The Able Crew - Puddles & Rain

Part 1

5 th Installment

The story opens with Ben, Nodin, Alexa, Gabby and Sam standing in front of Alexa’s house. They are listening intently while Alexa tells of her missing cats.

Alexa: “My cats, Rain and Puddles are missing. Please help me look for them. I don’t

think they’d go far from the house.”

Ben “What do they look like?”

Alexa: “Rain is a gray striped Tabby and Puddles is a black, white and orange Calico.”

Ben:“Okay, we’ll help. Nodin, I think we should split up. I’ll go up the block and you

go across the street, Nodin while Gabby and Alexa scout around and call for

the cats.”

Nodin agrees quietly. “Let me know if you find them. I’m not going too far,” he said and walked away. “Puddles? Rain?” he called out as he crossed the street.

Ben walking up the sidewalk calling out for Rain and Puddles. (Show a bubble over Ben’s head as he also calls out for the cats in his mind.)

Alexa, Gabby and Sam peering upwards at the cats in a tree. A stray German Shepard dog named Caesar is barking frantically at the cats.

(Telepathic communiqué between the dog).

Caesar to Sam: “Those two tried to eat my food, so I chased them up this tree. I would have

left them alone, but they kept coming back, hissing, clawing at me and invading

my territory.”

Sam: “They’re just hungry and you probably scared them. Please let them down and my

human partner’s friend will take them home so you can eat.“

Caesar growls at Sam. He’s too angry to listen to reason. He barks his answer.

“Mind your business and go away!”

Sam shifts his weight, gets closer to Gabby and she pats him on the head. She can tell something is wrong with her partner. “What’s the matter, boy” she asks.

“You’re in my territory, too! Get out of here!” Caesar barked and suddenly lunged

after Sam. He turns to protect Gabby and Caesar bumps both him and his human

partner to the ground.

Sam checks Gabby to make sure she’s okay, while Alexa pokes the stray dog with her

crutch. “Go away! Shew! Get away from my friends,” she says.

Caesar gets up yelping. He takes off, knocking Alexa to the ground, breaking her right

crutch in the process. She falls to the ground, next to Gabby.

Meanwhile, Nodin meets up with Jason and tells him that Alexa’s cats are missing. Jason

likes Alexa and agrees to help look for the cats.

The stray dog (Ceasar) runs past Jason and Nodin. Jason turns to where the dog came from, sees Alexa and Gabby on the ground. Sam is waiting patiently beside Gabby while she tries to get up.

“Hey, there’s Alexa and Gabby. Let’s see what’s going on,” Jason said. He and Nodin run across the street to help out.

“Are you okay, Gabby?” Nodin asked.

“I’m just a little shook up, but I’m more worried about Sam. He has a scratch on his nose that won’t stop bleeding,” Gabby said while running her hands over Sam’s head and back. She checked his ears, his paws and legs, then once again ran her fingers gently over his nose. He yelped and she grabbed the harness.

Jason grabs the broken crutch, puts it under his arm. He grabs Alexa’s arm while she stabilized herself on her good crutch. “Are you okay, Tiger?” Jason asks Alexa.

Alexa: “I’m fine, but my crutch is demolished,”

Jason: “What were you trying to do?”

Alexa: “I was trying to get that dog off Gabby.”

Jason: “Who’s dog is he?”

“Don’t know. Just a stray, I guess,” Alexa said. She pointed upwards to the tree and Jason peered up to see the cats still stranded on a high tree branch.

“He startled me when he ran past me,” Jason added. Then to Nodin and Gabby he asked, “Has anyone seen that dog in the neighborhood before?”

Nodin: “No, never.”

Alexa: “I’ve never seen him before. I’ve never seen any unleashed dogs in this

neighborhood before, so he must be a stray.”

Problems faced by neighborhoods with stray dogs shown in different blocks of the comic.

1. A stray chasing a mail man. 2. A stray dog eating trash out of several turned over trash cans. 3. A stray dog barking at a leashed dog behind a gated fence. Gabby explains:

Gabby: “Stray dogs interfering with their visually impaired or blind handlers are such a problem because guide dogs are bred and trained to be gentle souls. They are actually bred and trained to act quietly in public, that is, to be out of the way and not to be noticed. Guide dogs are a great addition to the life of a visually impaired or blind person and their significance to their visually impaired or blind partner far outweighs the cost of breeding and training. There are so many true stories of these heroic canine partners protecting their human partners, stories of stray dogs biting and even latching on to the neck of the guide dog, all the while the guide dog leads his human partner to safety. Sometimes the dog gets seriously injured or even dies and then his human partner is left to use the cane and hopefully get acquainted with another canine partner. That’s why it’s so important that we protect our furry service animal friends from bad dogs like the one who just attached Sam,” Gabby said and rubbed Sam’s back. “I’d hate to lose you, Sam. You’re a very important part of my life,” she said quietly. She reached into her pocket and gave him a doggy treat.

