Sky Wolves Read Free

right at the back of his cupboard. So far back, in fact, that he didn’t notice when it glowed, fiercely and brightly for a moment, before settlingdown. He got into bed and lay awake for a long time, thinking about having a dog of his own, and when he fell asleep he dreamed strange, wonderful dreams, about a boy with a face like the sun and a white dog gleaming like a small star through the early-morning mist.

2
New Day, New World
    When Jenny woke up the next morning, she had no idea where she was. It was still dark in the kitchen, and rather cold, and the whirring and humming and clicking noises were still there. They seemed to be coming from tall, metallic slabs that stood against the wall.
    She had been dreaming that she was with her master, playing in meadows thick with flowers, and the early-morning sun shone down on them through the mist. But now here she was, stranded in a cold, dark, alien world. The only warm place was the pillow on which she lay and the only reminder of her former life was the small, chewed twig between her paws. She tried and tried, but she couldn’t remember why she had come here in the first place. It was as though the accident had driven the memories from her mind. She felt lonely and afraid, and she jumped when she heard footsteps clattering down the stairs.
    ‘Jenny!’ Sam called. ‘Jenny?’
    The little dog lifted her nose and sniffed. That was her name now, she remembered. Jen-ny.
    Sam bounded into the kitchen.
    ‘There you are, Jenny,’ he said, hugging her straight away. ‘Are you cold? Did you sleep well? I bet you’re hungry!’
    He went on talking to her in words Jenny didn’t understand. But fortunately all dogs speak human to some extent. They respond to the tone of voice, the rise and fall and rhythm of the words, and Jenny knew that Sam was being kind. And she recognized the smell of him right away, though he wasn’t quite as shiny as the night before. In fact, now that she could see him clearly, he didn’t remind her of her master at all.
    He stood up and pressed a switch and immediately the room was filled with the same yellow glare as before, and Jenny couldn’t see a thing. She cowered in the blinding light.
    ‘It’s only a light bulb, Jenny,’ Sam said, laughing, and he opened one of the whirring metal slabs and brought out the sausage rolls from the party. He ate one himself and offered one to Jenny. She sniffed it, but she was too confused and wary to eat.
    ‘I bet you need the toilet,’ Sam said, and he opened the back door, letting in a blast of cold air.
    The door led into a yard that was full of junk: planks of wood, buckets and ladders, an old brush and mop, a window, still in its frame, and Sam’s bike, draped in a plastic sheet. Jenny hung back warily. The yard was full of strange smells. She didn’t dare venture out.
    ‘Go on, then,’ Sam said, but Jenny didn’t move. He went into the yard and called her, patting his knees, but still she wouldn’t stir.
    Then Sam had an idea. He walked back into the kitchen, quickly picked up the little dart on Jenny’s pillow and threw it into the yard.
    Jenny leapt. She flew through the air like a bird, or avery bouncy kangaroo, catching the mistletoe twig before it landed.
    ‘Go, Jenny!’ shouted Sam, and in the middle of all the confusion of the yard, Jenny squatted and made her mark. It felt strange, but she couldn’t help herself. Making your mark was very powerful magic, and another sign that she belonged in this world now.
    Then, just as she would have done with her old master, she returned the dart to Sam.
    ‘Good girl!’ he said, patting her on the head. ‘Looks like your hip’s better, Jenny!’ He threw the twig back into the kitchen and Jenny leapt after it, flying gracefully over a chair.
    ‘Ace!’ said Sam.
    He found a bowl in the cupboard and filled it with water, and Jenny lapped at it gratefully, then ate the sausage roll. She had eaten and drunk twice now in this strange world and