Black Blood Chapter 15
Story by Rtlstien on SoFurry
It's not easy trying to please everyone
The chime of the doorbell echoed throughout the house. "I've got it" Sera said as she approached the door. Tom watched as his mother disappeared around the corner followed by the sound of the door opening. He couldn’t help but feel a bit nervous, knowing who was at the door. He knew that his mom had invited Irena’s parents over for dinner, but with what happened yesterday involving Irena’s father shouting at him, even if it was just an act, Tom couldn’t help but feel a bit anxious. Tom could tell his mother was speaking with them at the door. He couldn’t quite make out the words thanks to Luna’s show. Tom sighed as he turned his attention back to the television, figuring it to be a welcome distraction.
A few seconds later Tom noticed movement from the corner of his right eye. He turned his head slightly, expecting to see his mother and Irena’s parents. His eyes widened slightly when he saw that it was Irena. “You came as well?” Tom asked as Irena scoped out the room before approaching the couch. “I figured you’d stay away.”
Irena sighed as she took a seat next to Tom. “They wouldn’t say it outright…” Irena said in a hushed voice as she briefly glanced towards the direction of the door. “But they really wanted me to come along as well. I didn’t want to risk them declining your mom’s invitation just because I refused to join in.” Irena let out another sigh. “If they don’t come to an agreement with your parents then you won’t be able to come over to our house for quite some time…” Irena’s attention suddenly focused down at the young set of eyes now focused on her.
“Hi!” Luna said with a smile and a wave.
“Hi…” Irena said softly as she softly waived back.
“Did we distract you from your show, Luna?” Tom asked with a chuckle as he looked down at his sister fidgeting in his lap. The sound of the front door closing caught the attention of Tom and Irena. “Let’s watch it together.”
“Sounds good” Irena said hastily as they quickly focused on the television. Luna giggled and focused on the screen too as her mom walked into the living room and headed straight towards the kitchen.
Tom swallowed hard when he notived Irena’s parents walk into the living room out of the corner of his eye. He didn’t dare gaze in their direction. After some shuffling around they seemed to come to a stop at the dining room area behind the couch. Tom didn’t know if they were staring at them or were just looking at things around the house, but he was feeling rather uncomfortable at the moment. Tom glanced down at his sister and got an idea. He leaned down to bring his mouth closer to Luna’s left ear. “Hey Luna,” he whispered. “want to play upstairs with me and my friend?”
“Yeah!” Luna said as her tail started wagging with excitement before she jumped off of Tom’s lap and onto the floor. Luna walked in front of Irena and grabbed ahold of her left paw, tugging as hard as a five-year-old Hund could. “Follow me!”
“Oh, alright” Irena said as she slowly stood up and allowed herself to be led by Luna. Tom reached for the remote and pressed the power button before standing up himself to follow his sister and Irena.
“Heading upstairs?” Sera asked as she walked back from the kitchen and noticed Tom walking out.
Tom stopped and turned his head to see his mother bring in a plate of fruit. “Yeah, going to play some games.” With his head turned, Tom could also see Irena’s parents standing near the table, both of them gazing in his direction. Irena’s mother had a calm expression and a slight smile while the father appeared to be a bit sleepy; the wide eyes that he had when he was shouting at Tom were now narrowed like he was ready to take a nap.
“We’ll let you know when dinner is ready” Sera said as she placed the fruit platter onto the table. “If you kids get hungry there’s fruit here to munch on.”
“Alright” Tom said as he turned around and hurried to catch up with Luna and Irena. When he got to the top of the stairs Luna was about to lead Irena into her room. Irena stared back when she heard Tom reach the top of the stairs. Tom looked towards his room, then back at Irena. “I’ll join you in a few minutes.” Irena just gave a slight nod as she entered Luna’s room. Tom walked towards his own room.
