Investigating [Invite only. NK]

He waited for the crowds to disperse before doing anything; he was just another face in a crowd if raging merchants, and if not for the cloth covering his face, the only one not obviously raging. He wasn't angry because he basically didn't care about the money and goods he'd lost to this thief, his clan was very well off, and they had a large fund set aside to cover their loses due to thefts and natural disasters. It wasn't even a noticeable loss to him, but he was there anyway because he was a well known, and highly ranked, member of the merchants guild; he had to be there as a 'representative'. He'd rather be at his shop working on his books, but whatever; it was a needed hassle. Something about the whole situation didn't make sense to him, however; and his fox instincts where telling him he needed to look a bit deeper than the rest of them where.

Just because someone, the 'leader' of the village at that, was saying that the thief had escaped, didn't mean he'd believe it. With his ears, he could hear something moving around inside of the cave, and the way the man had told the crowd was laced with the tones of deception. The masses took the man's word for truth and angrily dispersed; leaving him behind standing near a small rocky outcropping where he basically blended into the landscape. He was a fennec fox, both in name (his family name was literally Fennec), and birth, as he carried the fox ears and golden eyes of those born with a fox's soul; he was more than human, and perfectly adapted to the desert. He was apart of it, and it was apart of him, he could blend into it without even needing to bother to try.

Once the area was clear, he made his way into the cave, and began to explore around. The place was obviously a hide-out; and whomever was living here was either from a caravan, or extremely well versed in how to live in the desert itself. Most of the city dwellers had forgotten how to exist without easy access to water and civilized things; but the caravan merchants and such still remembered the old ways. The shade was the biggest boon to this cave, but it's depth was the key, it was deep enough to allow a refuge from both the heat, and from the sandstorms that swept across the dunes. Even the worst of the storms wouldn't reach to back of this cave, meaning that anyone living in it and storing goods here would be safe. he would be willing to bet it had several entrances and exits, and a hidden water source somewhere. Smart, very smart.

The deeper he worked into the cave, the more impressed he was. This was someone that really knew what they where doing. That basically cemented in his mind that it wasn't the average starving thief.

Given the markings on some of the cargo containers? He was putting his vote on the 'thief' being an escaped slave. Or an owned slave that was left behind to watch a storage spot. Not unusual, really. The slave trade was alive and well in the desert, and the city dwellers tended to turn a blind eye to it; they didn't care so long as they didn't have to see it, even though they saw it all the damn time.

Oh, he was right then. In the rocks, marks carved in a way that only a caravan merchant would recognize. Ownership of the cave, stated by a well known slaver and stolen good trader. Wonderful. Well, the thief was likely his property, stealing from the village to survive because they couldn't touch the goods here without being punished far worse than anything the merchants would do.

"I can hear you, thief. I'm not here to cause you harm, I merely wish to speak with you. I have a message for your master."

WC: 690

”Hnn...” The sound came forth like a scared whine as she heard not only the sound of movement but a voice within her cave. However, this voice differed from the village leader and his companion. This voice was different: and new. Very, very slowly, she turned back around – having opened one of the back entrances of the cave in her makeshift bedroom. She looked ahead and then glanced backwards towards the back entrance. However, something kept her rooted to the spot; a familiarity that made absolutely no sense to the child.

Instead of escaping out the back like her fear wanted her to she took several very tentative steps forward. She still had all five of her tails pulled into her arms; chewing on the tip of the center one in her nervousness. She kept taking careful steps until she reached the makeshift doorway of her bedroom and stared down the 'hallway'.

”He's.. he's not my master anymore. He.. tried to... “ She stopped, staring at the floor as her bare toes wiggled against the cool flooring. ”He took me... and made me protect him; he beat me if I didn't. Then I got older and he wanted more. I... attacked him and ran away.” She stopped talking about that point and returned to chewing on the tip of her tail gently. It wasn't surprising that this had happened of course: her master was a cruel man who needed protection simply because he liked to extort, con, and take things by force that didn't belong to him. The things he traded - both goods and slaves - made him extremely disliked: and the majority of the goods were illegal.

