The Lower End (open)

The raindrops peacefully fell from the beautiful gray and orange sky. It was a rare rainy day, and the whole world seemed at peace. Red Moon city itself seemed utterly calm that day, and especially so did Bruno. He left his shack that morning, hoping for a good day, maybe some one would hire him. He didn't particularly need money that bad, he just wanted to be safe. With his stored up money, he could buy a very nice house. But he was trying to be financially safe.

Bruno calmly looked into the sky. Raindrops hit his stout face, and he let out a smile. Today, he decided, was going to be a day of rest and relaxation, according to the human calendar, Sunday. He needed not work today, even though he was worried earlier. Bruno peacefully let out a sigh, and closed his eyes. The next thing he knew, he was covered in red, with a jet-black face. Cardinal form. He quickly flew up into a tree, and let out a whistle. Before he knew it, he erupted into a beautiful song, singing for about ten straight minutes. He stopped to take a breather, and thought of what he was going to do next. Today seemed like a good day. Perhaps he could head to the center of the town, and help relax people with his songs.

When he arrived at the center of the town, the people there were busy, bustling about doing business things. Though they all seemed calmer than they usually were. Bruno started whistling a relaxing tune, and he caught a few glances from some passer-by's. He hoped they appreciated his music. Bruno, having been a gangster for a chunk of his life, was surprisingly a mild-tempered guy, and he was very friendly. He sang for about an hour. Afterward, he flew to the ground, and closed his eyes. When he opened them again, he was much taller, and felt hair on his head. He smiled, and yawned. Today was going to be a good day.

OOC: My first post was eaten, this one is better though.

BIC: On the edge of the city, just on the outskirts of the lights, was Red Moon University. Cathedral in appearance, the university had been founded by the very first Weres to adapt to city living. Inside, subjects like math, science, english, and history were taught with pride. Despite the fact Weres turned into animals, very few subjects were taught on them. One professor was the exception to the rule. At the end of the corridor was a door with a combination lock built into it. Territorial by nature, the other professors would call the one inside, a pretty loner who hated change.

Inside that locked door, a blonde haired, hazel eyed woman stared blankly at the papers in front of her. Some had red letter grades on top of them, while some had comments in the margins. The papers had been about Shifters, a race of animals that could turn into other animals. These were special and now unfortunately only seen on Shifter Isle. Sahara had worked extensively with her father to map out the different environments and possible species on the island. As she stared, pen in right hand, her left hand played with the necklace around her neck.

Looking at the clock, Sahara sighed, put down her pen, put on her coat, grabbed her work backpack and walked out the door. Tugging her coat further around herself, she crossed her arms in an attempt to get warm. She had been born and raised in the desert, this was something else entirely. Walking out the door, Sahara discovered it was raining, much to her disappointment. Smelling a group of pigeons, Sahara walked into an alley and changed into a caracal.

Tawny fur met black ears which ended in black tufts of fur. She wasn’t a gorgeous tiger, nor was she very big. However, as she bolted out of the alleyway into the group of pigeons, she did not go for the ones on the ground. The ones in flight were her target. Jumping, she snatched one in mid air. Eating quickly, the bird was gone in minutes. Supper being finished, Sahara walked on until she came to a man. Sniffing slowly, he had the stench of bird on him. It wasn’t bird of prey though which confused her as this man certainly didn’t portray weakness. Changing back into a woman, she coughed and then spoke to him. Hi, are you ok? Can I help you?

OOC: Thanks for joining Fire.

BIC:
Bruno stretched out, and yawned again. He wasn't even tired, nor was he even bored. Sometimes people can randomly get a case of the yawns. He casually pulled up his hood over his head, and noticed a blonde haired woman approaching him. Hello. I am fine, but are you? You seem worried. Myself, I am relaxed. The rain always calms me, and provokes me to sing around these areas. Today is a good day.
Bruno looked at her, and removed his hood.
He was wondering why she came up to him and asked if he was okay.
Probably just a friendly gesture, he thought. Bruno, after all, looked sort of like a troubled man. Though today, he was the exact opposite. His past did not matter today, no matter how dark it may have seemed. Bruno seemed to keep a positive, kindly attitude, in contrast to his past jobs. He learned to be at peace with himself. His memories did not haunt him. Over all, he was a calm man. And cardinal. That is why his animal form was a cardinal. So peaceful, kind, and calm. Even in his past jobs he wasn't an angry person; He did what needed to be done, and kept a level head about it.
My name is Bruno, by the way. What is yours?