Ren sat on his bed, his back against the headrest as he stared down at the novel he held in his left paw. The edges of the page fluttered slightly from the breeze coming from the window. His right arm rested on top of a nearby pillow, only moving when Ren needed to turn the page. Aside from the sounds of nature making their way in from outside, the room was silent. This silence allowed Ren to become more immersed in the stories he read to the point he would become oblivious to what was going on around him.
Tom had given a courtesy knock on the door before entering. He was met by a soft gust of wind as it pushed its way through the opened doorway. “Hey Ren” Tom said as he entered the bedroom. When he noticed Ren reading on his bed and not replying he smiled, knowingly. He slowly closed the door, making sure it did not slam shut from the wind. He slowly walked further inward. As he got closer he could see the pupils of Ren’s eyes, but they didn’t notice him. Tom chuckled softly as he went to his own bed and laid himself in a manner to mimic Ren. He let his gaze wander around the room until he looked straight up. He kept his upward gaze for a few seconds until he started feeling a familiar sickening sensation. Tom’s eyes widened when his vision to started shift, almost as if he were falling. Tom propped his arms against the bed out of instinct. He immediately closed his eyes and lowered his head, waiting for the dizzy feeling to go away.
With another page turn, Ren came the to the last page of the chapter. After a little more reading he came across the gigantic font marking the start of a new chapter. He had already read five chapters this morning so far and decided to take a break. Ren marked the page and closed the book with a sigh as he placed it down to his right. A similar sigh echoed from Ren’s left, causing his ears to straighten in surprise as he turned his head to see Tom smiling mischievously back at him. “How long have you been there?” Ren asked as his ears relaxed.
“About four or five minutes” Tom said as he rotated himself on the bed to allow his feet to hang over the edge, facing towards Ren. “Didn’t want to disturb you while you were in your immersion state” Tom chuckled as he stood up. “Must be a good book…” Tom said he gazed over at the book now lying next to Ren on the bed.
“Yeah” Ren said with a smile. “It’s a fantasy novel written by a human over a hundred years ago. It has quite amazing character and world building. The plot is also very exciting to follow.” Ren sighed softly. “I kind of envy those who are creative enough to write stories like this.”
“You should try writing a story of your own” Tom said as he crossed his arms. “You’ve read so many of them I’m sure you’d be able to write one as well.
Ren laughed nervously as he flattened his ears. “I’m not really creative enough to write a story. I’d more likely just end up haphazardly copying various stories I’ve read.”
“Well, you can still always try” Tom said with a shrug of his shoulders. “If it’s not for you, at least you can say you tried.”
“I’ll think about it…” Ren said as he picked up the book and placed on the desk nearby. “So… done watching tv with Luna?”
“Yeah, but…” Tom looked towards the door. “We actually got distracted by the Chiennas coming over.”
“They’re already here?” Ren asked as he looked towards the door himself. “I didn’t even hear the doorbell ring.”
“What a shock…” Tom said with a sarcastic smile as he watched Ren scratch behind his ears with slight embarrassment. “Anyways… mom and dad are downstairs with Mr. and Mrs. Chienna, and Luna… is in her room with Irena.”
Ren looked at Tom with confusion. “I thought you said she wasn’t going to come.”
“I wasn’t expecting her to come” Tom replied. “I just wanted to let you know so that…” Tom paused as he bit his lip. “so that you two can avoid one another.”
Ren closed his eyes as he let out a sigh, trying to hide his disappointment from Tom. “So she has something against me?”
“Not you, personally.”
“Ah… so something against Black Collars?”
“Yeah…” Tom said softly, looking down at the floor.
“And knowing that…” Ren opened his eyes and looked at Tom with frustration. “you’re fine being friends with her?”
Tom’s eyes widened as he looked up at Ren. “Not sure why that’s a concern of yours.”
“Right…” Ren said as he turned his head away from Tom. “Just… go on and hang out with her. I’ll just stay in here and not bother either of you.”
“Oh come on, Ren” Tom said as he tried to get his brother to look at him. “I didn’t come here to put you in a foul mood. Why are you upset?”
