It was a tradition for Hazael and his family to spend a few weeks in the capital city at the start of every season. Though these trips were never for leisure or any other reason like that. No, it was a trip made merely for business and it was a necessary one at that. This was where the family was able to sell the last bits of the previous seasons' wares while also stocking up on exotic and unique items brought to Judea from distant lands; giving the family an advantage when they returned to Israel. As one of the handful of older men in both his father’s and uncle’s family, this was not an optional trip for Hazael. After all, he was an extra set of hands and while his family was still unaware of his worsening disability, it seemed as if he would one day take over the family business; especially if his father’s secret political ambitions were ever to succeed. He was needed in Judah to aid his family and to learn.
However, that didn’t mean Hazael ever looked forward to such trips. Especially as it meant that he would have to entrust his dogs to the care of others like his mother Levana or beloved half-sister Nissa. He trusted them, of course, but whenever he had to part from what he saw as his livelihood… it was naturally worrisome.
Luckily, though this time had been different. With two pups half a year old and still remaining in the kennel, he had been allowed to bring them along on this trip to the city, along with their mother Bracha, in the hopes that someone would take the dogs off of Hazael’s hands. Though it wouldn’t be an easy sell even as Hazael wandered the early spring market with a smile wider than a half-moon.
In part, this struggle would come down to the two pups themselves. For Rayla, it was easy to tell why she had yet to find a home beyond the kennel Hazael maintained. She was a wild pup with boundless energy and no sense of restraint. A simple game could rile her up to the point where only sheer exhaustion could bring her down and her endless yapping was testing even his patience. However, as cautious as he had to be around her, Hazael couldn’t help, but let a wide smile across his face whenever the pup was around. After all, he could see that just beyond her childlike exterior there was a hound just as loyal as her mother, Bracha. Rayla was a natural born leader and was unafraid of anything that dared to cross her path. He could easily see her becoming a trustworthy guardian to anyone who was brave enough to try to bring some peace to the restless dog.
On the other hand, Ilan was a bit more of a mystery to Hazael. In truth, this was the pup he personally was more drawn to from this group… even though he’d never actually admitted that the pup was his favorite. This was probably due to the fact that Ilan was far more gentle than the others and was the only one that Hazael never had to keep a careful eye on as the similarly colored fur ran about the yard. He was far more content staying close to his mother --and Hazael by extension-- instead of following the pack that his sister created. Although this ensured that the boy was far more enamored with this young Saluki, it caused a bit of problem when potential owners were only interested in how fast or strong the sedentary creature was. That was the lifestyle of a working dog and the Israeli boy just couldn’t imagine giving little Ilan over for a life like that even though he always knew that not very many people saw the dogs as potential companions as Hazael did… as heartbreaking as it was to him.
So, to him, it wasn’t that surprising that six months after their birth, the litter had been reduced to these two and as they grew older it would be increasingly difficult to sell them. Especially as they became more accustomed to him and his mannerisms with every passing day.
Secretly, this pleased him. A part of him was eager to use these dogs in his bloodlines as the confidence of Rayla and gentleness of Illan could make future litters more appealing as companions. However, his father did not see things the same way. The constant yapping from Rayla irritated him and the addition of more dogs would chip away at the already crowded space from the already large family of ten. It would not be easy to convince Avriam to allow these dogs to remain within Hazael’s care for much longer after this trip; which he had made that painfully clear in no uncertain terms. They would have to be sold here in Judah where he might have a better chance of finding homes for these outcasts and for their sakes, Hazael hoped he was successful in this endeavor.
That’s why he was currently walking about the market with all three of the dogs, something he would never dream of doing in Israel lest he loses control over them. He needed to show them off to the people here, in the hopes that someone would take interest in them and thus far there was no such luck.
However, he refused to give up hope as he moved from stall to stall, exploring the various wares as best as Haz could with his blurring eyesight. As the morning sun gave way to an afternoon heat, he could hear a little nagging voice in his mind tell him that it was time to return to his family’s stall and let the dogs rest for a few hours during the midday rush. After all, it would do him no good to tire the dogs from walking all day, especially as it seemed no one cared very much for the sight of a slight nineteen-year-old lad with the three dogs at his side.
Little did he know though that someone had indeed taken notice and was now very curious to learn more about the adorable canines that Hazael care so much for…
Maeri was always excited to spend a day out in the city. There were so many interesting sights to see, and one thing she loved about living in a large thing such as this was that things were never the same from day to day. The city was ever changing and there was always something new to see every time she was out and about.
