Weathering the Storm [Open]

[Vixen]

Arabia

Passing time often ended up being a nightmare that could not be harnessed, the rain would pulsate like a forbidden dance on the ground. While it should have been reassuring, almost a lullaby, it was far from putting the dog laying on the ground in the state of mind she wished to turn to. Her body ached instead, ignored the fact she would likely be quite mistreated in her old age. If the rain brought on the warning signs now, while she was still little more than a pup, then the end of her life would be filled with stiffness and torment. Not something anyone would want to look forward to with a little bit of common sense. While she would have been tempted to curse, what good would it have done? A riding feeling that she was going to be sunk down the nearest drain was not something she wanted to embrace. The tension was the faintest in her features, and the consideration made her want to creep forward. The rain would hammer down upon her, and in moments her dry coat would be stolen away from her. Was that really something that she wanted to look into? The head tilt was enough to make her lift her head off her paws, and the side was uttered. The overhang was a small thanks, but it was still not what she could have liked. Once upon a time there was the rare night where she could slip into the warm embrace of a house. Living with humans had not been something to forget, even if the life had been bad. Being permitted to come around and track through the windows in exchange for a few hours on a couch had been nothing short of heaven. What a fool she had been to think it had all been that easy, to think it would ever stay that way when so many night terrors were chasing her. Dark eyes opened, and the hint of displeasure shined on the shepherd’s face. Nothing about being homeless made sense to her, not when she had already had the nobility lecture. Oh, the last of her breed she had ran into had been such a joy. They had told her exactly how worthless she was for not doing her job, not protecting her human at all cost. Why would she ever protect a human that had tormented her, caused her to cry when he accidentally burned her tail on his smoke pipe? The mere notion was not something that set well in the intelligent mind. Her paws gripped the ground and the hint of a growl lingered under her voice, her tongue flashing over her lips. Anxiety was not something she would have assumed was hunting her down, it was not a trait that was well expected. Still, Arabia had never enjoyed the rain, the wind. It had never been something she had been interested in, it reminded her of guns. Many times she had been explained in a roundabout way what a gun did. While her human was high, he often liked to explain how he would use them. How many deaths of humans she had seen? More than the amount of dogs she had seen in her entire life. Everything from her youth was such a blur, and as her head turned, the pinch collar reminded her why. That dog would kill anyone it could touch, let alone your fuzzy rat. She was deemed something she thought was inappropriate, but what did it matter? No one had ever asked her opinion on the matter, and while she had been welcomed to the taste of blood in her mouth, it was still an empty feeling. There was never a chance given, so why could she have expected things to turn out differently? The sigh rolled out into the air, ears flicked on top of her head with the harder sounding rain. The intensity of the storm clouds was increasing before her very eyes, and she felt the shiver of awareness roll through her body. What could she do to make it go away? Nothing, so there was nothing to do while she huddled against the side of the building in the alleyway, knowing there was no other option. At least if she startled herself into wanting to eat, she would not have to go far.

[HokeyPokey]

z a r a
female | stray dog | 2 yrs, 6 mo

The night was cold thanks to all the rainfall. Zara had lost her favorite scarf to the drain on the curb. She chased the scarf for half a block before it disappeared underground. Her fur was wet and matted, her paws were cold, and her stomach was rumbling to remind her that she had skipped another meal. Dinner. The grey-colored female hopped on to the sidewalk so she was no longer in the road, and she shook herself until she felt more dry than before. Of course, her long coat was surely damp nonetheless. She stood under the overhang of a closed shop though a fireplace was lit. She stood there for a moment, peering into the warm space and getting lost in the dancing flames. "Someone should have turned that off, all it takes is a spark and this whole place will go up in flames. Silly humans..." Her green eyes rolled in her skull, her white paws unsticking her from in front of the window. Her tail swept low behind her and the raindrops felt like a massage on her back once she stepped from under the over hang.

Zara wasn't sure what she was going to do for the rest of the evening. The weather was awful but manageable, and she hadn't seen a dog in sight, but she knew in the back of her mind she wanted to get her paws on another scarf. Not a wooly scarf, but light and airy for decoration rather than warmth. She had enough fur to keep her plenty warm, she honestly just loved collecting scarves, from stores and from rich ladies in the park. Main Street was usually a hit, considering the endless boutiques on this side of the city. Zara's stomach rumbled again. "If only I could create food out of thin air," her thought was brief. She glanced around, seeing a dark building adjacent to the corner she halted at.