Ren sighed as he grabbed the book off the desk and lied down on his side, facing away from Tom. “Just go…” Ren said as he opened the book to where he had left off.
Tom stared at Ren’s back for a few seconds, incredulously. Tom tapped his fingers against the mattress with an increasing tempo until he let out a soft sigh. As he stood up, Tom slowly shook his head. “You know Ren… I was worried about you after your outburst yesterday.” Tom crossed his arms. “I had hoped it was just because you were still sick, but… I can’t say I’m liking this new side of you.”
Without another word Tom walked away towards the door. Tom didn’t bother being gentle with either opening or closing the door, leading to a rather audible slam. Ren continued to stare at the first page of the chapter, not having read a single word. His mind had been occupied with thoughts of frustration regarding Tom and his new friend, but those thoughts began to fade after Tom left. Ren let the book fall out of his paw onto the bed as Tom’s words echoed in his mind. A weak whine echoed from Ren’s throat as he stared despondently at the wall in front of him.
Irena sighed internally as she was led into Luna’s room. The room was a decent size, especially for just a single child. The only furniture in the room was a bed, along the right wall, large enough to fit Luna until she was Irena’s size, a small dresser on the left side of the room, and a small circular table underneath the window with three small chairs surrounding it. The rest of the room would be quite spacious if it weren’t for the variety of toys cluttered about. Irena watched her steps, careful not to trample any of Luna’s playthings. “Your room looks… quite fun” Irena said softly as Luna brought her to the small table.
Luna’s tail started to wag. “Thanks” she said with a giggle before bringing Irena to one of the small chairs. She pulled the chair away from the table and offered it to Irena.
“Oh, thank you” Irena said as she slowly lowered herself on the chair. The seat wasn’t big enough to fit all of someone her size, but the plastic chair was flexible enough for Irena to find a comfortable position. As Luna went to the other side of the table Irena looked down to see it covered with papers and various coloring utensils. “You like to color?”
“Uh huh” Luna said with a grin as she took her seat. “What about you?”
“It’s been years since I’ve even touched any of these things…” Irena said as she fiddled with a green crayon. “I had some fun with these when I was your age, but I actually preferred reading story books.”
“Oh…” Luna said with ears going slightly limp. “You’re like Renny, then”
It took a moment for Irena to realize who Luna was talking about. “He likes to read too, huh?”
Luna nodded her head. “Renny likes reading so much he spends all day in his room.”
“All day, huh?” Irena smiled, amusedly. “He never comes out?”
“Well he comes out when we have to eat and when he has to use the bathroom…” Irena closed her eyes, wondering why the conversation had to touch on that subject. “or when Tommy’s around…”
Irena’s attention was caught again as she opened her eyes. “He leaves his room when Tom is present? Why do you think that is?”
“Because Tommy is fun to be around!” Luna said with a big smile.
Irena chuckled and smiled back after seeing how adorable Luna’s smile was. “He definitely is very interesting to be around…” Irena noticed Luna leaning forward towards her; that smile not appearing to fade in the slightest.
Luna supported herself with her paws on the table until she was within an arm’s reach of Irena’s muzzle. “Are you Tommy’s girlfriend?”
Irena’s ears shot up, her eyes widened and her fur stood on end from the surprise of the question. It had almost caused her to shriek, but she managed to contain it to a stutter.
“Come on!” Luna giggled. “You can tell me! Are you and Tommy boyfriend and girlfriend? Tell me!” Luna’s tail was wagging furiously in suspense.”
Irena managed to calm down enough to answer. “No” Irena said while shaking her head. “Tom and I are just friends. I never even considered the possibility that…” Irena stopped herself when she realized Luna seemed to be disappointed by what she was saying. “Sorry.”
“It’s okay…” Luna said as she retracted back into her seat. “Tommy said the same thing when I asked him.”
“Then why ask me?”
“I kind of thought that, maybe, Tommy was lying to me…”
“Well how do you know I’m not lying?”
