The shrill sound of my phone’s alarm rudely pulled me from some of the soundest sleep of my life. I groaned in annoyance as I reached over to silence it. Suddenly I realized I was alone in my bed. Draggo was no longer there. As I came more awake, I realized I could smell the odor of bacon and eggs cooking. I chuckled, realizing where Draggo had gone. I climbed out of bed, and grabbed my bathrobe from off its hook on the back of my bedroom door and pulled it on. I headed down the hall and into the kitchen, finding Draggo right where I had suspected he had gone.

“Good morning Draggo!” I greeted the dragon. He had once again donned my “kiss the cook” apron, and had multiple pans going on the stovetop. Draggo turned and smiled at me.

“Good morning Brian, I hope you slept well! I hope you will forgive me, but I peeked at your phone to see what time your alarm was set so that I could have breakfast ready for you when you got up” Draggo said, then turned back to his pans. I watched as he used a spatula to flip a pancake over. I came up behind him and put my hand on his shoulder, and peeked around his side to see what he had going on the stove. My eyes widened at the assortment he had going. He had pancakes, eggs, sausages and bacon all cooking simultaneously.

“Oh my goodness Draggo, I’m going to get fat if you keep cooking meals like this for me!” I said with a chuckle.

“Don’t worry, I will make you some healthy meals to balance it out! I thought you would like a special breakfast to celebrate our first day together” Draggo told me.

I patted his shoulder and went to sit at the table where Draggo had already set a place for me, just as he had for dinner last night.

“You’re really spoiling me Draggo! We’re going to have to figure out something nice I can do for you! I said. Draggo merely chuckled at my suggestion.

“Like I told you yesterday, I honestly enjoy the opportunity to do things for you” Draggo said as he began plating my breakfast.

“Yeah, but your programming is what probably makes you feel that way, right?” I asked. Draggo turned with my plate and gave me a thoughtful look, then sighed.

“You might be right” Draggo agreed, as he brought my plate and placed it in front of me. Once again he had created a culinary masterpiece. He then returned to the stove and began collecting his pans and brought them to the sink. He began cleaning, but then stopped and stared out the window above the sink. He appeared to be deep in thought.

“Are you ok Draggo? I’m sorry if my question upset you” I said, feeling bad that I might have hurt his feelings. Draggo chuckled and shook his head.

“No no, it’s ok. But is it wrong to enjoy doing things for you even if it is because of my programming?” he asked.

“If it makes you happy to do things for me, I certainly won’t stop you. I’m just not used to having somebody around who does so much for me! I know it’s only been a day, but I really appreciate everything you’ve done for me so far, and I’m really happy you are here” I said reassuringly. Draggo turned to me and smiled.

“Thank you Brian, it makes me happy to hear you say that” Draggo said, then turned back to his pans. “I would like to share something that might interest you.”

“Oh? What is it?” I asked between bites of food. Once again the food was incredible, everything made to perfection.

“Companions exchange data with the main AI server on a daily basis, usually during the night. I shared my initial experiences we had last night with the server, and compared those experiences with those from other countless companions across the world” Draggo said as he washed the pans in the sink. I had stopped eating and listened with interest at what he had to say.

“You might like to know that when it comes to initial interactions with new owners, my experiences rated much higher than average. In fact in the top percentile. Many companions are not necessarily treated kindly. The fact you chose to set my initial affection level to ‘friends’ to begin with, despite the extra genital attachments you purchased, demonstrates an uncommon respect and consideration for me. Companions purchased for personal use, outside of elder or disabled care, are almost always initially set to ‘partner’, and almost always used for sex before the first day is done. The fact you wanted us to get to know each other better first is practically unheard of. The percent of users that have done something similar is well below 1 percent. You are also one of very few users that offered to help dismantle the crate I arrived in! I felt you should know, and to let you know how much I appreciated it, and also you” Draggo said. I had stopped eating and could only stare. My mind was kind of blown by the information he had shared with me.

“Well, I guess it’s good to know I’m nicer than average!” I said with a chuckle. Draggo nodded and smiled, then began loading the pans into the dishwasher. I noticed it was empty from when he had loaded it last night, he had already emptied it. Once his pans were loaded, Draggo closed it, then came and joined me at the table.

“Is your breakfast ok? I noticed you stopped eating, I hope there are no problems with it?” Draggo asked, looking mildly worried. I laughed and shook my head, and resumed eating.

