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Bussing to Sisky’s gives him time to think as a human. Mostly Nate just thinks about how much he’s going to enjoy what’s about to happen. He knows why Gabe and Victoria are making such an elaborate scene, aside from the simple fact that Gabe takes pride in building scenes, to the point that planning could almost be his slant. He doesn’t need tonight, but you don’t have to need something to like it.
By the time the bus stops at the school it’s nearly four. Nate gets a double seat to himself, but doesn’t hope to keep it for long. Four is officially rush hour, getting off work hour. That means there will be men and women waiting at each stop instead of the majority being empty for the driver to sail past like it is later in the evening. As the seats start to fill Nate sighs and prepares for the inevitable. He pulls his backpack from the seat beside him and plunks it on his lap. Two stops later a girl slightly older than him fills the spot. Nate can’t help but check her out. She’s beautiful. Not in a Victoria perfect dom way, he can tell she’s a sub before she pulls back her windblown hair and reveals a collar. It’s spiked, like his. He wonders if she has a similar slant, or if her dom(s?) just liked it. He won’t ask though, it’s a bit personal for a bus ride.
He rings the doorbell as his last human act, then falls to his hands and knees on the porch. The position is centering for him. It reminds him of what he really is. A man opens the door. He looks friendly and Nate wants to be friendly so he moves forward and licks the man’s knee. The man hesitates for a second before holding out his hand. Nate doesn’t have to lick it to know he’s good. Bad people smell different. This man just smells like peanut butter and jelly. But he does. He licks the palm until every trace of food is off.
“Are you lost?”
Dogs can’t talk. Nate arches his neck to start licking the man’s wrist. It doesn’t taste like peanut butter, just people. People like it when you lick them though.
“Okay doggie, I guess you can come in while I call your owners. But don’t attack my cat.” Nate growls, but not enough to make the man not like him. If the beast doesn’t come near him he won’t go after it. The man leaves the door wide open behind him and Nate follows him through it.
The man picks up a thing. Nate growls when noises start to come out of it. The ringing stops and he relaxes, but only for a moment. When voices start coming out of the thing -his man owner’s voice- he yips. “Hello?” He barks back, saying hello and come find me and are you trapped in that machine?
“Hi, my name is Adam Siska. I found your dog?”
“Oh my god, you found Natey?”
Nate barks happily, drowning out the new man. That’s Victoria, his human mom.
“Yeah, you heard that, right? His tag said to call you.”
“We’re coming, but we need to finish our shift. Can you take care of him for a little while longer?”
“I guess? He’s staring at my couch though.”
Nate barks. Of course he’s staring at the couch. He wants to sit on the couch. Couches are good. He can see it across the hall, plush and amazing.
“If he gnaws a cushion lock him in another room. But it should be fine.” Gabe raises his voice. “Be good, Natey, don’t chew.”
The new human -Adam, he said. Nate remembers, he’s good at remembering. He’s not a dumb chihuahua- puts the machine back on the wall. Nate follows at his heel when he walks out of the room. Close, but far enough back that Adam doesn’t trip. Victoria doesn’t like tripping on him. Adam probably won’t either. He goes into the room across the hall and sits on the couch, another machine in his hand that makes the big machine on the wall make noise. Nate flops his face on the cushion beside Adam and whimpers.
“Oh doggie. I hate it when people dress up their animals. You must be uncomfortable. I don’t think your owners would mind if I took your damn clothes off, not when you look so overheated.”
Adam skritches his head before sitting up and leaning over to peel all the clothes off. Nate licks Adam’s hand in appreciation. He has to wear clothes far too often for his liking. But he still wants on the couch. As Adam throws himself back against the cushions Nate whines again.
“What? Are you hungry? I don’t have any dog food. I dunno if dogs can eat cat food. I guess I could google it.” Nate gives him the best look he can, and flops hard against the couch. “You can’t eat my couch, my parents would freak.” Nate whines. “How about you just sit beside me and wait for your owners to feed you? I’m sure they’ll have food for you.”
Adam pats the brown suede beside him. “Up!” Nate gratefully follows the command. Adam doesn’t tell him to stay, but Nate will. Adam pets him, his hand running slowly down his back over and over again. It’s nice.
After a while the doorbell rings. Nate barks loudly. Maybe not as wildly as he would for Gabe and Victoria, he doesn’t need to protect Adam like he needs to protect them. But enough for the intruder to get the warning. If someone hurts Adam he will bite them, hard. Adam doesn’t seem as concerned, he gets up and goes towards the front door without even barring his teeth. Nate keeps growling, just in case.
He stops as soon as Adam brings the person into the room. It’s not a person, it’s people. It’s Gabe and Victoria, his people. He leaps off the couch and scurries across the floor towards them, slipping slightly on the wood.
“Did he attack your furniture? Of course we’ll reimburse you.” Gabe reaches into his pants. Nate doesn’t like pants, or anything else they put on their furless skin. And he really doesn’t like it when they do it to him.
Adam shakes his head. “No, not at all. Nate was good, we just watched tv together.”
That makes Victoria happy enough to skritch him. The skritch makes Nate happy. He moves in and rises until he can hump Victoria’s leg. It doesn’t feel right, doesn’t feel like her. She’s wearing tights under her skirt. Nate doesn’t like tights either.
They clip the leash to his collar, thank Adam again, and give him a chance to lick Adam’s hand goodbye. Then they walk him to the car, Victoria’s hand tight on his leash, his show clothes a bundle under Gabe’s arm. There’s not enough room to curl at Gabe’s feet so they let him have the whole back seat. The tinted glass is still rolled up so he can’t stick his head out for breeze.
“End scene. Sorry, you can’t come in my house naked. My moms would have opinions.” Gabe sounds apologetic, but Nate just nods. He knows Gabe’s moms don’t get mad, or disappointed, they just have opinions.
“Was it what you needed?” Victoria is looking at him in the rear view mirror.
He nods again, even though it’s not quite true. That scene wasn’t just for him, probably wasn’t even mostly for him. It was for them, and checking that their relationship was still secure after Gabe scened with other people. He still hasn't said who but Nate doesn’t really care anymore. He’s not gonna do it again, and it couldn’t have been better than what they just did. “It was good. We’re good.”