I AM ONLY POSTING THIS STORY BECAUSE IT WAS RECENTLY PLAGIARIZED.

I probably won't be working on it for some time, but I want this story where it belongs: with me! :D So feel free to enjoy the first chapter, but please be aware that it'll be on the back burner for a while until I complete my other stories.

Thank you for your time!

-PD

Chapter 1

"Ugh, you stupid prick!" A delicate ivory hand, smooth to the touch with long elegant fingers and bright red nails, left a stinging welt on the face of a young man, a welt that was the same color as the nails on the perfectly manicured hand that created it. "I never wanted to see you again! Don't even think of even looking at me ever again! You're a disgusting, noncommittal bastard! Get a job, or, or get a hobby, or get a pet if you need to be entertained so badly! But I'm not going to indulge you and be one of your playthings!" And with that, heels a-clicking, she stormed off, purse grasped roughly in one hand and hair twitching angrily as she quickly vacated the scene. But the only things the young man could think of as she walked away were "I do have a job", "she's so hot, even when she's mad", and "her ass is amazing."

Clearly, someone isn't off to a great start.

Meet Kuroashi Sanji: a perfectly average law student from a well-to-do family. Brains, looks, cash, and incredible amounts of skill not only in the kitchen, and not only in the courtroom, but he was a god in the sack. Any way a superficial woman looked at him, he was a perfect catch. He'd grow up to be a rich, successful lawyer that would be able to give her those shelves of multi-thousand dollar purses, clothes, and shoes. The woman who'd just stormed off had been dreaming of having a closet that was worth more than the house itself; that is, before she broke up with him. However, even with all these material benefits, there was one little thing that got in the way: his personality. Sure, he was suave and a complete gentleman, about half the time, but all the women he'd dated had left him for pretty much the same reason: his apparent insincerity. And it was because Sanji kept getting dumped for the same reasons again and again that he was finally able to sit down and decide that he was tired of it.

He sat down on a bench, sighing deeply. He was alone once again, and that feeling of loneliness was already settling into his system. He was going to return to his big, empty house and wander about aimlessly until he either busied himself doing nothing in particular, or until he fell asleep. He could call up one of his friends, but as he went through his contacts he realized that he really didn't want to talk to any of them at the moment. He deleted his ex's number, positive he wouldn't be receiving a call from her anytime soon, and got up, ready to head for home and to sit on his couch to watch a movie.

He was glad that he'd left his car at home. This gave him an excuse to casually stroll the streets of the North Blue District. He was looking into every window of every store he passed, almost running into a man with a heavy cart due to his lack of attention. He'd linger at some windows, window-shopping for hot babes, and others he's just kinda stare at as he walked by, not really taking in what it was he was looking at. As he was walking he came across one of his ex's – he couldn't remember which ex, sadly – favorite places: the North Blue Pound. Now, Sanji didn't find this place particularly appealing. It was filled with animals that had been abandoned by their families and were left behind with a future uncertain; but that one girlfriend of his would always want to stop and go inside, most likely because there were always adorable, little puppies sitting in the window display, as there were now. Though for some reason or another they never went inside. He didn't know why this place looked so particularly appealing at that very moment in time, but to Sanji, the curiosity was suddenly overwhelming. He stepped away from the window and turned to enter the pound.

The second he walked in, he was blasted with that distinct smell of "unwashed dog" and the faint smell of piss. He could hear the dogs barking from the other side of the door. To his left, there were the young puppies – thin, bony little creatures that had probably been rescued – that were doing their duty of drawing in compassionate souls. Sanji walked up to one and placed his hand in front of its nose. The little guy backed up, but after a moment, he braved a tentative little sniff. Sanji reached up to pat its head, but the puppy recoiled, going back to be with its brothers and sisters. Sanji was unreasonably offended by the creature's lack of trust.

