The rest of the room was what one might expect to be in a typical house- a large rug stretching from the bookshelf to the table; a lightbulb in the middle of the ceiling; a suspiciously poisonous-looking plant in a flowerpot on the table… all normal house things.

Rolf sneaked a glance at the hallway again, noticing no Yam before quietly sneaking towards Bread to pat him. However, reality wasn’t as nice as Rolf had hoped. Just as the tips of Rolf’s tippy toes touched the wooden plank, an extremely loud noise sounded.

It was… a fart.

Rolf farted. 

While trying to be sneaky.

A gut-busting fart. A smelly fart. Nasty.

Bread snaked backwards in disgust from the noise and Rolf coughed up a storm from the horrible smell. Bread’s usual docile expression contorted into one of disgust, but the fluffy orange fur made him look more cute than scared. Bread made a few chirping noises at Rolf, seemingly to protest against the weird behaviour.

Yam, with her excellent hearing, heard the commotion and rushed out from the hallway, now carrying a stack of pillows and blankets, all in mismatching colours. “What did you do.” Yam questioned, eyes sharp and staring at the embarrassed Rolf. She extended her arms towards Bread on the ground, forming a bridge for Bread to snake up onto her shoulder.

“Uhhhhhhhhhh I was trying to pat Bread but farted instead…?”

Yam stared at her, eyes narrowed, not saying anything. Rolf was just beginning to feel awkward when Bread booped Yam’s nose with his own and let out a little squeak of amusement when she purred with laughter and gently set him down on the table.

“This is what I get for letting her into my house, huh?” Yam tsked at Bread, stretching out an arm in Rolf’s direction. She turned to the Gnome, rolling her eyes. “Press that button over there.”

Rolf stared wildly around her, wondering where said button was, when she noticed a small wooden circle a metre to her left that otherwise would have gone unnoticed. She smacked it a bit too hard and Yam growled at her, but there suddenly came a loud whooshing noise from above their heads. Rolf glanced upwards and almost yelled in shock; the entire wooden-plank roof of the house had vanished, replaced by a thin sheet of glass through which the entire night sky was visible.

“Wow,” Rolf breathed, eyes wide, stunned. How had Yam managed to pull off such a thing? The Tabaxi, meanwhile, was busying herself throwing cushions and blankets onto the couch, Bread helping her by holding a pillow on his back and a corner of a blanket in his teeth.

“You’ll sleep here,” Yam announced briskly, stepping back from the couch. Bread jumped from the table onto the seat, bouncing off the couch with a yelp of alarm and skidding to a halt on the floor, orange fur bristling and tail fluffed up to twice its usual size. “Come, now, Bread, don’t be scared.”

Rolf waddled over to the couch and sat down with a thump, also jumping up with a screech of surprise when she realised that it was, indeed, very bouncy. She then spent a rather enjoyable ten minutes bouncing up and down on the couch, Bread lying beside her and squeaking every time he got thrown into the air.

Yam let out a sigh at the sight of the two flying into the air and the slight creaking of the couch before turning off the lights and disappearing into the darkness of the hallways. “Sleep soon, and don’t touch anything in the house. Break anything and I will skin you alive.” Yam yelled out from inside the hallways, presumably inside her room.

“OKKKKKK YAMMMMMMMMM. GOOD NIGHTTTTTTTT!!!!!” 

Rolf screamed back in response and jumped into the padded surface of the chair,  sinking into it along with Bread. She reached her hands out towards the stars. All while using her other hand to scoop Bread up and lay him across her belly. Bread let out a surprised chirp before curling up and enjoying the warmth of the body contact combined with the furry blankets. Bread let out a satisfied yawn and closed his eyes. Rolf halted, and stared down at the comfortable Bread, before releasing a melancholic breath. 

Only the quiet night and the stars bear witness to this rare moment of silence and sadness. “Y’know, Bread. I actually do remember where my house is. It’s just… I don’t think my parents or… ‘friends’ want me back there... There’s no point of my existence… If I can’t even meet everyone’s expectations. Maybe that’s why I ran away from home...”

