Secondhand Cheeseburger (Solo!)

[Anonymous]

The streets of Connlaoth were slowly emptying out, the steady stream of passerbys dwindling to a scant trickle of stragglers making their ways to their homes. Overhead, dusk was enveloping the last hints of a sunset, painting the world it's feint blue before night took over completely.

For Serena, this was the optimal time to grab a bite. She teetered on the tip of her scuffed leather boot, trying her damnedest to get a good look within the cart of trash stationed at the side of the inn. The smell was foul, that was for certain, but the homeless girl knew better. For inside that cart - yes, amongst all that trash - was a feast waiting to be had. With all the scraps that came out of this inn's tavern, she might be able to get an entire meal out of this one stop alone!

Yep, this place was an absolute gold mine.

Resigning to the fact that she'd never get a worthwhile glance into the cart, Serena extended her arm, bending her elbow over the side of it's wooden lip and wriggling her arm around lamely. Fingertips graced the oddest of textures, such as wax, paper, sticky rag, old bread, broken glass... Eek! She recoiled back, examining her pricked finger with a scolded frown and knit eyebrows, and suckled the blood from her finger. But... Wasn't that bread she touched?!

Bravely, and spurred on by the complaining ache in the pit of her stomach, she confronted the bin again and felt around gingerly. "Hee! There it is!" Serena squealed in delight, simply incapable of containing it. She reeled in her lucky catch, eyeing the nearly whole cheeseburger she'd won.

Yes, nearly whole! The meat itself was burnt, so the meal must have been scrapped by the picky customer and, god bless him, thrown in the trash! "Yes! Yes, yes, yes!" The girl cheered, clutching the stale burger lovingly to the front of her make-shift dress as she twirled in circles. Her auburn hair spun around her face in coils, hiding her giddy smile from the innkeeper who threw open the side door with a sudden thud.

"'Ello? Quiet down there!" The old woman reprimanded, squinting down the dark alley to spy what had been making all the commotion right outside the windows of her sleeping customers, "'Ello!?"

She cupped a hand over her mouth, tiptoeing back and away from the aggravated lady until she was safely shrouded by the impending shadows. But nothing, not even being caught with trash in her hands by another person, could take away her sunshine. A nearly whole burger! It only had one bite in it. "Can you believe it?!" Serena chirped, nestling her body in between a sealed doorway and smoothing her hand down the front of her dress. This way, she was protected from the biting winds channeled within the alleys /and/ she had her very own burger!

She felt like today was her birthday!

[Anonymous]

Another creature was scrounging in the trash that night, but with far less luck.

The ginger and white dog snorted as he pulled his nose out of the rubbish, a fruit peel decorating his muzzle. He licked his lips and shook his head to rid his fur of undistinguishable grime. He looked down at his large paws with a quiet sigh and moved onto the next garbage bin. Hunting hadn't been too good lately; he hadn't been able to rush out onto the fields due to a couple of hunters taking shots at him. While some people were able to guess that he was just a great big husky, others saw the wolf half in his tawny-streaked fur and muscular and lean build. A half-tame wolf was a dangerous creature, unafraid of humans, and an arrow through the heart was the fate for any of them.

Nakkura saw it as a mixture of predatory instinct and punishment, and he'd slinked out of the meadow with his tail tucked and ears flat, wondering what he had done wrong to make the humans decide to eat him. Now, however, he'd forgotten much of that and was focused on his hollow stomach.

"Where's all the good stuff?" he complained with another quick shake of his head. He wrinkled his snout and walked back across the street. Gas lanterns lit up parts of the sidewalk; a few people stood in the glow cast by the oil-scented posts. He avoided them and paced onward, only half paying attention to his destination, pink nose erected busily in the air.

The smell he detected was far different than trash. Well, underneath the slight layer of grime and odor that a canine found interesting rather than repulsive. He grinned and wagged his tail. Female humans didn't like to stick around long, especially as the sun dipped out of sight and the skies bled with color. He stared up at the display of pink-ribbed clouds and then trotted toward the human scent.

The first thing he noticed about the young woman was the hamburger in her hands. Nakkura uttered a small bark and ran toward her, pausing at the edge of some invisible barrier yet leaning forward and sniffing. It was forbidden to beg from grown-ups, who kicked you, but kids willingly fed scraps to a cute stray dog. He hadn't tried it with teenagers yet, and this girl was somewhere between grown up and young, like someone on the edge of his own age converted to a human's lifespan.

