The Chibi Problem Part 30
We started right in on the explaining and teaching. Point of fact, I did most of the explaining; BabyDoll took care of most of the training. It was all just stuff he did around the house anyway, and he took great pride in showing Berber and his boys what to do to help Ruthie out.
Of course, they needed someone to practice on. That was where I came in. From the time I got home from work until I went to bed, I was waited on, paw and foot. The trowas loved the idea of tossing soda cans from the refrigerator shelf to a net waiting below. The quatres took to making coffee as if they'd been born to it. The lone Heero homed in on the appliances in the kitchen and was soon twisting, turning and punching the various controls like a regular little geek.
Collectively, they learned how to handle dishes and glassware, flatware and knives. Nothing got broken and no one lost any blood. I was quite impressed. BabyDoll preened like a little major general.
He used the time to also begin on those members of the gundam who had shown an interest in helping. Not all of them did, of course. Some of the heeros and wufeis were passively appalled at "domesticity' and most of the trowas were too shy to participate, but none of them seemed to mind if their mates or offspring joined in.
As time went on, some of the sideliners kicked in a little help here and there. Sort of an "I'm not saying I want to be civilized; I'm just being polite and helpful here.'
We didn't keep any sort of rigid schedule; if they felt like joining, fine; if not that was fine too. Helping is supposed to be fun; something they could do because they felt like it, or because they were attached to the person they were helping. I wasn't aiming to force anyone into doing anything. Wouldn't work in the first place, and would only leave a bad taste all around.
Somewhere in there, Mike noticed the sudden influx of strange Chibis. His cautious interest made me smirk; Gunny was becoming a Chibi-person whether he realised it or not. Shawn was getting ever-closer to having his own Chibi.
"So, all those ..." He indicated the platoon of Ruthie's guys. "... Are the visitors."
"Yep."
We were sitting on my patio with ice tea and classical music, watching the troops practicing their various chores. Most of the gundam were drilling with their respective weapons; it was that time of year when the chibits began their training. Since he had not had the opportunity as a chibit, BabyDoll was also training with the young duos. I think they got a kick out of seeing their elder going through the motions along with them. Seduces Humans was bouncing more than usual, even more than the quatres, absolutely thrilled to have his parent among the trainees.
Gnaws on Ankles and Thousand-Watt Glare had joined their respective groups being instructed by their respective parents. Both of the alphas were trying hard not to glow with pride in their eager offspring, but you could just tell that it wasn't working. They weren't alone, though. All the new parents were scurrying about with various silly or fatuous looks.
I had consulted with Ruthie's current parents on whether they wanted their pure-blooded, registered, show babies taking part in this, and received an enthusiastic "Yes!' So, front and center of their groups were the quatre and trowa chibits from Ruthie's gundarium.
Also in line were the orphan wufeis. Not exactly front and center; they seemed to find that a bit... embarrassing, but they were being attentive as only wufeis can be. Slight curl to the lips, almost imperceptible lift of an eyebrow, body language that fairly shouted "bored!' But watching every move Killer made and mimicking his movements perfectly.
The orphan duo perched on the arm on my chair, a little wistful at not being able to participate. His wing was healing nicely, but he wasn't yet up to the aerial maneuvers required of the duos and heeros in training. But BabyDoll and DeathSky had promised him personal instruction once he was fully recovered. He had a scythe now, and he could join in the weapons drill if he chose.
"So how come they aren't drilling with the rest?"
"They're thoroughly domesticated; never known anything else. They all decided that they don't really need to know this stuff."
He shot me a look that clearly suggested he thought me a sandwich short of a picnic.
"Huh. Okay. And their babies do?"
I shrugged. "They're babies; not so set in their ways. You know parents always want more for their kids."
Again, that look...
Actually, that wasn't totally accurate. Ruthie's heero was out there with Angel's group, not so much to learn, as to observe for the future. He had already declared that his next chibits would be trained and his mate, a sleek impassive trowa, agreed. The heero, whom Ruthie called Kanbu, had let me know that it was my job to convince Ruthie of the desirability of that course. I could only try.
"What about those three? The big ones in that group."
"Those are the orphans I told you about. They were abandoned by their owners as being difficult. They figure if they're going to be part of the gundam, they need to learn how to be an asset to the gundam."
He finally couldn't stand it. "You know you talk about these critters like they were real people. Are you sure your head is healed?"
