Morning struck, revealing both the beauty and cruelty of the world. The rays of light just barely touched an old battered crate in a cluttered alley behind a hair salon. Inside the crate, a weary head rested on worn paws, and two big ears moved with the sounds of the new day.

The creature could hear the salon being opened and prepared for business. Someone opened the small, high window in the back of the building, directly above the lonely crate.

". . . several early appointments, in fact."

"Already?"

"I have a feeling it's going to be a busy day."

The creature rested its ears, uninterested in the chatter of the humans. But within moments, the creature's ears shot back up, and it opened its sharp eyes -- the only attractive thing left of its appearance. It listened to the echo of the shattering glass, keeping its head low and slipping its matted tail into hiding. It heard voices first, laughing pathetically as more glass shattered. Two humans appeared shortly, hitting glass bottles against old boxes and crates. They were wearing loose garments, as if trying to appear larger, but the creature was not fooled. As they stumbled closer to the creature's territory, it pushed itself onto its four big paws, and crouched, waiting. The humans approached, and the creature let out a low, vicious snarl. The humans froze, their laughter silenced, as if unsure whether or not to be terrified.

It was then that someone in the building came to the window to see what was happening. This human must not have heard the warning, for she did not sound threatened as she confronted the two humans in the alley about their behavior. They stayed silent for a few moments, then one broke through his shock.

"Hey, whaddya got in there?" he slurred, motioning to the crate with an all too vulnerable hand. The creature held back.

"You guys need to go before I call the cops." That did the trick. The two humans left muttering and cursing the female human inside. With them gone, the creature lowered its head to resume resting.

Within minutes, other humans, who all seemed to be females, arrived at the building. Some voices were familiar to the creature, as they came often. One voice, however, was familiar from a more recent event.

"Yes, it was in our garbage last night!" the voice was saying.

"What was it?" questioned another.

"Well, I didn't see it, but my husband said he never saw anything like it. He told me it was very ugly and would have attacked if he hadn't chased it off first."

"So now we have monsters roaming the streets?"

"Oh, I hope there aren't more!"

"It should be shot down, whatever it is, before it attacks someone."

"As if that would have been the first thing to cross your mind when an overgrown rat was in front of your house!" the voice responded.

"And how can you shoot something that's probably already dead according to your descriptions?" that brought mild laughs, and the conversation turned to things of no interest to the creature. Their chatter seemed to be without meaning, and only the sound of their voices mattered now, as they hummed the creature to sleep.