Chapter 11: Bullseye
A/N: In which we meet one of my favorite characters that is often overlooked, Bullseye! I love that dog, especially the way Dodger and Charley talk about him in the novel. Makes me smile! Anyways, R&R! Thanks to all my wonderful reviewers as well, you guys are the best.
Warnings: Contains mentions of a dog mauling, and some disturbing imagery, nothing too bad though. Also some swearing, and a ridiculously bold Nancy.
Xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx
As the weeks passed and night after night went without incident, the worry Nancy felt involving Bill's housebreaking subsided, although she doubted it would ever really die completely. Still, it was to the point now where she could go to sleep if Fagin promised to wake her when Bill had returned home. Being woke up early had never felt so good to the young girl. Every night around four or five a gentle hand would shake her shoulder and there would be a quick whisper of 'he's back, he's safe.' Nancy most definitely liked the sound of that, safe. That word was all the more she needed to hear to slide back into a much more peaceful state of unconsciousness. After about a week they had even revealed the secret to the rest of the gang. Nancy chuckled now as she remembered the moment they found out.
--
"You've been where?" Ace cried in shock.
"Housebreaking," Nancy repeated for Fagin proudly. Bill sat back modestly, as if it were the most normal thing in the world.
"So you 'aven't been at the Cripples?" Johnny said.
"Nope."
"An' you've been riskin' yer neck every night..." Ace continued for him.
"By housebreaking," said James picking up right where Ace had left off.
"Uh-huh," Bill said taking a drink of his gin. All was silent and Nancy figured they were all feeling the same way she had when she had found out. She was proved wrong instantly by little Marshall's cry.
"AND YOU 'AVEN'T TOLD US ABOUT IT?" Fagin and the rest of the lads burst into jubilant laughter after that little outburst.
"Yes yes my dears, old Sikes 'ere is well on 'is way to bein' the greatest man of all time," he said clamping both his hands on Bill's shoulders proudly. For once, Fagin wasn't just saying that. He'd always known Sikes to have a particular deal of promise, but this was better then even he had anticipated. Something upset Nancy about the whole ordeal though, none of the boys were sad...none of them were worried. They looked at Bill as if he had gained a whole new sense of hero status, did they not even consider he might get caught?! Nancy judged the look on their faces and realized...no, they didn't consider that a possibility at all. And why should they? To them, Bill Sikes was invincible.
--
Nancy was pulled from her reverie by the yelling of a very familiar voice not too far off. Turning the corner, Nancy saw Ace battling it out with a strange white dog. The thing was stocky looking and gruff, a stray, just like the rest of the kids in the gang. It had a strange black spot about one of it's eyes that reminded Nancy oddly of a bullseye in a game of darts. The thing couldn't have been more then a year old, it was more a puppy then anything else.
"Get away from me ya blasted mutt! I says get away!" The dog simply jumped about Ace's feet happily and barked loudly every time it was scolded by the boy. "Blast you, get away from me I says!" Nancy couldn't help herself, female instincts taking over, she ran in a full sprint towards Ace and the dog.
"Aww," she cooed kneeling down. Instantly the dog barked with glee and began licking Nancy's face and every bit of exposed flesh he could reach.
"Oh gross, get away from 'er! Nance get away from tha' thing, you don't know where it's been," Ace insisted. Nancy giggled and threw her arms around the dog's bulky neck.
"Don't be ridiculous. Looks to me like 'e's been in the streets, same as the rest of us."
"I'm serious Nance, you don' know where that thing's been. It could be...diseased or somethin'," he persisted.
"Oh yeah, 'e's real sickly looking," she said as the pup bounded around them happily.
"'E could be....dangerous," Ace tried again. Even as he said those words he knew they were ridiculous, the dog had Nancy tackled and was licking her relentlessly.
"Ho-yuss," she giggled "a right born killer this one."
"Oh come on Nancy don't encourage the thing I was jus' startin' to get it away from me."
"Away?" Nancy cried shocked. "Why?"
"What do you propose we do, bring it 'ome wiv us?" Nancy sat there indignantly as she nuzzled her face in the dog's neck and smiled happily.
"I don't see why not," she insisted.
"Oh sure that'd go over well," Ace continued. "I suppose we're just goin' to get the thing to follow us around, pick our pockets for the day, march through the front door with the blasted thing following us like it owns the place and cry out as if it's the most normal thing in the world-"
XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXxXXXXXXX
"Hey Fagin, look we found a dog! It's comin' to stay wiv us now, 'ope you don' mind!" Nancy closed the door as she finished the sentence, Ace shaking his head like she was absolutely off her rocker.
"I was bein' sarcastic Nance," he whined. In response Nancy stuck out her tongue and bounded up the steps, the dog following her loyally.
"A what my dear?" Fagin asked appearing from the kitchen. He was covered in grease and clouded by smoke, squinting his eyes to see through the dim light to see the thing barking at her heels.
"A dog," she repeated, the young puppy nipping at her heels. "Can we keep it?" Fagin sat there as if trying to collect his thoughts before replying to the smiling young girl before him.
