ink, then digital.

Work for an upcoming Ironclaw project.

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Ah, Spring in the city! The combination of the annual arousing, the earthly renewal with whirring, bustling culture bring such fresh possibilities for easy living; physically, mentally and yes, spiritually.

Physically, I'm sure I don't need to explain; all around you there is endless budding, and after months of dreary, heaping Winter (all the more awful for the tedium involved than the chill), the flowers of the world spread forth in colour and beauty, promising joy now in their splendour and such fruiting profit later. Literally, of course, there is food aplenty. On my morning patrols, attending to my affairs as a man about town, it seems as though I only have to thrust out my paw and find it full with a melon or a plum. A detour through the market will load your pouch of tidbits and other offerings of providence.

More figuratively (but still within the realm of the physical), there is food for the eye as well, as practical but leaden Winter shrouds are folded away in favour of breezy, sunny attire. Even the loose hairs of my own plush coat seems to float off with every gesture, taking with them the mild pangs of yesteryear.

I am surging lean and handsomely slim, grooming my knuckles by the fish market and casting glances about for admirers and glinting wet scales, all around me - all around me. Oh, how nimble my fingers are now without a wintry pelt plugging my gloves! I soon procure the makings for a small snack of sardines in the hollow of a crusty roll; the least hair on my tail will positively gleam with such endless bounty.

While on my usual patrol, I am making eyes with all who share this bright morning, seeking the kindly hearted. Please know that I am not prone to seduction as a means, but given the spirit in the air, when Nature herself is whispering endless suggestions and showing such spry form in the carriage of all who pass, one would have to be dead stone not to respond in some fashion. And so, by the grace of one or two familiar soft faces, here and there, occasional business acquaintances, I find that love freely given may still be rewarded, particularly by widows in need of continued consolation. I am sure to leave small scatterings of my fur with each visit as a memento; I am generous with my being to those who share my admiration of the same.

Once the needs of the body have been met, it is time to let Spring work it's warming fingers upon my mind. A timely exit through a bedroom window (now made all the easier without frozen ledges or snagging icicles) can take me to the rooftops above the throng and cobblestones. From above, I have clear view over my urban domain.

Anywhere in the city is available to me this way, and often with less issue from well-intentioned but misguided constables who always seem to have a question or two that I am simply too busy to address. I should like to tell them, "Travel by the high way and all that you seek will be revealed." But I value the open passage too much to clutter it for the sake of their ignorance.

Rooftop to rooftop, awning to awning, in springtime I pass a multitude of open windows. And as people exchange the stale winter air for the breath of a new season, so too do they cast to the world news and gossip, polite conversation and such. There is much to learn lazing about in the sun, upon verandas and in hammocks of laundered bed linens hung to dry, it just matters who happens to be speaking nearby. I could tell you a thing or two about certain upstanding citizens who, in the presumed privacy of their chambers, have conducted themselves questionably in full view of the neighbouring rooftop - however a gentleman would never willingly reveal such unsavoury affairs. Oh, never.

Spiritually, you might think city life has little to offer, regardless of season; poets long laud the countryside as more fitting a place to renew the soul. I'm sure that a bare meadow is quite droll, and that there must be something sedative about a tinkling brook - but to me, I take much more renewal of faith by the actions of people. There are daily occurrences of heroism, generosity, enlightened thought and fine living, here. Of course, by the same token, one can witness the opposite just as readily; I am not naive. However, the push and pull of such a variety of impulses produces change and progress; it is a beautiful tapestry woven with fine and coarse threads, formed by many hands. I am happy to add my sharp needle to such work.

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[NOTE: The entry calls for "European Wildcat". This is presumably because domestic cats aren't exactly viable in the Ironclaw world. Fair enough, but I can't exactly imagine them running around calling each other "European Wildcats". To me, it would seem these are "Cats" and fill the same worldbuilding niche as what a reasonable person would consider a cat.]

[ALSO: Swiss guard uniforms are kinda silly. I'm just saying.]