Glacier Pherret
MoinMelody stopped for a moment and looked at the heartwarming scene behind her. Snow was still beside herself with joy over the night fall of delicate snowflakes, occasionally wriggling her tail feathers as she gazed, completely awestruck, into the night sky. "Come on, Snow," Melody coaxed gently. Snow gave a squeaky honk and hurriedly waddled to just behind Melody's ankles. Snow curiously looked up at Melody with her piercing blue Arcti eyes and almost tipped over backwards from the effort.
Melody scooped Snow up into her arms and gently snuggled her close. If such an adorable minion wouldn't lift her spirits, she wasn't sure what would. After a few moments, Melody noticed that Snow's attention had drifted beyond them, into the window of a pet rescue facility across the street. Snow's wide eyes and intensely uninterrupted gaze intrigued Melody - the tiny Arcti had a noticeably short attention span under normal circumstances. She wondered what was so different about that building. Finally, she decided to find out.
The Arcti seemed to get more and more excited as Melody carried her closer to the window until they were so close that she could no longer hold on to Snow. Melody gently placed her onto the outer windowsill and peered inside. Glass "playpens" of various breeds of animals and minions were everywhere. Some were sleeping; others were playing or eating.
Melody looked back down at Snow, whose gaze was still intensely fastened on a playpen right behind the glass. Melody observed the playpen: there were roughly twenty pherrets of various shapes, sizes, and colors... but the most remarkable thing about it was that one pherret alone was returning Snow's gaze. Frowning, Melody gently said, "You'd be nothing more than a snack to him, Snow, sweetie."
Neither animal's gaze had faltered, however, so Melody opened the doors to the shop and walked inside without the distracted minion. A cheery elderly lady greeted her, asking if she was looking for anything specific. Hesitantly, Melody replied, "Umm, yeah. You see that pherret over there in the corner?" She pointed and then continued without waiting for a reply, "He seems to have an intense interest in my Arcti and she - well, I'm sure you can see how much she returns the interest. So, uh, I guess what I'm asking is whether they would be good companions?"
"First of all, dearie," the lady replied, glancing briefly at a clipboard she had located, "that pherret is female. Blue isn't always a boy's color, you know. Gender roles are just a part of our silly culture -" The woman's voice trailed off as Melody let her continue her rant in favor of eyeing the pherret closer. Finally she interrupted the still-rambling woman to ask the question that hadn't been answered - whether they would make good companions or whether Snow would turn into tonight's dinner.
"Oh sure, dearie. They would make most excellent companions. Just look at the way they look at each other, like starcrossed lovers..." The woman clicked her tongue and sighed dreamily, almost longingly as she continued watching them. Melody quickly asked if she could be completely sure before considering an adoption - she was still quite skeptical about Snow's safety. The woman replied, "Just bring your sweet little Arcti in here, dearie, and I'll show ye."
Melody glanced in the pherret's direction again before exiting the store. The shopkeeper had sounded so sure of herself, but Melody was still skeptical as she scooped the little Arcti into her arms. Snow gave an irritated honk and glared at Melody. Melody just replied, "Oh, hush you."
Back inside the store, the shopkeeper still waited with a clipboard and a pair of gloves. She led Melody to an area with an empty playpen and told her to wait there. Melody nodded and watched the woman as she put on her gloves and went over to the pen with the icy blue pherret. The pherret was gently picked up and carried over to the empty pen beside Melody. The pherret made eye contact with Snow again before she ever made it into the playpen, which made Snow squirm with excitement. The pherret's paws finally made contact with the bottom of the pen, and immediately she pressed against the glass to get as close to Snow as she could. Snow squirmed out of Melody's arms, waddled across her legs to the glass, and stared. A few moments passed, and then the pherret yawned and rolled over onto its back, staring up at Snow from upside down. Snow shifted her weight to each flipper, wiggled her tail, and then honked.
Melody looked up at the shopkeeper. "So, what now?" The woman was looking at her clipboard taking notes. Eventually she stopped and replied, "Well, dearie, typically we put them both in the pen. If they fight, there are measures we can take to make sure they both remain safe. If they get along and you wish to adopt this pherret -- oh, her name is Malladea by the way -- it would cost you 1000 gold. She would be up to date on shots and several of her favorite toys would be included, as well as her bed."
Melody's throat was dry. There were measures in place to make sure they both remain safe? What kind of measures? She gulped, nervously, and then squeaked her consent to add Snow to the pen with the pherret with a name so similar to her own. The shopkeeper scooped Snow up and gently placed her on the floor of the pen. Malladea didn't move, but strained her eyes to watch Snow. Snow waddled over to Malladea and tripped over her fluffy tail because she was too entranced trying to hold her gaze. As Snow laid there stunned, Malladea rolled over in the opposite direction, then turned and nuzzled Snow. Snow sneezed before returning to her own two feet.
The two circled each other, sniffing and nudging. Eventually Malladea yawned again, curled up into a ball, and closed her eyes. Snow looked at her for a moment, then honked. Malladea didn't even open her eyes, so Snow forced her way between Malladea's chest and tail to lie down for a nap herself. Soon Melody left the store with a bag full of toys, a plush pherret bed, and a crate of two happily sleeping companions.
For the rest of the night Melody handed out gifts while Malladea and Snow slept. Most pets would sleep by a fireplace, but not those two. They preferred to sleep squished against the coldest window they could find, or in the bottom of the bathtub.
At midnight, Melody was exhausted and was just finishing up getting ready for bed when she heard a frantic knock at her door. She wrapped a fluffy red robe around herself to prevent herself from becoming too chilled, and opened the door. A single Subetan stood outside, shivering in the cold. "Am I too late?" the girl asked. Melody looked at a clock to her right, and then to a stack of almost-empty crates by the door. Melody smiled and welcomed the girl, whose name she learned was Moin, inside while she rummaged through the crates. She took out one of each item she had handed out today, but one thing was missing - an Arcti. She frowned as she looked at the happy companions on the windowsill.
"Well," Melody began, "here are a few things. You were supposed to get an Arcti as well, but...." Melody pointed toward the windowsill. The girl smiled and made a comment about how they were so adorable together and she wouldn't want to separate them. Melody thought for a moment, and then suggested she take them both. Moin tried arguing because they looked so content on their windowsill, but Melody reasoned that she was too busy during Luminaire to take care of pets anyway.
Finally, Moin agreed. It seemed weird to argue with someone like Melody anyway. Melody fetched a cup of warm apple cider from the kitchen and directed Moin to sit somewhere while she prepared them to leave. Just as Moin finished the last sip, Melody had everyone ready, including all of their toys and bedding. Then Moin exchanged the cup for the sack of toys and the pet carrier, thanked Melody profusely, and went on her way.
TC to be updated soon
