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When Penelope lowered her book to check on her dog, she got a very particular look sent back at her. She knew that look. When those big brown eyes squinted out from Minotaur's white face and his little nub of a tail wriggled ever so slightly, he was bored. Bored and wanting her to do something about it, not bored and willing to take a nap in order to entertain himself.

She rose with a stretch, slipping on her shoes on the way to the kitchen to get the solution to this problem. "Alright boy, I know it's been quiet... how about we go for a walk?" She slipped the leash off of its resting place and returned to the kitchen to find Minotaur already on his feet, waiting for her. She couldn't help but smile as she knelt down and attached the leash to her bulldog's collar, saying in faux seriousness, "And today, if we see a kitty in distress, we're going to ignore it because who knows what supernatural mission it might decide to give us! Agreed?"

Minotaur tilted his head in confusion, but nevertheless gave a grunt that she decided to take for consent. Penelope stood up straight and brushed down her skirt before heading out the door and down the main street, away from her family's home and more towards the shopping district. That would be slightly different than their usual path and give both of them something interesting to look at.

Penelope had hoped for just a quiet walk with Minotaur, but it seemed that her wish wasn't going to come true. A chatty little dog barking at a squirrel lost interest in the rodent and seemed, instead, to want to play with her own dog.

The English bulldog had always been friendly as a pup, and it transferred to his adult years as well. He did not object to the spitz; his jowls split into a grin as he licked at her, tail wagging as hard as it could. He had a new friend! He looked back at Penelope, as though trying to tell her such, and his owner couldn't help but laugh.

Her good mood transferred to the situation at large--it was hard to get upset when the dogs seemed to be having a good time. She smiled at the young man holding the pink leash, kneeling down as well to help him separate their pets, "No need to be sorry; I can bet that she's quite a handful. But, she's adorable, which has to count for something, right?"

Minotaur snorted excitedly, snuffling the other dog as best he could with two leashes being in constant movement in order to separate the tangled animals.

Penelope paused from the work whenever the man introduced himself, and she offered her hand and returned his smile, "I'm Penelope, and this handsome fellow here is Minotaur. It's nice to meet you and Annabel Lee, Chris."

The teenager hadn't expected the follow up question about her dog's lineage, but she replied sheepishly, "Oh... yes, yes he is, but you know I don't think about it much. I just think of him as a friend. A big-headed, drooly, snoring friend... but a friend, all the same."

Minotaur plopped down to sit on the ground, lowering his large head to give the other dog easier to access. His stub of a tail was wriggling all the faster the longer he was around this new friend. If his new position offered the two humans a harder task? Eh, not his problem--he was still having fun!

At Chris's comment, Penelope couldn't hide her distaste, her nose crinkling as she confessed, "I really don't care for people who treat living creatures as possessions. I mean, wanting a purebred dog is fine, but it's not as though it makes the owner a better person or proves that the animal is superior. Nice mixed dogs are just as good as nice purebreds."

Minotaur was not the type to jump around himself, but his face was split in a wide grin as he watched Anna move around, as though egging her on.

The dark-haired teenager couldn't help but laugh, both at the antics of the two dogs and at her human companion's agreement with her views. It was nice to find someone to talk to--she was not, on the whole, the type to intiate a conversation, and even when she did she didn't always find them as easy-going and relaxing as this one had turned out to be.

Penelope's right eyebrow rose at Chris's question, not because it made her uncomfortable, but because it was such a different change in direction. Still, she saw no harm in answering truthfully. She found the young man before her nice and reasonable on the subject of dogs, and there was no reason to suspect he would be otherwise here. "Yes, though I'm out for the summer. I go to Crystal Academy."

She ran her eyes over Chris, a slight frown on her lips to match his as she considered him. He appeared older than her, so probably not in high school like herself. Not a Crystal Academy boy, then. Still, he wasn't so old that he couldn't be in college... at least, she thought. "And you? Are you still in school?"

Wait, the other doggie was getting to give kissies? To both the humans? Oh, now Minotaur found something worth getting back on his stubby legs for! In a flash he was in Chris's lap as much as he could be, square hed angled so that his tongue had the best chance of reaching his cheek. KISSIES!

Chris may not have liked the little dog's show of affections, but Penelope relished them, giving both dogs little rubs and pats as they sought the attention of the two owners. She tilted her hand to let Annabel better sniff and lick at it. She nodded, glad to see her idea confirmed. Chris was a student at DCU; perfectly understandable, given his age. Azure Valley... but he seemed so kind, not a snob at all! It was a good thing, but she had to smile at his opinion of the uniform. (She had never been fond of it either, but then... were uniforms MEANT to please everyone? She was just lucky hat Crystal Academy's matched her own aesthetic!)

"I can't complain--my classes are interesting, and the library's been newly rennovated. I... spend a lot of time reading." The last was said almost shyly, since Penelope didn't tell the nice young man that her reading needs partially meant she had a hard time interacting with her other classmates. "Plus, there are a lot of different clubs that you can try, to find something fun to do, and if they don't have one you want, you can start your own! I'm working... slowly on forming a debate team."

Minotaur was satisified with pettings; all too often, it seemed, no one wanted to have his big ole slobbery kissies. Alas. Still, any kind of attention was nice, and this walk had just been full of it. Getting his leash tangled had led to some awesome attention!

Penelope smiled as she continued to play with Annabel, nodding in answer to Chris's question, "Yeah, I've always like libraries. So many books to read and so much you can learn. Plus, it helps that my dad works at the library. Maybe he knows your friends!"

The change in topic lead to a slight change in tone, but it didn't get too serious. "All positions on a team are important, so I don't think there's any shame in being asked to do the research," Penelope reassured him. Her voice was neither coy nor overly sweet; she stated her opinion on this subject as plainly as she had every other time in their conversation. "We can't all be good at everything, right? I mean, I'll bet your science fair projects were better than mine, and you probably know lots more than me now that you're in college."

Penelope gave Annabel a small belly rub, not wanting the already excited pup to get even more excited. She laughed lightly along with Chris, "Well, we can agree that we're each better than the other at something. And that's what really matter; that everyone's good at something."

Oh, the leashes were finally free! Penelope accepted Chris's hand and straightened up, returning his smile with another one of her own. "Don't worry--I plan on enjoying it as much as I can. It was nice to meet you and Annabel, Chris; maybe we'll see you on another walking day." She then turned to walk in the direction of home, giving the now free leash a tug, "C'mon Minotaur--let's go home, boy!"

Minotaur seemed positvely dejected at the thought of leaving the nice man and his new little friend behind, but when Penelope gave another gentle tug on the leash, he snorted and began to trot off with her.