The Remil

The bell dings above Arlo's head as he slips into The Imporium. His imp, a skittish impup that had come to be called Bear, trots happily beside him. Arlo glances down at the little creature, stooping down to pat it's noggin, careful of his horns. 

“Oh, good afternoon, I'll be right there!” Arlo can hear Hutch holler from the back of the shop. His lips twist into a little grin. 

“No rush, Hutch! It's just me.” Arlo says as he loiters in the front of the store, reaching out to touch one of the many collars Hutch kept stocked on a small display. Bear had a collar, he didn't need another one. Still, the one on the display was cute. 

Arlo plucks it from its hook and squats down, showing it to Bear. The pup tilts it's little head, first to one side, then to the other. “What do you think? Do you like it?” 

Bear stares at the collar for a moment. The collar itself is black, adorned with little red spikes. Then, Bear makes a little noise, twisting around in circles. Arlo seems to take that as a yes. He sets the collar aside, onto the counter for safe keeping. He was here to get Bear more food. The poor pup went through it like no one's business. He wondered briefly if he was feeding him too much. Could you feed an imp too much? 

“Ah-!” 

Arlo looks up the clatter of noise from the back room, leaning down to scoop up Bear and head for the back. Normally, he wouldn't bolt into the back of a store unprompted but.. Well. It was Hutch. 

“Hutch?” He asks, swinging the doors to the back open, stopping short as they swing close behind him. “Uh.. Hutch?” 

Hutch looks up from where he sits on the linoleum floor. “Oh, I.. Sorry, Arlo. I've run into a bit of trouble with these imps.” Hutch reaches up to scratch the back of his head, his smile sheepish. With his free hand, he points upwards. A loafki sits high up on a shelf, tail twitching back and forth as it watches them. “She won't come down. I don't think she's stuck; just stubborn.” 

Arlo sets his impup down. Bear takes the chance to rush over to Hutch, who'd cared for him previous to Arlo. Arlo didn't mind the bond the two seemed to have. As far as Arlo was concerned, it simply meant Hutch took good care of the imps he rescued and rehomed. 

Though, this loafki seemed to have no interest in being cared for. “Well, how can we get her down?” 

“I'm in no rush to get her down. She's just skittish, I think.” Hutch answers, his attention turned to Bear. “I think once I spend enough time with her back here, she'll warm up to me. It's all about patience.” Hutch's fingers curl over Bear, who wiggles happily in place. 

Arlo sits down too. Hutch gives him a curious look. “Well, if you're going to be back here working, I may as well hang around and help, right?” 

Hutch seems surprised by this, but there's a curious glimmer in his eye as he thinks it over. “Sure. I'm sure we can find something to occupy ourselves with. I've got a few more imps that I need to get settled in, anyway. Why don't you help me set up their tanks?” 

Hutch stands up, and Bear returns to Arlo. It takes a few minutes for Hutch to gather the essentials for the two of them, but by the time he's sat down again, each of them have a tank and the supplies needed to create a happy little home for an imp in front of them. 

“What kind of imps are going in here?” Arlo asks, picking up a bag of nesting material. 

“I'm going to make an enclosure for a sciel. You are gonna make an enclosure for a remil.” Hutch answers, giving Arlo a smile. “And our little loafki friend up there is going to get used to our presence.”

Arlo glances back up at the loafki, who is contentedly watching down at the two below her. “Right. So how should I do this?” 

“Any way you want. Do you know anything about remil?” 

“Just that they're little food thieves.” Arlo answers, but he hums for a minute. “I've heard they can get through all sorts of traps, so I suppose they're pretty smart, too.” 

“Right. They are very smart. And they like to steal food, and find stuff we've hidden away, hm? So maybe keep that in mind as you build their enclosure.” Hutch says, giving Arlo a curious look. 

Arlo isn't too sure what Hutch is getting at, but there must be something to his words. Imps were pests before, but nowadays, they're widely seen as pets. So maybe… 

Arlo glances at Bear. Impups, before they were viewed as pets, were always under bun’s feet. Always begging for food, or attention. Now, they made a great companion, and we're highly food motivated. He looks up at the loafki, who's leaned over a bit, head on her paws as she watched. On the other side of him, Hutch was making sure to put lots of hiding spots for the sciel he'd be housing there. 

Maybe Arlo was looking at the remil wrong. Instead of looking at it as something that liked to steal food, and something that couldn't be easily caught, he needed to see something else. A little creature, heavily motivated by food, smart enough to learn to avoid traps to get what it wanted. Maybe it was smart enough to learn tricks. Maybe, Arlo could make sure the remil’s enclosure had lots of storage spots and things to keep the imp engaged. 

Arlo gets to work. First, the bedding, then a cute little house for the remil to hide and rest in. Next in goes food and water bowls, followed by a little wheel and a hammock, the two ends stuck to the glass by sticky plastic. His final touches are a few extra hidey spots, including a small chest that the remil could hide its food in if it wanted. 

“It looks good. I think the remil will like it.” Hutch says, from behind Arlo. Arlo jolts, having not realized Hutch had moved. He looks back at him, and Hutch smiles. “Remil are known to be pests, yes. But they're very smart, and highly food motivated. They can be trained to do a ton of tricks, and without having to fight for it's life out there, it'll have plenty of time to relax and play in it's new home.” 

In Hutch's arms is the loafki, sound asleep and purring. It's tail sways contentedly. 

“You got her down.” Arlo says, nodding towards the loafki. 

“She came down by herself. I think you were so busy trying to get everything about your tank right that you didn't notice her.” Hutch laughs softly, fingers scratching gently between the loafki's ears. “It's getting late. You can swing by the shop tomorrow to see the remil, if you want. I'm gonna get them set up tonight.”  

Arlo nods quickly, gathering up his own sleeping impup as he stands. “I didn't mean to stay so late.” 

“It's alright,” Hutch dismisses the other's worries. “I liked having company, and it was fun to watch you piece together that tank.” 

Hutch turns to leave, and Arlo follows after him, snagging a small bag of food as they pass the shelves. He sets it by the collar he'd forgotten about on the counter, and hands over the carats. 

“Don't let him fool you,” Hutch says gently, nodding towards Bear. “He won't starve if you don't keep his bowl full all the time.” 

Arlo gives the other a grin, it's his turn to be sheepish. “Thanks, Hutch. I'll stop by tomorrow to see the remil. I hope it likes it's tank.” 

“I'm sure it will. Goodnight, Arlo.” 

With that, Arlo grabs his bags and makes his way out into the darkening street, a newfound appreciation for imps and the traits that make them them.