Pietro, Medusa, and Lockjaw

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Before Crystal finds him, Pietro stops by Medusa's room looking for her, and is introduced to the puppy.



Pietro knocked on Medusa's door then settled back to wait; he was fairly sure the sisters had returned from their trip, but Crystal hadn't been in her room. Medusa's suite was the next logical choice, and he'd meant to pay the elder Amaquelin a visit in any case, to thank them both for the wine.

The door opened, seemingly on its own, until a red tendril of hair was seen snaking back to the other side of the room. "Please come in," Medusa said, smiling when she recognized Pietro. "I apologize for not coming to the door, but as you can see, my hands are slightly encumbered at the moment." Medusa had both hands firmly locked around a plush dog toy. The other end of the toy, which was shaped like a sports car, was firmly between the teeth of Lockjaw. The bulldog's butt was wiggling in the air as he pulled with all his might.

Pietro laughed and entered the room, watching the puppy play. "Far be it from me to take either of you away from such an important game. I remember when I was a boy, some of the caravan dogs could get very persistent when they wanted to play. If only they'd managed to avoid slobbering on both ends of their toys . . ." He shook his head, smiling. "At any rate--have you seen Crystal recently? I wanted to thank you both for the Christmas gift, but she wasn't in her room."

"You are quite welcome. It was the least we could do. Crystal went for a ride," Medusa said, though her attention was quickly pulled back to the puppy who most insistently yanked on the toy in his mouth. "But she should be returning shortly if you would care to wait for her." Finally, Medusa was able to pull on the toy hard enough to wrest the toy from Lockjaw's mouth. "I believe that is the first time I have won this afternoon."

"I think I will, thank you." Pietro grinned at the dog. "He looks like a stubborn one, that's for sure. Yours?"

"Indeed. I almost thought I would never convince him that shoes were not a tasty, delicious treat left out for his enjoyment. He was Crystal's birthday present, actually," Medusa said with a wry smile. "When Jennie returned, she informed Crystal that she could not stand to have a dog in the room. So Lockjaw lives with me, though Crystal still cares for him the majority of the time." Lockjaw padded over to sniff Pietro, then sat expectantly at the man's feet.

Pietro reached down a hand to be sniffed, then scratched the dog behind the ears. "Well, Lockjaw, you certainly have good taste in mistresses. Pity you can't live with yours." He smiled at Medusa. "He seems very well-behaved, especially for his age--shoes notwithstanding, I suppose. I'm not surprised, of course, but it still merits saying."

"Yes, he is a good little fellow." Medusa said, fondness evident in her voice. "I think it is because we do not dress him up in silly hats and sweaters or dye him pink." Lockjaw promptly laid down across one of Pietro's shoes, seemingly content.

Pietro gave the little dog one last pat and favored Medusa with a wry look. "I've never understood that impulse. The sweaters I can perhaps see the reasoning, if one owns a thinly-furred dog in a cold climate, but there are no excuses for hats or fur dye."

"It is the way many people flaunt their wealth," she replied. "Of course, what they do not realize is that true wealth does not be put on display in order to be recognized." Tossing the toy she was still holding into a nearby basket, Medusa walked over to the couch and sat down. "So were you looking for Crystal for something beyond a thank you?" she asked, glancing at the clock and realizing her sister would be returning soon.

"Nothing world-shakingly important," Pietro replied. "I was wondering if she'd like something to eat--we've been sharing meals occasionally, and I was . . . a little surprised to find how much I missed it while the two of you were gone."

"Oh?" Medusa said with a slight arch of her eyebrow. "I am glad that Crystal has found someone to eat with, I know she often felt left out of the lunch groups that tend to form in the dining hall." Her tone was neutral, but she made a mental note to ask Crystal some questions about her time with Pietro. While she was glad that Crystal seemed to have finally made a friend, she didn't want her to stop attempting to reach out to her peers now that she'd found someone who she seemed to get along with well. "You should come to Attilan again one day, you know. When your father is not dragging you off before you have time to enjoy the sites of the island."

"She's said so, yes. The idiot children she takes classes with are missing out, in my opinion." Pietro smiled. "Thank you for the invitation; I'd very much like to go back someday, when I'm allowed to travel again. My first visit was far too brief."

"Some of them are not as bad as others," Medusa replied, thinking of Angel, who while bubbily, also cheerily addressed her by title with no sense of insult. "I just do not understand how they consider themselves to be open and us to be the closeminded ones."

Pietro chuckled. "If I figure that out, I'll let you know--but they do seem to have an institutional disregard for people who refuse to kowtow to their social norms, don't they?"

"Indeed. As someone once told me, a cultural exchange should go two ways. Perhaps they will begin to realize this one day, though now our time here is almost halfway complete." The smile on Medusa's face may have held a tinge of relief, but it was difficult to tell in her carefully controlled expression. "I do not know what is keeping Crystal. Perhaps she chose to return to her own room."

"That's entirely possible. I'll track her down sooner or later." Pietro smiled. "Though I don't regret the missed chance this time--it's been a pleasure speaking with you, and I'm very glad to meet Lockjaw."

"The pleasure is mine," Medusa said. "And he appears equally glad to have met you," she continued with with amusement, eyeing the puppy still very contentedly laying on Pietro's foot. Clicking her tongue, she rose to head towards the kitchen, Lockjaw leaping up in excitement and rushing from the room. "I will let Crystal know you stopped by," she said with a small bow of her head. "

"Thank you," Pietro said, rising with her. He smiled at the scrabble of puppy claws as he left the suite. Perhaps next time he'd bring the dog some sort of treat.