Orion wiped his face with his free hand, before pushing the dog away from him without much strength.


    "How did you even manage to enter this place? I can''t believe a stray dog found a portal to Horizon."


    Once the dog and him had some distance between them, he stood up.


    He looked at the dog that looked excited to see him. In its excitation, it rapidly looked at Amelia, and then at the group on the other side.


    His tail swiping left and right near the ground, it looked again at Orion, and tried to jump at him again.


    ''Not this time!''


    Orion back-stepped away, leaving the dog to wonder what had happened for him to be further away than a moment before.


    *RUFF*


    Its paws touched the ground, and it let out a little noise showing that he wasn''t done.


    The next moment, he once again jumped toward Orion.


    ''If I continue like this, I won''t have anywhere to go, so...''


    He opened a portal and led the dog outside.


    "Karteira, could you close the door, please?"


    Seeing that Amelia had a covered plate in her hands, he asked Karteira.


    "Sure."


    Since she was the one responsible for this event, he would hold it against her, though, it wasn''t that big of a deal in his mind.


    *Wraf?*


    The dog seemed instantly lost, but it also remembered that the same things happened when he arrived. It immediately turned around and ran toward the house again.


    But the door got shut before he could even get close. So, it waited.


    "I''ll have to go close the portal to Lahro quickly after this. I can''t have anyone and everyone find them. The reason I''m always there when we get through a portal is because only I can close them. Something like this can happen if it remains open."


    Karteira looked a little dispirited. It was his birthday, and she made a huge mistake. She was expecting to be yelled at, but that didn''t happen.


    "Deveralna, are you scared of dogs?"


    Amelia asked as she noticed her panic slightly earlier.


    "I might be. I have never seen one before, so it is pretty new to me."


    Everyone realized once again that she was close to a true ''sheltered princess''.


    "I like dogs! I always wanted one!"


    "Drania, not now."


    "But-"


    Both sisters stared at Orion as he looked annoyed.


    Amelia immediately noticed it, and went to ask.


    "Orion, is it-"


    But he cut her off.


    "I know what you''re going to ask. You want to keep it since it has managed to come here. Am I wrong."


    "... No."


    *sigh*


    He felt all of his strength leave his body.


    Orion walked past Amelia into the dining room, and looked through the window.


    There, in the distance, a white dog with short but fluffy fur was laying on the dirt. It was a very large dog, and was already a grown one at that.


    The thing that looked the most unfamiliar for this dog was its close resemblance to a wolf. It had pointy ears, a long muzzle and a slim body. Though, it was most definitely a dog. It had not the same fierce gaze as its wilder siblings.


    It was so dirty you could tell it went through a lot. Sometimes, it held its head high to look at the Siren Sea, as it looked curious about it too.


    *sigh*


    Another sigh left his mouth.


    ''I don''t necessarily hate dogs. I fact, I would prefer this to a cat. What if it is not a stray, but simply a runaway dog? Can we deprive someone of their pets just like that?''


    But another part of him thought otherwise.


    ''It has no collar, looks friendly to us, which would be opposite if it had a home, and looks quite malnourished. Also...''


    Orion touched his face, and remembered being licked all over, which still felt gross.


    ''Me and Amelia never got to have a pet. I didn''t even think about that possibility even now that we have a space just for us.''


    He began to warm up at the idea of getting adopting the dog.


    After thinking for a moment, the dog sensed he was being stared at, and looked at Orion.


    Its big, round green eyes, which looked like emeralds seemed to convey how tired it was.


    ''You came from a long way, didn''t you...''


    If you find this story on Amazon, be aware that it has been stolen. Please report the infringement.


    The five women looking at him noticed that he was clenching his fists harder at each passing seconds, and his expression softening at the same time.


    Until he spoke again.


    "Fine. We''ll take care of him for now."


    "Eh?"


    Amelia, who wasn''t expecting him to give up so easily, placed the plate on the table.


