The black dog sat completely still. She could hear the whines and growls of the scared ones in cages, two large males lay behind her wounded staring off at things unseen, she knows they didn’t want to hurt one another The Bad Ones forced them, and that’s why she was here.
The black dog always knew where The Bad Ones were. The strange fuzzy sound would fill her ears, she’d catch their scent on the breeze, and off she’d go to find them, their fates now sealed. This had been the way since she left The Warm Place, when the call came…she answered. To The Nearborn and Forever Innocents a shield, to The Bad Ones their reaper.
The Bad Ones here had been harming Forever Innocents entrusted to them. Locking them into filth filled barred boxes, forcing them to tear at the flesh of their brothers and sisters as they watched untouched by the pain claws and fang leave, extinguishing their light inside. That would end today.
When the first Bad One saw the black dog approaching he called out, “Who’s fuckin’ dog is that?! Why isn’t the bitch with the rest em’?!” He turned his head back towards the dog, he could have been sure he saw her eyes flash red. “No fuckin’ way,” he whispered, the black dog was on him before he drew his next breath. He struggled under her weight and wrath to grab the old pocket knife his father had given to him as a child. He plunged the blade into her side 1-2-3-4-5-6 times…the black dog stared into his eyes as he lifted the weapon again, “No blood,” he choked out. She cocked her head to the side, raised her ears…he could have sworn he saw her smirk…
The black dog followed the sound of The Bad Ones down the dirt road and beyond the pines until she found what she came for, the one who’s scent brought her here. As he walked by the cages tails went between legs, whimpers filled the air, some let out the liquid she knew meant fear. Other Bad Ones gathered around the snarls that were used for pain, their smells faintly mixed in with the one she followed here, but His was the strongest.
A howl rang out through the air, louder than seemed natural, The Forever Innocents went silent, the two surrounded by The Bad Ones laid down side by side in the orange dirt. Mercy had come for them, judgement had come for the others.
The black dog watched as their leader stepped forward and began walking her way, his hand outstretched, “Well aren’t you a big ole bitch!” his mouth twisted into a rotten toothed grin, “you gonna make me a lot of money!” Greed would be his downfall, she wasn’t even going to have to chase this one.
When The Human Law arrived they found what could loosely be described as a pile of men…all terrified, each missing their Achilles tendons. Only one lay outside the gory clump, a small bald man with a round belly stretching his shirt too tight and a mouth full of rotten teeth. He stared straight into the sky, eyes never leaving the clouds above, whispering what The Human Law could only understand to mean nonsense
I emptied the clip, and she didn’t die.
I emptied the clip, and she didn’t die.
I emptied the clip and she didn’t die.
A black dog looked to be keeping guard of two injured others as the officers began loading men into the back of a van, “These ones will need doctorin’ I guess…the crazed one can go straight to bookin’.”
The wind was blowing now, covering the drag paths the runners’ bodies created on the dry ground with dust and leaves, they tried to escape but all they really did was give her an excuse to stretch her legs, she made sure they wouldn’t run again.
The strange fuzzy noise filled her ears as she lifted her nose to catch the next trail, “That’s odd,” she thought, “a Bad One has never smelled like this…” She stood up, nose as high as she could in the air spinning around and around and around and around trying to make sense of what she was breathing in.
“Wet earth” sniff. “Moss” sniff. “Honeysuckle” sniff. “sweet smoke?” Sniff. “Old books” sniff. “An Ancient One.” Sniff.
She stopped her assault on the air in time to see The Human Law toss the leader of The Bad Ones into the back of their loud flashing light car, she was already sitting beside him before the officers realized what happened. She didn’t want to scare them, they did not have the smell of The Bad Ones…she gave a little bark, wagged her tail, and extended her head out the door for a little pat.
“What a sweet darlin’!” The Wrinkled One laughed, rubbing behind her ears with both hands, “Proof right here the Devil won’t ever win! Made to fight for her kibble and still lovin’! Praise the Lord!”
“I EMPTIED THE CLIP AND SHE DIDN’T DIE! I EMPTIED THE CLIP AND SHE DIDN’T DIE!”
“Yeah bud, whatever you say” The Unwrinkled One nodded his head slowly, “We didn’t find evidence of gun fire no where on the premises Sir.”
This pleased The Wrinkled One. “Boy done lost his damn mind! Oh well…let’s gone head and give this girl a lift to the shelter before we drop the crazy bastard off alright.”
“You got it boss,” The Unwrinkled One closed the door and off they drove into the direction of the curious smells.
The black dog knew she had been where The Human Law left her for two moons now. The strange fuzzy noise still filled her ears, louder each day…and it seemed like the scent she was meant to be following would get closer, closer, closer, further, further, further…like it was running back and forth, back and forth which she knew was wrong because as far back as she could remember the smells only ever got closer.
Twice now someone had come and taken her from behind the bars.
Once a woman who drove her far away from the smell…and she needed to be getting closer, why did no one understand this? It dawned on the black dog, “this woman has no intentions of letting me follow my trail! She thinks I’m a house pet! No offense to those creatures…but I am not that…” She decided to do what had to be done to convince the woman to return her closer to the smell, she would be a nuisance.
