Dylan Dalmatian, was a very worried puppy right now.
The same was his stepsister Dolly Dalmatian, the only diference it was that she knew a little more how to hide it better, with her more hyperactive and carefree attitude.
"It doesn't seem like Hunter is going to do anything Dylan"
"We don't know that yet, Dolly," Dylan said, always ready, with his wineglasses waiting for what was happening in front of him and his stepsister, "Hunter could be up to something right under our noses"
dolly just rolled her eyes, "Dylan, we have been spying on Dixie and Dan playing Hunter for over thirty minutes," I suppose, "if he was planning something, don't you think I would have done something already?" she asked, a little more than annoyed by her brother's constant suspicions.
"...", Dylan just kept silent, not quite knowing how to respond to his obviously bored stepsister.
Dolly rolled her eyes at Dylan's silence, "Look Dylan, if this bothers you so much that Dixie and Dan are playing with Hunter, why don't you just tell mom or dad what they're doing?" she turn it to see it directly.
dylan brushed her stepsister's paws off her shoulders, "No Dolly!" I bark, "Mom and Dad don't need to know this!"
"What? but-"
Dylan rushed to interrupt her sister, in a slightly softer tone, "They've been very stressed lately, Dolly ... Besides, Dixie hasn't apologized to Dad yet."
Dolly just raised an odd eyebrow, "What are you talking about?" she asked puzzled, scratching her chin with one paw and looking away, remembering, "She and Dan apologized to Dad as soon as we all got home."
Dylan just shook his head, as he returned to point his binoculars towards his brothers, "Dan apologized to Dad, Dolly"
"Well yeah, but everyone knows that Dixie doesn't like to talk to much-"
"When Dixie accidentally ruined one of Constantine's bonsai trees ...", Dylan interrupted again, in a flatter tone, "... She personally apologized to him ... She don't need Dan for that"
Dolly paused for a moment, looking up, remembering that specific moment.
"These ... Are you really mad at Dixie for not apologizing to Dad? "
"I didn't say that", A little too quickly for Dylan to respond, still focusing on the task at hand of stalking Dix-Hunter.
Dolly widened her eyes, "Oh, brother." The realization hit Dolly all over her snout. "You're totally upset with Dixie for not apologizing to Dad."
"And I repeat, I didn't say that" Dylan said through clenched teeth, watching Hunter throw one of the tennis balls without any enthusiasm for Dixie to go get it.
Dan was also patiently waiting his turn on the bench.
"Wow, this is ... new even to you Dylan" Dolly stood behind Dylan, only to see how his assumptions were correct, as his stepbrother was following Dixie's movements with the binoculars and not Hunter, "I mean I can't remember a single time when you got upset seriously with none of the pupps "
"I'm not mad at Dixie!" Dylan barked at his stepsister, only to quickly panic and dive deeper into the bush they were hiding in along with Dolly, to whisper, "I'm not mad at Dixie, okay? I'm just worried, that's all."
dolly with a flat face and blank eyes, "Again, if you're so concerned about this, we should just tell mom" she said rolling her eyes, "there's no reason to make this more complicated than it surely already is"
Dylan looked away from his stepsister, "It's not that simple Do-"
"I'm pretty sure yes, it's simple enough brother" Dolly interrupted more than annoyed by how stubborn Dylan was being, "so simple that in fact, we just have to go home, tell Mom, and wow!" he gestured with his exploding paws, "problem solved, she takes care of this, and we stop stalking our two younger brothers hiding behind a bush with a pair of binoculars"
After a brief competition of glances, Dylan returned to his task of stalking while saying: "... Nobody forces you to stay, you know"
dolly just sighed and crossed her legs, with one currently massaging the bridge of her muzzle, "You have the slightest idea of how strange and bad you would look right now if I had decided not to come with you, Dylan" he questioned opening only one eye towards Dylan.
dylan suddenly turned around with one paw up, ready to respond, but his eyes played a bad game on him and he was well aware of all the spy tools he had brought with him, the binoculars, a camera, the many photos collected of Hunter chasing a balllike a dog, one specifically from Hunter bathing in the park pond shirtless, and one sock allegedly from Hunter.
