Could this day get any worse...? (open)

[blizzard]

Keisha

At the time of day when the sun was the highest in the sky there should have been a lot of people at the carnival. However, since it was raining so hard that your own nose was barely visible it was no surprise that no one was at the carnival. The sun wasn't even visible due to the heavy clouds and rain. Some dogs liked the rain... some didn't and as for a little Chihuahua who thought it would be easy to get fresh food at the carnival... she absolutely hated the rain. It made her fur all soggy and droopy and as an added bonus, it made dirt cling to her easier. How fun was that! About as fun as running over a hot bed of coals! The little dog though savagely. She ran trying to find a good spot to keep herself dry... stupid rain... messing up everyone's plans! Now she wouldn't get any food and she waited for the horrid little dribbles of water to stop pouring from the sky. She ran a little farther and found something that made her want to bark... or rather yip in join. But only lesser dogs with no training yipped in happiness... not her. So she settled for running over to the what lifted her spirits. It was a huge booth, possibly for games. With all the bottles lying around and little colorful hoops as well. Keisha didn't find any of this interesting however so she just found a nice spot far enough from the outside that she would keep dry. It was nice being only 4 inches tall. You could fit into a lot of spaces to keep yourself dry while other bigger dogs would probably still be getting part of themselves wet while in the little sheltered area.

Settling down, Keisha put her head on her paws and stared miserably out at the rain. Her dark brown eyes narrowed angrily as she thought of her whole pathetic situation. I am a queen amoung strays! I should not have to deal with all of this horrible mess and dirt! I should be in the most luxorious of hotel suites right now! Keisha heaved a dejected sigh and decided to close her eyes and drown out the sound of pounding rain by sleeping. Only... she was starting to get cold because of long, wet fur. So she curled herelf up and concentrated on not shivering so she wouldn't look pathetic. Could this day get any worse...?

[[.BakaIsai.]]

'Optimistic. Think optimistic.'

It was something she had been telling herself for most of the day now. Ever since escaping those humans and losing her master, the pretty pup's day had just been going sour. Taking a mad dash through the city may have been effective for losing clumsy humans, but now she had no idea how to get home - or worse, if there was even a home to go to anymore.

She sighed and looked up at the sky. It was raining pretty heavily, and while she had always loved watching rain clouds, with all the water getting in her eyes it was difficult to keep looking up. She blinked a few times and shook her fur out. Fat lot of good it did. Leala had gotten over the horror at finding her fur unkempt a while ago, though she did still want to find a place to hide from the downpour and just groom for a while.

Not to mention her tummy hurt. Being used to three course meals a day, not having eaten since early this morning was starting to wear on her. What did strays eat? Whatever they could find? But where do you find it? She growled under her breath again and finally started her paws trudging. She had barely realized that she was on a fairground now. Her lady had taken her to plenty, back when they all had those fancy gatherings.

Oh, and now nostalgia was setting in. Leala gently shook her head and forced a small grin. 'Smile, cheer up! C'est la vie, girl, don't be so negative.' While it was a bit forced, there was a small new bounce in her trot and a bit more warmth in her eyes as she went forward, now taking in her surroundings with utmost care. It seemed like what could be such a lively place, and it was obvious that it had seen much better days. Despite the rain, the place still appeared beautiful to Leala, and she found herself promising to come back on a nicer day.

A shift in the wind, and she stopped. Could it be? The scent of another dog had reached her nose, and her tail wagged involuntarily at the thought. Her first new acquaintance in this life of a stray! 'Oh, but I must be careful,' she thought. 'They may not appreciate such naivete as mine.'

Ears erect but tail low, Leala followed the scent with enthusiasm, but was beginning to feel nervous when she didn't catch sight of the unknown dog. It was clear to her that she was getting near the source but. . . where? Shouldn't she be able to see them by now?

She stopped a short ways from a large booth and looked around, disappointment creeping up on her. Her ears fell and a small sigh escaped her as she still found no sign of the dog she was positive she could smell. Leala looked down in despair once again - and found what she was looking for.

"Oh!" she exclaimed, hopping back in surprise. "My apologies, I did not see you there." Her French accent was thick, turning her English into a gentle flow that made her voice sound even more melodious than it was. She bowed her head briefly, then said with obvious confidence and even a bit of vanity, "My name is Leala."

word count: 575
mood: neutral, kinda tired
muse: ehh.. 6/10?
notes: hullo. new to the site, hope you don't mind me posting here.

