*** Contains some original script dialogue***
After Michaela had made breakfast she cleaned up and gathered all the tools she would need for the garden. Finding an apron to protect her dress, she walked out to the area beside the house. This is where she wanted her garden to be, easily accessible to her medicinal plants as well as other plants for food. She picked up the garden hoe and its metal edge fell solid against the hardened soil. She stopped, from the first strike she knew this would not be easy, and she wished Sully would have stayed to help her. This was ultimately her garden though and she had decided it was a necessity, she would take the responsibility for it. She worked at clearing some of the grass first. It had taken her a little over an hour and she still wasn't done. She wanted to get started with the soil. Lifting the hoe again she let it fall. The results were similar to before and knowing she had a long day ahead, she lifted the end again.
A while later she had made minimal progress, but it was progress, and she moved to the next area. Slowly she worked to free the soil. The sun was starting to warm everything and deciding to go in the house for a drink of water, she set her tools down and walked up the steps. Colleen was in the kitchen getting a cup of milk and realizing her mother was also heading for the cups, she sat one down on the countertop for her. "You look like you need a break." Colleen smiled and Michaela smiled back. "Yes Colleen, the soil is much more solid than I thought it would be, but that is the best place for a garden so that's where I'm putting it." Colleen took a drink from her cup and looked at Michaela, " I kind of thought Sully might help you with the garden?" Michaela looked at the water in her cup and simply said, "He needed to find Cloud Dancing to tell him about the reservation at Palmer Creek. It's important to him, he had his own things to take care of today. I do wish he was here though." She looked at Colleen and smiled. Michaela set the cup down and gathered her things, this time she went to her room and found a hat to block the sun. Walking down the steps of the front porch, she turned to the left to begin her work again. But movement from the trees caught her eyes, and it was Sully on his horse making his way quickly back to the house. As he got closer, she saw why. Cloud Dancing was holding on to Sully as they made their way closer to the barn. Quickly racing back up the steps she dropped the hat, opened the door to the house, and said, "Colleen I need your help, Brian go get my doctor's bag." She turned and rushed back down the steps to the barn. Sully was getting off his horse and Cloud Dancing slid down the side as Sully helped him and then guided him into the barn on his shoulder. Michaela followed quickly behind them. Brian brought her medical bag, and she quickly found her forceps and extracted the bullet from him. After watching for a moment Colleen asked what had happened. Sully told them all that bounty hunters had ambushed them. Brian quickly exclaimed, "Ambushed?" It was then that Cloud Dancing felt comfortable enough to respond, "I'm worth five hundred dollars." Michaela knew that whatever had happened in the woods had been dangerous for both men. She briefly paused as she readied her needle to finish the sutures in Cloud Dancing's arm.
Finishing up, she left Colleen to dress the wound and walked outside with Sully. They needed to talk. Cloud Dancing was, after all, still a wanted man. Michaela waited until they left the barn and looked up at him. Before she could form another thought, she saw the blood on his lip, and it worried her that she hadn't noticed before now. It worried her that he had also been a part of this fight that had left their friend unfortunately afflicted. She reached for his face, but he stopped her as she said, "Your lip's bleeding." His lip had bled many times before they were married, but this time she was deeply troubled about it. Not wanting to make a big deal about it, he quickly said, "It's alright." She sighed. Michaela inquired about Cloud Dancing and what would happen to him, and Sully explained that he had told him about the reservation. They both knew that it was the only safe place for him to go, but Michaela had more meaning in the question as she asked it. "Will he go?" She did want him to be safe, she did care deeply, but she also knew that if he went, the likelihood of Sully being hurt would be drastically reduced. She hoped that her own wishes would also be realized. Sully was quick to answer, worried about his friend. "I don't know." Feeling guilty that she had hoped for her own outcome, that maybe there would be no question as to if he would go, she stared into the distance. She was afraid of the future and Sully's place in that future. Sully noticed she was deep in thought, and she had pulled ever so slightly away as she did so. He could see the worry on her face, so he asked, "What's wrong?" Not realizing that her emotions were so readable, that she was deeply troubled by the current uncertainty, she softly sighed and said, "Nothing, I'm just glad you're alright." She wanted to remind him that this was a very dangerous ordeal he would be placing himself into. They embraced as she placed her head against his chest. " You could have been killed out there." She held him close. Now she was thinking about their relationship, of everything she had to lose. She had only just found this happiness in her life, after waiting for so long. Sully didn't want to make a big deal about what had happened, and he realized that Michaela was reacting in a much different way than she had before. It was true, she had kept her distance before, even with their feelings for each other, but she didn't feel that distance between them anymore. She only knew that she loved him with everything she had, and now she would worry about anything that would threaten that reality. He tried to reason with her knowing she was right, "It's not the first time I've almost been killed, probably won't be the last either." She tried to control how upset she was, how easily he could have been taken from her. "Yes…..Yes I know," she breathed out slightly exasperated, "Well things are different now, somehow the thought of losing you is even….. even more devastating." She pressed her face against him, and she was on the verge of tears, not her usual reaction to adversities. Sully was concerned and he wanted to reassure her. He softly said, "Don't worry, reaching to her face to bring her lips to his, he gently kissed her, but it wasn't a full kiss. For good reason, he had avoided the side of his lip that had blood on it, and after quickly kissing her he said, "You're not going to lose me." His arms moved around her and he rubbed his hands over her, but the moment it left his lips left her looking in disbelief, staring at his face but also avoiding his eyes. Michaela knew better than to believe the confidence he now displayed, she'd seen many people die, and they had displayed the same confidence. This was more than he could promise, even if he believed it. Feeling like she couldn't contain how upset she was, she pulled away and found a reason to leave him, so he wouldn't see that she didn't believe in promises that couldn't ever be true, even if he himself believed it to be so. "Cloud Dancing must be hungry, I'll get him something to eat." As she walked away with her back to him, the tears overcame her eyes and then they slowly streamed down her face. She walked into the homestead, shut the door and leaned against it. She couldn't do this right now. Wiping her tears, she went to the kitchen and found something for their friend to eat.
