Ch 12 Stories
(May 1990)
(Pittsburgh Ohio)
Ever since that tragic day, Rose had taken Whisper as her own daughter. The older dog protected that puppy with her very being from anything that tries to attack them. Whisper had grown close to Rose, seeing her as her mother.
The weather was much warmer, but the nights were pretty chilly. Most nights were really cold, luckily Rose would use her body to keep the pup warm. Rose couldn't be happy to take Whisper under her wing.
She wondered how the gang would react to seeing Whisper. How would her pups react to their new adopted sister? She hoped they'd take her into the gang as their own.
The teen dogs stayed in an empty box that was bug enough for both of them to fit in for the night. When morning came, Rose had decided to teach Whisper on how to get food on the street. They make it to the busiest part of the city where the restaurants were.
"Okay, here's your next lesson, Whisper," Rose said, staying behind an alleyway that was next to a hot dog cart, like the one Louie ran. "What's that, mama?" Whisper curiously asked, tilting her head.
"I'm gonna teach you how to get food on the street," Rose said, looking at her adopted daughter. "Really, how? It sounds fun!" Whisper barked happily with vigorous tail wags.
"Yes, it is but you see, not all humans aren't kind to the canine world. Finding food on the street is hard work, the humans don't just hand it over," Rose explained in a serious tone. Whisper was intrigued.
"Oh… I see. How're we gonna get it?" She asked. "Watch what I do," Rose said, crouching down to be stealthy. Rose kept her ears perked up, her hazel eyes focused on the food.
She waited until the owner of the cart was distracted so she could get the hotdogs. Once he was gone, Rose made her move. She grabbed the end of the rope of hotdogs and took off, ignoring the yells of the person running the hot dog cart.
Whisper watched in awe at what her mother did. "Whoa! You're amazing!" She laughed, wagging her tail vigorously while jumping up and down. Rose trotted to her daughter and through the hotdogs over her back.
"Thank you, hon. Soon you'll be just as good as me. But for tonight, we'll eat good," Rose said, giving Whisper a nudge and a motherly lick to her pup.
The two dogs find a secluded place to have their dinner. At nightfall, Rose had gotten Whisper ready to go to sleep. They were gonna move on in the morning.
"Mama, can you tell me a story? I can't sleep," Whisper asked, snuggling up next to Rose. Rose smiled down at the pup, seeing her innocence in those big blue eyes of hers.
"What story would you like to hear?" She asked softly. "About your home. Where you live. I wanna know," Whisper requested.
"Oh. I don't believe I told you where I'm from, haven't I?" Rose chuckled. "Uh uh," Whisper giggled with a heads shake.
Rose felt herself become warmed by this pup. It felt so good to be able to be able to be a mother again. She loved this pup to death.
"I thought I didn't," Rose chuckled, licking Whisper again, "Well, I live in New York City. Which is where we're going,"
"New York? What's that?" Whisper curiously asked, tilting her head. "It's one of the biggest cities ever.
It's an amazing place to live, especially at night where it lights up in beautiful colors. But it comes with some cons. That's when bad things happen, like getting ambushed, beaten up with an inch of one's life. I've seen and been through so many things to know," Rose said to her.
"Sounds scary…" Whisper whimpered. "It can be, hon. But it's a really fun place to be. You gotta feel the rhythm of the city, follow it," Rose said.
"I wanna learn that," Whisper giggled. "You will, Whisper. My family and I will teach you just how to be a street dog. You learned how to get food, tomorrow I'm gonna teach you how to car surf or jump from car to car," Rose replied.
"I don't know, mama…" Whisper said, sounding nervous about doing that. "Don't worry, I'll be your guide. I wont let you get you get hurt," Whisper promised.
"Really?" Whisper curiously asked. "Sure thing, hon. Now try to sleep. We got a long day tomorrow," Rose assured, nuzzling her. "Okay," Whisper agreed, resting her head between her forelegs. Rose laid her head down and wrapped her neck and went to sleep.