Vision was not her best sense, she is actually partially blind in her right eye but won't tell anyone. Her ears flicked while she tried listening over the machine gun-like rain falling onto the city. Zara waited for the crosswalk to signal she could cross, safely, and crossed. She was growing eager to find out what she saw. Was it a bag of trash that may have some left overs inside? A cat, which are tasty if they're plump? Or a stinky human who is rejected by his own kind? No matter, Zara would come to a conclusion. She crossed the other street once the signal flashed brightly from the corner. She barked, in case it was alive, canid or humanoid, to encourage movement so she could rule options out before she actually approached. "I am far from a threat!" she exclaimed with flattened ears to avoid rain trickling into her ears and causing infection. Her tail stiffened as she closed in on the object... It was a skinny dog!

speech thought

[Vixen]

Arabia

It never stopped amazing her how being alone would end on a note that was a surprise. Her head tipped to the side, and out of the shadows came a marching set of paws. She absently noted the dog-sized creature coming for her in the rain and the sigh bubbled out of her mouth. Should she be courtesy? Of course, it would never kill her to offer a little bit of a speak up, but her head raised and eyes washed over the sight that came into her view. What a pretty little girl. The German shepherd fought away a bit of a mocking smile, but managed to hold her tongue. There was no reason to be impolite, as long as the little girl proved not to be obnoxious. It caused her fur to bristle with the bark regardless, and she twisted around and rose to her paws, giving her full height as she eyed the approaching canine. Not a threat. While Arabia dared to question the meaning behind the words, she simply took a few cautious steps forward. There was no reason for her to lack confidence, she had been beaten enough by panicking humans to put up with a dog fight. So if the female was carrying some false information in her well meaning tones, he would have to deal with it. So her head cocked to the side, and she cleared her throat. "Why aren't you inside?" Tones were gruffer, a testament to the fact she had not spoken in quite a while. Tail lifted faintly, but her large ears simply swayed forward, expectant. "It's wet out." The words were a bit lame to her own ears. Of course it was wet out. While she had come across plenty of strays, none looked like they should be curled up in a bunch of frilly pillows like this one did. The thought caused her to wince, and her tail swished loosely, once, before she stilled herself again.

[HokeyPokey]

z a r a
female | stray dog | 2 yrs, 6 mo

A rainstorm was the least of Zara's worries. As a stray, she was not caught up with seeking shelter. She did so when she was tired, but no reason to be hiding out when positive energy flowed through her today. She reached the curb and stepped under the overhang where her paw pads could feel dry concrete.

The mottled female shook out her coat before she traced the wall of the building to stand a few feet from the German Shepard. Her folded ears pushed forward as she listened to the other dog's response. She was concerned with Zara being outside in the "wet" weather. Zara exhaled a light giggle, "I could have asked you the same question, but I'm sure we both know why we're not inside." Zara winked, as best she could anyhow, and sat her damp haunches to the cold concrete beneath them. "What does she think I am, some fluffy house-pet?" she thought silently to herself. Her feathered tail flopped around on the ground as she thought a little more, "There's no other place I'd rather be."

"Filthy humans," she spat audibly, not realizing she had broken from her thoughts. She lifted her gaze to the other dog. She wasn't ugly nor extremely appealing, but she was interesting enough. "Did you get kicked out or something?" Zara began to pry before introducing herself. Sometimes a name wasn't all she wanted or cared for at all. She reached towards her head with her back paw as an itch begged to be scratched. She slightly grunted when her claws hit the spot-- her tongue also inched out of her mouth which added to her aloof demeanor even moreso.

speech thought

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[Vixen]

Arabia

This was not the type of conversation she would have expected to have, the staunch reply was enough to make her ears roll back against her head. No, she was perfectly capable of surviving out here in the rain. If she got wet, she could shake it off fast enough. On the other hand, the fluffy pot of love and fur before her would be damp for quite a while if it wiggled into the undercoat. Tail swished from on side to the other, and she offered a heavy sigh. The exclamation about humans had the rich coated female jerking through, surprised at the venom that could come out of such a cute little mouth. It was enough to have her eyes looking in stronger assessment, nose flaring as she attempted to absorb her thoughts. Why would someone say something like that in this weather? There wasn't any reason for her, at appearance, to be so broken by humans. "Thrown out?" Her words repeated, testing them. "No, I was due to be put down." The explanation was soft on her tongue, bitter as she said it. "The dark coated humans came and apprehended my human, and I was deemed a danger to them." Her head twisted, and the pinch collar dug in with a reminder. The female winced briefly, and a slight laugh filled the air. The notion that she had gotten away still shocked her to the core. It would have been so easy to just give in and go with the humans, but they had no intention of being gentle with her. Her mind wandered over what she had said, "I believe they're known as officers, they control the human laws. I never really paid attention, because my human always called them pigs," Careful words were happy to diverge the basic information. She was more thoughtful on the subject than not. But as the female seemed to be making herself at home, Arabia shifted back, forcing a little more space between them, still staring almost like the female might disappear if she blinked.