(-continuing from the last part...)

***

     As the sky began to darken, the group had found a somewhat clear space to fall asleep in. Now that the sun was gone, the tall grass seemed even creepier and more foreboding then before. Saphrina scooted a bit closer to Loki and Nimbin moved closer to Saphrina, making them feel more secure. The sky was cloudy, bringing back the threat of snow and blocking out the only source of light the dogs had used the past few night. 

“Who wants to watch it first?” Captain grumbled.

“I will” Saphrina answered. “Might as well get it over with sooner then later”

The rest seemed okay with it, and almost everyone slipped into sleep right away. All except Solo. But as Saphrina rested her head on her stubbornly crossed paws, she promised herself that she wouldn’t let Solo get to her. She would not talk to him either! But after a while, it seemed like the dog didn’t have to worry. Solo was sitting up straight, ears flicking this way and that, picking up sounds that Saphrina didn’t recognize. Saphrina watched curiously, trying hard to keep her questions to herself. Solo paused, noticing the dog watching him.

“Habit I picked up from my parents” Solo shrugged.

Saphrina raised her brows. “The ones that taught you to hop from one girl to the next?” she asked carelessly.

“No. The ones I didn’t really get to know too well because they were too busy to notice they had pups to care about. Probably dead for all I care”

Saphrina raised her head, shocked and unsure what to say.

“Doesn’t bother me. I didn’t know them. I don’t miss them”

Saphrina bit her tongue. She couldn’t imagine what it would be like to have no family, much less not care about them. She’d been close with her family ever since she was born. She only got to see them when John and Wendy visited Nome and she still missed them terribly even though she knew they’d be waiting for her. No wonder Solo acted the way he did. Even though she wanted to hate the wolf, Saphrina felt like she needed to make up for what she said.

“Well, you had siblings, right?”

“Yeah” Solo said, not really paying attention. “A few brothers and sisters... most of them were taken away too. And I left the others behind as soon as I was old enough to leave”

“By who?”

“Another wolf. Things like that happen all the time out there. My family was big. It was bound to happen to some of us sooner or later”

Saphrina wasn’t sure how to reply. What was there to say after hearing that?

“Sorry” she finally said softly. Solo stopped fidgeting for a second and paused, looking at the smaller canine.

“What about you? Got a family?”

“A big one” Saphrina chuckled. “All back in town. I don’t know what I’d do without them”

Solo smirked. “Well at least your family looks forward to you coming back”

Saphrina tilted her head curiously. “They won’t take you back?”

“I dunno” Solo replied absentmindedly. “I left them as soon as I was old enough to and never looked back. Never said anything either. They probably think I’m dead too and I doubt they’d care if I was”

Saphrina was about to reply when Shooter started to snicker darkly. Saphrina and Solo’s conversation had woken him up.

“I know I wouldn’t want to take you back” Shooter remarked, usual gloating grin on his face. “We barely know you and we want you dead”

Saphrina sighed and rolled her eyes. “Well since you’re awake, why don’t you take your shift”

“Just go to sleep sad eyes” Shooter shot back, completely ignoring Saphrina. “I think me and mr. sad-story have some catching up to do”

Solo looked unamused and turned away, attempting to sleep. Saphrina closed her eyes and started to drift off too. The last thing she heard was Shooter jeering, “Don’t be fallin’ asleep now! If I have to be awake to watch you, you’re gonna be awake too...”

     Saphrina ran fast. Faster then she ever had before. So fast, it felt like she was floating. Something was chasing her and she was too afraid to look over and find out. Somehow, she knew it was the forest. The woods, like some dark, shadowy wave, were trying to swallow her up! Suddenly off to her right, she saw her family; Jade and Kit huddled together and a terrified Clover scrambling in place with Saphrina’s six other siblings who couldn’t get out of the way. Saphrina tried to yell “run” but all that came out of her mouth was a choking noise. It sounded so real... She couldn’t talk either! Desperately digging her feet into the ground, she tried to turn. To just save her family. But it was like running on ice! As the dark, tree-filled wave engulfed her family, Saphrina’s choking noise only got louder then faded altogether in a deafening crash!

     Saphrina jumped awake. The crash turned into an eerie silence until Captain yelled, jarring everyone awake. Saphrina jumped to her feet, whipping around just in time to see Captain tackle Solo, who was on top of Shooter. While Captain took his anger out on the wolf, biting and hitting whatever parts of the wolf he could reach, Saphrina felt herself go numb when her eyes passed over Shooter’s dead body. His eyes stared up at nothing and his white fur was stained, the dark night making it look like black paint had been spilled over him. The same shock seemed to cross over the other five, forcing them to freeze and gawk. Finally, Ridge tore his eyes from the scene and returned his attention to Captain, who’s anger still didn’t seem to be drained. 

“Get off him” Ridge said softly. Captain ignored him, going in for another hit. “Get off him! There’s less of us, and I’m not dragging him!”

Captain finally stepped away, wanting to hurt the wolf one more time, but holding back. Saphrina had finally forced herself to look away from Shooter too, so she looked at his killer instead. Solo still hadn’t gotten up, eyes closed, but a smile was spreading across his red-streaked face until he finally let out a dry laugh. Saphrina’s numbness faded into chills and shivers. This couldn’t be the same wolf she was talking to earlier...

“And you get up” Ridge muttered to Solo. Still grinning, Solo rolled to his feet. His shoulder seemed to have finally gone numb with cold. Somewhere else in the sea of grass, a spooky, hollow howl rose up, making the dogs fidget.

