Date:
28, Fall, 514
Though it was rare for Alexander to drink to excess, today was almost one of those days. He had quite a buzz going upon walking out of the Rearing Stallion. Walking hadn't become a focused skill yet but a few more ales and it would have been. Alexander had the next day off and a few mizahs to spare so he decided to kick back, relax, and have some fun. Already on the mend from the fighting pits he decided to give that a miss today. It was a good vent for him but it also took a toll on the body. A few feet down the street a pair of young and rather well endowed young women walked by. To this Alexander made no attempt to hide his interest and gave them a small two finger salute.
“Ladies,” Alexander said. The two looked and him and giggled but kept on walking. Now in a rather good mood Alexander tried to think of something else to kill time that wouldn't cost money which immediately took out one of his favorite pastimes, gambling. With a grunt he decided to settle for going home and crashing to sleep off the buzz. Work had been rather demanding lately and a little extra sleep would be nice. It was already getting close to evening so it wouldn't disrupt Alexander's sleeping schedule.
On the way back to the apartment he let out a small burp that almost masked another unidentified noise. This caused Alexander to stop and look around, it sounded like a cry but it was too small to be a person. The noise sounded a second time and he managed to pinpoint the general location to a nearby alley. Not sure what was going on Alexander squinted slightly trying to see if there was any movement.
“Hello?” Alexander said. Still not sure what to expect he remained cautious upon approaching the alley, then the noise sounded for a third time. This time Alexander recognized it as a cat's cry, but it sounded so small. It took a moment for his eyes to adjust to the darkness, then looking down the saw something that pulled at the man's heart strings. Against the wall near the middle of an alley was a calico cat laying on her side. It wasn't hard to see that she was dead, there were no visible injuries but it could have been one of a hundred different causes. Next to the cat was a single calico kitten that barely looked old enough to have its eyes open. The kitten let out another tiny cry and Alexander could see it was cold, scared, and lost without its mother.
“Oh you poor little thing,” Alexander said. Kneeling down he picked the kitten up and it looked at him with the most pitiful black eyes letting out a tiny 'meee' at the smith. Not only was the kitten so cute it bordered on cheating, having grown up in The Welcoming Home, Alexander knew what it was like not to have any parents. He also knew if the kitten were left to fend for himself in the city it likely wouldn't last more than a day or two. The idea of leaving such a small and innocent creature to die would have been an act of incredible cruelty he would have felt guilty over for a long time.
With the kitten in one hand Alexander managed to catch one of the local shops right before it was about to close and bought a bottle of milk. This was going to turn out to be an interesting lesson in parenting because aside from baby animals drinking milk, Alexander didn't know anything about raising one. The kitten continued to cry most of the way home which only wanted to make the smith care for it even more. The kitten was like a lost little child and Alexander wanted it to feel safe and cared for. It was the right thing to do, because if The Welcoming Home could take in a lost child and care for them, he could do the same for this kitten.
Back at the apartment Alexander set the kitten on the table in the middle of the room long enough to get a small bowl out of cupboard after lighting the lantern, and pour it some milk. He set the bowl down on the table and set the kitten closer so it could see what was inside. Curious to the contents the kitten leaned it's head over the side sniffing the liquid, following this it pulled back and sneezed a few times.
“That's milk silly, you're suppose to drink it, not smell it,” Alexander said. He left the kitten to unravel the mystery of drinking out of a bowl while he started a fire in the hearth. Being near the end of fall it was already getting cold outside and Alexander had no intention of freezing. Once the fire was going well enough he tossed a few chunks of wood in and looked back to check on the kitten. By this time the mystery was solved and it was busily lapping away at the milk. When he used a finger to pet the kitten it began to purr which brought a smile to his face.
“I think I'll call you Sparky,” Alexander said. Having always liked the bright light caused by sparks when sharpening metal, it seemed as good a name as any. The next order of business was finding a place for Sparky to sleep. That in mind Alexander looked around the room trying to find something suitable to use as a bed for a kitten. It took a moment to work things out mentally but he finally settled on using a small basket. Taking one out of the corner of the room he grabbed a wool towel normally used for drying off after a bath to line the basket, then placed a a wash cloth in it so Sparky would have something to cuddle up next to.
Very carefully Alexander took the Sparky off the table after dinner was done, cupping her in both hands, and placed the kitten in the bed before setting it just close enough to the hearth to stay warm. Now safe, warm, and with a full belly the kitten flopped down in the basket letting out a contented 'meee'.
“I agree there munchkin, it's time for a nap,” Alexander said. With Sparky now safe and content he decided it was time for some shuteye as well.
