Fantasy Replacing Man's Best Friend

[Deadly Darkness]

I always loved going to the pet store. There were always so many different type of animals, all with their own unique personalities. I remember when I was little I wasn't allowed to feed or pet them because they didn't want anyone getting hurt. I suppose it makes sense now, but they're still just as cute as I remember them. I got a job at the nearest pet store the moment I was old enough. My whole perspective on pet stores really changed after that. I had never seen a litter get split up before, or watched an old animal get put down. It almost makes it harder, watching all the families pick out the younger pets. No one wants an old animal. They aren't as active or entertaining when they get old. I always do my best to point them out when I see families come. "They're already ready to work! They'll be like an older sibling to your child!" We don't keep them after they hit 18. I try not to think about what happens to them after that point. But that doesn't matter right now.

Hi, welcome to the Monstrous Pet Store! Please have a look around and tell me if anyone catches your eye!

Please read OOC before joining!​

 

[Deadly Darkness]

The car hummed softly as it idled outside of the local pet store. Lauren's father, a gruff, short man, huffed as he tapped away at his tablet. "Bringing an animal into my own home, and of all places you want to look for yours here at this dump." Lauren simply smiled, understanding that the only way to get through to her father was through business. "I already explained to you father, buying from a local shelter demonstrates our loyalty to the places we supply. It'll do well for our image." The old man grumbled to himself before finally exiting the car. Lauren quickly followed suit, a mixture of anxiety and excitement swirling through her. The bell attached to the door jingled as the two entered the room. A cacophony of barks, chirps, an all filled the air. The CEO cringed at the noise. Clearly, she was going to be on a time crunch. Most of the pets were young, no more than two or three years old, but there were a select few that were clearly nearing their "expiration date". Lauren hung around these pets, understanding what would happen to them if she didn't choose one.
One stuck out to her in particular, an older boy with white hair sat in the back corner, presumably trying to draw the least amount of attention to himself. His legs were long and his shoulders were somewhat broad, so the argument could be made that he could be her guard pet. With a quick wave of her hand, Lauren called over one of the employees. "What can you tell me about this one?" She inquired, pointing to the boy with rounded ears. the employee brightened up quickly. They always seemed to do that when someone took interest in an older pet. "Ah yes! He's an excellent choice! That's Calvin; never owned before, quiet, and well behaved. He's a polar bear, but doesn't show any signs of aggression!" A light smiled pulled at Lauren's lips, enjoying the humor in his name.

 

[Meglivorn]

Calvin was bored out of his skull, "Another wonderful day in paradise..." he grumbles to himself, knowing it is too loud in the store during the day for anyone to hear what he is saying. He says it nonetheless, wanting to voice his complaint to whatever higher power might be listening, one had to hope for something in a place like this, at least that's what the other older pets told him. He thought about the few older ones he had met over the years, he hoped they had found some semblance of happiness in their new adopted lives. He was told they did, that they all went to a 'Better place', whatever that means... His ears pricked up at the higher pitched bell sound of the door as it opened, no one usually comes in to look around lunch time, the humans are all out enjoying their freedom why would one of them come here? The volume rises higher in the store, the noise of the younger pets on offer he could drown out well enough most of the time but this was just unbearable... Calvin grumbles having laughed at that in his own head. He craned his neck to look and see who this window shopper would be, probably just a kid trying to get some free entertainment while their parents shopped at one of the other stores down the street. He blinks several times as he takes in the two newcomers, no kids here, it's a young girl and presumably her business man looking father, complete with suit, tie, dissatisfied expression, and tablet to boot. Calvin sighs, trying not to act interested in them as he stands and feigns a stretch to make himself feel a little less awkward, walking slowly he begins to realize something... a-are they looking at me?! He calmed the skip in his heartbeat, people rarely payed any attention to him and he immediately felt very childish for getting excited at the attention her was receiving, 'I'm just bored' he tries to reason with himself. He offers a slight smile to the girl staring him down but once again mentally kicks himself for it, 'What am I doing! I don't need to be nice to them... they probably will just move on to one of the younger ones in a minute..'

