Storytelling: Loyal and True

"DAD!" 

Levi heard his son call from upstairs. He raced up the stairs to find out what was scaring his little boy. 

"What's wrong? Why are you yelling?" He asked his little man. 

"Something is in my room." The child told his father, "Please get it out."

Levi began searching the room looking for anything that might have scared his child but he could not find anything in the room. 

The next morning Levi was up early to go hunting. He called his two dogs, Gellie and Hobbes, so that they could get on the road. 

"Gellie! Let's go." He called for the dog. Hobbes was already in the truck and Levi was anxious to get on the road. 

He stomped inside to find his dog, "Gellie!" He yelled when he saw his dog lying by his son's bed, "It's time to go. Get up!"

Gellie just laid there and growled a little. No matter what Levi did or said he couldn't get Gellie to leave his son's bedside. 

"Fine, just stay here. You weird dog."

Normally Gellie was his favorite. He was already for the hunt and raring to go. He loved being outdoors and was his best hound. Levi couldn't believe he didn't want to go this morning, and he never growled, "What is wrong with that dog?" Levi thought to himself. 

After a long day of hunting Levi came home to a terrifying scene. 

"Why is the door unlocked?" Levi thought to himself as he pushed it open to reveal a devastating picture. 

His entire house had been turned upside down. Pictures were broken on the floor, knickknacks were either missing or broken, furniture had been overturned and many pieces were missing legs or now had rips in them. 

Levi raced up the stairs to check on his wife and son. 

When he reached the landing he noticed something on the floor, "Was that blood?" Levi asked himself in terror. 

He raced into his son's room to find his wife tied to the rocking chair. 

"Levi!" She exclaimed, "Oh God, it was horrible. The came in so quickly and I couldn't stop them." 

"Where is Ryan? Why is there blood everywhere?"

"Gellie!" she panted, "Gellie saved him. The men were trying to take him and he fought them off." 

"Dad?" Ryan cried as he opened the closet door, where he was hiding. "Dad, Gellie is really hurt. He fought them and the hit him a lot." 

Levi checked over his wife and child for injuries and finally exhaled. He ran around the house looking for his god dog. 

How could the dog have known? Such good instincts. His hound had always had good instincts. 

Levi finally found Gellie out in the backyard badly beaten and bloodied. 

"Come on, boy, let's get you to the hospital." Levi tried to console the dog. 

While Levi carried the hound to the car he worried, Gellie was in bad shape. How would he ever deal with losing this precious dog. He had saved his wife and child, he owed this dog everything. 

When they reached the animal hospital he carried Gellie inside, "Please, please save my dog. He rescued my family today, and I just don't know what I would do without him."

The family sat in the waiting room anxiously while the vet checked over the dog. 

"He is going to need a lot of stitches and even more love and care, but after some recovery Gellie will be good as new." The vet told Levi and the family. 

"Thank you, thank you." Levi said, "That dog will get the best care any dog has ever received."

The family took Gellie home and began to pick up the pieces of their lives. Gellie continued to recover and eventually returned to the wonderful hunting hound he was before the break in. Levi was always grateful to the wonderful dog and never questioned his instincts again. 

Hunting Hound

Author's Note:

I wrote this story based of the Celtic Tales by Joseph Jacobs in particular I wrote it about Beth Gellert. In this story a king goes hunting and cannot find his favorite hunting hound. When he returns he find blood leading up to his baby son's crib and cannot find the sun. He immediately assumes the dog has killed his baby and stabs the dog with his spear. He then discovers the child hidden and a wolf caracas beside him. The hound had stayed behind to protect the child. When he realizes this it is too late for the dog and he dies. I really hated that the dog died in this story for protecting the child, so I wanted to change it and make a much happier ending.