"... Wow"
Bow-Wow!
"You stole the barks from me, brother," Dolly said as she kept her eyes on the direction in which Dylan was now looking, "and you know, I totally regret what I said before, this looks just as bad, or terribly worse, if im here with yo or not "specifically pointed to the photos where Hunter was missing some parts of his clothes.
"So, or, you give me a very good reason to keep allowing this, or i- hurk!"Dolly stopped to vomit a little in her mouth, she was about to sound like Dawkins, not at all like her, "i will accused all of you with mom, and ended with your very sick and strange obsession with Hunter, as simple as that" He crossed his paws waiting for Dylan's response.
Dylan was surprised by this, but again, he just tilted his head away, not finding the situation very comfortable where his naughtiest stepsister had to return him to his five senses.
And of course, Dolly was able to catch this, "look Dylan" got attention, "I know that with Hunter around, Dixie and Dan playing with him, and the pupps still getting over the whole burning ship incident, it's affecting you in a bad way ... "
Dylan snorted, "It is wrong to put it too lightly."
Dolly just rolled her eyes, "I know I know, but ..." she sighed, withering a little, looking tired, "... This is affecting me too, Dylan" she was no longer really smiling, the mask it fell.
not every day you discover that a crazy woman is looking for all your very loving family to kill her and make clothes with their fur.
Dylan noticed that, "... I'm sorry, Dolly."
"Yhea, I know you sorry ..." dolly sighed and nodded, "... but getting back to the point ...", she pointed to all the spy tools and photos, "this, all this, this type of dog its not exactly what neither you nor me and the pupps needs, wath we need now it's our brother, "he placed a paw on his shoulder," we need you brother ..., I need your help ", the situation at home has been difficult.
Dimitri 1, 2, and 3, no longer play pranks as much as they used to.
Deepack has nervous episodes and is staying with constantine.
Dante is more taciturn than normal.
Dj has a creative block.
Triple Ds don't want to leave home.
Da Vinci is obsessed with finishing a painting.
Dawkins has night terrors and is not for a moment separated from his positronic princess.
Delgado just wants things to go back to the way they were before.
Dizzy and Dee dee feel bad about the swear words Hunter barked at their dad, and they both have questions, why did the funny face want to return to the fire.
"I ... I can't handle all this alone Dylan," Dolly shook her head, wiping away a few tears originally, "..., I'm not strong enough to carry all these things by myself, nor do I think you are either "
"Dolly I-!"
Dolly only raised one leg with both eyes closed, "stop ...", she opened her eyes again to give him the look but it would be that she has never given her stepbrother in her life, "you know what? ... I won't tell mom what's going on here ... but I just want you to tell me the truth ...the truth of why you're spying on Hunter like this "
Dylan ... For the first time he felt that he was really failing as an older brother ... and what he was about to say potentially only upset his half sister Dolly.
"I am concerned ... About Hunter"
Dolly blinked, "..., alright ... continue "
Dylan sighed lowered his head, "... It's been a week now since he hasn't left the park, Dolly ..." he said, "... And he only moves when Dixie and Dan bring him kibble to eat, or when feel the need to clean ... "
Dylan looked up only to see Dolly nodding, surprising him greatly by waiting for her to continue.
"... And that's another thing, it seems that Hunter can not eat anything other than Kibbles"
Dolly raised both ears in surprise, "seriously?"
Dylan only stepped aside his stepsister Dolly while sighing, and took one of the photos showing Hunter crying red-faced over the wrapper of a half-eaten burrito,
"... hunter has played all this time according to our rules Dolly "Dylan said, drawing Dolly's attention out of the awful photo," ... And look where did it taking him "
"Dylan ... you remember what mom and dad told us about Hunter ... right?"
