A Political Fable for the Times that Try Our Souls

[derby378]

I adapted this story from one I read a long time ago. Interpret this story however you wish!

One upon a time, there was a big, fat, lazy hound dog that lived all his days in a comfortable log cabin by the woods. Now this dog always got clean water twice a day in a big ceramic bowl, plenty of decent food, slept in an overstuffed dog bed, and had all the rawhide, bones, and chew toys a dog could ever want.

But this dog secretly carried a grudge in his heart, which meant he never learned to be satisfied with the bounty he had. About a year ago, a little weasel wandered into the backyard of this log cabin. He found one of the lazy dog's older scraps of rawhide, which was so thoroughly chewed up the dog barely bothered with it anymore. But the weasel was interested in this little piece of rawhide for whatever reason, so he scooped it up in his mouth and headed off back into the woods.

And how the dog barked and snarled when he saw this weasel, running off with a piece of trash that the dog guarded so jealously, even though he no longer needed or truly wanted it! And the dog rushed to fight the weasel, but he couldn’t get through the door to the backyard. For his wise master kept the door shut so that the dog wouldn't get himself into any trouble with the weasel, and refused to let the dog out that day. The foolish dog snapped at his master, and found himself sleeping in the laundry room that night. But the next morning, the lazy dog still had his food, his water bowl, his comfy bed, and all his good toys. But he never forgave that little weasel.

Then, one spring day, when the master left the back door open to let the cool breezes into the cabin, the big, lazy dog saw a pack of wolves patrolling the backyard. And there was the alpha male wolf, at the head of the pack. And the rest of the wolf pack obeyed every command the alpha wolf gave.

And then the big, lazy dog developed an evil plan, one in which he would take control of this wolf pack and get revenge on the weasel who stole from him long ago. And he charged out of the log cabin and stood before the alpha wolf. "I challenge you," he barked, "because I'm taking over your clan!"

And the other wolves howled with laughter! Imagine, a lazy dog thinking he could give orders to a pack of wolves! But the alpha wolf was in no mood for laughter. "You have insulted me," he growled at the dog, "and you have insulted my brothers and sisters with your challenge. We shall fight, and you shall learn your lesson."

The alpha wolf and the lazy dog fought each other as the wolf pack watched. It was a hard fight full of biting and scratching. But the dog, being crafty, cheated. He scooped a clod of dirt with his paw and flung it in the alpha wolf's face, temporarily blinding him. Taking advantage of the alpha wolf's confusion, the dog leapt upon the wolf’s chest and clamped his teeth around the wolf's throat. "Submit to me," the dog growled, "or die!"

The other wolves advanced, ready to tear the dog apart for his treachery. But the alpha wolf, his life at the dog’s mercy, cried out, "Hold! You know the law of our tribe, he has won the battle. By the law, we must obey him."

So the wolf pack grudgingly accepted the big, lazy dog as their leader. And then the dog started telling the wolf pack of a new threat to their existence. He told the wolves, "There is a weasel in the woods who is planning to destroy this wolf pack! He has stolen from me in the past, but he is no longer content with stealing! If we do not fight this weasel, he will kill us all!"

But the wolves did not know where this weasel was, and neither did the dog. So the wolf pack journeyed on through the forest, led by the dog, who forsook his log cabin and all of its comforts in order to lead the wolves.

Then, half an hour later, a starving bear stumbled upon a young female wolf who straggled behind the rest of the pack. He sank his teeth into the body of the wolf, who died before she could utter a single sound. The bear lumbered away just as the rest of the wolf pack, including the big, lazy dog, discovered their loss. And the wolves howled in mourning for their sister.

"I told you!" said the dog. "The weasel is responsible for this!"

"No, my leader," said the former alpha male, "these teeth marks are the marks of a bear!"

"Then we shall kill the bear," growled the dog, "but not before he tells us where the weasel is!"

And the wolves bounded through the forest, but their noses were unable to pick up on the scent of the bear, who had taken refuge in a cave. Besides, the one scent trail that the wolves could have picked on was obliterated by the lazy dog, who casually urinated on the tree stump that contained the scent.

