About

The legend of The Bell is not a happy tale, nor is it one with a proper ending, but it is told all the same.

Once upon a time, as all great stories begin, there were two street dogs roaming the paths of Thistlewoods without a care in the world.  When they were thirsty they would drink from the creeks, and when they were hungry they would beg in front of the butcher's store until she came out and fed them hearty meals.  The town adored them for years and gave them proper names, as all living things should one day have.  

Bella, the stronger of the two, would occasionally lead them off on grand adventures just outside of the village walls.  Courageous and witty they worked together to befriend the townsfolk far and wide, charming little ones with their big eyes and droopy tongues while the other would gently steal scraps from kitchen tables or countertops.  They lived peaceful, harmless lives and brought joy to those they crossed paths with.

Until the day they crossed the wrong gentleman.  As the legend goes Bella one day stole from a greedy old man who lived far outside of the town, and that man followed them all the way back to Thistlewoods.  The man cast a curse on the town that would not be lifted until the thieving dogs were dead, yet the townsfolk swore to never bring harm to those loving dogs.

This remained true for seasons.  Throughout the clumsy feet of Autumn and the chilled breath of winter the two paired dogs were kept warm and fed, and it wasn't until Spring did anything change.  The crops did not sprout, seeds did not give, winter lasted on and on eternally it seemed.  Starving and desperate the townsfolk finally ran the dogs out of Thistlewoods and into the vast unknown beyond, but they did not stop there.  The townsfolk ran them all the way to the very edges of the shores, where they stood there with their knives and their fire and forced the dogs into the ocean.

Terrified and confused the dogs swam on, and on, and on.  They swam for hours on end, not daring to go back to shore but knowing there was no land waiting for them beyond the waves.  Bella told her friend that there was an island just farther out to sea and if they could simply keep paddling they could make it and live happily.  There was no such island, and Bella knew that well, but in that moment the temporary comfort of her friend was more important than anything else.

So they continued on endlessly.  Their legs cramped and their stomachs ached, but they swam for they had no choice.  The man, fearing the dogs would not die, cast a curse upon the sea to rage with all of the fury in his heart - and rage the ocean did.  It tossed and curled, it swallowed and bit, it sank the two dogs before they could come up for air.  

Under storm's bruised and snarling sky the dogs were cast beneath the sea, and consumed by the deep.

Days later Bella's heavy body was set ashore, her fur forever drowned but blessed with the marks of the ocean, for the deep had gazed upon her pure heart and deemed her worthy of another life.  Bella waited for days on the shore, unmoving, for her friend to be returned as well.

Years passed, and Bella remained on the same shore.  She waited, through storm and heat and cold, for the return of her beloved.  In the years that came Bella began to save others from the same fate she had suffered, dragging them to shore and pushing the water from their lungs with her paws.  

Bella still waits to this day for the return of her most loved one.  On foggy nights she is said to carry a glowing bell with her as she patrols the shores, and sometimes the creatures of Cape Moor can hear her wailing for the love she had lost, calling out for them.

Legend says that while Bella (The Dog of Many Names) was washed ashore, she was not the only one to be saved.  Many believe that her beloved was chosen to patrol the depths of the sea, to comfort those that Bella is unable to save from the raging deep.  Two lovers who lived and died intertwined, now destined to never cross.

                    "just AN Old Sea Dog"

The Driftwood Dog

The small town of Thistlewoods was an idyllic and happy place until they were plagued with hearts as sour as the soil by a greedy old man, wronged by Bella and her friend.  The town continues to blame Bella for their misfortune even after decades, and despite Bella's virtuous actions on the shores of Cape Moor they vow to never forgive the street dogs they had once fed and loved with all their might.  In Thistlewoods, Bella (The Dog of Many Names) is known as The Driftwood Dog, or alternatively The Driftwooder.  The term 'driftwooder' has negative connotations in the city, and has come to mean somebody that drifts from place to place, never making any permanent residence nor welcome by anybody they come across.

Summer-er

Etc etc placemarker.

Old Dog

Etc etc placemarker.

Relationships

Character  [ relationship ]

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Character  [ relationship ]

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Character  [ relationship ]

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