“We’re going to have to move” Captain growled, shoving Solo roughly forward. Duke went to get Shooter’s body but Captain snapped, “Leave it there! The other wolves are just going to smell him and catch us faster”

The dogs hurried through the marsh until morning had lit up the sky a little more. But with the dark, snow-filled clouds, the sun wasn’t able to light their way as well as they had hoped. Besides Solo, who seemed to be rejuvenated by his latest kill, the dogs were so tired from lack of sleep and hunger, they were ready to drop. 

“We need to stop” Ridge finally managed, voice cracking.

“Not until we’re out of here!” Captain argued, clearly as worn-down. 

“Why don’t you guys take a well-deserved rest, and I’ll keep an eye on things” Solo interrupted with a pleasant smile. Captain and Ridge both gave the wolf dirty looks, then continued arguing. Saphrina yawned and sat, staying out of things. Solo, who had been standing next to her, sat down too, leaning over to talk to her.

“Look, we match!” he said in a goofy voice, motioning to a gash Captain had given him across the nose. Self-consciously, Saphrina rubbed the nicely-healed cut that ran across her own and hissed in reply, “Except mine was given to me by some psycho”

Solo considered it thoughtfully then shook his head. “No, they aren’t that different then”

Saphrina turned away, giving him the cold shoulder. 

“You were so eager to chat last night” Solo snorted. Saphrina turned to stare angrily at the wolf, but one look at the wolf’s now scratched up and dirtied face brought back flashbacks of Shooter. 

“Fine, we’ll stop here for a while” Captain finally announced, giving in to Ridge’s stubbornness. “But those wolves are going to catch up with us, and when they do, you can blame yourself”

With that said, Captain collapsed and was snoring before he hit the ground. Ridge snorted and muttered to himself before settling down next to Loki. Nimbin was exhausted but Saphrina was practically a zombie.

“I’ll watch ‘em” Nimbin finally grumbled, laying his head down on his paws. “Git some rest”

Saphrina smiled thankfully and fell asleep almost immediately. This time, the dog found herself in a dreamless, soothing deep sleep and no one woke her up to watch Solo.

     After what seemed like hours, Saphrina woke up as refreshed as she could be out in the wild and found that snow had begun to steadily fall. She looked over to Nimbin, who’s shift had apparently ended. He was still sound asleep. Saphrina smirked to herself and glanced over to where Solo had been resting. Nothing was there. Solo was gone!

Saphrina leapt to her feet, looking around when someone gently put their paw on her back and lowered her to the ground.

“Shhhhhh”

It was Solo. He was so close to Saphrina, she could feel the spiky fur on his injured shoulder against her clean fur. The wolf was on his stomach too and he had a look on his face that Saphrina had never seen before. For some reason, Saphrina felt herself trusting the wolf’s judgement. The hair on his back stood on end and his ears twitched even though the only thing Saphrina could hear was the uneasy quiet of falling snow. The thick snow was blocking out the sight of the far-away Alaskan mountains so it looked like the surrounding tall grass was the only thing that existed. Solo tilted his nose up in the air. Suddenly, a long-drawn out howl vibrated in the air. A few others joined in, making everyone else wake with a start. 

“Four” Solo muttered under his breath.

“What?” Saphrina asked, turning her attention back to the wolf.

“There’s four of them”

Duke and Blue huddled together, shaking uncontrollably but Ridge, Loki and Captain looked like they wanted to fight. Nimbin looked like he wanted a fight too, but Saphrina knew the dog enough to know he was just trying to act like Ridge.

“Stick together now!” Ridge growled. “We might have to fight our way out of this one!”

“You don’t stand a chance” 

All eyes turned to Solo. “There’s no way” he continued. “These four are all males, probably as big as me. They know how to work together and you jokers have had a hard enough time just watching me”

“Then what do you suppose we do?” Captain growled skeptically. 

“I can take care of them...” Captain and Ridge both started to object, “...or you can get torn to shreds on your own and I escape anyway”
Captain and Ridge exchanged looks, but Solo didn’t wait for an answer. He left Saphrina’s side, leaving the dog feeling unsafe and cold, and snuck forward, focused on the tall grass. He slipped out of sight through the thick snow and grass, leaving the six dogs shivering in silence. For a few moments, no sounds escaped from the grass around them. No smells of blood. Nothing whatsoever.

“E’s not comin’ back... is ‘e...” Nimbin finally said aloud.

“Nope” Ridge answered. “I bet the other four were his friends too”

“Or he just left us to get eaten” Captain grumbled. Saphrina looked between the other dogs. She wasn’t so sure about what they were saying. She doubted he was going to come back with them... but he didn’t look like he was acting. 

“Well we better get moving then” Captain said gruffly. He started off, passing Duke and Blue who were still shivering. “Get a grip you two! Get up and get moving!”

The two hounds reluctantly followed, whimpering. Another howl floated into the sky and Saphrina started to shiver. Maybe the others were right after all. Suddenly the howl was cut short with a yelp. Captain paused and Ridge tilted his head. 

Then, the silence was shattered. Snarls could be heard not far away. 

“Now let’s really get moving” Captain said, jogging away. Not wanting to be left behind, Ridge, Loki and Nimbin hurried after. Saphrina paused for a second, not sure what or who she was waiting for, then followed too. The snow fell harder and harder until the dogs had to walk so close, they were touching each other. 

“So much for a light autumn snow” Loki smirked. Saphrina didn’t mind. She loved snow and cold. She always got too hot in the spring and summer anyway. She took her eyes off of Nimbin for just a second and when she focused back on her best friend, he had simply vanished into the white. 

“Nimbin?”

No answer.

“Nimbin?!”

