Hello, everyone! Thanks for visiting and whatnot. Just a quick note, this story used to be an awesome RP witten by us, Greenie10, From0the0Ashes, and Infinite Sky. We thought it'd be just as awesome as a story so...that's why it's here, obviously. Anyway, we had a lot of fun writing it and hope you enjoy! Don't forget to review! XD

1 ~ Slaves, Feathers and Horns

A short and slim Felie stood shivering as her rain soaked wavy black hair dripped onto her already soaked beige tunic, making it seem a rather dull brown. Her long-haired black tail was hanging limp, much like her dampened spirits. She had been walking for quite a while; the day had been sunny and humid when suddenly a huge amount of rain clouds decided to make their appearance. Thankfully she had been near this town, where she now had to find someplace to stay for the night. After a few minutes of searching, she came across a building called the Melting Pot Tavern.

She grinned at her luck, her black cat ears straightening from their previous flattened position against her head. Her tail rose in a question mark, pleased.

Then she remembered; runaway slaves didn't have money, did they?

"Cat got your tongue?"

"What?" replied Megumi, looking to the side. With her cat ears and green cat eyes, she should have been able to hear and see anyone. A little worried, she neared the door, ears flattened once more.

"I said, cat got your tongue?"

"I heard that!" replied Megumi. "But where are you? And who are you?"

The voice sounded a little exasperated. "The big wooden thing behind you, you know, the one leading inside?"

Megumi turned to the door in haste, expecting to see someone. There was no one. She scowled.

"You don't learn fast, do you?" came the voice. "Well, might as well let you in, you're splashing water on me." The door opened.

Megumi's eyes widened and she stood for a moment, shocked. Then she laughed, reached out a hand and patted the door. "With all that I've been through, I shouldn't be surprised. Well, thanks for letting me in, Mr. Door."

"You're welcome," answered the door as she walked in.

mMm

Not five minutes later, a green lovebird with a bionic eye and wing hopped up to the door, one wing trailing a little to the side. She winced as it jarred against a pebble on the road. She pecked on the door, hoping someone would hear and let her in.

"Oof," the door said. "Stop. It tickles."

"Excuse me," she chirped. "I need assistance. Is there anyone with a radio in there?"

"I have no idea. I don't catalogue every single creature." The Door sighed at the pitiful expression on her face, before opening up. "But...there's a soldier or two who might have something."

Ava nodded. "Thank you," she said, as she hopped inside.

mMm

Megumi walked into what she thought was a fish market. There were all sorts of people everywhere. Winged people, short people, giant people, teeny people... well the list would have to go on for a very long time. As she made her way through the tables to find an empty one, her sensitive ears heard a scream. Turning, she saw a tiny creature dash underneath a table.

Hmm, she thought as she finally sat down. A newcomer like me, maybe? It does seem like a place that could bring out screams. She smirked to herself; if she had been her old human self, she might have fainted. Seeing all she had in the last few years, the sight of the people didn't shock her, rather the amount held in this building.

Still cold, she wondered if she should have picked a table near some source of heat. Maybe if she was lucky, she'd find a fire beast in here.

She lifted a hand to her hair, grabbed it and squeezed the excess rainwater out. Not that she cared much about the water, well not really; she'd gotten over her dislike a few years back. Or so she thought. She brought her hand back down and drummed at the table, wondering whether to order something to drink or maybe something to eat instead.

Mostly she wanted to get dry.

Standing up, she looked around the tavern, searching for any source of heat.

She noticed a small dragon in the corner, talking to a few other patrons. She looked away for a moment, remembering the death of her beloved dragon.

Leave the past, her practical side said, unless you want to be killed.

mMm

The bionic lovebird scuttled in as the door shut behind her, freezing in dismay when she saw all the legs walking around. She would be trampled for sure; she had forgotten that fact. She quickly rushed to the edge of the room, staying close to the wall, and looking around cautiously. She was currently rebooting the circuits in her bionic wing, which meant it would be out of commission for a half hour. Hence her need to stay out of the way.

Megumi's eyes once again picked up something small dashing toward the wall.