"If we cannot find the bear," the dog finally barked, "we can still find the weasel who sent him to kill us!"

"My leader," the former alpha wolf asked, "how are you so sure that the weasel DID order the bear to attack?"

"It's a secret," lied the dog, "and I cannot tell you the secret because it will enable the weasel to kill us for sure! But as your leader, I want to keep this wolf pack safe and secure, so I command you all to find the weasel and kill it!"

And thus the wolves obeyed their leader, for that was the law of their tribe. And after a couple of hours, they finally discovered the weasel who stole from the dog in the past, and the alpha wolf killed him, and brought his body to the lazy dog.

"You did well, brother wolf," growled the dog, "but where is his treasure that he hid from me?"

"I saw no treasure upon him, my leader," the wolf responded.

"Then," barked the dog, "we must find where he hid it, even if we have to kill every weasel in the woods! I shall stay and protect the females and cubs of the tribe while the brothers hunt!"

The wolves grumbled, and the former alpha male spoke, "We are pledged to obey our leader, for that is the law of our tribe. But our leader must accompany us on every hunt for our enemies, for this is also the law of our tribe. And our laws are fixed and unchangeable, for they preserve the integrity and safety of our tribe. And so, our leader, you must join us."

The dog let out a big sigh, but he joined the male wolves as they hunted through the woods. And the former alpha wolf whispered to his fellow wolves, "Brothers, now we shall see the true power inherent in our new leader as he searches for what I believe is nothing more than an old dog toy." So the wolves, accompanied by the lazy dog, bounded further and further from the rest of the pack - and from the log cabin that the dog called home.

And now the dog was getting hungry - but there were no kibbles or chewy treats to find in the forest - and the dog was getting thirsty - the wolves lapped from streams that contained leaves and twigs, and the dog was beginning to miss his little doggy dish - and the dog was getting tired and sore - oh, why did he have to leave his comfortable doggy bed so far behind? - but the wolves continued to run, and hunt, and bound over the streams and through the old paths, and they showed no sign of tiring or slowing down. For this was THEIR forest, and THEIR home, and the dog, who couldn’t remember the last time he did anything strenuous, faltered when he tried to jump streams or fallen tree trunks, complained that his joints and muscles were aching, and even tried to convince a couple of wolves to try to carry him for part of the journey.

Finally, in the middle of a clearing, the dog collapsed on the cold, wet ground, thoroughly exhausted and starving. And that's when the former alpha male bounced on top of the lazy dog, his teeth around the dog's neck.

"Now, by the law of our tribe, I challenge YOU!" the wolf growled.

"The tribe is yours! I submit!" the dog whimpered.

"Very well," the alpha wolf growled. "As leader of the tribe, I shall direct my brothers to hunt for food to nourish our tribe instead of chasing imaginary enemies. As for you - you who would dare to command a tribe of wolves with lies and greed - I banish you from our tribe forevermore! Run back to your master, and beg him to take you back!"

And so, the dog, finally returning to his senses, scampered away, whimpering with hunger and thirst and aches and pains, back to the security and comfort of his master's log cabin, hoping that his master hadn't forgotten him.

That night, the wolves did eat together, and even the cubs had enough to eat, and all were content and happy. And the alpha wolf said these words to his tribe:

"My brothers and sisters, I am sorry that you had to endure the incompetence and the lies of our former leader, but you and I also know that the way of the wolf isn't a dog's life."

The End

[derby378]

1. Kick - and thanks to whomever recommended this!

:applause:

[mojowork_n]

2. I hit recommend, too, but it was past the 24 hour shelf life

Just out of curiosity, what was the story that inspired yours?

I've been thinking lately of a book I read in high school, Peter S. Beagle's, The Last Unicorn.

If you go any farther with the story, consider your main character as a resident of King Haggard's town. (Same greedy possessiveness.) That's not in the animated version of the book, which has been on cable recently.