Up and Ahead: Introductions

He was floating in the darkness. It was thick and cold and heavy. It felt as if the ocean he had crossed with his family long ago had swallowed him into its abyss. It was deafeningly quiet. He couldn’t even hear his own heartbeat. Panic began to seize him and he attempted to run, but his limbs were stubborn and stiff and refused to yield to his commands.
“Help!” he tried to scream, but there was something obstructing his throat, something sticky and unpleasant, that made it impossible to speak. Desperate to take back some control of his plight, he began to writhe and squirm helplessly like a worm caught in a bird’s beak. Two orange orbs materialized from the darkness, and he froze, chest heaving. A steady, confident sound echoed through the emptiness, and it filled his ears to the brim.  Oddly enough, they sounded like the familiar clip clop of a horse’s gait. As the glowing orbs drew near, they revealed themselves to be the eyes of an enormous beast, whose form gave off the softest orange glow.
“Why do you always panic? Do you not trust me?” a deep, ancient voice rang out. It resonated through his bones and brought a flurry of memories back into his head. As his fear trickled away, so did the obstruction that prevented him crying out before.
“I never remember until I hear your voice,” he returned; glad to have his own voice again. The beast chuckled.
“That is not unheard of. Tell me, Dimitri. Where are your demons hiding?” it asked. Dimitri blinked. In the crushing, surreal, blackness, he had forgotten his own name, his own identity.
“Again with the demons! I’m not hiding any demos anywhere. They donnae exist. In fact, they aren’t any more real than ye are. All I want is for ye t’stop bringing me back t’this awful place,” he spat, hackles rising. The great beast reared up on its hind legs. It slammed its feet down dangerously close to Dimitri, illuminating the darkness in a blinding orange flash. In those precious moments of light, Dimitri could finally see the creature’s form: a magnificent black horse.
“Fool! You continue to cage them! You feed them with your apathy and cowardice!” it thundered, making Dimitri’s ears ring and his tail swoop between his legs.
“Why cannae ye just leave me alone! I have no demons!” he snarled, though his limbs were trembling with fear. Its orange eyes flared an angry crimson, and the horse reared again. This time when it brought down its great hooves the blackness cracked and a creaked like thin ice. Blinding white light streamed through the cracks.
“What are ye doing? Stop!” Dimitri cried. The horse brought its feet down again, shattering the blackness and sending Dimitri plummeting into the blank space below. He fell with a heavy thud onto a smooth surface and cried out in pain. A low, primitive snarl made him slowly look up. An enormous black bear stood before him. Its eyes were bottomless pits of blood-red hatred and it didn’t seem to be made up of flesh and fur. Its body was instead covered with a shiny, sticky black ooze that dripped and spattered as it moved. Dimitri scrambled away, whimpering with terror. It gave an ear-splitting roar before collapsing into an oily blob. The blob thrashed about until its shape shifting from a huge, menacing snake. It slithered toward him, black tongue flicking the foul ooze onto Dimitri’s sensitive nose. It reeked and burned like hellfire, and he frantically tried to rub it off. This only made things worse, as the substance singed off patches of fur wherever it touched. Dimitri screamed with horror and fear, turned tail and fled. As he ran into the white blank emptiness, he felt the ooze falling like rain on his back, looking up, he saw the monster had shifted into a giant, sticky black eagle. The eagle let out an ugly shriek before swooping down and trapping the helpless dog in its mighty talons. As Dimitri looked into its hellish eyes, an ancient voice whispered in his ear.
You refused to see them, so I found them for you. Remember, dog, if you don’t tame your demons, they’ll destroy you. Dimitri gave a final scream as the eagle’s beak plunged toward his throat.
“NO!”

“Mister Collins! Mister Collins! Mister Collins!”
The new deputy jolted upright in his bed, panting furiously. His limbs shuddered slightly, and his eyes stared blankly before him. When his vision was granted back to him, he looked frantically at his paws. He breathed out a sigh of relief when all he saw was the smooth black fur. He went limp and flopped back down in his bed, pulling the cover over his head. The hollow ache from his dream returned, this time in his chest, and it took his shallow breath away.
“Uh, Mister Collins? Are you okay?” a small, concerned voice said. Dimitri poked his head out from under the sheets and saw two chocolate Labrador pups by his bed. It took him a moment to remember them as Rory and Nathan, the two pups he had rescued the evening before. Their expressions were one of concern, but there were traces of something else there, something he had seen before. It tore his heart open.
