Citlali was up bright and early the next morning, unlike her younger sister, who muttered incomprehensibly and put her pillow over her face when Citlali poked her head into her room.
But Citlali wasn’t the only one up and about at this hour.
“Back again, huh, girl?” She cooed at the familiar stray. “Are you going to let me near you this time? I promise I’m not scary.”
She slowly stepped forward. To her surprise, this time the dog didn’t run away.
All it took was a scratch between the ears. The dog leaned into Citlali’s hand, wariness melting into a goofy doggy grin and rapid-fire wagging of her nubby tail.
“Uh-oh. I think I know what this means,” Domingo said, emerging from the house to see Citlali and her new companion. “So, what’s the name of our newest family member?” Peanut looked nonplussed.
"Oh! Hi, Dad. I don’t know... You’re a pretty girl, aren’t you? Maybe... Sylvie? Do you like that? Would you like to live with us, girl? You poor thing, I can see your ribs. It’s weird, though--you didn’t look all that skinny from a distance. Anyway, if you stay, you can have all the food you can eat. What do you think, girl?”
As if in answer, the once-skittish dog flopped over, exposing her strangely engorged belly and wagging her nub even harder.
“I think we’re going to have more than one new family member soon, Dad,” Citlali said. “She’s pregnant.”
“Hmph. You look proud of yourself.”
