You May Not Know It Now [open]

[CUR]

Beautiful weather had brought out the best in everyone lately, or at least it seemed so. Birds were singing happily while they flitted from branch to branch and began their courtship dances. They were so beautiful, those tiny flits of beak and feather, and it was hard not to want to be among them, experiencing life from up above.

KC was watching from down below thinking exactly those things and not much else. She longed to feel the cool air caress her sides as it did the wings of the sparrow, to feel the sun warm her fur as the birds have their feathers heated each day by the kindest light of all. These thoughts did not sadden her as they might another dog. She was not one for longing but of imagining- experiencing a life that would never be hers but cherishing it all the same for the wonderful feelings they inspired in her heart.

She was a kind girl, the sort of country dog one rarely if ever sees around city parts, and she had the ways and manners of a Southern Belle and those would not be dropped no matter how far she travelled from her beloved home. Things had taken a turn for the worse earlier on in her life but the beach at which she now stood was a fresh start, a new beginning. She dug her claws into the sand, feeling it rise up between the pads of her paws and press against the strong webbing of her feet.

She had been awake for a few hours already as it was her custom to rise with the sun and even the changing of the seasons would not cause this to end- no matter how early or how late sunrise was she was up like a sapling ready to begin the day and strive toward something new. Stretching deeply, she brought her forequarters to the ground and felt the sand against her chest and the wind blowing her fur. Eyes halfway closed in contentment, she plopped her rear end down and decided to take a break, waiting and seeing if anyone else was also up on this fine spring morning, and hoping that she could meet up with one of her old friends or hopefully meet someone new.

[Fritzie]

"Cawww! Cawww!"

The seagull voiced its irritation as it flapped its large wings and took to the air. Only an ear twitch showed that the dog who had disturbed the bird even realized he had done so. The sun was making the sand of the beach quite warm, and Sir Lucien was extremely tired. All he could think was that if he could just reach the edges of the trees, he could find a nice shady bush to lie down under and rest.

For the last year, he had been wandering around, wondering what he was doing with his life. He had gone back and seen James' grave, but the trip had taken more out of him than it ever had in the past. He had almost considered returning to father, who had told him that he would always have a home with them. Maybe soon...

But for now, one step at a time was leading him closer to the treeline and closer to the coolness of the grass on his old, worn down paws.

[CUR]

The warm of midday was fast approaching and with it the brightness of noon. There were still a few hours left yet before that time and yet to the eyes of a canine (or just about any other mammal for that matter) there was no discernible difference. Head still resting on her paws, KC's ears pricked up to the noises of the seagulls and albatross. Sea-faring birds are some of the loudest but their calls contribute an ambiance that could be understood by shore dogs and sailors alike.

Her tail wagged slowly and formed gentle sand-angel patterns behind her, coming down with a soft 'fwap' every few moments to send them up in a cloud and fall back down looking exactly the same as the rest, only to be re-designed by her wagging tail moments later.

She was growing bored looking at the surf and the summer sun was reflecting back at her twice as brightly as off the sand. Soon she would have to move further into the tree line and it was probably better to just move now. Perhaps she would do a bit of exploring before she went back into the city to sleep out the night. Rising with a grand stretch that placed her chin almost on the ground, she looked to her left and started in surprise at seeing another dog only a few feet away. He was looking straight, toward the trees, and she figured he was probably after a bit of shelter as well.

"Well I'll be," she said, "Didn't figure I would see anyone else out here today. It's been pretty quiet all morning. But then I am getting a bit ahead of myself now, aren't I? My name's KC. Pleased to meet you." She spoke with a strong southern twang that made each of her words as much a work of poetry as of speech. While her manner may have been a bit overly-friendly for these parts, she had never lost that southern good-neighbor mentality.

[Fritzie]

One step at a time. It was all it took to keep him going. Always one to look at the now, and try not to look to far into the future, Lucien could only control what he was doing now. And as of now, he was steadily making his way closer and closer to the refreshing treeline.

As he drew closer, he heard another voice call out to him from under some shade in the same direction he was heading. He perked his ears to catch the words easier, since he was starting to loose his hearing with his age. His eyes quickly spotted the female resting in the shade, and he wagged his tail in joy. It had been far too long since he had dealt with a civilized creature of his own breed. Lately, all that he had dealt were half starved backalley dogs, willing to kill off one of their own for a scrap of meat.

