While the bright, fiery sun rested high above the town, Audrey found herself nearing the tower she called home. It had only just passed noon, and while she didn't exactly mean to sleep most of the morning away, her body was definitely thankful for such a blessing.

Thankfully, Katie had called her parents so they wouldn't be worrying about her, no more than usual at least. But even when she had gotten up and she was still in the groggy state of trying to fully wake up for the day ahead, not to mention her soreness, her owner still made the executive decision to head down to their local restaurant for lunch—not that she would ever pass up those amazing cheeseburgers.

She could say this for certain, there was no better way to wake up than a good meal, and the girl was even nice enough to buy two burgers for her to take home to her parents—according to Katie, Everest needed it (whatever that was supposed to imply) and she would've never heard the end of it if she only got one for the husky. She had also made sure to make it clear that if the pup ate so much as a fry out of their bag, she would never buy her takeout again for as long as either of them lived. Truly a shame, she was really looking forward to snagging one or two of those.

And unfortunately, as tempting as it was, her chance had faded away. As she had expected, the moment that she was within view, her parents noticed her and ran up to meet her, though it was also just as likely that they were after the bag in her mouth. She had no problems believing either, but regardless, she gently set the bag on the ground before welcoming them into a group hug.

"Hey, Dad and Mom," she warmly greeted, nuzzling against both of their necks as they licked each side of her cheek. Despite all the stress that was constantly pilled against her in the past few weeks, these few seconds took all of that way, a breath of fresh air that she enjoyed while it lasted. A moment that she wished she could rest in forever and ever, tomorrow was a day she never wanted to set foot into.

"Hey, Princess. How was Katie's?" The Border Collie smiled softly as she pulled away, pursing her lips as she tried to come up with a somewhat reasonable response—preferably one that was truthful, personally, she didn't feel like trying to lie her way out of this one. Conflicting was the first word that came to mind, but that sounded a bit harsh, she had no intentions of shedding a poor light onto her otherwise nice visit.

"U-uhm...it was fun, it was nice to catch up with her," she answered, not at all a lie of an answer—simply leaving out the most important details, she had shown far more dishonesty before.

The Dally nodded, ever so slightly leaning over, and looking down at the grass beside her. At first, Everest looked at him like he was insane (grass couldn't be that entertaining), but her eyes lit up just as much once she managed to catch on.

"So...what's in the bag?" he calmly asked, willing to give her the benefit of the doubt and believing that it was just something Katie had asked her to bring over. But to his delight, Audrey smiled and laughed softly, picking up the treasured bag and handing it over to her parents—both of which were immediately greeted with the smell of burgers.

"Katie and I went out for food, and she said that you guys needed some or whatever, I don't know what she meant but yeah, it's for yall." Just like a puppy with a fresh, tasty new bone, the two of them eagerly ripped the bag open. and sure enough, two orders of burgers and fries were waiting inside, just waiting for their time to shine.

"Well next time you see her, tell her we said thanks." Marshall looked over, holding up his burger as the husky grinned and raised hers up, sending a cheers to one another before having at it. Their daughter was a bit jealous at first, but out of the decency in their hearts to not eat right in front of her, they let her have one of their packs of fries while they just split the other—there goes Katie's rule of no eating their food, and she had snagged the fries, a win for everybody!

And eventually, after just a short bit of time, all of them were as content as they were full. Marshall and Everest had every intention to let the three of them go their separate ways, but before any of them made a move, they started to notice the changes in the Border Collie's behavior.

Almost every moment that they weren't talking to her, she was dazing off in her head. That wasn't too uncommon, especially after a seizure, but she didn't exactly look happy about it when it happened, nor did it usually happen as often as it was now (and that was saying something).

"Audrey, is everything alright? You seem a bit stressed." Everest finally asked, speaking out on the elephant in the room that had just now made its appearance known. The collie lowered her head, nervously pressing her paws together until she sighed and motioned for them to follow her.

