[html] mall-caps;">TABLE BY MISERY
Josiah walked quietly through the abandoned human city, headed in the direction of a rather decrepit amusement park. He’d surpassed the church, taking note of it briefly, for as a religious man, Josiah had full intentions to return to visit the church at another time, when he felt he was dressed more appropriately, for even though none would really care what he looked like, Josiah wished to be better dressed in the House of God.
For now, the male wore jean pants and no shirt, his typical get-up. His back held his signature leather pack, and the small white rat navigated from his shoulder, clinging with his tiny pink feet to Josiah’s thick black fur. He’d recently been accepted into the lands of Jaded Shadows and had met a rather charming woman there who was one of the two leaders. He was already enjoying the area of Bleeding Souls, finding that it was diverse enough to keep his interest while still letting him be a permanent part of something. It truly was a wonderful feeling.
As he wandered through the gates of the amusement park with no real intentions in mind, Josiah stopped in front of a large cage, where bones that had at one time fit an animal larger than he himself lie dirty and forgotten. Josiah fumbled with the latch and managed to pull it open, reaching in slowly to touch the bones. He wondered what they had belonged to, and from a brief inspection and his very small amount of knowledge in the area, he decided it was probably a feline of some sort, though he could not be certain. Josiah lingered at the animal cages now, not sure what kept his attention, only aware that he was not yet ready to move on.
[html] mall-caps;">this table was touched by Misery
She had Valerik's bag with her, the one she had made for his Mitexi strung over her shoulder so that it came to rest at her hip. Sighing softly as her fingers fumbled across the stitching on the outside - a strange symbol, the one that belonged to his God, Fatin felt her stomach lurch at passing the church she had found her son in. One of the crosses in the small graveyard adjacent to the building had Valerik's rosary hanging from one edge, as placed there by Endymion. Feeling such despair in her stomach at the thought of her fallen son, she quickened her pace, seeking to be far away from the church and the memories it invoked.
In the bag were many books about pet rats. The few moments she had spent in the dusty library - a favored haunt of hers - had told her that rats liked company, and that many people had elaborate cages with cute hammocks for them. Hammocks she could make! And maybe, she could find a cage and surprise Josiah and Zor with it. That would be a longer stretch though, since most of the buildings in the city seemed to be geared towards the humans directly, she had not spent much time trying to find one that suited pets.
She was about to pass the gate of the decaying amusement park when suddenly she was stopped in her tracks. The scent of the newest joiner, ironically the one who had just crossed her mind, tugged at her nose until she decided to slip in and see what he was up to. Finding him standing at a cage, caressing the bones of a fallen creature, put Fatin into a strange mood. She liked to think of herself as eager to tackle the world, eager to take on everything; but the truth of the matter was that some things, including the afterlife and death, scared her witless. "It's very sad that it had to die there, alone." She said quietly, hoping he did not mind her company.
[html] mall-caps;">TABLE BY MISERY
Josiah had a strange feeling in the pit of his stomach as he stood before the decaying bones of the creature who he had no attachment whatsoever to. He had never known it and never would, yet he felt a strange connection, as though he should have done something, though he was unsure just what he meant by his own thought. He sighed, and let his hand fall still on the milky bones.
Zor had ventured down from his shoulder to his hand, where his tiny whiskers twitched as he sniffed at the bones, not sure what to make of them. Josiah smiled down at his companion, one he’d had for just about a year now. He’d raised the rat from the moment he was weaned from its mother until now and could easily say that he had been the only one Josiah could ever call a best friend, and they couldn’t even properly converse. Some might find it sad, Josiah found it normal.
He caught the scent of Fatin and was not surprised when he found her growing nearer. So far, she was the only one he knew of in this land and he was glad for her company. When she spoke, he did not turn right away, his blue eyes still trained on the various bones that lay scattered and forgotten. ”Yes, it is. No one should ever have to die alone,” he said without thinking, the thought of he himself lying alone in a cage, waiting to die crossed his mind and he quickly shut it out, pulling Zor towards him as he tried to hop off of his hand and turning back towards Fatin. ”It’s nice to see you again,” he offered with a smile, ”What brings you here?” Josiah asked with honest curiosity.
[html] mall-caps;">this table was touched by Misery
It scared her to think of dying alone. Having no one at her side, no one to comfort her? The thought chilled her to the very bone. In some way, she expected to be alone. It would be hardly any better than being chained up in a cage like the creature had been, left to suffer alone at the owner's digressions. Her ears flickered back as he turned to her, asking what she was up to. With a sheepish smile she unlatched the bag, taking from it a couple books to show him. "You probably already know most of the stuff in here....but I dont know much about rats, and I found Zor pretty interesting. So I found some books so I might educate myself with them!" they would be a welcome addition to the library, since the little white rat had been a welcome addition to the pack. "And what about the two of you?" She asked, head tilting slightly.
A cascade of red fell into her face, covering up one of her eyes. With an impassive sigh she reached up, pushing the strands of amber out of her eyes and tucked it behind her ear. Though on most days she did love her hair, it was unusual and unique from the rest of the world she had seen, some moments she was just aggravated by it. "I'm glad I ran into you guys...I honestly wasn't expecting to so soon. I was just going to pass by until I caught your scent...making this the first time I've actually been in here." It was exciting, but at the same time slightly scary. The whole park had the feel like at any moment, it might cave in on itself. "I heard humans visited these parks for fun...played games, rode giant rides.....some of them look pretty dangerous to me!" Like the one, off in the distance, where the metal twisted...which if the cart followed it perfectly, would send the riders upside down. And there was no way that Fatin would ever, ever be so bold as to trust a contraption that would put her upside down.
[html] mall-caps;">TABLE BY MISERY
Josiah listened as Fatin spoke and was deeply moved by her desire to actually try and learn more about Zor. She was a good leader, he thought, to take interest in her members’ daily lives, something that he didn’t think a great many leaders took the time to do. "That is very kind of you, Fatin. If you’d ever like to know anything firsthand, feel free to ask, or even spend some time with Zor, he won’t mind it,” he spoke for the rat, though he was sure that Zor would be fine, as he was a pretty easy-going rodent from what Josiah knew of him, which he thought to be just about everything.
Josiah watched as her red hair fell to her face and he thought with a slightly guilty feeling that she was actually quite a beautiful lady, with a color of hair that he had never seen on any other. Josiah picked a grape from his pocket and offered it to Zor, who had suddenly become restless in his hands. The white creature grasped it quickly, munching contently on the snack, allowing Josiah to return his full attention to Fatin when she spoke.
Josiah nodded as she spoke, smiling slightly. "Yes, I imagine that these humans must have been quite brave to risk themselves upon these contraptions,” he said, following her gaze to the odd looking ride that apparently turned the riders upside down. "Funny though, how they managed to make it work. Smart things, humans,” he commented, his blue eyes still trained on the decrepit roller coaster.
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