Chapter 2

"So Egon, whatcha make of it?"

Egon shrugged and offered the dog a piece of his turkey sub. The dog picked up the poultry meat delicately and swallowed. Egon continued surfing through the Kennel Club website.

"I would say this canine is an Alsatian, more commonly the German Shepherd. A perfect purebred too."

The dog rolled its eyes, but everyone's attention was elsewhere.

Egon squinted at the screen and nudged his glasses further up the bridge of his nose. "Strange. No picture matches, no name record of Sidus.....Nothing tallies."

Kylie watched as the dog yawned and lay down at her feet as though he belonged there.

"So what do you propose we do?"

Egon scratched his temple and leaned back against his chair. "Well......There's always the traditional Lost And Found ad in the newspaper. If the owner sees it, problem solved. But until then, the Alsatian will have to stay here."

"Seriously?"

The dog was staring at Roland and sending shivers down his spine. "Not that I dislike dogs but, you know, after that ectoplasmatic dog spooked New York's pooches, I don't think I'm keen on being a dog person."

Finding Roland rather boring, the dog was now watching Eduardo out of the corner of its eye.

"Hey, what are you lookin' at?" Eduardo snapped. He was still pretty pissed after the fright the dog had given him.

The afore-mentioned canine growled back in sheer defiance.

Eduardo glared.

The canine accepted the challenge and growled all the more. Its voice sounded like thunder that vibrated the floorboards.

"I'm going to get some water."

The dog's growl immediately wilted. It got up and trotted after Kylie like the lost dog it was.

Eduardo scowled after it. "I hate that @£$%^ mutt."

Roland tried to make peace. "It's just a dog, Eduardo. Take it easy."

"Jealousy, my friend, is one of the many constituents of hatred."

Eduardo glared at Garrett. "What's your point, Roller Boy?"

"Nothing, Peach Fuzz. Nothing at all." /Maybe the fact that this dog gets more of Kylie's attention than you./

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#SIDUS POV#

I follow Kylie down to the kitchen.

A dull brownish black streak of coffee trails across the floor, up the wall, across the ceiling, and out the door frame.

Looks like the Green One got a caffeine bust to boot.

A drop of coffee falls splat on my nose, and I lick it off. Me stupid. Nothing tastes worst than cold coffee.

Sure, I am a dog. Dogs have a sense of taste too.

Sidetracked again. Back to where we were.

Kylie is drinking from her glass of water and watching me.

Coffee's dripping all over me, and I'm freaking out with every bit of the foul stuff that lands in my mouth.

My Dignity flies out the window in search of more sanity-retained premises.

/Okay Kylie, this is not funny anymore. Towel please?

Kylie? Stop laughing.

C'mon. Seriously, being marinated in cold coffee that has toured the ceiling isn't very dandy. Stop laughing.

Fine. Go ahead and laugh. But I'd prefer to be dry, y'know./

About time, Kylie retrieves the box of paper towels from the counter. "Come here, you dummy. You're getting soaked."

/Wow. Really? But thank you for noticing./

Kylie takes out a few towels and proceeds to dry me off.

I never realized how warm or soft her hands are. The feeling is vaguely familiar, but I might be wrong. I mean, this is the first time we are this close to each other.

Kylie rubs dry the back of my neck, and then she fingers my collar. "Where did you get this?"

I just look at her innocently. The truth is, I not so sure myself. It's been on me for as long as I can remember.

Joy. It's just little ol' me with my terrible memory.

"It looks a lot like my brother's. His name is Sidus, too."

That's it. She's got my full attention.

"I remember having it custom made for him, before he left for the army. He never took it off since the minute I gave it to him. He promised to keep it forever."

His chain. My collar. We are both Sidus. The only difference is that her Sidus is dead, and I'm standing right here getting my coffee-drenched fur dried out.

Are we somehow connected? That, I will find out in due time.

Right now, I'll just enjoy the bliss of hearing her speak, feeling the warmth of her touch, and just being close to her.

Is this why I am here? Why I chose to make my entrance instead of remaining hidden in her shadow?

I sure hope so.

#END OF SIDUS POV#

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