.S.treet .U.rchin

[Anonymous]

(Alrighty, here ya go Vernionator X!)

In every town or city, there were those dark, dirty pathways that no self respecting citizen would ever dream of venturing down. The kind that gives you the chills when you chance a look down them. It is in places like these, dreary, gray, that the refuse of society dwell.
Or just those unlucky enough to land there.

She was one of those unlucky. Abandoned and unwanted, she lived a hard life in the back alleys of Adela Village. Her form was small, petite, and easily slipped into those tight hiding spots she relied so much on. She lived with the street cats she so closely resembled, sporting their ears and tail, despite her otherwise human appearances. Digging through a recent pile of garbage, Apple Rose (as her master had named her) was tight lipped in her work. Her clothing was baggy, little more than hastily sewn together rags. But the fabric was thick, and served its purpose.

Scraping together what meager scraps she could, Apple was quick to retreat further into the winding, narrow passageways that were now her home. She curled up in a dark, sooty corner to chew half-heartedly at the tidbits she had collected. She was what one would call calico, with her long, neglected hair the characteristic mix of white, orange, and black, which carried over into her cat ears and long furred tail. However, the stubborn gray dirt that engulfed her living environment masked her colors, and smeared her lightly tanned skin.
She might have been quite pretty if it were not for all the grime that had settled on her.

Only her strange eyes remained sharp and pure, with her right a light pink and her left a light blue. Those were something her surroundings could not turn gray over time.

[Anonymous]

From rooftop to rooftop, a small young lady merrily skipped across with amazing grace.  She twirled and leapt with ease, her eyes closed and behind sunglasses and earphones on her ears.  She was small in stature and her skin was a rich dark tan.  She had bright white hair, styled choppy and medium length and the long sharply pointed ears were a dead giveaway that she was an Elvish person of some kind.  She wore Starship Military uniform, slightly oversized.  Her overshirt was unbuttoned half way down, but still tucked in and her white tanktop showed underneath.  

A shadow was cast onto the upper walls darkened alleyway as the sun stood behind her and the sound of unusual muffled music was heard.  The spiraling girl came to the edge of a rooftop above the kitty below, coasting along cheerfully, without a care in the world.  Then the klutz tripped, but luckily caught herself before falling over the side with a yip and a crash as she fell to her knees.  One of her wireless earphones joggled off and fell to the ground of the alleyway with a soft clack.  Opening her eyes, she reached a hand up and felt her bare ear as she peeked over the side.  She tipped her sunglasses down her nose to see into the dim alley to search for the piece.  

Music still played from the device as it sat unharmed beside the kitty.  She blinked her eyes curiously as she listened for the sound, trying to spot it in the low light.  "Aww crap..." she sighed at herself for being clumsy.  "Just my luck..." her voice was mostly soft and disappointed.  "mmm...where did it go...i can hear the damn thing, but I cant find it..."  she complained with another sigh.  She limped to her feet and dusted herself off and then continued to look over the side, hoping for a better view if she stood.

[Anonymous]

Her matted ears flickered, hearing the woman long before she arrived. But Apple was confused as to where the sound could be coming from. Further down the alley? A sound on the street beyond? Or somewhere else...?
She scrunched down into her corner, hoping the darkness would conceal her against the stranger. If they were coming down her alleyway, she was screwed. She was sitting in a dead-end, the perfect little deathtrap she realized too late.
Drat!

And then there was a clattering above her, and something small fell to the ground with a great deal of noise coming out of it. Apple gave a choked hiss, trying not to scream, and litterally plastered herself to the wall and far away from the noisey little thing near her. She was still crouching, never having made it to her feet, and she clung to the wall with slender fingers as she stared at the earpiece.
Slowly, her cat's eyes traveled up toward the rooftops, and she saw another. Immediately she froze, hoping the person up there hadn't seen her. Her own eyes were well adapted to the dim light, and the person above might have that same ability.

However, the stranger (whose gender Apple couldn't really tell, the clothing was too confusing for her) seemed to be searching for something. The...little noise machine perhaps? Her gaze quickly flickered down to it, ears flipping back nervously.
Ok, she had a few options:

1. she could always run away
2. she could wait until the person gave up and left
3. she could wait, but then the person might come down after the lost item
4. she could risk her safety and return the item to the person so that they'd leave

Well, running was a good option...unless the person decided to chase after her for some unknown reason. Ehh...she didn't like the sound of that.
There was a good chance the person would come down after the little noise machine, and then what would she do? She'd be trapped if the person did that!
So...what did that leave her?