Sam looks up, seems to smile.

Ben walks up to the group (Gabby with Sam, Alexa.) “Gee, looks like I missed all the action.”

Gabby: “You sure did…A stray dog attacked Sam and now he’s bleeding. I hope he’s okay.”

(Telepathic communicate between Sam and Ben stares as he stares into the dogs eyes. “PLEASE LET MY HUMANPARTNER (Gabby) KNOW THAT I’M A LITTLE BRUISED, BUT OKAY,” HE SAYS TO BEN TELEPATHICALLY.

Gabby: “Does Sam look okay to you, Ben?”

Ben: “He’s a little bruised, but he’s okay. I think you still need to take him to the

veterinarian. David is around the corner with Megan in the van. I’m sure they’ll

take you to the vet, if you ask them.”

Gabby: “Cool… I’ll call him now on my cell phone.”

Ben to Alexa:“You have to get your cats, Alexa. We’re going to the vet.”

Alexa:“I’ve been trying to call them down out of the tree, but they’re so scared.”

“Let me give it a try,” Jason said to Alexa.He peers upwards at the cats, locks eyes with Puddles, then Rain and whispers, “Please come down.” Jason has the power to mentally manipulate people, animals and insects to do as he wants them to, as long as it’s something positive. “Puddles, Rain, come down.”

The two cats scoot down the tree into Jason’s waiting arms. Alexa is flabbergasted. “First Ben with his secret knowledge of what dogs think, and now you with your whispering to cats. It’s amazing,”she said as Megan and David drove up in the van.

(Everyone piles into the van to go to the veterinarian.)

Megan: “So, where’s the vet?”

Gabby “Sam’s veterinarian is Dr. Reddy. He’s two blocks down, then hang a left and

drive to the first light. His building is the first one on the block.”

David: “Is Sam okay?”

Gabby: “I think so, but it doesn’t hurt to have a doctor check him.”

David: “Are your cats okay, Alexa?”

Alexa: “Puddles is shaking and they’re both hungry. I think they got quite a scare.”

David: “Maybe you should let Dr. Reddy look at them also.”

Alexa: “I am.”

The Able Crew is seated in the Veterinarian’s office. Alexa and Jason are seated in the corner of the room, each has a cat in their arms. Two other children are in the office with their cat and dog, while Ben, David and Megan are seated in front of them, each reading a magazine.

Alexa: “I have a feeling that they’re going to keep Sam overnight,” she says to

Jason.

Jason: “How do you know that?”

Alexa: “The same way that you knew how to call my cats out of the tree. I just get a

feeling and it turns out to be right.”

Jason: “Oh wow, that’s cool,” he says and pauses then adds, “So, how’d you come

up with the names Rain and Puddles?” he said while petting Rain.

Alexa: “Their names just popped into my head I found them in an alley, in the rain.

They were soaked and so skinny. I guess they were abandoned.”

Jason: “They’re really nice cats.”

The door to the veterinarian’s office opens. A tall man with thick glasses and black hair stepped into the waiting room with Gabby. He’s wearing a long white lab jacket. Gabby looks worried and Dr. Reddy has his hand on her shoulder to comfort her.

“It looks like Sam will have to say here for the rest of the day,” Dr. Reddy says, then he adds, “and it will probably be best if we keep an eye on him overnight.”

Jason to Alexa: “You said he’d have to spend the night,” he whispered.

“I told you,” Alexa said then turned to Gabby. She looked on the verge of tears.

Alexa got up (with Jason’s help), grabbed Gabby’s hand and led her to the chair next to hers and they sit down. “He’ll be okay, Gabby, don’t worry.”

Dr. Reddy: “He’ll be just fine. We’ll take good care of him.”

Gabby: “I-I don’t want to leave him here. I wish I could stay, too. We don’t like to be

apart.”

Dr. Reddy smiled warmly. “I’m sure Sam will miss you too and when you guys get together,

he’ll be well again. Right now, he needs to rest.” He then points to Alexa, Jason and the cats. “I will see those two now.”

“Rain. Puddles. Let’s go,” Alexa said and stood up. She handed Puddles to Dr. Reddy as Jason handed Rain to her. Alexa gets up, grabs her good crutch and goes with Dr. Reddy into the back office.

David, Ben, Gabby, Jason and Megan are in the waiting room together.

Ben: “Don’t worry Gabby, we’ll help you while Sam is away.”

Gabby: “Thanks guys.”

David: “Hey, you’re part of the crew, the Able Crew, and we help each other.”

End

Part 1 of Puddles & Rain

(By Kirsten Campbell)