Chapter 1

I do NOT own any rights to Emergency! , the series or any of its characters. The character of A.J. Whitewolf is my creation. This story is solely for entertainment purposes only, with absolutely no profit made what so ever.

It was a warm sunny day in Los Angeles County. The weather had been very cooperative the last two weeks, it was warm but not suffocatingly hot as was more the norm in August. The A-Shift of the department had just finished a rather busy and hectic one; there had been a dwelling, a three story brownstone on the edge of Carson. They had been there for several hours; the call had come in around 2AM which means they got almost no sleep at all. Among the stations there were 51 and 110.

There had been many obstacles in fighting the raging flames. The house was sitting on a large plot of land, mostly consisting of dense woods. There were also a few huge trees, almost right up against the house itself. This presented an issue from the start, how to get the apparatus, especially the ladder trucks close enough to the structure to do the most efficient and safest job. The engines could simply lay out additional hose if need be to accomplish putting wet stuff on the red stuff, however for the ladder to be able to reach to flow water or do rescues it had to be set up at a certain distance and location. Additional units were also needed to control the wild fire that ensued because of the radiant and contact heat from the fire.

Although it may not have been suffocatingly hot outside, it was still plenty warm enough to put an immense physical hardship on the rescuers. The gear they wore, complete with air pack weighed a surprising 80 pounds plus. Between the heat of the fire and the adrenaline pumping up their heart rates it made for an exhausting task indeed. House fires contain more toxic smoke than most people would imagine, since the use of household Plastic and Styrofoam the air inside a typical dwelling was even more polluted. Carbon Monoxide is dirty enough, on top of that when these materials burn it creates cyanide gas, which is simply a no no to inhale.

There had been two children entrapped in the blaze when they had arrived on the scene. The paramedics from the two squads had acted quickly retrieving the small ones. However in the process both A.J. Whitewolf and Johnny Gage had been injured. One of the main support beams from the roof had crashed down on top of them. Their perspective partners had managed to lift off the debris off of them and got them out. Neither one had been seriously hurt, the boo boos had amounted to some first degree burns on their upper backs and shoulders, nothing that a little moisturizer wouldn't help. The beam had knocked them down, the smaller debris had pinned them but also saved them from serious injury.

The kids were unharmed and that made everyone's day. In a firefighter's life there are times where their skills and dedication simply aren't enough. So whenever fortune shines upon them, they never take it for granted. The other obvious plus was that each member of their family was going home under their own power. There was no critical injuries or thank GOD deaths.

All of them were boosted by the knowledge that they had the next four days off. They could catch up on much needed sleep and then spend time in this beautiful weather, less the 80 pound gear. So when 8AM rolled around, it was quite a relief to all of them.

Many weeks ago A.J. and several of her friends had made plans to go on a weekend get a way of sorts. There was a beautiful national park just to the north and it was a perfect spot for camping and hiking. It had this huge ten mile trail of waterfalls. The group included Dixie, Joanne DeSoto, Emily Stanley, as well as Sandy McNeal, Chet's long term girl friend and Alice Denver who was dating Mike Stoker. All of the men at the 110 where she ran out of were terminal bachelors; hence the reason none of their better halves were part of the group.

She was getting her gear together at the house, when Johnny came strolling in the front door. He had moved in with her several months ago when his lease for his apartment had run out. They had been engaged for a little longer than that. Much to her family's disappointment they had yet to set a date for the wedding. It wasn't that there was any doubt for either of them, they just couldn't figure out when to make the day that worked for everyone involved. Plus there was the scheduling of the time off they would need, etc. So for now they were content on being happily in love and the rest would work itself out eventually.

His keys clanked loudly into the tray by the door where they kept them. It still made her smile the way he would do little things to announce himself when he came home. Even before she had told him about that horrific day he had done that, automatically making the effort to never startle her with his presence.

"Hi, Honey I'm home!" He shouted up the fire pole. Their home was a renovated fire house. The current one was actually located on the property bordering the back part of her ten acre lot.

While she was going away for the next four days, Gage had his own plans. Several the guys were coming over to watch the football game. Besides the men from the station there was some of the staff from Rampart as well, Drs Brackett, Early and even Morton were invited. He had even decided to extend an invitation to Craig Brice, A.J.'s partner. Although he certainly wasn't buddies with the guy, he still wanted to make him feel welcome, if for no other reason then he meant something to her. To his shock he actually said yes and thanked him.

"I'm in the bedroom, Dear!" They used the 50's sitcom phrases as an inside joke. They however certainly didn't sleep in two separate twin beds.

"You still packing? Your only going away for four days, you taking the kitchen sink too?" He teased her.

"No, it doesn't carry well in my back pack!" She shot him a look of feigned annoyance. She knew that he packed just as much for his trips, if not more. The first aid kit was what she was in the process of stuffing into her bag. It was a kit full of supplies that were above and beyond what the typical civilian one would include. Her years in the army had taught her that it was far better to be over prepared than under.

"Well I am going to have to figure out how to act like a bachelor again!" He grinned, thinking about what she looked like under her shorts and tank top. Before he met her the thought of being so completely and utterly lost in love was something that had scared him.

"Yeah, I guess Roy and the guys will have to help you suffer through it!" One of the great things about their relationship was that they thoroughly enjoyed spending time together but were more than secure enough to spend time apart, with other people.

A familiar grin then brightened up her face, "Oh yea, I haven't properly thanked you for playing nice and inviting Craig to your little shindig...." She slid up to him and planted a deep, passionate kiss on him.

"Well it's not necessary but if you have your heart set on it, who am I to stop you?" He shoved the suitcase and back pack off the bed, and embraced her with his strong masculine arms.