Taku blinked, suddenly incredibly uncomfortable. 'Never knew her parents? Oh dirt, that means they must be DEAD. CRAP, what do I say, what do I do? Crap crap crap... uh.. I know, act consoling!' Taku slowed a bit, looking back to apologize, "I'm sorry to hear that. Like, seriously, I'm really sorry, I wouldn't have asked if I'd known... um..." that was ALSO awkward. He grabbed at something else quickly, "Oh, look, more berries!" he rushed over to a bush of berries, trying to stuff his mouth so full that all he could say was "om-nom-nom" (which is rathar hard to do with berries). He quickly found that they were sour, but didn't really care: it gave him something else to say, "Oh, these are a bit sour. You may not be interested..."

(( Wow, sour berries: talk about deep literary symbolism. If only I could think of stuff like that more often... ))

Tantrum tilted his head. "Do you want us all to go, or do you want to go alone and visit him..? I don't mind either way, you go ahead and decide." Tantrum said with a warm smile.

Peter-Rabbit thought about it: he knew Cale well enough to be comfortable around him, but he wasn't the most reliable poster... "No... That's ok, let's let him sleep in..." he looked at Rocky, "Were you going to do something today?"

A sleeping ferret jumped awake when a small jay made a loud collision with the window. Where am I?, the ferret asked himself as he calmed himself down before sliding out of the large oaken bed. "Mr. Archae?", he called out but a reply never returned. He approached the window and looked out, A road, trees, trees and more trees. I'm in a log cabin?. He stepped back from the window and tried pushing on the walls, but to no avail as the wooden walls didn't even bend, "I love the maintenance this place gets.", unconsciously smiling as he continued exploring the room.

How could there be a room with no door?, the ferret started panicking as he paced around the room. 1. I was in Oleus' car, I felt tired after moving all that stuff and having dinner. 2. We were driving down the highway... I-I can't remember., a growl that came from his stomach quickly stopped his panicking though. The rug he was standing on suddenly rose up and he tried balancing but instantly decided to just jump off. He landed on fours and stared as the trap below the rug was pushed open by a hand.

"Gladius, is that you?", asked a voice from inside the open trap.
"Oleus?", the ferret replied.
"You're awake. Perfect, I have your favorite here.", claimed the man who rose up from the hole in the floor carrying a small silver tray with a covered bowl.
"Beef steaks!?", the ferret yelled out excitedly, "I can't even remember the last time I had them."
"It was three days ago and you ate $70 worth of them.", answered the man as he set the tray down over the extended window sill that made a good table substitute.
The ferret was quickly all over the man before he even had a chance to open the bowl, "Is that all for me?", he continuously asked as the man lifted the lid off.
"Yes Gladius, it's all...", the man paused for a moment as he watched the ferret drank the bowl of meat, "..yours."
"Thank you for the meal Mr. Archae.", the ferret respectfully thanked the man, "So what's my assignment for today?"
The man replaced the lid on the bowl and took the tray. Securing a footing down the ladder rungs, he then started, "Oh, today I have a very special assignment for you." the man said as he descended.
The ferret quickly followed and walked with the man down a flight of steps. "Special? Like retrieving a precious scepter?", the ferret inquired with almost glowing eyes.
"No no, nothing of that triviality.", the man assured as he opened the door leading outside.
"Something more important than treasures?", the ferret continued asking while pre-emptively walking out the door. "I wonder what it is.", he said as he stopped on the porch.
"Live.", the man said as he shut the door.

The ferret just stood at the entrance to the large manor, dumbfounded by his 'special' assignment. But I already am.

Rofl..

Rocky shrugged half heartedly. "nah not really, just walking around." He said, looking around him for no reason.

"Mhmm." Kylie was sitting under the tree, leaning back against it. She was piking at the grass under the tree, occasionally nibbling on as fallen berry. "So ya ready?"

Pifer patted his stomach appreciatively and belched. "Hmm... I think so!" He vaulted onto his paws, using the tree as leverage, then held a paw out to Kylie. "Let's get going. All the pets should be getting up around this time."

Terry grinned, nodding. "Alright then! I say we get something to eat and then wander around town for a bit. Find somethin to do!"

"Sounds good to me!"