 

[Deadly Darkness]

A light smile befell the bear's face. Lauren smiled back, offering a small wave. He certainly seemed nice, and even though he was incredibly thin, she imagined he could easily become what her father thought he should be. "Is there a possibility I could meet him?" The employee's excitement only continued to grow. "Of course! I'll get one of the meeting rooms squared away and have him brought in immediately!" The underpaid woman then scurried off to find help. Lauren couldn't help but laugh softly at the excitement she has seemingly caused. She turned, letting her body now fully face Calvin. She stepped closer to the glass panel separating them, taking a moment to glance over the potential pet. He would most certainly do.
Another equally eager worker soon greeted Lauren and led her and her father into the meeting room. Her father's gaze had remained on his tablet the entire time, and now that they were in a much quieter room he finally spoke. "So what did you choose?" He asked, feigning some kind of interest. "A polar bear." She stated simply. His eyes finally left the tablet as he looked up to his daughter with a chuckle. "That's my girl." The original employee moved through the back entrance collected Calvin and soon entered the small meeting room. Lauren watched as her father's somewhat excited gaze fell into one of disappointment and almost disgust. "You call this a polar bear?" He grunted. Both the employee and Lauren frowned. "Father, be polite. You should know that such small facilities don't have the means to fully exercise every animal." The old man continued to grumble before Lauren quickly interjected again. "Just imagine though, once he's properly trained he'll be the most frightening guard around." The CEO's grumbles became somewhat less as he continued to look the scrawny male over.

 

[Meglivorn]

Calvin couldn't help but get closer to the girl, she had an air of... Calvin didn't know, he had only ever seen a girl pay attention to a guy in rom coms and his brain was really overthinking this whole thing. He kept walking and as she smiled back at him his heart did that little skip again, 'what was that?!', his face felt flush but he just couldn't stop some part of him wanted the possibility of alleviating his boredom if only for a small amount of time. He was already enjoying her and the fact that she provided anything to his entertainment starved brain, she said a few words to the nearby employee he couldn't make out what was said but the tone of her voice indicated a question. Calvin was quite surprised as the woman immediately went off to solve that question, he gave a little amused huff and noticed that this girl made a soft giggle of her own, he felt a chill pass down his back as his ears turned towards her to pick up more of the sound, he smiled some, much more shyly at his own involuntary reaction and as she turned more to face him. She was well dressed and Calvin guessed she was an affluent daughter, which supported the bizarre actions of the employee as the workers in this store hustled for nothing like they did with this girl. She started to walk off as another employee came to her side and Calvin's heart sank a little, his first thought was right, she was just window shopping and didn't have any interest in him. He turned as the far side door opened and the first employee entered with a collar, Calvin's hair bristled and he immediately started to back away from the woman but he knew there was nowhere to run. He hated being in these collars with a passion, they were old, heavy and short-circuited often leaving small burn marks on the unprotected skin on his neck. He gave the woman a pleading look to just leave him alone, no entertainment was worth that sadistic piece of junk, "No.. please I don't want to... just give her one of the kids she will like them better!" He felt the cold cement wall at his back and the woman just shook her head, "Don't get a choice Calvin, she wanted to meet you specifically. Now be a good boy and don't make me force this on you." Calvin froze for a moment, s-she wanted to see him specifically?, and in that moment the employee slapped the collar around his neck, the cold metal ends digging into his neck and he let out a growl of anger. He glared at the woman and she held up the remote for him to see, Calvin promptly quieted down, they never bring out the remote and the collar is always for show... who the hell are these people!? His internal questions went unanswered as the clerk quickly spun him around and they headed towards the adoption meeting area, he could feel her knuckle digging into the small of his back to prod him along and he begrudgingly went with her, under threat of electric shock. Reaching the meeting room he was greeted with the pleasant sight of the girl from earlier, and then his mood immediately darkened at the older man's words, "Yeah?! Well you're..." Calvin winced feeling the knuckle prod his back again and he fell silent a low grumble in his throat as he stared daggers at the man. Calvin was only deterred for a moment, stepping forward he thought to himself 'I'll show you a polar bear' and with a small grunt of effort he lifted the mostly solid metal table in the room, carried it over and let it drop a few feet from the mans well polished shoes. Calvin instantly felt the electric shock course through his body, his own dense fur acting as a conductor and building up more of a charge than he was supposed to get. He let out a cry of pain and fell to one knee, his muscles and limbs twitching as he tried to stand back up.

