A Grizzly Return Home, Part 1

Music played on the radio as Stud waited patiently for his family to come home. It's been several hours since they left in the morning. So, he whined in his yearning.

He lied there on the floor, staring at the door. Any minute it'd open. Any minute, they'd walk through. He imagined their smiling faces as they'd greet him just as they do every day. He'd greet them as they surround him to show their affection. He'd inspect the various scents about them to figure out what they did and where they went. And then they'd go about their business.

Though, Stud was curious about Damien, the newest member of the family. His scent was so strange; so unfamiliar to the little corgi. Stud fell in love with Damien the very moment he saw him. Though, he wasn't given so much time the night before to get to know his newest friend. So, he hoped to make up for that tonight.

Suddenly, as Stud was day dreaming, he heard the sound of a car coming into the driveway. He immediately stood up, smiling with anticipation. The knob turned and the door swung open.

"I cannot believe you two!" Judy shouted as she and Desean walked through the door.

Stud barked happily to greet his family as they walked through the door. Though, no one turned their head to see him.

"Us?" Gerome argued. "Damien was the one who was chasing Delia."

"After the two of you convinced her to steal from him." Judy replied harshly.

Stud barked again to get their attention.

"We didn't convince her to do anything." Ivy tried to plead. "I just said I wanted to know what he was reading. She decided to take the book on her own."

Stud realized that something was wrong. Wherever his family was, something happened to upset them. In an attempt to divert their attention, he decided to roll over on his back, showing off his belly.

"Look, it's late, and your mom and I are not interested in excuses." Desean sternly said. "I want the two of you to go to your rooms for the night. We will both be up to talk to you about today."

Both Gerome and Ivy's jaws dropped.

"But, Dad, why!" Ivy pleaded.

"Because I said so." Desean exclaimed with a paternal fury in his voice. "Now go!"

The two siblings silently made their way up the stairs. Their heads hung low in disappointment. Stud watched the show, silent and saddened.

"Alright, Damien." Desean called from outside the door. "You can come in."

There at the threshold of the door, Damien came in. He held the little black book tight to his side. The look on his face appeared spooked and distressed.

Stud's ears perked up as he saw his new friend. With a wide grin, he ran over to get the lad's attention. Damien looked down at the excited pup, but said not a word or gave a smile. He reached down and gave Stud a quick rub down his back. Though that was it. Afterwards, he simply walked away. Stud became truly concerned. Whenever his family was upset, he was always able to lift their spirits. But this time was different, somehow. He whined as he grew worried.

"Thanks for letting us talk to them, Damien." Desean showed his gratitude. "I'm sorry about what happened earlier."

"You're not hurt, are you?" Judy asked.

"No, I'm fine." Damien replied with a blank stare. "I just want some time alone."

Damien started making his way to the stairs, hoping to disappear into his room. Stud watched in disappointment, as he simply wanted some attention.

"Hold on, Damien." Desean put his mighty hand on the lad's shoulder.

Stud's ears fell flat upon his skull as he expected more trouble.

"You can be alone." Desean began to say.

His face showed that he was about to do something he didn't want to do.

"But I'd like to see your bag before you go." He finished.

"What?" Damien's eyes lit up with anxiety.

"Desean!" Judy exclaimed.

She took her husband and brought him to the side.

"What are you doing?" She whispered. "You can't ask to go through his belongings."

"You saw how he reacted last night when Ivy reached for it." Replied Desean, whispering as well. "He could be hiding a weapon."

"What?" Damien asked in shock.

"So, you want to invade his privacy?" Asked Judy.

"No, I don't want to." Desean told her. "But for the safety of the family, I have to."

"Excuse me." Damien said from behind.

Both Judy and Desean turned to him.

"Did I hear that clearly?" He asked. "You think I have a weapon?"

Damien's face looked both puzzled and insulted.

"What makes you think that?" He finished.

"Yes, Desean." Judy added as she gave her husband a glare. "What"

Desean looked at the two of them, feeling outnumbered and backed into a corner.

"Answer him." Judy commanded.

He shook his head with a begrudging sigh.

"Damien," Desean began, "This isn't something I want to do."

"But I was talking to Marcus and Paul at the barbecue." He continued. "And they said…."

"And they said that I could be dangerous." Damien interrupted him with an adversarial look on his face.

"Well…." Desean paused.

"Yes." He admitted reluctantly.

Judy's jaw dropped in shock.

"What the Hell was their reasoning?" She asked.

Desean opened his mouth to explain, though, he said nothing. He took a moment to think about what he was going to say next.

"They thought he was weird." He blurted out as he knew nothing else to say.

"What?" Judy exclaimed as her eyes widened. "Why would they think that?"

"I'm sorry!" Desean exclaimed as he knew the trouble he was in.

"Typical!" Damien stated with a growl. "This is why I don't go to church."