Who knew; maybe she needed food worse than he did. Some of the folks he hunted with thought so. Borderline timid, he flicked his ears and continued to stare at the hamburger, sometimes flashing glances up at the young woman. If she said no, then he'd try to get over it, but he hoped she could at least give him some of the leftovers or point out where more food might be hiding.

[Anonymous]

The petite girl froze mid-bite when she heard the familiar little 'clicks' of dull claws versus the cobblestone-paved alleyway, and turned to crane her neck so that she might peek over the edge of the doorway she was huddled in. Having already been acquainted with many of the strays of Reajh - squirrels, felines, mutts, rats, and pigeons alike -, she had been expecting a familiar face when she spied the advancing animal with her large, brown eyes.

Needless to say, she was surprised at the sight of the large canine. "Woah, there!" She squeaked as he came barreling into view, then suddenly came to a stop as if there were some etiquette he was expressing. She held out her lithe hand, bony but soft, palm up towards the dog's muzzle. "Hi, puppy!" Giggling happily at her adorable find, she wriggled her fingers at him to beckon him closer, "I've never seen you before. Are you lost?" She scooted further out from her perch to finish the distance he'd left open, shimmying on her dirty knees onto level ground with the newcomer, "Come on, puppy... I won't hurt you!" Her voice was lilting, whispery soft and pitched high with intentions of inviting him closer. Then again, the change in her voice was closer to an internal wrestle, as she struggled desperately not to burst into baby talk and grab this dog by his heavily furred head and just... mush his ears! Oh, the temptation!

"Someone must be missing you..." Serena sighed, offhandedly using the hamburger to hold the edges of her dress down in the breeze. It was getting steadily colder as the sun retreated behind the horizon, and as Connloath was straddling the line between the arctic and a mountain pass, the weather, even in the spring, could be unforgiving. The next breeze went about dislodging her hair from behind her ears, and as she used the hamburger-hand to try to keep it back in place, it became quite apparent where her visitor's two-toned eyes were focused.

"Aha!" She acknowledged, pulling a teasing smile that wrinkled her small, freckled nose, "That's why you came to see me, hmm? You must've smelt my dinner with your pink doggy nose. Is that it, boy?" Hugging the brick of a burger back to her chest, she cocked her head at the abnormally large mutt, "Are you hungry?" It was as if she fully expected him to answer her back, like he would understand the common tongue and act upon her words. Had it been daylight, so that the scene might have been apparent to more of the citizens of Reajh, they might've shaken their head at the 'delirious' girl trying to hold a conversation with a dog. But, to Serena, there were no species barriers for her friends. Strays had to stick together, after all!

Besides, isn't every girl's weakness a big, fluffy dog?

[Anonymous]

The young woman noticed him immediately and greeted him in one of the many intricate ways humans greeted animals. Hers was an outstretched hand, which he would sniff from a distance, wagging his half-curled plumy tail to acknowledge her hello. Her scent was unusual, wrapped in some extract of plant, one of the several oils and perfumes that females liked to douse themselves in. He sneezed but wagged his tail again, harder, to show that he didn't mind this quirky aroma. So long as he didn't bury his face in her brown hair, he'd survive.

The girl greeted him with enthusiastic words, which would be a sweet and soothing collection of meaningless noises to any other dog. Nakkura, however, understood the language, with the intelligence and capability for words passed on from his father's heritage. He offered a snort when she asked if he was lost. Why would he be lost? He didn't have a real "home," even if he only vaguely recognized this part of the streets.

She gestured for him to come closer, and with odd eyes reluctantly unlatching from the hamburger, the large orange mutt stepped forward. Her voice was the overly friendly coo women attracted him with and was welcome. It meant safety and acceptance. He licked her arm and cocked his head as he listened to her words—only half-listening, really, as much of his focus was on her moving food. "If they missed me, they'd come find me," he responded distractedly, not that she'd understand. It was true he'd met many people in his lifetime, but few stuck out or kept him for long. No one cared that much anyway.

Then, the torture of staring at the unacknowledged meat was over.

