[who let the dogs out?]

[majorlyugh]

WHO: Major Lilywhite
WHERE: Major/Ravi's cabin, around the village
WHEN: Mid-October
OPEN TO: All, specific starter for Ravi
WARNINGS: PUPPIES.

---

Major had been lured outside by the sound of whimpering. Every ounce of softness and kindness he'd ever held in his body had been tingling like a small fire, spreading over the expanse of his body from head to toe at the sound. When he had opened the door, two boxes were sitting side-by-side on the porch - one about half the size of the other and, to his surprise, moving around like one of those fake ferret toys for cats, the kind that's glued to a mechanical ball that moves around.

Only a little less erratic.

He took the stationary box in first, setting it off to the side of the living room, before returning to get the one that had now seemed to calm down a little bit. As he lifted it, there was a quiet yelp from the inside, and Major knew in an instant what the mystery box's contents were, without having to remove the lid.

He sets the box down in the middle of the living room, carefully lifting up the cover to reveal the small, Basset Hound puppy gazing up at him inside. At the sight of his face, it lets out another yelp, this one happier but still pleading, and tries to stand on its hind legs to see outside the open top of the box. It doesn't quite have the hang of what it means to be coordinated yet, and so it tumbles backwards, causing a very loud "AWW!!" to come rushing out of Major's mouth.

He reaches inside, carefully scooping the puppy up in his arms. Once near enough, it begins to lick his face and squirm around in his grip. As Major's trying to check the box for any other dog-related items, the puppy manages to wiggle its way out of his arms and, before he can manage to do anything to stop it, runs straight out of the door that Major's foolishly left open by mistake.

He opens his mouth to shout a name, but realizes he doesn't have one at the ready, so he shouts the only thing he can think of:

"HEY! ... HEY YOU! COME BACK!" as he scrambles to his feet and out the door, chasing after the bounding, long-eared puppy.

Comments

[majorlyugh]

Major's finally caught up to the small, bounding fur ball - who's significantly faster than Major could've ever anticipated - and he's glad to see a familiar face when he does. Between a few breaths as he attempts to catch that, too, he oscillates between trying to offer a firm look at the puppy, a grateful look to Lucrezia, and a non-chalant attitude of how out of shape he feels.

He shouldn't be this winded, right?

"Door was open," he says, in between breaths, "He ran out. Tried catching him. Thank you." Once his breathing returns to a more normal pace, he exhales and tries that again. "He just arrived in one of those boxes. I was trying to check and see if there was anything other than a puppy in the box when he wriggled his way out of my arms and flew out the door. He doesn't .. have a name .. yet."

[the_scandal_of_italy]

It seemed as though the wind was taken from him, but she didn't want to call attention to that. Babies and puppies were the two creatures that could exhaust anyone. As none seemed to have the former, the latter would have to substitute and run Major ragged. She gave a conciliatory smile, hoping he wouldn't feel too embarrassed about his state.

Still, she was concerned, even if only a little.

"I think he only wished to say hello." She continued to stroke the puppy's ears, allowing it to lick her hand and jump on her excitedly. "He's very eager for attention. Did he just arrive?" She wasn't even certain it was a boy yet, only assumed. "He's fast as the wind. You will have to train him."

[majorlyugh]

"Like, just arrived. Not even five minutes ago. Or maybe the box had been sitting there for a while, but I only just found it on the porch," Major explains, dissociating just enough to remember how insane this all sounds, yet how casual and accepted those kinds of phrases are. Mysterious gift that isn't a prank or a bomb or a flaming bag of poop, given by unseen Observers no one is certain exists, nothing weird here.

"I will. I think I have my work cut out for me. I - ugh, sorry that he's - jumping all over you. Lemme just -" he bends over and scoops the furball up, adjusting it in his arms so that it can face Lucrezia and attempt its puppy bark. "There you go. You can pet him, if you want."

[the_scandal_of_italy]

"I think you would know if he had been there for long. Strange the box only just appeared and you weren't aware of it. All of these boxes simply arrive, with no fanfare or announcement. We at least realize the boxes are there. I should hate to imagine what would happen if it sat there for days." But how did they come there? She could ask the question, but it was what they all wondered, it would only be repetitive.

She shook her head, brushing down her skirts as she got to her feet. "There is no reason to apologize. He's eager." She reached out to scratch his ears once more. "Will you take him hunting with you?"

[majorlyugh]

"You'd hope. This is my first couple boxes that I've gotten since I arrived, so I don't know how it normally works but - I imagine they're placed in a spot they're guaranteed to be found. I mean, right? I doubt that ... uh, whoever is sending them wants them to just sit there, collecting dust. Or letting some creature inside of it starve to death. It would be kinda cool if the box played some sorta trumpet fanfare whenever you opened the lid for the first time," Major says with a quiet laugh, imitating the four-note 'got-item' sound from Zelda.

"That's probably a good idea," he says, glancing down at the puppy for a moment. "I am sorta terrible at it because I can't bring myself to kill anything if I do wind up catching it. He could probably help me with that. I think that's something Basset Hounds are known for?"