Of course that was what happened. It made perfect sense, really; it was a common enough story, and he had no reason not to believe it. "I believe you. I've seen it often enough, child." Shit, she was barely any younger than he was, but you'd never know it for not being able to see his face entirely, nor any of his body. He was fairly tall for his age, and his thickly layered clothing gave his body a bulk that allowed him to pass for being far older than he actually was. He dressed like he was still riding camels between trading posts, even if he did live in the village much of the time.

Those where... tails. A lot of tails.

"You are fox-kin, yes? Many of our people had been taken during a raid on one of our trading posts, but we thought we'd gotten them all back. Come forward, little one. Let me see you better. I'm like you, see?" He reached up to the hidden knot that kept the cloth wrapped around his head and loosened it, allowing him to unwrap and show off his large golden furred ears, as well as making his golden eyes easier to see. "I don't have tails like you, but I'm still fox-kin. One of the Fennec, we're the fox-kin that live with the fennec foxes. I won't hurt another fox-kin, and I won't turn you over to the merchants. You're safe with me, little one."

She had no reason to believe him, and he wouldn't blame her if she didn't; but their kind, they could tell when someone was lying, and they could sense each other. Nothing he'd said was a lie, and he could prove he was like her, so he hoped that would be enough for her to at least humor him.

WC:332

332+690=1022

Sephora listened to him speak; his voice was soothing to her – he wasn't being loud, nor yelling, as the village leader had done. She nodded to his question as she watched him very closely and carefully. When he asked her to come forward more she didn't move – at least not at first. However, as he revealed himself to be like her she found the majority of the fear she had been feeling subside. The village leader – while she was sure the man had meant well – had scared her worse then she had been in a while. But, this male was like her.. even if he didn't have the amount of large fluffy tails that she did.

So, still chewing on one of her tails, and hugging them to her chest, she moved closer. ”I don't... I don't remember where I came from. I just remember being in the village: I was five I think. The people there didn't like me; they called me nasty things. Then Yung found me... he said he would take care of me, but he didn't. He just beat me until I listened to him; and if I didn't he just hurt me more.”, she was rambling; something she often did when lost in her own thoughts. But, it subsided quickly enough.

She tilted her head a bit; staring at the male still. She was relaxed though; she believed him when he said she was safe with him, and she had no reason to fear him because he was like her.

”I didn't mean to take all that stuff... but I was hungry; and cold. The man with the funny hat said he'd... pardon?... me. But I had to do jobs in the village; and he'd take... ”, she paused suddenly – thinking. She didn't know how to read well, but math was something she had a natural talent for. ”Seventy five percent.. that's what he said. He said he'd take that much and I'd get to keep the rest...” Her eyes lowered to the ground suddenly; and she hugged her tails tighter to her chest. ”He... he scares me. A lot...”, the words were but a whisper, though the child looked near tears.

"I believe you, young one. You stole to live, that's something many of us have done from time to time. As far as I am concerned, you deserve no punishment for that; and because you are able to give the information needed to prove that you where forced into the things you did, you carry no blame. This next question is highly personal, and I completely understand if you do not wish to answer; but did the man mark you in any way? A brand, or a tattoo of some sort?"

It wasn't unheard of, it was actually rather common. A way to make sure that everyone knew forever that a person was owned. It made it easier to recover their 'property' if they escaped; rivals and allied caravans would return them for a small profit.

Whether she answered his question or not; and he gave her ample time to do so; he moved on, in relation to her words: "The leader of the village is a strange man, I agree. He is... not a bad man, from what I've seen, but he's not the smartest, nor is he all that great at working with the merchants and desert clans. He seems to know little of our culture and ways, and that causes problems. It is good that you did not go with him; from what the merchant guild is claiming that you have stolen, you would never be able to repay the debt like that. You would end up accruing more debt in food and lodging than you where able to pay off."

WC: 274

274+1022=1296

At his question she nodded slowly. Very slowly she released her multiple tails and reached up. She grabbed her long white hair that faded to gold at the tips and pulled it to the side and off of her neck. On the left side was a brand clearly burned into her flesh with what had to be some sort of metal or wire. It was towards the back of her neck and there were several cuts around it as if she had attempted to some how remove it or distort it by some means – which she had done exactly that in an attempt to keep them from being able to identify her. ”He heated up something until it was red hot.. and then held it to my neck.”

She then grabbed one of her tails and chewed on the tip a bit more gently. ”The leader got upset that I wouldn't go with him; but I told him to leave and he did.”

