Yuna Lee just wants to help (to_zanarkand) wrote in valarlogs, @ 2014-03-22 15:05:00 |
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Entry tags: | !complete, rikku, yuna |
Who: Yuna and Rikku.
What: Getting a puppy!
When: 3/14, after these text messages
Where: A corgi rescue.
Rating/Warnings: G because I doubt this’ll get higher.
Status: Complete!
It had been a great idea, getting a dog. It’d help distract Rikku from being suddenly single, and it’d help her feel less lonely. And since Yuna was working out more, it would give her a running partner! Awesome all around.
So Rikku had researched an animal rescue nearby that specialized in corgis and corgi mixes, excited to drive there with her cousin-slash-roommate. She was all but tugging on Yuna’s arm once they arrived, all grins and laughs. “Come ooooon, Yunie, someone here is getting saved today! They don’t know, but their family just showed up!”
It hadn't even occurred to Yuna that she'd get another running partner out of the deal! Corgis were cute and Rikku was understandably down about Kitty; Yuna just thought it would cheer her cousin up and give them both some companionship.
She was at least right about the first part, because Rikku was ecstatic, and it made Yuna giggle as she was practically dragged into the rescue building, "I'm glad you're so excited about this, Rikku! I can't wait to see who's in there waiting for us."
The Kitty thing hadn’t been entirely unexpected, but it still hurt. But Rikku couldn’t help but be cheerful about puppies. And this rescue was AWESOME - most of the animals were out in groups in rooms, not in cages, and it made Rikku’s heart happy to see. “Sometimes I wish I were smarter, then I could’ve been a vet or something.”
"I bet you could have done it. You're really smart about mechanical stuff, it isn't that much different, I don't think..." Yuna encouraged. There had been a lot of people in her pre-med courses that were going off to vet school. Yuna thought Rikku would have been great at all of that.
She grinned widely as they walked into the shelter - her own heart was glad to see that the animals were out and about, getting love and attention and a chance to stretch their legs. There were too many cute animals to even begin to choose from!
"I don't even know where to start! I guess we should see who takes a shine to us, too. Maybe our new family member will choose US instead!"
“Maybe we should see the ones who’ve been here the longest? Just so we have a place to start, otherwise we’ll never leave.” Rikku laughed, seeing one of the dogs wiggling around like it had to pee.
Yuna decided to give that one a wide berth as she walked through the shop. Starting with the ones that had been there longer was a good idea, "I wonder if they're organized like that. We should ask someone, I suppose..."
She waved at one of the workers, trying to get their attention.
Rikku smiled and jumped up and down too, getting a worker’s attention and explaining what they wanted. They were ushered into a room where there were dogs of various ages, all who had been at the shelter the longest. Some since they were puppies!
The tiny Al Bhed’s adoption strategy was to flop into middle of the room, sit crosslegged, and wait for dogs to come to her.
This was definitely the room they wanted to be in! Yuna laughed a bit as Rikku made herself comfortable, though she held back a bit instead of joining her cousin. The dog was mainly for her cousin, though Yuna knew it had to be a dog that liked them both.
She'd love any of the gorgeous animals in the room with them, though, and she mainly wanted to watch Rikku at work, "There are some toys over here, do you want one?"
“Sure! Maybe a stuffed animal?” Rikku giggled when one of the dogs put its front paws on her shoulder, licking her ear. “We should make sure they like you too, come sit!”
"I just didn't want to get in the way!"
Yuna giggled a bit, because it was really kind of silly. Why would she be in the way? She grabbed a couple toys - a stuffed bear, and a plush tube that seemed to have some bells inside - and took a seat next to Rikku.
"Here, pick whichever one you like."
Rikku grabbed the tube and waggled it at a puppy. He seemed to like it, and soon they were playing tug of war, playfully growling at each other. The dog’s comically long tail wagged, and Rikku couldn’t help but ‘aww’.
Watching Rikku and her new friend play was really too adorable for words. Yuna nearly forgot that she was supposed to be making friends with puppies, too. She looked around a bit, eyes settling on a corgi with darker fur, and tried to get its attention with the bear.
The dog trotted over and they played for a little bit, but Yuna wasn't sure it was a match. He didn't seem as enthusiastic as the dog Rikku was playing with, and she thought high energy levels were probably important!
