It was a cold morning in Russia. Grey sat outside of his master's house awaiting his return. There had been talk that he was buying another dog to replace his escaped team mate; a dog he'd called Red. He sighed and lay down in the snow. Filat sure was taaking a long time at the airport. The mix turned over on his side and snorted.

Suddenly, a shrill whistle permeated his ears. Grey's head shot up and looked over his shoulder. He saw Filat walking towards him with a sulky looking black and white dog on a leash. By the looks of it, a female.

Disregarding her, he jumped up and ran to him. To his surprise, the young female who looked so downhearted but a moment ago, was now a white mass of snarling fury. She clamped her jaws on the back of his neck and shook him with fury. Grey cried out, more out of surprise, than in pain, as the female threw him to the ground.

She closed in on him but didn't get another chance to attack before Filat intervened. He struck her over the head, and yelled out something, most likely her name.

Luckily, for Grey, she hadn't drawn blood, but she'd scared him to death. He shakily rose to his feet, not taking his eyes off her. There was something odd about her scent. Something...wild and untamed.

"Grey," The musher said gruffly. "Show Marie around, and don't start another fight with her."

The mix was extremely insulted. He didn't start the fight. She did!

"So, you gonna show me around, or what Old-Timer?"

Grey snorted. "If you keep it up, Missy, you're going to have to find someone else."

He turned to leave but she leaped in front of him. "Wait."

He raised an eyebrow. "What?"

"I'm just going to through a tough time right now." She said quietly. "I'm not trying to be aggresive, it's...It's in my blood."

"Your blood?" The older dog asked.

"Yes." She sat down. "My father...My father was a wolf, and my mother's family isn't too kind-hearted either."

That was it! "Heh, well, I've got a bit of wolf in me too."

Marie cocked an eyebrow at the mix. "You do?"

He nodded. "It's not much, but it's there."

The female began to grow increasingly curious. "How much?"

He smirked. This girl was amusing him. "Oh only about an eigth or so. My father was a third wolf and three fourths malamute. My mom was all husky."

His gaze was focused across the street. His attention was set on a red female with bandana 'round her neck. Marie chuckled to herself and nudged Grey.

"Your mate?" She asked teasingly.

He sighed. "No. My mate's...not around anymore."

Marie lowered her ears. "I'm sorry. I didn't mean to bring something like that up."

"Don't." He said softly. "You didn't know."

The female softed  her gaze.  "You wanna talk about it? I could be hard-headed at times, but I have a way of making others feel better."

He smiled weakly. "Sure. Why not?"

*********

A dog, maybe three years old,  was exploring the edges of a forest. He'd picked up the scent nof a female and was following it deeper into the thicket. His mind was racing and his vision wasn't exactly clear. Females did that to him.

He stopped short when a slender-looking female came into view. His spine tingled, but he quickly regained his composure. He strode up to her casually. His eyes widened when he saw she was wolf. However, she'd already seen him and he didn't want to seem rude and run away.

The brown annd  black wolf stepped back. She wasn't sure what was going to happen with this, dog. "State your business."

Grey stepped back at her harsh tone. "Not much. I just wanted to see what smelled so interesting. And I must say, I am extremely pleased with what I've found."

The wolf began to blush. "Well...You're not so bad yourself."

He laughed. "Well that's something good to hear. By the way, the name's Grey."

She paused before answering him. "Katya."

******

"A wolf?" Marie interrupted.

"Yes." Grey answered, a little annoyed. "Now do you want to hear the rest or what?"

Marie winced. "Sorry. Go ahead."

******

A few months had passed since their first meeting and Katya had repeat visits from Grey since then.  They'd even become mates in the short time. Today, she was anxious to tell him the good news. She sat in their spot, pacing back and forth. She quickly decided though, that it wouldn't be a good idea for her health,  or her unborn offspring's for that matter.

Just as she sat down, she heard snow crunching behind her. She whipped her head around to see three males from her pack, ready for a battle. She began backing away, but before she had a chance to turn and run, they were upon her. They'er fangs tore through her flesh, and their slaws pushed down on her belly.  One of the assasins' jaws clamped around her throat and bit down on it, bursting a blood vessel.

Before he had time to let go, he was knocked to the ground. The wolf was disoriented, giving Grey a chance to deliver the same fate his mate met. Withing seconds, he had finished him off, blood surrounding the attacker.

He narrowed his eyes and turned around to see a second coming at him. He grasped the other male by his scruff and tossed him into a boulder, breaking his back. Now there was only one left. Grey came to recognize him as Ktya's brother, Renji.

"You stupid mutt." The wolf growled. "You ruined my sister. Because of you she's dead!"

Grey retaliated. "I did nothing! It was your accomplice that killed her!"

His tongue was sharp and his words dripped with venom. He was determined to end Renji's life, even if it cost him his own. The fur on the back of Grey's neck bristled. He uncovered his fangs and a deep throaty growl escaped his lips. Renji stood in a defensive stance, but to Grey's surprise, he turned and walked away.

"You're not worth my time, mutt."

Infuriated, Grey charged at him. Renji spun around and grabbed oneof his front legs. The wolf twisted Grey's leg into an ungodly shape before a sickening crack split through the air.

Grey pulled away from him with a yelp. Not satisfied with just breaking his leg, Renji mule-kicked the dog in the face, knocking him unconscious.

*******

Tears threatened to spill from Marie's eyes when he was done.  He stared into space, remembering that horrible day. He'd been in pain for weeks aftewards and even after his leg recovered, he couldn't race yet.

He heaved a sigh of relief and smiled. "Thanks for helping me out Marie. I can finally let the past go."

The hybrid smiled. "Anything to help a friend, Grey."

Suddenly, something caught her eye. Across the street she coul have sworn she'd seen her cousin, Cobalt, but that was impossible. She was thinking of home too much.

Grey nudged her. "Somethin bothering you, kid?"

Marie shook the thought from her head. "No. I'm just thinking of home is all.

*~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~*

Filat, Red (Dakota) and Cobalt are (c) catwhohas14tails

Everyone else (c) Me