Saphrina’s ears flickered but Nimbin still didn’t respond. “NIMBIN?! RIDGE?! LOKI?!”

Someone called her in the distance and Saphrina rushed through the grass toward the noise. 

“Wait for me!!”

With a final leap, Saphrina jumped through a bunch of tall grass and was out of the marsh. The snow was starting to let up and Saphrina could see the silhouettes of the others. Once they spotted her, they trotted back, feeling much braver now that they were out of the marsh. Something rustled in the tall marsh grass and Saphrina glanced over her shoulder, expecting Solo. Instead, she found herself looking at another wolf. One she didn’t recognize. His slate grey coat almost seemed to melt into the dark of the grass behind him, but Saphrina could see that he was roughly the same size as Solo. The wolf lowered itself to the ground and sprang at Saphrina only to be knocked right out of the air by a golden blur. Saphrina had never been more happy to see Solo! The two wolves tumbled on the ground, breaking apart only to get a better look at who they were attacking, then Solo made a dive toward his attacker. The rest of the group rushed to Saphrina and froze when they saw Solo and the other wolf locked in a fight. Finally, the grey wolf lay still and Solo stood up and staggered back.

“Five in one day... “ he panted, trying to keep the weight off his bad leg. Then he looked up, the mischievous light returned to his eyes. “Well, nothing personal, but I think it’s time we went our own ways”

The dogs didn’t say anything but when Captain took a step, Solo whipped around and took off, limping badly and disappearing in the snow. The group watched him go then Captain grunted. 

“Alright, let’s go get him”

“What?” Nimbin yelped. “Can’ we just go home already? E’s long gone!”

“He’s limping badly and it’s only a little bit of snow. It’ll lighten up soon enough”

They followed Solo’s faint scent for a while and as Captain had said, the snow let up. However, the snow had coated the ground and none of Solo’s tracks were visible. In the distance, they could see the lights from town. 

Once they lost track of the faint trail, Captain ordered for the group to split up to search and meet back up where they had separated when the moon reached the center of the sky. Saphrina didn’t mind. She wasn’t afraid of Solo anymore. He wasn’t going to hurt her. 

     The sun got lower and lower in the sky and soon, Saphrina found a set of footprints. Saphrina smiled at her luck. Maybe they were Solo’s! She picked up an easy jog and followed the prints, slipping under some other farmer’s fence as she did. Soon enough, voices reached her tawny-tipped ears. None of them were Solo’s... but maybe the owner of the voices could help.

A short distance away, two dogs, a Burmese mountain dog and some kind of tan herding dog were talking to... something.

“Excuse me!”

The two dogs whipped around, but relaxed when they saw it was just a dog.

“Can we help you ma’am?” the tan herding dog asked politely.

“I need some help...” As Saphrina got closer, she could see what the dogs were talking to. Solo’s blue eyes stared up at her, mouth closed tightly. Barbed wire was wrapped around his legs. The dogs’ eyes followed Saphrina’s eyesight and both smirked.

“Got himself caught in some extra barbed wire from the fence!” the mountain dog chuckled. 

“That’s a coincidence” Saphrina replied politely. “He was what I was looking for”

The two others frowned. “I don’t think you want him back... he’s pretty dangerous”

“I know”

“There used to be three of us. He killed our friend”

Saphrina glared at Solo. The wolf shrugged. “Actually, that time was in self-def-”

“Shut up” the mountain dog snapped. “Do you want us to help you? We were just gonna kill him here”

“I need to bring him back to my owner for a reward” Saphrina said. “Thank you for your offer but I couldn’t possibly drag him all the way-”

“We’ll carry him for you”

Saphrina frowned. 

“Man you guys are determined, aren’t you?” Solo marveled.

The two dogs ignored him while Saphrina tried to think up another excuse. “My owner will get extra money if he comes back alive” she lied.

The two dogs exchanged glances but shrugged. “As long as he gets what’s coming to him”

Solo breathed a sigh of relief and the two dogs wandered off. “Let us know when he’s dead!”

“Okay! Thanks for your help!” Saphrina replied, getting close enough to Solo to start gently pulling the barbed wire off.

“Why do humans make this?” Solo sputtered once the dogs were out of earshot. “All it does is hurt you!”

“It’s supposed to keep animals like you out!” Saphrina said through her teeth as she removed the last wrap of wire. Solo groaned and stood up gingerly. “Thanks... uh, for that”

Saphrina gave him a half smile and pushed him. “Just get going”

“You’re not still going to bring me back, are you?” Solo yelped in shock. “You just saved me! That means you like me!”

“That means I’m repaying you for saving me before... which means that you like me. Not the other way around”

Solo made a face, but Saphrina gave him another push, making him start to walk. 

     The trip back hadn’t taken too long and when the pair came to the meet-up point. Saphrina sank down to her stomach, knowing Solo would collapse too. She had noticed that somewhere in between fighting off the wolves and getting caught by the dogs, he’d re-opened his shoulder wound. While they waited, Solo tried to clean the matted fur on his front leg and shoulder.

“Why’d you kill Shooter?” Saphrina asked suddenly, not knowing why the question had popped in her head. Solo stopped mid-lick and raised his eyebrows.

“What?”

“You could’ve just gone after any of us”

“I hated him. So did you. Why do you care?”

“Hating and killing are two different things”

“He deserved it. If I didn’t do it, I can guarantee you someone else would have done it eventually”

Solo returned to cleaning and once his leg was spotless, he tried to lick his shoulder. Wincing, he was too sore to stretch and reach it. Agitated and uncomfortable, he dropped his head between his front paws. Saphrina raised her eyebrows. She rose to her feet, growling hatefully at herself, and plopped down next to Solo. The wolf watched her out of the corner of his eye, and was surprised when the dog started to clean what he couldn’t reach.

