A couple of months roll by. Rita had found joy being with her friends each day.
However, she got disapproval from her mother and siblings just for being with them.
She was relieved that Casey had found a home and was out of her life, not sorry that she missed Casey getting sold.
Rita spent her days with Rose, Dodger, and Einstein, running wild with them.
She enjoyed the extra company and was happy that she was away from Casey. That made her more distant from Willow, her twin sister.
Rita had been taught to not involve herself with street dogs, but that changed when
she met Rose and them. She had figured out that her mother was wrong.
Running away didn't seem like a bad idea, but she didn't know how her mother would react. She didn't know if Fagin would even want her, just like every other human she's ever met.
That following morning, she was ready to leave to see her friends again. As usual, she was up when the sun started to rise, ready to be by Rose and Dodger's side.
But, her mother caught her just as she was sneaking out. "Rita, you go on ahead and have fun, okay? Take care of yourself," Chioe said, giving her wayward daughter a nuzzle and a lick to her head.
"I'm sorry you've been dealing with a lot and how it hasn't been fair for you. I just want you to know that I love you,"
There was more that Chloe wanted to say, but the pain couldn't be masked for her
pup, how uncertain she was feeling. She hadn't connected with her all that time they stayed here, so it took a lot of strength just to do this.
"You have fun, okay?" Chloe said, nudging Rita to the window with her snout. Rita
smiled back at her mother before heading out.
As usual, Rose, Dodger, and Einstein were waiting for her. Rose had tackled her to the ground as she always did. Rose and Rita had become the closest over the course of those months.
She earned their respect as she found her footing. They traveled through the city, showing her around more of Manhattan. Dodger had showed her how to move with the city, to be in sync with the rhythm.
He had taught Rose the exact same thing, and she was a natural at it. It felt right to Rita to be on the streets since she had the blood of a street dog from her father.
Rose-was born to be on the street too since her mother was also a street
dog for the most part.
(Central Park)
The puppies made their way down to Central Park, which had the softest grass that they ever walked on. It was Rose's favorite place to go. The three puppies tackled one another and bit each other's ears and tails.
This went on for about 20 minutes until they needed to catch their breaths. Rose
flopped down on her side, panting heavily from how hard they were playing.
"Guys, my mom acted weird when I let earlier," Rita said, laying down with her forelegs in front of her and her hindlegs on the right side of her.
"You mean more than usual, Rita?" Rose asked, turning herself over onto her belly. Her legs were in front of and behind her so her belly was pressed against the soft grass.
Ever since learning that her mother and Rita's mother knew each other, she had
become intrigued with her.
Dodger however, wasn't impressed by her stuck up attitude towards street dogs. He
saw that Rose didn't exactly favor her either. He didn't know if that makes sense to her that Rita would keep coming coming back to them, it sure didn't make sense to him.
She didn't stop me from leaving, she actually wanted me to," Rita said. "She
probably changed her mind about street dogs and sees just how awesome we are?" Dodger asked.
Rita rolled her eyes at him. "Yeah, right. You'd think she did change her mind, make thing more simplier. I don't know if that's why she acted so weird this morning. Maybe I'll come live with you guys, " Rita sighed.
"Are you kidding? You'd fit right in with us! You're just as good as us when it comes to stealing! Rose replied, her long tail thumping on the ground. "Yeah; Fagin would love you!" Dodger agreed, rolling onto his back.
Rita considered this for a moment, bringing herself out of her imagination. "Well, Rose already said something about her family. What about yours, Dodge? Where'd you come from?" she asked curiously.
Rose's estatic demeanor died as if it was water to fire. She glanced over to Dodger,
noticing how he rolled over to his side, facing away from them. Rose's ears dropped a little bit as she looked at Dodger in Sympathy
"Rita... this is personal to him. His mother's not in his life either," Rose grimly said. Rita knew that she crossed a line and fell silent again. She should've considered thing since she's been with them for a few months.
She was distracted when she saw Einstein trying to catch some butterflies. Rose laid her head down on her forelegs, feeling just as sad as Dodger because she was abandoned by her mother also, so she knows just how Dodger feels.
It had become late in the day, the sun was on the other side of the sky. Rose saw
Fagin approaching, making her spring to her paws. "Fagin's here!" Rose cheered,
galloping over to him.
Dodger and Einstein rushed over to him and the three dogs jumped on him, nearly knocking him over. Rita was uncertain about this scruffy looking man, keeping her eyes on him.
Rose held herself up by putting her forepaws on Fagin's left leg, looking at him with bright, wide eyes and her tongue hung out. Rita hadn't ever seen the trio interacting with a human, much less a human who looked like he hadn't been groomed in quite some time.
Sure, she and Rose had scruff to them. Any other time, they would be stealing from the humans just to eat.
Rita wasn't sure if she should approach Fagin. Her hackles were raised up.
But Dodger and Rose glanced over at her with encouragement in their eyes. "Come over here, Rita," Dodger said. "Fagin's great. You shouldn't be scared of him," Rose said, getting down from Fagin's leg and looked up at him.
Rita knew she could trust them and saw that Fagin was their human friend. Rose saw how nervous Rita was and galloped over to her. "Come on," Rose assured, walking next to her She would lead Rita over to Fagin. The two dogs walk up to Fagin.
Rita kept her tail dropped, showing how anxious she was. She wasn't sure if Fagin
wouldn't like her. If that happened, she wouldn't have a chance at this new life.
