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This is an on-going series of loose stories.", "count": "24", "submission_left_submission_id": "427506", "submission_left_file_name": "551458_Fritti_exploring_nezinoma_salis_-_viola_town.doc", "submission_left_thumbnail_url_huge": "https://nl1.ib.metapix.net/thumbnails/huge/551/551458_Fritti_exploring_nezinoma_salis_-_viola_town.jpg", "submission_left_thumbnail_url_large": "https://nl1.ib.metapix.net/thumbnails/large/551/551458_Fritti_exploring_nezinoma_salis_-_viola_town.jpg", "submission_left_thumbnail_url_medium": "https://nl1.ib.metapix.net/thumbnails/medium/551/551458_Fritti_exploring_nezinoma_salis_-_viola_town.jpg", "submission_left_thumb_huge_x": "200", "submission_left_thumb_huge_y": "200", "submission_left_thumb_large_x": "200", "submission_left_thumb_large_y": "200", "submission_left_thumb_medium_x": "120", "submission_left_thumb_medium_y": "120", "submission_right_submission_id": "427531", "submission_right_file_name": "551484_Fritti_market_day_part_1_-_painting.doc", "submission_right_thumbnail_url_huge": "https://nl1.ib.metapix.net/thumbnails/huge/551/551484_Fritti_market_day_part_1_-_painting.jpg", "submission_right_thumbnail_url_large": "https://nl1.ib.metapix.net/thumbnails/large/551/551484_Fritti_market_day_part_1_-_painting.jpg", "submission_right_thumbnail_url_medium": "https://nl1.ib.metapix.net/thumbnails/medium/551/551484_Fritti_market_day_part_1_-_painting.jpg", "submission_right_thumb_huge_x": "200", "submission_right_thumb_huge_y": "200", "submission_right_thumb_large_x": "200", "submission_right_thumb_large_y": "200", "submission_right_thumb_medium_x": "120", "submission_right_thumb_medium_y": "120" } ], "description": "Another story I did for the writing exercise. The word in question was \"box\", so I figured out something to tie that in with my story series. I did, in the process, make a little cock-up or two in the story continuity, though :P\n\nI marked it Mature again, this time because I did actually described in a bit of detail how Lucinia nursed from Skyfire's breasts >~_^<\n\nThe song Windsong sings is \"The Women All Tell Me\", first appearing in Chappell's \"Popular Music of the Olden Time\", published in 1859. I find almost all the old folk songs and ballads I have my Mry singing on www.contemplator.com which I find is an amazingly great source for songs from before the 19th century >^_^<\n\n© to me are:\nSunfire\nSkyfire\nFleetfire\nLucinia\nand all the other Mry (honestly, I'm not going to list them all by name; there's way too many of them =~.^=)", "description_bbcode_parsed": "Another story I did for the writing exercise. The word in question was "box", so I figured out something to tie that in with my story series. I did, in the process, make a little cock-up or two in the story continuity, though :P

I marked it Mature again, this time because I did actually described in a bit of detail how Lucinia nursed from Skyfire's breasts >~_^<

The song Windsong sings is "The Women All Tell Me", first appearing in Chappell's "Popular Music of the Olden Time", published in 1859. I find almost all the old folk songs and ballads I have my Mry singing on www.contemplator.com which I find is an amazingly great source for songs from before the 19th century >^_^<