Giving the noisey thing back to the person on the roof. Well...she knew she could climb the wall easily enough. It was craggily, and the stone bricks had eroded so much that they seemed to stick out from the wall like stepping stones. Well, to her eyes anyway. Her fingers and toes were so small and slender that it was no problem climbing a wall that most others would never dream of scaling.
Apple took a deep breath. Ok, just grab the thing, climb the wall, set the thing on the roof, jump back down, and run for it.
Ok, sounded good. Then the person would have no reason to chase her, since they'd have their thing back. Ok, good!

Apple darted forward and carefully grabbed the earpiece in her mouth. She was griping it with her teeth, but she had her lips folded under so that the item wouldn't get lost or accidently get swallowed somehow.
And then it was up the wall.
Apple gave a gracefull leap as a head start, and as soon as she hit the wall, she began to climp. She kept a careful eye on the strange figure as she came closer and closer to the rooftop. Finally, when she was close enough, but not too close, Apple stretched out her neck and spat the dry earpiece out at the stranger's feet.
Ok, now time to leap down and run!
Apple hastily released the wall...

[Anonymous]

The Elf's deep red eyes shifted behind her glasses.  Her eyes switched from normal to night vision and she was able to see below very clearly.  She heard the music growing closer and easily spotted the cat-like girl scaling the wall and pretended not to.  She pretended not to see anything as she watched, holding back a kind smile.  Her ears flickered at the small clack from her earphone landing next to her.  She then smiled.  "Thank you..." She spoke sweetly, looking over at the girl with her bright eyes.  But the girl was frightened and wanted away as quickly as possible.  Poor thing...  "...Uhm...wait...please..." she announced softly, leaning back over the side.  "...Please don go..."  she sighed sadly, watching her fall.

[Anonymous]

The woman's oddly sweet voice temporarily caught Apple's attention, and instead of looking down as she should have been, the cat girl's timid two-toned eyes flickered up for a moment.
Big mistake.
The ground was closer than she realized, and by the time she looked back down she was practically on top of it. She landed on her feet, as all good cat should, but she hit awkwardly, and in a slick spot of slimy water, so that her legs went out from under her with a startled yowl of surprise.

She lay there frozen for a moment, a bit afraid to move. She knew her body wasn't exactly the most sturdy thing, but she wasn't really fragile either, though she seemed delicate like a cat. However, her left ankle was spiked with pain, and the sudden smack of her head on pavement had caused an explosion of stars against her vision so that she had to blink slowly a few times to be able to see clearly again. Her sleeves were torn, both elbows scraped, but aside from that and the previously noted injuries, she seemed to be fairly ok.
She sat up, but too quickly, and the world swam, her small body swaying slightly to one side as she tried to right her surroundings.

This day just kept getting better...that had been none too bright. A sprained ankle was terrible for a little street rat like herself. She wouldn't be able to run properly for at least a week, which meant a greater probability of being caught by...well...by anything really.
Damn, that was soo stupid!

[Anonymous]

She winced at the girl's fall, realizing what she had done to the poor thing.  "Oh!  I'm soo sorry!  I didn mean to..." She called out softly.  What a klutz...  She snatched up her earpiece and then boldly leapt off the edge.  With unusual nimbleness, she skipped down, pushing ff the two parallel alley walls until she reached bottom softly.  She landed beside the little kitty and wrapped her arms around the small thing to hold her up as well as hug her in apology.  "I'm sorry..." she whispered gently.  "I shouldn't have distracted you...its all my fault..." She just stood there, embracing the girl tenderly, filled with guilt.  "Are you okay?" she asked softly.

[Anonymous]

Apple's calico ears flickered around as the woman's voice echoed down. Wait, she was sorry? It was Apple's stupid clumsy fault! And then she realized that the woman was coming down. The cat girl's head snapped up immediately, and her eyes grew wide as that strange woman skipped from one side of the alleyway to the other, back and forth, getting closer to the ground with each pass.
Oh crap oh crap oh crap oh crap...!

