A/N: This will be the final chapter of the story. Wow, this thing was a beast to write. I will warn you right now, that this thing is over 5k words long. Though, it was necessary as I had to wrap this thing up once and for all. Things might get a little gore-esque in this chapter, but it's nothing gruesome. Hope you enjoy, and thanks for reading!

The airport was a good two hour drive, so Barry's parents wouldn't be home until late. It was currently only seven-twenty at night since his parents had left half an hour ago. Barry got all of his homework out of the way, which wasn't much this time around, and for that he was grateful. He had a rough sleep last night courtesy of a bone-chilling nightmare, one of the many that had tormented him over the years. As much as Barry wanted to stay awake, afraid of what may come to haunt him if he fell asleep, he just couldn't keep his eyes open. It was to the point he was nodding off while watching the late night cartoon block.

So, deciding he had nothing to lose, he let himself nod off without any resistance. Barry collapsed onto his pillow, laying atop the covers still in his day clothes. And then, he was fast asleep.

Dawkins was laying diligently at the foot of Barry's bed, feeling blessed to have a home as cozy as this. Not to mention being Barry's chosen one. He missed his family back at his old home, sure, but he also saw how much Barry needed him. He was his hero, after all. So, his family just had to move on and accept that the days of him being one of the Dalmatians were through, and that he was a human dog now. Dawkins sighed. "Forgive me, old family. But I must do what I feel is right," he thought sadly.

At first, Dawkins thought it was he himself who were whimpering uneasily, but then he noticed the sound had been coming from elsewhere. Dawkins glanced over to his side in curiosity and realized that it was Barry who was whimpering, whimpering in his sleep. Dawkins raised a brow and watched him intently, curious as to what he would do next. The soft negligible whimpers worsened into distressed human cries. Barry stirred in his sleep, grimacing at some unseen terror. He gasped and felt his heart tighten. Barry was having a nightmare! This was no time to gawk, he had to snap him out of it!

In a flash, Dawkins was over at Barry's side shaking him frantically. "Master! Master, awaken, please! You are having a fright-inducing nocturnal simulation!" Dawkins said with urgency.

Dawkins' concern was further amplified into a fearful panic, as Barry wasn't waking up. Tears rolled down Barry's face as he was trapped in a nightmare. There was no running from his suppressed fears with the escape hatch to the waking world. Dawkins' brow furrowed and he started to growl, then reeled a paw back. He then began, "I said. . . " Dawkins slapped Barry hard across the face using all of his strength leaving a red paw mark, "terminate your fright sequence!"

That did the trick. Barry's eyes fluttered open and he took a big gasp of air. He sprung up in bed and glanced around frantically as if he were in the middle of escaping something. Barry blinked a few times, chest heaving for air, and took in his surroundings. When he saw the familiar sight of his bedroom complete with that ostentatious case of precious dodgeball trophies. All of Barry's bravado had evaporated and was replaced by a timid wariness that Dawkins had never seen in Barry before. The other side of Barry.

Dawkins raised his brows with worry. "Master, i-is e-everything alright? Would you care to talk about it?" He asked gently.

Barry set his eyes on Dawkins and quickly pulled him in close for a tight embrace as if he his own personal safety blanket. "I'll take that as a yes," said Dawkins matter-of-factly.

Barry then wailed as tears streamed down his face. "I-It happened again! But it was in the living room this time. They were all there," he cried out.

Dawkins' eyes softened in sympathy and he nuzzled against Barry's chest. "Who was there? Divulge it to me," inquired Dawkins.

Barry choked up and explained between sobs, "I was b-b-back in th-that same house. Th-the one it h-h-happened in. My parents and other relatives w-were all l-l-laying on the floor in the living room u-u-unconscious! Fire was all a-a-around us, but there w-w-was nowhere to go. N-No access to a phone! T-T-Trapped and left for dead!" Barry then whispered morbidly, "that fire was s-spreading. Spreading I tell you."