Another puppy soon came over to lick the back of her hand, and she giggled, "I don't think this is working, there's still so many that like us. I wish we could take them all home, but I think... our apartment is definitely too small for that."
“Yeah, definitely.” Rikku looked up at one of the people who’d guided them to that room and asked them if there was a room where they could meet puppies one on one, just to be able to get to know them better. They did, and Rikku grinned at Yuna as she stood up.
"Oh, that's a good idea!" Yuna got to her feet, taking the toy she'd chosen with her. She bounced on her heels once and followed the person into a new room, one that looked extremely comfy. It was kitted out with a few pillows to sit on and some toys, and Yuna took a seat again.
"We should... maybe visit with the one that was licking your ear first. I think that one really liked you. Or maybe the one you were playing with?"
“Yeah, let’s do the one who was licking me, then maybe the one I was playing with.” Rikku flopped down on one of the sitting pillows, rolling a ball back and forth between her hands as she waited for the clerk to bring one of the puppies.
"Right!" Yuna nodded at one of the helpers, who left the room. After a few seconds, they returned with the puppy that had been so friendly with Rikku earlier. It was as enthusiastic as ever, bouncing into the room and wagging its tail.
Yuna couldn't help but go 'awwww'. She hunkered down a bit and held out her hands to the puppy to sniff, "Hello there, cutie..."
Rikku bit her lower lip and flailed a little before the puppy bounced its way over to her and Yuna. “You may have to make the final choice, I’m going to suck at this.” How would Rikku ever pick out just ONE?
"Oh I know it's hard," Yuna agreed, her attention still on the puppy. The dog was enthusiastically licking her hand now, and she was trying hard not to giggle and immediately fall in love with him. Mainly because there were still a few more to see, "I wish we could take them all home, I really do. Maybe what we should do is... consider stopping in here every weekend to visit with them. Like volunteering. We can take ours out for a walk and then stop in. I don't think they'd mind that."
“I’m sure they wouldn’t mind, and maybe they could play together still!” Rikku giggled when the dog hopped and bounced around in a little circle. She figured they should probably make their decision after they saw all of the options.
The next dog came in, a corgi mix that was somehow grinning. Rikku looked at it and blinked. “I love you, dog, you smile, how is that even a thing.”
It was definitely a smiling dog, and Yuna nearly fell instantly in love. Her dream self was big on smiling - she was always telling her guardians to remember to smile. Here was a dog that was so happy that it was actually grinning at them!
"This one... look how happy it is! He is? She is?"
“I don’t care I want them I love you dog,” Rikku repeated. She quietly patted her leg for the dog to come over and flailed her hands when it trotted over and sat down between her and Yuna . “YUNIE. IT LIKES US BOTH,” she stage whispered, fooling nobody.
Yuna definitely wasn't fooled. She grinned at Rikku, and let out a breath that she didn't even know she was holding. It would have been heartbreaking if the dog didn't like them!
"And so well behaved!" Yuna ruffled the dog's ears a bit, still grinning. It was a genuinely happy grin, the kind that made her feel warm down to her toes, "I think... I think we have to keep this one, Rikku. I think this is the one."
Clapping, Rikku giggled when the dog’s tail started to thunk rhythmically. “Okay, so we have to figure out if it’s a boy or a girl, then we have to figure out a name. Because I am stupid in love with our dog.”
"OUR dog!" Yuna repeated, suddenly elated. She wrapped her arms carefully around the dog and gave it a hug, in fact. Since she was the doctor in the family, she figured it was probably her that was the most qualified to 'take a look under the hood', so to speak.
She still blushed a bit as she ducked her head down, "Sorry about this, but we just need to know so we know what to call you..."
Rikku grinned, wrinkling her nose when Yuna lifted the dog’s tail and stuck her head down. “I don’t see any dangly bits?”
"No dangly bits! Girl puppy!" Yuna let the poor dog's tail go and grinned at Rikku, "What should we call her?"
“Hmmm, a girl puppy. Something cute, but not too cute. Not like, fluffykins or something.” Rikku wrinkled her nose. “And we’re never ever dressing her up.”
"Oh goodness no!" Yuna clapped one of her hands over her mouth, equal parts amused and horrified by the idea of both that name and dressing the poor dog up. That seemed more like some form of torture!
