Dogfish
07.29.10
“Mum, I’m taking the fish for a walk.”
“Okay, but be back in time for dinner.”
When Tommy was five years old, his parents had taken him to a Greek island on holiday. His memories of it were rather vague, consisting mainly of sandcastles built and then promptly destroyed in glee, but one incident was still crystal clear in his mind. They had been sitting in a taverna by the harbour, and a boat with two fishermen had moored a few feet from their table. One of the men had jumped to shore carrying a small shark, harpoon still sticking out of it. On seeing Tommy’s eyes widen, the man smiled at him and lowered the fish so he could take a closer look. He still remembered its intense dark eyes, and how smooth it had been to the touch.
“Skilópsaro,” the man had enunciated, slowly. “Dogfish.”
Ever since, Tommy had been obsessed with the “lopsio” and had argued all summer long that, as it was a dogfish rather than any other kind of fish, it should be perfectly acceptable to keep one as a pet. His parents had tried to reason with him, to explain how keeping such a pet in their two-bedroom terraced house was not possible. How it would be cruel to confine a shark to a tank small enough to fit in his bedroom. None of this caused him to stop demanding “Why not?” so in the end they had to resort to the harsh, but final, parental response of “Because”.
Tommy had started school that autumn, and the dogfish was pushed back from the forefront of his mind. He never forgot about it though, and even after two years had passed he would get wistful at the thought of a lopsio as a pet. When the law concerning the genetic modification of animals changed, and celebrities were seen about town with creatures like zebra-bears and actual tortoiseshell-cats, he knew he could add some weight to his argument. A shark with the legs and lungs of a dog would not need an expensive tank to live in, and sharks ate pretty much anything so they could feed it dogfood. It would be no more expensive to keep than a dog. The prohibitive cost of buying the animal in the first place was thrown back at him, and he despaired again of ever owning the pet of his dreams.
By the time his tenth birthday was approaching, however, the popularity of genetically modified pets had brought their price down to levels affordable to the general population. He worked hard at school to earn a string of A-grades, and armed with those and the assertion that there was only one thing he really wanted, he presented his case once again to his parents. To his joy they relented, and on the morning of Tommy’s tenth birthday Lopsio was welcomed into the family.
It had taken Tommy a few minutes to see that something wasn’t quite right about his new pet. A closer look revealed the issue – Lopsio had no teeth. He enquired as to the reason for this travesty (politely, so as not to appear ungrateful), and was informed by his father that the public liability insurance premium for a sharkdog with teeth was more than they could afford. Tommy decided he didn’t mind – Lopsio was still the coolest pet ever, and at least he looked like he had teeth.
On their walk, he reflected on how much better life had been since Lopsio’s arrival. All the neighbourhood kids looked at the dogfish in admiration, and even Bruiser Matthews had stopped extorting dinner money from Tommy. As he walked towards the common to let Lopsio loose for a run, he saw they were heading in the direction of Bruiser and his gang. Bolstered by Lopsio’s presence, he didn’t change his course. As they got closer, however, he noticed to his horror that Bruiser was holding a dog lead, and that the creature straining at the end of it was not a dog. It had the legs of a jack russel, but the rest of it was pure piranha fish. To make matters worse, the bully’s piranha appeared to be, legs aside, anatomically correct: it had all its teeth. Tommy suspected Bruiser’s parents weren’t the sort to worry about insurance.
The stand-off only lasted a few minutes, but it felt like hours to Tommy. How could a toothless sharkdog compete against a piranhadog? Even an ordinary pitbull would stand a better chance than Lopsio. The pets circled each other warily, but suddenly the piranhadog made its move and went straight for Lopsio’s throat. The boys watched in amazement as Lopsio feinted just at the right time, opened his mouth wide and swallowed the piranhadog whole. Tommy felt joy and relief surge through him, but both were short-lived. Lopsio started convulsing, then fell to the ground in a heap, his stomach ripping apart as the piranhadog chewed its way out of him. Bruiser and his posse cheered and jeered, but Tommy didn’t hear any of it. Not caring if anyone could see the tears coming down his face, he gently took the limp dogfish into his arms and turned to walk home. His look of grief was such that one by one, the bullies stopped jeering, and even Bruiser looked at his feet, ashamed.
At home, Tommy declared he didn’t want any dinner, and his parents didn’t try to force him. He lay on his bed mourning the loss of his friend until his mother came into the room to hug her inconsolable son.
“You know Mr Henderson at number 12? Well, his dog has just had puppies, and he says you can have one if you want.”
“Yes please, Mum. I’d like that a lot.”
Tommy cheered up a little. Mr Henderson’s dog was, after all, a pitbull – Bruiser and his abomination were going to be very, very sorry.
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Tags: Flash Fiction, fridayflash, Humour, pets, Piranha, pitbull, shark, Writing
An engaging tale and wholly believeable. For one minute I thought the Lopsio was going to triumph. Ah well!
Yes, they will be sorry. So very sorry.
Oh man Maria, what did you have for dinner last night before dreaming this up?
Loved it.
Also wondering where the ESP leap about fish and your fridayflash came from….
*decides to take advantage of this newfound talent and goes off to play the lottery*
Aw, I’m so sorry to see the end of poor Lopsio, but yes, Bruiser’s uppance will come!
Aw! What a touching story of a boy and his dogfish. And a happy ending at that. Sometimes, the best pets are the old fashioned kind, I guess.
A great job of covering a lot of ground in this. An enjoyable read, despite the loss of the boy’s fantasy pet. 🙂
You may say it’s silly, but I find it very entertaining. 🙂
Although, poor Lopsio…
What a great story. Poor Lopsio, but just wait, Bruiser. Really enjoyed this one.
