"The further a society drifts from the truth, the more it will hate those that speak it."
-George Orwell
Chapter 4
They settled into a somewhat careful companionship after the.. utterly anti climatic result of their conversation.
"I'm the psychotherapist of the Black Market as well.. I keep watch over this place to make sure carnivores that give into their feral instincts are put down. Or have the chance of rehabilitation, which is slim to none, but does happen. You can't go walking around freely within this place, especially since you're a herbivore...there's also something no one wants to know, the meat from the Black Market comes from hospitals and funeral homes."
Just giving those facts out there like bullets.
"But why would it be dangerous for me to walk around here? Is it because I'm a herbivore?"
"Precisely because of that."
"Okay, I get that, fine. But.. don't they also sell carnivore meat? I mean, at the end of the day, meat is meat. So why does it matter so much that the meat be herbivore? If they need meat, can't they also digest carnivore meat?"
"...They're unable to digest that type of meat.."
"You don't sound so convinced honestly, but okay." A cynical soft laugh beneath her breath.
Her responses to Gouhin's explanations just further confirmed what he was thinking, that she either had a very strange upbringing or that her mind was worse than he thought if she had opinions like that and still sound confident. He had never heard of that type of suggestion before... and didn't exactly know how to feel about the casual way the smaller slim herbivore calmly stated that carnivore meat could also be eaten, even sounding a bit indignant that only herbivore meat was the only thing being sold. Gouhin could only stare at her with a rightful amount of wariness. What the fuck kind of herbivore goes around thinking that? Apparently this little miss.
"Another important thing, what the hell is wrong with your instincts?"
"You're asking me?" A snort, "My mind is like swiss cheese right now."
"It's as if the part within you that's all instinct is somehow messed up."
"Thanks. For that Lovely reassurance."
"If you feel any changes within your body or mind, let me know. For now, don't go out of the room unless I'm here. If anything happens, you tell me immediately, alright?"
And that was that. See? Quite anti climatic.
She thought perhaps he just wanted her close by to scrutinize her better.
Keep your friends close, enemy's closer and all that. Not that Sienna minded much, since she's getting free lodging (for now at least) alongside being taken care of partially. The giant panda had even provided a small room for her right next to his own personal lodge. While eternally grateful for such easy accommodation, she knew it didn't come free. Being observed analytically was the least she could allow since it was all she could offer the fluffy muscular panda for now.
And her Lovely personality.
"You walk like a carnivore." Gouhin stated plainly with a firm but curious tone, spoken from careful observation since Sienna had gotten the confidence to walking comfortably in the small room he gave her with all basic necessities.
Her long slim legs (full of fur, that she still feels unsettled looking too long at them) froze their rather carefree steps to the small kitchen, hands twitching slightly on the empty juice and bamboo tea mugs she was carrying.
She tilted her head to Gouhin and gave him a look, because What?
He saw her confusion in her overly expressive face, (plus those flickering ears atop her head), and snorted with narrowed curious eyes. "You have a steady graceful prowl to your footsteps, as if you're on a constant hunt."
She blinked a few times.
Wha.. wrinkling her nose, ignoring his smothered snicker at her befuddled expression, "I mean, is that a compliment or what?" She was still trying to get used to the actual animal metaphors or meanings they used here, it was so confusing. The hell he mean she walks like a predator, she ain't crawling all over the floor. Although the explanation he gave sounded rather nice, she can never be too sure now.
"It's not something you see in a herbivore, that's for sure." Gouhin hummed, giving her a clinical up and down check up with his focused dark eyes. She huffed, turning back to place the two dirty mugs in the sink. Great, she was an anomaly within an anomaly. Human soul, animal skin, different kingdom animal characteristics- she wouldn't be too surprised if she sprouted wings next.
Please no.
"I think maybe it was because I did side jobs on modeling?" She absently stated while turning the tap, listening to the swishing sound of the cool water freely flowing down her paws, frowning slightly at the feeling of the fur on her hands weighing a bit more now due to the liquid in them. Sienna still felt a bit perplexed whenever something similar happened regarding the texture of her skin- fur now. Thankfully she got the hang of speaking after a few days of constantly moving her mouth to the motions of the words to pronounce them well, no one can tell her she ain't motivated.
