Included: Arc, Shupple, Lux, Hoom
Mentioned: Hon, Melody, Ppl from Arc's past.
Enjoy! :D Added something special for anime-chan xD You know what it is already~ Lalalalalalala~
Random title but I'm bad with titles~
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"Nine! Nine! Come here! I have something to show you!" A young girl's voice continued to call for me. I obeyed, following her voice to the garden behind the large estate. There were other gijinka there too. All of them were older than me, much much older. They were trimming hedges or tending to wild flowers; all things that humans apparently couldn't do on their own. It seemed ironic, that I was the 'pet' and yet I was the one taking care of her. It didn't make much sense but ..I digress. "C'mere doggy! Hurry!" She continued to call for me.
"You called..." I said rather plainly.
"Look! Father's compass! We're going to go on an adventure! Just you and me!" Her eyes seemed to sparkle with enthusiasm, and her smile.. Her smile was so inviting. She could always trick me so easily..
"Did you ask your Father for his compass, madam?" I asked, though I shouldn't have. Who was I to inquire such things from my master's daughter? I had no 'right' apparently.
"That's none of your business" she started and for a second I thought she would have snapped like usual, but she seemed rather calm this morning. "Besides, he's not here today. He's busy with work and said that you would play with me. So that's what you'll do. And you'll ask none of it."
I just nodded and she patted my head, smiling as usual.
"Good boy" she said. Then she opened the golden, family encrusted compass and turned north. "Let's go this way!" If I could sigh in public, I would have, but that was against the rules..
"On your knees!" she commanded, and I did as I was told. She pushed me down and climbed onto my back, pulling on my ears as though they were reigns. With a hard yank, she commanded me to run. I yelped in pain but stood and ran at full speed.
We didn't get very far. After about an hour she complained that she was hungry and made me take her back home.
"Do you know the way back?" I asked her.
"Weren't you paying attention!" She shouted, throwing the blame on me.
"..Just give me the compass so we can find our way back."
She gave it to me a little too quickly, then smiled widely.
We had only been out for an hour or two. I shouldn't have gotten blamed for anything. I was only following orders. But I had apparently broken one of the biggest rules.
When they came for us, her father included, I was dragged back and thrown into the basement. One of the gardeners ratted me out; told Lily's mother that I had kidnapped her daughter. Lily even sided with the gardener, and when I was being taken away I could see a smile on her face as she waved to me.
"Kidnapping and stealing from your Master! I would expect no less from a rotten mutt! All of your kind is the same! Can't be trusted.." A cloaked man shouted with disgust. For his information, Arcanines are no mutts.. We're very loyal and proud.. But I wasn't like that anymore.. so did that really make me a mutt?
Heavy steps came down from upstairs and stopped right at the bottom. My vision was hazy after the beating, but I could tell who it was. Lily's father walked up to me and put his hand on my head. I flinched and grit my teeth.
"It's been a year now. He has been responding well to the pre-medications so far. I think it's time we try the full treatment" The cloaked man began to explain. This was the professor. I was never told his name, only that he was my doctor; a very cruel doctor.
Lily's father turned towards the stairs without saying a word then as he reached the last step, he said the words that would change my life for the worst. “Go ahead.”
There was a sharp pain, the room faded to white, then...
“Who… the… HELL… was that, Shupple?” Lux's voice exclaimed loudly, making me jump slightly out of my dream and back into reality. Lux's face was filled with anger. Beside me I noticed Shupple was also awake, clenching something tightly in her fist. The scent in the room seemed familiar. The stench.. It was.. Shift! Suddenly I forgot all about Lily.
“None of your business,” She said coldly, throwing the hair in the trash. I didn't like hearing Shupple's voice like that.
“Who was it Shupple!? He said that he would.. meet you or something at the Festival. What the hell!? ” Lux shouted again.
Now I wanted to say something, but I couldn't think of what.. I wasn't sure if I should say anything at all. Just hearing the mention of Shift made me feel all the more guilty.
“Lux, it's none of your-” She didn't finish because Lux suddenly gripped her arm.
“Who was it?” Lux asked again, calmer than before. It would have sounded like an interrogation had he not calmed down.
“He was the man who took my parents and put them in testing with hunters, okay?” Shupple hissed.
