Strykrr woke up. He had fallen asleep, feeling pain. It had been dark. He was in a meadow and the sun was bright, the wind cool. He smelled a familiar scent. He got up and felt no pain in his hip, shoulder, or neck. He stretched his back leg, enjoying the feeling without pain. He sat down and looked around. The air smelled wonderful, he could scent the rabbits, pheasants, and other birds. He suddenly heard an old bark saying, "Welcome. It's good to see you again." He turned and saw an aged rat terrier, splotched brown and white with the gray muzzle of old age. Strykrr shook his head feeling confused, "Do I know you?" he asked, searching his memory for this old terrier. "He was there when you were young," replied a deep, familiar voice. Strykrr turned and saw a big black and white dog. "Shadow!" he barked happily, his tail wagging like a windmill. Then it stopped and he frowned, "But.... but... you're dead, aren't you?" "I am, as is Ben, and so are you," Shadow replied. Strykrr turned his head and looked across the meadow, looking back in the past, back when he was a puppy, growing up, being trained, and always knowing he would forever be loved. Then he turned and looked back at Shadow, feeling like a puppy again, a lost puppy. Not sure if he will ever find the one who loves him again. "What about our masters? The young female who loved us? You have to remember! She played with us, loved us. Is she here?" Shadow's dark, chocolate brown eyes softened. "No." At the word Strykrr went numb inside. 'What am I feeling?' he thought, then he knew what it was. His heart had broken beyond repair. "This is paradise," Ben said. Strykrr just nodded and watched Ben trot off. Shadow looked at the smaller dog and said, "He means well, but he grew old, sick of a painful life," and followed Ben. Strykrr walked to a pool and stared at himself. He was a small dog with long, golden-tan, and white fur. His face was freckled with golden spots across the white stripe down his face. His eyes were usually a happy, excited golden color. Now they were dull with sadness. 'There's only one thing I can do' he decided. He ran across the meadow, as far as he could get. He enjoyed the feel of wind through his fur. When he reached the edge he laid down, waiting until the time that his beloved owner could join him in this paradise. But only then would he enjoy it.

 

He laid there waiting, noticing that he never got hungry. Suddenly he heard a female voice say, “You’re wasting your time.” Strykrr turned to see a Border collie that was pure black with a front right paw and a back left paw that were snow white. Her eyes were a soft blue, her nose shiny and black with a pink spot on the top right corner. She smiled, but her eyes were filled with sympathy. “I’m Sox,” she said in a soft voice that sounded like small silver bells. He grunted and said, “Strykrr. I’m not wasting my time, thank you very much!” Sox’s smiled faded as she said, “I know what you’re doing. I did the same thing.” He rolled his eyes and looked at her and said, “Really…..” and waited for her to leave. “You’re waiting for your human family. Only, they won’t come,” her voice was filled with sympathy and sorrow. Strykrr jumped up and barked, “What do you mean?!” anxious to know what this strange dog said was a lie, but scared because he knew it had to be true. If the humans came here, where were they? “I did the same thing. I’ve been here for a century. All my humans are dead, but they aren’t here. They never come here and you can never go to their paradise,” Sox replied, her voice even softer than normal. “No, no! NO! I have to get back! I have to! I need to!” Strykrr howled, his heart filled with pain and misery. Then he heard Shadow’s deep voice, “Sox! I told you to leave him alone! You went through the same and learned it on your own. You should have let him. He was even closer to our humans than you were to yours.” Sox bent her head, embarr*censored*ed that she had been caught. Shadow watched her walk away until she was out of earshot. Then he turned to Strykrr, saying, “She means well, her heart is good and pure. But she doesn’t realize that some dogs need to go through hardships like this on their own. She went through what you are and want to spare fragile hearts the pain, but sometimes she makes in worse.” Shadow paused and took a good, long look at Strykrr. Then he said, “But she’s right, there’s no going back. The only thing you can do is watch our humans through a pool near where you woke up. Many dogs go there, and watching their humans live their lives, grow old, eventually p*censored* on really helps them. Maybe it’ll help you,” and with that Shadow left, running across the meadow to where Sox had laid down to wait. Then they walked the rest of the way back to the other dogs, talking.

