The cold winds outside the streets of Nome blew furiously, whipping and lashing cruelly at everything it touched. The sidewalks and patios were all frozen solid, and everyone was prohibited to come outside until the angry storm had passed. Even in the safety and comfort of their homes, people still fought to keep warm. Inside their boiler room, Blitz, Ambyr, and Haywire were no exception. Haywire was curled tightly in Blitz’s usual sleeping position, a jet-black ball of fur rubbing at his paws and wrapping his tail around his body. Ambyr stood near the heater, standing absolutely still, but shivering tremendously, teeth chattering and tail numb. Blitz also stood next to the heater, blowing out puffs of his breath into the air, and trying to bite down on the smoke (an impossible task, I might add.).

“W-What’re y-you doing?” Ambyr shivered.

Blitz clamped his jaws shut on his cloud of breath. He turned to Ambyr. “It’s fun. You should try it!”

Ambyr scowled. “Aren’t y-you c-c-cold?” she asked.

Blitz stood perfectly still. There was no shiver whatsoever in his posture, and he looked down at himself proudly. “Cold? C’mon...we Huskies live for the cold!”

“Ugh.” Ambyr sniffed. “W-Well, if y-you’re so warm, why d-d-don’t you get us more w-wood for the f-fire?”

Blitz lowered his ears. “Wood? But I have to –“

Ambyr snapped her head to him, her eyes burning brighter than the heater.

Blitz corrected himself. ”I have to...catch my breath!!” He blew out a puff of smoke again and snapped at it. “Haha! Catch my breath, get it?”

Ambyr continued to glare.

“...I’ll get that wood.”

Blitz got up and turned for the door, but not before pawing at Haywire’s tight body. “It’s only comfortable if you have a small body.”

Haywire’s muffled voice came from within the dark furball. “I think I got it...If I can just...bite down on my tail...”

There came a crunch inside.

“...YYEAAAAAAHHH!!!” Haywire uncurled himself and started bouncing around, holding his tail in his paws. He whined and stroked it “Oh, my poor tail! Ow, ow, ow!!”

Blitz chuckled, and headed for the door. “I’m out to get more firewood. You wanna come with?”

Haywire put his tail down. “No thanks, I think Balto would make the only good Husky statue around here. If you want to freeze your tail off, you go right ahead.”

Blitz shrugged, and pushed the door open. Cold gusts of air screamed and whistled as they entered, blowing snowflakes everywhere. Ambyr struggled to keep the fire lit, and Haywire resumed curling up into a ball as Blitz kicked the door closed with his legs. He looked around at the deserted streets. Not a single person was in sight, yet the houses were all filled with orange light. As the wind ruffled his fur, Blitz shook off the snow. What’s the matter with those two? Humans rely on us to brave weather like this! Blitz proudly walked down the street, actually enjoying the sensation of not being able to feel his tail anymore.

The storage shack was just a few blocks down. He would get that firewood...then maybe go for another walk. Blizzards like these were dangerous to humans, but it was pure fun to a young pup like himself. And even if he did get cold, he could easily just scratch at a door, and wait for some humans to feel sorry for him and bring him inside. He smiled at the humans’ soft spot for small pups.

As Blitz walked, he closed his eyes to enjoy every sense. The chill of the wind, the holler of their call, and the foggy blanket they made that covered the whole town. These people had no idea what they were missing.

Suddenly, a very warm wave of heat hit him. He’d be lying if he didn’t say he enjoyed it. Then, another one hit him...then another.

I didn’t know blizzards produced heat waves, Blitz thought, still smiling. The heat waves continued, and the sound of crackling fire could be faintly heard.

That’s strange. Is someone having a bonfire?

Right then, Blitz froze in place as the heat waves became more and more intense. With a feeling of dread bubbling in his stomach, he opened his eyes, and gasped at what was placed before him.

A large two-story building was moaning and creaking as a roaring inferno surrounded it. The walls let out a painful sigh as flames crawled up the sides up the buildings, slithering into the windows.

Even the blizzard wasn’t enough to stop to blaze. The flames only swayed and danced around, as if playfully, as it continued to swallow the entire building whole. Blitz stood watching the building, gaping. Why wasn’t anyone coming out to help?!