© to me are:
Sunfire
Skyfire
Fleetfire
Lucinia
and all the other Mry (honestly, I'm not going to list them all by name; there's way too many of them =~.^=)", "writing": "While the day started calmly, it also started a little ominously. Even before sunrise, it could already be heard; a low, occasional rumbling in the distance. It was vague, coming and going, and always around the same strength; not getting closer, not moving away. When the sun finally did rise, it was clear that the animals felt it too; Jorbles were quieter than usual, Rukus were not heard at all. And the sky was not blue; it was tinged with grayish clouds, outlined in a flat yellow from the sun behind them.\n\nAt breakfast, Lucinia was surprised that her Mry adopters and step-sisters did not seem to notice it, or at least didn't comment on it.\n \"Sky Fire?\" she asked when the wildly patterned dark grey Mry handed her a slice of bread. \"What that sound?\"\nSkyfire perked and swiveled an ear.\n \"That rumbling, you mean? Nothing special, sweetie, it just means the goddesses are having a bowling tournament again.\"\nLucinia blinked in even more surprise, Fleetfire snorted a giggle, and Sunfire made a funny face at her sister.\n \"Don't be such a weirdo, sis,\" she admonished with a good-natured grunt, turning to Lucinia. \"It's just thunder, kiddo. It means a storm is brewing somewhere over the ocean. It's probably very far off yet; sometimes we hear rumbling for a day, two days, before we actually get a storm.\"\n \"Oh,\" Lucinia said.\nShe fell silent while she nibbled on her slice of bread covered with butter and a few slices of sausage. Skyfire smiled and softly stroked the Kattin's hair after filling their milk mugs.\n \"Nervous, sweetie?\"\nLucinia looked up and silently nodded a little bit.\n \"Storm on sea bad. I on ship, storm come, break ship, I almost drown.\"\n \"Awww, you don't have to worry about a thing, sweetie,\" Skyfire soothed. \"For one thing, you're not on a ship out at sea, you're safe here with us. It's true, the storms of New Season can get quite violent at times, but we're quite deep inland here, and we're protected by the mountains around us, so you don't have to be afraid of anything.\" She softly stroked Lucinia's ears. \"Or are you afraid of thunder and lightning?\"\nLucinia nodded a little bit again.\n \"We not see in my land. I only see once, on ship. And... that end bad.\"\n \"I can understand that, sweetie,\" Skyfire smiled softly. \"But like I said, you don't have to be afraid of a thing.\"\n \"No, we'll be with you all the time!\" Fleetfire said. \"We'll totally hug you and cuddle you and keep you safe between us, Lucie, promise!\"\n \"And besides, storms often bring us lots of good things,\" Skyfire smiled again. \"Rain for the fields and the plants, and lots of handy and valuable things that wash up on the Sand Shores. And look! It also brought us the most precious thing we ever found; you!\"\n\nLucinia smiled a little bit and leaned over to the side, softly nuzzling against Skyfire's side. The large storm-gray Mry smiled and softly hugged Lucinia with one arm, leaning down her head a bit to press a soft kiss between the Kattin's large pointy ears. Across the table, Sunfire emptied her mug, shaking her head a bit.\n \"Nevertheless, I think it would be a good idea if we go to the inn after we pick Fleetfire up at school and listen to the box. Minnaluna will have one of their fly-crafts out to check for the storm, and you can be certain they will say something about it on the box.\"\nAgain a look of surprise slid over Lucinia's face at Sunfire's words. She looked up questionably.\n \"What box?\"\n \"Ohh, that's something really special!\" Fleetfire piped up with her mouth full before either of her two older sisters could react. \"Goldstar, of the inn, has this awesome weird box! She got it on the market in Oceanside; it comes from Minnaluna, you know. It's a very special box!\" She swallowed her bite of breakfast. \"It has knobs and stuff, and a light inside, and there's music coming out of it! And also announcements, we can hear when the people of Minnaluna have found out about a big storm that's coming or something; they tell the other people about it on that box, and we can hear it over here too. Of course, we always already know when a storm is coming, because we can feel it and smell it, but those people in Minnaluna can go out over the ocean and see it, and they can say how long it will take before the storm will reach land, or how big of a storm it's gonna be.\"\n \"That's right,\" Skyfire said, softly chuckling over Fleetfire's enthused answer. \"When we notice a storm is coming, for instance from that rumbling we keep hearing right now, we often visit the inn so we can listen to the box and know exactly when the storm will reach land, if it will even reach land, and if it's gonna be a big storm or not. For most of us, that's just handy to know in case we need to put shutters before the windows of our houses for instance, but for Sunfire and me it's even more important, because it will give us information about which of the Sand Shores will be most likely to have lots of stuff washed up on them.\"\n \"You look for stuff on shore much?\" Lucinia asked.\n \"Yeah, it's kind of our work,\" Sunfire nodded. \"We make our living that way. First we used to dive for pearls and valuable items from wrecked ships, but for a while now we mostly search the Sand Shores for items of value after storms.\"\n \"Ohh,\" Lucinia said, nodding in understanding. She smiled a bit again. \"I hope is storm, so you find lots.\"\nSunfire chuckled, and Skyfire let out a soft giggle.\n \"That's sweet of you.\" She started collecting the plates. \"Are you done? It's time for the communal bath.\"\n\nLucinia nodded, drinking the last of her milk and handing Skyfire the empty mug as well. After collecting all the dishes, the storm-gray Mry took the small bag with pieces of soap and brushes, holding Lucinia by a paw as they walked down the street to the Warm Lake. Other Mry greeted them cheerfully, chatting calmly while they walked to the large lake and waterfall at the south side of town. One of the main topics of conversation was, of course, the distant rumbling in the air, indicating a brewing storm.\n\nAt the Warm Lake, Skyfire left Lucinia to be taken by Fleetfire to the small group of the flame-striped Mry's friends. The other young Mry greeted the two of them happily, talking amongst each other while they washed themselves and one another, giggling and splashing up water. Lucinia stayed closer to Fleetfire this time, though. The yellow and orange Mry could feel her adopted step-sister trembling a bit while she helped Lucinia with her washing. The others noticed it as well.\n \"Are you not feeling well, Lucinia?\" Nightshade, the small, fully black Mry asked as she washed Lucinia's slowly twitching tail.\n \"No, I okay,\" Lucinia said. \"Is just, rumble in sky. Make nervous.\"\n \"Aww, is the baby freak scared of a little distant thunder?\" the sneering voice of the green-furred Mry Morningdew sounded from behind them.\n\nFleetfire turned her head with a growl, but before anyone could say anything Morningdew was shoved aside, so roughly she lost her footing and toppled over sideways, submerging in the water of the lake. When she came back up, coughing and spluttering, she shook herself and sent a scowl in the direction of Cloudchaser, the slender white Mry with the grayish blue markings similar to Lucinia's markings, who was stepping closer with a head full of foam.\n \"Hey, can't you watch where you're going, you idiot?\"\n \"Sorry, got soap in my eyes,\" Cloudchaser said dryly. She took Lucinia's paw. \"Can you help me rinse the soap from my hair, Lucinia?\"\n \"Yes,\" Lucinia said, sending a sideways glance at Morningdew. \"Is no good get soap in your eyes. You walk into blockheads, maybe hurt yourself. I help you, Cloud Chaser.\"\n\nAll the other younger Mry burst into snorts and giggles at Lucinia's offhand remark. Morningdew scowled again, but since Lucinia simply turned her back and waded towards the waterfall together with Cloudchaser and Fleetfire, there was nothing the green-furred Mry could do but look angry.\n \"That was a good one, Lucie,\" Fleetfire giggled. \"Set that numbskull in her place, she deserves no less.\"\n \"Yes. She not nice,\" Lucinia said with a smirk.\n \"No, she's a little bitch alright,\" Cloudchaser said, leaning her head back under the waterfall with her eyes closed. \"Always making trouble, and it seems like she's chosen you to pick on because you're so different than us.\"\n \"Yeah, and because she knows we're not easily impressed anymore,\" Fleetfire added, washing Lucinia's back while Lucinia helped rinsing Cloudchaser's hair. \"But you really handled her very well, Lucie.\"\n \"You certainly did at that,\" Cloudchaser giggled softly, opening her eyes again. \"And don't worry about her too much, we'll protect you from her a bit when you come into school.\" She leaned forward to drape her hair over her shoulder and wrung it a bit. \"Are you coming into our school, by the way?\"\nLucinia nodded.\n \"I go school at new Season. But other class first, with Fleet Fire, to learn Mry things. I learn other things on school in my land.\"\n \"That makes sense,\" Cloudchaser smiled. \"The lessons we get wouldn't make much sense to you if you haven't learned about basic history and culture and such first. But I suppose you did learn how to read and write and all?\"\n \"Yes, I learn read and write,\" Lucinia nodded. \"Two languages, too.\"\n \"Two languages?\" Cloudchaser said, looking up. \"Wow, that's impressive! What languages did you learn?\"\n \"Own language, of Saloria,\" Lucinia smiled, looking a bit proud. \"And village I live, is two day travel from sea. We get lot sea folk in village, we learn language of sea folk too. Is same your language. Fleet Fire give me old school books, I read, is same language.\"\n \"That's really awesome,\" Cloudchaser said. \"Sounds like you're quite ahead of us in some things already.\"\n \"Yeah she is!\" Fleetfire giggled. \"You should see her do math! She's amazing at math! Much better than I am!\"\nCloudchaser giggled and teasingly poked Fleetfire's tummy.\n \"Well, that's no wonder, you suck at math, Fleetfire. Always have. Even before you went blind, you couldn't see the outcome of two plus two even if it stared you in the face,\" she teased.\nFleetfire laughed and swished her tail, splashing water into Cloudchaser's face.\n \"Oh, like you're such a genius! It took [i]you[/i] six Seasons to master A is for Apple, you dimwit!\" She turned to Lucinia and gave the Kattin a hug. \"Here, you show her how much smarter you are, Lucie! Do, uhm... sixteen times thirty-one, divided by eight, plus fifty-nine!\"\n \"One hundred twenty-one,\" Lucinia said after a moment's thought with her eyes half closed.\n \"Wow... geepers!\" Cloudchaser said, looking quite perplexed. \"It took you, what, three seconds to think of that? Good goddess, you [i]are[/i] smart! Can I ask you a sum too?\"\n \"I thank you,\" Lucinia smiled. \"Yes, you ask sum, I say outcome.\"\n \"Okay, uhm, let's see...\" Cloudchaser looked up along the waterfall, running a paw over her whiskers. \"A hundred and sixty-three times nineteen, plus... uhm... seventy-six, divided by... eleven, minus four.\"\nLucinia thought for five seconds this time, squeezing her eyes while she soundlessly moved her lips, counting in herself.\n \"Two hundred and eighty-four, and forty-fifths of one hundred.\"\n \"Golly!\" Cloudchaser exclaimed, stunned. \"You're not just smart, you're a frikking genius, Lucinia! I can't believe it! How old are you again?\"\n \"I forty-two Seasons,\" Lucinia said, beaming proudly.\n \"Damn!\" Cloudchaser shook her head. \"Only forty-two? I'm fifty-five Seasons old, and I sure can't do math that fast! I even need an abacus for sums like the one I asked you just now, I definitely can't do them right from the top of my head!\"\n \"That's my sis!\" Fleetfire giggled. \"She's gonna grow up to be the genius leader over all of Nezinoma!\"\n \"Hee! No, I not be leader, is silly,\" Lucinia giggled, shaking her head.\n \"Not as silly as you might think,\" Cloudchaser smiled. \"You're really amazingly clever, Lucinia! I bet you could indeed grow up to be someone real important.\"\n \"Aw, no,\" the little Kattin blushed.\n\nFleetfire and Cloudchaser both giggled softly at Lucinia's shy response, although the Siamese-patterned Mry could see Lucinia was secretly glowing proudly at the praise they were giving her. They talked a bit more about the different things Lucinia had learned in the school she'd gone to in Saloria, and the things they were taught in the school of Viola Town, relaxing under the splashing, pleasantly warm water of the waterfall, until Sunfire showed up to tell them it was time to dry off and go home to get Fleetfire's things for school.\n\nOnly a half hour later, at the school, Lucinia was again praised like mad to Windsong and Dreamweaver by a cheerful Cloudcatcher who hailed the small Kattin like some kind of hero, causing Lucinia to blush so much it almost showed through the deep dark brown of her facial fur.\n \"Bye Lucinia! See you in our class next Season! Can't wait for you to embarrass us all like heck with your super math!\" the Siamese-patterned Mry cheerfully called out as a parting remark when Windsong brought them into the school.\nSkyfire giggled softly as she and Sunfire turned to walk back home with Lucinia.\n \"What was that all about?\"\n \"Cloud Chaser... she impressed I fast with math,\" Lucinia said, still blushing a bit. \"At wash, she ask sum, I say answer, very fast.\" She shrugged a bit. \"I know numbers. I not know why that special?\"\n \"I guess it's because you're still rather young, kiddo,\" Sunfire smiled. \"And math isn't a very strong point with us Mry; it takes several tens of Seasons for us to get good with numbers. Our expertise is more in nature; biology, potionry, herbology, those kinds of things, you know?\"\n \"Oh,\" Lucinia said simply, not really knowing anything else to reply.\n\nSunfire grinned lightly and gently ruffled the slender feline's curly brown hair with a paw as they walked home. They spent the day relatively calmly; Skyfire cleaned the house a bit before going to work on making some more clothes for Lucinia, who helped Sunfire in the golden-furred Mry's vegetable garden, pulling weeds and tending to the young plants. When they were done, Sunfire took Lucinia out to the back of the garden, where she had a few targets set up. Sunfire was a good archer, and she had taken it upon herself to teach Lucinia the finer points of handling a bow and arrow. Lucinia was still practicing with the wood bow she had gotten at the metal shop, even though the silver one that had been made for her was finished as well. She learned fast, showing a talent for straight aim and even a few trick shots already that Sunfire taught her. When complimented on her fast progress, Lucinia blushed and just shrugged it off by saying she had to learn how to aim very well with throwing rocks at deadly snakes and other animals in her desert home land, since it was simply a matter of life and death there.\n\nAll through the day, the rumbling in the sky never ceased. In fact, it seemed to be coming closer. It was felt in the atmosphere; birds were silent, the sky was a deep gray-blue tint instead of its usual brilliant blue, and the warmth was all but stifling in its dampness. Over the trees crowning the summit of the mountains around Viola Valley, puffy clouds with a sickly yellow glow to them could be seen sailing through the sky.\n\nSunfire consulted a silver pocket watch she fished up from a front pocket of her vest after she had collected the arrows from one of the targets in the back of the garden.\n \"Right, let's call it a day for now, kiddo,\" she smiled. \"School's going out in a little while, we'd better walk over there so we can pick up Fleetfire.\" She handed the small arrows back to Lucinia and stuck the longer ones in her own quiver. \"You're doing very well. In a day or two, we'll practice with moving targets, okay?\"\n \"Yes. Sound fun,\" Lucinia smiled, shouldering her bow. \"What kind targets? Like animals?\"\n \"That comes later,\" Sunfire chuckled. \"There's a difference between target practice and actual hunting, you know. For hunting, you need to know a lot of extra techniques only to already even get close to your prey without scaring it off. But for practice, we'll use balls. I have a bunch of small balls made of twine and cloth for just that.\"\n \"Oh.\" Lucinia tilted her head a bit. \"How they move?\"\nSunfire chuckled again.\n \"Simple, kiddo. I toss them, simple as that. I throw the balls into the air at random, you shoot them.\"\n \"Oh. Of course. That logical,\" Lucinia nodded. She looked around when Skyfire stuck her head out a window.\n \"You done out there? It's time to walk to the school and pick up Fleetfire.\"\n \"Yes, I was just telling Lu we should get going,\" Sunfire said, wrapping an arm around Lucinia's shoulders, walking into the house with her.\n\nMere moments later, the three of them were on their way down the street towards the town square. The rumbling in the sky was louder now, causing Sunfire to nod her head upwards.\n \"The goddesses are sure making a lot of racket with their bowling tournament, aren't they?\"\n \"You're a weirdo,\" was Sunfire's dry response.\n\nLucinia giggled softly, although she kept pressing herself against Skyfire's side, every now and the nervously looking up at the sky which was turning a deeper shade of gray. It was getting close to the hue of Skyfire's fur already. The rumbling was less distant, and more frequent. Sure enough, every now and then even a momentary lightening up of the sky could be seen as a far-away bolt of lightning crossed between the clouds. Still, though Lucinia was visibly nervous, she kept bravely walking along with her two large step-sisters and adopters, talking a bit and sometimes giggling when the two Mry teased each other in their good-natured manner.\n\nAt the school, they met up with a number of the other adult Mry who were there to pick up their younger sisters or daughters. The talk was, again, about the weather, with many a confirmation that most of them would be going to the inn so they could listen to 'the box'. For a moment, though, the talk wavered when the school went out and the group of adult Mry was joined by the group of young Mry coming out of the school building, chatting and giggling and greeting their older sisters or mothers. Their voices were louder than usual, partly of pent-up excitement that came with the building of the storm, partly simply to be heard since the wind picked up, blowing loudly through the trees on the mountains and ruffling fur and hair.\n\nFleetfire had happiness beaming off her face as she was walked over to where Sunfire, Skyfire and Lucinia were waiting for her by Healsong.\n \"I take it you had a great day at school, kiddo?\" Sunfire grinned. \"Your smile is practically too wide for your face.\"\n \"Yeah!\" Fleetfire said. \"Miss Windsong gave me lute lessons! She let me practice a bit on her lute! It was so totally awesome! I want one too!\" She grabbed Sunfire's arm with both her paws, lifting her head to send a begging expression up to Sunfire's face. \"Can I have a lute too, Sunfire? Please please please?\"\n \"We'll see what we can do, kiddo,\" Sunfire promised with a grin. \"There's definitely a big storm coming, so we'll be most likely finding lots of good stuff on the Sand Shores come morrow, and it's market day in Mountain City at the end of this quart-cycle, so we'll be going there with the things we'll find tomorrow and see if we can find a nice instrument for you, okay? What does Windsong say about it?\"\n \"Yay! Awesome! Thanks!\" Fleetfire cried out happily, almost hopping up and down on her four feet like an exuberant kitten. \"Miss Windsong says I have talent! Honest! She says with some lessons, I can come to play as good as her!\"\n \"Really, now?\"\n \"Yes, I did say that, and I meant it too.\"\nThey looked up to see the pale silvergray-furred Mry Windsong having stepped up to them. Sunfire smiled.\n \"So it wouldn't be a bad idea to get the kiddo a lute of her own?\"\n \"No, that wouldn't be a bad idea at all,\" Windsong smiled. \"She really does have talent. It's the blindness, I wager. She can't see what her fingers are doing on the frets and the strings, so she has to do it all by touch and hearing, and those are still some of the best teachers. So yes, I think getting her a lute would be a good investment. I know they can be a bit expensive, but it'll be worth it.\" She chuckled lightly. \"I'd gladly give her my old one, but I'm afraid it has a crack in it.\"\n \"So?\" Sunfire said with a cheerful grin. \"The fairest maiden of Viola Town has a crack in her, and there's sure no complaints there.\"\nWindsong and Healsong laughed, while Sunfire shifted her four feet at a shove she got from her giggling sister.\n \"And you call [i]me[/i] a weirdo.\"\n \"Sure, that's because you [i]are[/i] one, sis,\" Sunfire chuckled.\n\nLucinia also giggled, although she didn't get the joke Sunfire had made. Her ears were attentively perked to the conversation between Sunfire and Windsong, her big blue eyes growing a thoughtful sparkle as she was looking from one to the other, until she looked around when another voice cheerily called out to her.\n \"Hello genius!\" It was Cloudchaser. \"Are you coming to the inn too?\"\n \"Yes, I think?\" Lucinia said, waving at the white Mry with the grayish-blue pattern. She looked up at Sunfire, who nodded, then back at Cloudchaser with a nod of her own. \"Yes, I come too.\"\n \"Good! All the others are coming too! We'll play Beads! You ever played that before?\"\n \"No?\"\n \"Oh. Well, no worries! We'll teach you! It's easy, and it's fun too! I bet you'll beat us all!\"\n\nLucinia smiled and looked up at Sunfire again, who sent a smile back down at her and wrapped one arm around the Kattin's shoulders, her other arm resting around Fleetfire's shoulders. Together with all the others, they walked off the town square, past the bakery and into the inn, of which the sign reading \"The Last Leg Inn\" was creaking in the ever increasing wind. Already, in the streets and along the square, other Mry were busy fixing shutters before the windows of their shops and cottages.\n\nThe inside of the inn became quickly crowded with about half the town suddenly coming in there. Oil lamps were burning all over the place; fixed from sconces on the walls, set on the tables, and three large circles of them fixed to wood wagon wheels hanging from the ceiling by thick chains. It gave a very cozy atmosphere. Behind the bar, the innkeeper, a large female Mry with a burly build and a strangely inverted leopard-like fur - yellow rosettes in black fur, which explained her name of Goldstar - shook her head cheerfully at the large group of Mry crowding into her establishment.\n \"Can I take three guesses what y'all are coming in for? Betcha it ain't my sparkling presence, now is it?\"\n \"Well, that too,\" Sunfire chuckled. \"But you're right, we did mostly come to listen to the box. Have they said anything about the weather yet?\"\n \"Yes, you just missed it,\" Goldstar nodded. \"They'll make another announcement, they said, though, so you'll just have to wait for...\" She dug a gold pocket watch from a pocket of her vest, opened it and glanced at it. \"...oh, about an hour or so.\"\n \"Oh. Well, good, we'll just have a drink in the meantime, then,\" Sunfire said.\n\nShe looked around to ask Lucinia if she wanted something to drink, but the young Kattin was already whisked off to a corner of the inn by Fleetfire and Cloudchaser, joining the other young Mry who were laying down on the floor on the chest and tummy of their feral lower bodies, dividing a number of colorful little glass beads they had taken from a box in one of the inn's open cabinets. Lucinia was listening attentively as the others explained the game of Beads to her, nodding in understanding of the rules. Sunfire smiled and gave a light shrug, sitting down around a table with Skyfire, a silver-white Mry with a Siamese patterning of very pale light gray named Moonchaser, who was Cloudchaser's older sister, and a black Mry whose fur had a faint dark green sheen over it, named Forestshade, Nightshade's mother.\n\nGoldstar was filling the orders for drinks, helped by Silverstar, a somewhat smaller Mry who had a similar fur pattern, black with light rosettes, though the rosettes in her fur were of a grayish white color. She was probably Goldstar's sister, although she could also be her daughter, since the double pair of breasts on Goldstar's anthro upper chest denoted she had born young once. Also helping out were Mountain Glory and her younger sister Morning Glory, the Mry with the spectacularly purple fur and hair, both of them wearing an apron under their vest that showed they worked at the inn.\n\nThe air was filled with cheerful talk and laughter, and before too long, a shout rang out that was quickly met with other shouts of approval.\n \"Windsong, can you sing us a song?\"\n\nRising up from the large cushion on the floor that were the regular seats around each table, the pale silvergray-furred Mry unstrapped her lute and checked the strings while she stepped up to a small podium at one end of the room.\n \"By all means. And since we are all here having a drink while we wait for storm news on the box, I shall sing you a drinking song,\" Windsong announced with a cheerful wink.\n\nShe sat down on her feral haunches, curled her tail around her front feet, checked the strings of her lute again, re-tuned one, and started drawing a merry tune from the instrument, her clear, obviously trained voice following shortly after.\n \"[i]The menfolk all tell me I'm false to my lass,\nThat I quit my poor Chloe and stick to my glass;\nBut to you gals of reason, my reasons I'll own,\nAnd if you don't like them, why let them alone.\n\nAlthough I have left her, there truth I'll declare;\nI believe she was good, and I'm sure she was fair;\nbut goodness and charms in a bumper I see,\nThat make it as good and as charming as she.\n\nMy Chloe had dimples and smiles I must own;\nBut, though, she could smile, yet in truth she could frown,\nBut tell me, ye lovers of liquor divine,\nDid you e'er see a frown in a bumper of wine?\n\nHer lilies and roses were just in their prime;\nYet lilies and roses are conquer'd by time;\nbut in wine, from its age, such a benefit flows,\nThat we like it the better the older it grows.\n\nThey tell me, my love would in time have been cloy'd;\nAnd that beauty's insipid when once 'tis enjoy'd;\nBut in wine I both time and enjoyment defy;\nFor the longer I drink the more thirsty am I.\n\nLet murders, and battles, and history prove\nThe mischiefs that wait upon rivals in love;\nBut in drinking, that heaven, no rival contends,\nFor the more we love liquor, the more we are friends.\n\nShe, too, might have poison'd the joy of my life,\nWith nurses, and babies, and squalling and strife:\nBut my wine neither nurses nor babies can bring;\nAnd a big-bellied bottle is a mighty good thing.\n\nWe shorten our days when with love we engage,\nIt brings on diseases and hastens old age;\nBut wine from grim death can its votaries save,\nAnd keep out t'other leg, when there's one in the grave.\n\nPerhaps, like her sex, ever false to their word,\nShe had left me, to get an estate or a lord;\nBut my bumper (regarding nor title or pelf)\nWill stand by me when I can't stand by myself.\n\nThen let my dear Chloe no longer complain;\nshe's rid of her lover, and I of my pain:\nFor in wine, mighty wine, many comforts I spy;\nShould you doubt what I say, take a bumper and try![/i]\"\n\nLaughter and cheerful shouts rang out when Windsong finished her song, glasses and goblets were raised and clinked together. The younger Mry in the corner, who had stopped their game of Beads to listen to the bard's song, also giggled.\n \"She never sings songs like that in the school!\" Fleetfire chortled.\n \"Gee, I wonder why,\" Sunfire sniggered. She perked an ear when Goldstar turned a dial on the wood box that was standing on a shelf above the bar, and held up a paw. \"Oh, shush now, here comes the news. Goldstar, can you turn it up a bit, if you please?\"\nThe gold-speckled Mry obliged, turning another dial which made the voice that sounded from the box come out a bit louder.\n \"...report from Minna One,\" the voice was just saying. \"You have probably already felt it, and it is official now; a storm watch is in effect along the east and south coastlines of all of Minnaluna as a heavy storm is approaching fast, having formed as a tropical storm in the south-eastern regions of the Subterra Ocean and converged with a front drifting past the south-western region of Kotyonok Island. It is expected that the storm will graze the coastline of Minnaluna at the south side, bringing severe thunderstorms and rain, possibly hail, and winds of seventy to ninety miles per hour, gusting to one-ten. After passing the Minnaluna coastline, the storm is expected to then pass over the south end of Nezinoma Salis, with any luck staying just south of the mountains and cliffs and veering off to sea without doing any damage. Nevertheless, warnings are issued for the towns of Merian, Fandago and Klifina in Minnaluna, and Oceanside and Mountain City in Nezinoma Salis, which are expected to receive the brunt of the storm. Moving at an estimated five to seven miles per hour, the storm is furthermore expected to pass by the Minnaluna coastline around early evening and Nezinoma Salis at mid-evening, probably leaving the area around early morning tomorrow.\"\n\nGoldstar turned the dial on the box to lower the volume back down, and murmurs rose up all over the room from the assorted Mry who began to talk among themselves.\n \"Well,\" Sunfire said to her sister, \"sounds like the eastern Sand Shore is our best pick for tomorrow, sis, and perhaps the small stretch near the southern cliffs, past Oceanside, although I think the people from Oceanside will be going there already.\"\n \"Yes, there may be a ship wrecked near the reefs west of here, but with the wind coming from the south-east, anything that's swept off will float away from the shore there instead of towards it,\" Skyfire nodded. She ran a paw over her whiskers. \"Tricky situation; on the one hand I hope the wind will be more from the east so the storm passes by on the sea side of the cliffs behind Mountain City, but on the other hand I hope the wind will be a bit more from the south so anything that washes up will be pushed towards the Sand Shores, however that would also bring the storm to the inside of the mountains and right over the land.\"\n \"Yes, well, still not far enough inland for us to worry about,\" Sunfire pointed out. \"If the storm comes along the inside of the mountains on a south-easterly wind, it'll pass right over Mountain City and whisk out to sea again somewhere past Black Rock Point, just over or perhaps just inside of Cluster Reef.\"\n \"True, true,\" Skyfire nodded in agreement. She had to raise her voice more and more to be heard over the din of the wind. \"Well, I think we'd better go home now and just to be sure, put the shutters over the windows, right?\"\n\nSunfire nodded. Many of the others were already leaving as well to do the same. On the way home, Fleetfire babbled happily about the game they had played, mostly to distract Lucinia who was now visibly nervous as the storm was clearly moving in. The trees creaked and groaned in the rising wind, the sky was leaden in color, repeatedly shot through with purplish blue lightning bolts which were followed shortly after by rolling claps of thunder. Skyfire however looked up at the magnificent spectacle with sparkling eyes; this was the savage power of nature displayed in the wild pattern of her fur, the very power of nature from which she took her name.\n\nFortunately they reached their house rather quickly, taking a shortcut between the rows of cottages and the small street past the side of the hotel. Fleetfire took Lucinia inside and cuddled the nervous Kattin on the rugs before the fireplace, talking of the things they'd done in school and telling stories and jokes to make Lucinia feel more at ease while Sunfire and Skyfire went around the house, placing heavy wood shutters before the windows and securing them. When the last one was in place, they found their way inside as well and lit several oil lamps to dispel the darkness, and so they wouldn't see the lightning too clearly.\n\nIt was impossible to tell the time; with the shutters in place and the sky so dark, it could have been night as easily as day. Faster and faster lightning and thunder followed each other as the storm drew closer. Skyfire read stories from books out loud, Sunfire sang songs, all the while cuddling close together with Fleetfire and a trembling Lucinia. As the storm reached the Nezinoma land, it brought rain as well; thick sheets of rain whipped by the wind, clattering against the sides and the roof of the house, eventually making such a racket that neither Skyfire's voice nor Sunfire's singing could be heard over the noise anymore. Refraining from speaking, the four of them just huddled even closer in the nest of pillows and cushions on the thick, soft rug before the fireplace, holding one another close.\n\nHours passed like this. The room grew slightly dimmer as one or two of the oil lamps burned out, but neither of the adult Mry rose up to refill them, staying on the rug with their younger sisters to comfort them. Lucinia had almost buried herself under all the pillows, her face pressed firmly into Skyfire's tummy and her arms wrapped tightly around the dark gray Mry's waist where her upper anthro torso met her lower feral body, trembling and shivering in the embrace of Skyfire's arms and forepaws.\n\nSlowly, very gradually they could feel and hear the storm passing. The rain still all but bombarded the house, but there were longer pauses between the thunderclaps, the flashes of lightning grew weaker. The wind seemed to die down a little as well, making conversation possible once more.\n \"It was more severe than I'd expected, from what I heard on the box,\" said Sunfire.\n \"Wind must've been more south than we thought,\" Skyfire nodded. \"Sounds like the storm came along the insides of the mountains, alright. Can you imagine how bad it must have been in Oceanside and Mountain City?\"\n \"Yeah, they probably got it right over their heads. I wouldn't be surprised if we'd see some damage when we go to the east Sand Shore tomorrow, and probably in Mountain City as well when we visit the market the day after aftermorrow.\"\n\nSkyfire nodded again, looking down at Lucinia pressed up closely against her body. She softly rubbed the bases of the trembling Kattin's large, pointy ears which were flattened flush against her head, while Fleetfire rubbed Lucinia's back and nuzzled her neck.\n \"You okay there, Lucie? It's alright, it's passing over, you don't have to be afraid.\"\n \"C'mere and drink some, sweetie,\" Skyfire purred in a calming tone, lifting Lucinia up a bit towards her dual bosom. \"It'll do you good.\"\n\nWithout opening her tightly closed eyes or even loosening her embrace around Skyfire's upper torso, Lucinia crawled upwards a bit, now burying her face into the cleavage of Skyfire's double pair of breasts while she closed her lips over one of the dark purple nipples, suckling with a soft, chirping sound. The process and the taste of the dark gray Mry's rich, warm milk soothed her and relaxed her somewhat, enough to stop shivering. Fleetfire crawled up against her, still rubbing Lucinia's back and softly nuzzling her neck with calm purring tones as she murmured gently into one of Lucinia's flattened ears. Sunfire smiled and softly stroked the slender feline's curly hair while she rose up and extinguished the oil lamps, save for two of them which she merely turned down low.\n \"We might as well try and get some sleep,\" she said calmly, checking her silver pocket watch which she had taken from her vest that was draped over a low table. \"It's a few hours past dinner time, and it looks like we will have a very busy day tomorrow.\"\n \"You're right,\" Skyfire agreed, hugging Fleetfire and the still slowly suckling Lucinia against her upper chest. \"Handy to know that in advance, too. Goddesses bless Goldstar for bringing that strange box.\"\n\nSunfire nodded her assent while she lay back down with her sisters, curling herself around Skyfire's front to let Fleetfire and Lucinia snuggle backfirst against her feral chest and tummy. With the thunder now only an occasional rumble in the distance and the rain no more than a calmly pattering rhythm on the roof and against the shuttered windows, sleep came soon for all four of them after a long day filled with strong experiences.", "writing_bbcode_parsed": "While the day started calmly, it also started a little ominously. Even before sunrise, it could already be heard; a low, occasional rumbling in the distance. It was vague, coming and going, and always around the same strength; not getting closer, not moving away. When the sun finally did rise, it was clear that the animals felt it too; Jorbles were quieter than usual, Rukus were not heard at all. And the sky was not blue; it was tinged with grayish clouds, outlined in a flat yellow from the sun behind them.

