shadowrun journal 2: better luck next time

Addendum to Official Medical Examiner's Report
M.E.: Dr. Dana Scully

Tonight two bodies were brought into the morgue. Both were involved in a shooting in Platte Park. I was asked to do two autopsies on the bodies because of the strange nature of the deaths.

The first body died of rather easily determined causes. Two bullets to the chest, the first one entered and exited through the right shoulder and the second struck through the center of the torso passing through the ascending aorta. The first shot would have killed the man because of the blood loss caused by the exit wound, however the second shot killed him instantly. Both bullets were recovered from the crime scene and were determined to belong to the second man's revolver.

The second man is the interesting case. He has two contusions on his chest consistent with the bullets found embedded in his armor. He has lacerations on the arms and hands consistent with claw marks from a large dog or wolf. He has also been disemboweled by one or several large dogs or wolves. It is clear that the man was still alive when this began. Not all of him was found at the crime scene so it is to be assumed that he was partially eaten by the animal or animals that attacked him.

Second degree burns were also found on the man's face and cannot be easily explained. There was a burning tree reported at the crime scene by the first responding officers which could be the cause of the man's burns.

The second man also had the first man's blood covering his hands and face. It seems that after first man was shot and killed the second man began to paint himself with the dead man's blood and then was attacked by a pack of dogs. This is consistent with signs of struggle at the crime scene. If this wasn't strange enough, rat fur was found matted to both men's clothing as well as covering the ground around them. It is as if a giant swarm of rats ran through the area. It is recommended that a full investigation be undertaken to understand what happened here. I believe that both death's were criminal acts.

CSI confirms that there were at least 8 people present for the first man's death. The first man was a gang member of a local gang and has been identified by a police officer who has had several runins with the man. The second man was identified as Rick Deckard through his SIN and was a retired special forces operative. CSI has determined that Deckard took on at least 6 armed gang members without so much as a scratch but was then attacked by at least 3 large dog like animals. From the extracted recordings held in Deckard's memory card it is apparent that he has been dealing with psychological issues for some time now and has been slipping deeper and deeper into a psychosis. Perhaps he manifested these demons himself.

Shadowrun Campaign

Rick Deckard: Time Cop

Where to begin. I needed money so I found out about a job so I went to the bar where this mexican guy, he looked mexican anyways, was said to be and I showed up early. Sat down at the bar and asked the bar for a gin and tonic and to keep it coming. I usually drink whisky but by the looks of the place the whisky would be that sour mash crap and I only like scotch. So I decided pinesol was a better idea. Boy was I wrong. I would have switched to something else but the vodka was brown.
Around 430 I told the bartender that I was looking for a job and he said to go downstairs. That is where I met up with this guy. He was pretty odd, although I am pretty odd myself.
Late 40s, a ratty old fedora tipped low across my grey eyes, my beard is about a week times three worth of growth completely grey I grow it out to hide the scar from a night long ago. . .dark brown floor length jacket, you can just see a hint of a bulge underneath my right arm. I lost my ankle holster and my snub nose a few months back. Got mugged by a bunch of rascals, they took my hold out but not before i took off a guys ear and clipped a guy in the shoulder with a nice sized round from my big piece i kept holstered on my back. Sort of goes back to the old .357 magnum days. I lost that going through customs. Thank god I had a whole lot of nuyen too otherwise I wouldn't be writing in this piece of crap. Which comes back to why I am here to begin with. I ain't no glitterboy I need cash.
So this tribal looking mexican is telling these guys we are with about how we need to take this package to the group across town and it needs to be there by 7 and then this crazy girl next to me starts mumbling about rats, freaked me out thats for sure there is definitely a screw loose there. Dude says we can use his van if we want so we all climb in and zoom off at the 45 km/h the van could go.
We come to the first pass to get through and call up a guy who is supposed to get us across the border. He tells us he is going to drive which was fine by me. All I need is my money. So while traveling through these tunnels the dude stops and gets out and looks around. I think he was doing it just to scare us but he could of been on the level. The other guy in the car definitely was. Could tell he knew his way around. Nothing I couldn't handle but I wouldn't want to if I could avoid it.
So we get to the other side same deal, whatever you know, but then we get caught up in traffic. We got like an hour to go and we get traffic? I mean I this ain't neo-Tokyo or anything what is up with all the traffic?! What is even worse is we got these two gangs, one an incredibly ugly looking trog, the other a pretty fragged up looking chinese guy. Well both these mugs start demanding us to give them whatever it is we are transporting and so I ask how much and they both say the same thing! So I tell them to start bidding and then they start shooting each other! So it is sort of this "aww hell" moment and I pull out my gun switch on my tweaks and the buddy next to me stops me and points out the rather astute observation that they weren't shooting at us! So we all sit there and wait and my buddy guns it as soon as the traffic opens. Well all of a sudden that ugly chinese dude starts running after us and opens the back door of the van so I figure hey if he wants some he can come get some so I toss a flash bang out the back. Dude gets knocked dead with it lucky for us there were only a few mild effects. He goes running off while we jet around the corner on two fraggin wheels! I gotta say, my buddy is a great driver.
So we show up at this dudes house, I figured it would of been an office building for sure, but whatever. So we go in this dudes house and he acts all menacing shooting at this elf, but come on the house was huge! And you know a huge house like that has to have a bowling alley in it somewhere and I figure a guy with a bowling alley can't be that bad and anyways, he is paying us.