Dawkins jaw lowered in disbelief and he gasped. "Great jaws of Ahuizotl, the atrocity you must have witnessed. Allay your fears, it was only your mind running wild with simulations to embody your deepest traumas," said Dawkins with incredulity.

Barry buried his face into Dawkins' fur and let the water gates come flooding out as he blubbered noisily, only muffled by Dawkins' now wet fur. His shoulders heaved from his spill of pain. Dawkins pet Barry's head, he didn't know if this worked on humans, but if it worked on dogs then it must be effective. "Shhh-shh-ssshhh, there is no fire. Your home is fitted with five fire extinguishers, even having one located in this very room we reside. Everyone is safe now, Barry, and I'll be right here to protect you. So now, please, cease your outpour of saline fluids," cooed Dawkins.

Barry sniffled and looked up red-faced, his face wet with tears, and a shadow of a smile dawned on his features. "Thanks, Comet. Means a lot to me that you're there for me," said Barry in a raspy voice.

Dawkins smiled and gave a dismissive wave of a paw. "Please, please, I'd do anything for you. I love you, you know that. Also, sorry for being so finicky when we started off, things will be plain sailing now."

Barry didn't understand a lick of what Comet had said, but if he did, he'd assume it was a heartfelt ode to being chosen as his beloved companion. That's when Barry smiled clearly and pet Comet, who smiled back at him.

Barry didn't hear it at first, but he started picking up on a peculiar crimping metal sound. It had sounded akin to someone crushing and playing with an aluminum soda can. Barry arched a brow and listened closer, continuing to pet Comet, and heard it continue. The source was in some other room of the house, but that didn't make any sense considering he and Comet were the only ones home.

The two wires finally connected in Barry's head and it dawned on him that it was more than likely an intruder. His neighborhood was considered to be generally safe, and there haven't been any reports of home invasions as of late, but the small possibility of it being his dalmatian's former owners was on the table. Barry didn't know if it really was just a burglar or former owners taking matters into their own hands, but he wasn't about to end up as another statistic.

Barry looked down at Comet with a serious expression, and said in a low tone of voice, "Comet. . . Listen to me very carefully, I'm going to hide you. You are not to come out, until I come get you. Understand?"

Comet, who had heard the sound too, nodded with a look of apprehensiveness.

Barry walked down the hall cautiously while wielding a large kitchen knife. The metallic crimping sound became more and more audible as he went deeper into the hallway. That's when Barry was close to a dark room where he'd heard the sound emanating from. He turned his head to look in, but could see nothing but absolute darkness. Barry entered the room, then felt around the wall next to the entrance for a light switch. When he found it, he flipped it on and saw the noise's source. A window shrouded by blinds at the other end of the room.

Barry steeled his expression and kept his gaze on the window steady as he began his approach. His grip on the knife tightened, and he neared the window. Slowly, he took a peek through the blinds to see who the potential intruder might be. That's when he felt his heart almost stop, and a lump formed in his throat. Outside that window, were two dalmatians. Two familiar dalmatians at that. One who wore a red collar adorned by a blue star, and another who had a three-ringed blue and orange collar.

Barry frowned. "They've come for me," he said darkly.

Dylan pried down on the crowbar, throwing all of his weight onto it, and the window finally gave — breaking the lock. Dylan slid the window up giving entry to the dognapper's home. He turned to Dolly and motioned her in. "Get in, before they know we're here."

Dylan climbed in through the window and fell two feet to the floor, crying out in surprise. There was a loud thud accompanied by the sound of things being knocked over. Dolly rolled her eyes and deadpanned, "can you be any quieter?"

Dolly climbed into the window frame and that's when Dylan then started to sputter, "w-wait, wait — let me move fir — " Dolly didn't wait and leapt right in, skillfully clearing Dylan, landing a few feet away from him on all fours. She then turned around to look at Dylan with a wry smile.

