Esperanza stumbled into the clearing just as the sun set. She lay down on her side and whinnied in pain, her swelling stomach shaking with exertion. A few minutes later, her cries ceased and an unsteady whinny rung out into the crisp spring night. Esperanza sat up and looked at the young colt who had whinnied, studying the dark, green, starlit, and blooming clearing. Esperanza nickered and smiled when her first-born turned and grinned cross-eyed at her. She beamed as she nuzzled him and began to stand. He snapped at her tail as she walked a short distance away. He whinnied at her sadly and she hated to see him so sad, but her instincts told her to wait. His cries only intensified untill Esperanza was nearly in tears. But her instincts were strong and she began to graze, her back to him. The April night suddenly became silent. "Oh no!" She thought, panicked. "He's dead!" She thought as she desperately leapt around to chase away the predator that got him. The colt nearly fell over and whinnied in surprise as Esperanza spun to face him. Esperanza heaved a sigh of relief and let the colt unsteadily wobble through the long grass towards her. He nuzzled her and found the teat, and began to peacefully nurse.

Esperanza wearily raised her head as the pink dawn was warming her neck. Suddenly she froze in fear. Where was her foal?! She looked around, expecting the worst, but sighed thankfully when she saw him resting quietly by her feet. She silently scolded herself for her foolishness. She peered around the clearing. It was deep grass surrounded by clumps of flowers and trees. The sky began to turn a robin-egg blue. She nudged her foal gently until he opened a bright green eye, but he stubbornly closed it again and snuggled deep into the warm, waving grass.Esperanza smiled. She began to consider names for the fiesty gray colt. Cougar? No, if she called him, it would scare the others. She thought of his steel colored coat and his emerald eyes. Just like the wolf-dog at the cavalry! "Wolf, his name will be Wolf!" She thought pridefully. She nudged him again, and he grudgingly got up with a disgruntled snort. She began to lead him to the herd, but he began to race ahead and she nervously ran after him. Surprisingly, she realized he was following her scent from the night before. Her heart swelled with pride and she followed him until he froze in wonder on a hill overlooking the small herd. She trotted up beside him and nuzzled him "Home." She whispered to him. He happily perked up and followed energetically as Esperanza raced to her herd. The lead stallion and her mate, Strider, looked proudly at young and beautiful Esperanza and his first son. He met Esperanza at the base of the hill and nuzzled her lovingly. He looked at Wolf, who was lingering nervously behing Esperanza. "He's so handsome." Strider said fondly. "His name is Wolf." Said Esperanza. Strider led Esperanza and Wolf to the small, curious herd. They nickered soft welcomes to little Wolf. Other foals looked on nervously from behind their dams. Strider took his lookout post and Esperanza began to chat with the others dams. Wolf lingered nervously on the edge of the herd. Refusing the offers of playing from the other foals, he amused himself by watching the eagle and other birds flying in the distance, looking for shapes in the clouds, and observing the play-fights of the other colts.

2 years later...

Wolf stood nervously at the edge of the herd, the others ignoring him. He had become a lanky, long-legged two year old, not particularly handsome or cool to the other foals. As he snorted softly in amusement at a foal slipping in the mud and getting up laughing, an eagle silently alighted on a low branch next to him. Wolf gasped and widened his eyes in fear. The eagle squaked loudly, and the herd whinnied for him to get away. As a foal Strider had been attacked by an eagle, and now everyone was terrified of them too. Wolf nervously and slowly backed away, terrified. His sire had personally told him the terrifying tale of him and the eagle. Esperanza screamed and tried to run to him, but the mares kept her back for her own safety. The eagle spread his left wing and revealed a small bit of bone poking out from the feathers. Now, Wolf understood. The bird only wanted a friend to help. The herd screamed in renewed terror as Wolf calmly went back to the eagle. He stood next to the low branch and invited the bird onto his back. It cautiously stepped onto him and picked a burr gently from his mane. He ignored the pain in his back from the eagle's talons. Wolf walked calmly to his herd and nickered to them. "It's okay, he is hurt. He just needs a friend to help him heal." Strider looked at the eagle perched awkwardly on Wolf and shook his head in disbelief. He sighed and held his nose out to the eagle. The eagle butted the top of his head against Strider's nose. The younger foals giggled at the strange pair.