Today Maeri had gone out to buy some inks and parchment for a project she was planning to attempt soon. Several weeks ago, she had seen some ink drawings for sale in the markets. She had bought one for herself and ever since then she had been studying it. She figured that it wouldn’t be that hard to figure out how to paint something like that. She had told her mother of her plans, and Yonita had sent her out to the market with money for supplies and her blessing to attempt this new endeavor.
Maeri had already had some success at tracking down the different colored inks that she had been looking for. She had a few tiny glass bottles tucked into her bag, and she was trying to find some nice parchment to make her drawings on. She had been having less luck with that, and she had spent a long time browsing at a stall of pottery, and she had bought herself a new glazed pottery bowl, it had patterns of horses drawn around the room. It would do to replace the one that she had broken the week before, that she had knocked it off the table through a careless swipe of her elbow.
That purchased, Maeri set her sights on finding more painting supplies, when she heard a yapping coming from across the market. Maeri perked up immediately, looking for the source of the noise, she always loved dogs and was hoping it might be near enough that she would have the opportunity to pet it. She spotted it across the market, a small dog, barking its head off, and as she approached, her eyes widened in delight. There wasn’t just one dog, there were three. Maeri couldn’t believe her luck.
Maeri rushed over to the dogs, bending down to pet the smaller two adorable ones. “Who are the most adorable dogs in the world?” Maeri asked in a voice one would normally reserve for small children. “You are!” She was rewarded by the wagging of little tails. The larger dog circled around in front of the other two, edging them away from Maeri, as she begged for attention of her own. “Oh, you don’t want to be forgotten about either!” Maeri exclaimed in the same tone, obliging the dog with a scratch behind the ears, as she squatted down to the same level as the dogs. Before she knew it she had three friendly faces, poking their noses at her, and she scratched each one behind the ears in turn. Maeri was grinning from ear to ear, overwhelmed by the number of cute dogs in front of her.
After a moment, Maeri realized another pair of eyes on her. A young man was staring down and her from beside the dogs. Maeri immediately blushed scarlet, she had forgotten that she was out in public and that people could be watching her. She rose up slowly, adjusting her mitpahath that had gone slightly askew in the excitement. Her mind was rushing through a million different things to say to explain what she was doing talking to this man’s dogs. “Hi, I...These must be your dogs,” she said awkwardly. “They were just really cute and I had to say hello and I didn’t see you there.” The words just kept tumbling out of her mouth, and she couldn’t seem to make them stop. “I’m Maeri,” she added, remembering that he didn’t know her from a stranger, so she should probably introduce herself. Hazael of Avriam ,
Hazael wasn’t too sure he would have any success with finding a new home for the dogs as a lot of people ignored him and the pups as they moved about the Market. This worried him a bit as he knew that this was his last chance to find them good homes before he would have to stop being so picky with what he did with these last two pups of the litter. That changed though when out of seemingly nowhere, a girl who looked to be no older than him came over and immediately stooped down to pet all three of the dogs at his side.
Hazael couldn’t help but grin at the sight of his dogs rushing forward to greet this girl. There was just something endearing about the whole scene, especially the way all of his dogs reacted instantly to her. All three of them, even Bracha who had padded away from Hazael’s side to get her fair share of love from the girl. The way that they so easily trusted her was a good sign to Hazael as dogs instinctively knew which people were trustworthy and which ones weren’t, so he didn’t feel too nervous letting the leashes that were in his hands go slack so that the dogs wouldn’t be held back by him. He did not completely let go, however, that would have been an incredibly stupid thing for him to do; especially given Rayla’s tendency to use her brain first before her ears. But it was still just enough for Hazael to blend into the background, just watching the little fuzzy blurs.
However, the moment was short lived as the girl remembered that the dogs weren’t alone. Hazael didn’t fail to notice the bright red bloom of color across her face as she stood up, clearly embarrassed over her behavior. That much was made even strikingly more clear when the next few sentences practically tumbled from her mouth. Hazael could barely keep up with the words, but he was able to catch the general gist of what she was saying. Smiling lightly to set her at ease, he responded with a small laugh, “Don’t worry about it. Trust me, happens all the time.” He obviously wouldn’t admit it out loud, but Hazael lied a little bit as he said this. It was true that sometimes people would run up to the dogs and start petting them without asking him if it was alright first. The only difference between this and Maeri though was… well, it was mostly children that did this. Hazael couldn’t blame them. He had still remembered that wide-eyed wonder he had the moment Bracha had first been put in his arms all those years ago. Hazael knew that a lot of kids also had that moment of excitement when seeing a puppy (and judging by Maeri, some adults too). Truthfully, he didn’t mind it, just as long as they knew not to pull on the Saluki’s soft ears or squeeze them too tightly when they tried to hug them and figuring that Maeri was a bit older than the age he was normally concerned about, he honestly did not mind.
