Authors Note: So, some of you asked if Jo could meet Bass, and I was already considering it. xD I went ahead and wrote this little drabble. (: Excuse any grammar errors I haven't read over it. :P Too lazy right now.

Disclaimer: I obviously own none of these characters, just having fun.

Bass Meets Jo

I was in the middle of chewing on one of my bones when my human, Jane and her companion, Maura came home. I had been so preoccupied, I didn't even hear the door open but soon their scents registered and then I heard their voices. "Maur, I really appreciate you letting me stay with you last night but I promise I'll be okay tonight on my own." I hear Jane say. I note the strain in her voice and drop my bone to scramble into the den to greet my owner. "Besides, I need to feed Jo and take her out..." She says as she spots me running toward her.

My tail wags and I dance around in a circle, unable to contain my excitement. I haven't seen Jane since the day before yesterday and I desperately missed her. She kneels down and pets me lovingly and I lick her hand. Maura is beside her, looking down at Jane in concern. "You can bring Jo Friday with us. Please? For me?" I watch as Jane looks up at Maura with trepidation before she sighs, giving in. I'm not really sure what the problem is, but I assume that all the tension and uneasiness in the room as something to do with their jobs..."Alright, fine. Let me just get a change of clothes and get Jo's leash." I realize now that we're going somewhere and despite feeling uneasy about Jane being upset, I can't help but get excited at the prospect of going for a ride.

Soon enough, Jane and Maura and chitchatting as I do my business outside before Jane leads me to the car. I easily jump in the back, automatically putting my nose to the window as I wait for Jane to roll it down a little. I love to feel the wind in my fur and take in all the different scents. Sometimes, when I close my eyes I feel like I'm flying. On the ride, I hear Jane and Maura talking idly of the night ahead of them, but the different scents and the crisp air of the night overwhelm me and I'm too consumed in them to even comprehend what they're saying.

The ride is over too quickly for my liking as Jane parks the car in front of a place I do not recognize. I wait patiently for Jane to hook my leash to the collar around my neck before I even attempt to jump out of the car. The new scents continue to overwhelm my senses and I'm unconsciously tugging on my leash as I move around this new territory with curiosity. I can hear Jane and Maura still talking but, I ignore them for now, my heart pounding as I pull harder on the leash to get access to a tree I'm unable to reach because of the confines of my leash. Jane says something I don't hear to me and finally moves so that I can smell the tree.

Finally, Jane insists it's time to go inside this new building and as we near the door I immediately recognize Maura's scent and gather that this is her territory, though there is something a little unfamiliar about the scent, something else that shares her territory. I can't place it. It's not another canine. I wait patiently for the humans to open the door and when it closes behind us, Jane leans down to unhook the leash. I feel a little out of place here and decide to follow Jane around and get comfortable with my new surroundings before I go and explore on my own.

I follow them both to the kitchen and the strange scent I smelled earlier gets stronger. My haunches are raised and when I turn the corner I hear Jane curse as she stumbles. "Damn it, Maur...I swear that thing pops out of nowhere!" My eyes look around to see what she talks about and I involuntarily jump back and let out a startled growl. I now see what Jane was referring to. I briefly hear her chuckling at me as I stare down this...I'm not sure what it is. "See? The turtle even scares Jo." Jane's voice is light and teasing and Maura snorts.

"Tortoise, Jane...Bass is a Tortoise." I hear Maura say in a rather exasperated tone. So this creature is something called a Tortoise. It's head pokes out of the large shell and I growl unsure of what to make of this creature as he stares back at me.

"Greetings, canine..." From the deep voice I gather that this...'Tortoise' is a male. I'm a little surprised he knows what species I am.

I inch closer, sniffing him apprehensively and ignoring the two humans watching our interaction and making unwanted commentary. "How do you know what I am?" I question, still unsure if I should trust him.

I hear the tortoise chuckle and watch his slow movements as he assesses me as I do the same to him. "I've been alive longer than you have, and have learned a lot living with this human." His voice is thick, but he speaks slowly and I'm unsure if it's because he thinks I'm unintelligent or this is just how he speaks.

I'm silent for a moment, letting his words sink in and trying to decide if it's okay to let my guard down. "I see...Well I can't say I've encountered one of you before. Pardon my apprehension." I reply back evenly as I take a seat in front of him.

The tortoise nods calmly. "Quite alright, canine. The human calls me Bass...What does your human refer to you as?" He studies me carefully and I feel a little uncomfortable under his scrutiny.

"Jo Friday, but Jo for short. Nice to meet you, Bass." I say as my eyes still assessing him, unable to wrap my mind around such a strange looking creature. By now, Jane and Maura have vacated the kitchen and are sitting on the couch in the den. I assume they were only watching us to make sure one of us didn't harm the other.

Bass seems to be thinking before he nods. "Pleasure to meet you, Jo Friday." He uses my whole name and it sounds strange in his gravely deep, calm voice. "I have heard a little about you when I listen in on Maura and your human, Jane's conversation. I must say, it's nice to put a face to a name." He says calmly.

I nod slowly shifting my weight from paw to paw. "I think I may have heard a little about you in one of their conversations..." I say as I try to recall his name coming up at some point in the past. "You're human is nice," I comment, watching him nod in agreement. "I was convinced for a while, that your human and mine we're mates, but they just seem to be very close." His head nods again.

"Maura has taken care of me for a number of years now, and I can say with certainty that your human means a lot to her. She comes up a lot in our conversations. I have observed her interactions with a lot of other humans and I think that your conjecture isn't far off. Maura's behavior is very different when it comes to Jane. What are your observations on your human?" The way he speaks reminds me of Maura and it's much clearer now of how he knew what species I was. Of course any animal of Maura's would be this intelligent.

I sigh softly as I look over to the two humans on the couch. "Similar to your assessment regarding Maura's actions. I have watched Jane interact with other humans of both genders and the way she interacts with your human is different, and I can tell she cares a lot for her." I say softly. "But, they don't seem to notice their feelings for each other." I comment idly.

Bass follows my gaze to Jane and Maura before he nods ever so slowly. "It would seem that way, yes. But upon further analysis, I have hypothesized that it's only a matter of time." He seems to smile, though I'm not sure if it's a smile or not as I assume facial expressions are rather limited to his species but I decide he is smiling and I smile back.

"I hope you're right." Is all I say before I politely excuse myself to spend time with my human, having missed her while she was gone and perhaps missing Maura too.