In Dire Straits

The North City

Claws clicked on the rocky road that the Siberian Husky walked upon. After fleeing the pack lands, Vega decided to head back to what her and many other dogs knew as "The North City". Of course, her knowledge of the city was limited. These borders were like strangers. At least here she knew how to avoid aggressive pack dogs.

Keeping her head low, the lithe black and white female moved quietly down the road, where it was less crowded at the early hours of the day. It was almost vacant, the husky's breathing being one of the only things that could be heard besides the gentle breeze and her claws clicking upon the ground. Other senses were very apparent as well.

The scent of food still lingered throughout the outskirts of the city, making her salivate eagerly. She was so hungry. So alone. She thought of the friends she had made in the past, and how she longed for their companionship. But now was not the time. She could not let dismal feelings distract her from finding a safe place to stay. But she was alone, scared, and hungry.

Vega continued to scavenge, desperately looking through trash cans, and places she could reach. Her anxiety flared as the faint scents of humans passed by.

Meanwhile, the savory scent of meat was what drew a gargantuan canine to the rocky road. Though the food down here was far from what he desired, he always took what he could get. As his dark form sauntered through the blinding rays of the sun, the heat beat down on his back and made him pant. The massive pit bull often wondered how the few humans around here could stand these temperatures... they were not highly intelligent creatures, at least to him -- but for some reason they were able to stand this. The male always searched for an alley or creek to relax and cool down in once he was overheated, where he tried to avoid other pesky canines.

Brown eyes settled on a cart ahead which held one of the pit bull's favorite foods: hot dogs. It would be easy to snatch a delectable treat from this particular human, because after so long of being here and realizing plenty of stray dogs visited him for food, he willingly gave away some of the older food items. The male walked faster and soon his mouth began watering for the taste of the meat. Approaching like a shadow sliding across the worn down buildings, he barked loudly to get the attention of the man, who appeared to be in rough shape as most of the people and animals in the North City.

"Ahh, you again, huh, Gunner? I'll give you something good today." Gunner didn't particularly like humans, but nothing would hurt to work them and receive something positive out of it.

He leaped midair to catch the hot dog in his mouth and in one quick swallow, he swiftly downed all the food. "Alright, get going, dog."
Gunner huffed towards the human and turned his back towards him. The large dog hurried over to a nearby brick wall. He leaned against it and laid down with a heavy sigh. "Creatures of habit," he mumbled to himself. Humans constantly did the same things over until it became repetitive. Just as Gunner was about to get up and leave the street, he saw a peculiar little dog in the corner of his eye. The dog was quite small, but seemed to carry itself as a little more mature than the annoying little scoundrels that so often bothered him.

He laid his head down on the warm concrete and studied this dog for a few minutes... an elegant black and white coat. The dog struck him as a Siberian Husky.

Moving along on her way, Vega had just turned the corner when the sounds of a human flooded her ears. They shot up, as her body became tense. Her ears perked and her tail wagged. Unlike most dogs in the North City, she did not harbor any resentment for humans, despite most of them around here not liking strays. Most dogs hated all humans because there were always the cruel ones that would even laugh and throw things at them. The human failed to notice Vega; merely continuing on his way, cleaning up his station.

The scent of hot dogs floated from the cart where he stood, something so irresistible to the hungry stray. How would he react if she approached? She kind of liked two legged creatures, but she knew there was a lot of diversity in their behavior. Sometimes they liked her, sometimes they didn't. Like dogs, she guessed, but admittedly more dull. She weighed her options. Go over there, summon the courage and not starve, or creep back into the outskirts of the city... and starve. The latter didn't seem too bad; maybe she wasn't meant for the streets. No, she was going to learn. Vega knew she was quick, and could get away if things turned against her.

Carefully, she approached the cart, the scent of food growing stronger with each step. When she reached the front of the cart, she sat, tail wagging. A quick yap from her caught the attention of the man, who looked down at her with curiosity. Her voice sounded high pitched: more pup like than she intended.

Her face molded into a hopeful expression as she huffed a breath of excitement. The man bent down, reaching his hand out. While most dogs would growl a warning, Vega happily let him scratch her behind the ear. The man then handed her half of a hot dog, which she took gratefully between her teeth. The plan had worked better than she expected. 

After finished the piece of meat, the female barked again, wanting more. The man looked at her, saying something, his tone a little harder than before.

"No, leave, dog. Come back tomorrow if you want more." Again, Vega barked, whining as her ears folded back. The human looked sympathetic, and handed her more. She took the piece in satisfaction, swallowing it quickly. Her curled tail wagging, the female started to walk off, but her eyes glanced in a more ominous corner of the station. There laid a massive dog, watching her. Vega froze, terrified. She watched the dog with large eyes, her breathing heavy.