T-minus 1 day to DEADLINE.: seanan

T-minus 1 day to DEADLINE.

Berkeley, California. July 31st, 2014.

Marigold felt bad.

There had been a raccoon in the yard. She liked when raccoons came to the yard, they puffed up big so big, but they ran ran ran when you chased them, and the noises they made were like birds or squirrels but bigger and more exhilarating. She had chased the raccoon, but the raccoon didn't run. Instead, it held its ground, and when she came close enough, it bit her on the shoulder, hard, teeth tearing skin and flesh and leaving only pain pain pain behind. Then she ran, she ran from the raccoon, and she had rolled in the dirt until the bleeding stopped, mud clotting the wound, pain pain pain muted a little behind the haze of her confusion. Then had come shame. Shame, because she would be called bad dog for chasing raccoons; bad dog for getting bitten when there were so many people in the house and yard and everything was strange.

So Marigold did what any good dog in fear of being termed a bad dog would do; she had gone to the hole in the back of the fence, the hole she and her brother worked and worried so long at, and slunk into the yard next door, where the boy lived. The boy laughed and pulled her ears sometimes, but it never hurt. The boy loved her. She knew the boy loved her, even as she knew the man and the woman fed her, and that she was a good dog, really, all the way to the heart of her. She was a good dog.

She was a good dog, but she felt so bad. So very bad. The badness had started with the bite, but it had spread since then, and now she could barely swallow, and the light was hurting her eyes so much, so very much. She lay huddled under the bushes, wishing she could find her feet, wishing she knew why she felt bad. So very bad.

Marigold felt hungry.

The hunger was a new thing, a strong thing, stronger even than the bad feeling that was spreading through her. She considered the hunger, as much as she could. She had never been the smartest of dogs, and her mind was getting fuzzy, thought and impulse giving way to alien instinct. She was a good dog. She just felt bad. She was a good dog. She was...she was...she was hungry. Marigold was hungry.

Something rustled through the bushes. The dog that had been a good dog, that had been Marigold, and that was now just hungry rose slowly, legs unsteady, but willing to support the body if there might be something coming that could end the hunger. The dog that had been a good dog, that had been Marigold, looked without recognition at the figure that parted the greenery and peered, curiously, down at it. The dog, which could not moan, growled low.

"Oggie?"

***

We are experiencing technical difficulties. Please stand by.

When will you Rise?

cupcakery

May 31 2011, 05:11:44 UTC 6 years ago

New comment

Oh, Marigold. Poor dog. Poor Masons.

jennygriffee

May 31 2011, 05:13:55 UTC 6 years ago

...oh, God. What a perfectly creepy twist of POV. Nicely done. Also, SDFLKJDF. ;)

want book noooooooow

seanan_mcguire

May 31 2011, 05:47:46 UTC 6 years ago

SDFLKJDF?

6 years ago

myuki_chan

May 31 2011, 05:18:36 UTC 6 years ago

Oh no. I could just feel the dread and what I knew was going to happen. Good dog, Marigold. It wasn't your fault. :(

I'm concerned my bookstores won't be carrying Deadline come release day, but if not, I shall just order it online and wait a few more days!

tereshkova2001

May 31 2011, 05:24:36 UTC 6 years ago

:( :( :(

deakat

May 31 2011, 05:33:40 UTC 6 years ago

::cries::

kengr

May 31 2011, 05:34:38 UTC 6 years ago

Ok, I didn't think racoons got big enough to convert. If they can, that likely means the local possums could. Damn.

Also, just realized that my large supply of ammo (gotten because it was a great buy at the time not because I'm a survivalist) is less than ideal for zombie stopping. FMJ just punches neat holes. Need hollow point.

Or a way to safely convert FMJ to dum-dum.

supersniffles

May 31 2011, 05:49:01 UTC 6 years ago

It's pretty rare. Raccoons usually don't weigh more than 30lbs, with 20lbs being more average. I believe the body weight needed for conversion is 40lbs.

beccastareyes

wendyzski

Deleted comment

greycoupon

May 31 2011, 05:47:28 UTC 6 years ago

New reader here but I've gone back and read all of these vignettes. You have GOT to publish these in some form. The back story here is great and well, hurts to read.

