His Domestic Wolf

Prologue

Ruth sat in the other room with her head on her paws. The room was dim from the lights being so low and the sun had set long ago. On the other side of the closed door, she could hear her owner, Betty, and someone else bickering quietly. She knew what it was about, but she chose not to listen in on what they were saying. She already knew what the outcome would be, knowing how stubborn Betty could be.

Jack, Betty's nephew, was sitting next to her in his superman onesie. His thumb was in his mouth and his other hand was playing with her ear, sometimes tugging it rather harshly. She looked at the boy. He was small, being born prematurely. His hand was tiny compared to her large ear. She felt the small boy pull at her ear again. She raised her head slightly to him to lick his face with her tongue. The little boy squeaked, falling back slightly he wiped his face which was now covered in her saliva.

"You expect me to take the dog on top of everything I need to get done and with my panic attacks! She is no service dog, Betty! Keep her, she won't gain anything from living in an apartment!"

Ruth lifted her head to hear it now, being slightly startled by the rise in the stranger's voice. She would've come into the room with her hackles up, but Betty knew this person. She smelled no fear coming from her owner. So she remained where Betty had told her to stay. Jack couldn't reach her ear anymore and shifted his attention to her thick brown coat. He pulled on her coat as well. It was thick and soft.

"She'll be a good companion goddamnit! She is not like the other dogs." Before Betty's voice could rise too loud and make the baby cry she stopped talking. Ruth could hear Betty taking a deep breath. "Can you at least let me introduce you to her? You know I can't give her the care she needs."

She couldn't hear the rest of the conversation over Jack's rambling in his baby tongue. She looked down at him when he laid on her hip. His small hand stretched out and pulled at another patch of fur. Ruth curled to the boy and sniffed the top of his head. She could smell Justin and Hela, his parents, along with the smell of the baby shampoo. She liked the smell of Jack, it gave her fond memories. He did have a bad habit of pulling her, but that was what she expected from the small boy who was neglected. It's not his fault that he was never taught how to properly pet a dog.

The door opened and Betty came in first in her wheelchair. The woman who she had never seen before stood at the door and was hesitant to come in. She was short and was obviously athletic. Her dirty blond hair was up in a messy bun and she wore no makeup. She couldn't be a day over twenty-five either.

"She's a lot bigger than I expected," she commented as she glanced Ruth over. "What breed is she? She's not a Shepard."

Betty wheeled the chair over and leaned down to take sleeping Jack off of Ruth. "I'm not sure, I've never known dogs well. She's the first dog I've ever had. She's a big girl but she doesn't take up much space."

The woman finally stepped into the room and stopped when she got next to Betty. Ruth sat up and walked over to the woman and sat at her feet, not too close. She looked up to the woman with curious eyes. A smell of perfume and other mysterious smells emitted off of her. Ruth always enjoyed the new smell of strangers. Not dogs, however. She hated other dogs, they all stunk and lacked intelligence.

"She's a lot calmer than I expected."

Betty adjusted Jack in her arms so he could sleep easier in her lap. "She's always like this. Great around other dogs too. And I've never had her pull on the leash before. I think her previous owner was a dog trainer." Betty chuckled and stroked the fur on top of Ruth's head. "I've never got her to fetch though."

"Are you crying?" The woman asked.

Ruth finally noticed the tears in Betty's eyes, it made her whine. Betty was never sad.