She hugged her tail back to her chest, refraining from chewing on it again. ”I don't know what I'm going to do though. They came here looking for me: he told them I wasn't here but I don't think they'll believe him for long.” A frown formed on her face and she glanced back at her makeshift room. Where would she go from here? She returned to chewing on her tail while looking worried.

Well, that was all he needed to see. He knew the brand, it was well known among the caravan traders. A prolific slaver, thief, and overall bandit lord. How the hell a leader of the region could miss it was beyond him. "The merchants need only to see the mark, and you will be forgiven. We all know of the horrors of the bandits and slavers; and as much as it can hurt to lose the income, we understand. The guild will still end up recovering it's losses from the city itself; they get far more out of our taxes than they have to pay out via our deals, so they don't complain much. I won't force you to come with me, but I will offer you a safe place to stay where no one can harm you, if you wish. Our kind, we look out for our own, we have too, in this desert world."

He began to wrap the cloth around his head again, making sure to be careful how he covered his ears so that they weren't crushed or uncomfortable. Once finished, "If nothing else, I can remove that brand from your neck. It will scar, but without the mark itself, no one will be able to tell who had claimed you, so they won't be able to take you back without showing paperwork. No bandit lord keeps that, hence the brands. You'd be free to do whatever you wanted."

WC: 255

255+1296=1551

She would be forgiven? That was a major difference then having to work for the village and barely receive anything for it: and from what he had said she likely would have ended up in debt far worse then she already was considered to be. ”But... what about Yung? Will he be able to find me? He's angry at me; I know he is... “ A look that could only be called 'sheepish' appeared on her face then, like a child who had done something naughty but wasn't quite sorry for it. ”I... bit him. On his face. I didn't stick around to see how bad it was, but there was a lot of blood, so I'm sure it was horrible. Where would I live? I don't have any money; and according to Yung I'm too stupid to be useful – I can't read. I'm just good at math, but I dunno why.. he never taught me.”

She watched him cover his ears again, her head tilting in the other direction. She had never bothered to try and hide herself: really, with how large her tails were she thought it impossible. Hiding her ears would do little when her tails stuck out so badly.

”I tried removing the mark but it didn't work out too well. It hurt to keep trying.” She was hopeful now, her ears more perky, and she no longer was staring at the floor. The idea that this whole situation could be fixed, could be made better, it gave her hope. Added on the idea of a safe place to live? A place she wouldn't have to constantly watch her back or sleep with one eye open? It was glorious.

"We protect our own, young one. Even if he could find you, he can't get to you, not so long as you stay with us. As for how you will live, as I said, we take care of our own. We will teach you, feed you, clothe you. You will not have to want, we make sure of it. We have medicines and such that make it possible to remove the marks without pain; we've done this many times, and we know the best ways. I promise you, it can be done."

There was a conviction in his voice that came only from the truth; his words where sure, his gaze was solid and clear. He wasn't aiming to fool or coerce, merely offer the alternative that he could give her to a life of running and fear. "Come with me, I offer you the protection of our people, and of my guild. I will make sure that you are given a fair chance. Once they see the mark, as I said, they will forgive you; and once your story is recorded, you will be exonerated. After that, what you choose to do is up to you. You are free to stay with me, but if you wish to leave, you will be allowed. Your future is your own, child."

WC: 229

229+1551=1780

His words were sincere; and there was no sign that he was lying. She would be taken care of, taught, fed, clothed. Even the mark on her neck would be removed without pain. And she would be protected: Yung would never be able to get his hands on her ever again. It was... far better then anything she had been offered since she escaped. Even better then the deal that the leader of the village had tried to give her. She released her hold on her tail and then walked the rest of the way over to him without a backwards glance. She held her hand out; wanting his. ”Okay, I'll come with you.”, she said as a small smile appeared on her face.

There was a spark of hope in her eyes; and she truly felt that perhaps this was a chance at a better life: one she would have no reason to leave. ”I'm Sephora, by the way... “ It was about the only thing she could remember from what she called 'the time that was before': her name.

She looked up to him; waiting for him to lead the way. Every instinct in her very being was telling her to trust him and that's exactly what she was going to do.