distant stars

James walked into his Physics 2211 classroom and put his bag on his desk. Some of his students were already in the classroom. When James was first asked to teach physics he felt like he would be a bit out of his league but his colleagues had encouraged him to do so reminding him of all his accomplishments and how smart he was and how physics wouldn’t be that hard he would just have to brush up on his calculus.

James had chosen to teach community college instead of at the University after his wife died because he found it less stressful. He had been teaching at the college for about five years and had learned to enjoy his students. They seemed to enjoy his class as well. He often had one or two smart students who he seemed to bond with over the semester only to meet new students fifteen weeks later. That was the part of the job he hated. Some of the students he had were so insightful, so full of life, they seemed to fill him full of life as well. Those were the students I would keep in my class, James thought.

Some of the students who had already been in the classroom had started to raise their voices in what seemed to be a heated debate.

“. . . Yes, but I believe that the legalization of euthanasia in the United States is wrong. . .”

“But you just said a minute ago that you thought the death penalty was a valid form of punishment!”

“Ummm. . . That is different. The death penalty is for those who deserve to die not for people who want to die. People who want to die need therapeutic care not suicide pills.”

“But they have the right to take their own life!”

“Says who?! You? Me? We do not own their life only they do.”

“But could not life be something that is not innately yours, could it be that some other force in the universe granted you the right to live?”

“Oh give me a break, don’t bring God into this, you always bring God into everything.”

“Well God is rather relevant. . .”

“Professor Lyndon what do you think?”

“Hmmm? I’m sorry I wasn’t listening,” although James knew what they were speaking of all too well. The law was passed just two months after his wife had died. James had pleaded with his doctor to do something about his wife’s pain, knowing all his doctor could do was wait for her to die. James watched helplessly as his wife screamed in agony as her organs slowly deteriorated, being eaten away by the vile growths inside of her. Her limbs became grotesque, looking bruised and beaten by the simplest touch. By the time she died James could not even kiss her without her torturous screams because of the pain he was causing her.

The disease swept through her body quickly, she died four months to the day after she told James about her sickness. The day she had told James he wept for six hours. She was his first real girl friend. She had been the first woman he married. The first woman he slept with. She was his first in everything and he was resolute that she would be his last. No one could replace my wife.

James’ son didn’t handle his mother’s death any better than James. He found out several weeks later when his mother had been admitted to the hospital and his father had quit his job to be with his mother. He became distant. If he was at home at all he would only be found playing his drums or locked in his room. He spoke one word through the entire ordeal. That was the day James told his son that his mother had died. His response was as short and painful to James as his wife’s death had been.