Though it was rare for Alexander to drink to excess, today was almost one of those days. He had quite a buzz going upon walking out of the Rearing Stallion. Walking hadn't become a focused skill yet but a few more ales and it would have been. Alexander had the next day off and a few mizahs to spare so he decided to kick back, relax, and have some fun. Already on the mend from the fighting pits he decided to give that a miss today. It was a good vent for him but it also took a toll on the body. A few feet down the street a pair of young and rather well endowed young women walked by. To this Alexander made no attempt to hide his interest and gave them a small two finger salute.
“Ladies,” Alexander said. The two looked and him and giggled but kept on walking. Now in a rather good mood Alexander tried to think of something else to kill time that wouldn't cost money which immediately took out one of his favorite pastimes, gambling. With a grunt he decided to settle for going home and crashing to sleep off the buzz. Work had been rather demanding lately and a little extra sleep would be nice. It was already getting close to evening so it wouldn't disrupt Alexander's sleeping schedule.
On the way back to the apartment he let out a small burp that almost masked another unidentified noise. This caused Alexander to stop and look around, it sounded like a cry but it was too small to be a person. The noise sounded a second time and he managed to pinpoint the general location to a nearby alley. Not sure what was going on Alexander squinted slightly trying to see if there was any movement.
“Hello?” Alexander said. Still not sure what to expect he remained cautious upon approaching the alley, then the noise sounded for a third time. This time Alexander recognized it as a cat's cry, but it sounded so small. It took a moment for his eyes to adjust to the darkness, then looking down the saw something that pulled at the man's heart strings. Against the wall near the middle of an alley was a calico cat laying on her side. It wasn't hard to see that she was dead, there were no visible injuries but it could have been one of a hundred different causes. Next to the cat was a single calico kitten that barely looked old enough to have its eyes open. The kitten let out another tiny cry and Alexander could see it was cold, scared, and lost without its mother.
“Oh you poor little thing,” Alexander said. Kneeling down he picked the kitten up and it looked at him with the most pitiful black eyes letting out a tiny 'meee' at the smith. Not only was the kitten so cute it bordered on cheating, having grown up in The Welcoming Home, Alexander knew what it was like not to have any parents. He also knew if the kitten were left to fend for himself in the city it likely wouldn't last more than a day or two. The idea of leaving such a small and innocent creature to die would have been an act of incredible cruelty he would have felt guilty over for a long time.
With the kitten in one hand Alexander managed to catch one of the local shops right before it was about to close and bought a bottle of milk. This was going to turn out to be an interesting lesson in parenting because aside from baby animals drinking milk, Alexander didn't know anything about raising one. The kitten continued to cry most of the way home which only wanted to make the smith care for it even more. The kitten was like a lost little child and Alexander wanted it to feel safe and cared for. It was the right thing to do, because if The Welcoming Home could take in a lost child and care for them, he could do the same for this kitten.
Back at the apartment Alexander set the kitten on the table in the middle of the room long enough to get a small bowl out of cupboard after lighting the lantern, and pour it some milk. He set the bowl down on the table and set the kitten closer so it could see what was inside. Curious to the contents the kitten leaned it's head over the side sniffing the liquid, following this it pulled back and sneezed a few times.
“That's milk silly, you're suppose to drink it, not smell it,” Alexander said. He left the kitten to unravel the mystery of drinking out of a bowl while he started a fire in the hearth. Being near the end of fall it was already getting cold outside and Alexander had no intention of freezing. Once the fire was going well enough he tossed a few chunks of wood in and looked back to check on the kitten. By this time the mystery was solved and it was busily lapping away at the milk. When he used a finger to pet the kitten it began to purr which brought a smile to his face.
“I think I'll call you Sparky,” Alexander said. Having always liked the bright light caused by sparks when sharpening metal, it seemed as good a name as any. The next order of business was finding a place for Sparky to sleep. That in mind Alexander looked around the room trying to find something suitable to use as a bed for a kitten. It took a moment to work things out mentally but he finally settled on using a small basket. Taking one out of the corner of the room he grabbed a wool towel normally used for drying off after a bath to line the basket, then placed a a wash cloth in it so Sparky would have something to cuddle up next to.
Very carefully Alexander took the Sparky off the table after dinner was done, cupping her in both hands, and placed the kitten in the bed before setting it just close enough to the hearth to stay warm. Now safe, warm, and with a full belly the kitten flopped down in the basket letting out a contented 'meee'.
“I agree there munchkin, it's time for a nap,” Alexander said. With Sparky now safe and content he decided it was time for some shuteye as well.
