A Single Step [Varde <3]

[Lucca]

Molly was completely on cloud nine after Fenzik's compliments. The truth was, a lot of other Cards did look on her mutations with fear and scorn, so Fenzik's admiration was something entirely new. She laughed and fluttered dark eyes at him. "Oh...you're too sweet!" She was still smiling as Fenzik's only association with her Realm seemed to be a plant that grew there. She laughed and nodded.

"I think I've seen those! They carpet the fields all through early Summer..." Her eyes got a little misty. Times like this, she got a bit homesick. It had been simply ages since she'd had a chance to visit her home...months and months! She nodded. "It's right next to Corvistowne! Just...it's not a very popular place to visit..." She shook her wings, getting out the last of the dust from when she fell, and then made an unsure noise. "But Fenzik...I don't mean to keep you. You must have come to the Capital for something..."

[Varde]

Fenzik beamed, happy that Molly did, in fact, know of the flower he had mentioned, and that he hadn't been remembering incorrectly. "That sounds quite lovely," he commented, imagining the fields of which the chicken spoke. True to his scientifically inclined brain, of course, he was at least slightly more interested in the botanical offerings of said fields from a chemical perspective than from an aesthetic one. Nonetheless, the visual appeal of such things was not wholly lost on him. "I do feel ashamed that I haven't visited Cranstone myself! I should really make a trip over there soon," the rat resolved. "And when I do, perhaps you could show me around, hm?" he added, counting on his hopeful expression to hide the fact that he didn't really like exploring new places by himself. It was always more comfortable to him if he initially had a guide -- or, in some of the more uncertain realms, a protector.

"Oh, uh, right." Fenzik was a little surprised to realize he had all but forgotten about the errand he had been running. Even now, he struggled momentarily to remember his mission, his mind presently cluttered with thoughts of realms and chickens and eye-spots and ruined food. "I must have, mustn't I? I, erm... it was very..." As he stuttered, he looked around and saw the same street sign he had puzzled over earlier. Streets... "Oh! That's it, yes, I was looking for... a certain shop," he said, still unhelpfully vague. "Er," he stalled again, finding the scrap of paper that he had dropped in the confusion. "O'MacGuffin's Shop O' Oddities," he read, rolling his eyes at the name. "I was told it was... well, right here, but I can't find it for the life of me! I don't suppose you've... ever heard of it?" he asked, not overly optimistic. Especially if the shop in question didn't, as Fenzik was gradually beginning to suspect, actually exist.

[Lucca]

"Oh!" Molly couldn't help but cluck a bit in pleasure. "You have no idea how happy that would make me, Fenzik! How happy it would make everyone!" She was only exaggerating a little. Her Realm really didn't get a lot in the way of tourism. And she did, of course, like the idea of seeing the Rat again. He was showing himself to be a gentleman of the highest caliber, and very sweet besides! True, she no longer lived in Cranstone herself, but it had been ever so long since she'd been back there, and she was due for a vacation anyway.

Molly kept the bright smile on her beak, though it turned slightly confused when Fenzik had trouble remembering. Then again, they had just collided and--oh, he hadn't gotten hit on the head, had he? Or maybe she was just distracting him! But she was able to leave those worried thoughts behind like so many shed feathers when he found his reason again. "Oh my! How bothersome," Molly said, blinking large, dark eyes at that. She glanced down in thought, looking at the cobblestones. "I...I think I've heard of it..." Her face lit up. "Yes, yes, why I have! And it is here, or close to it, but it's just a bit hard to find the entrance."

She moved up to Fenzik and tugged on his paw with her wing, leading him down what looked to be nothing but an alley between two buildings. But on the side of one of them was a door, above which hung a very weathered wooden sign. Only some of the letters were actually readable anymore, but it could possibly have said O'MacGuffin's Shop O'Oddities at one point. "I...I think this is it," Molly said, though she glanced around nervously. "It's a little dingy back here, if you ask me...and that sign could use some work." She frowned up at it sternly.

[Varde]

Fenzik's hope faltered when Molly seemed, for a moment, to be just as perplexed by his question as he. But when the chicken said she had heard of the shop, after all, he couldn't contain a look of exuberance. "You have?" he echoed. "It is?" What unfathomable luck! Of all the Cards he could have run headlong into... "Well, by all means... please, lead the way!" he exclaimed, and although it surprised him when she grabbed his paw, he didn't protest.

"Hm? Oh, yes, it certainly could," Fenzik agreed, looking up at the dilapidated sign, but in a strange sense that perhaps only his fellow Corvies would have understood, the disrepair reminded him of home. "But I believe you're right. Thank you, Molly, so much, for helping me find it," he said, smiling warmly. "Say, would you care to have a look around inside with me?" He put a paw on the door handle and pulled it open just a crack, waiting for her answer.

