The two dogs began playing regularly after that. Flare had found a newfound confidence in using her paws and teeth to take the pinecone from Shadow. Her nose was narrower and niftier than his. After a few days of use, the pinecone unfortunately became too small to properly grip- so the two dogs had nothing to play with. Almost two weeks passed before more sticks and pinecones fell into the Yard, on an extra windy day.
Flare and Shadow were trying to agree on a large but thin stick near the back fence when Grey Dog barked. Though it was normal for the other dogs to bark at sounds from the neighborhood, his tone made Flare turn and look.
The muscular grey dog was barking with his ears pricked towards the house. Flare wondered what his deal was, recalling the fact that the dogs had been fed a few minutes prior. It was around mid-morning, though the sun was blocked by tight clouds. Wind whistled through Flare's ears as she pricked them and listened.
"Mocha!"
"He's yelling Mocha's name," Shadow said from beside her. When she looked over, she had to resist the impulse to jerk away. Shadow had stepped almost close enough to brush flanks.
"She's inside the house," Flare stated sadly as she watched him. Although Grey Dog had been totally unforgiving to her at all times before now, she still felt a tug of pain in her chest as she watched him.
Mocha, Grey Dog's mate, was still trapped inside of the house with her puppies. And what was worse, she hadn't been let into The Yard for quite some time.
"Wonder why Mocha hasn't been outside in two days?" Shadow whispered in a suspicious tone. He looked Flare's way but she subconsciously avoided his gaze, fearing the worst.
Both dogs ear's twitched involuntarily as they heard Jax approach. He was followed closely by White Dog, who moved slower and on older paws.
"She still isn't answering him," White Dog commented halfheartedly. They halted a few dog-lengths away.
Jax had sat down to pant, though it didn't seem too hot to Flare. And her pelt was much thicker, especially around her neck and in-between her shoulders. The wind tugged on her fur and blew it away from the skin on one side.
"No dog wants to say it, do they?" White Dog said with more confidence. Jax looked up at him and solemnly closed his mouth, shaking his head.
"Grey Dog's going to be upset about it, but... The Man might have traded away Mocha, as well as the puppies, this time."
Flare nearly gasped. She couldn't imagine why Mocha was ripped away from Grey Dog so suddenly. Though Shadow wasn't a mate for her, she assumed that having him disappear would be a difficult thing to deal with. I'd be lonely. White Dog and Jax have each other, and I have Shadow... But now Grey Dog has no one.
He turned suddenly, and noticed the others watching him. Instead of reacting negatively as he often did, Grey Dog's face twisted into one of panic and confusion.
"It's been so long since I heard her bark back. She used to bark back every time from inside the den. What if she's sick?" Grey Dog's eyes shone with worry as he addressed the other dogs.
White Dog's ears were pinned back nervously. Even after announcing it moments earlier, he was still finding it hard to state the obvious to Grey Dog. When no one responded, the male carried on frantically.
"I need help from you- all of you. Please, when The Man comes outside in the morning- someone needs to sneak in there and check for Mocha!" His eyes looked pleading, and soon he turned his muzzle away as if he couldn't bear to ask for help. Finally, Grey Dog swallowed.
"I can do it. But I need another dog's help distracting him. I know we may not be able to reach her and the puppies in there, but someone has to check for their scent!" The male's voice grew more desperate with each passing word.
The wind whistling by was the only noise heard for the next few heartbeats. Finally, Shadow stepped forward. Flare couldn't recall them ever exchanging any positive words. Regardless, the brown dog kept his tail and head at neutral positions.
"I'll do it. It may be easier for me to fit through whatever gap there is." Shadow didn't need to state that he was thinner and taller, with a much smaller head- the two males couldn't have looked more different. One is hound, after all, and the other bully-breed.
"And I agree that we should find out whether Mocha and the puppies are still in there or not." Thankfully, Grey Dog chose not to react to the possible notion of Mocha missing from the den.
Shadow caught White Dog's eye. The tall male with shredded ears gave a tiny nod of acceptance.
All of them were sure that Mocha, alongside her puppies, were probably gone.
Besides Grey Dog. Naturally, it would be harder for him to accept. Shadow is clever, halfway agreeing although we all know she isn't sick.
"She talked about her puppies a lot, you know." Grey Dog spoke stronger this time.
"She said that she had one little male that looked just like me, except with stripes on his pelt. I asked her to name him Bold, because I always wanted that name... And she did."
Quiet was the outcome again, because most were too tentative about Grey Dog's potential reaction to any comment he saw unfit. Flare privately wondered why Grey Dog hadn't named himself, but came to the conclusion that other dogs had simply disregarded his chosen name. Thus, causing him to think of himself as Grey Dog rather than something else.
Jax eventually replied, enthusiastic and bubbly.
"That's a great name, Grey Dog! N-" He broke off and bit his tongue. Nervously, Jax sat on his haunches and tried to look away from the other dogs.
"I know what you were going to say, Jax. 'Not as good as mine, though!'" He raised his voice to mock Jax's higher pitched voice.
Flare pricked her ears as she listened to Grey Dog's comment. His tone hadn't sounded agressive, at least. White Dog chuckled and Jax huffed.
"Yeah'p, you got me right there, Grey."
Before another lull in conversation occured, Shadow took up his chance to strategize.