Now that she had their attention, she led them off to the end of the lawn; under a large tree overlooking the bay. It was always their sacred talking spot, the cool breeze blowing in their fur, the smell of the water below, and the sun beaming down against them always made for the perfect trio of comfort.

"When you went there yesterday, did Katie tell you anything about what she wanted to do?" The two guardians glanced until they looked back at her, shaking their heads in denial of the question—typically her and Katie's friendship was one of those without many faults, and whatever was about to come out of her mouth was already a bit concerning. "She's adopting another dog soon."

"Oh, that's great! Do you know who she's adopting?" Marshall excitedly asked, smiling just as brightly as Everest was—as far as they were concerned, this was a perfect opportunity! However, that expression quickly fell off their faces once they noticed their daughter's blank stare. "Oh...is that not great?"

"I-I mean...I'm happy for her, and obviously, I want whoever she adopts to have a good life, b-but...I don't know, it's probably selfish, but I'm worried that whoever they end up being won't like me. Katie says me and them could be friends, and I would love that, b-but I just doubt that's what would happen." Within a moment's notice, the two quickly changed mindsets now that they had a wider picture to work with. Gone was the initial excitement, replaced by a sense of calmness and comfort for their pup's worries, even if they were still seeing this in a more favorable light.

"Oh, no, no you're not being selfish. I was originally worried when Ryder said he wanted to adopt more dogs too. But hey, you two might be really good friends, you never know, I know that came true for me. And besides, Katie is nice, I'm positive she would have you in mind. She wouldn't adopt someone she didn't think you would get along with," the Dalmatian reassured her, gently wrapping his leg around her while Everest placed her own paw on her shoulder.

"Like Dad said, I'm sure she's doing this with only good intentions. This could be a really good thing for you, I get that it would make you nervous, but have some faith in yourself," the husky added, softly smiling at her daughter. Audrey solemnly nodded, subtly wiping her eyes before she looked back at them—though it wasn't subtle enough to not be noticed, not that she really expected to escape her parents' sights.

"B-but what if they don't like me? I-I mean, I know why people never wanna be friends with me, I-I just can't talk to them. W-what if they think I'm weird, o-or I start talking too much and I say something, or what if I get really stressed and have a seizure, or—" she spewed out, only stopping to actually breathe after her dad gave her that small nudge back to reality.

"Hey, hey, don't say that, the best you can do is be honest with them, and if they don't like you then they're missing out. Anyone would be lucky to have you as a friend," he tried to tell her, even if half of her worries were things that she had no way of controlling. In all fairness, she had every right to be scared, her disorders weren't exactly helpful when it came to socializing, especially with new people.

"I guess, maybe, I don't know. Sorry, it's probably not a big deal. If they don't like me then...they just don't like me, wouldn't be the first time, would it?" she asked, softly laughing at her own-self depreciation. She thought it was kinda funny, but given the looks on her parents' faces, they didn't share her sense of humor—how unfortunate, usually they were on the same page with that.

"Audrey, don't say that. This could still be a good chance for you, try don't let it stress you out. Whatever happens, we'll still be here for you, so just see if you can relax until then. And don't be sorry, we want you to talk to us, you're getting a lot better at that and we appreciate it," Everest explained, nuzzling against her. Audrey smiled lightly, even if it was a small one that very clearly wasn't convinced; merely one thrown onto her face so her parents wouldn't worry any longer, which just might've worked if all three of them hadn't tried such a thing at one point or another.

"A-alright, I'm just gonna go lie down for a bit, I'll see you guys later," she eventually stated, holding her composure as her parents looked at her with sympathy—both knowing that they weren't all in the same boat, but still not wanting to push her any further. Each of them leaned forward and hugged her one last time, at least one good note to end everything off with.

"Yeah, go ahead, just try not to let it get to you. We're always here if you need us, we love you." Marshall slowly pulled away from the hug, giving her the chance to take the escape into the privacy she wanted. The Border Collie nodded and quietly muttered her love in return, leaving the two alone as she walked away to her dog house.

