User blog:InklingBear/Life of Pets - Ailalophobia

Story #30 - Ailalophobia
12:00pm

"Bwak! Wanna shred!"

"No Sergio! You're not coming down with me to the rink!"

Lalo whines.

"Don't worry boy. I promise to get you those treats you've been begging me for that kept me up almost all night!"

It's a rather timid day down in a place other than the good ol neighborhood of Royal Woods. The spectacular afternoon down in Great Lake city is nothing but perfection. Sweet ol' Ronnie Anne had her sights planned on showing off her skills down at the rink, always never failed to impress with anything she can pull off. If nothing goes wrong within the rest of her day, she could keep her streak up for yet another day.

But there was something that felt empty about her plans today. She was expecting Lincoln and his big sister Lori to come by today, along with a friend for a different vetrenarian down in the area. For some apparent reason, their vet from where they lived had to move to a different state. They were at least lucky that there happened to be another vet down in the city that was open for today. Even though they'll spend miles driving to the place, they'll do anything to keep a good feral friend.

As Ronnie Anne let out a small sigh while Sergio rested on her head, she opened the front door of her apartment. Her gaze had a sight full of Lincoln and Lori holding a pet cage, eager as heck to come down to the city once again.

"Lincoln, you're here!" she said.

"Hey Ronnie Anne," Lincoln said back. "Glad we could come down-"

"No time for chit-chat," Lori spat, giving the pet cage to her brother as she walked inside. "Where's my boo-boo bear?"

Confused, Ronnie Anne answered "He's currently working a shift down at the-"

"Got it!" The eldest said back before rushing to the grocery store."

As the Ronnie Anne turned back to the middle child, she curiously asked "What's with the pet cage?"

Looking right at it, the boy answered "Oh yeah, we had to take our cat down with us to try out a new vet a few hours prior."

Lincoln set the cage down and opened it up, revealing Cliff inside. His unenthusiastic meow caused Lalo to jump right out of fear, running straight to another room as his whimpering began to sound present. Yeah, he was still afraid of cats, after all this time.

Lincoln was curious about Lalo's behavior. "What's the matter with Lalo?" the boy sincerely asked.

"Tell me about it." Ronnie Anne replied, irritably rolling her eyes. "I don't know how he can be three times bigger than those cats and still be such a wimp."

"I can say the same thing about Charles. I'm pretty sure he'll have a lot in common with him"

Squinting his eyes towards the middle child, Cliff thought to himself "I oughta tell 'em ya said dat one 'o dese days." He shifted his perplexed gaze on the reader not long after. "Dis ain't botherin' nobody so far, is it?"

Given a reaction he may have felt, the cat gave off a glare and thought in angry words "Aw shaddup."

Already bored out of his mind while Lincoln and Ronnie Anne chatted it up, Cliff set foot on the floorboards of the Casagrandes and attempted to follow in Lalo's steps. He found the quivering mastiff hiding behind the couch. Curious, the feline walked up to him. Lalo, scared out of his mind, adjusted his eyes wide. The sight of the peculiar cat alone had him draw out a jump.

"Aah! Cat! Don't hurt me!" Lalo loudly spat, ducking for cover.

Twitching his nose with a few pokes to the fraidy canine, Cliff asked "Hey uh… what's da mattuh wit' youse?"

Lalo tried his best to tone down his shaking. Even though his fear of cats was greatly at large, he was willing to at least try and cope for once. Did he think Cliff was going to do something to him? Was he thinking about him inflicting pain? He looked into the eyes of the black feline as he uneasily responded "Y...y-you're not gonna... scratch at me… a-are you...?"

Cliff was confused. "Will ya relax?" he said. "Now why would I wanna hurt 'cha? I barely even known ya fer like five seconds."

Lalo stared blankly at the cat. Tracing back to the past for a brief moment in hopes to remember anything, he does have a point.

Stunned from the memory, Lalo spat "You got a good point…"

Growing curious overtime, the pudgy hound barely squinted his eyes as he walked up to Cliff as he circled around him for inspection. "Hm… you don't look like a street cat… you don't smell like a street cat…" He squinted his eyes tighter than before. Just to be completely sure, Lalo passed his slobbering tongue onto the cat. He licked upwards, covering Cliff's face in his excessive saliva.

Understandably, Cliff spat in disgust "Blech! Disgustin'!"

