Well… This idea came up when discussing a fish I was going to give Jin with Lizzy (it's name was going to be Mini-Jin, which sounds horribly wrong!). Then we somehow got on the topic of my Pap-pap's evil bitch (literally a bitch)! And a bird for Shishi, which also sounds wrong. Yeah. So! Here it is! I know it's a little too soon to be posting again, but whatever! Here ye go! Moral of this story early: All little kids need at least one pet within their lifetime.
The sun was shining brightly. The birds were singing beautifully. The river by the dojo prattled blissfully, and the koi fish within it swam gleefully. The wind danced and played in the yard, carrying the sweet scent of flowers with it. A bird sat on a tree branch, and began to sing. It was a beautiful sparrow, its breast ruby red. Its song was soothing to the ear. And then… SPLAT! Death by yo-yo!
The tree fell over, too.
Rinku's yo-yo's flew through the air, knocking over several different things. He had been out here for two hours or so, training, or simply whacking things with his yo-yo's, coming up with new tricks. A dragonfly fluttered by innocently, its wings flapping rapidly. A wooden yo-yo chased after it almost instantly.
"No, not again! Damnit!" The yo-yo flew through the air at a rapid speed, making a whooshing noise as it soared. It was an impressive fling, and inflicted a lot of damage to the environment, and killed the dragonfly as it had set out to do. Rinku would've been very smug with himself for making such a throw, if only the yo-yo were still on the string.
Farther and farther it flew, out of eye-sight completely. It soared far over Rinku's head, into the forest not too far away. He chased after it frantically, determined to catch the wooden toy. Rinku considered this particular yo-yo one of his best. It fought well, moved along the string smoothly, hit hard. But no longer was this a fantastic weapon, not the perfect yo-yo anymore, because now it was simply a wooden spool.
Rinku ran fast, the string still wrapped around his finger, flowing freely in the wind as an emancipated twine. O, how the string loved being released from the spool, how it loved the wind in its threads! It was so peaceful, so rare! It was an old string, and it had only felt such gayety and freedom and serenity once, and it was when it had been a new string, young and white as snow, only recently wound together were its threads then. Rinku had made this old and decrepit string very happy in its later life, the end of its stringy existence. But it made the poor string sad, and it missed its old owner, and its maker. It remembered how it came to be Rinku's yo-yo string. It remembered all people before this little demon, 'the good ol' days.' Ah, but that is a different story entirely.
The forest was deep, stretching for miles on end. They were very easy to get lost in, and many have come to find that out. Tall pines surrounded Rinku as he ran through the edge of the forest closest to the dojo. They towered over the small demon, making him feel even minuter than he already was. Bushes scratched at his bare arms, tore at his clothes. Mud clung to his white sneakers, speckling the laces a dark shade of brown. The yo-yo which he diligently chased finally began to lower closer to the ground. Rinku knocked the grabbing bushes out of his way, following the fleeing yo-yo at a faster pace.
It was only a few yards off when it hit the upcoming bushes. They rustled and twigs could be heard breaking. A yelp sounded from inside of the high and untrimmed brush instantaneously as Rinku reached them. The fall of the yo-yo to the ground sounded, and a whimper soon afterwards. Rinku stopped dead in his tracks, assuming a horse stance, ready for any type of battle that fall upon him. A sniffing sound could be heard, then scraping on the earth. The yo-yo rolled out timidly from under the bushes, languid in speed. Rinku grinned and reached down.
"Hey, my yo-yo! Awesome!"
Rinku fingers wrapped around the smooth wooden spool, eyes fixed on it, knee to the ground. With his free hand pressed to the dry earth he pushed himself back up to stand in a loose position. Smiling still, he pocketed the yo-yo, as well as the poor old string mentioned before. Breaking the locked stare at the yo-yo, Rinku looked up ahead of him. A low growling could be heard now, which Rinku had not noticed before, from within the wild brush. A look of fear and confusion, mixed with a bit of childish curiosity, spead across Rinku's face.
He stepped back a little, a little further, and tripped on a rock sticking out of the ground. Rinku fell backwards, ripping his shirt and pants, scraping up his hands. The growling got louder, more frightening.
Suddenly, from within the bushes, a dog bound out, jumping high, and landed on top of Rinku, teeth bared. It was a ragtag dog, with tan matted fur. The dog was rather small, maybe about as tall as the average eight-year-old if standing on its hind legs. Brown eyes, black dots that looked something like eyebrows above them; a black nose, with a pink spot on its tip. The dog had a long snout, long whiskers sprouting forth from its cheeks. Its claws were sharp and long, pressed against Rinku's chest. Brown eyes locked with blue-green eyes. The dog growled again, baring its yellowing teeth further. Rinku gasped. The dog leaned down and sniffed Rinku's neck as the small boy looked away from the mangy mutt.