OOC: Your welcome....Please, please post more. Threads die when there is nothing to post off of.

BIC: The man yawned and it took everything within her not to hiss. The mention of the man singing made her inwardly cringe. She'd expect a woman to be a cardinal...although the male was the red one. Interested by the combination, Sahara stood completely still. She yearned to be in her caracal form, it was so freeing. Behind her, cars began to whiz by. Within them, Weres who had lost touch with nature drove from place to place instead of walking. The new generation wanted everything quickly, it was a shame.

Hazel eyes tried not to meet his as her solitary nature took over. If she left would he follow her? If she left, would she never see him again? Oddly, she didn't like the idea. The guy was an enigma to her, a challenge. Why was he a cardinal? Was he weak? The presence did not seem weak at all. Smiling, she answered him. I'm Sahara. The rain is cold and wet, two things I'm not exactly fond of. Looking at her watch, she once again learned the time. Oh goodness look at the time. I must be getting home, nice meeting you. Sahara then began to walk away from the man in the direction of her house.

OOC: Sorry about that. I usually post more, don't know what happened there

BIC:
Bruno looked into her eyes as he listened to her speak. She had beautiful Hazel eyes, those of a strong Caracal, though Bruno did not know it.
Sahara is a beautiful name. Anyway, Loads of people do not like the rain. I am not one of them. And most people don't like the cold. I am also not one of them.
He noticed her glance at her glance at her watch, looking sort of awkward. Ooomf! He scared off another person that could have been his friend. What was it about Bruno that looked so unfriendly? He did, after all, work as a gang member and a high-class assassin for a good chunk of his life. She couldn't have known that. He was savvy and was not known except by extremely high-class gangsters and Mob-lords. He wourked quietly, and only for the most shady and high-paying employers. He was too good at his job. His nickname was widely known through the crime world, though his real name was known by none. Bruno was just getting too good, and too widely known. So he retired, and tried(And still tries) to lay low. He even made sure none of his past colleagues knew his animal form.

She couldn't know, he thought.

He snapped back into it, and she said she was leaving. Not surprising.
Goodbye, Sahara. Perhaps one day our paths will cross again.

He took a few steps towards the woods, and shut his eyes. He opened them, flew up, and began to whistle a merry tune. A raindrop hit his head, and he slipped off the wet branch and caught hold onto the next one.
He thought this amusing.

Sahara, he thought.What a nice person.
He felt the impact to stay with her for a while.

Did I offend you in any way? I apologize sincerely. Would you like me to walk you home?

He thought her name was beautiful. The rest she didn't really pay attention to. Her name had often gotten the compliments, the rest of her...only occasionally. Sahara did love her name. As far as the rain went, if there was ever a such thing as warm, less wet rain, Sahara would diffently enjoy it a bit more. As a cat who came from the desert, it was understandable that those droplets of water were not her favorite thing. In fact, she very rarely drank water, getting most of her moisture from her prey.

As Sahara began to walk home, she hoped he would begin to follow her. At first, he didn't. Their paths crossing again seemed impossible, considering the size of Red Moon City. Sighing, she continued to walk until she felt his presence long before she heard the words. Did she really want a stranger walking her home? The City had gone bad lately. Every day, stories of robberies and murders filled the newspapers. As the Weres became more human every day, so did the crime. Nobody lived by their animal instincts anymore. Sahara hated the idea, but to fit in, she had to act more human then the animal she yearned to be.

Smiling at the man, she decided to throw caution to the wind. As long as a bird Were like you can protect me from all those bad people out there, you can walk me home. So where do you live? Anywhere near here?

She smiled at him. So she was nice. Bruno chuckled when she made the bird joke. Bruno had always learned to laugh at himself. She even asked him where he lived.
I don't really live close to here, I live on the east side of town. But I like it here, especially during the rain. I love how calmer everyone seems in this weather. Except for a kitty-cat like yourself, of course. My house isn't that nice, anyway. I didn't spend much money on it, though I could have bought a much nicer house, but I didn't really see the need. I live alone. As for you, where do you live?

