AN1 : Alright, so here's the next update for you all! *WARNING* In this chapter, you'll find out a little more about Dax (Arizona's Great Dane). Talks of animal abuse.

DISCLAIMER: All characters belong ( unfortunately ) to Shonda Rhimes and ABC. Though they didn't use many of these characters to their full potential, I will do my best to do so.

ARIZONA'S POV

When we reach the the storage room I start explain to Callie what I'm doing. I put her in charge of writing down the stuff we need as I count up everything we have. It takes about 30 minutes for us to finish up and now we're both sitting on the floor in the storage room, waiting on Alex to get here so we can head out, he should be here in about 20 minutes. I want to be back before 8:00, so we'll have to make this a quick trip, thankfully Dunkin Donuts and the company we buy our supplies from, are both only a few miles up the road. I was able to place our order and pay for it on the supply company's website, so hopefully my purchases will be ready and waiting when we get there. Gotta love the internet.

I'm brought out of my thoughts, when I hear Callie ask, "Hey, is Dax here today?"

"yeah, he's in my office."

"Good, I missed my baby." she says happily.

I turn and give her an amused look, then ask, "Your baby, huh?"

"Yes, my baby. Gotta problem with that?" she says playfully.

I'd rather you be calling ME baby….

"what if I do have a problem with it?" I teasingly ask.

Her expression turns serious when she says, "Then you will just have to deal with it."

Squinting my eyes at her, I say "fiiiine. But just remember, he's my baby too."

"I can do that…." she laughs out, then adds, "hey, I've actually been wanting to ask you, where did the name Dax come from?"

"Well actually I named him Daxton, but everybody calls him Dax for short….the name Daxton means 'warrior who conquers great obstacles.' Daxton was fitting for him."

I can tell she's more than a little curious, so I'm not surprised when she asks, "was he a rescue?"

Nodding my head and giving her a sad smile I say, "he was...when I found him-I don't know how he lived through what he did...it was horrible." My boy was so strong… "I rescued Dax almost 2 years ago now, he was just a puppy. His parents were both high end show dogs. You see, show dogs have standards they have to meet, if a puppy is born and has two different colored eyes or something then they can't be shown. Dax, as you already know, has one blue eye and one brown eye..have you ever noticed his paws?"

Callie shakes her head no and I continue, " ...his back left Paw is missing a toe and is partially deformed."

"Really? I've honestly never even noticed that. He doesn't walk with a limp or anything."

"Most people don't notice. I actually didn't realize it, until we got to the vet's office and the veterinarian pointed it out… Anyways, because of those things, Dax was no good to the breeders, so they chained him up to a tree and threw food and water to him every once in awhile." I look at Callie and she looks heartbroken. I haven't even got to the worst of it...

"ho-how could someone do that?" she asks. I've asked myself that a million times.

Thinking about how bad my boy was treated… it shatters my heart. Sniffling I say, "Daxton lived like that for six months. We received a call about an abused dog, and when I got there…" I take a breath as I prepare myself to finish the story, "he was just lying there barely alive, he didn't even flinch when I walked up to him and touched him. It was horrible… he was almost starved to death, covered in mud, fleas, and, and, and, blood…" I hear Callie gasp and she covers her mouth with a hand... "the chain around his neck was so tight it was starting to embed into his neck, they had attempted to crop his ears, but only did one half way and left part of his ear just hanging there…..and they had beaten him so much that they broke a few of his ribs." I wipe a tear away and I see Callie has a few of her own. "I picked him up and put him in the front seat of my jeep, driving every bit of 80 all the way to the closest Vet's office I could find. They told me he had a 20% chance of living through the night, it was a miracle that he was still breathing, but my boy was a fighter. I stayed by him the whole night, rubbing him and talking to him… I begged him to live, and promised I would give him the best life ever, if he made it."

"That's so horrible…wow, Arizona...I don't even know what to say."

"Yeah... it was the most horrific thing I have encountered since working with the rescue."

" Well, I'm glad you found him, he is the sweetest dog ever!" I smile at that and nod in agreement.

Not wanting to talk about that horrible day any longer, I jump up from the floor and say, "Alright, looks like I've done everything I need to in here." I check the time on my phone, " Alex should be here any minute now, we can leave as soon as he walks in."

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After Alex pulled in, Callie and I jumped in my Jeep, and after stopping to satisfy her caffeine cravings, we made our way to pick up the supplies. That was over 7 hours ago. After a pretty hectic morning, Callie and I are just now getting a chance to sit down for a lunch break. Everyone else else has been to lunch, and have either left for the day, or are back to working in the kennels.

"Jesus Arizona, I had no idea this place could get this crazy." My brunette lunch companion says in huff as she flops down next to me on the couch in my office.

I lightly laugh at her statement, as I reach out to rub Dax when he walks up to me. "That was pretty crazy huh?" she hums in agreement, then I say, "fortunately, it's very rare that we have these kind of days. Of course we have hectic days, but nowhere near as hectic as this morning was. The good news is, we only have one more truck to wait on." thank god! I am exhausted!

After a few seconds of not getting a response, I Look over to Callie, to see her head leaned back and eyes closed. Looks like I'm not the only one exhausted.

I can tell by her deep breathing, that Callie has fell asleep on me. I softly smile, as my eyes trail over every detail of her beautiful face. She looks so peaceful. I would love to wake up to that face every morning. To be able to kiss those lips. I bet she has the softest lips...

I shake my head to clear the not so friendly thoughts I'm having about the beautiful sleeping latina beside me. Giving one last glance to her, I mumble, "what are you doing to me?" as I stand up and make my way to my desk.

"who's doing what to you?"

I jump at the unexpected voice, and cover my racing heart with my hand, "Holy shit! You scared the hell out of me! I thought you were sleeping."

Callie laughs and says, "I was, but I woke up because I felt you watching me. That's kinda creepy, ya know." she sends me a wink, letting me know she's only joking.

I open my mouth to reply, but a loud knock and a Flustered looking Alex barging in interrupts me. Thank you Alex! "Hey boss, the last truck just got here. He needs you to sign off on the release forms." and he rushes out just as quickly as he came in.

"Well guess lunchtime is over" Callie says as she stands from the couch. I just smile a nod as she gives my shoulder a light squeeze when she walks past me and out the door. I stand in my spot for a few more seconds before I left out a huff and make my way to the door.

Get yourself together Arizona. Falling for that woman is a BAD idea...

It may be a bad idea, but it also may be a tad bit too late...

AN2: Daxton's story is sad, and unfortunately many innocent animals have experienced abuse like he did. Animal abuse happens more than we realize or would like to acknowledge, but it is a very real thing. If you see or know of an animal being mistreated, please don't hesitate to contact your local authorities or animal control. You could save their life!