"That he's sick and he needs professional help ..." Dylan nodded slowly, "yes ... I remember Dolly, very well actually"
"Then why-?"
"I've been waiting for that help to come ...", Dylan quickly interrupted, "... I've been waiting a week for someone to help him ..." he remembers very well and in detail that humans would only approach a safe distance from Hunter for the purpose of taking a photo of him while muttering something about a eccentric hero, then not return with the professional help that her parents had told him about.
"But only Dixie and Dan have been close to him all this time ... And they are not professionals Dolly !, they are not! They are just puppies, just like you and me"
Dolly instead of giving an answer at that very moment, just silently turned her attention in the direction of Hunter, who now seemed to be just sitting on the bench with an apathetic expression as he watched the silence of Dixie and Dan chasing each other happily.
She ... She did not know how to feel about this Hunter right now.
For Dolly, it was much easier to just tease Hunter when he acted like none other than a clown while trying to catch them.
Hunter was an enemy at the time, kind of funny one, yeah, but he was still a threat to watch out for.
So ... it was easy just not thinking too much why he was doing what his great-aunt Cruela De Vil ordered him to do.
he was a De Vil, after all, with the same essence and everything, his parents told them how determined and vengeful they could be.
and Hunter proved himself far more than a true exponent of the De Vil surname, when he painfully released and commanded all that same determination characteristic of a De Vil in the task of freeing his brothers and parents from his great-aunt Cruela De Vil.
Hunter, unconsciously in those moments he acted as nothing less than a Hero in that burning ship ... but ... what did he lose on the way?
So, ... a question was born from the deepest core of Dolly Dalmatian.
"Where are his parents?"
"Huh?" dylan raised an eyebrow, not expecting that question.
Dolly just turned her neck in the direction of her brother, with a puzzled expression, "I mean ... Eh, Hunter is still a kid, right?"
Dylan just nodded, still not quite sure where his stepsister was headed with that question.
Dolly struggled a bit to find the right words, "well, isn't kid just another word to say puppy?"
"Well, technically" Dylan shrugged and nodded as he choked out his chin.
Dolly nodded, then pointed at Hunter "...where are the parent's of that puppy", she said, just to continue a little more annoyed with the following," ... or any family for that matter? "
Dylan just rolled his eyes, "... Dolly, you know what happened to-?"
Dolly just rolled her eyes and sighed, "yeah yeah, I know wath happend to cruel Dylan" she said, "but still, I don't think Cruela is his only family ... it was?" She ended up swallowing.
"Well, yes, in fact Dolly," Dylan confirmed, making Dolly jump a little, "... from the little I've researched on the Internet, Hunter is currently the eighth heir to the De Vil fortune ... and that he is a test tube baby "
Dolly raised an eyebrow, "what is ... a test tube baby?" I ask, being the first time I heard that word.
Dylan raised a paw as he entered explanation mode, "It is a term commonly used when humans extract a-"
"In Canine, Dylan" Dolly stopped him, before his stepbrother could proceed with his surely very long explanation.
Dylan just rolled his eyes, annoyed, "basically, Hunter was cast in a lab," he said, but he saw that Dolly didn't quite understand, and decided to put together a little more, "...even more basically, they locked him up like a fetus in a glass container and artificially fed him until he was ready to come out of it. "
Dolly blinked silently, before asking, "... what is a fetus?"
Dylan sighed rolling his eyes, "...what Dorothy was like before she got out of mommy's belly "
The realization lit up Dolly, "OOoohh, that sounds soo bad" and terrifying and sick, and many other words that she just didn't feel like saying.
"Actually, it's not as bad as it may sound ..." Dylan said, raising a raised eyebrow at Dolly, "... Some of the puppies from my mom in our home are test tube too," he shrugged.
"" Really? "" Dolly and ... Dan asked surprised by this new information.
