Man's Best Friend

In the beginning, there was a Man. He said, "Let there be dogs!" And there were dogs and they were good. They made the Man happy.

 And there was a dog the Man loved so much he brought this dog into his own home. So blessed was this dog that it could even charm the dead and make them become as friends.

 One day the Man said, "It is not right that a dog should be alone." Thus he brought into his home a companion for his dog. They one day united in great gladness and were never parted.

 Time passed in the Man's house and soon two became four. Psi and Gamma begat Sigma and Tau - good strong children that cheered the Man's heart even more. They were inquisitive pups that had questions at times that their parents could not answer.

 The gnome, out in the coldest reaches beyond the Man's house, found himself bitterly jealous of the Man's new wealth and joy and sought to claim the dogs for himself. After he cleaned their piddle from his head he sought dogs in his own likeness. And thus, even the jealous gnome was soon made happy.

In the warm summery night Psi and his son Tau, now a grown dog himself, ventured out to run and frolic. And the Man was happy with what he'd bought. And then he rested.