Dolly held in a laugh. "Shall we continue?"

Dylan looked at her stunned, and then came back to his senses. "Uh, obviously! There's no time to linger." Dylan was now back on his feet and quickly got back to Dolly's side.

The two adamant siblings exited the room they'd broken into and went out into the hall. They both froze in place, petrified. All the blood drained from their faces. In the middle of the hall, smiling smugly and brandishing a knife similar to one you'd see in a slasher movie, was Barry himself. The culprit who'd taken Dawkins away from them and caused their family so much heartache.

Their fear morphed into vein-popping anger and they both gave Barry the deathglare. Dolly then took the heavy crowbar from Dylan, who obliged. "Tell us where he's at, before I show you what it feels like to be a sack of rocks!" Dolly barked.

Barry chuckled at the sight, genuinely amused by their bravado. "You sure are comical. I know what this is about, dog. And Imma tell you right now, your little buddy's gone out for a little ride to the pound. . . and you will never find him." Barry chuckled again, this time darkly. "By the way, did you know that dogs who bite humans get euthanized?"

Dylan and Dolly's eyes flew wide open. "You sick twisted fuck! You could've killed our brother!" Dylan shouted angrily.

Dolly didn't buy it though, her eyes narrowed and she turned to Dylan. "He's lying through his teeth. I can tell. It's all a ruse to lead us down the wrong trail," she whispered.

Dylan was breathing heavily, fuming, but he calmed down at the consideration. He gave a subtle glance at Dolly, then said in a gruff voice, "it better be."

Barry quickly tossed the knife between two hands, his eyes shifting between the two dalmatians. He then spoke with confident eagerness, "step right up, who goes first?" He then focused his maniacal gaze on Dylan. "What about you, stringbean? Wanna test your luck?"

Dylan bristled and made to step forward, but Dolly stopped him and shook her head. Without warning, Dolly slung the crowbar at Barry — bashing him in the head before he could even react. Barry went down, lying splayed out on the ground unconscious. Dolly then commanded. "He's out cold, but we've gotta hurry."

Dylan gave a single nod. "Right. I was getting tired of his sassiness."

The two of them stepped over Barry, and before running down the hall to search for Dawkins, Dolly made sure to grab the crowbar and knife. She glanced momentarily at Barry. "Don't mind if I do! I needed one of these," she quipped.

Dylan and Dolly walked together, as it would be unwise to split up. "Dawkins!" They called out in unison.

"We've come back for you, Dawkins! It's me, Dylan!"

"Together with Dolly!"

There was a faint moan from deep within the house, a meeker more fragile moan. Dylan whispered to Dolly, "did you hear that?"

"Yeah, it came from that way." Dolly pointed in the direction of the living room.

The brother and sister ventured into the living room surveying the area with intent. After stopping and listening for several minutes, the house was hush save for the distant sound of a TV in another room. Dolly's brow creased. "Hmm. . . " In a moment of intuition, Dolly pressed her ear to the wall.

Dylan started, "Dolly, what're you do-" But Dolly quickly shushed him.

Dolly picked up the faint sound of breathing from within those walls. It was near them, and sounded to be in an enclosed space of some sort. She adjusted her head, channeling into the breathing. That's when she made the connection and turned to look at Dylan. "He's in a room to the rightmost of the hall."

Dylan appeared surprised that Dolly had such keen listening abilities, then started, "How did-"

Dolly tapped her ear already knowing what Dylan was going to ask. "Been honing in these babies for years. Practice pays off, bro."

Dylan, still stunned, only replied, "I guess that means I'll be the one to use my sniffer to pick up a scent."

"Ding-ding-ding-ding!"

Dylan and Dolly stepped into the carpeted hallway and made their way to the dark room at the farthest right of the hall. As they entered, Dolly jumped up and hit the light switch to give some light to the room. There was a neatly kept queen-sized bed in the middle of the room with a wooden dresser supporting a flatscreen TV on top of it.

