A New Friend
Chapter Two
Ami smiled as she walked out of the hospital's cafeteria doors and sat down at a table under a shady tree. As she opened her lunch bag, the young intern remembered what she had told her mother the night before. She had been was surprised to hear that her mother had always hoped Ami would want a pet. The elder Mizuno had enjoyed her canine companion when she was a young girl. Now Ami was really looking forward to having a pet of her own. She just wondered how Luna and Artemis would react.
"Looks like you're deep in thought Ami. Can I sit with you?" a familiar voice asked beside her, causing the girl to jump a little.
"Mom! Of course you can." Ami replied, smiling as her mother sat across from Ami.
"How was your morning sweetheart." mama replied.
"It was busy. I just wish we could find a way to help little Kaeko to talk again." Ami replied.
"I've looked in to the therapy dog program that might be starting up in this hospital. The puppy would have to be quiet and good natured. In the meantime, I want you to handle a few more cases then you can head over to the shelter to find yourself that puppy. It looks like things are going to slow for the rest of the day." mama replied, interrupting Ami's protest.
"Thank you mother. I have a feeling that I will. I met Sora in the hallway this morning, and she said
there's one puppy left from a pregnant female that was brought in a month or so ago." Ami replied as she checked her watch. "I better get going if I'm going to get these cases done."
It didn't seem to take long for Ami to get through the cases she needed to deal with, and was soon entering the park. For a reason she couldn't quite understand, the blue haired genius had a faint recollection of having a pet in the silver millennium. Looking ahead, she noticed Luna on a nearby wall, sunning herself.
"Hi Luna." Ami called out.
"Hello Ami. It looks like you're deep in thought. Is there anything I can help you with?" Luna asked as the young girl approached.
"Yes there is Luna. Did I have a guardian animal from my planet in the silver millennium?" Ami inquired.
"I can't really call at the moment. I'll have to talk to Artemis about this. Why are you asking?" Luna replied as she jumped on to Ami's shoulder.
"I got home from work yesterday and found a little husky puppy. I took him in and took care of his needs. His owners came around this morning and got him. I was glad that they found him, but it left me feeling empty. So I've decided I would like to find a puppy; a husky breed." Ami stated quietly, almost afraid of what Luna might think.
"And you would like me, and hopefully Artemis to be friends with it. I think that would be a great idea Ami. As long as the puppy is not overly...friendly." Luna stated, coming right to the point.
"Thank you Luna. That means a lot to me. It looks like we're here." Ami stated, as she noticed Lita walking past the shelter and waved to her.
"Hey Ami, are you here to get a pet of your own?" Lita replied as her friend and Luna came closer.
"Yes I am. I'm hoping to get a dog. Hopefully a husky breed." Ami stated.
"And you're alright with this Luna?" Lita asked, surprised that the guardian cat wasn't freaking about the idea of a dog being "too close for comfort".
"I don't mind. The thing would still by young enough to learn to like cats." Luna stated confidently.
As they entered the shelter, still on Ami's shoulder.
"Hey Ami I see you brought some friends with you. Mind introducing me?" Sora replied.
"Of course. This is Lita Kino and Luna who belongs to another friend of mine. Lita, Luna; this is Sora, my friend from the university. She's studying to be a veterinarian. Her uncle runs this shelter." Ami introduced.
"Nice to meet you Sora. Meow." Lita and Luna replied.
"Nice to meet you two as well. You have one smart cat there Ami." Sora giggled.
"Thank you. Is that puppy you mentioned still available Sora?" Ami asked.
"Yes. We had to move her and the mother in to a quiet a room. I'm afraid the mother is going to die soon and needed her attention to rest and raise her daughter. The poor pup knows this and is quite sad." Sora reported as they headed to the room where the two dogs were being kept.
"Why is she so sick?" Lita asked.
"Well to make a long story short, our SPCA officers brought the female who was very pregnant, and malnurished. She went in to labor not long after we had her checked out and fed. The sad thing is she lost half of her large litter of pups. She's a Siberian Husky and by the look of the pups, their father was a Shiba Inu." Sora answered as they entered the room and quietly closed the door.
Over in the far left corner, the mother raised her head weakly and woofed softly in acknowledgement. What surprised Ami, Luna and Lita was that she had the sign of Mercury on her forehead. Although they didn't say anything because of Sora's presence. Just then the door's bell rang, announcing a new arrival.
"Excuse me while I tend to these customers. I shouldn't be long." Sora replied and quickly left.
"Princess Ami, is that you? In case you don't remember, I am Mizu and I was guardian during the silver millennium." Mizu replied as she bowed her head...as best she could."
"Yes, I am princess Ami from the silver millennium. I'm sorry I didn't find you earlier. If I may ask, what happened to you?" Ami asked kneeling down by Mizu's head.