"The pleasure is all mine Ms. KC. I too did not expect to find anyone else out here. They have been known to call me Sir Lucien, but I will answer to Lucien if it tickles your fancy," Lucien lifted his nose and breathed in the scent of the female, as well as the softer scent of the brush around and behind her. She smelled of friendliness, and nothing more, and Lucien could feel himself relaxing just by speaking with her

[CUR]

The sun glinted off of every surface, flat or otherwise. Dark though her eyes were, KC nevertheless squinted to keep the sun from totally overpowering her vision. Cocking her head to the side, her ear cast just a bit of shadow over the right side of her face. She looked at the stranger before her and liked what she saw. He was a shepherd mix of some sort, one that she was not familiar with so likely some European breed. His coat appeared to be less course than her own and while his colors were somewhat like that of a German Shepherd he didn't have the weak hind legs or long, narrow face she had come to associate with that breed.

"Sir Lucian, that's a nice name. Sounds like royalty to me. I'm not really from around here but I have visited town before and decided to stop by again now that the weather's cleared up."

She smiled, lips parting just enough to show the pink of her tongue. She was panting quietly, growing warmer as the day progressed. Soon enough she would be edging further into the trees but for now she was too distracted by the handsome dog before her to notice much else, and figured she would bide her time patiently while they got to know each other before she found somewhere else to rest.

[Fritzie]

{ooc: Sorry!Sorry! *bows apologetically* i've been super busy lately, with work and fiance and whatnot}

ICC:

He could make out that she was looking him over, and he puffed out his chest slightly to make himself look better. He knew from his reflection in the puddles of late that he had grown a little ratty with all of his traveling and no steady supply of food. But he kept his coat clean and was still filled out from his many many days traveling.

Lucien chuckled slightly at her comment of royalty. "Not quite sure about royalty in the blood. I know my boy seemed to like my name...." he trailed off after the comment, and seemed to gaze off into his own world. Then he shook his head, and returned his gaze back to K.C.

"I, too, have only returned to this area recently. I've been travelling for quite some time now, and have only just returned. And if they've sent you out to be my welcoming committee, I feel privileged indeed." he sat down, his tail wagging back and forth slowly in the sand, pushing it up in little piles on either side. The shadow of her ear covered most of her profile, but from the side he could see, she was quite lovely. Better looking than most of the bitches he had encountered on his travels.

[CUR]

OOC;; no problemo =D

BIC;;
KC was a bit surprised when she heard Sir Lucien almost laugh at the idea that he might be royalty. City guys sometimes, they just didn't realize what they had going for him. This fella was no spring chicken, but he had a handsome coat with beautiful, symmetrical markings and held himself in such a way that she could tell he'd done some living- although the more she got to know him, the more she began to think his life was closer to her own, rather than some Rin-Tin-Tin story. It was amazing what a slight resemblance to a movie star could do to a dog's perception. Then again, she'd always known enough about airhead collies not to think they were some sort of genius heros, but that's another story.

"Not quite sure about royalty in the blood. I know my boy seemed to like my name..." He'd had a boy once? A human family? She looked at him, surprised. In her youth, KC had been a cattle dog. Not in the sense that she was now- an Australian Cattle Dog by breed alone- no, she'd actually lived on a farm and made her living herding sheep. Some of the best and worst things had happened to her on that farm, but all the same it had broken her heart to go when the farmer couldn't keep the family business running anymore.

"Really now, you had a family once as well? I wasn't exactly a pet or anything, but I was a farm dog and I loved my people all the same. Still miss 'em sometimes too. And unfortunately there ain't a welcome committee, just me here waiting for another cool evening before I wander off to do something else. I'm out here alone, no pack or anything so sometimes the days pass kinda slow."

[Fritzie]

Lucien nodded briefly. "I once had a family. But that was a long time ago. Almost seems like a lifetime ago...." he trailed off once more, then tossed his head again. "Lately, it seems that almost no one has a pack. Heard some news that the monarchy was regrouping. If you feel the need for a family, i'd check there first." Lucien had heard whispers about the Monarchy grouping again during his travels. But Lucien had once had his own pack, even his own litter of pups. But, he was too old now to even want to consider joining another pack.

The screeching of the seagulls continued to grow louder as the sun continued to climb higher into the sky. Opening his mouth slightly, he allowed his tongue to hang out as he panted. The sun was beating straight down onto his head now, and even though he had a light coloured coat, it was slightly on the thin side, ever since he had been getting older, making the sun even harder on him.