"This must be the guest bedroom," muttered Dylan.

Dylan lowered his head and got to sniffing.

His chest tightened when caught a whiff of Dawkins' scent within this very room. Dylan followed it, scent growing stronger and stronger. That's when he bumped into something wooden yet hollow. Dylan grunted and looked up to see he had run into a small square door with a painted knob. A crawlspace. So that's where Barry's been keeping Dawkins hostage.

Dylan felt nervousness warp its cold tendrils around him as he reached for the doorknob. He hoped Dawkins wasn't physically injured or worse. His breaths became shakier as he tugged on the doorknob, prying open the little door and peeling it away from stuck-on paint. Dylan's eyes widened and he gasped.

"Dawkins?"

Dylan crouched down and climbed inside the crawlspace. He looked at Dawkins, who stirred and glanced up in surprise. "D-Dylan? Is that r-r-really you?" Dawkins asked, sounding as if he hadn't seen the light in forever.

Dylan smiled warmly. "Yes, Dawkins. It's me, and we've come to take you home. Come on, buddy, you're safe now," he said reassuringly, not knowing how damaged Dawkins was exactly.

Dawkins then frowned. "No. I won't go," he said stubbornly.

Dylan's ears perked up and he did a double-take. "Hubba-what? Say that again," inquired Dylan, taken aback.

Dawkins huffed and repeated himself, "I won't go. Here is where I belong."

Dylan's jaw was agape in incredulity and he felt a pang of sadness sucker-punch his heart. Surely this had to be some elaborate act to mess with him. But, seeing how serious Dawkins was about this told him otherwise. He didn't get it though, Dawkins was taken right out of the warm arms of his own loving family and here they come to rescue him — only for him to side with that self-indulgent dognapper! Dylan struggled to find the words, but then finally choked out, "why's that? What changed?"

Dawkins arched a brow and looked over at Dylan. "You wanna know? You really want to know? Okay. . . Barry, that human boy you've met, needs me. He's been through a lot that I'd much rather leave unspoken, and when I came into his life, he told me that I made everything better! That I 'took the pain away'. I can't just leave him like this, Dylan. I love him! He loves me!"

Dylan grimaced, now realizing the gravity of the situation, and let out a long exaggerated whistle. He pinched the bridge of his nose. "While I get that he may have some unresolved trauma that was numbed by your company, he can always find himself another dog. But what about your family? About us? We need you even more; the house has been in a slump ever since you've been gone!" Dylan replied, debating on whether or not he would have to "rescue" him against his will.

Dawkins furrowed his brow, crossing his arms, and turned his head away stubbornly. "No." He said with firm finality.

Dylan rolled his eyes. He'd had enough of Dawkins' childish behavior and pulled him by the hind legs. "If you won't go, then I'll pull you out of here like a little child," said Dylan laboriously.

Dawkins clawed at the ground as he was dragged out. "No, no, let me go! I don't wanna go home!" Dawkins cried.

Dolly poked her head in, oblivious, and started, "did you find- Oh my dog, Dawkins!"

"Give me a paw, help me drag him out."

Dolly gripped Dylan's midsection and helped tug. Dawkins was now openly bawling and pounding his fists on the ground. "You two are animals I say! Animals! Why can't you let me make my own life decisions for once?" He wailed.

Dolly rolled her eyes. "Uh, maybe it's 'cause, I dunno, it's a stupid one?" She deadpanned.

Dawkins gasped and scowled, offended. "Well!"

After much hassle, and a temper tantrum, the two of them managed to yank Dawkins out of that crawlspace — who was now coated in dirt and dust from being in that filthy space. Dylan and Dolly then fell back, winded, and caught their breaths. However, Dolly saw Dawkins making a move back for the crawlspace — so she cut him off, and slammed the door to it shut and blocked it. "Whoa there, little fellah. I don't think so."