At this point, Lalo managed to calm himself. For once, he was comfortable. As he enthusiastically uttered "And you don't taste like a street cat!" His tail wagged frantically before sitting down.

After Cliff shook his head in hopes to dry his face, he responded with "Ya know, dat last part really ain't dat necessary."

"Sowwy." Lalo uttered back.

Sitting down with the dog, attempting to find some understanding with one another, Cliff calmly asked "Now, what's da problem wit' you 'n dem street cats yer talkin' about?"

Lalo sighed heavily. He wasn't used to talking to anyone with his little problem. If only people could really understand them, things would have went a lot more smoother. But, he had to spill his words. The black feline was willing to hear him out in any way shape or form anyway.

The dog cleared his throat. His voice started to break as he progressed. "Well… If you must know… The abundant quality of these street cats have been a pain in my butt ever since they roamed our streets! And it ain't just me, it's my whole family! Everytime I see one of those things, I start to freak! It's like they're out to get me! Gosh knows how many of those jerks versus a pup like me? Heck, how could anyone even compete with that?!"

"Whoa, dis sounds serious." Cliff responded. "But let's be real fer a sec here. Now, here ya are, a big, strong lookin' mutt dat could take down at least a group of five people, 'n yer really scared of a few cats, includin' myself for a sec?"

Lalo was a little fazed for a small amount of time. "...Did you just call me a mutt?"

Cliff patted the pudgy pup, understanding his situation perfectly clear. "C'mon now big guy. I know ya could do bettuh den dat. Mattuh fact, I'ma help ya through dis!"

"Really?" Lalo asked, having his hopes up.

With a smirk, Cliff answered "Sure, why ever not? But first, where can I find some grub in dis house?"

Half an Hour Later

Cliff and Lalo sat next to each other, eyes closed and face to face, attempting to reach a certain level of calmness. Simple exercises were being performed with surprisingly good progress at a normal pace.

"Breathe in… breathe out..." Cliff softly muttered as Lalo slowly followed. They went at it for minutes on board until the cat used other phrases. Before they both inhaled, the relaxed feline said "Bring it all in…" before the next phrase inevitably followed. As the cat exhaled "Let it all out…", a noise came erupting. It was the sound of the wind currently being shattered into pieces.

The sudden noise startled the feline as he quickly opened his eyes. He quickly glanced over to an embarrassed, blushing Lalo as he let out a small whine.

"Whoops…" he uneasily uttered.

Now learning that Lalo was the one who farted after his stench crossed his nostrils, Cliff suddenly felt woozy. He fell backwards and fainted almost immediately after. His first plan didn't go so well. It was time to make another one.

Still determined, he barely uttered "Alright… maybe we oughta try somethin' else."

Not long after the offensive incident, Cliff and Lalo resorted to the bedroom belonging to Ronnie Anne. Coincidentally, Cliff turned on her radio, which happened to be playing an expy of a really old song called 'Eyes of the Cat'.

Game faces were on, except there was an issue with the pup. A record scratch immediately ensued. "Erm… you sure there isn't something else you could put on?" Lalo asked.

"Uh, naw. Ya want somethin' dat fits what we're about ta do fer da next couple 'o minutes!"

''As the music starts back up, a quirky montage was in progress between the two. Cliff started with a glare at the dog. Lalo reacted with a quick whimper. As the feline squinted his eyes, the dog walked back a couple steps. Cliff sighed in disbelief.''

''Next, the cat popped up in random places in the interior. The sight of seeing the cat ever so suddenly had the dog yelling. Behind the bed, under the bed, inside the compartments of her dresser, not a single bit of progress was being made.''

As the music stopped, Cliff uneasily spat "Ugh, I don't tink dis is workin' out so well."

Lalo sighed. "C'mon! You can't give up now! I promise, I can do this, I swear!" he said to Cliff.

"Eh, I dunno…" the cat uttered. "Oh! I tink I got it. What if I threw in a lil' treat fer youse?"

Lalo was ecstatic. He really liked the sound of that. "Treats?" he happily spat, walking in circles. "Boy you don't know how much I love those things! Oh boy oh boy oh boy—"

Cliff put a paw on the dog's snoot, getting him to chill out. "Calm down dere, big guy. You'll get whatcha want if ya keep dem eyes on da prize."

