Name: Alana Sage

Age: 20

Appearance:

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Carefully, Lana re-counted the money she'd withdrawn from her account. She'd worked extra hours and overtime for months to save up enough money. 'Special' pets were obscenely expensive, and she'd finally managed to save enough money to get one. Aside from fish, 'special' pets were the only things allowed by her landlord, and she'd wanted one anyways since she was a pre-teen. Once she was sure she had enough, she went into the shop to find the right pet.

Name: Kindian Sienna
Age: Appears sixteen
Appearance:

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The shop was lined with the 'special pets'. One in the very back was curled up into a ball, staring morosely at the wall. He seemed innocent, perfect for the new buyer, but his looks were deceiving. He stared as Alana walked in, his green-gold eyes betraying no emotion.

This particular pet had black ears and a black tail, which was wrapped around him. He had white hair, though which made him odd. He kept staring at her, wondering who she'd pick. He wasn't sure if he wanted to get out of there. They'd taken him away from his roommate and sister, neither of them being nekos. He stayed curled on the small cot as the shopkeeper went over to Alana.

"Hello. How may I help you?" the shopkeeper asked. The neko just rolled away, turning his back on them.

"I was looking for a pet," Lana replied as she wandered about the shop slowly. Several of the 'special' pets had caught her eye when she had walked in, but she noticed that one in the back kept staring at her. Though she tried to ignore him, she couldn't help but keep glancing back at him from time to time. "I'm afraid I've never had a pet like this before... Is there anything in particular I need to know about them?"

"Well, they're like humans, but some of them can have non-human powers. How about this. What type of person would you prefer? One that you can control or one with a spine?" The shopkeeper seemed friendly and noticed her gaze going to the same pet. That one had finally turned his back on them, and was curled up again, his tail flat against him. "Would you like to take a closer look?" the shopkeeper asked, referring to the one she kept looking at.

"Is it alright?" Lana asked. If it was against the rules or something, then she didn't want to put anyone to the trouble... "I don't want anyone too timid... A bit of a backbone would be nice." She wasn't what anyone would call controlling, so a timid pet would make her feel awkward. She would feel like she was taking advantage of them.

"They're here to be looked at," he responded. He led her over to the boy's cage and tapped on a bar. "Up, Sienna," he said. The boy just hissed in response. "I said up," the man said, his tone becoming more firm. The boy hissed again, but rolled back over and stood up. he was very thin, almost emaciated. He also had a scar on his face, right under his eye, almost as if someone cut or whipped him. He just stared at Alana, looking almost bored. The shopkeeper frowned then looked at Alana. "What do you think of him?"

It was obvious that this particular neko had a backbone, and probably a whole bunch of bitterness besides. Somehow, she was still drawn to him. She knew she should probably look around some more, maybe pick one that would be easier to handle, but she'd made up her mind. Something about him just made her want to take care of him.

"How much do you want for him?" she asked. She'd saved up enough for a pet that was on the higher end of the price range, but she wanted to be sure she could afford this one.

The shopkeeper looked almost shocked as did the boy. "Well, anywhere between three and five." He obviously meant thousand. The boy sat back down on his bed, expecting her to change her mind. He really wasn't a bad person, just scared. He folded his arms around himself and glowered at the wall. His tail was completely still.

The shopkeeper watched him. He also watched Alana, wondering if she was still interested.

"I can offer three and a half," Lana replied. Actually, she'd saved up almost five thousand, but she wanted to see if she could get by cheaper than that. They both looked surprised that she wanted... Sienna, was it? Something like that... But she was intrigued by him, and she knew she would regret it later if she didn't get him now.

"That works," the shopkeeper responded. "Let's go, Kindian," he called, opening the door. The boy, named Kindian, stood and walked to the door. He pulled away when the shopkeeper tried to touch him. "Don't touch me," he warned quietly. The shopkeeper rolled his eyes and kept a hand on him, anyway. "Anything else you'd like to get before we draw up the paperwork?" he asked, gesturing to the small area next to them, which had a wide array of 'toys'; like whips, chains, collars, shock collars, etc.

Lana glanced at the 'toys', and was about to shake her head, but stopped.

