Cherish || A Chase x Sweetie Fanfiction ||

(S1-C12) • Thorn of the Past •

"This clothing is too tight!" Sweetie pulled her tracksuit's collar, reeling some air to cool off, her lids heavy from looking at the buildings in the vicinity. Every movement felt restrained and unruly; lacking the freshness—unfit for someone of her caliber.

Her paw instinctively reached up to the tip of her cap, attempting to use it as a fan because heaven knew the onslaught of heat despite the lack of sunshine in the deep sea atmosphere. However, not even a slight tilt later, another's paw weighed on the headgear, preventing it from unlatching off Sweetie's head. With this, she shot a grimace towards the Shepherd, his head shaking in disapprovement. "Keep it on," he said, the female roughly shrugging his arm away with a "Tch!" in evident chagrin. "If I pass out from exhaustion, I'm sending you to the dungeon."

"You're overreacting, Sweetie. You and I both know you're not weak enough for such an incident to occur," Chase replied in complimentary, although Sweetie took it as an insult for telling her she's wrong. "Yeah? How could you say?"

"The Princess shared her stories with me before and I doubt you changed that much." One side of Chase's mouth stretched to smirk. "I was told that she notices you actively doing chores meant for the servants. Sometimes, you even do arts of nature. You didn't tell me you picked up a hobby?"

"Cursed be that barely 5-foot sovereign, why must she expose my likings?" Sweetie turned her head away with eyebrows reaching towards each other, hating that she was easily exposed just like that by the Shepherd who should've known nothing, and it was her fault for assuming The Princess wouldn't do something she would most definitely do. Now she understands the consequences of lazy planning, and Chase immediately saw through her irritation, proceeding to increase it further to have his share of the fun.

"She also told me how you've tried modeling in front of the mirror during your free time. Sometimes, you even do ridiculous things like serenading yourself as you continue learning the guitar and conversing with your reflection which often leads to overdramatic throwing of yourself on any nearby resting places to sob out of existential crisis. You Disney princess."

Sweetie's blood shot through the roof, her blood swirling around her body and circling her cheeks, blocking Chase's path in a stance like she wanted to square up. "Don't blame me, I didn't even ask. It was all The Princess's own intentions," Chase responded nonchalantly, unfazed from the boiling pup as he simply walked past her. He knew she'd try to get him back somehow, but he just had to be prepared, not even batting an eye.

Meanwhile, the Terrier looked like she was about to burst into a tantrum, gritting her teeth tight as she reluctantly turned to follow the police pup, forgetting all about how uncomfortable her clothes were. She'd never admit it, but she was enraged and embarrassed at the same time, yet she was slightly glad that her guardian knew only the surface of what she does. She replayed all the contents of her journal in her head like a rapid slideshow. They were too precious to be allowed to become public. Perhaps she should start finding a better hiding spot instead of just under her pillow.

Silently, the duo reached the sidewalk at the end of the city, metal rails representing the separation of land and water. The sun still rested below the horizon no matter where they looked in the far distance, and it was a good opportunity for a nice, refreshing jog.

And jog, they did. Their paws traveled on the smooth pavement by the oceanside while Mother Nature breathed winds of life onto her world. It cooled off not just the early birds who came outside for a stretch, but also the bubbling lava that formerly circulated in Sweetie's tiny vessel. Chase took some silent glances from time to time, catching the focus Sweetie had in their exercise. It was a nice sight for a change, even though it might be because she was plotting for her revenge from her earlier teasing but inspirational speakers would say, "Look at the bright side."