At breakfast, Lucinia was surprised that her Mry adopters and step-sisters did not seem to notice it, or at least didn't comment on it.
     "Sky Fire?" she asked when the wildly patterned dark grey Mry handed her a slice of bread. "What that sound?"
Skyfire perked and swiveled an ear.
     "That rumbling, you mean? Nothing special, sweetie, it just means the goddesses are having a bowling tournament again."
Lucinia blinked in even more surprise, Fleetfire snorted a giggle, and Sunfire made a funny face at her sister.
     "Don't be such a weirdo, sis," she admonished with a good-natured grunt, turning to Lucinia. "It's just thunder, kiddo. It means a storm is brewing somewhere over the ocean. It's probably very far off yet; sometimes we hear rumbling for a day, two days, before we actually get a storm."
     "Oh," Lucinia said.
She fell silent while she nibbled on her slice of bread covered with butter and a few slices of sausage. Skyfire smiled and softly stroked the Kattin's hair after filling their milk mugs.
     "Nervous, sweetie?"
Lucinia looked up and silently nodded a little bit.
     "Storm on sea bad. I on ship, storm come, break ship, I almost drown."
     "Awww, you don't have to worry about a thing, sweetie," Skyfire soothed. "For one thing, you're not on a ship out at sea, you're safe here with us. It's true, the storms of New Season can get quite violent at times, but we're quite deep inland here, and we're protected by the mountains around us, so you don't have to be afraid of anything." She softly stroked Lucinia's ears. "Or are you afraid of thunder and lightning?"
Lucinia nodded a little bit again.
     "We not see in my land. I only see once, on ship. And... that end bad."
     "I can understand that, sweetie," Skyfire smiled softly. "But like I said, you don't have to be afraid of a thing."
     "No, we'll be with you all the time!" Fleetfire said. "We'll totally hug you and cuddle you and keep you safe between us, Lucie, promise!"
     "And besides, storms often bring us lots of good things," Skyfire smiled again. "Rain for the fields and the plants, and lots of handy and valuable things that wash up on the Sand Shores. And look! It also brought us the most precious thing we ever found; you!"