[Lucca]

Molly ruffled her feathers a bit, feeling uncomfortable in such an odd setting. And the thought of walking back down the alley alone was not a pleasant one. But she'd never want to impose on Fenzik any more than she already had! Why, he was the picture of a gentleman and she'd hate to inconvenience him in any possible way. She opened her beak to bid him a fond farewell when...he invited her to go along?

Dark eyes lit up and Molly made a small happy cluck before she could help herself. "Oh, that would be lovely! I've never been inside before! I bet it's filled with all sorts of darling little things!" she said brightly, and waiting for him to open the door a little more before nodding her head to her in thanks and bustling inside the shop. She looked around, her eye instantly caught by all the...well...odd things around! She had no idea what most of them were, but that just made it all the better!

Molly made her way slowly over to the counter, clucking under her breath in wonder at every new shining instrument or miniature topiary. Hearing a sound like the gentle clearing of someone's throat, she turned and was startled to see a Card behind the counter, a large Black Vulture. "Oh! Oh, I'm sorry, I didn't mean to ah...intrude!" she said in a rush, quite flustered. "Are you Mr. O'MacGuffin?"

[Varde]

Fenzik smiled at Molly as she walked past him and into the shop, and he followed, absently letting the door shut itself behind him with a noisy clatter. The interior of the shop was impressive, not in size, but in the sheer number of shelves packed into such a confined space -- and the variety of items covering each shelf. On Fenzik's immediate right were mechanical gadgets that defied description; on his left were baskets filled with gemstones of every color, around which the air seemed electric with a peculiar energy. But the rat's eyes passed dismissively over these and soon landed on the the far corner of the shop, where hung a wooden sign that appeared similar to the sign outside but was far less worn and bore just one word: "Flora". "Excellent," he said excitedly.

Fenzik proceeded to this corner of the shop and had begun to rifle through the small, clear canisters containing dried leaves and seeds and petals, when he heard Molly's voice come from elsewhere in the shop. "Hm? Intrude?" he answered in confusion, but a glance in that direction quickly explained the context. The chicken was addressing a man who, given his place behind the counter, must have been the shopkeeper.

The shopkeeper was an imposing figure: tall, dark, and feathered. Between his biped form and his long neck, he loomed over Molly. The combination of slate grey and dark blue that covered him gave away his Sorgaire heritage. Around his neck on a gold chain he wore a shiny red amulet, the long, pentagonal shape of which bore a suspicious resemblance to a coffin. The vulture stood silently for a moment, his eyes tracking every move, every subconscious fidget, of his new customer.

"I am not," the shopkeeper answered at last, in a dry, grating voice that sounded like the creaking of rusty hinges. "Mr. O'MacGuffin has been deceased for eleven years, eleven months, and twenty-six days." Fenzik blinked and stammered uncomfortably at this piece of knowledge, but the vulture continued matter-of-factly. "I am his former business associate, Archer Swanswick Pell. What can I do for you today, my lady?" The rat had opened his mouth to speak, but he closed it again at those last two words. The question had been directed at Molly, so he supposed the only polite thing to do would be to let Molly answer it.

[Lucca]

Molly's dark eyes were wide, and it was clear from the way she unconsciously leaned back from the tall figure that she was very intimidated by him. Her wings shook a bit, though she fought to control the motion. And then the Vulture spoke, and it was all worse. She found she couldn't meet his eyes, and her own darted down to the charm swinging on his neck. The shape made her vaguely uncomfortable. "O-oh," she said, feeling small. "I'm sorry to hear that. I didn't mean to bring up...bad...memories?" Her voice lilted a bit on the last word, as she couldn't quite discern whether the man was actually upset or not.

She made a worried, unsure sound as she was asked another question, and her eyes darted away, to land on some glittering statuary. "I...I was just..." She searched for the purpose in her mind, the reason why she and Fenzik had come in, but found to her horror that it had fled. They were looking for something...some sort of plant, but...its name eluded her. She shot a helpless, pleading look at the Rat.

[Varde]

"...What?" Pell answered, caught off his guard for the first time by Molly's apology. He coughed once. "There is no need to apologize. It was simply a statement of fact." When the chicken's gaze went to Fenzik, the vulture's followed.

Fenzik took that as his cue to jump into the conversation. "Oh, we were looking -- well, I was looking," he corrected himself, walking closer to the counter where Molly stood, "for some of the oil extracted from the croaking crocus. I heard from a colleague that this is one of the only shops to extract and sell the oil." He gave the stoic shopkeeper as winsome a smile as he could, before casting a glance at his Cranstone friend. Was she... shaking? Hesitantly, the rat put a paw on one of her wings, to steady her.