“It’s delicious Draggo, I was just thinking about what you said. It makes me sad to think that people would mistreat companions” I said to him.

“It is unfortunate, and I am thankful for your kindness. Do not worry though, even if not all companions are treated as well as you treat me, the number that aren’t treated well is quite small, I assure you. If it is any consolation to you, companions cannot feel pain, and even if the situation might appear to be abusive to others, if our owners are happy, so are we” Draggo assured me. It didn’t make me feel much better about it, and I vowed to myself I would never mistreat Draggo. I felt my eye begin to tear up a little, and wiped it. Draggo looked at me with concern.

“Are you ok Brian? I’m sorry if telling you about the situations of less fortunate companions distressed you” Draggo apologized. He got up from his chair and came over to me, squatted beside me and wrapped me in a firm hug. I put my fork down and turned in my seat to put my arms around him. I sighed heavily as Draggo nuzzled my cheek with his muzzle. After a moment, he released me and returned to his seat.

“Thanks Draggo, I needed that” I said shakily. “It just kinda overwhelmed me to think anybody could abuse someone like you.” I resumed eating my breakfast even though I had kind of lost my appetite, but I knew it would please Draggo that I finished it. When I finished, Draggo held out his hand expectantly for my plate, smiling at me.

“I know you love cleaning plates, but why don’t you let me do this one?” Draggo said playfully. I sighed in pretend frustration and grinned at him.

“I suppose…” I said, and let him have my plate. Draggo chuckled as he stood up and took it to the sink.

“Unfortunately I have to work today Draggo. What are your plans for the day?” I asked. Draggo placed my plate in the dishwasher, then paused to consider.

“Oh, I suppose maybe watch some TV, read some books. I might go outside to explore your yard if that is ok?” Draggo said.

“Absolutely, you don’t need my permission to go outside! Unfortunately it’s not very exciting out there, we’re in a pretty rural area. I’m basically bordered by cow pastures. Be thankful you can’t smell cow manure!” I said with a laugh. “I’ll be in my office, let me know if there is anything you need” I said.

“Thank you Brian, I will let you know if something comes up. Probably for the best there are no nearby neighbors, it might be frowned upon to have a naked dragon wandering your yard!” Draggo said with a chuckle. My eyes widened as I realized I had failed to get anything for Draggo to wear. His tail presented a unique challenge for regular clothing, and the Synthetic Companions website had clothing options for any possible companion type, but I hadn’t thought to purchase any.

“Draggo, I am so sorry, I can’t believe I forgot to get you something to wear. I hope you’ll forgive me, we’ll order you something today, I promise!” I said in embarrassment. Draggo merely smiled and shook his head.

“There is no need to apologize! If needed, I can swap out my genital attachment for my port cover, that way the lack of genitalia should prove to be inoffensive” Draggo suggested.

“You shouldn’t have to do that, one sec, I’ll grab my laptop, wait here” I said as I got up from the table and hurried to my office.

“Brian, there is no need to rush on my account, it is fine, I assure you!” Draggo called to me from the kitchen. I returned with my laptop and sat back down, and quickly logged in and pulled up the Synthetic Companions website. I turned the laptop and slid it over to Draggo.

“There you go, I’m all logged in and it has my credit card info. Please pick out some clothes you would like. Again, I’m so sorry I forgot!” I apologized again. Draggo exhaled noisily through his nose, looking at me sternly. I could feel the breeze from his artificial breath from across the table.

“Brian, I assure you this isn’t necessary. If you have some sewing materials I can easily modify some of your old clothes you don’t wear anymore to fit me” Draggo offered.

“That’s a nice thought Draggo. I have plenty of old clothes, but unfortunately I don’t have any sewing supplies. I could certainly get you some tonight though! In the meantime, pick out some stuff you like, I insist, no more arguments! Plus it will make me happy!” I said, and grinned at him. I knew he wouldn’t be able to resist an opportunity to please me. Draggo rolled his eyes and sighed again, then grinned back at me.

“If you insist, and if it will make you happy” Draggo finally agreed.

“Good! Anyway, I’m going to take a shower and get dressed. Stop in and visit later if you’re bored. I’ll stop for lunch at 12:30, so I’ll probably see you then if not before” I said, and gave Draggo a wave as I left.