“What are you doing?”

“I don’t know” Saphrina replied between laps. “I still hate you... but I figure you might as well be as comfortable as you can be before you know... you...”

“Thanks for that comforting thought” Solo grumbled. 

Once Saphrina was satisfied with how clean the wound was, she moved away a little but still stayed near Solo. Even though she was close to town, she was still far enough away that she felt safer next to the larger canine. The moon was almost in the middle of the sky and Saphrina figured that the others would be back in another hour. Her blue eyes drifted from the moon back to Solo. The cuts that Captain had given him seemed to have faded. All except the one going across the bridge of his nose. Absentmindedly, Saphrina rubbed her paw across her matching one.

“That was supposed to be just a warning” Solo said softly in an apologetic tone.

“It still hurt”

“I figured you were brave enough to get in my way, you’d probably be tough enough to take that too”

Saphrina looked away unamused. Solo leaned closer and licked across Saphrina’s nose where he had bitten her, making Saphrina open her eyes wide.

“What are you doing?!”

“Making up for before?”

Saphrina and Solo stared at each other. Maybe he wasn’t such a bad guy after all... what was she thinking?! Saphrina shook her head and got up, stepping away. When she looked up, she spotted Nimbin coming back and relaxed. 

“You got ‘em!? Good job Saphi!”

Saphrina wagged her tail, forcing herself to not look back at Solo even though she could feel him watching her.

“Ridge an’ Loki are on their way. Not sure where Captain, Duke an’ Blue are though”

“That’s good” Saphrina breathed uneasily. “I want to go home”

     The three waited in silence until the rest of the dogs got back, Saphrina ignoring Solo the entire time. Ridge and Loki smiled proudly when they saw that Saphrina had caught Solo. Even Captain mumbled something. But it all went over Saphrina’s head as they began to head back. She didn’t want to be involved in this anymore. She didn’t want to be involved with Solo. She didn’t even want to think of Solo. She hated Solo!... right?

Saphrina was so busy wrestling with her own thoughts, she hadn’t noticed that they had returned to the porch of Phil’s cousin’s house. Captain’s bark snapped her out of her thoughts and for the first time since they had been alone, she flashed a look at Solo. His face was blank, eyes pinned on the door. No one came at first and Saphrina wondered if anyone was even awake. She flashed another look at Solo and this time, caught his eye, but turned away quickly before any glances could pass between them. Should she just let him get away? He did, after all, save their lives when the wolves came to attack. Captain barked again and this time, Blue and Duke chimed in, making Saphrina wince at their annoying bays. 

The front door swung open and Phil’s cousin stumbled out with a gun. When he spotted the wolf among his dogs, he rubbed his eyes and yelled something back into the house. A few seconds later, Phil and John crashed out of the house too. 

“Get out of the way dogs!”

Saphrina jumped out of the way, heart racing, and closed her eyes tightly. But no shots were fired. The only sound she heard was a click. Followed by another, then a series of frustrated clicks. Saphrina opened an eye.

“I’m out of bullets!” Phil’s cousin exclaimed. “Phil, you got any?”

“We used them all up shooting at nothing, remember?”

Phil’s cousin grunted. “Shouldnna done that”

“The general’s stores not open now, what do you want to do with him?”

“The sheriff’s office is right in town. We’ll just lock him up in the shed ‘til tomorrow”

So while John and Phil fed the hungry dogs, Phil’s cousin threw a rope around Solo, strapped on a muzzle Saphrina had bet he’d used on Shooter, and tied the wolf to the side of the porch away from the dogs. Saphrina scarfed down her dinner and plopped down on the ground, eyes flitting between her empty bowl and Solo. Did he really deserve to die?

Phil’s cousin thought so. He snatched Solo’s rope and the three men headed for the nearby town. The dogs followed a short distance behind, Saphrina as quiet as ever.

“What’s botherin’ ya?”

Saphrina looked at Nimbin and faked a smile. “What are you talking about?”

“I’ve been yer best friend for yea’s! I think I’d be able to tell if somethin’ was wrong”

“I guess I’m just tired from the trip” Saphrina lied. “I’ll be fine once we get back”

     The procession came to the closest building and walked through the open gate to the backyard. An old shed stood right behind the house and Phil happily opened the door, letting his cousin lead the wolf in. 

While the humans put Solo away, the Sheriff’s dog, a large white German shepherd, watched calmly. On the other hand, his enforcer, a buff-looking Rottweiler, was clearly on edge. 

“Is that him?” the Shepherd asked.

“Yep” Captain replied. “He killed four wolves and Shooter while we were bringing him in”

The Shepherd frowned. “Well it’ll be a thing of the past tomorrow. We’ll round up a few dogs to keep an eye on the shed”

Saphrina watched the men fiddle with the shed door, unable to keep a blank face. When she returned her look to the Shepherd and Rottweiler, the buff black and rust dog had noticed. But before they could say anything, the three men had finished. They closed the door, placing a nail-shaped object between the two metal rings, and locked the door closed. 

“It’s finally ova’!” Nimbin breathed. “We get to go home!”

The three men laughed as they began to head back to the house, the happy dogs following after they bid the two other dogs a good night.

