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wispofwillow · 9 months

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Prompt 2: Bark

FFXIV Write 2023

Aerith (the cat) surveyed the length of her domain - well, one of her domains - stretching out her front paws with a yawn and a contented purr. This particular domain consisted of a cramped but neat greenhouse (a sunny glass palace with innumerable shady leaves and places for good jumping, with comfortable cushions just for her, as she saw it), striped through now with late afternoon shadow. And, of course, it also included the tall not-cat within, who knelt now (sadly - knees were less good for kneading and for curling up into balls of napping fluff on top of) by the wood table at the back of the room.

At least the not-cat (though, confusingly, a not-cat with ears and a tail - grey, not like Aerith's bright white, vibrant orange, and sleek black) was awake and here this time. And this was part of Aerith's contentment as she stretched again, whiskers pointing forward as her back arched, and stood up on her shelf cushion (marked of course with layers of her fur). Aerith did not quite know what she meant by her not-cat (Wisp was what they were called by other not-cats, though the sounds meant little to Aerith) being not-here, even when sitting in that same spot they occupied now, head bent over some things or other that Aerith was not allowed in - but she knew when it happened and she did not like it. Especially when the not-here times came close together.

Just to be extra sure, Aerith threaded her way through and around the potted plants and trays of seedlings with surprising grace for such a round creature, headed with determination towards her Wisp. With a noisy thunk and an accompanying mmrp? (it would not do to go unannounced - well, at least not when she wanted attention), Aerith jumped down off the last shelf, back up onto the table, and waddled her way between the trays off moss and sheets of (oh! crinkly!) paper, to plop onto her behind just in front of the not-cat. They did not have that stiff not-fur layer on their face right now, so it was easier to look up to meet their eyes and see themselves reflected back. "Mrrp? Rrrawr."

Wisp made a credible (if non-sensical - not-cats were so silly) imitation of Aerith's greeting back to her, and offered a hand for Aerith to sniff. Aerith did so, politely (earth smell, like always, honey…sadly not the fish treats), before ramming her head into that hand. The mossy softness that not all not-cats seemed to have made a nice cushion against her face. But, lately, there was a hardness under that moss, like the bark that Aerith scratched on in climbing (illicit! Not allowed, but fun) outside that was nice for scratchy chin rubs, but not as much for accidental hurts in head bonks, so it needed to be approach with caution. Today, though, it did not seem bad, and Aerith could see the extra relaxation in the expression on Wisp's face that meant a purr.

Good. Her not-cat was doing well. She had done her job.

Nevertheless, she remained for several more minutes for appropriate pets and chin-scratching (a good reward, and Wisp did not always allow her to sit here, if there were that shiny glass, or that crystal that made her fur bristle - or sometimes sharp-smelling plants), before hopping down again, to walk the length of her domain.

Here and there she stopped for a sniff, or to set her paws in soft dirt (but not to pee, for apparently this was discouraged by stern noises from the not-cat, except in the separate box with softer sand that was set aside just for this, which was fine). Interesting smells abounded - dog, for one, and the other not-cats - the one that smelled of batter and butter, one that smelled…dustier?, others that also smelled of dirt and earth, but different dirt. All familiar smells.

Except…

A strange smell…no, not a smell…

Aerith paused in her rolling perimeter of the room, fur lifting, nose to the air, pointed toward the wood-framed door that led to the outside of the little glass house. Something…No, not a smell…but a-

Bark. Bark bark bark!

Aerith dropped flat, ears twitching, little round tail poofing out to the size of a Moogle pom.

Dog! With its loud dog language.

Wait…a familiar bark, a familiar dog. She sneezed, readiness to attack or run easing just as a little excited whining whimper, followed but the snuffle of a nose at the door crack, reached her ears. It was not until the quick rhythmic tap at the door, also a familiar pattern, that Aerith heard her not-cat look up and shift in those swishy robes. Wisp called some kind of greeting, and Aerith dutifully trotted forward to receive the requisite licks from the blur of tan fur and curled, violent fan of a tail that burst in almost before Wisp finished speaking. Despite the excessive bathing (tolerated, one should not say enjoyed), Aerith pointed her whiskers forward: a small price to pay for the warmth of the cuddles offered by the Dog (Gidget was what the not-cats seemed to call her) when she finally wore herself out (how did dogs have so much sprint in them? And so much energy just in their tails).

Properly enjoyed were the surprisingly gentle head and chin rubbing offered by the not-cat that followed Gidget, calling a cheerful greeting back to their own not-cat. For a creature with such long ears and such energy himself - and such a boisterous companion as Gidget - this not-cat was exceedingly good with cat language.

Well…mostly properly enjoyed. But it was hard to sink even into well-applied chin scratches with that sense of - not a smell, but something…off. Wrong. Like food gone off. Not entirely familiar, but not entirely strange, either. Coming from somewhere out that door.

Aerith looked up as the long-eared not-cat moved past her at the faint, scarcely-heard whine from Gidget. Whining again, the dog looked at her - it was a Look, even across species.

Something out there was not right.

Aerith (with a curiosity said by some to be dangerously native to her kind) wanted to know what it was.

#FFXIVWrite2023 #FFXIVWrite 2023 #Belated on this one even more than the first - whoops #Wisp Alsentia #FFXIVWisp #X'Khala Moui #Aerith the cat #Gidget

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