“But Dusty, that strength to want adventure put you in a male dog’s world with a female dogs mind. I can tell because you cry, you think you’re weak. But Dusty, you’re a female and you need time to cry; and I think you need someone to help you get your emotions out whenever you need to. You need someone who will keep a secret and help you choose the right paths when they come. Someone who is a little girly.” Jenna giggled. “So Dusty, I would like to try and help you, if you would let me.”

Everything that Jenna had said was true. Dusty did feel stupid and weak for crying. She didn’t have any friends who were really girly and would talk about how they looked or about which boys looked good. And she especially didn’t have any friends that would keep a secret about anything. Right now, she felt she needed that. She wanted to open her soul and let all of her emotions flood out.

“So Dusty, do you want me to help you?” Jenna asked again, looking straight over the empty can at Dusty’s ears.

Dusty slowly raised her head. Tiny blood vessels ran bright red around the sides of her crying sore eye. Frozen drops of tears clung to her muzzle. And her face looked broken and tired, frazzled to the very soul.

When Jenna saw Dusty look over at her she knew the answer was yes. Jenna came to her feet and moved around the can until she saw Dusty in full. She sat back against the side of the can, her gray shoulders slumped over herself in a pitiful manner with her head hung low between them. “Come on Dusty, let’s see that face.” Jenna said with her best mother-sounding tone

Dusty let Jenna’s words take her. She slowly lifted her muzzle and let her soul be bared to her closest, ‘friend‘.

Jenna smiled and stepped even closer to Dusty and began licking at the frozen tears. Dusty let her do it without hesitation; she felt she needed to be cleaned up. When Jenna finished she moved to Dusty’s right side and sat down with her back against the building so they could speak with the comfort of not having look in each others eyes. “So Dusty, can you tell me what happened?”

Dusty sighed deep; a sob huffed up in the middle of it. “I don’t know if I should.”

“Why?”

“Because it has to do with your son Kodi.”

“Kodi!” Jenna half shouted. “What happened with Kodi?”

Dusty didn’t know how she could explain everything that happened and why she was crying so pitifully. The words came to her and vanished. “Well … it started … I … Kodi was … It was in the boiler room …” Dusty finally just turned her head and looked straight into Jenna’s eyes.

Jenna looked into her eyes and could see it gradually dawning upon her. She could see the pain that Dusty was feeling like it was her own. She could see it in her tears. Someone had hurt her really badly in the emotional area.

“It was Kodi.” Dusty said coldly.

Jenna sighed, “Oh no. what happened with Kodi? Did he say something?”

Dusty sighed sadly and looked away. “Well, it’s a little more than that.”

“Do you have a crush on my Kodi?” Jenna said going out on a limb to see if it was true.

“I might have at one point.” Dusty sobbed and turned her head full away.

“Dusty.” Jenna brought Dusty’s attention full to her. “I need you to tell me everything that happened.”

Once again the words in Dusty came and vanished. “I … It was … when … Mr. Simpson first …” Dusty looked away disgusted with her inability to tell the story.

“Take your time Dusty.” Jenna nuzzled her nose into Dusty’s shoulder to give her courage.

Dusty glanced at Jenna before moving on. “Mr. Simpson had found an ice-ball between my toes and kept me a little later so he could put some cream on it. When Fell, Kip, and Myself headed for the boiler room we heard Kodi speaking angrily. We joked that Ralph had done something. When I opened the door Kodi stood with his back to me. He was.” Dusty began to break down as tears stained her fur again and her eyes became bloodshot and red. “He … was … telling Ralph and Kirby, how ugly I was … and how he … couldn’t, tell that I, was a girl … and he, was saying that he, hates me … and that he would never be caught dead with someone … as … horrible as … me.” ’Me,’ finished with a high pitch wail as Dusty fell forward into the snow crying at full potency.

Jenna could hardly believe what she had just heard. Her son, Kodi, had said all of those things behind Dusty’s back, especially when Dusty liked Kodi. Jenna felt anger filling her veins. She wanted nothing more than at that moment to leave Dusty and go give Kodi his fair share of tongue lashings. Who had taught Kodi to talk, or even think, about others in that way? Balto was too much of a nice guy to do such a thing, and Jenna certainly hadn’t taught him anything like that. Could it have just been something inside Kodi? No it couldn’t have been. Kodi was much nicer and kinder than that. Yet if Dusty said he did, he most likely had. Jenna grinded her teeth together, as soon as she got Dusty on her feet she would head straight to Kodi and give him something he soon wouldn’t forget.

