Archosaur was the largest city on the continent. All around were squarte buildings, arches, and pavilions. Upon entry, one could hear the sounds of seagulls in the distance; smell the sweet, salty breeze of the ocean, mixed with the fresh air of the forest to the west; and of course, hear the throngs of people chattering, negotiating, walking.
Schadenfreud hated it. Every inch of it bored him to tears. About the only thing he liked about the city was the huge, dragonian fountain in the middle; in part, because it was one of the few places he could go where there were no PEOPLE. Good God, the people!
About the only saving graces to him, for this city, were the bars and the women. To be specific, one woman; a venomancer named PotatoChips. He sighed. The things he did for friends.
The winged elf was a tall man, a little over six feet. He had long, blue hair that he usually wore back in a ponytail (he hated the way it flew into his face when he was flying) and mahogany eyes, and was wearing a V neck t-shirt under a trench coat, a pair of worn jeans and combat boots; his normal adventuring gear. His wings materialized on his back; large things, fading from purple to black with yellow spots toward the base; Darklord wings, a rather ironic (and perhaps, fitting) choice. He gave them one powerful flap and his feet were hovering two feel off the ground.
The building he flew to was a long, three-story apartment building with a swooped, red tiled, oriental style roof (just like every other building in the city). He flew to the third floor, thanking god that he had copied the apartment's key.
The door opened onto a slighly messy den. Taking off his trench coat and throwing it over the back of the couch that would be his bed, he walked over the scattered clothing, avoided the books and magazines, and made his way into the kitchen, where he grabbed a knife from the counter and cut two slices of bread from the loaf he had made three nights ago (and was honestly rather surprised had lasted this long). These he toasted over the magic-driven stove, touching a small glyph and charging it with his own mana, adjusting iron knobs to make the top heat appropriately. After that he grabbed some unidentified meat from the cooler (he sniffed it foirst; it smaelled edible, and god knows he had eaten far worse in the field) and sliced off a good-sized chunk, warming it on the iron stove as well before simply slapping it between those two slices of bread.
He scarfed it down before it ran away. It's amazing how hungry he was; he had forgotten to eat lunch, and it had been a very long day helping a group kill Qinzi. They were young, and often foolish; they made mistakes and he had had to cover for them. If it hadn't been a quest set forth by the elder, he wouldn't have even bothered; as far as he was concerned, they deserved to die.
He shook his head, clearing it of the thought. It was friday night; a happy night for him. Movie night.
He made a private bet with himself, and won a hundred of his own coins when he removed his worn, bloodied (some his own, but more that of the monsters) shirt now. He threw that into a bason, turning a knob on the articicial stream that ran over it and releasing the water itno it. He would let it soak for now; he was tired and his feet and eyes both ached.
He headed back to the den, navigating the obstacle course and sitting on the couch, sighing with release as he took the weight off his feet. He untied his bootlaces, kicking them off, letting them land wherever before laying back on the couch, drifting off to sleep.
He woke up to hands shaking him. "Schad! Schad! Schad!"
"What? What? What?" he replied, opening his eyes slowly.
PotatoChips was crouched at the side of the couch, her hands hooked over the edge, wearing a short white tank-top and jean shorts. She was looking at him with large, green eyes, her cat ears sticking straight up through short, reddish-pink hair. he could see her tail over her shoulder; it was waving enthusiastically. He groaned inwardly.
"Monsters! HUGE MONSTERS!" she replied, holding up her prize. "Monsters EVERYWHARGH!"
It was a flat piece of stone, about siz inches, perfectly square. On it was a distription of the image it would display; something about giant lizards and towers.
"Nap?" he said hopefully, yawning and stretching, giving her his best puppy-dog eyes.
"No! Monsters! They will not wait!" she replied, tugging on his arm.
"Monsters...outside. Why do I want to see monsters?" he yawned, sitting up slowly.
"Giant lizards that go RAWR and stomp on buildings!" she replied, stomping around the room, knocking over stacks of books. "MOONNNSSTEEERRRSSSAUGH!"
"Coffee." he grumbled in return.
In reply, she points to the table beside him, where a fresh mug steamed. He sipped it; just the way he liked it.
"I love you." he muttered to the coffee.
"I know." she replied, flopping beside him. She had placed the artifact on the podium in front of the couch, and now the movie was being siplayed on the air in between them.
He chose not to correct her, dipping his hand into the bowl od popcorn she produced. It was buttery and salty and probably the worst thing he had earten in a week, but he loved it.
After a few hours of bad monster movies, she began leaning on his shoulder. It wasn't long before her breathes became long and slow; she was sleeping.
He didn't shut off the projection; he didn't care for the movie, he more enjoyed her company. And this was the best kind of company; while she slept, she looked so quiet, almost peaceful; he enjoyed it almost as he enjoyed the chaos that ensued while she was awake.
Instead, he maneuvered her to his chest so he could get comfortable, and fell asleep himself.
This was inspired by a short bit of art by my friend Lorie (whom I will link eventually), which was really nothing more than a picture of Schad and Chips cuddling on the couch. Schad and Chips are our characters on an MMO, Perfect World International, and these are VERY LOOSELY based on that world. Like, to the point that I would call them legitimate fiction.
MOCK ME IF YOU WILL! Also, there was a t-shirt inspired by this story, which you can buy at the store.
Yay!
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