Charlie Swan never saw himself not being lonely after Bella and Renee left, but his salvation came in the form of a Police K-9. Perhaps his sidekick would be the key to saving his daughter as well.
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Tango didn't know what she thought would happen when Bella came. Perhaps it was that they would play every second of every day but Tango could confirm, that did not happen.
The first day Bella was here Tango didn't get to spent much time with her. Charlie and her were very busy at work because of a missing persons case. Tango got to do one of her favourite games: find. Charlie always gave her something with a strong scent so she could track the object he wanted.
After work Charlie drove them home. Charlie took off her harness and changed his clothes, letting Tango do her business before they got in the car again.
One of Tango's favourite places to go was the Carver Cafe. It had such great smells and the food was amazing, like literally her mouth watered at the thought. It was after work so Tango only had her collar on, Charlie kept her on the leash when they went inside places or they were in a heavily public area.
Tango was laid down by Charlie and Bella's feet, resting her eyes. She wasn't exactly sleeping but she was tired after the day. Her nose twitched every so often as more food moved around the cafe but Tango knew better than to beg.
"I just can't get over how grown up you are," Cora smiled at Bella as she placed down Charlie's burger. "And so gorgeous." Bella didn't say anything only smiled timidly, after all it's not like she could say she doesn't remember the woman at all.
"Hey Bella," a man leant over Cora's shoulder with his hands on his hips smiling at the duo. "You remember me? I played Santa one year."
"Yeah, Waylon, she hasn't had a Christmas here since she was four." Charlie looked to Bella and then Waylon who scoffed playfully.
"I bet I made an impression though, didn't I?" Waylon questioned smiling at the Swan's.
"You always do," Charlie muttered salting his chips.
Cora patted Waylon's shoulder, "butt-crack Santa?" She offered as a reminder but they all just laughed albeit awkwardly.
"Hey, kids love those little bottles, though." Waylon defended although he was chuckling.
"All right, let the girl eat her garden burger, Waylon." The man nodded and walked back to his booth. Cora smiled at Bella, "As soon as you're done, I will bring you your favorite." The waitress smiled playfully at Charlie, "Berry cobbler, remember? Your dad still has it. Every Thursday."
"Thank you. That'd be great."
Cora left pretty quickly and they only stayed as until they finished. Tango behaved well the whole time but no one expected any less.
They got home after Bella since Charlie needed to pay the bill. Bella seemed to spend a lot of time in her room so Tango went to check on her every so often just to make sure she was still there. The dog was learning that whilst Bella was very shy, she loves giving her cuddles.
Just like clockwork before they went to bed Charlie took her on a quick walk around the block. When Tango returned Charlie was scratching his head as he stared at the rope in the tree. The dog came to sit beside her human and he rested one hand on her head, gently rubbing between her ears.
"I know, girl, ain't no way that's coming down anytime soon," Charlie stroked the scruff on his beard and as if she could understand him, Tango huffed and walked inside. The chief of police eyed the rope one last time yet followed his best friend.
Because at the end of the day, Tango was his best friend like he was hers. Having a dog was very different to having a different kind of pet. At the end of the day, show the dog a little bit of love and they'll be the ones to always save you.
Tango waited on the floor as Charlie came into the room, only when Charlie was in bed and patted the duvet did she jump up and snuggle up to Charlie's side. Her head rested on his side as he brushed her fur a little then dozing off, Tango was quick to follow.
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A week passed and things relatively stayed the same. At work they'd made progress on the missing persons report, a note was found left by the teenage boy so it was ruled out as a runaway. There wasn't much Charlie or Tango could do now as bad as it sounds.
Bella over the weekend had asked Charlie if she could learn Tango's commands. So now after school Bella took to training with Tango so she would respond to her as well as Charlie. Her dad always supervised the training, and by supervised he watched TV whilst Bella tried to get the whistle and hand movements right.
Bella was beyond confused about Edward Cullen. He was there one day and gone for the rest of the week. Not to mention how all of the Cullen family seemed to stare at her at lunch, it was unnerving to say the least. But training with Tango brought a good distraction to the awkward girl. Charlie thought it was a good idea too, brought him peace of mind in case Bella was ever in trouble. Plus Tango seemed to make his daughter happy as he often heard her lighthearted chuckles.
It was bad weather today. Charlie had left early not bringing Tango with him for the first time in a while, he had told her to go to Bella. When the girl woke up she found Tango laid on the end of her bed watching the door.
"Morning Tango," the dog got up from her laid down position and licked Bella all over the face. She groaned but chuckled as Tango's tail wagged excessively, even yipping as Bella playfully pushed the dog away. "Out so I can get dressed," Bella threw the covers off herself and got up stretching.
Tango tilted her head in confusion, that wasn't a command. Bella seemed to realise this and opened the door wide, gesturing for the dog to leave the room, "Bed." That was the only command Bella would be sure that she would understand, Tango did as she was told and went downstairs sitting in her bed.
Not long later Bella came down the stairs and grabbed an apple, patting Tango on the head she quickly left for school. It was weird for Tango to be home alone, she was never really alone. The dog did however go to her food bowl which was already full courtesy of Charlie and ate her full. It didn't last long as not two minutes later Charlie came home.
"Just got Bella some new tires so let's get changed and then we'll go to work okay, Tango?" The dog didn't understand most of what he said, only recognised a few words like 'Work' and 'Bella'. "Coat." Charlie told his dog as he went upstairs. Knowing that command, Tango walked over to her harness, grabbed it in her mouth and pulled it off the hook.
Tango sat by the door with her harness in her mouth waiting for Charlie. The man came down the stairs and smiled at his dog. He leant down and kissed her head whilst strapping her uniform on her, Tango getting stroked on her ears before they headed off.
Neither knew that later that day they would be called into hospital.