Methinks I see a spiral of revenge and one-upsmanship coming. Excellent story!
Heh…there’s nothing like revenge to make one’s day. Like Karen, I’d like to know what you had for dinner… 🙂 Fun story!
Poor Lopsio, he shall be missed! What is it about little boys named Tommy and their dreams of owning rare and toothy pets? (I have a character named Tommy with a dragon) Thanks for the fun story!
I loved this, especially since we just got a puppy of our own. Of course, I don’t think puggles can eat pirahna-beagles…
I didn’t think this was silly at all. A very engaging tale.
I’m overly fond of sharks so I really enjoyed this story. I, unfortunately, did see Lopsio’s death coming as soon as he swallowed the piranhadog whole.
Makes me wonder if in this world they’re hybridizing humans as well as animals. Maybe Tommy could meet an interesting “girl” once he’s old enough to think of such things. 🙂
Well you certainly fooled me Maria – I thought Lopsio would turn into the pirahna. What a sad ending for him, but I too feel revenge coming on, and I sure hope you’ll give it to us.
This was especially enjoyable to read justs now because, while we were on vacation at the beach last week, my sons got to PET a shark that a fisherman had caught, and it was still alive! Their dad, not I, was with them at the time, so you can imagaine, (being the overprotective mom I am), what a fit I had!
Your imagination is wild!
Piranhadog… ugh. And poor Lopsio, eaten inside-out. A wild ride (I expect no less from you, though!); you’ve taken the idea of pet and catapaulted it into something very eerie. You’ve alos given me insight into why some people train dogs (mostly) for attack purposes. Peace…
First I was happy. A boy and his dogfish, how could this get any better?
Then I was sad. Boy looses his pet and grieves.
Then finally I was confused. The parents seem too laid back after such a situation. I would have been furious if some neighborhood bully resulted in the death of my child’s pet.
This piece brings on a variety of emotions as it progresses. Well done
Fabulous tale Maria – Lopsio the lopsided half-dog/half-fish!
And yes the social class observation of the piranha dog owners was spot on – no health & safety concerns for them!
A great story, proving you can still be light in tone and yet pack a punch.
I for one would like to see Bruiser consumed by the piranha dog, in his sleep, if possible.
I have loved where your stories have gone lately. They have a great quirky edge but are bound in the realities of everyday life and relationships.
Course, I’m wondering how the folks can afford pit bull insurance…
Funny thing is, I can see genetically modified pets happening. Or is it that you tell it with such believability?
Always enjoy the visit to mazzz-world.
I think I’m with Walt. I’m not sure how to feel after this, but you painted it so well it feels totally believable, the whole crazy thing. Well done.
What a great story, a traditional theme with a more than modern twist and very real emotion. Thoroughly enjoyed it.
Alas poor Lopsio!! Love the premise here. Great story as usual.
My mind is reeling with the possibilities. I love this kind of story! Can you imagine the black market creatures that would be created? What a terrifying world that would be to live in. Coming soon to a neighborhood near you 🙂
Awesome story!
Brilliant. Love it. Of course it’s acceptable to get a genetically modified pet if all the celebs are getting one!
That was wonderful, a bit of Ray Bradbury-esque fantasy.
Great story. Very whimsical. I was so sad to see the end of his dogfish though.
A wonderfully bizzare tale, Mazz. Well told and thanks.
Your really nailed the obsession of that boy’s desire of a specific pet and the social nuances between he and the bully and his pals. The dogfish at the start takes me back to salmon fishing with my dad as a teen and catching a dogfish.
That was a nicely told tale. Yah for pitbulls!
I loved the first half of this story when I heard it earlier in the week and the conclusion certainly doesn’t disappoint – knew all along that it would take a dark turn, would expect nothing less from the fridayflash queen of the macabre!
I was about to bring up Ray Bradbury but I see someone beat me to it…
Love your imagination, and as always your names are brilliant.
I loved this. A well told story and original for sure! I think I might bookmark this one to read again later.
Fabulous! One of the most innovative Flashes I’ve read in a long time. I love your characterisations in this one, and how you eboked my sympathy for Lopsio. A sad ending, but at least Bruiser will get his comeuppance.
Another great piece – well done. Your descriptions are great and really draw the reader into building a picture of the scenes in their mind.
That first sentence was one of the best hooks I’ve read in a while. After reading that with the title in mind, a person just has to continue and find out what it’s all about.
I was almost disappointed toward the conclusion, thinking “It can’t end like this.” But you pulled off a triumphant rekindling of hope that all would be made right–or, at least, as right as things can be. Justice will be served, I have no doubt.
All in all, it’s a wonderful piece of science fiction, relying equally on the speculative science and human factor, and you blended them well. Great job!
Hilarious. The idea of hybrid sharkpets is just brilliant. Sorry the dogfish copped it…
This could very easily be adapted into a short animation. I loved the ending, how we thought Lopsio was victorious…but Bruiser and his gang will have a reckoning. They BETTER have a reckoning.
Great story. Thanks for sharing.
Another great story, Maria… And I just gotta say, I love that name “Lopsio” …
… bummer about the dogfish
Pssst, there’s an award for you at Randomities. 🙂
http://bit.ly/plethora_award
My heart broke for Tommy. What an amazing tale. I love the way you think.
~2
I really really enjoyed that, Mazzz… I felt like I was a child at the knee of a cherished adult reading me a knockout story. I sort of read it to myself in a sing-song kind of way, except the part where the piranha-dog ate its way out of Lopsio’s stomach, of course. Ew!
Different, refreshing and just plain good!
Heya, stopped by to read. 🙂
I loved the concept. Your imagination amazes me. I am so stuck in the here and now. I need to wander a little. You inspire me.