“Whatever.”

That was all James’ son had said. As the months passed after his mother’s death James and his son had grown more distant. Many times the boy wouldn’t even sleep at home on school nights. His grades dropped from all A’s to low C’s. At least he graduated, James thought.

His son was now attending a college in Connecticut and James only saw him when he came home for break. It was just as well. They hadn’t a real talk since before his mother died. I just wish things were different that’s all.

“Professor Lyndon. . .?”

“Yes?” James looked confused as if he didn’t realize he had already been addressed once.

“What do you think about euthanasia?”

“Oh excuse me; I really don’t have an idea on the subject.”

rewrite of parts 1-3

Walking through the woods James was wishing he had his umbrella with him. The morning dew was covering the trees so much it was dripping off like rain.
James was thinking. His brain was pondering over whether or not he should quit his job. I've worked there for 23 years and now I have been asked if I want early retirement. What an insult.
" I am not ready to retire!" James exclaimed into the fresh morning air. A few birds fluttered by startled by his outburst. Their fresh red and yellow specks aggravated James; he felt as used up as the egg shells they had hatched from months before.
Walking back towards his house James noticed his wife had already begun her Saturday morning routine. The clothes were already hanging up to dry in the back yard and he could smell the bacon that she soaked in maple syrup. Her cooking was always perfect on Saturdays.
James could hear the logging trucks already lumbering up the hill towards the mountain. Those men have real jobs, James thought to himself. They will work until their bodies can't take it anymore and then they will retire. Not like me, computers seem to not have a use for anyone over the age of 50 anymore. We don't learn fast enough, I guess.
"James! Breakfast is ready!" James' wife yelled to him from the porch.
James waved at her absent mindedly as he walked up the grassy hill in front of his house. It was a sturdy house, one that he had designed and partially built himself. Two stories with a full basement sure sounded like the end all when I was 32, James thought. Since building the house James had added a garage, a separate art studio for his wife and a separate building originally intended as a place to keep his tractor in the winter but had now been converted to house his 15 year old son's drum set, anything to keep the noise out of the house.
"What's for breakfast?" James asked smelling the bacon still sizzling in the pan.
"Bacon and eggs, you can make some toast if you want."
"That's ok; I'm a little burnt out on toast." James chuckled.
James sat down to breakfast and looked at the front page of the Saturday Chronicle. "American Aero Comp Land on Mars" the headline read. I designed the computer that lands that damn contraption and they want to offer me "early retirement".

What James thought wasn't entirely true, he was on the team that designed the computer for an earlier mission and was the project manager for this particular missions' landing computer. What bothered him most was that they seemed to treat him less like an employee and more like an old man. Especially since one of the younger guys at the office had found out he was offered early retirement and circulated the rumor that he was retiring. By the time James had heard the rumor he was dying of cancer.
James wife noticed him reading the paper and remarked, "That's exciting isn't it Hun?"
"Not for me," James grumbled. Why would a corporation landing on Mars be exciting?
Finishing his coffee, James washed his dishes and went downstairs to be alone with his computer. It had been giving him problems lately and James was afraid he was going to have to start over. He had built it out of old parts for his wife to use in the kitchen. All of its parts were outdated, they had been sitting down here for at least a year, but his wife didn't care, as long as she could look up the recipes without running up and down the stairs to check measurements.
James looked out the window of his basement. The sun had cleared the trees and the dew was steaming off them. A slow breeze blew through the pines, spring was coming, James sighed.

