The weather that day was unbearably cool, and to make it worse, the wind around the large estate-like house was picking up to a drastic fifteen mph. In complete contradiction, the sky had chosen to be clear and beautiful, with the tiniest hint of of a cottonball cloud. If one were to stand inside by a window and comment on the weather, it would be nearly as inaccurate as if they were countries away. Now, as Spoon stuck his large wet black nose against the glass, he felt like he peered at a movie screen that played an endless loop of a clip from a summer day. But the screen itself was cold his breath fogged it up in two quickly fading clouds. They were the only ones in the sky.

He absolutely, positively, undoubtedly could not wait any longer for Kiri to get home. Spoon hated being alone, having spent the last hundred years surrounded and raised by his loved ones, never leaving the perfect climate with his tribe and rarely seeing any humans. Not that he remembered his time as a Shumi at all, it sort of congealed in his mind as one big, happy, blurry existence. And now he was in a different one. One that revolved around only one man: Kiri.

Once again, Spoon left the window to run to the one across the room and search anxiously out of it. /Kiri, Kiri, Kiri!/ When would that vain bit of heaven get home so they could eat dinner together? Well, not together, persay, rather Kiri would slouch in front of the television and Spoon would nose his bowl over to his owner's feet and nibble quietly. Kiri was -obsessed- with soap operas, and God help you should you interupt his daily schedule. Spoon was just happy to be near the man.

Today though, Kiri was very late and Spoon was very worried. Suddenly, the door burst open, sending a shockwave though the building. The exact person on his mind stomped through the entrance just in time to see his favorite vase shatter on the slate floor.

Kiri closed his eyes and the door, carefully setting the filled plastic bags in his hands onto the floor before screaming. "Dog!" Wailed through the property. And even as the small beast padded joyfully up to his feet, Kiri continued to yell. "Get your ass over here now!"

Spoon simply blinked and looked up with no less adoration than before. He layed one paw over the other demurely, resting his head on them to show his apology for whatever he had done. He even added in a small whimper to back up his point.

Still oblivious that it was his own destructive force, Kiri raged at his pet moomba. He took two fingers and slapped them harshly across Spoon's nose. Not satisfied with the sharp squeak, he grabbed the large fur-spiked tail and dragged him over to the pottery shards. Once there, he lifted the creature by the extra limb and held him over the pieces. Kiri raised a hand for a second punishment, but a moment more of thought dissauded it.

Spoon was dropped onto the porceline fragments adn left to find his way out without adding to the lasserations made on impact.

"Fix it, Dog." Kiri mummbled as he walked away.

Still fumbling in the blood and vase, Spoon's love for Kiri was not lessened. He made his way to his dogbed, tracking red footprints portions of the way. Slowly, he used his great sharpened teeth to pick away each white triangular piece. Then with his tongue he cleaned the cuts with the aid of healing enzymes included in his saliva.

The vase was in about four large chunks, the smaller fragments in a pile next to him, and the rest ground to dust. Nosing carefuly into the abadoned plastic bags in the front hall, Spoon was amazed at what he found. Dog treats, toys, and food was abundantly spilling from the wrapping. This was the reason he loved Kiri.

Spoon simply let the small, quiet, kind acts outweigh the huge explosions of anger and selfishness. Using large, furry paws like hands, he gathered what he could of the broken sentimentality. He started putting each one in order with the next, building the sacred object back up to its original stature.

The glue was being impossible! Every time Spoon got it near-completed, the damn vase would just collapse. Of course there was the inconsequencialfact that his paws were too big for the percision needed, and the odd tufts of fur tangledin the glue. With one last try, Spoon carefully finished the vase.

He had waited the some odd twenty minutes for the substance to coagulate. As he carefully lifted away the bracing, the rebuilt vase collapsed for it's last time. Now there wasn't anything left to put back together, simply a pile of white dust and orange hair. Howling with the extreme anguish of not being able to please the only creature he'd ever loved, Spoon clutched his head. There was a horrible ripping sound, and more wailing.

Just as the digits on the old alarm clock that sat next to Kiri's bed reached the six o'clock mark, the moomba's skin split at the scalp. There was a wet slap as the material hit the blac-tiled floor and more sections began to detach. The screams began to change, they were now more confused than resistant, the tone becoming clearer and gradually the volume lessened. Kiri side-stepped out from his room holding his hands together in mimicry of a gun.

His eyes randomly searched the chamber from which the disturbance came. A small, still pile of red and orange fur lay in the center near a collection of dust that dispersed with a slight breeze. Kiri felt the whole room die, every leaf fell at once from all of the potted plants and a faraway rodent pitched it's last high-octaved screech. Uneasily, Kiri edged farther into the room, still holding up his "gun" defensively.

