“Thanks for not coming to raft practice,” Zadie yelled from the bathroom. “Some people actually want—” Zadie stuck her head around the door and stopped midsentence at the sight of Halo’s dirty, blood-stained jeans. “What happened to you?”
“Wounded dog. I’ve been helping Koze and Dr. Leaf. I’m really sorry about raft practice, Zadie.” She flopped down on her spotless white bed, avoiding Zadie’s eyes and the guilty feeling of forgetting raft practice.
“Dog?” Zadie wrinkled her brow, fanned the air and said, “You need a shower.”
“Yeah. I stink, all right.” She stripped off the tee, tossed the knee-tops into the laundry basket, and headed straight into the shower, leaving Zadie confused and gaping behind her.
She showered quickly, leaving her hair wet and fuzzy, and found Zadie waiting impatiently to hear her story.
“Now, tell me exactly what happened? You actually rescued a dog?”
“Yeah. He’s huge, got a big gash from its neck all the way down to the front paw. We made it a bed in the shed because it’s too big for the cottage. Dr. Leaf’s probably going to stay with it all night, maybe Koze, too.”
“Where did it come from?” Zadie dug into her backpack, pulled out two packs of juice and tossed one to her.
“Thanks. I, no, we, Koze and I, found it half-dead in the woods. Koze sent me to get Dr. Leaf on his aero-wheel. Can you believe it? I actually drove an aero-wheel?” She wiggled around doing a happy dance from the floor pillows.
“Yeah, I believe it. Koze must trust you.” Zadie twisted her ponytail through her fingers, waiting to hear more.
“That’s it. Found the dog, got Dr. Leaf, and it took all three of us to haul it in and out of the truck. I held its paw while Dr. Leaf cleaned the wound and sewed it up. I didn’t even get sick. Can you believe it?”
“Do you think Dr. Leaf will let me see it?” Zadie wanted to know.
“Maybe. He’s funny about the patients, but you can go with me in the morning if you want to. I’m beat. Night, Zadie.” She downed the last drop of juice and crawled into bed a few moments before the lights dimmed signaling suns down and was asleep before the lights out chimes began to ring.
~ ~ ~
A graceful half-moon-shaped bridge spanned the brook connecting TLC with the fanciful painted rock path leading from Star Compound. It usually took her from the halfway chime to one bell to walk the distance from the compound to TLC, but, this morning, she and Zadie jogged and made it in half the time.
They trotted across another pretty wooden bridge and ran through the garden, anxious to see the new big patient. The shed was a miniature replica of TLC, housing Dr. Leaf’s truck, garden tools and, now, an oversized wounded dog.
Dr. Leaf stood on tiptoe beside the big furry animal, massaging ointment into the wound when they arrived and tapped on the half-open shed door.
“Who’s there?” Dr. Leaf shouted.
“Hi, it’s me, Halo, and my roommate, Zadie. She wants to see the dog.”
“Come on in, but don’t disturb him then get back to wherever you’re supposed to be. You can hand me some bandages since you’re here. Go up to the cottage and bring me the biggest ones you can find.” He sighed and capped the jar of ointment. “And take this with you. Be careful. It’s all I’ve got.”
“What is it?” She tightened the lid.
“Spotted berry cream,” Dr. Leaf muttered and shooed her out of the shed. “Go. Go.” She ran, and Zadie followed.
“It’s okay. You can come in. Don’t touch anything or get the patients excited.” She rolled her eyes and laughed because she sounded a lot like Dr. Leaf.
“Most of them aren’t really sick. They’re crippled, old, and have no place else to go. Dr. Leaf likes having them around.” She put the jar of ointment carefully on the shelf and began searching for sheets large enough to accommodate the huge animal. After a short search, she decided to check the linen closet where Dr. Leaf kept his sheets.
“Here, you can carry the sheets, and I’ll get the bandages. See the big orange fish over there? That’s Oscar. He has a broken fin and trouble swimming. Cotton is the white cat with the ghostly eyes. She’s blind.” She introduced some of the other members of the menagerie, including Wren the lame bird, Lizzie the three-legged lizard, and Romeo the parrot while loading Zadie’s arms with sheets.
“Now you’ve seen TLC and met the patients. We walked through the healing garden on the way to the shed, so that’s pretty much the whole tour.” She pointed to the freshly painted porch. “Jet fixed all the holes, made new banisters, and painted them, too. You wouldn’t recognize it if you’d seen it before Jet cleaned it up.”
