Waggit Again (9 page)

I
t was as if Lowdown had let a cork out of a bottle. It seemed that each dog had a story about Olang that they were dying to tell but had been too frightened to reveal until now—tales of his bullying and arrogance, and the way that he lied to Tazar, spreading false rumors, and taking credit for kills that someone else had hunted.

“I think he's horrid,” said Lady Magica, who was the kindest of dogs and never had a bad word for anyone.

“He ain't just horrid,” Lady Alicia complained. “He's ugly and he smells bad.”

This was the worst thing she could say about anyone.

“It's worse than that, Waggit,” said Gordo, who was part Labrador and constantly overweight. “I once caught him hiding food for himself instead of sharing it with the rest of the team, like we are supposed to. He said that if I ever told anyone he would bite my tongue off while I slept, and then I'd never be able to eat again.”

The thought of this sent a shudder through Gordo's ample body. It was a threat he had taken seriously, because, as everyone knew, Gordo slept with his tongue hanging out.

Waggit suddenly realized that the reason they were all talking about these things now was that they were looking to him to do something about the situation, but what he was not quite sure.

“If you're all so upset about Olang, why don't you say something to Tazar about him?” he asked.

“Tazar's a great dog and a fine leader,” said Lowdown. “He's kept this team together through some difficult times, as you know, but like most great dogs he has
a blind spot, and his is Olang. He won't hear nothing bad said about him, and everything the miserable cur says is like law to Tazar. If he said hot was cold Tazar would believe him.”

There was a chorus of agreement.

“If you say anything that is even a little bit critical of him,” said Raz, “he comes back and tells Tazar the most awful lies about you, and even if you've got a dozen witnesses what says you didn't do the thing he says you did, Tazar don't believe you.”

“And he's the most awful bully,” said Little One. “He's always pushing Little Two around and snapping at him.”

“It's true,” said Little Two shamefacedly.

“So what are you going to do about it?” asked Waggit.

There was an awkward silence again.

“Well,” said Lowdown eventually, “we was hoping you would have a talk with Tazar about it. He always had a soft spot for you, and he listens to what you say. Can't you tell him that you noticed how unhappy we are, and how we talked about it? If you do it straightaway he'll know that it ain't because you've got a grumble against Olang, but because you're worried
about the team sticking together.”

The team breaking up was exactly what Waggit was worried about. If this went on unchecked it could split the dogs into two groups, with Tazar and Olang on one side, and the rest of the dogs on the other. Although there were many fine animals on the team, they needed a leader, and as far as Waggit could see, there was nobody among them who could take the place of Tazar. What Lowdown said made a lot of sense, but the thought of confronting Tazar about anything, least of all his illusions about his son, was very scary; even though he was a great dog, he had a fearsome temper. On the other hand, if the team broke up Waggit would truly be homeless, and this was something that was even more frightening than facing Tazar.

“Okay,” he said hesitantly. “I'll do it—when the time is right.”

“Don't leave it too long though,” warned Lowdown. “The sooner the better.”

“I know,” replied Waggit.

A surge of relief went through the group when they heard him agree to do this. It was as if the problem was already solved. Although this was gratifying, it
didn't make the task any easier.

“Come on, Waggit,” said Cal, “let's show you the pipe so that you can choose where you want to sleep. There's not much room, though, I warn you.”

Lug coughed gently behind them.

“Oh, yeah, you can come too,” said Cal. “I guess if Gordo can get through the entrance you can. I don't think we'll ever fit Felicia in though.”

His last comment caused a ripple of chuckles to go through the team.

Cal led them past the place where the tent had been to a big, old maple tree at the foot of a rocky incline. From the side that they were approaching it looked like any other tree in the park, but when Waggit got between it and the rocks he could see a hole in the ground between its roots. It certainly didn't look big enough for a dog of Gordo's stature to get through, but according to Cal he used it frequently, although always accompanied by much groaning and panting.

Cal went first, followed by Raz, and then Waggit prepared to push himself inside. Before he did he turned to see whether or not Lug was following. He was standing several feet back.

“S'okay,” Lug said. “You go ahead. I'll stay here,
sort of stand guard. Tell me what it's like.”

Waggit shrugged, turned toward the hole, and disappeared down it. In the darkness it was impossible to see where he was going, and suddenly he felt the ground drop away from beneath his feet and he tumbled down to find himself on the floor of the pipe. Now that he wasn't blocking the light with his body and his eyes had become accustomed to the gloom, he could see his surroundings better.

While the pipe was large for a pipe, it was a small place for dogs to live in. Waggit couldn't see how Alicia would be able to stand up in it to her full height. In fact he was pretty sure she couldn't. It had obviously been part of a drainage system, of which there were many in this part of the park, where streams ran into pools and small ponds. The pipe had fallen into disuse when it fractured in two places, one where the dogs entered it, and another about twenty feet along where earth had trickled down over the years and now completely blocked it, cutting off any possibility of escape.

