[1/4]
Alyssa never liked the fluffy abomination that her sister bought her as a house warming gift.
Ada told her that it was spaniel of some kind and Alyssa had rolled her eyes and snarked," Yes, very helpful, Ada. 'A spaniel of some kind' - it is a wonder that you have not been expelled yet for your incredible lack of brains!"
Her mother scolded her for being rude to her sister and told Alyssa that, even if she had moved out, she wasn't too old to be grounded for bullying her sister.
Alyssa stuck her tongue out but relented.
She said a very sour thank you to Ada for the fluffy abomination and resolved to get her sister back for giving her something unwanted.
The puppy loved the tall creature that she was bought for.
Her tail wagged happily as the woman - one of three blondes in the room - stared down at her.
They were all talking - presumably about her - and her tail wagged even faster.
The tallest one - her human - was yelling about something.
She jumped up, tail wagging as she yapped happily.
"I love you!" She barked," You are so pretty! I love you so much!"
Her human barely gave her a glance.
Alyssa never liked the fluffy abomination that her sister bought her as a house warming gift.
She named the dog Sadie.
It was a pretty name for a very annoying dog.
Alyssa didn't understand how the thing had gotten so attached to her.
It followed her everywhere, somehow deciding that Alyssa was the one for her - the pack leader, the alpha in their home, the one whose bed was always warm.
She could scarcely come home from her work without it yapping at her, tail wagging happily.
Alyssa couldn't even go to the bathroom without it following her, sitting down on the floor and staring up at her when she took a bath or making itself comfortable on her feet as she brushed her teeth.
Regardless of how annoying it was though, Alyssa didn't get rid of it.
Her house was in a small village in the middle of the countryside.
She hadn't made friends with any of the villagers and the little puppy was her only company outside of work.
The puppy loved the tall creature that she was bought for.
Her human was so elegant and so very smart.
Books were stacked neatly on every available surface in their house.
Her human had named her Sadie.
Sadie loved her new name.
She followed her human around their house all the time.
Sometimes her human would be tired after she got home from whatever she did when she left Sadie alone.
Sometimes she would fall asleep on the sofa with her hand cradled to her chest and Sadie would jump onto the armchair and drag the blanket over to her human to keep her warm as she slept.
Sadie's human had bought her a puppy bed a few weeks ago and had placed it in the corner of the living room, near the sofa.
Sadie didn't like it at all.
She preferred sleeping on the floor next to her human's bed - just to check that she was okay during the night.
Alyssa never liked the fluffy abomination that her sister bought her as a house warming gift.
It liked to pee all over the house.
Sometimes it was excitement.
Sometimes, Alyssa thought that it was just to spite her.
Either way her 'spaniel of some kind' needed to be potty trained.
Alyssa deemed it to be a necessity.
She spent her entire weekend teaching Sadie not to pee on the corner of the sofa and in the kitchen.
She approached the problem like she approached her programming - methodical and stern.
She taught Sadie the difference between right and wrong and where to pee and where not to pee.
She chose to not react when the puppy licked her hand and gently ate the treats that were offered to it.
[2/4]
The puppy loved the tall creature that she was bought for.
Sadie was eager to be praised.
She was eager to show just how amazing she was.
She listened to everything Alyssa told her to do.
Sometimes she got it right.
Sometimes she got it wrong.
She preferred when she got it right because Alyssa's smile was so pretty as she hand fed Sadie treats and patted her head.
Alyssa was a stern teacher but Sadie didn't mind.
Her tail wagged and her tongue rolled out of her mouth whenever Alyssa's voice would go high pitched when she praised her.
Alyssa never liked the fluffy abomination that her sister bought her as a house warming gift.
Sadie barked when she came home.
Sadie barked when she heard the neighbours arrive back home.
Sadie barked when the mailman arrived with Alyssa's letters.
Sadie barked when a few of the village youths walked past their front door as they stumbled home from a party.
Alyssa threw a pillow in her general direction one night when the barking became too much.
The puppy - shameless Sadie - just curled up on the pillow and continued barking into the early hours of the morning.
She scratched at the door when she wanted to be let out - ruining the wood work - and Alyssa constantly had to seal the cracks again.
Sadie ran through the garden like her arse was on fire - scaring off any birds that had been standing on the grass.
