Hey there! Thank you for the wonderful support! I have also recieved some lovely reviews... I'm so happy T^T I won't delay you any further. Here is the next instalment.
Onwards!
Chapter 4: The Importance of a Good Name
"When can I expect to receive it by?" I asked the person on the other end of the call.
"We should have it to you in four days." He/she answered. I really couldn't tell what gender they were. The voice was androgynous.
"Thank you." I said before hanging up. I sighed and flopped down onto my bed. I looked at the large dog bed sitting on my desk that had been shoved next to the bed.
"What should we name them?" Lulu asked. She stood by the door.
"Let's get a better look at them to see some special features." I suggested. I slid off the bed again and looked at the pups carefully. Lulu stood next to me and did the same.
"I heard somewhere that Napoleon was a redhead." She said, not looking up. I turned the muscle-lacking pup over.
"His belly is slightly brown. He also seems to have brownish socks." I noted aloud. I could see the Border collie markings, but with red and brown instead of black and white. The dog seemed to glare at me so I turned him back over. I looked at the other red patch and noticed a slightly lighter patch on his back.
"The retriever's fur is slightly longer above his left eye." Lulu flattened the puffy fur and it went right over his eye. We both laughed a bit when she let go and it puffed right back up.
"I think he should be Panda." I said, stroking the ring-eyed puppy.
"Ooh, I like that." Lulu agreed, pointing at me. She picked up the golden retriever and twisted him around carefully.
'Limonchelo? Advocate? No, wait, Guiness." She declared triumphantly.
"Guiness is almost black in colour." I shot her idea down before it went too far.
"Aw." She huffed. "I don't know then." She placed the dog back down.
"What about the other red one?" I asked her. We thought in silence for a while, just looking at the puppy.
"Some food product would suit him." Lulu finally said. I raised my eyebrow but said nothing.
"Burrito!" she exclaimed.
"I concur."
"That was easy."
"What about the other one?"
"Are you sure Guiness is black?" Lulu asked.
"Yes. Yes I am." Silence fell again.
"Zapdos?" Lulu suggested.
"Isn't that a Pokémon?"
"Well, yeah. The flying electric legendary." 'She explained.
"I don't think that's a good idea."
"Why?"
"He snarled." I lied through my teeth. I just didn't like the sound of it.
"How about Midas?" I tried.
"Midas?"
"Yeah, the king with the golden touch." I explained
"Oh yeah, I remember that story." She looked at the puppy again and nodded.
"I think it works." The puppy in question cocked his head to the side.
"So, Panda, Burrito, and Midas. This is going to be fun."
"Why do you sound sarcastic?" I asked. "I'm the one who is going to have to look after them." I pointed out.
"Well… They technically belong to me." She said hesitantly.
"Oh? So you'll be paying me for all the expenses of surgery, check-ups, overnight care, and the purchase of new equipment?" I challenged, sitting down on my bed.
"What equipment?"
"Something to help… Burrito." I replied, forgetting the name for a moment.
I lowered Burrito into the tank I was in, filled with water. The life jacket kept him afloat, but I stayed nearby. He didn't move at all. I pushed him forward slightly. He just let the water push his legs back.
"You need to try swimming." I told him, moving his legs in the way they should be going. Nothing. No reaction, no resistance.
"Come on, you have to at least try or you won't get better. There is only so much I can do to help." This had been going on for the past five days. I first tried the underwater treadmill I ordered, but it proved useless with Burrito. I just used the tank instead. I tried to get him to swim, just a bit. I hadn't had any success. The first few times it didn't work, I used simple massage instead. I wasn't going to give in so easily this time. He would move by himself. Even if it was just a twitch of the paw.
"Come on Burrito. Swim to me." I stood a foot away and held my arms out to him. I watched him carefully and noticed absolutely no movement. He just bobbed up and down thanks to the jacket. I sighed in frustration. Midas wobbled over and sat at the base of the tank, looking up at us. He gave a bark and Burrito replied with a growl. Midas seemed to snicker. Burrito looked up at me with a lot of effort. He snorted at me. I raised my eyebrow. I moved next to him and took hold of the handle on the life jacket. I pushed him forward gently. There was the slightest resistance, but his legs crumbled quickly. Midas let out a barking laugh and Burrito growled.
"Maybe I shouldn't push. Here, come to me." I went back in front of him and opened my arms. His one leg bent and moved forward. It pulled Burrito forward ever so slightly, causing his legs to all be pushed back. Unable to move anymore.
"Well done Burrito!" I picked him up and gave him a hug. "I think that's enough for today. Let's get you dry." I held him carefully as I waded over to the stairs. I placed Burrito on a towel I had set on the floor.
"That was really good. We just need to get you moving, bit by bit. You need to try moving outside the water though, especially your neck." I dried him as I talked. I was interrupted by growling. Looking over to the sound, I saw Panda and Midas standing across from each other, hackles raised and teeth bared.
"Hey, you two, break it up." I walked over to them and picked Panda up. He was still dehydrated but kept pulling the needle out whenever I gave him a drip. He had enough strength to drink by himself, so I just kept a close eye on his liquid consumption. But he was weaker than Midas because of it.
Panda looked up at me with pale green eyes. He seemed to have grown since I got them only two weeks ago.
"If you two keep fighting I won't give you any more treats." I threatened. Midas looked worried. He dropped his ears and widened his eyes. Panda blinked at me slowly, like he didn't care much. Why would he? They were dogs. They shouldn't understand what I was saying anyway. I heard a growl from the other side of the room.
"I'm coming Burrito, calm your tits." I replied slightly annoyed. I was just one person. Three puppies at one time were a lot of work. Midas seemed to snicker. I had become used to Midas making sounds like laughter and some other human noises. I had heard about pets who copied their owners, but I had never seen it myself.
I walked back to Burrito with Panda still in my arms. I put Panda down and went about the task of drying Burrito who watched Panda's every move.
"I really don't understand between you guys. You and Midas keep glaring at Panda. It's not very nice. Just try and get along, okay?" I asked with a smile, holding the floppy pup up so he could look me in the eye. Burrito huffed, looking away. I narrowed my eyes and finished drying him. I checked my watch. Panda, water time." I took Burrito and walked to the reception of the clinic, placing him on the bed behind the counter. Panda had followed me.
I put a small metal bowl filled with water on the floor. Panda lapped it up with no particular rush.
"You're looking a lot better. That's good, although I don't know what to do with you guys once you're all healed up. Lulu will have to figure that one out. She is technically your owner after all." I said, mostly to myself. Panda snorted and shook his head wildly. He coughed a few times. He had gotten water up his nose again. It happened surprisingly often.
And there you have it. I know it's a little shorter than usual. (About 500 words) But I have my reasons! You see, I've written out the next few... many chapters by hand. Looking over them, I couldn't find a good place to stop. It was either here, or 1000 words later which would take another day to update... It was a difficult decision, I'll have you know. I wasn't just being lazy! I swear! Please don't kill me *Cowers in corner*
now that that's out the way, please send me your love with reviews and cookies! Wait... I mean, I'll give you a cookie if you give a review. Yeah, that.
Until next time.
See ya!