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Within the FTC Play Park, a copse of trees stands off to one side. There really isn’t anything special or interesting about these trees – nothing at all. Feather-tailed cats and dogs alike spare this dark, dreary and gray cluster nothing more than a glance before moving onto more interesting things... Like that kochii over there! Oh! And the fountain – look at how it sparkles! And hey, look – the SANDBOX! Why not go for a roll?!

Those that know the trick to the place, however, know that there is much more to this small grove. The few that know the secret to this sanctuary merely must slip beneath what feels like a heavy, invisible curtain and pass into the cluster of trees to enter a small, private meadow. In the center of the lush vibrant green grass is a small tree cared for and looked after by the familiars – it is from this tree that the magic surrounding this glen is held up.

The bonsai tree is not the only object found within this area, however. Off to one side stands a machine of some sort, rusted and worn down by weather and time. The contraption consists of a cage and a box on top on which rests a timer set for 6:00 PM PST, Saturday to 10:00 PM PST, Saturday. The back of the machine appears to have been torn open, and many of its gears lay strewn about near it. The wire mesh cage at the bottom of the machine also has a hole in it, lined with tufts of multi-hued fur. This ring of fur has a faint cinnamon scent to it: kochii.

Near the bonsai tree is a wide, shallow ceramic bowl filled with rainwater. The color of the bowl and its design shifts and varies upon a familiar’s whim, as well as the color of the water. Sometimes the taste varies, and other times the bowl deepens and contains a confused teleported fish. This water dish has also been known to suddenly shift to contain salt and shrimp.

The glen is lit up in colors by two main sources. The first is a wide, careless patch of various wildflowers that change and vary with each season. The second are the long trails of ribbons that hang from the trees and flutter freely in the wind, inviting cats to bat at chew at them. Also in the trees are small, bird-like nests decorated with twigs and pieces of fur – here is where the domesticated kochii must roost. Not to be left out, there are baskets with weather-worn blankets for the cats have been placed around. Some of these baskets are encircled by familiar-runes...

Other things of interest lie several faded catnip toys, balls, and miscellaneous feathers forcibly donated by the local bird population. One side of the Sanctuary consists of a gently sloping hill, mostly clear except for the rocks piled off to one side. These rocks form a miniature mountain complete with caves and tunnels big enough for a cat, yet bigger for a kitten. There are also flat "plateaus" for those who wish to sunbathe, arranged so that each ledge is not covered by shadow. Near this mountain is an abandoned rabbit-hole for the more adventurous feather-tails, with even more tunnels and den-areas than the familiar-made mountain has to offer.There is something in this area that is far more interesting, and dangerous than this however...

The surrounding foliage of this glen is seemingly unremarkable trees and bushes, much like the kind that can be found in the rest of the park. One tree stands out from the others, however. On the north side of this glen, towards the thicker forests of the park stands one tree grayer than the rest. Near the base of this tree is a sooty black scar. No amount of healing magic, cleaning magic, or water magic has been able to remove this. Instead, the magic seems to... Become absorbed by it. It is rumored that at night, a certain nemesis that the Feather-Tailed Cats have defeated flits around, once again as a ghost... and on nights of the new moon, its powers appear once again. But that, of course, is just a rumor... Right?

To be filled out later...

((If you know what goes here, SHHH! xp ))

Rikou raised a golden eyebrow at Cloud's reaction to the toy. He stretched lazily in the worn, soft cloth of the basket he'd chosen, chuckling a little under his breath. "I guess it doesn't matter what class we've chosen; catnip is still the solution to everything, isn't it?"

Reluctantly, he hauled himself out of the warm bed, headed for the toys himself. After batting at several, he found one to his liking: a faded, but still colourful and fuzzy ball with a small bell inside, that emitted a muted ring with every movement. Soon enough, he too had succumbed to the effects of the catnip that was... well, everywhere. His original housecat nature surfaced almost immediately.

He was sprawled on his back, kicking the ball into the air and laughing like a kitten at the sounds it made. When he'd kicked it wrong, he chased; and it felt good to chase. So very good. When he caught it, he carried it proudly and then flipped back over to resume kicking. What was he doing? He was making a fool of himself! But... but... oh, who cares?

Rikou paused when he heard a familiar voice, twisting his head around to look. Just as he recognized his beloved... the ball came back down, bopping him squarely in the head. "Cle- ow."

The ball rolled itself into the grass, jingling the whole way.

(( One third of all cats aren't affected by catnip, and until kittens are two weeks old, they are unaffected by eet~ x3 Or is it three weeks? ;; ))

"Mrrrow mree mrrroooooow~" Cloud purred in greeting to the two familiars while still happily munching away at "his" kochii. His real kochii was that one moving brown-blue-green spot in the trees, adding sticks and twigs to his nest. So far, the kochii had managed to wrap one of the ribbons meant for cats to bat at it into his nest -- he was working on another.

"Mrrrrph. That thing makes me feel dirty every time I look at it," Cloud interjected. "Whatever that thing is, it's good at being... something that rubs my fur the wrong way, y'know?"

Rikou's ears swiveled, catching the conversation. His brain was still a little fuzzy from the catnip-high, but at least he was coherent?

"Mmmm... I don't like it too much either... But hey, we picked this area for a reason, right? What I'm worried about is how that area seems to be sucking out energy... It's causing a constant drain on my protection spells on the area. Luckily the little tree can take it."

((*is giggling at the edit-conversation above* xd ))

It took a moment for Rikou to calculate. "Plenty long, I think. Unless somehow it starts absorbing more energy really fast, the wards should keep themselves stable... It's just slowing down the amount of energy that's being siphoned for 'rainy day' storage anyway. The little tree's actually sucking down more power than that scar." He had confidence that his low-power, catalyst-based spells would keep working fine even without a fair backup reserve, but it never really hurt to keep extra just in case. As it was, they were doing fine. All they did was make everything else look more appealing, anyway.

His deep blue ears twitched as his eyes spotted little flecks of imaginary light around him: something he wrote off as just another side-effect of kitty-cracknip. It was when the colours started to get swirly that he started to shake his head in an attempt to clear it. It wouldn't do to go bolting off after that ball again in the middle of a conversation, would it?

(( xd Those little colour-specks were supposed to be only in his head because he's high from the catnip. ^_^))

Rikou looked over at Cleo when he heard her fall back down. He padded over (slowly, I might add... he may have been coherent, but he was still high) and sat down with her, frowning with some concern. "You alright, my dear?"