Especially when he knew that someone who was excited over the pups would probably be able to provide one of them with a better home than some of the other shadier people Hazael had to deal with.
His ultimate goal of selling the pups wasn’t too far from his mind as he spoke again, trying to put Maeri at ease, “I don't mind people saying hello to them, just as long as you aren’t too rough with them.” Right then, almost as if on cue, Bracha perked up and trotted back over to Hazael. She took her usual place by sitting at his side, nuzzling her snout into his kneecap. Almost at the same time, Hazael reached down to scratch behind her ears. It was just an automatic greeting for both of them. A pattern that had formed in the near decade they had been at each other’s side. Glancing down at the tan dog he then further joked, “And it doesn’t look like they’ve been through the wringer.”
A small grin crossed his face as Bracha looked up at him and he baby talked the dog as well, “Huh, is that right girl?” A small wag of her tail brought out a small laugh from him. It was actually rather odd that Hazael was saying so much to this total stranger. After all, he had always been a quiet kid around practically everyone he knew. It was just probably just easier for him to open up when the conversation was about the dogs. Nothing else on earth was as capable of bringing out the real him like they were.
“Hazael,” He said simply in response to Maeri giving him her name. Maeri, he repeated in his mind so that he might remember it in a later conversation. He may not be capable of seeing details, but from what he could see of her, she most certainly did seem like her name suited her. It was short and sweet, like how she had been so far. Although he knew that he stood to be corrected, based on how she had acted a moment earlier, he didn’t think that would happen.
After pausing a moment, he then pointed to each of the dogs in turn and introduced them as well, “This one is Bracha, she’s a sweetheart. I haven’t seen another dog like her.” The oldest dog practically lit up with Hazael’s praise, with her tail wagging rapidly. By this point, one of the pups had started to move closer to his mother, “And that one is Illan. He has Bracha’s temperament. I’ve never seen a more laidback dog than him.”
As he said this, Rayla grew impatient from the lack of attention and decided that she was going to get it one way or another. While the people were distracted with the calmer dogs, Rayla trotted over to Maeri and jumped up onto her leg, scratching her dress lightly in order to get Maeri to pet her once again. Seeing this, Hazael said sharply to her, “Rayla! Down!”
Luckily the dog listened and her front two paws fell back to the ground with a small whimper. However, she clearly wasn’t that discouraged as she had caught sight of Illan’s wagging tail and decided promptly that a game of fetch was in order. She lept after her brother causing Hazael to tighten his grip around her leash as she zoomed about. “This is Rayla.” He said as he struggled to get the dog to settle down a bit, “As you can see, she’s got a lot of energy that I just don’t know what to do with.” He hoped that the joke might bring a chuckle out of her, but he wasn’t too sure. He didn’t know yet if she was the kind of person to be annoyed by displays of energy like that. She didn’t seem to be, but he couldn’t be too sure at this moment.
Hoping to see if she would have an interest in buying one of the pups, Hazael decided to test the waters with a seemingly innocuous question. “So, do you own any dogs?” Hazael had learned over the years that it was this kind of question that would normally provide the kind of answer he was truly looking for as some people would use it as a segue to say something along the lines of, “No, but I wish I did though.” This was the kind of answer Hazael was hoping to hear.
Maeri was very relieved to hear that she wasn’t alone in being overwhelmed by the sight of the dogs. She knew that she was often seen as weird or could do things that others didn’t see as appropriate, but it was reassuring to hear that at least her reaction to the dogs wasn’t that strange. The flush from her face faded into a smile as she glanced down at the dogs as the larger one trotted back over towards Hazael. She wondered how hard it had been to train the dog to come back to him like that. Maeri wondered how difficult it would be to train a dog to be as loyal as that. She knew dogs could be trained to do any number of things. Maybe she could get a dog and train it to jump through hoops and dance as she played a lyre. Of course, she’d have to learn how to play the lyre first but, she had seen that done and it couldn’t be too hard.