The Dalmatian turned around, seeing his mate awkwardly standing there with a worried expression slapped onto her face—no shame in letting it show now that it was just the two of them. With a small sigh, he walked back to her side where she wrapped her front leg around him, placing his head on her shoulder as she softly placed a soft, tender kiss on his forehead.

"You're thinking the same thing, aren't you?" he quietly asked, taking the place of the mind-reader that he always assumed she was. The husky gave a nod of certainty that their worries might be more than just irrational thinking, their one line of thought bridging out and leading them to common ground.

It may have felt obvious, but the concern for their pup melted into both of their moods. While this could be a perfect thing for her, it could just as easily be a soul-crushing blow to her already low self-esteem.

"I really, really hope this goes well for her. We still don't even know how she's gonna react about our pup, what if she gets stressed about him too?" she reasonably asked, rubbing her forehead in worry. They hated the thought of adding more to her plate, but at the same time, they probably had a week tops before they had to say something about the matter. If things went well, that would be easy, but if not...well, it wouldn't be easy, that much was for sure, and it would be even worse if they had to give her that news right after losing a chance at a friend.

"I-I know, I don't think there's much more we can do but hope for the best. We're still there for her if she needs us." The husky nodded solemnly and lowered her head, lips pursing as she thought to herself—knowing what the first thought that came to her head was, knowing that it was right, and yet still knowing that it wasn't something she wanted to be on the table. Being the less optimistic of the two was not a task she enjoyed,

"Just like we always came to each other when we were hurting?" Marshall sighed and turned to face her, giving her a look that was somewhere in between irritated at how right her point was and sympathetic. "I know, I know, sorry. It's just...I mean, we both know we were never good at that either, and we both know she's not always either. S-she's not gonna come to us every time she might want to."

"I know, Eve, but we just have to be there whenever she chooses to come to us. Worst comes to worst, if it's obvious the two of them don't click, we'll reach out ourselves," he explained, even if he didn't love the idea—like it or not, his mate's claims were valid, just as they usually were. Everest nodded softly, sighing as her eyes panned out on the bay below them, each of them knowing whether it was made easy for them or not, they still had to focus on their top priority; taking care of their pup.

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Katie closed the door to her car, stretching her arms as she stepped out onto the parking lot with her hands tucked back into the pockets of her hoodie—the chilling weather made it feel like her fingers were about to fall off.

She was admittedly a bit late (curses of not being able to find her stupid car keys), but it wasn't by too long, and this would be far from the first time she had been fashionably late. Surely her friend knew that, it wasn't like anything more should've been expected of her by now.

And sure enough, her friend was waiting in the lobby of the pound, dressed up in the standard, dark blue uniform that every employee was required to wear, with her black hair tied in a ponytail behind her head. The other girl seemed completely unaware at first, probably texting someone on her phone before stuffing it away into the safety of her pocket—only noticing her friend's presence when it was too late.

"Carol!" she happily exclaimed, hugging her friend who, after jumping from suddenly seeing her appear out of thin air, gladly returned the favor. Carol backed away a moment later, smirking at the vet—even if it had been a while since they had seen each other in person, that was no excuse not to play along with their usual tones.

"Katie! How's it going? How's Ryder?" she jokingly asked, and while it was mostly a genuine question, she made sure her tone in the last question was extra dramatic for that bonus flair. Katie rolled her eyes, playfully punching her friend's shoulder, only to be brushed off in the end. Weeks without seeing each other and this was how she was greeted, the audacity! Not that she expected anything different, that is.

"Real formal for someone on the job, huh? But yeah, I'm fine, he's fine, we're both fine, thank you for that. Anything new on your end?" Carol softly shook her head, only shrugging as she looked off at one of the doors in the pound lobby—her day-to-day life had yet to take a turn that she considered noteworthy.

"Nope, not really. But fine, if you wanna be formal, come on. I talked to the guys who run the adoption process, I think I know exactly the pup you want. Do you wanna meet her?" Naturally, the vet nodded eagerly, ready as ever to get this show on the road. As promised, her friend motioned for her to follow along, holding the door open as the two of them walked into where most of these poor dogs lived their lives.

