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Post by Noodle! on Jun 25, 2008 18:33:16 GMT -5
Mbala panted lightly as he entered the crowded pathways. He was a mastiff-type breed known as a Boerboel. People noticed his exotic form, and started either in wonder of this bloodline, or in fear of his massive size. On his neck was a blue nylon collar with his name scratched into a dangling tag, he rarely wore the collar unless he was away from the farm or the home... Which was a rare occasion in itself. The master and his wife had been home this night, and they sent their two sons to the park with their little sister. Mbala had planned on laying on the porch all day, enjoying the sunsets and resting; but the children had other plans for him.
Tommy, the eldest boy of fifteen, held onto the collar with one hand as he walked through the crowds. Adam held onto his brother's hand and Mary was perched on top of Mbala as if he were some sort of horse. She was only five, and it was a wonder her parents allowed her to be out so young in a city such as this. Of course, every metropolis had its fair share of violence, but this particular area of town was pretty safe for children of all ages. Plus, no one would bother three children with such a large protector. Tommy waved to his uncle who he saw in the distance and helped Mary dismount. He turned to Mbala and patted him on the neck roughly as he said, "We're gonna go talk to Uncle Steve, boy. We'll be back, don't wander off." He clutched a dog whistle in his hand as he sprinted towards the man in the distance, dragging his brother and sister behind him.
The mastiff-dog began squeezing through the people after them, making sure they got to Uncle Steven alright. After seeing the young two-legged creatures were safely to their uncle and his small canine companion, he turned to find something for himself to do. Mbala began muttering to himself in a dialect of Zulu, before settling him down by a bench and watching people and their pets walk by or play frisbee. He lay his massive head between his equally large paws, and sighed; stirring up a cloud of dust in the process
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Post by Skitt is Under Marmalade Skies on Jun 25, 2008 21:20:48 GMT -5
Kitty followed her human, Al, until he reached his little group of friends from church. He bend down and unclipped her collar. "You be good no, Okay?" He gave her pat on the head. She wandered away, watching all the other dogs. She snorted, watching a little yorkie wearing a bright pink sweater fuss and yip at her owner to pick her up. When she found no one worth talking to, she settled a little ways away from Mbala.
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Post by Noodle! on Jun 25, 2008 21:35:26 GMT -5
Cool winds tickled the ears of Mbala as he lay in the dappled shade of the park. Scents flowed in and out of his nares as he lay watching those passersby and the occasional child who petted him or tossed him food he would not eat. However, the boerboel's muscular bulk twitched lightly as he saw the dog approach him. He raised his blocky head, amber eyes surveying her. She was white, a horribly obvious and noticeable color. She was also intact, a certain twinge to her scent that screamed 'notice me'. His eyes narrowed lightly, tail drooping. He noticed her apparent lineage to the bull-baiters of the past. As she was close enough to hear, he barked his greeting,
Hello, Suster.
Still a foreigner to the land, he spoke all of his sentances in half Zulu and half English. It was his signature language, much like the hispanics in the city and their "Spanglish" mix. He watched the female pause some distance away, but knew she was a pet, for he could see her color standing out against the stark hue of her coat.
((ooc: ishk... sorry its so short.))
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Post by Skitt is Under Marmalade Skies on Jun 25, 2008 21:39:32 GMT -5
She turned to the god and nodded a greeting. " Ello" she said. She didn't know this dog she perfered to say as little as possible. She stared past the fence, longing to jump it, which she easily could, and be free again. But she just could not abandon Al. She looked back at him, tilting her rather large bully head.
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Post by Noodle! on Jun 25, 2008 21:50:27 GMT -5
Mbala cocked his head at a slight angle to the left, jowls closing together and halting his pant mid-breath. He watched her carefully, ears taking in the single word she spoke to him. Strange, she didn't seem to have any interests in talking to the boerboel. He stood up, stretching, and looked back over at the bulldog. His stump of a tail wagged lightly, glinting the golden hairs of his coat in the sun. He tilted his head downwards to look at the relaxed female, and spoke again.
My name is Mbala. Yours?
He whimpered lightly, longing for some sort of conversation. While he waited for he to reply or move away, he scoped out the rest of the dogs in the park. There was a particularly mouthy Yorkshire that the other bulldog had most definately noticed... A random array of small dogs, a couple of border collies... German Shepherds... No one that was unoccupied enough to satisfy the boerboel's need for interaction. He wasn't much on chasing things such as toys, or catching frisbees. He was always up for a good hunt, but as far as a squeak toy? He wouldn't waste his time.
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Post by Skitt is Under Marmalade Skies on Jun 25, 2008 22:09:28 GMT -5
"I'm Kitty." She said, thinking about her name. "Who's your human?" she asked, trying to start up a conversation. She quite liked this dog. He was indeed very handsome"You look familiar. You live near by?"