Bread’s purple globe blinked open, taking in Rolf’s expression. Rolf stared back, diverting her gaze away and whispered. “Nevermind. Let’s sleep.” Bread kept his eyes on Rolf’s face, slowly scooting close to her head and licking her cheeks. He let out a soft cooing noise, not unlike the affectionate purrs he made when being patted, and pressed his cheek against Rolf’s.

Yam woke up the next morning with a start. Something felt wrong. She hopped out of bed and quietly padded towards the door, slowly opening it, careful not to make a noise. She moved swiftly and silently down the hallway, creeping towards the main room, ears pricked up to detect any sound.

Nothing.

She burst into the living room, claws unsheathed and tail lashing. But what she saw, she hadn’t expected. In fact, it was rather unexpected.

Rolf was quietly sitting cross-legged in the middle of the couch, Bread lying across her lap, purring contentedly. She was stroking the fox-crow, and looked as if lost in thought; she didn’t notice as Yam silently stalked up to her and didn’t react when she waved a paw in her face.

“Earth to Rolf. Is anyone in there?” Yam snapped, waving her paw so aggressively she almost knocked off Rolf’s monocles. Bread chirped happily at the sight of her and leapt into her arms, curling up and closing his eyes.

Rolf suddenly jolted and stared at her, almost looking panicked. “Huh? What? Bread! Where’s Bread?!”

“He’s here.” Yam held out the purring fox-crow and Rolf’s shoulders dropped in relief.

“Oh. I didn’t see you there, Yam. Good morning. How was your sleep?”

“What’s… wrong with you?”

“Nothing,” Rolf replied cheerily, most of her joyousness returned. “I had a good sleep! Your couch is comfy!”

Yam stared at the Gnome, Bread still purring in her arms. “Alright,” she said after a while, “you can go now. Cross the river to the left and get out from there.”

Rolf blinked up at her, eyes pleading. “But Yaaaaam, can’t I stay with you longer?’

“No,” Yam snapped, gently setting Bread down on the table. He yawned, curled up and closed his eyes, wrapping his tail over his nose. “I said one night. Now go.”

Rolf opened her mouth to protest, but a steely glare from Yam made her shut it again. Despondently, she got to her feet and crossed the room, heading for the door. Yam flung it open for her and she stepped out into the sunlight.

Yam shut the door behind Rolf with a snap, glad to be free of the loud Gnome. She sat down on the couch with a sigh, only to hop up again a second later and head towards the kitchen, intent on making herself some breakfast.

Just as she was slotting a plate of sardines into the microwave, a loud banging on the door made her jump- she unsheathed her claws as a precaution and tried to smooth her ruffled fur before stalking across the room.

“Yaaaaaaaaaaam,” Rolf’s annoyingly sing-song voice rang out. Yam grumbled under breath and opened the door.

“What.”

“Yam, do you usually have random, creepy-looking strangers standing behind your house?”

“What?” Yam jumped out of the door, skidding to a halt with a very cool slide. Instantly, she got to her paws and raced around to the back of the house, claws unsheathed and eyes narrowed. Bread leaped off the table and dashed after her, his smooth orange fur fluffed up and his tail bushed out to twice its usual size. He snarled, showing his sharp white teeth, transforming his small, fluffy teddy bear-appeal to that of a ferocious wild animal.

“Who are you? State your name and cause,” Yam growled, rather evidently showing her Tabaxi side. Most of the time, she was civilised and humanoid, but when she was under threat, she went full-on angry cat mode.

The stranger stepped out of the light, revealing themselves to be an average-height half-elf with flowing brown locks streaked with blonde. They, as it turned out, she, was dressed in a simple blue shirt with a bow on the side and a pair of white shorts over semi-opaque black tights. Over her feet she wore heavy black lace-up boots that reached halfway up her shins, and to top it all off, she had on a hooded white jacket that barely dipped below her lowest rib.

“Hey there,” the stranger greeted Yam, Bread and Rolf, her voice smooth and calm. Her eyes were a weird shade of blueish-green, and her streaked hair didn’t look dyed- in fact, the coloured strands looked rather natural.

