Zechs and the Furry Beast
By: Reboo
Email: rlw1985@hotmail.com

A/N: This is a little bit different from the rest of the stories so far in the arc, mostly because it focuses on Zechs and the dog, no Lucrezia this time, only mentionings of her.

He ran his fingers through the dog's thick white and black mangle of fur, and attempted a smile as he gently rubbed behind the dog's ears and under his muzzle. When he was a smaller child he had never dog, but now with thhis animal in front of him he understood why people called them man's bests friend. They were always willing to listen, and you never got a response, but normally if you were talking to a dog you wouldn't be looking for one. They were creatures for comfort, ones to console people in their loneliest hour. No matter how forgotten and misguided dby man you were these magnifacent dogs would still be your friend as long as you showed them kindness. This simple animal could bring so much delight into one person's life, and they probably didn't realize it, but maybe that was for the better. Who knew? As he continued to rub the dog, simply to give it some much needed attention he realized exactly what had attracted Lucrezia to this handsome creature. The dog was a friend, and willing to except those whom showed him kindness. The dog was the light within the darkness.

Being so alone in the world, no matter how many friends, and how much of a family you had was what she must have felt, and sensed it in the dog as well. The dog was an exilar for his lonely soul, just the same as it was for Lucrezia's, and they were a comfort to the dog. They needed each other. Some things could not be denied. He had lost his childishness the day his family died, but to the dog that didn't matter. Zechs was Isaiah's friend. That was all that mattered.

It was so much easier to connect with the dog then with humans, and no matter how close any person was to you they would most likely never match the comforting presence of a dog. Lucrezia was Zech's best friend, but she was still so far away, and she probably felt the same way in reference to him. There was so many obstacles in the way, interests, ideas, ethnicity. He doubted either him or Lucrezia had a problem with ethnicity, but there were certain things that you just felt you couldn't tell any other person, but you would freely say to a dog, who would simply be happy for your presence and attention.

With steady hands he placed the walking rope on Isaiah's collar, and let the dog run, pulling him along for the ride. If anyone had seen them they would have asked if he had control and needed help with the dog. The fact was, he had perfect control over the dog, but sometimes just felt like letting the dog walk him, but only to a certain extent. Isaiah trained him to run, and of course to stop rather quickly. It was amazing how well the Alaskan Husky could stop in comparison to Zechs. Frankly Zechs figured the dog had an advantage four legs, which meant you had extra breaking power. He let Isaiah, the dog, lead the way, and followed trying his best to avoid the thorns and bramble which would tear his skin.

Without warning Zechs began to talk to the dog, to spill out some of his darkest secrets. Now you may wonder how a child could have dark secrets, but Zechs had seen things that would make even a grown man shudder. What startled Zechs as he talked while they walked was that to a certain extent Isaiah seemed to understand him, showing with his body movement dislike to certain things. For a puppy the dog was rather nice, and quiet, and seemed very understanding, and sympathetic if those qualities can pertain to animals such as a dog.

Zechs had alloted himself an hours time to spend with the dog that day, and as they headed back to Treize's mansion he began to wonder when he had become so loose with himself and his surroundings so that he could actually talk to the dog. People would think he was insane if they caught him talking to the animal. Of course he had seen Lu talk to Isaiah as well, and Treize had commented that she had had a couple of bolts loose. What would he say if he caught him talking to the dog right now. He understood perfectly well why Lu talked to the dog. He was better than any human companion you could hope for, and was much nicer. The dog looked up at him for recognition as they reapproached the house, and he rubbed the dogs neck, and behind it's ears. He suddenly felt very sorry for the poor creature, tied up, and caged without its freedom. It was like his mask, it was constantly upon his face now when others were around and it was a barrier a cage, a dimishing thing. It made him feel trapped, so much like what the dog must feel like all the time.

Deftly he hooked Isaiah and went and fetched some treats for him, as he had seen Lucrezia do every time after the dog and she had come back from a walk. The walks were comforting, and quite tiring, which was why Isaiah always got his treats and extra water. He returned to the dog and one by one fed the dog his treats, letting him take the things off his hand. It was quite enjoyable to just sit there and watch the dog. Zechs rubbed the dog once more, and left him to finish drinking his water and headed back towards the house, there was always something Treize wanted to show him.

5/16/02