PA 3.5: End of a Tail

Chapter XXII Part III

"You obviously already spoke to Cujo, and if I had to say-" Patches lazily gestured to the room around him, still maintaining eye contact with Dell, "it seems like your little reunion didn't go as planned."

Dell narrowed her eyes and continued to nibble with her canines. "The crystal ball," she mumbled, "it changed him- changed all of our memories." Suddenly, the hoodie felt less snug, like it had been dirtied with the memories of her last exchange with the golden retriever. "I can... I can still convince him, I just need to..."

"Don't lie to yourself," Patches said, interrupting the muttering dog, "you know I said that just to get you on my side- I'm ashamed of how awful my lying was," he paused, forcing himself to tear up and give Dell his best puppy eyes, "and I'm ashamed to have lied to you."

Patches almost shuttered at his own words, but Dell seemed to take the words as an ill omen; she stared at the dalmatian in fear of his brutal honesty.

"Coco never held the crystal ball, she never changed anyone's memories. You knew that from the start, how else could you explain your memory of her remaining intact, eh?" He tittered, "You were just lucky enough to see her before she slaughtered you, and if that wouldn't have happened, you'd be as carefree as the rest- unable to recognize the face of their killer." He tried speaking with genuine compassion and believed he came across quite well.

Dell cringed hard, digging her face into the baggy sleeve of her hoodie in an attempt to hide the nausea welling in her stomach. His words stung- they were exactly the thing she needed to hear- exactly the thing to break down the lie she had been telling herself, now she could be remolded.

"You're nobody special, Dell..." he let his words sink in, hoping his honesty was enough to inflict the exact feelings he needed to give her, "but then we found each other."

He smiled, taking a step towards the dog, who instinctively took her head out from her hoodie and stepped back, eyes immediately darting around for a weapon.

"You wrapped a knife around the most powerful magic-user I can think of, stole their wand, and fought back against the people who Coco stole from you, all because we had that chance encounter, all because I believed in you."

Another step forward and another step back. She grabbed the single most dangerous thing she could- a large vial amongst the desk, then reeled her arm back to throw it.

Patches raised his paw up in surrender, taking a step back and almost looking impressed. "Dell, I'm just trying to help you. I can only imagine the pain you're in because of that dog's-"

"STOP," she demanded, gripping the empty vial vice-like. "I've known him a lot longer than I've known you. He's a good dog, he knows who I am, he wouldn't abandon me!"

"And so what did he ever do for you, hm? Were you his friend? Did he love you?" Patches paused, curbing his id as his frustration edged his words. "Did you really think you could trust him?"

"Don't you dare say that about him!" Dell spat, her features narrowing in a fit of sudden anger as her long hair whipped about with her sudden movements. "All I need to do is show him what Coco did, then he'll remember, the crystal ball doesn't matter!"

"But that's not the case right now, is it?" He took another step forward. Dell didn't move, and they were in striking distance. "No matter how you slice it, he doesn't have his memory right now. He helped Coco capture you because he has no idea what she did, and he's not going to listen to you- but, I can help you."

"I am NOT hurting him, or anyone else!" she bellowed defiantly in response, baring her teeth and making the dalmatian flinch. "You-" she took a deep breath in, calming herself, "I'll never forget what you almost did to those poor dogs yesterday. She balled her fists up, "I can't believe I worked with a murderer! It's YOUR fault he hates me, he thinks I want to kill cats and dogs, that I'm just some kind of maniac!" Her voice went wild, her eyes beginning to bulge. "I-I c-c-can't stand it!"

"I'm not saying to hurt him..." he inhaled, taking another step towards the dog, "He hasn't listened to you because he doesn't want to accept the truth. Any evidence you bring forth will just be ignored because it's too painful to assume Coco's not the person she says she is." He looked at her with a curled lip and pleading eyes. "Dell, you need to get his attention first."

Dell paused, looking at Patches with a mixture of anger and apprehension. Before the dalmatian could open his mouth, she piqued up with a furious tone. "Why would you care about me or him?"

"Because," he began, tone rising, "you're my friend! You helped me when the whole world was against me, what's so wrong with returning the favor?" He put both paws behind his back, cradling them together as he felt the contours of Mitt's wand. "So what do you say, for old time's sake?"