Lucinia smiled a little bit and leaned over to the side, softly nuzzling against Skyfire's side. The large storm-gray Mry smiled and softly hugged Lucinia with one arm, leaning down her head a bit to press a soft kiss between the Kattin's large pointy ears. Across the table, Sunfire emptied her mug, shaking her head a bit.
     "Nevertheless, I think it would be a good idea if we go to the inn after we pick Fleetfire up at school and listen to the box. Minnaluna will have one of their fly-crafts out to check for the storm, and you can be certain they will say something about it on the box."
Again a look of surprise slid over Lucinia's face at Sunfire's words. She looked up questionably.
     "What box?"
     "Ohh, that's something really special!" Fleetfire piped up with her mouth full before either of her two older sisters could react. "Goldstar, of the inn, has this awesome weird box! She got it on the market in Oceanside; it comes from Minnaluna, you know. It's a very special box!" She swallowed her bite of breakfast. "It has knobs and stuff, and a light inside, and there's music coming out of it! And also announcements, we can hear when the people of Minnaluna have found out about a big storm that's coming or something; they tell the other people about it on that box, and we can hear it over here too. Of course, we always already know when a storm is coming, because we can feel it and smell it, but those people in Minnaluna can go out over the ocean and see it, and they can say how long it will take before the storm will reach land, or how big of a storm it's gonna be."
     "That's right," Skyfire said, softly chuckling over Fleetfire's enthused answer. "When we notice a storm is coming, for instance from that rumbling we keep hearing right now, we often visit the inn so we can listen to the box and know exactly when the storm will reach land, if it will even reach land, and if it's gonna be a big storm or not. For most of us, that's just handy to know in case we need to put shutters before the windows of our houses for instance, but for Sunfire and me it's even more important, because it will give us information about which of the Sand Shores will be most likely to have lots of stuff washed up on them."
     "You look for stuff on shore much?" Lucinia asked.
     "Yeah, it's kind of our work," Sunfire nodded. "We make our living that way. First we used to dive for pearls and valuable items from wrecked ships, but for a while now we mostly search the Sand Shores for items of value after storms."
     "Ohh," Lucinia said, nodding in understanding. She smiled a bit again. "I hope is storm, so you find lots."
Sunfire chuckled, and Skyfire let out a soft giggle.
     "That's sweet of you." She started collecting the plates. "Are you done? It's time for the communal bath."

