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"It was my fault!" I yelled, jolting violently. A second later, when I my senses had come to me, I realized I was back in the hospital bed.

Just another dream. But it had happened, I just knew it. Then why did Stokes say I saved him? I wondered.

I sat quietly for a while, and eventually I was able to pick the reality from the dream. One time, we did indeed get stuck inside our tank for a while, and Stokes did catch his hand on the breechblock and lose two fingers; that was most of the action we saw during the Battle of Hill 214. I had held Stokes in my arms to keep him quiet, looking back on it now makes me feel awkward.

But that last part, I guess it was just his memory coming back to haunt me.

Whatever it was, it compelled me to sit in bed, fully awake, for a few hours, until a pale glow permeated the window, signalling the dawn.

I dozed intermittently until the door of my lonely room opened, and Sadie Hutchings appeared. The sunrise coming through the windows cast a lovely gleam on her auburn fur, and at the same time I smelled something that made my stomach growl. There was another smell I caught a hint of, something musky. I didn't pay that much mind, though.

"What'd you bring this time?" I asked quickly.

"You may be a Human, but you have the nose of a Canine." She cooed, mimicing what I had said the previous day.

I chuckled lightly, and sat myself up, as she sat at the foot of the bed. "Really, what is it?" I asked, my eyes fixed on a paper bag she had. I've found that when you're hungry, your sense of smell gets pretty sensitive. I could smell bread, and something else, something a bit spicy.

She didn't keep me guessing long. From the bag, she produced a thick sandwich. "Roast beef, onions, cheese and sauce on panini!" She proclaimed proudly.

"Where'd you get it?" I asked. I tried to make it sound like I was putting off eating it, out of modesty, but really I wanted to know where I could get one once I got out of the hospital.

"A classy place uptown." The Vixen smirked. "I got it on my way here this morning."

"It looks expensive." I said. Given the food rationing and all that, It must've been. "I hate for you to spend money on me..."

"Who says it's for you?" She quipped, and took a sizable bite, the juices of the sandwich spurting onto her muzzle.

I blinked, and looked at her incredulously.

She chewed for a moment "Mmm, tasty!" She said, through a mouthful of delicious panini. She looked at me smugly as she swallowed, then her face melted and she broke out laughing.

"I'm just teasin' ya!" She said, finally. "You should've seen your face, Here!" She tossed the sandwich, and I just barely caught it, preventing a big grease stain from appearing on the bedsheets.

I didn't bother protesting her taunting, or the big chunk she'd taken from the sandwich, and savagely bit into it. I reckon I was trying to eat it as fast as possible. "Gee, you eat like a Wolf too." She mused.

"I have been livin' with them for a year." I said, in between mouthfuls. Even trying to wolf it down, that was one good sandwich. "Seriously, how much was that?" I asked when I'd finished.

"13 redbacks." She said matter-of-factly. The official currency of the Balfor Confederacy, the "Redback" (nicknamed because of the crimson obverse on most) is worth a lot, backed up by tons of Mancitoman gold.

"Wow..." I said. "I oughta pay it back to you." I reached for my uniform jacket, I figured there might be some money in there. Sadie was about to raise her arms in protest when somebody knocked on the door to the room.

"Come in." I yelled. Sgt. Kent entered, dressed in street clothes and holding a duffel bag. "Hey sarge!"

"I just thought I'd drop by, I'm catching a bus in an hour to Panaville." He said.

He then looked to Sadie. "Do you mind?" He asked, motioning towards the door. I nodded to Sadie, and she left the room, looking at me through the corner of her eye as she left.

Kent's Home was in Panaville, a city in the rainy, western part of Balfor. He had a son there, and an ex-wife. I know because he used to have a picture of them taped onto the inside of the tank's turret, right below his hatch. He took it down when his wife left him. It just seemed to happen, one day he tore the photo up, and told us he didn't want to talk about it, in response to our inquisitive stares. The next time we had leave, we didn't hear from him much, I guess he was sorting out divorce papers and stuff like that.

"How's your son?" I asked him finally.

"Well, I'll find out soon." He said sullenly. I couldn't be sure whether he took offense to my asking.

"You never did tell us just what happened."

"And I don't think I will." Said Kent sourly. "Let's just say the bitch was... nevermind, fuck it. Forget I said anything."