The woman smiled and held the food closer to her, taunting him with an obvious question. He wrinkled his forehead slightly and uttered one sharp bark then proceeded to march forward and ram his head against her knees. It was very impolite, and might get him kicked, but the girl had exuded friendliness and acceptance, and he decided to risk it. She might even bless his ears with a laugh.

After this pushing with his face, Nakkura backed up and dropped his jaw in a cheesy grin. Most people might think he was just panting, but his relaxed ears and warm eyes told a different story.

[Anonymous]

Serena was hooked. He'd given her what she claimed was the 'doggy equivalent to a kiss' on her arm, had been wagging his tail fiercely, and that adorable sneeze... It was enough to pull on any canine-loving human's heartstrings, and this brunette in particular wanted to gain access to those large, fluffy ears of his. So cutely defying gravity atop his head. And, didn't it seem as if the stray understood what she'd said? His reactions weren't the run-of-the-mill dog 'slobber and woof' routine, but he had quite the appropriately timed display of responses to her words. Her interest was undyingly piqued with curiosity, and doubly so when he'd pressed his head against her folded knees.

"H-Hey! Okay, fine! I get it, you do!" She giggled, winking one eye shut nervously while her free hand shot out to balance herself against the cobblestone else she toppled from her kneeling position. Impolite indeed, but the proximity of those furry triangles to her hands had her pleased beyond all doubt. It was a shame her hands were preoccupied with that burger, else she'd snag the objects of her desire and pet them like she had pet no other ears before! That thought died out quickly, however, as the aching groan of her belly nearly ignited a tremor throughout her slight body and noisily made itself recognized amidst all of the glamor and excitement of finding a 'cute puppy in the streets'. The fact was, Serena realized with a light rub of her offending tummy, she either was going to devour the burger herself, or share it with the dog who had only bothered to find her because he had likely caught wind of her find and wanted some for himself. The reasonable choice was obvious, weighing the life of a human being against a canine, of finder's keepers, and of survivability in the wild.

Serena snapped the burger in half by breaking it over her knee, and slid the mildly inedible meal across the earth of the alleyway and before the rust-white mutt. "Here you go, boy," She murmured, increasing the volume of her voice towards the end of her offer to overcome the noise of the oncoming breeze, "Tell me. Do you grant wishes? Are you going to give me some for feeding you? Maybe three, like they say in the fairy tales!" It was troubling to think that it might have been Serena's reasoning for feeding the mutt against the odds, but the true inner workings of her mind remained a mystery, perhaps a function only of her whims and moralities, "Maybe if I kiss you on the nose, you'll become a prince and marry me. What do you think?" She gnawed on the hardened edge of her burger, tearing at the meat and continuing to talk in a very unladylike fashion over the efforts of chewing, "You're too pretty to be out and about without an owner. Someone /must/ have snatched you up. Do you have a name? How about ..." She tapped a finger against her chin, then on second thought, used it to brush away the crumbs of burnt ground beef off of her lip, "Fluffy! No.. Fang? Or... Rusty! How about Rusty?" Curled over her knees, she attempted to peer into the face of her wolfish friend, blinking wide brown eyes towards his mismatched hues, "Or Wolfie. You look like a wolf, don't you?"

[Anonymous]

The girl giggled and attempted to regain balance after he'd nudged her. He wagged his tail in response to her laughter and was glad she wasn't mad at him. When her stomach growled explosively, he leaned back and cocked his head to the side after the manner of a curious dog, eyes wide, one white brow-spot raised higher than the other. "You're a stray, too," he realized, lowering his ears slightly. That's why she didn't reek of other humans. He felt guilt, suddenly, and while any other mutt would have gobbled the burger up when she offered it, he hesitated and stared.

"I'm not that hungry, really," Nakkura protested. He lowered his head to sniff the meat, salivated involuntarily, and then his pink tongue shot out to lick the corner of it. Wondering how best to accomplish this, he surveyed it by every angle and then picked it up in his mouth. His fangs and other sharp teeth cut through it neatly, leaving a quarter on the ground. This, after swallowing his share in a single gulp, he nudged toward the girl. "You deserve more than me. You found it." He accentuated his words with a whine. He didn't stop to think she wouldn't want to eat food covered in dog slobber and picked up off the ground.