Apple tried to scramble away, tried to get her legs under her so she could run. But her injured foot just refused to cooperate, and another wave of diziness washed over her with all the frantic movement. Apple had just gotten coordinated enough to crouch when the woman landed beside her.
The cat girl stared up at her in utter fear, but without warning her petite frame was being scooped up and held. Immediately her limbs shot out stiffly, her head craning away from the lady, two toned eyes wide in a hungry face.
What the hell was going on here??? Why was she being hugged and apologized to??

Apple let out a scared, shakey little breath, her entire small frame quivering from head to tail. It still hadn't dawned on the poor thing that death might not actually be a part of this equation.

[Anonymous]

She felt the girl's tenseness and heard her small breath.  She calmly shushed the small girl and rubbed her hands up and down her back coaxingly.  "It's okay.  Yer all right, I'm not gunna hurt ya.  Jus relax."  She looked at her face and smiled timidly.  Her sunglasses drooped down her nose, revealing her very unusual shaped blood red eyes.  "Hi there.  Yer cute."  She giggled a little.  And unable to resist the urge, she removed one of her hands from around the girl and reached up and pet her ear softly.  "I'm so sorry for making you hurt yourself, but thank you for returning me earphone."  Being a little slow, she looked over the girl again.  "Oh...you don look so good.  You don live out her, do ya??" she reached down from the girl's ear and rubbed her cheek.  What to do, what to do...  "Uhm..." she saw the hungry look on her face.  "...H-here...let me help you.  W-will you come with me?" she asked sweetly in her soft voice.  "Y-you look like you could use something to eat too..." she smiled a little.

[Anonymous]

Apple took to trembling slightly, ears flattened back defensively. She had been brought up as a pet, a good, obedient pet. Which meant it would take alot to get her to strike out at anybody. Even now those old instincts took hold, telling her it would be bad to scratch this lady, bad to bite her, to kick, to punch. So instead she didn't move, nervous and scared as she was.
She listened to the stranger's words, slightly amused by the accent, or whatever one would call it, that the woman had. Her master...old master, rather, had had a very refined voice, no slurring or chopping of words.
This new dialect both intrigued and confused her. Thus her ears timidly came forward to listen better.

The little cat girl's head bowed slightly at that old familiar compliment, 'cute'. That's why she had remained in master's house, out of all the rest of the kittens of the litter. Because she was cuter than them all. Or so master had dictated.
Then her ear was softly pet, and Apple's slender tail twitched. She glanced back up at the woman, large eyes wondering at her. She finally began to relax some, recognizing the caress as one you would give to a pet. Maybe this lady would have her as a pet, and her life would return to normal again.
Maybe.

Apple had not spoken in awhile, and so could not muster the ability to answer right away. But that was alright, as the lady was doing enough talking for the both of them. And then her cheek was rubbed, and her eyes shut slightly. Another familiar gesture. That familiarity felt good, better than it ever had before. Perhaps because she'd been without it for so long.
She then realized she was required to say something back. Food...medical aid...a place to stay even...
It all computed that this lady was going to adopt her, to become her new master. To take her out of this dismal life of abandonment, and give her the love and care she was so accustomed to.

Apple smiled slowly, not having done so in too long a time. It was a cute little half smile, still a slight bit timid. Forcing her rusty vocals back into use, the little cat girl opened her mouth and spoke a very simple, soft word. "Ok."

[Anonymous]

Her smile grew at the girl's answer and her cute little voice.  She gave the little kitten a great big hug and then held her hand warmly.  "All right then.  I'll take ya somewhere nice and safe.  M'kay?" she reassured her sweetly.  She then began to walk with the girl, out of the alley and onto the streets, heading back to her ship.  She held the girl close in case she was scared of the streets and would gladly offer to take her through the alleys if it made her feel better.  "Well, I'm Trinity." She announced cheerfully.  "What might yer name be?" she followed up to complete the introduction.

[Anonymous]

Apple was again surprised by the warm, friendly hug she was granted, too startled to respond until well after she had been released. Those large, innocent eyes stared up at the kind lady as her small, too slender hand was taken. She understood, and only managed a nod before she was being pulled up as the stranger stood.
Poor Apple clutched at the woman's thigh in order to stand up, unable to put weight on her bad ankle what-so-ever.
But she wasn't about to be left behind.

The dirty cat girl hobbled alongside her rescuer, clutching at the other female, not only from fear of the streets, but also to keep from stumbling or falling. Blood oozed slowly out of the scratches on her skinny elbows, but she was confident this lady would take care of her like she said she would.