“Yeah” Saphrina chipped in, unable to be as happy as everyone else. “It’s over”

     Back at the farm, Saphrina couldn’t sleep. Everyone else was out. Ridge and Loki were curled up together. Nimbin was next to Saphrina. Captain, Blue and Duke were snoring on the porch. Saphrina was tired out of her mind, but sleep was just something she couldn’t find. She knew what was keeping her up... maybe Solo didn’t deserve that hard of a punishment. A bullet to the shoulder was bad enough. And he’d saved their lives too. That had to count for something! Saphrina lifted her head off of her paws and glanced up at the moon. She knew what she had to do...

Muttering to herself, the dog picked herself up and carefully snuck away, glad everyone else was in such a deep sleep. 

     Shaking her head at her own stupidity, Saphrina finally came to a stop at the Sheriff’s building. The gate was still open and no one seemed to be around. So cautiously, Saphrina stepped into the backyard. The Shepherd and Rottweiler were nowhere in sight. They were probably still rounding up dogs to guard the shed. The blue-grey dog made her way to the shed and studied the lock, remembering how John had locked it. She stood on her hind legs and using her nose, tipped the nail out of the two metal rings. Then she stood back, letting the door swing open on its own. At first nothing happened. No sounds. No glowing blue eyes. Just silence. For a moment, Saphrina was convinced the wolf had already escaped. Then Solo limped out into the moonlight, curiously scanning around until his eyes rested on Saphrina.

“What are you doing?”

“Letting you go” Saphrina answered, eyes on the ground. “Don’t say anything else. Just get out of here before they come back. I don’t want anything else to do with you after this. Go away... and stay away from me and my farm”

Saphrina looked up, making eye contact with Solo. The expression on his face was a mix of gratitude and hurt. 

“Just go”

Solo didn’t say anything else and limped off. Saphrina waited until Solo was out of the yard, then headed for the gate herself. Voices echoed through the gate. With a jolt, Saphrina recognized the voice of the white Shepherd. Panicking, Saphrina looked around the yard and spotted a hole in the fence. She dove for the hole, slipping through it just as the dogs walked into the yard. Saphrina rolled right into an alley and stopped to observe her surroundings. The voices in the backyard got louder and Saphrina scrambled to her feet, scurrying from one alley to the next.

“Oh giiiirrrrllllyy”

Saphrina hid behind a trashcan when she recognized the Rottweiler’s voice. 

“We know you let him out!” he sang. “Your scent is all over the yard and your little footprints are in the snow!”

Saphrina glanced down at the snow covered ground. She’d forgotten about that.

“I told them we should’ve watched you too! I didn’t trust the way you were lookin’ at that wolf”

Saphrina tried to calm herself down and think straight. She continued down the alley way and came to the main street. Just down the street was the end of the town. And just out of the town was the farm. Saphrina darted across the street and into the opposite alley, trotting behind the other buildings until it looked like she just had to get around one more fence and she was home-free! She popped around the corner of the building and came face-to face with the white Shepherd. 

“Hello there” he said calmly. 

Saphrina went rigid with fear. She didn’t even notice she’d tucked her tail between her legs.

“Why’d you let him go?”

Saphrina forced herself to back away and bumped into the Rottweiler. She couldn’t think of anything to say. What had she gotten herself into?! A few other dogs, undoubtedly the ones that had been rounded up to guard Solo, circled around Saphrina. 

“I...I...uh...”

The German Shepherd raised his brows, waiting for an answer. When Saphrina couldn’t bring herself to say anything, the German Shepherd sighed. “Well you’re still gonna have to come with us”

“NO! I can’t!”

“You let him out. If they can’t shoot the wolf that’s been on a killing streak, might as well bring back the dog that let him out”

“Isn’t there something else she can do to get out of this?” the Rottweiler asked. Saphrina turned to the buff dog thankfully but her smile faded when she saw the funny look on his face. 

“I’ve had a long day. I don’t want any part of it” the Shepherd said, leaving Saphrina with the group of dogs. Saphrina went numb, hoping that she had misunderstood the Rottweiler’s intentions.

“I thought you were a pretty girl anyway” the Rottweiler crooned, getting really close. Saphrina shivered, tucking her tail tighter and backing away. Thoughts of her sister and mother flashed through her mind. She didn’t want to share the same fate!

“Come on back here pretty girl!” one of the dogs jeered. Saphrina continued to back up until her rump hit the only wooden fence between her and the open land where the farm was. Her blue eyes jumped from one dog to the other. The five dogs were spaced out. She could dive between them! Puffing out her chest, Saphrina shot between two of the dogs. The Rottweiler lunged and caught her bandanna. Saphrina struggled until she had slipped the blue bandanna over her head but she only took two steps before another one of the dogs tackled her and pinned her down to the ground. The five male dogs laughed and teased. Saphrina closed her eyes, gritting her teeth. She wanted her dad Jade. Or her mom. Even her uncle Utah. Someone to protect her. Suddenly, the male dog pinning her was tossed off and the others started to yell. Someone else was standing over her and she figured they were fighting over who got to go first. But when she opened her eyes, whoever was standing over her had charged one of the bolder male dogs and knocked the canine clean off it’s feet. It scrambled up and took off, tail between it’s legs. Saphrina stood, shaking badly. The Rottweiler was a few feet away, knocked out. A few more feet away... was Solo. The wolf’s head was low and the fur all along his back stood on end. She had never seen him look so scary before. 

Satisfied that no one was coming back to mess with him or Saphrina, the golden wolf turned to limp back. Tears running down her cheeks, Saphrina lost her self-control and ran to Solo, burying her face in his fur. She didn’t care who it was. At first, Solo was tense at Saphrina's unexpected move, but as Saphrina cried, he rested his head over hers, letting her drain her emotions into his chest. 