I never saw her so angry. Even Lux seemed shocked. I stood up and tried to say something to comfort her, but she turned and stopped me with teary eyes. I froze..
“You have no right to say anything!” She cried. “You ditched me in a forest, in the rain, where I got sick for a week looking for you and you never came back! Did you ever figure how I felt? How much I cried!”
That hit me hard. I really couldn't say anything after that. But, hell, I wanted to. I just stared at the ground instead, trying to logically formulate some sort of plan, something I could say to make things right, but I couldn't function right like this! Then as I looked up, Shupple stormed out of the room, leaving me with the cat.
We stood for a few moments in silence. It killed me, that silence. All I could think about was everything I did to Shupple, and the silence was allowing me to think about it; remember it. I hated that! This was worse than being beaten. Turning towards the door, I decided it was best for me to just leave. That's what I was good at after all.
“I better be going,” I said. “This place isn't suited for me..”
As I opened the door, it was slammed shut by a brute force. Lux stood beside me, glaring sharply.
“So, just like that, you are leaving her again?” he shouted at me. I looked at him with slight surprise. He barely even knew me..
“I don't deserve to be around her. It's not right what I did..” I told him. “Now, if you'll excuse me, please move,” I said, smiling an empty smile at him as I walked out the door. It was then that I felt a sharp pain. I let out a small bark as Lux stepped on my tail. I turned to him only to see him shaking his fists at me.
“You really are a damn dog you know that?” He started. “A stupid mutt that is a brainless drone. You may be obedient and emotional but that doesn't equate to high intelligence which has now been proven to me, you rotten fleabag.”
Stupid mutt? Brainless drone? Suddenly I was back in that basement.
“You know nothing about me..cat” I said, still smiling as I grabbed my tail. But he grabbed me by the neck and dragged me back into the room, tossing me to the ground. I felt I deserved it, but his brute force made me think him more a brainless cat than an intelligent being. Still, he wanted to get a point across, so I'd play along..
“Wh-what are you doing, Lux?” I demanded.
He grabbed my collar and shook me, but as he did that, I just stared back at him with a blank smile. “Stupid dog, listen to yourself. You are just running away from your problems. How ignorant of you! Obviously, you are like a small puppy with a tail between his legs and that makes you pathetic. I know that situation all too well and I won't let someone like you repeat that and hurt her! And as much as I hate saying this, you know more about her past then I do since she doesn't open up much to me.” He was smarter than I thought, but I already knew these things. Even so, I liked running away.. There was less of a burden for me to carry that way.
“If you leave her, you fleabag, I swear I will castrate you right here and now. Believe me dog, you may call me a cat, but this cat doesn't take things easily so SIT!” He spat at me, dropping me to the ground. Did he really just threaten to CASTRATE me? That would be a first..I didn't like the order at the end but some force of habit made me do as he said: sit.
My tail wrapped around me as I hung my head in thought. I really just wanted to leave, but another part of me just wanted to run up to Shupple and apologize.
“Now Arc, go fetch and make things better with Shupple...” Lux said, pointing to the door. “GO!”
I didn't have enough times to think things through. As soon as I heard the order, all I thought of was the consequence of disobeying. If I thought of it any more I would have imagined the professor again.
Nodding, I bolted out of the room, slowing down once I got far enough away. Now I could think without the pressure. I could have taken the elevator up to the roof, but instead I decided to take the stairs. The long walk would give me enough time to come up with something to say. Her words had struck me so deep. I didn't realize how much I had hurt her...
“You ditched me in a forest, in the rain, where I got sick for a week looking for you and you never came back! Did you ever figure how I felt? How much I cried!”
Why did she have to say those things! I stopped halfway and just sat on the stairs, contemplating. “Why..couldn't she just forget it all..” I muttered to myself, running a hand through my hair as I let out a deep sigh. Everything had been fine up until meeting Shupple again. Suddenly, all of this guilt seemed to just flow continuously. I couldn't regret bumping into her again though..
"What's the matter, Nine?"
L-Lily!
"Don't you want to go on an adventure?.."
I quickly shook the thoughts from my head and rubbed my face with my hands. GAH..this is frustrating..