“Because I told you to tell me…”
“You told me to…” Irena’s eyes widened again when she realized what Luna was talking about. She didn’t even realize that she had been given an order.
“Yeah… sorry” Luna said as she looked down towards the table.
“It’s alright, but why are you sorry?”
“Mommy, daddy and Tommy tell me to be careful what I say around those like you…” Luna pointed towards the collar around Irena’s neck. “No one likes it when I do that…”
“But you want to, don’t you?” Irena asked.
“It’s fun…” Luna said with a nod. “Renny does anything I tell him, no matter how silly. Tommy always tells me not to tease Renny like that, but I just can’t stop doing it. I like doing it…” A slight smile formed on Luna’s muzzle for a moment before quickly fading away as she looked down at the table. “But even when I don’t do it they still hate me.”
“I’m sure your parents or Tom doesn’t hate you!” Irena interjected. “I’ve heard nothing but good things about you from Tom.”
Luna’s ears straightened as she looked up in surprise. “No, no, I mean the kids at school.”
“Ah…” Irena’s ears went limp, understanding where this was heading.
“I did what Tommy said and tried not to do what I do to Renny with the other kids. I was having fun with many of them on the first day; we played games and did arts and crafts…” Luna’s eyes drifted downward again as she continued to recount to Irena. “There was this one boy who kept looking at me weird all the time and stayed away from me. Maybe I accidentally did something to him?” Luna closed her eyes. “The next day everyone was treating me like the boy was. Only one girl has even bothered talking to me… but I don’t like her”
Irena took a deep breath before silently exhaling. “Do you… feel lonely when you’re at school?”
Luna nodded her head slowly. “I always look forward to going home” a smile started to creep back onto Luna’s muzzle.
Irena gave Luna a gentle smile back. “Because of Tom?”
Luna nodded her head with a little giggle. “Tommy’s the only one I can talk to and have fun with.”
Irena stared in silence at Luna as the little Hund continued to give her an energetic smile. Her mind ablaze with ideas of what to do or say next. Part of her wanted to keep on smiling, hoping Luna’s mood continues to be lifted. Another part of her wanted to take a risk, one that Irena instinctively didn’t want to take, but with Luna something seemed to click into place.
“Would you like to have another person you can talk to?”
Luna tilted her head in slight confusion as she stared at Irena. “Who?”
“Me” Irena smiled.
Luna’s smile nearly vanished. “I like talking to you, but I might do something that’ll make you hate me as well.”
“No you won’t… you see…” A part of Irena’s mind was screaming at her to keep her muzzle shut, but it was ignored. “you don’t affect me.”
“I... don’t?” Luna asked, her confusion growing.
“Try telling me to do something like you would with Ren” Irena smiled with confidence.
“Okay…” Luna thought for a second. “Wave your arms in the air.” A second passed, then two, and as more time passed Luna’s tail started to wag with excitement as she watched Irena’s arms stayed by her side. “Stand up!” Luna said. Nothing. “Stick out your tongue!” Nothing. “Blink!”
“Well now you’re just cheating…” Irena said as she held off blinking for as long as she could before the burning in her eyes became too much for her.
Luna giggled as she started hopping up and down in her chair. “How are you doing that?”
“It’s a secret” Irena said with a smirk. “However, it will only work as long as you don’t tell anyone else that I can do this. If you do, I lose this ability.”
“Not even Tommy?”
“Not even Tom” Irena said with a quick shake of her head. “This is something I’m trusting you with. Can you do it?”
“Yeah, yeah!” Luna said with a furious nod of her head.
“Wonderful” Irena said as she started to look around Luna’s room. “So what would you like to do while we wait for Tom?”
Luna’s ears straightened as an idea came to her. “Can I show you something?”
As Tom walked down the hallway towards Luna’s room, he could hear Luna’s voice speaking louder than usual. As he cracked opened the door the words became clearer.