Apple again looked up as the lady introduced herself as Trinity. It was a pretty name, and Apple liked it immediately. Of course, this meant she needed to introduce herself as well. It was odd however, as the name she was about to give was the name bestowed upon her by her old master. If she was to have a new master, it was totally possible that her name would be changed.
But Trinity had asked, so Apple once again put her rusty vocal chords to use. "My old master named me Apple Rose." She spoke again, her voice soft and weak from disuse.

[Anonymous]

"Nice to meet ya, Apple.  That’s an unusual, but cute name." she smiled.  She watched the kitten struggle to walk and then her brain kicked in.  Oh!  I'm so sorry..." She immediately scooped the girl up under the arms and held her against her chest for her to cling.  "Please forgive me...I'm so stupid."  She begged, feeling awful for making the poor girl walk.  How could she not see that Apple needed help?  He held Apple firmly and continued walking, not too much affected by the small girl's weight.  She pulled her head away to make eye contact again.  "Hmmm, I think Neptune would really like you." She smiled with a small giggle.  "I hope Alexander comes back to the ship sometime soon so I can introduce you to them."  She announced happily.

[Anonymous]

Apple squeaked slightly as she was scooped up, but was quick to cling to Trinity. Both slender legs wrapped about her waist while both arms went around her neck. Indeed her weight was not much, for though normally petite, at the moment she was also starving. The catgirl shook her head softly at her new owner's apology. Her master should never apologize. That was Apple's job.

Apple Rose pulled her dirty little head back a bit as Trinity did, blinking cluelessly up at her as she spoke. "N...Neptune?" She repeated, unable to tell anything from the name. And then more hints came out, and she titled her head in a questioning manner. "Alexander? Ship? Are we going to this ship? Are these people your friends?" Apple asked timidly, her rusty voice slowly regaining it's usual soft tones. It actually sounded...rather exciting in a way.
She was finally going to a new home. Hopefully a permanent one.

[Anonymous]

"Mhmm." She nodded her head.  "Neptune." She reiterated.  She nodded again and again at each word Apple spoke.  "Yep, a great big ship, nice an cozy an safe.  And yeah, they're also crewmembers."  She replied happily, smiling as she looked at Apple.  She then leaned forward and nuzzled noses playfully with a soft giggle.  "I'll get ya all nice an squeaky clean an dress ya up all nice." She spoke cheerfully.  "I think you'll fit in my clothes." She joked with another small giggle.  She headed toward the docks, which wasn't too far from the small part of town they were in.  Her one earphone still played the usual upbeat music that could be heard from a small distance, and the other in her shirt pocket between her and Apple on her chest.  

Eventually, they made it out of the buildings and onto a large strip.  The smell of ocean air and the sight of ships were in this area.  She wandered down the docks in the direction of a huge ship.  "There it is." She pointed out the tremendous, but sleek warship.  Though its size was menacing, its features gave of a kind appearance.  There seemed to be no visible guns, but it did have a sleek flight deck.  "Aint she pretty?" she grinned, turning onto the dock that lead to the ship's entrance ramp.

[Anonymous]

A happy little chill ran up Apple's spine at the words "nice", "cozy", and "safe". How long she had wished for a new home just like that. She mewed despite herself and snuggled up to Trinity, more happy than she had been in a long time. If she hadn't been so tired and in pain, she probably would have been wiggling about in Trinity's arms.

Apple received the noserub quite enthusiastically, closing her eyes and sticking the tip of a small pink tongue out playfully. Clean and newly clothed! It just kept getting better and better. She mewed again, her ears twitching happily.

The sharp scent of the ocean caught Apple's attention, and she craned her head around to look upon the new sight. She had never seen the ocean before, and boy was it magnificent. Apple grinned, those strange two-toned eyes bright in her dirty face. It was incredible!
She nodded enthusiasticaly at Trinity's words. It was pretty! Pretty big!
She had never seen a warship before either, even in the photos her old master used to have on the walls.
She couldn't wait to get inside!

