[PRP] Surprise Puppy (Erebus & Lutz)

[Melodine Cantus]

Every now and then, Erebus needed to stretch his legs. Especially since he was entirely engrossed when reading a book that he would forget mealtimes and even sleep, so he always felt much better when he went for a nice jog after.

Pulling off his skull pin once he stepped outside, he found himself breathing a sigh of relief as he shifted into his natural form. It was always nice to run around in his canine form again, especially since he had gotten bigger since his advancement to year 2.

He certainly couldn't be called a puppy any longer, but it didn't mean he wouldn't behave like one.

...Of course, it would only be when he was in this form. Erebus did not chase his tail when he was humanoid, though sometimes he did wonder what that would be like.......

Kaiyumi

 

[Kaiyumi]

The one thing of note throughout Lutz' time here had been that odd Wonderland fiasco...but after that, things had stagnated and he had pretty much just been tossed back into daily, boring life. For all he knew, something interesting had happened (it had) but he had been too distracted with poring over things in his dorm room to notice. A rare trip to the maul had resulted in him hauling back enough discount books and movies to last him a lifetime, and he had spent the last...you know...months...poring over those.

It was a little excessive, maybe, but it had meant that he didn't need to talk to people and he was always happy to not socialize.

Unless, apparently, it was what he perceived to be a minipet. When he decided to take a quiet stroll around campus that day, Lutz had not been expecting to find a dog out and about--at least, not one without an owner. He faltered upon seeing the creature, but after doing a quick look left and right, crouched down and held a hand out to beckon the canine closer.

"Hey there. What's a pup like you doing out here alone? You lost?"

Melodine Cantus

 

[Melodine Cantus]

He caught a whiff of a familiar scent, and turned around, tail wagging when he saw who he was. Lutz! Erebus barked happily, running around his friend in excitement. They certainly hadn't seen each other in a while, but he was glad to see that the other boil was doing well.

He nosed the outstretched hand, brown eyes shining up at Lutz. "Ruff ruff!"

Of course, Erebus could talk in his canine form, but it sometimes seemed to slip his mind, especially since creeple usually seemed much friendly and willing to play with him when he didn't talk...

Kaiyumi

 

[Kaiyumi]

Even Lutz couldn't keep a straight face around a friendly puppy. The corner of his lips pulled upwards in a lopsided smile and he crouched down, immediately scratching his new and unexpected company behind the ears. "Well aren't you a friendly pup. Out taking a walk by yourself, are you?"

If only he knew.

The fact of the matter was that Lutz had one hell of a soft spot for minis. It wasn't something that he liked to broadcast--anything that implied that he was soft in any way was something he didn't like being known--and so he kept taking frequent glances to ensure that no one was around to watch him. He felt relief every time he realized he was alone; it was just him and this dog, and it wasn't like the dog could tell anyone.

Nope. Not at all.

Melodine Cantus

 

[Melodine Cantus]

See? He was right! Creeple liked him better when he was in his canine form, and Erebus couldn't exactly blame them. He had grown up tussling with his brothers in this form, the three of them yapping happily side by side. It was a fond memory, and hey, if this would make others more comfortable around him, Erebus was completely fine with it.

He barked again, his tail still wagging. Erebus gave Lutz a nod in reply, starting to trot forward, glancing back to him to see if he would follow.

Kaiyumi

 

[Kaiyumi]

He arched a brow when the dog trotted away from him, only to realize a moment later that it wanted him to follow him. Pushing himself back up onto his feet with a little grunt, Lutz obediently walked forward until he had caught up. Stretching his hand down, he gave Erebus a couple of pats on the head before letting out a short, quiet laugh. For once in his undead life, he was more dere than he was tsun.

"Okay, okay, I got it. Where do you want to bring me?" He had some (a lot of) time to kill, so he decided it wouldn't hurt to humour his new animal friend for an hour or so. Lutz would rather have the company of a minipet than another student any day.

Melodine Cantus.

 

[Melodine Cantus]

Actually, Erebus didn't exactly have a specific place in mind to go. He would just frolic around and go where his feet (or his nose) took him, until he was all tired out and ready to head back to the dorm.

He paused for a moment in thought, before he merrily trotted on, sniffing around curiously before he found what he was looking for.

A stick was deposited at Lutz's feet and Erebus wagged his tail in anticipation.

Kaiyumi

 

[Kaiyumi]

Since he hadn't had any particular plans for the day, Lutz was all too happy to follow the excited pup around, even if it did look like they weren't set on any particular destination. Whenever Erebus came into reach, the boil would give him a fond scratch on the head or a pat on the side. His expression was far softer and more relaxed than he usually allowed himself to be.