“And now that we have you trapped, you will stay here forever!” Luna said, standing on top of her bed with her best, devious-looking expression before bursting into what Tom assumed to be evil laughter. “Muhahahaha!” Luna cackled. Tom had to stop himself from laughing, not expecting something like that from Luna. He saw Irena sitting nearby and responding with some applause.
“What’s going on?” Tom asked with an amused smile as he opened the door wider and made his way in.
Irena looked towards Tom with a smile as he closed the door behind him. “Luna was just demonstrating some of her lines in an upcoming play she’s in.” Luna started to bounce up and down on her bed in excitement as Tom came closer.
“Oh really?” Tom asked. “Luna’s never shown anyone here what she has been practicing. “She usually likes to keep it…” before Tom could finish Luna jumped one more time before leaping towards Tom. Tom reflexively held his arms out and caught his sister as she slammed into his chest, causing him to back up a few steps to avoid falling over. Once he regained his footing he looked down at Luna staring at him with a toothy smile. Tom chuckled. “… a secret” he said as he slowly lowered Luna to the ground.
“Well…” Irena shrugged her shoulders. “Just in case I’m unable to go see it, she wanted to show me some of her parts now.”
“Well that was nice of you, Luna” Tom said as he let go of his sister. “You going to show anything else?”
Luna quickly shook her head. “You got to wait until it’s ready.”
“Ah, fine. I can wait two weeks” Tom said as he took a seat on the floor to the left of Irena. Luna quickly followed suit and took a seat to Tom’s left, the three now in a semicircle.
Luna raised Tom’s left hand and started to gently nibble on it. While Tom chuckled softly with indifference, Irena was noticeably surprised by it. She leaned in to whisper into Tom’s right ear. “Does she do that a lot?”
“Every once in while” Tom whispered back. “Is it that unusual?”
“It’s not uncommon for children to nip and nibble when they’re young, but they usually grow out of it by the time they’re Luna’s age. Does she do it to others?”
Tom shrugged his shoulders. “I think I’m the only one she does it to; she’s been doing it since she was born.”
“So she may be doing it out of habit then…” Irena noted. “Perhaps you should try to get her to stop doing that.”
“It’s fine” Tom smiled. “I’m sure she’ll grow out of it on her own eventually.
“Alright, as long as it’s not bothering you” Irena said as she leaned away from Tom. “So what should we do now?” Irena asked in her normal voice.
Ren sat at his desk, groaning as he stared down at the notebook. Aside from a few scattered pencil dots that littered the left side of the page from his constant tapping, there were only two words written at the top- Story Ideas.
In his mind, Ren tried to think of something to write down on the paper, but each time something came to his mind he’d rationalize a reason to not write it down. Just as he feared, all of these ideas coming to him were based on stories he had read himself. He didn’t know how authors were able to come up with interesting ideas, much less write captivating books.
Ren sighed as he placed the pencil down on the desk. He wasn’t in the mood to read, and he wasn’t in the mind to write. He sighed as he leaned forward and rested his head on his arms, staring at nothing in particular in front of him. The breeze coming through the window swept through the fur on the right side of his face. It was calming enough to make Ren let out another, softer sigh. He glanced towards the window and was met with the familiar sight of the deep blue ocean in the bay. “Nice weather today…” Ren said softly, noticing not a single cloud in the sky nor on the horizon. Ren smiled as he continued to stare out the window. “Maybe if I ever do write a story, I’ll use this as inspiration for the setting…”
Ren’s ears flattened as his smile faded. “That’s not very creative though…” Ren said silently, followed with a sigh. He wondered if he’d have better luck trying to write non-fiction instead. Ren doubted he had enough factual details to just start writing something like that off the top of his head. Even if he did, Ren doubted he’d be able to write something that Tom would find entertaining. Ren would end up just writing something akin to a school textbook, and even if that book was all about his brother, Tom still wouldn’t… Ren’s ears shot up. Ren sat up, picked up his pencil and quickly started writing while the idea was fresh in his head.
