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There was a huge banner on the perimeter fence of the humane society advertising a cat adoption drive. Since the fire had destroyed the better part of the feline housing, they'd been improvising and trying to adopt out as many as they could. It was going pretty well - probably because of the steep discount being offered on the adoption rates.

Tallulah was manning the front desk at the moment, as she tended to do when they had nothing else she was qualified to do. She was reading - trying to see what this Twilight thing was all about and not really understanding - when the bell rang as the door opened. She looked up to see a girl leading a border collie.

Please tell me she isn't dropping that dog off, thought Tallulah, and felt her stomach drop. The girl looked too happy for that, though. Something else, then.

Tallulah put her book away.

"Can I help you?" she asked.

"So you brought..." Tallulah leaned over the counter to look over at the border collie. She smiled. "Smudge? to see if he gets along with the dog you adopt?" she asked. It was an excellent idea. "I can take you back."

Oh, and cats. "I can show you the cats, too," she said. "We just had a big fire about two weeks ago, so things are kind of hectic - if you adopt one you'd be doing us a huge favor."

She climbed over the counter, not having the patience to go all the way down to the end of the room to walk around, and pointed through a door to the left. "Did you want a big dog or a little dog?" she asked, leading the girl and the collie through. The hallway beyond split in two directions and was filled with the muffled sound of dogs barking.

Tallulah nodded, taking this all in, and led the girl and the dog off to her left. It seemed like she'd done her research, and that made her happy. It was better than the silly little girls who came in wanting to be just like Paris Hilton and carry a chihuahua in their purses. "I'm not sure if we have any border collies right now," she said, selecting a key off her lanyard and opening the door in front of them. The hall beyond was sunlit and lined with kennels, each containing a mid-sized dog.

"I know we have some midsized terriers," she said. The reactions of the other dogs as she lead the visitors through was mixed. Some didn't stir from the sunny patches at the back of their cages. Some investigated. Some barked.

"You'd be willing to consider a mix, right?" she asked. Some people were, some people weren't. But if you were at the shelter, your chances of finding a pure-bred were a bit slim.

"They neuter all the dogs at the shelter," Tallulah assured her. "But I understand. Sometimes males can be territorial."

She slowed her pace. "Any of the dogs on this hallway are available for adoption," she said. "Just take your time and if you see one you're interested in I can let you get closer."

Personally, Tallulah was more of a cat person, but she liked working with dogs as well. All of the ones here were well behaved, cleaned up, and apparently on their best behavior. Little laminated cards attached to the wire-mesh doors each stated the dog's name, approximate or actual age, breed or assumed mix, gender, and any precautions the shelter had on placing them.

"So, just, take a look around," said Tallulah.

"There should be a note if they absolutely can't be with cats," said Tallulah, leaning against the concrete block wall between two kennels.

"You need to talk to the volunteer coordinator," said Tallulah enthusiastically, her eyes lighting up. She always loved it when people expressed interest in working at the shelter. "Her name's Aggie and I'll show you where her office is on the way out. Do you see any dogs you want to look closer at?"

Tallulah looked very pointedly at the wheaten terrier across from her, who was prancing about excitedly in its cage.

Tallulah nodded. "Sure thing," she said, taking a leash off the hook on the wall. She spun her keys until she found the one for the cage in front of her, and opened it. In one swift move, she clipped a leash to the terrier and lead her out into the hallway.

"She's an owner turn in," explained Tallulah as the two dogs sniffed each other. So far, so good. "The breed does require a lot of grooming, though," she added. "Do you think you can handle that?"

So far, the dogs were getting along.

Tallulah was not intimately familiar with every single dog in the shelter - cats were more her thing - but she had paid attention to the tag when she was getting the dog out of its cage. "Peggy," she said. The dogs were still getting along just fine.

Peggy, she reflected, was an odd name for a dog. But it was cute. Peggy and Smudge. Huh. Good match.

"She's been spayed and she's up to date on her shots," added Tallulah, remembering more information from the sign on the kennel door. "Do you want me to hold onto Smudge so you can play with her alone?"