((Next poster wanna time-skip to town?))

(( How are you getting there? There's really no hurry unless you can't think of anything remotely interesting to do before then... ))

Meeka stopped and watched Taku, figuring he was uncomfortable. "You don't have to say sorry. It wasn't your fault or anything and I never got to knew them, so I can't really miss them or anything."

Tantrum nodded and smiled. "Sounds good to me, I need to get to know the neighborhood and all its quirks anyways, heh!" He chuckled, looking around slightly.

Kylie grabbed Pifer's hand and pulled herself up. "Okay. I wonder if that one cat ever got back..."

(She be talking about Kytes, which is in teh hospital, Which why will be described at a later date...)

"I'm not sure..." Pifer said, helping Kylie up. He glanced up at the tree and down to the remainder of their meal. "But the best place to find out would be the development. The pets know all about the goings-on in their neighborhood." He turned and started off into the forest. "Why so curious about the cat?"

Taku looked over at her, his mouth somewhat full... He sighed, swallowing and opening his juice-covered maw to speak, "Alright then... I just... I kinda felt bad that I'd brought that up... eh heh heh..." he scratched the back of his head awkwardly with a juice-stained paw, "So... I guess we should just get going... It's not much farther. C'mon!" He waved for her to follow, heading off in the direction of his tree, once again...

==== Brookshire Meadows ====

Peter-Rabbit smiled a bit, "Um... ok! Where should we go now? You know any place we could go around here Rocky?"

Kylie streached out, following behind Pifer. "I don't know, but I haven't seen him around for a while."

(I'll include him in the next post... promise)

Rocky shrugged again. "Not really, you?"

Peter-Rabbit looked up at Rocky, his ears drooping a little, "Rocky, I don't know my way around this place at all, I mean... I've never actually been here without Timothy, and most of the time, we go somewhere with Mrs Patterson... I don't know anything about this area, and nigther does Tantrum." he glanced over at the other dog before looking around, "Isn't there some place you like to go around here? Don't you have some friends you like to hang out with? I mean, this place seems pretty big..."

==== Meanwhile ====
Sid flew out the front door, riding his skateboard across the threshold and down the driveway at high speed (prudent for cars, of course) He grinned wildly as he began to meander his way about: he was meaning to visit the hospital soon, but not before checking the neighborhood for some quick fun...

Rocky sighed heavily. "Not really.. i usually just hang out with Cale and a few others, i'm afraid that if i go without them and try to meet new people that the new people wouldn't like me... " He looked down, but looked back up at Tantrum. "But i guess you proved that wrong.."

Meeka nodded and followed after Taku. "How long have you had your tree? I been thinking about getting one too ever since you mentioned it."

"My tree? Oh.. A little over a year now: I moved in last summer. (I'm only four you know)" Taku chuckled a bit, "Before that I just lived with my parents, you know? I mean, I still sleep over there alot in the winter... you know, because it's cold... But most of the time I just sleep in my own tree." he smiled. Normally he would've felt embarrassed about sleeping with his dad all the time, but Meeka somehow seemed so unintimidating, like no weakness of his could make her think less of him. In fact, she seemed so meek that he probably seemed pretty tough to her. (though, this didn't really cross his mind, as he could never think of himself as being "tough" with a cougar-fighting elder like his father around...) He looked back over at her, "I'm not really sure if I know of any unclaimed trees around here... Well... not the kind you want... I mean, there are plenty around here that I sleep in when I get bored of my own, or sleeping with dad, but only a few of them are that big, and they're all starting to die of age... heh..." the last part had always seemed a bit odd to him, as he couldn't think of anything like a tree actually getting old and dying: to him, they seemed to just BE there. They lasted so long, and him so short, that he'd hardly noticed them growing more than an inch or two...

"Oh, there aren't? Hmm.." Meeka looked down in thought as they walked. "Oh, I'm four too." SHe looked up and smiled at Taku.

Erin nodded, "Yeah, then let's go!"

Ellen chuckled, "I don't see us making any progress just standing here, so let's hurry on up and go."

