::. Graphiret .::
A hot, lazy sun beat down on the little town, making everything with a pulse, and some things without, sweat. Air conditioners blasted into tiny and large buildings alike; no matter how high their dials went, how much electricity they used, nothing would beat the heat. The townsfold lazed around, some in their beds, other venturing outside to gather in the saloons and have a cold drink. They swished their bushy tails behind them, grasping onto the handle of a pint, or the dial of an AC with rough, clawed paws. It was summer in Graphiret; a miserable time of the year, when no one wanted to move, to stir, to work, and yet everyone did. This world was a harsh one, and no matter how hot it was, everyone had to get to work on time, or they'd be fired, and then where would they be? No where, that's for sure.
A couple strolled along the wooden sidewalks of the town, arm in arm; somehow, the heat didn't seem to affect them at all. Their love was all they needed in the world, and would protect them from anything, until it faded. Tails entwined, they continued down the sidewalk, oblivious to everything but each other. Suddenly, there was a shout, not far from where the couple were walking.
"Fight!" A voice bellowed, and, with a great clattering and banging, what seemed like the entire town streamed from every door, window, and crevice in the area, bellowing and whooping. Two forms were struggling on the ground, kicking up so much dust that the spectators could hardly get a good view. A few people waved large, straw hats around in an attempt to get some of the dust away, and everyone coughed. Finally, after a few minutes, a couple of fox-like people from the crowd pulled the fighters apart, settling them both down.
The larger of the two snorted, licking a large cut on the end of his muzzle. "You, me, tonight, under the 'High Noon Moon'...alright?" The other fighter barked once, twice, and then again, showing his aggression in the most animalistic of ways.
"It's a duel...I'll be there, but I doubt you'll be, ya' coward!" With that, the smaller of the two struggled to his feet, turned, and walked away, his tail swinging limply behind him. The crowd turned back to the larger fox-creature, and many more had to jump in to restrain him, and keep him from breaking the duel for later that night. After all, no one wanted to miss a good show, especially if it was a duel under the 'High Noon Moon.'
Later that night, everyone in the town was gathered around the scene where the last fight had taken place; it was customary for the fighters to have their duel in the exact place where they had last brawled, or it wasn't a duel at all. Everyone was there; everyone, of course, but the duelists. They were always the last on the scene, as per dueling tradition.
Just before many members of the public were about to leave from boredom, both duelists slunk out from the shadows; the larger one's gunbelt drooped low on his hips, while the smaller one's was hiked up around his waist. Both had two pistols nestled in their holsters, and both wore traditional cowboy uniform; chaps, a vest, boots with spurs, ten gallon hat, the works. They walked slowly, taking their steps together, until they were in the middle of the road, facing each other.
The people backed up until they hit walls, doors, windows; many a duel had ended with a stray bullet in an innocent bistander, instead of a duelest. Once the public had settled down, the larger duelist took a deep breath, a smile spreading along his muzzle.
"Hey, you! Are you ready to die? 'Cuz I'm ready to kill you!" His voice carried throughout the town, bouncing off of the rustic buildings. At the word 'kill,' the smaller Duelist perked up, growling softly. He pinned his long ears back, his hands twitching closer to his pistols.
"I'll show you a killing..." He muttered, shifting his weight. "One you'll never forget..." The sheriff of the town stepped out slowly, drawing in a breath. All eyes were on him; he was the one to start and end every duel in the town, and he had the say as to who won.
"One..." His voice was crisp and loud, and the whole town seemed to gasp with every number. "...Two..." Both duelists tensed up, their trigger fingers twitching ever so slightly. Some more people stepped back, a few children twittered amongst themselves; the moon shown over the two duelists, the light glinting off of their loaded pistols.
"Three!" The sheriff yelled, stepping back into the crowd; the collective gasp of the populus caused the town to be enveloped in silence. Two shots rang out, and as soon as it was apparent that no more were going to be fired, the people surged toward the two duelists, chattering and yelling. The slim form of the smaller duelist was raised by many hands toward the sky, and then, a bit more akwardly and slowly, the larger fox-creature was hoisted up. Both were untouched, and as the crowd brought them closer to each other, two heads turned, both with smiles on their faces.
"You never could shoot, Bernard..." The smaller duelist licked his nose with his long tongue, smirking. He made sure that the rest of his body was nice and limp, so the people would keep carrying him.