 

Strykrr sat at the edge of the meadow many hours more, thinking of what Shadow and Sox had told him. The next day he started back across the meadow at sunrise. When all of the other (millions, millions, and millions) dogs woke, they found him staring at the pool, silently watching his humans. He was like this for days, just watching. He paid special attention to HIS human, the girl who spent at least a couple hours with him everyday. At first he was upset, because it seemed like everyone had moved on. But he noticed that his girl was always thinking of him. When she drew, she signed it ‘Strykrr and Faith’, when she was bored in cl*censored*, she doodled his name. On her phone she had pictures of him. The puppy they still had, Squeaky, was always with her. They would sit together on her bed; his girl was always talking about him. At night before she went to bed, she looked at her poster of her, him, and a horse. Sometimes she fell asleep crying, whispering his name. It hurt Strykrr to see her suffering, but it made him feel warm inside when he saw it happen, knowing that she didn’t forget him helped. He would sleep when other dogs came to watch their humans. Occasionally, when he wasn’t sleeping, but watching the other dogs. He noticed they never touched the pool. He never had because he didn’t want to ruin the image he was seeing. After a year next to the pool, he got up, stretching sore, tense and cramped muscles. He walked around until he found Shadow. As if he was a shadow himself, he walked up next to the big dog and quietly said, “Shadow?” and stopped. He had not said a word for a year, and didn’t remember the sound of his own voice. “Yes?” Shadow asked, drawing out the word and his eyes rising in the shock of seeing the little dog again after a year. “Why is it that no one touches the pool?”  And saw a look of understanding settle on Shadow’s face. “They say one dog wanted to see what would happen. He touched it and no one saw him again. No one knows what happened, and everybody’s scared of finding out themselves.” Strykrr nodded his thanks and walked back to the pool side. The next few days, he seemed to be watching the pool, when he was actually thinking of what could’ve happened to the dog. He finally concluded that he would never be happy without his humans, or at least his girl, so anything else was better than this. He waited until that night. When he was sure everyone was asleep, he stood up, took a deep breath, and jumped into the pool.

 

 

Strykrr woke up to the sound of cars and birds, the whole scent of home. He was back home! He looked up and realized he wasn’t in front of the house, but he was near the road where he died. He looked up and saw a woman running. She was tall with shoulder-length hair pulled up in a ponytail. She was wearing a sport’s bra with volleyball shorts, a black strap around her upper right arm that held her Ipod, the earphones in her ears. She was wearing white Nike shoes that had the blue Nike insignia on both sides. At her side ran a black and white, short-haired female dog, she was small and fully grown. He felt some sort of connection with them, but he was sure that they weren’t his girl or Squeaky. A little ways behind them he saw another black and white dog, obviously trying to catch up. ‘This must be Squeaky. It looks just like I remember her!’ but this thought was crushed when the female stopped and called, “Squirt! Keep up honey, we’re almost home.” Then he realized that they were heading in the direction of the house. He thought ‘Maybe this is my girl’s mother! She would come home sometimes with different hair.’ He decided to follow them home. They ran next to the canal he remembered, up the road, past the neighbor dogs that he used to bark and growl at, past the two other houses on the dirt lane, up the hill and down the road, past the failed pheasant farm to home. Home! Oh how good it was to be home! To be where his memories started and ended, where he grew up, the place he knew would always have a place for him. Until now. The thought crushed his happiness. Until now, the words seemed to say ‘You’re dead. You no longer matter’. He had been thinking with his head down when he ran into the older dog. Strykrr had thought they wouldn’t see, feel, or sense him. But she turned and looked at him with amazement, then uttered, “You’re dead,” before walking into the house after her owner. Strykrr thought about those two words. He had felt like there was a way to come back, but her saying that seemed to close his way back. Like it was really true now, he was dead.

 

