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Hiruko looked up at the sky, then reached a hand out. By the time she pulled it back, it was soaked. The torrent of rain was far too much to go out in. If there was any consolation, they wouldn’t have to worry about Invaders getting through that. But at the same time, it meant that neither of them could get back to the school.
Hiruko let out a small sigh. “We’ll need to wait.”
Thankfully, she had planned for rain. Or rather, she had planned for many possible events that could arise when away from the school. As long as the school wasn’t attacked by the time they got back, at least. But she had food with them, and even if the rain were to last until night, they had materials to keep them safe and warm overnight.
With their personal safety sure, it just meant they had a lot of time to kill.
Hiruko would get a chance to play with her pet dog.
Really, she was more of a cat person. Dogs were too loud and rowdy. Cats were quiet and soft. They made for much better companions than humans did. Hiruko would have never considered a pet dog on her own. But when Darumi looked at her with those puppy dog eyes, Hiruko couldn’t just ignore her. Besides, if she didn’t give the dog attention, then she would start clinging to Hiruko’s leg, and that was annoying.
There weren’t many soft places to sit in rubble, but Hiruko managed to find something nice enough. She sat down, then gestured to her lap. Darumi hurried over to her, then rested her head in Hiruko’s lap. In return, Hiruko began to run her hand through Darumi’s hair in a gentle petting motion.
If they had more space in that room, if they didn’t have to worry about rubble and glass, if they had remembered to bring a ball with them, Hiruko might have thought to play fetch with Darumi. She always thought it was a bit too demeaning, even for Darumi. But Darumi thought otherwise. Darumi loved it. And if that’s what Darumi wanted, Hiruko would comply.
After all, this relationship was to make Darumi feel better. So if Darumi wanted something, and Hiruko thought she would feel better for it, she would do it.
Really made her think who actually had power in the relationship.
But even if play wasn’t an option, Hiruko could still pet her. She could still cherish her pet.
Her pet had been doing such a good job today, too. They each had bags with them for gathering materials, but Darumi’s was at least twice as heavy as Hiruko’s. Of course, a reward for that might want to wait until they were home.
But Hiruko made sure to let Darumi know how she felt. A gently whispered, “Good girl,” in her ear. That was a reward of its own. Hardly anyone would describe Hiruko as a gentle figure, but knew that meant it meant even more when she showed that side of her.
With the sounds Darumi was making, she sounded more like a cat than a dog.
Of course, when she wasn’t resting her head like so, she was undeniably a dog. A dog in human form. Hiruko was happy to indulge the fantasy, but sometimes it felt less like a fantasy and more like reality. Stranger things happened daily.
Hiruko knew that it was more like a reaction to the hardship that Darumi had experienced in her life. She had still only heard a little bit of it, but it sounded truly horrifying. Not that Hiruko hadn’t hardship of her own, she certainly had, but it wasn’t the same. Hiruko was strong. Darumi lacked that same kind of strength.
Most people did. Darumi was only notable for how much she had needed to endure.
Hiruko tried scratching behind Darumi’s ears. She always liked that.
Eventually, the rain began to let up. Hiruko gestured for Darumi to stand. She followed a few moments. They gathered their bags, then checked outside. Hiruko wanted to make sure the rain was truly over before they left. It would do them no good to leave a safe position, only to need a new one again in a few minutes. But the sky seemed to be clearing up, so they were safe to leave.
Hiruko was ready to get home. She was ready to fall asleep in her own bed. And maybe, when they got back, her dog would join her.