[/i][/size][/blockquote][/blockquote]

[blizzard]

Keisha had just managed to calm her shivering enough to slip partway into a fitful doze. Her thoughts were a jumbled up mess however. They would go to her past owner for a while, then leap to some strays she had seen wandering the streets, and they would even go so far back to fuzzy images of other Chihuahuas who she had to have some kind of relations with... She didn't know however, since the thoughts she had weren't exactly being controlled by her. She was just along for the ride of images of her mind decided to take her on... The dream-thoughts were quite comforting but the thoughts were starting to fuzzy although this wasn't necessarily a bad thing for she was slipping into a wonderful...

"Oh! My apologies, I did not see you there."[/b]

Keisha's dark brown eyes snapped open and she looked at the dog in front of her. She watched as the she bowed and introduced herself, although Keisha didn't change positions at all. The little Chihuahua narrowed her eyes and slowly uncurled herself and raised to a sitting position. She wasn't at all happy right now... this dog, this Leala, had just interrupted her wonderful nap! It was a rainy day and there was no better thing to do besides nap and now it was ruined!

"Cha'hmed." Keisha said stifling a yawn. Just because she was a bit of a bad mood because of this dog didn't mean she had to forget her manners. Now did it? "My name is, Keisha, dahling." Keisha couldn't help but notice that the other dog had a French accent. She recognized it because once-upon-a-time when she had an owner she had met a few French dogs. The dog had brought on two unwanted things with her: ruining of sleep and a wave of sadness... Not a good way to start off the day with a diva dog like herself. "And how could you not see a dog such as myself? I'm quite visible if you actually open your eyes and look, sweetheart." She said rather sharply. She pretty much in the wrong here because someone that's only 4 inches off the ground is hardly noticeable. Yet, with her big ego it's not too difficult to understand why she would think different. [/size]

((I don't mind at all and welcome to the site ^^, you just have to excuse Keisha's bad mood right now lol))

[[.BakaIsai.]]

The big golden dog could feel herself tensing up already. She had been right, sort of. This little pup didn't seem to appreciate her much; in fact, seemed to want her gone. 'Well, too bad for her,' she thought stubbornly. 'She's the first stray I've met, and I won't be wasting this opportunity.'

Those narrowed eyes and the lack of a return bow had her a bit edgy though. Leala certainly didn't want her first interaction to be a fight. "Cha'hmed. . . My name is Keisha, dahling.

[/i]" Lela nearly reared back in surprise at that one. What on Earth was that accent? She felt the urge to snort in derision, but bit it back. Now was definitely not the time for anything that could so much as be construed as rude; so she settled with simply tilting her head a bit.

"And how could you not see a dog such as myself? I'm quite visible if you open your eyes and look, sweetheart.[/i]" Oh, bien fait! Of all things, one should know never to call a small dog small, they don't appreciate it. 'But now how do I fix it?' she thought worriedly.

"I suppose you're right," she said in a small voice, "I should look more carefully. It seems it would be difficult to miss one of your caliber, madame." She ended with another small bow, though one could hear the French subtlety in her words; Leala was pointing out the little pup's quick temper, and while she couldn't do anything about it now, she was a bit worried about what may come of it.

wordcount: 298
mood: pretty great actually.
muse: 4/10
notes: bien fait: literally "well done"; used when someone is justly punished

[/i][/size][/blockquote][/blockquote]

[blizzard]

Keisha watched with some amusement as the dog bowed to her. It seemed a little weird to her. She had never known a dog to bow, save if it was trying to play. But here was someone that was bowing just for... politeness, she supposed. She was a little bit flattered at this and Leala's subtle French-accented words that she failed to notice that the other dog was pointing out her bad attitude. Keisha's tail involuntarily wagged a little but she stopped it.

Instead of showing the fact that she was slightly pleased at how the other dog was acting she glared up at her instead. Her small mouth was twisted into a look of smugness. "Yes, you should look more carefully. One day you may trod upon someone who's not as well behaved as I and they'll chew half your leg off!" At the end of her sentence Keisha made an exaggerated chomping noise with her mouth to get the point across.