Strykrr lay outside the house in his old sleeping place, a little hole in front of the house next to the door created from Ben, Shadow, Strykrr, and now Squeaky laying in it for so many years. He slept, happy for the first time in a year. The next morning he awoke with Squeaky’s face close to his, her nose almost touching his forehead. He could feel the anger and pain coming off her in waves. “What?” he asked confused, for he had expected a warm welcome back. “YOU!” she growled, almost howling in anger. “Yes, me,” he repeated, not seeing where this conversation was going. “You broke our hearts, especially our master! She was not the same for several years! All because of YOU!” she yelled, ranting, and wanting to scream her head off. Her stomach was a ball of fire. Oh, how happy it would make her to hurt this dog that broke her family’s hearts! She closed her eyes, breathed a good, long breath. She seemed more relaxed, but her eyes were still angry pits of fire. Strykrr had stood up, shaken the sand out of his fur, and had started across the yard. “HEY!” she yelled, not done with him yet, “Where, exactly, are you going?” she said, running until she was in front of him and blocking his path. His eyes were dull again, as he said, “I am obviously not wanted here. I am leaving,” Squeaky stared at him and whispered, “I know that look in your eyes. You’re hurt.” That made him snap, “Of COURSE I’m hurt! I was in pain, I fell asleep, and I DIED! I find a way home and I am not welcomed, but yelled at and not wanted!” he turned and walked away. Squeaky looked at the ground, feeling horrible. She went inside to hear her owner on the phone talking to her friend, “-I’m going crazy Chelsea! I swear it was a clone of Strykrr. It was a boy, and it had that limp he had, his back right foot never touched the ground, just like him. I’ve got to find him. I still have some hair of Strykrr’s; maybe he had a family before he died. Okay…. Good idea…… Okay, love ya and see ya later!” She ran outside to find the strange dog. Squeaky groaned in frustration, the dog her owner wanted was the same dog she just chased away. Her son, Squirt, heard her groan and said, “What is it mommy? You don’t want another dog around the house?” She looked at him, hating that he thought that and said, “No Hun. I don’t want him around ‘cause he hurt our master. Why would we want him to hurt our master again, do we?” she said. After thinking about it, the small black and white dog shook his head and said, “No. Master is wonderful. I don’t want to have someone hurt her.”

 

            Strykrr watched all this from his hiding spot he found while living. Faith ran out calling, “Tsk, Tsk, Here boy!! I have meat!” then stopped and thought. She had trained Strykrr to answer to a special whistle, only using it when she really wanted him to come to her. She took a deep breath, and whistled, going high for a second, then quickly going to a lower note and raising it again. Strykrr’s ears came up. That was his whistle.  She knew it was him! He burst from the bushes, jumping into her arms like he used to, head butting her chin gently, but not licking, for he knew she didn’t like that. He looked up, into her dark brown eyes. Her eyes said ‘I’ve found you!’ She took a deep breath, and put him down, walking to her blood red truck. She opened the p*censored*enger’s side door, crossed over, hopped in the driver’s side, closed her door, leaned over, and whistled again. His short tail wagged wildly as he threw himself at the truck, jumping in on the floor in his old spot. She leaned across, hauled him up onto the seat, gave him a big hug, closed the door, and then he felt something go across his neck and then heard the click of something clipping together, confirming his thought of a collar. She turned the key, the engine roaring, and slowly backed up. Then she turned wildly and sped off down the long driveway. She slowed only when they hit a big bump, and then sped up again. She slowed down when they hit the actual road, then turned towards town, smiling, laughing, crying, and petting him. Occasionally she let go of the wheel completely, driving with her knee, to give him another big hug. But the entire ride, she had a hand dug into his long fur, grasping a handful and never letting go. She pulled into a parking lot where only a few other cars were. She parked next to a new, blue BMW. She climbed out, closed her door, ran over to his side, and opened the door. She let him out without a leash. ‘Does she miss me so much, she is willing to trust a strange dog that looks like me with all her heart?’ Strykrr thought, realizing for the first time how much his leaving had truly hurt her ‘If I had been in Squeaky’s spot, I’d act the same way’ he thought, his stomach a painful knot full of sorrow. They started walking towards a small, light gray building made out of bricks with a white roof, darkened and dirtied from weather. Over the door was a sign that said MIDDLETON ANIMAL HOSPITAL, but he didn’t know what that meant. They entered; the clear gl*censored* door hitting a bell, announcing their arrival. The floor was covered in gray carpet. Ten feet before the secretary’s desk, the floor turned to black and white checkered tile. The secretary looked up at the clip clip clip of Strykrr’s claws against the tile. She was in her mid-thirties, with strawberry blonde hair piled on her head in a messy bun. Hot pink gl*censored*es were perched on the end of her nose. “Do you have an appointment?” she asked in a soprano voice, her blue eyes searching for that day’s appointments on the computer screen. Faith looked at her and said, “I don’t have one, but this is very important to me. I will pay extra if you can squeeze me in right now,” her brown eyes hopeful. The secretary looked at her, then pressed a button on the intercom and said, “Doctor Freeman?” “Yes Mrs. Harris?” a deep, friendly voice answered. “We have a young lady here who doesn’t have an appointment, but insists what she needs is very important. She said she is willing to pay extra. Send her in?” The little black box was silent for a minute, but it seemed like hours to the dark-haired girl with her dog. Finally she heard, “I’m clear ‘til eight. Send her in. Normal pay.” Faith almost started crying when Mrs. Harris unlocked the door leading into the back rooms and led her back to Doctor Freeman’s office. Doctor Freeman was a tall man, about six foot two inches, with short, dirty blonde hair. He was dressed casually in denim jeans and a plain blue t-shirt under a white lab coat. “So…… what’s so important?” he asked, flashing the smile of someone who smiled frequently. “My dog……..” Faith started, the paused, would he think she was crazy? He smiled again and said, “I can see this is about your dog,” and nodded in Strykrr’s direction. “My dog,” Faith began again, “looked exactly like this. But he disappeared when I was twelve. This dog appeared today, but I believe that it is either related to my dog or is my dog. Same color of fur, same length, knows the same tricks, has the same limp on his back left leg, has the same scar over his nose, same eyes……” she paused, absorbed with looking at the dog at her feet. “Miss?” Doctor Freeman asked, bringing her back. “Dunn,” she replied, then got to her point. “I want…. I would like………. You to do a DNA test to see if there is any relation at all,” she finished, bringing out a small plastic bag with a clump of Strykrr’s fur in it, which she had collected from his brush. Doctor Freeman nodded, taking the bag. He studied it, then said, “It will take a while, but should be done by the end of the week. I will call you then?” he asked. Faith nodded, then took the piece of paper and pen that was handed to her and quickly wrote down her number in a quick, cursive-like hand-writing. “There you go,” she said handing it to him, and then she left.