She watched and waited for Zadie’s reaction when she mentioned Jet’s name, but there wasn’t one. Zadie never talked about him at all, not since the day Halo learned that Zadie and Jet were twins.
She wondered if Zadie knew where Jet went after class. She’d seen them together once at the big tree near Shell Arena. They sat together for a long time without making signs or using the wrist link then Zadie started to cry, and Jet brought her a flower and put it in her hair. She hadn’t meant to spy, but the whole thing was weird. She figured there was no point in asking Zadie if she knew what Jet was doing every day after class. It would only cause her to worry. He probably wasn’t doing anything wrong anyway.
“Jet does good work. He’s smart, too. He even let me copy his notes since I can’t write as fast as Dr. Leaf talks. I can’t wait for Jet to see the dog.” She chattered on about Jet all the way back to the shed, hoping Zadie would chime into the conversation, but she didn’t.
She helped hold the animal steady as Dr. Leaf wrapped bandages around a paw as thick as his own arm.
“Will it live?” Zadie whispered.
“Probably.” Dr. Leaf was concentrating on the dog and not their questions. “I don’t know how it got here. Nothing in Shadow Forest is this big.”
“Good morning,” Koze announced himself, startling both girls when he walked up silently behind them.
“You’re here.” She thought Dr. Leaf actually sounded glad to see him.
“You watch the patient. Call me if any part of him moves. He could be dangerous. Koze, we need to talk, outside.” They left, leaving Halo and Zadie to babysit.
She was arm’s reach from the dog’s head, tilting a water bottle to drip one drop at a time into his closed jaws, when Zadie screamed. The dog jerked its head and made a deep growling sound. She jumped back, squeezing the bottle and causing water to stream directly into the dog’s face. Dr. Leaf and Koze barreled through the door in time to see the dog open one bloodshot eye, curl back its lips to reveal a set of sharp teeth and extend a parched tongue.
Nobody moved until Halo held out her shaky hand for the dog to sniff and cautiously eye her.
“Be careful,” Dr. Leaf warned as he and Koze knelt on each side of the dog, protecting her.
She focused on the dog’s bloodshot brown eyes, refusing to think about the mouthful of sharp teeth. His eyes followed her outstretched hand, sniffed and then licked it. She stroked him behind the ears.
“It’s water. We’re going to help you,” she whispered while administering it drop by drop and stroking its head.
“I’ll take over now. You can go and do whatever you do on no-class days,” Dr. Leaf told them.
“I can stay with him,” she volunteered.
“You’ve helped already.” Dr. Leaf pushed open the door and shooed them out.
“I’ve never seen a real dog before, except for a few pictures of them in books. I didn’t know they were so big,” Zadie confided as they walked toward the arched wooden bridge.
“Yeah, but they aren’t all that big.” Then she thought about her fatal day and the tiny, white dog, and how fast it ran. And that’s why I’m here.
“Why don’t you have dogs here?”
“Who knows? Pets aren’t allowed in the compound. Ask Dr. Leaf. He knows all about creatures.”
“Wonder if he’s ever seen a dog?” She stopped at the sound of the chimes.
“Oh, I forgot my notebook. You okay to find your way back without me?”
“I know the way.” Zadie laughed. “See you later.”
Halo watched her cross the bridge then turned around to return to TLC.
She’d planned to attend Annie’s concert this afternoon, but kept it a secret from Zadie. Annie had given her a ticket and she knew Zadie wouldn’t understand or approve. She certainly couldn’t tell Amber, Opal, or Star, either. She didn’t understand why Annie gave her the ticket anyway. They certainly weren’t friends. The tickets cost two pinfeathers each, and Annie was definitely the star.
Maybe she’d find out about Effie’s round-string if she went to the concert. She’d planned to wear the new skirt she bought on the esplanade and the cute matching sweater, but didn’t dare go back to the room and change. She dusted off the seat of her black knee-tops and walked slowly back down the path to TLC. She only had three pinfeathers left in her account after buying all new clothes, things for her room, and school supplies when she arrived. Thing was, she wanted to see the concert and hear Annie sing, but she didn’t want her friends to know. If they found out, they would have to get over it.
The door to the shed stood half-open, and she couldn’t resist another peep at the patient. She stopped dead still and eavesdropped.
“We can’t keep it here. It’s too big. Ask Angel Vesta where to send it.”
“I’ve spoken to her and...” She ran into the shed before Koze could finish what he was saying.
