Estrangement

Disclaimer: Don't own Victorious

A/N:

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Chapter 29 (A Day at the Kennel)

"So I heard you'll be working for Kate." Tori was caught off guard by Courtney's statement. She just walked into the kennel and hadn't expected such a blunt greeting. Courtney was studying her from the front desk, she had a slight smile and an intrigued expression. "Congrats on the apprenticeship opportunity. I'm a little surprised you didn't decide to work with Emma. I would have thought you'd want to try and be famous."

She shivered with disgust and groaned, "Please." Courtney's expression changed to amusement and Tori slowly walked over to her. "Wanting to be famous is what got me in this mess and on bad terms with my sister in the first place." She leaned forward over the desk and folded her arms on the surface. "Besides. I've always wanted to be a veterinarian, always loved animals and always wanted to work with them. I know I lost sight of that when I went to Hollywood Arts, but that dream never went away. It just got overshadowed by something less…important to me."

"Well I'm glad you figured it out. So you'll be working with Kate the first week of June? She told me you wanted to help out here also." Tori straightened herself and nodded as Courtney began to smile. "It'll be a good thing if you do. My baby's due any day now, so it'll be less weight on my shoulders to have an extra hand here besides my workers."

"I'm happy to help out." She felt comfortable for once, like this was right where she needed to be. Of course, Courtney achieved half of their dream already. It was a shame they never opened it together, and with that being said, she didn't know just what extent she'd be considered, if she was working for Courtney or with her. "So, am I working for you, or-"

"Well as far as I'm concerned, you're working for Kate. She's your mentor and the one paying you for your time. If you're interested in being a partner, I'd take that into consideration." Her heart jumped up as Courtney started to grin. "I still remember wanting to open up a kennel together, so it wouldn't be too much to put you as a partner. My workers could deal with it as much as they wanted. You don't have to prove work ethic to me, either…"

Tori scratched her neck and started to chuckle as she thought about all she'd been put through. "Yeah, that surprises me a little. It's hard for me to see someone not expect me to prove myself now…"

"Well remember I've been seeing how you've been working too. So it's not like I don't know you can handle a job. That's not my issue with you, that's Trina's. She's the one that wanted you to learn that life lesson. For me, I guess it's just friendship, I don't know." Courtney put her hands to her hips and raised an eyebrow at her. "It still stings to remember your best friend trading you for vainer, shallower friends." Tori winced. Courtney sighed and walked around the desk. "I'm starting to get past that. I just hope you don't do it again."

"I wouldn't. I don't know how many times I have to tell people that, but I'm not the person I was back in Hollywood Arts."

"I know." Courtney's smirk deepened as her eyelids fell halfway. "Trina mentioned you going into the annoying little sister mode." Tori started to blush as Courtney lifted her hand into the air. "High five?"

"Definitely." She gave Courtney a high five and started to laugh with her. "I'm still proud of myself for it too, because it helped chisel a little bit of that excess stone away from her. I just hope maybe she'll warm up to me eventually. I know she realizes-and I realize-that I can take any job given to me…now it's just trying to get her to see that I can be serious about family."

Courtney clicked her tongue and motioned for her to walk with her towards the back kennels. "That's a tough one. She does not want anyone hurting her family, and as long as she can control who she lets in and whether or not she can let someone hurt them, she will do so. If she feels like someone is a threat, then she won't let them near."

"I'm not a threat, though. I don't have any ill intentions. I know there is twenty years worth of resentment to sift through, but I can't work on reconnecting if she doesn't give me a chance. I know I need to be patient and all that, but I just don't know how much longer I can keep hoping. I have to keep trying, even if it takes all my life."

"I don't think it'll be that long. She'll give you a chance. Just keep being patient and have faith."

"Jade's coming back up to have another session with us. She says she's going to suggest like supervised visits or something to help with Trina's trust issues."

"Well, that should help. She's already suggested that to you?"

"Sort of." It wasn't so much as a suggestion as it was a thought of what she would like to discuss with the sisters. "Anyway, I don't think I've asked, but what's the story behind Silk? How'd you find her?"

"The ASPCA brought her here. I called Kate over to give the dog its check up and everything." They stopped in front of the yellow lab's kennel and Tori peered down as Silk turned her head up. "We gave her the name Silky because her fur was as smooth as silk. She's a brave pup who deserves a good home, but she's shy around humans."

"I've never noticed." Tori opened up the gate and crouched down. The dog moved over, sniffing her for a minute before resting her head on her knees. Tori ran her hand through Silk's fur, amazed at how smooth and soft the fur was. "Do you think the last owner abused her?"

"Either that or some sort of neglect. She was in bad shape when she got here." Silk started to lick Tori's arm, tickling her. Courtney watched closely and tapped her chin. "Tori, we need to make our rounds and make sure all the animals are fed and watered."

"Okay." She hugged the dog, still laughing. "Do you think Trina allows pets in the apartment? I don't remember her saying anything about me having a pet…"

"You're thinking of adopting Silk?"

"But she's so sweet!" She rubbed Silk's face as the dog continued to lick her. Courtney smiled at the sight and shrugged.

