Summary: Sir Bowie is growing up and needs a mate to keep him company, but Jade isn’t taking the news of finding her corgi a female partner so well.
“Bowie!” Jade yelled from her room between Hana’s high pitched screams. “Bad dog!”
“What?” Maxwell opened the door abruptly.
“Bowie was humping Hana’s leg. He’s humping everything,” she scowled at the corgi currently mounting the foot of her bed.
“He’s growing up, future sis,” Leo said as he leaned against the doorway. “You might want to find him a female dog so he can have some doggie-style fun,” Leo jested.
“Eww!” Maxwell cringed.
“But he’s just a puppy.”
“He’s about six months old, isn’t he? The timing is right. You ask his vet if you don’t believe me,” Leo stepped into the room and took Hana’s hand. “Can I offer you something to make you forget this horny dog situation, Lady Hana?” He brushed his lips against her knuckles and winked.
Hana giggled. “A stroll in the backyard and grabbing a bite to eat, perhaps?”
“As you wish, my lady,” he smiled as she stood up and twined her arm with his.
“I’ll see you later, guys,” Hana waved goodbye to Jade and Maxwell leaving the room with Leo.
“Okay, I’ll take this horny dog to the vet, but what about the one who just stole Hana from me?” She chided as Maxwell sat beside her.
Maxwell placed an arm across his adopted sister’s shoulders. “I don’t think there is a doctor capable enough to find a cure for that one,” he joked and she covered her face with one hand laughing.
…
“I’m afraid His Royal Highness is right, Your Grace. Bowie is reaching sexual maturity. Pretty soon he will grow agitated and try to mount people even more often,” the vet explained as he gave the corgi a scratch and handed him back to his owner.
“And what can I do to solve it?”
“Find him a mate so he can procreate or you can allow me to perform a neutering surgery.”
“But he’s just a puppy,” she eyed her dog trying to hump his dragon toy and frowned.
“I understand it seems too early for him, but it’s rather common for small dogs to show their sexual behavior at his age, especially if they don’t socialize with other dogs.”
“Oh…” Jade picked at her nail.
“Take your time to think about it. But rest assured that the sooner you decide, the better it’ll be for him.”
“Okay, Thank you, Dr. Farber,” she shook his hand and picked up Bowie to leave the veterinarian’s office.
…
“What?!? No! You can’t do that!” An exasperated Maxwell paced in the backyard of the Valtorian estate.
“Max, it’s one of the healthier options,” Jade tried to calm Maxwell, but he barely looked at her. “The vet said it’s going to get worse if I don’t authorize the procedure soon.”
“Who is this so-called vet?” Maxwell sneered.
“It’s the one who takes care of the menagerie,” Jade admonished.
“He’s specialized on treating carnivores like the red pandas, cats and dogs. He has many articles in the field,” Ezekiel explained.
“He’s the one who performed Merlin’s and Morgan’s neutering surgery. Bowie will be fine a couple of days,” Penelope added.
“I don’t want him to go through unnecessary surgery,” Maxwell whined.
“And do you think I want it?” she howled. Jade and Maxwell glared at each other while the others exchanged wary looks. Hana petted Bowie on her lap, while Leo scratched the corgi’s chin and talked in hushed tones with Liam.
Olivia rolled her eyes and stood up. “Ugh… Big deal. Just let the dog get some action already. It’s what he wants.” Jade and Maxwell immediately shoot nasty looks at her, but she huffed and left.
“Can you believe her?!?” Jade fumed.
“Well… Yeah,” Leo shrugged. Jade cocked an eyebrow at him and he lifted his palms up. “I want to say I told you so, but I’m sure the King will not be pleased if I mess with you again,” Leo turned to his brother scolding him and smirked. “Anyway, isn’t it one of the options the vet mentioned?”
“Olivia and horny dog here are right, Bourbon. Find Bowie a mate, so you can avoid the surgery and even get new puppies,” Drake said.
“That wouldn’t be a bad idea, my love,” Liam stood up, walked over to Jade and grasped her hand. “Can you imagine having Bowie and his puppies running around the Palace and bringing them here whenever we come here to join a Valtorian event?”