Lucinia nodded, drinking the last of her milk and handing Skyfire the empty mug as well. After collecting all the dishes, the storm-gray Mry took the small bag with pieces of soap and brushes, holding Lucinia by a paw as they walked down the street to the Warm Lake. Other Mry greeted them cheerfully, chatting calmly while they walked to the large lake and waterfall at the south side of town. One of the main topics of conversation was, of course, the distant rumbling in the air, indicating a brewing storm.

At the Warm Lake, Skyfire left Lucinia to be taken by Fleetfire to the small group of the flame-striped Mry's friends. The other young Mry greeted the two of them happily, talking amongst each other while they washed themselves and one another, giggling and splashing up water. Lucinia stayed closer to Fleetfire this time, though. The yellow and orange Mry could feel her adopted step-sister trembling a bit while she helped Lucinia with her washing. The others noticed it as well.
     "Are you not feeling well, Lucinia?" Nightshade, the small, fully black Mry asked as she washed Lucinia's slowly twitching tail.
     "No, I okay," Lucinia said. "Is just, rumble in sky. Make nervous."
     "Aww, is the baby freak scared of a little distant thunder?" the sneering voice of the green-furred Mry Morningdew sounded from behind them.

Fleetfire turned her head with a growl, but before anyone could say anything Morningdew was shoved aside, so roughly she lost her footing and toppled over sideways, submerging in the water of the lake. When she came back up, coughing and spluttering, she shook herself and sent a scowl in the direction of Cloudchaser, the slender white Mry with the grayish blue markings similar to Lucinia's markings, who was stepping closer with a head full of foam.
     "Hey, can't you watch where you're going, you idiot?"
     "Sorry, got soap in my eyes," Cloudchaser said dryly. She took Lucinia's paw. "Can you help me rinse the soap from my hair, Lucinia?"
     "Yes," Lucinia said, sending a sideways glance at Morningdew. "Is no good get soap in your eyes. You walk into blockheads, maybe hurt yourself. I help you, Cloud Chaser."