 

 

Strykrr sighed. Life was normal again, only Squeaky was older, had a puppy, and he was allowed in the house again. He was curled up with Faith on the couch, with Squeaky at her feet and Squirt curled up next to his mother. Faith was flipping through T.V channels, not that he knew exactly what that was, it was just what he heard Squeaky call it. He was tired, for it seemed that Faith wanted to do everything that she had missed in the last ten years, which was how far he was bumped to the future, in a week. They fetched, ran biked, hiked, play wrestled like they used to, and even played their old game where they ‘switched’ places. Faith would give him a piece of baling twine from a hay bale and he would lead her around the house. His eyes were slowly closing, then her cell phone rang. She answered, saying, “Hello? Dunn household.” His ears perked up, for he could hear the conversation. An older, female voice said, “Hey honey. You called?” In her excitement, Faith nodded, then remembered that she was on the phone, and said, “Yeah, but I guess you and dad were ropin’ again.” Her mother said, “Why’d you call today?” Faith petted Strykrr, then said, “STRYKRR CAME HOME!! Or… at least a dog that looks EXACTLY like him did.” He heard a sigh, then a slightly irritated voice said, “Faith, I thought you got over him years ago! And I defiantly thought you got over him when Squeaky had her puppies.” Faith sighed, sounding like her mother, and said, “I was. But then this new dog, or Strykrr, showed up. I am having DN-” then a beeping noise sounded on her cell, and she said, “One sec mum. I have another call coming in.” She pressed a button on her cell and said, “Hello?” A male voice said, “Is there a Faith Dunn there?” She smiled, recognizing Doctor Freeman’s voice, and said, “Speaking. What are the results?” She heard him quietly laugh as he said, “Was this dog important to you?” That question triggered the memory of the pain when Strykrr had left her; a tear slowly crawled down her cheek as she said, “Very,” while looking at her dog. He said, “Good. Then you will be happy to know…….” She held her breath, waiting. He finished “……. The results came in and when you come back I will tell you them.” She scoffed, then said, “That is so not fair.” He loudly laughed and said, “Oh… I know. Then I guess……… You had better hurry down to get them,” she laughed as well and said, “I am on my way.” And they hung up. She opened the door saying, “Common boy. Time to go find out who you are.” Strykrr jumped off the couch and followed her to the truck, where she was holding a door open, and hopped in. She climbed in the other side and drove off.

 

They climbed out at the animal hospital and quickly walked in. His ears twitched at the bell as they walked in. She walked up to Mrs. Harris and said, “Dunn. Doctor Freeman called-” and then he walked in the room saying, “Good, you’re here. Follow me.” Faith smiled at his secretary as she p*censored*ed. They entered his office. He sat down and said, “I’m sorry, but this dog and your old dog have no relation.” Faith nodded and said, “Thank you.” With that she left, feeling let down, but happy all in one.

