Dog Season (Discontinued)

Part 1: Chapter Two

     Charity continued to watch the door where her mate vanished while one of the men lifted her back into her cage. His hands around her feathered rump and chest made her feel uncomfortable.
     "That was quite the stunt you pulled with that Shepherd." The huge man grumbled without breaking a sweat carrying her. "We'll catch em'. Don't you worry. Then y'all have someone to talk ta."
You'll never catch my Forest! The silken windhound snarled and dug her canines into the wide man's bald head. He yelled in pain and threw Charity inside the cage. The mean man slammed the door shut and it caught the female dog's fluffy tail. Charity yelped and gnawed at the cage.
Large laughed and clicked a lock on the wire latch. "Just in case ya get any ideas." He stomped around continuing to put locks on every dog's cage latch, Charity saw Large pat his head and blood smeared on his scalp. He chuckled while leaving, then the other people of the shelter, including the young boy, strolled out of the glass doors.
The dog room's lights dimmed and silence washed over every dog. No one made a peep; only the sound of a dog's paws shuffling the newspaper laid out under them echoed through the dog room.
     Charity plopped down on her rump, she now found the time to mourn for her Forest. She began to cry a howl. For a moment she had her mate, the next he vanished.
When are you coming back, my love? Did you abandon me? Will you ever come back? The young dog stopped yowling and began to whine anxiously, circling determinedly. Why did you leave me?! You could've stayed with me. Charity paced in her small kennel, suddenly feeling claustrophobic and began to panic. The kennel walls began to close around her. Charity's breathing became scared pants and she circled faster. To calm herself, the female dog curled into a ball, but she started to tremble. The cage got tighter and tighter until she couldn't breathe. "Forest! Forest!" Charity screamed at the top of her lungs, and her breathing became shaky. She could hear her heart pounding in her ears and collapsed onto her back. Charity began to suffocate and she couldn't inhale a breath. The world before her started to black out. I'm dying. I'm going to visit mother.
     "Young one! Young one, calm down! Take a breath." A raspy, but soft female voice comforted.
     The voice somehow opened Charity's throat and she inhaled slow breaths. Her black world lit up before her. The cage, no longer curving, returned to its original, straight form.
    She blinked multiple times before speaking. "W....what happened?" The silken windhound groaned.
     "Ya almost passed out, that's what happened!" The voice answered.
     "Where are you?" Charity rose to her paws and looked in every direction, but didn't find a dog staring at her.
     The raspy female voice sounded under her paws."My kennel is underneath yours. I heard your screaming and your pacing woke me."
     Charity laid down and rested her head on her paws; her thin, white muzzle poked through one of the spaces of the cage door. "Sorry I woke you."
     "Ah, that's alright. I'm glad ya did. I didn't want ya to kill yourself."
     "Thanks for helping me. What's your name?"
     "Your welcome. Name's Axle."
     "Charity. Hope this isn't to weird but...what do you look like?"
     Axle remained quiet for a second and rumbled, "I'm an old, ugly, black lab."
     "I'm sure you're not ugly! I'm-"
     "I saw you. You're some sighthound with a long, gorgeous, brown and white pelt."
     "H-how did you know? You must've saw me, right?"
     "Yeah. You're very beautiful." 
     Charity closed her eyes, taking in the compliment and smiled. "Thank you."
Forest never called me beautiful...
     "Mmhm. How long have ya been here?"
"Seven suns. Soon to be eight."
"I feel bad for ya. I wish you could get outta here and find your mate."
"What about you?"
"Eh. I don't have anyone special. Well, not anymore."
"What happened to him?"
"He got shot by a human."
"Why would a human shoot a dog?"
"Duh, stupid! It's dog season-" Axle cut herself off. "You don't know, do ya?"
"'Bout what?"
"The alpha of the humans decided to pass a rule..."
"And what is it?" Charity mumbled nervously.
"Until there isn't that many strays, he decided to make it dog season."
"What?! That's insane!"
"Well, an Alpha sometimes has to make extreme measures to protect their pack."
"My mate is out there! For all I know he could be dead!" Charity jumped to her feet and reached a dainty paw through the cage.
"What are you doing?" Axle barked up at her. Charity didn't answer as she hooked a toe on the latch and lifted it up. The beautiful sighthound grinned mischievously and slid the latch to the left, but the cage didn't open. She fidgeted with latch but it still stayed closed.
"Dammit! Dammit! Dammit! C'mon! Why did these fox-hearted humans have to ruin my chances to escape?!" Charity slammed her body into the cage, she continued to ram into the door even though her shoulder throbbed with pain.
"Charity take it easy! You're gonna break a bone or something!" Axle yelled up towards the angry sighthound.
"I! Can't! Take it! Easy! I have to find my mate!" Charity growled while she continued to bang into the door. The cage slid a bit forward, and she paused. "It's working!" She gasped and continued her violent work. By now, every dog watched Charity either fascinated or annoyed.
As she pushed, dogs cheered: "You can do it!" "Keep going!" Through the encouraging howls, the determined dog made out the old, gruff voice of the sheepdog. "You're not gonna get it! Your mate is long gone!" His words only enraged Charity and raised her strength. She closed her eyes and backed up until her feathered rump touched the back of her cage. In her mind, Charity imagined Forest and her having pups with the looks of them both; some tan and black, and the others brown and white. The mates lead a strong pack, including Charity's older sister, Kimora, who shared the looks of her. Their territory, a beautiful stretch of green forest filled with juicy prey creatures, and which the whole pack hunted together. Charity's dream injected energy into her muscles. She opened her eyes. With a powerful howl, Charity leaped on the door with all four legs. Unpredictably, the cage flew forward and rolled onto the tiled walkway.