Nightfall was always a difficult time for Hanako. Cold snowflakes gently fluttered down from the heavens and stung into her skin like tiny glacial shuriken, burrowing into her skin and her soul. Hana had never liked Coerthas, it was always a place where misery laid across the land, resting on the hills like snowdrifts, no matter what happened within the lands of this retched region, any joy would always be swiftly reprimanded by pain. To be stuck within this twisted brutalist palace of penitence, even if supposedly for survival, was a sick twist of fate. Hanako's apprehensiveness was not eased by the apparent increase in political unrest that had befallen Ishgard, between the Dragonsong War reaching a fever pitch and speculation of cultist meddling it was getting too much to take. Granted, she had achieved some friendship within those who lived in Ishgard, mainly those of the Fortemps house, but she knew in her soul her lingering ties to the old, supposedly discarded House Noire placed her in an incredibly precarious situation, and if only to expedite the process of her eventual demise, her growing rumored status as one of the 'Warriors of Light' put even more of a spotlight on her.
Hanako stopped in the snow at a familiar sight, 'Saint Valeroyant Forum' was it's official title but to a younger Hanako it was the Inn Fountain, due to it's position relative to the local Inn the Forgotten Knight. Hanako paused to sit at the lip of the fountain, in her mind, coursed back memories shared with Rosemary, the noble girl from House Noire she had been ordered to protect. They had grown close in their years together, Hanako chuckled to herself, a couple near death experiences would do that to people she supposed. Back then, all she wanted was to fulfill her duty, to keep Rosemary safe, and although the temple knights seemed to often seek to jeopardize that mission and wipe not only Lady Rosemary but the entire House Noire off of the map, Hanako considered herself to be successful. Hanako kept Rosemary alive and safe for as long as she had the power to do so. Hanako was dismissed and that's when her duty ended. Hanako shook her head, it didn't matter anymore, now she had a bigger duty. Another duty, ironically, she did not ask for. Yet, such as it was, she couldn't help but feel that this duty left her even more lonely.
Hanako snapped out of her thoughts at the sound of a dog barking. It was not unusual for people in Ishgard to keep pets, Lady Rosemary had a ragged, wretched old cat named 'Empress' but for dogs and hounds, Ishgardians almost always decided to choose big, stocky dogs. This bark, this sound, was not of a big, stocky dog. It was a yapping. A light, high pitched 'arf' sound, that rung out amongst the courtyard, and it seemed to be getting louder. As if the dog were running, or someone was running with the dog. Hanako turned her head towards the sound curiously, she didn't seem to spot anyone about, nor did she spot the dog. Curiosity filled her, she stood up and looked about, before she felt someone tap on her shoulder. Hanako squeaked as she twisted to see who had approached her.
"Take it!"
A scruffy lady before her aggressively thrust the small, puffy cloud of a dog into Hanako's hands, she reflexively grabbed the ball of fluff, bewildered and swept up in the moment. She opened her mouth to ask a question but the words did not manage to exit her throat before the woman had disappeared. A second passed as Hanako was frozen in shock, stood in the middle of the courtyard with a pile of fur in her hands, trying to process what just happened, and that's when the fur began to wriggle. It was a lateral wriggle, where the top half would move laterally in one way, and the lower half would move opposite. Then, it barked, spooking Hanako from her stupor, she leapt back at the sudden sound as if she had held a cloud-based explosive. Hanako stared down at it, and now it was not inches from her face she could properly see and identify it. It appeared to be a lap-dog, but it had great bounds of energy, as was very evident by it's erratic dance at her feet. It's paws tapped excitedly into the stone pavement, and it's mouth beamed wide back towards Hanako, expectantly. Hanako, with no humans left to question, turned to the dog.
"What, are you?"
"ARF!"
Hanako thought, puzzled, perhaps that was a bad question.
"Where did you come from?"
"ARF!"
Hanako paused her interview, her situation dawned on her, and perhaps she shouldn't be trying to rile up the dog in the middle of night. It seemed a little counter-intuitive to the idea of laying low. With nobody to return the dog to, she turned her head to the Forgotten Knight where she was staying. She knew that the proprietor would not be very happy at her additional resident, but she also knew the power of a cute face, and besides, she couldn't just leave it out in the cold. Secretly though, although Hanako would never admit it, she was delighted by her new companion. She hoped she would be able to keep it with her, and take it on her journeys. Life would be better if she could just watch the little guy wiggle a couple times when things got tough. She went to pick the puppy back off the snow, and to her surprise, it leaped into her bag. It managed to perfectly aim itself into the gap between the flap of the bag and the actual contents. It settled on top of her things, and she thanked the heavens that she had chosen to place her journal at the top of her belongings. Her journal provided a much-needed barrier between the adorable yet muddy puppy and the many different things she carried about with her, and the puppy itself seemed to lie down contently on it.
"Okay," Hanako breathed, half to herself, and half to her new companion. "I guess we figure out where we go from here, huh?"
"ARF!" The puppy replied loudly, Hanako shook her head and reprimanded herself, whispering under her breath,
"No more questions. Not until morning."