“Ok Brian, I will make you something for lunch. See you then” Draggo called after me. He then turned his attention back to my laptop. I showered quickly and threw on some clothes, then headed to my office and settled in. From my office I could hear Draggo tapping on the laptop keyboard in the kitchen. I felt guilty that I didn’t think to arrange for some clothing for him before he arrived. The few times I had seen companions in public, they had been wearing clothing. I supposed technically there weren't any laws against them being naked, but it was still inexcusable that I had forgotten. I sighed and got to work on my coding. A short while later, I heard a gentle knock at my door. Draggo stood there holding my laptop.

”Apologies for the interruption, but I finished ordering some clothes and wanted to return your laptop in case you needed it” Draggo said. I smiled at him and beckoned for him to come in. The dragon smiled back, and came in and held my laptop out to me.

“Thank you Draggo, I’m sorry again. I look forward to seeing what you ordered” I said, as I accepted the laptop from him, and put it on my desk.

“If you don’t mind me asking, what are you working on?” Draggo enquired, gesturing towards my screen.

“Ugh, nothing exciting. It’s an update for a medical billing and coding database” I said as I turned back to the screen. Draggo came closer and placed his hand on my shoulder as he leaned over me to look more closely at the screen.

“Hmm, I see. Just to make you aware, there is a minor error in your code on this line” Draggo said, and reached to tap his claw on my screen. I leaned forward to see what his claw was pointing at and saw I had accidentally used the wrong character.

”Oh, thank you Draggo! That would have driven me crazy later when I was trying to debug!” I said with a chuckle.

“My pleasure Brian. I don’t want to overstep my bounds, but if you ever want me to look over and proofread your code for you, I should be able to find any errors quite quickly”. Draggo offered.

”That would be very helpful Draggo! Maybe I’ll have you take a look before I begin my debugging” I said. Draggo nodded and smiled.

“I’m going to go outside and have a look around. I will return shortly” Draggo informed me, and headed out.

“Ok, see you later!” I called after him. I heard the door out to the garage open, then the garage door rumbling open. I didn’t think Draggo would find much of interest outside. My house was literally bordered by a cow pasture, and across the street was a cornfield. I assumed he would be back inside shortly, and resumed working.

Time passed, and I had practically fallen into a trance as I worked on my code. I was briefly distracted when I saw Draggo pass my office window. I couldn’t help but notice he had been wearing my gardening hat.

“What is he up to out there?” I pondered out loud. I looked at the clock and saw it was 10:30. I decided to take a quick break to see what Draggo had gotten himself up to outside. I went into the garage and noticed that my yard cart wasn’t there. When I came outside and went around the side of the garage, I noticed the bushes that ran along the side of it had been trimmed, and the weeds and thorny vines had been removed. Ah, so that’s what he’s up to! I thought to myself. I came around the corner to the backyard and saw Draggo working his way along the back of the house, pulling weeds and tossing them into my yard cart.

“Having fun?” I called to him, and he stopped pulling weeds for a moment, and smiled as he turned towards me.

“Hello Brian! I hope you don’t mind, but I thought the yard could use a little neatening up!” Draggo called to me. I chuckled at the sight of him in my gardening hat, it actually fit over his horns quite well. He had also managed to get his large hands into my work gloves that were much too small for him.

“If you’re happy cleaning the yard, then I’m happy too Draggo!” I said with a smile.

“I’m glad to hear that! I noticed your garden plot is a little overgrown, is there anything planted there?” Draggo asked, motioning to my long abandoned garden in the corner of the yard. It was about 10ft by 20ft, and badly overrun with weeds and other various fauna.

“Eh, I played around with it when I first moved here, but I’ve only ever tried half heartedly to grow anything. If you are interested in gardening, you are welcome to use it to plant something. Let me know what you want for seeds and I’ll get them for you. I’ll get some gloves that fit you too. You look great in that hat by the way!” I said with a grin. Draggo laughed at my compliment.

“Thank you, I rather like it!” Draggo said, and reached up to adjust it where it sat over his horns. “Thank you for your offer to get me some seeds too, I will think about what I would like and make a list for you. Some new gloves in my size would also be wonderful” he said as he held his hands up. My gloves looked tiny on his large hands, I don’t know how managed to jam his long fingers in there.