Keisha regained her composure and tried to stifle another yawn. She failed this time however and a huge one ripped right out of her muzzle. She looked very displeased with herself. Especially when she realized she would have to say "excuse me" in front of Leala. For some reason, this annoyed her... she didn't want to be particularly nice to anyone who ruined her day... Oh well... seems as though you'll have to get over it... Her eyes roved down to a patch of grass beside the bigger dogs foot so she wouldn't have to look fully at the dog when she said it. "Excuse me, dahling, didn't mean to yawn in your face like that." She probably should be going back to sleep right now. She hadn't been awake too long and she could probably start her same dream over... No, she would stay awake as long as this new dog was here. She didn't feel like going to sleep right now and leaving the other dog awake right near her...

[[.BakaIsai.]]

'I wonder if I'm doing this right. . .' Leala thought vaguely, recalling how her lady used to tell her stories of other countries, and how their people didn't behave with as much sophistication. That's what she had said anyway. Leala didn't worry much about how "sophisticated" other dogs were, just as long as they weren't so far gone as cannibalism. She couldn't count the number of dreams she had had about having her flesh ripped off by her own kind.

But that was negative thinking.

The basque immediately focused all of her attention on the little pup in front of her, studying the way she moved (or not), the manner in which she spoke (disregarding the atrocious accent), and what her attitude was. She seemed fiesty.

"Yes, you should look more carefully. One day you may trod upon someone who's not as well behaved as I and they'll chew half your leg off!"

[/i] Yikes! Had she not just been thinking about how much she dreaded cannibalism? And that exaggerated bite was unnecessary, and so totally unexpected that Leala did rear back this time with a short whine. It wasn't this Keisha's seemingly empty threat that frightened Leala, but of how coincidental she seemed to mention such a thing right after Leala had dispelled her own such thoughts.

"Epoustoufler. . ." she murmured quietly, "such is this the life of a stray?" But a moment later, her worries about the normality of the small dog were tossed in the wind of her violent yawn. A small grin etched itself into Leala's muzzle, and her tail wagged in relief. This pup wasn't a monster; she was as prone to the common needs of a dog as Leala herself was. All momentary doubts were gone from her mind, and she was again open-minded toward the chihuahua.

"Excuse me, dahling, didn't mean to yawn in your face like that." That accent though. . . it really was an interesting thing, and every time she heard it, all senses would pause and she would give the small dog a strange look, as though she was something from another planet - though, more accurately, another country.

Leala remembered herself. "Oh, it's not a problem, madame. Did I wake you? I was so surprised when I saw you that I did not register whether or not you were sleeping." Again she dipped her head, though her faintly wagging tail gave away that the apology was not as sincere as her joy over having found another dog. Still, she was French. French females do not forget their manners.

"Though I would implore you otherwise, would you like me to leave, mon amie?" It showed clearly in her body language that she didn't actually want to leave, but her upbringing required her to ask nonetheless; and if Keisha said yes, then she would indeed take her leave of the dog.

Despite the accent and the short amount of time, she had grown to like the lamb with the lion's teeth.

wordcount: 527
mood: neutral. kinda stressed.
muse: 6/10 again?
notes: epoustoufler: an interjection of surprise/astonishment; mon amie: my friend (female)

[/i][/size][/blockquote][/blockquote]

[blizzard]

Keisha watched with a small amount of amusement as the other dog reared back. Supposedly, frightening of the fierce biting motion she had done. Well, at least she had gotten her point across quite nicely... and if there was ever a point in time where she wished she were a bigger breed of dog then it was now. Maybe then she could have scared off the other dog. Although, some nagging voice in the back of her mind told her that wasn't a good idea. Leala was the only dog within the radius that she could most likely hold an educated conversation with. And in spite of herself she couldn't help but say, "Ah, don't worry, my dear. Those ruffians will only do that if you happen across them while they're in a bad mood or if they just have no home training... which I'm sure quite a lot don't.

Keisha looked back up into the gold dog's eyes. There she went bowing again. What was the point with that? It was very foreign to her since no one she had ever met before did that. Even all those high quality fashion designers she had met never bowed like that... Well, maybe it was just a French dog thing. Whatever the case was however, it showed lots of politeness and her good training and just like before... she was flattered and a little pleased. Her mood softened a little so a little crooked half-smile formed on her muzzle. "Well, as a matter of fact you did, dearest. And I was having the most wonderful dream! It was of my wonderful past fashion designer owner and of my parents. However, dahling, I suppose it's alright. You had no idea that a diva like myself was sleeping here." As was her nature, Keisha said this with much emphasis and plenty of over exaggerating of her words and emotions.