     After what seemed like hours even though it was only mere minutes, Saphrina had calmed down a bit. But she still stayed burrowed close to Solo. She felt him raise his head, tense up, then relax and Saphrina was afraid to look around. She already knew who was in the alley.

“Sa- Saphi?!”

She had never been so happy and so afraid of hearing Nimbin’s Australian accent. Saphrina finally stepped back, leaving Solo’s warm, good smell to turn to her best friend.

“Wh- what’s goin’ on!?” Nimbin’s eyes jumped to the Rottweiler who was still unconscious. “Is he...?”

“No” Solo answered. “He’s out cold though. I smacked his head pretty hard on the brick part of that house. He’ll probably be out for a while”

Nimbin noticed Saphrina’s tear-streaked face and Nimbin growled at Solo.

“What did you do to her?!” he snarled.

“He saved me” Saphrina said, walking over to her bandanna and nosing it around her head so it slipped over her neck. “ From him” she added, pointing to the unconscious dog.

“We need to get back” Nimbin said softly. Saphrina nodded and turned to Solo. She walked back to him and for one more time, buried her face in his neck, nuzzling him. When she fell away, Solo had an expression she had never seen before on his face, but she knew very well what it was. She’d seen her parents give each other that look before. And she was sure she probably had the same dazed look on her own face.

“Come ‘on Saphi” 

“Thank you...” Saphrina breathed one more time before following after Nimbin. When she glanced over her shoulder, Solo was gone.

     The next morning, the three men had gone to the Sheriff’s office and back before the dogs had woken up. To their dismay, the wolf had disappeared. So saying a short goodbye, Phil and John packed up the dogsled they had rented and started their journey back to their own homes. Nimbin, who had been told the full story of what happened, walked protectfully next to a still pretty-numb Saphrina. Ridge and Loki had also been told what happened, but Nimbin and Saphrina chose to leave the part about Solo out of the story. A day and a half later, Saphrina said goodbye to Ridge, Loki and Nimbin and followed John back to their cozy farmhouse. John was the first one in the house and gave Wendy a hug as soon as he was through the door. Saphrina carelessly wagged her tail and sulked to her bed. The sooner she forgot about the whole trip, the sooner she could forget about Solo. 

     Life returned to normal the day after John and Saphrina had returned home. Saphrina was up early the next morning with John and helped to herd the cows out of the pen and out to their open pasture. Besides the calf that Solo had killed, the whole herd was safe and healthy. The pasture that the cow herd grazed on was the pasture closest to the woods and whenever the dog took a break to rest, she always paused by the woods just in case anyone wanted to stop by for a visit. 

When John whistled for Saphrina to bring the herd in, her heart sank. Maybe she was right... Solo just hopped from one girl to another... and she was just a stepping stone to him. Saphrina urged the herd through the gate and into the pen, John closing the gate when all were in. 

“Good girl Holly” he smiled, patting the dog. “You’re such a good girl”

Saphrina smiled, waging the tip of her tail and followed her owner to the porch and through the door, where her bowl of kibble was waiting. After she had finished, Saphrina plopped into her warm doggie bed.

“Did we get any reports of anything?” John asked as he ate.

“Nope!” Wendy replied. “Hasn’t been a single attack since you got back”

“Maybe we got him after all!”

Saphrina sighed. Maybe he did... She shook her head. She needed to snap out of it! Placing both of her paws over her eyes, Saphrina slipped into a light sleep.

     In the middle of the night, Saphrina jumped awake, ears twitching. Did she hear a howl?! She got out of her doggie bed and went to one of the front windows. Nothing stood out against the bright snow. 

“You’re hearing things...” she said to herself. She might not have heard Solo, but she had heard something. And if that something was someone who’d hurt her herd, they’d have to get through her first! With that, she snorted to herself and darted through the doggie door. The herd was clustered near the far side of the pen, near the woods.

“Stupid cows!” she scoffed, hurrying down the steps. She swiftly trotted around her herd, making sure they were all safe. Then she positioned herself between the herd and the woods. Nothing seemed to be happening, so Saphrina sank to her stomach. Just before she started to doze off, she caught something out of the corner of her eye. 

Saphrina jumped to her feet, whipping around. The figure was shrouded in darkness and just stood. It was definitely some kind of canine. Saphrina slipped under the cow’s pen fence, putting herself out in the open so the intruder could see her. The figure swayed a little then took a step forward, limping.

Saphrina’s heart leapt and she sat down calmly, making Solo come to her. When he got close enough for Saphrina to see his face, she could see that he didn’t look so good. His eyes were still lit with their usual light, but they had dark circles and he looked like he had almost wilted.

“Are you alright? You don’t look so good...”

Solo brushed off her comment, an almost crazed look on his face. “You do like me” he started, changing the subject deliriously. “You saved me from those dogs... and then you saved me from... more dogs” 

Saphrina tried to smile, but Solo looked awful!

“Solo, are you sick?!”

Solo puffed his chest out, as if he was going to argue, but staggered. “Yeah... I- maybe” he said softly before his eyes rolled back into his head and he collapsed. Saphrina jumped to her feet, shocked and checked him over. He seemed okay except for his shoulder. It looked worse then before! Saphrina looked around and spotted the old barn John sometimes used to put pregnant cows in. She could hide Solo in one of the stalls. Using all of her strength, she grabbed the unconscious wolf by the scruff of his neck and dragged him to the barn.

Once she had gotten into the dusty wooden building, she dragged Solo into one of the stalls, settling him down in the hay. She took a rest, panting then remembered Galileo, Phil’s border collie and one of Ridge’s close friends. He was a genius! Saphrina nodded to herself, mumbling a quick “I’ll be back soon” to Solo, then she took off into the night.