“No! Please, don’t send him away. I’ll take care of him. I’ll feed him, walk him every day after class. Please. I promise,” she pleaded with them and ran to protect the dog.
“I told you to leave.” Dr. Leaf shook his finger at her.
“You’ll send him away. He’s not too big. He’s mostly fur. He won’t be any trouble at all.” Halo rubbed its head and received a moist lick on her leg. “See? I told you. He’s a good dog.”
“Fiddlesticks.” Dr. Leaf threw his hands in the air and stomped out the door.
“Taking care of an animal is a big responsibility, especially a huge dog like him,” Koze said.
“I promise I’ll stay with him. I can do it. Please, Koze, let me keep him. Please, ask Angel Vesta to let us keep him,” she begged, tears streaming down her face.
“If you will not cry, I will talk to Angel Vesta,” Koze stated, his eyes blazing from the all-too-frequent flashing. “If you need me, ask Dr. Leaf to ring the bell.”
“Don’t worry, big guy. I won’t let them send you away. I’m going to stay right here,” she comforted the big animal. “I didn’t want to go to the silly concert anyway.” She settled back to protect and nurse the dog for the afternoon.
~ ~ ~
When Jet showed up at three bells, the exact time of Annie’s concert, she wondered if Zadie knew about her plans after all.
“Did Zadie tell you about the patient?”
His slow smile and nod answered her question.
They took turns holding the water bottle and gently combing snarls out of the dog’s matted fur.
Koze and Dr. Leaf returned and assured them that the dog could stay, at least until his wounds healed, if he didn’t cause any problems. Jet walked her back to the compound as purple clouds played hide-and-seek with the setting suns.
~ ~ ~
The next day, Annie stopped her on the way to TLC and asked how she liked the concert. She admitted she hadn’t attended, and started to make an excuse about having extra homework, but Annie didn’t wait to hear her reasons.
“I get it. You can’t go anywhere without your loser friends. Well, you’ll never find a group to accept you anyway. I don’t know why I even bother to try and help you.” Annie turned on her heel and headed down the Star IV path to catch up with her friends. She was relieved and realized she didn’t want to be part of Annie’s group anyway. She should have known accepting the ticket would obligate her.
~ ~ ~
Halo and Jet spent their school holiday time off running back and forth from the compound to TLC’s shed and the “patient,” as Dr. Leaf referred to the giant dog. She held his head when Dr. Leaf sedated him to clean the wound and change his bandages. The dog was secured to the shed with a rope which might or might not restrain him. They took turns sitting and watching as the dog sniffed, chewed, and tugged at the rope. They soothed him with words and treats and listened to him whine when they left for their dorms. His eyes followed her and Jet when they brought food and water. He didn’t growl at Dr. Leaf and Koze, but it was clear that he preferred them to the doctor and android.
“You must never, never growl at Dr. Leaf or Koze. They saved your life, remember?” Halo shook her finger at the dog. He whimpered in reply.
“You need a name. I’m not going to call you dog forever. Now, how about Sandy?” She saw Jet shake his head no.
“Okay, I guess that’s too girly sounding. How about Sam? Or Wolf? Ha! Got your attention, didn’t I? I can tell because your ears went straight up. You have gold flecks in your eyes, did you know that?” She winked at Jet and held out an open palm to the dog.
Jet scratched on his wrist link. The verbal translation was “gold.”
“Gold? Goldie? No, too sissy. How about Midas? Do you like that name?” Jet smiled and gave a thumbs-up when the dog answered with a bark.
“Midas. Perfect. Midas was a king, and everything he touched turned to gold, even his daughter...well, you don’t need to know the rest of the story. Midas, that’s your name.” She hugged him, he licked her face, and Jet gave them a nod of approval. They couldn’t wait to share the news with Dr. Leaf.
~ ~ ~
A walk around the garden was approved by Dr. Leaf a few days later. Each day, the walks got longer. Dr. Leaf relaxed the rules and let Midas sit outside TLC to wait for Halo and Jet to finish their work and take him for a walk.
Midas sat patiently watching Halo clean cages, prepare instruments, and assist Dr. Leaf with his patients. He curled up under a tree to watch the two of them weed and hoe around the plants in the healing garden. Midas followed them to the end of the path and howled when they forced him back at the end of each day. After much persuasion by both of them, Dr. Leaf agreed to let Midas wait on the porch, secured him with a leash tied to the post. Midas focused his big golden-brown eyes on her as she knelt beside him talking, petting, and explaining why she couldn’t take him back to the Star Compound.