Threw It On The Ground

Atilla rode down the street on her bike, a number of fliers in one arm as she pedaled. Shou was out doing... whatever it was Shou did in his free time away from her, and she was seizing the daylight to promote the event her church would be holding: A beauty, fashion, and talent show for charity. She stopped by Club Hype and pasted up a sign advertising the event, and the glue (for she wasn't all familiar with Yochi and it's Scotch tape) had hardly dried before she was off again, huffing down the street. She would have to stop soon for some lunch and maybe a drink... one of those energy drinks they were always selling in the slummy shops for way too much. Planning to place the fliers all over the Lower Commons today, East City would be her target tomorrow.

*

Now ordinarily, the mouse kami frequented the candy shops when she was hungry, as she was a very big fan of sweets. Since she'd been pedaling all day, however, she wanted something a little bit more substantial. She pulled over at a Metro Sub Station store, a franchise that spread throughout the city. Chaining her bike in place, she opened the door and a little bell chimed above her, not an unpleasant sound, but since it was high pitched -and she was a rodent, so she was most attuned to the high-pitched noises- it made her wince slightly and retreat from the offending noise.
"Welcome to Metro," a disinterested teenager told her, stopping his conversation with a coworker to see what she'd like to order.
She looked up in the air and recalled that Shou said he liked meat. She didn't eat meat very often, but since she didn't know what kind of foods other than sweets and ambrosia tasted good, she figured the more experienced male might be on to something. The pictures of the meatball sandwiches on the menu couldn't compete with the smell of the tuna right below her nose, however. "What's that?" she asked politely, pointing to the fish and mayonnaise mess behind the glass.
"What? The tuna?"
"Yes, that. I would like some of that."
The employee moved quickly towards a shelf-oven hybrid with silicone pans full of bread. "What kind of bread do you want?"
"Ummm..." The woman looked down at the little bread menu taped to the glass. "The cheddar and herb sounds good..."
"Footlong?"
She didn't know what that meant. "Sure."

*

Her eye twitched at the sound of the chime ringing again. "Ugh..." she groaned audibly, turning to see her friend alive and well. As a follower of Bleaus, she had through long practice become quick to forgive. Besides, he wasn't himself that night, it was that darkness in him that she still hadn't discovered a method of banishing.
"You want it toasted?" The teenager brought her attention back to the sandwich counter.
She took a look back at the large oven, but decided she wanted her meal as quickly as possible. "No thank you."
"Ok, what else do you want on it?" He scooted over to the condiments and fixings section.
"Oh. Ok, I'll take umm..." She sniffed briefly over each ingredient as she ordered. The fellow behind the counter had seen weirder things than someone who constantly sniffled as though afflicted by a cold, and failed to give her an odd look. "I'll take the lettuce... some cucumbers... those tomatoes over there... that white stuff... salt and pepper... oil and vinegar... that sprinkly cheese... some of that... Par-Me-Shan in that can over there... whatever this green stuff is... and I think that's... oh! A little bit more vinegar if you please. That will be all, thanks."
She paid for the sub, giving the young man a tip and a pamphlet before taking the food and sitting across from her friend. "Have you been in good health?" she asked the lycan, seeming genuinely happy to see him.

*

Atilla allowed the man to finish his statement, before nodding gently. "Excuse me..." She bowed her head and began to pray in a low, soft, fast, murmuring monotone. "Pater noster qui in caelis es sanctificetur nomen tuum..."* she began, continuing the prayer until some fifteen seconds after she'd started she was finished.
Picking up the sub, she took her first, big bite and she scrunched up her face in delight. Afterwards, however, it was time to address the lycan's words. She swallowed the mouthful before speaking. "Perhaps it occurred to you during that fight that I was also protecting the one I loved in the only way I could. You said you loved that woman, but she disappeared and left you with the two who were intent on teaching you a lesson, did she not?"

*Our father who is in heaven, hallowed be your name...

Atilla had a naturally calm disposition, but the wonders of the sub sandwich... the texture of flavors exploding in her mouth... very little could ruin her mood in light of such a wonderful new treat. She'd taken another bite while he talked and she chewed steadily, looking at him with her red eyes. Before that night they'd been brownish gold, but she hadn't had the time to look in the mirror since then and notice that they'd changed.
"Were you human that night?" she asked gently, as though genuinely curious as to his classification. "I am not on anybody's side, I am just glad that you are both safe and healthy. I too am sorry for the night's events; would you like for me to buy you one of these delicious sandwiches?"

*

"Mmm?" she asked through a mouth stuffed with sub and rimmed in mayonnaise. She took a couple more chews and swallowed before answering,"I could never feel threatened by a friend. I trust you, after all." She stopped to flash him a smile, the long, thick sandwich inches from her face, dripping. "I'm glad you are not upset at me. Mmm, you really should try this, though. It's very good." She licked her lips as her eyes focused on the sandwich again before she slipped it between her lips.

*

She grinned, biting again with an audible crunch as the juicy, crispy lettuce and richly flavored tomatoes burst beneath her teeth. "Oh Bleaus, it's so good..." she moaned, catching a stray bit of liquid on her finger and licking it off. After another swallow, however, she caught the sadness in her friend's voice. "End soon? Do you have something you have to attend to?" she would ask, not completely aware of the correlation between the darkness and this man's inner demons.

*

The kami seemed to perk up at the statement about drugs. "You know, in my briefing before I came down here they told me that the streets were addled with drugs here..." She looked at her sandwich with her brow furrowed, as though it'd just given her some riddle. "I haven't seen a single drug dealer or a single person taking any of those substances. Don't get me wrong, I'm very glad that nobody I know is involved with them...

*

The kami munched pensively, deciding that perhaps she should invite him out to a church sometime. He seemed like a nice person. With a free hand she reached over and withdrew one of the fliers she'd been posting up around town for her event. "I appreciate your kindness towards me. You should come out to the show we're having. It's free, the businesses I'm advertising for there will pay according to the number of people present and the number of entries, so it's free for people to come."
She offered a smile with the paper before nibbling around the last fragment of the sandwich, not wanting to see it go. "You can invite your drug dealer friends too if you'd like... rather, I'm sure they will appreciate you trying to help them get off of such a destructive path in life."

*

The kami shook her head thoughtfully. "I can't come along; I apologize. I must get the rest of these fliers out before next week so we will have a big turnout for the show."
She thought for a little bit longer and came to a different conclusion. Nagi moved much faster on foot as a lycan than she moved on her bike, and he was probably going to go to many locations around that segment of town, locations that held poor and downtrodden women who might have big dreams of fame and recognition. Such people would be drawn to compete in a free beauty pageant, and the more competitors they had, the more the sponsors would pay out. They might even pick one to represent their companies, who knows?
"On second thought, I can be gluing up these fliers while you talk to the people about not doing drugs. You don't mind if I do?"

*