The three puppies spent the entire day together. Dodger and Rose found Rita to be a great pupil. They saw just how quickly the little hound had gotten around in this city. While Dodger taught Rose how to car surf, they both taught Rita how to car surf.

Rose was impressed that Rita wouldn't get herself run over. If Rita made a mistake, they'd be there to help her out. The three puppies spent a lot of time playing tag, treating the city as if it's a gigantic playground.

Dodger was even proud to show the two girls his talent for snatching city-goers of their possessions. Rose was pretty good at it herself, especially when it comes to food. Rita felt uneasy about stealing but soon followed their lead, following into the thrilling act.


Hours went by and the sky started to darken. Rita was aware that she would be missed by her family. She had found Dodger and Rose to be great companions. It was more fun than she had in a long time. She finally found real friends.

Rita turned to head home, much to the other pups' dismay. They frankly enjoyed having another pup to hang around with.

"I gotta go, guys," she sadly said, "My mom's gonna be mad. If you guys come back tomorrow, I'll try to come play with you guys again. Today was really fun,"

"We'll be there, Rita!" Rose said, bouncing from side to side, tongue hanging out. "We'll see ya later then!" Dodger added, feeling just as cheerful.

Dodger had grown up a single pup, while his other siblings didn't live to take their first breath. Rose was basically the same. She does have a brother, but who knows where he was. As fun as Einstein was, he wasn't a puppy anymore.

Rita smiled at this, feeling warmed that these two pups had enjoyed her company. It meant a great deal to her, not feeling so lonely anymore.

And with that, the three puppies went their separate ways. Rose and Rita both felt extremely happy. Rita didn't look forward to being lectured by her mother. She felt more at home with Rose and Dodger on the streets than with her own family.

Even Rose felt more at home with Dodger and Einstein. She found that they were much more caring than her own mother, who had left her alone in the big city, not bothering to look back.


That night, Rita had gotten an angry lecture from her mother about her wayward daughter wandering the streets of New York City on her own. However, her little sister, Willow, was intrigued when Rita had told her where she had been.

The two sisters were close, excluded by the rest of their siblings. It was mostly because she was always butting heads with the eldest of the litter, Casey. The eldest pup always put Willow into submission, demanding attention from her other siblings. The other puppies had already found homes except for the three of them.

Afterward, Casey had changed her attitude towards Willow, leaving Rita as an outsider. Willow avoided being a silly-heart with Rita as long as the eldest pup could see. She wouldn't allow herself to be punished by the more dominant pup.

"Wow, I can see the humans lining up now, wanting to take home a disgusting street dog," Casey chortled. Casey was neater in appearance, her fur a golden color which was kept tidy.

"Look at how good you're doing being unwanted, Rita. It won't help coming home smelling as bad as you look," Casey continued. Rita huffed, "Well, I don't see anyone taking you either. Not sure if you count on the subject,"

"Well, you don't see me running around with flea-bitten street mutts. They aren't worth anything but a needle in the pound. They're just going to drag you down with them," Casey said, looking at her sister as if she was a delinquent.

Rita tried to block out her sister's rant, hitting a nerve. Every pet knew about dogs getting euthanized when there wasn't any use for them. Her fair share of nightmares had always haunted her.

Their own mother shielded her mother from the real terror that they were close to, but she couldn't hold back the anxiety. "Go choke on a bone!" Rita growled, baring her teeth.

Their mother, who was a Saluki, came back into the room after hearing the squabbling between her daughters. "Girls, that's enough. Fighting isn't going to help. I understand it's hard for the three of you, but don't get all worked up," she said, nuzzling each other daughters. Seeing that fighting wasn't going to help anything.

Her mother was named Chloe. She was impeccably groomed, having golden-brown fur which was far tidier than Rita and Willow's. She was a prize-winning show dog, familiar with Rose's own mother, Celeste.

Celeste had been a show dog too and was good friends with Chloe. However, after losing a competition, she was going to be sent to the pound. But she had run off before the humans even had a chance to.

The fact that their mothers knew each other is so bizarre, their own pups didn't know this.


The next morning, Rita decided to go back and visit her new friends. She was eager to get back to her new friends so she could get away from that apartment. It'd be a while before her friends would find her, so she would go find something to eat.

She avoided much more aggressive dogs that were behind fenced-off alleyways. She even practiced car surfing just as Rose and Dodger had taught her. Much like Rose, she felt the outside world so freeing, she could be one with it. She didn't feel like a lonely pup when she's out in the streets.

She envied Rose and Dodger; they were only puppies, but they controlled their own lives. There was a chance that she would do anything it took to live and survive freely on the streets.

Suddenly, she was tackled to the ground by none other than Rose. The collie mix gave her a friendly grin with her tongue hanging out. Behind her was the towering Great Dane with the scruffy terrier mix trotting in front of him.

For a moment, she didn't think they'd find her. She wasn't much of a stranger to them anymore. Einstein was usually a big child at heart, he was excited to have the company of three rambunctious puppies.

The Great Dane wagged his tail at the little hound, feeling enthusiastic to see her. He may have been Dodger and Rose's pup-sitter, but he couldn't take the job too seriously. Unlike Rose, Dodger kept his greeting calm, but his eyes lit up when he saw her.

Since it'd been raining this morning, it brought more amusement to the four dogs. They were able to slide atop the rooves of the cars, scaring the drivers silly, especially when Einstein jumps on it.