She was snapped back into the present as Hazael bent down to talk to his dogs, and then introduced himself. He seemed so invested in these dogs, and she smiled to hear him introduce them and their personality. He spoke of them almost like they were friends and it was so nice to see someone who could be made so happy by these animals. She wondered if she had a dog if it might make her as happy. The dogs themselves certainly looked happy, she could almost see the excitement radiating off Bracha as Hazael spoke her praises. Maeri reached down to pet Rayla as she jumped up on her skirt, but at Hazael’s command, the dog returned to the ground and scampered off after the other puppy.
Maeri didn’t think it was quite fair that Hazael was dampening the dog’s enthusiasm. ”You don’t have to yell at her. She was just being friendly,” Maeri objected as the dog headed back away from her. She had been hoping for another chance to pet the dog and watched it wistfully as it ran around energetically restrained on the leash. Maeri couldn’t help but sympathize with the dog she knew what it felt like being confined by her station in life when she’d rather be able to express all of her enthusiasm as fully as she felt it. Not that she often let that stop her, it was easier to ask for forgiveness than permission after all.
When Hazael asked if she had any dogs, Maeri answered without a second thought as to any implications he might be making. “I don’t have any dogs now, but my father used to keep them when I was younger.” She smiled as she remembered playing with the fluffy animals. Maeri wished that she could have a dog again, but neither her mother or her aunt had ever expressed any interest in bringing another dog into the house. She wondered if she could convince them to get one. ”Where did you get your dogs?” Maeri asked, her expression clearly showing the cogs turning in her head. If she could just figure out where to get a dog, she’d surely be able to convince her mother to let her keep it once it was already home.Hazael of Avriam,
Hazael looked at Maeri with a puzzled expression when she chastised him for telling Rayla to not jump on the girl. He wasn’t used to people finding an issue with calling his dogs back to him, not when they were as energetic as the young pup who was chasing after her brother’s tail, clearly unbothered by the discipline that Hazael had to hand down to the unruly pup. “Sorry,” Hazael curtly said as he shuffled around the dog’s leashes in his hands as a way to prevent them from tangling together as the pups moved about. Bracha patiently stayed by Hazael’s side, but her head darted back and forth trailing after the pups. Content that the mother dog would keep an eye on the pups, Hazael turned his attention back to Maeri.
A slightly awkward silence hung in the air for a moment after his short answer. Within it Hazael could sense that maybe she wouldn’t be happy with his lack of an explanation, so he added, “It’s better that she doesn’t. For her safety.” Hazael said simply, his quiet and distant side starting to show through. His tone was matter-of-fact, almost as if he expected Maeri to already understand why it wasn’t good for dogs to think it was okay to jump up on strangers. After all, it was pretty self-explanatory for him. If Rayla’s behavior wasn’t corrected, she could jump up on someone who was scared of dogs and react badly to the pup. Then both her and Hazael could get into trouble. Plus it was also important just generally that the boy has some sort of control over his dogs, the last thing he needed on his plate, after all, was a rowdy dog that wouldn’t settle down. That was just a disaster waiting to happen.
Though, of course, this would be obvious to Hazael. He had dedicated his life thus far to raising the dogs. Truthfully, by this point, he understood canines better than people. He had negative experiences to draw on when it came to the dogs misbehaving to draw upon. Maeri didn’t have that and Hazael didn’t seem to register that with his simple and straightforward way of thinking. It was obvious to him, so why wasn’t it obvious to her?
While Hazael “explained” why it was best that the dog didn’t jump up on Maeri, Rayla began to play a bit too roughly with her brother. She was beginning to jump back and forth, unable to contain her energy as well as her own excitement over chasing after Illan’s tail. After a moment of darting back and forth in pursuit of the little tuft of fur, the pup pounced forward. Before the other dog could react, Rayla caught the tail between her paws and sharply nipped at the offending “toy” causing Illan to cry out in pain.
Both Hazael’s and Bracha’s heads turned to the sound almost instantly, showing off how in-sync the pair were. Without a word, the boy reached down pried the energetic one off of Illan while scolding her, “No! Rayla, drop it.”
Although she was still a pup and was nowhere near as trained as Bracha was, Rayla still knew the basic commands. She reluctantly dropped Illan’s tail with a pitiful expression crossing her face. Immune to the cuteness of the pup, Hazael immediately scooped the guilty canine up and into his arms to hold her tight to his chest as Bracha inspected her other child’s injuries. The Israeli boy could tell instantly that the pup would be fine, he couldn’t even see the telltale pinpricks of red showing that Rayla had broken the skin. If anything, Illan would be sore for a few days, but overall no worse for wear.