    "I''ll take that as Karteira''s gift too."


    He turned and crossed his arms with a smile on his face.


    ~


    After that, Orion went outside to check on the dog. The moment it saw him, it stood up and ran toward him, but looked a little different from earlier.


    Noticing that the dog was limping slightly, he thought that the adrenaline of finding this place helped him until it disappeared.


    "Are you hurt perhaps?"


    The dog stopped in front of Orion and sat down, wagging its tail. Orion also kneeled on the dirt to pat the dog.


    "Let me see, give me your front paw?"


    Tilting its head, it looked at him with interest.


    "Paw?"


    Orion tried again while pointing at the dog''s front legs. All the dog did was look at the tip of his finger.


    "I thought as much. You were not trained by anyone. Fine, don''t mind if I do."


    Without hurting the dog, he caressed the front legs from top to bottom.


    ''No fractures, no bumps, no cuts... Yes, that''s definitely malnutrition at this point.''


    The dog had not enough strength to support its own weight anymore, and it was a large dog at that.


    "So, are you a male or a female?"


    Orion tried to guess, but he couldn''t see the private parts of the dog, because of the fur under its belly.


    "We''ll have to resolve that. That and your disgusting fur. First, bath, then food. Sounds good?"


    *Wrooo*


    The dog lifted its head and made a growl that sounded like it agreed.


    "If I had to guess, I''d say you are a male, but I could be wrong. Alright."


    Without hesitation, Orion grabbed the dog by the collar and lifted him. He knew that grabbing a dog by the scruff was the best way not to hurt him, so he did just that.


    It looked like a puppy as it was carried by Orion, with its hind legs pushing in the air. A big puppy indeed.


    With the girls watching everything, they found it amusing.


    Amelia was still waiting for him to see his cake, Karteira had been forgiven for this little mistake, Deveralna was scared, yet interested in the dog, and the sisters were battling against each other to give a proper name for the dog.


    Walking through the corridor, Orion heard the battle, and instantly refused to name the dog like this.


    "Henry."


    "Who in their right mind call a dog Henry? Its white, so Cloud is better!"


    "If it''s a female, then Verna."


    "Sis! No!"


    ''...''


    Orion entered the changing area with the dog, and dropped it on the ground. He removed most of his casual clothes, that is, only his shirt.


    "I won''t be calling you any of those names. Until I know your gender, I won''t give you a name."


    The dog sniffed around a little, and waited patiently.


    "Follow me."


    Opening the door, the dog went through and stared at the steaming water of the bath.


    "Well, we don''t have shampoo for dogs, so just this once, I''ll use mine on you. If it ever makes you sick, I''ll heal you. Now, come here."


    First, Orion called the dog toward the showers. He cleaned the dog of the grime it had on itself, and scrubbed it at the same time.


    "You''re a rare one, I heard dogs hated water, but not you it seems. I like you already."


    With a smile, Orion watched as the dog enjoyed the hot water spraying on it.


    A few minutes later, the dog had a clean white fur. Its fluffiness had disappeared, only leaving a sleek and short fur.


    "That fluffy fur was mostly because of how you lived until now."


    Orion closed the water faucet, and watched the dog walk further away to shake the water of its body.


    "Come here."


    Tapping on his thigh, he made the dog come to him.


    "Dawn."


    The light dagger Amelia used before appeared in his hand.


    "We''ll trim that fur carefully, so that you don''t look like a mess out of here."


    The dog sat in front of him, waiting. Orion grabbed the side of the dog and pulled it toward him, so that he could easily went around him.


    Slowly, but swiftly, Orion cut the fur that was uneven. He even managed to cut the fur under its belly.


    "A male. I was right."


    A magnificent pair of jewels had been found under all that fur.


    Once done, Orion released Dawn, who returned inside his body.


    "Hey, aren''t you looking great right now? Way better than earlier, though, you still look way to thin and frail in my eyes for a dog your size."


