Pets are good for children

[angstennou]

Who: Nephrite and bitty!Ami
What: Nephrite turned into a grumpy-looking great dane.
When: ???
Where: Juuban district's amusement park


Nephrite huffed impatiently. He had woken up as a dog again. As he was too big to stay at Crown and was scaring the clients, Motoki told him to go out for a walk. He had wandered through the city all day and was now tired and hungry, but people shooed him wherever he stopped to take a nap. The only place he hadn't tried was the amusement park because it was noisy with all the kids and roller coasters and stuff, but maybe he could find some quieter place there.

Comments

[waterfell]

[At the amusement park, at least, there's enough suspension of disbelief anyway that no one really pays attention to a dog wandering around as long as he isn't stealing food or doing something else to annoy them.

No one except one little girl, anyway, who seems to be here with her parents for once, or at least a man and a woman are watching her as she goes on a few of the rides.

The little girl stops when she spots Nephrite, and smiles brightly as she bends down to pet him.]

A dog! [She looks around, still petting him, to see if his owners are nearby.] Are you lost, Mr. Dog?

[angstennou]

[Yeah, Nephrite had been considering stealing some sausages from the hotdog stand when he was surprised by a little girl that started to pet him. She was so small but she wasn't scared of him! It was so nice to be smiled at and petted, especially after a long day of being shunned. He wagged his tail and licked her hand.

There was no one around that looked like an owner. The few people that were paying attention were actually holding their breaths, afraid that the dog would attack the girl at any instant.]

[waterfell]

[Ami has to laugh - the rough tongue against her hand tickles, for one thing - and she can't help it, this dog is great.]

You can stay with me until we find your owner. I don't mind.

[angstennou]

[Nephrite had no idea what had make her like him enough to offer that, she had come to this place to ride the things, after all, and he couldn't join at that. But he surely had liked this girl, she was really cute and nice. He nuzzled her face and licked her cheek to see if she would laugh again.]

[waterfell]

[She did laugh again, and get ready, Nephrite. You're not going to have to steal food anymore, because Ami is heading towards a food stand with her allowance.]

I think the stand over there has sausages... that should be safe for a dog to eat. [After all, even at this age, Ami knows dogs can't eat all people foods, only some of them.]

[angstennou]

[She understands him! Even before he asked for food she decided to buy some! He probably shouldn't take advantage of that, but… he hadn't eaten anything all day. The dog followed her closely, with his mouth open and tongue hanging.]

[waterfell]

[Well, it was a shrewd guess anyway. Dogs like food and treats, just like humans like food and treats, right? Ami has something of a sweet tooth herself.

She buys the food and sets the plate on the ground beside the bench where she sits down.]

Go ahead; it's all for you so eat it up.

[angstennou]

[Ami, you're the best owner ever. He wags his tail happily while he eats all the sausages. When he's finished, he looks up to the girl again, waiting for the next thing she wants to do.]

[waterfell]

[She's mostly waiting for him to finish his meal. Actually, her next stop was going to be less dog-friendly (a few rides), but now she'd have to leave him somewhere or something.]

Why don't we take a break for awhile. If we stay around here, your owner might be able to find us.

[angstennou]

[How can he explain to her that he has no owner? It would be bad if she missed the opportunity to go on a few rides waiting for someone that isn't coming, right?

He decided to push her towards the carousel line. Don't worry about him, Ami. He'll wait for you right here.]

[waterfell]

Eh? Mr. Dog, could it be you don't mind if I ride once?

Don't go away, alright? [Alright, even this small, she's not really expecting a dog to stay put... but she does hope if he leaves, it'll be because his owner finally came.]

[angstennou]

[As unexpected as it is, she'll see the dog sitiing exactly where she left him. (Nephrite is a very obedient dog!) And he seems to perk up every time the carousel turns and she passes by him again. He runs to meet her when the ride ends, waiting for the next place to go.]

[waterfell]

[When the carousel turns to bring her near him, Ami waves to the dog several times. But she still looks a bit surprised when the ride ends and she comes back to find him still waiting.]

I didn't know you'd wait all that time.

[angstennou]

[He had waved his tail to her every time she passed by, did she notice it? And he licks her face again in reply. She treated him well, why wouldn't he wait for her?]

ignore icons for a bit

[geniustheveil]

[Ami can't help a small giggle.] That tickles!! [Not that this stops her from petting the dog and even scratching behind his ears if he lets her.]

kk!

[angstennou]

[Well, he's going to do it some more, since she's laughing and petting him. And of course he lets her scratch behind his ears, he loves that.]

more icon ignoring goes here

[geniustheveil]

[As fun as this is, Ami is starting to wish she could take the dog home. And come to think of it... she hasn't gone far. She'd expect any family he belongs to, to already be looking for him, and to have found him with her by now.]

Don't you belong to someone? [Until now, she hasn't really considered that maybe... he doesn't have anyone.]

[angstennou]

[The dog shakes his head. No, he doesn't. Most houses don't have space for such a big dog. And he wasn't even cute like a golden retriever to have people willing to bear with his size.]

[geniustheveil]

We'd better go find someone to help us, then. I don't know where any pet shelters are in this part of town.

[angstennou]

[He visibly deflates at the mention of pet shelters. His ears lower and he lets out a whine. He had hoped she would take him with her. Though he should know better by now, he's not exactly the kind of dog or person that people like enough to take home.]

[geniustheveil]

I wish I could take you home myself. [Coincidence? Either way, she means it, but there's a catch.] But our apartment doesn't allow pets.