09-5-2010 at 12:10 AM

Sha wasn't sure what to say. His new acquaintance-- he hesitated to say 'friend'-- smelled so strongly of hunger and sadness that it almost made him sneeze. One didn't just come out and ask what has another dog so depressed, though. Especially when said dog was big enough to bite one in half.<br /><br />Not that he thought Bell would attack him. It took energy to attack another dog, and Bell didn't seem to have much of it. She looked worn out. Sha wasn't precisely familiar with the feeling; he'd been born in an alley and raised on the kindness of hobos who fed him scraps before he was fast enough to catch rats. He didn't need as much food as the bigger dog before him, either. He did pretty well on his own as a stray, and hadn't gotten tired of the struggle yet by the time he'd been plucked from the sidewalk and placed in a too-soft, too-small apartment where the food was too rich but his coat was always clean. He supposed he'd been lucky.<br /><br />Sha gave the scent of the aggressive dog one last sniff, just to be sure it was old, and then flopped onto the damp pavement next to Bell, who was staring at the passing crowd as though looking for something... and waiting. What could she be waiting for out here? The idea baffled him.<br /><br />Still, along with her half-starved appearance, it told him she wasn't used to being on the streets, and at least gave him something to say. "How long have you been out here?" he asked.

09-4-2010 at 3:42 AM

Bell thought that name fitted him for some reason. He seemed quite active and full of energy. She must have looked quite drab to him. She shook her fur out, water flying everywhere. At least the ground under here was drier then out there. <br /><br />She eyed the offered mat and stood, padding over to it. She sniffed at it, mostly getting Sha's scent. She also picked up another dog's faint scent and human feet. She tested it with a paw, like someone would before entering water. She slowly lowered herself down onto the mat and rolled onto her back. She gave a few rolls before she couldn't stand it. It just wasn't fun anymore. Bell sat down, staring at the humans that passed by. <br /><br />She hoped that her master would come for her, but she was starting to doubt. He had fallen to the ground a flashing red and white human car had come and taken him away. She had tried to follow it, but that had been a few weeks ago.

09-2-2010 at 8:04 AM

Sha stopped rolling abruptly and gave Bell a sheepish upside-down look. "Oops," he said, "I didn't introduce myself either." Such an oversight was not uncommon for the papillion, as seldom as he actually spoke to strangers, but since Bell had offered her own name, he saw no reason not to give his. "I'm Sha. At least, that's what the humans call me. For a long time, I didn't have a name."<br /><br />He rolled back onto all fours and wagged his tail at Bell; being at least mostly dry had greatly improved his mood. "Care for a turn?" he asked, indicating the mat with a twitch of his ears. He didn't wait for an answer before he was off on a miniature exploration of their small square of dry concrete, first lapping up some water from a cat dish next to the door, then sniffing around for traces of other dogs. He caught a scent he recognized-- a big, ill-tempered chow/husky mix, if he remembered correctly-- but that scent was reassuringly faint.

09-2-2010 at 4:50 AM

Bell kept her eyes away from the humans she ducked past, keeping the smaller dog in sight. She spotted what looked like a overhang covering part of the sidewalk. She was grateful to have the rain stop plastering her fur to her sides as she sat down, looking around.<br /><br />"Yeah." <br /><br />She pasued, watching him roll on the mat, she used to do that once. But those kind of activites are no fun to her now. "I'm Bell." She realized she had frogotten to tell him her name when he had first come to the bench.

09-1-2010 at 7:20 AM

Sha made sure to keep his pace slow, seeing how his new companion winced every time her paws hit the concrete, but the shop really wasn't that far. Before long, they emerged from the alley to find a far less busy street and several shops with awnings still stretched out over the sidewalks, despite the late hour.<br /><br />The wiry papillion darted around the legs of a few pedestrians and stopped in front of one of the darkened shops, where he commenced rubbing himself vigorously on the mat to dry his coat. He paused for a moment. "You alive back there?" he inquired before resuming his rubbing. He knew he looked ridiculous, but it was better than being wet.

09-1-2010 at 5:22 AM

Bell sighed, what the smaller dog described sounded better then this bench. She eased herself out from underneath it. Looking from left to right, it had been a growing habit for you never knew what was coming. She trotted off after the other dog. <br /><br />She wondered how far they had to go, her paws were already sore from traveling along the sidewalks and she was wet and her bones were growing sore. It seemed this smaller dog was much more built for city life then her.

09-1-2010 at 5:16 AM

Sha's ears lifted when the larger dog responded without hostility, and his tail wagged once before dropping again.<br /><br />"There's a shop with an awning on the next street," he offered. He had a feeling this dog would be interesting to talk to, but he wasn't about to stand in the rain trying to draw her out, and it was obvious she'd be happier if she was dry. So would he, in fact. "If the same humans run it that I remember from before, they won't mind us sitting in front of their door, at least until the rain lets up."<br /><br />He turned and trotted toward a nearby alley which cut through to the next street, then he paused and looked back expectantly to see if the other dog would follow.

08-31-2010 at 6:02 PM

Bell watched a few more cars whizz by, splashing even more water onto the sidewalk. Luckily none of it reached her under the bench. She was already soaked to the bone, she didn't need any more of that sticky stuff on her coat either. She was loathe to lick it off, so her plan was to find a source of water in the morning after the storm. <br /><br />And then she saw something run across the road, showing skill in avoiding the cars. She assumed this was either some city cat or dog, but now it was heading her direction and she saw it was another dog. <br /><br />She couldn't put a name to his breed, she had seen them once with her master at one of his 'shows' but that had been quite some time ago. <br /><br />Her nose twitched as she lifted her head to get a better look at the smaller dog. He also looked drenched and soaked with water. But then who wouldn't be? <br /><br />"Well, it's the only one that's easy to get to." Bell muttered. She didn't want to keep searching in the rain, the bench would have to do for now.

08-31-2010 at 9:33 AM

(Sha is a white male papillion with black upstanding ears.)<br /><br />Sha shook himself and sneezed, hating the way the rain plastered his silky white coat to his lean form. It made him look smaller than he was, which wouldn't be good if he ran across a mean dog that had an inclination to fight. Not that Sha normally looked big enough to discourage attacks... but it made him feel better to be able to raise his hackles and look as though he'd doubled in size.<br /><br />He knew he could always go home and dry off, and he knew that it bothered his owners that he wouldn't stay home... but he had been born on the streets and felt most comfortable there. He skillfully dodged some cars and darted across the street, then he set off at a trot down the sidewalk, not really having a destination in mind. He stopped, however, at the sight of a bedraggled form resting forlornly under a bench. The skinny german shepherd appeared not to notice him or the rain that dripped through the slats of the bench onto her ears. Sha approached cautiously and stopped just out of the other dog's reach.<br /><br />"Not the greatest shelter for a dog your size," he observed.