"True, the days have seemed to be passing by more slowly than usual. And I would never forcefully move an unwilling lady, but the sun is quite unbearable, and I would love to keep conversing with you, but maybe in the shade?" Lucien looked towards the tree line and almost groaned with the thought of how blissfully cool it would be in there.

[CUR]

KC listened carefully to Lucien. He was one of the few strays she'd seen recently who could be bothered to speak without trying to fight or mate, and she admired the fact that he was smart enough to see the value in conversation without meeting either extreme end. Back where she'd come from it was not uncommon for two dogs to sit a long time in silence, speaking hardly a word as they went about their work together but that was one of the few things that she didn't miss about her old home. She had always been quite the chatterbox and as she grew up she didn't grow out of it, quite the opposite in fact.

"Lately, it seems that almost no one has a pack. Heard some news that the monarchy was regrouping. If you feel the need for a family, i'd check there first." She thought carefully about this. It might be nice to see others every day. Have a real family to spend time with when she got bored or lonely, but there was no way she was going to join a well established pack, especially one who's very name was rife with chauvanism.

"Much's I wisht I had company most days, no way I'd go be lorded over by some mutt who probably couldn't tell the tail end of a steer from its horns, the whole 'Mr. King' thing really gets to me." She'd heard stories about the Monarchy last time she was here. How some huge brindle dog fancies himself the King has this big old family and supposedly his pups are gonna take the throne, no matter who second in command is. She thought before of starting her own pack, not even as the leader just a ragtag group of sorts, but had never really put the thought to action.

She could see Sir Lucien growing warmer, panting as his coat became hot with the sunlight, and the eloquent way in which he suggested their moving made her blush like a pup beneath her fur. "Why, Sir I do think that would be an agreeable idea. In fact, I've just been thinking about hustling over under those trees myself." She smiled at him, rising to her feet and wagging her tail, showing that she was ready and waiting for him before they set off.

[Fritzie]

Relieved she was willing to move into the trees, Lucien rose from his sitting position and walked her way, allowing enough room between the two as to not overcrowd her and make her uncomfortable. "Then lets be off," he gave her the dog version of a smile, and quietly padded his way toward the tree line. He could practically smell the damp, cool air, and it was all he could do to keep from racing off towards it. Although, he wasn't quite sure he could do any racing these days.

"I quite agree. When i was younger, i had a small pack, just of my family. But I do not quite see the bright side of being under the rule of someone else. Especially someone younger than me." he walked slow enough as so she could keep pace with him at a leisurely speed. "I know i prefer the fact that roaming alone, all you have to worry about is yourself. But it does indeed get lonely." His tail waved softly back and forth in the breeze, expressing his pleasure of both talking with her, and the shade that was moving ever so closer to him.

He liked to listen to her talk. She had a lovely accent that he had come to associate with those who had traveled from the south of the giant land, and she was very well versed in her language, although she still used the southern slang and vocabulary that was well known from coming from the south.

[CUR]

The two of them walked together, not too close for comfort but certainly close enough to see each others' whiskers moved when the breezes stirred up a bit. As the two of them broke treeline and were finally in the cool of the shade, she could barely stop herself from sighing in relief. Chest low and tail high, she stretched, spreading each toe far enough apart to feel them sink into the soft dirt.

"I certainly see what ya mean about only worrying bout yourself, but being all alone gets boring. Lonely. Sometimes I can hardly remember how much time has passed since this or that happened since there's not much to compare to." KC remembered the summers of her youth, long afternoons spent laying in the pond with her friends, coming back home before dusk to help her family drive cattle. Every day had routine but each day was made just a little bit different by the knowledge that everyone was up to something and not a day went by where someone didn't have a story to tell.

"It sure feels good being outta that sunlight. Wouldn't have liked anything more to start the day with but once the day drags on it gets to be too much."

[Fritzie]

Lucien bobbed his head in agreement. With a slight grunt, he too stretched his body out, tail high, head low, before dropping his rear end and lying with his back legs stretched out behind him, soaking in as much of the coolness of the dirt as he could.

