Chapter Eight
Out on the streets of Camden, the day was already underway. Cars and buses drove by. People walked down the sidewalks, the majority of them glued to their smartphones. Above, the sun shone through the scattered cloud cover, providing the city a warm, summer's day. In the middle of it all were the four Dalmatians. Pongo and Perdita were looking all around as they walked, taking in their surroundings in a manner reminiscent of tourists. Dylan was at the head of their group, marching forward with a look of vibrant enthusiasm on his face. Meanwhile, Dolly was characteristically bouncy, jumping up and off the lampposts and mailboxes they passed.
Dylan began speaking, "Okay, I've got the whole day planned out for us, everything needed to get you two acclimated to the modern world." Pongo nodded, with Perdita remarking, "I think yesterday proved we need all the help we can get!" Dolly chimed in energetically, "And I'll be here to make sure Dylan gets it right!" Dylan rolled his eyes at Dolly's snide comment, "Well, I guess two tour guides are better than one. Now, where to begin?" Dylan stopped to think for a second, and then said, "I know just the thing to start us off!"
Dylan led his party down several blocks until they came to a bridge over a canal. Beneath the bridge lay several garbage bins, emerging from which were sounds of rustling. Dolly hopped ahead towards the bins and rapped against their sides, "Hey guys, how's it going?" The rustling sounds stopped, and three creatures poked their heads out from the bins; a slender red fox with a protruding gold tooth, a scrawny-looking squirrel and a stout rat with a patch of purple hair and flowery tattoos. Dylan smiled and turned to Pongo and Perdita, "Aunt Perdy and Uncle Pongo, allow me to introduce Fergus Fox, Sid Squirrel and Big Fee, AKA the Canal Crew. Nobody knows more about the streets of Camden Town than these three!"
Pongo and Perdita were slightly put off by the sight and smell of trash, but still managed to smile politely. "Pleased to meet you…uh, the Canal Crew was it?" Perdita said. Fergus wore his trademark cocky grin. "The one and only, my spotty friends," he said with a charming Irish brogue. Jumping off the bin, Fergus swaggered over to the two elder Dalmatians, "I take it you two aren't from around here?" Pongo answered, "Well, we are originally but we've been out in the countryside for quite a while." Perdita nodded in agreement, "You could say we're a little out of touch with how things work nowadays." Fergus chuckled with tangible sass, "Well, we can certainly help with that in the food and drink department." Big Fee smirked in kind, "Especially if you're in the mood for some tasty human food!" she remarked in her gruff, gravelly voice. Sid nodded twitchily, "Or some tasty nuts, hehe!"
On the topside of the bridge, Fergus, Big Fee and Sid moved sneakily towards a bus bench. On the bench sat a human with orange hair, a brown grocery bag in one hand and his smartphone in the other. His eyes glued to the latter, he failed to notice the vermin pilfering food items from the bag. Carrying their ill-gotten gains, the trio hurried along the bridge and ducked into a nearby alleyway.
In the alley sat the Dalmatian quartet, all curious as to what the Canal Crew would bring back. The three rascals arrived almost on cue, each placing their stolen snack on the ground. Dylan and Dolly chuckled at their friends' success, but Pongo and Perdita were unsure of what to make of what lay before them. The three items were both familiar and unfamiliar at the same time: a small mason jar full of an orange-yellow cream labeled "Hummus," a cardboard box labeled "Avocado Toast and Spread," and a stack of shrink-wrapped meat patties labeled "Impossible Burgers: 100% Made from Plants."
Pongo tilted his head in curiosity, while Perdita voiced her confusion, "What on earth are these things? Is this really what people eat these days?" Fergus snickered with palpable snark, "Hey, don't knock it till you try it!" He then ripped open the plastic and started gnawing on a burger, "Who says eating healthy can't be yummy too?" he said with his mouth full. Perdita winced slightly, "Aside from your lackluster manners, I suppose you have a point." Perdita then pulled out her own meat patty, taking the smallest of bites from it with her eyes closed. Her look of unease soon disappeared, her eyes opened in surprised delight as she ate enthusiastically.
Upon finishing her snack, Perdita licked her chops and looked towards her mate, "Oh Pongo, you must try this, it's delightful!" Pongo looked at his mate with a skeptical expression, "How can it possibly taste like meat when it's not even MADE of meat?" Perdita shook her head while continuing to smile, "I swear, you'll never tell the difference." She then grabbed another patty and let it dangle from her mouth, offering to share with her partner. Pongo overcame his skepticism and took a bite, the couple each nibbled on half the piece of pseudo-meat. Pongo's face lit up as he began to enjoy the taste. As they finished eating, the couple's noses touched, at which both of their faces brightened further.
Dylan and Dolly both made exaggerated gagging noises at this display of affection, with Dolly remarking, "Ugh, it's like when Mom and Dad kiss, but somehow ten times worse!" Dylan nodded, "Well, since my appetite is gone, you two can have the rest of the food." Pongo and Perdita turned their heads, clearly enthusiastic about broadening their culinary horizons further. Pongo opened the jar of hummus with his jaw, while Perdita chewed open the box of avocado toast.
Licking out a mouthful of the orange goo, Pongo's look of excitement turned to disgust in an instant, spitting it out as fast as possible. Oblivious to her mate's dietary revulsion, Perdita happily munched on the crunchy bread and green spread. Dylan comforted Pongo as he frantically tried to scrape the taste off his tongue by paw, while Dolly and the Canal Crew couldn't help but giggle at his misfortune. Finishing her bite to eat with gusto, Perdita looked up excitedly, "The modern world is starting to grow on me."
Fergus and his fellow rapscallions chuckled, "You really are out of touch, aren't you?" Pongo, having shaken the unpleasantness from his taste buds, scowled slight, "I think that's putting it mildly." Dylan rolled his eyes while smiling, "Well, now that we've let you sample some of our cuisine, how about we move on to the next part of our tour?" A perky-eared Dolly then jumped on top of Dylan's head, much to her brother's chagrin. "Now it's time for some winging it. And I know just the place where we can have some epic fun! Follow me, fam!" Dolly bounced down the street, followed closely by the other three Dalmatians as the Canal Crew waved goodbye to their spotted friends.