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Post by Emery on Oct 11, 2023 11:23:08 GMT -6
First things first- his name. No pet could go without learning its name, and it would get Orpheus used to the concept of learning tricks from her… and seeing her as a source of treats. She had brought plenty with her today, hidden in an inner pocket of her jacket where she could easily reach up and pull them out without her pet noticing. They were soft and meaty, but not disgusting for her to handle- perfect for this kind of training session. Orpheus wasn’t paying her any attention right now, instead opting to take up the entire sidewalk with his bulk. She could work with that. “Orpheus.” She said aloud, trying to get the estharne’s attention. “Orpheus.” As expected, there was no response- past a subtle flicking of his tail. Perhaps he DID hear her, and was just opting to ignore her entirely. Brat cat. His tune would soon change.
Emery 6 Orpheus 1.1/0.6 Name 1
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Post by Emery on Oct 11, 2023 11:23:35 GMT -6
“Orpheus.” She said again, this time pulling out a treat. She waved it around in the air a bit, letting the autumn breeze carry the scent to his nose- or the hole where a nose should be, at least. Slowly, he turned his skull to face her screen, both faceless creatures looking at each other, albeit briefly. “Good job, Orpheus.” She said, tossing the treat down to him. That was all she wanted from him- acknowledgement that she was saying his name. They could work up to more complex tricks from there. She did, however, resist the urge to throw in a “Oh, NOW you pay attention”. Not because she didn’t want to be that petty, but simply because he wouldn’t understand it (and it would likely distract from the trick.) Once he finished eating the treat however, the ghostly estharne went right back to ignoring Emery’s presence, her grasp on the leash attached to the collar around his neck disregarded.
Emery 7 Orpheus 1.2/0.7 Name 2
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Post by Emery on Oct 11, 2023 11:23:50 GMT -6
And yet, his lack of attention was just what she was hoping for. “Orpheus.” She said again. The estharne once again didn’t look up, but she did notice that his tail was flicking a lot more earnestly- perhaps his ignorance of her was more intentional now, or she was getting a lot harder to forget about. Both good things. “Orpheus.” She repeated, but still no response. Oh well- she wasn’t expecting it to work instantaneously. She pulled out another treat and repeated the first syllable of his name, but his skull had already turned to face him. Perhaps he had already understood her, and was waiting for something to be in it for him before he responded. “No matter. You did well regardless.” She said, throwing the treat just in front of him. It bounced to a stop in front of his head and immediately his tongue came out, trying to nab it.
Emery 8 Orpheus 1.3/0.8 Name 3
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Post by Emery on Oct 11, 2023 11:24:04 GMT -6
It was a bit too far for him to actually grab and so for once Orpheus actually moved, rolling over onto his belly so he could reach out his head to grab it. It wasn’t, you know, standing up and moving off the sidewalk so other people could pass by yet, but Emery noted it down as progress. It took him longer to stop paying attention to her this time. He seemed more aware in general this time, looking at her but also looking at his surroundings, his ears moving to catch the sounds around him. Then, a gust of wind blew from behind them, scraping some leaves along the sidewalk. Orpheus’s ears perked up in surprise as he watched them move past, his paws twitching as if he wanted to chase after them. Emery probably wouldn’t survive getting her arm ripped out of her socket if he decided to do so, so she called after him to try and get his attention again.
Emery 9 Orpheus 1.4/0.9 Name 4
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Post by Emery on Oct 11, 2023 11:24:18 GMT -6
“Orpheus. Please don’t.” She said with a sigh. To her surprise though, he actually obeyed, craning back his head to look at her. She stood there surprised for a moment, not expecting this reaction so quickly. After a few moments of staring at each other however, he started chattering his teeth, as if to say “Am I getting food for this, or…?” “Right, yes. Good job, Orpheus.” Emery responded to the imaginary question before shoving her hand inside her jacket again. She pulled out another meat treat and tossed it to him. He lunged forward a bit, catching it before it even hit the ground. He chewed loudly (what with the lack of cheeks) and Emery relaxed a little, reminiscing on what just happened. It was clear he did learn his name- it was just a matter of catching him when he was in a good enough mood to listen to it.