Sure, Rose was a little hesitant because all the humans she's come across were always mean to her. But she learned to warm up to Fagin.
She wagged her tail the same way Rose did when she first met Fagin. "Who's you're friend, guys?" Fagin asked, kneeling down in front of the saluki mix.
He extended a hand towards her, waiting for her to come at her own time. Rose smiled at Rita, even giving her an.encouraging nudge to help her relax.
Rita walked up to Fagin slowly, letting the man scratch her behind the ears, making
her head tilt to the side. Fagin has been around dogs long enough to know where to scratch.
Rose loved to be scratched behind her right ear, her floppy ear. The saluki mix was relaxed enough to let Fagin pick her up by under her forelegs annd he looked at the tag on her collar. All it had was her name, no address or phone number.
"Hmmm, Rita, huh? Well, hi there, Rita. What're you going way out here, huh?" he
asked, scratching behind her ears again. That reminded Rita that she needed to go
home and wiggled in Fagin's grasp.
She didn't want to be rude as she enjoyed Fagin's company for that amount of time.
Fagin set her back down on the ground. She looked back at her friends as if to say
Sorry, She lost track of time while playing with her friends.
"We'll catch up tomorrow, Rita!" Rose called after her. They watched as Rita galloped away from them, her image getting smaller and smaller. Rose's ears perk up as a thought crossed her mind.
"Something up, Rosie?" Dodger asked, tilting his head to the right. "Something tells me that she's gonna live with us for good. It's a good feeling," Rose said, smiling towards the terrier mutt.
They made their way home, but Rose stopped in her tracks. The collie mix looked over her left shoulder tO where Rita went to, a feeling of worry going through her entire body.
"You comin', Rose?" Dodger asked her. "Ah... actually, I'm gonna follow Rita back to her place. See if she's okay. You guys go on without me, I'Il be back soon," Rose
answered. Dodger didn't feel comfortable leaving Rose on her own, but he knew that
she loved having her own space.
She also knew this city just as well as him. "Okay, be careful, okay?" Dodger said, giving hera confident nod. Rose then turned around and galloped her way in the direction of Rita's apartment. When she got there, she put her nose to the ground, catching the scent of Rita's humans.
The scent itseif was faint, as if they were gone for a long time. That was when she heard Rita cry out, "Mom! Mommy!" She raised her head and her ears, looking in the direction of where the call was coming from. "What's. going on?" she asked herself, trotting to the fire escape stairs.
She jumped on the fire escape stairs until she made it to the open window of Rita's
apartment. The only light in the apartment was the setting sunlight, covering it in
orange, gold, and a little bit of red.
The place was completely empty aside from a few pieces of trash on the floor. "What? Didn't Rita's humans live here? Where'd they'd go?" Rose wondered, looking in the apartment, lifting her forepaws on the window sill, lifting her front half up so she could see inside.
Rose used her forepaws to push herself up and hopped inside of the apartment.
(Inside of the Apartment Complex)
Rose slowly walked through each room of the small apartment, the only sound she
heard was her paws with each step she took. Her hackles were raised a little bit from how tense she was feeling.
The rooms were empty. Rose began to think that it was just a vacant apartment. That was until she heard some muffied paw steps coming from another room, then the sound of soft crying came from the single bedroom that was on the right hand side of the small bathroom.
The rooms were empty. Rose began to think that it was just a vacant apartment. that was until she heard some muffled paw steps coming from another room, then the sound of soft crying came from the single bedroom that was on the right hand side of the small bathroom.
Rose's mix-matched ears raise up when she heard the soft sound. The collie mixx turns around and trots towards the sound of the crying. She made her way to the bedroom, the crying became louder and clearer.
She turns towards the doorway and was surprised to see Rita in the corner, laying on her belly, her right forepaw covering her face with her paw, crying softly. "Rita?" Rose called, tilting her head.
Rita hears Rose's concerned voice and carefully uncovered her face. "R-Rose? Why are you here?" she asked tearfully. Rose walked in the empty bedroom and said, "I had a feeling something was wrong so I came after you. Why is this place empty? Where's your humans? Rose asked, looking around the room.
"They left me. They abandoned me to go someplace else..." Rita said, closing her eyes as more tears fell. Rose's ears dropped when she heard this, her heart breaking. "Oh Rita... I'm so sorry..." she said, laying down beside the saluki mix.
"I'll stay with you tonight. You don't deserve to sleep alone. I know how it feels to be abandoned by someone who you thought loved you," Rose said, closing her hazel colored eyes.
"You do? But you said..." Rita said, snuggling close to her new best friend.
"You didn't hear everything. My mother left me when I was a month old. I was born in the streets. I thought she loved me. But I was too young to realize the truth. She never gave me the attention mother's are supposed to give their pups. There was something about her that said she didn't want to be a mother to me... and my brother. She thought we burdened her and were the reason she got kicked out from her house. But he went missing when we turned six weeks. I don't know where he is now. My mother left, saying she was going to her owner. She never came back. I was on my own for another month until Dodger and Einstein found me and took me into their family. I don't regret making the decision to live with them. You can stay with us. Forget them. I'll take you there tomorrow. Dodger and Einstein will worry for sure," Rose explained, feeling bitterness towards her estranged mother.
Rita laid her head on Rose's forelegs and she went to sleep. Rose waited a minute before she went to sleep also.


Just for the record, Rita's family belongs to AlleyHound. This is a tribute to her.