Chapter 2
"Lucky come on, it's bath time," Clint's voice echoes down the hall with footsteps sounding louder as he nears where Lucky is lying across the living room's empty space near the window.
'oh. Damn it. Shouldn't have rolled in all those mud earlier nope. Nu-uh. He said Lucky and that's not me, from now on my name is... Mucky, yup, definitely not me.'
The dog starts moving but as expected, in the opposite way from the staircases leading to the second floor's bathroom and straight into the dining room, hiding his massive golden floof right in the corner behind the wall, playing classic 'if I can't see you then you can't see me' game.
"Come on buddy don't make me get the lead out, don't make me do that," Of course it doesn't work, Clint is now at the doorway separating the living room and dining room.
"Look, I have your favorite treat!" Clint comes closer as he rummages through his pocket, taking out something and holds out what appears to be a pizza crust in front of Lucky's nose.
'Pizza!! Wants, nomnom, oh my God pizza!' Lucky excitedly tries to chomp on the crust, consequently on Clint's hand too but his human of course wouldn't give it away just like that, he slowly backs away as he retreats his hand holding the pizza crust along with him, coaxing the muddy golden retriever to follow him into the bathroom.
Lucky quickly notice his attempt and sit back down on his previously occupied corner, "Come on, I know you want the treat, come on buddy." Clint waves the crust around a few more times before giving up and decides to try a more forceful attempt by invading the dog's personal space and gently nudge him out of the room and it worked.
Not completely, Lucky is now heading for the entry hall but hey, at least he is closer to the staircases now.
"No Lucky out, out!" There goes the dog's next hiding spot, Clint thanked him before leading him up the stairway to the second floor where the dreadful bathroom is located.
On the way up he meets Jelly; Daisy's cat, his favorite fluffy friend in the whole world, even though they just met when Daisy and Melinda moved in but he is proud to call Jelly his best friend now. The newlywed agreed for Daisy and Melinda to move in instead of buying a whole new place since Coulson's house is big enough to accommodate all four of them, with 3 extra spare rooms that need only little modifications to make them feel homey. Phil and Melinda both didn't really feel like going for a 'proper honeymoon', saying that leaving a teenager and a five-year-old to manage the house is both irresponsible and definitely something that they would regret. Their time off is used to properly decorate the house instead, it was a fun few weeks of multiple trips to IKEA.
Jelly meows lazily at the event unfolding before her, it's the rainy season so it wasn't the first time she looks at Clint and Lucky chasing each other around prior to bath time.
'That is why you should learn how to bathe yourself, ugh dogs.' Jelly licks and nibbles at her hind paw as if showing off exactly what she meant, Lucky feels a bit betrayed by that but he still loves his best friend Jelly. Lucky trudges slowly around Jelly, carefully avoiding the tail, for the reason that Jelly hates. Hates it. When her tail is stepped on. Having been unlucky in the past to have learned multiple times how she has mean claws for such a tiny body.
Finally arriving on the second floor, Lucky sees the next perfect place for him to hide.
"No no, Lucky come out that's not-"
"Come on Lucky that's not your place,"
Natasha chuckled lightly as Lucky unabashedly walks into Daisy's playhouse and sits in the darkest corner, filling half the space in that tiny room.
Daisy basically got two loving siblings after she and her māmā officially move in with the Coulsons, Natasha is like a big sister to her already with how often she comes over, originally to study (not really but let's not get into it) with Clint, yet most days the three end up playing together instead. Like today, it was a rainy Saturday and they had to cancel their plan to go playing at the park. Hence Natasha came over to make up for it and the two were just playing with dolls as they waited for Clint to go on his regular endeavor of getting Lucky to bathe after a day out on a rainy day.
"Daisy, go in there and tell Lucky to get out." Clint is employing help from his little sister, not noticing how amazed she looked at the fluffy friend inside her play house as she approach the dog in little steps, he is so not getting the help he wanted.
"Lucky you are silly." Daisy giggles as she pats Lucky through the small window on her playhouse and Lucky licks her hand in return.
'Yup don't betray me Daisy, Imma let you grab me all the time, now you are my favorite hooman!' Lucky pants happily and continue licking Daisy's hand as her giggles and Clint's sigh fill out the room.
"Yeah out Lucky, go on buddy, please?" Natasha finally took pity upon looking at Clint's exasperated scowl, gently telling the dog to move out and Lucky finally listens, only that he actually comes out from the tiny window where Daisy's been petting him from instead of the door, which was a tight fit even with his lean body, ending up on the ball pool right beside the playhouse before sniffing at the air and lock his eyes at the pizza crust on Clint's hand.
'Pizza again! My favorite,'
'no, stop going away! let me have you my delicious pizza! yummy good pizza,'
' a bit more, just a little bit'
"Oh my look at that, good boy! Okay Lucky, there you go." the canine finally got his treat.
And inevitably ends up walking right into the bathroom.
'Again Lucky? You got fooled by treats again?' Somehow Jelly is right there to sneer at him with a meow before she gracefully moves out of the bathroom, leaving Lucky to deal with his nemesis.
The showerhead.
Another 30 minutes of war ensues in the closed bathroom, then both Lucky and Clint come out dripping wet despite it was actually a bath time intended for one, but that's fine, now Lucky is free of soots and mud and is all ready for cuddles because he smells good. Except.
Here comes the dog's next nemesis, the hairdryer.
While his owner is still busy trying to plug in the dryer and towel dry his arms at the same time, Lucky takes the chance to run away in no specific direction, just, away with dripping wet trails behind him. Realizing too late that his usually-loyal companion is gone, Clint just groans and decide to as well change his wet clothes before doing round two of dragging Lucky back to the bathroom, by following the wet trail to both clean it up and finding where else is it this time that Lucky decides to hide in.
"Daisy-chain, Nat, please be careful if you ever need to use the hall since it seems like Lucky has decided to bring the bathroom along with him."
Clint is definitely getting a good workout every bath time, but that doesn't make him love Lucky any less, okay, sometimes it's a bit much but he would still cuddle him to sleep every other night, especially when Lucky smells this good.
Well, he better starts cleaning before Phil and Melinda make it back from their monthly grocery trip.