Dylan just closed his eyes as he nodded, and tried to remember the names of those puppies, "yes, if I have to remember correctly, I think they are, uh, Damien, Dexter, Dwaine, Delaware and ... Dan !?", he asked scared when opened his eyes and discovered his brother next to Dolly ... listening carefully.
Dolly also jumped when she turned her neck to the left and found her brother sitting next to her.
"Wow ... all this time I've been a jar puppy?" Dan reflected with a paw on her chin, "... Every day I learn something new, I guess" she ended with a shrug.
"D-dan, how much of this did you hear?" asked a trembling Dylan.
"Hm?" Dan parted from his musings by lifting both ears in Dylan's direction, "... Well, uh, you two were talking about human babies, wasn't it?" he asked, as he focused his vision on the spy tools scattered across the bush as well.
"... Should I ... worry about whatever is going on here?" Dan fearfully point to multiple photos of Hunter in all sorts of positions while cleaning himself ... and a sock.
the two brothers only shared one look in silence, before Dolly took the initiative and responded.
"... No"
Dan just blinked for a moment, "er, okay, I guess," he walked over and grabbed Hunter's sock, "just ... Gonna, I'll take this ... "then he went back and took a red disk that wasn't there before," ... and this, and I'll just pretend that I didn't see anything, I think, uh, I think it's the best thing for everyone here "then he jumped through the bush towards Hunter and his sister, while shouting "Hunter! I found your sock behind this bush! "
Dylan and Dolly just stood still for a moment watching the direction Dan had gone, just watching
Finally, Dylan and Dolly's shoulders slumped in relief, when they realized that Dan surely wouldn't say anything he had just seen, "... We should go home now," Dylan sighed.
Dolly nodded as she also returned her attention to Dylan's tools, "... and finding an appropriate place to burn all these things"
Dylan nodded almost instantly, "... Yhea, that too" moving to take all her tools, "Can you help me?"
Dolly just shook her head as she took a step back from Hunter's photos, "I've already followed you here, bro," she said, "no way you can convince me to also add the traces of my paws on all of these clear evidence of child stalker "she excuse herself with one mocking smile.
Dylan just rolled his eyes with his ears drooping, not deigning to reply to his stepsister, as he took all the photos and tools inside a small bag and hung it on his back.
Meanwhile in the Dalmatian home ...
doug Dalmatian, was a very worried dog at the moment.
The same was his beloved wife and mother of his puppies, Delilah Dalmatian, she was also a very worried dog, only that she was better to hide it given her more professional and clinical attitude about it.
the worst nightmare of both adult Dalmatians; Cruela De Vil, had seen its tragic end at the hands of its sole heir Hunter De Vil.
These events had drawn too much attention from the public eye.
Argentino, that a family of 101 Dalmatians who illegally inhabited a home that did not pay human taxes.
Did not need.
It was already generating enough controversy between both parents to allow some of their puppies (Dallas, Destiny, and Deja Vu) to participate in television productions all the time.
It was very dangerous.
But ... it also became a necessity with the large number of puppies they currently had.
Those humans who hired their daughters to advertise dog food, among other things, gave them an almost limitless amount of kibbles that warned their children of hunger.
They were quite useful, given that Delilah and Doug were not really making enough money to support all of their puppies.
It was a rather delicate operation at the same time that titanic, the one that both parents could maintain their home without the presence of a human.
Captain Walker, official owner of Doug Dalmata.
Doctor Dave, Official Owner of Delilah Dalmata.
Those two were important enough pillars to keep the most basic Dalmatian household operations running, the light bill, the water bills, and the vet papers for each of the pups were in both Dave's name and Captain Walker.
the only problem was that ... both Dave and Captain Walker ... They were not entirely aware that the barcodes on their dogs' accounts were connected to their debit cards.
Delilah and Doug were extremely careful with their finances, of course, they did not want to get their humans in trouble or bankrupt them, they wisely invested part of the money in the stock market to create an account, which although it was in the name of their humans, technicallyhe was also independent of them.
