Little Miss Hellhound (NaNoWriMo 2022)

Chapter 9

It was later in the night, we were given dinner in our own pens in the basement while much of the crowd was off in intermission. The owners were off in the secret restaurant, leaving most of us with the hotel staff. There were dozens of them looking over our cages. Some took pictures. But they didn't try and pet us or let us out. They gave us newspaper to do our business on. All of them did. Just like race horses. Disgusting. I wouldn't be caught dead going in public like that. I'll just wait until I'm let outside like a proper dog. Begal was in the cage next to mine, keeping her cool while next to Spicey Bite, who made some taunting gazes at her. She knew Call Back, sitting in the cage on the opposite side of the room, was watching her. I could see it, at least. He was being brushed by his owner, who stayed in the basement for a while longer to touch up his coat and give him an inspirational speech I was certain he couldn't understand. But his tail wagged, just happy to be around Clarice, clearly.

"Nice run, beagle," Spicey Bite said, still facing forward and talking quietly. "You really know how to put on a show for someone your size."

"Thank you," Begal said, saying nothing provocative.

"Save the best for your last run. That's what I always say."

"In that case," I Interrupted, "You go first. You made no impressions with the judges, miss fourth place."

She stuck her nose up, the first time I saw her break character completely since the competition officially started. "Call it whatever you want. Your word means nothing when you don't even know how to walk. I don't ever know why I was scared of you. Other than those ugly fangs you pass off as teeth."

"I can spit fire you know!" I growled.

"No you can't. Dogs don't like fire."

"Yeah, and it burns. I could do it right now."

"Shut up."

"Hiss–"

"That's enough, Jessie," Begal said, putting emphasis on my name. "Try not to scare the competition down. It wouldn't be a fair run, then."

There was nothing smart about her inflections, because she didn't make any. But I agreed. Nothing good would come from actually getting angry in this case. But it was fun taunting her. I genuinely scared her, until she saw me compete. She wouldn't be scared of a rabid pitbull if it couldn't do a perfect trot down a dog show circuit. She really was all in on this life. Why does she even want Call Back to win so much? There's no actual reason I've heard from her on why it's even important. She'd probably bounce right back to the next thing if you put it in front of her. Probably why she couldn't make it as a police dog. Too stupid and shallow. Call Back winked to Spicey Bite, who clipped her jaw and straightened him up, even from the other side of the room. If he really wins while being kept straight by his 'mother' over there my god, this place would be stranger than I thought.

"Break a leg, Begal," I whispered.

"What!?" she said, genuinely hurt.

"No, it's an expression. Good luck."

"Hmph. Don't scare me like that. Masters are weird."

She only broke that pose once, when I told her that. It didn't seem as fun to her as I thought it'd be. She was seriously all in on this contest. I know I said it before, but really this time.

**** *** **** ****

The contest started up, with all of us in a line this time. No splitting into two pairs since only two dogs would be on the circuit at once. I was tall enough to see over the other dogs and what we were getting into.

Welcome back to round two of our competition, the announcer belted. I hope you enjoyed your dinner at our restaurant. For those of you just returning to your seats and you newcomers out there, we have a returning obstacle course from the earliest years of our show in the fifties! Spotlights beamed down on the sections as she listed them out. The course has been modified a bit to be a little less dangerous for our canine companions from the designs of the past, but it certainly isn't easy. We take full advantage of our stadium when we test our endurance. First, our dogs make their way through seesaw platforms, keeping their balance as their weight shifts around to avoid falling, stumbling, or stopping. Next, they jump through hoops of heights one to eight feet off the ground! Points here are awarded for the number of hoops cleanly jumped through. We can't expect all our dogs to jump all those hoops. But they have to at least jump one to prevent disqualification. And last is a crowd favorite, left exactly as it was during our very first show. A sixty five meter dash with a twist! Half the course is standard grass you'd find on any lawn, and the other half is fine sand from parts unknown. This is a test of speed. The most points are awarded for the fastest clears, with the rings acting as bonus points. The dog must be running at top speed through the sprint area and must clear all seesaws. Now, with the rules out of the way, let's get started.