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It was night. the moon shone brightly against a star speckled sky. The wind was bitterly cold and unforgiving, with eerie animal calls piercing the otherwise deathly silent night. At this hour in Rhyolite Village, nobody wanted to outdoors alone.

Instead of the Cait Shelter cottage, however, was a different story.

Rugs and blankets were tossed across the hardwood floor. Cushions rested close to the crackling fireplace. Likely music played through a vinyl record player, previous salvaged from an abandoned shack. The disc was heavily scratched, courtesy to the feline who had handled it, and so every so often Koji had to stand up to fix it.

Fresh imports of fruit from the neighbouring Andesite Village had been… borrowed. And the members of Cait Shelter were feasting on various fruits of all kinds. Earlier today, another Cait mage had hunting through a junkyard and found a plethora of riches. Not in the usual sense of the word, but they were treasures when morale was low. Board games and card games had been retrieved.

Koji himself was in the kitchen, no more than an alcove, and slicing up chunks of watermelon to distribute across the guild.

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Open to all CaS members!

Koji followed his brother's stead in removing his outer garment, slipping off his yellow jacket and revealing the bare black and white fur of his head, neck and back. Courtesy to the rain, it was still rather damp, although thankfully not sodden.

"You can say that again." Koji agreed wholehearted. Now in the absence of a stranger, the exceed felt himself relaxing even more, joining his brother in lounging beside the fire. He let a contented sigh escape his jaws as he curled into a ball, adopting a sleeping manner more reminiscent of their quadrupedal cousins.

"I think…" He began slowly, as though musing over the solemnity of his next words. "…That this place is a lot less beat up than we could have ever hoped for." His tails flicked happily behind him. Against his will, a rumbling purr began to emanate from his chest.

"We even got a bedtime story to boot." Koji mused, his eyelids growing heavy. "I bet it was your adorableness which got us here. Nobody can resist that." He touched his nose to Topaz's cheek. "It's a superpower on its own."

Notorious B.I.G.

Koji was only vaguely aware of his apparently unapproachable presence towards the ex-member in the past. However, given the perspiration on her forehead as well her fidgeting fingers, it was evident that she still did not feel totally comfortable around him. A part of him regretted this. Perhaps he should have made more of an effort to make her belong. Maybe if he did, she would not have left…

"Good to hear." The exceed responded in kind. He had never been fond of excess words, considering those who spoke too much to know little. Thus, he respected Cheshire's brevity, attributing it more to solemn efficiency, rather than nervousness.

"I've been well too." The cat simply provided, before padding towards the Cait Shelter cottage's oak door. It creaked as he swung it open and he gestured Cheshire to enter.

Tilting his head back so that he caught the girl in his peripheral vision, he invited her, "Come sit. Once a Cait Shelter member, always a Cait Shelter member." Warmth began to seep into his voice as he repeated the mantra and an unashamed amount of parental fondness glowed in his single eye. "You may no longer have our guild insignia on you, but you still have a place in our hearts."

A little more poetic than Koji would have bothered with, but he figured that a little flair would assist with comforting Cheshire. The poor girl looked like a coiled spring ready to burst at any moment.

Cheshire Copeland

Upon Topaz's departure from the seat, Koji was pulled out of his daze to watch his kin assist in lighting the fireplace.

He would have more preferred his brother to lean more on subtilty, but at the same time, he was thankful for Topaz's assistance to the woman who had done nothing but help them. The effect of the lit fireplace was immediate – the room was bathed in a warmth Koji hadn't realised he needed until now.

He bit his lip at Topaz's frank explanation for his abilities and shut his eyes, as though trying to revisit his constructed utopian landscape. But it was a futile attempt.

Perhaps interpreting the closure of his eyelids for sleepiness, Mrs Wetzel rose back to her feet with the help of her cane and offered. "It must be long past your bedtime. Come sleep by the fireplace. I'll settle in for the night too. Feel free to knock if you need anything."

With that she shuffled away from the fire and entered the nearby bedroom, closing the door behind her.

"Good night boys."

Notorious B.I.G.

"I'd rather not antagonise his remaining kin." Koji remarked, traces of irritation lancing across his face. "The last thing I need is another fight."

"I regret that his death upset your guildmates." He added, quite truthfully. After all, his intention was simply to end a madman and to cease the suffering he unleashed onto others. "Many would have died for him. Many would have died from him." He transfixed a hard gaze onto the masked individual. Koji could not help but perceive this is no more than a petulant child, their perception of the world so severely warped to serve their own conscience. Their naivety was pity, but alas, it was not Koji's job to educate him on the realities of the world.

"Do you deny that he caused many unnecessary deaths?"

Sovereign Pale

Much like his brother, Koji listened with rapt attention as their host recounted the world before it had ended. As she spoke, the Exceed was lost adrift a dreamscape of an impossibly beautiful haven. It was difficult to imagine such a place had ever existed, much less that it was what preceded the very lands they roamed now.

He inquired where appropriate and sat respectfully silent at other times. As beautiful landscapes were constructed in his mind, a seed of determination began to plant within Koji's mind. He desired to bring about such a world again. A world where both him and his brother were able to thrive peacefully without the horrors of scavenging for scraps just to survive. But that seemed so grandiose and the impossibility loomed before him, threatening to shatter such an aspiration.

"Woah." Koji echoed, albeit his voice was more subdued and thoughtful. Comfortable silence followed as the trio mused over their cooling cups of tea.

At length, Mrs Wetzel rose from her seat and shuffled towards the fireplace. Her ancient hands trembled as she handled the flint and steel. Koji only watched her absentmindedly, still adrift in this wild fantasy of his, not noticing that their host was experiencing trouble with getting the firewood to spark.