"Though I would implore you otherwise, would you like me to leave, mon amie?"


Leave? While she would admit she had wanted the other dog gone earlier... she didn't really feel the same way now. The Chihuahua glanced around the bigger dog and noticed that it was still pouring rain. If the other dog (who she could just tell was younger, from some innate sense) left right now she would be soaked and possible catch a cold. And somewhere deep inside of Keisha's heart was the stirrings of some maternal instinct that didn't want Leala to get sick or stay wet and cold. So, there was no way she wanted Leala to leave.

"Leave, my dear? Oh goodness no! You absolutely have to stay here, my dahling! If you leave now you'll surely catch something and be sick! So be a good dear and stay." Keisha stood and made her way farther back into the booth where it was a little more sheltered. She turned a few circles and laid down. She hadn't said anything but it was a silent command sort of thing. She had expected Leala to automatically follow and would most likely feel a little annoyed if she didn't. She didn't look now however, and continued to talk. "So, what happened to your owners, dahling?"

[[.BakaIsai.]]

"Ah, don't worry, my dear. Those ruffians will only do that if you happen across them while they're in a bad mood or if they just have no home training. . . which I'm sure quite a lot don't.

[/i]"

Ruffians, eh? That was a word she hadn't heard in a long time. Interesting to hear it from a stray's mouth; the last time Leala had heard it, her lady was referring to the number of streetdogs and alleycats around the suburbs of the neighborhood. They had started to wander into busier streets, and Master hadn't appreciated it much.

Still, that did make her feel a bit better about cannibalistic dogs. Leala thought herself a pretty fast runner, though she didn't have much endurance. She was resilient though. Small bursts of speed were her specialty. Hopefully she wouldn't need to prove that any time soon. This rain was a real damper, and if she really needed to run that would slow her down for sure. Oh this beautiful coat was a wonderful curse.

"Well, as a matter of fact you did, dearest. And I was having the most wonderful dream! It was of my wonderful past fashion designer owner and of my parents. However, dahling, I suppose it's alright. You had no idea that a diva like myself was sleeping here.[/i]"

Keisha seemed to like calling her funny things. "Dahling", which Leala could only assume was darling (though they did say the word similarly), "my dear", which carried a bit more sentiment in her own language than she supposed was meant here, and "dearest", which was a new one altogether. For a brief moment, Leala dared to hope that maybe this little dog had already accepted her as a friend. 'Oh, wouldn't it be grand?' she thought blissfully, but soon focused again.

"Leave, my dear? Oh goodness no! You absolutely have to stay here, my dahling! If you leave now you'll surely catch something and be sick! So be a good dear and stay.[/i]"

Leala could have leaped for joy, but since this pup was setting a rather self-controlled example, she held it back. Instead, her tail wagged rather furiously for a moment, and a big doggie grin lit up her face. She had won her first fellow stray's affection! Or at least enough respect to allow her to stay. For the first time since her lady's odd disappearance, she felt truly happy.

Since this little shack of a shelter was where Keisha was staying, Leala saw the place as the little dog's home. The golden pup followed her as far into the small space as she could - without crowding the. . . diva, was it? Yes. . . Keisha called herself a diva. That was fine with Leala, just as long as she wouldn't ask the basque to call her that. It carried some insulting connotations in her homeland.

"So, what happened to your owners, dahling?[/i]"

Leala's thoughts immediately scattered. What would she say? She had to assume this little dog had had owners before as well, or she wouldn't have asked. 'Nor would she have mentioned home training before,' she remembered. But would it look back on her image if she didn't actually know what had happened? There was only one way to find out.

"Well, mon amie. . . entre nous, I'm not entirely sure what became of mademoiselle. I was awaiting her return when, quite some time after she should have been home. . ." She paused, dark imagery overtaking her for a moment. A slight shake of her head and her thoughts cleared. "These strange men barged into my house and tried to take me away. I believe they may have tranquilized me, I was being very aggressive. . . but you can understand that, right mon amie?" She sounded as though she were begging, even to her own ears. Still, she couldn't bear to have her new friend suddenly dislike her because of what may appear to be abandoning her master.