Oh god, he was going to be so mortified this is great.

Odd break in narrative aside, things had been going swimmingly when Lutz was suddenly presented with a stick. Snorting, he picked it up and waved it in front of Erebus' nose. "Ready?"

He wagged it back and forth a couple more times before giving it a nice, arching toss.

Melodine Cantus

 

[Melodine Cantus]

The one thing Erebus really liked were pats and scritches, though he didn't get that as often in human form as he did when he was a dog. Perhaps it was because he was a lot taller and usually seemed like the one who would do most of the petting.

Oh well. It wasn't something particularly perturbing. Besides, he had someone to play catch with now! How fun was that!

"Ruff!" Erebus nodded, watching the stick like a hawk. The dog shot off as soon as the stick left Lutz's hand, chasing it as it flew through the air.

However, someone else... a pom in particular, had already found the stick and claimed it as its own. Erebus sighed, letting a soft growl rumble in his throat, hoping that it would scare the minipet off.

Kaiyumi

 

[Kaiyumi]

Lutz raised a hand to shield his eyes as he watched Erebus go zooming off. Heh, dogs really were easily excitable little things, weren't they? He stood there waiting expectantly for the not-a-minipet's return...

And waited...

...Okay, what was going on? From his angle, the marionette boil had yet to see the pom, so it just looked like that Erebus had stopped in front of the stick for no particular reason. It wasn't until he started forward did he let out a quiet "huh" upon realizing the problem.

Well, dogs could communicate better with one another than he could, so he'd leave it to them to sort things out.

Melodine Cantus

 

[Melodine Cantus]

Except that Erebus wasn't exactly comfortable with fighting with a minipet, even though he had the size advantage in this situation. Or it was because he had the size advantage that he refused to fight; Erebus was not willing to hurt it over a stick.

Blowing out a frustrated breath, he shifted back into human form, and held out his hand to the pom. "Hey." He said quietly. "I'll give you some snacks if you give it back?" Food bribery was always how he managed to tame minipets, though some had certainly took a lot more effort than others.

Or if the pom didn't want to give it back, they could play with it instead?

Kaiyumi

 

[Kaiyumi]

Looks like they were at a standstill. Tapping his foot impatiently, Lutz finally sighed and took a step forward. Maybe he'd try to help.

But then the most unexpected thing happened. Freezing in place, the boil's eyes widened as he watched the cute little dog he had been playing with shift into another boil. A...familiar boil...

...Oh no. OH NO.

NO.

"WHAT THE JACK."

Melodine Cantus

 

[Melodine Cantus]

The pom cocked its head at Erebus quizzically, as if it too were surprised by his transformation.

But it certainly wasn't as surprised as the one yelling away.

Erebus very nearly jumped out of his skin, scooping the pom up into his arms before it fled in terror. "Oh Jack, Lutz, you're scaring the minipet!" Of course Erebus had no idea why he was reacting this way. Maybe Lutz didn't like poms? But he had certainly seemed to like dogs.........

... It was then when he recalled the time he had very nearly scared Tomoko when he had spoken in dog form as well. "Whoops." He muttered under his breath, and then flashed Lutz an embarrassed smile. "Er....."

He had no idea what to say.

(The pom wiggled in his arms, looking quite amused rather than terrified with this situation.)

Kaiyumi

 

[Kaiyumi]

Could the undead blush? Because it certainly looked like there was colour rising to the marionette boil's face as he realized with great mortification that he had been treating Erebus with that gentle affection. He hadn't been petting a cute mini, but another boil--a boil he knew, which somehow made it all the worse for him.

Blushing furiously, he closed his hand around the bottom half of his face as if hoping that it would help hide his embarrassment. When he realized that it really wasn't doing much, he let his hand drop. Then he continued yelling.

"EREBUS I SWEAR TO JACK IF YOU TELL LOCK--OR ANYBODY--ABOUT THIS..."

Melodine Cantusx

sry for short tag this is literally all Lutz muse wanted to say

 

[Melodine Cantus]

Ohhhh Jack. Ohhhhh s**t.

Erebus did look somewhat embarrassed (though not as mortified as poor Lutz), and yet, a small part of him found the boil's reaction as hilarious as the wiggling pom in his arms. He hadn't been exactly surprised that Lutz had a soft spot, but for him to react this way...

He shouldn't hide who he was after all, right? "So... you don't want creeple to know that you like animals? I don't really see the problem with that..."

Kaiyumi