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Bat's aren't known for their practical sleep patterns, years of evolution made us night dwelling flyers who cower at the sight of the sun and pick up the scraps left behind by day walkers. Well we're not tribal animals anymore, sunglasses help with the whole too bright to see thing, but sleep, well. No environment can overwrite your carnal instincts better than the concrete jungle: where hunting for food becomes a quick walk down the block to the nearest convenience store, you can be around other species without worrying about teeth severing your jugular, and you can sleep with the miasma of noise being blasted at all sides at night.

That's what I thought until my job forced me to move here, a tiny well built, clean, and quiet neighborhood surrounded by miles of empty roads and grassy fields. This was where I realized that I didn't sleep through the hustle and bustle scrapping through the grime covered streets of my city, I needed it to sleep. The soft sounds of cricket songs and frog croaks soaring through the gentle night breeze were more peaceful than the public domestic disputes, 2AM music, and police sirens doppler affecting their way down the road, but they weren't as good at lulling me to sleep. Or as fun to listen to either-- feral frogs don't have disputes over whose eggs those were as much as anthros do.

Falling asleep to the same noises every night just isn't possible for me. That's why nightly walks are going to become a thing in my daily routine. Stepping out of my house as the edge of dusk peters out and gives way to starry skies, that's something I never saw in the city with the skyline being covered by brick buildings as far as the eye can see. Never did that much in the city, sure teeth won't sever my jugular, but a rusty knife might.

I feel more perceptive here in general, it's hard to pick and isolate individual sounds when they're coming at you on all sides, even with hearing as good as mine. But here it's so quiet, aside from the crickets and frogs, I can't help but pick up the faintest sounding "Did you take your pills," coming from the lit upstairs window of the elderly grey wolf couple living next to me. And now that they have my attention, I can't help but listen to the rest, a raspy voice responds with, "Yes, now turn off the lights." And finally, a faint "Night dear" as the lights in their window go out.

I grinned like an idiot at that, those two look so cute cuddling on their porch in the mornings, bobbing back and forth under the rhythmic creaks of their rocking chairs. I bet they were the kind of couple that went on vacations across the world in their heydays, the kind that wouldn't be worth the money if they didn't have a near death story to tell when they got back.

About a few houses later the cricket and croak chorus were silenced by footfalls hitting pavement. A jogger huh, in the city a figure coming towards you at the end of night would trigger some anxiety in you, but here, I almost felt excited when I saw the cheetah coming in my direction. He was breathing hard yet rhythmically, the sign of a true athlete, and was listening to a power metal ballad I didn't recognize. I wanted to wave at him, get his attention maybe strike up a conversation, spend the night at his house, and not need the walk to get me to sleep tonight. But he was long gone when I finally decided to that I'd talk to him about maybe lowering the volume in his EarPods. Yeah, I've got great hearing, but his music was cranked way past any safe volume if I could hear it from where I was.

I didn't expect to see anything too interesting on this walk, but the greenhouse next to that beautiful white marble house caught me off guard. It was filled with flowers and plants with exotic colors that coated strange shapes. The rabbit in there was tending to something with massive blue tipped leaves coming out of a stem, and that wasn't anywhere near the most interesting looking plant in there.

The rest of the walk was uneventful, not that everything else I saw was something worth writing about. an expensive looking car pulling into a drive way as a suited jackal exited, some sprinklers going off, a feline family having dinner silently clinking their utensils into their plates. It smelled nice though, my nose doesn't react well around spices but from a distance I could tell that whoever cooked put some work into it.

I didn't see a speedy drag race that resulted in a crash down I9 that'll block traffic for the weeks to come, but it was something that helped me get to sleep tonight. Maybe my next walk will be more eventful.

The day dragged on far longer than it should have. Despite getting a somewhat healthy amount of sleep everything still felt lethargic. The endless keyboard clicks, and white screens assaulted my senses in a miasma of monotony. It wasn't any different than my position back in the city, but everything just seemed less... Just felt less exciting somehow.

After work I spent some time at home. Enjoying a delectable microwave pizza, the expensive kind, and binge watching some shows I've been meaning to catch up on since the move. To be honest, this new crime thriller that was hitting the same points as the last one I binged wasn't that interesting, I'm just in this far so why not. I was excited when the glare on my tv disappeared and the night bugs started singing their songs again. Another night walk is just what I need, maybe it'll even be the highlight of my day.