Dawkins snorted and crossed his arms pouting. Dolly's expression softened. "Listen, I know I've called you some demeaning things in the past, namely 'egghead'," began Dolly gently. Dawkins made a small sarcastic sound at the name. "And I wanted to say, I'm sorry. You're a wonderful wiz of a brother, and I couldn't ask for more than that. I love you, Dawkins. I really do."

Dawkins' scowl melted into a sad one and he finally met Dolly's gaze. "All is forgiven. I could never stay mad at you, Dolly." Dawkins ran in for a hug and Dolly accepted him in a loving embrace. They both hugged it out in each other's warmth, then pulled away, now smiling.

Dylan sighed in relief. "Good, good, mission accomplished. Now time for us- W'aaahhh!" Dylan suddenly cried out. Dawkins and Dolly gasped when Barry came up from behind Dylan and snatched him up in a chokehold. Dylan choked for breath as Barry's arms tightened like chains around his neck.

Barry grinned wildly as he choked Dylan out, then his expression went sorrowful for a moment. "Maybe I have taken this whole thing too far."

"Ya' think?" Dolly quipped.

"But still, that's my little dalmatian! You're a dead dog!" Barry squeezed harder on Dylan's neck causing his eyes to bulge.

Dolly scowled, feeling a red hot burning anger erupt from within her, she then bellowed. "Get your sweaty stinkin' mitts off my brother!" She bellowed.

"Master, leave him be! He is a loved one of mine!" Dawkins cried.

In her fervor, Dolly picked up the kitchen knife and plunged it deep into Barry's leg. Barry stumbled letting out a pained scream. But he wasn't about to give up just yet, no, his future of having a dalmatian depended on this tussel. Barry reinforced his grip on Dylan and growled — kicking Dolly away from him. Dolly grunted as he was casted aside roughly. She got back up, now five times angrier, and bared her teeth growling.

Dylan wriggled like a freshly pulled earthworm in Barry's chokehold as Barry stumbled around with him not letting up. Blood stained the tear in Barry's black jeans where the knife was stabbed and dripped onto the carpet dotting it red. Barry's wicked smile returned and he grunted like some wild beast devouring its prey in triumph.

As Dylan was on the very edge of the cliff of consciousness, Barry whispered tauntingly into his ear, "ever know what it's like to take in a lung-full of soot? Well, you're about to find out."

Dylan was drooling, about to pass out, his mind's clarity having gone kaput. Out of the blue, Dolly jumped on the bed and somersaulted in the air — bashing Barry in the head once more. Barry dropped Dylan, who fell to the ground roughly with a grunt, and collapsed against the side of the bed. Dolly stood on the bed, chest heaving with fury. "Next time it'll be your legs," she threatened menacingly.

Dawkins stared wide-eyed at the sanguine display and gulped. "Kibbles."

Dolly dropped her crowbar and jumped down to show up at Dylan's side. She held him with a look of desperate concern etched across her face. "Dylan? You still with me?"

Dylan stirred and coughed momentarily, then looked over at Dolly with a weak smile. "Yeah, don't fret," he whispered.

Dolly gave Dylan a brief hug and chuckled. "For a neat freak, you sure can take the punishment."

Dylan only shook his head playfully.

Once Dylan recovered, he came up to Dawkins, but his eyes fell on his collar and he froze. Dylan stood there, transfixed on that collar, his expression blank. Dolly looked at him confused and asked, "Dylan? You feelin' okay?"

Dylan then spoke in a distant tone, "this collar. . . " He took Dawkins' collar into a few delicate fingers. "I've read about it in the papers. The humans invented this torture band to inflict violent microwaves upon a canine's system."

"Uhh, in english please?" Dolly quipped.

"It's a burn collar, meant to punish dogs by making them feel as if they're on fire."

Dolly's eyes widened and she recoiled. "That's a violation of dog rights! How can anyone allow this to go down?" She said in disbelief, appalled that any human would even consider such an option.