"Just a basic collar," she replied after a moment. "My apartment building requires that any pets have collars, elsewise they're taken back to the pound." Just a basic collar was required, though, nothing elaborate. Maybe later she'd get a better collar, once she knew better what her pet liked.

(D: I'm so sorry. My internet failed epically last night.)

The shopkeeper went over and got a plain silver collar and went to put it on Kindian, who hissed quietly at him. He pulled his head away as the collar was put on, looking unhappy. He stepped away from the shopkeeper and folded his arms around himself, staring at the floor. The shopkeeper sighed. "Are you sure you don't want a shock collar or something to keep him in line?"

"Would you want a shock collar put on you?" Lana asked in return. "If I find that I need something like that, then I'll get one, but there's no sense in getting it now if I end up not needing it." That was also a subtle hint to her new pet to behave, and she hoped that he picked up on it. She wasn't expecting perfect behavior, by any means. She'd settle for him not breaking anything.

"I really enjoy being talked about as if I don't exist," Kindian muttered sarcastically. He kept his arms folded around himself, and he lifted his eyes to stare at the shopkeeper. The shopkeeper rolled his eyes at Kindian and handed Alana the leash. "You'll need this, he might try running away." Kindian sighed. "That was once. I wanted to find my sister, you twit."

Lana took the leash, but she didn't pull it very tight.

"If there's nothing else," she said, "I'd like to get everything in order so that we can leave." She didn't like how the shop keeper was treating her pet, and she didn't want to stay much longer.

Kindian watched as the shopkeeper got the papers in order. All she had to do was sign and pay. He stared at Kindian when he called the shopkeeper a twit. "A twit is a pregnant goldfish you realize." Kindian nodded. "Mm-hm. Hence the insult, it fits your mentality. And mm, fish." His tail swung back and forth at the idea of fish. He seemed quite adorable when he wasn't being bitter.

Lana signed the papers and looked them over to make sure she didn't miss anything. She couldn't quite hide a small grin. A sense of humor was always a good thing. She liked her pet already. Once the paperwork was done, she paid for him and tucked the rest of her money back into her purse. Maybe she would splurge a little on dinner or something later.

Kindain looked amused at the small smile he got, unlike the shopkeeper. He fiddled with the collar, adjusting it. He waited for her to be ready to leave after the shopkeeper nodded. "All seems to be in order." Kindan rolled his eyes. "You mean, 'everything seems to be in order,'" he corrected, growing more bold now that he wasn't able to be hit for it.

"Alright, then," Lana replied, taking the paperwork that she was supposed to keep and putting it into her bag. She ignored the bickering between the two. In a few more minutes, it wouldn't be an issue anymore. She turned to her new pet. "Ready to go?" she asked. "My apartment isn't too far from here, it's not that long of a walk."

Kindian nodded. "All right." He again waited for her, having no idea where he was going and she also held the leash. One of his ears twitched as he waited. The shopkeeper lead them to the door. He knew Kindian had no possessions on him.

"Then let's go," Lana said, walking out with him. Again, she didn't hold the leash all that tightly. Instead, she looped it around her wrist so it wouldn't fall off. About half-way to her apartment, she realized something. "You know what, I completely forgot to tell you my name. I feel really dumb now." She grinned a bit. "My name is Alana, but people usually end up dropping the first 'a' and calling me Lana."

Kindian chuckled. "Meh. I'm used to it. I'm Kindian, as you know." He walked beside her contently. He was just glad to be out of there. Now that they were in better light more of the cuts and bruises were visible, and he kept his arms around himself to try to hide some of them.

Lana saw the cuts and bruises.

"How did those happen?" she asked. She hadn't seen them inside, but the light had been bad. She didn't try to move his hands aside. She could see enough of the bruises without needing to see more. "I have something you can put on those at home."

"The shopkeeper didn't like that I have a mind of my own. So he'd hit or whip me to shut me up." He sighed. "I don't normally act like...a brat, but he took me out of my home while my roommate and sister were out, so I wasn't too happy with him." He seemed much better now that he was away from the shopkeeper and his tail was moving slowly.

"I can imagine," Lana replied. "You must miss them..." She felt a bit bad, now. She hadn't known about him having been taken from people who would miss him. "Well, up until now I lived alone in my apartment, so it's not like there's anyone else there to not get along with..."