“Sorry laddies, ‘twas a nightmare,” he grunted, sitting up and stretching. “What can I do for ye?”
“Momma says breakfast is ready,” said Nathan.
“And we there’s a hot bath ready for ya, Momma says you can’t show up on your first day of work lookin’ as scruffy as an upside down jack rabbit in a tumbleweed tornado,” added Rory.
“A what now?”
“Bacon’s gettin’ cold!” their mother’s voice called from downstairs.
“C’mon Mister Collins! Momma’s bacon is famous!” Rory said, tail wagging.
“Thank ye lads, I’ll be down in a moment. And call me Dimitri,” he said with a grateful smile. The pups looked at each other excitedly.
“Thanks Dimitri! See you soon!” Nathan yipped, and the two scampered off to the kitchen. Dimitri slid off the bed and gave himself a good, thorough shake. He looked out the window. It was lovely outside, and he allowed a small seed of hope to grow in his chest. It was a new place, with new people, and a new job. He gave a wry smile. Things had started out well for him. Who knows, maybe the nightmares will finally cease.

Dimitri licked his plate clean with as much dignity as he could muster; which wasn’t much as it was the best food he had eaten in weeks. Is this what real bacon tasted like? What had he been eating all these years? And the fresh squeezed orange juice! What sweet nectar of the gods was this?! He didn’t want to seem greedy by asking for seconds, but God! he couldn’t remember the last time his taste buds were so happy. Mrs. Smith laughed heartily.
“My, he is a polite one, isn’t he? Here, dearie, eat up,” she said, piling two more strips of bacon, two more pancakes, and topped off his orange juice within a matter of seconds. Dimitri fought a losing battle with his watering mouth.
“But-I-I couldn’t, ye’ve given me so much already, I cannae possibly-”
“Don’t worry, Dimitri, we have a sayin’ in our family,” Nathan said with a grin.
“When mama’s cookin’, no matter what you say, you’re getting seconds anyway,” him and Rory sang in unison. Mr. Smith, who was quietly reading the paper, gave a small chuckle.
“Not t’ mention you wouldn’t be any good to us all skinny like. We always fatten up our guests. Tell me, will you be doing lots of running as deputy? We like our guests lean for dinner,” he said deadpan, looking Dimitri straight in the eyes. Dimitri shifted uncomfortably and felt unease creeping up his spine.
“I’m afraid I don’t follow.”
“Don’t fret, I’m sure we’ll figure it out eventually. Wouldn’t you like more syrup on your hot cakes?”
“I’m fine thanks,” he said, although his appetite had wavered a bit. Mrs. Smith cuffed her husband over the ears, knocking his glasses onto the table.
“Really, Thomas, is that acceptable host behavior? Look at the poor dearie, he’s spooked out of his wits!”
“That’s a slight exaggeration-” Dimitri began.
“If I hear another word of such depravity, well, to this warning take heed: you’ll not get supper, no matter how much you plead. Understood?” she said sternly to her husband. Although her voice was cold, there was laughter and affection twinkling in her eyes. Mr. Smith nodded and did his best to look terrified, but the same twinkle lit up his eyes as well.
“Understood, love, my deepest apologies to you and our guest. He’s probably too gamey for our taste anyways.”
The pups collapsed on the floor in a fit of giggles, while a slightly disturbed Dimitri looked from dog to dog, unsure of what to do.
“Don’t worry, Pa tells all our guests he’s gonna eat ‘em,” Rory informed him once he regained his breath.
“Ah, good ta know, laddy,” he said with a nervous laugh, and ate his breakfast faster.
*
“Well it’s about time you showed up. They have clocks where you come from, Mac?”
Dimitri looked at Sheriff Lester incredulously.
“Well, sir, yes. With all do respect, that’s why I’m here on time and ye are in fact five minutes late,” he said with a straight face. The sheriff cocked his head to the side, made a confused sound, and turned to look at the clock tower in the town square. Sure enough, it read 8:05.
“And my name ain’t Mack, sir.”