Dylan gave a faint shrug. "It's beyond me, humans are strange creatures," said Dylan matter-of-factly.

Without another word, Dylan did Dawkins a favor and undid the clasp to the collar, then took it off him. Dawkins sighed in relief and felt around his neck. "Ahh, unrestrained at last. It was getting a bit sticky under there."

Dolly grimaced. "Ew."

Barry groaned a little and everyone turned his attention to him. To their luck, Barry was still disoriented, possibly with a concussion, from being whacked. Dylan's expression darkened and his grip on the dog collar tightened. He then turned to Dolly. "Fetch me the remote for this thing, I have business to take care of," ordered Dylan.

Dolly looked at Dylan blankly, and quickly dashed off not wanting to question him. Dylan approached Barry, who was just coming back to his senses, and wrapped the collar around his neck snapping it into place. He then stared down Barry who looked at him with a shadow of weariness in his features. "You hurt my brother. I don't know what your reasoning behind it was, but I really don't care. If you ask me, I think you should feel what he feels," spoke Dylan in a dark tone.

Barry then felt his neck and gasped when he came into contact with the collar. That same collar he had used so bountifully in his dealings of "punishments" to his personal dalmatian. He uttered a faint whimper of fear and glanced up at Dylan, eyes pleading for mercy. But Dylan only kept his steely gaze, eyes burning into him with hatred.

On cue, Dolly returned and handed the gray bulky remote to Dylan. Dylan looked at the remote, then at Barry and smirked. "You've been misbehaved for far too long, so now you will learn." He grasped the dial on the remote.

Barry's eyes widened. "Whatt're you doing?" Barry asked with an air of panic, baffled at how a dog could possess such human-like intelligence.

Dylan twisted the dial all the way to stage 5, and exclaimed, "that nobody messes with my family!"

Barry immediately stiffened up and his eyes rolled into the back of his head. His entire body was overloaded with an immense burning that even made his organs feel as if they were being cooked. A low gurgle came from Barry as he foamed at the mouth and was paralyzed in place from all the pain and his stinging overstimulated nerves.

Dylan tossed the remote into a stubby little plastic trash bin beside the dresser.

"We gotta go, his parents could be home at any minute now!" Dolly said with tense urgency.

Dylan prodded Dawkins into coming with, but he was obstinate on staying. Not having any time for his games, Dylan pulled Dawkins onto his back and carried him out of there.

Dawkins looked back at his, now former, master with teary eyes and wailed. "Go back! Stop! You'll kill him!"

Dylan only grunted. "His parents can save him for all I care."

The trio of siblings escaped the house of terrors the same way from which they broke in, climbing out that same window. They made haste and hurried away from the scene before there were any witnesses. The night was hectic enough as it was already; the last thing they needed was their faces all over the news.

However, that would prove to be a challenge with Dawkins blubbering all the way home. Dawkins bawled his eyes out, his heart shattered into a million pieces, as Dylan carried him. Both Dylan and Dolly were cringing as their brother incessantly begged them to take him back to Barry and how he couldn't go on without him. Dolly did her best to console Dawkins. "We know, we know. Sshhh, you'll remember how fun it is being one of the Dalmatians when we get you back home. It's a promise."

That only made Dawkins cry even harder, much to Dylan and Dolly's dismay. This was going to be a long trip back home.

It was a big event when Dawkins came back home, all the pups ran up to him when Dylan had made the announcement of his return the following morning. They all hugged him in one gargantuan group hug, to which it was a miracle the poor dally wasn't crushed to death by the entire family.

DeeDee's tail wagged as she ran up to Dawkins. "Did the humans have games to play with you?" DeeDee inquired.

"Do they know about fetch ball?" Dizzy asked.

"A plethora of games. Boredom was nonexistent," replied Dawkins.