All the other younger Mry burst into snorts and giggles at Lucinia's offhand remark. Morningdew scowled again, but since Lucinia simply turned her back and waded towards the waterfall together with Cloudchaser and Fleetfire, there was nothing the green-furred Mry could do but look angry.
     "That was a good one, Lucie," Fleetfire giggled. "Set that numbskull in her place, she deserves no less."
     "Yes. She not nice," Lucinia said with a smirk.
     "No, she's a little bitch alright," Cloudchaser said, leaning her head back under the waterfall with her eyes closed. "Always making trouble, and it seems like she's chosen you to pick on because you're so different than us."
     "Yeah, and because she knows we're not easily impressed anymore," Fleetfire added, washing Lucinia's back while Lucinia helped rinsing Cloudchaser's hair. "But you really handled her very well, Lucie."
     "You certainly did at that," Cloudchaser giggled softly, opening her eyes again. "And don't worry about her too much, we'll protect you from her a bit when you come into school." She leaned forward to drape her hair over her shoulder and wrung it a bit. "Are you coming into our school, by the way?"
Lucinia nodded.
     "I go school at new Season. But other class first, with Fleet Fire, to learn Mry things. I learn other things on school in my land."
     "That makes sense," Cloudchaser smiled. "The lessons we get wouldn't make much sense to you if you haven't learned about basic history and culture and such first. But I suppose you did learn how to read and write and all?"
     "Yes, I learn read and write," Lucinia nodded. "Two languages, too."
     "Two languages?" Cloudchaser said, looking up. "Wow, that's impressive! What languages did you learn?"
     "Own language, of Saloria," Lucinia smiled, looking a bit proud. "And village I live, is two day travel from sea. We get lot sea folk in village, we learn language of sea folk too. Is same your language. Fleet Fire give me old school books, I read, is same language."
     "That's really awesome," Cloudchaser said. "Sounds like you're quite ahead of us in some things already."
     "Yeah she is!" Fleetfire giggled. "You should see her do math! She's amazing at math! Much better than I am!"
Cloudchaser giggled and teasingly poked Fleetfire's tummy.
     "Well, that's no wonder, you suck at math, Fleetfire. Always have. Even before you went blind, you couldn't see the outcome of two plus two even if it stared you in the face," she teased.
Fleetfire laughed and swished her tail, splashing water into Cloudchaser's face.
     "Oh, like you're such a genius! It took you six Seasons to master A is for Apple, you dimwit!" She turned to Lucinia and gave the Kattin a hug. "Here, you show her how much smarter you are, Lucie! Do, uhm... sixteen times thirty-one, divided by eight, plus fifty-nine!"
     "One hundred twenty-one," Lucinia said after a moment's thought with her eyes half closed.
     "Wow... geepers!" Cloudchaser said, looking quite perplexed. "It took you, what, three seconds to think of that? Good goddess, you are smart! Can I ask you a sum too?"
     "I thank you," Lucinia smiled. "Yes, you ask sum, I say outcome."
     "Okay, uhm, let's see..." Cloudchaser looked up along the waterfall, running a paw over her whiskers. "A hundred and sixty-three times nineteen, plus... uhm... seventy-six, divided by... eleven, minus four."
Lucinia thought for five seconds this time, squeezing her eyes while she soundlessly moved her lips, counting in herself.
     "Two hundred and eighty-four, and forty-fifths of one hundred."
     "Golly!" Cloudchaser exclaimed, stunned. "You're not just smart, you're a frikking genius, Lucinia! I can't believe it! How old are you again?"
     "I forty-two Seasons," Lucinia said, beaming proudly.
     "Damn!" Cloudchaser shook her head. "Only forty-two? I'm fifty-five Seasons old, and I sure can't do math that fast! I even need an abacus for sums like the one I asked you just now, I definitely can't do them right from the top of my head!"
     "That's my sis!" Fleetfire giggled. "She's gonna grow up to be the genius leader over all of Nezinoma!"
     "Hee! No, I not be leader, is silly," Lucinia giggled, shaking her head.
     "Not as silly as you might think," Cloudchaser smiled. "You're really amazingly clever, Lucinia! I bet you could indeed grow up to be someone real important."
     "Aw, no," the little Kattin blushed.

Fleetfire and Cloudchaser both giggled softly at Lucinia's shy response, although the Siamese-patterned Mry could see Lucinia was secretly glowing proudly at the praise they were giving her. They talked a bit more about the different things Lucinia had learned in the school she'd gone to in Saloria, and the things they were taught in the school of Viola Town, relaxing under the splashing, pleasantly warm water of the waterfall, until Sunfire showed up to tell them it was time to dry off and go home to get Fleetfire's things for school.

Only a half hour later, at the school, Lucinia was again praised like mad to Windsong and Dreamweaver by a cheerful Cloudcatcher who hailed the small Kattin like some kind of hero, causing Lucinia to blush so much it almost showed through the deep dark brown of her facial fur.
     "Bye Lucinia! See you in our class next Season! Can't wait for you to embarrass us all like heck with your super math!" the Siamese-patterned Mry cheerfully called out as a parting remark when Windsong brought them into the school.
Skyfire giggled softly as she and Sunfire turned to walk back home with Lucinia.
     "What was that all about?"
     "Cloud Chaser... she impressed I fast with math," Lucinia said, still blushing a bit. "At wash, she ask sum, I say answer, very fast." She shrugged a bit. "I know numbers. I not know why that special?"
     "I guess it's because you're still rather young, kiddo," Sunfire smiled. "And math isn't a very strong point with us Mry; it takes several tens of Seasons for us to get good with numbers. Our expertise is more in nature; biology, potionry, herbology, those kinds of things, you know?"
     "Oh," Lucinia said simply, not really knowing anything else to reply.

Sunfire grinned lightly and gently ruffled the slender feline's curly brown hair with a paw as they walked home. They spent the day relatively calmly; Skyfire cleaned the house a bit before going to work on making some more clothes for Lucinia, who helped Sunfire in the golden-furred Mry's vegetable garden, pulling weeds and tending to the young plants. When they were done, Sunfire took Lucinia out to the back of the garden, where she had a few targets set up. Sunfire was a good archer, and she had taken it upon herself to teach Lucinia the finer points of handling a bow and arrow. Lucinia was still practicing with the wood bow she had gotten at the metal shop, even though the silver one that had been made for her was finished as well. She learned fast, showing a talent for straight aim and even a few trick shots already that Sunfire taught her. When complimented on her fast progress, Lucinia blushed and just shrugged it off by saying she had to learn how to aim very well with throwing rocks at deadly snakes and other animals in her desert home land, since it was simply a matter of life and death there.

All through the day, the rumbling in the sky never ceased. In fact, it seemed to be coming closer. It was felt in the atmosphere; birds were silent, the sky was a deep gray-blue tint instead of its usual brilliant blue, and the warmth was all but stifling in its dampness. Over the trees crowning the summit of the mountains around Viola Valley, puffy clouds with a sickly yellow glow to them could be seen sailing through the sky.

Sunfire consulted a silver pocket watch she fished up from a front pocket of her vest after she had collected the arrows from one of the targets in the back of the garden.
     "Right, let's call it a day for now, kiddo," she smiled. "School's going out in a little while, we'd better walk over there so we can pick up Fleetfire." She handed the small arrows back to Lucinia and stuck the longer ones in her own quiver. "You're doing very well. In a day or two, we'll practice with moving targets, okay?"
     "Yes. Sound fun," Lucinia smiled, shouldering her bow. "What kind targets? Like animals?"
     "That comes later," Sunfire chuckled. "There's a difference between target practice and actual hunting, you know. For hunting, you need to know a lot of extra techniques only to already even get close to your prey without scaring it off. But for practice, we'll use balls. I have a bunch of small balls made of twine and cloth for just that."
     "Oh." Lucinia tilted her head a bit. "How they move?"
Sunfire chuckled again.
     "Simple, kiddo. I toss them, simple as that. I throw the balls into the air at random, you shoot them."
     "Oh. Of course. That logical," Lucinia nodded. She looked around when Skyfire stuck her head out a window.
     "You done out there? It's time to walk to the school and pick up Fleetfire."
     "Yes, I was just telling Lu we should get going," Sunfire said, wrapping an arm around Lucinia's shoulders, walking into the house with her.

