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When they walk in throught the doors to the shelter, Killua's thoughts are immediately drowned by the cacophony of noises. There are dogs barking all around, people everywhere, little kids running around enthusiastically to pet the dogs with their parents walking behind them at a much more sedated pace.
The volunteers talk animatedly with the prospective adoptees, smiling at the kids, at the animals and offering treats for the little kids to give to the dogs.
The place, despite looking like a mini-prision, it's lively and happy with all the wagging tails and little people laughing around.
Alluka looks up at him with huge, sparkling eyes and squeezes his bicep, her excitement barely contained by her slightly smaller frame. Killua gazes at her expression and his heart softens, another reassurance into his mind that they were doing the right thing.
Alluka has been begging him for ages to get a dog but Killua always had a lot of misgivings. A dog it's a lot of responsibility, and it's needs and quality of life are at the forefront of his mind the first few times he denies her request.
They're too young, too busy with college, with work, with taking care of their own selves. How would they be expected to take good care of another life when theirs is still all up in the air? he always reasons with her.
She pouts, and sighs but ultimately understands everytime. Her hopeful eyes spark when she asks, One day, though? One day soon? and he finally caves and concedes, ruffling up her hair tenderly, Yes. Soon.
Soon takes a long time to come.
Killua has to admit that he keeps pushing it around for a bit, more than necessary. Alluka it's in her final year of college, very busy with it all and he's also working full time at Mr. Netero's law firm and there's just no way they can offer a dog any sort of quality of life when they're barely home themselves.
And then Alluka's internship happens.
She's so over the moon with it everything— moving to a new, bigger city, finally getting further away from the clutches of their stranded family, starting a new life— that the getting a dog conversation gets pushed to the sidelines even further.
After they're finally settled in their new apartment complex and Killua starts at his new job, she brings it up again.
"We still living in an apartment, Alluka. I don't think this is the best environment for a dog, don't you think?" He chances but his hesitation is no match for the determined little smile in his sister's face.
"You know I will soon be done with my internship, right? I already got offers for a few full time positions whithin the programe." She says softly.
"There's this a really good position with good hours. It will allow me to do what I love and still have lots of free time to properly care for a dog. And..." She pauses, breathing in deep and Killua knows he's not going to like whatever else she has to say.
He mentally prepares himself for the bomb she's about to drop.
"I've been talking with Mrs. Montero and she says...she says that the tenant in the ground floor is moving in two months time, you know, the one bedroom with a garden? And she's, uh, more than happy to accommodate a tenant with a dog..."
Killua gapes.
He works his mouth around all the multitude of things crowding around in his mind, all the you're moving out? and the you're too young to live by yourself, you're my baby sister, and shit, shit, shit, you're already thought of everything, didn't you? but in the end, after a lengthy pause he spent gazing at her brilliant, hopefull eyes, he sighs, defeatedly.
She really spent a lot of time considering this.
The bubbling mixed emotions inside of him were making it difficult to articulate his feelings. But in the end, in the end he couldn't deny her.
"It would be perfect wouldn't it?" She says, smiling at him brilliantly. "We'll still be living close to each other but we'll ach have more space, hm? And maybe...maybe you can finally start living your life freely without having to worry about me all the time?"
"That's not— Alluka! How many times, how many times do I have to tell you you are not a burden? You're my little sister, I love you! I'll always worry about you—"
"I know brother. I know and that's not what I meant." She says, squeezing his hands to stave off the incredulous indignation rant bubbling up inside Killua. "But you can't keep hiding yourself behind me forever, brother. I love you, ok? I love you but I'm not stupid." She says, pointedly, daring him to disagree with her words. He stays quiet. Lying to Alluka was never a easy task, she could read him like a book.
He hangs his head in shame.
"A little independence would be good for us, hm?"
She frames it in a way that makes it seem that she's the one asking for independence from him, when in reality, Killua knows, he knows that she's doing it for his benefit. She's on to him and she knows it.
"You really tought of everything, didn't you?" He says, defeated tone going amiss in the face of her determination. She nods.
