→❤❤❤←
username; agentshield
name; mollie
gender; female
pps?; yes
story;
Mollie's soft little paws scrabbled to take a hold on the smooth material of the armchair, her body wriggling about as she attempted to stay upright- even as her back legs dangled over the edge of the seat. She was slipping backwards, but at the last moment managed to push her muzzle forwards to grip the edge of her cushion in her narrow jaws. So there the young Plumerian stayed, her head and front paws on the chair, her back legs just able to touch the floor with the tips of her paws.
By thrusting her head forwards and wriggling hard, Mollie was eventually able to pull herself onto the seat, where she rubbed her head against the armrest as she got her breath back. From the chair, she was able to hop up onto the glass coffee table to her right and, from there, wriggle then onto the back of the armchair to a perfect view out of the living-room window.
It was large, and opened out onto the wide lawn outside. Grass stretched until it reached the hedge bordering the garden, a narrow gravel path leading from the door to the wooden gate set into the hedge. Through the gate, you could see just a strip of tarmac, and the occasional roaring flash of colour.
The lawn itself was mostly empty, save for a few scattered flowers and the big oak tree directly diagonal to the house.
Mollie gazed out, awe and delight in her eyes. The breeze was sifting through the grass, waving the branches of the oak slightly, and the watery winter sunlight lit up the tips of each flower petal and leaf. It was beautiful out there, with the cloud-streaked sky and the hazy yellow of the sun. But Mollie knew in her heart that, no matter how much she longed to explore it, she would never be able to try. She was just too frightened.
The shrieks and cheers of distant laughter caught her attention, and interest sparking in her eyes, she raised her head and attempted to see the Plumies. There was maybe five or six young ones, further down the row of houses in one of the gardens, and they were running about, playing, laughing with one another...
Mollie ducked her head. But her mind was racing. Maybe... she could just sit on the step by the door... it wasn't as though she had to go any further?
Very, very slowly, the young plumerian peered around the front door. She was shaking hard, her paws quivering even as she took the tiny steps to come further around to sit in front of the house. A cold wind buffeted her fluffy chest as she braved a little further around the door, peeking out to check for danger. Mollie shivered. But, although her heart was quaking, she huddled herself close and ordered herself to be brave. "Nothing to be afraid of... it's just the garden," she whispered to herself, very carefully placing one paw onto the freezing stone of the front step. "Nothing to worry about..."
As Mollie moved away from the door, winding her whole body out of the house, she felt a wonderful sense of achievement. She'd been brave! She'd actually--
Her brief sense of joy disappeared in an instant, however, at the frenzied barking of a large dog on the other side of the hedge. Mollie watched in horror, crouched low, as the dog scrambled up over the gate, barking and growling all the while, its huge paws carrying it over the wood in moments. It dived towards her, snarling, and in a desperate terror Mollie bolted- not back inside, where there was no escape if the dog followed her, but away across the lawn. She could sense the dog thudding after her, feel its breath all over her back, and cried out as she felt sharp teeth nip her tail. But then she reached the hedge and plunged desperately under, wriggling in a panic through the tough roots as the dog bayed furiously on the other side. And then Mollie was through, skidding onto the tarmac road on the other side and rearing in fear as a car splashed past, inches from her nose. She tried to turn around, but the dog would be waiting; and so the terrified young plumerian sprinted away up the road, racing along the narrow grassy verge, flinching away from the cars that shot past. And she ran until her legs, never before feeling the roughness of this material- used only to soft carpet and smooth wood flooring- could no longer keep going. Mollie collapsed beside the road, whimpering as rain started to fall on her mud-soaked pelt. Within minuites she was soaked, but she was spent; her heart was racing from the excersize and the panic.
Only when the exhaustion shifted slightly did she realise she was completely lost; there wasn't a single place she knew outside, nor was there much point in trying to scent her way- the rain had washed all that away. So the little girl struggled to a seating position, and there she remained, head bowed, rain running off her little grey head in rivets, her paws tucked close to her chest. She was the picture of misery.
Mollie wasn't aware of time passing, but after about three hours, without warning an idea blurred into a picture in her mind. "I didn't turn any corners," she realised slowly, murmuring the words aloud to make them real. "So I just need to go back the way I came!"
Of course, she knew the dog could still be in the garden. But she just wanted to go home, to be with her owners by the warmth of a fire.
And so, with evening quickly falling, the rain hammering down fom the clouds, with aching legs and burning paws- Mollie started the slow, steady trudge home.
And just over an hour later, with the sky darkening all the while, water dripping from her shoulders and her tail and head dropping, she forced her exhausted body under the gate and down the path. Every step was agony. But it was better than miles of endless wet road and bordering hedges, of splashing cars that coated her in filthy water.
"Mollie!"
The plumerian raised her head slowly, and suddenly was able to let her entire body relax as the rushing feet of her owner came sprinting from the house, and warm hands lifted her and cradled her body against a reassuring figure. "Oh, sweetie, you're all wet! It's okay now, it's okay. I'm here. Mummy's here. Oh, Mollie, where did you go?! Come on, now, I'll take you inside. You'll be nice and warm soon."
Less than ten minuites later, Mollie was warm and dry once more. She was curled up on the lap of her owner as they sat in the same armchair Mollie had struggled to climb up that same morning. A fire blazed nearby; Mollie smiled sleepily as she shifted into the warm lap, the terrors of the day driven away by food, warmth and love. Yes, the young plumerian thought to herself as she drifted steadily off to sleep; going outside might be alright for some, but I'm happiest in here.