From his position, he looked up at K.C. She was very smart, and he felt he could enjoy spending more time with her, even if it was just in passing. It wasn't often that he acquired friends in his travels, but he had always like this town ever since he stumbled upon it. And since he planned to stay for another year or so, he figured that she would be a nice friend to look for when the wind whistled a little to mournful.

"I do agree. Awaking to the nice warm sun on your belly is fine and dandy, but the heat of the day has been getting hotter and hotter it seems," he sighed. "Although, i could just be getting older," he added with a sly grin, and a wag of the tail that meant he may be older, but was anything but an old lazy mutt.

[CUR]

Watching Sir Lucien stretch out and get comfortable made KC want to do the same, but at the moment she was trying to be as ladylike as possible. She couldn't explain why, it was just a desire to show this noble, friendly dog that she was more than just a southern bumpkin- she had been a true belle in her day, born to a family of working dogs, sure, but they had been dogs with class and were a carefully maintained family which was worth nearly as much as the enormous flocks they routinely worked. A farmer could always go out and buy new stock if they had the money, but it was damn-near impossible to replace a good dog.

Daintily, she reached her front paws forward, dipping her shoulders and stretching her back legs, standing forward on the tips of her toes, tail stretched up and a tight arc. When she lowered herself to the ground it was with a small sigh, barely escaping her parted lips. Lucien's comment about the weather and his age surprised her somewhat, she knew that around these parts ageing individuals were not revered the way they were where she had come from. More to the point, city strays often tormented and harassed the elderly, chasing them from shelter and snagging their food unless the older dog actually fought back. It was a sad and sorry state of affairs but she was pleased that he was willing to speak of his life in a way she was comfortable with.

"I feel exactly what your sayin about the whole age thing. Sure does seem like time flies by faster and faster, ya barely have a chance to feel it these days before realizin its tomorrow..." She faded off, not sure what to say next. She sometimes felt as though the dog she is and the dog she used to be were two completely different individuals. Looking back on her memories, it sometimes seems they were more thoughts and knowledge than experience- like she wasn't remembering things that happened to her so much as something she had seen one time from an outside view.

[Fritzie]

((OCC)) Sorry, i was dog sitting for a couple and didn't know they didn't have the internet until i got there! thats where i've been for the last week! I didn't abandon!

((ICC))

Lucien watched K.C. stretch out carefully, moving slowly and with the grace he had so often associated with well-bred cattle dogs. In her form, Lucien could see many years of well-chosen breeding, her owners striving to make the perfect cattle dog to work with day in and day out.

What made him happiest, he mused, was she treated him with the dignity that had once been bestowed upon older dogs. Lately, all he noticed when wandering around, was young pups either gave him nothing but grief, or ignored him altogether. Being brought up to respect the elders, he could only shake his head at those young ones who seemed to think they knew everything there was to know about everything.

"Certainly, time does seem to be flying by lately. But with the time of the high sun and longer days, maybe it will slow down a little bit, allowing some of the hard-working dogs a chance to relax a little. Or at least let an old dog enjoy the ends of his days in peace." it was no secret to Lucien that he would soon be gone from this world. Maybe not for another year, but he knew it was coming, and after seen so many pack wars and so many harsh winters and hot summers, nothing would suit him better than to just relax for the rest of his time on this rock.

[CUR]

OOC;; it's okay, I've been super busy with 4th of July. NJ gets totally PACKED. xD

BIC;;
Talking with Sir Lucien came so naturally to KC that she felt she could sit with him forever, enjoying the beautiful weather and their conversation. He spoke with gentle mannerisms that were familiar to her from the life she'd left behind so long ago and yet she was still a bit struck by his statement that he may not be around much longer. It was a cruel reality, how short life was and the way it seemed to fly by once you learned to fully appreciate it.

She dipped her head respectfully, acknowledging his statement and adding her own. "True it would be nice to go off somewhere beautiful and just relax, maybe have some little puppies around once in a while to brighten up the day..." KC still regretted missing out on that part of her life. She'd never had a litter of her own and now, packless, she knew it was unlikely that she would ever share the close company of a truly innocent dog now that she was old enough to appreciate the treasure in childhood.

Being too reasonable a dog to get caught up in sentimentality and what-ifs, she struggled to push the thought from her mind. Regret is a perilous road- when young it allows you to grow and learn, to make better decisions in the future. At her age however regret led to little more than a darkening of mood over long ago events and choices that cannot be changed. "Sir, if you don't mind my asking, what is it that you are most proud of?"