Everyone in town is talking about the sale at the pet store. The owner, ‘Truth’ as she likes to be know, positions her self as bit of a Seer. She tells you which of her many eccentric animals would be best for you, with the aim of creating life long bonds, naturally.

Truth is many things but hard to miss wouldn’t be one. She is six foot nine, her piercing blue eyes seem to look straight into your soul, and her long white hair gives her an otherworldly appearance, most think she is about twenty five but she’s been running the store for sixty! This can be chalked up to her perfect, wrinkle free skin. She hasn’t aged a day since I was a boy. My dad used to say that it was never a good idea to pay for an animal.  

My dad has always been a bit paranoid when it comes to Truth and her pet store. He thinks she’s up to something, and he doesn’t like the way she always seems to know what we’re thinking. He says she has a strange, almost supernatural ability to read people’s minds and manipulate them into buying whatever pet she wants them to have. When walking past her shop, some days crossing the street; what was strange was that no matter the time of day she would come to the door and wave at him, even if he crossed the road. She thought it was funny, well she laughed. So who’s to really say.

Most children in our town, when we turned ten our parents would take us to her shop. We would walk around the inside looking in all the cages, pens, tanks and even the stable in the back; eventually the child would be silly enough to point at some poor unsuspecting animal and say,

‘I want that one,’ there parents would laugh and say,

‘That’s nice but lets go see Truth and see what she thinks.’ This isn’t totally crazy, kids are dumb. Should they really be able to pull a rip cord on a fourteen year commitment?

Well, my dad didn’t think so, he knows he picked wrong when he was a boy. He walked up to a tank filled with water and pointed at a blue ringed octopus and said as many do,

‘I want that one,’ he had come in alone on his birthday as many used to do. Truth came up behind him and presented him with a skinny, black cat on the brink off death, she said;

‘His name is Daggers, and he will be your friend.’ My dad has confessed he didn’t see it at the time but Truth is never wrong so he when she placed the little cat in his arms he said,

‘he looks ill,’ she smiled and replied,

‘He was neglected by his previous owners and wasn’t given the care and love he needed. But with the right treatment, he has the potential to thrive. He’s a rescue, he has so much love to give but the people who I took him off were mean and treated him poorly. You treat him right and he will flourish, buy him good food and let him sleep in your bed. Play games with him and you’ll see him brighten right up.’ My dad didn’t know how to respond, he said later on that he couldn’t stop staring into his eyes, they where almost sealed closed by a mucus like crust.

But, sure enough after three days of eating good food, getting to sleep in the bed and playing all they liked, Daggers was a completely different cat. My dad took him to school with him, in the winters he would sleep on the radiators and in the summer he would lounge on the window sills, Daggers followed Dad round all day at school, then at the final bell would lead him home.

Dagger was with us for almost two decades, ‘not bad for such a scrawny cat,’ dad always says. I was only young when Daggers died but he wasn’t a scrawny cat in fact he was a fat cat, he could bat the big dogs away and never took any shit. Dad said,

‘He’d watch over you at night, but I couldn’t sleep without him so I ended up sleeping in your room on the floor a lot.’ its quite sweet really, mum isn’t a local but she liked Daggers too. They were like old friends.

Daggers and my Mum became inseparable. He would curl up in her lap while she read, and follow her around the house while she cleaned. She would make him special treats and give him extra cuddles when he was feeling down. And when she was feeling sad, he would sense it and do his best to make her smile. In the winter mum always made sure the fire was going for him, even if no one was all the room.  Daggers was a bit of a food snob. He only liked the most expensive cat food, but when money was tight, he would reluctantly eat the cheaper stuff. He always made it clear that he wasn’t happy about it, though.

My dad doesn’t trust Truth, Daggers broke his heart. Mum says she’s never seen him so heart broken. He didn’t eat for a week and was hospitalised. He spent a long time finding peace. He even sleeps with a weighted blanket now. But when it was my turn, he was scared to walk back in that shop. We walked around the shop and even into the stables out back, but I had heard all the stories and was determined not to play into her game.

Eventually we had seen all of the pets, there where many that caught my eye but non that made me feel how my dad felt for Daggers so I walked past them. My parents though this was funny, they saw my eyes light up and watched as I clawed away from cages on to the next. I thought I was being so nonchalant like a prince not  fazed by normal pets. My dad said after the last horse,

‘Okay, I think its time. Lets go talk to Truth,’ mum agreed but I started to cry, they thought I was scared, at least that was the line at Christmas. But, I wasn’t scared, I was crying because I was about to meet my life long friend, the friend who will take me into this life.

Truth was behind her desk sitting diligently, she didn’t seem fazed at my crying. She looked me up and down and asked if I wanted a cat like my dad. We were all shocked, you didn’t get to choose, truth told you and she was always right. My Dad actually said,

‘Your Joking!’ She looked offended, she leant over her desk and looked into my eyes,

‘You do, don’t you?’ I nodded and wiped my eyes, she said,

‘Tough!’ and sat back down at her desk. I was so confused but my Mum found it quite funny. She said to Truth,

‘ What pet should he have?’ Truth pulled a puppy from her coat pocket and placed it in my hands. It was white with brown and grey spots, it was fast asleep. My mum knelt down to me and made sure I was holding it properly, he was fast asleep.

‘What’s his name,’ I asked. Truth said,

‘Shoe box. He’s quite healthy but he will get quite big. Feed him a little more then you think you should and walk him three times a day minimum, ideally he’s the type of dog that always wants to be on the move. Let him sleep and keep him off your bed, he will need to be trained. Not like Daggers who trained your Dad.” Mum laughed.

Shoe box was my best friend. He got me through the death of father, my mother and many friends. He’s how I met your mother, his charm got her to stop on her run and I closed the deal. She loved him as well and was very excited for the day you would get your pet. Her pet was called Lizzy, she was a Harlequin Rabbit that lived for ten years, taking your mum through the hardest years of her life. I’m grateful to Truth, I’m grateful to the many pets she’s given out and how they have transformed our lives. I don’t know if Truth is a Mystic, I think she is a kind old lady who changes the world with a her kindness.

The townspeople have come to trust Truth’s judgement when it comes to pets. She has a reputation for making matches that last a lifetime, and for knowing just how to take care of each animal in her care. Even my dad, who was initially sceptical of her, has to admit that she’s never been wrong.

She knows, better then anyone, that if you truly raise and animal with your heart and a handful of your brains. You will gain a life long friend, she has quite the intuition and a good feel for what might be right for you. But she told me a secret on my way out, she said,

‘There is one truth you should know; with love comes love.’ I didn’t know what she meant but I found out, and so will you.

So, know its your turn, what do you think Truth is going to give you?

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