“Yes, yes, you’ve made your point, follow me,” Lester grumbled as he pushed by Dimitri. At that moment the deputy decided that it if he didn’t take anything the sheriff personally, they would get along swimmingly. He followed Lester inside the dusty old sheriff’s office. It was nothing out of the ordinary. The first room was an office with a wooden desk, an oil lamp, and a small pile of neatly stacked paper in the upper right corner. There were a few rickety -looking chairs in front of the desk, with a single, large red, comfortable-looking chair behind it. A large, clean window provided whoever sat in the red chair a view of the entire street outside. In the back of the office there was a blackened brick fireplace with a basket full of twigs, scrap wood, and tumbleweeds next to it. There was a wall to the right covered in wanted posters, maps, a few newspaper clippings of Lester’s exploits, and photographs of dogs Dimitri didn’t recognize. Dimitri couldn’t help but notice a dartboard in the back of the office with Steban’s face tacked over it, though the sheriff had only hit the top left side of his ear. The rest of the darts were scattered around the board, and he noted one on the ceiling.
“I have a bad elbow, ok?” Lester grumbled indignantly.
“Ah,” Dimitri replied, looking away.
There was a heavy wooden door in the center of the wall, with a small steel-barred window on each side. He could just see into the other room, and he made a face as he picked up the smell. It was mix of urine, body odor, wood, and dust.
“Hey, hey ya filthy, dust suckin’ sonofa-hic-bitch! Lemme-hic- outta ‘ere, I got shit-hic- ta do!” a voice slurred from inside.
“Don’t mind him. That’s Chester, the town drunk. You’ll heave his useless ass in here on more than one occasion; that I can promise you. So, first thing is first, Mick, you need a badge so everyone knows who you are,” Lester said, trotting behind the desk and opening a drawer.
“Y’know Mick is a term for Irish folks, not Scottish right?” Dimitri said, trying to keep the annoyance out of his voice.
“Is there really a difference, Paddy? The only thing I can think of is that Irish people don’t wear silly skirts, so if anything it might be better not to be Scottish,” he replied, not looking up as he rummaged through the drawer.
“Now look here, mate, first off, it’s called a kilt. Secondly, it’s a proud tradition datin’ back thousands o’ years-”
“Ah! Here it is,” Lester interrupted. He held up a light blue cloth collar with a golden shield-shaped badge attached to the center. “Deputy” was neatly printed across it in black letters. Lester smiled nostalgically.
“It’s been a while since I’ve worn this ole thing,” he sighed. Dimitri couldn’t help but smile at the sheriff’s rare moment of humanity. It evaporated as Lester snapped his head to him with a look so cold it could have frozen over the entire desert.
“I swear to God, if you disgrace the honor and pride of this badge I will personally tie you to a horse and drag you across every square foot of this town, UNDERSTAND?” he snarled, his voice growing louder and louder until he screamed the final word. Dimitri had held his ground, though his expression grew more distressed and the volume of his voice increased. He was beginning to think everyone in this town had spent too much time in the sun. Lester leaned back, cleared his throat, and squared his shoulders. “Well?”
“Understood, sir. You have nothin’ t’ worry about, I promise ye,” Dimitri said solemnly.
“Good. And I mean it too. Here, take it,” he said, holding it out with a paw. Dimitri stuck his head through the loop and gracefully pulled it on. It fit perfectly, and the gold shimmered beautifully against his night-black fur.  An emotion stirred in his chest- pride, joy, clarity? He couldn’t be sure. It felt good, whatever it was.
“Don’t worry, Sheriff. I’ll not let ye down,” Dimitri said, looking Lester right in the eyes.
“Good. Now, about your pay: I was thinking five dollars a week, since that’s what mine was when I started. Does that work for you?” he said, dipping a claw in ink and signing a form on his desk. Dimitri stifled a scoff of disbelief. It was enormous sum to a veteran that had been out of a job for months.
“That’s very generous, sir, thank ye.”
“Good. I wasn’t going to pay you anything more anyways.”
“I’m hungry ya slack-jawed-hic- mouth-breathin’ –hic- toad-lickin, -hic…”
“Yeah, yeah, Chester, we can hear ya fine, three more hours and you’re free to go!” Lester shouted into the holding cell. He rolled his eyes. “Never pay any mind to him. He has more booze in his system than brains. Well, now that all the busywork’s been taken care of, it’s time you got the grand tour I suppose.” Lester gestured for him to follow as he padded to the door.
“What about him? Shouldn’t ye feed him?” Dimitri asked, looking at the heavy door dividing the two rooms.
“Nah, I warned him that meal service would stop after strike five. Now are you gonna follow me or just stand around asking dumb questions all day?”