"Heh...Neither could you, Michael..." The larger of the two retorted, before accidentally sliding off of the grip of the crowd. With a muffled curse, he stood, dusting himself off. "And these were new chaps, too..." The high-pitched laugh of his companion was the only other sound in the area, for the people were too suprised at the results of the duel to say anything. Usually, at least one person died, whether it be one of the duelists, or a member of the crowd; it was highly unusual to have shots fired, and everyone okay.
The sheriff stepped up, switching a wad of chewing tobacco from his left cheek to the right. "Allrightt, you two..." He frowned, trying to look down on them both, but not quite succeeding with the larger of the two fox-creatures. Nevertheless, he mustered his most annoyed face, snorted, and spit off to the side. "A week in jail for both of you, and then I want you out of this town, you hear?" At the mention of jail, both former duelists backed up slightly, their faces identical masks of shock.
"Whaaa?" The smaller of the two spread his arms, sucking in air. As soon as his waist was small enough, his gunbelt slipped off of his hips, down to the ground; this scene caused the crowd to go up in histerics, and while everyone was laughing, the larger of the two dropped a small, grenade-shaped object on the ground, which immediatly began emitting a thick smog. Before anyone knew what was happening, the two were out of town, running like streaks of lightening.
"Well..." Michael, the smaller of the two, panted, still smiling. "We got out of that one pretty well, if I do say so myself, and I do...I think that new smoke bomb of yours was pretty slick, Bernard..." Their legs pumped quickly back and forth in an attempt to outrun the mob that would be forming shortly, and they made a pretty good distance before the yells and soft glow of torches started toward them.
Before long, the mob stopped, too tired and too angry to keep going. The sheriff turned, changing his wad of chew to the other cheek and spitting off into the distance. A small smile formed on his face, and he swished his tail gently. "Just another day, in Graphiret..."
.:: Jeu'tsu ::.
A gentle breeze swept through the area, causing the tall rice plants to sway slowly this way and that. Barely a sound was heard, save the gentle lapping of the waves of water as they sloshed against the boundaries of the farms. A dragonfly took a moment out of its busy day to land on the edge of a large, straw plane, fanning its wings.
Suddenly, the plane began to move, instantly starting the dragonfly away; a slender form rose up from where it had been praying at a small, stone alter, its straw hat waving gently with the breeze. The creature took a moment to stretch, waving its long, striped tail behind it, and flattening both its front and back paws, causing them to pop. Two pert ears flipped this way and that, catching the sounds of the morning with ease. After another bow toward the alter it turned, making its way down a dusty road, toward one of the rice farms.
"Ai! Mekoshi, you're back already!" A high, happy voice rang out from a tiny shack, and a rice-paper door slid quickly to the side, revealing another creature, although this time more feminine. She, like her companion, had a striped tail and paws, although her ears were more rounded, and her hips were slightly larger. The two embraced, pressing their noses together for a moment, before drawing back. The more masculine of the two creatures sighed, removing his large straw hat.
"Korika, I prayed so hard today...I prayed with all of my might, for a better harvest, and peace and prosperity amongst our people..." His ears drooped a little, betraying his dispair to his mate. "The gods are our only hope now, my mate..."
Both creatures brought their heads up, turning toward their own plot of land; there were barely any stalks rising from the water, and they didn't look like they would make it until the rice could grow to maturity and be harvested. Mice and bugs ate away at the plants, making the final harvest for the people very little.
Korika smiled softly, rubbing her belly, which protruded a little. "Even if we don't have enough to make a profit off of, in town, we will have enough to feed our family with..." Mekoshi turned back to his mate, hugging her gently, before wading off into the water, to check the plants.
Meanwhile, many miles away from the peaceful farm, a long-cherished tradition was being upheld; two of the panda-like creatures faced each other, long swords grasped in their paws. Both wore the traditional dress for the occasion; a long piece of fabric that was wrapped around the wearer and held tight with a belt around the waist. Two enormous sleeves allowed arms to be free, and the way the garmet flowed near the legs, like a dress, enabled adaquite mobility.
The light from the rising sun glinted off of the two fighter's swords as they advanced slowly toward each other. One creature, slightly taller and thinner than his opponent, slid across the dirt in the traditional footwear of the time; his socked feet were strapped tightly to wooden sandals that made him rise a few inches higher than he already was, increasing his omonous presence.