~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~

It was a dark and stormy night. James woke with a start; he could hear the thunder crackling outside along with the bark of a dog. I left the dog outside again, thought James. Fortinbras was a black and tan German Shepherd and Labrador mix; the dog was as large as a German Shepherd and as friendly as a Lab but was also rather noisy during thunderstorms.
James walked out onto the porch and called Fortinbras. The black dog came running up from the woods drenched as if he had just come from swimming in the pond. James had never put a fence in to keep Fortinbras from running away, he never had too. When he bought the land he had built his house right in the center of the property which was around 130 acres. James had never taken the time to calculate it exactly, but 130 acres was what the realtor had told him and that was what James’ was going to believe.
Fortinbras walked up to his side and nuzzled his nose against James' pant leg. Thanks, these pants were just washed. Why do you always seem to be outside during the rain? James thought towards the dog. James walked back inside with the dog and noticed that the clock on the coffee maker said 2:30.
James groaned. I have work in the morning. Thunder boomed above the trees in his back yard. I am never going to get back to bed with this racket.
Fortinbras sniffed the trash can and then plopped down in front of the vent on the wall. It was his customary spot, especially when it was cold, because it was so warm there. He was still dripping wet.
James grabbed a towel from the pantry and wrapped it around Fortinbras.
"Well at least you seem content," James sighed to Fortinbras. James had found the mutt one day when he was walking into town to get some groceries. His wife had just had their son and they needed some more baby formula. James, tired of the screaming baby, had opted to take his time and walk into town.
He passed a sign that read, "Free dog, good with kids." What James found was not a free dog but an ugly dog with matted fur who seemed to have been treated rather poorly. The man who was taking care of the dog was wearing overalls with no shirt and was chewing tobacco. As James walked up the man spit his chewed cud and hollered at James, "You figurin' on takin' this dog? Nobody else bin' up here till I put that sign up."
James shrugged. "The dog seems rather dirty."
"Oh, that’s just cuz he's been rollin' around out back in the mud pits."
Yea, I bet that’s the reason. This dog has probably not had a bath in months.
"So, the dog is free?"
"Yerp! Ole, Fortinbras is free. Tried to sell the mutt but no one would buy him. He ain't even that old ya know? Barely one years." The overall clad man spit again.
"Ok. I'll take him."
"R'ly? Damn, thought I'd never get rid of this mutt."
James, who was rather disgusted with the man by this time, felt rather emphatic for the dog so he thanked the man took the dog with his leash and led him to his new home.
His wife, rather irritable now that it was almost dinner time and James had not returned with the formula came outside. "Where is my baby formula?! Why are you all wet and soapy?! Do you know what time it is? What have you been doing this whole time?!"

That’s when the dog ran around the corner still wet from the bath and jumped on James grinning ear to ear.
"A dog! We don't need a dog! We just had a baby! Of all the things in the world James THIS is what you were doing?"
"I figured it would be a good companion for the baby." Which wasn't necessarily true, James knew the dog would be a good companion but he didn't expect the baby would think so.
"Well does it have a name?"
"The owner said it responded to Fortinbras."
"Hmpf. Well Fortinbras, welcome to the family," James wife sighed.
James looked up from petting the dog. It was already 3:00 am. Work is going to be quite a drag tomorrow. Why do I still go? James thought. Early retirement sounds nice if not also insulting. I could get a job teaching at the University.
James locked the sliding door that Fortinbras and he had come through and walked back up the stairs. As he passed his son's bedroom he noticed a faint blue glow coming from underneath the door. James didn't feel like lecturing his son on the errors of staying up way to late especially since he was up to late himself.
He pushed his son's door open just slightly, trying to see what his son was doing without his son knowing. What he didn't expect his son to be doing was sleeping in front of his computer.
James figured his son would be playing one of his video games. Luckily, James’ son was in his bed. James walked over and picked up his laptop but as he was closing it he noticed something peculiar his son had been looking at. The wind outside howled.

~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~

It was still raining when James got in his Jeep to drive to work. He still couldn't believe what he found in his son's room last night. He had neglected to tell his wife out of fear she would blame it on him. It's your fault, if you hadn't of done it in college then he wouldn't be doing it now, they say it’s genetic you know. I did it twice.

James sipped his coffee. He usually didn't drink coffee in the morning, coffee was his wife's morning drink, he preferred a nice cup of tea but this morning he needed a jolt. Something to bring him back to reality after what he dreamed last night; something to help him compose himself enough so he could do his presentation today.