"Hey, other people talk that way about their dogs. I don't hear you accusing them of being nuts."
"Most of them don't really believe that dogs talk back."
"You talked to BabyDoll, on the cellphone."
He squirmed on that one. "That was... different."
I didn't want to back him into an uncomfortable corner; he was gradually coming around to the dark side, even if he wouldn't admit it to himself.
"Right," I snorted and went back to watching the various performances.
The little Duo patted my arm; I looked down inquiringly.
"Moooiiiii..." he crooned softly.
"Yeah, sweetie?" I could feel eyes rolling in Mike's direction. I ignored him.
"Oooooiii... Shiniiiii... Kyyyu."
"Don't feel bad, sweetie; it's not your fault you got hurt. DeathSky doesn't look down on you."
I don't know what his original owner situation was like; the person I talked to when I called for his papers was just short of snippy, saying only that she didn't want "it' back and didn't care what I did with "it.' I didn't feel inclined to push for more information. But the little guy had obviously been traumatized in some way even before being tossed out to fend for himself.
He nuzzled my hand, curling up to pillow his head on my fingers, and I reached across to pet him gently.
"It's okay, little guy; they'll work your fanny off once you're ready."
He sighed deeply. I snorted and scooped him up to cuddle him. He spread his wings and relaxed against me.
Mike watched him, chewing on something. "He's not as... lively as the other duos, is he? Is it just the bad wing?"
I stroked the little duo's braid and ran my fingers lightly over the sturdy structural bones of his wings. "I think he had problems with his owner. I have a feeling someone was cruel to him before they dumped him. The wing doesn't help, of course. Duos are flyers; it's as natural to them as walking, like birds. Take away a bird's ability to fly and they're just lost. They become instant lunch for whatever predator comes along. And wings are a big deal when it comes to mating for duos and heeros. Showing their wings is part of the mating display. Bigger, better, prettier, sturdier; all comes into play during the courtship. Chibis want a mate who offers good healthy wings. A flyer with less than perfect wings probably won't find a mate."
"You mean this one is at a disadvantage because of the injury?"
"Mmm... Maybe not. It was an injury, not a defect, so there's no reason to think his babies would be anything but perfect. His demeanor is a bigger factor. He's... shy. Duos are not naturally shy. It's a big fault in a show. It may just be from previous problems; maybe he was punished for being too lively. Maybe he learned to keep a low profile to avoid someone or something." The little guy was thrumming softly; I could feel the vibration running through my collarbone. It... tickled.
"Why in hell would anyone buy a pet ... a damned expensive pet ... if they didn't know what they were getting, or weren't prepared for it? That kind of thing always pisses me off," Mike growled. "I've had troops that ignored their dogs, but wouldn't get rid of them. Some macho bullshit thing ... my dog's bigger, meaner, tougher. But they can't be bothered to play with the poor animal or walk it or train it or even notice it. Assholes."
I just shrugged. "Some people just like the status of being able to afford a very rare, very expensive, very high maintenance pet. I don't understand the mentality any more than you do. I would never think of moving and leaving my cats behind, but people do that every day. Pets are "members of the family' until they become inconvenient, then suddenly they're "just animals.'" I petted the dozing duo. "They have feelings and needs, just like people, and unlike a lot of people, they'll love you forever."
There was a long silence after that. I hadn't meant to say that last bit; but sometimes the tongue just slips. Better to ignore it.
After a while, Mike cleared his throat experimentally. "You ever do anything over the long weekend?"
"Nah... Stay home, watch TV, play with the computer, enjoy the gundam..."
"My shop is doing a barbeque at the beach. We've already reserved the tables." He wasn't looking at me, I noticed, but staring hard at the groups of training Chibis. "You're welcome to come... And bring BabyDoll and the others..."
I blinked. Suddenly BabyDoll was on my shoulder, eyeing Mike suspiciously, scythe ready in his little hands. "Woooooiii," he rumbled, sounding nothing at all like my little doll.
Mike shot him a startled look. "What's with him?"
"Um... He's in protective mommie mode..." I couldn't help it; I had to ask. "Mike, just so I'm not jumping to any conclusions here... Did you just sorta-kinda invite me to dinner?" It's been a long time; I really wasn't sure.
"Ah, well..." Guess it had been a while for him too. "I guess... Yeah, apparently I did," he finished more strongly.
I snerked; I couldn't help that either. "Hey, I'm always up for a free meal."
TBC...
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