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Snow Flower

"Sanya!"

Lyon woke drowsily at the sound of the voice, her ears drooping lazily. In front of her knelt a green robed man, his face twisted into disapproval. Confused and wondering what she had done, she hastily opened her mouth to ask but somehow only mewled softly. She was so surprised at the cat-like sound that she clamped her mouth shut, but the worker only laughed and stroked her ears pleasantly.

"Not you Lyon, sorry to have woken you," He smiled before shifting his gaze a little. "I was talking to the manager's runt."

Curiously Lyon shifted her head to glance beside her and was surprised to see another face resting against hers. One beautiful emerald eye was drowsily half open, peering up at the worker. The worker shook his head and reached down to grab its ear, twisting it slightly.

"Ow, ow! I'm up, Len, I'm up!" a melodic, feminine voice cried out quickly as someone rose from on top of her.

Rising up into a sitting position herself, Lyon stared surprisingly at what seemed to be a female dog. She hadn't even noticed the dog sleeping on top of her until the worker had pulled her off, but now that she thought about it, it had felt pretty warm and comfortable..

"How many times have we told you to not sleep on top of others?" Len said, sighing. "Apologize to her."

The wolf-like dog turned her pretty head towards Lyon and smiled warmly. "Sorry I found you comfortable to sleep on."

In spite of herself Lyon couldn't help but laugh. "It's all right, I didn't mind too much. Just ask next time, all right?"

Seeming satisfied, Len walked through the large pen and opened the keycard door with a smooth swipe. Now that they were alone Lyon considered the dog curiously. She was definitely what Lyon would call beautiful with attractive white skin that was silky and smooth. Her snowy white hair was as long as Lyon's and fell down to her waist. The dog's long tail and perky ears matched in color, both of them as white as everything else about her, but her tail seemed especially fluffy. Almost like a fox tail, really. What stood out most about her though was her emerald eyes, each vibrant and full of life, each sparkling like gems in a queen's scepter.

"Hey," the dog said cheerfully, leaning forward and licking Lyon's cheek in a friendly manner. "My name is Sanya, my master says it means "snow flower."

"You certainly look like one. I'm Lyon, nice to to meet you."

Sanya eyed her with unhidden respect. "Master told me about you, the cat that's smarter than even me."

"I'm flattered, I guess.."

"You should be, learning is hard!" she replied with a smile, then sat next to Lyon. "You have met everyone else already?"

Lyon nodded. She had, mostly throughout the past week, but animals with a new owner were required to stay for at least an hour every week for observation. That meant each day usually a few new animals or ani were present for a little while so she was still meeting a few. This dog was probably one of those.

"What do you think of the center? Fun, huh?"

"It's all right.."

Lyon wasn't especially fond of the center, but she didn't hate it. There really wasn't anything wrong with it. The food was nice, the workers really loved animals and were very kind, and the place was as interesting as anything she could recall. It was like a park, pen, restaurant, and store for both animals and humans all in one. The pens they were kept in were spacious and comfortable, each area sectioned off for a different reason. Where she was now at, for example, was delightful for naps. The glass ceiling above let sun soak the area and the flooring was made of a spongy material that would have been nice enough to sleep on alone even if there wasn't a sea of pillows and other soft surfaces to snooze on and under. There was even a human-like bathroom and a section with a lot of human-like things they could do under supervision, such as watch television or use any of the many artistic supplies and games. She also had to admit that rolling around and scratching her claws on everything in the aerobatics area also felt sinfully good..

Sanya wagged her tail happily as she glanced at Lyon. "I like it a lot. My master brings me here often when I'm not training. I miss all the fun and my friends, even the strange ones like Daggy."

"I've met Daggy," she replied with a knowing smile.

The workers had asked her to forgive him because his behavior was pretty normal for his breed, a Golden Kaiser, but there was really nothing that needed to be forgiven. He was a bit proud, but very kind. There had however been a bit of confusion when he had first come over to greet her. Lyon had exchanged scents with him (she had quickly learned that scents were everything to most ani and animals; trading scents was like exchanging finger prints and meant you trusted the other ani.), but had been surprised when he had nipped her ear and then waited expectantly. It took a bit of clumsy bodily communication between them to sort it all out because he refused to flat out say what he wanted, but eventually she had understood and submissively lowered her head, ears drooping and tail between her legs. He had placed a hand on top of her head and nibbled on her ear and neck hard enough so that his fangs hurt, but not enough to make her bleed. By not challenging him in response to the pain she had accepted him as her superior.