“Aww…” Maxwell pressed a hand on his chest and sighed.
Jade furrowed her brows in deep thought and Liam tilted her chin up. “It is a nicer option for Bowie and for you if we find him a mate, don’t you think?”
Jade furrowed her eyes for a moment, but caved. “Okay…” she uttered.
“Where would we find a company for Bowie?” Hana asked as she tried to make Bowie stop humping the armchair.
“The Royal Public Relations team could make an announcement letting the people know the Royal Couple is looking for a mate for their pet,” Leo said, taking Bowie away from Hana, then putting him down and letting him trot around the backyard.
“That’s a brilliant idea. We could make an event out of this. It could be an additional part of the Unity tour visit here in Valtoria,” Hana added giddily.
“Yes! It’d be like a social season for Bowie!” Maxwell looked at the dog excited.
“I can help Dr. Farber to analyze Bowie’s suitors,” Ezekiel smiled.
“I can make outfits for the bride and groom,” Penelope clapped her hands excitedly.
“Oh, look. Another courtly event… Yaaay,” Leo rolled eyes and stood up. “I’ll have a glass of whiskey.”
“Count me in,” Drake followed suit.
Liam shook his head smiling. “I’ll talk to the Royal communications team.” He fetched his phone and began to make some calls.
“Great! Maxwell, let’s find Juliet. Ezekiel, Penelope, come with us. We have a social event to prepare,” Hana beamed and stood up. The others followed behind.
“Aww… My boy is all grown up,” Maxwell wiped a tear with his fingertips as he called Bowie, put him back on the leash and went to the main lounge, where the others would meet to plan the event.
Liam hung up and turned to leave when he realized Jade remained on her seat, chewing on her nail. “My love?”
“Huh?”
“Everything alright?”
“Yeah, yeah… Just fine.” She looked away.
Liam stepped closer, kneeling before her and took her hand in his. “Jay, if you’re not comfortable with this, you can tell me.”
“Okay…”
“Jade,” Liam called as he sat beside her, eyeing his fiancee suspiciously. Soon, she frowned and started to cry. “Hey,” he cupped her face, wiping her tears with his thumbs. “What’s wrong?”
“My baby is– he’s–” she took a deep breath. “He’s going to have babies!” she choked up and cried more, burying her face on Liam’s shoulder and tugging at his jacket. Liam chuckled softly, caressing her shiny brown hair and kissing her head to soothe her.
…
At the main town square, the press, Valtorian citizens and tourists gathered around to watch the furry parade. Nobles and commoners from different parts of the world arrived with their pets presenting them to society and giving interviews. Many found the idea of social gathering for the future queen’s dog to find a mate too eccentric for a courtly event, especially it was announced it was part of the Unity tour schedule. However, by the time the event began, most people couldn’t resist watching dogs from all kinds of breeds playing around with kids and their owners.
The crowd cheered when the herald announced King Liam and Duchess Jade’s entrance and was captivated by the poise and cuteness of Sir Bowie Bourbon, who walked down the furry carpet by himself, joining his beaming second owner, Lord Maxwell Beaumont, at the end.
His first owner wasn’t as thrilled, though. Jade simply forced a smile and nodded for the cameras while Liam spoke to the reporters and greeted the people. Her fingernails dug into his jacket sleeve every time someone tried to steal him away. Concerned about her well being, Liam guided her to their private tent, the servants fetching them refreshments as Jade’s eyes followed every tiny step of her corgi. “Thank you, Bastien,” he smiled discreetly as he sat down next to the duchess and unbuttoned his sleeve to dab a cotton pad filled with peroxide on his forearm. He finished cleaning the small wounds made by his fiancee and glanced at her. She watched her dog like a hawk, one her heels clacking frantically on the wooden floor as her knee bounced up and down. “Just so you know, I can survive a minor injury on my arm, but this is irritating.”
“Mmmhmm…”
“Jade?”
“What?” She asked absentmindedly, her eyes still fixed on Bowie strolling around the square. Liam placed a hand on her knee, pushing it down to cease the movement. “Oh… Sorry,” she smiled sheepishly at him.