Slowly, Rinku began to reach in his pocket. Feeling around, his fingers fell upon a round, tin foil wrapped dome. He languidly pulled his hand out, of his pocket, his fingers working to pull of the wrapper as he did. He moved his hand up in front of the dog's snout, revealing to him the unexpected Reeses' Cup. The dog sniffed it cautiously, and then licked at it in Rinku's hand. The boy smiled hopefully. With a swift grab with its teeth, the dog snatched the candy from the child's hand, eating it hastily. It looked at Rinku expectedly, and Rinku wriggled beneath it. The dog soon leaped off of Rinku, who sat up straight and began emptying his pockets for the dog, looking for any other foods the dog could eat instead of him.
This stray, skinny, tattered dog was overjoyed by the ample candy that inhabited the small boy's pockets. The dog had Reeses' Cups, Everlasting Gobstoppers, M&M's, Skittles, and Milk Duds. After Rinku's pockets were void, and the dog's temper dwindled down, and the dog's feast completed, Rinku stood up to leave. The dog still licked the ground for anything he might have missed. Rinku stuck his hand out for the dog to sniff. Sheepishly it looked up, stuck its snout to the boy's hand and licked it lovingly. Rinku smiled and pet the dog on the head, scratching its ears a little.
"Bye, doggie. Maybe I'll see you next time I lose a yo-yo, right?" Rinku laughed as he spoke to the dog sweetly. It looked at him with doleful eyes, tongue hanging loose, tail wagging. Rinku grinned at the dog as he began to walk away. What appeared as a smile on the dog's face soon faded as Rinku strode farther from the animal.
Rinku's arms rested inside his empty pockets, his stride bold. The boy whistled a tune as he walked back to the dojo. Soon he heard a stalking noise, a ruffling of the leaves on the ground. Rinku spun round only to see the dog following him. He smiled, then sighed.
He walked over to the dog, whose eyes lit up with glee, and pet it on the head lovingly.
"I'm sorry, bud, but you can't come with me!" The dog looked at him, melancholy, pleading. Rinku's heart melted. This poor thing, all alone in the woods, starving, no one to love him, no one to pet him, flea-ridden and impoverished. Rinku sighed and hugged the dog. He pet it on its head again sadly, empathetically, and he walked away again, sadder this time than before, slower, half-hoping the dog would walk at his side. The mutt stood as Rinku made his trip back home. It wagged its tail and took some paces forward, sniffing Rinku's trail.
"Can't wait to tell Chuu 'bout the puppy I found! Haha! Sucks I can't keep 'im, though…" Rinku spoke to himself as he walked back into the dojo garden, where he had been training earlier. He sighed, happy to be out of the woods. He thought of the dog once more, sorry that it had such a sad life.
Rinku opened the back door of the house and walked inside, stepping into the kitchen. Shishiwakumaru, Jin, and Suzuki sat round the table, playing a game of cards. Shishi's face was contorted in rage; Rinku figured he was losing. Beyond the open doors, Chuu's leg could be seen hanging off of the arm of the chair. The TV channels changed, second by second, a faint clicking coming from Chuu's comfortable chair in the corner. Touya was curled up on the couch; a paperback novel was held close to his face, free arm clutching the couch's matching throw pillow.
"Hey, guys, I'm home...!" Rinku sounded happily.
"From the backyard…?" Suzuki asked in a monotone voice. Rinku furrowed his brow.
"I was in the woods, too, dumbass!" He retorted. Suzuki smirked and shrugged, not looking from the card table.
"RINKU…! Wha' were you doin' in the woods?" Chuu called from the living room. Rinku walked over and poked his head out the doorway, looking at the drunken man sprawled out in the chair, remote control in hand, half-empty bottle of sake on the floor.
"My yo-yo came off of the string and I went to go get it…" He said.
"O, okay… Just makin' sure ye ain't doin' nothin'… bad." Chuu slurred. He hiccupped as he changed the channel once more.
Rinku jumped onto the arm of the chair. He sat there and looked at Chuu sweetly, trying to look as cute and childish as he could. Chuu glanced at him, eyebrow cocked, eyes glazed.
"Whay'dya want, kiddo?" He asked finally. Rinku grinned adorably, swinging his foot a little.
"Chuu, I'm gonna get a dog, okay? Okay! Thanks, see ya later!" Rinku exclaimed, and sprung from the chair before Chuu could register what the boy had said to him. Rinku ran back into the kitchen and opened the door again to leave, grabbing a rope from a drawer. Shishi looked at the little guy questioningly.
"Rinku, are you getting a… pet?" He asked.
"Yes, a dog I found! Be back soon!" He replied as he went to leave. Suzuki's eyes widened incredibly.
"RINKU, I'M ALLERGIC TO DOGS!" Suzuki cried as the child opened the door. Rinku shrugged.
"O well!" He countered. Chuu suddenly jumped from his spot in his chair as Rinku ran out the door snickering.
"RINKU!" Chuu screamed, running over to the back door. "NO! NO DOG! NO PET! RINKUUUUUUUUU!" He screamed out the door at Rinku's vanishing figure.
Rinku laughed and grinned. His very first pet!
Okay… So how do you like it? It's going to get funny… You'll see…! I'm basing this dog partially off of my Pap's dog, Nora. I hope you enjoy! I shall update soon! DON'T FORGET TO REVIEW! Thanksies, mina-san! Aishiteru!