Chapter 1

Those Damn Dogs

Sunday : March 2nd 2025

It was 8:30 pm Sunday evening, and Ruby couldn't feel her legs. Stretched out in the bed-bed of her Maloo, she tried her best to relax with her head up on some pillows by the cab. There wasn't much to look at, she was parked deep in an industrial estate where the parking lot was nice and empty. She couldn't start a fire or anything like that, but at least it was quiet. Far away from the hustle and bustle of downtown Melbourne, and far away from those damn dogs…

A few hours ago, Ruby was in a fancy suburb of Melbourne, surrounded by million dollar homes and meticulously maintained lawns. On the end of a short leash were three enormous dogs. Luna, a lazy and easily distracted White Labrador, Jack, a loyal and well behaved Australian Shepard, and Marty, the utter dick head of a German Shepard. Their owner was a Photographer for a Magazine Ruby had worked for in the past. He was going out on an adversary dinner date with his wife, and asked if Ruby could watch their dogs while they were gone. No problem! She thought to herself. She could snag a free meal and shower, get an easy paycheck, and play with some cute dogs… That’s what she thought anyway, until she arrived at the house.

“We don't have a backyard Miss Starfire. So you'll have to take the dogs on a walk. You'll be okay with that, right?” 

Of course, Ruby nodded back with a reassuring smile. Little did she know that she was the one about to “get taken” for a walk. A couple hours later, and barely out the door with all three dogs on a lead, a small blue butterfly grabbed Marty's attention. Like a race car from the starting grid, he dashed off in pursuit, leaping into the air after the bug. Ruby, desperately trying to hold onto the fully grown German Shepard, grabbed his leash with both hands just as his momentum yanked her forward. Having to run to stay upright, Ruby’s boots clomped along loudly on the asphalt as Luna and Jack excitedly and quite happily marched along beside.

“No Marty, stop! Heel! Heel!”

 But Ruby’s desperate cries did little to stop the Blitzkrieg express. Barking and jumping, the big dog pulled Ruby along like a steam locomotive. Block after block flew by in a blur, as people stepped outside with their smartphones in hand. Soon the videos would gain hundreds of hits on social media with titles like “Cute Girl Dragged Down the Street by HUGE Dog”, “German Shepherd takes Girl for a Walk.” It wouldn’t be long until some people started to recognize her, and soon Ruby’s phone started to get pinged by a relentless stream of messages.

Ping

“Hey, isn’t that @Ruby_Starfire?”.

Ping

“Awww, are those your dogs? @Ruby_Starfire They’re so cute, what’s their name?”

Ping

“#doxedmyselfIRL @Ruby_Starfire”

Nearly forty five minutes later, having run around almost the entire neighborhood in her high heeled cowgirl boots, Ruby was too exhausted to care as her notifications started going crazy. Her feet ached and Marty, now satisfied and snuggled up on the couch beside her, painted away with those famous “I’m sorry” puppy dog eyes. Ruby glared at him with only a hint of annoyance, before sighing and melting into the cozy couch cushions. The rest of her hours dogsitting would go by without incident, and Ruby would indeed collect her paycheck for the night. Mission Accomplished!

It was only after she found a quiet place to set up camp for the night did she start going through the enormous queue of pings. Over 567 mentions and over 7000 likes in less than five hours awaited her reply. Only her lewder photoshoots in bikinis seemed to get more of a response out of her followers this rapidly. Laying in the back of her Maloo, Ruby watched a few of the “eyewitness” videos of herself.

“Oh nooo… Hehehe!” She giggled to herself. The whole situation was quite funny, even if it was slightly embarrassing. Thankfully, the internet seemed to mostly agree, although there were a couple of comments worth worrying about.

“Look at this neighborhood!”

“Ruby must be rich!”

“Anyone know where this is?”

For any model, actress, or otherwise public figure, avoiding some level of public discord about your private life was a necessary skill. Stalkers, Paparazzi, and even jealous rivals were all the normal threats every wannabe idol faced. However, for Ruby, it was that little bit more important to remain secretive. She is in many respects the exact opposite of what many expect her to be, and in the back of her mind, she was terrified at that becoming exposed. 

She was not rich despite her appearance and career choice. In fact, she often had to pick up several odd jobs like dog or babysitting, house cleaning, or even a full on part time job between modeling and acting gigs to make ends meet. She did not live in a mansion, but instead out of the trunk of her Holden, going city to city looking for work. She didn’t have an agent, just a friend from school with connections. Everything about her life was a lie up to some degree, the difficulty switch placed firmly onto hard. Just one picture of her sleeping in her UTE, and the discovery she was actually homeless by the internet, and she could kiss the nearly 20,000 followers she had worked so hard to build goodbye. Let alone a successful career as some sort of idol. 

Yet, despite this threat, Ruby woke up each day with a beaming smile ready for whatever challenge laid ahead. So as she turned off the notifications for her phone, zipped up the UTE’s tent, and prepared to drift off to sleep, she smiled. Ready for tomorrow, and whatever life could throw at her.