"Did you take your pills?" was once again what I heard from the Cadson's household as I walked past. Predictably followed by the raspy "Yes, now turn off the lights," before their window went dim and the old couple rustled in their bed. Seems like whatever adventurous spirit those wolves had before their fur started frizzling is gone now. Although blaming the elderly for not leading interesting lives is something even us city dwellers can't complain about. I've seen enough saggy thongs in my day.

I wasn't tired of seeing the cheetah coming towards me though. Must be a routine and if it is, maybe I can interrupt it one day cause damn that frame. Lithe and curved under that tank top and those red shorts, baggy enough to make me feel like they'll fall over any second. Yet, the accident of my fantasies never happens, and the hunk runs past me, leaving not but the district smell of sweaty cheetah and slightly too loud, power metal.

That rabbit is still tending to that weird looking plant. I get it, it's probably some valuable specimen found in the deepest crevasse of the most hostile jungles the equator has to offer. But I haven't even seen him touch the mace shaped plant, complete with spiky green thorns sticking out of a bulbous end.

By now that 'wrong' feeling from work was coming back, as I saw the same Jackal pulling into his driveway, practically yelling "you're fired!" at his phone when he got out. The mist created by a familiar sprinkler system washed over me as that feeling only grew in intensity. Even that feline family's delectable smelling food wafting its way out of their house didn't distract me from this feeling.

I couldn't sleep, I couldn't figure out what was wrong, I couldn't even stay focused at my job today. After a few uncharacteristic screw ups my boss sent me home, did he notice the frizzled tufts of fur and bloodshot eyes. I needed sleep.

I couldn't sleep, an evening of just lying in bed and waiting to sleep went by before the night sky overtook evening. Maybe another walk is in order.

There went the wolves lights, after Mrs. Cadson made sure Mr.Cadson took his heart medicine. I didn't have the courage to talk to that cheetah this time either, and honestly, I don't think I'd be able to for a while. Finding out what he was listening to didn't help either, Dragons of the iron storm just weren't a band for me. There's professor. Milton tending to that Marker leaf, google told me it's called that cause of the colored tip. That jackal exec in his Maserati, firing some poor guy from his firm once again. Oh, and what's that smell, I don't need to ask it's the Goodman spices that family gets from professor Milton. How can they stand just eating the same thing every night...?

Deja-vu, there was never anything wrong with this neighborhood, or the people in it they all just went about their nights like normal folk with a routine unhindered by the randomness of the outside world. That Cadosns are old folk of course they retire at the same time every night, and that cheetah, well athletes got to keep their regiment up. And from what I heard normal family dinners always went like that, with everyone just silently crowding around a table munching away.

I'll admit, the concept is a little foreign to me, my family just wandered into the kitchen and snaked on whatever was there so organizing dinner never happened. Nope we chatted with whoever was there with us and munched on whatever was my dad bothered to stock in the fridge. It's always a mixed bag though, bananas--because we're fruit bats of course--but some canned beans, or even some ricearone were always there to stop the food from getting repetitive. It wasn't random with those felines though, it felt like Mr. Rolfzen was always stocking up on potatoes, I know I see him whenever I pick up microwavable pizzas for after work. Do they genuinely eat the same thing every day? does he go thorugh his day and at 6:30pm on the dot think 'we need more potatoes' then head to the store to pick them up. A routine like that would just drive anyone to a breaking point.

Every day another batch of scrambled eggs for breakfast, sandwich and apple for luch, then a microwave pizza for dinner. Every day going to work at 8:00am leaving at 5:00pm and binging tv. Every day going on the same walk and seeing the same sights over and over again right that's... that's completely. That's what I've been doing since I moved here.

No, no I was right, there's something terribly wrong with this place and it's infecting me like it did all these people. Th-They just haven't noticed it until now, they're trapped, they're trapped and so am I in whatever monotonous curse was placed here. I-I need to get out, I need something different before I snap, but everyone else. No, no I can fix this for them too, they needed someone like me who can notice all this. If I'm feeling this way after 3 weeks then, then those passing smiles, those innocent waves and blank expressions. I-I need to help them.

"Hey watch! Ugnf." The cheetah ran directly into me knocking me flat on my ass while his posture remained upright if a bit shaken. Even he wasn't fast enough to dodge a bat walking down the sidewalk pretending to be distracted by the whatever was playing in his earphones, while aiming directly in fort of the route he took every day. Crashing into the ground teeth rattling at they hit each other and ears ringing on impact, I might've scraped my leg too, and all of it was surprising, unfamiliar, almost euphoric. "Oh, I'm so sorry." He said reaching out a paw which I readily accepted. It felt so nice to grasp an unfamiliar paw. "Thought ya bats were better at paying attention, haven't met one yet though, sorry mate." That voice, it was not from around here European maybe, god I loved hearing it that accent washing over my ears felt amazing.