She trotted back to Alyssa after that, head held high as she did another loop of the garden.
Alyssa rewarded her with a few pats on the head and Sadie flopped over onto her back for tummy rubs.
Alyssa tolerated the fluffy abomination that her sister bought her as a house warming gift.
The puppy loved the tall creature that she was bought for.
Sadie liked their garden.
She like the sights and the smells and how big it was.
She could run to the end of it and still see Alyssa sitting at the garden table.
It was their space and Sadie loved it.
What she didn't love though, were the flying things that thought that it was okay to land there.
She chased off each and every one of them - barking and snarling at them to make sure that they knew that they weren't welcome.
Every time, she returned to Alyssa's side.
Alyssa's hand would fall from the table - without her knowledge - and she would use her fingers to rub the space between Sadie's ears.
Alyssa tolerated the fluffy abomination that her sister bought her as a house warming gift.
She's sitting in the kitchen with her best friend, Ben Bitdiddle, when Sadie barked at the door.
She flashed her friend an apologetic look as she got up to check what was going on.
She opened the front door to see what all of the commotion was about.
Sadie was off like a shot.
She ran down the front garden until she got to the gate.
There was a dog on the other side of it.
They touched noses between the gaps in the gate.
"Cressida!"
Alyssa's head shot upwards and she blushed at what she saw.
There was a girl standing by her gate, a moving box in her hand.
Her dog - which seemed much better trained than Sadie was - hurried to her side.
It wasn't even wearing a leash and it obeyed the girl's commands without question.
Sadie whined as her new friend disappeared.
"I'm sorry about Cres," The girl said," She's a bit excitable."
"It is okay," Alyssa replied hurriedly," Sadie is the same."
"May I?"
It took Alyssa a moment to realise that the girl was asking if she could touch Sadie before she quickly nodded.
The girl put her box on the ground and reached through the gate.
Sadie rolled her tongue out of her mouth and accept the ear rubs.
"Eva?"
Ben had followed them out.
The girl - Eva - straightened up.
"Oh," She said," Hey, Ben. I didn't realise that you would be here."
Ben just grinned. "Is this the new place that you were talking about?"
"Yeah. I'm just next door. Cres got a bit over excited when she smelt another dog. She's not normally this bad."
If this was how her dog was when she was bad then Alyssa had no idea what Sadie's attitude would be called.
"Ah, no problem," Ben waved away the problem with a flick of his hand.
He jumped over Alyssa's gate with a grin and knelt on the floor.
Cressida didn't go anywhere near him, looking up at Eva in question.
"Cressida," She said," Greet."
Cressida moved towards him, sniffing his fingers before licking them.
Eva turned to Alyssa.
"I'm Eva. Cres and I will be moving in next door."
"Alyssa," She replied," And this is Sadie."
Eva nodded once.
"A pleasure to meet you."
[3/4]
The puppy loved the tall creature that she was bought for.
Sadie liked the dog that had moved in next door.
She liked the dog's human as well.
The dog had introduced herself as Cressida.
She was two years old.
Sadie liked her a lot.
She was more quiet than Sadie was and always well behaved.
They met each other through the gaps in the fence between their front gardens.
Sometimes Cressida's human - Eva - would be there too.
She would smile at the pair of them and reach her hand through the gap to stroke Sadie's soft fur.
Sadie would let her.
Her hands were different to Alyssa's - but welcome, all the same.
She gave Sadie the best treats as well.
When Eva wasn't there, Cressida would share her treats with Sadie.
She liked Cressida a lot.
Alyssa tolerated the fluffy abomination that her sister bought her as a house warming gift.
She always got up early to walk Sadie.
She clipped her dog's harness on before going down her usual route through the village.
She smiled as Sadie hurried her way through the park - sniffing at every tree and barking at every bird she saw.
Alyssa sat down on a bench nearby and unclipped Sadie's leash.
Sadie waited with her for a second, licking Alyssa's hands before she was off like a shot through the grass.
"I take it she likes it here."
Alyssa's head whipped around suddenly and she smiled shyly at Eva.
Cressida was at her side.
"Yes," She replied," She likes chasing the birds."
Eva nodded.
"May I sit with you?"
"Oh! Of course."
Eva smiled before she inclined her head to her dog.
"Cres," She said," Go play."
