''Day 1''
It's another busy day at the animal shelter in your small little town tucked away in Robloxia. You feed all the animals, ensure that they are all healthy, and fill out paperwork.
While writing on your paper, you see a cat walk in through the door you left open.
[[Greet them. -> greet]]
[[Freak out. -> freak out]]"Hello!" You greeted, pretending as if a cat walking in unprompted by itself was normal. "Do you need anything?"
"I need your help!" The cat exclaimed. "I don't know how, but I was turned into a cat!"
You blink thrice out of confusion, podering what to do next.
[["I'm down to help"->agree]]
[["I'd love to, but I'm busy at the moment."->disagree]]You jump out of your chair, yelling. //How did that cat walk in by itself!?// You wonder.
"Hey, hey!" the cat yowled. "Calm down, I swear, I won't hurt you! I just mysteriously got turned into a cat and I don't know what to do! Can you please help me?"
[["Uhm... sure, I can try."->agree]]
[["Sorry, but I'm not helping a talking cat!->disagree]]"Really!? Thank you so much! You're a lifesaver!" the cat purred.
"First things first, however," you began, "we should do introductions. My name is Aura. What's yours?
(set: $cat_name to (prompt: "“My name is...”",""))
[["My name is $cat_name."->named cat]]"As much as I'd love to help, I just don't feel like it... I just don't know if you are trustworthy."
"That's... fine, I suppose. I can't blame you." The cat looked crestfallen, yet attempted to stay optimistic. I felt kind of bad for them. They turned on their heels and began walking out of the building.
[[Let them leave. ->walk away ending]]
[["WAIT!" You yell. "I have an idea!" ->idea]]"$cat_name, huh? That's a nice name," you nodded.
"So, Aura, where do we start searching?" They tilted their head to the side in questioning.
You think to yourself for a moment. "Well, we're not gonna get anywhere if we just sit inside and do nothing. [[Let's head outside->leaving the shelter]]."You pick up $cat_name and allow them to perch on your shoulder, before leaving the shelter.
Since you have someone who turned into a cat, the smartest thing to do first would be...
[[Go straight to ROBLOX HQ! -> roblox hq]]
[[Post a poster on the help board! -> help board]]"We're gonna take the bus to Roblox HQ! It's not that far!" you announced.
"Isn't that far, though?" they asked.
"Not from here! It may be a small town, but many small towns surround big places like that."
The two of you walked to the bus stop, and waited until the bus arrived.
After the bus arrived, you two boarded the bus and rode it until [[you reached Roblox HQ. ->end of demo]]The two of you walk down the block and cross the street, reaching the Help Board. A stack of blank papers sat on a table beside the board, held down by a box of pens, pencils, and erasers.
Carefully opening the box, you take out a (either: "pencil & eraser", "pen") and begin writing.
(align:"=><=")[HELP WANTED]
(align:"=><=")[I'VE BEEN TURNED INTO A CAT AND I CAN'T TURN BACK! I WOULD LIKE SOME HELP PLEASE!]
(align:"=><=")[CONTACT THE AURIC ANIMAL SHELTER AT (XXX)-XXX-XXXX OR WALK IN IF YOU ARE ABLE TO HELP]
(align:"=><=")[THANK YOU]
"Does that look good?" you asked. "Yep!" $cat_name replied. "Now what?"
[[We wait -> day 2]]''DAY 2''
Yesterday, you took $cat_name with you home after closing up for the day. Today, you took them with you back to the shelter.
After taking care of the animals and ensuring your schedule for the day was clear, you and $cat_name waited for the call.
And waited.
And waited.
And waited...
[[Until...->john doe]]The bell above the door rang as someone opened it, entering the place. My eyes widened from shock as I saw who walked in. Light yellow skin, blue tie and pants, and a golden vest... It couldn't be.
"Hello, is this the Auric Animal Shelter?" the man asked. $cat_name and I side-eyed each other before answering him.
"Yes, this is the Auric Animal Shelter. How may I help you?" I flipped to my cheery reception persona, trying not to freak out.
"I saw the flyer on the help board, and came over to help! Is that the critter in question?" he asked. $cat_name nodded.
"That's me. What about you? Who are you?" they asked.
"I'm John Doe," he enthusiastically answered. [[That confirmed both of our suspicions->end of demo]].You watch the poor cat walk out. It sucks that you were supposedly unable to help them. Perhaps in another timeline, you two could've had a fun adventure together should you have helped them out.
(align:"=><=")[[[Retry? ->story start]]]The cat stops halfway out of the door. "What's your idea?" they asked, turning around.
"If you want, I could put up a poster in case anyone else is willing to help you out!" I exclaimed.
"Really?" their eyes lit up. "That'd be great!"
"Yeah. I'll be right back. [[I just have to head to the help board.->outside]]""Sounds good to me," the cat purred.
"Stay put, and don't go anywhere, please!" I said as I hurried out of the building, racing down the block and crossing the street to the help board. A stack of blank papers sat on a table beside the board, held down by a box of pens, pencils, and erasers.
Carefully opening the box, you take out a (either: "pencil & eraser", "pen") and begin writing.
(align:"=><=")[HELP WANTED]
(align:"=><=")[Someone turned into a cat, and showed up at my shelter.]
(align:"=><=")[Please contact the Auric Animal Shelter at (XXX)-XXX-XXXX if you are able to help.]
(align:"=><=")[Thank you]
"That seems good enough!" you mutter to yourself [[before turning back and heading back to the shelter.->week 2]]''Week 2''
A week has passed by now. Nobody has shown up nor phoned to help, unfortunately.
"What am I gonna do...?" the cat lamented. "Am I gonna be stuck like this forever?"
"Probably," you frowned. "That probably means you have to be adopted out by someone. The shelter is pretty crowded as is, and we don't have the resources to house you for a prolonged period of time."
"Aw man," they whined, staring at the wooden desk. "If you say so..." Pondering your next move, you begin speaking.
[["You can stay with me!" ->adopted ending]]
[["I'll find in someone to adopt you out, I'm sure."->adopted out ending]]"I guess..." they nodded.
"You can stay with me, if you'd like," you gently offered.
"Sure, I guess."
Later that day, you take them home, and give them some food. For the next few days, you take care of them, and things seemed to be looking up for you.
Until one day, you walk into the living room, and see the window mysteriously open. You search your house frantically, but there was no sight of your feline acquaintance.
Seems like they left.
(align:"=><=")[[[Retry? ->story start]]]"I guess..." they nodded.
You trained the cat to not speak, and eventually foudn someone willing to adopt them out. It seemed like things were looking up for you.
Until one day, you got a call from their owner, frantically yelling into the phone's microphone that the adopted cat ran away from home. What a shame.
You get the feeling that if you had taken other measures, this wouldn't have happened in the first place.
(align:"=><=")[[[Retry? ->story start]]](align:"=><=")[Thank you for playing the demo of my Twine game! I hope you enjoyed it as much as I enjoyed creating it :-)]