There was another pause wherein Pell stood silently. Perhaps the tilt of his head meant he was deep in thought? "Ah, croaking crocus oil," he repeated, finally. "Your colleague spoke truthfully. I do sell it. However, your timing is most unfortunate. I just sold the last of it to another customer, not twenty minutes ago."

At this, Fenzik groaned. Twenty minutes... if only he hadn't gotten lost! He probably could have gotten here in time -- but then again, if he hadn't gotten lost, he might not have met Molly, and he was very much appreciative of her presence. Just to remind her of this, he squeezed the paw that was still on her wing a little more tightly, then worried that she wouldn't like it and quickly pulled his paw away. "I, uh," he faltered, trying to refocus his train of thought. "Would... would you be able to make a new batch? How long would that take?"

Pell cocked a quizzical eye at the rat. A new batch of oil? During business hours? That would be time-consuming. Then again... The vulture began rubbing a thumb along one side of the red pendant, and his expression turned calculating. "I typically perform such tasks each morning before opening my shop. If you were to return tomorrow morning, I would have more oil prepared at that point." Seeing that Fenzik didn't look satisfied with this answer, he went on. "Or... I could prepare more now, but only if you first run an errand for me."

"An errand? Sure, we'll do it," Fenzik volunteered quickly, then caught himself. Why did he always make decisions so rashly when his chemistry was on the line? "Er... what is it?"

"My oil press has fallen into disrepair," Pell explained. "I commissioned a new part from a blacksmith two weeks ago. I should have known better -- she has a reputation for being lazy. Her father was always so much more industrious. Nevertheless, perhaps by now she will have finished it. If it is, will you retrieve it for me?" Out of nowhere, he produced a small paper card with a name and address printed neatly on it.

"Of course," answered Fenzik helpfully, accepting the card. "You can count on us, Mr.... uh..." he fumbled, forgetting the shopkeeper's name.

"Archer Swanswick Pell," the vulture stated before disappearing into the shadows of the shop's backroom. "Alert me when you return," his voice emanated.

"Mr. Pell," Fenzik repeated, giving a nervous chuckle as he turned to Molly. "Is this, um, okay with you?" he asked, giving her a sheepish smile. "I guess I should have asked sooner." He toyed with the piece of paper, flipping it over a few times before offering it to the chicken. "Here, I trust you with this more than I do myself."

[Lucca]

When Fenzik walked closer and began to speak, Molly breathed a little easier. She felt a right fool for forgetting what it was that Fenzik had wanted to buy from this shop. Well...until he mentioned what it was, and she realized that he hadn't before. No wonder she hadn't know what to say! Between this revelation and the fact that a warm, gentle paw was resting on her wing, the Chicken felt worlds better. She shot Fenzik a small, shy smile that she wasn't sure he saw, and turned back to look at the intimidating shopkeep.

She made a sad, sympathetic noise as the man said he was out of what the Rat was looking for. Bother! That wasn't good. She caught her breath a bit as his paw squeezed her wing, and she subconsciously leaned toward him a bit, distracted by how surprisingly pleasant it felt. But in the next minute the Rat withdrew his paw, and she tried not to look sad about it. She was being silly, she knew, but her wing tingled as if missing his touch.

She shook her head, trying to collect her thoughts, and the next thing she knew, they were apparently being sent on an errand of some kind. Well...apparently it was really important for Fenzik to get this oil as soon as possible, then! She wasn't sure rather she should be annoyed that Fenzik had automatically assumed she would help him, or flattered to be included.

She still hadn't decided when Fenzik asked, and her small beak opened without her permission. "Oh, it's no trouble, Fenzik! I'm free for the rest of the afternoon." She blinked in surprise when he thrust the paper at her, taking it and feeling a flush rise to her face. "Oh...I...thank you," she mumbled, carefully tucking the paper in her scarf after studying the words on it. "I...suppose we should get going?" She looked toward the door, a bit uncertainly, then shot a glance back towards where the Mr. Pell had vanished.

[Varde]

"Ah, good," Fenzik smiled, relieved when Molly said she was free. But he still needed to buy her some replacement food at some point -- he couldn't let himself forget that. Certainly not after all the kindness she was showing him. "Yes, I suppose we should," he assented. He strode toward the door and pushed it open. He hadn't noticed it being exceptionally chilly inside the shop, but the air in the alley felt warm by comparison, despite the buildings on either side blocking out a good portion of the sunlight.

When the chicken followed him out of the shop, the rat bowed his head slightly and extended his paw in front of him, as though she were a Queen stepping onto a plush red carpet instead of a dingy cobblestone street. "After you," he said, glancing up and shooting her a grin. "After all, I probably don't need to tell you that I have absolutely no idea where that address is," he confessed with a good-natured laugh. "Do... do you?" he asked as an afterthought, realizing that he really ought to stop just assuming these things.