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Post by Xentus on Oct 6, 2020 3:00:23 GMT -6
The leopard swatted away the overeager puppy's teeth and stood again - leaving his nose far out of reach. A quiet huff escaped him as he shook his head. Right. Pup needed to still learn better manners. He was getting there, but there was still work to be done.
"Stay there, boy", the leopard directed the houluh as he took a few steps back from the canine, "Laku, focus." At first, the pup's eyes wandered to the man's hand to scan for a treat there.. But saw none. The command 'focus' was repeated, encouraging the pup to switch to looking at the man's face. Or rather, his nose. It wasn't quite the treat that the pup sought to eat, but it was.. Close enough. Xentus paced a few slow steps around the houluh. And with each step, little Laku's eyes followed after that nose. After taking a few more steps, the leopard kneeled down and beckoned for the puppy to come, much to the creature's delight.
"Yes! Good boy, Laku, good focus!"
Watch Me - 5
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Sub Dio
Oct 6, 2020 13:54:07 GMT -6
Post by Xentus on Oct 6, 2020 13:54:07 GMT -6
After taking a moment to ruffle the puppy's fur, the leopard stood up and clapped. The houluh shook and looked curiously up to the man, as if to question what was next on the agenda. In a proper show ring, the dogs are led by a short leash, following right alongside their handlers. So that was what the leopard decided to work toward with Laku, swapping out his harness for a leash and collar.
"Come, Laku", the leopard started, beckoning for the puppy. As the little houluh came bouncing toward him, the leopard started walking backward a few steps, forcing the pup to travel a bit further. "Come along, Laku", the leopard said, adding another word to the mix. Not that Laku seemed to mind. His eyes were locked onto the treat that the mammalian held, little paws pushing him the extra few steps further that it took to earn himself the reward.
Follow - 1
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Sub Dio
Oct 6, 2020 14:22:21 GMT -6
Post by Xentus on Oct 6, 2020 14:22:21 GMT -6
"Good boy!", the leopard praised the pup as he closed the gap between them, "Yes, good come along! Let us try that again, okay?" The pup was tossed his reward and right as he finished gobbling it up, Xentus was ready to start this all over again. The mammalian had already paced a few steps away, leaving little slack remaining on the leash.
"Come, Laku", Xentus called, patting his leg to beckon the pup. And Laku was happy to come bounding on over, tail wagging all the while. Just as before, Xentus stepped backward as the pup came toward him, casually increasing the distance that the puppy had to go. "Yes, good Laku! Come along", he called encouragingly, continuing to step away. This was met with a little frustration by the houluh, voiced by a yip, but the pup was much too eager for the treat reward to stubbornly stop at this point.
Follow - 2
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Sub Dio
Oct 6, 2020 14:32:40 GMT -6
Post by Xentus on Oct 6, 2020 14:32:40 GMT -6
The leopard continued stepping backward and forcing the pup to keep on coming after him. "Come along, Laku!", he called, taunting the pup with the treat that was just ever out of reach. After a few more steps of teasing and calling, he decided it was enough and finally stopped to give the houluh his rightful reward.
"Good boy, Laku! Good come along", he praised as he offered the meaty marble to the pup. Laku yipped as if to complain about this unfair exercise, but was quickly hushed by the tasty treat. A smug smile crossed the leopard's muzzle as he ruffled the pup's floppy ears. He figured they could use a short break, then they'd pick back up again.
After giving himself a water break, Xentus was ready to resume. "Alright, Laku, Come along", the leopard skipped over just calling the pup to come and went to having him follow along.
Follow - 3
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Sub Dio
Oct 6, 2020 14:39:05 GMT -6
Post by Xentus on Oct 6, 2020 14:39:05 GMT -6
Laku tilted his head curiously at the man, but after taking a moment, he figured the call was close enough to simply 'come' that he'd come bouncing over anyway. It made little difference since the reward of a treat was the same! Xentus turned around this time and walked normally away from the pup, but this was met with confusion. The pup stopped and barked, feeling that his efforts were being ignored..
"Laku, come along", the leopard called over his shoulder, peeking over at the pup to give him some encouragement. It was enough to get the houluh going again, little paws pattering against the earth after the man. And so Xentus continued walking, beckoning for the pup to follow by patting his thigh. Laku was a little apprehensive due to the lack of direct attention, but carefully stalked after the leopard anyway. The leash between them was somewhat slack, but never dragged along the ground.