 

[Deadly Darkness]

Lauren's eyes widened. This wasn't going as planned. The sudden dropping of the metal table made her flinch, retracting slightly. She then watched with a solemn look as he was shocked. She watched as all potential seemed to be drained away. "Get him out of my sight." Her father barked, but Lauren quickly shrieked, no. She raised her hands in defense. "Wait, please." Her father, clearly angry, turned to his daughter. "What? What do you want? Just choose a younger one. They'll behave better than this beast!" He snarled. "That might be true," she began. "But they'll take time to mature and reach an age of being truly useful. It'll cost more to raise a young one and we won't even receive the benefits needed from a young one! I promise you, we can train him!" Lauren's blue eyes met the bear's, pleading for him to calm down. She knew what would happen if they didn't adopt him. He wouldn't never be adopted. He would be left to die. She only hoped that he could understand her desperation and how far she was sticking her neck out for him.

 

[Meglivorn]

Calvin couldn't help but grin, even as his muscles spasmed with residual electricity, god these collars were the worst... but this one would be off him soon enough, he glanced over at the girl as she pleaded his case with her father. Calvin meet her eyes and glanced at her in confusion, why does she want him so badly, his body slowly sinking to the floor as his legs couldn't support his half crouched position with all the random shocks making his body shake and move, contracting in painful ways. He sat down as a final shock caused his shoulder to twitch and looked up apologetically at the girl, he still didn't understand why she want to adopt him so bad there were certainly other better pets than him like her father said and Calvin didn't want to be some rich girls guard dog... right? He sat and waited, letting the girl try to calm the older man down, he was interested to know why she was still trying with him even after his display of aggression Calvin had never done that before, he had never done any of this before so he was just running on instinct and emotion at this point. So he sat, more out of reluctance to receive another painful shock than to help with this girl's confusing plans, but they were certainly interesting so he planned to play along.

 

[Deadly Darkness]

Seeing as Calvin had calmed down, The CEO eventually bought into her spiel. He didn't dare look down at the disgusting animal at his feet though. "Bring me the paper work, and get him out of this room." He stated in a rather short manner. Lauren thanked her father a number of times as another employee came in to help remove Calvin from the area. Once gone the papers were brought in and Lauren's father signed them begrudgingly. Once that was complete the two exited the room and moved to the front counter to deal with payment. "An older pet is a great choice financially!" The cashier exclaimed. "I make more money in a day than you do in a year. I don't care about financials." The CEO growled. The boy behind the counter shied away and quickly finished checking the two out. Lauren sighed inaudibly, but was glad they had managed to make it all work in the end with minimal damage. After a few minutes Calvin was brought back out, still wearing the old, somewhat rusty shock collar. Grabbing the bag from the counter, she carefully stepped towards him. She dug around the papers and removed a black standard shock collar with a smooth sort of fake fur around the inside. "I think you might find this one is much more comfortable." Her voice was soft as she looked up to him. The employee unclasped the clunky collar and both she and Lauren waited anxiously to see if Calvin would accept the new collar.

 

[Meglivorn]

Calvin glared at the older man even as he agreed to the younger woman's pleas, his aggression turned into a low growl as he was lifted to his feet and walked out the door he came in. He tuned out the torrent of reprimanding over his outburst, he just continued to grumble and growl at the prospect of being bought and sold, paying now mind to the statements of he shouldn't act that way, that he is incredibly lucky that he even got adopted today, that he was very disrespectful and should be ashamed. That last one almost got a rise out of him, who were they to tell him how to act, it's not like they knew what his life was like, mind-numbing boredom and a constant pressure to be cute, or useful, or something to please every person that came through those doors. He almost yelled back but was reminded of the painful shock he had just gotten and the remote could go to a much higher setting, so Calvin bit his tongue and just hoped that they would shut up before they really made him angry. He was led back out front as the two people, his new owners apparently, were wrapping up the payment. The father looked as disgusted with him as ever and pretended to not notice his existence, the feeling is mutual old man, and then Calvin noticed the girl walking towards him. She seems... scared of me? I meant to scare her father not her, Calvin didn't plan on that at least but it was probably bound to happen, it might be better this way actually he thought to himself. Maybe she will be too frightened to ask much of me and will just give me back to the store in a few weeks, Calvin grew even more hopeful as the old half-broken collar was removed from his neck. But his dreams of being left without a collar were crushed when the girl lifted out another shock collar, "dammit.." he mutters under his breath, he could already feel his neck feeling irritated from the previous collar and wasn't excited to put on a new collar and face the same treatment. He tries to hold back the torrent of fears about what world of suffering he was about to be brought into, being owned always disgusted him even though it was all he has ever known, but now with this one person being the face of his ownership made it easier to focus his distrust and fear. What if she shocked him just for fun, what if she was cruel to him in every way imaginable... he swallowed the growing lump of panic in his throat as her voice came out soft and gentle. Calvin didn't know what to say, or what to do, nothing he had ever seen from his glass box could guide him on what to do, so he just nodded slowly and cautiously offers his neck as he leans down towards her. Maybe if I'm well behaved like the others tell me to be I can get through this... Calvin hoped beyond hope that he was right, but had never known a pet to come back after purchase, 'maybe they all learned to do this? put a little trust in their new owners and they would be kind to them?'. Calvin's electric blue eyes glanced over at her anxiously, waiting for her to place the new collar on him, his ears folded against his head.

