I DO NOT OWN GINGA DENSETSU WEED OR HANK THE COWDOG!

Snort was bored out of his mind. There was absolutely nothing to do aside from fighting and howling. Chief Gut payed little no attention to him, even though he and his brother Rip were Scraunch's right hand men. Missy Coyote was still hoping for that traitor Hank to come back, even though that bastard "Hunk" never fulfilled his promise.

The coyote's stomach growled hungrily and, following his literal gut instinct, Snort took off into the vast desert of Coyote City. He sniffed the ground, trying to see if he could find any footprints around. His ears tried to pick up the slightest sounds, finally hearing a confused young boyish voice. "Where am I?"

Snort's nose instantly recognized the scent – a dog! And determining the young voice the dog was probably no less than a year old. He raced off into the direction of the voice and saw something unbelievable. Gazing at him with confusion and friendliness was a strangely blue-furred puppy.

Snort's stomach rumbled, but the thought of eating something with blue fur just didn't settle right with his mind. Besides, this was a puppy – a confused and lost puppy no less.

"Hello, sir," the puppy said with a smile that literally melted Snort's heart. "Who and what are you?"

Snort regained his composure and responded, "Name Snort. Coyote. Who are you?"

The puppy told him, "I'm Weed, the Leader of Ohu."

"What mean Ohu?" Snort asked, becoming more curious and open-minded. "Why puppy's fur blue?"

Weed replied, "Ohu is a Paradise for wild dogs. My fur is a Tora-Ge, Tiger Stripe."

Snort had to laugh. "That berry funny," he chuckled. "Snort no see Tiger Stripe."

"They faded when I was a puppy," Weed responded with the same friendly smile. He looked around in curiosity. "Though I can't seem to find a way around Coyote City." His sky blue eyes stared at the coyote with curiosity. "Can you help me?"

Snort's eyes widened in joy, something that only usually happened when he was fighting with his brother Rip. Or when he had made a kill. But this was a new type of joy, one that made him beam with a smile that equally matched the puppy's. "Yes, Weed," Snort replied. "Snort help puppy. Snort show puppy around Coyote City."

With that Snort headed off into the desert with the puppy – his possible new friend – following close behind him.

Hank sniffed at the air curiously. It seemed so deathly quiet, even on his ranch. It could have been the perfect opportunity, he thought, for a coyote to come in a sneak a calf. However, as he continued to sniff the air, even he couldn't catch a whiff of a coyote's stench lurking about.

Maybe someone had finally killed those bastard calf-killers, he thought triumphantly. Unfortunately, he also thought about Missy Coyote – the very first coyote he ever met. The very first coyote who had ever been friendly to him. The very first coyote whom he had saved and she'd done the same for him. And he had promised that he'd return to Coyote City. And slightly regretted that he couldn't have had kept that promise.

Missy was nowhere beautiful as Beulah, but she had made him see that not all coyotes were bad. He could have been her mate, had Beulah not have entered his life.

Suddenly, a bizarre but familiar scent drifted into his nose. He recognized whose scent it was, but he realized where it came from – a dog! He directed his nose in which way it came from and he got his answer, speaking the dreaded truth out loud, "Coyote City."

Hank didn't know what kind of dog it was or whether or not it was a trap, but he knew one thing for sure; a new adventure was about to begin.