''The same song resumed for the two. After their motivational chat, they had the courage to try it all again. Cliff believed that anybody, even a dog can conquer their fear in some way. It all just takes time, and especially a lot of effort to reach those achievements.''

''The cat started with a glare at the dog, as the dog tried to the best of his ability to copy his expressions. The cat showed off his pearly white teeth as his eyes came halfway shut. Lalo did the same thing, except he drew a growl as an extra addition. Noticing he had something in his teeth, the cat slowly drew himself back. Small amounts of nausea filled the feline.''

''Despite the grit the dog had stuck in his teeth, Cliff liked what he was seeing so far. He could tell that his alternative plan was going flawlessly well. If he could keep the charade up for a little while, he figured that Lalo would no longer have his fear of an innocent animal such as his kind. Progress slowly filled the two while the cat gave off a little smirk.''

''Next on their agenda was another exercise Cliff had in store for Lalo. He hid around the room, popping out in front of the big dog wherever he could. Everytime the pup's gaze caught sight of the furry feline, he growled a brief moment before he barked loudly. It was so loud to the point where it would send the cat sprinting to the other side. After another round had been completed, Cliff popped out from behind the bed, giving the dog a thumbs up before his expected barking sent him hiding behind the bed again.''

''Nothing surprisingly went wrong so far, despite Lalo's fear of cats. Lalo was almost as impressed as Cliff from his plan. With the positive outcome of what they've managed to accomplish together, the dog smiled.''

''The last thing Cliff and Lalo had to do together was a small chasing session. It's commonly known fact that dogs love to chase other animals, most notably squirrels, birds, and especially cats. Cliff took off running around the apartment while Lalo closely followed. Some stuff came tumbling down as the chase continued, to nobody's surprise. As they both made their way down the stairs, a misplaced ball rolled around the front of the last flight of stairs. Lalo, still focused on chasing the swift feline, stumbled upon the ball, tumbled down the stairs until he finally landed on the cat.''

''The dog was curious, yet confused. Where did Cliff run off to? He cautiously looked to his left and right, that is until he felt a few claws poke his huge rump. A whine later, he leapt into the air, unknowingly jumping right off of Cliff. The cat lifted his face up in an unamused manner. He felt embarrassed from getting his face smooshed underneath that big backside from the family dog. Knowing it was an unfortunate accident, Lalo attempted to try and play it off with a simple snicker before he burst into laughter. As the cat was still not in the mood, the dog stopped with a sheepish smile.''

''Cliff concluded their segment with throwing a treat in Lalo's mouth, much to his enjoyment. Satisfied, he licked his lips. In his tiny mind, that was some tasty treat. Their montage finally ended on that note.''

Two Hours Later

While Lincoln and Lori were still here for a little while. Cliff patted Lalo on the back.

"Alright, I tink all dis trainin' seemed ta have paid off." Cliff said.

"You really think so?" Lalo asked nervously.

Cliff confidently responded with "I mean, ya did good after ya realized a mutt like youse could ever get over yer fear of cats like me. If ya could handle me throughout da whole exercise, den a couple 'o dose cats in da streets really shouldn't be dat much of a problem!"

Lalo was suspicious. "...Again, did ya just call me a mutt?"

"C'mon! Yer a malleable, unconditioned, ...tender 'n tantalizin' ol' pup. Now who in da world could ever take dat compliment from ya?"

Before Lalo could give an answer, he was unfortunately cut off by Bobby running away from Sergio after his shift.

"Ronnie Anne, would you do something?" he said

"Bwak! We need to talk about this!" Sergio spat.

When it was just those two again, Lalo responded to Cliff "Well isn't that nice coming from a cat like you."

The cat shrugged. "Eh, I have a way wit' words sometimes."

Curious about the interesting place of Great Lake City, Cliff made his way to the front door of the apartment building. "While I'm here, I am kinda curious as ta how nice dis place may be…"

Before the cat could open the door, he was dragged away by the tail from the big dog. He screamed "No! You can't go out there!"

Cliff sighed. Knowing that he was able to take care of himself plenty of times before, he wasn't going to let him stop him from exploring. "Will ya relax? Ain't nothin' bad gonna happen ta me."

Nervous, Lalo gulped. "Uh… okay. If you say so… but please get back here safe!"