Cressida padded towards where Sadie was mucking around in the grass.
"She is very well trained," Alyssa commented.
"Yeah," Eva replied," My parents got her for me two years ago. I was up at MIT at the time so they made sure to train her for me. Her breed is known to be really smart so the extra stimulation is needed."
They talked for a while before Alyssa's phone started to vibrate - her alarm to end the walk so she could get to work.
She stood up and hollered for Sadie.
Eva stood as well.
"Cressida!"
Her dog was by her side in seconds with Sadie trailing after.
"Hey," Eva said, nervously biting her bottom lip," D'you want to, maybe, go out some time? Get a drink or something?"
"Yeah!"
Alyssa's voice went embarrassingly high.
Eva smiled at her.
"Excellent," She said," Come on, Cres, let's finish exploring."
Alyssa watched her go with a stupid smile on her face.
Sadie pawed at her ankle and Alyssa smiled down at her.
She crouched to the floor and allowed her puppy to lick all over her face.
"Yeah," She said," I know - the cute neighbour girl is actually into me."
Sadie barked at her happily and for once, Alyssa didn't care.
She put Sadie's leash back on and headed back home.
Alyssa liked the fluffy abomination that her sister bought her as a house warming gift.
The puppy loved the tall creature that she was bought for.
Alyssa came back from her date with Eva happy.
She walked in the front door.
She went straight to the sofa and screamed into one of the pillows in happiness.
Sadie wasn't usually allowed to be on the sofa but she jumped onto it without a care in the world.
Alyssa stroked her fur softly and she smiled.
"She is perfect," She whispered," Sadie - she is perfect."
Sadie's tail started to wag and she licked all over Alyssa's face.
Alyssa liked the fluffy abomination that her sister bought her as a house warming gift.
She hummed as she worked to clean up the living room.
Sadie was at her feet, following her around again.
She was almost a year old now and nearly full grown.
Alyssa didn't mind the way that Sadie followed her around.
She smiled as she bent down to rub behind her ears.
Sadie's tongue licked at her fingers in happiness.
Eva was coming around today - for the first time.
Alyssa had been to Eva's house countless times before but this was the first time that Eva was coming to hers.
She couldn't be more stressed but the comforting presence of Sadie was keeping her grounded.
"Okay," She said to herself as she smoothed out her clothes," I can do this. It is just Eva - just the prettiest girl in the world. I can do this."
The dog loved the tall creature that she was bought for.
Cressida and Eva had moved in with them.
Or, maybe, Sadie and Alyssa had moved in with them.
Either way, they had both abandoned their little cottages for a bigger house together on the outskirts of the village.
Sadie loved it, tail wagging as she explored with Cressida following behind her dutifully.
Eva and Alyssa were in the kitchen.
They were doing their silly human things again.
Touching their lips together.
Putting their hands in each others hair.
Sadie watched as Alyssa picked up Eva and placed her on the kitchen counter - murmuring something about 'christening the house'.
Cressida let out a huff from next to her and shepherded Sadie away.
They both knew to make themselves scarce when their humans got like that.
Alyssa liked the fluffy abomination that her sister bought her as a house warming gift.
She yawned slightly from her position on the sofa.
Cressida was lounging on the floor next to Eva's armchair and Sadie was curled up in her lap.
Eva was out for the night.
One of her friends - Julie, Ben's little sister - was in hospital and Eva had gone to visit her.
One of Alyssa's hands held a book while the other absentmindedly carded through her dog's soft fur.
Out of nowhere, Sadie started to whine and Alyssa hurriedly put the book down.
"Sadie," She called as she softly shook her dog awake," Come on, Sadie. It is just a dream - it is okay."
Sadie's eyes opened with another soft whine and she moved around on Alyssa's lap until she was staring at her owner.
"It is okay," Alyssa said again as her hand moved to gently pet Sadie again," It is okay."
Sadie rasped her tongue over Alyssa's face and she didn't bother to push her away.
Alyssa loved the fluffy abomination that her sister bought her as a house warming gift.
The dog loved the tall creature that she was bought for.
There was a small thing in Alyssa's arms and Sadie leapt onto the sofa to see what it was.
"Sadie," Alyssa said quietly," Meet Victoria."
The thing was sleeping and Sadie peered at it.
Cressida did the same from her other side.