I knew I saw something!she thought. She also noticed it was a bird -woah, how normal looking. It seemed rather terrified, so even though Megumi's first reaction was to squeal and go after it—she loved winged creatures—she stayed put. No use frightening small ones; it was a harsh enough world for them.

A rumble in her stomach reminded Megumi of her hunger. How long had it been since she'd eaten? Long enough, she thought to herself. Deciding it was time to let someone know she was around, she stood up and made her way to the counter.

"Something to eat and drink please," she called out to the man who she guessed was the bartender. She reached up and grabbed a small gold earring that she wore on her left ear. Yanking it open, she let it tumble on the counter.

"This should be enough for a few drinks, right?" she asked no one in particular.

"That might not pay," commented a random man beside her.

"Are you serious?" demanded Megumi unbelieving. Ah, what a shame. She laughed out loud at the irony of her only worldly possession not being able to pay for a few drinks.

She looked at the earring. "Useless junk," she muttered, flicking at it so that it rolled off the counter and fell to the floor.

Ava, still huddled by the wall, noticed the gold piece fall to the ground, and against any judgment at all, hurried over to investigate. Lovebirds were shamelessly attracted to tiny shiny things. She pecked at it curiously.

Megumi's cat ears picked up the small pecking sound. When she looked down, much to her delight, she saw the bird she had seen earlier. Up close, Megumi could see that the bird wasn't exactly the normal thing she had thought at first.

"So cute," she said under her breath. She wanted to pick the little animal up but resisted; from a bird's point of view, a huge hand coming down at it would probably look rather malicious.

Ava stopped admiring the earring, sensing eyes on her. She tilted her head to the side, looking up. A young woman with cat ears looked down at her. Ava was suspicious at first; she didn't trust cats. But she could also sense with her birdy instincts that the girl meant her no ill will. She nudged the earring with her beak. "Did you drop this?" she asked, in a slightly robotic chirp.

It speaks! thought Megumi, feeling her previous forlorn mood leaving quickly. Sure it looked odd, but wasn't everyone in here an oddball? And it had wings!

"Um, yeah," she said, "but please take it if you want!" She smiled down at the bird, glad it wasn't frightened.

Ava looked at the object longingly, but shook her head. "No. I don't have any place to keep it."

Megumi was a little disappointed, but nodded; the bird was right. "How about I keep it for you, then?" she asked. Slowly, she reached down and picked up the earring. "Once you find someplace to keep it, tell me and I'll give it to you." With that, she put the earring on once more.

"It looks better on you anyway," Ava cheeped. "Would you mind putting your hand back down?"

So... darn... cute, thought Megumi when she heard the bird tell her the earring looked good on her.

"Sure," she said aloud, complying with the bird's request.

Ava stepped carefully onto the girl's hand, wrapping her toes around her finger. "Thank you. I would like to go on the bar counter."

"Sure," said Megumi once more, bringing up her hand, her thumb unconsciously petting the bird's head. It was around this time that she noticed one of the bird's foot was made of metal. "Be careful though, there's a fire breathing dragon up here."

Ava hopped off onto the counter, wincing as her wing caught. "I've met scarier things," she said.

Megumi grinned. "You and me both then," she commented before catching the bird wincing. "Are you hurt?"

Ava chirped. "Oh, no. I am simply running a normal procedure. It will work fine in a few minutes. But it sometimes hurts if I bang it against things by accident."

"Ow," said Megumi with a wince of her own. She remembered how cranky her master had become once due to wing problems. In her opinion, the little bird seemed more pain tolerant than him... or perhaps he had just been whiny on purpose.

"I am actually looking for a soldier with technology similar to mine," Ava said. "I am hoping to send a message somewhere."

Megumi looked around at the many different people in the tavern. "Well, there's bound to be someone here. Maybe we should make an announcement or something?"

"Oh, I do not want to draw attention right now," the lovebird said quickly. "People often think I am a circus act." Normally she didn't mind when people poked or pinched her, she would just bite them. But with her wing out of commission she was almost useless.

