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It, consequentially enough, was a day much like any other for the young French maid attired feline. A day full of the simple pleasures of life (and those not so simple) that she would ordinarily encounter during the mediocre followings of her 'schedule'... That is, if one could rightly call it that.

Most would be quite perplexed by the simple things that would run through this feline's crowned head, her thoughts and motivations all cunningly her own, yet at the same time not cunning at all. The framework of her mind would indeed be something one could look at upon the surface and understand wholly. But it was when one ventured deeper, to try and untangle the loops of logic and eventual priorities, that they lost themselves and became, at times, intimidated by the simple complexity of it all.

This made Serena smirk, the thought of it, how why some would try to understand it was something she didn't really care about, as long it was given the attention from such 'scholarly' minds, she was happy. Though, Serena, the impressive little kitten she was, wasn't much for using others. Nay, they let themselves be used. It was a strange thing really, but as long as both parties were satisfied with the other, who cared, right?

A pondered sigh escapes her delicate lips as a renewed 'bounce' to her step could be seen, features bent so gingerly into a soft grin as she continued to muse innocently to herself. As it were, she was walking down a small city street. Somewhat drab looking, if she'd take the time to notice.

Indeed, drab would be near to the perfect word to use when describing the surroundings. Depressing would be going too far, there was actually a sort of charm in the area's 'drab-ness'. The street she was currently walking the sidewalk of would seem to be going on for quite a long way, with the tallest buildings on either side of the street comprising of three, maybe four stories at most. Small thrift shops, diners, 'casual' clothing stores, apartments, with the occasional alleyway breaking the mold set up by the blocks.

A chill wind would suddenly plummet itself down the narrow of the street, such nearly caused Serena's little head piece to go flying,

"Eee! Noo!.." She stammers as one of her forepaws reaches up to plant the covering firmly upon her head. The sudden gust would be rather fierce, it causing the mildly dropping temperature to make itself known to Serena's mind. Her form would have cringed, making itself as small as possible while still standing, feet nudging closer, body curling in the slightest. Small curses would escape from her petite mouth as a great difficulty was made with holding the hat in its place while her other paw kept the edge of her frilled skirt thrust it downward. She didn't want some creep catching a glimpse of anything that could be revealed from this horrendous wind.

But, as soon as it had started, the wind stops. The only evidence that it had occurred at all would be the twirling scraps of newspapers and a slightly aghast kitten standing on the sidewalk, blinking. It'd be now that she takes her first look around where she had walked herself to. More often then not her sense of direction would have prevailed in keeping her within recognizable territories. However, it seems as if it had missed its mark this day...

"...Where the hell am I?.." She mutters to herself as her paws made short and remarkably accurate work in re-illustrating the perfectly delicate picture that she was. But, despite her near perfect representation, she still hadn't the faintest clue of where she was. Her frail arms cross over themselves as she takes a moment to take in her surroundings... It is with much distaste that she scoffs at the seemingly lifeless stores and barren apartments. There were many windows that were boarded up, but it didn't look such had occurred all too recently. Some of the planks were rotted with moisture, or from being entirely too dry, in which case the splintered remains either hung from their nails, or laid upon the ground in ruin.

Clearly, this wasn't a place for a French maid. But it wasn't like she was going to pick up this horrid mess. Her mind clears and begins to take on an air of rationality as she looks over her shoulder, seeing the way she came. It'd be here that whatever rationality she was using would be slapped away.

The street went on forever... Perpetually. Even the horizon seemed flat and void of distinguishing detail. It made her eyes twitch with a confused blink,

"I couldn't have been walking for that long... Gr!" She grunts and stomps one of her close knit slippers upon the ground, looking now ahead of her, which seemed to be more or less the same. Anxiety at this point would grip her, thus causing her body (without much consultation from the mind) to turn around and start walking briskly towards the direction she had come.

As said, the air was cold, a very stale sort of chill where as there was no wind. Which made one ponder upon the cause of the earlier torrent. But, as it were, Serena was too distracted with the thought of 'locating herself' that she didn't pay much more heed to her surroundings other then that it was dirty, and seemed to look all the same.

