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Elsewhere in the hotel, there was a room with three unusual characters inside, but considering all of the other customers around there, this trio could actually be considered quite normal.
"This is a pitiful room. We paid to stay in a dump?" a male, resembling a horned wolf, remarked sullenly.
"Come on, Tiger! It's not bad at all in here," a human exclaimed eagerly, actually apprearing to like it.
"Yeah, you would say that, Genki! Seriously, has anyone ever taught you how to complain? Look around you! The dust takes up as much of the floor as the floor itself. And I've seen stronger wood in a marsh! It feels like the rotten boards we're standing on are going to save us the trouble of needing the door to get out at any moment. Plus, all those wavy strings are from monsters called "spiders," right? I have to sleep with one eye open knowing we could be attacked as we sleep," Tiger grumbled.
Genki laughed. "They aren't "monsters;" they're called "insects." They're actually small enough to step on and will only bite if you bother them first. They don't just run around attacking everyone, so relax for change," Genki told him.
Then a third character spoke up. She resembled the horned wolf looking monster but was a female and colored differently. "Honestly Tiger, can you really complain when Genki paid for everything?" she said with a laugh, not being mean at all. Then she added, "But what you're doing is sweet."
"What're you talking about, Tigress?" Tiger asked, in a very confused sounding voice.
"Really though, the room is comfortable enough for me and I really can protect myself," she replied with a smile.
Tiger snorted. "I still don't know what you're talking about. I was only thinking about me. Don't flatter yourself," he said gruffly.
Tigress' smile didn't drop though. She knew Tiger better than he thought she did. Then she turned to Genki. "It may be awkward to educate others about things in their own world and all, but I feel that you should know that spiders are not insects. I read that that is often a misconception. They actually belong to a large group of animals called Arthropoda. The phylum Arthropoda consists of five classes of animals:
Crustacea
Chilopoda
Insecta
Arachnida
Diplopoda
Spiders belong to the class Arachnida while insects are found in the class Insecta. This might be difficult to remember so here are some other characteristics that distinguishes spiders from insects.
Spiders doesn't have antenna like insects.
The abdomen of spiders isn't segmented like the abdomen of insects.
Insects have 3 pairs of legs, while spiders have 8 legs.
Spiders have 8 simple eyes while insects have 2 more advanced compound eyes.
Just remember those and you'll never be confused about this again," Tigress said cheerfully.
Genki and Tiger's mouths dropped open. "Where did you learn that?" Genki asked in shock.
"Yeah, where the heck did you hear that stuff?" Tiger asked, although trying not to sound curious.
Tigress laughed. "Well boys, if I'm going to be spending a good deal of time away from home, I would like to learn as much helpful information as I can about this world. Let's just say I've been reading about a lot of things for a while."
"How the heck was that information helpful?" Tiger wanted to know.
"Well, it did help clear things up for Genki," she replied.
Tiger became silent. He had no comeback for that.
Tigress noticed that and did not want him to feel awkward. "Still, I would feel safer if you slept beside me." she told him.
"Humph!" he growled, walked away from them, and curled up in a corner. He had ended up changing his mind about the bed. He'd slept in many types of environments throughout his life and so was used to pretty much any type of terrain to get rest on. "If she gets all stiff from sleeping on this rickety floor, she won't be as much help in a fight," he thought to himself.
Then he thought more about Tigress. He was no fool. He knew her type, and it wasn't her species he was thinking of. "Those females waste their time trying to be nice to everyone. They only end up being annoying," he thought to himself. His heart was yelling at him otherwise, but he wasn't in the mood to listen to it right now. He actually hadn't been for a while.
Being with a friend was one thing. But with all of his fighting experience, he still lacked the skill of trying to connect to someone wanting to be more than that. As of now, the ice around his heart was colder than the warmth that burned within hers. He still needed time to chip away at it on his own so she could have the chance to melt away the rest. Not too much later, his breathing followed a distinct pattern.
Tigress sighed gently. "It's getting late, so we should get some rest too Genki, although we all shouldn't get very much."
"Huh? What do you mean?" he asked her.
"There is definately a forboding presence here," she said in a low voice. "I know one when I feel it. I'm aware that we're all tired from our journey, but we all can't remain off our guard."
"Why are we whispering?" Genki asked in a whisper.
"I don't want Tiger to wake up and hear all of this, then get all riled up. Or course, he will when he does find out, but I won't allow that to happen right now at least. He just doesn't relax enough and I want him to get some good rest. He couldn't sleep if he knew about this," she explained.
"But I'm confused," Genki said, still whispering. "Why didn't Tiger notice this too?"
"I'm not sure what about, but Tiger has seemed very distraught lately, as if he has a lot on his mind. Another's energy is felt through the mind, but it has to be very clear for a slight sensation such as sensing a presence to be perceived. Something must really be bothering him.
I'm worried about him, but I don't know what his problem is to be able to help him with it. And of course, Tiger doesn't like discussing his feelings, so we'll just have to wait and see what happens with him, while keeping our eyes on him to be safe," Tigress said.
Genki turned and looked at Tiger, who was sleeping soundly in the corner. "Not letting others help you is really a weakness Tiger, not a great strength like you make it out to be," he thought to himself. "I'll always be here to talk." "Okay, I'm gonna go to sleep now, Tigress," he said aloud. "Have a good night." Then she told him the same thing.
He then kicked off his shoes and was about to jump into one of the two beds when he remebered Tiger. He then walked over to the side of it and and gently eased on so it wouldn't creak. He pulled up the raggedy blanket, closed his eyes, and soon drifted off as well.
Seeing both of them asleep, she headed for the door and sat down in front of it. "I have to keep watch. I'm not too tired." She chuckled lightly. "If they knew I was staying up, they never would have gone to sleep either. They're both so kind," she said to herself. Then she turned to Tiger for a moment but noticed something. He was sleeping right below a window with a medium sized hole in it, and the wind was really picking up.
She got up, pulled off the blanket from the free bed with her teeth, walked over to him, and gently draped it over him, so not to wake him up. She smiled and said, "Sleep well, my good friend." Then she went back to the door and waited patiently. She just had to be ready if anything unexpected were to happen.
