BXBX NOVEL Chapter 46 Switch Gears
I followed Alfredo into the ruined building, and I could hear the sounds of whimpering animals coming from a room up ahead. I could smell strong scents of animal urine coming from up ahead, and Gaia screwed up her face.
"What is that strong smell?! It burns my nose!" Gaia exclaimed, and I laughed.
"Maybe you should go wait out front with Alfredo? I will deal with the animals and bring them out," I explained, and Alfredo nodded.
"I am sure that you can figure out what room they are in. Come little one, you can pet me more," Alfredo said as I set Gaia down, and she ran over to hang him.
Then she grabbed onto his fur, making both Alfredo and me wince. Him much more than me!
"Hey, you little runt!" Alfredo complained but stopped when Gaia started to scratch behind his ears.
"Be a good big kitty and take me outside, and you will get more head scratches! I will convince Dan to give you chin scritches if you are good!" Gaia said, and Alfredo grumbled but did what he was told.
I chuckled, watching the two leave, and then turned back to the bathroom that was up ahead. It had a push to open the door, so it made sense why the big cat had chosen it.
Once I was at the door, I slowly pushed it open, but the smell was intense, and it made me step back in revulsion. I let the door close again and summoned grass up from the ground to break up into the bathroom.
The animals inside started to go wild, but they would be fine. The grass was just meant to absorb all the fertilizer, and the smell was practically gone within a few moments.
Now comes the tricky part.
I walked over to the door and slowly opened it, but all the animals ran at me.
"Stop!" I roared, and every one of the animals froze in place, and I sighed.
The cats and dog\'s all looked to be in rough shape, and wild eyes stared up at me. They all must be pretty traumatized by now, but hopefully, making them bigger and brighter would help them overcome this little hurdle.
"All right, everyone forms a line! Follow me outside, and then space yourselves out!" I ordered, feeling a bit silly, but all the animals listened and seemed to calm down.
I lent my line-up outside were Gaia and Alfredo were waiting. All the animals ignored Alfredo and did precisely what I had asked of them, somewhat impressing me, even though it was my Systems doing.
"Woah! It\'s like you are an animal trainer or something! I could do it too, but seeing someone else being so connected to life like me is amazing!" Gaia said as she watched all the animals spread out.
I smiled at her and started to walk through the gathered cats and dogs, targeting each as I went. I made sure to keep them a good bit smaller than Alfredo but still big enough to be able to help carry people if they needed.
It only took about ten minutes to get them all to a proper size, but none of them moved from their spots. They were all just staring at me intently, so I nodded to them after I stood back so all the animals could see me.
"I know that you guys have had a pretty traumatic couple of days, but there are more people out there that need your help. I would like you all to listen to what Alfredo here says. He is in charge of search and rescue, and he will be giving you orders from now on, okay?" I asked, and the group of animals nodded, and then all turned to Alfredo, who took a step back in surprise.
"Are you really going to have all the animals following me?! How am I supposed to get anything done if I have to keep giving everyone orders?!" Alfredo complained, and I rolled my eyes.
"If you don\'t want to have to look after them all, you will have to find some animals that you trust. Once you do, we can better divide the workload, but as It stands, you are the only one I can trust with this, got it?" I asked, and the big cat let out a long breath.
"You\'re the boss, but I will try to find out who will be best for the jobs by tonight," Alfredo said as I walked over to him, reaching out to Gaia.
"I have to get off him already? He is so fluffy and warm!" Gaia complained, but I still scooped her off the big cat\'s back.
"Later, I am sure that you can ride him or any of the others, but don\'t you and I have some sick people to take care of?" I asked as she settled back into my arms.
"Sorry, I got caught up in the feeling of that soft fur! Yes, we need to go help the sick!" Gaia declared, pointing forward.
I laughed, and she looked up at me with a questioning look, and I leaned down to kiss her. The way that she switched gears was just another adorable thing about her.
"Why are you laughing at me?" Gaia asked after I broke the kiss.
"Because you\'re cute. That\'s about it," I said as grass pushed up through the pavement, under my feet, and started to move me forward.
"I don\'t think I really understand, but if you are happy, then I am happy!" Gaia said, and I kissed her again, and she looked at me with a grin, asking, "Was I being cute again? Do I get these wonderful kisses whenever I am?"
This woman was almost too much for me, and I would have to concentrate on getting anything done with her around. She was just way too cute for her own good, and I couldn\'t help but want to kiss her every time.