"Don't worry about it." I said with my own city slicked voice. "Loooong ass day today, I'm a little out my cycle. Oh agh" The pain shot through my leg as I stood up, the fur on my right calf was scraped off at spots and blood was starting to mat the intact patches. I might've stared a little longer at the beautifully mangled flesh if the cheetah didn't speak up again

"Shit, that wound's rough looking."

"Yeah agh, better pick up some bandages tomorrow." That's something you never get used to when living alone, my shelves don't magically restock.

"Oh mate, ya don't want an infection do ya, come on I've got a jar's worth of Neosporin at my place. Need a shoulder to lean on." He said coyly patting his right shoulder. It wasn't bad really, I could walk to his place without assistance and it'd probably take us less time to get there. But contact with another person like this.

"Yeah, thank you."

We chatted for a bit, he remarked on seeing me a couple of times and I was tempted to tell him how I saw him every day. Told me his name was Len and that he's a personal trainer, both things I already knew but it's nice getting the same information from a different source. "Oh, looks like bad luck's just running through the neighborhood." He said eyeing the house with an A-shaped roof and green tiles, but this time the light at the top window was off, no dim shine from a reading lamp or anything.

"Yeah ugh the scream woke me up first thing in the morning." I said we slowed our pace to look up at the dead looking house.

"Heard the old dog just up an went off in his sleep. Least it seemed painless for him. Medics dragged the body off while the wife just whimpered on.." Of course, he saw it too, everyone who was in the neighborhood at the time got to see the ambulance drive the body out. Mrs. Cadon's bawling probably caught more eyes though. The sight was a wave of emotions. Showers of support for Mrs. Cadson. A miasma of hugs and kind words showered the crying old hound. Her tears kept coming but every fur around was determined to help stop the flood gates. It was more beautiful than the dusk sky, more wholesome than seeing the two rock together on their porch in the mornings and was an amazing change of pace for these people. I basked in every second of it.

All it took was switching the pill on Mr. Cadson's side of the bed while the two sat on the porch in the morning.

"I think Mrs. Cadson is still out, I'm not sure how she'll live without him." I said somewhat wearily

"Yeah man, well let's get you patched up too" He said, while slightly readjusting my arm on his shoulder. "By the way you're sleeping at my place tonight, can't have ya being alone with that." That sly wink gave me all I need to know about what'll really be happening.

Waking up in unfamiliar beds, it's usually a bit uncomfortable until the events of the previous night come flooding back to you. However, being greeted with an unfamiliar ceiling and a very liberally dressed cheetah sitting next to me was a feeling almost as good as the one I had before passing out.

"Hmmm, morning Len," I said while lightly brushing my wrapped foot against his spotty thigh.

He jumped at that. "Oh, uh morning, shit man I don't know what to say, just look." Len was fixated on the TV across the foot of the bed--instead of the naked bat lying down next to him, that annoyed me a bit--then he started raising the volume too. He doesn't know a lot of bats huh.

"--Family found dead in their beds, cause of death is unknown, but police suspect foul play was involved." The Lynx reporter was standing in front of a familiar two-story family home, one I've come to associate with the smell of freshly baked potatoes and sliced vegetables. The crowd here was even larger. it looked like the entire neighborhood, save for one Jackal and us of course, was out there looking on at the investigation being carried on in and around the house. Faces were petrified and tails hung limp between legs. The calm quiet of suburbia was interrupted by the roar of some very unexpected and unexplainable deaths. Maybe not completely unexplainable, the family went about their routine, they couldn't have known the packet of brown powder wasn't the delectable spice produced by the mace plant, but the deadly and nearly undetectable toxin made by the Marker leaf.

"Oh my god." I said feigning surprise.

"Yeah mate just." He said getting up and rummaging through his dresser. "Wanna go offer our condolences or something," Shit, that probably means no shower together.

"Y-yeah, what do you think happened?"

"Bad luck maybe, or something really malicious... hey you should stick around for the next couple days. I don't think either of us should be going out alone for a while at least till all of this dies down. I-I don't wanna see anything bad happen to ya"

I got up and limped my way over to the shaken cheetah, affectionately wrapping my arms around his neck and nuzzling his nape. "Yeah, it used to be so quiet here."