He could only smile when she moved toward him; it felt good to be able to hep one of his own escape from a horrible life; especially one so young. Taking the offered hand, "I am Kin. I am glad that you are willing to allow me to help you." Without being forceful, he turned toward the main entrance and exit of the cave and began to walk; he would guide her, not force her to come with him. "I will take you to my home first, so that you may have a chance to clean up a bit and rest. I have cousins about your size that stay with me sometimes, so I likely have something clean that will fit you. I will send a messenger to the merchant's guild, give them time to gather at the main hall. The officers will want to see you, and it takes a bit of time to pull them away from their books; even for something important. Once that's taken care of, we can get that mark removed. How does that sound, Sephora?"

WC: 189

189+1780=1969

Sephora smiled more when he took her hand and she walked with him as they exited the cave. She was often scared of leaving, but this time she felt none of that fear. She truly felt this was her chance, and that hope was enough to squash her usual instinct to remain hidden in the cave and not come out unless she absolutely needed to. She found her mind playing with the idea of never coming back: the cave had been better then where she had been staying with Yung, and she found herself imagining where it was that Kin was taking her: the result were magical places that only the mind of a child could possibly dream up.

She nodded to his words; ears twitching as she looked around. The idea of cleaning up and possibly getting some proper rest was nice and she was all for it. She wasn't worried about the idea of having to talk to anyone – or allow them to see her mark. ”That sounds fine.”, she said softly as she kept walking with him.

He didn't feel the need to respond or say anything at the moment, he wasn't the 'stoic' type in as much as he just enjoyed silence, he preferred the sounds of the world to that of human talking. It was the fox in him, after all. Once they exited the cave, he lead them around the side of the rocky outcropping he'd been standing at before, during the lynch mob, and showed her the horse he'd ridden out. From a pack strapped to the saddle he produced a traveling cloak; it would be massive on her, but that wasn't a bad thing. "Wear this. It'll get you past the guards; it has my clan's mark on it. That's as good as travel papers around here."

He gave her a moment to slip it on then helped to onto the saddle, hopping on behind her and gently nudging the beast's ribs to signal it was time to go. The ride into town was short enough, and the guards barely gave him a second glance, allowing him and his passenger into the village. He made his way down the main road and toward the residential areas. Once there, he guided the horse along the smaller roads and toward the area his clansmen occupied. They'd bought out much of the houses and apartments in the general area, so it functioned almost like a dedicated compound. Reaching a stable, he hopped down and helped her to the ground, passing the beast's reins over to a stable hand and taking Sephora's hand once more.

He led her the rest of the way to his apartment; it was a small house sharing a lot with a few other houses; but there was plenty of room for them all to share. It was meant for the younger clan members that didn't live in the village full time; and it served his needs perfectly. Once inside of the small building, "It's not much, but it is home. Part of the year, anyway. Please, sit and be comfortable. I will find you some clothing and a clear towel, so that you may clean up. You're welcome to anything you see."

The front door opened into a small living area; it served double duty as a sitting room and dining area, with the kitchen against one wall and separated off by a waist high bar. A hallway lead to the rest of the room; two small bedrooms and a bathroom. One bedroom was being used by Kin, the other was being used for storage at the moment; but there was a bed and such in there once you got past the boxes.

Built into the walls where shelves holding very little in the way of decorations, instead filled with books filled with ledgers and notes and records of his business transactions. He'd only just come back to the village a few weeks prior, so he hadn't really gotten around to unpacking his small trinkets and the like. In the hallway was a linen closet; where he was able to grab some fresh towels and such. In the spare room was a closet with extra clothing and the like shoved in it; he was able to find a tasteful dress that would fit her. It was a bit musty, but it would air out quickly enough. He did a lot of fabric trading, so he had plenty floating around; he'd be able to make her something nice later that night. Returning to the room, he offered her the towel and dress, "The washroom is the door on the left. I'll move some of the junk out of the spare room so you have a place to sleep."

WC: 644

644+1969=2631

Sephora didn't mind the silence at all; in fact it gave her time to think and her mind a chance to come to terms with everything that was going on. She walked with him to the rocky outcropping where the horse was and looked at the animal curiously: she had never ridden a horse before – though she wasn't scared of them. She put on the offered cloak; noticing that the largeness of it kept her tail well hidden. She accepted the help then with an excited sounding giggle onto the horse. ”I've never ridden a horse before.. I always had to walk.” She fell silent then and remained as such.

