Ownership - [2]
#2 of Ownership
(Not as long as the first part, I know, but I feel this has far more development than the first, which was just an initial basis for the story.)
It amused Lyle to no end that Jules seemed to be quite the academic-- especially for someone who was bred in captivity, and yet he knew so little about the world around him. "Jules," He started, as he watched the rather undignified human snarf down the eggs and ham that had been prepared for him. It hadn't been much, but the human had stared at it at first as if the Gods had given him some sort of gift. "Tell me something. I can obviously tell that you're no idiot; but how does one raised the way you were become so... intelligent is the wrong word, I'm sorry."
"Aware? Able? Advanced? Those aren't really right either." Jules replied, as he swallowed his mouthful. "Back in the... warehouse, I guess, I was allowed to pursue one thing. Some there pursued physical means, but I asked for literature. Anything and everything I could read, I got. Tabloids, to theses, and everything in between. Of course they..." The human stared at his cutlery-- which he was holding without any means of grace. "They let me learn english and various things... but very little of it was practical."
Lyle snickered. "Ah, yes, I can tell. I'm surprised they even let you read." The blank expression he got from the human urged hiim further. "From what I know of police raiding those kinds of places, humans are treated like dirt. Most people actually believe that humans that act as pets and as servants are actually being helped towards equality. It beats being treated like some wild beast, trapped in a cage." Jules just nodded.
"Actually Master Lyle... erm... sir..." Jules said, starting to stammer. He figured he had to learn to address his new owner properly-- but he didn't really know how.
"Sir is fine. Master Lyle makes you sound like you have multiple owners... which you won't." Lyle said, with a smirk and wink. Jules felt his face flush, and he just nodded.
"I had questions to ask of you, sir. If that's okay." The human looked slightly curled in, his voice growing sheepish. Lyle's smile grew warmer, and he just waved his hand, telling that it was okay to continue. "How do you... I mean... you hinted earlier that the relations between humans and..." Jules trailed off, trying to find the proper word.
"Between humans and furs isn't exactly the most stable? No." The husky finished, rubbing his chin. Where to start? Considering that anything Jules would have read was given to him by the owners of the warehouse, he figured it was plausible that they would limit or censor what he read. "From what I know of school, no one really knows how animals became anthropomorphic. Some people think it was some sort of natural evolution, others believe it was scientifically created by breeding the human genome and bestial genomes together. Whatever the case, furs came to be.
"What we do know is that most furs are superior to humans; I don't mean that in any condoning way, but from a scientific standpoint they retain that bestial, primal nature. They're physically stronger on an average-- though I know of humans that work as bodyguards, that could probably knock some of the tougher furs out. But still-- we retain many natural animal qualities. Claws, fangs, horns, poisons-- things that our animal counterparts have that act as defence. Man has had to create their own; weapons, guns, biological viruses-- which we can also harness because we're human-like.
"Because of this superiority, there was first a war; lots of casualties on both sides. What they didn't expect was that our numbers matched theirs, if not trumped it. The world couldn't sustain such a boom in population. It had to equal out-- naturally, or forced. In the end, humans became rarer. They were forced back, and were cast out from society. Those that were left were like prisoners of war. They were forced to assimilate into our lifestyle-- if it's any different. We use transportation, we work, we have government, society, trade, amusement, lives at home-- from what I know, it's nothing different from how it used to be. The only difference is... I guess a dominant race.
"But it makes no sense. If our life isn't any different from before, why the whole caste system, right? I know it's stupid-- but I have no answer for that, I'm sorry." Lyle couldn't do much more than smile weakly. "It's just... how it is. While that may not be the answer you seek, that's the only answer I can give you."
Jules blinked, perhaps the first time through that small lesson, and he nodded. He couldn't deny the logic that the husky was using, and accepting such a truth would make life far easier than trying to fight it. He just pushed his now empty plate forward slightly, and tilted his head. "Alright then, so can I ask something a little more mundane? What do you do?"