Megumi understood what the bird was saying. In truth, it'd be bad if she caused attention to herself as well. Anyone could be here, and she didn't want to go back on the run, not tonight at least. It was best if she kept a low profile here.

"We'll keep an eye out then. I'm Megumi by the way." She put out her hand in greeting.

The lovebird nodded. "Ava," she said, shaking Megumi's hand with her real foot, just like she'd been taught. She sighed a bit. "I'm hungry. Do you think they sell spray millet here?"

Megumi hid a grin as her hand was shaken by a bird. "Ava, what a nice name," she said politely. "As for the millet, hm, well I'm not sure since I just arrived a while ago, but I'm guessing they might have some here, seeing the mixed up clientele."

Ava hopped forward. "Hello?" she called to the bartender.

He trundled over. "What?" he asked sharply.

Ava narrowed her eyes at his unprofessional behavior, but didn't comment on it. "I would like a sprig of spray millet, if it is not too much trouble."

Martes grumbled and then walked away to get it.

Ava looked at Megumi. "He is very grumpy."

Megumi nodded just as Martes returned with a bowl full of millet.

Ava brightened. "I am so hungry!" She rushed over and stuffed her beak into the bowl. She cracked happily, looking about as she ate and spewing millet husks everywhere.

Megumi smiled at Ava's enthusiasm. She put her arms on the table and rested her head on them, watching the bird eat, enjoying the sight. She let out a sigh of contentment; for a crowded and noisy tavern, it sure felt peaceful at the moment.

mMm

Meanwhile outside, a faun wandered dejectedly down the narrow street, feeling extremely sorry for himself. He stopped next to a tavern and leaned against the wall, letting out a heavy sigh.

"What's the matter with you?"

Alasdair's head shot up in surprise and he look around, confused. "Who, who said that?" he asked timidly.

"I did, you idiot."

He frowned. "Where are you? Who's talking?"

The voice sighed. "I'm the door, if you must know." The door's tone turned disapproving. "Why don't you stop wallowing in self pity and actually try to change your situation?"

Alasdair shrugged hopelessly. "What can I do?"

"Doors are always open if you know where to look," it told him.

Alasdair looked over as the door swung open. He peered inside and sighed again. "Well, I have nothing better to do."

He entered the tavern, shoulders hunched and expression downcast.

As he walked inside the tavern, he immediately blanched as he took in the crowd of people. He hurried over to an empty corner and tried to make himself as invisible as possible. Thankfully, everyone looked quite busy, so he didn't think they would notice him.

Why, oh why, had he listened to a stupid talking door and agreed to come into this place?

mMm

Ava was taking a break from stuffing her face, and looked up at Megumi. "So. What are you, Megumi?" she asked curiously. She had never seen anything like the girl.

"Ah, well get this," started Megumi. "I was actually just a normal human being six years ago on a world called 'Earth'. I managed to drown along with a young boy, but we both woke up in another world. At that point I realized that I was no longer human but a race known as Felie. Long story short, a cat-like human. I have the ears, tail and eyes of a cat, along with the sight and the hearing." And the tail puffing and ear flattening, she added ruefully to herself.

She then brought forward both her hands. "My nails elongate as well when I'm in a fight," she continued before adding quickly, "not that I fight much nowadays."

Ava looked thoughtfully at Megumi. "My world is similar to Earth, or so I've heard. But I only have a few texts about that planet."

There was a sudden small beeping sound, and then a light click, after which Ava flapped her bionic wing a bit. She chirped happily. "It is fixed!" she informed Megumi.

For some reason, that made Megumi feel extremely giddy.

So much so that when the door opened and in came what looked like a faun, she stood up and called, "Good evening, sir!"

Alasdair thought he heard someone call out a 'good evening' his way, but he didn't dare say anything in case they were referring to someone else. He shuffled his hooves, and tried unsuccessfully to blend into the wall.

Megumi's eyes followed the faun, who it seemed was pretending to be part of the wall. He was half human, half goat. A Capris, she thought, classifying him as what his kind was called in the world she had come from.