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Post by Noodle! on Jun 25, 2008 22:15:42 GMT -5
His tail began a slow swish as she finally opened up and began conversing with him. He took this opportunity to move himself somewhat closer and lay down to face the female. Kitty... Interesting name for a canine, but two minutes into meeting a new dog was not a time to inquire about the origin of such strange terms. Humans just seemed to have a knack for coming up with the oddest of dubs. The three young ones there. As far as where he lived, well as soon as someone asked he immediately thought of Africa again.
Phoenix Avenue. I live in house there. His grammer and sentance structure was a little rusty, but nonetheless he pieced them together so they were easy enough to understand. I also guard vee on the farmland sometimes. And yourself? Do you live near Phoenix Avenue?
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Post by Skitt is Under Marmalade Skies on Jun 25, 2008 22:19:31 GMT -5
Her eyes went wide. A potential friend! "I live on Pheonix Avenue. The small house with all the flowers on the corner." She said. She liked the brute, his breed similar to him. She preferred bullystyle dogs.
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Post by Noodle! on Jun 25, 2008 22:48:50 GMT -5
The large dog smiled a toothy grin, and he barked proudly, holding his head high as he gazed through the grime and dirt of the city to the clean grasses of his home. He could practically see the his house in his head.
You live not far from me. Two or three houses down, I am the guard dog of the house with the white fence. They have a sign for my presence. He smiled here again.
'Beware of Dog', that sign read, but it wasn't necessary to tell her that. Several humans have those signs for even the smallest dogs. He supposed it was a liability issue to have a guard dog and no sign warning the mail man or other people who just have that... air about them. Of course, Mbala never bit anyone without just cause.
What is it they call your breed? He asked the question curiously, something he always did when meeting a new dog.
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Post by Skitt is Under Marmalade Skies on Jun 25, 2008 22:54:48 GMT -5
She smiled slightly. Now she'd have someone to visit when she was outside. "American Bulldog. You seem to be descended from some type of bully breed, am I wrong? So. When you guard are you out of the house?" What was she to say? She couldn't think of much to say. She looked at Al, waving his hands about as his friends laughed. Suddenly, he stopped, and fell over, his body going into spasms. "Al!" She cried, racing over to him and licking his face. The spasms slowly stopped, and then the old man was still, eyes open. He can't be dead? Can he? She whined, pawing at his chest.
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Post by Noodle! on Jun 26, 2008 17:16:25 GMT -5
Mbala's ears twitched lightly as the bitch spoke her lineage. American bulldog, he'd never heard of the breed, but he knew the "bull" term well. He nodded to her lightly, Decendant of many breeds. Bullenbijter, bulldogge, bull mastiff, and several Afrikaan species. Then he smiled, I am in and out, it typically depends on where the children are.
He waited for her replies, but before she could even reply a blur of events occured. The man who had brought Kitty to the park suddenly collapsed some distance away. Mbala's ears perked and his muscles bulked as Kitty took made a mad dash towards her human. She began licking his face and Mbala came towards them but didn't move any closer. Quickly his humans gathered around him. The young ones clinging to his coat and collar as they looked at.
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Post by Skitt is Under Marmalade Skies on Jun 26, 2008 17:31:42 GMT -5
Kitty stared at the old man, wondering what would happen to her. She saw a few uniform clad men walk towards him. She began to growl. The humans stopped, as she bared her teeth.
She knew she wouldn't bite them,but they didn't seem to know. She put her paws on the old mans chest, as if to say "Stay away"
"Anyone willing to take her?" asked one of the humans as he slipped a collar around her and the other's took the old man away
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Post by Noodle! on Jun 26, 2008 18:03:28 GMT -5
Mbala's expression was ever stern as he watched the bulldog react dramatically to her owner's demise. His ears leaned back into his skull as he began panting and he heard his youngest male master make an outrageous suggestion. Oh, Tommy, let's take her home. Mbala needs a friend. The dog closed his mouth quickly, looking back at the youngsters as they talked. He wished he could speak to them, but he knew that even if they brought her home the master would not allow her to stay long.
But sure enough, the small two-legged girl walked clumsily up to the massive white dog and grabbed her around the neck. Mbala's body tensed, wondering if in her sorrow the bulldog would snap. The two boys led Mbala up to her and told the man they'd take her home. Mbala looked at Kitty and said, Looks as if we may share a yard for a little time.
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Post by Skitt is Under Marmalade Skies on Jun 26, 2008 18:11:51 GMT -5
Kitty was shocked for a moment but quickly recovered, giving the girl a few quick licks on the face. Normally if a human did that, she may growl, or even snap if she felt that threatened, but considering that the girls family was taking her in, even if only for awhile, it was best not to.
She looked at the brute and nodding. "Funny how things turn out, eh?" Her tone was one that was hard to figure out. Was she mad, sad, or being comical? Kitty happened to be rather good at hiding her emotions. But she wasn't doing that this time. She really didn't know how to react to the situation.
'This is going to be..interesting' she thought to herself. 'Are they going to keep me confined in a small yard, or worse, in the house? Are they going to force me to learn silly tricks?'
She looked back to the brute and sighed. 'This is going to be interesting'
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