Instar

"Instar" is the state of metamorphosis an insect or other arthropod passes through when he is between molts, when his new shell is forming. Soft and sluggish. Vulnerable. Changing. Hugh Murray is like that. he used to have a "shell," he used to be a man with a job, a wife, four children, and as respected position in the community. But he's put all that behind him. Now he's a man with a dog. A dog is devoted. Hugh Murray's dog, Waffles, clings to him like a curse. Like the curse George Livingston mentioned just before he died. A dog is attuned to his master's moods. Why, Waffles almost seems to read Hugh's mind sometimes. He knows all of his master's moods and thoughts. He even knows when Hugh is angry enough, perhaps for just one moment, to wish that someone was dead. And a good dog always does his master's bidding...