Silver and Cold |h.s.|

Prologue: Setting Sun

July 15th, 2017

The sun here was a different kind of scorching hot than the one back home. Here it was a sweltering 92 degrees Fahrenheit and back home it was a delightful 78 degrees.

There was something about the fact that he was also wearing his fatigues, with a camel colored backpack swung up onto his shoulder, in the middle of a hot desert surrounded by mountains that added to the amount of sweat that was accumulating in every part of his body.

Harry, more than anything, just wanted to be home.

This wasn't his first tour to the Middle East, nor would it probably be his last. There had been talk of pulling the Army out now that peace negotiations had settled between the Taliban and U.S. Government but Harry knew better than to get his hopes up.

He had joined up right in the middle of college.

Harry, having dual citizenship, had pleaded his case to his mother. He wanted to join and do something to help. He felt it in his soul that there was something he was meant to do and although she couldn't understand it, Anne had supported her son's decision.

Harry was a stubborn child after all and when he had his heart set on something, Anne knew he would eventually get his way.

So here Harry was, almost four years later, standing in the middle of a hot desert, fighting some previous president's war, and wondering why he'd ever thought he needed to be a part of this in the first place.

If there was one good thing that came out of his time in the military though, it was Blaze.

Once he'd first settled into military life, he'd seen emails about recruiting for K-9 training and something inside of Harry had clicked into place.

He'd applied the next day.

Blaze was just a pup when Harry had landed his emerald gaze upon him. He'd been all floppy ears and large paws with the signature coloring of a German Shepherd.

Harry had fallen in love immediately.

Blaze was a rambunctious sort of puppy, as most were, but he had a certain spunk that came with him that had taken Harry by surprise. 

Blaze had taken up a space in Harry's heart that he hadn't realized was missing. It started when Blaze had cried at night from the confines of his crate and Harry just didn't have it in him to let him stay out there, training or not. 

He knew that by letting Blaze into his bed with him that he was breaking the golden rule, but Harry didn't see the harm in it. After all, he needed to gain Blaze's trust, right?

Blaze had been so easy to train, earning high marks in every session and when the CIA approved him for working along side Harry in uncovering bombs while in the field, Harry had been absolutely beside himself. 

He realized that Blaze had been the calling he'd been looking for. 

Looking back on it now, Harry can't really imagine a time before his beloved furry friend and he doesn't want to envision a time after him but he knows eventually that day will come. It won't be for a long time from now but still, if Harry looks at Blaze for too long he feels himself get really emotional about it. 

Harry only had a year left in his contract with the Army and he had plans to finish up college and maybe explore music. He'd always had a passion for it and could usually be found at the compound by the fire, plucking at his lucky guitar. It was something that naturally came to him and he hoped one day that he and Blaze could have a home with a fireplace where he could play to his heart's content. 

"Oi, Styles!" A voice called out across the expanse of the compound making Blaze perk up by his feet.

"What is it?" He yelled back and sure enough, his squad leader was calling for him to join the group as they huddled together in one of the shelters set up inside the confines of the compound. 

"Come on boy." He patted Blaze on the back and off they went to discover what their next mission would be. 

~~~~~

The mission was simple but had plenty of room for errors. 

The team was to evacuate as many civilians from a village just outside of Kabul. There were communications off and on all night and well into the day about possible scenarios of ambush but the plan was to send them in, let Blaze scavenge the area for bombs so that they could keep an eye out towards the hills and abandoned buildings for enemy fire. 

Harry placed a hand on Blaze, running it protectively over his vest to make sure everything was as it should be. He pulled his companion's long snout between his hands, and looked deeply into his big brown eyes. 

"Just like all the other times before. Get in, get out, and we go home bud." Blaze wagged his tail obediently and let out a small whine before sitting down and giving Harry the look that meant business. 

"Voraus. Such." Go out. Track. Harry spoke the commands and watches as Blaze carefully maneuvers out from behind the trees and trots over to the entrance to the village, his head low as he surveys and sniffs the surrounding areas. 

So far, so good. 

Harry could hear chatter on the radio from his squad leader's vest. Communications still coming through that there were several civilians still trapped inside a few of the homes but Harry had eyes only for Blaze. 

Blaze skirted the remains of what used to be a car, his head low to the ground and Harry was about to give the all clear when it happened. 

His green eyes watched as Blaze moved to round the car, his nose to the ground, and then there was an explosion that came from Blaze's back left foot, closest to the vehicle. 

Harry hadn't even blinked but he, along with his team, were knocked back from the blast and the sound rang in his eardrums. A piercing, high frequency was radiating through his ears as he tried to let his mind catch up to what he'd seen. 

Blaze. 

Suddenly, there were gunshots coming from everywhere. It was as if it were raining bullets but Harry didn't care about them. All he saw was his best friend laying motionless in a pool of blood. 

"BLAZE!" He shouted, his voice practically gone as he defied his team leader's calls and ran out from the tree line and towards the lifeless form of his companion. 

Harry tore through the dirt, his backpack flung who knows where as he frantically ran the several feet towards his dog. 

He had just reached him when something ripped through his hip, causing him to cry out and drop to the dirt. He could feel warmth pooling and making his pants stick to his leg as he crawled the last bit to his furry friend. 

Harry pulled Blaze towards him, far heavier than he'd ever been before, and cradled him to his chest as his team screamed and shouted for him to come back as the steady gunfire sounded throughout the village.

But Harry couldn't hear them. 

A piece of Harry died in that moment.

As his blood seeped from the wound in his hip and mixed with the blood of his best friend, Harry knew that nothing would ever be the same.

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Author's Note:

Soooooo I'm not crying........

-Balletclutz