All Leashed Up and Nowhere to Go

“Are you serious?” Ari had set out three different outfits on his bed, laid out as he tried to decide what to wear for his shift tonight. He snatched Trinket up off of the ground, where she had been pulling a shoe under the bed. Ari held the Ribbow up in front of his face, looking into what counted for the imp’s eyes. “Why do you do this? Don’t I treat you just as well as I do the rest of them?” 

‘The rest of them’ referring to the multiple other imps that lived with him, all currently minding their own business, not one of them looking directly at him. 

“Enablers…” Ari muttered. He stuffed Trinket under his arm and left the bedroom, carrying his Fiendish imp down the stairs. 

Mosaic was in the kitchen, putting some dirty dishes into the sink. “Where are you going?” 

“I’m sick of Trinket messing with my clothes. I’m taking her to Hutch to see if they have any tips for me.” 

“Can I come with you?”

Ari turned back to look at his littermate. “Sure?” 

“I live here too, don’t I? What if she gets bored of your clothes and comes down to torment me instead?” 

Ari laughed, Trinket wriggling in his grasp as if she knew they were talking about her. “You make a good point. I’ll wait for you, take your time.” Ari looked down at Trinket thoughtfully. “Are you okay if I stay in doll form? I don’t want her getting away.” 

“Yeah, that’s alright. We’ll just have to walk slow.” 

Ari nodded his agreement. There was a backpack on the bench near the door that he always brought when he went out with Mosaic; he slung it over his shoulders as Mosaic grabbed his cane, and the two of them headed out.

~ 

When they arrived at the Imporium, it was quiet. No customers; just the soft cacophony of various imps going about their day. A Chirop was sitting on the front desk; it looked at Ari and Mosaic as they came in, and flapped away into a back room. Ari took the chair from behind the desk and pulled it over to Mosaic. “Sit, please.”

Mosaic sighed at the concern but let Ari help him up, and made an obvious sound of relief as he settled into it. 

“Oh, hello!” Hutch came in from the back room, holding the Chirop from earlier. “Ari, it’s good to see you again. And… Mosaic, right? It’s nice to finally meet you.” The Chirop took off again, flitting around and eventually landing in Hutch’s hair as they came closer. “What brings you in today?” 

“This lovely lady,” Ari started, voice dripping with sarcasm. He held Trinket up and swayed her side to side, ribbon-like arms dangling limply as she glared around the shop. “- keeps making a mess of any clothes I leave out.” 

Hutch tipped their head. “What do you mean when you say ‘makes a mess’?” 

“She throws everything around. Hides things, especially under my bed.”

“That’s honestly the least offensive thing I’ve heard Ribbow owners complain about. You’re lucky she isn’t ripping the stitches out of those clothes and piecing them together like she’s making a puzzle but lost the box.” Hutch hummed thoughtfully. “She might just have extra pent up energy. You should get her something that she knows is hers, and she should stop stealing your stuff, or at least not do it so often.” 

“I should have a box of stim toys somewhere; they’re good for calming down some of the more intelligent imps.” Hutch absentmindedly grabbed for the chair that Ari had taken earlier, and realized Mosaic was on it. 

“Oh, sorry.” Mosaic moved to get up but Hutch quickly shook their head. 

“No no, you sit.” Hutch glanced up at a box on a higher shelf, and then around the room. Eventually they grabbed a handheld imp cage and carried it over, putting it down and placing one foot on top of it, causing the plastic to creak a little.

“Okay, enough.” Ari could only see disaster coming from Hutch’s makeshift stepladder, and moved closer to help them out. “I’m the tallest one here, let me.” 

“No, that’s alright! You’re a customer, I couldn’t possibly - “

“Hutch, get down.” Ari’s command caused Hutch to freeze in surprise, then slowly take their foot off of the imp carrier. “Take this,” Ari said, holding Trinket towards them. When Hutch took her, he playfully purred “Good boy,” and went about his task. It was easy; the box wasn’t even heavy, just an odd shape that would’ve been annoying for the smaller doll to bring down on their own. “Where should I put this?” He asked as he turned towards Hutch, only to see them staring up at him with wide eyes and a blush painted across their face. 

“What?” Ari furrowed his brow, then very quickly realized that this reaction had come from something he’d said. “Oh ~” 

“I - I’m sorry, I -”

Ari reached out with his tail, wrapping it around the black leash Hutch always had draped over his shoulders. He shook it, causing the metal on the attached collar to rattle. “Is that what this is all about then, Hutch?” 

“I promise it’s not what you think!” 

“What is it then?” 

“Ari, leave them alone,” Mosaic called from the front of the Imporium, exasperation clear in his voice. “They look like they’re seconds away from turning Trinket into a paste.” 

Hutch looked down and quickly adjusted his grip on Trinket, who began smacking their chest with her ribbon-like arms. “Oh, sorry little one.” They looked back at Ari, sheepish. “Can we just… Pretend that didn’t happen? Please?” 

Ari nodded, but cast Hutch a sly smile. “Sure, but don’t think I’ll forget about it.” He went to the front desk and put the box of stim toys down, Hutch trailing behind him. They handed Trinket back to him and began rooting through the box. 

“Aha!” They triumphantly held up what essentially looked like a ball of yarn, but made of interlocking plastic pieces. Trinket stopped her wriggling and seemed to focus on the toy; Ari felt that if the imp had a neck, she would be tilting her head to the side. “May I?” 

Ari knelt, placing Trinket on the ground. She ran over to Hutch, untying their shoes before they had a chance to give her the toy. As soon as they did, she snatched it up and darted under the desk. A series of rapid clicking sounds emanated from her hiding spot as Trinket immediately started trying to unravel her newfound victim.

“Huh. I guess she likes it.” Ari hadn’t thought it would be that easy. “How much?” 

“Oh, it’s not new, you don’t have to pay me for it.”

Ari rolled his eyes. “Ten carats? Twenty?”

“It’s okay - “ 

“Hutch.” 

“Ten is fine!” 

Ari took his backpack off and set it on the desk. He pulled his wallet out of a small pocket and tapped his card against the machine Hutch brought over. “Thank you.” He glanced over at Mosaic out of the corner of his eye. His littermate seemed fatigued, staring quietly at a Furdin playing with a small fluffy ball. “We’ll head out now.” He bent down and grabbed Trinket; the Ribbow was much calmer now, staring at her new toy with complete concentration. “I’ll give you in an update in a few days?” 

“Yes please!” Hutch nodded. They turned to the box and began taking the rest of the toys out, sorting them.

Ari went to where Mosaic was sitting and helped him into the backpack they had gotten custom made for this specific purpose. When he was nestled inside cozily, Ari stood up, both of his precious cargoes safely secured. “See you around.”

“Bye! I hope you two have a good rest of your day.” 

Ari made to leave, but stopped with his hand on the doorknob. He turned his head to call back: “Oh, and Hutch?” 

“Yes?” 

“You were such a good boy for me today ~” Ari smirked at the shade of red that immediately took over the imp trainer’s face, laughing as Mosaic slapped the side of his head lightly. 

“ARI, enough!”