Into the village they went without any trouble – something she knew wouldn't have been the case had she not been covered and hidden – and into a residential district. After being helped down from the horse upon arrival at the stables she walked with Kin to his apartment; her hand in his. Once inside she relaxed and removed the cloak as she looked around.

She didn't sit, at first anyway, as she was too busy looking around. Yung had never allowed her in his home properly; at least not the better part of his home anyway. She had been left to sleep in a cage in what had been a storage room, so this place was magical. After a moment though she did relax and sit; at least until Kin returned with fresh clothing and a towel. She took both and stood up. ”Thank you!”, she said happily before following his instructions to the wash room and closing the door.

She removed her old clothing before starting the water. As much as she wanted to hurry through cleaning up she couldn't help but slow down and take a moment to actually enjoy the water: it felt good to be able to clean up in water that wasn't cold or lukewarm. When she was finished though the process was still quite long: drying off was a bit of a chore with such a fluffy tail – let alone five of them. But, she was dressed soon enough, and clean.

She looked at her face in the mirror, noticing how sickly pale she was, and frowned. She made several faces and then giggled at herself before she opened the door and stepped out of the washroom. She looked around, wondering where Kin had gotten to – and how soon she had before she would meet with these people she needed to talk to.

Word Count: 1,995

Hearing the washroom door open, Kin looked up from where he was hunched over the kitchen counter; he was slicing some smoked meats thinly and placing them on a plate with some cheeses, slices of fresh bread, and fruits; it was a simple meal, but there was plenty to go around, and was good for someone that wasn't used to eating a lot of solid or heavy foods.

"Feel better, young one? Come, sit. I'll be done in a few moments." He wasn't kidding, either; he was pretty much done. He only had to wrap the leftover meat and cheese, return them to their storage spots, and he was done. He carried the plate to the seating area that doubled as both a place to relax, and a dinning table. It was the fairly common circular area with large cushions and pads to rest on, with a low table that allowed for a place to put things. It allowed for the maximum seating area, without taking up the entire room. He placed the plate in the center of the table, and returned the kitchen area to retrieve a pitcher of fresh, cool water from the ice box, as well as a few cups for them to use. He grabbed some fresh lemons for them to use to season the water if they wanted; he preferred lemon in his water most of the time, and he wanted to give her the same options that he gave himself. He'd need to pick up some fresh teas and such if she was going to stay with him, so that they didn't have to get bored with just water and camel milk.

Once it was all ready, "Eat, enjoy. There is plenty for both of us. I have some fresh dates soaking in some honey for later, as well."

WC: 316

316 + 2613=2929

Sephora hugged her fluffy tails to her and hugged them; though it was hardly in the frightened way she had done before – in fact, she had a big and bright smile on her face. She nodded to Kin's question, ”Uh huh! My tails are so fluffy now.”, she said with a giggle. Her giggling abruptly ended when she accidentally ended up tickling her own nose with one of her tails and sneezed.

She wandered over to the cushions and sat down carefully. She pulled her tails onto her lap – it was out of habit more then anything, and a means of keeping them out of the way.

Her stomach, which she had mostly gotten used to ignoring, roared to life as she looked at the food. Hunger had been something she had become all too accustomed to feeling – used to using water to fill her empty belly, but the idea of food now excited her. She carefully made herself a little sandwich, ignoring the water for now. She took a bite, chewing very slowly and thoroughly before swallowing. She continued this; eating far slower then perhaps the normal person. But; she had learned her lesson well in the past – scarfing down food after going so long without it would only lead to her being sick later. ”Mmm, yummy. Thank you.”, she said between bites. Even with her slow eating she was soon finished and contemplating another sandwich: though she didn't know how great of an idea it was to push too much, too soon, on her stomach.

Word Count: 263 + 1,995 = 2,258

"It's not a problem. I meant it when I said that I would make sure that you where taken care of. A good meal and a chance to clean up is the least I can offer. I sent off a message to the guild while you where washing up; it'll be tomorrow before they will be ready to meet you, so you have time to relax and rest."