Suddenly, Blitz’s spine shivered. Not because of the cold, but because of the shriek that came from inside.

Is someone in that building?!

Another shriek answered his question. It was apparent no one was going to come in to help. The streets were deserted, and no one could be seen running for aid. What cowards. Would they just sit there and watch the building and its inhabitants burn?

No.

Not Blitz. Let the others watch this building burn. He was going in to do something about it. Blitz’s anger gave him courage. With a bark, he dashed for the burning building, and shoved the door open. The living room was a horrible scene. Fire demolished the wooden furniture, and waltzed all the way up to ceiling. Blitz barked loudly to show that he was there.

He was replied once more with a shriek. It echoed throughout the whole building, and Blitz snapped his head towards the direction of its origin. He sprinted down a corridor, flames jeering at him mockingly. He got down on the ground, and sniffed, but his nose stung with the scent of smoke.

There is no way I’m biting this smoke.

Suddenly, the ceiling gasped, and a rain of burning debris came roaring down. Blitz let out a startled yip and quickly jumped out of the way. The debris slammed down on the floor with a horrendous crash.

The shriek returned.

Blitz barked and continued down the corridor until he got to the last door down. It was sealed shut. He pawed at it. With an angry growl, Blitz got up on his legs, and turned the doorknob. He kicked the door open, and it, too, came crashing down.

The room was filled with grey smoke. Blitz squinted and could faintly make out someone’s silhouette. It walked around, groping blindly as it tried to find its way out. Blitz rushed up to it and barked. The shadow turned to him, and started coughing. “Please,” it wheezed. “Help me!”

The shadow materialized. It was a young woman, only about twenty or so years old. She coughed again, and reached out for Blitz. Blitz ran up to her and put his head under her hand. It grazed down the top of Blitz’s head until it found his collar. She firmly grasped on, slightly choking Blitz in the process. But he didn’t have time to worry about that. Blitz walked forward, out of the smoke-filled room with her following close behind. She coughed again, keeping her head low.

Blitz looked down the corridor. The ceiling could come down again, and he didn’t know just how long it’d hold. He’d have to take his chances. Blitz whined, and led the woman down the hallway. The ceiling and floor creaked, and they hurried on. When they neared the end, the other side of the corridor heaved and crumbled away. The ceiling was next.

The woman coughed again, and Blitz quickened his pace before he, too, would begin to suffocate. Luckily, he was closer to the ground, so he hadn’t inhaled as much.
Finally, with sudden jolt of energy, Blitz rounded the next corner, yanking the woman with him. The living room, which was now fully consumed by fire, was a total catastrophe, ad Blitz jumped out the fallen doorway, and into the cold air.

The snow padded the woman’s land. Not long after they had left, did the building at last heave out a final gasp and crumble to a heap on the ground. Some of the flames were smothered, and the rest was quickly devoured by the blizzard.

The woman simply looked at the mess. She sniffed loudly, and quickly embraced Blitz tightly in her arms, the sobs finally coming to. “Thank you! Oh, thank you!”

Blitz didn’t know what to do, but now that heat was no longer a problem, cold was quick and eager to take its place. When she finally let him go, Blitz walked over to the nearest house and pawed at the door.

“Oh,” the woman quickly got up and knocked, She wrapped her arms around herself. After a couple of seconds, the door unlocked and opened a crack. An elderly man peeked through, and saw the mess of a woman standing there, and Blitz

His eyes widened, and he instantly pulled the door open, pulling the both of them inside. “My god! Your house! Oh, my word, I’m terribly sorry. I would’ve gone out to help, but I never would’ve gotten to the other side of the street in this condition! I tried calling for help, but no one was answering.” He led them to his kitchen.

“I-It’s alright,” the woman stammered.

“Come, sit down,” the man gestured. He pulled up a chair, and the woman was reluctant to sit down, but she finally decided to. The man turned from his cabinets. “Err...would you like something hot or cold to drink?”

“Oh, umm...that’s okay,” she replied.

Blitz whined.

The man looked down at Blitz, and got on his knees, petting and scratching him. “Is this your dog?” he asked.

“No, he’s not...I mean...but he saved my life.”

The man looked up at her. “Did he really? My goodness, and