Tricks for Treats

"No. That's not... exactly..."

A sigh left the woman's lips as she scratched her head, debating whether or not the imp's actions really warranted a treat. Poor Milky Way had just spent the better part of an hour trying to train her rabebe to hold a particular pose. The modeling agency she worked with had decided to release a special surrounding imps. Given she had several, they asked if any of hers might be able to pose and save them a couple talent fees. Initially, Milk didn't think anything of it and readily agreed. Rather, it might be more accurate to say she didn't think at all. How hard could it be to get them to stay still for a moment?

Incredibly hard, apparently.

She was starting to wonder if this was how it felt when she first entered the field.

Lepus, her adorable lunar rabebe, simply looked up at her expectantly. It seemed to glance between her and the treat still dangling in her hand. But she couldn't hand it over just yet. They hadn't managed to keep the pose for more than a few seconds at best! With an apologetic pout taking its place, Milk turned her attention the gargowl, Noctua. He stood perfectly perched on a coat hanger and tilted his head the moment she looked at him. It was moments like these that she wondered if he actually understood everything going on. "Noctua... You learned so fast. Come here."

She stretched out her arm and the gargowl instantly flew over, carefully landing on top. Right after, Milk set him down a few paces away from Lepus and took out her phone again. "Pay attention, Lepus. Noctua, look here." She waved her hand and the gargowl needed only a moment to get the queue. He flapped his wings and shifted to face the camera. His head turned to the side for a view of his profile and Milk tapped the screen. The sound of a shutter sounded and he adjusted to give a different pose. This time extended his wings as if ready to take flight. Click! Another photo was taken. After a third, she put the phone down and gave his head a few light pets. "Good, Noctua. That was perfect." She held out the imp treat in her hand and he wasted no time in eagerly snatching it and flying off— returning to his place atop the coat rack to enjoy the snack. Hoping the example might have had some effect, the bun now turned attention back to the rabebe. It... seemed to have not a care in the world.

"Lepus... Please work with me."

She sighed again and picked up the rabebe, placing it atop a plush pillow. After fixing its ornaments and making sure all its hairs were in place, she moved its paws into position and slowly, ever so slowly, retracted her hands. "Stay... Stay..." She was almost whispering. Just as slowly, she picked up her phone and opened the camera app. So far so good. Just a few seconds more. The phone rose to position, the camera lens taking a quick moment to focus, and then she tapped the button.

Click!

Finally! It was... It was a bit blurry.

But not by any fault of hers! (For once). Rather, Lepus seemed to move at the very last second. But this was progress so...! That counted for something, right? She wasn't too sure. But that was the farthest they'd gotten within the hour, so that had to be considered close enough. With a slightly less defeated sigh this time, Milk fished a new treat from the bag beside her and broke off a small piece. "Here. I guess this is fine." And perhaps it was time for a short break.