The four dogs spend the whole day together, so Rita was anxious to go back home. Rose saw the anxious look on her face, seeing how uncomfortable she was.

"What's the matter, Rita? Why don't you wanna go back home?" the collie mix asked, cocking her head, letting her semi-floppy ear hang limply on her head. "Yeah, what's the big deal? We know you have to go home at some point. Why does it matter when? We were gonna show you more of the city," Dodger added, feeling bitter that Rita had to go home.

Rita looked at her friends, feeling like she owed them an explanation. Rose was curious to know, while Dodger was sulking. Dodger wasn't much fun when he's grumpy, Rose knew this very well.

"It's my mom. She got mad at me last time I came to hang out with you guys. She didn't want me to come and see you," the hound responded. "What's up with her? She doesn't even know us! I bet she'd like us if she did. I mean, what's not to like about us?" Dodger huffed.

"Yeah, we're so much fun! Does she hate street dogs or something? I mean, my mother... she was a street dog. My father was a pet," Rose said, looking at the sidewalk for a minute.

"It wouldn't help anyway. If it makes you guys feel any better, I like the both of you. My father was a street dog, and I think she's kind of embarrassed by that," Rita said. "Embarrassed? How?" Rose asked, feeling offended a bit.

Einstein shot her a look. The Great Dane was eager to listen to Rita's story. "My mother's a purebred Saluki, she is pretty good in shows. Noby expected her to have puppies with a street dog. She really liked my dad, but she wasn't the same after her friends found out. I need to be able to take care of myself because I might get dumped off somewhere. It's hard to find homes for mixed-bred pups. My mom did say my father had some Saluki in him. Humans normally want puppies who're well behaved." Rita said, getting Rose's attention with that last sentence.

"Wait. Kicked out? What kind of dog was she?" Rose asked. "A Border Collie, I think. How come?" Rita asked, tilting her head a bit. Rose felt a shiver run up her spine in realization. She did learn that her mother had been retired early from being a show dog for a reason she didn't know, but she didn't know that her mother and Rita's mother knew each other.

"Rose? You feeling okay?" Dodger asked, watching the uncomfortable look on Rose's face. "I know who's she's talking about," Rose said, dropping her mix-matched ears. The other three puppies looked surprised for a moment.

"You do?" Dodger asked, raising a brow. "She's my mother," Rose admitted. "Really?" Rita said in surprise. "Yeah. Quite the surprise, huh?" Rose replied. "I'll say," Rita laughed.

The four dogs walked down the sidewalk while they continued to talk. "So, how come you came to see us again?" Rose asked curiously. "Yeah, aren't you afraid that the humans will see you and believe you're like us?" Dodger added.

"I like you guys; you're fun to be around. You guys make me happier than I've ever been. You guys are the only ones I wanna be around. Do you guys know what it's like to feel alone?" Rita replied.

Rose's ears dropped at this. "Yeah, I do," "My owners are trying to find us homes before they move out, otherwise they'll just send us to the pound. Guess my mom didn't want me to go there or end up on the street. She means well but I dont feel right being there with her, or with my siblings," Rita said, her expression turning sad.

Einstein looks down at Rose and Dodger, who were beaming in excitement. Dodger glances at the shepherd/collie mix,having the same idea as her. "Say, why don't you come live with us?" He suggested.

Rose's tail wagged feverishly and she pawed at Rita playfully with a big smile on her face. "Yeah, it'll be nice to have another girl to hang out with," she said joyously, "They took me in without hesitation Only problem is, Fagin wouldn't be able to get you since we don't have a lot of money. He'd like you a lot though,"

Rita's tail wagged at the idea. It's what she'd always wanted in her 10 weeks of life. But it sounded too good to be true. "Are you guys sure? I can't just run away from the apartment.

My mother would be devestated and my humans still own me until they give

me away, Rita said uncertain about the offer. Both Rose and Dodger flinched when Rita mentioned her mother. Neither one of them had a mother figure in their lives.

They couldn't help but envy Rita a little bit despite her being just as lonely as them.

She could live with them and have a happier life with them then being in that small apartment.

Sure, this city wasn't always glamorous, but it was better than being stuck in the darkness that was the dog pound. Rose would probably feel the same if she was in Rita's paws.

"Thank you guys. I don't want to be on my own," Rita said. She felt a close connection with her friends, the only

true friends she's ever had.

She didn't know the full layout of this city, so they could help her with it. "See, there's

nothing to worry about," Rose said, putting her left forepaw on Rita's shoulder. She

shook off her envy at Rita and smiled.

"Yeah, we'll get you fixed up," Dodger added, smiling his cocky smile at the saluki mix.

Rita smiled at the mutts and said, "Guess I can hang around a little longer. Do you guys want to?"

"Absitively posolutely!" Dodger replied. Rose's tail wagged vigorously and she spun around in circles. "Yes! Let's do it!" she exclaimed.

"Guess we are doing it," Einstein slowly said, "But first, let's get something to eat,

"Sounds like a great idea. Think you can help us get something to eat, Rita? Dodger

agreed.

"You got it. Where should we start?" Rita replied, feeling joy about this challenge. "Whydon't we let Einie choose since he brought it up," Rose suggested, perking her mix-matched ears up. "Ill take any food," Einie said.

It was settled. They would go to the first restaurant that they'd lay their eyes on.


Hey, my peeps! Sorry I've been away for a while. Had other stories that I needed to work on. Plus, things in my personal life got in the way. My mother passed away two months ago so I've had to stop.
Thank you for reading, my peeps!