Lyle laughed. He figured he might as well let the human know more about who he would be living with, or under. "I work at a financial firm-- we give loans out to companies, act as accountants for large businesses, and generally handle the flow of cash. Cherise, that doe, is the secretary for my boss, the large doberman. Everyone else at that party were the people who worked in my department; you probably won't see them again anytime soon." The husky's tail wagged a little, and he leaned forward on the table. "Anything else you want to know? Don't ask everything at once, I'm sure you'll have a lot to ask and learn."
"Actually," The human tapped his fingers on the table lightly. "One more thing. Who is Delilah?" The husky's smile dropped instantly, and he looked away. The human blinked, and recoiled, looking to the kitchen. "I-I'm sorry." Was all he said, before he took the plate and stood up, bringing his now dirty plate to the sink. Sure he'd never washed a dish before-- but now was probably a better time to learn than any.
_"Delilah, I mean it. I want you to meet me tonight, at the Château-du-Lac. It's really important."
"Lyle, you know I have overtime..."
"I'll wait. Just make it, okay?"
A giggle.
"Lyle Stanton, if I didn't know you any better, I'd leave you. But I know you'll be waiting, so I promise I'll make it."_
Lyle fidgeted in his chair, pulling out a ring from his pants' pocket. He played with it in his fingers, before he stood up from the table. Jules had washed all the dishes (without breaking one to his surprise), and had resigned back into the living room. He stared out of his dining room, seeing the human curled up on the couch, facing into it. He sighed, got up, and made his way over.
"Delilah was someone who worked at the firm." The husky was surprised to have found his voice. He took a seat on the other end of the couch, but Jules made no sign of any movement. "She was Cherise's little sister. I met her through Cherise actually-- she was in Personnel and I work in the Finance department. We hit it off really quickly, and really well." He continued to finger the ring, staring at it. It was a twisted silver band, enlaid with a small, pale blue sapphire.
"We started to see each other for three years. She started moving up to Management, and I stayed where I was. If she advanced any further, it'd have caused problems. Not being allowed to date someone who's in a position of power over you, and such. So I figured before it happened, I had to make my move." The husky clenched the ring, and fought back the urge to cry. "She never arrived. I learned at half past midnight, that she'd asked to leave early. On her way to the restaurant, she was sideswiped by a drunk driver. Her car veered straight into a lamp-post. It was a frontal impact, driver's side against the pole." Lyle choked back a sob, and shook on the couch.
"Ever since then, I..." He began to break down, breaking out into sobs. "... Cherise wouldn't let me do anything stupid. I tried to commit suicide and she caught me-- ever since then she made it a point to make sure I was doing okay. She even had to tell me once «Lyle Stanton, if you think what you're going through is horrid, think of me. Delilah was my sister. But I have to keep going for her, and so you do. She loved us both, and that's what she would want.» I realized what she meant, and so I focused... no, I engrossed myself in my work. I ended up in the position that Delilah would have gotten, and have been there ever since."
Lyle felt tears run down his face, but instead of falling into his lap, they fell off, and disappeared. He stared down, to see Jules' head on his leg, faced away from him. He just broke down more, a shaky paw reaching up to caress and pet the human's hair, no more words being said.
"He's asleep." Jules mumbled to himself. He'd just laid his head on the husky's lap, figuring that what he needed was someone there-- but he didn't know what to say. Now he felt conflicted inside, and he resented every though that he had had. He shifted off the husky, and lay him down, giving him the pillow that the husky obviously had slipped under his head the night before. He tucked the husky in, and just took the ring, setting it on the nearby table.
Tired himself, but painfully awake, Jules headed into the kitchen. He didn't really know for what reason, but he found himself taking a seat at the table. He stared at his hands, and stared around the room. He felt pity for the husky, but also pity for himself. He scrunched his hands together, and tugged at his hair.
Was he... just a replacement? Intended to fill the gaping hole that Delilah's death had left in the husky's heart?