Mere moments later, the three of them were on their way down the street towards the town square. The rumbling in the sky was louder now, causing Sunfire to nod her head upwards.
     "The goddesses are sure making a lot of racket with their bowling tournament, aren't they?"
     "You're a weirdo," was Sunfire's dry response.

Lucinia giggled softly, although she kept pressing herself against Skyfire's side, every now and the nervously looking up at the sky which was turning a deeper shade of gray. It was getting close to the hue of Skyfire's fur already. The rumbling was less distant, and more frequent. Sure enough, every now and then even a momentary lightening up of the sky could be seen as a far-away bolt of lightning crossed between the clouds. Still, though Lucinia was visibly nervous, she kept bravely walking along with her two large step-sisters and adopters, talking a bit and sometimes giggling when the two Mry teased each other in their good-natured manner.

At the school, they met up with a number of the other adult Mry who were there to pick up their younger sisters or daughters. The talk was, again, about the weather, with many a confirmation that most of them would be going to the inn so they could listen to 'the box'. For a moment, though, the talk wavered when the school went out and the group of adult Mry was joined by the group of young Mry coming out of the school building, chatting and giggling and greeting their older sisters or mothers. Their voices were louder than usual, partly of pent-up excitement that came with the building of the storm, partly simply to be heard since the wind picked up, blowing loudly through the trees on the mountains and ruffling fur and hair.

Fleetfire had happiness beaming off her face as she was walked over to where Sunfire, Skyfire and Lucinia were waiting for her by Healsong.
     "I take it you had a great day at school, kiddo?" Sunfire grinned. "Your smile is practically too wide for your face."
     "Yeah!" Fleetfire said. "Miss Windsong gave me lute lessons! She let me practice a bit on her lute! It was so totally awesome! I want one too!" She grabbed Sunfire's arm with both her paws, lifting her head to send a begging expression up to Sunfire's face. "Can I have a lute too, Sunfire? Please please please?"
     "We'll see what we can do, kiddo," Sunfire promised with a grin. "There's definitely a big storm coming, so we'll be most likely finding lots of good stuff on the Sand Shores come morrow, and it's market day in Mountain City at the end of this quart-cycle, so we'll be going there with the things we'll find tomorrow and see if we can find a nice instrument for you, okay? What does Windsong say about it?"
     "Yay! Awesome! Thanks!" Fleetfire cried out happily, almost hopping up and down on her four feet like an exuberant kitten. "Miss Windsong says I have talent! Honest! She says with some lessons, I can come to play as good as her!"
     "Really, now?"
     "Yes, I did say that, and I meant it too."
They looked up to see the pale silvergray-furred Mry Windsong having stepped up to them. Sunfire smiled.
     "So it wouldn't be a bad idea to get the kiddo a lute of her own?"
     "No, that wouldn't be a bad idea at all," Windsong smiled. "She really does have talent. It's the blindness, I wager. She can't see what her fingers are doing on the frets and the strings, so she has to do it all by touch and hearing, and those are still some of the best teachers. So yes, I think getting her a lute would be a good investment. I know they can be a bit expensive, but it'll be worth it." She chuckled lightly. "I'd gladly give her my old one, but I'm afraid it has a crack in it."
     "So?" Sunfire said with a cheerful grin. "The fairest maiden of Viola Town has a crack in her, and there's sure no complaints there."
Windsong and Healsong laughed, while Sunfire shifted her four feet at a shove she got from her giggling sister.
     "And you call me a weirdo."
     "Sure, that's because you are one, sis," Sunfire chuckled.

Lucinia also giggled, although she didn't get the joke Sunfire had made. Her ears were attentively perked to the conversation between Sunfire and Windsong, her big blue eyes growing a thoughtful sparkle as she was looking from one to the other, until she looked around when another voice cheerily called out to her.
     "Hello genius!" It was Cloudchaser. "Are you coming to the inn too?"
     "Yes, I think?" Lucinia said, waving at the white Mry with the grayish-blue pattern. She looked up at Sunfire, who nodded, then back at Cloudchaser with a nod of her own. "Yes, I come too."
     "Good! All the others are coming too! We'll play Beads! You ever played that before?"
     "No?"
     "Oh. Well, no worries! We'll teach you! It's easy, and it's fun too! I bet you'll beat us all!"

Lucinia smiled and looked up at Sunfire again, who sent a smile back down at her and wrapped one arm around the Kattin's shoulders, her other arm resting around Fleetfire's shoulders. Together with all the others, they walked off the town square, past the bakery and into the inn, of which the sign reading "The Last Leg Inn" was creaking in the ever increasing wind. Already, in the streets and along the square, other Mry were busy fixing shutters before the windows of their shops and cottages.

The inside of the inn became quickly crowded with about half the town suddenly coming in there. Oil lamps were burning all over the place; fixed from sconces on the walls, set on the tables, and three large circles of them fixed to wood wagon wheels hanging from the ceiling by thick chains. It gave a very cozy atmosphere. Behind the bar, the innkeeper, a large female Mry with a burly build and a strangely inverted leopard-like fur - yellow rosettes in black fur, which explained her name of Goldstar - shook her head cheerfully at the large group of Mry crowding into her establishment.
     "Can I take three guesses what y'all are coming in for? Betcha it ain't my sparkling presence, now is it?"
     "Well, that too," Sunfire chuckled. "But you're right, we did mostly come to listen to the box. Have they said anything about the weather yet?"
     "Yes, you just missed it," Goldstar nodded. "They'll make another announcement, they said, though, so you'll just have to wait for..." She dug a gold pocket watch from a pocket of her vest, opened it and glanced at it. "...oh, about an hour or so."
     "Oh. Well, good, we'll just have a drink in the meantime, then," Sunfire said.

She looked around to ask Lucinia if she wanted something to drink, but the young Kattin was already whisked off to a corner of the inn by Fleetfire and Cloudchaser, joining the other young Mry who were laying down on the floor on the chest and tummy of their feral lower bodies, dividing a number of colorful little glass beads they had taken from a box in one of the inn's open cabinets. Lucinia was listening attentively as the others explained the game of Beads to her, nodding in understanding of the rules. Sunfire smiled and gave a light shrug, sitting down around a table with Skyfire, a silver-white Mry with a Siamese patterning of very pale light gray named Moonchaser, who was Cloudchaser's older sister, and a black Mry whose fur had a faint dark green sheen over it, named Forestshade, Nightshade's mother.

Goldstar was filling the orders for drinks, helped by Silverstar, a somewhat smaller Mry who had a similar fur pattern, black with light rosettes, though the rosettes in her fur were of a grayish white color. She was probably Goldstar's sister, although she could also be her daughter, since the double pair of breasts on Goldstar's anthro upper chest denoted she had born young once. Also helping out were Mountain Glory and her younger sister Morning Glory, the Mry with the spectacularly purple fur and hair, both of them wearing an apron under their vest that showed they worked at the inn.

The air was filled with cheerful talk and laughter, and before too long, a shout rang out that was quickly met with other shouts of approval.
     "Windsong, can you sing us a song?"

Rising up from the large cushion on the floor that were the regular seats around each table, the pale silvergray-furred Mry unstrapped her lute and checked the strings while she stepped up to a small podium at one end of the room.
     "By all means. And since we are all here having a drink while we wait for storm news on the box, I shall sing you a drinking song," Windsong announced with a cheerful wink.

She sat down on her feral haunches, curled her tail around her front feet, checked the strings of her lute again, re-tuned one, and started drawing a merry tune from the instrument, her clear, obviously trained voice following shortly after.
     "The menfolk all tell me I'm false to my lass,
That I quit my poor Chloe and stick to my glass;
But to you gals of reason, my reasons I'll own,
And if you don't like them, why let them alone.

Although I have left her, there truth I'll declare;
I believe she was good, and I'm sure she was fair;
but goodness and charms in a bumper I see,
That make it as good and as charming as she.

My Chloe had dimples and smiles I must own;
But, though, she could smile, yet in truth she could frown,
But tell me, ye lovers of liquor divine,
Did you e'er see a frown in a bumper of wine?

Her lilies and roses were just in their prime;
Yet lilies and roses are conquer'd by time;
but in wine, from its age, such a benefit flows,
That we like it the better the older it grows.

They tell me, my love would in time have been cloy'd;
And that beauty's insipid when once 'tis enjoy'd;
But in wine I both time and enjoyment defy;
For the longer I drink the more thirsty am I.

Let murders, and battles, and history prove
The mischiefs that wait upon rivals in love;
But in drinking, that heaven, no rival contends,
For the more we love liquor, the more we are friends.

She, too, might have poison'd the joy of my life,
With nurses, and babies, and squalling and strife:
But my wine neither nurses nor babies can bring;
And a big-bellied bottle is a mighty good thing.