Breathing a sigh of relief, he looked disapprovingly down at the squirming pup in his arms. A small scowl crossed his face for a moment before he pulled it back afraid of what the other girl may think of the dogs at that moment. He knew that it didn’t look good and she was already someone who seemingly did not approve of Hazael disciplining the dogs. If she thought of Rayla as wild or dangerous, there was no way that she would be willing to bring one of the pups home. He needed to find homes for them here in Judah. His uncle had already made it painstakingly clear that he was not going to let Hazael bring them home. Maeri was the only one thus far who had even shown a remote interest in the canines. Hazael wasn’t going to let this slip out of his fingers if he could help it.
So, thinking quickly, Hazael decided to make the situation appear as light-hearted he could muster. Tucking the dog into the crook of his arm almost like a baby, Hazael jokingly wagged a finger at the pup as he said with a surprisingly airy tone, “We don’t do that Rayla.” Of course, the dog didn’t understand a word of it, but with any luck, it would set Maeri at ease and in his mind that was all that really mattered at that moment.
For a moment it seemingly worked as Maeri answered his previous question about whether or not she already owned dogs. He listened intently to her answer, visibly turning his attention away from the dogs to the colorful blur that was this girl in front of him. A small hopeful smile could be seen when she said that she didn’t have any at the moment. For a split second, Hazael could almost hear her say the magic words he needed to hear to move forward with his rapidly forming plan to sell her one of the pups. However, that was before her next sentence which caused his heart to drop and his grin to falter.
It was never a good sign to hear used to in regards to these kinds of things.
In his experience, the phrase used to usually meant that there was some sort of unfortunate story to accompany why the family no longer included dogs within it. He had practically heard everything, from the horrible reality of folks no longer being able to talk care of them to the worst case scenario of a canine attacking someone. It made Hazael nervous to hear her say that instead of what he had been expecting, but at the same time, he could sense that maybe the story wasn’t that heartbreaking. Maeri had reacted well to the dogs thus far and clearly held an interest in them. That usually meant that whatever happened, it didn’t have anything to do with the dogs. Either way, it left Hazael in an awkward position, after all, for all he knew now, he could be wasting his time with Maeri.
Treading carefully, in case he accidentally offended the girl, Hazael decided that it would be worthwhile to try and find out what the used to meant in this context by saying, “Used to? What happened?”
Little did he know that the used to was due to her father’s death.
He had known, he obviously would have left the subject alone. Not only was it too heavy for strangers to discuss, but at the same time, Hazael knew he couldn’t offer any form of emotional support should she need it. It just wasn’t something he was good at and truthfully, he tried to avoid situations where it was needed if he could. If he knew, he would instantly take it back. But it was too late. The subjected had been broached and now it hung just as heavily as the heat in the air.
Luckily though, the subject quickly shifted to something that Hazael knew could be easy and light; how he had gotten the dogs in the first place. “I raised them.” He said with a small shrug as he shifted the still squirming pup in his hands, “Bracha was a gift and these two are her pups. Helped deliver them myself.” The dogs were at the center of his life and he made sure that they were reared to his own personal standard. No feral dogs would ever come from his kennel. The temperament and natural loyalty of his dogs was something that he took pride in. It might not mean much to others and he wondered whether Maeri would think if it was really as much work as Hazael poured into caring for these dogs every single day.
Rayla wriggled about again, which gave Hazael a brilliant idea as to how he could see if Maeri was possibly interested in taking one of the dogs home. With a slight, calming grin on his face, he asked her, “Do you want to hold her?”
As he said this, Hazael shifted the pup in his arms one last time in order to safely hand her off to the other girl, if she chose to accept his offer.
Maeri nodded a bit at Hazael’s explanation of his discipline of the dogs. She still didn’t like the scolding, but it was true that people and dogs needed rules to protect them, so she could understand it at least. She watched with interest as the puppy frolicked around before starting to attack her brother. Maeri appreciated the gentler handling of Rayla as Hazael expertly separated the rambunctious pup from her brother.