Fifteen Minutes Later

Cliff was running away with a hot dog he got to steal from an unattended cart, just before a man angrily shook his gist at the mischievous feline. Already having fun roaming the streets and on his free food spree, he was enjoying the city life. It's almost like he wanted to live down here.

"Well ain't dis da life?" he thought. "I ain't nevuh felt dis alive before ever since I did my bidness anywhere other den my litter box!"

The cat figured it was time to head back to the apartment before the two Louds realize that he was gone. Although the new experience he had was short lived, it was definitely something to remember for a long time.

Curious yet nervous as he walked down the right lane to the Casagrandes, he thought "Hm… dis is da right street back to da place… ain't it?"

Lalo looked out a window, looking for the curious cat living his new experience. Not long after, he spotted him, located a couple blocks towards the building. The dog sighed in relief. He thought something terrible would befall the animal. That is… until his greatest fears would cross paths with the only cat he managed to befriend.

Two street cats jumped in front of Cliff, softly hissing at him. They looked furious for a brief moment. As Lalo gasped in horror, fury quickly shifted into neutrality. They took their time inspecting the stunned feline as the dog continued to watch the confusing situation. His eyes kept shifting as if he was conflicted as if he had to do something, or to continue observing.

Before Cliff could even utter a single word, one of the street cats asked him to follow them. After Cliff checked his surroundings for a brief moment, he inevitably followed. That forceful decision had Lalo in shock. Almost instantly, the big dog felt so betrayed. He never thought something like this would ever happen to him, but for the first time in his life, it did.

Sadness filled the bumbling Lalo. "Oh no!" the dog said, before his voice progressively broke. "How… how could he do that? I thought he was my friend!" Lalo shed a tear. "I thought a nice feline like him would never do something like that! I… I guess it's true what I thought my whole life! All these cats are the same!" He then got on his knees, covering up his eyes with his left paw as they started sprinkling. He was so hurt. He cried. "Oh woe is me!"

One Hour Later

As Cliff returned back to the apartment safe and sound with a lampshade over his head, he was met with a sorrowful Lalo. He was still sniffling from the pain he witnessed with his very own eyes. The cat was worried, did someone do something to him? Did they punish him while he was out and about? Who knows? He'll never find out unless he tried to stir up a conversation.

After Cliff threw his lampshade off to the side, he curiously asked "Hey dog? Are ya alright?"

As Lalo lifted up his face to place his gaze on the sympathetic feline, his sadness slowly shifted into a new emotion. Rage.

Standing up before he slowly walked towards the cat, the dog spat in angry words "Well… look what the cat dragged in: betrayal!"

Cliff was confused from his sudden change of mood. "...What?"

Squinting his eyes, Lalo said "I saw exactly what you did out there not too long ago!"

As the feline flopped his ears in fear, he uneasily asked "W-what I do?"

"I'll tell you what you did!" Lalo spat before he inhaled deeply. Cliff had no choice but to prepare for what he had to deliver. "You were friends with those street cats! I can't believe you would do that! After all the stuff you've done for me, I thought we had a connection! I thought we were cool! But what you did was really not cool! You just had to take my chance at knowing that all cats aren't the same, and you crush it with your monstrous paws!"

Cliff shook his head. "Wait just a darn second!" he questionably retorted. "Were ya spyin' on me?"

"I should've known you backstabbing cats were all the same!" Lalo tearfully said back. "You don't know how much I feel betrayed from this thanks to you!"

"Whoa now. Ya can't just go assumin' dat I was backstabbin' ya just cause I crossed paths wit' dose street cats! Dat's like suspectin' a partner cheatin' on someone behind dere backs! 'N besides, w-what was I supposed ta do?"

Lalo put his paw in front of the cat. "Please, I don't have time for any pathetic excuses you just pulled right out of your backside." He placed his paw back down. "I… I don't feel like spitting out another word with you!"

Offended by the dog's accusation, Cliff had to show off his dominance. "Well what kind of a friend are ya ta paint me in such a mean spirited light fer talkin' to a species of my kind?"

Lalo threw his head down. A sniffle later, he turned his back to the cat. "I… I think it's best if... we don't ever see each other again!"