Taku smiled back at Meeka, "You certainly look it. I bet my sister looks just-" he froze, catching himself, his smile immediately disappearing. This was something he NEVER talked about, and he didn't want to either. Why was it that Meeka seemed to lower all his guards? "Um... Nevermind. Yeah, good trees are hard to come by: it's not common for a tree to have just the right size and shape of hole. But anyway, mine's real nice. Has a door and everything!" he shot her another grin, "It's not much farther from here either..." he quickened his pace a bit, eager to get her to his tree...

Meeka's curiosity started to kick in. "Oh, you have a sister? Does she have her own tree too? How big is your family?" She picked up her pace and kept up alongside Taku.

Taku got really uncomfortable at Meeka homing in on his sister, "Um... Yeah, I... I had a brother and a sister... but.... My brother moved away with my mother, and my sister.... I... I don't wanna talk about that...." He looked away, feeling very uncomfortable, "I'm sorry..." He slowed, looking at the ground in discomfort...

Tantrum smiled at Rocky and Peter-Rabbit. "So, shall we get going or are we going to stand around here all day?"

Pifer gave her and odd look, but shrugged it off. "Alright, I just never realized you had such a thing for cats." He said teasingly, a mischievous grin on his face.

Peter-Rabbit looked over at Tantrum, "I don't know... I thought Rocky might know what to do, since he's from around here, but...he doesn't seem to know anything at this point..." he sighed, turning and walking off in no particular direction...

At that moment, a black cat in some crazy black outfit zoomed around a nearby corner, riding a skateboard with one leg in the air as part of some silly stunt. He wasn't really paying attention to his surroundings, and ended up looking only at the last possible second to shout some vulgarity, finishing with "-LOOK OUT!!!"
Peter-Rabbit looked up and froze, hesitating instead of dodging at his chance. Therefore, Sid slammed right into Peter-Rabbit, lifting him right off his feet and taking them both straight into a bush, which caved under their impact, both shrieking loudly.

Sid's face had landed right in the middle of Peter-Rabbit's chest, causing him to let out a muffled groan. He squirmed to all fours on top of the other cat, looking down with an annoyed expression, "Hey, whaddaya think yer doin'!? Standin in the middle of the-" he immediately blushed, having suddenly determined that this other cat was a very innocent female, and that the way he had his hands on her was more improper than even he was ok with. He jumped off, "Oh, er... Sorry, didn't mean to run into you there..."
Peter-Rabbit let out a moan, slowly trying to rise to his feet through the bush...

His fingers knocked gently against the door arm, the soft whispers of idle chatter between tired children floated by his ears every couple of seconds. Once in awhile he'd pick up on something he'd not heard yet, or of something he recognized, and would toss his own two cents in, but otherwise he'd been quiet the entire eight hours of driving. The large truck which had been customized to have three rows of seats like a van was pulling up to a neighborhood, so the talking died down a bit as everyone examined it as it drew closer. There was a lot of trees, a big forest. This was a comfortable thing to know for Black.

The older women driving the truck glanced into the rear view mirror. "Mister Black, if you'd like out early, I can pull over once we're in the town." Her voice was gentle and sweet, if it had a smell, Black would have to guess it would be like honey, or sugar cane. He thought for a moment, watching as the first couple of houses zoomed by them. And, closing his eye's for a moment before looking back to her, he nodded. She pulled the truck over, and Black removed his belt. The three kids in the vehicle said they'd see him later, and he responded with a nod as he closed the door behind him. The truck slowly took off again, and was eventually out of sight. Black's ears twitched as he looked up at the sky for a moment. Pulling from his pocket a black hat, he slipped it on, covering his ears as he started walking. His curled tail waged gently as his nose deciphered smells, and his ears listened to the wind in the trees. The air was fresh, and clean. He liked it.

Finding an open area with a tree, he took a seat under it and pulled a small notebook from his pocket. He flipped it open, and searched through a couple of pages before he pulled a tiny pencil from the lip of his beanie, and started scratching something down on the note books paper. He could hear nearby pets, though he had little interest in them at the moment. When he was ready, he'd explore the town, and eventually find his way to his new home where he'd stay in for the night. "Home." He nearly cracked a smile, the thought of home was almost exciting to him for some reason. He would assume it was his memory of his first home, that made every new home seem so much better.