"So how do we get the human to leave the door open? They always slam it shut, and I don't fancy a bonk on the nose tomorrow morning."
"You may have a bonk either way," Grey Dog said with a huff of laughter. The male curled his lip with a snarky look. Apparently the little hope he had left of recovering Mocha was lifting his mood.
Shadow, true to circumstance, didn't take the comment seriously.
"Sorry, I couldn't resist. It was a good joke. But anyway, we jump on their legs. They won't be expecting it as soon as they open it."
"We all do?"
"Yes." Flare thought about the idea. She didn't like being that close to the male dogs, but she knew she had to help.
"Brown Dog might get less food than us. Or even none," White Dog's hulking form pointed out seriously. Before Shadow could speak for himself, Grey Dog broke in roughly.
"Who cares? Mocha and the pups are more important than a day's loss of food." His defensive switch seemed to have turned on again, and Grey Dog sneered. Flare's repulsive nerves shot up again; she naturally wanted to turn away from the aggression.
"I just do it by myself if that's a problem," he finalized with a deadlock stare. His eyes are kind of grey, too, and it's creep-o. Flare couldn't help but shrink away from them now, as he was getting closer to Shadow's face.
"No, we want to help," Shadow said quickly. Flare was relieved that he wasn't as keen to fighting Grey Dog as he was White Dog or Jax. The first shed fight between those two had permanently split Shadow's ear in half.
"Okay." Grey Dog seemed accepting of that. He finally backed off, made his way back towards his bucket, and then took a long drink. When the male was done with that, he didn't even turn in a circle before flopped down.
Flare expected him to put his head on his paws, but instead, he raised it. Grey Dog kept barking until The Man let out an ear-splitting scream at him from inside the den.
~
The next morning, the dogs were working together like never seen before. Grey Dog ordered them all awake and on the porch early.
The plan was to sit directly beside the door's entrance and ambush when opened. Though the minutes ticked by slow and long, the anticipation was building. Flare's legs were taunt with energy as she waited to jump.
So close to the door, they heard the footsteps before it opened. The Man's we're heavier and father apart than the female's, so Flare already knew who it was before they showed.
As soon as the door was opened wide enough, the dogs rushed towards the threshold- sufficiently forcing the door open even more. They halted just before the doorframe, at the human's feet. This is where the flurry of activity started.
Grey Dog started barking and angling his body to peer behind the human. He held himself back from darting through the opening as Shadow's brown form blurred through it.
Jax jumped on The Man's legs immediately, accompanied by Flare. She tapped her front feet against The Man's thighs and barked frantically. Jax had pushed his full weight onto The Man, but wasn't reaching very high up.
Then White Dog's legs splayed and stretched up towards The Man's chest. Flare ducked her head away. While the huge male placed his legs on The Man, his tall upright figure tipped backwards and the entire contents of food as well as the bowl itself fell onto the porch.
Jax's head went for the bowl immediately after that. His teeth snapped close to to the plastic dish as The Man leaned down to pick it up.
Jax was in The Man's way, so this added hassle made it easier to stretch out the time of distraction. White Dog used this chance to lick The Man's face, which was closer to the ground now that he was bent over. Flare had unconsciously backed away, so now she was on the very edge of the porch. The Man's feet shuffled as he struggled to avoid stepping on the dogs.
During all of this, Flare couldn't help but urge Shadow out of the den with her mind's willpower. Soon The Man will be closing the door! Hurry! Her eyes searched the striped expanse of near-white tiles that made up the kitchen, until finally something moved.
Shadow darted through like a cheetah who'd nearly outrun it's prey. The whites of The Man's eyes became larger than usual as he watched Shadow streak though, then jump off the porch and into The Yard again. After a moment of silence, he just shook his tiny-eared head back and forth and then receded inside.
"You found her and the pups!?" Grey Dog's stubby tail wagged with excitement. Flare had never seen it do this before, so she was all the more crushed at Shadow's response.
"Well, her scent was there but..." He swallowed.
"It was stale," Shadow said with his gaze pinpointed on the other male. Grey Dog's immediate response was a lip-curl accompanied by a loud snarl. The brown dog flinched but didn't back away, or lower his tail.
"Are you lying? Or are you so dumb that you can't tell an old scent from a recurring one?" He asked in a challenging tone. The fur around the scruff of his neck was puffed out. The male's head was lowered, a clear sign that he may attack.
"I am not... I checked underneath everything I could fit under. Even went up the stairs to check for her scent."
"What's stairs?" Jax interrupted, but no dog besides Flare even glanced his way. I don't know what stairs are, either, Jax, but shut up! Flare didn't want any added fuel to raise the fire.
"There was only one room I couldn't get into, so I check all I could through the crack along the door." Shadow's words were slow and careful. Flare sympathized; she wouldn't have been confident telling Grey Dog such bad news.
"She hasn't been there for around two nights. I'm certain. And I'm sorry." The ultimatum sat there, in silence, for a long moment. The only noise was the wind and White Dog's continuous crunching on dog food from the porch. Jax went over to join him, because at this point, the male who'd lost his mate had masked his expression completely. Blank-faced, he seemed to be staring at a random blade of grass.
Finally, without a word, Grey dog turned away and gingerly stepped towards his tire. He didn't bark again.
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artwork of Flare that I recently finished(digital):