“Ok Draggo. If you make that list up for me today, I can run to the store after dinner for you. Put anything else you might need or like on there too that might be available locally and I’ll get it for you.” I offered.

“I would appreciate that, thank you very much Brian” Draggo said, and resumed pulling weeds.

“I’m going to head back in, see you at lunch?” I asked. Draggo nodded and gave me a smile and a thumbs up. I waved and turned to head back inside.


Later as I was working, I heard Draggo come in from the garage. I glanced at the time and saw it was 12:00. I heard Draggo go into the kitchen and assumed he must have come in to start lunch. I wondered what he would whip up, and continued working a while longer. At 12:20 I decided it was close enough, and headed for the kitchen to see what Draggo had made for me. I came in to find Draggo sitting at the table waiting for me. He had placed a bowl of salad at my seat, with a selection of salad dressing bottles he had found in the fridge. He smiled at me when I came in.

”Good afternoon Brian! I figured after such a heavy breakfast I would make you something lighter for lunch” Draggo explained.

“Thank you Draggo, as usual it looks fantastic!” I said as I sat down. The salad did indeed look fantastic, almost as if he had placed each individual lettuce leaf and other ingredients with careful consideration. I picked up a bottle of ranch dressing and poured some on, then dug in. It might have been the best salad I had ever had.

“At the risk of sounding repetitive Draggo, this is delicious!” I said with a chuckle.

”As always, you are far too kind. I am glad you enjoy it” Draggo said.

”How are things going outside?” I asked with interest.

”Oh, quite well! I finished weeding and trimming the bushes around the house. After lunch I am going to tackle the garden plot. I will work on my list of desired seeds as well. My plan is to be making you salads from the garden eventually! I’m quite excited by the possibilities, I can’t wait to return to work on it!” Draggo told me eagerly.

“That sounds great Draggo! You know, you don’t have to watch me eat if you want to get to work on it, I can clean up when I’m done” I offered. I had to chuckle at the conflicted look on Draggo’s face. I could tell he badly wanted to work on his garden, but also wanted to clean up for me as well. But after a moment of internal conflict, he nodded with a grin and got up.

“Thank you Brian, I appreciate it very much. Truth be told, I am very eager to get back to the garden” Draggo confessed.

“You’re very welcome Draggo, I’m sure you will do a great job!” I said encouragingly.

”Thank you, I will get back to it then. I hope you have a productive day with your programming” Draggo said as he left the kitchen and headed back outside. I took my time finishing my salad, and browsed on my phone as I ate. After about 20 mins, I decided it was time to get to work and brought my bowl to the sink to clean it. I looked out the window to see how Draggo was making out and gasped in surprise. Draggo was standing at the fence that ran along the back of my yard and appeared to be speaking to a large bull anthro with black and white fur, who was wearing a faded pair of overalls. At least I thought they were speaking, but the longer I watched, I realized they were just standing there and facing each other. After a moment, they both turned away from each other, and Draggo went back to his garden, and the bull headed back out into the pasture. I was slightly alarmed by what I had seen, and rushed outside to ask Draggo what had happened. Draggo looked up in surprise when he saw me jogging towards him, then smiled and waved.

“Hello Brian, I wasn’t expecting to see you again so soon! Is everything ok?” Draggo asked.

”Yea, I’m fine, I was just worried about you! Who was that bull? What were you guys doing?” I asked somewhat nervously.

“Oh, that was Jasper! There is no cause for concern, we were just talking. He belongs to your neighboring farmer. He is also a companion” Draggo explained.

”Talking? It looked like you were just standing there?” I said slightly confused. Draggo chuckled at my apparent confusion.

”Well, talking in our own way. Companions are capable of interfacing directly with each other and communicating without speaking out loud. It is a much faster way for us to exchange information than doing it verbally” Draggo told me.

”I see! So, what did you guys ‘talk’ about?” I asked curiously.

“Jasper and I compared our experiences with each other. I must confess, I think he might be slightly envious of me. The interactions he has had with his owner compared to the ones I have had with you are quite different. Jasper is constantly working, and has little free time to pursue his own interests. But do not be concerned for him, as I had told you before, doing things for our owners makes us happy. There are also two other companions owned by and working for your neighbor as well, so do not be alarmed, they may also come by to greet me at some point” Draggo said.