Follow - 4
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Sub Dio
Oct 6, 2020 15:04:37 GMT -6
Post by Xentus on Oct 6, 2020 15:04:37 GMT -6
The houluh was led around the dirt plot for a few laps, encouragement to keep pace given all the while. 'Come along' was repeated a few times along with thigh pats and tongue clicks to really drive the point forward. 'Good boy', he said. 'Good come along', he said. The words were growing stale, but Laku was steadily getting used to the whole idea. It didn't seem so bad, now what he seemed to understand what it was all about. But more than anything, he wanted his treat! That was his main motivator.
Xentus finally came to a stop, turning around and kneeling down. "Good boy, Laku!", the leopard chimed, "Good come along, yes." And the rightfully earned treat was given to the proud pup. The little houluh was given a couple pats on the head s he ate, then Xentus began heading off once again.
"Come along Laku. Let us go around the park now", the leopard called to the houluh, who happy bounced over after him.
Follow - 5
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Sub Dio
Oct 23, 2020 2:17:47 GMT -6
Post by Xentus on Oct 23, 2020 2:17:47 GMT -6
Laku did well to keep pace with the mammalian, following after him diligently as he started away from the dirt plot. The leash was slack, the houluh was focused. And Xentus was quite pleased with the pup's performance. But there was still much to learn! Having the houluh focused on staying directly by his side would be a valuable trick to learn in the show ring. So after mulling on it for a moment, Xentus decided to further these leashed lessons. Laku didn't seem to mind the much leash anyway. He bounced around the man's legs, tail wagging. Until his name called him to attention.
"Laku, focus..", the firm voice stated, "Come along." And the man was off once again. It was a strange change from how the pup thought of 'focus'. His eyes watched the mammalian's face as they started walking away while his feet pattered his body forward.
Heel - 1
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Sub Dio
Oct 23, 2020 2:28:15 GMT -6
Post by Xentus on Oct 23, 2020 2:28:15 GMT -6
The first few steps went by just fine. Needing to look up at the leopard's face while walking meant he was encouraged to stick close. And to aid in this lesson, Xentus kept the leash nearly taut to discourage straying steps. The system seemed to work.. But after following for a few moments longer, Laku's coordination began to falter. The pup grew a bit nervous, unsure of where his feet might step while needing to stare up at the leopard. A whimper sounded, voicing his concern. Xentus had been keeping watch over the pup as they walked, maintaining eye contact to encourage the same from the houluh. He felt they were doing well, why the whimper? "It is ok, Laku, you do well", the leopard gently assured the pup, pausing their walk for a moment to give Laku a pat on the head, "Good heel, boy. Let us continue, yes? Come along, focus."
Heel - 2
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Sub Dio
Oct 23, 2020 2:55:28 GMT -6
Post by Xentus on Oct 23, 2020 2:55:28 GMT -6
Laku was a little assured, the praise meant he was doing something right! .. Right? This didn't seem too different than just following after the mammalian. The leopard seemed pleased enough though, already starting to head off again. Still a bit unsure, Laku followed after the man, eyes locked onto his face. The leash tugged gently to help guide the houluh to where Xentus wanted him to walk - right beside him. Laku's steps stuttered a bit, but he adjusted quickly.
"Good heel, Laku!", the leopard praised, continuing their walk, "Come along, just like that." The encouragement was definitely reassuring for the young pup. Laku barked happily, pleased to be doing something right. Even if they were just walking. He felt that he didn't need to twist his head to much to look at the leopard so keenly now.. And so his gaze relaxed and watched the path ahead of them. The man guided them to a concrete walkway for surefooted travel.
Heel - 3
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Sub Dio
Oct 23, 2020 3:44:55 GMT -6
Post by Xentus on Oct 23, 2020 3:44:55 GMT -6
The area was clear from any foot traffic, leaving the duo at peace from distracting beasts and their people. It was time for a little change-up in the lesson. Suddenly, Xentus stopped. Laku continued a couple steps further before the light tug around his neck pulled his attention. A confused blink passed the houluh's eyes as he turned to look at the mammalian. And to further the confusion, the man was starting to walk the other way!
"Come along, Laku. Heel", the leopard called, taking his first slow step in the opposite direction. Not wanting to be left behind, Laku changed course to keep up with the man, little paws scampering to catch up. The pup's eyes wandered to look up at the mammalian's face just to exercise its previous learnings. And it saw a somewhat devious look. Just as the pup was getting attuned to the pace which was set, Xentus turned around again to retrace their steps.