Dawkins did his best to force a smile and give his good share of embrace to the best of his ability, but deep down inside, was a dull aching sadness that gummed up his spirits with muck. Regardless, he feigned his excitement of being back home. "Settle down, settle down everyone. There's more than enough of me to go around," said Dawkins in a chipper tone.

The three Dimitris came up to Dawkins, with Dimitri 1 holding his Princess Positron doll in his mouth. Dawkins felt a lump in his throat. "Princess Positron!"

Dimitri 1 set the doll down before Dawkins and chuckled sheepishly. "We've been watching over your, Princess. . . Portatron? Doll for you," explained Dimitri 1 awkwardly.

"Positron," corrected Dawkins matter-of-factly.

"Right, 'Positron'. She was left out in the open where she could get chewed up by some pup, or Dorothy, so we thought we'd protect her. Keep her safe."

Dimitri 2 and Dimitri 3 both mmhm'd and nodded their heads in confirmation.

Dawkins' fearful expression changed into a wide ear-to-ear smile, and he gratuitously thanked the Dimitri trio. "Thank you to Mars for keeping her safe in my absence, you don't know how worried I've been about her. You guys are- are- "

"Heroes? Nah, we know we're the outlaws of the family. But, not gonna lie, it did feel kinda nice to be good for a change," finished Dimitri 2.

Dawkins stifled a chuckle. "It wouldn't do any harm to try it more often."

All three of the Dimitris pondered in thought, then said altogether, "nah, pass."

A paw held Dawkins' shoulder and he turned around to see that it was DJ. DJ looked at him with a melancholic smile. "Don't ever leave us again, 'kay? I can't stand listening to another sad song," said DJ.

Dawkins smiled a little, though there was a shadow of sadness behind it. "I don't think I ever will, DJ." He choked back tears, but DJ didn't seem to notice. "I'm here permanently."

It was tiresome playing and spending time with his siblings for the entirety of the day. On top of that, Dawkins had to do some minor maintenance around the house due to Dylan messing things up from sheer inexperience. When his parents got home, they both wrapped their arms around him and told him not to ever scare them like that again. Dawkins faked a smile, hiding how much he wanted to be back with his human, and played the act of "happy to be back".

Dawkins sighed as he sat at the edge of his bed, looking out the window at the starry night sky. It appeared as if a blackish blue paint brush had swept across the sky and made its mark over Camden. The pale crescent moon glowed behind a mist of ghostly clouds, staring back coldly, indifferent to the treacherous emotions he was lost at sea in. Dawkins shed a single bitter tear.

"I won't ever forget you, Barry. You shall reside in my mind 'til the day I perish, rent-free," he whispered.

It would be a long road ahead readjusting to Dalmatian family life and shaking the shackles that Barry had mentally bound him to. He knew Barry could be cruel at times, but in his own mind he reasoned it as him encouraging him to be his best self. A shrub can not grow if its branches are not trimmed after all. It gave Dawkins a righteous sense of pride in being the light to all Barry's darkness. But that night was his final hour in being that hero Barry so desperately wanted him to be, and he had to learn to accept that. Accept that he just wasn't meant for the human life, much less be someone's hero.

Emotionally exhausted and frustrated with himself, and his elder siblings who brought an end to such a beautiful thing, Dawkins finally laid down and drifted off to sleep.

Outside the window of the Dalmatian house, a figure shrouded in darkness jammed a crowbar underneath the window. The red steel instrument pried up on the window, bending the metal frame. The figure grinned, revealing stark white teeth that almost glowed in the dark, and giggled uncannily.

The End?

A/N: That concludes this tale of heroism and the psychotic dognapper Barry. This was a neat little experimental story to write and I really enjoyed it. Originally it was meant to be only 15k words long, but it kinda got dragged out because of what was happening in the plot. Overall, I think it turned out okay. Could it have been polished a little more in some areas? Definitely. But, I did the best I could with it and it turned out fine. Again, thanks for reading and hope it was an interesting tale to follow!