A Havanese's Journey

Prologue

Note: Listen to the song above for a better experience (we don't own the music, so all rights and credits go to it's respectful owner(s).

In the dark forest, under the moonlight, two havanese puppies were born to a she-dog named Moss. Her silver-white pelt was matted and untidy, and her soft blue eyes were uncharacteristically dull. She sheltered in a hollow away from the rain, and wrapped her tail protectively against her precious puppies.  

Another dog lay beside her, and in a gentil voice he asked

"They are so adorable. Can we name the golden puppy Ginger"?

Moss squinted, she could barely see the golden colors in the dark. "Of course", she muttered," can we name his sister Leafy? Her leaf green eyes are so calming and beautiful."

 Ginger battered at his sister with huge white paws, and Leafy let out a playful growl. The cavern filled up suddenly with a horrid onion smell. Everyone glanced toward the entrance as Patricia Onion walked in.

"Moss! Moss! Are you ok? Did Moss make it?". exclaimed Patricia. The dog beside Moss replied

"Yes Patricia, Moss made it, and she delivered two gorgeous puppies!" Patricia Onion leaped toward Moss in one jump, and whispered

"I'm so proud of you Moss. You are officially a mom!". Moss looked up at Patricia, and her eyes gleamed with sorrow. She knew she didn't have much time left

"Mom, I don't think that I will get a chance to see the sunrise again. Delivering these puppies has made me very tired and very sick. I've lost a lot of blood. Promise me yourself and Birch will take good care of them for me." Moss informed. The dog that was sitting beside Moss before answered in a frantic voice

"Moss, don't say that. You will be ok! You will live, and you and I will raise our pups together."

"I'm sorry my love," Moss licked Birch on the check, before taking one last shuddering breath. Her head dropped onto her mossy nest.

"No! NO!" Wailed Birch, he looked at Moss distraughtly.

"We could mourn her later". Rasped Patricia Onions. "We need to make sure these puppies are strong enough to survive the night. Both puppies are very weak."

"How could I lost her now? It's so unfair! Everything was just coming into place!"

Patricia ignored him, "Could you go out and hunt please? The puppies need food."

Birch took a couple of deep breaths, before nodding. "I'll be right back."

Patricia watched as the he-dog leaped into the rain and disappeared into the distance. She curled up next to Moss's two puppies, barely conscious of what was going on around her, Patricia drifted off into a restless sleep.

❦

When she awoke, it wad nearly dawn, and Birch still wasn't back. She quickly covered the two puppies under some moss before leaping out of the hollow and running into the forest. Birch wasn't there, and his scent was very stale. Patricia felt a lump stuck in her throat like a morsel of prey.  

"He couldn't have abandoned us! Oh please tell me he didn't!," exclaimed Patricia.  

She found a path of paw prints leading to a road, she tried to track them farther, but his scent was washed away. Birch had abandoned them. 

Patricia waited for the grief to take her, but instead, she felt a rush of rage. She promised herself that she would teach the puppies to hate on the father they never had, and that he was nothing but a coward.