"It's a possibility. You'd have to ask. I could draft up some adoption papers for you if Trina okays it. She might require a pet deposit like most landlords. You would have to be able to care for the dog, I think you know the responsibility that comes with it."

"I do, of course." To be honest, she'd only ever had one dog to take care of. When she got her first apartment, she adopted a small puppy. She spent every day with it, loved it with all her heart. Then one day she got evicted by the landlord because she wasn't making payments on rent; she had to move back in with her parents, and David said she had to get rid of the dog. "Dad never liked dogs much, I don't know why. I had a small puppy years ago and he told me I had to get rid of it."

"That sucks."

She guided the dog back into its kennel, then walked the rest of the kennels with Courtney, ensuring that all animals had ample food and water. They did the same with the cat room, then went back to the front. "The workers walk the dogs?"

"Typically I'll walk them, but yes, the workers walk them most of the time. I'm one person, so I can't take them all for a walk in one day. We also have to socialize them. There are some animals in here, obviously, that don't do well with humans."

"What happens to the ones that can't be socialized?" When she saw Courtney frown, she knew the answer. Her heart sank and she bowed her head. No one wanted to have to put an animal to sleep, but if they couldn't be socialized or made adoptable, it was better for that animal that they didn't have to live the rest of their days in a cage. "So you're the first step before they go to a pound or what?"

"We are a pound. I will not put an animal to sleep if they aren't adopted, there has to be a valid reason. If they can't be adopted because they can't be socialized, or if they have a sickness, like cancer, and can't recover, then they have to be put down. But the ones that are socialized and healthy can be adopted, I will not put them down if they haven't been adopted for any amount of time."

"That's good."

The bell at the door chimed, signaling someone entering. When Tori glanced over, she saw it was Sinjin. He waved at Courtney. "Sinjin, I thought you would be at work?" Courtney asked.

"Yeah I was heading to work." He crossed his arms and glanced back to the door. "I have a dog with me that I picked up on the way, thought I'd bring it to you. It was just laying on the side of the road."

"Did you pick it up or did he come to you?"

"Came to me." Courtney's eyebrows rose and she immediately walked outside. The others followed. Tori's heart sank when she saw a sad looking shaggy brown dog in Sinjin's back seat. Its head was hanging out the window and its eyes were drooping. "He's been listless the entire time. I'm not sure if he's old, wounded, or what, but figured I'd drop him off with you."

Courtney opened the door and the dog slowly climbed out. It wasn't a big dog. "It's an otterhound breed." Courtney ran her hand through the dog's fur, inspecting it. When she got to a particular spot near the shoulder, the dog whimpered. "Okay, so it is injured. Was he limping?"

"Yeah he did limp over to the car. I was worried he'd been hit." Courtney knelt down, continuing her inspection.

"I can't make any assumptions just yet, he doesn't look like he's been hit by a car, but something injured him." Her fingers tucked beneath a red collar, then slid down to the front where a tag hung loosely over the dog's chest. "Okay, so he's not a stray. I'll call Kate up and have her look at the dog. Tori, could you grab a leash from the desk?"

"On it," Tori hurried inside and grabbed a leash from one of the drawers, then ran back outside. Courtney then led the dog inside. Tori looked towards Sinjin, giving him a light nod. "Thanks for bringing the dog here, Sinjin." Sinjin smiled and moved for his car.

"Well my sister is one of the best rescue shelter owners around, I couldn't just leave the dog on the side of the road, she'd be pissed at me."

"Yeah, we'll take care of the dog."

"Oh? You're working with her now?"

"Maybe, she said I could be a partner if I wanted to. I'm working with Kate, actually."

"Ah. Well, Kate can teach you a lot, I'm sure." Sinjin checked his watch as Courtney walked back outside. "Okay, I need to start back on the road. Thanks for taking the dog in, Courtney."

"No problem," She waved at him and looked back to the door. "We'll let you know how he does." They waited as Sinjin drove off, then made their way back inside. Tori looked to the dog, now sitting in front of the desk. Its right paw was barely touching the ground, which concerned her.

"You think maybe his leg's broken?"

"Could be, I called Kate up, so she'll be on her way over."

"Good." She sat on the corner of the desk and looked towards the door. Something was bugging her, and she wasn't sure what. Nothing was wrong, it was just a little sadness, she wished that Sinjin would have said more. Sure he had to get back to work, but why couldn't he at least say hi? Then again, she already knew the answer to that. "So you guys…you, Sinjin, Trina, your family, you're all close knit, right?"

"Yeah. Sinjin usually does chat a little more if he ever drops by. He must have been in a hurry to get to work."

"Or he hates me and was avoiding me." Courtney rolled her eyes and shook her head.

"No, I doubt that. If anything, he probably just doesn't know what to say to you." True, she couldn't blame him there. As far as he was concerned, she was the source of his wife's problems back in the day. If she were in his shoes, she'd be unable to think of any way to hold a conversation. "Anyway, if you're going to be sticking around, now's a good time for you to help me out."

"Sure, I'll be glad to stick around." There wasn't anything else she had to do today..

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Well, what are your thoughts? Next chapter is another joint session with Trina, Tori and Jade. Tori's got what she wants on the business end of things, and as far as career wise and personal life goes things are starting to look up, now it's the climb for what she wants most of all, her family.