"It appeared they planned to lock me up when I awoke. Luckily, I took them by surprise and got out of the man's arms. You could tell he had never held a large dog before!" She chuffed quietly before laying her head on her paws. She hadn't realized how much she missed her master until now. Leala couldn't help wondering if she was okay, and - though she felt a bit guilty for it - whether or not she was thinking of her pooch.

wordcount: 793
mood: ugh. i'll be glad when i get this speech out of the way.
muse: 7/10
notes: entre nous: between us

[/i][/size][/blockquote][/blockquote]

[blizzard]

"Well, mon amie. . . entre nous, I'm not entirely sure what became of mademoiselle. I was awaiting her return when, quite some time after she should have been home. . ."

She didn't really know what 'entre nous' meant but all the other more commonly used French words she did. However, she didn't feel like asking the other dog what it meant. Keisha watched the dog pause to shake her head. It must have been a pretty bad thing that happened. She started to comment but saw that the other dog wasn't finished so she held her small mouth shut.

"These strange men barged into my house and tried to take me away. I believe they may have tranquilized me, I was being very aggressive. . . but you can understand that, right mon amie?"

Hmm, that sounded an awful lot like her own story. Strange men coming to steal dogs of high distinction. The only real difference was Keisha was small enough to handle (even if she had been agressive) without the use of tranquilers. A Chihuahua doesn't cut a very intimidating appearance even if its trying to. She could understand why they would tranquilize her nonetheless. A big dog being aggressive is bad. To her though, the better strategy would be to have hidden out and waited until her 'mademoiselle' had returned to save her.

"It appeared they planned to lock me up when I awoke. Luckily, I took them by surprise and got out of the man's arms. You could tell he had never held a large dog before!"

Keisha smirked a little as she thought of some ignorant, ill-trained humans trying to hold Leala. Even she knew that would be a bad idea without proper muzzling and leashing... But who would want to do that to a dog? It seemed absolutely horrible! Image, having a muzzle on you and a leash around your neck to keep you from moving. Seemed beastly to her!

Not forgetting her manners she listened all the way through Leala's narrative without interuppting once. She waited until Leala laid her head on her paws until she spoke. "So, where had your 'mademoiselle' gone previously? It seems rather silly that she would leave you alone by yourself. Especially since you don't seem to be a common breed of dog." It was true that Keisha had never seen Leala's breed of dog before. Not even when she had travled to far away places. "She shouldn't she have expected something to happen? She said lightly. In a tone that slightly accused her owner of something. Not that she knew, but Keisha almost always preferred placing the blaim on others instead of directly on herself or her friends. Oh dear, was she thinking of this new dog as her friend? Hmm, she thought she had never had use for them... but now once she thought about it... It would be nice to have someone to talk to and as some people say "watch your back"... Not that she needed someone to watch her back, she was perfectly cabable herself.

[[.BakaIsai.]]

To have told someone about what happened. . . it was oddly relieving to Leala. She had heard that talking about problems helped make them easier to deal with, but she had never had problems to talk about. A pampered, beloved belle like herself, have problems? Other than her thirst for adventure, there wasn't really anything she could complain about. It was refreshing.

Leala appreciated the little pup's silence throughout her tale, but now that she was finished, she was grateful for something to break the silence. Being left with her dark thoughts was not a pleasant thing. It made her feel like a different person to be so profoundly sad.

"So, where had your 'mademoiselle' gone previously? It seems rather silly that she would leave you alone by yourself. Especially since you don't seem to be a common breed of dog.

[/i]"

Hm. That was a good question. Mind you, it did put some more negative thoughts into the golden dog's head; but it was something that she did need to consider, to confront. What if - she flinched as though the thought physically hurt her - what if her dearest lady had abandoned her?

"Shouldn't she have expected something to happen?[/i]" A whisper of a whine escaped Leala's throat. It was true. She knew she was a rare breed - her master had told her often in praising tones. That meant her master knew as well. So why would she leave her like that? Had she become undesirable? Was she too calm? or the opposite, too adventurous? She closed her eyes and laid her paws on her nose. This was depressing.