The only light came through the shallow entry tunnel, and what it illuminated was not good. Because the floor of the pipe was round, an attempt had been made to flatten it with newspapers and cardboard
boxes. Many of these were wrinkled where water had come into the pipe, presumably from the entrance. They were also filthy, and Waggit remembered how scrupulous Tazar had been about keeping the tunnel clean and how frequently he had insisted that they remove all the cardboard boxes and paper on which they slept and replace them with fresh ones. The air in the pipe was damp and stale and smelled strongly of its occupants.

“This is another thing that Olang took credit for,” Cal said. “There was four of us what found the pipe, and he was just one of them, but he ran off and told Tazar about it first so that it looked like he found it all by himself.”

“Why is it so dirty?” asked Waggit. “Doesn't Tazar say anything?”

“Oh, it drives him nuts,” replied Cal. “But it's really hard to get boxes and clean paper in the pipe and the old stuff out and, to be honest with you, everyone's so fed up we can't be bothered. Olang tells Tazar it's 'cause we're lazy, but it ain't. It's 'cause we ain't got any enthusiasm for it.”

“Why didn't you say something to Tazar about the effect Olang's having on the team?” asked Waggit.

“You don't seem to understand,” said Raz, with an edge of frustration in his voice. “You can't say
anything
to Tazar that puts Olang in a bad light. He just don't want to know about it.”

Just then the pipe went dark, and they all looked up to see the unmistakable silhouette of the leader looking down from the entry.

“Well, what d'you think?” Tazar asked Waggit. “Pretty good, eh? Warm, secure, easily defended. My boy found it, you know. Mind you, it needs tidying up a bit, although nobody except for Olang and myself seems to be bothered by that.”

“Tazar,” said Waggit, summoning up all his courage, “can you and I talk?”

“Sure we can,” said Tazar. “You know me. I've always got time for a team member. Come on up.”

Waggit scrambled back through the hole, shook the dirt from his coat, and had reached Tazar when Felicia's voice pierced through the glade.

“Okay, everybody, come and get it.”

Tazar and Waggit turned to see her tall figure laden down with shopping bags, Alona trotting proudly by her side wearing the expression of one who knows a secret.

“Now listen up,” Felicia declared in her most authoritative voice. “I don't have enough money to do this every day, but I thought that we should celebrate Waggit's return to the team with a special breakfast.”

The dogs had gathered around, curious to discover what she had in the bags. She opened them up and started to retrieve the most amazing assortment of food that they had ever seen. Even Olang, who had returned after sulking in the woods for a while, moved forward in curiosity. From the deli there was salami and roast beef, hot dogs and different cheeses, and from the pet store there were rawhide chews, smoked pigs' ears, and large, crunchy biscuits. As the contents of each package was laid out on the ground all Gordo could say was, “Oh my! Oh my!”

The feast was magnificent, and even Magica's sensible suggestion that maybe they should save some for a later date was swept aside. This was a celebration, a homecoming; it was not a time to be practical. Tazar took over the distribution of the food and the seating arrangements, and Felicia was wise enough to let him. When all was in place, and each dog sat in front of a pile of food and other goodies, Tazar intoned the prayer that he said every time the dogs ate:

“Remember as you eat, you eat your brother's food; remember as you sleep, you take your sister's space; remember as you live, your life belongs to them. You are the team; the team is you. The two are one; the one is two.”

That said, nothing much else was, for the serious task of eating good food demanded utmost concentration. Felicia was given the honor of sitting between Tazar and Waggit. Lowdown sat on Waggit's left, and Olang on Tazar's right.

“The food is fine, Felicia,” Tazar said between mouthfuls. “It really is fine.”

“So is your team, Tazar,” Felicia graciously replied.

And indeed, for that moment it did seem as if they were. Waggit looked around at them enjoying themselves and their meal, and the conversations he had such a short time ago seemed to have been with a different pack of dogs. This was the old team, close-knit, fun-loving, a family.

Tazar turned to Waggit.

“You wanted to say something to me?” he asked.

“Later,” said Waggit. “It can wait till later. For now let's just enjoy ourselves.”

I
t took the team only a short time to finish the meal. The dogs who had the good sense not to overeat—and believe it or not there were a couple—took their pigs' ears or rawhide chews off to secret spots to be buried and dug up later. This was not an option open to those who had been seated next to Alicia, whose appetite was legendary.

“If you ain't gonna eat that,” she was heard to shriek, “I'll finish it up for you.”