From that day on, the eagle and Wolf grew to be the best of friends. The eagle had healed completely, but had not left like Wolf had thought. Instead, the powerful bird stayed and refused to be carried by any horse but Wolf. The younger foals looked up to him.

"Wolf!" Esperanza called. Wolf rolled his eyes and began to gallop to his mother. He had been racing the eagle as usual, but would not make his dear mother wait. She nuzzled him affectionately and looked deeply and happily into his eyes. "Wolf, you're going to have a little brother or sister this Spring!" She said happily. Wolf smiled and nuzzled her growing belly. That night, He stood next to her and Strider, watching the stars and imagining his unborn sibling. Would they be friends?

The next day, Wolf woke as the eagle landed on him, smelling off freshly killed mouse. Wolf wrinkled his nose and snorted. The herd was soon rounded up and they began to travel to the river to drink. He sniffed the cold, wet air and snorted out a cloud. The foals laughed hysterically at that and tried to imitate him. Wolf rolled his eyes and trotted ahead to his father. Soon the eagle began to pace and make a sound between squacking and growling on Wolf's back, and Wolf looked at Strider, confused. Suddenly they heard it. The unmistakable pounding of a buffalo stampede. Strider screamed for the herd to go back, but soon the buffalo were on them. Strider was crushed and in thier terror, the buffalo began to sweep Wolf along with them. The eagle screeched frantically and tried to help Wolf, but Wolf was in the middle of a herd of buffalo. "Look after my unborn sibling, eagle! Train him, help him, and be a friend to him, like you were to me!" Wolf called over his shoulder as the buffalo swept him along. The eagle gave a final, long, mournful cry and veered away to try and console Esperanza, who was screaming in desperation.

Wolf was forced to gallop along until sunhigh, but then the buffalo slowed and the herd spread out more, and he was able to gallop into a sparse forest to rest. He sighed, knowing he was very, very far from home. Then his head shot up and he smiled. A Scent Trail! He only had to follow the trail of the buffalo backwards to get back to the river! Forgetting his weariness, he galloped to the Scent Trail.

As Wolf followed the trail, a strange scent wafted to him as the wind direction changed. The scent of a stallion right behind him! He whirled around and whinnied fearfully. The stallion screamed a challenge, but Wolf shook his head and whinnied fearfully again. The stallion suspiciously circled him and warily looked him in the eye. "You look barely older than two years. You should still be travelling with your birth herd." He stated suspiciously. "I-I-I w-wanted to, b-b-but the buffalo drove me away a-a-and killed my sire." Wolf stammered, terrified of the strong stallion. The stallion's expression softened. "My father was killed when I was a young too." He said quietly. "You look terrible. You have gashes on you back and you seem exhausted. Come to my herd and rest. Even if it rained all night, the buffalo stench would not fade." The stallion said with a small smile. Wolf stepped forward and smiled shyly too. He suddenly realized that his back was aching. Eagle must have torn his back as Wolf was swept away. "My name is Marrone. What's yours?" Marrone asked. "My name is Wolf."

Marrone led Wolf to a tiny herd in a barely-there forest, who gaped at the yearling's scars. Marrone led him to a small lake with waving grass. "You should rest. But first, what on earth gave you those injuries?" Wolf blushed. "My best friend did... By accident!" He exclaimed. "Looks like talon marks to me..." Marrone said. Wolf wearily nodded his head. His legs and wounds were burning. Marrone looked amazed but he reluctantly let Wolf rest. Wolf sighed and layed down, homesick already.

The next morning, Wolf's scars were burning. They itched like crazy, and put Wolf in a bad mood. Marrone soon came, most likely to question Wolf about the talons. Wolf tried to get up, but fell back with a cry of agony. Marrone galloped over and sniffed the wounds. "Infected..." He whispered to himself. He quickly helped Wolf get up and held him up. He pressed his muzzle to Wolf's forehead. "Fever..." He muttered. He and Wolf stumbled along, and Marrone met with a brown mare from his herd. "His scars smell infected and he has a fever... The indians are the only ones who can help him now." Marrone sighed and continued to stumble along with Wolf and they came to the crest of a hill, revealing an indian camp. Marrone neighed urgently to a silver stallion who galloped up looked questioningly at Wolf, who was now unconcious and shuddering with each labored breath.