FK snippet for Lamentables from Rubberbutton
FK, 1,121 words, PG
I’m woken by Benton, who stands over me, nudging me with the toe of his boot. “Good morning, Dief. It’s a beautiful day for a run.”
I yawn hugely, letting my tongue loll before saying, “Yes, excellent. I do hope you’ll enjoy it.” I curl up again and miss his reply. He prods me again, none too gently, and I deign to open an eye.
“You really are exceptionally lazy, you know.”
I’m about to reply that being energy-efficient is hardly the same thing as laziness, but he threatens to withhold breakfast if I don’t rouse myself.
So I rouse myself.
Ben runs faster than normal, pushing himself hard, though it isn’t any difficulty for me to keep up, of course. He goes farther than his usual route as well, and by the end he dripping sweat and breathing heavily. He smells different, I note with some concern. His sweat is laced with anxiety, though it’s not quite fear.
As we ascend the steps back up to the consulate, we meet Ray Kowalski who is carrying a white box that smells of donuts-both glazed and powdered, if my nose doesn’t deceive me. I have always had the greatest of affections for Raymond Kowalski.
“Oh, hey, Fraser. There you are.” He gestured over his shoulder to the building. “I knocked, but you didn’t answer. And I thought...” He breaks off. He, too, smells nervous. Interesting.
“Good morning, Ray. Yes. No. Er, I wasn’t here. I was running. With Diefenbaker. I find exercise particularly invigorating early in the morning-gets the blood pumping, the heart-rate up. Best way to start the day.”
“That sounds really great, Fraser. Real fun.” Which is an odd thing for Ray to say. He is even more energy efficient than myself. “I, uh...Here. I got some donuts. And chai-no idea what that is exactly, but the girl at the shop said it was a kind of tea. If you hate it, blame her.”
“Ah, thank you, it’s very kind of you to think of me.”
“What the hell is wrong with you two this morning?” I demand snuffling at the box in Ray’s hand. There’s crullers in there too, I bet.
“Nothing, nothing,” Ben answers quickly and pushes past me to let us into the consulate. Hmm.
Ray sets the donuts down on Ben’s desk and selects one, chewing slowly. Ben’s saying something now, but I’m focused on Ray and the donut he is clearly not appreciating, so I miss whatever it is.
Ray swallows. “Fraser. You don’t have to apologize. I don’t even know why you’re apologizing. It’s me who should apologize.” This catches my attention and I look at Ben.
He fidgets and pulls at the edge of his t-shirt. If he were wearing the uniform, he’d be straightening his lanyard. “No apology is necessary. I understand.”
“No. You don’t.”
“No, I don’t,” Ben agrees quickly, looking shamefaced.
“Interesting,” I observe. “How much you humans can talk without getting anywhere. All wolves need to do is smell another’s urine to know what is on another’s mind.”
“I don’t really think that’s a feasible option,” Ben tells me, dismissing a perfectly good idea.
“What are you talking about, feasible options? Because that’s exactly what I don’t feel like I have. Options-feasible or otherwise.” Ray sets down his donut-sadly out of reach-and licks powdered sugar from his fingers. “Because you ran out, before I had the option of explaining. I am not so good with the words, Fraser, you have to give me a chance to get them right. You cannot just kiss me and then exit the premises without giving me the option of doing something about it.”
“You kissed him?” I ask, impressed. As a wolf, I don’t really get the appeal of kissing, but I understand that it is a very important step in the human courtship.
“I know that was unfair to you, Ray.”
“Was it a good kiss?” I interject, while Ben looks like he’s bracing himself for the worst. “With tongue? Tongue seems to be an important part of kissing. I read some tips in Cosmo, if you’d like me to share.”
Ben steadfastly ignores me.
“You really took me by surprise there, Fraser. No, no, don’t give me that look. I didn’t say in a bad way. Surprises can be good. They’re just...surprising, is all. So it took me a while to get with the program. Whoa, hello, this is really happening, I am not crazy and hallucinating or in some other way completely out to lunch.”
I am not particularly impressed with this speech. “He likes you, Benton. He would certainly accept you as his mate if you asked.”
Ben reddens further and says, “How would you know this?”
“How would I know this?” Ray is thrown off. “I guess I could still be hallucinating or something. But as crazy as this is, I think my hallucinations would be a little wilder. Pink elephants, bleeding walls, the whole shebang.”
Ray continues his monologue, veering off into metaphysics, while I explain, “Oh, I know because he told me so himself. I feel a little bad about spilling the beans now, but this is getting ridiculous. He never swore me to secrecy, of course, but I think he assumed his confidence would be kept. But if it’ll save me more of this...well then. Sometimes when he takes me for walks, he enjoys sharing the details of his personal life-most of it beyond inane-but a few months back he confessed his affection for you was more than platonic. There was something about the jumping of bones, though I can’t quite recall. His interest has only increased since then and-“ I would shrug here, were I physically capable of doing so, “-here we are.”
“If this were, like, an erotic-type fantasy, there would probably be more actual nakedness and less talking about our feelings,” Ray concludes. “So I’m pretty sure this is reality. More or less.”
“I see,” Ben says to both-or neither-of us.
Ray shakes his head wildly for a moment, trying to clear it. “What I’m trying to say here is that I like you, Fraser. And if you want to, you know, get together I am down with that. Really, really down with that.”
“Now, shut up, boy,” I advise Ray. “And give the dog a bone. And by bone, I mean donut.” To Fraser, I add, “This would be the part where you kiss him. If only to keep him from talking.”
Fraser says nothing but takes my advice, which is lucky for me as it keeps them sufficiently distracted while I help myself to a cruller or three.