The young woman was speaking to him again, and Nakkura pricked his ears at her odd ramble. Wishes? He'd chased a fairy, once. They didn't have tails. When she offered him the bit about becoming a prince, he flattened his ears. The thought of marriage—a concept he couldn't understand—didn't linger for more than a second in his mind, but his stomach was beginning to hurt. Was it the burger? He settled his rump on the ground and watched the mash of food in her mouth as she spoke.

"My name's—" Nakkura began, straightening up, but when she offered suggestions, he quieted. Another name. He'd picked up a lot of those over the months. Fido, Ginger, Mutt, the list was endless. Some of the  names were charming, though. He sat politely through the spiel and shyly averted his eyes from her deep brown ones; it was impolite to stare.

Rusty? It sounded nice. Wolfie? About half the people he met thought he was a wolf, albeit a hybrid or one of unusually bright color. The tawny streaks along his shoulders was evidence of that, and if one looked hard enough in his coat, here were some black and silver hairs. Nature had given him a rather unorthodox pelt, and it might not have shown on a normal hound.

Nakkura wiggled slightly and waited for her to continue. He quite liked her voice. It was gentle and soft and while the baby-talk annoyed him after a while, her occasional bouts of it didn't bother him. She spoke to him almost like an equal.

[Anonymous]

(OOC: He's not actually speaking common, right? xD Serena can't hear him? She's just a regular hoomannnn)

Serena blinked aback at the discarded piece of burger rejected onto the ground, watched in half-awe as it settled in the impression midway between two cobblestones. She would have snatched it up herself, but the telltale glisten of canine drool upon the burger in the advancing moonlight had her refusing to. Instead, she peered back up at the husky-esque stray from between the tousled locks of her hair. "Hey, what was that? Are you on a diet? Watching your figure?" She teased, popping the last of her piece of burger in her mouth. Grinding her teeth down on it in trying attempts to break it into edible bits in her mouth, she belayed her speaking and instead rolled the soiled bit of burger towards the dog. "You'd better..." She mumbled over a mouthful of food, cupping her hand over her mouth as if she were in the presence of a human who would care for such manners, "...eat that! It's a terrible thing to waste!"

Serena rolled back on her heels, swallowing down her food - albeit, with difficulty-, and rounding back upon the fluffy discovery before her. "It's so strange that you aren't leaving me, Wolfie. Usually, once I give a stray some food, they'll take it and scurry on off! What is it with you, sitting here and listening to me?" The girl cocked her head at said 'Wolfie', tentatively reaching a hand out towards his head. She extended her arm slowly, however, to give the animal the time to reject her if he so pleased.  But would he? After all this time, wagging his tail and sitting through her babblings that were surely white noise to the ears of an animal? She wiggled her fingers at him, seeking the plush happiness that she imagined was surely what his fluffy pelt felt like. "You want me to pet you? Is that it? I'll scratch behind your ears! Oh, let me?" She crooned softly, inching towards him.

[Anonymous]

ooc; No, he's not speaking common. I guess I didn't make it clear enough. xD And after this bit, I don't know what else to do to make it interesting...

[hr:1izj07mg][/hr:1izj07mg]

The young woman stared at the piece burger he had offered, guessing in amusement at why he had given it to her. He flattened his ears slightly, frustrated that she didn't understand his gesture, though he was used to humans misunderstanding. Few of them stayed around long enough to realize he was different than the average dog, more intelligent, more human. Other dogs hardly understood it when he used radical ideas, but at least he could communicate with them in the simplified form of noises and body language.

She rolled the food back to him, and Nakkura licked his lips uncertainly. She insisted that he eat it and not be wasteful, so he tentatively picked it up in his mouth, chewing through the gritty, tough meat and swallowing.

The woman talked more and reached for him. He blinked then took a step forward when she paused to wiggle her fingers. He pushed his head up and into her palm, whining softly and wagging his tail.

[Anonymous]

It was unimaginable to most that a canine could understand their words, and any logical Connlaothan who believed magic to be the purest form of evil would have either up and fled from an animal who displayed such intelligence, or never believed in it to begin with. Though, Serena wasn't exactly your common civilian. 'He looks like a dog. He sounds like a dog! He even moves like a dog, but his eyes...' Serena mused whilst Wolfie stepped forward, as if he'd actually comprehended her spoken request, and less taken heed of her hand, '... something in them doesn't look bona-fide puppy.'