Judy turned to the lad as he spoke.

"I even told you that this morning," He explained, "And you still forced me to go."

Judy then turned back to her husband, looking angrily at him.

"You forced him to go to church?" She asked in shock.

"I wanted him to meet people in the community!" Desean tried to defend himself. "Besides, this family goes to church."

"You don't force people to go to church!" Judy argued with him.

"I was trying to help him be a part of our family." replied Desean.

"And what makes you think I want to be part of this family?" The lad expressed angrily. "Or this community?"

"Damien!" Judy was shocked to hear. "Why would you say that? We love you."

Judy placed her hand upon her heart.

"You thrust me into your culture." Damien argued furiously. "You didn't even take the time to get to know me first."

"You force me to meet people who clearly didn't want to meet me," He shouted angrily, "Had me signaled out in church, and I'm not sure if you were aware, but some old woman came over and accused me of causing trouble to her grandchildren."

With each word Damien spoke caused another tear through Desean's heart. It made it harder and harder for him to do what he was doing.

"Wait." Judy had him pause. "An elderly woman harassed you at the barbecue."

Damien nodded to her.

"She asked me where I was from." He said. "Then when I told her, she pointed to some kids playing and told me not to go anywhere near them."

"Damien, this is a great community." Desean calmly debated. "Everyone is friendly and cares about each other."

"Yeah, but only for their own." The lad continued to debate.

"But so far, everyone you tried introducing me to has only caused me trouble." He opened his arms wide in an aggressive pose. "You're reverend said that, because I'm different, I must be some serial killer."

"And it looks like, SIR!" Damien continued spitefully. "Your own brother thinks the same. And isn't it coincidental that they manage to convince you to believe that too?"

"And should I even mention getting humiliated by Delia," Damien finished, "After she stole my book and had me chase her?"

The room began to have a violent energy, as if the air was filled with sparks from Hell itself. Both Desean and Judy listened in heartbroken horror to Damien's fiendish words.

"Yeah, Vito may not have been the best place to live." Said Damien. "People were selfish, mean, and apathetic. But it was the norm, so at least you knew what to expect. People weren't claiming to be anything more than they already were. No false pretences or anything."

"That's called Sin." Desean tried to interject, holding out an authoritative finger.

"No, it's just nature." Damien interrupted. "And it doesn't go away just because you condemn. It just takes on another form."

"Damien, please!" Exclaimed Judy. "That's enough!"

Damien suddenly fell silent. But it was clear in his eyes that he had more to say.

"We'll be talking about this later." She demanded. "But for now, please let me take your side and speak to my husband."

The lad stepped back as Judy turned to Desean with fury in his eyes.

"You see what you've done?" She asks as she gestures to Damien. "He told you he doesn't go to church and you still make him."

Desean stood silently as he was being berated.

"I thought, maybe, it might help him adjust." Desean tried to explain. "God's been good to this family. So, I thought he'd be good for him."

"Who are you to decide what's good for me?" Damien stepped forward to object.

"Damien, please!" Judy quieted him. "I'll handle it."

The lad grunted in frustration as he moved back out of the way.

"Maybe so, but you can't force God onto anyone." Said Judy. "They have to discover him on their own."

"History would say otherwise." Replied Damien with a smug grin.

"Damien!" Judy silenced him.

Damien once again went quiet.

"And what if he doesn't?" Asked Desean.

"Then he'll find his own thing!" Judy answers. "Or, maybe he already found it. The point is it's his life, and he can do whatever he wants with it."

"But he just insulted our community!" Desean complained.

"Well, he hasn't been given a good example of it. Has he?" Judy put her hands on her hips. "He's already explained that he's had a hard enough day. And to top it off, it's his first day living here. So, yes, he's mad, upset, and most likely misses his own family. I don't blame him for what he just said. I'm not happy that he said it, but I get that he currently feels the way he does."

"And now you're asking to see his belongings." Judy said in an accusatory manner.

Desean sighed in frustration. He understood their arguments, and even agreed with them. However, he felt he had to do what he was doing.

"Judy, Paul and Martin made some good points." He began. "The truth is that, while you've conversed with his mother, neither of us have ever met Damien before. And, he is from Vito. So, we really don't know what he'll do."

"Just because he's from Vito doesn't mean he's going to hurt anyone." Judy argued.

Desean looked her with sad eyes.

"That's true," He replied, "But we still need to be careful."

"How would you feel if people from Vito said that about us?" Commented Judy.

"Judy!" Desean calmly interrupted her.

"You remember what happened to Alecia Michelle, right?" Desean asked.

Judy's eyes widened in realization. She paused as she considered his words. She closed her eyes and let out a disheartened sigh. She then turned to Damien and looked at him with the same sad eyes as her husband.

"He's right." She said solemnly. "Damien, I'm sorry, but we really can't take any chances. We need to see your bag."