James was almost to work when he realized that he had left his laptop at home. He usually worked from home, he had a nice office. It was in the basement with the rest of his computer equipment. It was one of the few sanctuaries he had where his family knew not to bother him. Probably because they assumed he was doing work.

James phoned his wife. They had always had a happy marriage. . .RING. . .They had their share of fights but everyone does. . .RING. . .Why isn't she picking up. . .RING. . .I wonder where she could be. . .click. . .You have reached the mail box of. . .5. . .4. . .1. . .James always hated computer voices . . . 3. . .2. . .6. . .3. . .8. . .2. . .7. . . please leave a message after the tone . . . James hung up. She never responded to his voice mails except in person so he stopped leaving them years ago, might as well right it on a post-it note.

Not having his laptop wasn’t going to be that much of an issue. He had everything he needed for the presentation he was going to give today but he knew that whenever he forgot something he always ended up needing it.

Flashing his ID card to the guard James hopped onto the elevator almost tripping. Sixteenth floor, I need to be on the sixteenth floor. James was always nervous on elevators. He never knew why, maybe he was claustrophobic, or maybe he just didn't like being so close to people, especially ones who had hairy nostrils and a rather rotund belly. James had seen this man before; he usually waited for the next elevator so he wouldn't have to share it with the man but today the man stepped on just as the doors were closing.

James felt bad. It isn't this man's fault, I just feel uncomfortable around him. Why haven't we reached the sixteenth floor yet! The panel on the wall said fifth floor. James was about to scream. Seventh floor. Good we skipped a floor. The doors opened on the eighth floor and by the time they closed on the ninth the two people in the elevator had turned into twelve and James was being pressed uncomfortably against the man he had dubbed Orson Welles.

James fiddled with his keys in his pocket. A woman from the eighth floor flashed him a look. James stuck his hand in his back pocket to feel his wallet and elbowed a man in a silk shirt and tie who was holding coffee. The man yelped as the steaming coffee spilled on his silk shirt. James jumped into the fleshy arms of the hairy beast he hated. The fat man looked startled as if he had not noticed the commotion that was going on between James and the silk shirt and tie man. Orson took a jump back.

All of this happened just as the elevator had reached the sixteenth floor. By the time everyone knew what had happened James had bolted out the doors of the elevator and was down the hall before anyone could give chase.

Walking into the conference room James became much more comfortable. Most of the members of his team were already there, as well as the customers. James seemed to be the last person they were waiting on. So he took his place in front of the projector.

Several hours into the presentation the group broke for lunch. James picked up a sandwich and walked down the hallway. He needed some alone time, presentations like this always drained him. He also needed to call his wife.

She answered rather quickly this time, surprising James; she usually takes at least three rings.

"Hello dear," James wife answered.

"Hi, I was just checking on how you were doing . . . ummm . . . I tried calling earlier but you didn't answer. . ."

"Oh, I had an appointment, don't worry about it, we do have some things we need to talk about though."

"Yea, I agree."

"What?" She sounds startled, like she already knows what I found. She already knows that I am a failure, she is just waiting for me to bring it up so she can tell me how it is my fault he is doing this now. Why did I bring this up, I should have waited till I got home, at least.

"Hello?"

James sounded anxious now. "Oh, it’s about our son. I found something in his room last night that we need to discuss."

"What was it?"

"What do you think?"

"Wait, you didn't find. . ."

"Yea, and I know what you are going to say, how it's my fault, how if I didn't do it in college. . ."

"No, James, it doesn’t really matter now, we have other things to talk about, how about we meet for dinner some where after you get off work."

"Ok. That sounds fine."

"I love you, James."

"Yea, I know."

James hung up the phone and finished his sandwich. He didn't like where this was going. He didn't like it at all.

