Chapter Five: Joan Richardson
Disclaimers: I don't own Once Upon a Time. Also this is a spin – off the original "Thicker than Water" written by La Lisboa.
You probably thought I was finished with this series, because it's been a few weeks since I updated it. I admit, I haven't really been motivated to write this series for a little while. I couldn't think of any OC in the "Thicker than Water Part II" chapters that I wanted to write about. But now I have someone from chapter sixteen I'd really like to focus on, so…here you go!
This chapter is about Joan Richardson, the owner of the dog Red bumped into. It focuses on their meeting.
Joan Richardson smiled as she walked Shaggy down the street. It was a nice day for the two of them to walk around town. Even better, they hadn't encountered any children yet. Children had a hard time understanding that Shaggy wasn't very friendly. They wanted to run over and pet him. Often they would do so before Joan could explain why it was a bad idea. Then Shaggy would growl l at them, showing his teeth and scaring the children. Fortunately, he hadn't bitten any of the children yet. But Joan figured it would only be a matter of time.
All the same, Joan loved her dog. He was her constant companion for the past three years. And Shaggy was actually really sweet with her. He just didn't trust strangers. And that lack of trust usually showed by being aggressive and sometimes violent with them.
Suddenly a tall woman with dark hair almost ran right into Shaggy. Joan could have slapped herself across the face. She had been so busy daydreaming about her dog; she had forgotten to watch for strangers! She sighed. This wasn't going to be pretty. Joan really hoped Shaggy didn't bite the woman.
"I'm sorry!" the woman exclaimed. "Is your dog okay?" Joan nodded, wishing the woman would leave quickly. She knelt in front of Shaggy, and he began to growl at her. Joan watched their interaction nervously. "I'm so sorry," the woman told Shaggy again. He continued to growl. (No surprise there.)
Joan had to warn this woman about Shaggy before things got worse. "He's okay, but I wouldn't do that if I were you. He's not very friendly to strangers. He might even bite you," she told the other woman. She needed to get Shaggy away from this other woman. Quickly. "Come on, Shaggy. Let's go now," Joan told her dog firmly, tugging at his leash.
Unfortunately, the other woman didn't seem to understand the danger, as she continued to stare at Shaggy. Then she even tried to scratch Shaggy's head. Joan cringed, picturing Shaggy's teeth clamping on the woman's fingers. She and Shaggy needed to leave. Now. "Careful", Joan told the other woman. "Come on, Shaggy."
But then Joan watched as something she never believed possible occurred. Shaggy began licking the woman's hand. He seemed…happy to be interacting with this woman! "I…just…don't believe it. He's never let anyone but me get that close to him. And he's never seen you before! If you were anyone else, he would've bitten you by now, maybe even more than once. You must have a special way with animals." That had to be it. Joan had heard of some people who really had a gift for interacting with animals. Still…she never thought that gift could apply to Shaggy.
Joan shook her head in disbelief again. Suddenly she thought of something. How long had it been since she had visited her sister? At least three years ago, probably. Since she had gotten Shaggy. Camellia Constantly asked her when she would be able to come down. If this woman really could interact with Shaggy like this…maybe she could take care of Shaggy and Joan could finally see her sister. Of course, Joan would need to get to know the woman better…but it could work out. "Listen my name is Joan Richardson. You may think this is a little forward, but my sister has been after me to visit her for over a year now. She lives in New Hampshire, you see. I'd love to go, but I can't leave my dog. He needs to be walked, and brushed, and fed daily. I can't take him with me, because my sister doesn't like him. I can't even put Shaggy in a kennel, because like I said, he doesn't like strangers and has been known to bite them. But…you seem to get along well with Shaggy, and he likes you. If I can plan a trip to see my sister next month sometime, would you take care of Shaggy?"
The woman shrugged. ""I probably could. The only thing is, I don't know if I could have a dog in my apartment."
Joan shook her head. "You'd have to stay at my apartment. I'd probably have to have you over for dinner a few times, or something, so I could get to know first. But if it works out, I'd pay you a fee we'd agree on to watch my dog for two weeks."
The woman nodded eagerly. "That sounds great. My name is Ruby Lucas, by the way. The only thing is…it might be better for me if we did lunch. I work most evenings. Here's my number," she handed Joan a piece of paper with the number to her cell phone.
Joan nodded. This was wonderful! "Lunch would be fine. Thank you. Here's my number," she added, handing Ruby a piece of paper as well. "So I'll see you soon?"
"Of course," Ruby replied smiling. She seemed so friendly. This would probably work out great. "And I'll see you soon, too," Ruby added, petting Shaggy. He licked her hand again. Joan shook head as he did so. She still couldn't believe how well Shaggy was behaving with Ruby. In fact he was acting…happy to be with her. It was beyond anything Joan could dream.