Maeri was a bit caught off guard by the question about what happened to her father. She didn’t often interact with people who had not heard of her father’s death. His attempts to help negotiate protection against the Egyptians on the Judean borders had led to his death at Egyptian hands. ”He...died,” she said hesitantly, looking down. She couldn't think of any other way to put it, while other people seemed to dance around the topic, she didn't see why. She hated the way bringing up the topic always seemed to change the tone of the situation. While she missed her father, he had been gone for a number of years now, and she was almost never as sad about it as people seemed to think that she was. Maeri’s attention immediately turned back to the puppy in Hazael’s arms, her face lighting back up again at the sight of the energetic young dog.
“Oh,” Maeri's face fell as Hazael explained where he had gotten the dogs. She was sure that she wasn't going to be able to help a dog give birth to puppies. Nevertheless, maybe there would be some other place she could get a dog. She glanced back at the wriggling pup in Hazael's arms, wishing he'd let her free so that she could pet her again. Her face lit up again as she was offered the chance to hold the puppy. ”Yes! I’d love to!” She reached out and grabbed her the wriggling ball of fur from Hazael, struggling to keep a hold of the dog as it greeted her enthusiastically. She giggled as it started licking her face. “It tickles,” she gasped between laughs.
Maeri knew at that moment that she wanted nothing more than to take that puppy home with her. She had the dog in her arms, would it really be that hard for her to just turn around and disappear into the market? No, she stopped herself. That would be stealing, and besides, it wouldn't be nice to take Hazael's dog when he had been nothing but kind. She’d just have to figure out another way to get a puppy. She was sure now that a dog of her own was what she wanted more than anything in the world.
Maeri scratched behind Rayla's ear, and the dog yipped happily. She took the opportunity to squirm out of Maeri's grip while one hand was occupied petting her. Rayla practically jumped out of Maeri’s arms to circle her feet then flop on her back for belly rubs. Maeri grinned as she pet the soft tummy of the wiggling puppy. She had again almost forgotten about Hazael's presence, too enthralled in the puppy's excitement.
Hazael didn’t know what to say when Maeri revealed that her father had died. Just like the girl had feared, those two simple words had created an air of awkwardness of the pair as he was overcome with an immense amount of guilt for even pushing the topic. Truly, Hazael had expected the explanation to be a bit different, something more along the lines of the man still being alive and there was some sort of event that had caused him to stop owning dogs. Never in a thousand years would he have imagined…
After a moment of silence that was mostly Hazael trying to figure out what to say, he finally settled on saying quietly, “I’m sorry. I shouldn’t have asked.” His eyes glanced downward, truly apologetic for possibly stirring up bad memories for the girl. Little did he know that Maeri didn’t feel this way, but it was hardly his place to ask about it. Out of respect to her, Hazael decided it would be for him to not accidentally broach the topic again. After all, who was he, an insignificant Israeli boy who had yet to lose anyone within his large family, to ask questions about a man who he had never met and would never even learn the name of?
He was relieved though that Maeri was genuinely excited to hold Rayla and he happily passed the pup over into her arms. Hazael smirked at the sight of the dog eagerly greeting the girl with kisses and the general excitement of the pup that Maeri seemed particularly endeared to. He was pleased though to see that she was laughing the entire time as she held the pup. He could tell then that if he were to sell Rayla to the girl she’d have a good home which given the circumstances that Hazael was under was more than he honestly could have asked for. He couldn’t thank his lucky stars enough that he had come across someone like her rather than some sleaze that only saw hittas and sughs when they saw his dogs.
He knew at that moment as she exclaimed that the pup’s tongue tickled that it was unlikely that there would be a better home here in Judah for Rayla than with this girl.
Now it was only a matter of making sure that she saw it as well.
Recalling how she had appeared to be a bit despondent when he said that he had helped raise the pups, he thought it might be best to elaborate a bit further just in case it was a simple case of confusion over his words. “I raise dogs like them,” He started to say, pointing at the pups as he was also gearing up for what to him would be basically a speech, especially as he was not really all that talkative if he could help it, “Back home in Israel. ‘Been doing it for years. It’s a lot of work, but these guys make it worth it.” He finished as he scratched behind Bracha’s ears. Although he didn’t say much, he was careful with his words. He didn’t think it was a good idea to mention the financial component of his passion to this girl, especially not when he wanted her to buy the dog. After all, he couldn’t know for sure, but she seemed to be the kind of girl that might jump to conclusions if she heard that he raised them for a profit. If she got that impression of him, Hazael seriously doubted that reassurances that he really didn’t make all that much after the several months of resources he would pour into each dog.