Bruno grinned as he countered her bird joke. He hoped she wouldn't take offense. He hadn't.
Bruno began to stroll peacefully alongside her. This Sahara was an interesting person. Bruno was glad he met her.
Bruno had no friends. He never really wanted any, they never seemed relevant to him. But know he knew why people made friends. He never before understood the concept. He had been a loner for too long in his life. As a child on the streets, he once met a stray dog. They remained friends for a while, but one day, the dog dissapeared. Bruno never found this dog again, and he was sad for a very long time. After that, he lost the will to make friends.

Bruno looked at her and smiled.
An advantage to us birds, is that we can do wonderous things that land creatures can only dream of. Like this.

Bruno shut his eyes and ran forward. When he opened them, he was in midair. Bruno flew high in the sky and circled her. He flew up even higher, and did a backflip. He spun in circles diving down, and shut his eyes, and fell about four feet to the ground. He grinned at her.

This man lived on the East Side? The City had good parts and bad parts, the East Side was one of them. It seemed to belong to the criminals or ex-criminals. The cautious wall went right back up now that she knew he may be from the other side of the tracks so to speak. He seemed nice enough though. Actually I only live a few blocks down. It's nothing big; a bedroom, kitchen, and a space big enough for a couch and a tv. Nobody really comes over and I never really invited anyone either. I...also live alone.

He knew she was a cat...so why was he still around? As long as he didn't turn into a bird, he would be safe. Caracals were loners and so was Sahara. Other people bugged her and Sahara knew that she may not see Bruno after tonight. That's ok...he's just a bird... Sahara knew she was lying to herself and she kept walking. Then Bruno had to turn into his animal form. A cardinal? Oh jees...it would be so easy to jump up and snatch him from the air. It would be so easy...and yet Sahara controlled herself. Believe me, I have some advantages to. I'm sure you don't want to see them. My house is right down this street... Turning right, she waited for the cardinal to follow her. This was going to be hard. Sahara remained in human form. If she changed, she didn't think she could stop herself.

OOC: At the bottom of the last post, he turned human again.

Bruno was grinning at her and looked into her eyes. They looked like the eyes of a predator eying his prey. He was sort of scared, but he tried not to show it. Bruno sighed, and told himself to calm down. He could not pretend he didn't somewhat like her. As a friend, yes, as a friend...

Bruno kept on walking. As he walked, he thought about if he would ever see her again. It began to worry him.

Nervous as he was, he worked up the courage to say something to her.

Would, you like to, umm, perhaps, maybe get together some time? I mean, as friends, you know?

He couldn't handle pressure very well. He chuckled nervously after he spoke. His palms were sweating heavily, and he brushed them casually on his pants, hoping she wouldn't notice. She made him more nervous with every stride she took. Bruno hoped she wouldn't reject him and he would never see her again. She appeared to be nice, but she was a little intimidating.
He smiled nervously, and began to whistle.
Calm down, Calm down, He kept telling himself.
He really could not handle pressure well.

It was a sincere pleasure to meet you today, Sahara.
That is a beautiful charm around your neck. Where in the universe could you find something like that?

OOC: OOPS...my bad...

BIC: Sahara could tell how nervous he was feeling and the human part of her stepped in and stopped her predatory instincts. She smiled at the man and began walking slower as they neared her house. There were no trees in her short backyard but the grass was oddly green. Surrounding the front yard was a white fence. Despite the small nature of the house, the backyard was quite large for a city property. When buying it Sahara had made sure she'd have room to walk around without feeling cramped. Opening the latch to the gate, she began to get nervous herself.

Should she ask him inside? Should she tell him anything about herself? Everything seemed to be happening to fast. He was a cardinal for goodness sake. Would he trust her if he knew she were a caracal? He knew she was a cat...not what kind. Sighing and smoothing her hair she tried to speak to him. The charm was given to me by my mother. We can hang out some time, I'd like that. Umm...it was nice meeting you but I really must be going to sleep. Early day tomorrow and such. Umm...Goodbye, nice meeting you.

Oh my goodness I am soo sorry I haven't posted in forever. I AM SORRY FIRE! You may hit me if you like. And I'm sorry if this is sort of bad, I am in a hurry.

BIC:
Bruno carefully looked over her face to see if she was still resenting him. If she did at all. Bruno was a bit too self conscious. It was obvious to Bruno that she was wondering why he was a Cardinal. Most people that he met does.
Bruno himself even wondered why his animal form was a Cardinal. He had been a gangster, orphan and ASSASSIN for goodness sake. Nothing made sense to him. He had to leave.

