Journey to the West

[Ashitaka]

April 20th | Agrabah Marketplace

This was the first great settlement that Ashitaka had come to on his journey westward and the beating sun had forced him and Yakul to stop. He didn't even know if this was the way San had come but he had faith that if he headed west then he would find the wild girl and her wolf brothers. What he hadn't expected was the hot and seemingly endless desert that had opened up before him after passing the great mountains that separated Irontown from the greater world. When it seemed like he and Yakul would be lost forever amongst the sand dunes, a great dome loomed up in the distance and so he had headed straight for it hoping that it was not just a trick of the heat.

The first thing he felt like doing was dunking his head in the nearest water trough just to feel the coolness of the water after the heat. That likely would just attract unwanted attention though so Ashitaka settled for just taking a long drink from the small water canister he had whilst Yakul drank his fill from the trough. Maybe some food wouldn't go amiss either, his ration bags had been getting lighter and lighter and in the desert finding food was a near impossibility.

All he had were the iron coins that he had from Irontown, hopefully that would appease any vendors in this strange place better than small lumps of gold. He had learned that lesson the hard way on his travels. He only needed enough to get him to the other side of the sands should he not find any signs of San having passed by this place. He doubted it, he had barely made it through the desert with provisions and he wondered if San had thought to take anything with her.

"Excuse me." he asked the first person to pass him by after he had entered the city gates "I was wondering where I might go to find some food?"

[Thomas]

It had been a slow, uneventful day at the infirmary, so instead of doing busy work like he usually did when he had no patients to attend to, Thomas had been sent by his mentor to run a couple of errands. He did not mind one bit. The infirmary was the one place in Agrabah where he truly felt safe, but it was nice to go out once in a while, especially on a beautiful day like this.

"Okay," Thomas told Cassie as he sedulously placed a package of embalming chemicals in his satchel - right next to the mouse paste and snake oil. "One more thing, and we can call it a day." He was not sure where he was going to find the "revolutionary banana slicer" in the bazaar, nor why it had been put on the list to begin with. But short of going to the Quarter of the Street Rats, where residents were forced to depend on the thriving black market, the bazaar was the only place he could check.

But - of course - not one of the street vendors had ever heard of the banana slicer. In fact, a lot of them gave him funny looks. Thomas was beginning to feel he had been trolled. The last item on the list was written in a different pen color...

God damn it. These people really need to get a life.

"Excuse me."

"Oh!" Thomas jumped. He had been so wrapped up in his misery that he had not heard the man approach. Thomas looked at him appraisingly. He was young, somewhere between fifteen and twenty years of age, and of normal height, and build but otherwise his appearance was strange. He wore a cloak that looked to be made of hay, and behind him was an animal that was as tall as a horse but resembled a stag. But Agrabah was a major trade city, and most of the Blackblood Legion were made up of members that hailed from faraway countries, including himself, so Thomas was not particularly surprised.

"I was wondering where I might go to find some food?"

"There's some food vendors up ahead," Thomas replied politely. "You can't miss them." 

[Cassie]

The young lab happily trotted along side Thomas as he walked through the marketplace. Her gaze never stayed in one place too long, there was simply too many things to look at. So many smells and sounds.
Her attention was drawn back to Thomas only when he spoke up, telling her their outing was almost over.
"Aww, okay!" she chuckled, feigning disappointment only for a moment.

They wandered around for a little while longer, Thomas apparently having trouble finding the last thing on the list. Cassie meanwhile was welcoming the little showers of attention from locals and vendors, some even sharing a small bite of food or two.

Once again her attention was drawn back to Thomas when he stopped suddenly in front of her, the labrador having to quickly hop to the side so she wouldn't bump into the back of his legs.
Cassie tilted her head up at Thomas, then looked at the person standing in front of them. He looked different than anyone in the city, but she'd seen plenty of different people at the palace where the legion was, so perhaps he was there to join them too.

The boy and Thomas exchanged quick words about the location of food vendors. Tail wagging, Cassie happily added,
"We can show you! C'mon Thomas!" she nudged his leg before bounding off in the direction of the friendly people who gifted her snacks.

[Ashitaka]

He was used to the strange looks he got from strangers, if he wasn't by now then he never would be. Ashitaka knew that he presented an odd sight to these people but it still didn't ease the sense of self-consciousness he felt when the red-haired man turned to look at him. Even back in his own lands he knew he presented something of an unusual sight and likely it would only get more intense as he journeyed further and further afield.

At least, he and his companion seemed willing to assist him.

Ashitaka smiled at the dog, ignoring the fact that she spoke like a human would but didn't seem to be a spirit, bowing his head to her and softly said: "Thank you." in all honesty, this place was so much larger than any town he had ever been to and he wasn't confident that he wouldn't end up taking a wrong turn down one of the narrow side streets and becoming lost there. Also from what he had saw, there seemed to be more than a few unsavory types who would likely view such an obvious foreigner like himself as an easy target.

"What do you call this place? I've never seen anything like this." he asked, striking up a conversation may help him get what information he could. Who knew what lay further out into the desert and then beyond that. More importantly, perhaps these strangers could assist him in finding San. If he was a strange sight then she would likely be an even stranger one and he could feel that a town even larger than Irontown would likely unsettle her.