Scamp shook as he saw his old adversary, Reggie snarling and growling and tugging upon his chain. Scamp could see by the lighting of the fireworks that Reggie was making progress in breaking a link on the collar that kept him stuck to the wall. He could smell the big dog's hot breath like a heat wave in August.
A burst of red light and Reggie burst free of his chain. Scamp could do nothing to stop what was about to happen. Reggie grabbed the little puppy in his mouth and shook him in his mouth. That was right about when Scamp's father, Tramp burst through the door.
"Get your paws off my-" but he stopped midsentence when he realized that Scamp was in the big monster's mouth! He stood horrified for a second before his fatherly instincts kicked in. He rushed to the cage that his son had been dropped in, and using the smarts he had learned out on the street, he unlocked the latch.
Realizing that he was going to get more trouble than the puppy, Reggie threw Scamp to the side, where the little guy fell in a heap. Tramp launched himself right at the large dog, throwing his whole body weight against the big mastiff's throat, that managed to stun the big brute for a minute, but it was a minute Tramp didn't waste. He quickly picked his son up in his mouth, and rushed out of the cage, using his hind legs to shut the door right as Reggie charged him. That impact rendered the mastiff unconscious.
Tramp let out a sigh of relief as he gently placed his son's limp body upon the stone floor. Scamp had deep bite marks in his body, and the impact from being thrown against the wall with such force had clearly broken something. Tramp gently licked his son's cheek. Scamp struggled to open his eyes.
"Dad?" he asked. Tramp looked upon his son with deep concern.
"Dad, I'm sorry about everything I said. About wanting to be on the run, to leave home and live with Bruno. I don't wanna be a junkyard dog anymore, I wanna go home, and be with you, Mom, my sisters and the Darlings," Scamp said as his body shook, tears coming down his face.
"I'm sorry too Scamp, I may have been a little rough on you, but that was because I cared, I understand how glamorous life on the wild side could seem, but sometimes, things aren't always what they're cracked up to be," replied Tramp as he started to cry too. Then the dogcatcher came in.
"What have we here? The one who got away?" he asked with a sneer. Tramp poised himself over his son in a defensive manner, but then Angel bit the dogcatcher right on the keister. He dropped his net with a yelp and in his confusion, he bonked his head which caused him to faint. In a different situation, this might have been funny. Angel rushed over to Tramp and Scamp and a horrified look spread across her face when she realized the true gravity of the situation.
"Dad, take Angel home. All she's ever wanted was a family to call her own. She deserves that. Tell everyone, I love them," said Scamp before his eyes clouded over and he shook no more. Tramp tried to nudge his son, but it was no use. His son was gone.
"Come Angel, you're coming home with us," he said.
"Us?" asked a confused Angel.
"I'm not leaving my son here," he said as he gently picked up Scamp's body in his mouth and slowly walked out with Angel following. The crazy dog who had first acknowledged Scamp's presence in the pound for once had nothing to say.
The two of them made it back to the Darling home where Lady and her three daughters were already waiting on the front porch. Annette started barking madly which got the humans inside to realize something was up. The female dogs ran to Tramp but when they saw who was in his mouth they stopped dead in their tracks. Tramp gently placed his son's body on the ground, tears still falling from his face.
"No," responded Lady as she looked upon her son's body.
"We were too late to save him," replied Tramp. The humans came to where the dogs were but when Jim saw the scene before him, he made an attempt to block the view with his own body.
"Darling, Junior shouldn't see this, not at his young age!" he exclaimed. Darling covered her son's eyes and looked around her husband to see that he could be right. She grabbed a blanket she had under her arm along with Junior and hastily handed it to her husband.
"Cover him with this!" she hissed. Jim Dear took the blanket and very gently covered Scamp with it, still trying to work out the situation in his head. He gently petted Tramp on the neck.
"Tramp buddy, I am so sorry. I can't even begin to imagine what you're going through right now," he said partially cover his own eyes. But not enough to realize there was some one standing behind Tramp.
"Oh, hello, who have we got here?" he asked. Angel walked from behind Tramp, fully revealing herself to the humans. Jim Dear reached out a hand gently scratched her behind the ear.
"Were you looking out for our Scamp? Trying to keep him safe? Well, I'm sure you tried, it just didn't work out," he said sadly.
"She's a little angel, if Tramp brought her here, I'm sure there's a reason, perhaps we could take her in?" asked Darling.
"Darling, we just lost Scamp, now's not the time to think about getting another dog," replied Jim Dear. Here, Annette, Collette and Danielle all approached Angel and gave their best begging faces. Their mother joined them.
"Well, I guess the family spoke, welcome to our home, Angel," said Jim Dear knowing when he had been beat.
"Angel," said Junior.
"I guess, in a way she is our Angel, she came to us after we lost our boy and made sure his family could say goodbye," said Darling trying to stay strong. This was about when Jock and Trusty showed up. Trusty walked over to where Scamp laid covered and began sniffing it.
"I think I smell the little guy, but something-oh, no, no," Trusty said but his eyes grew wide in horror when he realized what happened.
"It's true Trusty," said Tramp. Jim Dear buried Scamp in the backyard underneath the tree. All the dogs were present as was his wife and son.
"I don't blame you Tramp, you did everything you could. You ran as fast as you could, you fought that big dog, but sometimes, our best isn't enough," Lady told her husband, trying to give him some reassurance, she was weeping herself. Losing her only son was never going to be easy. Tramp nuzzled her in affection and comfort.
Weeks went by, Angel was able to adjust to life in a decent home and a roof over her head. Scamp was still missed, that was something that would never change. Tramp did go back to the junkyard to tell Bruno what happened. Hearing of Scamp's death, Bruno's gang left him disgusted that their leader had allowed a small pup to be killed at a pound and they all managed to find homes of their own. Bruno found himself on his own, very much alone in the world.
One day, while they were sitting at Scamp's grave, Lady finally asked Tramp something.
"Did he say anything to you before he died?" she asked.
"He said that he was sorry for his attitude, and that he just wanted to be home with us. I only wish he didn't need to die to realize that, he would be happy to see Angel as part of our family. He asked me to bring her home with me," replied Tramp. Suddenly the leaves began to rustle in the wind. The two dogs looked up and saw two leaves actually fall from a branch and they landed where Scamp was buried and together, they seemed to form the shape of a heart.