Shadow wakes up with a start. He had just had a terrible dream that his friend from his old life had been running through the woods terrified of what was chasing her. She had been calling out his name pleading for his help. She knew he was dead and gone and yet, still called for him. This sadden him, seeing her and yet not sure on what he can do to help her. He gets up off the bed and heads down stairs. He walks into the study and finds Death sitting behind the desk with the death list and a few books scattered on top of the desk.

He plops his front paws on the edge of the desk and gave a short bark. Death without looking up, “yes?” Shadow explains his dream and what he thinks it means and that he wants to go save her. “You just need to forget about her and your old life. You are here now, you are my dog.” Shadow barks his frustration and pleads with Death. “No and that is final.” Death glares the order at Shadow and Shadow holds his glare both breaking and removing his paws from the desk. Shadow stalks out of the room, heading towards the front door. “You will not be able to return here once you step through that door, there will be no afterlife. Even if you do save her and protect her for all of her years, she will die. Then there will be no one to remember you and your deeds. As soon as you are forgotten, you will cease to exist.” Death says with a stern look. Shadow pauses for a moment then continues towards the door. It does not matter if I don't exist, as long as she lives. To die for one's beliefs and for the safety of others is better than living forever as a fat coward, Shadow thinks to himself. He works the handle with his teeth and paws, pulling it open. He walks through the door, knowing that he will never be coming back to this house.

With a jolt and blinding light, he passes through the door. He has appeared in a clearing, in the middle of a forest. The moon is bright in the night sky. Sniffing the air and listening to the sounds of the forest he realizes that this forest is his forest. Sniffing a few choice trees solidifies that conclusion. He knows this forest and he knows where the camp will be. Running through the forest he finds his old camp, or what's left of it. He can still see the old central fire pit and make out where a few tents use to be. The place is barren of anything else to show that people lived here.

He lays next to what remains of the old fire pit thinking, where could see be? The wind rustles his fur and he sighs not knowing what to do. He gets up and wanders back to the forest thinking maybe this was the one he dreamed her running though. Wandering through the forest, lost and no clue what to do, hoping that one of these trees would look familiar.
He hears an owl hooting in a tree in front of him. The moonlight that makes its way through the treetops catches on something shiny near the owl. Shadow creeps closer to the owl and sees that there is a metal tag tied to the owl with leather. There are markings engraved in the metal. Shadow decides to follow the owl through the night. As dawn approaches the owl heads out of the forest and across the meadow. Shadow did not like the meadow; the tall grass kept hitting him in the nose and rubbing uncomfortably a crossed his belly. As he follows the owl a crossed, the meadow ends near a camp. There are animals grazing between him and the camp which would explain why the tall grass ends so suddenly.

This camp reminds him so much of his days living with the humans. The smells of the camp fires and the humans talking brings him back to running around with his human. The little girl who he had given his life to save. He is snapped out of his memories by a familiar scent, a scent he would never forget.

He creeps towards the camp, there are a few humans doing pre-dawn chores so he tries to stay out of sight. He follows the scent, heading into the camp. He slowly realizes that the humans and the other others of the camp don't react to him, like he is not even there. He stops trying to hide and just focuses on following the scent. He follows the scent through the camp till he comes to the front of a tent. He goes to push the flap away and to walk inside, only to just pass right through the material and into the tent. He looks about the tent, half outside, half inside the tent. He sees her there by the cooking fire in the tent stirring the embers of the fire, trying to reawaken the them and ignite the new kindling she has added. He rushes to her, bouncing and barking so happy to see her. She continues to stir the fire, trying to bring life into the dead embers. He barks at her and tries licking her face but his tongue passes right through her. It dawns on him that he is a ghost. He does not know where he learned the word or its meaning he just knows that his mission was a failure from the beginning and Death knew it and tried to warn him.



Shadow sits down on the packed earth next to her and sighs. What is the point of being here if I can not do anything. Death must be laughing at me now for being so ignorant and stupid. I should've listened to him. I am no longer among the living and have no place here. I can not help her anymore than a breeze could. Shadow gets up to leave and head back to the forest when the tent flap is thrown aside and man walks in and starts yelling at the girl. She shields away from the man as he takes a swing at her. Shadow lunges at the man growling and barking at him but to no effect. The man grabs her by her hair and hits her before throwing her to the ground again. The man is pointing at the fire and yelling at her. She is crying and cowering on the ground shielding her head from him.

Shadow watching this snarls deep and approaches the man. The hatred he feels towards the man overwhelms the knowledge that there is nothing he can do. He walks over the fire pit and through the kindling. The kindling that the girl had tried to ignite roars up in flames. The man and the girl both jump and look at the flames in shock. They both can not believe what had just happen. The girl takes advantage of the flames and puts would on the new formed fire. The man on the other hand is paralyzed at the sight before him. In the fire and slowly stepping towards him is a black dog, snarling at him. The fire dancing in the dog’s eyes. He sees the girl putting wood on the fire not noticing the dog. The logs not even affecting the dog as it steps towards him. The man turns and runs out of the tent.

Shadow goes to chase after him but as he places his paw into a patch of sunlight he falls down onto his side. He looks at his paw and it is just a shimmering reflection of his paw. He quickly pulls it out of the patch of sunlight. As he lays there in the dark his paw returns to normal and he is able to stand again. He does not understand what happened but he knows that he can not leave this tent till the sun goes down. He curls up in the farthest corner from the door and waits, watching the girl he came back to protect.