Emery 10 Orpheus 2.0/1.0 Name 5
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Post by Emery on Oct 11, 2023 14:46:43 GMT -6
Perhaps he was in a good enough mood that she could coax a few more tricks out of him today. She would like it if he would follow her without her having to put up a fit about it. She wasn’t especially strong and he definitely was, so while he didn’t seem prone to running off without permission, if he sat down she couldn’t budge him at all. She couldn't have him doing that in a contest though- teaching him to follow her was definitely prudent. Still, he seemed to have gotten over his immediate fit of laziness while she had been teaching him his name, so with any luck she'd be able to get him to stand up. While she had his attention, Emery got out another treat. He looked at it eagerly, and if he had saliva she could imagine him drooling with the look he was giving her.
Emery 1 Orpheus 2.1/1.1 Follow 1
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Post by Emery on Oct 12, 2023 10:23:31 GMT -6
She lowered the treat until it was at her hip, on perfect eye level with him, but she didn’t hand it to him. “Orpheus. Follow me.” She said, trying to set the command phrase. He looked at her, not moving, waiting for her to throw it to her like she did before. Emery didn’t get frustrated- she couldn’t expect him to know what she wanted. She held the treat out a bit further, and finally he took a few steps towards her, sniffing loudly. Then, she pulled it back towards herself. “Orpheus. Follow.” She said, and finally the estharne continued towards her, reaching the treat in her hand. Good enough. “Good follow, Orpheus.” She said, letting him take the treat from his hand. She made sure to hold her hand as flat as possible as he grabbed it from her palm- she didn’t need to lose a finger. Or, more fingers than she already had.
Emery 2 Orpheus 2.2/1.2 Follow 2
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Post by Emery on Oct 12, 2023 10:23:46 GMT -6
While he ate, she reached into the pocket inside her jacket and pulled out another treat. He looked at it eagerly (as well as he could without eyes, that is), even as he licked his chops for the last crumbs of the previous treat. Then she held that one down as well. “Orpheus, follow.” She said. He moved to grab it, but as he did she took a step backwards again, and his fangs clicked closed on air. He twitched his ear with irritation but moved forwards again, trying to grab it. As he did, she continued stepping backwards, coaxing him a bit further each time. It was sloppy work, and quite difficult for her to walk backwards (her prosthetics weren’t really adjusted for it), but it worked for what she was trying to do. After about ten feet or so, she finally let Orpheus have the treat, giving him a few words of praise as she did so.
Emery 3 Orpheus 2.3/1.3 Follow 3
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Post by Emery on Oct 12, 2023 10:24:00 GMT -6
After all, she didn’t want to frustrate him too badly- she’d much prefer to work up to something that resembled proper following. He ate the treat quite happily, and soon Emery was ready with a new one. “Orpheus. Follow.” She said, and began backing away again. There was no hesitation in him this time, and soon Emery was able to turn around and keep walking. It was a stuttering walk, having to slow down or stop several times for Orpheus to catch up or decide to follow her once more, but progress was made, slowly but surely. Emery found herself repeating the command less too, with Orpheus obeying her for longer before losing interest again. They were able to go a lot further this time as well- nearly thirty feet down the sidewalk- before Orpheus got tired of listening to her again. Still, Emery was pleased with his progress and gave him the treat.
Emery 4 Orpheus 2.4/1.4 Follow 4
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Post by Emery on Oct 12, 2023 10:24:16 GMT -6
She kept repeating the process- get out a treat, lure him down the sidewalk with it, and give it to him when it looked like he was about to start throwing a fit. As time went on however, the periods between him getting tired were longer and longer, and she didn’t have to hold out the treat so emphatically. After nearly an hour of work, Orpheus was happily following along behind her without her having to get a treat out at all. They were simply going for a normal walk. Every so often she would stop and wait before giving the command again, and he would always start up again just as easily once she did so. “Good follow, Orpheus.” Emery said, getting out another treat and throwing it over her shoulder. She heard the clack of jaws as he caught it effortlessly before they continued down the path, now simply enjoying the day.