“Who are you,” Yam repeated, not trusting this stranger. After all, how could you trust anyone who wore white in the woods? That was practically the same as screaming at the top of your lungs “I’m right here! Come and get me!” to any predators skulking around there. This stranger would stand out like snow at midnight among all the dark shadows.

“Ari,” the stranger introduced herself. Rolf rushed straight at her, eyes wide and mouth gaping in excitement.

“WOW YOUR HAIR IS SO COOL,” the Gnome gushed, circling Ari to get a good look at her hair from all angles.

“Yours is cool too,” Ari gasped, noticing Rolf’s naturally orange-and-blue hair. The two spent at least five minutes inspecting each other’s locks, picking up strands and staring closely at them. Yam watched, feeling more confused by the minute, and Bread, still crouched at her feet, ready to spring at a moment’s notice, let out a confused whine.

“Oh, yes, you’re here too!” Ari finally pulled away from Rolf and turned her attention to Yam. “Charming, charming. Hi there! What’s your little fox’s name?”

“That’s Bread, and he’s a fox-crow,” Yam hissed, pushing Bread behind her. The fox-crow chimaera let out another whine, ears flat against his head.

“Absolutely adorable,” Ari continued, giving Bread a little wave. “You know, I have a pet of my own at home, she’s the cutest little hamster, practically eats me out of house and home, though-”

Yam interrupted before she could continue rambling on. “Bread isn’t a pet. He’s my friend.”

“Of course, of course, no, I didn’t mean it like that,” Ari went on, proving Yam’s assumption that she never stopped talking true. The Tabaxi opened her mouth to shut her up, but before she could, another voice rang out from behind Ari, an annoyingly familiar one at that.

“Is this a party? Why wasn’t I invited?”

Aey stepped out from the dark forest, her suit as dishevelled as the last time they’d met, her eyes glinting with the same mischievous energy as ever.

“Oh, so you’re all here and you didn’t tell me about this, hm, Yam? Well, I suppose it doesn’t matter now that I’m here, but I must confess, I am a little hurt that you kept this whole gathering a secret from me.” Aey suddenly noticed Ari was there, and turned to face her. “And who might you be? Another friend Yam told about this party instead of me?”

“I’m Ari,” Ari introduced herself again. Aey nodded as she took in this new information. “You’re a Tiefling, aren’t you?” Ari seemed to shy away as she said this, backing away half a step, looking as if she were scared but not wanting to be rude by running away.

“Yeah.” The flash in Aey’s eyes told Yam that she’d noticed Ari’s fidgeting. “Don’t worry. I won’t eat you. I mean, yeah, I’m practically a demon from hell, but the whole “eating people” thing is a common misconception. A racial stereotype, if you will. No, I only eat children, and only the ones who were asking for it,” she added in an undertone.

“Oh, god,” Ari breathed; apparently she hadn’t heard Aey’s additional mumble. “I’m so sorry. I- I didn’t mean to, I’m sorry-”

“Don’t worry about it,” Aey replied swiftly, waving a hand. But her voice was sharper than before- she was obviously a bit hurt and maybe even a little offended. She turned to Yam, cocking her head slightly to the left. “So Yam, about that party?”

“It’s not a party, for goodness’ sake-”

“PARTYYYY,” Rolf practically screeched, pumping both fists in the air. “YEAH, PARTY!!!”

“Party?” Ari’s eyes widened and she turned to Yam. “Did I intrude on something?”

“It’s not a party,” Yam hissed, grabbing Rolf by the shoulders and shoving her into the woods, the Gnome still screaming “PARTYYYYY” at the top of her lungs. She turned to Aey and Ari, grabbing their wrists and dragging them after Rolf, groaning exasperatedly. “Get out of here. Aey, you go. Ari, you too. I want you all gone by noon.” Bread dodged around and nipped lightly at Ari and Aey’s heels, essentially doing no more than nomming them with his fluff.

“Alright, alright,” Aey relented, holding up both hands as a peace gesture and allowing herself to be pulled away. Bread slipped around her heels and nommed at the hem of her pants leg, trying and failing to help Yam pull her away. “But before I go, have you got any cider~?”