"Ah, good day to you, sir." A young voice greeted. Sanji turned around to see a man that was maybe in his late thirties, early forties. "Would you like to see our other dogs?"

Sanji felt a little uncomfortable saying that he'd only decided to pop in and had no intention of getting one of these little creatures, but figured it wouldn't hurt to take a look at the other animals being contained here. "Sure." He finally agreed, after much internal debating.

"Alright, follow me on back." The tall man with the jet-black, chin-length hair and beaky nose walked through the door, holding it open as Sanji proceeded through it. "These are our younger, newer arrivals." Upon seeing a new face, all the dogs began to liven up, barking eagerly and strutting their stuff, all of them desperately clamoring for much wanted love and attention. They all equally wished to be picked up by this young man, to be taken into a place that was safe, warm, and comfortable with food and love every day for what would hopefully be the rest of their lives. But even though the animals were all rather cute to some degree, Sanji didn't really see anything special. Sure, he felt bad for them being cooped up like this, but at least they were receiving a second chance, whereas many others had died in the streets, cold and hungry. The young student quickly stopped this morbid train of thought as he tried to look interested in what he was seeing.

He noticed another door, a solid brown one that appeared to be locked. "Where's that door go?" He asked, not really noticing that he'd spoken.

"That...is where our more unfortunate dogs are; the ones who have been returned a few too many times, and the ones who are reaching "that point" in their lives." The man explained sadly.

"Can I see?" Sanji asked.

"Uhm, they're really not up for adoption."

"Please let me see them. I'll only be a minute."

"Young man, those dogs have been through quite a bit of trauma. Most of them with mild to serious cases of aggression, depression, varying levels of insanity, and/or, separation anxiety. I really wish those dogs could find a happy home, but it's almost better for them to..." He didn't want to finish. This was a subject he was not meant to discuss with his clientele.

"Please." Sanji said more forcibly. "Let me see them."

The owner sighed. "Alright, alright. Just for a little while." He knew this was against his better judgment, but he really didn't want to deprive those poor dogs of getting one last slim chance to go to a good home. He took out his ring of keys and undid the lock, not entering the room and instead just holding the door open for Sanji. "Just come and find me before you leave so I can lock up." And with that, Sanji was left alone. The blonde looked at the dogs in their cages. One was pacing back and forth, one was spinning in circles, another had been given a muzzle to prevent it from gnawing on it's own legs, while others, who seemed to be in a slightly more stable frame of mind barely moved. A few stood up and sullenly walked to the doors of their individual cages, not even daring to make eye contact with Sanji as he looked at them. They knew the routine: someone would give them a once, or maybe even a twice over, and then move on. So the ones who felt they still had an inkling of a chance stood at attention like a couple old war veterans who knew they weren't gonna make it. It tugged Sanji's heartstrings horribly; he almost wished he hadn't come back here. As he walked through the room, he noticed one cage in the corner. He couldn't see what was inside, as this particular cage had solid walls instead of the bars the other stalls had. Sanji walked over slowly, expecting some sort of ferocious, rabid monster to be behind this special cage. Soon he was standing in front of the barred door, looking in on the shadow of a dog, a dog that was living its life in almost complete darkness, as his cage had no windows and the light from his door was able to seep only about a foot into its prison-like cell.

"Hey," Sanji called out to the dog, "c'mere." He whistled gently. The dog, who was curled up in the darkest corner, lifted his head and swiveled it around to look at Sanji. Even in the darkness Sanji still got the impression of 'I'm not coming just because you called me' from the dog. Sanji crouched down so he'd be eye level with the dog. He placed his hand right against the bars on the door. He clicked his tongue. "C'mere boy." The dog seemed to resign to the fact that Sanji wasn't going to be leaving anytime soon. He stood up slowly, tottering to the side a bit before finally getting his footing. His claws clicked as he made his way over to the door. It was a German Shepherd, Sanji realized. A particular breed of dog that, if raised incorrectly, could be extremely dangerous, easily life threatening. However, this dog's face was different from the others in this section in the kennel. He showed little sadness in his hard stare, and he was completely sane, Sanji could tell. His eyes were calculating, looking Sanji over as the two had a stare down. "Let's see...are you friendly?" Sanji, perhaps somewhat unwisely, slipped his hand between the bars slowly, letting the dog sniff his fingers. The dog looked at the hand like 'are you serious?' but took a sniff anyhow, never breaking eye contact.