RING, RING, RING

It was still raining when James got in his Jeep to drive to work. He still couldn't believe what he found in his son's room last night. He had neglected to tell his wife out of fear she would blame it on him. It's your fault, if you hadn't of done it in college then he wouldn't be doing it now, they say it’s genetic you know. I did it twice.
James sipped his coffee. He usually didn't drink coffee in the morning, coffee was his wife's morning drink, he preferred a nice cup of tea but this morning he needed a jolt. Something to bring him back to reality after what he dreamed last night; something to help him compose himself enough so he could do his presentation today.

James was almost to work when he realized that he had left his laptop at home. He usually worked from home, he had a nice office. It was in the basement with the rest of his computer equipment. It was one of the few sanctuaries he had where his family knew not to bother him. Probably because they assumed he was doing work.
James phoned his wife. They had always had a happy marriage. . .RING. . .They had their share of fights but everyone does. . .RING. . .Why isn't she picking up. . .RING. . .I wonder where she could be. . .click. . .You have reached the mail box of. . .5. . .4. . .1. . .James always hated computer voices . . . 3. . .2. . .6. . .3. . .8. . .2. . .7. . .please leave a message after the tone . . . James hung up. She never responded to his voice mails except in person so he stopped leaving them years ago, might as well right it on a post-it note.
Not having his laptop wasn't going to be that much of an issue. He had everything he needed for the presentation he was going to give today but he knew that whenever he forgot something he always ended up needing it.
Flashing his ID card to the guard James hopped onto the elevator almost tripping. Sixteenth floor, I need to be on the sixteenth floor. James was always nervous on elevators. He never knew why, maybe he was claustrophobic, or maybe he just didn't like being so close to people, especially ones who had hairy nostrils and a rather rotund belly. James had seen this man before; he usually waited for the next elevator so he wouldn't have to share it with the man but today the man stepped on after James had.

James felt bad. It isn't this man's fault, I just feel uncomfortable around him. Why haven't we reached the sixteenth floor yet! The panel on the wall said fifth floor. James was about to scream. Seventh floor. Good we skipped a floor. The doors opened on the eighth floor and by the time they closed on the ninth the two people in the elevator had turned into twelve and James was being pressed uncomfortably against the man he had dubbed Orson Welles.

James fiddled with his keys in his pocket. A woman from the eighth floor flashed him a look. James stuck his hand in his back pocket to feel his wallet and elbowed a man in a silk shirt and tie who was holding coffee. The man yelped as the steaming coffee spilled on his silk shirt and James jumped into the fleshy arms of the hairy beast he hated. The fat man looked startled as if he had not noticed the commotion that was going on between James and the silk shirt and tie man and took a jump back.

All of this happened just as the elevator had reached the sixteenth floor. By the time everyone knew what had happened James had bolted out the doors of the elevator and was down the hall before anyone could give chase.
Walking into the conference room James became much more comfortable. Most of the members of his team were already there, as well as the customers. James seemed to be the last person they were waiting on. So he took his place in front of the projector.

Several hours into the presentation they broke for lunch. James picked up a sandwich and walked down the hallway. He needed some alone time, presentations like this always drained him. He also needed to call his wife.
She answered rather quickly this time, surprising James; she usually takes at least three rings.
"Hello dear," James wife answered.
"Hi, I was just checking on how you were doing . . . ummm . . . I tried calling earlier but you didn't answer. . ."
"Oh, I had an appointment, don't worry about it, we do have some things we need to talk about though."
"Yea, I agree."
"What?" She sounds startled, like she already knows what I found. She already knows that I am a failure, she is just waiting for me to bring it up so she can tell me how it is my fault he is doing this now. Why did I bring this up, I should have waited till I got home, at least.
"Hello?"
James was the anxious one now. "Oh, it’s about our son. I found something in his room last night that we need to discuss."
"What was it?"
"What do you think?"
"Wait, you didn't find. . ."
"Yea, and I know what you are going to say, how it's my fault, how if I didn't do it in college. . ."
"No, James, this is serious, but we have other things to talk about as well. How about we meet for dinner some where after you get off work."
"Ok. That sounds fine."
"I love you, James."
"Yea, I know."
James hung up the phone and finished his sandwich. He didn't like where this was going. He didn't like it at all.