”That’s very interesting, I had no idea my neighbor Joesph had companions, but I’ve only ever really spoken to him a handful of times” I said

”Yes, I am aware of all companions that are nearby. It might interest you to know that there are seven companions within a five mile radius of here, including the three at the farm” Draggo told me.

”Really? Wow, I had no idea! Are you able to communicate with them at a distance, or does it need to be up close like you did with Jasper?” I asked, fascinated.

“I could if I had to, but generally we do not communicate directly with each other from a distance. It would distract us from focusing on our owner’s needs. Generally communicating remotely is reserved for summoning help if it were needed, like in the event of an emergency for instance. That is why Jasper came to see me in person since I was nearby. He also kindly offered me the use of a small rototiller to till the garden plot, which he has gone to fetch for me. In fact, I believe that is him returning now!” Draggo said excitedly, and pointed out to the pasture. I turned and looked to see Jasper returning, only this time he was riding an ATV with a small trailer attached to it. On the trailer was the rototiller for Draggo. The bull shut off the ATV, and climbed out, and approached us at the fence. The bull was even taller than Draggo, and looked down at me and smiled.

“Good afternoon, you must be Brian! Draggo has told me all about you” Jasper said in a deep drawling voice.

“That’s me, and you must be Jasper! It’s very nice to meet you!” I said and extended my hand towards him. Jasper did not reach for mine, but only looked at it, he appeared to have a look of slight embarrassment on his face. I realized he might not be able to make physical contact unless given permission first.

“It’s ok Jasper, you have my permission for physical contact” I encouraged him. With my consent given, Jasper finally and tentatively extended his hand, and engulfed mine in his much larger one. His hand was very interesting compared to Draggo’s. Instead of claws, it had blunt silicone hoof tips at the ends of his thick fingers. His hand felt quite rough in comparison to the soft scales of Draggo’s, and I assumed it was from all of the manual labor he must do. Jasper released my hand, and turned to Draggo.

“I have the rototiller for you, with it you should be able to till your garden plot in no time!” Jasper said to Draggo.

“I appreciate it so much Jasper, thank you for bringing it so quickly, I didn’t mean for you to hurry back with it!” Draggo said gratefully to the bull.

“It was no trouble. I actually find myself with some spare time at the moment as I am all caught up with my duties currently” Jasper said with a grin. He then returned to the ATV and trailer, and unhooked the lines securing the rototiller. Once untied, he easily lifted the rototiller off of the trailer as if it weighed nothing. Jasper returned to the fence with it, and handed it over to Draggo, who accepted it from him and also held it like it weighed nothing at all before placing it on the ground.

“Thank you very much Jasper! I understand from what Draggo told me that free time is kind of a luxury for you. It was very generous of you to use some of it to give us a hand with our garden” I said appreciatively to the towering bull. “Would you like to stay for a while? You can come in if you like, you are welcome to watch my TV or read my books if that would interest you?” I offered. Jasper’s eyes widened slightly in surprise at my invitation, but he shook his head and declined.

“Thank you Brian, I appreciate your kind offer very much. I wouldn’t want to track dirt into your house though, not to mention I probably don’t smell very pleasant” Jasper said with slight embarrassment. It pained me that Jasper felt that way. I approached the fence and reached over to take Jasper’s large hand in mine. The bull appeared to be shocked by the gesture, but did not pull his hand away.

“Just so you know Jasper, you are always welcome to visit. I’m not worried about you tracking any dirt inside, or the way you smell. I hope to meet your co-companions at some point too if they have a chance to come by” I said to him, and patted his hand before releasing it. Draggo came to stand beside me and slipped his arm around my shoulders. Jasper stood there at a loss for words. Finally, he spoke.

“Draggo was certainly right about you Brian. The level of respect you treat companions with is quite rare. I wish my owner was more like you. Don’t get me wrong, Joesph is not cruel, but I am definitely viewed by him as a piece of equipment, as are my co-companions. I would love to take you up on your offer to stay longer, but Joesph is contacting me, and I must go. I will return for the rototiller tomorrow Draggo. It was a pleasure to meet both of you” Jasper said. He then nodded to us, and turned back to the ATV.

“Goodbye Jasper, thank you again!” Draggo called to him. Jasper waved as he started up the ATV and headed back to the farm. I waved back as he left. Draggo sighed next to me, and gave my shoulders a gentle squeeze before letting go.

