cuddletalk | video | un: vaquero

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video | un: vaquero

[ The sheepish look on his face is not one that he's proud of, especially because of what's happening immediately behind him. There's a dog on its back, all four legs in the air, and its chewing on the rope of his lasso. He only wishes that he could say this has happened to him before. ]

If anyone's seeing this, I could use a little help to get out of this...situation.

[ The dog barks. ]

I don't know if I'll get arrested for this, but I think this animal might belong to someone and is lost, so any distractions for the police would be very appreciated.

[ Another bark, like the dog approves and is enjoying its upside-down antics, kicking its legs in the air like it enjoys it. With a wary look back at the screen, Vasquez gives one last pleading look of help in a single expression. ]

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( Caitlin frowns at that. She hadn't connected the dots. )

Fine, then drop him off at the animal shelter. They can scan him for a microchip and see if he already belongs to someone else they can contact to pick him up or else they'll find him a forever home.

Yes, that. That sounds better.

[ Unfortunately, there's now a clueless look that passes over his face. Because... ]

Where's the shelter? And what's a forever home? Are you talking about them killing the dog and sending him off to whatever waits after?

I'm not sure, you'd have to look at the town map. I know there is one, though. Best Friends Rescue. I haven't been there myself.

( She looks surprised at that; Caitlin hadn't considered that it might be a kill shelter. It probably isn't in Cadelle, but she doesn't actually know the answer to his question and it shows on her face. )

Oh...no, I think it's probably a no-kill shelter and they'll keep him until he finds another home. You'd have to ask them...some shelters will keep animals for a given amount of time and then...yeah...

[Vasquez looks at the dog, then the video on the phone, bending down to haul the dog into his arms because he thinks it will run away. Though, maybe that's not such a bad idea.]

And there's no park? Maybe somewhere that has fences that I could just drop him off? Maybe his owners will come see him.

[Not that Vasquez imagines there are any, but then, he also doesn't deal much with dogs that aren't strays and mutts.]

It's probably better if you just take him to the shelter. What if he doesn't have any owners? Then you're just leaving him in a park where he could starve or freeze to death. At the shelter, even if he doesn't have owners, they'll take care of him until someone adopts him.

[He makes a face because she's right and Vasquez wishes that she weren't because then he wouldn't have to admit that he has a heart.]

You're sure that you don't want to adopt him? I bet you could take very good care of him.

Pretty sure. I'm more of a cat person, personally.

( But she's not sure she's going to do the whole pet thing while she's here, because she isn't really planning on staying long enough to take on a pet. Maybe a fish or something but cats live closer to twenty years and she's not looking to be here that long. What happens to their pets when they leave? What if they don't get to keep them? She's not willing to take that chance.

Plus, she's not sure having one is a great idea until she gets her wish, since a poorly-timed barking fit or a cat jumping out from beneath a piece of furniture could be enough of a scare, if Caitlin isn't expecting it, to bring out Killer Frost and literally no one wants that to happen here, least of all Caitlin. )

I'm sure they'll find him a home if you really don't want him, but don't leave him, that's just cruel in this weather.

[He presses his lips together and wishes that he could be more heartless and willing to leave an animal in the middle of nowhere. He knows that it's not coming back with him, because Vasquez is too selfish to want to ever deal with an animal like this, but he's also not planning to leave it.

As much as he wishes he had a reputation that he would.]

I think the shelter is the best place to take him then. Come on, chico, let's go.

[He works the lasso into a loose leash and collar, adjusting his phone to give the woman a somewhat hopeful look.]

Maybe you could give directions? I have my hands full now.

[Literally.]

( Admittedly, Caitlin feels some relief when the man says that he'll take the dog to the shelter. She can't help frowning slightly, looking apologetic, when he asks for directions, though, and Caitlin shakes her head. )

I've never been there...I'm still new here. I honestly don't know where it is, I just know what it's called and that it's around.

( She pauses, pressing her lips together thoughtfully. )

I could, I guess, meet you somewhere and we could figure it out together? But off the top of my head, I'm so sorry, I don't actually know how to get there...

It's not like I spend all my spare time looking at shelters.

[Maybe there's a hint of annoyance in his tone, because he's not exactly planning on this today. He's not planning to have done this anywhere, honestly, which is why there's a little tension in his voice.]

If you don't come and help, I probably will hand him to the first stranger who looks decent.

[After all, better a stranger who cares than him.]

I don't, either. There are maps. But it's fine, I'll come find you and take the dog myself.

( If she sounds frustrated that this guy has somehow made the stray her problem because she's a bleeding heart, it's because she is. )

Show me where you are again? I'll be there in a minute.

[Vasquez takes a few moments to show her the area, breathing out a sigh of relief when she says that she'll take the dog. He's just not really sure that he's ever going to be able to provide for it without killing it (even accidentally) and he doesn't want that on his back.]

I'll make sure he doesn't slip off.

[It's why he's bundled the dog to sit on his lap on a bench while he waits for Caitlin, giving sharp looks to anyone who might have a problem with this.]

( It takes Caitlin probably longer than either of them would like to find him because she's still new enough in town that it takes her a bit to figure out where exactly he is in relation to where she is. While she recognized the video he'd shown, it was a matter of remembering how she would get there .

