A tall lanky figure bundled in a coat wandered into the city seemingly talking to himself "Now now don't give me that huff you know we cannot bring the whole family on trips! Imagine how insane it would look for me to just be trudging around with an army of animals!" he remarked failing to note how seemingly talking to himself was any better. Surprisingly though there was a small drake nuzzled into the scarf he wore which he actually was speaking to, as it gave another squeak causing him to sigh "Yes it would look insane and you know that. Remember what happened when I was moving everyone into our home? That hardly went well at all! People looked at me like i had lost my marbles!" He stopped noticing a few people staring "kind of like that now that i think of it...oops" He glanced around stopping his talk as he pulled his hood down a bit more and moved towards a tavern to warm up as the drake nuzzled against his cheek

Socket noticed a stir in the crowd, an odd figure walking through the streets who seemed to converse with themselves. Being smaller in stature, the construct often went unnoticed in a simple grey traveling cloak. As the man walked toward the tavern, they noticed the scaled skin of an unknown creature peaking from the folds of the scarf he wore. Intrigued, the construct quickened their step, weaving carefully through the crowd. 

The droning of people moving about in the street meant that Socket either would have to make another scene in the street, or could simply follow into the tavern. The decision was easy to make, they preferred a subtle approach. For a being made of metals and synthetic materials, moving silently around others often proved to cause a stir as well, so they took care to make a bit of noise as they walked through the crowd. 'I hope I don't interrupt something important, but I must find out what manner of creature that was.' Socket thought, engaged by the curiosity. It occurred to them it could be perceived as rude or uncouth to bluntly ask such things, perhaps there was good reason to remain hidden. Each step brought more ideas, questions, their engrams spinning all manner of wild ideas and outcome possiblities.

Once inside the tavern, the tall slender figure sighed in relief taking off his hood to reveal long horns protruding from his forehead and gracefully arching back on his head adorned with bits of jewelry. He moved and sat down to the closest spot to the small fireplace and gently removed the drake from his scarf "there you are Darius all warm again right?" he asked as the creature gave a small noise flying above the fire then back to the table. After a moment mikael rummaged through his bag and found a warm small blanket, setting it upon the table and making it like a little nest or bed which the drake happily dove into seeming content. Once that was settled he waived to one of the barmaids and asked for some food, a small bit of meat and some water as he leaned back some "Nice to be out of the cold for sure"

Walking into the tavern, Socket tossed the hood of their cloak back and scanned the room briefly. A few of the patrons stared at the odd automaton, but no one paid them mind. As they spotted the gentleman settling in, the streaking Drake whizzed by and landed in the blanket. Observing for a few moments, the construct decided to approach and strike up a conversation. Greeting new people was always a tentative experience, seeing a being made of metals, magic and science could be understandably unsettling.

Still, having sated their curiosity, they approached the table as the man fed his companion. "Hello, my designation is Kosoku, and I couldn't help but be curious about your fine companion. I am a hunter from the Marsh Flats, would you care for some company and perhaps engage in a bit of conversation?" They inquired, speaking just loud enough to be heard over the din of the tavern's other patrons. 

    Mikael looked up rather surprised by the approach briefly taken aback by the figure before awe and curiosity filled his eyes "ah um n-no not at all do feel free to sit. Do you need anything? I mean I dont know if you eat or drink anything but I would surely want to offer to avoid being rude" he rambled a bit "I am Mikael and i am a protector and keeper of creatures. This here with me currently is Darius" he gestured to the happy little drake that was eating beside him. "He is a lightening drake, well a baby one of course though i do hope to find more in the future of varying types" he added with a smile "Ah if you have any questions or topics you would wish to converse do feel free I know of my tendencies to ramble especially about such lovely creatures" he added his tail giving an awkward little flick behind him as he wasn't often conversing with other mortals, instead enjoying the company of his creatures

Taking off their cloak and hanging it over the back of the chair, Socket sat down at the table. A moment of gathering their thoughts and watching the interactions of the two let the construct organize their curiosity. 
"How would you describe interacting with Darius, Mikael? I only have cursory knowledge of the wildlife outside of the Marsh, and much like this realm's magics and skills, I would love to know all I can."
It took a great deal of concentration for Socket not to let their curiosity run away with their ideas and drop tons of questions without room for an answer. Thankfully, watching the little lightning drake proved to be plenty of distraction. More often than not, they struggled to understand what drove someone to keeping a pet. In the end, they understood that it usually proved to be a benefit to both the pet and their caretaker overall. 
"A question for you as well Mikael, do you specialize in interacting with Drakes and other draconic creatures?"
They asked, and waited patiently for a reply.

He tilted his head as he listened some before thinking over his reply “well at first it wasn’t great as he didn’t trust me and snapped a lot. Now he won’t always show it as he’s a fiery and stubborn little one but we get along rather well and I’d say he’s like family at this point” he smiled some petting the little Drake gently. “He rather likes acting tough and prideful even when he wants something but he is quite sweet and caring” he grinned earning a little huff from the drake though it made a purring noise soon as it leaned into the pets. Upon hearing the second question mikael shook his head “yes and no. I know quite a lot about them but I keep a wide knowledge of all creatures and care for any that come across my path, especially those injured. Most I assist and let them move on but those who cannot survive on their own or wish to stay I allow to come with me. For this adventure I just brought drake along as he was being a bit clingy” he smiled softly as the drake let out another sound of protest and lightly hit his finger before nuzzling it

Making a few quick notes, Socket observed the behaviors of the drake, and the gentleman. There were a few among the other hunters who also had animal companions, though most often that was for practical reasons. Recalling their list of questions, they continued.

"What is the diet like for a drake? are they carnivorous? omnivorous? something else?" How did the creature sustain itself the construct pondered. Being vaguely aware that the coding of several intricate spells were their own source of life, the question always seemed an oddity, something that most living beings needed to do in one fashion or another. Mikael seemed to also be a fairly polite and informative person, perhaps some day there would be other adventures to partake in.

'There's always so much to take in... I'm going to have to see about freeing up more data storage, and do something about the abysmal rates of transfer and processing I've experienced recently.' The idea was a distraction upon their 'expression', the various parts of their 'head' that were capable of movement would either be completely still for a moment, or droop until they appeared to be powered down for a split second. 

"Mikael, are you familiar at all with the making and repairing of constructs, or other magical machines?" they posed the question in a distant fashion, almost as an afterthought. There were indeed repairs, maintenance they were incapable of handling themselves... and had struggled to access the needed personnel and facilities to get the dents and dings of adventure smoothed out.

“He prefers meet though can eat fruit if need be making him more of an omnivore though preference comes down to meat generally” he explained putting a little cup of water for the drake to drink from which it did happily seeming quite content for the time being not paying too much attention to the conversation around it at the current moment. Noticing the strange movements he raised a brow with a look of worry “are you alright?” He asked before hearing the next question “a bit but it is not my field of study. Why do you ask? Are you in need of aid?” He asked

Once the other left after talking and questioning he went to his room and relaxed with a grin