----
For
lamentables
Prompt: "Shut up boy and give the dog a bone", Character: Dief, or Dief POV
I’m woken by Benton, who stands over me, nudging me with the toe of his boot. “Good morning, Dief. It’s a beautiful day for a run.”
I yawn hugely, letting my tongue loll before saying, “Yes, excellent. I do hope you’ll enjoy it.” I curl up again and miss his reply. He prods me again, none too gently, and I deign to open an eye.
“You really are exceptionally lazy, you know.”
I’m about to reply that being energy-efficient is hardly the same thing as laziness, but he threatens to withhold breakfast if I don’t rouse myself.
So I rouse myself.
Ben runs faster than normal, pushing himself hard, though it isn’t any difficulty for me to keep up, of course. He goes farther than his usual route as well, and by the end he dripping sweat and breathing heavily. He smells different, I note with some concern. His sweat is laced with anxiety, though it’s not quite fear.
As we ascend the steps back up to the consulate, we meet Ray Kowalski who is carrying a white box that smells of donuts-both glazed and powdered, if my nose doesn’t deceive me. I have always had the greatest of affections for Raymond Kowalski.
“Oh, hey, Fraser. There you are.” He gestured over his shoulder to the building. “I knocked, but you didn’t answer. And I thought...” He breaks off. He, too, smells nervous. Interesting.
“Good morning, Ray. Yes. No. Er, I wasn’t here. I was running. With Diefenbaker. I find exercise particularly invigorating early in the morning-gets the blood pumping, the heart-rate up. Best way to start the day.”
“That sounds really great, Fraser. Real fun.” Which is an odd thing for Ray to say. He is even more energy efficient than myself. “I, uh...Here. I got some donuts. And chai-no idea what that is exactly, but the girl at the shop said it was a kind of tea. If you hate it, blame her.”
“Ah, thank you, it’s very kind of you to think of me.”
“What the hell is wrong with you two this morning?” I demand snuffling at the box in Ray’s hand. There’s crullers in there too, I bet.
“Nothing, nothing,” Ben answers quickly and pushes past me to let us into the consulate. Hmm.
Ray sets the donuts down on Ben’s desk and selects one, chewing slowly. Ben’s saying something now, but I’m focused on Ray and the donut he is clearly not appreciating, so I miss whatever it is.
Ray swallows. “Fraser. You don’t have to apologize. I don’t even know why you’re apologizing. It’s me who should apologize.” This catches my attention and I look at Ben.
He fidgets and pulls at the edge of his t-shirt. If he were wearing the uniform, he’d be straightening his lanyard. “No apology is necessary. I understand.”
“No. You don’t.”
“No, I don’t,” Ben agrees quickly, looking shamefaced.
“Interesting,” I observe. “How much you humans can talk without getting anywhere. All wolves need to do is smell another’s urine to know what is on another’s mind.”
“I don’t really think that’s a feasible option,” Ben tells me, dismissing a perfectly good idea.
“What are you talking about, feasible options? Because that’s exactly what I don’t feel like I have. Options-feasible or otherwise.” Ray sets down his donut-sadly out of reach-and licks powdered sugar from his fingers. “Because you ran out, before I had the option of explaining. I am not so good with the words, Fraser, you have to give me a chance to get them right. You cannot just kiss me and then exit the premises without giving me the option of doing something about it.”
“You kissed him?” I ask, impressed. As a wolf, I don’t really get the appeal of kissing, but I understand that it is a very important step in the human courtship.
“I know that was unfair to you, Ray.”
“Was it a good kiss?” I interject, while Ben looks like he’s bracing himself for the worst. “With tongue? Tongue seems to be an important part of kissing. I read some tips in Cosmo, if you’d like me to share.”
Ben steadfastly ignores me.
“You really took me by surprise there, Fraser. No, no, don’t give me that look. I didn’t say in a bad way. Surprises can be good. They’re just...surprising, is all. So it took me a while to get with the program. Whoa, hello, this is really happening, I am not crazy and hallucinating or in some other way completely out to lunch.”
I am not particularly impressed with this speech. “He likes you, Benton. He would certainly accept you as his mate if you asked.”
Ben reddens further and says, “How would you know this?”
“How would I know this?” Ray is thrown off. “I guess I could still be hallucinating or something. But as crazy as this is, I think my hallucinations would be a little wilder. Pink elephants, bleeding walls, the whole shebang.”
Ray continues his monologue, veering off into metaphysics, while I explain, “Oh, I know because he told me so himself. I feel a little bad about spilling the beans now, but this is getting ridiculous. He never swore me to secrecy, of course, but I think he assumed his confidence would be kept. But if it’ll save me more of this...well then. Sometimes when he takes me for walks, he enjoys sharing the details of his personal life-most of it beyond inane-but a few months back he confessed his affection for you was more than platonic. There was something about the jumping of bones, though I can’t quite recall. His interest has only increased since then and-“ I would shrug here, were I physically capable of doing so, “-here we are.”
“If this were, like, an erotic-type fantasy, there would probably be more actual nakedness and less talking about our feelings,” Ray concludes. “So I’m pretty sure this is reality. More or less.”
“I see,” Ben says to both-or neither-of us.
Ray shakes his head wildly for a moment, trying to clear it. “What I’m trying to say here is that I like you, Fraser. And if you want to, you know, get together I am down with that. Really, really down with that.”
“Now, shut up, boy,” I advise Ray. “And give the dog a bone. And by bone, I mean donut.” To Fraser, I add, “This would be the part where you kiss him. If only to keep him from talking.”
Fraser says nothing but takes my advice, which is lucky for me as it keeps them sufficiently distracted while I help myself to a cruller or three.
----
For
lamentables
Prompt: "Shut up boy and give the dog a bone", Character: Dief, or Dief POV