Private Finished Owl with a Cloud

Béatrice readjusted herself within her chair, moving her tail and wings a bit and folding her legs for more comfort. She wondered how much time had passed during their conversation. Perhaps an hour or two. Although time was something she was not skilled at keeping track of. She would start an experiment early in the morning, become entranced by it, then realize that three hours did not go by, but instead ten. There were also days where she would read a book for thirty minutes, but learn two hours went by when she checked the clock. A watch would have done her well if she bothered to get one.

Time was not of importance here, however. She was too busy enjoying the conversation Hazel and she was having. She slowly nodded her head with the response Hazel gave, showing that she was listening and agreeing with what was being said. "That makes sense. I did not even notice the bird theme of your last name until now." She giggled lightly. "I also think owls are adorable and favor snowy owls, though I may be a bit biased. To be honest, I love all animals. Aside from Arjean, I am the most animal obsessed person in my house. I wonder what sort of pets this island has. I heard two-tailed foxes are available for adoption. Do you know of any unique animals here or good pet shops? I would like to take some visits to them." Slowly, Béatrice drifted off into daydreaming about what other animals were on the island. She already spotted a few that she had never seen before during her hunting trips, but she doubted that the ones she hunted were also up for adoption at the petshops.

Béatrice's eyes widened at Hazel's telling of the cat that harmed her. "Oh dear . . . Are the cats here usually that violent? I have met a few who ended up being shape-shifters, but so far, my interactions with the animals here have been fine. If anything, some of the predators here have been . . . er . . . Some of them have been a bit uncomfortable to be around. At least dogs do not try to boast about how they are apex predators to me or threaten to kill me because I slighted them somewhat. The crime here must be much higher than what it seems with people like them roaming around. But I do understand why some would not be the biggest fan of animals. To some, they look intimidating or gross. Others may have allergies. I would like to have a pet, but I do not trust my family to care for an animal properly. You know, young predators. It would not end well." There was also how Béatrice had no time to take care of a pet. She was too busy with her job, her hobbies, being a wife, and being a mother. Taking care of a pet would be another thing to worry about, and she doubted she would be able to be empathetic towards it for longer before becoming bored or frustrated and getting rid of it.

"I'm sorry, what?" She wanted to know more about this corn maze. Hazel was not going to get off that quickly. You could not bring up a story like that and not expect a person to want to know more. "That sounds interesting. Terrifying, but interesting. A part of me wishes I was a part of that when it happened. I have heard stories about it, but out of all the times I have visited Manta Carlos, I never got to experience something like that. I have missed so much, that horrible sickness that went around infecting everyone. Thankfully, I missed out on that, but I would like to know more about the events and drama going around here.

"As for pets, that is a good idea! I need to befriend more animal lovers here first, however. I wonder if there is a club for people who love animals? I know there are various clubs at Starlight Academy, but the only class I have is one that does a general overview of most of the species here and how to behave towards them. I am unsure if I am taking enough classes to a club there, though I suppose there are clubs outside the school, like book clubs."

"As long as you are certain she will be happy with it. I have heard of instances of people buying pets for their families, but not everyone agreed to it, so it quickly became a disaster. Poor pets came to a family thinking they would be loved, then sent back to the shelter because not everyone wanted them." Béatrice sighed, her expression full of melancholy at the thought. If situations in her life were different, then perhaps she could have lived with all flavors of animals happily.

Béatrice distracted herself from the sadness by listening to Hazel explain the drama that happened on the island. How interesting. If the island were a reality show, she would be addicted. Now that she lived here, however; she was not too excited to be a part of all the disasters that went on.

"This island is full of surprises," she giggled. "Not to act like everything that happened was not horrible, but I could not imagine these things if I tried. I hope nothing like the New Years event occurs again. Losing my magic would be . . . terrible. I assume it would not be able to differentiate between my unique elemental abilities and the ones everyone from my species gets. No magic for me may as well mean my death." She did not attempt to hide her troubled expression. The possibility of losing her magic here, or any oricenta losing their magic, was a terrifying thought. That could cripple so many of her people.

"And no! You did not go off on a tangent. I asked, and I received. It is terrible that you had to go through all of those things. I never experienced anything like that before; my life is much more plain. Though I would like to ask, did you finding the kidnapper do anything to help? Even though you got shot in the leg, I would hope you came out with some victory in the end."

Béatrice gave a sigh of relief. She was not entirely convinced that she would be safe from losing her magic, but there was no point in continuing down a topic that would lead only to discomfort. It was better to focus on the other conversation topic. "It is good that I may not lose my magic, but I still find it difficult not to be uncomfortable. I am pleased that you managed to help out, however. I feel assured that you did a lot to help. No need for you to downplay your achievements."

Was there anything else Béatrice had to say? So much had been said already. "Do you have anything else you would like to bring up? It seems that I have run out of topics to converse about. If there is nothing left, perhaps it is time to end our session?" She tried not to word it rudely. It was not like Béatrice wanted to stop talking to Hazel, but there would come the point where the conversation would slow to a halt and become awkward as they forced it to stay alive. Better to leave possible discussions for the future instead of finishing them all now.