When they'd come into the little apartment, he'd taken off the wrappings on his head and the cloth mask that covered his face, allowing his ears a chance to breath, and making it easier for him to speak and possible to eat and drink easily. He'd poured himself a cup of the cool water and mixed in the lemon juice, as well as the husk of the squeezed slice, exactly how he liked, and took a moment to sip at it. He was a desert fox, he drank lightly unless it was dawn or dusk, at which time he drank deep to prepare for the long days and nights. Beyond that, he'd taken a hunk of the soft bread and was nibbling at it as he always did; he took his time to eat, and he didn't eat very much either way; he was thin as could be under his bulky clothing, but not in an unhealthy way. He just didn't need to eat much.

"If you are willing, I would like to ask you some questions. They may cross the border into personal territory, and I want you to believe that you are free to refuse to answer if you are uncomfortable."

WC: 285

285+2929=3214

Tomorrow. It seemed so close and yet so far away. But, she wasn't going to complain: now that she had some food in her stomach she was beginning to fully relax and even feel a bit tired. She couldn't remember the last time she had actually slept for more then fifteen minutes at a time and she felt that perhaps she would finally get the chance – though she wasn't quite to that point yet.

She picked up her water and didn't bother adding any lemon to it, she sipped it, and then looked over to Kin curiosity. She didn't know what else she could possibly tell him, but she didn't mind answering what questions she could. ”What are your questions?”, she asked, interestedly.

She placed her water down while she waited to hear what else he wished to know and picked up a piece of cheese. She ripped a small piece off and placed it in her mouth while simply taking a moment to enjoy the taste. She figured that so long as she didn't push her stomach too hard, too fast, it wouldn't hurt to nibble on it.

Nodding slowly, "You mentioned that you don't remember much of your past, beyond being in a village. Do you remember anything of that village? Anything about it's people? They treated you badly, do you remember the things they said?" He needed to know as much as he could, so that he could figure out when she was taken; or get a better idea of it. If her stories lined up with any of the known abductions or disappearances of his clansmen, then he would have a far easier time getting her settled and set up with the things she needed. Carrying his bloodline in the desert was a good thing, his clan was large, well known, and extremely wealthy, as they controlled the majority of the trading routes and many of the trading posts. Little happened in the desert without his family knowing of it. Even if she wasn't of his blood, she was still human, mostly, and while they where significantly removed from a true Bedouin lifestyle, they still valued the tenants of the society; one of the which was kindness to strangers and all living things.

"As for your physical appearance; please understand, I am merely curious; but have you always had your tails, and have you always had five? It's not unheard of for my clansmen to... grow, tails, in the multiple, as they age. Rare, but not unheard of."

WC: 243

243+3214=3457

Sephora thought back to the time she really didn't like to remember unless she had to: she did indeed remember the village, its name, and the majority of the more familiar faces that she saw on a more day to day basis. She also could remember the things the people used to say to her, and about her. They weren't pretty: in fact, a lot of them didn't make all that much sense to her even now that she was a good bit older. Before she could answer though Kin added a question about her tails onto the ones he had already asked – which actually tied in to everything she had been thinking about to begin with.

She ripped off another little piece of the cheese in her hand and popped it into her mouth while a very thoughtful expression came across her face: she was trying to figure out what she all remembered, and where to begin with it. When she was done chewing, she spoke, ”I remember the village's name because I thought it was kind of silly, but it really made sense because I was lost: it was called Village of the Lost. A lot of them acted like they were scared of me; they called me a demon, and said I was a bad omen. Well, they didn't at first, but you asked another question that kind of ties into it. When I first got to that village I only had one tail: I do think I was born with it. Then one day some little boys were picking on me; they were throwing rocks and one of them actually hit me. I got angry, like really angry, and I made fire appear. I did it before, but not like that... I almost burnt the building behind them down, and I could barely control myself. That night I woke up in pain but I couldn't figure out why, at least not until I noticed that I had two tails...”

She paused there, ripped off another piece of cheese, popped it into her mouth and barely chewed it before swallowing. ”It was shortly after that that Yung found me. It was kind of the same situation, only it was some adults trying to chase me out of their village. They had me cornered down a alley, and it scared me, and I snapped again. Yung was there: he had heard them and came to see what was going on I guess. The next morning I had a third tail... After that Yung brought me here and used me to protect him. There was a time that he lost control of himself when he was beating me; I could remember watching the lights pop in my eyes and then the darkness started to creep up around my vision: I think I might have been dying. When I woke up I had another tail.”