Then came the complete dread idea of isolation. This feeling would have came quite suddenly, a by product of her mind attempting to locate itself where as the thought of someone being near by would be fortunate. One could ask such a particular person where they were, and other inquiries to the disquieting aspect of the town in it of itself. But, there was indeed, of one, not a living soul. Serena's mind ached with the question, "When was the last time I saw someone?.." And certainly, she couldn't recall anyone past the moment since she realized that she was here.

There was also the immense silence that seemed to make the air thicker. It would play tricks on Serena's ears; the delicate flaps giving small twitches to things that she 'thought' she heard. A shuffling in one of the alleys, a groan from the buildings, a sigh of the wind, all of which were beginning to feed her anxiety. She didn't like this place, and it didn't look like her present course was leading her anywhere,

"Mmrph!.." She'd grunt with a whine as her arms refolded themselves with a sort of stubborn authority, such causing her shoulders to raise in a slight tension,

"I wish.. This damn place had a sign some-..." Her own voice would be interrupted as, just over the linear crest of the road, she spied a break in the building's monotonous pattern of blocks and alleyways. It made her heart leap, because it was an intersection, and with that her mind fluttered into a number of conclusions. An intersection would have the name of the street she was on, possibly a person, a phone, and maybe even a bus route! Her perky pace quickened, and her tail would sway now in broad strokes due to the elements of cheer that were running through her head.

The most striking thing about the intersection that she could see from her current position would be the rather large building that stood at the opposite corner to the one she was approaching. Indeed the tallest building, but other then that distinct feature it was still rather unremarkable. It seemed to resemble a hotel of sorts, just due to the many windows (of which, were boarded) that surrounded the buildings structure. Also, the door that faced the corner was grand, and actually well maintained. That is, both of the great slabs of carved oak were still connected to the arch they were made for. This building had six floors, which made it a giant among its lesser neighbors, a regal Victorian landmark amidst the stale architecture that she had been surrounded by.

As remarkable as this building was, there was a morose feeling of uncertainty growing within Serena that caused her steps to falter and slow a bit. Her eyes were glued to the building, it seeming to intimidate her only in one aspect. She couldn't recall ever passing it.

The hopes that she had built for herself upon discovering the intersection were all dashed away in that moment, dashed just as she reached her destination. Fear was something that hadn't yet come into her mind through the past minutes (or hours, as it felt) that she had been walking through this surreal atmosphere. But now it had foamed over the borders of her rationality and was beginning to have its effects with the chemicals of her body. Her heart rate increased, and the anxiety she had begun to feel seemed to double to the point that her torso would begin to quiver. For a moment her teeth would chatter as the soundless isolation of the place engulfed her more thoroughly. A shudder escapes in the form of a shaken whimper before the stubborn side of her mind attempts to bring her thoughts and emotions back into order.

And it does a fine job.

She stamps again, letting out an annoyed grunt as her form moves towards a bench that was conveniently nearby,

"Just get a grip on yourself..." She mutters, nearly in an embarrassed tone as she plops down to the bench with as much grace as a feline wearing a French maid's uniform could. But, as it were, even the stubborn nerves that ran through her body couldn't forestall the fact that she was indeed lost, and that it was becoming darker. There was no phone, but there was a board for a bus route that didn't look very promising. It was worn and almost entirely illegible. The only thing she could make of it, if anything at all, were the colored routes that lead to destinations that were either smudged with filth or bitten with the cruel teeth of age. That and the other saving grace she had relied on were completely useless, the street markers reading with 'Maple', and 'Baker' street, with Maple being the road she had been walking on,

"There must be someone around here that could help..." She said with a tad of feigned hope, for she knew that she hadn't seen anyone ever since she got herself lost in this blasted place. A sigh would escape her, the idea of walking further along Maple Street seeming wholly useless and undesirable. Her feet were already aching, and the idea of walking further into the apparent unknown was something she could care less about, at least with those slippers. And Baker Street didn't look any different. But she had to do something, the sun wouldn't wait for her to make up her mind, and being stuck in an unknown place, especially in the dark, certainly didn't agree with Serena in the least.

