To Azzaru

Holland woke bright and early, the sun's rays beginning to peak into her apartment. She stretched and rolled over, abruptly coming face to fluffy elbows with Axis. He was lying on his back with his front legs held high, little snores escaping his muzzle every few moments. "Axis, you're supposed to be on the floor." Every night she fought with him to stay on the floor, and every morning he was right beside her drooling on her pillow and getting his horns caught in her pillow case. She sighed and got out of bed, she saw Tilt was alert and awake watching her from her cushion on the floor, such a good pup. Holland gave her a pat on the head and began getting ready for the day.

She washed, dressed, and packed all without Axis waking up, he had merely rolled away and resumed snoring as she moved the blankets off the bed. It wasn't until she headed for the small rolling cart she used for her kitchen that Axis was suddenly upright alert and padding after her. Holland rolled her eyes at his begging, ignoring him while she cut up fruit and unwrapped dried fish for breakfast. "Why can't you be more like your daughter? She's just over there watching for trouble out the window. Never begs, never gets on my blankets without permission, never takes food." How had such a good hound like Tilt come from Axis' genes?

She gave the hounds their breakfast of fish -which Axis horked down abnormally fast,- and sat down to eat her own meal while Axis watched with pleading eyes. Holland ignored him and ate her meal, thinking of all the things she had to do today.

She would take all her bedding and cushions she wasnt taking to the cleaner with instructions to hold for the landlady she rented from. She would then scrub the apartment clean, which wouldn't take long. It was a small one room dwelling, with a small partition for the toilet. She kept it regularly clean so it would really only need light cleaning. She had a few small clay pots she was packing, her clothes, a quilt and her knife. They would stop at the market on the way to the carriage station and buy dried meats and bread, maybe some fruit if there was anything she liked in stock, and then, to Azzaru.
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It was with a large rucksack on her back, Tilt loyally beside her, and Axis straining against his leash behind her, that Holland arrived at the carriage station. It was time for another adventure. She followed the throng of people also riding the carriage that day and slowly but surely made her way on board the steam engine and found a seat after stowing her pack. Tilt crept under the bench seat to presumably nap, and Axis wallowed at her feet hoping to get her to drop the leash in annoyance so he could run free.

I really need to take him to another obedience class... Holland thought as Axis started trying to gnaw through his leash.

She wondered what would be available in Azzaru, there were hounds, so, of course there would be classes.

Her mind began to wander and she wondered what sort of things they might find on their walks there. Axis was great about finding stuff when they were out and about. He had shocked her with a mouthful of brilliant parsage just yesterday, she had sold a quarter of it to an apothecary to fund their trip and she had been left with money to spare. She'd dried the rest of the valuable parsage and planned on selling it if she needed to in Azzaru, depending on how things went there.

Azzaru was rich in minerals, evidently, so maybe they would find valuable gems? If they did, it would definitely make up for leaving the coast. Holland had grown very fond of the rocky coastline with its amazing diverse tide pools and beautiful views. And she would miss the few friends she had made there as well. She wondered if Axis would miss his friends as well? There had been a few hounds in town he had enjoyed causing chaos with, would there be friendly hounds in Azzaru as well? Undoubtedly, Azzaru was a growing mining town, there were sure to be tons of hounds there.

Holland smiled down at Axis, he had finally given up trying to eat his leash and was looking up at her with pitiful eyes. He took her smile as an invitation to jump onto her lap and in the process butted her with his horns. "Ouch! Ah Axis I think I'm bleeding!" Axis merely sniffed at where he'd hit her and looked away indifferently before settling down on her lap for what he felt was a well deserved nap.

There was the sound of a whistle and a shout, and slowly they began to move. Holland was still rubbing her forehead when the ticket master came for her ticket. Axis perked up when he stopped beside them and held out his hand expectantly asking for their ticket. As Holland handed it over Axis sneezed on it and looked at them as if to say, "That's for the both of you, you're welcome." Holland gave the man an apologetic look and he moved on, wiping his hand with a handkerchief as he did so. Holland patted Axis fondly, "You are exasperating, you know that?" In answer, a small brrrf sound emanated from the backend of the ram horned hound, because yes, he did know that.

It was going to be a long trip...