Cassie the Robo-Dog

You take a second look at Cassie, who's still switched on, her blue animated eyes looking hopefully at you. You remember being fascinated when the first robot pets came out, and while none of those expensive toys could really love their owners, Cassie really seems like a sweet, loyal girl, and is genuinely attracted to you. As you let your eyes linger on her ample, well-built chassis, you have to admit that the feeling is mutual.

You smile at her, then turn to the clerk. "I'd like to take Cassie home with me, please."

Cassie's reaction is immediate. Her canine jaw drops, and her eye screen blinks off for a moment, then on, then off, then finally lights up again, showing wide, startled eyes. Then her whole expression turns to one of radiant joy, and she leaps off the table. "Master!" she exclaims, running over to you, and begins licking all over your face. "Oh, Master, thank you for choosing me! I love-love-love you so much! I promise to be a g-g-good girl and do what-what-whatever you telllll meeeeeeeee....." Her voice goes low and fades for a moment, and her head droops slightly, eyes flickering. Then she jerks back up, smiling a little sheepishly. "Sorry," she says. "When I'm excited like this, it's like the feelings are just too big for my CPU to handle!"

"That's all right," you reply, putting a hand on her shoulder. "Actually, it's kind of cute. It lets me know you're really feeling happy, not just saying you are because you're programmed to."

Cassie smiles. "Thank you, Master," she says, then hugs you to her massive, amazingly soft bosom and gives you a kiss.

As you separate, the clerk hands you a silver plastic device shaped like a chew-bone. The top half is mostly taken up by an LCD screen, and the lower half features various brightly-colored buttons. "What's this?" you ask

"That would be Cassie's remote control," he replies matter-of-factly. "The screen displays various menu options, and the buttons allow you to navigate and make selections. This button up here letss you activate or deactivate Cassie whenever you need to, and this one connects to a GPS tracking system, in case she gets lost. The remote has a range of about a mile."

You look at the device for a moment, then tuck it into your pocket. Then you pull out the collar you received in the mail this morning and snap it around Cassie's segmented metal neck. She puts a hand to her throat, feels it there, then throws her arms around you and gives you the most intense, passionate kiss yet, her long pink artificial tongue sliding in and probing the inside of your mouth. You do the same, and find that Cassie's oral cavity feels remarkably warm. It's somewhat elongated thanks to her canine muzzle, and since she's a robo-girl, the contours are smoother and more slick than those of a human woman. Instead of hard, enameled teeth, the sparkling white in her smile comes from single strips of soft, ivory plastic that follow the shape of her upper and lower jaws where teeth would be. The one that curves around her upper jaw features two little nubs that stick down a bit where a dog's canines would be located. The material allows her to make speech sounds that would normally require teeth, yet is soft enough to hold things in her mouth without doing any damage.

You remain glued to her, lips locked together, for quite a while. Then you back up and look into Cassie's bright blue "eyes". "What do you say we head home now?"

Her expression lights up again. "Of course! Please, let me come home with you, Master!"

Putting your arm around her waist, you guide Cassie out of the PET Lab and down the corridor, back to the clean, unassuming-looking lobby you saw when you first walked in. After dealing with a little paperwork, you leave the Animorph Pet Shop with a very grateful robo-dog girl clinging to your arm, occasionally nuzzling your cheek and giving you little puppy-kisses. Surprisingly, her tongue is actually a little wet, though there's no dog-breath smell, and the warm trails she leaves all over your face disappear without leaving any slimy residue.

The two of you hop into your car, and in moments, you're on the main road headed for home. Cassie lays her head on your shoulder as you drive, her soft plastic-covered paws clasped with yours whenever you're not busy shifting gears.

On the way, she turns and notices a large, open area covered with grass. It's the city's central park, and you slow down a bit to let her gaze at the people running, walking, biking, and generally enjoying themselves. "What's that, Master?" she asks.

"That's a park, Cassie. It's a place where people go to enjoy nature and let off steam."

"You mean, people run on steam? I always thought you ran on chemical energy derived from ingested organic material."

You can't help but laugh at that. "No, I mean it's where we go to get rid of tension and excess energy. I go there after work sometimes."

Cassie looks thoughtfully out the window for a moment. "Hmm, that's strange. I always try to save my battery power whenever I can. Still, those people do look like they're having fun."

You smile. "Well, if you want, we can pull over and hang out there for a few minutes. Or we could just go home right now and use up some of that energy you've been saving."

Cassie appears thoughtful for a moment, her animated eyes looking up and to the side. Then she focuses back on you, her screen now displaying a sensual look that's matched by the smile on her muzzle. "Whatever you decide, Master," she says. "Either way, I know we'll both have fun!"