Post 311: Happiness is a Wagging Tail

Stardate:70722.1751
Title: Happiness is a Wagging Tail
Author: TC Blane
Scene: Deck 12
Time: Following "The Party is Over”

"TC, Sunshine won't come out of the deck. We tried everything. He won't give up looking for you." February said softly, and TC turned, startled.

He was momentarily confused. "What?"

"Your dog. He won't give up looking for you. You have to go get him."

TC shook his head, and moved past the others and back into the Jeffries tube.

"My dog," he repeated incredulously. Sunshine really believed he was Blane's dog already and was displaying loyalty without question. Amazing.

TC couldn't help but smile at the thought. "Well, I guess I better get him, then."

He took one more glance to be sure that all was well with the group and then stuck his upper half of his body back into the hole, pulling himself up to sit on the lip of the freshly cut portal. He scanned the holodeck for any sign of Sunshine the dog, his dog. He laughed again to himself.

“Sunshine! Here boy!” He called out over the sound of the surf.

At first he saw and heard nothing. “Sunshine!” He cupped his hands to his mouth. “Get your butt over here dog!!”

Then down the beach he caught the sound of a bark. It was behind him. He shifted to look and saw Sunshine the dog streaking at a full run towards him. Tongue hanging out the side of his mouth and ears pinned back to his head. The look of excitement was obvious to TC.

“There he is! Good boy!!”

Suddenly TC realized that Sunshine had no intention of stopping. “Oh oh. Slow down there doggy.”

The warning came a bit too late as Sunshine jumped into TC’s arms his tail wagging a tongue licking frantically. The dog’s mass and excited momentum was more then TC’s body could compensate for and he was not able to keep his balance on the lip of the hole. Both operations chief and dog plunged backwards though the portal and back into the conduit.

TC landed squarely on his back, the air leaving his lungs in a loud huff of expelled air.

Sunshine, who landed safely on TC’s chest, was undaunted by the fall and his licks of happiness continued unabated.

TC on the other hand was having trouble catching his breath as Sunshine’s saliva coated his face. “Pppttttptt…OK OK. Enough! I can’t breathe, ya mongrel!”

He was able to push the excited dog off of his chest and sit up. Sunshine sat next to him, tail in a constant state of motion, as he waited for TC to regulate his breathing.

TC finally looked over at the dog and smiled. Reaching over he scratched Sunshine in his favorite spot behind the ear.

“I happy to see you too.” He struggled to his feet and stretched out the kinks in his back. “I think we need to get to the bridge and see what we can do to help.”

The man and dog walked together side by side out of the tube.

Lt. TC Blane
Acting Chief of Operations
USS Independence