He sighs, not really having any excuse left to delay the inevitable. Truth be told, Killua isn't even really sure of why he's fighting this so much. He always knew that she would grow up one day. She would grow up and want to live her own life and have her independence, her freedom.
He just didn't knew it would come so soon he supposes. Ah. Well. He has to admit that Alluka has grown up, that she's a well adjusted woman now and more than deserves to walk her own path.
As much as it saddens him to see her grow up so fast, he has to accept it. He'll never, never ever want to be the overbearing, psychotic sibling that hangs on too tigh to the idea of her never growing up. He has first-hand knowledge of how destructive and damaging that idea is.
He wouldn't ever do that to her.
"The only thing is, we'll have to live here for a bit untill the unit is ready for me to move in." She says softly, biting her lips in apprehension. "Would it that be OK with you?"
And really. Fucking really, he could never deny her anything. Especially not something that she had tought so thoroughly, planned out so carefully.
Damn. She's grown up so fucking fast. He's so proud of her. His pride and love for her overwhelm him a little, bubbling up inside his ribcage and spreading around like warm, sweet honey.
He sighs, trying to sound defeated and put upon, but in the end, the only emotion left in him is hapiness for the woman she has become.
"You know we will have to dog proof the whole apartment right?" He finally says, the teary smile on Alluka's face breaking through like a ray of sunshine in a cloudy day. "Food bowls, water bowls, leashes and dog toys, have you tought of all that too, you little brat—"
She let's out a cry, jumping him and squeezing him tightly. They end up on the floor, the plush carpet at Killua's back tickling his neck as she crows victoriously in between heartfelt Thank you's, you're the best brother ever, thank you so much, and he ruffles her hair softly.
The happiness and excitement pouring ou from her in tangible waves was enough to drown out all his misgivings, all his anxieties and solidify in his mind the tought that he did the right thing.
He knew it then, a month ago and he's reminded again of it now as Alluka walks ahead cautiously, checking each of the little plaques with the dog's name and description, awning and exclaiming about the funny names and quirky temperaments of each dog she passes.
Killua looks around and smiles to himself, leaving her to it, kneeling down infront of some of the cages to pet some excited little dogs himself.
He loves animals, always had and always will, but he always tought himself to be more of a cat person. A sad little memory from his childhood pops up in his head as he scratches behind a fluffy ear of a tiny mutt, (Mr. Pea his little plaque reads) and he shoves it down to the corner of his mind fast, slamming a mental door on it and locking it.
This is not the place.
He looks around for Alluka and spots her at the end of the kennels, a pink-haired lady at her side, a clipboard in her hands as she blows bubbles out of her mouth with her chewing gum and talks excitedly to Alluka.
Killua approaches them and catches the end of the conversation.
"—born in the kennels two years ago. Her mom was found abandoned and pregnant by the bridge at the time of her rescue and has unfortunately passed at birth." The volunteer named Spinner is saying, an air of sadness clouding her features.
"All of her siblings have been adopted out but she never did. She's a quiet and shy dog, never interacts much with the other dogs here and never gets out of her cage when possible adoptees come around, but she's the sweetest and most gentle Rottweiler we ever had here."
Killua finally looks around Alluka to see a medium sized, all black rottweiler pup named Nanika laying down at the far end of her crate.
She doesn't have any brown spots like others of her kind do, her placard says that her all black fur is a rare occurrence in her breed, lists her temperament as sweet, gentle and quirky, and that she's been living in the kennels since birth, two years ago.
"It is such a shame that she always get passed up for adoption due to the general preconceived notions about her breed, her size and her shy temperament. Sometimes," Spinner continues, softly, sad. "Sometimes we think she knows that she's different and that nobody ever considers her and that's why she doesn't bother anymore."
Ok, now, Killua knows that that's a little bit overreaching on the volunteer's part but she says it so sincerely that Killua heart breaks, heavy and hard inside his chest.
The dog, Nanika, doesn't even lifts her head from between her paws, dark chocolate eyes staring fixedly at nothing in particular and it does sorta look like she knows, she knows that whoever is infront of her cage right now will not stay, will walk away and pass her up for a more young, less bulky, more bubbly dog.