The black dog ripped apart feather stuffed pillows (ALL OF THEM), the legs of the dining table chairs were no match against the force of her jaws, she let The Nearborns climb upon her back and shoulders to reach the object they desired most (which yes once was scissors but she never would have let harm come to them, they just wanted to shear the long fur from their tiny heads!), she would wait until The Big Man fell asleep to stare at him (nose to nose) until he woke up screaming.
The black dog was dropped off closer to the smell again before the second sunset away.
The second time The Young Man came for her and again TOOK HER FURTHER AWAY FROM THE SMELL!
“THIS IS MADNESS! I HOPE YOU KNOW YOU’RE MAKING ME DO THIS!” the black dog began her loudest, most blood curdling war howl right into the ear of The Young Man, wet dripped from his eyes down his cheeks BUT HE KEPT TAKING HER FURTHER AWAY!
“This is stupid,” the black dog said to her reflection in the mirror…on the outside…”ON THE OUTSIDE!” she waited until The Young Man was forced to stop by the rectangle in the air…PLOP…out she went and off she took back to The Place Closer To The Smell.
The Worker Who Sits was on the phone with an angry voice as she strolled back in…something about a dog needing to be put down, that was not of her concern so she paid it no mind. The other worker behind the desk began imitating bashing his head into the heavy wood, the black dog was concerned as she trotted over to him, placing her paw on his leg “Boy please do not injure yourself, you do not smell like a Bad One,” she tried to communicate with him, but like most humans he couldn’t understand.
Another moon passed, nothing changed. The smell continued to run around crazy in the vicinity, the humans would not let her out to track it. The strange fuzzy noise was so loud in her ears now it brought pains with it, which was new for her. She spent her days laying on a cold concrete floor sniffing and looking out a small window in a cold concrete wall. Everything was cold and concrete here. “This is no life for anyone.”
The smell was coming closer.
She lifted her head, nose in the air, ears up, circling circling circling, sniffing sniffing sniffing
WET EARTH MOSS HONEYSUCKLE SWEET SMOKE OLD BOOKS AN ANCIENT ONE ITS HERE ITS HERE ITS HERE
She let out her loudest bark “IM IN HERE IM HERE IM IN HERE!” She threw her head back into her war howl, she went back to barking, she could not keep her feet from dancing!
“I don’t know Briar, nobody wants this fuckin’ dog,” She knew that voice, it belonged to The One Who Wished To Harm Himself, “She’s gittin’ put down tomorrow, don’t you got enough trouble in that swamp already?”
“JEeesssuuusss Christ RONALD” The One Called Briar was now speaking, hers was a new voice…she sounded angry? No…formidable…the black dog decided, unable to still her feet. “JUST GIVE ME MY DAMN DOG!”
“YOU’VE NEVER MET THIS DOG! YOU DON’T KNOW IF YOU WANT HER OR NOT!”
“Listen to me…you greasy haired asshole, I was eating a turkey sandwich and I saw her posted on the shelter’s page AND THE FATES STARTED THAT STUPID NOISE IN MY EARS AND I COULD FEEL HER LAYING COLD AND SAD AND I KNOW THAT MEANS ME AND THE DOG BELONG TOGETHER GIVE HER TO ME NOW!”
“I don’t know…what any of that means Briar. I’m going to go get the dog now, you wait here because you’re scary.”
“YOU’RE DAMN RIGHT I AM RONALD!”
The One Who Wished To Harm Himself made the bars click and swing open. The big black dog walked beside him as patiently as she could, THE SMELL WAS NOW WRAPPING AROUND HER AND SQUEEZING AT HER LIGHT INSIDE.
“WHAT IS HAPPENING?!” She tried communicating with The One Who Wished To Harm Himself again, useless. The door to the room reserved for The One Who Sits All Day and The Useless One beside her was open just enough to see…who the black dog assumed to be The One Called Briar…
“A WITCH THE SMELL IS A WITCH! USELESS ONE THE SMELL IS A WITCH! THE ONE CALLED BRIAR IS A WITCH! WERE YOU AWARE OF THIS USELESS ONE?!”
The black dog ran to The One Called Briar…Who Is A Witch…,knocking her to the ground, inhaling her scent deeply into her lungs. She could not control her back end from wiggling or her feet from tap tap tap click click click clack dancing.
This was the black dogs happiest day.
“This is my happiest day too,” her witch spoke, “Now please sit.”
Her witch knelt beside her, cupping her face between two tiny hands, bowing so their heads could rest against each others, “What kind of dog is she?”
“No one fuckin’ knows Briar, Hell Hound is probably floatin’ around in her genes somewhere.”
“How much’s her adoption fee?”
“The Herald of Death can leave with The Swamp Witch free of charge…” The Useless One answered, bowing low to the floor and sweeping his hand towards the door to freedom.
The Swamp Witch bounced back up on her feet, pointed her finger at the black dog and proclaimed for every Unseen Thing to hear, “I dub thee…Loretta…Retta for short…PRINCESS of The Swamp!” Her finger found the tip of Retta’s nose, “BOOP!” The Swamp Witch turned on her heel, calling over her shoulder, “Come on Retta! Let’s go home!”
The black dog never had a name before. She never had a companion before either, but as she followed The Swamp Witch to freedom she decided she would follow her girl in this realm and into the next.