Dusty wailed as loud as a bear with a broken leg and the other caught in a trap. Jenna set her paw onto Dusty’s back and slid it up and down her muscular spine. Even though Dusty was strong in body, she was weak in feelings.

Suddenly Dusty sat bolt upright and looked straight at Jenna. “You can’t say anything to Kodi.”

“What?”

“You can’t say anything, nothing at all, to Kodi. I don’t want him to know I came to you.” Dusty repeated with more emphasis.

“Dusty.” Jenna shook her head. “I don’t know if I -”

“A secret.” Dusty cut in on Jenna. “A secret. Please, just keep it a secret from Kodi. That’s all. I just don’t want you to go and tell Kodi that I came and talked to you.”

Even though Jenna wanted nothing more than to rip into her own son, a secret was a secret and it couldn’t be broken to someone so knew to the area of close friends. Jenna bowed her head. “Okay.” She said quietly. “I won’t talk to Kodi.”

Dusty smiled and threw her face into Jenna’s shoulder where she kept crying pitifully. But Dusty hadn’t said anything about getting someone else to talk to Kodi about what he had done.

2. Dixie's Puppies.

“Jenna, you’re late.” Dixie said taking her eyes off of her five young blind pups that suckled at her belly. “What took you so long? I expected you an hour ago.”

Jenna pushed quickly through the extra large shed door with locks, bolts, nails and screws that served to secure the door shut long ago when Dixie and Jenna didn‘t even exist. None of them were fastened now and they all rattled as Jenna turned and shouldered the door shut with a jangle. The steam dissipated from the rafters and floor as soon as she did. “I ran into a little … delay.” Jenna turned and looked at Dixie sitting pretty in an extra large basket. Next to her stood her mate and father of her children Star. He stood with a tall chest and proud grin on his face waiting for Jenna to approve of his pups. “It’s so cold out there.” Jenna said moving slowly across the room towards the stove that sat under the frosted window near Dixie. She sat down near it.

“Yeah, well, I haven’t been outside in a while. I feel my pups are just too young to sit by themselves just yet. Is it cold outside honey bunny Star?”

“Well, yeah it is, I think. Do you want me to check?” Star said quickly with the look of a young dog trying to be a good father. Even though he was already getting along in age, he still had spryness to his voice, and sometimes his actions.

“No, No, that‘s fine. I believe Jenna.” Dixie turned back to Jenna. “So what was the delay about?”

Jenna sighed and stretched her paws out on the wooden floor. “Oh just some problems with one of my kids, that’s all.” She shook her head dismally.

“Dakota.”

“Dakota.” Dixie and Star said at the same time without thought or eagerness. It hadn’t even been a question; it was just an answer.

“No …” Jenna said wondering why they would instantly accuse Dakota, even thought he was the trouble one. Jenna shook her head slowly. “It wasn’t Dakota.”

“It wasn’t?” Dixie said mildly taken aback. “Then who was it?”

“Yeah.” Star added in.

For a moment Jenna thought she should tell them the story. Maybe they would have some words of advice. Yet Jenna couldn’t take a chance on Dixie and her loose mouth. But what harm would telling them the one who did it. “Well … it was Kodi.”

“Kodi!” Dixie yelled. Two of her pups squeaked in fear and began swimming through their brothers and sister to find safety. Dixie and Star both looked down at their pups to see what was wrong with them. “We should keep our voices down.” Dixie said in a hushed tone as she turned her pups back around to face her belly. They both found a comfy spot to rest and were quiet once again.

“Kodi, but, isn’t he the good one?” Star asked leaning forward so Jenna could hear him better.

“Well, that’s what I thought. I couldn’t believe it either. But when Dusty came cry -” Jenna winced like in pain, she had said too much.

“What did Kodi do to Dusty?” Dixie asked.

Jenna sighed, there was really no choice but to go and finish the story and hope that both of them could keep their mouths shut. “Well Dixie, I was on my way over here when I met Dusty crying. And you know how much of a tomboy Dusty is. She needed help, so I talked with her, and I promised her that I wouldn’t tell anyone that I had met her crying. It was her first real girl time so we need to keep this a secret or else I’ll loose her confidence in me, and I don-”

“- Don’t say any more.” Dixie raised her paw. “I know not to spread any secrets, especially when it’s a first secret and you need to keep her confidence.” Dixie then looked at Star. “So you need to keep it a secret from your friends. Got it Star? Whatever is said in this room stays in this room.”

Star shook his head jubilantly. “Yes snookums.”

Dixie turned back to Jenna and leaned her head in closer. “So have you talked to Kodi about it, got his side of the story? You