She thought he looked more than nervous at being in the tavern. "You know what, I'm going to go talk to him," she said. If anyone can make the poor fellow loosen up, she thought, it'd have to be this table here, what with Ava and all.

She stood up and carefully made her way to where the faun was standing. "Hello there," she said. "How do you do?"

Alasdair squeaked in surprise, preoccupied with trying to be a wallflower. "Oh, um, hello."

This fellow kind of reminds me of myself, thought Megumi, though I don't recall being so scared.

"It's probably a little uncomfortable here at first," she said in a gentle voice, "but you get used to it over time." She gestured toward the table where her new friend was. "Would you care to join us? It's a lot more pleasant than standing around here."

Alasdair gave the kind woman a hesitant smile. "Well...all right. I just hope I'm not intruding." He certainly wouldn't want to be a bother. No. No, indeed. That wouldn't be good at all. He made a mental note to try and not annoy anyone.

"Well you're a cautious one," said the Felie with a grin. "Come along, I very much doubt you'll be intruding." Nodding encouragingly at the faun she made her way back to the table. "I'm Megumi by the way," she added.

The faun trotted after her. "Oh, erm, I'm Alasdair," he said once he reached the table.

"What an interesting name," said Megumi, pulling out two chairs and plonking down onto one of them. "You're not from Narnia or Yaseef, are you?" The thought then came to her that she might have made him nervous again. "Sorry, bad joke."

Alasdair furrowed his brow in perplexity. "Narnia?"

Ava's eyes widened as she clapped eyes on the faun. It would take some getting used to all these strange creatures. "Hello," she chirped. "I am Ava."

The faun heard a strange little voice coming from somewhere and he jumped when he realized it was a tiny three-inch tall bird. "Oh! Hello there."

She narrowed her eyes up at him. "What are you?"

"Er, a faun?" he answered.

The lovebird sensed a lot of fear in him. "I want to jump on your head."

Megumi had to put a hand to her mouth so as not to laugh out loud. Creatures here are hilarious, she thought to herself.

Alasdair shook his head in confusion. "That is a very odd thing to say."

Ava tilted her head at Alasdair. "Not really. You have some things poking out of your curls. I want to see them." Normally she wouldn't have asked permission, but he was flighty, and she didn't want him to freak out.

The faun frowned again in confusion. "Things? Oh, you mean my horns? I suppose you could look at them." He felt a smile tug at his lips. He was starting to feel a little less nervous around these creatures.

Ava jumped on his head, turning around on his curly head. She pecked at the horns. They were hard and very strange.

"Gosh, you are all so cute!" The words burst out of Megumi when she saw the lovebird on the faun's head; she hoped her words didn't come out as a squeal.

Ava chirped loudly for no reason at all and flew into the air, crashing on Megumi's head instead. "I like your head better."

Megumi got a bit of a shock when at the crash landing; she jumped up, tail puffed, before calming down and sitting back down. "Whoops, sorry! You still there?"

Ava had slightly lost her balance when Megumi stood up, and was now hanging upside down from one foot tangled in her hair. Ava used her beak to grab onto Megumi's hair and haul herself up to the top again. She snuggled down between her ears.

"Mm-hm," she cheeped, closing her eyes slightly.

"Great," replied Megumi. She was used to having weight on her head (helmets, kittens and pet dragon among other things) so she hardly felt the weight of the small bird between her ears. They did twitch slightly though, feeling tickled.

Ava fluffed up until she was really round, feeling very cozy.

After a while, Megumi reached for one of the cups of water Martes had put on the table and drank deeply. Remembering the one on her head, she brought the glass up. "Tell me if you want to drink."

Ava perked up. "Ooh." She hopped onto the rim of the glass. "Bring me down?"

"Sure," said Megumi. "Hold on tight." She gently brought the cup down and put it on the table.

Ava dunked her head into the glass, starting to take a bath. Water droplets sprayed everywhere.

A drop of water flew in Megumi's face. Her nervousness left when she saw Ava taking a bath. "So cute!"

Maybe I should get another pet soon, she thought to herself. Right...right after I stop being chased. She rolled her eyes at her silly thoughts.