Every shelter has a story, every pound and rescue have their memories. Some are as old as the building that houses them, others as new as the tiny, fragile lives within. Many are joyful, stories of people who give new life to broken creatures, but others cast spells of melancholy, reminding even the most optimistic person that not all tales have happy endings.
For the Kai'e'e shelter, Steve the dobie is both. He is young and happy, full of wide smiles and puppy antics, but Steve's sweet demeanor covers a worried temperament. Barely more than a newborn, he'd been separated from his mother. It's impossible to tell what would have happened to him, had an older gentleman, a retired cop from HPD whose own family had been taken from him, not found him. Steve's stay with him had been cut short, however, because the man's weak heart had given out, and he'd passed away. In one of his final moments, though, he'd specifically asked that Steve be placed in Kai'e'e because he'd believed that someone good would come for the pup.
He'd been right, if not the way he'd anticipated. After a few weeks of careful socialization and getting used to his new home, Steve had started to shine with the type of boundless energy a puppy of four months ought to have, though he'd still struggled to get along with other animals. He'd quickly become skittish around them and refuse to do anything but watch the others.
Months had passed, and with little to no improvement, the staff had grown worried.
Then Danny arrives.
From one moment to another, everything changes, because Danny- who'd hissed and swiped at Steve the first time the dog, fascinated by the Japanese bobtail's lack of tail, had come near him, only to go after Steve when he'd gone to sulk in the corner- becomes more important to Steve than his nerves.
Somehow, between Steve's lack of social skills and Danny's overenthusiastic communications, the two wind up nearly inseparable. Steve constantly gets Danny in trouble, but Danny always follows him, licking any injuries Steve comes by or getting help when he's gotten in over his head.
What shocks the shelter workers the first time they see it, though, is Danny's tolerance of Steve touching him. The cat usually hates being touched, but if it's Steve, he doesn't struggle or claw at him, even if he does make unhappy noises or glares at the intrusion. But no matter what, he never hisses at Steve for the touching, or the bumping, the sitting, the looming...
He does make his distaste for the licking known, however, if only by putting a paw on Steve's nose and pushing it away... repeatedly. Even after he'd wound up doing it for five minutes the first time, all Danny ever does is push at Steve, and he never shows any inclination to do more- excepting, of course, the time Steve had picked his friend up and trotted around, doggie grin firmly in place. That time, he'd gotten kicked by a murderous Danny who, once freed, had stalked away, alternately hissing and mewling- none of which had dampened the joy on Steve's face.
The two have somehow become inseparable. Whether Danny's trying to sneak away from or flat out scrambling to escape his bath, or even if he's nosing at a sleeping Jenna, the newest volunteer and least prepared for the pair's antics, Steve is never far. If Steve is attempting to imitate Danny's escape root up the curtains, only to wind up on his back with the curtains draped across him, or pushing through Kono's legs to get more kibble, Danny's always somewhere close (provided it isn't bath time, in which case he's usually as far away as possible, completely unimpressed by Steve's love of splashing).
As the shelter's favorite duo, Danny and Steve often wind up in the front, Danny asleep on floor in a patch of sunlight and Steve lying next to him, usually with a paw draped over his friend's little body or, completely ignorant of subtlety as he tends to be, his entire head resting atop Danny's ribs until someone opens the door and the two are jolted awake.
Today, the people who enter are two men, one a short blond and obviously unhappy where the other is tall with dark hair and smiling slightly as he listens to the other grumble. They make their way to where Jenna's so deeply embroiled in updating the shelter's homepage to notice them immediately. After getting her attention, though, they have it all; she looks at them and hurries to the back.
Once she's out of site, the taller man leans against the shorter and takes his hand, leaning over to whisper something in the blond's ear. Whatever he says doesn't carry, but it does manage to get the other stop frowning at the floor, something he's been doing since Jenna had left.
No longer able to contain his curiosity, Steve drags himself up and starts to make his way over, only to stop to rouse Danny with a lick. Satisfied his friend is awake after the cats thumps him on the head, Steve crosses the room to learn more about the men. He doesn't bother to check to see if Danny's following him; he knows, somewhere in the back of his puppy mind, that Danny will always follow him anywhere, save the bath.