It would probably be better to just leave that for now.
He grew silent again as he watched how Maeri and Rayla interacted. When the pup jumped out of the girl’s grip, Hazael instinctively stepped forward to catch the now rogue pup. He pulled back though when Rayla chose to ask for belly rubs instead of running off like he expected her to do. The Israeli boy shook his head at this as his laugh filled the air. If he didn’t know better, it seemed like Rayla was determined to charm her as well. Ah, well she had always been the more crafty pup out of all the ones in her litter.
Hazael didn’t say anything for a moment, allowing Maeri to enjoy spending time with the pup. It was only when he could visibly see that she was enthralled by the pup did he clear his throat and carefully say, “You know, she does need a home…” He didn’t think that he had broached the subject too quickly, especially given how positively she had reacted to the dog thus far, but at the same time, he was naturally nervous that Maeri would back out at this point. After all, this probably would be the moment to do it and he wouldn’t blame her either if she decided that she wasn’t ready for the responsibility of a wild pup like Rayla.
However, he couldn’t help, but believe that fears of him wouldn’t come to fruition and maybe, just maybe… he might have found a home for the energetic pup that no one else seemed to want.
Maeri hated the awkward silence that came when she mentioned that her father had died. It was a long time ago now and she rarely thought much about it anymore. Hazael’s awkward apology only served to draw out the uncomfortable feeling, and Maeri found herself distracting herself by looking at the dogs instead of thinking about her father. So the awkwardness was long since forgotten by the time they moved on to talking about the dogs, and by the time she had the dog in her arms, the topic was forgotten entirely.
”It must be so much fun to have so many dogs all the time.” Maeri smiled to think of how amazing it would be to have so many dogs, and to just be able to create new dogs whenever she wanted, that sounded almost too good to be true. Hazael said that it was a lot of work, but how could looking after such an adorable animal ever feel like work? She found it hard to believe. Just looking at the dog, she couldn’t imagine feeling anything but joy at the idea of a dog in her life.
When Hazael mentioned that the dog needed a home, Maeri had almost forgotten her surroundings again as enthralled as she was by petting the fuzzy puppy belly of the dog. She jumped a bit as Hazael cleared his throat. When he suggested that the dog might need a home, she couldn’t quite believe what she was hearing. She had only just been wishing that she would get to take the puppy home with her, and now she might actually get the chance to. Rayla whined at her feet trying to get Maeri to continue petting her as Maeri’s attention switched to Hazael. ”You mean I could take her home with me?” Maeri asked excitedly. ”I mean, I didn’t want to ask because who just goes up and asks someone if they can take their dog, but I really did want to take her home with me.” Maeri was so excited. She scooped up Rayla, who wiggled excitedly in her arms. Maeri hugged the dog tightly and spoke to her in a high pitched voice.”Did you hear that Rayla? You get to go home with me! Isn’t that wonderful?” Maeri held the dog out and spun around in joy. Was it possible for this day to get any better? Of course, she’d have to explain the dog to her mother and sisters, but she was sure they were going to love the animal just as much as she did. Who couldn’t love this adorable fuzzy face?Hazael of Avriam,
Hazael couldn’t help but agree when Maeri stated that his job must have been a fun one. “It is,” He affirmed with a slight grin as he thought over how rewarding it was to work with the canines. Granted, it wasn’t as easy as Maeri seemed to think that his job was. In fact, it was a very difficult one to do as the dogs' health and wellbeing rested solely on his shoulders. If he made a mistake or forgot something, it wouldn’t be him facing the consequences, it would be Bracha and all the others. That sheer fact made most of what he did more work than play, but there were moments, of course where they could all just unwind with a simple round of fetch. Plus, working with the puppies was practically a whole game within itself. Those were the moments that Hazael loved very dearly and made all the hard moments worth it.
There was a pause for a moment as the quiet Hazael was satisfied with what he said. Sure, he could make some sort of joke about how his family didn’t think the same way as himself and Maeri, but it hardly seemed appropriate at the moment given the jovial mood. However, he did recognize by now that even though he and Maeri could agree on the joys of raising pups, they weren’t exactly on the same wavelength in regards to how long a conversation needed to be. So, he added one more statement to the mix, even though his naturally less talkative nature told him it really wasn’t needed, “I can’t imagine myself doing anything else.” That was a good general statement, right? Surely, that had to be enough to keep the conversation going as well as keep Maeri’s bubbly nature pleased with a happy topic.
