Work Text:
Sarah closed the door behind her as she stepped into her hab. Gosh, that party had been so draining! And that one Affini, Ms. Palustris, had pet her so nicely! It had taken all she had to not melt into a whining, barking mess and shatter the mask of Independence and humanity she worked so hard to keep up! She wished she didn’t have to pretend, and could just be a floret and a dog like she wanted, but she could never work up the nerve to ask!
But now wasn’t the time for such complicated thoughts. Sarah was exhausted mentally, and that meant it was dog time for her! She had a stash of class As and Ws specifically for times like this, when she was too tired of pretending to keep up the pretense in her own home. She flopped onto her massive dog bed full of plushies and took the xenodrugs in quick succession, snuggling into the warm, soft bed. The xenodrugs took effect fast, and Sarah’s puppy’s sense of time vanished in the face of such overwhelming bliss. The bed felt so nice! It was so warm and soft! The only way it could’ve felt any better was with her Owner’s firm vines all around her, petting her and scratching right behind her ears!
But puppy didn’t have an owner! She was a stray. That thought made puppy sad, so she stopped thinking it and snuggled into her bed more! An indeterminate amount of blissed out cuddle time later, puppy was so taken by the sensation of her warm bed and various stuffed animals that she didn’t notice the knocking at her door.
————————
Quercus Palustris, Third Bloom, was mentally drained. She’d spent most of the day at a party, trying desperately not to give in to her urges and domesticate the precious little independent she had met there. The girl had reacted so adorably to being pet! If she were less of a romantic, Quercus would’ve taken her right there, but she preferred to develop an actual relationship with her florets-to-be, unless they wanted her to take them immediately, of course!
She had originally planned to go home and fantasize about taking Sarah as her floret, but on her way out she’d seen that Sarah had left her purse at the party! What kind of Affini would she be if she passed up this chance at a meet cute?
So here she was, outside the delightful little sophont’s house, knocking at her door! Surely any second now Sarah would open the door and it would be a meet cute for the ages, right? And- did she hear barking coming from inside Sarah’s hab? She checked her datapad to make sure she had gotten the right address, and she had! Maybe Sarah had suffered an accident with xenodrugs? If something had happened to Sarah, Quercus needed to help her!!!
Quercus opened the door, expecting to see Sarah in distress, only to be met by Sarah pawing at her legs and begging for pets like an excitable dog! This couldn’t be right! The staunch independent who had maintained composure for so long under her vines was really a needy little dog?
That was just adorable!
If this was who Sarah really was, then Quercus was happy to oblige her! Plus, romantic she may be, she was still Affini, and no Affini would turn down the chance to pet an adorable sophont, or to take a free floret! After all, if this was what Sarah willingly became, she couldn’t possibly want independence!
After several more minutes of rationalizing, Quercus realized that Sarah was still begging to be held and pet, and even worse, still legally independent! So while she picked up and spoiled the dog with plenty of vines, others typed up a new domestication contract for her precious very soon to be floret! Everbloom, she was so glad she’d seen that purse before leaving the party!
—————————-
Sarah
puppy was so happy!! she felt so nice and the vines felt so good and she wasn’t gonna be a stray any more!! It was everything puppy had ever dared to want, and she didn’t even have to ask for it!!