"C'mon boy. Come out."

Bill gently tried to beckon the French Bulldog out of the small box in which it sat, to no avail. The more he tried, the further back it squeezed itself. Picking it up, didn't seem like a good plan either. He looked closely at the dog, before standing up. A sigh of defeat passed through him when he did. He'd been at it for half an hour, doing everything he could think of. From patting the ground, to making 'kissy' sounds with his mouth. He couldn't exactly blame the poor thing for being so scared. It had been a regular day, he woke up, worked in the garden for a bit and then went down to the general store. There he greeted John, the man found there everyday and walked through the aisles, searching for the products which he needed. The store had everything he needed, apart from a new pair of work boots. When he got back to John to pay for the items, a small whining sound had come from behind the counter. Curiously he asked what the sound was.

"Oh, it's nothing really, just this little pup I found behind the store this morning. Looks like whoever owned him, abandoned him." John had told him.

"Abandoned? This isn't a big town at all, tracking the owners down shouldn't be difficult at all."

"That's what I thought too. Everyone knows everyone around these parts. Wouldn't surprise me if it were a bunch of travelers passing through. Pity really, small thing is hardly old enough to walk by himself, let alone be without his mother. I've been giving him a few scraps, not the same as milk, but enough to keep him alive...for now."

"What will you do with him?"

"What is there to do for him really? I ain't no mama dog and that's the only way he'll live to see the future. I was gonna' put him out of his misery later today."

"Was?"

John nodded his head. "That was until you walked into my doors. You got yourself a mother dog don't ya'?"

"Yes...I do." He put his hand on his chin. "You don't suppose that..."

John nodded his head again, as Bill trailed off.

"Don't make me decide for ya' Bill, the choice is yours'."

The thought of leaving the young puppy behind to die was too much to fathom for Bill and so he picked the box up and carried it back home, alongside the products he had purchased. Verna was happy enough with his decision. The only ones who hadn't seen the newest member of the family was Rosa and Stormé.

"Any luck yet?"

He spun around at Vernas' voice. "Not yet, he's still a little reluctant."

Verna sighed. "You've been at it for a while now." She appeared thoughtful for a moment. "Why not let Rosa see him? Maybe she could help."

"I don't know, is that really a good idea?"

"Well, we don't have a lot." She shrugged.

"Alright, I'll give it a shot."

"Here she is now."

Bill turned towards Rosa and patted his legs. "Come here girl." She approached obediently and looked up to him, he pointed towards the box and she started to sniff it with a great interest. He watched carefully as she stuck her head into the box, the puppy whined a little at her sudden intrusion, but just as quickly seemed to go quiet. Both he and Verna waited, watching as Rosas' tail slowly started to wag and her head began to emerge from the box. The little bulldog followed slowly afterwards, tucking itself into her fur.


Verna smiled at the scene before her. Stormé had taken a particular interest in the young Bulldog, now named Farace, since the day they took him in. He was understandably a little shy, especially when it came to the females' over the top personality, but the two were seemingly treating each other as brother and sister. It almost looked like they had been bickering just now, before Rosa stepped in and separated the two.