The hugged her tails to her chest with her free hand. ”My last tail... that happened when Yung tried to...”, she stopped, unable to put into words exactly what Yung had tried to do to her. ”Anyway, when I got to the cave I passed out and when I came to I had tail number five.” She stopped speaking at that point completely, focusing back on the cheese in her hand as she took another bite out of the slice.

Word Count: 3,018

Village of the Lost? So... one of the old outposts; made sense. The place had been a constant target for slavers and thieves for generations; they'd come take anyone not branded and sell them as first generation slaves for huge sums of money. Free breeding stock was always prized in the salve trade, anyone born to slaves was likely to be inbred due to the way they kept their stocks segregated; so a new slave that was untouched and from a fresh bloodline could save entire; well, he hated to think of them as such, but they where basically just herds of camels at that point. Terrible, but true.

"I know of the place, yes. That it was your home, and where you where taken from, lends much credit to your story. It is common for slavers to raid the area for new meat for the breeding pens, sadly."

Hmmm. Emotional or traumatizing events caused the growth of more tails. That was fundamentally right; although he was going on anecdotal evidence in that department. It would make sense that any time a surge of power raced through the body, it would cause mutations. His people's chakra was tinged with the natural life force chakra that fueled the sages, and it was what caused them to take on animalistic appearances. It was that natural life force chakra that caused the mutations; so more of it being used meant more changes appearing. "The more I hear, the more I am convinced you are of my people; or at least distantly related. Maybe not the same bloodline as mine, but within the same clan. By the information you've given me, your changes are the results of bursts of intense energy; which makes sense, given how my people's chakra works. It is not normal chakra, and carries... mutagenic properties. In our case, we become more like desert foxes. Other clans with similar chakra become like other animals. One of our closest allies in the caravans become jackals, and another become river alligators. It is a well known trait of many of the old Bedouin caravan families."

WC: 362

362+3457=3819

Sephora listened to him speak; he knew of the place she had come from, and it sounded as if it weren't all that uncommon for people like herself to be snatched up from there and sold. It was sad to hear that it was such a common practice, but it wasn't like she hadn't known – she had met others in captivity during her time with Yung. She listened as he went on to explain that she was likely was of his people, something that caused her head to tilt a bit in curiosity. Her tails could easily be explained; and from what he was saying, and how this happened, there were chances that if she ended up in another tense situation she could end up growing another tail.

”So, if I get really upset like that again and rage out like I did those few times I might grow more tails? Oh my...” She hugged her tails to her chest and then yawned suddenly, reaching up and covering her mouth as she did so. She was tired; especially now that she had a fully stomach. ”Hmm..” She didn't have to meet with anyone until tomorrow, but she still worried about sleeping: would she be stuck in this same fifteen minutes asleep, then wake up, pattern? Or would she actually be able to get a proper night's rest?

Word Count: 229 + 3,018 = 3,247

Poor child; she was about falling asleep sitting up; he could see it now that he was focusing a bit. He'd been thinking of the information he'd need for tomorrow, so he'd missed some of the subtle signs that she needed sleep more than to talk. That was okay, though; he could let her sleep as long as she wanted, and they could deal with the headaches of tomorrow, tomorrow.

"It is only a possibility, child. You should try to sleep, while you can. You're welcome to anything in the house, so long as it's not marked for sale. I know how difficult it can be to sleep in strange places; even when they are quiet and comfortable. The window in that room faces north, so you won't have to worry about morning sun waking you up early."

He'd be up late into the night working on his books and such; that was normal for him to do. He was naturally semi-nocturnal, so late nights didn't effect him the way they did normal people. Sleeping late into the morning wasn't normally effective habits for traders, but his clan were masters at it. He had trusted people that could run his various stalls and shops in the morning when he was normally sleeping; that was what having managers and such was for. Most where younger cousins, or the elders of the clan, that where able to forgo sleeping at 'normal' times without being effected. He was definitely young, but he was also extremely busy most of the time, so he needed to rest more than some others did. "I'll likely be asleep when you wake up; I tend to sleep in late most days. There is a small tv hiding under the boxes somewhere in here that you can use, and there are books on the shelves. There's a radio in your room as well, if you want some music at all."

