Well, Sakura's a fairly independent girl, all things considered. Her father expects her to be in by a certain time each night, but she's allowed to go most anywhere she wants, within reason. And Penguin Park? Definitely within reason. It's tranquil, it's safe, and it's a great spot to just hang out with friends, or alone if you just want to take in the quiet atmosphere after a long day.
Right now, Sakura is doing the latter, choosing to relax on a bench after spending who knows how long searching for more Clow Cards. Despite Kero saying there are still plenty more to find, they've been pretty quiet of late. But hey, the weather's nice, she may as well take advantage of it for a little while, right?
Ikiko Hisakata has a similar independent streak, often heading to different parts of the city to help feed some of the stray dogs. Today, she's running a bit later than usual for the feeding of the local strays, and some of them have gone looking for her.
"Yes, yes, I'm coming," she smiles to the two dogs bouncing around her. The other dogs are lurking in the bushes, tails wagging but otherwise keeping a low profile to avoid attracting attention.
As Ikiko and the dogs walk along, their path takes them near Sakura's bench. "Hi there!" Ikiko smiles to the younger girl. One of the dogs walks over and sniffs at Sakura, seeming more curious than anything else.
Sakura Kinomoto soon notices the older girl surrounded by dogs passing by her, and at the greeting, she responds with a cheerful smile and a wave. "Hi!" she calls out, gently reaching to pet the dog that comes nearer, trying not to seem like a threat. "They're so cute! Are they yours?"
Ikiko Hisakata giggles slightly as the dog leans into the petting. "Nah, there some of the local strays," she clarifies as she places her bags on the bench. From one she pulls out a number of bowls, which she sets on the ground; from the other, she pulls out a bag of dog food.
She gives Sakura a grin. "Careful, it's about the get /really/ busy," she warns with a playful tone before starting to pour dogfood into the bowls.
Sure enough, the other dogs surge out from where they were hiding, and suddenly there's about a dozen dogs looking for food. "Be patient and take turns, everyone; there's plenty for all of you," she murmurs in caninespeak, sounding very much like barks and woofing. Some of the dogs not currently eating are sniffing in the direction of Sakura; they don't seem to be seeking out petting, but they're not going out of their way to avoid it, either.
Sakura Kinomoto giggles as well, giving the dog a little scritch behind the ears while she's at it. "Oh, I see. You're feeding them, huh? That's really nice of you." she comments, then blinks and tilts her head, puzzled.
Oh. /That's/ what Ikiko meant. Sakura is pretty surprised by the sudden appearance of so many dogs, like a whole pack of them were just hanging out offscreen waiting for their cue (and they pretty much were). "Hueeeeh! There's so many!" she cries out in surprise, but it soon becomes clear that they aren't going to hurt her.
As she gets up from the bench to spread the pettings around, the older girl's barking gets another puzzled expression from Sakura. "Can you speak their language? That's pretty impressive. I don't know anyone who can speak dog."
Ikiko Hisakata freezes for a moment at Sakura's question. "Th-that's just using their sounds to help show that I'm friendly," she laughs weakly. "Really, how could anyone speak dog?"
Well, having a sliver of wolf in your soul apparently helps, but try explaining /that/ to someone you just met!
"Name's Ikiko Hisakata, 5th grader at Seishou Public," she smiles. "Member of the Animal Care club, and friend to lots of strays. And you are?"
Sakura Kinomoto could believe a lot of impossible things. Why, sometimes she's believed as many as six impossible things before breakfast! Being the descendant of the world's greatest sorceror and dealing with magical phenomena near constantly kind of helps with that.
"Oh, that makes sense." she says with a nod, regardless. Can't assume /everyone/ is secretly magical, after all! Once the introductions start, though, she quickly stands up and bows politely. "I'm Sakura Kinomoto, 4th grade at Infinity Academy. Member of the cheerleading squad. Um..." She tries to think of something else to say, finally offering, "I like plush toys?"