"I told 'er not to bring it," Ace defended. "It was all 'er idea!" Fagin sat there staring at the little puppy as if it might carry the bubonic plague. Gingerly, the old man reached down and picked the thing up by the scruff of it's neck. Barking happily, the dog extended it's rough pink tongue to lick the old man's face. If there had been any doubt in Fagin's head, it was erased instantly by that one simple gesture. Chuckling, he set the thing down.
"Certainly my dear, certainly! The more the merrier, eh?" Squealing like a little kid at Christmas, Nancy rushed forward and wrapped Fagin's legs (the only part of him she was tall enough to reach) in a hug.
"Oh thank you Mr. Fagin!" Nancy took a side glance over her shoulder, Ace's mouth was flung open like a door in a wind storm, the child was dumbfounded.
"Yer lettin' 'er keep it?" He asked incredulously. Fagin nodded once and went back into the kitchen, more or less unaffected by the newest addition to the gang.
"Yer responsible for it Nance," he added over his shoulder. "You nick the food for it and such I mean." Nancy nodded and smiled as the puppy jumped about her heels yapping. As soon as Ace had walked away from Nancy she noticed that the dog followed him, and continued to follow him in fact. The dog would not leave the boy's side the entire night, much to the annoyance of his newly found master.
"What's that thing about 'is eye?" Morice asked as the dog circled Ace's feet at dinner.
"Looks like a bullseye if you ask me," James said, tossing the pup a bit of his sausages. All the boys, except Ace, had been tossing the dog scraps all evening long. Still, the thing would not leave Ace's side.
"We should call 'im that," Johnny said decidedly. "Bullseye!"
"I like it," Bill added groggily. He was just getting up to get ready for the evening. "Sounds intimidating." Nancy chuckled inwardly to herself, he would be the one to think like that.
"Alrigh' then, Bullseye it is!" Nancy cried smiling.
"I don't care what ya call the bleedin' mongrel, I just wish it would get the 'ell away from me," Ace said, trying uselessly to get the dog away from his feet.
"Whatcha got against the dog Ace?" Nancy said, throwing another bit of sausage under the table.
"Not jus' this dog, dogs period."
"Why, 'e's 'armless."
"Oh yeah," Ace said, his voice rising. "They're all 'armless, real cute and cuddly like until somebody gets 'urt!"
"What're you goin' on about Ace it's just a dog!"
"So was the one that used to live next door to me but that didn't stop it from landin' me a one way ticket to the 'ospital did it?" All was very quiet following Ace's words for little more then a fraction of a second before the dog barked and Ace jumped like he'd been shot.
"What're you afraid of it?" Nancy asked, understanding dawning on her face.
"Wouldn't you be?" Ace countered. Angrily he pulled up his shirt to reveal huge scars extending all over his stomach and chest. Nancy gasped in horror as she stared at the large purple and blue marks cutting all over his torso. There were distinct outlines of teeth, others were long like claws had been dragged the length of him.
"A dog did that to you?" she choked. Her voice was barely above a whisper.
"Yes! I don' care 'ow little they are, they're still dangerous, the whole lot of um!"
"Come come my dears," Fagin said, immediately jumping in to preserve the peace. "Nothing to fear here, nothing to fear. Civil words amongst friends yes?" Reluctantly Ace sat down, the dog still moving about his legs, attached to him almost unexplainably.
XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX
Bill had just exited the flat that night before all the boys and Nancy began to prepare for bed. Nancy moved across the flat towards where Ace's bed was, her bare feet barely making a sound. The boy had just finished re-arranging his bedding when he turned to face the little girl standing by him.
"Ace," she said quietly.
"What do you want Nance?" His tone was agitated, but not unkind. Nancy figured it was more exhaustion from the day then anything else.
"I'm sorry," she continued. "About the dog I mean. That's just plain terrible, really." Gently, Ace reached down and ruffled her head, so filled with innocent ideas about the world.
"It's alright Nance, I know you didn't mean no harm." She smiled and patted his hand away.
"Stop that," she said, unable to hide her smile. He smiled back warmly.
"Goodnight Nance."
"Goodnight," she said turning to go. As if having a second thought she turned back to the puppy still sitting very near Ace. "Come on Bullseye, come sleep with me yeah?" She walked away, and was all the way in bed before she realized the dog had not followed her. Ace too, seemed oblivious of this fact until he had laid down on the floor by the wall. Slowly, Bullseye climbed next to Ace on the bedding, while every muscle in the boy's body tensed. Quietly, he let out a whimper as he tried to push the dog away. He wouldn't show it so much in front of the others, but he was terrified of the thing. The dog, slowly, as if he understood that Ace was not comfortable around him, crept towards the young lad's face. Ace froze and squeezed his eyes shut, convinced he was about to be torn to shreds once again. Then something rough and moist slid across his cheek. Bravely, the boy opened his eyes to find the dog was licking him. It looked up at him with wide, pleading eyes. Tentatively, Ace reached out his hand and scratched the dog behind it's ears.
"Good boy Bullseye," he said as the thing curled up next to him to sleep for the night. "Good dog."
A/N: Now we all know who the dog's attached to now, and who Bullseye winds up being the dog of later in the novel. Hehe kind of makes you wonder what's going to Ace doesn't it? ....NO? Well it should! .....-ahem- anyways please review. :-D