[Pup]

  She had finally figured it out.

  ‘Kitty was right all along! It really was magic.’

  She had worried that Kitty wouldn’t understand the need to be quick and efficient. That wasting time would cost them a lot of money for the docking fee. That worry had turned into a different concern when Kitty had shown disdain for what she called ‘small thing games’.

  Games such as ‘proper trade paperwork’ and ‘contract negotiation’.

  ‘We might be small, but the ships are still big. She wouldn’t be any more able to break out of prison than me…..

  … Right?’

  At the very least, even if Kitty could break out, she probably wouldn’t come back for the ‘silly small things’. It made the negotiations tense in a way she hadn’t thought about. She had been so worried about Kitty popping out of the shadows and demanding things from the officials that she hadn’t cared a bit about the difference in status. It was still a harrowing experience, but she didn’t need to get nervous about talking to higher-ups.

  ‘It’s probably fine. Even if Kitty forgot me, I am sure that Moose would get me out.’

  Such a confident thought had surprised her at first. Why would Moose even care? But the more she thought about it the more it made sense to her. Kitty might be all over the place, but Moose was calm and supportive. He had brought her onto the ship and let her earn her keep. If she suddenly disappeared, he would surely question things.

  ‘Granted, He may never be able to find me if he needs to rely on Kitty for information.’

  She had resolved to learn the rumbling that Kitty and Moose both used. She knew she would never be able to speak the language, it was far too deep for her body, but she could at least take orders and commands directly from Moose. She even knew a couple of words already!

  Sure, one of those words was her name, but everyone started somewhere!

  She fortunately never had to test that confidence. Kitty had stayed quiet and the negotiations had finished quickly.

  Well, no……

  Kitty wasn’t ‘quiet’, she was simply ‘not there’.

  Not that she could see at least. It had been very difficult to follow Kitty’s movements when they had been on the station the first time, but she had assumed it was because her focus had been elsewhere. During the negotiations with the station staff, she had spent most of that time looking around to make sure Kitty didn’t ruin things.

  As far as she could tell, Kitty may as well have simply left them there.

  She didn’t see a single trace of the woman.

  Kitty’s absence had given her mixed feelings at the end as well. When the Crova summarized what happened and told her how the contact had been handled, she really would have preferred to make Kitty deal with that.

  This book was originally published on Royal Road. Check it out there for the real experience.

  Being told that two new people would be joining them and that they would be there for an undetermined amount of time set her fur on edge. She was uncomfortable with the very thought. She even would have said no and taken a much smaller payment, just so she didn’t have to let these outsiders onto her new home.

  But it wasn’t her money.

  Moose had sent her and Kitty to trade. He wanted them to make a deal and do their best. She expected it of herself as well. If dealing with these people would get Moose a better deal, she would simply swallow her aversion. If she wanted them gone sooner, all she had to do was trade off the new cargo as fast as she could, right?

  Her decision had been correct. Everything had been worth it, bad feelings and all.

  She got a pat on the head and a nice rumble. Something of a smile on Moose’s face.

  It had set all her insides squirming and the most pleasant fuzziness bloomed through her. Even her tail stopped listening, going back and forth for so long she worried it might fall off. It validated every decision she had made and set her goals for the future. Kitty was right. She had told her, shown her the obvious truth and simplified it to a single word…

  It was magic, there was nothing else it could be.

  ‘I should have listened the first time. I wonder how much I have missed out on for dismissing those other spacers I thought were crazy.’

  There was a momentary twinge of regret at what could have been, but she let it pass. The only thing that mattered now was finding more things that Moose wanted. Finding anything that might get her another pat and the coveted rumble. The ‘*good girl*’ that rattled her ears and gave her tail a will of its own.

  She had pestered Kitty for as long as it took to learn what that rumbling meant, even going so far as to forget to be afraid. That rumble took over her life. It was in her dreams, it filled her days with a desire to find it again, it even gave her courage she probably shouldn’t have.

  “Eep! Why are you naked!?”

  Her ears flipped down.

  Her mood couldn’t always be high though. She still very much didn’t like the feelings these invaders to her home set loose in her. A feeling she had never expected to associate with anything.

  Something protective and possessive.

  Something hers.

  “Moose doesn’t like cloths.”

  Such an obvious thing. Moose never wore anything. Kitty clearly learned that well before she showed up. After going for a time without wearing anything, now even she was starting to agree. Clothes weren’t made for her, they were uncomfortable. While Moose could just ignore what everybody thought and do what he wanted on account of being himself and Kitty clearly could just vanish and didn’t seem to have any shame to begin with, she still felt the shame of being seen. She wouldn’t go to populated areas or dance around naked in front of everyone.

  But this wasn’t a populated area.

  This wasn’t in front of everyone.

  This was home. Her home.

  She wasn’t about to let these invaders change what she did here.

  “That’s--. You--. This is highly unusual. I clearly need to speak to this Moose!”

  ‘NO! They’re not allowed to see Moose!’

  The feeling of rejection and her fur bristling happened so fast she surprised herself. Deeply ingrained habits are hard to break though. Her thoughts might be her own, but it didn’t mean she could voice them.

  “I will be sure to let him know.”

  The Crova seemed taken aback by the reaction and her response, quietly nodding and continuing on her way.

  She gave a sniff and carried on her trek. The interaction may have soured the moment, but she had spent all morning preparing.

  She would not be deterred.

  She walked onto the bridge to find Moose watching a screen while holding the little book he carried around. Kitty should still be napping for some time, as she had only come down here when the woman had passed her on the way to the bedroom. So long as nothing happened, she should have Moose to herself for a while.

  She could feel her heartbeat speed up and her face start to warm as she got close. It had taken her so much time to work up the courage and will herself into action. She didn’t know what she would do if she was denied.

  Carefully, being as delicate as she could, she pressed her head into Moose’s hand. Her own hands coming up to hold it in place.

  ‘I really wish my tail would stop. At this rate I might actually fall over.’