Alice stood outside a building, the rain pouring against and running down her cloak. There was a sign on the building besides its front door. She didnt know what the words ant, but even if she couldnt understand the language, it was easy to recognize the spoon and bowl carved onto the sign. It was a place to eatshe hoped. With her luck recently, it could be a general store. Alice walked up the steps and flinched when sothing rubbed against her leg. It was a cat. Now that she thought about it, there were seriously a lot of cats inside of this town or city. Oh, thats a cute little kitty. Alice crouched down and rubbed the cats head. Alice chuckled. Whos a good kitty? You are, arent you? ow.
The cat stopped rubbing its head against Alices palm. It pulled back a bit and sat on its haunches, staring into Alices eyes before opening its mouth. Girl, did you just ow at ? And sothing that was definitely not a ow ca out of it.
Alices brow furrowed. She looked around, but there was no one there except for her and the cat. Um. ow? she asked. ow, ow?
The cats eyes narrowed. Im going to scratch you if you ow at one more ti.
Are you a talking cat? Alice asked. It seems like she was wrong; there was magic in this world. Cats could talk.
All cats can talk, the cat said and rolled its eyes. But youre the first human that can understand what Im saying. Usually, I have to scratch at the door or food cabinet to be understood, and even then, humans cant understand anything else.
Alices brow furrowed even further. Could it be? There was a translating magic on that unreasonable dragons portal? If so, why would it translate cats but not people? Oh. Maybe it was focused on translating animals only because the unreasonable dragon would want to talk to dragons, not humans. Just wondering, but can you understand what humans are saying?
Of course, the cat said and raised its front paw. It licked the back of it a few tis before placing it down. Cats arent as daft as you humans are. We understand humans perfectly fine, yet humans cant understand us. Theres simply a difference between our species intellects.
Was a cat calling her dumb? No, it was calling the people that couldnt understand it dumb, so that didnt include her. Do you think you can help out? Alice asked and reached into the pouch hanging from her belt. She pulled out a stick of jerky and offered it to the cat. Im from a foreign land, and I cant understand what anyones saying. Do you think you can translate for ?
The cat leaned forward and bit the jerky, taking it from Alices hand. It purred and munched on the stick, holding it with its front paws to make sure it didnt fall on the wet ground. I suppose I could do that. Its not everyday you et a listening human. The cat took a few bites of the jerky, then a few more bites once it couldnt get any piece of it off. My na is Burc.
Im Alice, Alice said. Nice to et you, Burc.
Likewise. Burc held the piece of jerky in his mouth before stepping towards Alice. He bent his hindlegs and jumped, landing on her shoulder. He mumbled through the jerky in his mouth, Youre a bit small. Not a lot of space to carry , huh?
Alice frowned. Ill buy a bag to hold you in later. She straightened her back, careful to keep Burc from falling off. Is this place a restaurant?
Yes, Burc said and stuffed the remains of the jerky into his mouth. Its one of the best spots to pick up food scraps. Of course, being the greatest cat in the region, this spot is reserved for .
Greatest cat in the region, huh? Alice mumbled to herself and raised an eyebrow. Burc did look pretty majestic. He was a white cat with lots of fur, and a huge puffy tail. Compared to the cats back on the eastern continent, Burcs fur coat made him seem like royalty. I can believe that.
Alice pushed open the door to the restaurant and was greeted by a mostly empty room. There was just one person behind the counter; he was sitting down with his head tilted back, his closed eyes facing the ceiling. Alice took a seat at the counter and cleared her throat. The man flinched and sat up. He reached up and dragged his hands down his face before taking in a deep breath. He said sothing, and Alice turned towards Burc.
He said, Welco, what would you like to order? Burc leapt off of Alices shoulder, landing on the countertop. The owner of the restaurant didnt shoo him away, stroking his fur instead. And now he said, I see that rt likes you. He calls rt, by the way.
Tell him Id like the house special, Alice said. Instead of translating, Burc stared at Alice. The owner of the restaurant stared at Alice too. Her face flushed red. Right, you can only tell what hes saying and not the other way around. She looked for a nu but couldnt find one. There werent even drawings of the als either. A sigh escaped from her lips when she realized shed have to resort to the most barbaric thod of ordering food out there. She made eye contact with the owner and pantomid an eating motion.
Hes asking if youd like a drink too, Burc said.
Alice nodded.
He said itll be ready shortly. Burc yawned and stretched his front paws out while arching his back. How long have you been here that you cant understand what anyones saying? Ive seen kittens smarter than you.
Alices expression darkened. Ive been here for less than a day, alright? And just because I dont understand what anyones saying doesnt an Im dumb.
Burc stared at Alice. Then he nodded. Yeah. Okay.
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