"... I mean... I could understand, if she was one of those little chihuahas, those poor things always seem so cold, you almost want to wrap them in a dozen blankets! But no, no dressing her up... She should have a cute name. And definitely a happy sounding one. She's too happy to carry around something too serious."
“Well, yeah, but she’s got fur. If it ever snows again, maybe then she can have a jacket, but I mean like, no froofy dresses.” Rikku wrinkled her nose. “Ummmm names. Do you have any movie heroes or anything like that?”
"HMmmm..." Yuna tapped her bottom lip for a few minutes. She had lots of female characters in movies and tv she really liked. One especially came to mind, "This is a little silly to admit, but... I really like that Mako character from the Pacific Rim movie. She's so... quietly amazingly kick-butt."
She really looked up to the woman, even though she was imaginary, "We could get her a collar the color of those Kaiju monsters. Bright blue, that would be cute."
Yuna blinked then, and ducked her head a bit, "But only if you like that idea, of course. It's not just my dog or your dog, it's our dog!"
“MAKO IS THE BEST NAME OH MY GOSH I WANT A JAEGER SO BAD.” Rikku said it loudly, waving her arms again. “Eeeee, best name ever. And it’s short enough for a dog to remember and come to when it’s called. Sometimes, if you give them long names, they don’t get it.”
"I had no idea about that! You really know a lot about this kind of thing, don't you?" Yuna grinned at Rikku, "You're going to be... just so good at training her. I have faith!"
“I watched a lot of the Dog Whisperer,” Rikku shrugged, saying the name with a silly accent that made it sound more like “dog wheeesperer”. She patted the floor excitedly, grinning at the dog. “C’mere, Mako!”
Mako lopped over to Rikku, tongue happily lolling out of her grinning mouth and tail wagging madly. Yuna thought it was absolutely adorable, and she couldn't have looked more happy watching them together if she tried.
"I'm so glad that she likes both of us!"
“Me too, that means that she’s our dog and part of our family.” Rikku couldn’t wait to get toys and dishes and bowls and leashes and all the fun things that came with dogs. Toys! Stuffed animals! Beds!
There were lots of things to get, for certain. Food, too, and Yuna started thinking of things they'd need to do to care for Mako, like finding a vet and yearly checkups, "We should find out if she's gotten her first round of shots yet... I'd assume so, this place seems to take very good care of their charges. And then there's probably forms we need to sign. I hope we won't have to wait to adopt her!"
She glanced over at the helper nearby, who had been supervising their visit, hoping to get some answers from them. And to get the process started! If Mako was really well behaved they could probably even take her into the pet store with them!
Yuna was the organized one, and Rikku was already distracted by rolling around with little Mako, giggling when the dog tried to pounce her with kisses every so often. It kind of felt like they’d owned her forever, in the best way.
The shelter employee motioned Yuna over so that they could discuss the details while Mako and Rikku played. Every so often Yuna would look back over at her family members and beam a smile.
Even the helper seemed happy about how good a match they all were, chatting enthusiastically with Yuna about the kind of treats Mako liked and the food that was safest for her. Yuna took a lot of mental notes and then shook the other woman's hand and grinned.
The woman left to get the paperwork settled, and Yuna walked back over to them, patting Mako's head a bit, "It's all settled. You're going to come home with us today! Would you like that, girl? Hmm?”
Rikku stood up, grinning down at the newest member of the family. “Do they have a leash we can use to take her to the car? Eee, Yunie, we have a little sister!” It was funny; sometimes Rikku felt like she and Yuna were sisters instead of cousins, that’s how close they were. That, and Rikku had always wished that Brother had been a girl instead of a boy. Stupid boys.
Boys were dumb and complicated. Rikku and Lulu were like the sisters Yuna had never had - more so even than her actual foster sisters were, and her foster brothers had been a mixed bag. A lot of her foster siblings hadn't even kept in touch.
She bounced a bit and hugged Rikku, then crouched down and hugged Mako, receiving a lick to the cheek for her efforts, and giggled.
"They do! We have to sign some paperwork and pay them a fee - I can do that! And then we can take her to the store and spoil her with pretty toys and things."
“Eeee, this is the best day EVER,” Rikku grinned, hugging Yuna tightly before ducking back down to hug Mako. It had been exactly what Rikku had needed - a dog to help get over a Kitty.