Heel - 4
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Sub Dio
Oct 30, 2020 20:48:33 GMT -6
Post by Xentus on Oct 30, 2020 20:48:33 GMT -6
Laku was a keen one though, he wasn't getting fooled by the same trick twice. He stayed beside the leopard as their direction changed, loosing a little yip as if to announce his foresight. Xentus beamed at the pup, proud of it for keeping itself right by his feet so diligently.
"Yes, good boy, Laku! Good heel!", Xentus chimed, "Laku catches on well." The houluh seemed rather pleased with himself, tail wagging merrily as he walked. The leopard guided him a couple of yards forward, then stopped. Laku beside him almost continued onward, an apprehensive paw held out in front of it. But, it wasn't placed down until the leopard started walking again. A quick word of praise was passed as the leopard continued this exercise. A short walk forward, then turn. A motion which Laku was all too prepared for. Then, walking straight for a while, then stop! But the houluh wasn't tricked by such maneuvers anymore! Laku's little tail wagged all the while, finding this to be a good deal of fun! After plenty of walking around the park, Xentus decided it was time to wrap it up for the day and continue another time.
Heel - 5
> Exeunt Xentus and Laku (45)
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Post by Xentus on Nov 4, 2020 2:58:40 GMT -6
> Xentus, accompanied by... The week's wait for Astraea to develop into a walker felt like a long one in particular. All that time spent waiting for her to grow strong enough.. To be mature enough for his gifts. The twisted charm was not for a creature so young. The ribbon, while already tied onto her shell, granted him little to hear but the droning tone of the seed's inner working. That was all about to change. Part of him was nervous about this. Part of him was curious. What would a free thinking mind do to a creature who's heart was bound to his own?
It was time to find out.
A gentle set of claws pried open the interlocked segments of the golem's head-shell, meeting little resistance against this action. The young golem gave in to whatever of his whims he imposed upon it, and this would be no exception. And now, with that glistening white seed exposed, he took the red-tinted charm and pressed it into the thin membrane, joining the two together.
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Post by Xentus on Nov 4, 2020 3:06:39 GMT -6
The creature recoiled in a newfound sense of pain. Its body twitched, segmented carapace rattling in place while various pores on its elastic body opened and closed. Wisps of element vented from them, giving the mammalian a first look at what kind of power it possessed - a glimmering light which almost seemed tangible. But he could hardly find it within himself to be fascinated about that right now. What.. Was happening to the golem? He could only watch in a mix of concern, horror, and intrigue as the creature seemed to lose control of itself in these fleeting moments. The process of growing from a simple minded creature to one with free thought seemed to be a traumatic one. Perhaps it wasn't ready for this? The leopard clenched his teeth, hands gently grasping the walker's form while waiting for it all to end. He could only hope this was not a mistake.
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Post by Xentus on Nov 4, 2020 3:33:22 GMT -6
The process was eerily quiet. The only noise was the occasional clatter when the head-segments happened to meet while the body of the golem convulsed. While it felt like it took ages before the process came to an end, it was all over within a minute. The golem's shell realigned itself, body poised in an upright stance. Inner seed staring directly at the leopard. It held its gaze for a moment, then floated along the other openings in its shell to take a look at the hands grasping its body. It pressed itself into the man's arms, seeming.. Comfortable.
Relief washed over the leopard, a deep exhale escaping him. Whatever the little walker went through seemed to be over. And it looked perfectly fine. If anything changed, the creature was more animate he supposed, moving in a way that was less stiff than a walker normally would. Or maybe that's just what he wanted to believe.
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Post by Xentus on Nov 5, 2020 5:02:01 GMT -6
Regardless, he wanted to believe it sensitive to the new feelings it had obtained. The leopard's expression grew soft, drawing the creature into a close embrace. In the first moments of it experiencing life in an awakened light, it would feel love and warmth. He figured if he somehow became enlightened to new feelings, he'd want to be surrounded in the warmest of them. The glass golem nestled itself in his arms, wholly content.. Happy. Xentus didn't mind staying like this for a while. Under the open sky in the fresh breeze of autumn.
Time was left untracked, passing as it did. He might've even dozed off, he wasn't entirely certain. His eyes blinked slowly as he came to his senses. And in his arms was the cradled golem, who seemed to remain unmoving until he first stirred. The leopard's grip around the creature loosened, letting it freedom from his grasp.
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