The other fighter was small, and not quite as well formed as his opponent; he was an adolescent of the species, and was a mix between a total animal and the creature he was fighting. His stance was more hunched, making him look like he would be more comfortable on all fours, rather than on the two he was standing on. The sword he held tightly between his paws seemed to be too heavy for him; every once in a while he would falter and bring it down a little, and he was panting heavily, long before the fight would start.
A breeze slipped through the trees from the general direction of a patch of rice farms, swishing the leaves of the trees surrounding the fighters. The larger one sighed, raising his sword for a moment, before sliding it into a sheath attached to his belt. "You..." He said, waving a hand toward his smaller opponent. "I understand your feelings, and why you wish to fight me; nevertheless, you are not ready..." His long ears flopped gently as he nodded. "Get back to the Dojo; I don't want to see your face again until the practice room is spotless..."
The adolescent creature looked up, defiance flashing in his eyes. Before he could speak, however, the larger panda-like being's sword was at his throat, stopping any and all attempts by the smaller one to speak. Defiance melted into fear, and when the sword was raised from his throat, the smaller creature sped off into the forest, no doubt toward the Dojo.
Meanwhile, just a few miles away from the forest and the rice farms, the marketplace was preparing for a busy day of sales. Vendors in the open-air market set up their shops, placing the best of what they had to offer out front, coupled with a few less-expensive items; in Jeu'tsu, the market was a world of its own, filled with brutal competition.
A few early-risers started to filter in from the farms, sleepily gazing at the items of the day. In a few hours, the same lazy marketplace would be abuzz with the shouts and calls of the vendors, the haggling of the customers, and the sounds of children playing just outside the area while their parents shopped. Everything anyone would ever need could be bought here, for a price, so people rarely left the area; if something couldn't be found there right away, chances are someone could find it for you, if you gave up a couple days wages or a few bags of rice.
"Hey!" A gruff voice called over the growing crowd of shoppers, and a paw raised, waving back and forth. "Hey, you, over there!" The owner of the hand waved it faster, almost annoyed, until he caught sight of a glint on the other side of the marketplace. Another smaller, more dainty paw rose slowly; the glint came from the newly-risen sun reflecting off of the many rings and bracelets adorning the limb. The owner of the smaller paw made its way over to the rather loud vender, clutching a wooden basket to her chest.
When the two met, the vendor's lips curled back to form a wide grin, and he chuckled softly. "I never thought you could do it, Hika, but you did..." The large paw reached out, roughly grasping the wooden basket, and pulling it behind the shop front. After a quick inspection of the contents of the basket, the vendor's head shot up, his eyes scanning for any customers. When it was apparent that no one was currently interested in his wares, he reached down, pulling out a lumpy bag. Hika grasped the bag, greedily opening it; inside, several gold and silver coins sat, shining a little with the small amount of light that filtered through.
With a little squeal of delight, the panda-like creature closed the bag, smiled up at her partner in business, and melted quietly into the crowd. As soon as she was out of the main marketplace, Hika skuttled up a tree, giggling softly. "With all this..." She whispered, opening the bag again. "We can live happily forever!" With that thought, she jumped down, her tail waving happily behind her.
By the afternoon Hika had arrived home, and was busy showing her amazed parents her 'find.' Knowing her species' honorable ways, she made up the story that she had helped a lord with his farm work for the day, and he had given her the bag of coins in return.
"Oh, Hika!" Her mother cried for the tenth time that day, hugging her daughter. A large smile adorned the larger panda-like creature's face, as well as the more masculine being standing beside her. The family took a few more moments to bask in happiness, before the two adults started outside, to plan what they would do with the money.
"Korika..." Mekoshi began, frowning softly; he had doubts about his daughter's story as to how she had gotten the gold, but the family was doing quite badly, so he resigned to look into it later, after most of the gold had been spent. "This is a wonderful gift that the gods have bestowed on us...We must treat it with reverance and joy, and pray with everything we have every time we pass an alter..." He turned to her, suddenly looking serious. "You will do this, my mate, won't you?" A few tense moments followed, where the more feminine of the two gazed over the dying rice farm, lost in thought.
Korika turned to her mate, nodding slowly. "I will..." She whispered, bowing her head, and closing her eyes. The mood was immediatly lightened, and the couple continued their stroll along the outskirts of their farm, planning what they would do with their new fortune like children in a candy store.
