Sled Dogs

Chains

I stayed a part of Snowy's pack for a while. I never trusted her but considered myself a pack mate.  It wasn't long until Snowy formed a rivalry with Sapphire. I stayed off the radar for as long as I could during the fighting. It was only a matter of time until I'd be sucked into it, though. 

Snowy and I were practicing running on some free time when we smelt the scent of another dog. Snowy snarled, so I sniffed the air again. It was the unmistakable scent of sapphire. I wasn't happy to see her. Snowy certainly had a right to hate her, but this wasn't the usual feisty Sapphire I knew.

"I'm done fighting, Snowy," she addressed Snowy.

"Yeah right," Snowy growled. "I'm supposed to believe that?"

"Yes. I give up," she replied calmly. "Do what you want with me."

Snowy smirked and started searching for something. She asked me for a chain so I handed her one. I figured that she would march around Sapphire on a chain leash to humiliate her. I was so incredibly wrong. 

Snowy wrapped the chain around Sapphire's neck, but left two long hanging parts of the chain. This is where I started growing suspicious. She handed one to me and I accepted it. Are we both going to lead her, I wondered. Snowy stood on the opposite side of Sapphire and I realized what was happening. 

"Pull on the chain on the count of three," Snowy instructed me.

"One..."

"Two..."

"Three!"

We started pulling and the chain squeezed tighter around Sapphire's throat, cutting off her air. I squeezed my eyes shut and tried not to think about what I was doing. Tears stung my eyes, I felt cruel and heartless. Sapphire choked and sputtered. She gasped for air she knew wasn't coming. I turned my head toward her and I lost it. Tears rolled down her cheeks and her legs began to go limp. I was horrified.

The chain clattered to the floor. Snowy's head snapped in my direction, her eyes filled with fury.

"What are you doing!?" she screamed at me.

"Do it yourself. I won't connect my name to a crime as cruel as this."

Snowy picked up my side of the chain and began pulling. Sapphire's short break for breath was over. Snowy glared at me as she kept tugging. I looked down and away. Then I heard a small, weak yelp from Sapphire.

I lunged at Snowy and she dropped the chain. Her eyes widened in shock. I pushed her away and ran towards Sapphire. I yanked the chain off her neck. I could see where it had rubbed her skin raw, and some places even had blood. She fell to the ground limp, trying to catch her breath. I turned back towards Snowy and growled warningly. She stayed back.

"You're a traitor, Blizzard," she said disgustedly.

"A traitor? Or someone with morals?" I shot back. "Nobody deserves to be choked to death. Not even Sapphire."

"You've got one more chance," she warned me. "Or else you're out of here."

"Fine by me," I retorted.

I helped Sapphire leave the area and get somewhere safe for her. After that incident, she's been terrified of chains. Most dogs don't like chains, but I've never seen a dog look at a chain with such terror. She almost died by a chain. I started to phase out of Snowy's pack and more towards Sapphire's. They both had done some horrible deeds, but some were just too unforgivable. So, I joined Sapphire and became quite close with her.

And I fell into another rabbit hole of drama.