When I got to the roof, Shupple was sitting on the edge of the building, looking down at the people crossing the street or the recent ambulance pulling in with a fresh batch of patients. The sound of the sirens seemed to block out the rest of the world. But, up on this rooftop, it was just me and Shupple. No Lily or Shift or that blue cat.
I took a step forward.
“Go away” she said, but I kept walking towards her.
“I'm sorry..” I said in a low voice, stuffing a hand into my pocket while the other scratched the back of my head nervously. The whole while I was staring down at the ambulances, but eventually I turned back to her.
She looked at me, her eye brows furrowed as fresh tears threatened to flow from her eyes. “Sorry?” She demanded. “That's all? What good does that do, Arc! How do I know you're telling the truth, huh?” Then her voice lowered to almost a whisper. The sirens had stopped and she continued to speak. “How do I know..that you mean it..?”
“Shupple..I-” I tried to say something but she cut me off again.
“You promised me you were going to help me find my parents!”
“I know, Shupple.. but-”
“And then you just left! You didn't even say goodbye.. I thought we were friends..”
“We are-”
"Obviously we're not!"
"But-!" Dammit, how am I supposed to say anything!
“If you didn't want to be around me anymore, why didn't you-” I stopped her there. In a tight embrace, I held her close to me. Even though she protested at first, she seemed to settle down. I still didn't let her go though, not until she heard me out.
“I left because I was afraid I would-.” I began, still holding her close to me. I couldn't find the right words. “I tried to tell you..”
“When? With your constant changing of subjects, how could you ever tell me anything you really wanted me to know?” She lowered her head, hiding her eyes behind her bangs.
“I can't say-”
“Why not!” Now she pushed me back. “Why do you change the subject when things get too personal? You smile even when you're not happy.. You get distracted.. I see it.”
That actually made me smile for real, even though it was not appropriate for the situation. She glared at me, but I couldn't stop smiling. I even laughed a little, but covered my mouth. It wasn't to make her mad, I just never had someone point out things about me like this.
“D-don't laugh at me!” She suddenly pushed me down and sat on my stomach, glaring down at me with slightly pink cheeks. I didn't even notice the new position she had taken, but she definitely did. My hand had suddenly reached up and swept her bangs to the side. She blushed lightly and pulled away from my hand. Still angry, obviously.
“Please, Arc.. just tell me..why you left that night?”
I stared up at her blankly. By then my smile had faded and the laughing ceased. She gripped my shirt tightly, waiting anxiously for my answer. Her eyes were pleading with mine, but when I finally decided to just give in, the wrong words came out.
“So, there's a Festival coming up..” Dammit..
“You're changing the sub-” But I interjected.
“Will you go with me?”
“W-What..?” She stared at me with surprise.
“Will you be my date to the festival?” I asked again, smiling a genuine smile.
She didn't answer as quickly as I'd hoped. Something told me that she knew I was only trying to change the subject, but that wasn't entirely true. I did want to go on a date with her to make up for what I did.
“I'm still mad at you..” She said, turning from me and crossing her arms.
Hugging her from behind, I pouted. "Please, Shupple. You know I can't stand to see you mad.."
I could've sworn I saw a smirk on her face. "I know.." she said with a slight chuckle.
"Great, so you'll go with me to the Festival tomorrow?" I asked again with a big grin.
She turned around to look at me. "On one condition."
That worried me.. "What condition?"
"You tell me why you left."
I was sure I dodged that! She wouldn't let me forget until I answered. Though I wanted to sigh, I recalled those 'rules' again.
“Alright, I'll tell you. But, at the Festival, not here. Deal?”
Instead of a 'yes', I was suddenly pulled into a hug. As surprised as I was, she pulled back too quickly for me to even hug her back. It must have been on impulse since she looked slightly embarrassed afterwards.
I grinned as she cleared her throat and looked away. “O-Okay..” she answered,
“Then let's go before that blue cat tries to castrate me” I said, chuckling lightly.
“Did Lux tell you to come up here?” She suddenly asked, standing up.
“Yeah, but I wanted to come up anyway.”
She blushed lightly. “You did?” She must have thought Lux would have come up to talk with her while I ran off again.
“I did” I answered truthfully. I would have to thank that Feline later.
