Post by akiko on Sept 24, 2006 15:38:55 GMT -5
Akiko crouched low, the tip of her slender tail brushing against the ground with anticipation. Her heart thrummed steadily, but she caught her breath - there was no opportunity for mistakes here. The half-breed neko's sharp eyes roamed the busy streets of Tayou, marking each villager and their location. I can't screw this up... The young girl purred, then cocked her head to the side to pick up the sound of distant laughter. No, that's not his voice... Not that one either... The man she was looking for had a rather 'distinctive' accent, and couldn't be missed; well, at least for her. The hanyou's hearing was extraordinary - but that was due to the size of her keen, giant cat ears.
Yawning, the demon relaxed her muscles and stretched, contorting her physique into rather absurd positions, twisting the stiffness out of her body. She sighed. He mustn't be setting up stall today. For the past two days, Akiko had been studying a middle-aged man who surveyed over a stall of fish, noting his every move. The man walked with a slight hobble, had a thick drawl, and his laughter resembled the braying of a donkey; quiet a character indeed. Usually, the thoughtless hanyou would not be so tactful - however, Akiko had little wishes to be chased out of the village for theft so early. The demon child had taken to wandering of late, and had been here but four days - and liked it! The streets were full of merchants who were too busy pursuing customers to notice her shadow slipping down and grabbing a piece of clothing or jewelery.
Exhaling, letting out her disappointment, the girl straightened from her position squatted behind a fence that bordered the street roads, and lifted her head gently. She was in no luck today with the man. Pouting, sticking out her lower-lip in dissatisfaction, Akiko agilely jumped the fence, the extra folds of her kimono billowing back, before landing on both sharp-clawed feet. The villagers of the town didn't seem to mind her presence; she was just a child, after-all, and posed no threat. They either ignored her, or swatted her with a broom (in the case of wives), but Akiko would giggle it off, which seemed to unnerve some. Blinking, the girl's pale face scanned the crowd one last time, before slumping. The man must have the day off.
Instead, she diverted her attention elsewhere to other stalls - ah! The sweet scent of flowers tickled her nose abruptly, and the neko recoiled in surprise. What... what a heavenly smell!... Shaking her head, sending her lank, dusky-black tresses of hair flailing, Akiko cleared her nose of the haunting scent and followed the direction the smell had originated from. Skidding to a halt and slinking behind a wall, the hanyou squinted at a stall - a flower stall! A young woman attended it, carefully arranging the flower stems to nestle young buds amoungst blooming petals. Then, to her great delight, the woman paced off a distance away, leaving the stall temporarily unguarded. She'd have to move fast!
With long strides, the half-demon, bells on her head tinkling faintly, darted over to the stall and wrapped a hand about a bright yellow flower that had just fully bloomed. Taking off, on all-fours, the girl pounced off, the stem of her stolen flower clutched lightly between her teeth. Whilst still running on her hands and feet, the hanyou threw her head back to glance at the stall, curious as to know whether the woman was back yet, and had noticed- Thwump!! Yowling with surprise, Akiko was flung back as she slammed into a silhouette, left cheek smarting a bright red mark. Rubbing her cheek tenderly, she peered at who she had run into, and blinked in surprise. "Watch where yer' goin' an'... Who are you?"
Yawning, the demon relaxed her muscles and stretched, contorting her physique into rather absurd positions, twisting the stiffness out of her body. She sighed. He mustn't be setting up stall today. For the past two days, Akiko had been studying a middle-aged man who surveyed over a stall of fish, noting his every move. The man walked with a slight hobble, had a thick drawl, and his laughter resembled the braying of a donkey; quiet a character indeed. Usually, the thoughtless hanyou would not be so tactful - however, Akiko had little wishes to be chased out of the village for theft so early. The demon child had taken to wandering of late, and had been here but four days - and liked it! The streets were full of merchants who were too busy pursuing customers to notice her shadow slipping down and grabbing a piece of clothing or jewelery.
Exhaling, letting out her disappointment, the girl straightened from her position squatted behind a fence that bordered the street roads, and lifted her head gently. She was in no luck today with the man. Pouting, sticking out her lower-lip in dissatisfaction, Akiko agilely jumped the fence, the extra folds of her kimono billowing back, before landing on both sharp-clawed feet. The villagers of the town didn't seem to mind her presence; she was just a child, after-all, and posed no threat. They either ignored her, or swatted her with a broom (in the case of wives), but Akiko would giggle it off, which seemed to unnerve some. Blinking, the girl's pale face scanned the crowd one last time, before slumping. The man must have the day off.
Instead, she diverted her attention elsewhere to other stalls - ah! The sweet scent of flowers tickled her nose abruptly, and the neko recoiled in surprise. What... what a heavenly smell!... Shaking her head, sending her lank, dusky-black tresses of hair flailing, Akiko cleared her nose of the haunting scent and followed the direction the smell had originated from. Skidding to a halt and slinking behind a wall, the hanyou squinted at a stall - a flower stall! A young woman attended it, carefully arranging the flower stems to nestle young buds amoungst blooming petals. Then, to her great delight, the woman paced off a distance away, leaving the stall temporarily unguarded. She'd have to move fast!
With long strides, the half-demon, bells on her head tinkling faintly, darted over to the stall and wrapped a hand about a bright yellow flower that had just fully bloomed. Taking off, on all-fours, the girl pounced off, the stem of her stolen flower clutched lightly between her teeth. Whilst still running on her hands and feet, the hanyou threw her head back to glance at the stall, curious as to know whether the woman was back yet, and had noticed- Thwump!! Yowling with surprise, Akiko was flung back as she slammed into a silhouette, left cheek smarting a bright red mark. Rubbing her cheek tenderly, she peered at who she had run into, and blinked in surprise. "Watch where yer' goin' an'... Who are you?"