How big was that raccoon? Or was the poor dog mistaken? I expected Philip' POV here so this was a surprise.

As awful it would be, are we going to see the Mason's discovering and dealing with this? You really have great fodder for a prequel with more stories of that summer and events right after.

Is there going to not be a Deadline audiobook? I just went to buy the ebook and it's not available till June 1. Apparently I will be going to Barnes and Noble as I am not waiting another day.

After reading all these entries, it;s cliche but, the road to hell is paved with good intentions (and sometimes more self-serving ones)

May 31 2011, 05:48:48 UTC 6 years ago

1) Really big raccoons CAN convert. They get MASSIVE out here.

2) The e-Book may be delayed by a day; I don't know, I don't track those as closely.

May 31 2011, 05:51:43 UTC 6 years ago

THIS IS THE MEAN ONE.

notalwaysweak

May 31 2011, 05:57:04 UTC 6 years ago

Oh my... crap holy shit. Oh, Marigold. Oh, the Cujo flashbacks.

lyssabard

May 31 2011, 07:58:54 UTC 6 years ago

Yes, total Cujo flashbacks, which make this extra awesome.

My copy comes tomorrow, at which time, my day job ceases to be productive.

Thank the gods I work from home.

cryptaknight

kshandra

May 31 2011, 05:57:16 UTC 6 years ago

I almost couldn't bring myself to read past the first line. OW.

mrs_norris_mous

May 31 2011, 07:36:46 UTC 6 years ago

Your not the only one to have a problem past: "Marigold felt bad."

idancewithlife

May 31 2011, 06:00:58 UTC 6 years ago

Shit. Awesome POV.

Just checking--this is the last one right? Thank you again.

ceosanna

May 31 2011, 14:57:13 UTC 6 years ago

Yes. This.

owenblacker

5 years ago

rokwynd

May 31 2011, 06:19:32 UTC 6 years ago

Deadline should arrive today via Amazon. Regarding today's chapter: Seanan you as always take the twist that I can see coming and make it so much worse/better than I expected.

maggs_07

May 31 2011, 06:36:13 UTC 6 years ago

I agree! Definitely time to hug my dog and thank the heavens she's small for her breed!

whimpers

paynim

fullcontactmuse

May 31 2011, 06:32:43 UTC 6 years ago

Oh my.

This reminded me a lot of Cujo and what I loved about that book, the dog's point of view.

Poor Marigold. Poor Phillip. Poor Masons.

georgiamagnolia

May 31 2011, 06:46:08 UTC 6 years ago

oh dear gods above and below... I thought I was done crying at this series of stories. You really did save the hardest for last. Brava to you, oh goddess of all things Pumpkin and Zombie and Ghost Road-ish. Somehow the dumb innocence of Marigold is harder to see lost. Maybe that says a lot about my expectations of humans, or maybe I just am a sucker for a boy and his dog stories, or, a boy and his neighbor dog story, and really, it just makes me cry. You are made of win. This story is made of tears and tissues. All good, all sad, but still good.

kitan

May 31 2011, 07:00:10 UTC 6 years ago

Yup, definitely time to hug the nine-pound indoor-only cat. No zombie calico!

jenrose1

May 31 2011, 07:06:37 UTC 6 years ago

*whimper*

ashabardon

May 31 2011, 07:52:40 UTC 6 years ago

Oh sweet Goddess .... *cries* poor Marigold! Poor Philip ...

Yes, turning dogs into zombies is a thousand times worse than doing it to humans ...

*finds a corner, rocks gently*

May 31 2011, 07:56:53 UTC 6 years ago

Works out conversion ratio ... the interweb tells me 40lbs in kilos (I'm British, go figure!) is just 18.14ks. My beloved Unis the guide dog (who is a FCR/GR) is 24.65. Damn.

Oh damn you weight threshold ... *hugs Unis*

Kellis-Amberlee is a terrible thing ...

*Goes to read Deadline ... again*

baka_kit

May 31 2011, 08:08:20 UTC 6 years ago

Oh no, poor Marigold!

I live with two big dogs, a pit bull mix and a catahoula leopard dog. Both well over 40 lbs. Just the thought of sweet dumb Snoop or Zip the chicken-dog turning into a zombie is enough to bring me to tears.