I didn't push it any further.

"Speakin' of bitches, how's that nurse?" He whispered, a mischevious smile appearing suddenly on his face.

"What?" I was a bit taken aback. Inter-species love generally wasn't talked about.

"She's in heat, I can smell it. I'd bet my boots she's on the pills." Kent hissed, looking towards the door, as if he was expecting a vulpine ear to be pressed against it. I immediately made the connection to the musky smell I had caught a whiff of earlier.

"I don't - I mean, she's nice and all, but..."

"Come on, man." Kent admonished me. "What'll it hurt? Ya know, what Okie said last night got me thinking."

I looked at him quizically. I wasn't sure what to think, and what Okie had said last night wasn't the sort of thing that fostered good thoughts.

Kent paused for a moment, and scratched his head. "Well, to put it simply, you're just as much a dog as I am now." He glanced back at the door for a moment. "So if I were you, I'd buck up and tap that ass, 'cause if you don't, I'll look into it when I get back."

I couldn't believe what I was hearing. Kent was almost always somewhat quiet, except when he was excited, and I'd barely ever even heard him cuss before - I wouldn't have been able to picture him talking like this a week ago, even an hour ago.

But I considered what he said. Though I hate to admit it, I was a virgin then - a drawback of having rich, strict, parents. The idea began to appeal to me, but I was having second thoughts. Was this morally wrong? Did Sadie even like me that much?

"Are you sure -" I began.

"Don't worry about nothing. She's all over you, I can tell." Kent cut me off, to reassure. He then looked at his watch. "I'd best be heading out." He said. "And good luck" He added, with a jerk of his head towards the door.

He stopped suddenly. "Some of them pills, they can make bitches go psycho," He warned "Just watch yourself."

"He's all yours." I heard Kent say, from the hallway, probably with a wink to the Nurse, who was staring after him as she re-entered.

I noted the reappearance of the musky smell as she returned to her perch on the foot of the bed, now assigning it a different meaning in my mind.

"Where's he off to?" She asked.

"To see his family." I answered simply.

"And what are you going to do on your leave?" She asked, leaning closer to me.

"Not much probably. I get dirty looks walking on the streets here." I answered, recalling my last leave, where I'd nearly been arrested because a Husky had decided to pick a fight with me. I really didn't have much to do on leave. The only form of recreation I had was getting drunk - I had a friend who owned a bar in town, and he always let me have a quiet spot in back.

"What did you do last time?" She asked. Speak of the devil.

"Well, got drunk a few times. Mostly I just try to stay out of trouble." I explained.

"Sounds like a contradiction." Sadie giggled.

"Well, sometimes." I said with a smirk. "Say, I bet I could get up and leave right now, if they'd let me." I jumped up, and put my still-bandaged feet on the floor. I stood up gingerly, and was delighted to find my feet didn't hurt at all. I grabbed the pants for my uniform and pulled them on, not wanting to stand around in my underclothes.

I heard the door open, and Dr. Wright entered, just as I was buckling my belt. "Oh, up and about, already?" He said, upon seeing me.

"Yes sir." I proclaimed. "I don't feel any pain, think I'll be able to leave today?"

"Probably. The manager and the folks downstairs are getting antsy about having you in here." He said.

"Can I take these off yet?" I asked him, tugging at the bandages.

"We'll see." He got me to sit down, then proceeded to cut off the gauze, poke at my feet a few times, and when I still felt a bit of pain, he put more ointment on my feet, re-bandaged it, and told me to take them off the next day.

After I got dressed, Hutchings and Wright escorted me down to the basement of the building, encountering many a curious or surprised look on the way. It was apparent that the room I had been confined to was on the top floor of the hospital, and in a rather isolated hallway, too. The nearest rooms showed no signs of occupancy. The only evidence this floor of the building was still in use was a cluttered nurse's station, which I assumed was where Wright and Hutchings had been when not in my room.

They led me down stairs and through a room filled with lockers; one of which Wright opened, removing a bag bearing a numbered tag. He gave this to me, and upon opening it, I saw that it contained my knife, wallet, and a few other personal items.

I took the knife and slid it out of the sheath just enough to read the miniscule inscription at the base of the blade - "Respeto dal samga versita." I never knew what those words meant, not even what language they were In. I bet my father didn't either.