Soap and Tobacco

It was a dark and stormy night. James woke with a start, he could hear the thunder crackling outside along with the bark of a dog.
I left the dog outside again, thought James. Fortinbras was a black Border Collie who was rather large for his breed and rather noisy during thunderstorms.
James walked out onto the porch and called Fortinbras. The black dog came running up from the woods drenched as if he had just come from swimming and not from the rain. James had never put a fence in to keep Fortinbras from running away, he never had too. When he bought the land he had built his house right in the center of the property which was around 130 acres. James had never took the time to calculate it exactly, but 130 acres was what the realtor had told him and that was what he was going to believe.
Fortinbras walked up to his side and nuzzled his nose against James' pant leg. Thanks, these pants were just washed. Why do you always seem to be outside during the rain? James thought towards the dog. James walked back inside with the dog and and noticed that the clock on the coffee maker said 2:30.
James groaned. I have work in the morning. Thunder boomed above the trees in his back yard. I am never going to get back to bed with this racket.
Fortinbras sniffed the trash can and then plopped down in front of the vent on the wall. It was his customary spot, especially when it was cold, because it was so warm there. He was still dripping wet.
James grabbed a towel from the pantry and wrapped it around Fortinbras.
"Well at least you seem content," James sighed to Fortinbras. James had found the collie one day when he was walking into town to get some groceries. His wife had just had their son and they needed some more baby formula. James, tired of the screaming baby, had opted to take his time and walk into town.
He passed a sign that read, "Free dog, good with kids." What James found was not a free dog but an ugly dog with matted fur who seemed to have been treated rather poorly. The man who seemed to be taking care of the dog was wearing overalls with no shirt and was chewing tobacco. As James walked up the man spit his chewed cud and hollered at James, "You figurin' on takin' this dog? Nobody else bin' up here till I put that sign up."
James shrugged. "The dog seems rather dirty."
"Oh, thats just cuz he's been rollin' around out back in the mud pits."
Yea, I bet thats the reason. This dog has probably not had a bath in months.
"So, the dog is free?"
"Yerp! Ole, Fortinbras is free. Tried to sell the mutt but no one would by him. He ain't even that old ya know? Barely one years." The overall clad man spit again.
"Ok. I'll take him."
"R'ly? Damn, thought I'd never get rid of this mutt."
James, who was rather disgusted with the man by this time, felt rather emphatic for the dog so he thanked the man took the dog with his leash and lead him to his new home.
His wife, rather irritable now that it was almost dinner time and he had not returned with the formula came outside. "Where is my baby formula?! Why are you all wet and soapy?! Do you know what time it is? What have you been doing this whole time?!"
Thats when the dog ran around the corner still wet from the bath and jumped on James grinning ear to ear.
"A dog! We don't need a dog! We just had a baby! Of all the things in the world James THIS is what you were doing?"
"I figured it would be a good companion for the baby." Which wasn't necessarily true, James knew the dog would be a good companion but he didn't expect the baby would think so.
"Well does it have a name?"
"The owner said it responded to Fortinbras."
"Hmpf. Well Fortinbras, welcome to the family," James wife sighed.
James looked up from petting the dog. It was already 3:00 am. Work is going to quite a drag tomorrow. Why do I still go? James thought. Early retirement sounds nice if not also insulting. I could get a job teaching at the University.
James locked the sliding door that Fortinbras and he had come through and walked back up the stairs. As he passed his son's bedroom he noticed a faint blue glow coming from underneath the door. James didn't feel like lecturing his son on the errors of staying up way to late especially since he was up to late himself.
He pushed his son's door open just slightly, trying to see what his son was doing without his son knowing. What he didn't expect his son to be doing was sleeping in front of his computer.
James figured he would be playing a video game. Luckily, his son was in his bed so James walked over and picked up his laptop but as he was closing it he noticed something peculiar his son had been looking at. The wind outside howled.