Dog On A Rope

16 - Sly Coyote

"Your tribe? You mean, your pack?" Laika was in disbelief.

"Yes," he said, "If we could gather my pack, then they could rule Veal Tribe properly. Our leaders could. And then, maybe we would be accepted in the new world."

Laika scoffed, "No offense, Afore, but are you sure that's a good idea? Wolves taking over a tribe of dogs? How would that look to the other tribes? Would they even know how to run it?"

"They ran our pack just fine," Afore said with a low growl, defensively.

"Your pack got destroyed," Laika said, "Are you really sure that's the best option?"

Afore stood, then, towering over her, "My pack did not get destroyed. We were separated by your kind." He annunciated his words crisp and tartly, and every single syllable hung in the air like stiff water.

"Okay, whatever, same difference," Laika scoffed dismissively, looking away from him.

Afore's exhaustion pushed him, and he snarled at her, fangs bared, "This again, Laika? This again?"

She growled back at him, "I never took you as one for a temper."

"I never took you to be so judgemental." Afore calmed himself with ease, ears flattened and teeth becoming invisible again. He was angry, but his temper would not overtake him. More than anything, he was hurt. He had begun to consider Laika as a friend or ally; and now, that perception of her had been distorted.

Laika stood alongside him, shaking out her coat and releasing the leaves that clung to it, "Whatever! Let's just get going and get this damn rope off."

"Finally, you talk some sense."

"Oh, I've always talked sense."

Afore scoffed, "Have you now?"

"In my tribe, I'm renowned for my intelligence," Laika said with pride, head raised.

Afore chuckled, "Definitely not for your looks." Laika only scowled at him, and he laughed again. It was impossible to stay mad at her, and in these moments, Afore forgot how different they were. He liked to think that Laika forgot, too. The two began to walk. They would follow their noses, which would lead them to the next nearby tribe. It was diluted, but along the wind wafted the muddled scents of many dogs: a sign of a tribe nearby, and not just Jall Tribe. Afore's mission was to find his family, while Laika's was to get off of their leash and return to Veal Tribe.

The day had been long, and as they slowly walked, exhaustion and ache overwhelming their limbs, the sun began to set. Long shadows casted across the forest, and a golden light illuminated both Afore's tan agouti and Laika's caramel points. The night could not have possibly come too soon; both canines ached desperately and needed to rest longer than they had.

"Where will we sleep?" Laika asked as they walked. The sounds of the forest chirping and creeping drifted on the wind, soothing them, and airing a sense of evening tranquility.

"Not on your bear hide. That's for sure," Afore said, smirking.

Laika scoffed, "Well, where then?"

"Maybe I could sniff out an old burrow," Afore suggested. His steps were slow and heavy, burdened with the weight of the day's events.

Laika moaned, "That would take too long." She hung her head and then collapsed into the fluff of the leaves below, which crinkled and scattered with her weight. "This is good. This here is good." The gleaming red sun illuminated the silhouette of her spine in white as she laid there. She seemed to glow, surrounded with beautiful dying light.

Afore shook his head, amused, and then laid down more gently beside her, "Alright. Right here, the middle of the floor of the forest. Like primitive beasts."