    After standing up, he watched the dog turn around and sit next to him, on his right side.


    "I need to find you a name though... what about-"


    ~


    Orion walked out of the changing room after drying his new friend, and returned to the living room.


    Excited, the dog went immediately everywhere to learn about the various rooms of the house.


    The girls only had a fraction of a second to see how changed it looked after just a bath.


    "I''m leaving for a moment. I''m going to Hocride to buy some dog stuff."


    "Sure... but-"


    Before Amelia could say anything, Orion had already left the house.


    "it''s your... birthday."


    She looked completely defeated, as she wasn''t able to have him eat the cake she worked quite hard to make this time around.


    *Arooo!*


    The dog made a noise right next to her, so she looked at him.


    "You''re the one at fault you know?"


    She crouched and scratched his chin, the top of his head, and his back. Amelia wasn''t angry at all at the dog, in fact, she immediately felt something when she saw him.


    Once he received enough caresses, he went toward Karteira.


    "You came here because of me, right? Were you following me unnoticed, or did you stumble on the portal by yourself?"


    Karteira also caressed the dog in various places. Mainly his sides and his neck area.


    The same thing happened as before, and went to the sisters next.


    "Woah! Sis! Look at it! Wait, it''s a male?"


    "Seems like it."


    They seemed to very much like dogs, as they both surrounded him on both sides, and hugged him while rubbing his stomach as it sat there, happy.


    At last, he slowly approached Deveralna, who looked afraid of him. He sat a small distance away from her, and stared at her with expectation, wagging his tail.


    "Do you want me to... come to you?"


    ''What a smart dog, he knows I am scared of him it seems.''


    Her opinion of the dog changed, as she was expecting it to jump at her just like it did for Orion.


    Slowly, she slithered toward the dog, and lightly petted its head.


    "Ooooh, so soft."


    The bright smile on her face betrayed her previous apprehensions. Not long after, she was hugging it and scratching his chest roughly, which he seemed to like too.


    "Was she really scared of him before?"


    Amelia looked with disbelief.


    "I guess people can change faster than they notice themselves."


    With a dry smile, both women looked at each other.


    As the five of them took turn to talk and pamper the dog, time went by, and Orion returned.


    "I''m back. With a guest too."


    "Hello."


    Kamala had followed him, since he once again barged uninvited in her house. Orion was decided to place a portal somewhere else at a later date.


    He had to explain that today was his birthday, and that a special guest had appeared in Horizon. He also spoke about Deveralna being there, and at that point, she was very much interested in the situation.


    So, Orion invited her. As she greeted everyone, she walked toward the lamia Queen, and bowed.


    "As this is our very first meeting, I will introduce myself. My name is Kamala Genathis, Apostle and Lord of Hocride. I am a friend of Orion."


    "It is a pleasure to meet another Apostle that isn''t working toward our extinction. I am Deveralna, Queen of Lahro."


    They both smiled at each over without showing any animosity toward each other. It was very much a polite greeting.


    *Woof*


    Kamala heard a noise coming from her side, and dropped her gaze.


    "Oh! Is that the famous troublemaker who made Orion not understand what to buy for him?"


    She dropped her knees to the ground and patted his head.


    "Nice to meet you."


    Rubbing between his ears, he took a liking to her immediately too.


    Orion watched all the women smile toward the dog, before it shook away the hands that made him melt under the caresses, and run toward Orion at the entrance.


    "Good dog."


    The dog sat on the right side of Orion, and barked, asking for food while looking at him.


    "Alright, alright. I got what you need. Oh, by the way, his name is Sirius."


    Dropping that information out of nowhere, he went with the dog inside the kitchen.


    "So, I got beef and chicken flavor cans for you, and a big bowl too. Which one you want?"


    As Orion was having a moment with the dog, they all went silent.


    "He... already named the dog."


    Dramia and Drania felt betrayed.


    "Sirius..."


    Amelia repeated the name in her head.


    Sirius had entered their life.