[ WP ] In the canine world , humans are celestial beings who live for more than 500 years at a time . The caretaker of you and the past seven generations of your family will die soon .

Pepper wiggled his Corgi body part way under the chair, sniffing at Maxwell. “ Why are you still hiding in the corner? ” The scent of bitter fear reached his moist nose. 
 
 Maxwell hissed but it was an empty threat. “ I ’ m not coming out Pepper, it ’ s dangerous out there. ” 
 
 “ No it ’ s not. Just come out and play like we used to! ” 
 
 Maxwell meowled. “ We used to play in my familiar home. This place has weird smells and that Upright-Lady is mean. ” 
 
 “ You mean Upright-Lauren? Naw, she isn ’ t mean, she ’ s just gotten large and can ’ t move as well anymore. She still gives lots of treats! ” 
 
 “ Back when she visited me at my home, she was nice. But now she smells weird and is scary! I don ’ t want to be here! I want to go back to my home! ” 
 
 Pepper whimpered. He didn ’ t know how to cheer up Maxwell. It had been ten sunrises since the cat showed up in his home. It was unprecedented. Normally Pepper would travel with Upright-Brandon and Upright-Lauren to his old Deity ’ s house, Upright-Susan. But it had been many sunrises since he had last been there; then Maxwell suddenly showed up in his home. 
 
 Pepper had been excited about that, jumping as much as his little Corgi legs could manage. But Maxwell was afraid and when the Uprights opened the carrying box, Maxwell ran straight under the chair. Ever since, Pepper has tried his best to interact with the cat, after all, that ’ s what a good host does. Maxwell complained about everything though. The food tasted different, so he was certain the Upright-Lady was trying to poison him. Pepper ate the food to prove that it was safe, and now Maxwell would eat it but only reluctantly. The cat ’ s other complaints Pepper couldn ’ t do anything about. The “ strange sounds ” were not strange to him, but the cat insisted they sounded like monsters waiting to catch and eat him, even though the vacuum-monster hadn ’ t been around for battle since the cat showed up. Pepper ’ s promises that he and the Uprights would battle the vacuum-monster and any other monsters did not sooth the cat ’ s fears. The ” strange smells ” were also not strange to him, but Pepper rubbed on stuff as much as he could to cover up whatever the smells were that Maxwell didn ’ t like. After the first few sunrises, Pepper realized it was the lack of smells that distressed the cat most. This was something the corgi could not do anything about. 
 
 At that moment, when Pepper was feeling sad and unable to cheer up his guest, Upright-Brandon came into the living room. Pepper pulled his head and chest out from under the chair and ran to the Deity, providing the standard energetic worship greeting. Upright-Brandon smiled, signaling his pleasure with the worship, and bestowed pleasurable head scratches. If only Maxwell would purr for the Deity like he had in the past, surely the Deity ’ s blessing would shower down and cheer his mood. 
 
 As if the Deity heard Pepper ’ s thoughts, Upright-Brandon laid down on the floor to peer under the chair where Maxwell had been since he arrived. Pepper ’ s tail wagged furiously and he stuck his face under the chair as well. “ Maxwell look! The Deity wants to bless you! It will be divine! ” 
 
 Upright-Brandon pushed Pepper back and instructed him to sit and stay. Sadly, Pepper obeyed. Apparently, this was something the Deity needed to handle on his own. 
 
 After some cooing sounds and delicious smelling treats, Maxwell inched forward and emerged from under the chair. “ Upright-Brandon, will you keep me safe? Will you take me home? Can I see Upright-Susan again? I want to go home. ” Maxwell forgot to purr for the Deity, but he rubbed his body against the Deity ’ s face and presented his butt as a sign of trust. Pepper always thought that the cat was unnecessarily weird about his butt. 
 
 The ever gracious Deity, Upright-Brandon pet Maxwell and bestowed pleasure on the cat by scratching his rump. Pepper ’ s tail wagged with joy as he slid himself against the Deity ’ s leg, eager to partake in the blessings. 
 
 Upright-Lauren ’ s voice rang out as she appeared in the dining room, adjacent to the living room. 
 
 “ Too scary! ” Maxwell rushed back under the chair and with a sigh, Upright-Brandon stood. 
 
 The Uprights spoke to each other in their mysterious tongue. Pepper has worked very hard at picking up the divine tongue, but he was better at understanding the Uprights ’ scents. They had a sour sorrow to them today which had been occurring more and more recently. It was particularly strong on Upright-Brandon. Pepper barked gently, “ I ’ ll cheer you up, divine one. Would you like to see me wiggle on the floor? ” And with that Pepper rolled on his back and began wiggling in order to please the Deities. 
 
 Maxwell could see Pepper ’ s supplications from his place under the chair. He smirked at the corgi but stayed hidden. Both Uprights were so dark today, it made Maxwell afraid. Well, everything in this strange house that Pepper lived in was scary; the cat didn ’ t see how that dog could survive such a dangerous and terrifying place, much less be happy. Clearly the corgi had mental problems. 
 
 The Uprights opened the exit-portal and departed. Maxwell sat still and silent in his corner under the chair for a long time before he realized that Pepper had left with the Uprights. Cautiously, the cat slinked along the wall and came out from the protective hiding. He rubbed his own scent on the chair with his cheek a few times. This would keep the terrible odors from the rest of the house at bay, but it didn ’ t help provide the familiar smells from Upright-Susan or Daisy. He missed them so much. 
 
 Arming himself with the alertness from fear and the determination from curiosity, Maxwell crept across the living room. He had been sneakily investigating this house during the night, looking for safe places that he could hide should his current location become compromised. And looking for exits. This rare solitude during the day was a fantastic opportunity to explore further. This was also the perfect chance to eat. He wouldn ’ t admit it to Pepper, but the new food was kind of good. He crept up on his food dish, the scent of gravy covered chicken morsels wafting towards his nose. 
 
... 
 -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- 
 Edit: formating