We shorten our days when with love we engage,
It brings on diseases and hastens old age;
But wine from grim death can its votaries save,
And keep out t'other leg, when there's one in the grave.

Perhaps, like her sex, ever false to their word,
She had left me, to get an estate or a lord;
But my bumper (regarding nor title or pelf)
Will stand by me when I can't stand by myself.

Then let my dear Chloe no longer complain;
she's rid of her lover, and I of my pain:
For in wine, mighty wine, many comforts I spy;
Should you doubt what I say, take a bumper and try!"

Laughter and cheerful shouts rang out when Windsong finished her song, glasses and goblets were raised and clinked together. The younger Mry in the corner, who had stopped their game of Beads to listen to the bard's song, also giggled.
     "She never sings songs like that in the school!" Fleetfire chortled.
     "Gee, I wonder why," Sunfire sniggered. She perked an ear when Goldstar turned a dial on the wood box that was standing on a shelf above the bar, and held up a paw. "Oh, shush now, here comes the news. Goldstar, can you turn it up a bit, if you please?"
The gold-speckled Mry obliged, turning another dial which made the voice that sounded from the box come out a bit louder.
     "...report from Minna One," the voice was just saying. "You have probably already felt it, and it is official now; a storm watch is in effect along the east and south coastlines of all of Minnaluna as a heavy storm is approaching fast, having formed as a tropical storm in the south-eastern regions of the Subterra Ocean and converged with a front drifting past the south-western region of Kotyonok Island. It is expected that the storm will graze the coastline of Minnaluna at the south side, bringing severe thunderstorms and rain, possibly hail, and winds of seventy to ninety miles per hour, gusting to one-ten. After passing the Minnaluna coastline, the storm is expected to then pass over the south end of Nezinoma Salis, with any luck staying just south of the mountains and cliffs and veering off to sea without doing any damage. Nevertheless, warnings are issued for the towns of Merian, Fandago and Klifina in Minnaluna, and Oceanside and Mountain City in Nezinoma Salis, which are expected to receive the brunt of the storm. Moving at an estimated five to seven miles per hour, the storm is furthermore expected to pass by the Minnaluna coastline around early evening and Nezinoma Salis at mid-evening, probably leaving the area around early morning tomorrow."

Goldstar turned the dial on the box to lower the volume back down, and murmurs rose up all over the room from the assorted Mry who began to talk among themselves.
     "Well," Sunfire said to her sister, "sounds like the eastern Sand Shore is our best pick for tomorrow, sis, and perhaps the small stretch near the southern cliffs, past Oceanside, although I think the people from Oceanside will be going there already."
     "Yes, there may be a ship wrecked near the reefs west of here, but with the wind coming from the south-east, anything that's swept off will float away from the shore there instead of towards it," Skyfire nodded. She ran a paw over her whiskers. "Tricky situation; on the one hand I hope the wind will be more from the east so the storm passes by on the sea side of the cliffs behind Mountain City, but on the other hand I hope the wind will be a bit more from the south so anything that washes up will be pushed towards the Sand Shores, however that would also bring the storm to the inside of the mountains and right over the land."
     "Yes, well, still not far enough inland for us to worry about," Sunfire pointed out. "If the storm comes along the inside of the mountains on a south-easterly wind, it'll pass right over Mountain City and whisk out to sea again somewhere past Black Rock Point, just over or perhaps just inside of Cluster Reef."
     "True, true," Skyfire nodded in agreement. She had to raise her voice more and more to be heard over the din of the wind. "Well, I think we'd better go home now and just to be sure, put the shutters over the windows, right?"

Sunfire nodded. Many of the others were already leaving as well to do the same. On the way home, Fleetfire babbled happily about the game they had played, mostly to distract Lucinia who was now visibly nervous as the storm was clearly moving in. The trees creaked and groaned in the rising wind, the sky was leaden in color, repeatedly shot through with purplish blue lightning bolts which were followed shortly after by rolling claps of thunder. Skyfire however looked up at the magnificent spectacle with sparkling eyes; this was the savage power of nature displayed in the wild pattern of her fur, the very power of nature from which she took her name.

Fortunately they reached their house rather quickly, taking a shortcut between the rows of cottages and the small street past the side of the hotel. Fleetfire took Lucinia inside and cuddled the nervous Kattin on the rugs before the fireplace, talking of the things they'd done in school and telling stories and jokes to make Lucinia feel more at ease while Sunfire and Skyfire went around the house, placing heavy wood shutters before the windows and securing them. When the last one was in place, they found their way inside as well and lit several oil lamps to dispel the darkness, and so they wouldn't see the lightning too clearly.

It was impossible to tell the time; with the shutters in place and the sky so dark, it could have been night as easily as day. Faster and faster lightning and thunder followed each other as the storm drew closer. Skyfire read stories from books out loud, Sunfire sang songs, all the while cuddling close together with Fleetfire and a trembling Lucinia. As the storm reached the Nezinoma land, it brought rain as well; thick sheets of rain whipped by the wind, clattering against the sides and the roof of the house, eventually making such a racket that neither Skyfire's voice nor Sunfire's singing could be heard over the noise anymore. Refraining from speaking, the four of them just huddled even closer in the nest of pillows and cushions on the thick, soft rug before the fireplace, holding one another close.

Hours passed like this. The room grew slightly dimmer as one or two of the oil lamps burned out, but neither of the adult Mry rose up to refill them, staying on the rug with their younger sisters to comfort them. Lucinia had almost buried herself under all the pillows, her face pressed firmly into Skyfire's tummy and her arms wrapped tightly around the dark gray Mry's waist where her upper anthro torso met her lower feral body, trembling and shivering in the embrace of Skyfire's arms and forepaws.

Slowly, very gradually they could feel and hear the storm passing. The rain still all but bombarded the house, but there were longer pauses between the thunderclaps, the flashes of lightning grew weaker. The wind seemed to die down a little as well, making conversation possible once more.
     "It was more severe than I'd expected, from what I heard on the box," said Sunfire.
     "Wind must've been more south than we thought," Skyfire nodded. "Sounds like the storm came along the insides of the mountains, alright. Can you imagine how bad it must have been in Oceanside and Mountain City?"
     "Yeah, they probably got it right over their heads. I wouldn't be surprised if we'd see some damage when we go to the east Sand Shore tomorrow, and probably in Mountain City as well when we visit the market the day after aftermorrow."

Skyfire nodded again, looking down at Lucinia pressed up closely against her body. She softly rubbed the bases of the trembling Kattin's large, pointy ears which were flattened flush against her head, while Fleetfire rubbed Lucinia's back and nuzzled her neck.
     "You okay there, Lucie? It's alright, it's passing over, you don't have to be afraid."
     "C'mere and drink some, sweetie," Skyfire purred in a calming tone, lifting Lucinia up a bit towards her dual bosom. "It'll do you good."

Without opening her tightly closed eyes or even loosening her embrace around Skyfire's upper torso, Lucinia crawled upwards a bit, now burying her face into the cleavage of Skyfire's double pair of breasts while she closed her lips over one of the dark purple nipples, suckling with a soft, chirping sound. The process and the taste of the dark gray Mry's rich, warm milk soothed her and relaxed her somewhat, enough to stop shivering. Fleetfire crawled up against her, still rubbing Lucinia's back and softly nuzzling her neck with calm purring tones as she murmured gently into one of Lucinia's flattened ears. Sunfire smiled and softly stroked the slender feline's curly hair while she rose up and extinguished the oil lamps, save for two of them which she merely turned down low.
     "We might as well try and get some sleep," she said calmly, checking her silver pocket watch which she had taken from her vest that was draped over a low table. "It's a few hours past dinner time, and it looks like we will have a very busy day tomorrow."
     "You're right," Skyfire agreed, hugging Fleetfire and the still slowly suckling Lucinia against her upper chest. "Handy to know that in advance, too. Goddesses bless Goldstar for bringing that strange box."

Sunfire nodded her assent while she lay back down with her sisters, curling herself around Skyfire's front to let Fleetfire and Lucinia snuggle backfirst against her feral chest and tummy. With the thunder now only an occasional rumble in the distance and the rain no more than a calmly pattering rhythm on the roof and against the shuttered windows, sleep came soon for all four of them after a long day filled with strong experiences.", "pools_count": 1, "title": "Exploring Nezinoma Salis - Listening to the box", "deleted": "f", "public": "t", "mimetype": "application/msword", "pagecount": "1", "rating_id": "1", "rating_name": "Mature", "ratings": [ { "content_tag_id": "2", "name": "Nudity", "description": "Nonsexual nudity exposing breasts or genitals (must not show arousal)", "rating_id": "1" } ], "submission_type_id": "12", "type_name": "Writing - Document", "guest_block": "t", "friends_only": "f", "comments_count": "0", "views": "44" }