Ren didn’t know how long he had been writing. He had skipped the story ideas section at the top of the paper and instead filled out the rest of the page with writing. He looked over the sheet of paper and started reading it back to himself.
An Unusual Hund
_ _
Nothing of note ever happens here. This small coastal town of mine was a perfect picture of serene beauty, and also of near-absolute seclusion. Most of those who are born here spend their entire lives never leaving. A strong sense of familiarity can be found here, and with it an even stronger adhesion to tradition. Every one of us knows what our roles and positions are in this society, and of course we wear that aspect of ourselves our entire lives. No one ever questioned it since it has been a mainstay for more generations than I could count
_ _
It was just another mundane-seeming day, however there did seem to be a bit of gossip quickly making its way around town. It seemed to concern the arrival of a new Hund, but that was the only consistent thing about the gossip. Depending on who you asked you’d receive a plethora of adjectives describing the Hund. From demented to charming to brazen to intriguing, there was no consensus on what the individual actually was. It would seem I would have to encounter the new Hund myself in order to clear it up. I didn’t have to wait long though.
_ _
I could see a large group of Hunds gathered along the edge of the beach. Many, of course, preferred to keep a good distance from those troublesome grains. All of their attention seemed to be focused on something closer to the shore. I gazed over and could see a lone individual standing in the surf. It didn’t take long for me to conclude that the individual must be the new Hund all the gossip was about. You certainly would turn heads if you were that willing to embrace the beach and all the sand that came with it. I was even more curious about the Hund now. I groaned as I reluctantly stepped onto the sand. I walked gently, being careful not to kick up the sand or accidentally fall into it.
_ _
_As I approached the Hund from behind I realized a few things. One, was that the Hund was a male. Two, I could see many grains of sand reflecting in the damp fur along his legs, making me shudder slightly. Three, he wasn’t wearing a collar. I stopped in my tracks when I realized that last part. I guess I was close enough that I had caught his attention. He turned to me with a smile on his muzzle. Still in a bit of a daze, I just asked him what’s he’s doing. He responded that he had never seen the ocean before, and wanted to really get close and personal with it. _
_ _
_I shook my head and clarified that I was asking about why he wasn’t wearing a collar. He chuckled, clearly having been asked that question numerous times already. He said that he didn’t believe any collar truly represented him, so he decided to just not wear one. I understood, now, why he had been given both positive and negative descriptions; I could already tell who had given what. I couldn’t help but smile with amusement. I barely knew this odd, collar-less Hund, but his words had caused me to smile for the first time in a long while. I hoped he would be staying for quite some time. _
Ren’s right ear twitched. He really didn’t know if what he had written was fine, or if it was mundane. Ren groaned as doubts started forming in his mind. Ren tore the page out of his notebook. He wondered if he should just throw this story away and try again later with a more structured approach.
Ren’s ears shot up as his thoughts were suddenly interrupted by knocking on the door. On the other side was his mom letting him know that dinner was ready. Ren gave his acknowledgement and let out a sigh as his ears relaxed. Ren placed the piece of paper face down on his desk before slowly getting up. The edges of the paper fluttered as Ren left the room.
Tom stared down at the dining table in silence as he tried to avoid the awkwardness of having Mr. Chienna sitting directly across from him. To Tom’s right sat Luna who was having a one-way conversation with Irena sitting across from her. To Tom’s left was an empty chair for Ren which was across from Mrs. Chienna who was having a conversation with his mom sitting at the left end. The only other seat was at the right end for his dad, who was slowly bringing out the food to the table.
Tom wasn’t trying to pay attention to either of the conversations going on, but from the little his mind had processed he figured his mom and Mrs. Chienna were talking about something related to college while Luna was talking about some of her favorite shows to Irena. When the conversations suddenly ended, however, he looked up and could see Mr. and Mrs. Chienna staring off at something to the side. Tom looked over his left shoulder and saw it was Ren standing near the room entrance.
Ren was getting anxious from the prolonged silence and the many stares focused on him.