"Thank you..Arc" she smiled, still hiding her eyes.
I brushed her bangs to the side so I could see them but she grabbed my hand and blushed lightly, lowering her head. "You know I don't like when people see my eyes.." she said.
I smiled and leaned closer. "I like your eyes, Shupple."
"They're..red..it's weird.." she replied.
"I happen to really like the color red." This made her blush more. Amused by her reactions, I playfully tackled her like old times, wagging my tail the same way I used to. She laughed and looked up at me. I could see her eyes now, but she didn't seem to mind. Instead she scratched my ears, making my tail wag even more. Without thinking, I licked her neck affectionately. My ears were always my weak spot. I could hear her gasp with surprise. She was probably blushing like mad but I couldn't help it, she scratched behind my ears! After all, I was a dog.
Pulling back, I scratched the back of my neck. "Sorry, Shupple.." I said, chuckling nervously.
She sat up, still blushing, and smiled slightly. "I-It's okay.. I was wondering if you still had that habit.. Guess I was right.." She laughed.
I smirked and pushed her back down. "You just wanted me to lick you."
"Says who?" she questioned, smirking a little.
"Me" I said, hovering over her and making her blush again. "Do you like me, Shupple?"
She started stuttering as she answered. "W-Well, I um..I g-guess I always did.. s-since I m-met you. W-why, do you l-like me?"
I guess I always really did too..but I never noticed it until now.
"I might" I teased.
"M-might?" she looked up questioningly.
Instead of answering with words, I leaned down and pressed my lips against hers. When she returned it, I knew she understood. In that small moment I was able to forget about all of that guilt and pain. It was just me and Shupple up here.
We headed back, after reminiscing for a bit, hand in hand and met up with Lux, Hoom, and two others.
“So you figure everything out, right? Seems you two are a bit more friendly with each other.” Lux said, smiling at us.
I chuckled lightly while Shupple seemed to blush madly. “S-SHUT UP LUX” she spat. That actually made me chuckle more, but I felt sorry for the guy. I let go of Shupple's hand and walked over to Lux, wrapping an arm around his shoulder in a friendly manner.
“She's just embarrassed right now, sorry. Has a lot on her mind about Shift” I tried to explain briefly. Then I knew I had to thank him, so I tried to make it quick. “And thank you.. without your harsh words, I probably would have left and made the same mistake again..” After a pause, “I really do care about her, Shupple I mean. Maybe that is why she's acting the way she is in front of you since she really cares about you as well.” I smiled, my tail wagging slightly.
“So no hard feelings, Arc?” Lux asked, tilting his head to the side.
“Not at all, kitty!” I chuckled letting him go.
“Oh whatever, puppy!” He said back, pulling me into a man hug, which surprised me slightly, but I returned it. Looks like I made a new friend.
Shupple came in between us, pushing Lux away from me. “Just stop it, Lux, I know what you're doing..” she said, glaring daggers at him. He seemed confused and glared back at her.
I would have asked what was wrong but Hoom came up to me and my attention swayed in her direction.
“Hey, Arc, why don't you join us since we're heading back to the mansion? The big Festival is tomorrow so we all need to prepare and you should really meet the others there” she explained.
“Sounds good” I stated with a soft smile. Shupple left us to talk with Lux and I stayed to talk with Hoom. It felt good talking to another dog and when I found out she and Lux were together, I couldn't help but laugh. “You and the cat? I guess oil and water really can mix.” She punched my shoulder playfully.
“He's a good guy,” she smiled and I nodded.
"Yeah, I can tell" I said.
While Shupple and Lux went off, Hoom lead me back to the mansion with the others.
With the off smell of blood in the air, something told me there was one interesting party that morning.
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Aaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaand done! *falls over*
Sorry if it's short..err...yah.
Hope you guys enjoyed! :D Would've added what they see back at the mansion but I'd rather read the whole fight between Tanner and Abs first xD
Time: Same day as Abs transformation? Later that afternoon after the big fight.. >_>;; I think xD Since Abs tranformation is on a Tuesday (right?) Then we could all say the Festival is on a Wednesday instead of a Friday. lol Don't think it'll make a big difference :) I hope..>3>
Eh well~