 

Strykrr sighed. A tear slowly crawled down his muzzle, stopping at the end of his nose for a minute until more joined it and it fell to his paws. It was many years later. Many, many, many years later. He had stayed the same for all these years, but had watched Squeaky p*censored* on of old age. He knew it was coming, so on her last night he laid next to her and told her son, Squirt, to lay on the other side. He whispered in her ear, “After you have seen so much of this world, it will be a paradise where you will still look old, but you will feel like a pup again. You can run, jump, do whatever, and feel no pain. And you can watch over everyone who you love.” When she had left, he told Squirt to lie next to him. He did, and then with tears slowly falling, he laid his head on Strykrr’s back and said, “Good-bye mommy….” Hearing him say that hurt Strykrr so much, he almost couldn’t stand to stay there, but he did. For Squirt’s sake he did. When Squirt had left, Strykrr stayed by Squeaky’s still, cold form. Faith came out of her bedroom to where the dogs shared their room to let them know it was time to eat. She called them with a quick whistle they knew meant food, but was puzzled when only Squirt slowly left the room, walking slowly and hesitantly, like he was leaving something he felt he shouldn’t. She stared at him, then at Strykrr who had not left the room but was in view. The Squeaky came to her mind and she quickly walked a few feet and was at her side. Faith petted Strykrr’s head, then picked her body up and went outside for a few hours. Squirt and Strykrr bury Squeaky in her favorite place, the hole outside the house. When she was done, Strykrr went outside as well and sat next to her, but slightly leaning on her to show her he was there. The house was silent for a few months. Simple things set Faith off crying. When she heard the coyotes, she could hear Squeaky growling in her head. Squirt would whine quietly as well, feeling bare without his mother there. But eventually the house got back to normal, sort of.

 

 Faith had gotten married in those p*censored*ing years as well, and he had p*censored*ed away as well. Strykrr tried to help her through that pain, but what can a dog do to help feel that hole in their owner’s heart? After that, the house was silent. Faith gradually came back to her normal self, only going into dark moments when anyone asked about her husband the first year. She tried her best to play with Squirt like she used to, she was getting old too. Slowly, as she got older, so did Squirt. He no longer ran as fast, jumped as high, nor moved with his old agility.  Then that sad night, just like the one that took his mother, came for Squirt. Strykrr whispered a new thing to Squirt this time, he curled up close and said, “When you get there, remember to tell them not to touch the pool… There is no going back. Life isn’t as fun once everyone you cared about have gone.” Shortly after he was gone. Strykrr stayed there all night and all morning until Faith realized what was wrong and buried Squirt next to his mother, only this time Strykrr was right by her side. That night, and many nights afterwards, Faith didn’t have little breakdowns like she used too. She would just take Strykrr and curl up on the couch with him and turn on the T.V, and just quietly mutter, “Only you and me now. Maybe that’s just how it’s supposed to be…”

 

After running the last twenty years or so through his head, Strykrr looked up again. His paws were soaked from tears. This day was darker than any he had ever seen. They were in a building, dark flowers were everywhere, everyone was silent, the place was dark. A hand pressed against his back, grasping a handful of his fur and gripping it tightly. He looked up and looked into Faith’s dark brown eyes. Only, it wasn’t her. It was her daughter, her only child. Tears were falling down her cheeks, though she was trying not to cry. It pained him to see her cry, for she was all he had left of Faith, and she reminded him so much of her. A man in black stood up and started to talk, “She lived to be a hundred and twelve, but could no longer take it….” But Strykrr was thinking. ‘We have been together for almost a hundred years. Most dogs can’t even live a quarter of that, but I did. And I have to right to have lived this long. For when this is how I must live, I would welcome death…’ He caught only the last thing the man was saying, “…Faith has now p*censored*ed on…” A gasp from her daughter and her tightening hand sent chills down his body. Her daughter was given everything, so she took him to her house, locked it up, then left to live at her mother’s house. Strykrr sighed again. He was almost to the point that he was no longer needed here. He had promised Faith that he would watch over her daughter, but her daughter was old as well, and had not married. But for him, her time was up to soon. Only a year later, Faith’s little girl left him as well. They don’t know what killed her, but since she was so close to her mother, they are guessing a broken heart…

 

 

Strykrr was walking down the street. He was given to a friend to look after him until he p*censored*ed on, which he knew would not happen. He was already dead. He couldn’t take getting close to someone, only to watch them die before he did. He walked until he was almost home again. Suddenly Shadow appeared, or at least half of him did. Strykrr smiled, then realized it was the first time he had smiled in a while. “Strykrr! Jump over my back!” Strykrr was too happy to think about what would happen, so he jumped. He felt something sucking at him, but he didn’t resist. Shadow was beside him and asked, “Are you ready to come back?” Strykrr just nodded. He was going back. He was going to his new home. A home where he would be happy to stay forever.

 

 

 

write more please