“Do I have to ask you again what’s wrong?” He raised an eyebrow.
She bit her bottom lip. “You’ll think it’s silly.”
“Try me.”
“I don’t like this.”
“Can you be more specific?”
“All of this! Creating a courtly event to find a mate for Bowie, people parading with their dogs, forcing their pets to interact with my baby. Look at him. He’s clearly annoyed,” she pointed at her corgi playing catch with Maxwell and Juliet. “Okay, he doesn’t look annoyed now because Jules and Max are distracting him, but he was before,” she folded her arms.
“Then why did you agree to it?”
“Because I don’t want my dog to go on surgery. I want him to have a happy life, and play with our children in the future. And I wish he get his own offspring with a female dog he meets in a park and he naturally wants to make those puppies. He could have an entire family along with ours,” she sighed. “But this…” she gestured to the square filled with people taking photos, “It reminds me of–” she trailed off.
“Of how things were with us?”
“Yeah…” She looked down. “What if he doesn’t like any of these dogs? What if the other nobles just keep throwing their pets at my Bowie just to have any sort of ties with us?”
“As someone who has been in a similar situation,” Liam smiled sardonically. “I don’t think you should be worried. No matter how many dogs are introduced to Bowie, his instincts will guide him to his rightful mate. It can be here, at the capital, during a trip. The point of all this is just to help decrease his need to mount everything in sight and watch dogs playing,” he smiled fondly. “We don’t have stay here if you don’t wish to do this anymore. We can take Bowie right now if you want to and look for a female dog later”
“Okay…” she fidgeted with her phone for a moment, then looked at him again. “Now that you mentioned, I’ve been meaning to ask you this for quite a while now. How did you feel during your social season?”
“Honestly? It was awful.”
“Really?”
“We humans lost the ability to follow our instincts and prioritize logics, strategic alliances and internalize social constructions instead of simply trusting our gut,” he shifted on his seat to look into her eyes and took her hand in his. “I knew it was you I needed since the moment you noticed I wasn’t enjoying my own bachelor party and took to me to the Statue of Liberty. But I had to follow rules and courtly protocols. However, social season was a proof that I was right. As hurtful as it was watching you face those stupid challenges, your boldness, determination and strength showed the country what I knew in my gut,” he squeezed her hand gently.
“I knew it too,” Jade grinned.
“Really?
“Do you think I’d leave all my life behind to live a foreign country and engage in a competition to marry a prince just for fun?”
“Is it a rhetorical question or…?” Liam joked.
“Shut up,” Jade punched him playfully and he laughed.
“I don’t what made you choose to come to Cordonia. If you’re wanted to fulfill your dream to travel the world, or because you felt something for me, or because you’re simply trying to escape the exam you had on the following week…” she giggled. “But I’m elated you came here, Jay.”
Jade smiled, then stood up to sit his lap and they shared a sweet kiss. “I’m glad to be here with you. Thank you for understanding me, Li.”
“You’re welcome,” he cupped one of her cheeks and gave her several quick kisses. “And I’m sure Bowie will find his mate sooner than we think.”
What?
We’re not the only ones having a moment. Look over there,“ he pointed towards the sand where Bowie played with another corgi.
“That’s so cute. But it could be a male corgi.”
“But it’s not.”
“How do you know that?”
“Because that’s Dame Shirley Rys.” He nodded towards Hana holding the female dog’s leash.
“You have a corgi?”
“I figured you weren’t comfortable with all this, so I asked Leo to adopt a female dog for me a few days ago. At the very least, they could be friends. But Lady Hana took Bowie to the animal shelter and he picked her.”
“Oh… But how do you know he– oh my god!” Her eyes darted as she watched Bowie mounting Shirley. A sly grin crossed Liam’s lips and Jade narrowed her eyes. “What?”
“Nothing… Just wondering how forward Sir Bowie is. You know, there’s a study that says the dog’s personality is a reflection of their owner’s,” he smirked.
“Then I guess we have to avoid walking on the streets with them together. If Dame Shirley takes after you, her outdoor kink will a scandal even for the canine society.” They glared at each other jokingly and burst out laughing.
