Touring the "village"

Rouge was in awe as they came up onto Grassveil, as compared to his village, this place was absolutely massive. Those tall things that the Pokemon lived and worked in, were they fancy cave? what about those wooden things with pictures and symbols on them, were they a different types of trees? What kind of paint did they use to draw on it? what were those flat things with food on them? So many questions filled his brain the moment they entered the town. The sights and sounds were nearly too much for him, though he was happy to have ashen there to help guide him through this place. He would surely get lost in this place if he had come alone, even then what would they think of him? he was sure he not only looked foreign, but may even be mean to him. Maybe they wouldn't? Rouge knew none of the answers, but was happy he saw them using fire, albeit in odd ways with strange containers over it. he could smell them cooking food, but what were those shiny containers, and why did they put the over the fire directly? this was all very strange to him, though he waited for ashen to start her explanations at her own pace.

After an exhausting adventure at the Cattail Marsh, and an equally tiring trip back home, Ashen probably wasn't in the best condition to be giving her strange, new friend a tour of Grassveil. Of course, when they arrived at the village, she certainly wasn't going to disappoint the Cubone and retire to her house for a nap! As they walked through the outskirts of the town, Ashen quietly wondered to herself what she would need to explain. He told me that he's from a tribe, but... That doesn't really tell me a whole lot about what he knows, She thought, taking a quick glance at Rouge to gauge his reaction to the new environment. He already had a look of confusion on his face, which told the hound that she would need to explain many of the things that were ordinary to her. I guess I should start with the basics...

"Uhm, s-so this is Grassveil Town..." Ashen groggily told her companion, forcing a warm smile. "So we're going into the housing district, where most of the Pokemon like me live... We stay in the little houses, like this one," Ashen told Rouge, pointing at one of the buildings. Like most of the houses, it was constructed mostly of logs from the forest, with stone bricks serving as the foundation. "Uhm, d-did your tribe live in houses, or caves, or...?"

"c-ca-v-es." Rouge replied, looking at the houses. They looked different than any cave he'd seen. deffinatly not natrual, but they didn't look terrible. He wondered what they looked like inside though, were they stone, with a fire pit and carved shelves? There were many pokemon, some younge ones screeming and playing strange games, older ones moving dirt around with some strange device. Many different chores and actions Rouge didn't reconise were happening, leaving Rouge more confused with each passing second. He was sure it would take a long time to learn about this land and it's customs, though it would have to happen, there was no way he could go back to his home.

"O-oh, s-so this must be r-really different from where you lived, then..." Ashen said, yawning as she spoke. I guess I'm going to have to explain a lot... This must be awfully confusing for him, The hound thought to herself. It's not like Rouge had anywhere else to go, either. He would either have to learn how to adapt to city life, or return to the wilderness alone... And Ashen certainly wasn't going to let him do that. The last thing she wanted for her friend was to be completely isolated from society.

"Uhm... Have you ever seen houses, then? Or is this your first time in a town like this?" The hellhound asked, tilting her head inquisitively. I really hope I'm not coming off as condescending, She quietly thought to herself as they continued down the street.  "Uhm... My house is just a block away, so... I-I can take you inside if you really want to see what they're like inside," Ashen offered, smiling warmly at the Cubone.

Rouge was hesitant to reply to the first time question. He had been somewhere like this before, though the pokemon were prodding him with sharp thin sticks with some fluid in it and trying to hold him down. Rouge decided to lie about being in a place like this. "N-no-o. n-o-ot be-en h-he-re." Rouge heard her offer to show him inside of her home, exciting him, though rouge quickly chased that feeling away. and replied with this "y-yo-ou n-ne-ed r-res-st." as she looked and sounded weary from their encounters. He knew it would be better to get her some rest before continuing on with helping him to understand this place.

"N-no, I-I don't need rest, I'm fine," Ashen protested, shaking her head. She didn't want to go to sleep before she finished Rouge's tour, but... She knew that the Cubone was probably right. Ashen sighed, and looked up the road at her house. "Uhm... I-I guess I could give my legs a break, though," She admitted, feeling a bit wobbly from being on her feet for so long. 

After walking through the crowded street, the duo arrived at Ashen's residence: a quaint, two-story home of brick and stone construction (a pair of fire types living in a wooden house was a recipe for disaster). "Uhm... This is my house. M-my mom w-won't be home for a while, s-so... Y-you can stay here for a day or so," She told her reptilian companion, smiling warmly at him. "Uhm... A-are you ready to go inside...?"

Rouge nodded ready to follow her in, this would be one of the most exciting things that has happened to him in the past few moons. Even his cave being trashed by a large angry green Pokemon pales in comparison. He looked around seeing Pokemon pass by in a leisurely fashion, such and event was normal for Pokemon like that, but Rouge was different than them.

(honestly I'm not sure how to extend this post any longer mostly because Rouge can't do much with out ashen's action.)

Ashen smiled at Rouge's eager nod, and pushed the door open with a paw, gingerly padding inside of the building. She was a bit surprised that her mother hadn't locked the door, but... Well, there wasn't much inside to steal. Also, Grassveil was generally a safe place to live, with the lowest crime rates around, especially in comparison to Grima. To her relief (but not disbelief), everything seemed to be in order, just as she had left them. She looked back at Rouge, and motioned for him to come in.

