TRUST MY HEART ━━━ 𝐛.𝐛𝐚𝐫𝐧𝐞𝐬

44. The Barking Dog.

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LOCATION:  WASHINGTON D.C - UNITED STATES

Bethesda, MD.

Camille rubbed the back of her neck, trying to ease the tension. It was a Thursday, at 4 o'clock in the afternoon, just before her shift ended. For the past hour, she had been cleaning the cages and preparing the animals for the day's surgery. Now she stood behind the counter by the cash register, leaning on one elbow and thumbing through an architecture magazine whilst she waited for the next customer.

Undisturbed, she took her time browsing through the pages, looking for any new trends, until the bell above the door tinkled. Someone had entered, and the sounds of the street exploded in contrast to the quietness of the clinic.

She looked up to see the person standing at the door.

"Oh my god..." Camille whispered. Her face lit up in that first split second of recognition, then confusion gave way to astonishment. This lasted only a split second, then morphed into cautious curiosity as she regained composure. "Back from the dead, I see" she said, nonchalantly, while leafing through the magazine, pretending not to pay attention –and Magna suppressed a smile, pretending not to notice.

"Wouldn't that make me a zombie?" she said. The latter looked around, as if unsure for a moment where she was; echoing off cold steel, she could hear faint music coming from the laptop computer mounted above the cash register. "Or Jesus?"

"It's been a lot more than three days..." Camille deadpanned, without looking up. "I almost didn't recognize you with the wig. It's so weird."

When she finally met her eyes, the former S.H.I.E.L.D agent tilted her head gently and gave a reserved smile. She mirrored her expression, then flinched an eyebrow at Magna.

"Well, everyone should try blonde at least once. Isn't that what they say, anyway?" she said distractedly, without even looking at her. 'Lucky Paws' used to be just a veterinary clinic, but now it was one of those pet stores that had the clinic inside it. Staring around in amazement, she commented, "... Place looks great."

Camille followed her line of sight. Magna was right. It did look great.

"Thank you." she nodded appreciatively. "When the owners stepped down, they gave it to me. It's a lot of work, but we're doing our best."

"We?" Magna frowned, turning around to face her.

"Remember that animal shelter a few blocks away? Lucky Paws hosts an adoption clinic for them. We provide cage space and people can come and take a look."

The place Magna vaguely remembered had changed a lot over the years. Now it had so many aisles of colorful toys, different foods, collars, treats. Shelves were all stocked with new supplies. Metal gleamed and glass shined. Everything smelled fresh and clean.

"That's great." she said, approaching the counter slowly, taking everything in.

"Yeah, well" Camille said quietly, trying to avoid eye contact while casually starting to wipe down her side of the counter with a wet cloth. "Forgive my bluntness, but I have a feeling you're not just here to pay me a visit and share a drink with me."

"Can't I check on an old friend?" Magna retorted, trying to project an air of childlike innocence. With a sigh, Camille put down the damp cloth she was wiping the counter with.

"Is that what we are?" she retorted, and Magna detected a note of amusement and sarcasm. The two women looked at each other. Wash out the sarcasm, it might have been an honest question. Magna took it that way.