Gladius opened the door and stepped in, "Can I have a map at least?".
"Oh right.", said the man as he shuffled through a pile of papers on the table and pulling out an area map of Brookshire, "Here you go Gladius.", he said as he handed the map to the ferret.
"Thanks Oleus.", yelled the ferret as he ran out, accidentally slamming the door as he left.

Hm, I'm still quite hungry..., he shuffled through his pockets pulled out a small roll of Washingtons. Let's see now..., he traced his finger around the map and found a few clustered food shops. Perfect!, he told himself as he traced a path from the little X that marked his house to the food stores. He then kept both the map and the roll of money before he ran the path he just made, stopping only to let cars pass.

Black had moved a few minutes ago, and if he guessed, he'd say he was about the middle of town with the increased traffic which was now around. Still, it wasn't like a city so there was never much waiting for him. He came to a stop at a corner, now standing next to another pet; a ferret, but he didn't really notice them... or more so he didn't look at them. They seemed to be in a rush though, since he had watched them kind of jog to the corner. He wore a strange item on his one eye, and despite himself, Black was too curious to let it sit in silence.

"Pardon my intrusion... but, why do you wear that?" He looked to the ferret, and gestured to his eye piece. He'd looked away almost immediately after, avoiding eye contact.

Gladius skidded a bit before stopping. He then turned and looked at the dog beside him, Random conversation... "Uh, my left eye is bad and it helps me see better.". He quickly noticed the aversion and turned away slightly just to respect whatever norms the city may have. "Is it odd?", he asked wondering why a random stranger would ask about what he wore, it never happened before and people from the previous city would usually just turn away with a smile.

Was it odd? Hm, if he had to say so, yes it would be. But then again, he'd met plenty of people who wore glasses, helmets, all sorts of things. He himself was wearing his sweater and hat, and that wasn't very much like a pet now was it? It was clear to cross the street so he began across, responding first to the person he'd inquired. "No." His voice bore very little emotion, so it was hard to tell if he was sarcastic, honest, or just being polite. It would be resolved as he glanced back at the ferret, still not making eye contact. "Simply... interesting. Is all."

"Oh, Ok..." Meeka turned her gaze, feeling bad for obviously hitting a sore spot. So much for first impression..

Rushing?, the ferret wondered. Strange even to himself, he chose to follow the stranger on an impulse so strong he couldn't resist. He wondered how he could make his actions sensible, as most of the time he would have gone his own way and scenarios like the current were so rare that his experiences were comparable to that for a blue moon. "Thanks for the compliment, it's actually a gift from my brother.", he informed as soon as he caught up with the black clad canine. "I hope you don't mind, but may I know where you are headed?". came the question from the seemingly confused mustelid after a short pause.

Taku sighed, silent for a moment before responding to her reaction, "It's ok... It was a long time ago, I just... I really don't wanna talk about it..." he sighed, walking in silence for a moment before looking up and speaking, changing the subject, "So... There's my tree, right there." he pointed to a huge apple tree up ahead, at least a meter across, which had been decorated with little carvings and drawings up and down the entire trunk, and a trail of extra wear which had been made up to a raccoon-sized hole several meters up. Taku perked up, taking Meeka's hand and pulling her along, "C'mon! Let's go inside!" His tail was swishing back and fourth with excitement...

Kylie glared at Pifer. "Oh, shut up," she said as she gently punched his arm.

^~^~^~^~^~^~^~^~^~^~^~^~^~^~^

Kytes started up at the ceiling of his hospital room; the same ceiling he's stared at for a week now. The vets had said the cold he had a while back that went away for a while was actually a lot worse than just a cold, so they sent him here. He hadn't payed attention to what he had, but with the needles and the doctors and nurses buzzing around him, combined with his overall "Bhegh" feeling, he knew it wasn't good. He rolled onto his side in his bed, careful of the IV in his leg. He looked down at it and sighed; the majority of his leg around the IV was furless. He laid his head back on the bed and did the only thing he could do since he was put there; sleep.

Rocky jumped back in time to not be hit, unfortunately for Peter-rabbit, he was hit full blast. Rocky rushed over to the two cats, grabbing Peter-rabbits hand and helping him up. "are you guys alright?" rocky said with a concerned tone.