"She wasn't going to be out long. . . and of course, she locked the door behind her." That was a small lie. She had actually been planning to be out for a good six hours. Mademoiselle had always locked the door before going out; as proud as she was of her lovely rare basque, she didn't take the dog out unless it was for her usual exercise or a vet visit. Whenever she tried to follow her lady out, she was met with gentle denial in the form of words like "You'll burn your sweet paws out there," or "It's too cold, you'll freeze your cute nose off."

She had never questioned why she was left alone so often before. "Could she have thought me a possession, not a living thing?" she murmured softly, but not so softly that she could be sure Keisha didn't hear her; not that it was important. In the depths of the deepest sorrow capable of someone given everything in their life, Leala didn't much care what anyone or anything thought of her right now.

She whined again and rolled onto her side, facing her new friend. This was painful. Would she have to harden herself in a similar way as this pup before her? Leala loved who she was. She didn't want to change. . .

"What about your owners, mon amie?" she asked, her voice a hoarse whisper under the force of her new-found sadness. Though she was honestly curious, she couldn't help thinking that Keisha's couldn't be any worse than her own. Still, perhaps she could learn something from the little dog. Anything would be welcome, anything that could dull this pain.

word count: 578
mood: awesome. it's Saturday and i met my metaphorical twin.
muse: 5/10
notes: its hard to write depressing when you're in a good mood

[/size][/blockquote][/blockquote]

[blizzard]

"She wasn't going to be out long. . . and of course, she locked the door behind her."

Keisha shook her head and made a few 'tsk tsk tsk' noises. "But, my dahling, it doesn't matter. She should never have left you there with no one else in the house, is my point. My owner would never have done such a thing as leaving me at a house with no one to watch over me.". Her ears pricked when she caught the other dog's murmured words. It was a good thing they were so large or else she may have missed what she said.

"Could she have thought me a possession, not a living thing?"

Keisha walked forward so she could put a small comforting paw on Leala's bigger one. "Oh, my dear, it is alright. Not all humans can see that us dogs are not possessions. If anything, dahling, humans are the possessions not us." She gave an annoyed sniff. Imagine, Keisha being owned by a human! Even if it was someone she cared about... she would never be owned by someone!

Keisha stepped back a half step as Leala rolled over and whined. The poor thing must feel horrible and anything Keisha said most likely hadn't helped her feel better... Well, I'm just telling the truth as I see it... She said not feeling guilty at all... however, she did feel a little bit of... what was it, sympathy? It was actually true sympathy as well. Not what you felt if someone walked by with a thorn in their paw where you think "Aww poor thing. I feel sorry for him." No, this was the kind where she actually felt sadness in her heart... It was a new experience for her and she really wasn't sure whether she liked it or loathed it... She was dragged out of her thoughts by a question being asked of her.


"What about your owners, mon amie?"

[/b]

Keisha thought back to the day that she stayed with her real owner's relative. The idiot had gone out and left her unattended. The nerve of that fool!It made her angry then as well as now. As one could probably tell from the fierce anger that was starting to show in her eyes. She kept her voice level however and managed to answer Leala's question. "My wonderful owner left me in the care of her supposedly 'trustworthy' relative. However, that stupid, mangy, flea-infested, excuse-for-a-human most likely couldn't keep goldfish in a pond! So what did he do? He left a perfectly beautiful diva dog, meaning me, inside the house while he went out to do 'errands'." Keisha paused as she could feel her voice starting to raise to a higher pitch. Meaning her temper was getting out of control... however she had to finish her story so she kept going with it. "So, do you know what happened a few hours after he left? Some thieves broke in and kidnapped me! That's right! Snatched me right out of my house without a second thought! But it's to be expected. Why wouldn't they want a dog like me? I'm irresistible! Which can have it's drawbacks at times. Anyway, dahling, I manged to escape but I didn't know my way around town so I grew lost and have wandered around in this city of dirt, strays, and violence ever since!" Leala had only really asked for what happened to her owners but once you get Keisha going... it's kind of hard for her to stop. As was the case here. The thought of what happened still made her angry all these years later. She could have still been traveling with her owner but that stupid human had left the house unattended so she could be stolen... ugh, she absolutely hated that human...

However, she managed (after a minute or two of deep breathing) to calm herself down. She regained her composure and sat down with a smile. Now that she had gotten over her momentary anger streak her normal calmness was back.[/size][/justify][/blockquote]

[[.BakaIsai.]]

