Owl must have passed out. Not surprising since grass had little nutritional value. This was especially true for Miniblin like her. Maybe some other race could get by like that but Owl was not doing well. To make matters worse she did not have the energy left to hunt or scavenge. And though she had been begging by a frequently used path for some time she had nothing to show for it. Most people coming from or going to the nearby Castle Town ignored her as they ignored most beggars. Some took a second glance at Owl but most of those either hastened their pace or spat at her. There was a blurry figure crouched near her, a child by the size of it, probably checking to see if Owl was dead. Not yet but- where was her bottle of spice? Owl realized with a shock that the small bottle containing her most precious possession was no longer clutched in her hand. Adrenaline bringing her fully awake she sat up and noticed the bottle nearby. It must have rolled out of her hand while she slept. Then Owl noticed the child seemed to be reaching for it. Panicked, Owl snatched it back as fast as she could, startling the small girl. "Mine!" She snapped holding the mixture of spices to her chest. She realized then that the girls parents, surely nearby, would think Owl was a threat after that display. The child was in fancy clothes, too, her parents were probably nobles. A Hylian noble was a bad day as far as Owl was concerned, a whole family most likely traveling with guards? The thought was enough to inspire terror. Owl scanned the road behind the child expecting to see several armed guards descending on her. But there was almost no one else there. The only other creature looked to be a... Mogma? The Mogma was by the child's side as the girl stood up and brushed herself off. The red haired Mogma was brandishing something at Owl but keeping her distance, too. Was that a fork? Yes, Owl was being threatened with a fork. Fear left her in a rush replaced by sudden amusement. Owl suppressed a giggle, knowing the two could still be a threat even if their only weapon was usually only dangerous to a salad. The young girl, who Owl noticed had fully black eyes, motioned for the Mogma to lower the fork. "Garnette, it's alright. He just thought I was trying to take his... his, um..." "Drugs?" The Mogma named Garnette finished, and to her credit the girl looked appalled, admonishing her companion for saying such a thing. Garnette just shrugged, arguing that it seemed a reasonable assumption. The girl had a sweet voice Owl couldn't help but like. She smelled sweet, too, a blessing for Owl's sensitive nose. If she had to place the scent she would have to say it was like fresh soil, clean linen, and hot strawberry jam. No, that was strawberry jam! The both of them were holding jam filled pastries as they argued and suddenly Owl could think of little else. The words left her mouth before she realized she had said them, "Owl will work for food!" Actually she had more or less just screamed that at them, startling the two out of their debate. "Nyeeeh... Owl," she indicated herself to be Owl in case they had not picked up on that, "very hungry. Work for food? Can do many things, eh, no weird stuff, though. Owl clean. Not drugs." She held up her bottle of spices but kept it well out of reach just in case. "Oh, that's right," the as of yet unnamed girl spoke up, holding the mouthwatering treat near Owl. "I was just trying to give this to you." Owls mouth fell open in surprise hardly believing what she had just heard. A few scraps of hard bread would have been a great blessing but here was this child offering a fresh, and probably not cheap, dessert? Owl must have been standing there slacked jawed for quite some time. "Um... do you want it? You can just have it, really. No weird stuff, promise." Owl found she could not actually speak and just nodded vigorously, accepting the flaky pastry, careful not to startle the two this time. She meant to take a moment to savor the delectable smell and take it bite by bite... but she found herself stuffing her face in the next moment, driven by her ravenous hunger. Still, though she had mostly inhaled the pastry, she noticed the skill of the chef. The crust was light, flakey perfection and there was not a hint of additives some cooks used. This was all natural, prime ingredients, a heavenly creation. Opening her eyes Owl noticed Garnette was hunched over her own pastry regarding the Miniblin with, horror, maybe? Owl could not help herself this time and laughed aloud. "Is safe, Mogma.Owl will not steal yours." The girl covered her mouth trying to stifle her own laughter. Owl smiled at her. "Owl likes you. Thank you, thank you, much, young miss. You need help, you need help ever, you find Owl. Owl is, uh," she swirled her had in the air. "around. Have no home. Call for Owl, or just find. Owl will come help. Honor." Owl touched her heart as she made the promise. It was only fair since this girl may have saved her life today with that bit of food. And she was nice. Few were nice to her. Few were nice to her race at all, deserved or not. Owl couldn't express her gratitude enough without saying too much, so she left it at that. "I- well, thank you, Owl." The girl responded. "My name is Oryn and this is my close friend, Garnette-" she began formally introducing them both before Garnette interrupted. "Yes, yes, and friend Garnette would like to remind friend Oryn that we are late." Oryn sighed at this. "Right, I'm sorry, 'Nette. Owl, we have an appointment and should be going-" "Yeah, like ten minutes ago." Garnette mumbled and Oryn shot her an exasperated look. Owl nodded, understanding. Even if the two did not have an appointment she would not hold it against them. "Friend wants to make meeting, Owl will be fine alone, thanks to kindness. Go, go." The Miniblin urged the reluctant Oryn along, and Garnette gently pushed her friend back toward the road. As they started to leave Oryn looked back over her shoulder at Owl. "I hope we meet again, Owl. Or at least you find a place to call your own yes, yes, I'm going, no need to push, Nette!" As Oryn faced away Garnette hesitated, then turned back to Owl. The Mogma carefully set her own pastry on a clean patch of grass. With a stern look Garnette held a finger to her lips in a shushing gesture. Owl nodded once in understanding and mouthed a silent 'thank you'. The Mogma waved it off as if it meant nothing but Owl could see a slight smile at the corner of the others lips. Owl waited politely until they were both out of sight before descending on the pastry. As she licked her fingers clean an odd thought occurred to her. Had Oryn had a tail? No, not a tail, more like... a giant feather? Owl dismissed the thought, assuming instead it was just another fancy part of the girl's dress. A Hylian child with a feather for a tail, that would be a thing to see! But, wait, Oryn,s eyes had been a solid black.... You got the Picori Race License! "Owl is Miniblin. What is Owl supposed to do with this?"