Though her thoughts died quickly, vanished the moment her skin felt the soft (and surprisingly thick) fur. She inhailed sharply, gasping happily at the acceptance he'd given her, and had even pushed his own head into her hand! Well, well. That was as surefire as any sign that he wanted her affections, no doubt! Serena wasted no time in digging both her hands into his fur, lovingly scratching and feeling all about, working from the top of his head down towards the objects of desire! Yes, those two perky ears, and it was all the girl could do to stop from squealing lest she scare the dog away.

Sliding her fingers behind the base of the ears, Serena worked up and tweaked them at their fluffy apex, squirming happily. "Aren't you so cute!" She chirped, leaning forward to run her hands up and down the fluff of his neck fur, "I bet you never get cold, hmm? No you don't! No you don't~!" Now, degraded to baby talk, Serena plopped her head into his fur, scritching around down to his paws, which she promptly took into her hand. "Aww, I loooveee puppiesss..." She drawled in pure happiness, entwining her fingers with the pads of his canine ones.

"But... hey!" She proclaimed, taking her other hand to root her fingers against the white half of 'Wolfie's' fur, "What's this? These hairs are different colors, aren't they?" Tipping forward to examine the fur closer, Serena narrowed her eyes to spy the sprinkling of black and silver strands amongst the clusterings of pure-white fur. "You really are a wolf, aren't you... Or maybe...!"

Grabbing his large head in her hands, she forced the poor thing to look directly at her. "Maybe you're a king! And you were turned into a dog by an evil witch? I hear Serendipity's king has gone missing. Is that you?" She stared at the dog expectantly, as if she supposed Common would simply just burst out of his maw, but carried on regardless, "You never know! You could have had your memory wiped. They say a kiss from a fair maiden can always break a witch's curse!"

With that little gem of fairy tale logic, Serena let her eyes fall shut dramatically and puckered up her lips, leaning forward to plant one on the canine's wet, pink nose... but halted about ninety percent of the way there. She cracked an eye open, furrowing her brows. "You have to go the rest of the way! That's the rule!" Came the bold declaration between the still desperately pursed lips.

Yeah... Serena wasn't exactly the sharpest tool in the shed, but one had to admire her [strike:2v2wvkob]desperation[/strike:2v2wvkob] [strike:2v2wvkob]insanity[/strike:2v2wvkob] imagination.

[Anonymous]

Nakkura loved being petted, for it meant good things, from praise to simple acknowledgement. She stroked his thick coat, and he wagged his tail harder. This felt good. Usually when people touched him like this it was brief, a pat or a scratch, but she seemed to be enjoying herself as much as him. His tongue lolled out of his mouth and licked her arms when they were within reach. However, her fingers touched behind his ears, and he grew still. He was used to kids pulling and tugging on his ears and tail, which made him hesitant to let people touch him in those places.

However, the girl had managed to scratch behind them, at just the right spot; he nudged his head back against her hand and allowed her to fondle his ears. Her voice became sugary and higher in pitch as she petted him before holding one of his paws. He raised one white brow and shook his leg to get it out of her grasp, though he didn't dare bite or make noise of protest. Wiggling, he pushed his nose against her hair when she peered closely at his coat. "My dad was a wolf, so I guess I can be one," he remarked while still trying to free his foot, but he fell silent when she grabbed his head to stare. His eyes hovered on her forehead rather than meet her brown gaze.

Nakkura scowled when she suggested he could have been a king, cursed into a canine form. Well, he was slightly different than other dogs, right? But so had been some of his old pack. It couldn't have been true that he was a king or some other person who simply didn't have memory.

But the girl was adamant to try it out. She pursed her lips and leaned closer to him. He stared at the human's encroaching little snout with incomprehension. Humans did this sometime, usually mothers to children or males to females. Sometimes a little girl-pup would kiss his head and his ears. Would this "kiss" thing break the spell?

Maybe I am something different or more. Maybe it'll work. And if not, then I know.

Comically, Nakkura squeezed his eyes determinedly shut and touched his nose to her lips.

With a yelp and a sprawl of limbs, a young man—or a grown, lanky boy—fell on his rear on the cobblestones. A blue and a brown eye peered through messy strands of ginger hair to stare at the girl before the boy twisted to look down at his naked, faintly freckled skin in a mixture of amazement and fear.

"OhmygoshamIreally—?"

The words rushed out of his mouth clumsily, and Nakkura gaped in disbelief as his words found sound.