But now with all this new unwanted attention ... They, regardless of Delilah's reluctance, needed a human.
A human.
They had nothing against them.
but ... it was very difficult to make the transition from being a dog that achieved independence, to suddenly knowing that it was really only temporary and that at any time someone could call pest control to get rid of everything you had achieved until the moment.
Then there was the fact of becoming pets.
They ... knew that over time their children would have to make a difficult decision, from being wild dogs to being pets.
the 101 dalmatians' house was only a temporary dream, the pupps would cease to be pupps at some point and would have to cope in the real world.
But it didn't have to be ...
..they just ... they needed a human among all who had enough money and influence to convince theirs to allow the existence of the eccentric and very colorful home that housed 101 Dalmatians on 101 Dalmatian Street.
... Now there was one ... The problem was ...
"No, Doug" Delilah firmly shook her head, inside the closet where she and her beloved Doug slept together.
"Come on Delilah ..." Doug pleaded, "... he's just a boy and he needs help."
"Don't give me that Doug ..." Delilah sighed as she shook her head with both ears drooping, "...we cannot help him here, what he needs now is the help of a human professional "
Doug only withered at the refusal of his beloved, "... But ... we need it"
"We don't need a hum-"
"Yes, Delilah!" Doug interrupted, "yes, wee need a human, I'm sorry for raising my voice, but ..." he apologized lowering his head, "... You're being very irrational with this"
"I am not being irrational!" Delilah rose above her husband, "...We will think of something ... "Then he softened a bit giving him a smile," ... as we always do "
I give just shook her head, "Time is running out Delilah ..." she said, "...clarissa's human starts to become suspicious again, and this time we can't just take the puppies on a vacation far away until he calms down ... "then sighed with her ears down," ...not in the current state of mind "a father never enjoys seeing his puppies so scared and nervous.
Delilah grimaced, feeling the truth hit her right in her most emotional fibers, "Doug ... what do you want from me?"
"I just want you to think things through Delilah ..." he sighed hugging his wife, "... I know that our family is more important thing to you in this world" he said "and now ... What our family needs is a human ..."
Delilah returned the hug enjoying the scent of her husband, and sighed in resignation, "I know Doug"
Doug pulled Delilah apart enough to see her head on, "Look Delilah, if you still think we can fix something without the need of a human ...I'll wait for you, I believe in you "he gave her a small lick with a sure smile," ... But don't let pride cloud your mind ... we don't have to prove anything to anyone just to live without a human "
"I know Doug" Delilah happily returned the affection to her Doug, "...I only ask you to give me a few days to think better "
"... Delilah, a week has already pass" he said with a sigh, "I need you to give me something better than that ... Just to be at peace with myself"
Delilah bit her lip for a better answer, but when she was about to answer ...
The bell rang.
Both pairs of ears perked up at the sudden sound input, knowing full well that they now had a responsibility to open the door since they were still in alarm.
both dogs rose from their places, separating from their huddled state, not before sharing a glance with each other to make it known that the discussion was not yet over.
By the time Delilah had reached the stairs, Doug was following hear.
some puppies on the way to the entrance were already prepared to enter their respective hiding places.
Leaving, sadly for both parents, free the hall for their loving parents to check who was on the other side of the door.
by the time they were in front of the door the doorbell came alive again, but this time accompanied by a very light knock on the door.
Delilah and Doug shared a somewhat puzzled look.
They weren't expecting anyone, and the puppies were still not allowed to invite their friends over to the house. (Not to get them involved, of course)
Who could it be?
Doug only gave a shrug to his wife, and just lifted the grill slightly to see who was on the other side of the door.
he was none other than the same apathetic Hunter De Vil, eighth heir to the De Vil fortune, and current trending star known to humans as: wealthy wacky superhero hero, saluting his vision from the other side of the door.
... holding a pair of dalmatian puppies peacefully asleep under each arm.
(To be continue)
