Living Through Tasi

Chapter 2

"You had to do what? " Sonar stared up at me with droopy eyes, his blocky head cocked sideways in question. I stood atop Cassie's grooming table as she used a high-powered dryer to blow the water out of my coat, staring down at the larger, nearly all black Newfoundland that was splayed out on the concrete below. He outweighed me by at least 40 pounds, putting him in the 160-pound range. He was much thicker than me, which was common for the males in our breed, but his mass was completed by muscle hidden beneath a thick coat. As his head moved, so did his long lips, drool pooling in the two crevices of his impressive jowls. A bit of the white strip of fur down his chest was visible while his head was raised.

"Rescue a kid from another kid," I repeated, still barely believing the words myself. "One was pushing the other under the water. I couldn't believe my eyes!" I shifted on the table uneasily, but Cassie's hand on my back reminded me to stay still.

With a distinct huff, Sonar laid his head upon his front paws again. "Sometimes I think humans don't have brains..." he muttered, but he quickly added to his statement when his brown eyes fell on Cassie. "Well, some of them anyway."

"Agreed." As I spoke, Cassie leaned down to flip the dryer off, replacing the hose with a brush that she began to work through my now dry coat.

Sonar was approaching 9 years old, his age given away by the grey flecks of fur that were beginning to adorn his muzzle beneath his nose. Before I was born, it was his job to patrol the beach at Cassie's side and rescue humans from the clutches of the ocean. But Cassie had noticed his body beginning to slow just after he turned 7, which is when she had brought me in to take over his role. Of course, Sonar himself could never be replaced, and I had no intention of ever trying to, but I was glad to take over and let him enjoy retirement. Cassie still allowed him to accompany us to the beach frequently, but he rarely did more than relax at the edge of the water when he did. He also always wanted to know everything that had happened while I was on duty during the days that he didn't join us, like today.

"Anything interesting happen here today?" I queried, forcing myself to remain still while Cassie worked the brush through a tangle in the feathering of my front leg.

Sonar sighed, flopping contently onto his side. We were in the backyard of Cassie's small, two-bedroom home, surrounded by a screen that kept the annoying insects at bay during the cooler morning and evening hours. Inside the screen with us was a small pool with a home-made shelf that Sonar and I often lounged on, letting the water lap at our sides and bellies. Beneath a covering that protruded from the back of the house was an outdoor couch and two lounge chairs that surrounded a glass center table. Cassie laid on the couch often, either engrossed in a book or on her computer. She also studied sometimes, but I doubted that would happen again anytime soon. Summer had just started, plus she had just graduated from her final undergraduate year of college.

"Not really. I slept most of the day. Rufus wouldn't stop yelling though, as usual," Sonar huffed out in an annoyed tone. Rufus was a little terrier mix that lived next door. We never really talked to him, mostly because he was always too engrossed in everything else- squirrels, cars, the mailman... a leaf... you name it. He always exhausted me just listening to him.

"Alright Tasi, all done." Cassie patted me on the back and I hopped down off the table, wriggling my body to shake loose my newly groomed coat. My toenails scraped against the concrete beneath my paws as I shook, causing Cassie to arch a brow. "We really need to take care of those. They're getting long again."

I froze and tilted my head to gaze right into my human's hazel eyes, breathing out a puff of air defiantly. I didn't care how many times she tried to reassure me that the dremel she used to grind down my nails was safe. That thing was the spawn of Satan himself. I would never trust the device, and I always put up a fight when Cassie tried to use it on me. As if reading my thoughts, she sighed and shook her head, moving to open the sliding back door. "Never mind. I'm too tired to fight with you tonight."