"Plush toys are great!" agrees Ikiko, petting some of the dogs before starting to refill some of the bowls. Oddly enough, the strays do seem to be taking turns; as one finishes a bowlful, it moves away enough for one of the others to take its place.
As Ikiko finishes refilling the bowls, she stands up and smiles. "I usually feed the strays every couple of days or so," she explains. "Just an occasional meal to help them out, not enough to make them super-dependent on it." And as an extra bonus, it helps keep her in touch with her canine friends, and they let her know of things going on around town.
Sakura Kinomoto nods! "They are! Especially the cute ones, like this little lion I have at home. I call him Keroberos, or just Kero for short..." she starts to blather a bit, but trails off as she continues to pet each dog that comes up for a meal.
After the further explanation of Ikiko's hobby, the younger girl nods understandingly. "Smart! I guess they can't get too dependent, or they wouldn't be able to live on their own, huh?"
Ikiko Hisakata nods. "It's best if a dog looking for a family finds a family that it fits in with, but being able to survive independently is the next best thing." The bowls slowly empty, but she doesn't immediately move to pick them up; instead, she sits on the bench and helps pet the dogs.
"How goes the cheerleading practice?" she asks, an inquisitive look on her face. "I don't often get a chance to watch the squad at Seishou, so I'm not as familiar with how it goes."
Sakura Kinomoto sits back down next to Ikiko, smiling as they show the strays some affection. "Yeah... I wonder if my dad would let me adopt one if I asked really nicely." she ponders aloud, though given how everyone in her family tends to be busy throughout most of the day, either at school or work or with friends, she knows that any pet they adopt would most likely end up lonely half the time anyway.
"Oh, it's great! We do a lot of drills, but it's fun." she answers, snapping out of that train of thought at the questioning. Miming throwing a baton into the air, she adds, "Sometimes I get lost in thought though, and then BONK! The baton comes right down on my head. It's embarrassing, but even I have to admit it's pretty funny after the fact."
Ikiko Hisakata giggles a bit at the description of the mishaps. "Probably hurts for a bit, too," she notes.
As the strays finish their meal, she starts picking up the bowls and puts them back in the bag. The dogs still mill around, enjoying the attention and petting. "It's good to see them doing well," she smiles, skritching some of them between the ears. "At this rate they'll manage pretty well during the colder months."
Sakura Kinomoto giggles a little, rubbing the back of her head. "Yeah, heheh. I usually have a pretty good bump on my head for a while after it happens." she says, then silently pets the dogs a bit more before getting up herself, stretching. "I sure hope so. I'd hate for any of them to suffer out in the cold."
"Maybe we should both check up on them during the winter?" Ikiko suggests. "Having a second person along might be a good idea, especially for petting all of them." And she's pretty sure she can pass off her use of caninespeak as just a quirk that she uses to put the strays at ease...
"Want to trade numbers?" she offers, fishing out her cellphone. "At the very least, I'd enjoy hanging out with you again!"
Sakura Kinomoto nods at the suggestion. "Yeah! That sounds like a great idea, and a lot of fun!" she agrees, pulling out her own phone and bringing up her number. "Here, mine is..."
Numbers are traded smoothly, and the strays have started to disperse, their bellies fuller than they were. "I should probably be heading home," Ikiko notes. "Don't want to be late for dinner, after all!"
On a whim, she gives the younger girl a big hug. "Glad to have met you, Sakura!" she beams, picking up her bags. "Hope you have a good evening, and I look forward to seeing you again!"
Sakura Kinomoto is beaming as she now has another new friend, slipping her phone back into her pocket as she waves goodbye to the dogs. "Yeah, it's getting pretty late, huh? My dad might start wondering where I am if I stay out too late." she agrees, and she certainly isn't against sudden hugs! It's quickly returned, and then Sakura bows and waves. "Good to meet you too, Ikiko-san! Good night, and I hope we can meet again soon!"