"Meow."
Litten narrowed her eyes as she hung over the edge of the windowsill, staring at a figure outside.
The woman was pulling a handcart behind her, piled high with all kinds of scrap.
"Meow? (What's wrong? See something?)"
Meownei came over with a comb. For furry creatures, shedding had always been a serious problem.
Humans were no exception. Hair loss plagued countless people, and many worried about it from youth right through old age.
If someone had a secret remedy that could cure hair loss for good, that recipe alone could make them filthy rich.
Pokémon had it a little better, but they couldn't avoid the problem either.
Meownei herself was a Grass-type, while Lucario was a Steel-type. Although they shed too, it wasn't severe.
After all, Pokémon were very different from ordinary animals. They didn't shed large amounts of fur with the changing seasons. With adequate nutrition, their shedding was about on par with the minor hair loss of healthy humans.
Litten was different, though. As a trait of her species, she needed to turn her fur into a special fuel.
With enough nutrition and no excessive energy expenditure, Litten both shed and grew fur faster than other Pokémon.
She could often be seen licking her fur nonstop, but even then, someone still needed to help groom her regularly, or cleaning the house would become harder.
Most Litten didn't particularly like prolonged close contact with people, but this one was clearly special. Not only was she willing to get close to others for various reasons, she also often enjoyed being brushed.
"Meow~"
Litten didn't answer Meownei's question, merely stretching languidly, but Meownei still noticed what Litten had been watching.
She remembered that woman. Back when Xin Mu was still renting, she had lived in the same apartment complex,