"Well, looks like that's cleared up." Wright said blandly as we headed back upstairs.

"Anything you left in your room?" He asked.

"I'd better check." I said, trying to make my actions look deliberate, and my voice audible, as people we passed were gawking. I think I assumed that if they saw I could indeed reason and talk, that I would be much less egregious than they were making me out to be.

"I'll go deal with the paperwork." Wright sighed, looking suddenly tired. "Take him back up, and then let him go." He said to Sadie. "Let him go" could only mean leaving the hospital.

So we returned to the room, and I pretended to comb it for any of my possessions. But really, I wanted another chat with Sadie. I was pondering how to restart our conversation, when she did it for me.

"Do they let you stay on base when you're on leave?" Asked the vixen.

"I think there's some way you can do that, but I never tried it." I answered, as I stood up from peering under the bed. If you were on leave, they generally wanted you gone, especially when you're like me.

"Then where'll you stay now?" She asked, standing next to me, tidying up the sheets.

"Well, I guess I'll have to find a flophouse to stay at." I said with a grin. "One that'll have me."

"A flophouse?" She repeated incredulously. "You could get fleas, or worse!"

"Fleas?" I said with a chuckle.

"Don't tell me you stayed in one of those places on your last leave!" She exclaimed.

"I did. Can't be much worse than sleeping in a tank with a 200 pound rotty on your lap." I spat out. In retrospect, I don't know why I said that, honestly.

"Oh, couldn't you... I mean, you could..." Her voice broke and trailed off.

"I could what?" I asked, after allowing her a moment to think.

"Well, I was going to say that... um, I was going to ask why you couldn't stay with any friends." She crooned, before pausing to catch her breath. "But then, I remembered, you probably don't have... many friends here." She looked at the floor, saddened.

"Well, I... What's wrong?" I asked.

"It just made me think, I don't really have friends either." She said quietly, almost in a whisper.

"Sorry." I said, looking away.

"No, it's not your fault you met me." She said.

I was silent for a moment. "Some people say there's no such thing as accidents." I said, softly.

Sadie might've been blushing. "Would you say we're friends then?"

"Sure."

All of the sudden, she hugged me like I was some big stuffed animal. I've already stated the disparity in our heights; now that I was wearing the oversize boots, her head burrowed into a place just below my breast. But that only lasted a few seconds, as I lost my balance and fell backwards onto the bed. Still embracing me, she fell right on top of me.

"Oh, Sorry!" She moaned, rolling off me.

"Don't worry, I don't think you weigh too much." I groaned, as I sat up.

She smiled, then laid back on the bed, right next to me. I was sitting up against the headboard, she lay flat on her back, her head twisted coyly to look up at me.

"Anyway, what was it you were saying I could do?" I asked. "Before... this."

"Oh, well..." She trailed off, and paused for a moment, scratching her head. "I was going to ask if you maybe wanted to stay with me."

All this morning, since my chat with Sgt. Kent, that nervous feeling had been building in my chest, the feeling so familiar to a shy boy finally conversing with the object of his desire.

But now, my heart nearly skipped a beat.

"I'd love to." I said, without really thinking.

She chuckled softly, then we were silent for a while. She seemed to be almost trying to fall asleep, but every time she was still for a time, she would begin to twitch, and scratch some part of her body, as if she had fleas herself. I considered asking her if she was all right, but then I recalled Kent mentioning that Sadie might be on "the pills" - a not-so-clever euphemism for heat pills: some sort of drug that causes furs to go into oestrus, a hypersexual state that they naturally go through once or twice a year (Or so I'd gathered).

I had only heard snippets about them before, and decided not to investigate further. I glanced at Sadie; there was definitely something off about her, but she certainly didn't look hypersexual. But what I was really wondering was why she might've taken a heat pill: For me?

"Sorry, that bastard Collie's been working me to death this week." She said, after a while. "I just wanted to catch any rest I could."

"Suppose we should head out now?" I asked her, looking at my watch. I guessed it had been fifteen minutes since we re-entered the room.

"Yep, we'd better." She yawned, getting up.

I followed suit, and we walked to the door.

Before we opened it and left our privacy, she looked at me in the eyes and smiled. "Meet me out front at 6 o'clock."