Chapter Text
Chapter 3
Red sighed as he mopped the blue and white tile floor. Never thought I'd be scrubbin' floors like this... He thought with a sigh. He had been on the job for two weeks now and had mostly been cleaning things. I mean it ain't bad or hard....just dull. He grumbled as he dunked the mop into the bucket. He carefully lifted it out and continued to scrub, being careful not to muddy the floor again with his sneakers. "Can't we at least play some music?"
"You say something Red?" He turned to see you walking up to him, a cheery smile on your face as you held something in your arms. He raised a bone brow at you and gestured with his head to the bundle. "Oh this is a kitten. The mom rejected it so I'm feeding it." Curious still Red moved closer and you unrolled the blanket slightly. Inside was a tiny grayish kitten, eyes still closed as it suckled on a bottle. The fur had a tiny bluish tint to it and he smiled. "Want to pet her?"
"It's a girl?" You nodded and he reached a bony finger out. He gently scratched under her chin, receiving a tiny, high pitched mewl as little paws reached out for his finger. She pulled his finger into his mouth and tried to chew on it, though all he felt were gums. "Heh she's a fighter ain't she?"
"That she is." You had a sad look on your face and he frowned a bit. "I'll do my best for her, but there's a possibility she was rejected because she's sick....sick kittens usually...." You sighed and Red scowled a bit.
"Bit early ta give up on 'er ain't it?"
"Yes but I need to try and be realistic about it to." You explained as you sat on a nearby stool. He could faintly hear the soft sucking sounds of the kitten, along with her small mewls in between each greedy gulp of formula. Red chuckled a little at the sound and smiled.
"Reminds me of my bro's cat."
"He has one?"
"Yeah, DoomFanger." He heard you try to cover an ugly snort and chuckled. "Thing's not even remotely dangerous. He's as friendly as friendly can get. Hilarious considering the guy that raised him can be a grade a prick at times."
"You haven't really talked much about him."
"Yeah well...." He sighed and rubbed at the small crack on his head. "It wasn't really the best childhood or...time underground yanno? Sorry if that's a bit off putting."
"No no! You don't need to worry about it." He watched as you put the little bundle down on the counter and grabbed a vacuum. You began to clean the rugs as he kept mopping. "Opening time's coming up so we need to hurry!"
"Heh, yeah." Gotta admit...it's nice that this human's so easygoing....
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You were glad Red was so easygoing. When he had first arrived shortly after being nearly trampled by Hermes you still couldn't help your anxiousness around him. He was a large, bulky monster despite being a skeleton and his large sharp toothed grins would probably scare most children away and unnerve a few adults. Yet if there was one thing you knew for certain was that animals were good judges of character.
Hermes was proof of that as he never once left Red's side. Ever since then you could easily past the gruff exterior he put up, and were happy to see him lower his guard around you. The phone rang and you grabbed it, still cradling the kitten. "Heartfelt Sanctuary and Vet office! How may I-"
"Dearie?"
"Oh Mrs.Perkins! How are you?"
"I'm quite fine dear. I need to pick up Nickle's medicine today, are you going to be open soon?"
"Mrs.Perkins my door's always open for you." You chuckled softly. You could practically hear her smile as she laughed gently.
"Well I can't wait to see the stud you hired. I will be there shortly."
"Stu- I told you that's not-aaaaand she hung up." You sighed and put the phone down.
"Family member?" You yelped as Red popped up next to you, leaning against the counter and sipping from a soda can. "Bit jumpy aren't ya?"
"Says the guy that pops in and out all the time!"
"Heh, what can I say? Gotta make a good impression yeah? So?" You sighed and rubbed the back of your head, placing the small bundle on the counter.
"She's kinda like a grandmother to me. When I was a kid it was just me and my father and Mrs.Perkins." You smiled a little, grabbing your own water bottle to take a few sips. "She's always been there, and has this large farm filled with animals. She had a pet raccoon!"
"Ya mean a fuckin' trash panda?"
"They're very intelligent, so don't let her hear you calling them that." You pointed at him. He just grinned and shrugged. "Going for a smoke?"
"Yeah, floor's all washed and I scrubbed those toilets down to the handle. Before ya know it we'll be usin' toothbrushes to clean them with."
"Don't tempt me to force that on you!" You called out as he walked out the front. You took out Nickle's paperwork and looked it over before heading into the back to get his medication. "...Stud hmm?" You let out a soft sigh and shook your head. "...Maybe at some point yeah. But..." You gripped the cupboard door tightly, squeezing your eyes shut as your heart ached in old pain. "....Not sure I can handle another person...."
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Red sighed as a few puffs of smoke left his mouth and swirled lazily into the hot summer air. "Heh, wonder how to do some of those smoke tricks I've seen other people do. Kinda curious." He heard a soft 'gruff' and turned his eyelights to the older dog standing next to him, wagging his tail. "Yo Hermes. Here ta keep me company?"
"Grrowlf." The dog looked up at him with big, watery brown eyes and sat down, licking his lips and tail moving a bit faster.
"I ain't got no treats on me. And no, I ain't a walkin' buffet for ya."
"Woof!"
"Heh yer alrigh' though." He reached down and ruffled his head, earning a few licks from the large mongrel. He turned his head when he heard a car pull up and he almost laughed at it. It was an unsightly bright yellow with pink and bright blue flowers all over it, silly eye lashes glued to the tops of the headlights. The fuck? He watched as an older lady walked out of the car and stretched. She had long silver hair in a braid, a faded yellow dress on and sandals. She readjusted the straw hat she had on and turned to see him standing there. "Hello there-"
"So you must be the stud my young'un hired." She said, steely gray eyes narrowed at him. "Hrrmmm.....well you aren't quite stud material, but you'll suffice."
"Excuse me?"
"Well are you gonna come over here and help an old woman out? Or do you like watching old ladies struggle?" Red blinked a few times as the woman stared back at him. "....Bit of a shy one aren't you?"
"S-s-s-sorry ma'am!" Red sputtered and walked over, only to blink as his eyes landed on a very large dog. That ain't no dog! That's a fucking bear!!!
"Roooof!" The dog had a deep bark as he looked at Red, tail suddenly wagging faster. Before Red could react the dog leapt out of the car and pinned him to the ground, dragging his large tongue along his skull.
"Ack!"
"Nickle! That is not a snack!"
"Why is this happening again?!"