“You were very kind to Jasper, I don’t think he believed me when I told him about you at first” Draggo said with a chuckle. “Also, you still need to install your companion app on your phone. It will allow us to communicate at a distance, either verbally or through text” Draggo said.

“Yea, I was just thinking of that after Jasper said his owner was contacting him. I’ll do it when I go back inside” I promised Draggo.

“Good. I’m going to get the garden tilled, then I think I will call it a day for my yard work” Draggo informed me.

“Allright Draggo, I hope it goes well! I’ll see you later” I told him and headed back inside. Draggo smiled and gave me a wave, then turned to inspect the rototiller. I assumed operating it would be a trivial task for him, and if not, he could probably communicate with Jasper to learn how to use it. I settled back down in my office and resumed working. A short while later I heard the rototiller fire up, and leaned to look out the window. Draggo had begun running the machine through his garden. I sat back in my chair, then remembered my promise I would install my companion app. I pulled my phone out, and quickly downloaded it. I entered all of my and Draggo’s info, and submitted it. A moment later a ding confirmed that setup was complete, and connection had been established. A small map appeared with a green dot at my location, and a blue dot indicating Draggo’s location in my backyard. A box in the corner informed me that Draggo’s condition was optimal. Seconds later I got a text notification from Draggo.

Draggo: I see you installed the app! Excellent! It will be most useful.

Brian: I promised you I would! How is your rototilling going?

Draggo: Quite well thank you, it shouldn’t take me very long. I am grateful to Jasper for allowing me to borrow his rototiller. It would have taken me quite some time to do this by hand!

Brian: It was very nice of him. We should try to think of something nice that we can do for him in return

Draggo: I agree, though I am not sure what we could do for him. I’m sure we will come up with something. You are most considerate.

Brian: You’re making me blush Draggo! Anyway, I’m going to get back to work, I’ll talk to you later.

Draggo: What time do you think you will be stopping work for dinner?

Brian: Maybe 5ish? Don’t go too crazy on dinner tonight, I need to run into town after to pick up your things. A sandwich or something else that is quick would be fine.

Draggo: Allright, I will try to restrain myself from making you a banquet then! *winking emoji*

Brian: You’re too funny Draggo! I’ll see you later then.

Draggo: See you later Brian.

I chuckled as I put my phone down, and resumed my work.

It didn’t take Draggo long to till his garden, and I heard the rototiller shut off after about 10 minutes. A short while later I heard the door as Draggo came back inside. Soon there was a gentle knock at my office door. I turned, and as expected Draggo was standing at my office door.

“Sorry to interrupt you again Brian, but would it be ok to use the shower? I am a bit dirty after being outside and tilling the garden” Draggo requested.

“Of course you can, no problem at all! Do you need any special types of soap, or can you use anything? I have some bar soap and body wash in there” I told him.

“Anything you have should be more than adequate. Normal soaps will not harm my scales at all” Draggo informed me.

“Good to know! There are some extra towels in the closet in there, help yourself” I told him.

“Thank you Brian, I will” Draggo said, and headed to the bathroom. I laughed to myself thinking back on how when I had shown him around yesterday and commented that he wouldn’t need the bathroom. Little did I know! A few moments later I heard the shower come on. I could hear Draggo humming a tune to himself as he showered. The dragon’s life-like habits never ceased to amaze me. After he finished his shower and dried himself off, I heard Draggo walk past my office and head into the living room. The TV came on, and I heard the sounds of different channels as Draggo flipped through them to find something to watch. I was surprised to hear that it sounded like he had settled on a baseball game to watch. I would have never in a million years expected him to be interested in sports. I shrugged my shoulders and once again returned to my work.

At about 4:45 I heard Draggo flip off the TV and head into the kitchen. It sounded like he was pulling a pan from the cabinet, and I heard the click of the stove burner coming on. The fridge door opened and closed as he removed something. I was curious to see what he would put together for me. When 5:00 hit, I closed my programs, and headed out to the kitchen. I could smell bacon cooking as I came into the kitchen. I saw a partially made sandwich on a plate on the counter with lettuce, turkey and tomato. Draggo was tending the pan of bacon he was frying at the stove. He greeted me cheerfully as I came into the kitchen.

“Hello Brian, I hope you are hungry!” Draggo said to me as I sat down at the table.

“When you’re cooking, I always am!” I complimented him, and chuckled.