On the inside, the house was fully furnished, but with such little space, it still had a quaint feel to it. There was a couch and coffee table, which served as both a living room and a dining area, and a wood stove with a few cabinets tucked in the back. The walls were adorned with beautiful paintings, most of them featuring the same subjects: a Houndoom and a Mightyena.

"Uhm... I-I guess we could sit down for a while..." Ashen told her guest, hopping on the right side of the couch and curling up. The canine yawned; she couldn't help herself after all of that traveling. She didn't want to end up falling asleep, though. After all, there was plenty to explain to Rouge while they were inside. "Uhm... S-so... D-do you like it? It m-must be really different for you..." She awkwardly rasped, trying to create some conversation.

Rouge looked around eagerly, there were so many things, none that he recognized. He continued follow ashen over to the couch before stopping to admire it. He put a single hand on it, it was oddly soft and looked strange. Never has he known such an odd thing, and knew not what to make of it. Rouge looked to ashen as she spoke and simply shrugged, it was exciting to see new things, but everything was so alien to him. Carefully rouge climbed onto the couch, taking great care not to scratch, rip, or tare it.

Ashen patiently watched Rouge as he slowly made his way across the room, his eyes taking in every little detail. Eventually, the reptile sat down on the couch next to her, taking ginger care to not scratch or ruin it. "Uhm, it's alright," Ashen awkwardly cooed. "Just, uhm, make yourself comfortable..."  The hound's head slumped down on one of the pillows. She was tired, but... There was still a lot she had to teach Rouge about Grassveil. 

"Uhm, s-so... Is there anything you wanted to ask me about...? Did anything out there confuse you, or...?" She groggily asked the Cubone. It was a stupid question; obviously Rouge was confused, being in a completely alien environment with an entirely different culture. But was he capable of asking her questions with his broken speech?

Rouge shook his head, ashen looked very tired and sounded more so. He knew if he were going to have the best chance to learn more about his new surroundings he should let her rest for a while, though a bit of rest for himself wouldn't be a bad idea either. Rouge thought for a moment, pulling together his words as he wanted to make sure she would rest.

"R-re-es-st n-no-o-ow. t-ti-ir-re-d n-n-o go-o-ood t-te-a-ac-h." Rouge sated hoping his point go though his garbled words. Rouge took in his surroundings again, all of these small objects, and strange shapes were curious, though he knew it would be a while before he knew what they all were, weather ashen was tired or not.

"Oh, uhm... M-maybe that's a good idea," Ashen agreed, drowsily nodding her head at her houseguest. I guess he's right... I need some rest, or I'll end up confusing him even more with my rambling, She thought to herself. The hound shifted on the couch, leaning her entire body on the pillow, and shut her eyes. "I-I, uhm... G-good night...?" She said, giggling lightly. It wasn't even midday yet! But after staying up all night the day before, she had no complaints. It didn't take very long for her to drift asleep...

...

Ashen woke up a few hours later, still feeling quite groggy. She would be coherent enough to give Rouge the tour, though. The Houndour slowly rolled off of the couch and stretched her legs, a little sore from the marsh. "Uhm... Rouge...?" She quietly asked, looking towards the other side of the couch, where she suspected that he had fallen asleep.

Rouge was sitting on the couch, still asleep. His bone was slightly handing off the couch still clutched in one hand, acting as a way to pull him off to wake him up in case of an emergency. There was a small trail of tears coming from under hos skull helmet as he slept, his dream was obviously a sad one. Rouge slumped over slightly, his cheek now resting on the arm rest, his grip relaxing on the bone slightly. He was only slipping into a deeper sleep as time passed.

Ashen gingerly approached her sleeping houseguest, taking care not to accidentally rouse him awake. He appeared to have been crying... Poor guy must've had a nightmare, The Houndour thought to herself, frowning. I should just let him be for now, though. He must be exhausted from all of that traveling... Definitely needs the sleep. The dear would probably feel a little better if he woke up to dinner... She mused, padding into the kitchen area of her house.

For the next half hour, Ashen prepared a pot of tea and two large plates of berry salad. It wasn't a lot, but there wasn't very much else that she could make! She knew how to bake, but she would've had to go out and purchase all of the ingredients... It was already late, and she knew that many of the market stands would be out of stock for the day, so she just had to make due with what she had.

Once she was finished, she brought everything out to the coffee table (which was complicated by her lack of hands, but she still managed just fine). "Uhm, dinner's ready, dear," Ashen softly told her new friend, smiling warmly at him as she pouring him a cup of herbal tea. Yes, perhaps that was what Rouge needed to calm down and forget about whatever was bothering him while he slept...

Rouge woke up slowly, he was groggy for the moment looking around the room. He was confused as to where he was, it took him several moments to figure out where they were and what was going on. he made his way to the edge of the couch only to fall off, slightly panicked, with a hard thud. Rouge scrambled up, panicked because of how relaxed his muscles had seemed only moments ago. looking back up, he saw Ashen there and let out an embarrassed chuckle. He didn't know how long she had been standing there, it was at that moment he noticed the food. maybe she was trying to wake me up because she made food...? Rouge wondered for a few moments seemingly retreating back into his own mind for the moment.