Emery 5 Orpheus 3.0/2.0 Follow 5
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Post by Emery on Oct 13, 2023 9:07:40 GMT -6
Now that Emery had gotten Orpheus to follow her, she could finally explore the public park again. She took him off the sidewalk, ambling across a wide field towards a copse of trees in the distance. It wasn’t too remote, or too cramped- she could easily see the field and sky through the other side of it, with the trees close enough together to give them some shade. A few tufts of flowers, untouched by frost as of yet, poked up around their roots. It was as good a place to settle down for the next phase of Orpheus’s training as any, so she wandered through the grass towards it. Orpheus seemed to enjoy the grass, hopping around in it to look over the stalks. It was behavior suitable for a cat a fraction of his size- and age, for that matter. “I hope you’ll be more intimidating during the contest, Orpheus.” Emery said.
Emery 6 Orpheus 3.1/1.6
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Post by Emery on Oct 13, 2023 9:07:54 GMT -6
Of course, she knew she should be grateful for having such a gentle creature in her employ. A more aggressive beast she’d have a lot more problems with and she knew it. She was far too frail to yank around a more powerful creature. She definitely needed assistance with rougher beasts, but… alas, such help was outside of her budget for the time being. Emery would just have to manage on her own. Luckily, the small forested area seemed quite interesting to Orpheus, so he put up no fuss in making his way over there, almost pulling Emery in order to reach it. “Yes, it’s quite interesting.” She said in reassurance, though he ignored the droned statement. When they reached the forested area, Orpheus wandered around, sniffing everything quietly. Emery found this a good opportunity to switch out his equipment a bit. There was only so much she could teach him with one hand free.
Emery 7 Orpheus 3.2/1.7
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Post by Emery on Oct 13, 2023 9:08:09 GMT -6
While he was investigating a pile of leaves pushed up against a nearby tree, Emery reached over and carefully unclipped his leash. Then, she clipped on a longer leash- much longer, at least twenty or thirty feet long. This would let her teach him more physically active moves and tricks without allowing him to run off into the distance, leaving her unable to catch up with him. She could just about walk, but running was out of the question for her. It also freed up one of her hands so she could do more complex things with them while training- provided that she was able to find another end for the leash. It wasn’t too difficult- nearby her there was a stump, roughly sawed off about a foot and a half off the ground. From the side, a branch curved off the base, the tree somehow still surviving all this time as it put out a few desperate leaves.
Emery 8 Orpheus 3.3/1.8
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Post by Emery on Oct 13, 2023 9:08:24 GMT -6
She could relate. Emery wrapped the leash around behind a hook in the branch, tying it tight with one of the few knots she knew. With any luck, he wouldn’t be able to break it- the wood seemed strong and flexible. Then she took the opportunity to sit down the stump herself. The relief was instantaneous, and she hoped very much that she’d be able to will herself to stand up off of it later. Still, this was a good time to get a bit of rest. Orpheus was feeling well fed and happy, and was still investigating their surroundings. It all looked about the same to Emery, but she figured there would be a few objects here useful to her- for training purposes, that is. A nice walking stick wouldn’t hurt, but the trees here seemed to be regularly pruned and so hadn’t dropped anything large enough to count as a staff.
Emery 9 Orpheus 3.4/1.9
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Post by Emery on Oct 13, 2023 9:08:38 GMT -6
There were a few large-ish branches, a few smaller twigs, and plenty of fallen leaves, however. Perhaps she could put them to good use later. She would just have to wait and see. Emery rubbed her legs a bit, trying to work out some of the stiffness. After a few minutes of massaging however, Orpheus finally circled his way back around to her, as if to ask “Well, now what?” Emery moved to give him an affectionate pat on the head, but Orpheus jerked his head back and stalked around her. Apparently they weren’t close enough for that yet. “...That’s fair.” Emery remarked, her hand hovering in air for a moment before she pulled it back. She wasn’t expecting closeness from this creature- simply obedience. And to get that, she would have to work harder at training him, making him something to be proud of. Luckily, she already had her next move in mind.
Emery 10 Orpheus 4.0/2.0
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