"My previous owner was abusive and neglectful. He never took very good care of any of his animals. I am angry at him for the loss of half of my pups. This little one is the only one I have left, and I'm sad to say that I don't have very long to live. Would you take her princess and give her the love she needs?" Mizu related and looked at Ami for a response.
"I would be more than happy to, and I promise to take good care of her. I'm sure that Luna would be more than happy to help." Ami replied, tears forming in her eyes.
"Of course I will help Ami raise your pup. I'm sure the two of us will become good friends as we did back in the silver millennium. Do you have a name for her yet Mizu?" Luna asked sadly.
"No I don't. I'm sure the two of you will come up with a fitting name for her. It's good to see you again to princess Lita." Mizu replied.
"It's good to see you again to Mizu. I'm sorry we didn't meet sooner." Lita answered softly as she watched Mizu "talk" to her daughter, who could not speak human just yet.
As Mizu laid her head down, she sighed in contentment and closed her eyes for the last time. The pup went over and nudged her mother's head. When there wasn't any response, she threw her head up and gave a puppy's howl of sadness. No one in the room had a dry eye, including Sora who quietly entered the room. She had realized, from the howl, that Mizu had passed on. She watched in surprise as Luna patiently guided the pup over to Ami who gently picked the little female.
"I take it you and Luna have decided to take her Ami?! Do you know what you're going to name her?" Sora asked gently.
"Yes we have. And I think I will call her Kyoko. Except for the little bit of black on her ears, she looks exactly like her mother." Ami answered, stroking her new puppy's fur soothingly.
(By the way, Kyoko's main color is white with a blue/gray "saddle" on her back and her tail is slightly curly—from her father).
"That's an excellent name for her! Why don't you let Lita hold her while I get you to sign these adoption papers. If you want my dad as you vet, I'll pass a copy of these on to dad when I head home later. Oh, and by the way, Kyoko was weaned off of her mother a week ago, so she's been eating more solid foods now.
"That would be great Sora. I've heard of your dad's reputation and I wouldn't want any other vet for Kyoko." Ami answered, taking the pup from Lita.
"I gotta get back to work Ami. I would suggest you go to the pet store down a few doors and pick up a collar, leash and a bag of food. I believe the owner is a neighbor of yours." Sora replied as she pointed in the direction where the store would be.
I'll do that. I can't exactly let Kyoko run around free; she could get hurt." Ami replied as she and Lita left the shelter. A few minutes later, they entered the pet store and started to look around.
"Ami?! Can I help you with something?" the store owner replied, coming up to the young genius.
"Siano-san. Yes, I would like that very much. I'm looking for a collar and leash for my new friend here. Do you have any suggestions?" Ami asked, gently patting the frightened, sad little puppy in her arms.
"I would suggest a harness, since it's easier on her if she tends to be a puller. It has a place for the tags, and both it and the leash are made out hemp. And I would suggest a bag of natural dry food, such as SunRise. There's no preservatives, additives or chemicals in it." Saino recommend.
"That would be wonderful. Thank you." Ami replied as she walked to the counter while the store's owner walked to the food section and picked up a bag of food.
"That will be $25 Ami.. I'll bring the bag of food to you when I get off of work. Here's a sample package and some biscuits for her. They will help clean her teeth. They're my treat." Saino replied as she gently put the haraness around Kyoko and attaching the leash. Ami put the bill in to her purse and picked up the puppy.
"Thank you for your time Saino-san." Ami called out as she and Lita left the store.
"I gotta get going Ames. Since we just started summer break, I think I'll call the others and see if we can all meet up tomorrow. It would be a good chance for everyone to catch up and meet Kyoko. I'll phone and let you know what's going on." Lita replied.
"That sounds like a good idea Lita. Mom is going to be finished her shift soon and I'm sure she will be anxious to meet this little one. Talk to you later." Ami replied as she put Kyoko down and walked slowly away as the pup sniffed as she walked with her new owner.
"As Ami was headed towards the exit of the park, half an hour later, she looked up and saw Setsuna and Hotaru coming her way.
"Hello Ami. Who is your new little friend?" Setsuna asked as she and Hotaru came up to Ami.
"Hello Setsuna, Hotaru. This is Kyoko and I just adopted her from the shelter." Ami answered with a gentle smile.
"She looks kind of sad. Why is that Ami?" Hotaru asked, looking at the puppy.
"Her mother died about twenty minutes ago and the other puppies have already been adopted. Would you like to hold her Hotaru?" Ami asked.
"Yes I would." Hotaru replied, gently cuddling the little thing as Ami put Kyoko in her arms. Kyoko immediately sniffed at Hotaru, tickling her chin in the process.
"What is she doing Ami?" Hotaru giggled.
"According to my friend, she is doing that to get to know your scent." Ami answered.
"My scent? Why?" Hotaru asked.
"A scent is like having your own personal perfume. She can find you better in a crowd, if she knows what you smell like." Ami instructed.