Annoying thing.
Potty was glad he was at least half human, and able to get rid of that stupid collar his sister insisted he wear. He did not have fleas. He kept his fur clean, on head and tail. Besides, that collar was painful and rough on his neck.
He hated it, hated it, hated it, and no way in hell was he wearing it.
But his head was so itchy. He should've kept the collar on.
Placid whined and fished through the trash outside of the Yard. Where was that mangled up thing? He needed it. His pointed, furry, wolf ears twitched as he felt the little pests eat at his skin. Where is it?
"Prof?"
He knew only one creature called him that. Heart racing with the recognition, he scrambled out of the trash and saw Lucy, sheep ear perked up with an eyebrow in confusion. "Wot were you doing in the garbage bin, silly?" She questioned as he ran to her.
"N-No reason." He lied, flicking an ear as he felt another flea nibble at him. He wasn't going to tell Lucy about his collar problem. That burden was his and he needed to find that aggravating red strap before this could get any worse.
She let out a short, choppy breath, her usual sigh. "If you say so. I were worried about you, though. I saw your tail wagging out of the trash can and thought you were in trouble."
Not that kind of trouble, but Alfendi was in some. Tiny, relentless trouble that was literally eating at him. He gulped as she took his hand and lead him back to the Mystery Room.
Where was that bloody collar?
He didn't need it. He was fine.
No. He wasn't.
His legs shook and twitched under his desk. Their minuscule feet were touching at every cell on his head, teeth nibbling at each atom they possibly could.
Itchy, painful torture.
He had to find that collar.
Sharp nails dug into the skin of his palm as he told Lucy to get him the usual for the morning. When she left, his tail shook and he tumbled out of his chair.
They were all over him, crawling up and down his skin, and as he rolled around on the floor, he felt the annoying creatures gnaw at him.
Outside the Mystery Room, Lucy held his cuppa, though, she was more worried about the growling and whining coming from behind the door. She called to her mentor as she knocked on the door.
No answer. The cries stopped.
As she opened the door, she heard a shuffling noise from the desk, but the Prof wasn't in his seat. Strange. Lucy walked over to it, placing her mentor's drink down and pushing the vacant seat away.
Curled up under the desk, frowning and shaking, was the lone wolf. His ears were flat on his head, and when he saw her, he growled.
"Wot's wrong, Prof?" She reached out to touch him and yelped as he attempted to bite her. "Prof! Calm down!" Maybe it was the fear of his predator side snapping at her that stopped Lucy from yanking him out from under the bed. She wasn't going to just let him stay down there, that's for sure. Alfendi looked so upset, and twitchy, like something was eating him. "This is just childish, Prof! Just tell me." She exclaimed, sitting down in front of him. "It can't be ba-ad."
Alfendi cringed. It was bad. He told her though, as he had no other choice. He didn't want to hurt Lucy over his own problem, a problem that could've been easily solved, had his other not been so stubborn.
He didn't need the collar.
"Oh!" Lucy's fuzzy, light brown ears wiggled as she remembered something. From her pocket, she dug out a red and blue collar, a small golden tag with the letter A engraved on it dangling from it. "You mean this collar? I were wondering why I found it in the trash." Crawling over to him, she buckled the colorful thing around Alfendi's neck.
Half expecting her to choke him with it like his sister almost did, he grabbed one of her arms. Realizing quickly that she wasn't, he let her to and relaxed.
That felt so much better.
"There you go." She returned to her former sitting position reassured that her mentor was no longer troubled. At least for now.
Like she had just predicted, Alfendi made a small whimper. His tail began wagging.
When she looked up at him, her eyes widened. Instead of seeing a focused, aware gaze, Lucy saw eagerness, curiosity, and his tongue was sticking out. His ears were pointed up too. Lucy wasn't sure whether to be happy or nervous. It was his animalistic nature, wanting some attention, or lunch. She figured the former.
The half-wolf leaned forward and, without warning, jumped onto her lap, his face buried in the crook of her neck. His tongue ran up to her chin, more affectionate licks rather than hungry ones. He scrambled forward, wanting to be near her, panting heavily and tail rapidly swaying. He was far too eager to just be asking for attention.
He wanted love. The silly pup, even if he wasn't all that young anymore, still would forever enjoy the affection.
"Prof!" She laughed, trying to push him away.
His throat let out a squeak and he nudged her cheek, twitching and ear.
Finally, she understood what he wanted. Her fingers ran through his hair, and she pulled his head up, kissing his forehead.
Show me your love. Give me more but it's not enough.