By the time she gets there, he's got the dog on his lap and he's sitting on a bench waiting. That bleeding heart of hers gives way to a small smile in spite of her frustration. It's a sad one, because she's already anticipating that that poor dog is going to feel awfully abandoned because he's clearly chosen his person. He just happens to have chosen one that doesn't want him. )

I can use the GPS on my phone to guide us. I'm Caitlin, by the way.

( Because she honestly can't remember if she ever actually introduced herself in the midst of that conversation, come to think of it... )

[He gives her a squinting look that's as lost as anything. Maybe he's been here for months, but maybe Vasquez is also a little too stubborn to actually go out and try to learn anything about the future, which has left him clueless about a lot of the technology.]

Vasquez. And this is a dog.

[He's being super helpful, he really is.]

Whatever gets him to safety, that's fine. The little perro has a suicide wish, I think.

( Caitlin gives him a look that says that she knows very much that it's a dog, but there's a tint of amusement caught in her eyes when she does it. Her focus turns then to the dog itself and she smiles a little, moving closer so that she can scratch behind the dog's ears. )

I can see that. Hi, buddy. Did you get lost? You poor thing...

( She steps back and holds her hand out for the rope, still assuming that this guy isn't all that interested in the dog itself or the trip to the shelter. It doesn't occur to her that he might come along. )

They'll scan him for a microchip at the shelter and if he has one, they'll call his owner and reunite them. If he doesn't, then they'll take him in and put him up for adoption. One way or the other, they'll get him a home. He's probably just scared because he's lost.

[Vasquez is more than happy to give the rope away. He might have a soft spot for animals, but it's in the general sense that he wants to make sure they aren't being abused or hurt, not in the way that he takes them home and cares for them. That's not a person he'll ever be, he thinks.]

A micro-what? This is another one of those future things, yes?

[Hopefully, he does have a nice home with good people who are waiting for him. If that's the case, though, maybe they also need to have a talk with their dog about not running into cars.]

Microchip.

( Her tone is patient because she's aware of the fact that people here come from different places and it's a bit much to assume that everyone she meets will be on the same page. )

It's a little tiny implant that most shelters will put into pets and animal doctors can do it any time, that way if the animal gets lost, a shelter or animal hospital can scan for the chip and it'll pop up on a computer to let them know the animal's name and who their owner is, as well as how to reach them.

( She smiles a little and shrugs. )

I suppose it's a future thing, depending on when you're from, yeah.

[It's not that he's trying to be dismissive of this as an idea, it's just a very strange one, as far as he's concerned.]

I could've used this microchip you talk about to keep track of some people I wanted to avoid.

[If he'd had that, maybe he wouldn't have had to live in the conditions he did, because he would have been able to avoid them with much more ease. The perks of the future, it seems.]

I'm from 1879. I think? Didn't exactly have a chance to check out a calendar.

( She smiles a little in spite of herself. )

I think it'd probably be more trouble than it was worth to use it that way, but yeah, you probably could.

( The hand held out for the leash settles at her side and her eyes widen a little when he says when he'd come from. )

Oh wow, seriously? It was 2018 for me...that's a huge time disparity!

I think it's closer to that year for everyone I meet. [He says it like he's bitter about it, but maybe there's just some adjustment pains happening (still). At least when Faraday was around, he had someone else who understood the issue with time.

Now, it just feels like he keeps running into the same issue again and again, because people don't consider that he's from so far back.]

If I go back, maybe I'll ruin the future with everything I know, maybe?

( That's...something Caitlin hadn't actually considered... It's one thing to have to adjust to culture and technology that's literally centuries ahead of you, but to then have that knowledge and wonder about whether you'll retain it and create problems back home, should you return... That's more than Caitlin thinks she'd be able to comfortably handle in his shoes, so she has to give credit where it's due. )

Yeah, I know what you mean... I'd probably worry about the same thing...

But then again, you also have the potential to have a hand in pushing those things into forward motion by knowing them. Time works non-linearly, so it's equally as possible that the things you know from the future exist now because you knew about them in the past. Does that make sense...?

[He doesn't mention the fact that he's an outlaw, going home only means that he's going to end up hiding again, which means no pushing the future or anything other than trying to keep himself alive. Disappointing, but reality.]

What, like a big loop? I don't think I'm anywhere near that important.

[Besides, what is he really learning? He doesn't know how things are made up, just that he uses them.]

Sort of... Like your knowing about it starts a domino effect that, however many years later, results in the technology you know about. It's hard for me to explain, mostly because I don't really understand time travel as well as I would like. But I know people who travel through time for a living, fixing anomalies in the time stream to make sure that history stays in tact. They have new technology that sometimes gets seen when it probably shouldn't, but history hasn't imploded...

( She shrugs. Anyway, it doesn't really matter. Caitlin turns her attention to the dog. )

Ready to go? Let's see if we can find your family, huh?

[Vasquez gives the dog a look like he should be very thankful to be in the company of such a beautiful woman and if he had a shred of himself that felt capable of caring for something, then maybe he would think to keep it.

Knowing him, though, and his want to be able to leave things on their own while looking out for himself, it won't end well.]

So I take it that means you're not going to be the dog's new family?

( Caitlin shakes her head and gives a sympathetic smile. )

Cat person, remember?

( Her eyes shift back down to the dog. )

Sorry buddy. You're very cute, but dogs require a lot more time and effort than I have right now.

video | un: vaquero

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