Her paws smack upon the wood of the bench at either side of her and she rises with the momentum, having decided to try her luck with Maple Street once more to see if something else might come up. The curved lengths of her exposed legs would have begun to move her petite form across the street and into the muddy shadow of the 'grand hotel' when there came a sound.

A definite sound, something soft, but from being engulfed in utter silence for however long she has been here it seemed like a most startling and stentorian sound. Something had been knocked over and as her head snapped towards the direction it came from she spied on a garbage can rolling to a stop against one of the buildings, the contents spilled over the sidewalk. And what's more, a figure gave a sudden turn and hurried towards one of the alleyways down Baker Street, Serena called out,

"Hey! Wait!" Getting to who or what this figure was took hold of her mind, what it meant for her was information, that and contact with another being. But, as it were the figure seemed to be bi-pedal, dressed in a flowing mound of fabrics that she couldn't immediately identify. Serena gave chase, it seemed awkward to her to run in her current get up, but she didn't really care, she needed to get to this person.

The sun was still setting, and it drew the sky aflame with rich colors of purple and red, blue and yellow, the all of them contending against one another for supremacy of the sky and losing to the indomitable will of the coming darkness. Yet, this magnificent battle of color would be shielded from view, as the sky would have become quite overcast, which only added to the chill that was about the place, the sun's warmth being shielded. What descended then upon the town was a sort of monotonous gray tone that seemed to make the already chill air all the more frigid.

Yet, despite the coming of the starless night, Serena gave chase, seeing the figure dart into the alleyway with surprising agility. As it were, the kitten was at a fair disadvantage, the slippers upon her feet weren't really meant for any sort of physical strain, and as she turned the corner into the alleyway she nearly barrel rolled down the sidewalk. But with a slight flail of her arms Serena caught her balance and resumed her course, watching then the heavily clothed figure dash into one of the buildings that created the alley. If Serena had an advantage at all that could aid her, it'd be her natural feline grace and agility, it apparent as she closes the distance between herself and the door by which she enters and comes to a sudden stop.

The scene before her, like the rest of the town, was a complete mess. Though, it'd seem that the boarded windows and broken doors were hiding the true decadence that apparently made up each building's contents. Here she saw what she could see to be a diner, a definitive bar protruded from the opposing wall and towards the one she entered from, such being bordered by a number of stools on the one side. Along the wall where the main entrance was (with the boarded windows) were booths with cushioned seats and tables. The liter and garbage was everywhere, salt and pepper shakers, silverware, porcelain plates and other items typically found in a diner were strewn about the floor and upon the bar counter. Some of the tables and seats had a similar fate. The most unsettling feature of the diner would be that there were articles of clothing upon the floor, it wouldn't be strange if there was a jacket or two, but there was more then that. Old jeans, shirts of differing varieties and even socks, all of which seeming to have been there for a rather long time for they were all covered in dust and tattered.

Serena cringed at the dingy surroundings, she was a vehement enemy of things being disorderly, and dust was one of her chief enemies. So, it'd be as if she entered her own personal Hell. But, suddenly her attention snapped back to what was at hand, where had that person gone to? Certainly it couldn't have left through the main door, there was a thick slab of wood stretched across on the outside of it and it didn't look like there was any sort of force used upon it. There were of course, the swinging doors beside her that led into the kitchen area. But they were quite still, there'd be no way that the figure could have moved through them without having used a great amount of momentum to do so.