"Oh? That's interesting." She hummed in agreement to his response, yup. Grabbing the cup that she used to drink the juice she began washing it under the water, this time she felt the way her left ear flickered at the sound of the large panda getting more comfortable in the wooden chair he was using at her little place.
There was a vagueness image in her mind that told her her thing was modeling, but that was mostly it. Aside from a few uncomfortable pangs she got whenever she thought a bit more deeply about the subject, maybe she went through some painful experiences with that job? But aside from that, everything else came in more spurts of information, which she's gotten fairly used to by now.
Sienna's tolerance levels have raised spectacularly she thinks.
Though she doesn't think that tolerance involves her slight impatience at wanting to go out to check the world. She hasn't even seen any malls or food stores! Her curiosity was rising incredibly fast after a whole week and a half of just staying inside the small room, and though she felt odd since the sounds of the markets downstairs were super familiar, it was also completely different since everyone here are animals.
Therefor must assert caution.
It didn't help much that when he first found her, she was in a state of extreme disorientation down in a back alley of the Black Market. When she asked if there was anything that could help identify what happened, he had stated there was no other scent besides hers. Therefor the mystery of her sudden appearance and memory loss was put on hold. For now.
But like she said, that wasn't going to help her argument in trying to go to the city down there. Sienna didn't care for the Black Market though (not that Gouhin would allow it anyway), but she just really really wanted to see how the city was like.
...
And all the other animals. How do they look? How do they talk? What do they Eat? What do they wear? Is there any more fluffy animals!
So Sienna was also getting to know herself a bit more as well, evidently she adores fluffy animals.
Ironic really, considering how odd and apprehensive she feels with her own fur.
Putting the now clean wet cup to the side where the dry section was, she grabbed the cup Gouhin used for his bamboo tea and began washing it as well. "Maybe that's why when I walk it seems that way?"
Gouhin tilted his head in thought, inwardly considering. "It seems more ingrained to your body, muscle memory. If you did it constantly, I think you're right."
She turned the tap to stop the water, placing the wet cup next to the half dry one and drying her hands in the little light blue towel to her right hanging from a dark arrow like hook.
"So that's one more detail to add to my life", a small innocent smile curved up her lean snout, "you know, I was thinking-"
"No."
The smile changed to a tiny frown, it was Not pouting! as she turned to him, leaning against the counter while comfortably crossing her arms, unknowingly mimicking his posture. However, he would Not budge on his opinion, staring her down intently with his dark eyes covered by the black round fur. No matter how he thought it looked a small bit endearing.
"But I haven't even-"
"No."
"Gouhin!" She threw her hands up in a sharp burst of irritation for the way he kept interrupting her. She Despised that. And he knew that it got on her nerves, with that smug minuscule smirk at her abrupt outburst.
"I know what you're going to say, and I still say no."
"Well, at least let me Say it, and then you can tell me no."
He made a motion with his hand for her to go on, indulging her calm but edged response. She huffed.
"Can we please go to the city out there for awhile? I just want to see how everything looks." And the fluffy animals.
He merely blinked, barely detectable in the middle of the black patches of fur.
"No."
Sienna threw her hands up again, silently frustrated, only an annoyed groan slipping from her pursed snout.
"I did what you asked, so you can't get snippy little missy. What, you think I'd change my opinion in the span of five seconds?" He scoffed derisively in his throat at the thought.
"Will you blame me if I had hope?" She stifled her laughter at the incredibly incredulous look he gave her. "But really, can we? Just for a tiny bit? Who knows, maybe it'll make some pieces of my memory fit together or I'll remember something more important?"
Now she was talking seriously, staring at him from her spot with large doe eyes, some pleading mixed in with her posture and face features.
Gouhin frowned intently, mentally outweighing the pros and cons on the action and how it could affect the little herbivores health.
Damn those drooping ears.