*

Dimitri found the town lovely. The buildings, though old, were maintained with the obvious care and affection, as each sported fresh coats of paint, dusty but pristine windows, and well-kept signs before each door. Some even had bright flowers in the windowsills. There was a bakery, a cheese store, and meat shop all on one street, and the smells mingled together beautifully. He even spied Steban at one point, whom was traveling with a disgruntled-looking beagle and an adventurous-looking Rottweiler. They nodded a friendly hello but didn’t come over and quickly slinked off as Lester glanced their way. Dimitri had raised an eyebrow. What are they up to? He wondered. Lester had followed his gaze to the little band of canines and narrowed his eyes spitefully.
“Don’t trust that lot. They’re always getting in the way of the true lawmen of this town,” he growled. Dimitri nodded, though took no opinion.
Now he and Lester were walking back to the sheriff’s office, their tour nearly completed.
“I’m assigning you on a nightly patrol. Keep an eye out for anything that doesn’t strike you right, and report it immediately. Don’t be a hero, Mac, that’s my job, clear?” Lester said curtly.
“Clear,” Dimitri sighed. He had long ago given up on Lester calling him by his real name.  
“Good. Until then walk around and talk with people, gain their trust. That’s not a request; it’s an order. Don’t you dare go into the saloon and drink the night away, or I ain’t paying you until next week. Understood?”
“Yes sir,” Dimitri said evenly. It was becoming increasingly clear how much Lester enjoyed ordering him around. Perhaps it’s the first time anyone’s actually had to listen, he thought with a wry smile.
“Shit!” the sheriff suddenly exclaimed.
“What?” Dimitri asked, startled, though his nose soon told him what the fuss was about. The mix of lilacs, rose water, perfume, and cleanliness on the wind could only mean one thing: girls. Lester spun around to face Dimitri, eyes wide with panic.
“She’s with them, I’d know that smell anywhere. Quick, how do I look?”
“You’re fine, mate.”
“How do I smell? Quick, smell me!” Lester demanded fearfully, shoving his neck fur in Dimitri’s face. The deputy sneezed as his senses were suddenly smothered in collie hair.
“Get-puteuy- offa me ye silly bastard! Ye smell fine, now calm down and straighten up!” Dimitri snapped, shoving Lester away and spitting out hair. Lester cleared his throat, straightened his shoulders, puffed out his chest, and shined his badge with the back of his paw.
“I know, I just wanted to be sure,” he said quietly, badly hiding the embarrassment in his voice.
“Who’s the bonnie lass anyways?” Dimitri asked, pulling a hair off his tongue.

“Hey Lester, is that the new guy?” a strong female voice rang out. Their heads snapped in unison to the source. While they were talking a gaggle of women had rounded the corner and were making a beeline toward them.
“Her,” Lester said dreamily, gesturing to the stunning Saluki hound leading the pack. She had long, slender legs, a lithe, supple body, and a wonderfully glossy coat. Dimitri furrowed his brow as he tried to read her eyes. They were strange. They were a deep warm brown, yet they seemed cold, crafty, cunning. Ruthless. Whatever they held, he didn’t trust it, and he didn’t like it. There were three other girls with her, all quiet pretty. There was a lovely Afghan-Greyhound mix that gave him a shy smile before looking away, a gorgeous cream-coated husky-collie mix¬ (did she just wink at me? Nah couldn’t have been…) and a comely merle collie that waved a friendly hello.
“Well, well, what a fine day to see a fine group ‘o ladies,” Lester said airily, performing an over-the-top bow. “And Faye, might I be so bold as to say you look prettier than the first flowers of spring?” he continued, voice honey-sweet. Dimitri rolled his eyes and stuck out his tongue. Upon catching himself, he quickly retracted his tongue, stood up straight and put on a stern, aloof expression. This elicited a quiet giggle from one of the girls, though he couldn’t be sure which, and gave his fur a little embarrassed shake. In his little moment of silliness he missed Faye’s response, but judging by Lester’s crestfallen expression, it hadn’t been the one for which he was hoping. Faye suddenly turned to him.
“I was in the search party when you returned with those boys. Impressive work,” she said with a nod of respect.
“Thank ye, ‘twas nothing but the right thing to do,” he said modestly. She gave a half smile, but her eyes remained neutral. This Faye was very difficult to read, and it frustrated Dimitri immensely.