Katie had to use most, if not all of her willpower to keep her eyes up, she hated having to see dogs living in these conditions. She knew it was nothing one could fully help, and all things considered, this was a nice pound—fairly big rooms for each dog, fluffy beds, all the essentials for about as comfortable of a life as one could hope for here.

But still, most of them were alone, some taken from their families, some without any family at all—a life no one wanted to live, be it dog or human. Today, at least, one of them would be a little less lonely.

After a few seconds of walking, her friend stopped at one of the kennels, nodding down at the dog inside. Katie smiled softly, looking down at what she assumed to be an Australian Shepherd sleeping on their dog bed, paws wrapped around the pillow that they held against their chest. And as Carol gently knocked on the door, the vet did feel just a little bit bad for waking them up and dragging them out of whatever dreams they might have been experiencing. But still only a little bit bad, odds were they would forgive her with the promise of adoption.

"Ah!" the female dog exclaimed, jumping in bed as her head quickly darted to the hallway where the humans stood. At first, she seemed a bit confused, probably just trying to figure out if this was all real or if she was just in one of those super realistic dreams. But upon holding eye contact with one of them, she let out a calm breath and loosened her shoulders, even smiling softly as she stepped up. "'Sup, Carol, whos the new girl?"

"Hey! Sorry for waking you up, but someone wanted to talk to you," the girl explained, motioning over to Katie who gave a soft wave to the dog. The shepherd eyed her carefully, studying her as if trying to work out the mystery of her intentions. Not that this scenario was new to the pup, but it got really old after...well, it got pretty old after the first time, since then it was just an endless game of repeats.

"Let me guess, another foster owner?" she asked, sighing as she stretched her legs and left the comfort of her bed to step over the tiled floor of the pound until she was at the doors. Carol smirked and shook her head, opening the door and softly petting her head as the pup stepped into the outside world, looking up at what she still assumed would be yet another human added to the ever-growing list of fosters. "No offense, by the way, you just wouldn't be the first."

"Don't worry, you're all good. And actually...I wanted to adopt you, permanently. If that's what you want, of course, I figured we could talk a little bit so we could get to know each and all that." With a difference of light and day, the dog's eyes widened in surprise, a smile growing on her face as she looked up at the human she had spent most of her pound experience with. She tilted her head curiously, her tail nothing more than a blur as the human nodded in confirmation, filling her with the slimmest feeling of hope—though she was still cautious to let herself fully give in to that.

"S-seriously? Yeah, I would totally love that! What's your name?" she asked excitedly, sniffing her potential owner's hand—best to get acquainted early on if this really was the one to finally adopt her. Katie giggled softly, bending down on her knees so the two of them could see eye to eye. As clear as day, the human could see the childlike excitement on the dog's face, a pure, hopeful grin plastered from ear to ear. This was what she came here for.

"My name is Katie, it's nice to meet you," she greeted. The dog smiled even brighter, apparently, the excitement of actually being adopted starting to settle in more and more as the seconds passed. Ignoring the fact that it was probably a bit extreme for a first meeting, the shepherd excitedly jumped up against the human, excitedly licking her face. And although it was something the girl was used to with plenty of dogs before this one, it was still something that made her laugh as she tried to push her away—only giving up after a while because she could feel how happy she clearly was. "Q-quit it, what's your name?"

Finally, after who knows how long, the Australian Shepherd listened to her and jumped down—sort of thankful that her new owner clearly wasn't too against her affection. Then again, they had just met, there were still plenty of reasons for this to not end well in her favor.

It wouldn't be the first time she had been given the chance at the life she had always dreamt of, only for it to be torn to pieces in front of her very eyes once the family that could've been was filled in on every little detail. However, that was rare, for all she knew, this really was the second chance she had been asking for.

So, even if she had yet to be fully swayed into believing in the perfect outcome that was dangling in front of her, the shepherd raised her head up, noticing the hand that her potential owner was extending. With a small smile, she raised her paw up, grabbing onto the human's hand as the two shook on their first (and hopefully not last) interaction.

"My name is—"