Day 1
Mom and Dad walk me to the structure invading our backyard.
Something isn’t right about it. The look. The scent. It makes the hairs on my back stand up and I give a low growl.
Mom offers pets for comfort. She tells me ”It’s okay, boy, just give it a chance. It’s only for a little while. The baby is having allergies, we just need some time to figure this out”.
Dad slaps his hand against the structure and says ”It’s your new house, boy. Just for you.”
He looks to Mom and she looks to me. ”Be brave for us, Buster. Okay? Be a good boy.”
I step closer, one paw at a time.
Thunder in the distance. The sky over our heads goes dark. Didn’t smell like rain before. Why now? Ignore it.
Another step.
A chill blows from inside my new house. A sound calls to me. Instinct says to turn back, but Buster is a brave boy.
Keep going.
I make it inside and look back at Mom and Dad. They’re smiling, but they aren’t happy. ”Just for a little while, Buster, until we figure it out.”
Then they’re gone, and I’m alone in this strange place. My home. There’s that sound again, something I only hear for a second, but nothing is there. All alone.
Be brave, Buster.
Be a good boy.
Day 2
The house looks small from the outside, but it’s big on the inside.
There’s a smell. Bad smell. Coming from the corners. They’re the wrong shape and it always seems like there’s something in them.
Bark at each corner until the smell retreats.
Mom and Dad bring food and water. ”Did you miss us, boy?”
Affirmative bark. Tail wags.
Mom gives pets, but it’s different than usual. Her hand is shaking. Does my house scare her? Why does she leave me here?
Stay calm for Mom, Buster. Comfort and protect.
Mom says ”well it is a bit cold”. Dad steps forward and starts to say ”maybe for tonight…”
He looks at my house and steps back with his face all confused. ”Look at you, boy, Dad says, you’re a little homeowner.”
Argumentative bark.
”You just let us know if there’s a problem, alright?”
Mom and Dad leave and as they do the sound comes back. Voices? A whisper fills my house from nowhere and says You’re a bad boy, Buster. You’re a bad boy.
Bark.
Mom and Dad don’t look back. It’s like they can’t hear me at all. They keep walking.
Bark! Bark! Bark!
And I’m alone again.
Day 3
Look into water bowl, see dog staring back.
Angry dog. Violent dog. Hateful dog.
No. Look again.
Good boy looks back.
Bark at water and move on.
Day 4
Slept outside of dog house today. It was a good rest. Wake up to see something moving. It’s fast and sticks to the ground like a shadow. Same bad smell as the corners.
Bark.
It runs into my house. I follow it, barking and growling the whole way.
Nothing there. Where did it go?
Dad yells out from the old home ”Keep it down, Buster! You’re scaring the baby!”
Growl quietly into my house.
I can still smell it.
Day 5
Smell is stronger now. Like burning fur. It doesn’t retreat to barking anymore.
Step out to smell the grass instead. Walk past water bowl and bark at it again to be safe.
This time, something barks back.
Day 6
Found a rabbit in the dog house today. It has pieces missing.
Wild? Pet?
It hangs from the roof with a leash around its neck.
Bark.
It hops in the air all around and says Bad boy! Bad boy! Bad boy!
But Buster is a good, brave boy.
Bark. Growl. Attack.
Got the rabbit outside and Mom is there. She snatches it from my mouth and screams ”Buster! Stop it, Buster! Bad dog! What are you doing?”
She looks mad like I’ve never seen her and doesn’t sound like Mom anymore. She pulls back a hand to prepare a strike.
Whimper, but don’t move.
The strike doesn’t come. Mom falls to her knees and looks like she just woke up. The rabbit is gone and Mom looks around like she doesn’t know how she got here.
”What was… was I just…? Buster? It’s okay boy, it’s okay. I’m not gonna hurt you, boy. See? It’s okay. I was just confused.”
Comfort and protect.
It’s okay. Mom is okay. Just confused.
Mom won’t hurt Buster.
It’s okay.