“You must be Ren!” Mrs. Chienna said with her usual chipper voice. Ren nodded nervously. “You look so much like your father” Mrs. Chienna said before turning to Sera. “But he definitely has your fur pattern” Mrs. Chienna motioned to her face and muzzle.
Sera chuckled. “Todd and I said the same thing about Ren’s fur pattern when he was born.”
“I asked if there was actually any part of me in him!” Todd shouted from the kitchen. This caused Sera and Mrs. Chienna to laugh while Mr. Chienna let out a few chuckles. Tom didn’t laugh, but did have an amused smile. Ren just looked down at the floor in embarrassment as he slowly walked forward and took his seat next to Tom.
When the laughter died down Sera added, “He didn’t need to ask that when Luna was born, though.”
Todd walked in with the roast. “Because I was more focused on what I was hearing.” He gently placed the slab of meat at the center of the table. Many slices had already been cut on one side to be easily picked out.
Sera chuckled before letting out a long sigh, thankful those restless nights have long since passed. She looked down the table. “Irena, would you like to have the first serving?”
Irena’s ears straightened up when the table’s attention focused on her. Her muzzle was slightly ajar, opening and closing ever so slightly as though she was trying to say something but nothing was coming out. Mr. Chienna quickly patted Irena’s shoulder. “Of course she’d love to!” He motioned for Irena to pick some food onto her plate.
The food made its way around the table in a counter-clockwise fashion until Todd was the last one to fill his plate. With the raising of his silverware, the signal to begin eating had been given.
“How is it, Tom?” Todd asked after watching him take a bite. He was sure it was safe to eat based on the color of the meat, but wanted to make sure it tasted fine for Tom as well.
Tom, not wanting to talk with food in his mouth, responded with a smile and a thumbs up.
“It is delicious as always, dear” Sera added.
“Oh I have to agree!” Mrs. Chienna chimed in. “This is much better than anything I could ever cook up. “I’d love to come back to experience more of your cooking.”
Tom watched as both Mr. Chienna and Irena looked in her direction with surprise. Mr. Chienna cleared his throat. “If our schedules permit it…”
Mrs. Chienna’s ears flattened in realization. “Ah yes, as long as neither of us are on-call for the hospital.”
“A visit to your house next time would probably be easier then” Todd said before taking a sip of water from his glass.
“We’ll worry about the specifics of our next get-together later” Sera said. “For now, let’s continue enjoying our meal.” Almost everyone nodded their heads in agreement.
“Thank you so much for today” Mrs. Chienna said to Sera as she and her husband stood outside the front door. “It’s been quite some time since we’ve had such a pleasant outing.”
“It was our pleasure” Sera said. “Are you sure the three of you don’t want to stay longer?”
“We don’t like to impose ourselves for too long” Mr. Chienna said. “You and your husband have been great hosts for us.”
“I’m glad to hear that” Sera said with a smile. “And I hope that Irena enjoyed her time here as well.” Sera glanced past the two of them at their car where Irena was already seated.
“Oh I think she had a good time” Mr. Chienna said before letting out a deep yawn. “Just… she needs time to warm up to others.”
“Well, then, I won’t keep you all any longer than needed” Sera said as she took a step inside the house. “Drive safe.”
“We will, thank you” Mrs. Chienna said as she and her husband turned around and approached their car. By the time they heard the door close behind them their smiles had begun to fade.
Irena sat in the back behind the passenger seat. She waited in silence as she stared lazily out the window. Even when she heard the doors in front of her opening and the shifting of the car she didn’t avert her gaze or say anything. The doors slammed shut, and the car backed out of the driveway, but the only sounds that could be heard inside the car were the humming of the engine and the rolling wheels on asphalt.
They drove in silence for a minute before Mr. Chienna cleared his throat. “Why didn’t you tell us?”
Irena sighed. “Because if I did you wouldn’t have gone.”