[Anonymous]

Trinity felt a lot better as Apple relaxed more and opened up a little.  She had a cute smile.  "Ere we are!" she grinned, stepping on to the platform.  After a moment, they began to rise up the side up the ship as the magnetic rail pulled them up almost weightlessly on the platform.  The platform came to a soft stop and a sealed door unlocked with air pressure releasing with a hiss and then the door recessed and slid to the side.  Trinity stepped inside and made her way down the fancy hallway as the door resealed.  After a while, they made there way down what seemed to be a maze of passages until she passed the open door, leading to a hanger.  She had a thought and stopped and walked inside.  "Whaddya think?" she asked cheerfully.  The hanger was lined with large-scale humanoid mechs, attached to station locks.  One of them was being operated, moving cargo around and organizing with other crewmembers communicating with each other over com-links.  After a brief look, she headed back into the hall and made her way to her room.  She came to another sliding door with a keypad and opened it.  She waltzed on into her room and set Apple down on the bed, the door closing behind them.  "Lemme run ya a bath." She smiled, going into the bathroom and turning on the water.

[Anonymous]

Apple was all eyes and ears as she attempted to take in and understand all the new sights and sounds around her. It was incredible! She had never even dreamed of anything so grand!
The platform and doors completely baffled her in their smoothness and movement, but no sooner had she begun to ponder them than something else caught her attention.
Even the interior of the hallway caused her to stare.

And then she was brought into the huge hanger with the mechs, the likes of which she had never seen before. They were beyond her ability to discribe, to comprehend. Giant metal people! Well, robots at least. But still! "They're incredible!" She responded, the awe evident in her voice.

But then they were on their way again, down some more hallway, and then into what Apple had to assume was Trinity's room. Sat on the bed, Apple was forced to release her new owner as she left.
To make her a bath?
Really???
Apple squealed with happiness, clapping her hands together with excitement. She was finally going to have a bath! A real, honest to goodness bath!
She hated to be dirty, but living in the alleyways, it was inevitable.
She couldn't wait!

[Anonymous]

She ran the water and returned to the bedroom, sitting on her bed beside Apple, unbuttoning her overshirt.  She was pleased with Apple's excitement and giggled herself.  She pet Apple's head and then leaned over and began to remove her boots, tossing them aside.  Then it was her socks, and she sat back up.  "I know yer a cat, but I hope ya like water anyways." She smiled, unclasping and taking off her belt.  She pulled off her overshirt then and tossed it on the bed.  She stood up and slipped out of her pants, throwing them next to her shirt.  Now only dressed in panties, a bra and her undershirt, she took Apple and stood her up.  "Okay, Ya wanna take em off ere or in the bathroom?" she asked sweetly, her accent more noticeable in her voice.

[Anonymous]

Apple watched Trinity, practically bouncing on the bed from anticipation. She knew what Trinity was doing, and figured her master planned on taking a bath too. But she didn't feel it appropriate to do the same until master gave her permission to do so.
Besides, her clothes were filthy! She was almost afraid to touch anything! The only reason she stayed on the bed was because Trinity had set her there.
Oh how she wanted that bath!!

The words earned a timid giggle. "I love being clean." Was her answer, not really confirming a liking of water or not. But really, it was the humanoid in her that kept her from hating water all together. Water was really the only way she could get clean. And she loved being clean.
And groomed.
And...well...pretty.

Apple stood as Trinity pulled her from the bed, completely obedient. She looked down at her 'clothes', the dirty rags she was forced to wear, and frowned lightly. She didn't want to get anything dirty, especially not from laything these soiled things on the floor.
"My...clothes are very dirty." She had to work hard even to use the word clothes. Two toned gaze flickered up to Trinity, for she was unsure of where to change, and if she was even allowed to remove her own clothes. Her old master had treated her like a doll, removing her clothes and dressing her again whenever needed.
She couldn't be sure what Trinity wanted to do, so made no move to do anything.

[Anonymous]

"M'kay, so in the bathroom then."  She grinned, poking her nose cutely.  She took Apple's hand and led her into the bathroom.  She then pulled Apple's clothes off gently, freeing her from the dirty things.  She set them on the counter and then finished running the tub, turning off the water.  "There we are.  Nice and warm."  She felt the water's temperature with her hand.  "Ya ready?"  She held Apple's hands and guided her closer to the tub.  "Ere, I'll even help." She pulled of her shirt and then her panties and hopped into the tub slowly, covering herself unusually modestly.  She was slender, but physically fit and figured too.  "Ere." She grabbed Apple's hand again with her free one and pulled her closer, blushing slightly.