After the awkwardness that came with the discussion of Maeri’s father, Hazael was eager to keep the topic as light-hearted as possible, especially if he wanted to make sure that the girl bought Rayla. It really didn’t seem to be that difficult, truthfully. Maeri definitely came off as a little naive and in an odd sort of way, almost childlike to the Judean. Maybe this was just because he was used to more stern and stone-faced people, so any deviation from the likes of his parents, Tiras, and Arela would be further exemplified, but either way, Hazael had no problem catering to it. Though, it did mean he would have to be extremely mindful of the things he said as it became increasingly clear to him that Maeri was going to walk away with Rayla at the end of the day.
But he certainly did not mean that literally… at least not until she paid for Rayla.
He saw the way she practically lit up at the notion of bringing Rayla home with her. A grin crossed his face as he watched her scoop up the dog and excitedly baby talk the pup about the good news. Truthfully, Hazael was glad to see this as Maeri was the ideal person he wanted to sell his dogs to; someone who cared about the dog and not the profit it would bring them. Unfortunately, though, the Maeris of Judea seemed to be few and far between.
However, after a moment, something odd about Maeri’s statement struck him. Musing over it for a moment, it became more than plainly clear to the boy that Maeri thought that Hazael was just going to give her the dog. His eyes widened momentarily as he ran the simple fact over in his head that he was probably about to ruin the happy atmosphere with this awkward reminder that the dog wasn’t a gift.
For a moment, he was unsure of how to approach it given his reluctance to purposely create tense situations. Something needed to be said though before she ended up walking away with the pup, so after taking a moment to clear his throat again and pull her attention off of Rayla and onto him, Hazael said with all the awkwardness of the situation became clear in his voice, “You can have her for forty silver coins.” As he spoke, his eyes glanced down at the ground. It felt in an odd sort of way that he was somehow taking advantage of her naive ways, but he had to remind himself that it wasn’t his fault. How was he supposed to know that she wouldn’t realize that these things cost money? It was just a natural assumption for him to make in his defense.
But then again, it was better to not assume things when it came to dealing with the daughter of a rich Manheeg. At least Hazael would be pleased to learn that her naivety came from the simple fact that money was no object to girls like her.
However, he didn’t know this yet, so he quietly explained, hoping to spare the both of them of the embarrassment that this situation had brought, “Raising dogs is an expensive task.” Hopefully, if luck was on his side, she wouldn’t put up too much of a fight.
Maeri was so excited about the fact that she was going to get to keep this adorable puppy that she almost didn’t hear when Hazael spoke again. She was so busy trying to contain the happily flailing legs and tail that it took her a moment to process his words. She suddenly felt very stupid, of course, he would want to be paid for the dog. Perhaps it hadn’t been obvious that she thought she wouldn’t have to pay. At least she hoped that would be the case. Not that she didn’t have the money, so perhaps the interaction could still be salvaged. As she was considering how to proceed, the puppy managed to wriggle out of her arms and jump to the ground. Rayla proceeded to pull at the hem of Maeri’s skirt as she fumbled for her purse.
”I should have enough in here, somewhere…” It should have been easy enough to locate the purse, but it took running her hand around the rope belting her waist to find that the small pouch had migrated around to the back of her belt in all of her excitement. She looked down at the puppy as she tugged at the fabric, trying to regain Maeri’s attention. ”Rayla this is my skirt, not yours.” Maeri scolded the puppy gently, a wide smile on her face. In truth, she found the puppy’s antics adorable. Rayla was not dissuaded and continued to pull at the fabric as Maeri dug into her purse for the money.
Maeri looked back up at the young man in front of her as she pulled a handful of silver out of her bag. She counted out the appropriate amount into his hand. ”I hope this is enough, especially if dogs are expensive.” Maeri hated to think that he wouldn’t have enough money to take care of the dogs she had. Maeri reached down and tried to tug the hem of her robe out of the dog’s mouth, ripping the hem slightly as the puppy’s teeth caught on the edge, but Maeri didn’t care. She was positive nothing could make her feel sad now. She had a puppy and that was the most wonderful thing in the world. Maeri scooped up the puppy yet again, determined to take it home and show her sisters her wonderful new prize. ”Thank you!” she called excitedly over her shoulder as she headed quickly back home, squirming bundle of puppy clasped tightly in her arms.Hazael of Avriam,♖ Administration Mod,