InsaneJournal

Who: Myrcella and Stefan
When: Mid-August
Where: Dog Park
What: Random Encounter
Rating/Warnings: Low/None
Status: Complete when posted



Stefan had Lulu on her leash, huddled in his arm as they stood on the other side of the fence and watched the dogs play in the park. His dog was a little hesitant, and Stefan wasn’t sure about simply forcing her into the fray, so to speak. He probably should have talked to Bubbles about this before he brought the dog here, but he thought it would be good for her, and a fun way to spend his time off.

Myrcella enjoyed the dog park, despite living on the beach she made a point of bringing Dragon here too just to give the dog some social time and grass instead of sand. She noticed Stefan standing to the side and moved over, they’d never spoken in depth but she’d seen him a few times at Anna’s place, “Hi” she greeted with a smile, “Is this your first time?” she gestured to the dog in his arms.

Stefan turned when a young blonde woman came over to him. It only took him a moment to place the face, and then a second moment to put a name to it. Anna’s friend. Myrcella. Was she the one who helped Anna shop? Or was she the one who helped with makeup? Or were they one and the same?

“Hey,” he said, putting on a smile. The guy was pale. Really pale. But the smile was rather charming. “Yeah. I’m afraid Lulu’s not really as used to other dogs as I think she needs to be.”

Had Myrcella been able to read minds she’d have been amused by Stefan’s thoughts and assured him she was indeed one and the same. As it was she just smiled.

“Aww well Dragon may look big but there’s no threat there, Lulu could meet him if you’d like?” Myrcella knew her boxer looked big and scary sometimes but he was really the dopiest dog ever.

“Sure. That sounds good.” Stefan gave the girl a smile, and then set his dog down. He took off Lulu’s leash as they headed into the dog park, and then watched the dog run off and sniff at other dogs (Dragon first) like she was made to be social.

“You’re friends with Anna, right?” Stefan asked, turning to the blonde woman by his side. “Myrcella?”

Myrcella watched the dogs for a moment, happy that Lulu seemed more confident as she met the other dogs. Dragon seemed to be keeping an eye on her too, as much as a dog could.

“Oh yes, sorry. I should have checked you recognised me before I started talking” Myrcella grinned, “That’s me. Stefan, right?” she added, fairly positive she knew that but now wanting to double check and not make him feel too bad about not being sure about who she was.

“Hey, it’s okay. It’s nice to see you.” Stefan said, shrugging it off. No big deal. He turned his eyes to the dogs, making sure they were getting on all right. He might have been a little over-protective of Lulu. “Yeah, that’s me.” He tucked a part of the leash into his pocket so it hung down, but freed his hands. “I’ve heard great things about this park on Yelp, but in case it isn’t completely obvious, this is our first time.”

“It’s a lovely park, Dragon absolutely adores running around like a complete loon here” Myrcella smiled, “And all of the dogs are friendly too. At least they always have been when we’ve been here” she added in reassurance.

“I think we’ll have to make more play dates for the pups, then.” Stefan motioned to where Dragon and Lulu were running around chasing one another. “They seem to be getting along beautifully. You, Anna, and Bubbles should bring them here.”

Myrcella laughed, “Dragon loves the company of other dogs, so I would love to arrange more play dates for him. I’m glad Lulu has taken to him so well” she smiled as she watched the dogs running around.

“I think it’s hard not to love Lulu. Or for Lulu not to love others.” She was a sweetheart of a dog. But how could she not be? With an owner like Bubbles? Stefan was just glad that she didn’t take after him instead. He bent down and picked up a stray ball, then tossed it into the group of dogs. A couple of them bounded after it, then playfully bounced on each other.

“It’s true, she’s a lovely dog” Myrcella agreed, “Dragon’s a gentle one but people see him and just assume he’s going to be big and dangerous sometimes” Boxer’s didn’t have the worst reputation but people were wary purely because of his sturdy build.

“There’s a lot of preconceived notions about dogs by their breed.” Stefan could totally relate. There were a lot of preconceived notions about vampires, too. Not that he didn’t deserve some of those notions, but the fact that he was judged before he was understood? Same thing with the dogs. It wasn’t fair. “It’s a shame. Dragon seems like such a kind dog.”

“He’s lovely. Softest dog ever but hopefully we’re slowly changing peoples views, the more people he meets the more fall in love with him” Myrcella smiled, “It just takes a little longer than the instant love people get when they see Lulu”

“That’s how it starts.” One person at a time. The more people they could convince, the better. Maybe the stigma would change. Stefan knew what it was like to have people judging from afar. Just because he was a vampire and all that. He laughed. “Yes, well… they might have the opposite reaction with Lu. If she gets ahold of their shoes, anyway.” She was a chewer.

“Oh, sounds like you need a constant supply of chew toys to save your things” Myrcella said with a little chuckle, “Thankfully Dragon wasn’t ever a fan of chewing stuff. Though we do have to be careful not to leave food within his reach”

“Let’s see if we can get Dragon to teach Lu how to keep her teeth to herself.” Stefan teased. He moved to a bench in the dog park area and took a seat. It was relaxing actually, being here with all the other dog parents and the pups in the park. Much more than he expected.

“We can only hope they are positive influences on each other and not the opposite” Myrcella laughed, “But we can always make this a regular thing if you’d like, until you get more comfortable with letting her run free with all the other dogs” she offered.

“No, I think making this a regular thing is an excellent idea.” Stefan gave her a smile. “Next time I’ll try to bring Anna and Bubbles along, too.”

“That’s a great idea” Myrcella smiled, “It’s a nice catch up for us as well as the dogs”

“I agree.” Stefan gave her a smile. It was a good idea, and he was really glad he’d run into her today at the dog park.