PA 3.5: End of a Tail

Chapter VII Part I

Hachiko High School was alive with talk and action; people were rightly terrified by the events proceeding in the morning. Some of the staff were running around cleaning up the library's shattered window and broken chairs, while others coordinated with the students to hold another assembly; everyone was to head home early following the attack.

A second-year mutt took a seat on the roller bed in the nurses' office occupied by an older husky. Fear and disappointment had addled the mutt's eyes, letting them stare at the ground as they waited for their friends to wake up.

They looked up, seeing the wincing, unconscious form of Ginger, the bloodhound which had been stabbed trying to defend the very people she had sworn to kill just a few days ago. The mutt whimpered, shutting their eyes and shivering. They turned around after a moment, opening their eyes and looking at the unconscious husky. "... Please wake up, Sparky..." they muttered.

Right on cue, the husky's eyes jolted open, and his body reflexively threw its arms up in front of its body and curled its legs.

"AHH!!" the mutt yelled, nearly getting hit in the head by the sudden motion. Losing balance, the red-ish dog flailed their arms to keep themselves on the bed.

"O-OLIVE?!" Sparky yelled, suddenly realizing he wasn't in any danger, and quickly tried to reach for the mutt, but it was a moment too late. There was a thunking sound as Olive fell to the ground, smacking most of their back and head on the hard linoleum.

"Owwww..." they said with arms and legs splayed out between Ginger and Sparky's beds. Sparky quickly got into a sitting position, then threw himself onto his feet, stumbling at the sudden verticality. He leaned down, offering a paw to the pup.

Sparky weakly smiled as he helped Olive off the cold nurse's room floor and back onto their feet. An odd silence permeated the room as Olive stood there in much the same way they had been sitting just a little while earlier.

"Uhhh...?" Sparky muttered, paws at his side, expecting a massive hug from the overexcited second-year, but not getting one. Olive's disposition had Sparky questioning if he was still asleep or if time had up and stopped- it was unlike them to be so motionless.

Finally, though, Olive slowly leaned in for a hug, whimpering as they gave it. The hug wasn't jubilating or inspiring, but rather it conveyed a simple hope that things would turn out better.

"I'm okay Olive..." the husky muttered.

In truth, Sparky was far more worried about the mutt; ever since the assembly in the yard yesterday, they had been far more reclusive. Olive could be heard sniffling as they rested their muzzle on Sparky's shoulder. "Hey, hey. It's okay," he said, trying to cheer them up.

"I-I was so worried about you... Ginger is r-really hurt, and we can't find Brownie anywhere..." They sniffled again, tearing up as they mashed their muzzle into Sparky's neck, trying to maximize as much fur contact as possible. "P-Please don't leave me Sparky," they said with an uncharacteristic sadness in their voice.

Sparky's face turned to one of worry, then he shut his eyes and leaned his head onto Olive's, pulling them harder into their hug.

"Hey, it's okay." Sparky wanted to say something else but wasn't nearly as creative as he wanted to be. The oppressive atmosphere of gloom was pervading someone that had only ever been hopeful and joyous in the past.

Sparky smiled lightly as an idea came to mind. "Hey... Nice tail, Olive," he said in the happiest voice he could muster, smiling as he held onto the dog a little less tight.

"... W-What!?" Olive stammered in response, and Sparky had just realized how awkward a sentence like that was at a time like this. Olive was blushing with secondhand embarrassment at the compliment.