WC: 339

399+3819=4218

Sephora nodded a bit while sleepily blinking: it was hard to even keep her eyes open. But, that was what food on a normally empty belly did. Sephora was used to staying up all night – it was easier to steal things she needed that way because the streets were less busy during that time, plus Yung had always wanted the most protection while he was resting and sleeping since he had been paranoid of someone offing him while he slept – but for once she was actually tired at what others would have called a 'normal' time. Yawning softly, and using the back of her right hand to cover her mouth, she got up and shuffled off into the bedroom he said she could use.

She barely made it to the bed and simply fell upon it when she did. She curled up on her side, her tails held close to her chest as if to protect them: it was her normal sleeping position. She gave another yawn, a sleepily look around, and then closed her eyes for the evening. She fell asleep quickly, too tired and drained from everything that had happened throughout the day to even be able to dream.

The longer she would sleep the more relaxed she would become, slowly uncurling from the ball she had been in when falling asleep. Hours would pass, more then the average person would bother sleeping, until it was nearly noon when she would finally awaken. Eyelashes would flutter open as she would yawn and stretch out; surprised to find herself actually laying on her belly instead of on her side in a tiny ball.

With a smile she would roll over and sit up. Reaching up she would rub her eyes and look around. Her ears would twitch, searching for any sign or sound that would indicate that Kin was awake – she could remember him saying that he normally slept late, and she wondered how late was late. She got off the bed, feet shuffling softly as she walked over to the window and looked out: the position of the sun gave her the time of day easily enough and she found herself momentarily shocked she had slept so much. She couldn't remember waking up even once throughout the night, and she has slept easily more then ten hours. She had been one tired fox apparently.

Word Count: 401 + 3,247 = 3,648

Late into the night the soft scribble of pen on paper could be herd; Kin was a bit old fashioned in a way, he preferred the old style of quill pen and a home made ink to the newer ball point monstrosities that many civilians used. Sure, they could be convenient; but they ripped into the paper and ruined the beauty of the calligraphy. Kin was a student of the art, and had impeccable handwriting because of it. It made it so much easier to keep his logs; row after row of perfectly straight, perfectly legible notes and figures and sums. His books where an art form, in his mind, he was an artist that was extremely fond of his work.

He could, and would, routinely fill entire notebooks in one night; his records where detailed in the extreme, and the nature of the bookkeeping was soothing to his soul. The desert was a harsh place, full of hard truths, harder people, and sand that abraded away everything with time. Those long hours spent hunched over his books in the dead of night with the tiny flickering flame of a singular candle to see the dark ink on the creamy parchment. He wasn't much of a fan of those cotton paper scrolls most ninja and merchants used; he refused to use anything but a bound reed papyrus book for his notes. Sure, he stored the books in those new style scrolls; but that was for sheer lack of space. If he had to room to store his books properly, he'd do that; but he was far to young to have his own house; not unless he bought one. But buying one would be a waste of money, given he spent half the year, if not slightly more, out on the trade routes. No, he'd use this method for many years to come, until he was an old man that was ready to retire from the caravans and settle down with a nice little cluster of stalls and shops and such of his own; maybe make his own caravan to run from a nice little compound outside of the village. Ah, a man could dream.

The time for books had passed, however; and he'd once more dozed off over a closed book. He'd just managed to finish his work and close the cover before his mind had given out and he'd fallen asleep; the book pushed far out into the center of the table and his head cushioned on his arm. A few hours was all he needed and he'd be fine, and he was pushing that already; it was after dawn, but before the sun had breached the top of the walls when he'd fallen asleep; so it had been a good four hours or so by that point. Enough to be rested, for him.

A light twitch here, ears shifting as they unconsciously tracked the sounds of the sand shifting in the breeze outside, even a small snore; normal for a man sleeping.

And then he wasn't.

There was no fanfare to it; no gran snapping awake, or anything like that. He just sat up and began moving; shifting his shoulders and rolling his neck, stretching his elbow and cracking his knuckles; allowing the blood flow to return to some areas and resetting the joints and muscles in others. After a few moments of that, he rose to his feet and went to get a drink of water, and start hunting something to eat.

WC: 594

594+4218=4812