The ani world really was more complicated than she had first expected. "He's a good dog, smart too."

Sanya nodded and then continued to sit silently next to her, her gentle eyes watching Lyon. The beautiful dog seemed friendly enough, but she made Lyon feel a little uncomfortable. Aside from the greetings Lyon had pretty much kept to herself in some corner or another, thinking and wondering. Having company was...different, than what she was becoming used to.

"Um, why are you staring at me?" she finally asked, unable to bear it any longer.

"I'm just enjoying your company, Lyon~," the dog replied warmly in her lovely voice, her tail sweeping side to side behind her. "You seem a bit lonely and sad, though. Want to talk to me about it?"

She was pretty observant.. Lyon gave her a soft smile and waved her tail dismissively. "I'm just feeling a bit out of place, that's all. Thank you for worrying about me, though."

"I know what the real problem is, I think."

"Do you?" she replied without much enthusiasm.

"Yup! I had the same problem too for a little while." Sanya shifted around so that she knelt in front of Lyon and leaned forward until their faces were almost touching. "You think too much."

Lyon blinked in surprise, then shook her head. "That's not what's wrong, and I don't think it's a bad thing anyway."

"It can be. You're smart like me, so I know how it feels. You want to be treated like a human."

Again, Lyon was surprised. "I guess.."

"We're not human though, even if we're as smart as most of them." Sanya smiled easily, but Lyon couldn't help but feel touched each time she did. They seemed honest, just like her. "If you were a human anyway, would much really change? You'd be in a pen like this one. My master has one, but it isn't as big or as nice and she has to share it with someone else. They both work hard to keep it. The entire pen isn't even hers, she has a smaller part of it we live in."

"That's.. a good point, actually." It wasn't exactly the same, but the dog was right in a way. A house wouldn't be as nice as all this and needed money to keep, but at least it was 'yours'.

"We get to play all day and eat good food. My master always tells me she is jealous of that," she continued. "And it may be a bit lonely now, but you're a cute and very smart kitten. Someone will buy you eventually and then you will have a family that loves you."

"I hope so, anyway." Lyon smiled brightly, probably for the first time in the last few days. "I'm pretty expensive you know."

Sanya waved her hand dismissively, though it was an exaggerated gesture that looked as if she had a paw rather than a hand and fingers. It looked pretty funny. "There's a lot you can do here while you wait, you know. Especially if you want to do something besides sleep all day, hehe. You can try to pass the test to help around here, or with the police, or anywhere you like."

Lyon honestly considered her words, her tail waving thoughtfully. Sanya was right..there were a lot of options open to her and it was she herself that was really making her situation seem worse than it really was. Funny that it took someone like Sanya to point out that she was thinking like an idiot, or as Sanya had put it, thinking too much. It wasn't exactly the same as the life of a human, but it wasn't that different either. Kind of fitting for them, actually.

"Feel better?" Sanya watched her with amusement, her emerald eyes glowing with laughter.

"Yes," she replied, laughing. "You're probably the first real friend I have made here so far..thank you Sanya, you're a good girl." She petted the dog awkwardly, who smiled in return.

"Master said you've forgotten everything from when you were little, so I'm going to help and teach you everything I know so you can past any test you want." She took each of Lyon's hands into her own and squeezed them. "First though, I'm going to teach you how to have fun."

Lyon allowed herself to be pulled into a standing position and then dragged off towards one of the cardkey doors. She was confused by what Sanya had said, but decided to to trust her.

"Can we go to the park?" Sanya asked the attendant at the door.

"Of course. Hold on a second." The attendant picked up a clipboard and scribbled something on it before opening the door and grabbing their shoulders. "Only for a few hours though, it's almost meal time."

They were led through a brief hallway and then outside to a pretty park. It wasn't as big as the one she saw in the larger center, but it was big enough for them. The area was fenced off, but littered with all kinds of things to climb, long stretches of grass to run on, and plenty of trees to snooze under. It was like a child's dreamland.