Day 7
My house is cold. Much colder than before. Wind blows through it carrying voices that are like Mom and Dad but aren’t them, because these voices are bad and they say You’re a bad boy, Buster.
Howl.
Nobody listens.
Are Mom and Dad bringing less food than before? Getting hungry. Hungry and cold and scared.
It’ll be okay. It’s just for a little while.
Be brave, Buster.
Day 8
A rabbit comes from each corner now. They hop around and I stay quiet and watch. Can’t see them from certain angles.
They smell of burning fur and wind follows them.
Where do they come from? Where do they go?
They don’t attack. I don’t either.
They’re waiting for something.
Day 9
Can’t leave the dog house today.
Try to step out, end up back in. I get all mixed up. Hear Mom and Dad laughing in the distance.
Bark. Howl. Whine.
Nothing.
Not giving up. But still, can’t make it out.
Day 10
Water bowl is full this morning. Look inside.
The bad, angry, violent, hateful dog looks back. I hit the bowl with my paw and it all spills out. The other dog is still there, looking up from the ground.
It tries to claw its way out.
Bark.
It barks back.
Growl.
It growls back and it digs and digs like it’s almost out so I dig back until there’s nothing there anymore. Just a hole and the burning fur smell.
Howl for Mom and Dad. No answer.
Day 11
Wake up to see something crawl down where I dug. The hole is much deeper now. I move close and listen.
Crying comes from somewhere further in than I can see. Sounds like the baby.
Don’t want to go in, but Buster is a good, brave boy. Have to protect.
Be brave, Buster.
I try to crawl down the hole, but somehow it just leads up. I lift my head out of the hole and listen. Don’t hear crying anymore.
Hear Mom and Dad.
I look out of my house and see them but it’s not them and it’s all wrong. Angry, violent, hateful. It’s not them.
They’re missing pieces.
Bark.
Not them.
Bark! Bark! Bark!
They’ve got my bowls for food and water but instead they’re both filled with dirt and Mom and Dad say ”Did you bury us, Buster? Did you bury us?”
The smell is so strong here. Burning fur. This isn’t home.
Mom’s eyes are falling out and she says ”I can’t stand to look at you anymore, you bad dog.”
Dad is missing part of his head and he says ”I don’t even want to think about a bad boy like Buster.”
Not them. Buster is a good boy. Mom and Dad know that.
Bark. Growl. Retreat.
Back to the hole.
I dig and crawl as fast as I can and come out of the top again.
All alone this time. No crying, no Mom and Dad.
Just lie there and whine. Can’t take any more.
Buster is a good boy. But maybe not such a brave boy after all.
Day 12
It all gets better.
Mom and Dad are outside my house today. They’ve got big smiles and look like themselves again. I walk out to them without a problem.
”Did you miss us, boy?”
Affirmative bark. Tail wags.
Mom is holding the baby. She lowers him toward me and he reaches out his hand and pats my head. Mom says ”Look who came to see you!”
”It was all a mistake, boy,” says Dad, ”You weren’t causing his allergies. See, boy? Just a mistake.”
Excited bark. Tail wags.
Mom says ”You’ve been out here long enough, haven’t you? You’ve been such a good boy. Are you ready to come back with us, Buster?”
Yes.
Bark! Bark! Bark!
Finally.
No more dog house. Buster was a good boy.
Finally.
Day 13
In the old house now. The good house.
Dad stares outside, into the backyard. He’s distracted, but he’s still Dad.
The baby laughs and smiles at everything. He loves to pat my head.
Mom lets me sit in her lap and she gives pets and says ”You’re a good boy, Buster. You’re a good boy.”
And everything is better.
No. Wait.
Her hand is shaking. Why? Nothing to be afraid of anymore. It’s okay. We’re okay.
Comfort and protect. It’s okay.
No. What is that? Something wrong. Stop. Focus. There it is. Only a hint, but there it is, and it’s not okay at all.
The smell. Burning fur.
Be brave, Buster.