A Truly 'Howling' Commando

|3| Puppyhood Didn't Last Very Long

——Time: 11:30pm——
——30th of November, 1938——

Pain. Dull and throbbing all over my body. That was the first thing I felt.

I opened my eyes only to instantly squeeze them shut again. I shook my head a bit, only to be overcome with extreme nausea. 'Ohh... That was a bad idea...'

I opened my eyes again, slowly this time. Allowing my eyes to adjust to the light before opening them further. I could smell chemicals and cleaning products, as well as rubber and other animals. 'I'm in a cage again... wonderful...' It was barren and silver looking, with square bars creating a door. I looked down at the blanket around my feet before looking back up.

Images flashed in front of my eyes as I shut them again. Being carried into a building. I was set on a table and injected with something. I felt tired and became unable to move before falling asleep. I woke up again, feeling a little better before falling asleep again.

Feeling something tightly squeezing my chest and sides, I looked down. White bandages were securely wrapped around my entire torso up to my neck at the base of my jaw. Something else caught my attention and I sighed with relief. 'The collar's gone. Oh yay! That thing felt like it was going to suffocate me.'

I noticed a tube leading from a bag outside the cage into my foreleg. Not knowing why it was there, I decided to leave it alone. 'Who knows what it's doing for me...'

A wave of exhaustion came over me as I settled back into the blanket. I struggled to get comfortable before settling on my stomach, my forepaws stretched out in front of me. Resting my head on my paws, I drifted off into sleep.

——Timeskip: 8:00am——
——1st of December, 1938——

The opening of a door woke me from a dreamless sleep. I yawned before attempting to stretch my stiff limbs, wincing as my wounds began to hurt again.

A woman in a white uniform came over with a clipboard and began to look me over. She nodded and wrote a few things down before setting the board aside. Opening the cage, she took the tube out of my foreleg. As she began to put things away, another person walked in. A man this time. "How's she doing?"

'Well, I ain't dead yet, so fine...'

"She's doing well, plenty hydrated so I took out the IV. She looks strong enough to be sent back, but I haven't checked her wounds yet."

'Back? Wait... back where?!' My eyes widened and my ears perked up, the flops on them bouncing slightly with the movement.

"Alright," the man responded to the nurse with a nod, "I'll check her wounds, you contact the shelter and update them about her condition."

'The shelter..? Oh no...' My face fell and my head and tail drooped. 'I'm being sent back to where I came from... So much for finally having a family...'

The woman left the room with a nod. I looked off blankly as the man gently began to unwrap my bandages and check my wounds. He got fresh ones and rewrapped my torso and neck. "You'll be fine. Those will heal up in a couple of days. You're lucky." His voice was reassuring, but it didn't help at all...

"I don't feel so lucky..." I whined out an answer as he pats my head gently.

"Nurse!" He called out and the woman returned, peeking her head into the room. "She's good to go. Tell them she can be transported to the shelter again."

"Alright" She nodded before gently picking me up -with quite a bit of effort- cradling me in her arms. We went down the hall and outside before she put me in the passenger seat of a car. Closing the door, she began to speak to another man outside. I put my head on the seat and sighed in defeat. 'I wonder if there us anyone new at the shelter? Hopefully not, but at the same time a new face would be welcome.'