I WOULD LIKE TO ORDER.. ( Open to 1 )

It would appear that the young damsel had gotten herself lost once again . . .

Slaughter put one foot in front of the other slowly, exhausted from her nocturnal trek in the forest. She couldn't even remember how many days back that was; she had to be running on at least seventy-two hours with no sleep.
There seemed to be an irritating buzzing noise scratching at the edge of her thought process as she headed into town. Normally, she would have been overwhelmed and enthused at the sights in the seemingly populous town, but she could just not bring her mind to focus.

Had she made it to her destination? Was she in the right spot?

It certainly seemed as if she had. She was looking for a large city, perhaps this is it.
But there it was-- that vexing buzzing noise.

". . . Meat loaf,
Lemon meringue . . .Chicken-pot-pie . . . three whole mangos . . . oven-roasted turkey . . ."

Her mind was in absolute shambles, and she didn't think twice as she opened her mouth to say:
"Gluttony is a sin, you know."

. . . or had she?

Slaughter didn't much pay attention to the words coming out of the other boy's mouth. She wished she could have even one morsel of the food he was consuming. Her stomach cried out in the form of a large grumble as if to corroborate the girl's thoughts. "Practicing self-restraint every now and then is good for developing character," Slaughter said bitterly, unable to peel her eyes off of the boy's appetizing cuisine.

Slaughter must not have looked very good. She could feel her body dragging itself, becoming more and more agitated and off balance with each step. She would have asked the boy-- or anyone-- if they knew of a place to say, but she knew she couldn't afford it. Her situation was beginning to look desperate. She didn't want to have to resort to petty thievery , but she also wasn't sure if she could survive another day out in the wilderness. Maybe if she was lucky she could find a church or an abandoned place to nap in.

"Are you from here?" she asked quietly.

Without even thinking, Slaughter opened her mouth and chomped down like a ravenous hound. Her teeth came down on the food eagerly and down it went into her esophagus in no less time then it had gone into her mouth.

Gulp!

It takes seven seconds for food to travel from the esophagus down into the stomach, you know.

She knew it wasn't a good idea to take things from strangers, especially things you ingest, but she just couldn't help herself. She was starving.
"Thank you," she said, letting her guard down just a bit. "What's your name? And why have you ordered so much food? It can't really be just because you have a big appetite."

It would seem some nourishment in her belly had restored some of Slaughter's personality: a curious young woman who above all else, loved to pry into other people's affairs.

"Well, that sure sounds like a story!" Slaughter said, feeling a bit more lighthearted with some food being deposited into her belly. "I'm Slaughter."

There sure were a lot of strange and complex people roaming around the earth, and she hadn't even uncovered the half of them! Oh, how she wished she could get her hands on a map! Then she might be able to figure out where on the globe she was, and it might just bring her closer to what she was looking for.

Slaughter smiled at the boy, suddenly feeling very aware of the others around her. She pondered for a few fleeting moments what everybody else's adventures must consist of. She wondered what they were looking for. Everybody she met seemed to be filled to the brim with soul and aspiration. It was rather overwhelming; she began to feel her heart ignite with the longing for others and their company once more.

Augusta.
Child of August. Child of the summer. Child of the sun.
The moons and the planets and the stars make their rounds in infinite orbit around the sun, but it is the one true constant.
The sun which signifies power, the sun which signifies life and at the same time, destruction.

The girl had been born in the summer sun, and her mother had dubbed her aptly. But she rebuked her mother after she left, refusing to call anything given to her by her mother as her own and chose to never be called by the name again.
Her father had a tendency to call her by a nickname, Gussie. But of course, when he died, it died as well. Now she went by her surname, to bring honor to her father and intimidation to her enemies. However, this boy didn't seem to be intimidated at all. "Yes, Slaughter." she said simply, her sparkling cerulean eyes showing no emotion whatsoever. She considered his question curiously, thoughtfully. She wondered why he was asking such a question. She supposed she must be a rather peculiar sight right now, and surely must be acting odd due to her lack of sleep. She did not answer his query however, and instead opened her mouth once more to say:

"What is a boy so young doing out here all by himself?"

She wasn't sure why she asked. She certainly didn't think it was possible to feel empathetic when her mind was so clouded by fatigue.

"N-no thank you," Slaughter stuttered in between chews, as she casually shifted the food in her mouth to one cheek, making it swell up like a golf ball.

Slaughter knew she should take advantage of every social encounter with another person-- ask them for directions and listen to their interjections about certain geographic areas and the citizens that inhabit them. If this boy had been wandering about to find a cure for his illness, then his situation must be somewhat desperate. This led Slaughter to conclude that he had been to a myriad of places and perhaps even met many different types of creatures.

The tiny blonde silently began to fiddle with her hands in her lap, nervously deciding upon a way to pose all the questions she wanted answers to. She had the sudden urge to chew on her fingertips, but didn't want to give off any impressions that she lacked manners, so she resisted.

"So where is your next destination? Also, do you know how to get to the City in the Sky from here?"

Slaughter shuffled in her seat nervously, and it was painfully apparent. Was it so pathetic to want a friend so desperately? Another human life to travel with and share things with, a shoulder to cry on, and to comfort and entertain? Were all those nothing but silly aspirations in savage world so filled with corruption and room to only love oneself?

"Um, why can't you go there again?" She asked, finally acquiescing to the urge to bite on her fingertips and proceeding to nibble lightly on them. She let her eyes wander, attempting to surreptitiously examine the scar underneath the boy's eye and then his covered up arm. It was tragic story that he had shared with her.

Empathy.
Yes, Slaughter felt sorry for the boy, even younger than herself, having to face such an frightening ordeal on his own. Slaughter grimaced slightly, feeling ashamed of herself for letting herself become so lonely and sad. She had no reason to be, especially not when there were people like this carrying much heavier burdens than she.

"There are rules?!"

Slaughter felt a wave of anxiety descend upon her at once, unwittingly ignoring Ein's latter inquiry. If it was difficult to get into the City in the Sky, did she have any hopes of making it past the gate?
She just knew if she had somebody to travel with, things could be much easier. For now, however, she had nobody to rely on but herself.

The girl was silent for a moment, until a thought struck her like a drummer boy beats his snare. "I have an idea!" she exclaimed, sitting up just a bit straighter in her seat as she did so.

"I am planning on going there-- to the City in the Sky. While I'm there I'll look and see if there is any kind of herbal remedy that might help you!"

Slaughter smiled; she could do it. She could help somebody in this world, even if she had lost any and all hope of helping herself.