Killua looks at Alluka and her eyes are huge, round like saucers. The tears brimming in them make her irises look like the clearest blue lake he'd ever seen.
"Killua..." Her voice wobbles and Killua reaches for her on instinct— the urge to comfort her and take away the pain in her eyes is overwhelming ans eclipses everything else.
"Can I— can I pet her?" Alluka asks the volunteer, who nods and breaks out a piece of dog treat to give her.
"Of course. But please don't take it personally if she doesn't come to you. Unfortunately, she usually takes a while to get comfortable around strangers."
Alluka nods, taking the treat and kneeling down slowly. The dog, Nanika, shifts her dark chocolate eyes towards Alluka, ears prickling.
"Hey, girl. Do you want a treat?" Alluka croons softly, voice high and syrup sweet. She holds the treat in her open hand and waits. And waits and waits. Killua's heart kicks, feeling with utmost certainty that Alluka's heart will be broken, feels his own heart is breaking inside himself at this poor dog—
Slowly, very very slowly, Nanika extends her huge front paws and lifts her but in a languid stretch. One paw after the other she approaches Alluka cautiously, sniffing around and finally sniffing at her extended hand.
The volunteer goes Aww, very softly, happily. In the most controlled, gentle move Killua has ever seen a dog doing, Nanika bites into the treat.
Instead of chewing and swallowing though, Killua's eyes widen into brilliant moon's when the dog turns her head to the side and leaves the treat on the floor, walking further into a dumbfounded Alluka's space, as she places one paw in the space between one knee and the other on the outerside of Allukas leg effectively placing her huge body all along his sister's front.
Nanika nudges her cold, wet snout under Alluka's chin and closes her eyes, leaning all her weight into Alluka's torso. Her tail, goes up and down once, twice as she sighs and settles.
Alluka, overwhelmed with surprise, slowly brings her arms up to scratch softly at Nanika's body in a delicate caress.
"Oh my God..." The volunteer whispers, incredulously, the bubble she was blowing with her gum popping suddenly and loudly. "Oh my freaking—"
Killua shifts his eyes at her, noting the utterly shock written in the girl's features and he knows, he knows with certainty that they were both witnessing the most incredible special moment she had ever seen.
A noise pulls his gaze back down to his sister and he sees that Nanika now is wagging her tail back and forth, nuzzling her muzzle ever further into Alluka's embrace. Alluka is looking up at him, crying silently as she continues the steady caress into Nanika's fur.
Killua knees turn liquid as he slowly falls down to the ground to join her, overwhelmed with a single, unique intense feeling.
Love.
Killua feels his chest expand and fill up with a forgotten kind of love he'd only let himself feel once before. Different from the love he feels for sister's, different from the love he had for the few friends he had cultivated over the years.
He falls in love right then and there for Nanika and he knows, he knows that no matter what, Nanika's shelter days were over.
A few of the other volunteers are approaching them now, different looks of suprise and awe on their faces as they whisper amongst each other of how surprised they are, how that has never happened before, how Dr. Freecs should be here to see this, oh my god he's never going to believe this, Stick!! Lin, come look at this, oh my goodness—
Killua ignores them completely, attention focused on the dog curled up on Alluka's embrace. Nanika shifts her puppy dog eyes onto him as he extends one of his hands in an offering for her to sniff at.
She moves a bit, head tilting as she shuffles around and touches her cold snout onto the back of his fingers. She sniffs softly and gives a single lick in greeting, tail thumping with renewed vigour on the cold cement floor.
Killua is smitten. He's trully and well smitten as he scratches under her neck, her velvety loose skin bunching up beneath his fingers as her tongue lols out as she pants, happy and satisfied.
Voice rough like gravel, Killua clears his throath and asks, without looking up, "How can we start the adoption process? How soon can we take Nanika home?"
Alluka leans her head on his shoulders and laughs, crying little tears of happiness.
He discreetly blinks the moisture out of his own eyes and kisses the crown of Alluka's head, filled up with love, hapiness and the certainty that no matter what, they've done the right thing.
*