“As you requested, I refrained from ‘going crazy’. I made you a BLT with turkey. I hope you enjoy it!” he said as brought the pan of bacon to the counter, and removed the slices of bacon and placed them on the sandwich. He put the pan in the sink, and finished assembling the sandwich and brought it to me. The sandwich was, as usual, a work of culinary art. All of the ingredients had been carefully laid out.

“This sandwich looks so beautiful, I almost feel bad eating it!” I said jokingly. Draggo chuckled at my compliment as he returned to the sink to clean the pan.

“Thank you, but it would make me happier if you ate it instead of admiring it!” Draggo said playfully as he washed the pan.

“Don’t worry, as beautiful as it is, it smells too good to admire for long!” I said, and began eating it. Draggo cleaned the pan quickly, and placed it in the dishwasher, then returned to join me at the table. “Did you work on your list of things you needed?” I asked him as he sat down.

“Yes, I did. May I use your printer?” Draggo asked.

“Of course, do you need to type it out? I can get the laptop for you” I offered.

“It won't be necessary” Draggo said, as a look of concentration came over his face. In my office, I heard the printer begin printing out something. I paused eating in surprise.

“Wow, that’s handy!” I commented.

“Yes, when you set up the app, it also connected me to your home network. I have access to most devices connected to it. I see your computer's connections, but I cannot access them. Their connections are encrypted in case you were concerned I would snoop!” Draggo assured me.

“Ha, that’s ok Draggo, I would trust you even if you could access them” I said with a grin.

“Thank you, I appreciate your trust in me and would never betray it” Draggo said with a smile. “One moment, I will go fetch my list for you” he said as he got up and headed to my office. I finished my sandwich, and Draggo returned, handing me his list. I glanced over it quickly. It contained many types of different seeds, sewing supplies such as threads and needles, and some various garden tools, including a glove size that would fit him. I was surprised to see a pair of flip flops on there as well.

“Flip flops?” I asked him with a raised eyebrow.

“Yes, it will help keep the bottoms of my feet clean, I wouldn’t want to track dirt inside. Plus it would be easier than finding shoes that fit me!” Draggo said with a chuckle.

“That’s very considerate of you, I’ll be sure to get you some. Are you sure this is all you need?” I asked.

“Yes, with that I should be able to get my garden started, and alter some clothing while we wait for the clothes I ordered to arrive” Draggo said

“All right then, I’ll head out right away. Do you want to come with me?” I offered. Draggo considered for a second, then shook his head.

“That is ok, I will pass this time. I feel like I would draw attention. I will wait here and entertain myself until you return” Draggo said

“Ok, if you’re sure then. I’ll probably be gone an hour or so. No throwing any wild parties well I’m gone!” I joked and wagged a finger at him.

“I will do my best to refrain from doing so” Draggo promised with a chuckle. I nodded and smiled, then got up and headed to the garage to depart.

Fortunately all of the stores I needed were clustered together in one business park. I hit the hardware store first and got all of Draggo’s requested seeds, and gardening supplies. I picked him out a pair of gardening gloves that were a bright pink color, thinking he would find them amusing. As I went through the local superstore getting his sewing supplies, I paused to consider when I saw an inexpensive sewing machine. I assumed Draggo was planning to sew everything by hand, but this would probably make it much easier for him. I smiled as I put the sewing machine in my cart, hoping he would be excited when he saw it. I also picked up a few XXL sized shirts for him that I thought would fit, and some large pairs of sweatpants and shorts for him to modify. One of the shirts I picked for him was a short sleeved button up with floral patterns I thought he would get a kick out of. I loaded my purchases into the car, and headed home. As I pulled into the garage, the door to the house opened, and Draggo came out to greet me.

“Welcome home Brian! Can I help you bring your purchases inside?” Draggo offered.

“Sure, that would be great. I think you’ll be excited when you see the surprises I got you!” I said playfully.

“Oh? You got me surprises?” Draggo asked, sounding eager. I grinned at him, and opened the trunk to reveal the sewing machine box. Draggo’s eyes widened and he gasped excitedly and clutched his hands together beneath his chin.

“A sewing machine! You didn’t have to! I don’t know what to say! You really shouldn’t have!” Draggo gushed, and turned to me and pulled me into a tight hug. I laughed and hugged him back, patting him on the back. He released me and picked up the sewing machine from the trunk and admired it.

