Natural Born Performer

[Rythos]

He walked out the great meadows that made up the area often used for training. Patchwork stood beside him, looking as much like a sewn-together quilt as ever. A gentle breeze flowed across the area, stirring the fur around his face. His amber eyes peered across the green grass, narrowing. What all was out there, he wondered..? He flicked his tail, side to side, as though he were wagging it. Today, surely, would be a good day.

[Rythos]

The first thing he needed to do with Patchwork was teach her her name. It sounded simple, in theory - so it was he guessed it would be anything but. He looked at her, so strange-looking yet sweet tempered. Then again... she was clever, and eager-to-please, and with her personality... maybe it wouldn't be too hard.

[Rythos]

"Okay," he told himself, wringing his hands together as he turned to face Patchwork. She tilted her head at him, tails wagging slightly. "We're gonna work on a name today, and it's yours." He leaned down, poking the little female on the nose. "Patchwork." She sneezed, then gave him a weird look, quirking her head. What in the world was her person doing?

[Rythos]

"Patchwork," he repeated, looking down at her. She kept staring at him, not taking her eyes off. He sighed, straightening. How could he tell her the difference if she wouldn't look away? Still, he had been looking... "Good girl, Patchwork," he admitted, and gave her a treat. "But no more freebies this time! I mean it." She just kept staring at him.

[Rythos]

He turned his back on her, trying to get her attention to wane off from him. To his exasperation, she padded up behind him, nudging at his leg with a whine. "Oh, Patchwork," he groaned, looking down. She looked up from his feet as he spoke, tails wagging. He couldn't help but slip her something, and he let loose another sigh. If she never took her focus from him, how could he get this done?

[Rythos]

He'd have to figure out some other way, he admitted a few minutes later as needless tidbits continued to come from his pocket for the Volpe. He sat down on the hill, sighing again. It was certainly harder to train a Volpe than a person, so far... he'd thought she'd been a natural. She bumped his back with her head just then, wagging her tails and laying down next to him. She lay her head on her paws, and he reached out to stroke it. Still... there was something about her. They just worked together.

[Rythos]

He patted her a little longer, and her eyes snapped shut. Hmm... maybe it would work now. "Patchwork?" Her ears perked, and she lifted her head to look over her shoulder at him. "Good girl, Patchwork," he said, trying to keep himself from getting over-excited. It was only one time, after all.. He gave her a treat, which she gladly devoured, and stroked her head again, waiting for her attention to drift. That could be all it took, and if laying down way the key, he'd sit there for as long as he needed to.

[Rythos]

Her head turned away from him, and she panted in the direction of the open fields. "Patchwork?" he asked for her, tilting his own head. She looked back at him again, tails thumping against his side and the ground. "Good girl!" He handed her another treat, and stroked her head. Hmm... was this really helping? He stopped to think, leaning back again. Maybe... maybe not.

[Rythos]

She always looked at him when he spoke. She was attentive, and that was part of the reason he'd picked her. She had all the signs of a natural born learner, but that had now become part of the problem - something that would come in handy later was now getting in the way. There had to be a way to distinguish the sound he was making from the actual name... the treats, maybe? Mmm, but even attention was a treat to her.

[Rythos]

That was it! He sat up again, startling her slightly. She peered back at him, whining gently. "I've figured it out," he told her, and she stared at him intently. No treat came her way, and her head tilted. "No no," he told her, poking her nose again. She sneezed, again. "Only when I say your name, baby." She stared again, mouth closing and eyes filling with confusion.

[Rythos]

"Oh, Patchwork," he said to her once she'd set her head down in disappointment. She raised it again, looking eagerly back at him. "Good girl," he said gently, stroking her head and giving her another little tidbit. Her tails wagged, and her mouth fell open again in contentment. Oh, that was better, surely. He grinned to himself, and hoped this was working. It was all a matter of time, now.

[Rythos]

"The sky's pretty today, isn't it?" he asked her, leaning back. She looked at him again, expecting a treat or a pat on the head. Nothing greeted her, and the wagging of her tails slowed until it stopped. "So blue - it's just beautiful." The tails sped back up, and then stopped. ...nothing? Nothing at all? What was going on? Patchwork whined, nudging at Darius' leg.

[Rythos]

"Oh, Patchwork," he sighed, and she looked at him. He rubbed her head and gave her a bit of chicken again, then leaned back. She chewed it up, still feeling confused. Was it the whine and the nudge that had changed things. "Still, I hope this works." Nothing came, so the Volpe whined and nudged at her person's leg. Nothing came for her. "I sure would be disappointed if you couldn't even learn your name." More whining, and stronger nudging, and still nothing.

[Rythos]

"Oh come now, girl," he said to her, looking down. "Nothing until I say your name." She stared at him, eyes wide and begging. He sighed, leaning forward, and looked her in the eye. "All right, Patchwork." He said, carefully forming the word in his mouth. He scratched her between the ears, and tossed her the chicken. She grabbed it from the air, and began to understand - it was just that word, wasn't it?

[Rythos]

He began to hold a running conversation with his Volpe, throwing in her name occassionally and tossing her a treat and a pet when she responded correctly. She'd understood the basic concept, so now he could begin to find tune it - he had to get her to understand what it meant, the name. That it was her. He kept talking, throwing in her name and giving her pets and treats. She was loving it, but he made sure to look right at her when he said the name. Slowly, he began to see something grow in her eyes...