     Once she came to Phil’s huge pasture, Saphrina tilted her head, took a deep breath, and howled as loud and long as she could. Ridge, Nimbin, Galileo, Trigg and Pilot, who had been sleeping on the porch, scrambled to their feet and down the stairs. They spotted Saphrina and charged until they realized it was her.

“Saphrina!” Ridge began angrily, “What on-”

“I need your help!” Saphrina spat out. “Well at least Galileo’s!”

The dogs exchanged looks but leapt after Saphrina, following her back to her barn. As Saphrina walked back to the stall she’d left Solo in, she half wished Loki could’ve come too... she would’ve been a little easier on her when she found out about Solo. 

“Please don’t be mad” she aimed mostly at Ridge before pushed the stall door open. The six dogs stepped into the stall and Solo, who had woken back up, stared back at the dogs.

“I thought we were done with this whole capture thing!” Solo mumbled desperately. “Why’d you bring them here?”

“They’re here to help” Saphrina replied. 

“We’re here to leave!” Ridge growled furiously. “You’re lucky we don’t come back here with humans! Let’s go!”

“No!” Saphrina yelped, jumping in front of them. “Please! He needs help!” 

“I can’t believe you brought him back here!”

“I can” Nimbin interrupted. Ridge glared and Nimbin shrugged. “Well I saw it comin’...”

“What were you thinking?!” Ridge snapped.

“He’s not all bad!”

“Yes he is! You watched him kill Shooter!”

“And I watched him save me too!”

Ridge stopped arguing and raised a brow. “When did he save you?”

“Back in town” Saphrina said softly, eyes dropping to the ground. “When I... let him out”

“That was you?! Aw... Saphi...”

Rage was building up in Ridge’s voice and Saphrina couldn’t bring herself to look at his face.

“Nimbin wasn’t the one that saved you?”

“Nowpe” Nimbin replied back for her. “By the time I’d gotten there, he’d already chased ‘em away. I wouldna had time ta save ‘er”

Ridge glanced back at the wolf hatefully. “Please Ridge” Ridge shook his head, knowing Saphrina had found his soft spot and stormed out of the barn, leaving Galileo to look at the wolf. Saphrina, Galileo and Nimbin rushed into the stall and Galileo began to analyze the wolf’s shoulder.

“Hmmmm...” 

“Is it bad?”

“It looks infected” Galileo mumbled, intensely squinting at the gunshot hole. “Was the bullet ever removed?”

Saphrina looked at Solo and the wolf shrugged. “I didn’t take it out. I don’t even know what a bullet is”

Galileo frowned and squinted at the wound. “Well who wants to go get it?”

Saphrina looked expectantly at Galileo. 

“Well I’m not gonna get it!” Galileo exclaimed, stepping back. “Look at it! Do you know how gross and infected it is?!”

Saphrina turned to Nimbin. “Don’t even look at me!” he retorted before she even said anything. 

“Please Nimbin! Pretty please! You’ve done gross stuff before!”

Nimbin shook his head stubbornly. 

“Ridge would’ve done it it if he liked Solo”

Nimbin opened his eyes and glanced warily at the wound. 

“You guys are all pansies” Solo muttered, reaching around and nibbling on his own shoulder. “Do I just bite it out?” he asked between nips.

“Uh... yeah... that should work” Galileo asked, looking a little sick. Wincing, Solo finally closed his teeth on the tiny metal object and dropped it into the straw. 

“There we go” Solo said weakly, falling back into the hay and closing his eyes. Saphrina went to nudge him awake, but Galileo motioned for them to go outside the stall. 

“So will that make everything better?” Saphrina whispered. Galileo shrugged. 

“It might. Now that it’s out, the open air could make it better... but I don’t know how far the infection’s gotten. He could get worse. But he might be strong enough to make it through”

Saphrina nodded solemnly. “So what do I do until then?”

“Bring him water. Other then that, there’s nothing you can do. Just sit and wait”

“Okay” Saphrina breathed nervously. Galileo turned to leave, but remembered one last thing.

“And if he goes out to the woods, uh... don’t follow”

Saphrina nodded. She knew what Galileo was thinking. Wild animals usually went of to find somewhere to crawl under if they knew they weren’t going to make it...

“Seeya lata’” Nimbin said softly, leaving the barn. 

Saphrina watched them somberly, then did as Galileo had told her to do and went outside to drag in a bucket that snow had fallen in. Once she went back into the warmth of the barn, the snow melted into water and Saphrina set it down next to the wolf. Even in his sleep, the wolf shivered, so Saphrina found a tattered old blanket in the hay and pulled it over the wolf. Once she was satisfied he was okay, she left him alone. Morning had already come and Wendy had probably filled her bowl already. She didn’t worry about anyone finding Solo. Now that the calves were all born and were strong, the barn had little use. 

Throughout the next day, Saphrina would duck back into the barn to make sure everything was okay and every time she did, she found Solo in the same shape. Curled up under the blanket, deep asleep. 

When John had finally locked the herd up in their pen, Saphrina didn’t wait for his approval and rushed into the house to eat her dinner. She was back out the door and headed for the barn before John had even finished his dinner. When she returned once again, Solo was still asleep under the blanket. Some of the melted snow was gone, so he must’ve woken up at some point...

Saphrina settled herself down beside the wolf. He didn’t smell like what Saphrina remembered... it made Saphrina feel nervous. But shrugging it off, she closed her eyes and fell asleep too.

