Lactose Tolerant

As the sun peaks over the horizon, a rooster crows. Hope's Valley Ranch bathes in the new light, the grassy fields illuminated in the dawn. Komaeda stirs, the cries of the rooster rousing him from his slumber. Groaning, he sits up, the orange dawn light spilling through the closed shutters, highlighting the dust that hung in the air. He gets out of bed, and starts the day. By the time he steps out the front door, the pale yellow sun had fully emerged, the young blue sky promising a sunny day. He tips his hat down to shield the glare, wearing a pale grey flannel from yesterday, some shabby overalls and old faded jeans, the knees stained green from the grass.

Setting out towards the main barn, Komaeda greets the rooster that had awoken him, a ruffled fletchling named Loud Bastard. He wasn't one to ceremoniously name his animals, as they came and went often. The door to the shed creaks, an annoying reminder for the young farmer to oil the hinges. He snatches a clipboard with a chewed up pen attached to it. He begins to scribble down the day's jobs on it, going in chronological order. Today was going to be a relatively relaxed day: take care of the packaging of crops for the market, clean the chicken coop, and milk the cows and take care of the new arrival. Simple enough. Sighing, he tears off the sheet of paper, and walks back outside. He pins it to the flat bulletin board at the front of the main barn, then trudges back to the shed for supplies.

By the time he had finished packaging the crops and dusting the coop out, the sun beated down strong. He had worked up a good sweat from lugging the boxes and having to chase a couple of fowl on the run, and the harsh heat of midday certainly didn't help the situation. Wiping his brow, Komaeda goes back to refer to the to do list. Ah right, the new arrival. He remembered that the new member of the ranch had been shipped in yesterday night, from a relatively well known facility, but there have been mixed reviews about the quality of their animals. Straightening, he trudged back to the shed.

Leaning the dirty hoe against the wall, he washes his hands and grabbed all the necessary items, including a milking pump, a flashlight, and wipes, and several other things. He separates the items into the two buckets, and carries it all off towards the barn. Leaning on the large red doors, he creaks the barn doors open, the expected stench of a pent up barn wasn't present. Inside it was well lit, rows of rooms lined each side of the barn. Here, the residents are slightly different from the regular animal. His boots clicked against the solid floor as he walks to the room furthest away from him, the room of the new arrival. Stopping in front of the door, there is a whiteboard hanging next to the door, blank. He usually writes the resident's name or classification number on it. Surprisingly, this one came with a name. Most likely pre owned. He takes out a rumpled sheet of paper with the resident's information on it. Clicking his tongue, he unsheathes the marker, and writes the name. Hajime Hinata.

The knob turned, and Komaeda peeks into the room cautiously. There was no sound or movement coming from the room inside. Stepping inside, he sees the new arrival sitting on the plaster white cot at the corner of the room. Hajime looks pretty much like every other cow out there, and he gazed back with a calm eye. Hajime sports the regular outfit of cattle, a black and white spotted top and shorts, however sparsely covering him. Horns poked out among his spiky brown hair, and a cow's tail swayed lethargically from side to side over the bed. Komaeda wasn't phased by any of this. He'd seen worse and better, and he most didn't expect anything better from the reserve course, where he had bought this cow for a fairly decent price. He fully stepped into the room, not taking his eyes off the cow, and the cold gaze was returned. As always with a new resident, he introduced himself

"Uh howdy. My name is Komaeda, but you can call me Nagito for all I care. Welcome to Hope Valley Ranch. Hopefully we can get along no problemo. I need to give you a general exam, nothing too bad."

Komaeda says in a leveled tone, looking Hajime up and down. Hajime stares back, examining him as well. Komaeda places the bucket on the ground, and looks back at him. He's a bit caught off guard when Hajime's voice asks him a question.

"What are you going to do specifically?"

He asks tentatively. Komaeda turns back to him, wiping his hands down again with some sanitation wipes.

"Well, I'll check your eyes, ears, general muscle exam, and some internal examination, both entrances."

Komaeda rattled off, all too familiar with the process. Hajime tilted his head to the side, confused by that last part. Komaeda slips on a pair of gloves, and calmly approaches Hajime. Hajime stiffens, still intimidated. The farmer doesn't hesitate to pull the cow to his feet, ordering him to stand still. Circling him, he checks for anything out of the ordinary, occasionally poking at his abdomen and arms. He takes Hajime by the jaw, gently turning his head left and right, examining him closer. Once he was satisfied by the lack of any obvious injuries, he takes a small flashlight from the bucket, and returns to examine his eyes and ears. Hajime only stood patiently, a big nerved from the constant prodding but otherwise calm. Komaeda shines a flashlight into his eyes, ears, and down his throat, again searching for any abnormalities. Hajime became increasingly fidgety, not used to this kind of personal contact. He flicks off the flashlight and scribbles something on the crumpled paper, tossing the flashlight and paper back into the bucket, and replacing his gloves with clean ones.

"Okay, last step. Anal exam. Bend over on the bed."

Komaeda says, stepping back towards Hajime. This mood switched quickly, as Hajime takes a step back in hesitation.

"Wait what!?"