The taller one spots him first, noticing the little brown creature speeding toward them, but fails to tell his partner, who's suddenly knocked to the side by the pup, an, "Oomph," on his lips even as the other man reaches out and steadies him.
Steve is too busy trying to avoid getting stepped on, then too wrapped up in sniffing the blond man, to may much heed to the other, taller one. The one he has now smells too interesting to consider leaving, and he likes the way the man squats down and starts rubbing the spot under his collar that always makes Steve itch. It's been maybe three minutes since the men's arrival and Steve's already got a puppy crush on the short one.
When he manages to look away, he sees that Danny's made his way over and is currently fighting with himself as the tall man's picked him up and found the place on Danny's hip that always makes the cat get the blissful expression he's wearing at the moment, even as he tries to decide whether or not to give in to the temptation of purring.
About ten more seconds pass, and Danny loses the battle and starts purring loudly, trying to force the man to scratch harder, which makes the man laugh.
"Look, Danno, he's just like you," he says, knocking hips with the other to get his attention. When he has it, he indicates how the cat in his hands is nearly rubbing against Steve's hand on his rump and smiles brightly when the short man glares at him from his place on the ground, though Danny doesn't stop petting the pup sprawled against his shoes.
"And you, Steven, are nowhere near as cute as this little guy," come the retort, but it's said with too much concentration.
Jenna returns soon after, and the men are drawn back to the business that had brought them to the shelter- but not before Danny's been carefully put back on the floor and Steve's gotten a final pat.
Uninterested in whatever business has taken the attention from them but still curious about the new men, Danny and Steve stay where they are and watch, hoping to get another few pats, but by the time they hear their names, "Danny and Steve are the shelter's favorite pair," they've already moved back to the patch of sunshine. Still, they sit up and look at the men, both of whom are wearing strange expression.
"Danny... and Steve?" the shorter chokes out, turning to look at the other.
"Mmhmm," Jenna continues, distracted by a folder in her lap.
"And are, um... Are they up for adoption?" the man asks, finally drawing Jenna from her study of the folder.
"If I remember correctly, they're going to be added to the adoptable section in a week. We just don't want to separate them; they do just about everything together. Come to think of it, I'm pretty sure the only time they're apart is when Steve's having a bath..."
"Don't bother," the tall man says, taking over from his suddenly quiet friend. "We'll take them. Here, I'll leave my card, and when it's time for them to be up, give me a call. My partner and I'll come back then."
"Oh, um, I'm sure everyone will be glad for them to be kept together," Jenna returns, taking the offered card before going back to the folder in her lap.
Leaving her to it, the men make their way to Danny and Steve. The former's barely awake, he's so comfortable in the sunlight, but the latter is quickly on his feet, panting and smiling when the blond draws near and squats down next to him. Steve immediately rubs his face on the man's knee, earning himself a chuckle and more scratching.
"Danny and Steve... There's no way it's an accident."
"What, you suddenly religious, Danno? You think it's divine intervention?" asks the taller man, voice filled with humor.
"I was thinking something more along the lines of, 'The people in this shelter know,' actually," comes the dry reply.
"Danno... Do you not want me to have said anything?" the tall man asks, suddenly gravely serious.
"No, no, that's not it at all, babe. It's just... It feels a little weird, is all."
"I guess it does..."
Catching onto the tension that's suddenly fallen, Danny perks up, and upon discovering the dark haired man close by, slinks over and rubs his head against the backs of the man's legs, purring contentedly until he's suddenly being held against a wide chest and having his favorite spot scratched.
"Steven, are you trying to tell me something through a cat? 'Cause if you are, I've gotta say, babe, I feel a bit weird about it."
The tall man smiles, then, relieved and blindingly happy.
Jenna calls out, having found something in the folder, so the two are forced to part with the animals again, but before they go, Steve nuzzles his friend, only to lose his balance when Danny shifts unexpectedly, and accidentally plant a paw on Danny's head, pushing the cat the ground- which earns his a hiss and threat of revenge- and further throwing himself off balance. The struggle to remain upright only lasts a moment longer, and Steve winds up falling on his friend, much to Danny's dismay, nearly flattening his friend.
A snort cuts through the subsequent struggle to separate legs and paws.
"You know what? I think they've definitely got you pegged, babe."