I sat by the fence, talking to Juno about a particularly nasty mess the master's boy twins had caused yesterday. He was listening to me intently while nibbling burs out from his paws.
"Boys, they are trouble," he said to me when I had finished detailing the absolute horror on my lady master's face when she had finally seen the piano. "My master's son used to be such a hooligan. I remember when he was involved with a gang; he snuck me out of the house once to show to his friends back in school. The master had been furious!" He chucked deep in his wide chest, I saw him roll on his back through the gaps, "oh yeah, that's the spot."
I chucked, Juno, so empty headed and loveable. My best friend sat up suddenly, ears perked and muscles stiff.
"Somebody's home," he explained out of the side of his mouth as he dashed off and back inside his master's modest mansion. I stood up and shook my coat out, liking the way my collar rattled and side. Stretching my back and legs as I walked, stiff from an afternoons worth of chatter with Juno, I heading for my own house.
I climbed up the back deck and noticed the master's eldest daughter wringing her hands nervously as she sat at the outdoor table set. I came to her and pressed my nose into her hands, trying to ease her frittering stomach. She took my distraction thankfully and started playing and teasing at my coat, humming and explaining to me softly her problems.
I could offer her no explanation but silent company.
In Juno's house I heard the back door slam as someone came out, the suited man jogged over and leaned his arms on the boundary fence, calling for my master's daughter. She immediately dumped me and walked over hurriedly. I followed at her heels, intensely curious to see if they knew each other. I could smell Juno at the side of the fence beside the boy, obviously doing the same thing.
Our questions were answered when the two smashed their lips together in the way humans do with their mating partner.
"Well this is interesting," I said at the same time Juno woofed an I knew it!
Over the months, the two lovers meet many times along the fence, but in places where they could not be seen. They would walk all the way down to the corners of the yard, so far back that you would not have a hope of seeing them even from the roofs of the main houses. One would jump the fence and together they would talk and embrace in the orchards and neglected shrubbery.
They had a strike of daring one particular day, and the teenage boy lifted not only his love over the fence, but reached down for me as well. What an honour it was, the two laughed as me and Juno met for the first time with no fence between us. Finally, we could play and chase one another like all friends should.
He took me on a tour of his territory, and it was marvellous to explore. I snicker from the other side of the fence as my pups finally noticed where I was, bewilder they tried to get me to tell them how I managed to make it across.
I laughed at them and raced off with Juno, teach them for lazing around all day in sunbeams, trying to escape the coming winter cold.
It was much later when the lady and the man told their families about their mateship.
It had been a fun year, but only after I meet Juno. I own him my happiness I realise with no little delusion.
Weeks later, he off handily remarks about leaving.
"What? Juno, you can't leave me! The boys are staring to grow lazy and rebellious and they snap at me now! You're the only dog who will keep my company these days!" I barked at him, could he at least be more respectful when telling me, instead of his usual off hand manner.
"It's only for a few weeks Collette, the city track has finally been rebuilt after the fire! Aren't you excited!" He slammed his front legs into the ground with over boiling energy while my body, a third his size, shivered in rage and anxiety. I had heard horrible stories of dogs that go without company, going mad with loneliness. How long would it take for me to be overcome, a day? A week? Oh! How I will curl up in the horrible, big, silk bed of the master and watch my sons snore and laze like the no goods they were, desperate for any sort of contact. I howled at the misery of it all.
"Drama queen," Juno muttered from his side of the fence, I huffed at him good naturedly and turned my back on him.
"Maybe I will rethink keeping you as a friend." I said in humour, hoping to make him bite.
"Nice try, but no," Juno said, rolling on his back, his favoured position when lazing in the gardens with me. I sighed and turned back around to him, sad that my ploy was seen through.
"I didn't think you raced actually." I admitted to my friend.
"What made you think that? My master is the biggest and best racer in the entire town!"
"Oh really? Then where is all his dogs then?"
"At his other property."
"Sure they are; and you're here instead of there because…"
"Because I'm his favourite!"
"Sure you are…" I teased, rolling my eyes- as if, more like he wished he was the favourite, he was probably lame or injured.
"Colleeetteee!" I heard Juno childishly whine through the breaks in the fence.
Because of their children being engaged, her family and Juno's became quite close. One day, on a day that Juno was away "racing" the two families went out on a walk together like they have become prone to do. Annette and her two sons always came along, as does Juno. Their breeds are signs of nobility, status symbols that the master's love to show.
They walked to this strange place that was absolutely filled with shouting, screaming, jumbling people. She could hear and smell dogs, whirring mechanics and clicking, honking working of sirens and pens.
Soon they made it through and into a special area it seemed Juno's family had reserved for themselves only. They took seats, and for the first time she looked out of her immediate surrounds and observed the background.
It was a greyhound race track. Silas nudged her shoulder, jerking his head down to the muzzled hounds that were being warmed up.
"There's Juno," and as true as day, it was, with the same brown coat, white chest and white front leg which looked like it was in a cast from a distance.
He was wearing a shiny number and his mouth was muzzled tight.
"Well I'll be damned," she whisper, moving as far forward as her lead would allow. Quicker than she expected, the pack of dogs on the track where pushed into boxes and disappear from view. The a loud horn blew, making her jump into the air and her sons laugh, all the humans in the stands started shouting as much as they could and she realised, they were running.
Running faster and more furious than she had ever seen, chasing an object which was only a blur in her eyes. And, three abreast for first place was a black, a grey and Juno.
The announcer screamed into his microphone, "tied for the lead we have Mister Tricky just back from injury, Rabbit Run who is currently being squeezed back and Baby Darn, a renowned champion tipped to win this race today by a long shot. Behind them is-
If only she could understand their language.
And he did, he did win the race by lengths, streaking out like a horizontal waterfall and moving as if the other's had stopped.
After that day she never teased him again. Juno was just happy to have impressed the pretty spaniel next door who made his heart jump.
If only he knew how much she truly, actually, properly, loves him for saving her from haunted visions and troubling dreams. She had been going backwards, but he stopped her in her reversing tracks.
Two months later, she is pregnant again. But happy this time, glowing this time like a swollen bitch should. The owners scratch their heads; the stud spaniel hadn't visited…had she…oh, no.
One day she looked out the window and saw a child run by with a young dog at his heels. She looked just like her, except grey.
Collette thinks her master isn't that bad after all. It becomes apparent that he has no interest in getting rid of neither her two sons nor her next litter.
She is happy, resting in the gardens with Juno, finally happy once more.