When Cassiopeia woke up, she was alone in the open kitchen-slash-living-room that made up most of the second level of her employer, Mayra's, home. It was quiet and dim, with the curtains drawn to keep the heat out. There was a note on the table next to the couch.
"Cassie,
Gone to the market. Help yourself to anything in fridge/pantry. Please don't use the stove. I'll be back around lunch time.
-May"
Predictably, Cassiopeia needed to pee again and got up to rush to the bathroom. The clock on the wall indicated it was almost noon, and it made her stomach drop as she picked up her pace through the kitchen. She half-skidded down the stairs, made easier by the blue mouse-patterned fuzzy bottoms she wore.
Having had a shower the night before, Cassiopeia didn't feel like she needed one. Her long green hair was clean, pulled back into a lazy ponytail. The top she wore wasn't fuzzy like her pants, and it was bright chartreuse, giving her suntanned face an odd yellow-greenish tint and clashing with the brilliant red irises of her eyes.
It was a relief to Cassiopeia to see the bathroom door open, and she was careful to shut the door behind her before sitting down on the toilet. She let go, releasing a high-pressure jet that splashed oddly in the bowl. Yawning, Cassiopeia looked down and realized that she was still wearing pants. She stood up and pushed them down, spraying the floor for several seconds before sitting back down.
Cassiopeia stared at the piss-soaked pants and the puddle she'd made. She wanted to get up and get rid of the mess as quickly as she could before Mayra got back home, but couldn't stop peeing. Cassiopeia sat anxiously for the next thirty seconds as her bladder drained. With it finally relieved, she realized that she felt better than she had in days: no headache, no soreness, and no tension. She paused for a long moment to close her eyes and enjoy it before standing up and using the pants to mop up the piss.
The washing machine was across from the toilet and it was open, with some clothes already in it. There was also a mop and large squeegee in the cupboard next to it, and she used them to clean up what she'd missed.
When Mayra returned, Cassiopeia had put on some day clothes; she'd figured the best way to cover for herself was to wash all the clothes she'd worn the night before, and had raced naked up the stairs to put her clothes on. It turned out she hadn't needed to hurry: Mayra didn't arrive home until close to one in the afternoon.
"Oh good, you're awake," said Mayra. She wore a light blue halter top dress that left the back open for her large blue and tan feathered wings, and her dusk-blue hair was tied into a messy but elegant bun at the top of her head. She also carried several bags of groceries and other things she'd gotten on her trip to the market. "Sorry I'm so late, I stopped to get lunch."
Cassiopeia could smell the contents of one of the bags, which Mayra separated and set on the kitchen table before putting away the groceries. Cassiopeia wasn't sure what it was, but it smelled delicious.
"Pick one of each and dig in," said Mayra. "We have a lot to talk about."
The bag on the table contained soup and sandwiches, contained securely in a box. It even had spoons, and Cassiopeia had wolfed half of her food down before Mayra settled into the chair across from her.
"I'm glad to see you've got your appetite back," Mayra commented. "I heard that you checked out of the inn yesterday. Why didn't you tell me?"