"Excuse me." Sanji jumped a bit at the unexpected intrusion. The sudden movement startled the dog and he withdrew, growling for a moment. "You really shouldn't put your hands into these cages. It's dangerous." The store manager was standing in the doorway, motioning with a jerk of his head that it was time to say goodbye. Sanji nodded slowly, taking another lingering look at the German Shepherd that had gone to lie down on his blanket in the corner once more.

"Goodbye, buddy." Sanji muttered. The dog looked over at Sanji and twitched his ears ever so slightly. Sighing, the sharp young man stood, brushing dirt off his slacks before following the hulking owner out of the lesser half of the pound. He was tempted to look back at the cage, but even if he had he wouldn't have been able to see the animal that resided in it.

"Now, would you perhaps care for another look around at our adoptable pets?"

Sanji paused for a moment. "No, that's alright. I think I'm going to leave."

The man sighed. "I see. Well if the bond isn't there then perhaps its best to try not to force something."

As he was walking out the door, Sanji thought of the German Shepherd and those eyes. Those big, penetrating eyes that could read deep into a person's soul. He'd felt a connection with him...perhaps... He opened his mouth to say something but closed it again almost immediately. This would've been what one would call an "impulse purchase" and to do that to an animal wasn't fair. There was no way he could take care of a dog. He had school, a job, and he'd surely have another new girlfriend that he'd have to take care of as well. But still, he couldn't help but wonder why that particular dog was in that section to begin with. So, he asked.

"Ahh, that one. He's been in and out of this place more than any other dog I've ever had. He hasn't done anything in here, but everyone returns him maybe a day or two later. They've never given me any clear details, but their refusals to care for him any longer are so adamant that I can't refuse them, the poor bastard. I think he has serious separation anxiety or somethin like that. I dunno, but I'm afraid I'm gonna have to put the poor guy down. He's been here too long. A lot of these dogs have, so I'm putting some of them down tomorrow. My buddy who works in that bird shop next door is gonna have to help me."

The not so pleasant chatter brought the playboy to a halt. He was absolutely horrified! How could anyone be able to do that to one of those poor dogs? But he also felt that it was simply out of the question for him to adopt that creature. He couldn't deal with an issue ridden dog, especially when he himself was in a less than ideal place. No, as bad as he felt about that dog in the back room, he was simply unable to play hero and adopt that dog. He bade farewell to the pound owner and stepped outside. As he walked home he didn't look into any more stores and kept his eyes on his feet, watching them alternately appear within his field of vision before disappearing again only to have the other one appear. Yes, such was the miracle of walking.

He almost walked past his front gate, as he was so full of troubling thoughts. He pushed it open, having to slam his body against it a few times to get it over the raised section of sidewalk where the door would always catch, and walked down the path, up the stairs, and to his front door. He opened the door, alarmed that he'd forgotten to lock up, and went inside, checking the rounds to make sure nothing had been stolen. Thankfully, it seemed as if his place had been left alone while he was out. He went up to his room, flopped on the bed and turned on the TV. As he flipped through the free quick-rent movies, he thought about the dog again. He couldn't help but imagine what it'd be like to have a dog. Having a smiling, canine face greet you at the door with a wagging tail, eager for praise on how he'd done such a good job of keeping away all of the bad guys, and vermin as well, that had wanted to invade his master's territory. As Sanji finally picked out one of those 1960s sci-fi movies that he knew was gonna be hokey, he thought about how it'd also be nice to have the warm furry body next to him on the bed as he watched these comically horrible movies. To be able to be by himself, but without being totally alone; a faithful partner in crime; a best friend; and all those other stereotypical purposes for possessing a canine companion. He imagined the head of that German Shepherd on his lap, silently asking for Sanji to run his hand over the top of his head and to scratch his ears and neck.