It's small hand made a fist and it hit outwards - catching Cressida on the nose, making her sneeze.
Eva laughed as she arrived in the room, kissing Alyssa on the lips and the little thing on the head.
Sadie's tongue rolled out of her mouth as she watched her family.
She loved them all - the new little thing included.
[4/4]
Alyssa loved the fluffy abomination that her sister bought her as a house warming gift.
"Vic!" She called out to her eight year old daughter," Be careful with Sadie! She is getting old and cannot keep up with you like she used to!"
Victoria scowled - something she had inherited from Eva - but stopped grabbing at Sadie's ears.
Instead, she moved onto Cressida, who just huffed but did her duty as the second favourite pet in the family.
Sadie padded over to where Alyssa and Eva were sat on the sofa - Eva's head resting on Alyssa's shoulder.
Alyssa's hand immediately went out to smooth down Sadie's fur.
She was considered old now - at the age of thirteen.
It broke Alyssa's heart to see her once excitable Sadie become more subdued and slow.
She still chased the birds in the garden and she still followed Alyssa around the house but the light in her eyes was slowly dimming.
Victoria giggled slightly, drawing the attention of her mothers and Sadie - who had rested her head on Alyssa's lap.
Cressida was sitting on their daughter - looking pretty darn happy with herself.
Sadie's tail wagged lazily at the scene.
"Alright, Cres," Eva said," Get off Vic now - we need to go for a walk."
As soon as the 'W' word was said, Sadie was up like a shot - drawing Alyssa's memories back to the times that she was a puppy.
The dog loved the tall creature that she was bought for.
The dog loved Alyssa.
The dog loved Eva.
The dog loved Cressida.
The dog loved Victoria.
She did one last lap of the house - slowly but surely.
She chased the birds one last time, ignoring the ache in her old bones.
She touched noses with a sleeping Cressida.
She pulled the blanket over Victoria's sleeping body.
She settled on the pillow that was left on the floor for her in Alyssa and Eva's bedroom.
She closed her eyes.
Sadie had done her duty to her family.
Alyssa loved the fluffy abomination that her sister bought her as a house warming gift.
Sadie's picture was on her desk at work, nestled amongst pictures of Eva, of Victoria's first day of school, of Cressida and Eva's fall in the village lake together - covered in water.
It was almost like Sadie was still there.
"Mama!" Nine year old Victoria cheered as Alyssa entered their house.
Nine year old Victoria.
She had been eight when Sadie had died in the night.
Eva had made her stay in her room for a few hours while she consoled Alyssa - who had woken up first and wept when Sadie didn't wake with her.
"Happy birthday, love," Eva said as she exited the kitchen - hands covered in flour.
She gave Alyssa a kiss as they hugged.
"How was work?"
Alyssa shrugged. "Same old, same old," She said as she hung up her coat," Ben has invited us over next weekend."
"What did you say?" Eva asked.
Alyssa cocked her head to the side in confusion.
She didn't know why her wife was suddenly so worried about the answer.
"I said I would get back to him, why?"
"No reason," Eva replied," Vic - take your Mama into the living room. She has presents to open."
Alyssa's hand was captured in her daughter's and she was tugged into the living room and pushed onto the sofa.
She smiled softly, unwrapping each present and giving her girls kisses for each one.
"Is this it?" She teased when she saw the mess that they had made.
"Not quite," Eva said softly.
She rose from the sofa and left the room.
Victoria grinned at her mother - the grin she only used when she knew something that Alyssa didn't.
Eva appeared a few seconds later with a box.
It was moving and the lid had holes poked into it.
She placed it on her wife's lap and Alyssa opened it slowly.
A puppy's head poked out - tongue rolling out of its mouth and its tail made a thumping noise as it continually hit against the box.
Alyssa lifted it slowly from the box in awe.
"I know that it won't replace Sadie," Eva said softly as the puppy licked all over Alyssa's face," But I hope that you'll love her all the same."
"What are you going to name her, Mama?" Victoria asked excitedly.
"Lola," Alyssa said softly," Is that a good name, Vic?"
Victoria nodded with a grin.
"Do you like her, love?" Eva asked softly.
Alyssa just gave her a watery smile and gathered all her girls into a hug.
Eva
Victoria
Cressida
Lola.
The puppy loved the tall creature that she was bought for.
**