And without waiting for an answer from the food's unfortunate owner, she did just that. The two big mysteries of life in the park were how Alicia stayed so thin
no matter how much she ate, and how Gordo never lost an ounce, even in the leanest times when the dogs might go for days without food.

The next order of business, after the licking and belching that generally followed a meal, was what to do with Felicia. While it was true that she had money, it was not enough for her to stay in any but the most modest of hotels, and furthermore she had an aversion to sleeping in buildings. The problem was, of course, that apart from the park there were very few open spaces in the city where you could pitch a tent—actually, none.

At Tazar's suggestion the team broke up into several groups to search the area in the general vicinity of the pipe for suitable locations where the tent would be hidden from view. As was usually the case, Gruff stayed behind, claiming a frailty that no one else could see. Lowdown remained for the same reason, only in his case the frailty was apparent to everyone. Lady Alicia refused to join the search, regarding such activities, or indeed any activity that benefited the common good, as being beneath the dignity of a purebred dog.

Waggit went with Cal and Raz, whose company he always enjoyed, and Lug tagged along as well; Gordo
lumbered off with Magica, whom he had adored forever, and whom he would have followed anywhere; they were joined by Little One and Little Two, to whom Magica had been like a mother; Tazar and Olang left with the air of dogs who had important business to discuss.

It was Alona and Felicia who found the perfect place. Because Alona had been a loner, which was how she got her name, she knew the Deepwoods End better than anyone. She was also skilled at finding hiding places, a necessity for dogs who lived without the protection of a team. In fact she herself had used the spot to which she took Felicia as a refuge. It was at the foot of a tall, elegant willow tree growing next to a stream. A cascade of long, trailing branches almost touched the ground and became intertwined with rushes that grew around the stream's edge. Between them the tree and the grasses formed a natural tent, which would almost completely hide Felicia's. When Alona was sure that her companion was satisfied with the choice she gave out one long and three short, low howls, loud enough for the rest of the team to hear, but not so loud as to attract the attention of any humans who might be in the area.

Soon the other Tazarians gathered around and expressed their approval of the location. Felicia was so excited with the discovery that she wanted to get the tent as soon as possible and erect it on its new site, so she and Alona went to retrieve it from the rocks where they had hidden it just a few short hours ago. The other team members wandered off after agreeing to return to help with any extra camouflage that might be necessary when the tent was in position, and for the first time since returning to the park Waggit found himself alone—well, almost alone, because he still had Lug, his inevitable shadow. They trotted off along a narrow wooded path in the direction of the meadow.

“Where are we going?” asked Lug.

“Back to the pipe,” Waggit replied tersely.

“Are you going to sleep there tonight?” Lug inquired with anxiety in his voice.

“Dunno yet.”

“I hope not. It looks spooky to me,” said Lug.

Secretly Waggit agreed with him. The thought of spending the night in that stuffy, claustrophobic tube was not something that held any appeal for him, despite the fact that he wanted to be close to his old
teammates. He wasn't going to admit this to Lug, however, and so the pair of them proceeded in silence. It was a few minutes later when they literally bumped into Tazar. The path they were on converged with another, but the undergrowth was so high, and Waggit was so preoccupied with the team's problems, that he didn't notice the leader on the other path until they collided with each other. Tazar must have been deep in thought also, because both dogs were startled by the sudden appearance of the other, and both raised their hackles and growled.

“Oh, Waggit,” said Tazar. “It's you.” Then he noticed Lug behind Waggit. “And—er, what's his name again?”

“Lug,” replied Waggit.

“Lug, yes, absolutely right,” said Tazar in a tone of voice that seemed to indicate he was testing Waggit to see whether
he
remembered the other dog's name. “That's an interesting Upright you brought us,” he continued, “really interesting. Never met one like her.”

“Well,” said Waggit, “so far she's really been great. I don't think I would've made it back without her. I trust her.”

“Hmm.” Tazar was skeptical. “I'm not sure I would go that far. She's unusual, I'll give you that, but she's still an Upright. When the paw meets the pavement they look after each other before they concern themselves with us, but she's different enough from all the others to give her the benefit of the doubt. I guess time will tell. And talking about time, how long do you think she's going to be around?”

“She's a wanderer,” said Waggit. “I get the impression she doesn't like to stay too long in any one place, so I don't know exactly, but I wouldn't think it'll be forever.”

“What about the team?” asked Tazar, changing the subject abruptly. “I'm worried about them. They seem so morose much of the time, and I can't understand why.”

Waggit drew in a deep breath. His heart was pounding with fear, but circumstances would never be better than this to start the conversation the team was relying on him to have with Tazar.

“Well…you know, um,” he said hesitantly, “I haven't really been around long enough—well, actually, um, not long at all—to help you with that
one—although perhaps they do seem a little down.”