Leala had heard everything her friend had commented on as she was speaking, but for the most part was too absorbed in her fretting to bother with an answer. Even if her master was the one at fault, Leala couldn't bare to place on the blame on her. She had always adored her lady, always loved being the sole object of her affections. To think that there could be darkness behind a face which this dog always saw in the brightest of spotlights. . .

il était une fois une fleur
elle s'ouvre un peu, beaucoup
un papillon arrive, il se pose sur la fleur
hum! que ça sent bon
le papillon s'envole et il disparait
la fleur se referme, se fane et elle disparait

She wasn't sure why that old nursery rhyme suddenly came back to her. It was one of the few that her lady had only told her once or twice, one of the few that she barely remembered. Oh yes, her master had taught her many, many little rhymes and proverbs and songs like that. Leala remembered nearly all of them, but this she hadn't thought of in a long time. She had always wondered about it's moral. The flower closes up, withers, and disappears. . .

Her reverie was broken by Keisha's ever-fascinatingly accented words. She was telling her own story now. Leala listening with genuine interest to the little dog's tale, and felt herself cringe a bit when her voice began to show signs of anger. Leala was never good with conflict, seeing as she didn't have much experience with it. If Keisha ran away with her emotions, the basque wouldn't have any idea what to do.

She calmed though. Relief flowed momentarily, and as the story went on, it seemed the dog's depression was beginning to fade a bit. She wasn't the only in this situation, not by a long shot. According to her friend here, there were plenty of strays who were either abandoned by their owners too, or worse, born this way. In these few short moments, Leala learned a few valuable lessons: feeling along was painful, but she was never truly alone. It seemed the key to keeping her life as emotionally painless as possible was to remember that.

Leala turned her eyes toward her friend with a deeper kind of feeling in them. Though she had just taught herself that she wasn't and likely never would be alone in the world, the fact that this dog had been the first for her to personally meet made her all that more sentimental to the golden stray. Golden stray. . . She had been refusing to call herself stray for most of the day, but now the word seemed to carry a different connotation. It seemed to whisper to her 'You're part of a family you just haven't met yet,' and it brought a small smile to her face.

"Well, mon amie," she said, not considering how the happiness in her tone might affect the other dog, "at least we're in it together, right?" She rolled back on to her stomach and returned the gesture of comfort Keisha had given her earlier - her paw momentarily resting on her friend's.

"Have you met many other dogs then? Or do you prefer to keep your distance?" she asked, hoping to change the subject to something a bit more lighthearted. As much as she admired Keisha's fire, it did make her a little nervous. Better to be safe with a topic that would be harmless to the little dog's mood.

Hopefully.

word count: 621
mood: great. getting tired, but great. for once.
muse: 7/10
notes:

there was once a flower
it opens a little, then a lot
a butterfly comes, and rests on the flower
mmmm, that smells nice!
the butterfly flies away, out of sight
the flower closes up, withers, and disappears

[/blockquote]

[blizzard]

* * *

Keisha listened to her friend's happy tone of voice and was almost offended. She had just told the most saddening tale in the history of the dog world and Leala was happy! That was a not a reason to be happy! It should be a time of mourning and recollection of a good life lost... but here this dog was happy! She started to give Leala a piece of her mind but the other dog wasn't finished talking yet and the words she spoke opened up a soft spot in Keisha's heart. And the return gesture that Leala gave made a lopsided grin form on Keisha's tiny muzzle. "Why of course, dahling, a couple of high class dogs like us should, of course, have each other." Now, it was one thing for Keisha call herself high class, a diva, yada yada, but for her to say someone else was high class as well... was quite a big deal.

"Have you met many other dogs then? Or do you prefer to keep your distance?"

Keisha thought of all the dogs she had met living on the streets. Some she had just run into by complete accident, others had come up to her (and walked on her as well), and some had even tried to be aggressive and fight her. Imagine, her trying to fight some huge brute. Like she would stoop so low as to fight a stupid mutt such as them. "Dahling, I have met many other dogs of all shapes and sizes. None that are as beautiful and glamorous as me, mind you, but I've never purposefully tried to meet them. It just happens when you've been living on the streets for years and years like I have.