 

[Deadly Darkness]

With the removal of the old collar, Lauren watched the light return and then die once more from the bear's eyes as she pulled out the new collar. She never liked seeing the looks on their faces as they were collared, but it was mandatory for the safety of everyone. She watched as he lowered his neck, presenting it to her. Being as gentle as she could, Lauren carefully slid the collar around his neck and clasped it before letting her arms drop back down to her side. "Welcome to the family, Calvin." Slowly, but confidently, Lauren extended her hand out to him. She wore a kind smile that hopefully dampened the grunt her father had let out.

 

[Meglivorn]

Calvin felt his heart sink a little as the new collar was fastened around his neck, sure he offered his neck up to her but it was only because he was under threat of being shocked if he didn't comply. A new realization raced through his head, this is going to be my life now... he tried to be optimistic, maybe she will be nice, maybe even take off the collar when no one was around to complain, give me treats and treat me like an equal! Like the employees told them all, but most of him wasn't sure, he had never heard about what each owner did with their pets, to be honest he didn't really know anything about the outside world. What his life would look like as this girls "Bodyguard", whatever that means... maybe I am something awe inspiring like a warrior! B-but then why the collar... Calvin was interrupted from his thoughts of a fantastical life filled with adventure by the girl, his new owner, extending her hand. He looked down at it puzzled for a moment, what was he supposed to do with this? A memory suddenly filled his head, that of a throne room and someone kneeling in front of another person and placing his lips to her hand. What he didn't know was that memory is of a knighting ceremony not a pet acquisition, but being unaware did so anyways, lowering himself he raised her hand and kissed it softly on the knuckles. He looks back up to her, his eyes silently asking if he did that right.

 

[Deadly Darkness]

A suffocated snort escaped her as she tried to choke back the laugh that threatened to fill the room. Had he just bowed before her? She watched as his striking blue eyes met her gaze, begging to be told that he had done the right thing. She took a quick glance around the room to find a number of people watching in bewilderment. The employee behind him seemed rather embarrassed by it all. Lauren quickly cleared her throat, taking on a clear, but kind tone. "You may rise, Calvin." She would have to teach the proper way to greet someone, or how to shake a hand in general. She hadn't considered it before, but there were probably a number of things Calvin didn't know about. She couldn't imagine that the shelter had a stellar education program. In fact, she wasn't sure if they even had one. These thoughts were broken by soft grunt of her father, signaling that they had spent too much time in there. She gave him a small nod before looking back to Calvin. "Alright, we're going to leave now, so follow me closely, alright?" With that she turned and led the bear out of the small building and out into the streets. A black car soon pulled up, its windows tinted. The man who occupied the drivers seat scurried out and quickly made his way to the back door, holding it open for them. Lauren offered the man a kind smile as thanks before climbing into the car after her father. Once seated, she turned to find Calvin still standing outside the car. "It's alright, this vehicle will take us home." She patted the seat beside her. "You can sit right next to me." She offered, hoping it would coax him inside.

 

[Meglivorn]