"Stupid..." He muttered as he watched the people in alien suits waddle about as they shot beams of light out of huge, fake looking guns. "I'm really stupid."

o()o()o

The next day was a Saturday, which meant that he had the whole day free. And, since he was now single though not quite ready to mingle, he had even more free time than he was used to. He ran down back to the pound, his wallet in hand. He had pictured a look of deep sadness and fear on the face of that poor dog, lying curled up in a corner, completely alone as the big bad pound owner closed in on him with a euthanization needle. Sanji had dramatized tens of families cruelly kicking the starving creature out into deep snow banks and he, the brave, compassionate person his imaginary self was, would valiantly rush in and save the dog from another day of suffering. He wanted that dog to feel loved. He didn't know why, but that dog had stuck in his mind, and the thought of him getting euthanized hurt his heart.

He threw the door open, making the bell that hung off the doorframe jangle as frantically as he felt. "Hello?" He called when he didn't see a body behind the counter. He hurried back toward the door where the 'normal' dogs were. He pushed open the door and almost broke that beak-like nose of the bastard that was about to take the life of his future dog. However, the man was perfectly polite about it.

"Can I help you?"

"I want that dog."

"Oh, I'm happy to hear that. Which one of these dogs would you like? I can take them out of their cage for a time so you can get acquainted." He had to speak a little louder over the excited bark of the dogs.

"No, not one of these dogs." Sanji ran a hand through his hair, trying to smooth out all the flyaways. He desperately craved a cigarette. "I want that German Shepherd I saw yesterday." Sanji didn't like the expression that the man was wearing. "He's...not...?" Sanji didn't finish his sentence and instead ran past the man and burst into the back room, surprising the dogs, who'd not been expecting the loud bang. Sanji walked quickly, ignoring the protests of the shop owner towards the last cage. He looked in and found it...

"Empty?" His eyes widened. "Where is he? You didn't...you...he isn't..." 'I'm too late. It's done. He's gone. I was too late.'

"I just put him into a deep sleep. It's easier that way."

Sanji didn't want to know if he had meant it was easier for the dogs or for the man that had to put them down. Either way, he didn't care and hurried to the door that was open just a smidge. He pushed open the white door and entered into the sterile, white room. It appeared to be a veterinarian's workspace. Perhaps this man was a vet. Sanji's thoughts instantly focused when he saw his German Shephard lying on the table, completely still and barely breathing. Sanji ran over and ran a hand through its dirty fur. His hand was greasy and specked with black god-knows-what when he pulled it away at the demand of the pound owner.

"Listen, this dog cannot afford any more emotional trauma. Based off of past experiences, this dog isn't suitable for adoption. I don't have any other choice. This dog cannot be—"

"Give me a chance! I'm not like other people; I can give this dog a happy home. I can handle whatever issues he can dole out. I've had enough crazy girlfriends to be able to handle these sorts of things." Even though Sanji laughed at the part about the crazy ex's, it was also incredibly true, unfortunately. Though they were all stunningly beautiful... "Please, I really feel that I can give him what he needs. I'll be a great owner and friend to this dog. Please." As he spoke, Sanji felt that his argument wasn't at all convincing. Almost everyone had heard the same schpeel on a daytime soap or in one of those stereotypical " a boy and his dog" movies. Even though his speech wasn't original in the least, Sanji meant it. But the pound owner also meant what he said, and neither one of them were willing to let the argument drop, nor were they willing to give in. However, they really hadn't time to argue as the German Shepherd's eyes slowly blinked open.

To Be Continued...