Sanya thanked the attendant once they were gently pushed through a gate and continued dragging Lyon by the arm towards a grassy clearing. When they were alone she finally stopped and turned to face Lyon.

"Okay, I'm going to chase you and all you have to do is keep me from catching you."

Lyon frowned, puzzled. "You want to play tag?"

Sanya rolled her eyes. "No, 'tag' is the human way with too many useless rules."

"I don't really want to play, Sanya.."

Sanya narrowed her eyes mischievously. "Then you better hope you can run to the gate faster than I can, because if I catch you I'm going to bite.."

"Fine, fine," she said, relenting. "How much of a head start do I get?"

"As much as I feel like."

"That's not-"

"Woof!"

Sanya made a very dog-like sound and leaped towards her, nearly tackling Lyon to the ground. She just managed to nimbly step out of the way, impressed at her own agility and sense of balance. Sanya didn't hesitate however and quickly took up the chase again. Lyon stepped back and again managed to nimbly dodge, smiling brightly as Sanya quickly turned and tried again with unwavering determination. She sprinted away, feeling as if she were floating on clouds with how lightly her feet were pressing against the grass. Behind her Sanya continued to bark, quickly closing the distance.

Lyon smoothly rolled into a sharp turn and came up on her feet. Sanya dashed harmlessly by and clumsily tried to stop her momentum. Lyon laughed cheerfully, realizing that the dog was able to out pace her in a straight run but couldn't make such turns easily.

"What's wrong, Sanya?" she teased, waving her hips and tail at the dog."Nya, nya."

Sanya shook herself and ran after her again, her tail sweeping happily. Lyon waited until Sanya leaped at her again and this time rolled forward, coming up on her legs laughing.

They played like this for who knew how long and it never grew tiring. Sanya would quickly learn Lyon's movements and force Lyon to be more creative or surprise the white dog. It was a lot of fun, more than anything Lyon could remember. She didn't even realize that others were watching them or that she was making very cat-like sounds while they played, but she wouldn't have cared even if she had. Her instincts burned with pleasure at being a allowed to go a little wild and she had to admit it was nice to turn things over to them and simply enjoy the raw pleasure without strings attached.

After what seemed an eternity Lyon ended the game by nimbly and easily climbing up a tree and sitting on one of the low branches. Sanya just barely missed her ankles, then began barking up at her.

"Come down, silly cat!" Sanya growled, a smile on her face.

Lyon waved her tail thoughtfully and put a finger to her chin. "Hmm, why don't you come up and get me, doggy?"

"I don't like heights..and I couldn't climb the tree anyway.."

"Too bad~" She laughed, then slid off onto the dog, surprising her.

They both tumbled together on the soft grass, breathlessly grinning at each other.

"That..was a lot more fun than I expected it would be." she said honestly.

Sanya licked her cheek and laughed. "I told you!"

"Glad to see you're finally fitting in, Lyon. I was getting a little worried."

They both turned to the source of the voice, a pretty young woman with hazel eyes and black hair that fell to her neck. She wore a green robe like the others, but hers was patterned by black markings and a golden trim. Smiling, she knelt next to them and petted both Lyon and Sanya.

"Of course my cutey would be the one that helps make you feel at home." She laughed as Sanya wagged her tail proudly, then turned to Lyon. "I'm Aria, manager of the pens where you little loves live. I've been wanting to meet you for a while now, you know, but I'm actually here on official business."

"Oh?" Her ears and tail drooped. Had she done something wrong?

"Now, now, it's nothing bad." Aria fondled her ears, laughing softly. "Actually, someone bought you this morning. They sent the money over and will be picking you up later today."

"Oh, someone bought you!" Sanya cried out, throwing her arms around Lyon and licking her cheek. "I told you someone would!"

She was pretty surprised. After all, given her price, she didn't think anyone would buy her so soon. Maybe Gus had been right about her breed after all. "I..don't know what to say.."

"You don't have to say anything, cutie." Aria cupped both of her ears and gently tilted her head side to side. Lyon purred happily, then smiled. "You'll still get to see me and Sanya at least once a week. I'll make sure she's in the pen with you when your owner brings you by."

Someone had really bought her.. tomorrow she would be sleeping in someone's home, someone who would be her new master. The thought both thrilled and scared the heck out of her.