Then, a great inhale of breath and a sudden movement happened; like the grim reaper's robe sweeping the floor with each single stroke and back stroke of his scythe. With such fluid grace that Kiri barely had timeto be frightened, a silloutted figure rose from the vertex of the sunset and russet fur.

"Don't move!" The frightened man commanded. "Dog! Where the fuck are you when I need you?"

"Here. Right where I've always been, Kiri." The shadow faced him and briyght a hand up to fling a wet and sticky chunk of blonde hair over the top of his head. It immediately fought to stand up again.

With a shaking hand, Kiri flicked on a near-by lightswitch illuminating the remaining details the rising dawn had neglected. A well-muscled bi-pedual creature stood naked in place of the shadow. His body was coated in a slick transparent fluid, sheathing over his multi-decorated tanned skin. Each blonde strand of hair faded carefully into a deep crimson, matching the intricate language of his tattooed flesh. Spoon had bloomed beautifully from the shell that lay abandoned around his feet.

Kiri missed the point entirely. "Who are you, and what are you doing in my house?" He demanded, becoming so enraged that his face was the color of a well-ripened tomato.

"You are the one who captured me, and dragged me in." The mysterious figure raised a knee and stepped forward. He continued across the room until Kiri was pressed against the stucco-textured wall in fear.

He now changed the posture of his hands, breaking the obvious false gun and bracing a wavering palm on each of Spoon's shoulders. It didn't do much to keep the distance open, for he was much stronger than Kiri. "Who..." He was trying to compensate anger for fear again. "Who are you? Get away from me you..." He faltered for a word. "...Stupid...pervert! I'll call the police!"

Spoon was taken aback by the lame insult, wincing slightly with the impact of the words. It wasn't wrong, he wasn't...a...a...pervert. Spoon just... "I love you."'He blurted out before he could think about it.

Kiri pushed him away while he was stunned and crossed the room to the phone, but not quite making it. He had tripped over something, and looking over his shoulder he noticed what it was, and what the inttruder had been standing among. "Dog...?" His tone was unbelieving, once again quavering.

"I'm here, Kiri, right here!" Spoon was yelling in a desperate manner, hoping to snap the other man back to the current situation.

It worked...Sort of. Kiri was enraged, and pulled lightly, yet with an insane manner on his tawny dishwater blonde hair. "What did you do to my dog?!" He picked up the layers of fur and skin in balled fists that he pressed to his cheek. The thin ammount of blood smeared over his skin. Now he was crying softly through difficult puffs of air.

The thought that Kiri cared that much about him made Spoon want to cry. He knelt down next to him and put a hand on his shoulder. He knew that Kiri wouldn't understand the process he'd been through, so he tried a convincing lie. "Dog is...gone. He uh... I mean -SHE- ran away to have puppies."

Kiri shook his head like a moody child. "No, Dog was boy. He..." The words trailed off. Then, with big clouded blue eyes, he looked up questioningly. "Was Dog really a girl?"

Spoon fought to keep a straight face. "Yes." After a moment's thought, he slipped his arm around Kiri's shoulder's. "...And Dog is not coming back either. But, -she- was so worried that you would be lonely without her, that -she- told me to keep you company."

"Then why are you naked?"

"Kiri..." He started, wondering how he was going to explain this one. "I want to be with you forever. Please understand that I love you. Please...?" Spoon closed his eyes and did the best thing of his life. Cupping the other man's chin in his hand, he turned his head and pressed their lips together. There was no reaction from him for a long time, and when it happened Spoon sat on the floor amongst his shed skin and craddled his bruised cheek.

With a silent glare, Kiri got up and started for the phone again. A firm weight hooked around his shins where the naked man was wrapped tightly and surely. Kiri kicked at him, but it only made Spoon re-establish his grasp with more force. A soft noise of pain drifted it up to his ears and he looked between the skin and the man, noting the difference for the first time. He'd heard a stupid rumor once that there was a creature that changed to whatever was in their hearts. The reason for the useless rumor's appearance in his mind confused Kiri, and he kicked Spoon away again. "Get off."

"No, Kiri, please don't do this. Please don't reject me. I live for you." Nuzzling his face against his love's leg Spoon continued to beg. "Please love me..." He moved now from Kiri's side to in front of him, climbing up to wrap his arms around his waist. When he tried to escape again, he grappled on more frantically, ultimately sending them to the floor. Spoon immediately pinned Kiri down with his wrists by his side and straddled his legs.

Kiri hadn't realized how strong his opponent was until it was too late, and he was beginning to panic. His dingy hair was his halo on the hard floor, and his freedom seemed impossible. Slowly, Spoon began to nuzzle his stomach as he held him there, pushing Kiri's shirt further up his torso. "Please love me... "

(TBC...)
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