Keisha thoughtfully looked the gold dog over with her dark brown eyes. She wondered how long she had been traveling around by herself since she did look quite young. Most likely 2 or 3 years whatever the case the Chihuahua knew she had more years of life experience than her. "How long have you been wandering around the streets here, sweetheart? You don't seem to me as a dog that's been out on her own for long." The other dog seemed to just scream that she didn't have that much street sense yet. Keisha didn't know why... but she just did.

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[[.BakaIsai.]]

"Why of course, dahling, a couple of high class dogs like us should, of course, have each other.

[/i]" Elation rose in Leala's chest like a buoy that has been held underwater for far too long. She nearly bounced up with it, but held it back. Diva Keisha had just included her in the group known as 'high-class', and Leala suspected that carried a connotation that meant mature, which meant no spontaneous leaping for joy.

That didn't stop her from wanting to, though.

Still, she contained herself to a simple energetic wagging of the tail. It was probably getting her fur even more muddy, but it didn't matter right now. Keisha's interestingly profound ability to chase away the basque's feeling of lonliness left her with only her feeling of fulfillment; she had finally gotten into an adventure, a real adventure that would last her whole life.

She hoped it wouldn't get old.

"Dahling, I have met many other dogs of all shapes and sizes. None that are as beautiful and glamorous as me, mind you, but I've never purposefully tried to meet them. It just happens when you've been living on the streets for years and years like I have.[/i]" Years and years? So Leala had been right, sort of. She could certainly learn a thing or two from this dog. This was starting to feel surreal; not only had she met her first friend, but there was the possibility that she had met her mentor. She was less than half her size, but hey, Keisha made up for it in spirit. Once again, Leala felt her happiness swell in her chest. Perhaps today wasn't such a bad day after all.

"How long have you been wandering around the streets here, sweetheart? You don't seem to me as a dog that's been out on her own for long.[/i]" Ouch, hit the nail on the head there! Leala grinned doggishly and stared at the ground as she answered.

"You're right, mon amie. It has been a very short time indeed since I got on the streets." She paused and looked up at her friend, briefly debating whether or not to be completely honest. Honesty quickly won. "In fact, the events I told you about happened ce matin; this morning." Thinking about it again, her feeling of elation was brought gently down one level, though the afterglory of the past few moments stuck with her.

word count: 429
mood: great, aside from my small stomachache.
muse: 7/10
notes: i think i drank too much root beer at once.. ahhh

[/i][/size][/blockquote][/blockquote]

[blizzard]

* * *

"You're right, mon amie. It has been a very short time indeed since I got on the streets."

Ah ha! So she had been right. A short time though... she wondered how short. She waited for the dog to continue talking after her pause.

In fact, the events I told you about happened ce matin; this morning."

This morning! The poor dog had just been released from her life as a house pet this morning?! Keisha would never even have known that it was in that short of time. Leala was holding herself together quite well. When Keisha herself had first realized the hopelessness of getting her own back she... well, let's not dwell on past thoughts, shall we?

"Oh! My poor dear, I never would have dreamed you had been released so soon into the cold wild streets. You seem to handle yourself so well already, although, you can't have had more experience than a young cat that would play in the street. If you'll pardon my horrible expression, my dear." Keisha paused to contemplate the young dog's situation. If she had been released that morning there was no way she could know fully how to take care of herself in the streets. Which also meant... she wasn't fully tainted by the street life. Hmm, that could turn out to be... very nice actually. She could have a young companion that she could teach about how to properly survive on the streets and since Leala wasn't street-hardened yet, she could have someone that could keep decent company instead of some worthless riffraff. However, she kept her thoughts to herself.

Keisha looked at the dog and noticed that she seemed a little deflated. Like she had been extremely happy only to have it brought down a few notches. Only a few minutes ago her tail had been wagging a mile a minute and now she seemed saddened. Hmm, a nice change in subject should help that out. "So, dahling, have you eaten yet? Cause I know that a few of these booths sell food and if you can get inside of one there's bound to be something fresh to eat." Keisha glanced outside and noticed the rain was starting to ease up a little. If it stopped enough to where you could actually go outside without being soaked maybe they could go to get some food. Keisha's little stomach was starting to grumble. She frowned distastefully and wished she was back with her owner... there she had been fed every time her owner had. That included breakfast, brunch, lunch, dinner, and snacks... even midnight snacks as well. However, Keisha had gotten her exercise (somehow) and managed to keep in shape.

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