Cliff was shocked. All of this over having some bit of fun with some cats? Talk about dramatic. "Really?" Cliff spat before letting out a long, remorseful like sigh. "Well den… If I'm allowed ta be truthfully honest wit' youse as positive as I can, if yer willin' ta hear me out one last time, I'm pretty sure yer bein' way too sensitive ovuh somethin' like dis. 'N given da way yer actin' towards me right dis minute, I don't tink I'll ever regret teachin' ya my trainin' lessons."

Cliff sadly dropped his head down as he began to walk away from the crossed dog. He was still sad, but also angry. He wasn't just afraid of cats at this point. He now has a hatred towards them. The cat had a few more words before he left the large pupper alone.

"And… one more ting…" he said before turning back to Lalo. "Just cause I took da time ta hang wit' a couple cats dat I barely know, doesn't automatically prove dat I'm friends wit' em." He sniffled. "Just hope dat one day, you'll manage ta understand dat…"

After a brief moment, Lalo was left alone now. He looked around for him, but the cat was nowhere to be found. He made an attempt to toughen up after hearing his words, but he just couldn't pull himself together at the time being. He figured that some fresh air could smoothen things out a bit. As obliviousness filled the building, Lalo exited through the front door.

He took a slow, simple and gloomful stroll down the street for a few minutes. In his mind, those minutes felt like hours. Traffic was eerily empty, despite that he found a few parked cars on the block. Nobody on the streets seemed to pay any attention to the large animal. He was honestly surprised by that alone.

Before the pup even knew it, street cats popped out, one right after another. They were sinisterly laying their slanted sights right on the animal. Obviously feeling mischievous as they rubbed their paws and extended their claws, since there was no point in hiding it anyway, one of the cats lunged right out at Lalo, scratching at his tender back.

"Yow!" the dog uttered. Putting his sight on the single street cat, he softly jumped and whimpered. Not long after, One cat became two cats, two became four. The alley of cats grew into a large number, there was no way the big dog was going to stand a chance.

As he progressively shook in fear, he closed his eyes as if he was going to black out at any time soon. It was at this moment where the street cats would never see the day happen. He growled out of rage and hurt.

Oh, he was angry, and he really wanted to take it out on someone. This could be his chance, though he might not get another one like this.

As the street cats surrounded the dog, he finally lashed out. His raucous sounds of barking terrified a portion of the cats as they escaped with all their might. A few cats jumped at the dog, only to be taken out by his paw as it sent them flying to a brick wall, falling simultaneously to the ground. Lalo whipped his tail around, slapping another group of cats as they spun uncontrollably into an open, tipped trash bin. He bit down on another cat, shaking it down before he crudely tossed it into another bin. That's two points.

There was only one more cat left, and he was ready to attack. Unfortunately, there was a change of plans for the foolish feline as Lalo angrily stared at it. That move definitely made the cat have second thoughts. Slowly backing off, the cat ran off never to be seen again for… a while.

Lalo had no idea what the heck just happened. He just took down an array of street cats all by his lonesome. He stood there, speechless as to what he would do now. A blink of an eye later, he said "What the… where did that come from?!"

It turns out that Cliff's training really did him some justice. He was satisfied and happy now. Still fazed, he then said "I can't believe I actually did that!" He waggled his paws in excitement. Wow! I've never felt so alive! I never thought this day would ever come!"

Now, it was time to set some things right. There was one more thing he had to do now: making an apology.

Lalo looked to the reader and said "I gotta tell the cat about this!" before he ran as fast as he could back to the Casagrandes residence.

By the time he returned, Lori and Lincoln were in Vanzilla, driving on back to Royal Woods. He was unfortunately too late. Tired from running back, he didn't have the chance to try and stop them. Heavily catching his breath, he sat down on the sidewalk, sadly watching the van drive off into the horizon.

"No…" he uttered. "But… I never... got to say… I'm sorry…"

In the van, Cliff had thought about the exact same words. Until they meet again the next time, whenever that may be, they'll be spending that time worrying if they're still friends after their argument.

Lalo threw his head down once again. He whined and sniffled just thinking about the Loud's cat. Not long after, Ronnie Anne opened the front door, carrying the treats her dog was asking for. She was mighty confused on why the dog was sitting outside. She never saw him do something like that before.

"There you are Lalo!" she said as she walked to him, only to be met with his paws wrapped around him, followed by a sorrowful howl.

Confused as she thought the hug was for the treats, she responded with "Um… it was no problem… really." An awkward chuckle later, she glanced confusedly at the reader.

~End~