It was too still in the room of suspended time. Much too still for the commotion she had just experienced with the short chase. Cautiously, she steps forward. She kept near to the counter, the frill of her skirt swaying and caressing against the leather of the stools. Only a few steps would have been taken until she thinks of something, why not call to whatever it was? Serena does this, despite the lump in her throat from the utter strangeness of the scene, which frightened her, she hoped that whatever it was wasn't violent,

"I-Is there anyone here?.." She stammers, pausing in her steps just as she reached the middle of the counter. When no answer came Serena hesitated, was she going insane? Did she not just see someone run into here? No, it happened, she couldn't let such thoughts plague her. But still, it was odd... This place was so melancholy and... So utterly depressing that she couldn't help but think that she was in a surrealist's dream. She called out again,

"Please, I'm lost and I'm trying to find my way out of here... I just need some directions..." Serena's voice would have lowered nearly to a whisper as she spoke, she never liked admitting to needing 'help', as it were. She was a grown feline and could handle things herself, but in a matter such as this, she really needed a nudge in the right direction,

"Th'door's ro-ight thairs." The sudden voice caused Serena to gasp and wheel around on her heels, paws balling up and loosening from tension, she nearly shrieked, but wouldn't allow herself to. Her teeth made sure of that by pinching down on her bottom lip, but her composure is soon recovered, the voice she heard was feminine,

"What? No... Where are you?" There was a stern tone in her voice as she asked this, why couldn't this person show herself? But, just as Serena thought this, a pile of rags in one of the corners of the diner shifted and writhed into an erect position. The feline's eyes glued themselves to the stranger, whose back was apparently turned to her for the mass had begun to turn. What was revealed was rather surprising,

"'ere, mum..." Said the little gray mouse. The girl looked to be quite small, and quite skinny. Usually mice are thus anyway, but this one here seemed to be on the borderline of malnutrition. Yet, how could she have ran so fast? She was shaking, her head with the large round ears seeming to look around as if there was something in constant movement that Serena couldn't see. If anything, the mouse seemed to be very nervous, her eyes wide, dainty and bony paws rubbing one another with a steady uneasiness that effected even Serena. She wanted to get out of this stranger's presence soon. She speaks calmly, slowly,

"I just need directions out of this town." The mouse's head snaps to her direction, the trembling of her body having increased for some reason that was beyond Serena's comprehension,

"T-Town, mum?.." She stammered,

"Yes, this one... That we're in." Serena didn't know how else to explain it, this little mouse seemed to be a bit detached from reality. Sure, she had friends that could have fit this profile, but that was usually in jest, this mouse didn't seem to be joking at all... Something was seriously wrong. And why did she keep calling her 'mum'? With a gasp the mouse speaks, her head shaking rapidly,

"No, no..." She says, as if whispering to herself, head bowing now, the syllables drawn out,

"No, no, no," She continues, "Thair's none gettin' out of here's, no, no, no..." The mouse started to rock back and forth as her tail makes its first appearance, the tip of such jutting itself to her face (her maw really, though it was hard to see for Serena) where she begins to suck. Or, at least that's what it sounded like; Serena at this point was getting a bit annoyed,

"What? What do you mean 'thair's none gettin' out of here's'?" Serena mocked her tone, despite the mouse's decrepit state she wasn't in the mood for this, she wanted answers, and it was getting darker by the moment. Or, at least the gray overcast was growing darker. The mouse took her time in answering, seemingly more preoccupied with sucking on the tip of her tail then anything else. At length she replies,

"Too dark naw..." Her head would have turned to the wall with the boarded windows, she was gazing at such with such a ferocious concentration that Serena actually held her tongue for some moments, that is, until her patience wore,

"Come on already, just--" It's then that something surprising, and rather horrifying, occurred. The mouse's rocking would have increased as she began to hum an eerie sounding lullaby to herself, the words murmured, though it went a little like this,

_"With th'years, settlin' a'selve,s

always look up, th'sky swells,

hear th'ring, an' com'a back home,

they walk th'streets, don'a be 'lone..."_

Serena, at this point, wanted to get out of the room as soon as possible, she didn't care if she didn't get anything useful from this crazed mouse that was still humming its tune, sometimes repeating the verses, humming faster or slower, at times adding words and taking some out. The rocking still became faster, and Serena, shaking a little herself, took a step towards the door before bolting through it and along the alleyway, heading back to Maple Street.