Bruno turned away from her beauty. He decided that Sahara was a wonderful and kind person. He surely hoped they would meet again. He suddenly turned around. He had a thought.
It was wonderful meeting you. I myself am quite tired from todays events. As for hanging out some time, it would be wonderful. You can often find me in the park, I will probably be in a tree, humming a song. Goodbye, Sahara.
He smiled, turned around slowly, and began to walk, humming a merry tune of love. He shut his eyes calmly, and flew peacefully home. The rain had ceased pouring constantly from the sky. When he spotted his lone shack, he dove down and shut his eyes, becoming a human again. He unlocked his door and walked in.
He shut and locked the door behind him. He dropped on his bed and started laughing. It was not an evil laugh, but a joyous laugh of great happiness. Perhaps he had met his one and only true friend. Bruno put a pillow over his head and fell asleep.

Smiling, she nodded towards Bruno as he walked away. Closing and locking the door, she chnaged into her night clothes and then layed on her bed. Thoughts came to her quickly as she though about her day. What was she going to teach tomorrow? What was she going to eat and where would she hunt? Would she see Bruno tomorrow? Why did she care? As each question came, she grew more tired and soon she was fast asleep.

The next morning, Sahara got up like usual and went out huntng in her own backyard. Seeing a cardinal she thought it was Bruno but in fact it wasn't. A pigeon became her breakfast and she ate and then went back inside. Changing both her form and her clothes, Sahara walked the few blocks to the University. She stopped where she had met the Cardinal were before only to see he wasn't there. So, she went into her room, taught her class about the predator shifters and when the school bell rang the end of the day she collected her things and went to the park.

Central Park was one of her favorite places outside her home and her work. Changing into a caracal, she laid down under a tree and watched everybody else. Would he show up like he said he usually did? Sahara watched and waited for a red bird to come.

Beep.Beep.Beep.Beep.
Not that annoying alarm again. He didn't want to wake up.
Beep.Beep.Beep.Beep.Beep.
ALRIGHT! Damn.
Bruno wearily whacked the thing on the top of it to shut it off. He was too tired to realize he probably could have broke it. Suddenly it came to mind. He checked his alarm quickly. He noticed he didn't break it. Sighing, he slowly pushed himself up and stepped out of bed. Still half awake, he hit his head on the cabinet.
This place is cramped. he thought. He turned to his small mini-fridge and took out a bottle of water. He twisted the cap, and took a long swig. He threw the empty bottle towards the wastebasket. He missed.
Ughh.
He became angry and kicked the trash can. It tipped over and trash fell out.
He took a few minutes to clean it up.
Bruno was still thirsty. He made a cup of coffee and sat on his bed. He took about 15 minutes to drink it, and put the empty cup into the sink. He went outside, locked the door behind him, stretched, and shut his eyes.
I sure hope I see Sahara in the park today.
He opened his eyes and casually flew to the center of the city, watching the people below him scurry about. When he came above the park, he looked down. He flew to a tree and looked down. He saw a Caracal and began to panic. He flew higher in the tree before he realized he could just turn into a human. He did so, and was sitting on the top branch.
A strange thought came to mind.
Sahara?

Sahara watched silently as children changed into their were forms. She watched as everyone went about their afternoons. She felt lonely here and always ready to hunt. Her caracal form was always her favorite form and once again she was happy for just a moment. Soon enough she saw a Cardinal. Could that be Bruno? When it said her name she knew it was. Why was she so excited to see the little red bird? Not built for climbing trees, sh got up, turned around and looked up into the tree. Hey Bruno. Come down here. I promise I won't hurt you. How was your day?

OOC: sorry it sucks....

OOC: It's fine, I don't really mind.

Bruno was overjoyed to again come across Sahara, even though she terrified him with her animal form. He flew down and landed on a branch of the lower part of a tree. He whistled a high note, and started to talk to her.
You....Scared the hell out of me.
Laughing, Bruno continued.
You look quite nice as a Caracal, miss Sahara. As long as you aren't eating me, that is.
Anyway, I am glad to see you again.

Bruno flew down to a berry bush of raspberries and picked at a few. The rain had cause the once-planted-now-wild berries to flourish. He slowly bit into a berry, and let the juice run down his beak and drop onto the ground. He scarfed and picked at a few more perfectly-ripe berries, and flew to the ground. He shut his eyes, and became a Human again.
My day, Has been utterly boring today. As for you?