“You’ve got that right!” Mr. Chienna said with added volume. “Why would you take such an unnecessary risk like that!?”
“Dear…” Mrs. Chienna said as she reached over and placed her left paw on his right shoulder. Mr. Chienna took a deep breath. Mrs. Chienna turned her head to face Irena. “Irena… you know if your secret gets out again you won’t be able to just pack up and move to another area again right? It was fortunate you were given the opportunity to start over again like us but… you’ll have to live with it if it comes out again.”
“I know…” Irena said with a sigh. “So how does this affect Tom and I seeing each other outside of school?”
“Well…” Mr. Chienna groaned. “We don’t approve of all this secrecy you’ve been practicing, but we do understand how important Tom’s friendship is for you. On our end, we’ll allow him to come over with you after school. We just have to coordinate with the Renoirs.
Irena took a nervous gulp. “Do you think that… they’d allow me to go to their house with Tom as well?”
Mr. Chienna’s eyes widened from the suggestion. He took another deep breath to calm himself as he felt his wife trying to soothe him by rubbing his shoulder. Mrs. Chienna said, “We’ll discuss it with them”
“Dear, I don’t want to risk Irena being ostracized again” Mr. Chienna said with a brief glance to his wife.
“I don’t either, but it’s her decision to take risks.” Mrs. Chienna focused on Irena again. “You just be extra careful, alright?”
Irena nodded with a small smile. “I promise.”
Tom carried the last remaining dishes into the kitchen. He placed them next to the sink where his father was scrubbing the dirty dishes before handing them over to Ren to dry. “Is there anything else I can help with, dad?”
“No, you’re good. Your mother will be coming to pack the leftovers when she’s done saying goodbye to the Chiennas.
“Alright” Tom said with a slight yawn as he rubbed his stomach gently. “I’m going to go lie down for a while.
Todd chuckled. “Sounds good.” His ears perked up. “Before you do though, there’s a box of candies over there on the corner.” Todd motioned his head to lead Tom’s gaze. “Go ahead and take a piece for yourself.
“Oh, thank you.” Tom went over to counter across from the sink and opened the box. Many of the candies inside were decorated in colorful wrappers. He picked a random one wrapped in red. He closed the box and left the kitchen as he unwrapped the candy.
Inside the living room he could see Luna entranced in one of her afternoon cartoon shows. He popped the piece of candy in his mouth and started to chew… with some difficulty. Tom realized he must have gotten a piece of taffy. As he slowly chewed his mother entered from the other side of the room. With a smile on her face she kneeled down to give Tom a quick hug and nuzzle before continuing on to the kitchen.
By the time Tom reached his room he had managed chew out most of the taffy. A heavy gust of wind met him when he opened the door. He went over to the window and shut it until there was barely a crack at the bottom. Licking his teeth to wipe up the leftover sugar, Tom noticed a piece of paper on the floor when he turned around. He picked it up and flipped it over to see what it was. “An Unusual Hund…”
When Ren finished drying the dishes he left the kitchen. In his hand was a candy wrapped in blue. He hadn’t bothered inspecting the various pieces, he had just reached in and grabbed the first thing he touched. He unwrapped it and noticed it was golden brown in color. He popped in into his mouth. The taste and texture confirmed it was a piece of caramel. Ren chuckled softly when he realized most of it was starting to stick to his teeth.
When Ren entered his room he saw Tom holding a familiar piece of paper. His ears went straight up and his tail went limp. Tom glanced up. “You wrote this?”
Ren nodded softly.
“Not bad” Tom said as he gently placed the paper back onto Ren’s desk. “Planning to write more on it?”
“I don’t know…” Ren said with a slight smile as his tail started to wag softly.
“Well, let me know if you do” Tom said as he went to his bed. “For some reason I rather like that odd Hund” Tom said with a smirk.
Ren shook his head in amusement. “Yeah… can’t imagine what it is.”
Tom chuckled. “Well, it would definitely be better if there were more Hunds like him”
Ren smiled. “I agree.”