“Your accent is so pretty, Mr. Collins, where did you say you were from?” the cream-colored husky mix came up and fluttered her eyelashes coquettishly. She was beautiful. Her clear, sky-blue eyes matched the blue pendant around her neck perfectly, and she smelled of flowers and fine grooming. Dimitri felt heat rise to his cheeks. He couldn’t remember the last time he had flirted or been flirted with, and for a moment he forgot how to speak.
“Uh, er, Scottish, I mean Scotland,” he said with a flustered smile.
“Scotland? That’s incredible,” she breathed, taking a step closer to him. Her lovely smell enveloped him and he welcomed it into his nostrils. “You must tell us your story.”
“Keep your collar on, Delilah. I know you have thing for a man in uniform, but you just met the guy,” teased the collie. Faye and the Afghan-Greyhound mix chuckled, but the husky snorted indignantly.
“Well excuse me for being polite,” she huffed. With a final coy smile to Dimitri she stepped back with her companions. There was a beat of semi-awkward silence before Faye cleared her throat.
“Sorry, Mr. Collins, we seemed to have skipped introductions. This is Lorene. She’s the town’s fowl maid,” she said, gesturing to the Afghan hound, who nodded and smiled timidly. He noted that she didn’t truly meet his gaze.
“Please, Mr. Collins, call me Lori,” she said softly.
“Please, Lori, call me Dimitri,” he returned kindly. At this she met his eyes with a sweet smile. Lorene had a genuinely kind air about her that Dimitri liked.
“And you’ve already met Delilah,” Faye continued, a hint of disdain in her voice as she nodded at her. Delilah threw a quick wink at him and he puffed out his chest and gave a solemn nod back. Dimitri caught the collie standing next to her rolling her eyes with an expression that said, quite clearly, “Oh, brother, here we go.”
“And this is Emily Fforde. She owns the bookshop,” Faye concluded, motioning toward the cheeky collie. Of all the girls he had to begrudgingly admit, she smelled the best. It was a fascinating mix of paper, oranges, and Jasmine flowers. He quietly drank in her fragrance, pretending it belonged to Delilah. She had golden fur with splashes of snowy white on her paws, chest, belly, and face. Her right ear stood erect, while the tip of the left flopped downward. The gold made her mischievous ice-blue eyes stand out even more prominently. He nodded politely and she gave him a smile so good-natured and friendly that his previous misgiving melted away. He was about to reply when a white-and-copper Ibizan hound came hurtling around the corner and nearly crashed into him. The hound stopped just in the nick of time, though it caused his spectacles to land in the dust.
“Blast, blast, blast! Of all times! Where did they go…” he muttered, fumbling about in the dirt. Lorene quickly picked them up, dusted them off, and handed them over.
“Here, Edgar,” she said quietly. At the sound of her voice he grew even more flustered. He took his glasses with trembling paws, blabbering away.
“Lorene! Er, why, uh, thanks, thanks so much, that’s so very kind! You’re so very kind. You look er, ah, uh, detectible today!”
Lorene frowned a little at this.
Delectable? Dimitri thought with a smirk. He’s even more hopeless than I am.
“Oh, God, did I say delectable? No, ah, um, what I meant was delightful! Yes, that was the word I meant to say, I am so sorry, God, I’m just so er, ah, uh, umm…”
“For God sakes, Edgar calm down. What on earth is the matter with you?” Faye exclaimed. The hapless dog jumped and spun to face her, nearly dropping his glasses again. He looked puzzled for a moment, as if he forgot what he was so worried about in the first place. When it came to him his eyes went wide with terror.
“Fire!” he blurted out. “Fire at the Long Burrow Ranch! I went to investigate, and all the hands got out ok, but Mr. Calloway wasn’t there. They think he’s still trapped inside! I ran back for help as fast as I could. You have to hurry!” he explained breathlessly. The girls looked at each other worriedly. Pure, unadulterated dread entered Faye’s eyes and her fur bristled. Dimitri’s heart began to pound with excitement, and his paws itched to run. He nudged the trembling Edgar.
“Which way?”
“Follow Main Street to the end. The path forks, take the one to the left. It’s over the hill, just up and ahead.”
Dimitri gave Lester a questioning glance. He nodded his consent.
“Time to shine, Mac. Let’s go.”
The deputy nodded and took off on winged paws. He heard Lester panting behind him, but didn’t slow his pace. If being a soldier had taught him anything, it was that every second counted.