“Well, I'd appreciate your thoughts,” said Tazar, “when you zero in on what the problem is.” He looked at the length of the shadows cast by the trees. “Great Vinda, is that the time? I must be off. Let's talk later.”

As he disappeared into the undergrowth Waggit felt wretched that he hadn't taken advantage of the opportunity to bring up the subject of Olang. It wasn't just that he was scared of Tazar's reaction, although he was. But now that he thought about it more it seemed that he hadn't been around long enough. There was always the possibility that the team was blaming Olang for things that weren't his fault—the restricted living conditions in the pipe, for example. Waggit didn't yet know if their determined dislike of the dog was justified, and until he saw for himself how Olang behaved he would withhold judgment. It was a serious matter to come between a father and his son.

“I thought you wanted to talk to Tazar about Olang,” said Lug, whom Waggit had completely forgotten was there.

“I'll do it later,” replied Waggit.

“Suit yourself,” said Lug, “but that seemed as good
a time as any.”

Waggit decided at that moment that Lug was even more irritating when he was right than when he was cowardly.

Later that afternoon they all stood around the willow tree trying to see where Felicia's tent was, but the camouflage work that they themselves had done, as well as the natural characteristics of the location, made it impossible to spot. Of course to a dog its scent gave away its position, but their experience with humans was that the poor things had virtually no sense of smell and equally inadequate hearing. Their sight didn't seem to be that great either, and so the dogs felt fairly confident that Felicia would be in no danger, from her own kind at least. Despite the fact that Felicia was human, the whole team seemed to be excited about helping her. Once again Waggit saw how easily they worked together and how strong the bonds were among them. All except Olang, who sulked or made disparaging remarks about the foolishness of dogs who allowed themselves to be duped by humans. It was an echo of his father, only meaner and angrier.

When night fell Waggit decided that he would sleep
with the team in the pipe. This was not because he wanted to; he would have infinitely preferred to be with Felicia in the safety of her hidden tent. But he felt that if he was truly rejoining the team he had to live with them from the outset and share the discomforts that they suffered. He was also somewhat worried by Olang's comments about humans, especially when he'd implied that Waggit was a spy for the Uprights and shouldn't be trusted. The fact that he had left the team once to go with a human and now had returned in the company of another could be fertile ground for suspicion, and he felt he had to prove his loyalty to his teammates.

He settled into the confined space of the pipe. He hadn't realized just how cramped it was until he tried to find enough room to lie down, in the end nestling between Gordo's outstretched legs, his head resting on that dog's ample stomach. The temperature in the pipe soon became significantly higher than outside and the air was filled with the sound of tongues panting, as well as Gordo's snores. Waggit was hot and restless; he couldn't get comfortable and found himself wishing that he was Lug, who didn't have to prove himself
to anyone. Because of this the pit bull was now blissfully stretched out next to Felicia in the coolness of her tent.

After about half an hour of tossing and turning, none of which disturbed Gordo's slumbers, Waggit decided to go out for some fresh air, and maybe join Little One and Little Two, who were on sentry duty that night. Normally only one dog would be on eyes and ears, but these two never did anything without the other. Waggit stepped as carefully as he could around the other dogs in the pipe, although even with his vigilance he still managed to provoke a few growls on the way out. He finally scrambled up the entry tunnel and into the cool night air. He took several lungfuls that tasted as sweet as cool, fresh water, shook himself, was about to go and find the sentries when he heard a wheezing chuckle behind him.

“Heh, heh. Too friendly for comfort down there?” inquired Lowdown.

“Well, it
is
a bit cramped,” admitted Waggit.

“And a bit warm, I'll bet.”

“How come you're not in the pipe?”

“With my legs!” exclaimed Lowdown. “I'd have to
get Cal or Raz or another of those strong boys to carry me in and out like a puppy, and I'm way too old to be a puppy. No, they know I don't sleep there. What they don't know is where I do. Come, follow me.”

Lowdown hobbled off painfully, with Waggit following closely behind. They had gone some distance from the pipe's entrance when they came upon a large, dead oak tree, most of its branches missing, with ivy all over its trunk and ferns growing at its base. Lowdown walked straight up to it and pushed some of the foliage aside with his nose to reveal that the tree had a completely hollow trunk. Into this the short brown dog had pulled some cardboard and newspaper, and now had a safe, cool, and comfortable spot to spend each night.

“Home,” said Lowdown. “And my house is your house.”

Waggit looked at his generous friend and a wave of affection flooded over him. He began to lick the old fellow all over his face.

“Hey, hey, enough of that,” spluttered Lowdown. “You know I don't hold with too much washing.”

“That's not washing,” said Waggit. “That's love!”

“Yeah, well,” Lowdown grumbled. “Whatever it is ain't going to get us a good night's sleep.”

Then they settled down to rest.