Calvin stood up and released the girls hand, he smiled softly but could feel a lot of gazes on him and the room was noticeably quieter, had he done something wrong? He felt his cheeks flush and his ears folded to his head shyly, maybe I just didn't say something, she said, 'you may rise' but maybe there was something I didn't say before that I should of. He pondered this for a moment trying to rack his brain for anything to help him sort this out but he came up with nothing, only adding to his embarrassment, with a start he heard the girl speak to him telling him to follow closely and he did, he would really have to learn her name or maybe pets didn't get to know? He hoped not as he wasn't fond of the idea of calling her master or owner or something of that sort, but part of him remembered he didn't have too much of a choice now in really anything. Stepping out onto the street was like a rush of information, they were still only in the outskirts of the city and it wasn't as dense as the downtown but this was the best view of really anything Calvin had gotten his whole life and his ice blue eyes darted around frantically trying to take it all in. He only barely noticed the man hurriedly open the door for them, he offer an almost exact copy of the smile his owner had given him as he contemplated the man and then he stooped to glance inside the vehicle. He had never been in a car before and this is one of the nicest he had seen, Calvin nodded at her kind words and something about her comforting him was very reassuring to his slowly growing dread and the fear of when the cloth would be pulled from his eyes to the world of torment and pain that his panicked brain assured him was their destination. He took a breath and stepped into the vehicle with none of the grace and fluidity he thought he would and sat in the seat next to her as he was told and tried to seem as small as possible, he was completely out of his element now and he was becoming terrified. He turned and tried to muster up the courage to talk to the girl she seemed to be nice and reassuring to him, "M-may I know your name?" He asked shyly realizing how silly he must sound as soon as he said it. His eyes met hers but he wasn't sure if that would be seen as an act of defiance so his gaze kept flicking back to her after glancing down at the floor or his faded jeans or his worn out sneakers and then repeating the process again and again, eyes to floor to eyes to shoes to eyes to his lap.

 

[Deadly Darkness]

Lauren watched with quiet amusement as she noticed the wide eyed look he was giving the world. She hadn't even thought of the possibility that Calvin had never seen the outside of the shop. She was aware that most of the pets had been brought in at a very young age, but she never really considered that they weren't allowed outside. It made sense though. With these thoughts now in mind, she felt that it would be a terrific idea to take him to the park once he was settled in. Another light giggle tried to force its way from between her lips as he stumbled into the car. They sat in silence for a moment. Lauren didn't know what else to say, or if saying anything else would be too much for him. She didn't want to overwhelm him. His voice was timid and some what adorable, very different from the tough guy facade he had worn in the store. "Lauren," she responded softly, smiling. "And you are more than welcome to call me that." She would've liked to have told him that she considered them equal, but she knew it might cause some issues with her father so close by. The car slowly pulled away from the sidewalk and merged into traffic. "So," she began lightly. "The car ride will take approximately ten to fifteen minutes and we'll be headed through the city. It gets a bit loud and sometimes people shout, but you don't have to worry. We're safe in here." Obviously they're weren't invincible in this vehicle, but she trusted the driver not to pull any sort of stunts that could jeopardize them.

 

[Meglivorn]

Calvin smiled shyly, "Thank you Lauren... I-I would like to very much..." he couldn't help but try and be a little hopeful, maybe she will treat me nicely and she hasn't shown any signs of malicious intent. 'Yet.' was the response his brain gave but Calvin tried to push them away, he knew that would be the first in a long line of worries if he let it go unchallenged. "M-my name is Calvin...", his cheeks go red, ears folded to his head, "B-but you already knew that obviously...." 'That was so stupid!' His brain taunted him, 'Way to go oh mighty bear, you have the ferocity of a garden mouse.' Calvin had a more difficult time shaking these thoughts away, and even when he did the self-deprecation led to a flash of fear and worry. W-will she think I'm stupid, should I even bother speaking again, or will my words only bury me deeper? But what if she takes my silence as disobedience, revokes my privilege to call her by her name, and starts to treat me awful?! No, no, no I've ruined everything I... Her smile stops his thoughts for a moment, 'Failure', Calvin tries to smile back but is to nervous and apprehensive, 'Look at how she is mocking you'. Calvin's hand slowly moves up to his collar, the apparatus was amplifying his nervousness, feeling that he was only one slipup away from a shock. His fear and shame and panic running his thoughts, his eyes darting around as his brain constantly flies between competing thoughts about what he should do and what would be disrespectful. He tried to throw himself into what she said, maybe there I will know what to do, what she wants me to do. "... You don't have to worry. We're safe in here" , a-am I just overreacting? S-she said I don't have to worry but...I can't know for sure and... Calvin desperately tries to stop himself, in the space of a few moments his fear and apprehension from earlier have returned. He felt trapped, scared, but nothing had happened other than the fear in his own head, he turned back to Lauren. Maybe she will help, 'No she won't', b-but I have to try! "S-sorry..." He mumbles softly, "I'm...I'm not sure..." he stops not able to say anymore, his own voice inside taunting him endlessly.