Only a few hours later, Saphrina woke up on her own. She lifted her head, wondering what had woken her up. Had it gotten warmer? She looked down at Solo. The wolf was panting heavily, eyes closed tightly in pain and his tongue was hanging out of the side of his mouth. The heat was coming from Solo. He had a fever. Saphrina scrambled to her feet, eyes wide. He seemed like he was awake.

“I’ll- I’ll go get Galileo!” she managed before sprinting out of the barn.

Galileo and the other dogs were already outside guarding their herd, so Saphrina was able to get the Border Collie running back to the barn quickly. But as they got closer, they could see John making his way to the barn. 

“What is he doing out here?!” Saphrina barked aloud. “He’s usually about to go to sleep by now!”

John opened the door to the barn, lantern in his hand, and Saphrina dug in, speeding up in an attempt to beat John there. But by the time she had slipped through the barn door, John was already holding a lantern to the stall. Saphrina slipped through his legs to see the light of the lantern on... nothing. The stall was empty except for the old blanket and wooden bucket. Galileo finally caught up with Saphrina and when he surveyed the stall, he cocked his head.

“What were you doing out here girl?” John chuckled, patting he head. “Figured I would’ve found something around here”

John went to head back to the house and that’s when the two dogs spotted the paw prints in the snow leading from the barn towards the woods. Saphrina stared, dazed. 

“I’m sorry Saph” Galileo said. “I don’t think there’s anything I can do to solve that”

     The next day, Saphrina carried on her herding duties as she normally would. Despite the previous night’s sorrow, she held herself together, even when Nimbin dropped by to see how she was doing. But even John could tell that something was off about his dog. The entire day, Saphrina moved like a robot, almost as if she was completely oblivious to everything. She had barely touched her breakfast and when it came time for dinner, she only took a few bites before sliding right back out the doggie door. Just as night came around and another silent snow storm sent little flakes floating down, Nimbin stopped by again to try to cheer her up. 

“You should be glad e’s gone!” Nimbin tried to reason. “He did far mo’e bad then good”

Saphrina didn’t answer. She just laid her head on her paws. 

“I don’ even know what you saw in him”

“I don’t know either” Saphrina sighed. “I guess I did’t know why I liked him so much anyway...”

They sat in silence for a bit, then realizing that nothing he said worked, the mutt got up and started home. Saphrina didn’t even say a goodbye. He’d probably be back later anyway with Ridge or Loki. His shape faded through the falling snow and when Saphrina realized how hard it had begun to snow, she decided to circle the herd just to make sure they were okay. In the distance, she could see a calf had wandered off. Heart sinking, she recognized it as the calf that had brought Solo and her together in the first place.

“You have to stop wandering away” Saphrina said quietly, checking the calf over. “Or else you’re actually going to get eaten one of these days.” Saphrina nudged the calf back toward the herd and with a little buck, the calf trotted back to the herd. Now that the calf was away, she could hear Nimbin returning but didn’t look forward to it. She just needed time to herself...

Saphrina pivoted around but the shape coming toward her wasn’t Nimbin... it was Solo? The wolf was carrying what looked like a squirrel in his mouth and besides his usual limp, he seemed fine. Saphrina froze, still a little stunned and Solo stopped a short length away.

“Brought you something” Solo grinned, dropping the squirrel. “For, uh, taking care of me”

Saphrina’s eyes flicked down to the unappetizing squirrel then returned back up to the wolf. The wolf followed her eyes and shrugged. “Well I thought that’s what dogs ate. I saw other ranch dogs chasing them before”

“I thought you went to-”

“No. I heard you and that other dog talking” Solo answered. “That thing you put me in was too hot, so I went out in the snow to cool off...  And I was hungry. My shoulder still hurts but I don’t feel sick anymore. So thanks”

Saphrina gave him a small smile and nodded in return, then got to her feet to return to watching the herd. 

“Well I was thinking maybe I’d stick around for a while” Solo mumbled, following after Saphrina. “Maybe for just a few days until I get better”

“Aren’t you already better?” Saphrina replied lightly, glancing over her shoulder.

“I thought I was better after you let me go the first time too”

Saphrina hesitated for a second, wanting to look back at him again, but shook off the feeling and kept walking.

“Is that a yes? Because if I stayed for a bit maybe we could beeeee...”

Saphrina stopped and turned to face him, waiting for him to finish. When he didn’t seem to be able to form any more words, Saphrina frowned. “I don’t want to be one of your girls that you hang around with for three days until you get bored” she replied whirling around and continuing on in the snow.

“I don’t want you to be either”

Saphrina raised her brows and Solo limped closer. “Then what were you thinking?”

“I was thinking maybe a few days would turn into a little longer... maybe like forever...”

Saphrina couldn’t stop herself from smiling and she tried to hide it.

“... and you’re different- but in a good way! And I don’t know-” Saphrina couldn’t stop herself any more and started to laugh. “Well laughing at me doesn’t really make this any easier on me” Solo shot frustratedly. “If you don’t like the idea, you could’ve just-”

Saphrina nuzzled under his chin and Solo’s voice trailed off. 

“You can stay as long as you don’t touch my herd” she grinned, stepping back.

“I’ve got a better offer” Solo grinned, plopping down in the snow. “Why don’t I make sure no wolves come around here. I’ve heard of a few that’ve been killing livestock, and I think I owe you for keeping me alive”

Saphrina grinned and plopped down too, leaning against him happily. “I think that could work”

Saphrina, Solo, Nimbin, Ridge, Loki, Galileo, Pilot, Trigg (and other unnamed ocs) (c) me

Kit (c) ZukotheCat

Jade and Clover (c) Skotta