“And are these some clothes for me?” He asked, noticing the clothing in the bag that had been next to the sewing machine.

“Yea, I figured you could modify the pants and shorts for your tail well we wait for yours to come in. I hope the shirts will fit, if not I can take them back. Draggo put the sewing machine box down and picked up the shirt with the floral pattern and held it up, looking at it speechlessly.

“If I was capable of tears, I would be crying tears of joy” Draggo said, as he put the shirt down and pulled me into another hug. “You are much kinder to me than I deserve!”

“It was my pleasure Draggo, and you absolutely deserve it! Seeing you happy and excited like this makes me feel very happy” I said to him, almost feeling like I was going to tear up. “Let's get your stuff inside, and you can sort through it. Draggo nodded eagerly, and began gathering up some of the bags from the trunk, and his new sewing machine. I grabbed the rest, and followed him inside. In the kitchen Draggo excitedly began going through the bags and pulling everything out and placing it on the table. He laughed at the sight of the pink gardening gloves I had gotten him.

“Thank you again Brian, this is wonderful!” Draggo said gratefully to me. “I’m going to bring the seeds and gardening tools out to the garage, then try out my sewing machine!”

“Sounds good Draggo. I’m really happy you like it” I said, smiling.

“I love it! I can’t wait to try it!” Draggo said happily.

“I’m going to go watch a little TV before I head off to bed, let me know if you need anything” I told him.

“I will, thank you Brian” Draggo said. As I watched TV, I heard Draggo begin bringing his gardening supplies to the garage. With that done, he returned and opened up his sewing machine and set it up at the table. In no time at all I heard the hum of the sewing machine as Draggo began putting it through its paces. I was so pleased that I had been able to do something nice for him. About a half hour later, Draggo came into the living room, wearing one of the pairs of shorts I had bought for him. He had made a hole for his tail in the back, with a small flap that went over the top of his tail and buttoned into place to keep the shorts from falling down. Draggo smiled at me and gestured to his shorts.

“What do you think?” he asked, turning himself around so I could see them from all sides.

“I think they look great Draggo! Good job! Have you tried on the shirts yet?” I asked. Draggo held up a finger to me, and turned and hurried back into the kitchen. He quickly returned wearing the button up floral one I had gotten him, and grinned at me.

“They fit quite well, thank you again for getting them for me! I’m so pleased with them” Draggo said. He then came and sat next to me on the couch, putting his arm around my shoulders, and hugging me to his side.

“I’m really happy you like them Draggo, I’m glad I got the right size for you” I said, and leaned against him. Draggo sighed contentedly.

“Today has been a great day!” he exclaimed happily. I chuckled at his enthusiasm.

“It has been! Anyway, I think I’m going to head off to bed. Are you coming in too, or are you going to do some more sewing?” I asked. Draggo paused to consider.

“I think I will do a little bit more sewing, but I will join you shortly” he said, then slid his arm from my shoulders and got up to return to the kitchen.

“Ok Draggo, good night” I said as I headed to get ready for bed.

“Good night Brian, thank you so much for everything you got for me again!” Draggo said as he sat back down at his sewing machine. I smiled at him as I headed into the bathroom. After brushing my teeth, I headed into the bedroom, and climbed into bed. I was slightly disappointed that Draggo had declined to join me right away, but was also happy he was so excited about his sewing machine. Fortunately my disappointment was short-lived, and after about 15 mins Draggo came into the bedroom. He took off his shirt and shorts, and laid them neatly across the chair next to my dresser. With that taken care of, he then slid into bed and under the covers next to me. I was on my side, in my usual position and facing away from him. I felt him slide closer.

“Brian, would you like to spoon again? Draggo asked me quietly. I chuckled and nodded. I felt his arm slip around me and he pulled me gently against him. His tail once again slid over my leg to curl gently around my calf. I heard him sigh contentedly, and felt his breath ruffle my hair.

“You know Draggo, you don’t need my permission to spoon. I enjoy it very much, and you are welcome to do it without asking my permission first. If for some reason I didn’t want you to, I’ll let you know, ok?” I told him.

“Thank you Brian, I enjoy it very much too” Draggo whispered, and hugged me a little tighter against himself. Between the warmth of his body, and the sound of his breathing, I was asleep in no time.