When she returned to the barn, Sully had been talking with Cloud Dancing. His intuition told him that Sully and Michaela had not yet found their place as a couple. Cloud Dancing had tried to talk with him, but Sully had just gone back to talking about Palmer Creek. When Michaela entered the barn Cloud Dancing noticed the slight redness in her eyes as she kneeled and handed him the food. He noticed the slight strain in her voice as she tried to be the responsible doctor. "You need to eat, please, to help you get better, but also because I know you have been out on your own hiding. It can't be easy for you." She handed him the plate, "if you need anything, I'll just be right outside working on my garden." He thanked her, and she quickly got up and left. The next day after coming back from town, Michaela was working in her garden area. Cloud Dancing was feeling much better, and he brought Sully his knives as he stepped outside, admiring the sun and their beautiful home. He needed to talk to Sully and he needed to decide about his future. Observing Michaela's labored efforts, he approached Sully, handing him the knives he had asked to be sharpened. "The soil is hard." Sully looked over, "She wants her garden, nothing's going to stop her." He found a knife in the bag and dropped it again. "The marriage is good?" Sully nonchalantly said, "Yeah, it's great." He didn't see what Cloud Dancing was getting at, but that answer sounded more like an answer that he would give to Jake. Cloud Dancing turned to him, he needed to be a little more direct with what he saw. " It took many months for Snowbird and I to realize we no longer rode separate horses." Sully looked away, down to the ground. Maybe he was starting to understand what Cloud Dancing was trying to say. He had always guided him, he was guiding him now, and honestly Sully was hoping to continue this mentorship with his friend.
Sully's father had died when he was young, it was only when he started living with the Cheyenne, that he had found guidance, instead of always having to use his own judgment. He did appreciate Cloud Dancing's wisdom. Before he could say anything, Cloud Dancing spoke. He talked of leaving and Sully once again tried to convince him that going to Palmer Creek was his best option. Sully couldn't say anymore, he had spoken his peace about Cloud Dancing's safety, and the injury being a sign. He just walked away to let his words linger. At this moment while Cloud Dancing thought over his decision, he heard the sound of Brian's flute. He recognized the song too, it was one he had taught No Harm, before Brian and No Harm had become friends, before No Harm had tragically died at Washita. He walked over to let Brian know that he enjoyed what he heard. Brian had surprised him with the still strong feelings that he displayed for his friend, a friend that no longer lived physically in their lives. "Sully says every time I play it, it keeps his song alive." That was Cloud Dancing's sign, he didn't want Sully to have to deal with the uncertainty of his death, he needed to be here, to help him, to guide him. As true as Brian's statement was, it wouldn't bring back his friend, and Cloud Dancing realized that the same would happen for him and Sully. He walked back over to Sully. Michaela could tell that Cloud Dancing had made a decision, and she hoped that she would get what she wanted when it came to Sully helping to conceal a wanted man. She breathed a sigh of relief as she saw him speak, and Sully looked at her, then back to Cloud Dancing and smiled. He had decided to go to Palmer Creek.
Sully left to take Cloud Dancing to Palmer Creek, and Michaela went into town with the children. She had finished an appointment at the clinic, and she was talking with the townsfolk about Preston, the new banker. Horace was at his mercy considering he had bought a new carriage, wrecked it, and now needed to repair it. With the amount of money he owed, it looked as though he would be making payments to Preston for quite a long time. It hurt him mostly because Preston hadn't fully explained the consequences in terms that Horace could understand, and therefore Horace had not fully realized the consequences of his loan. Preston was not willing to budge either. As he told Michaela about his troubles with Preston, Michaela wished she could consult Sully over all the issues the town was having with the new banker. She would have to fight this problem alone. It reminded her of the time she had to help the town while Sully confronted the buffalo hunters. He had been beaten rather severely back then and it only made her worry about him more as she considered the uncertainty associated with helping the Cheyenne. Afterall, they were much closer now. It wasn't like she wasn't as worried before, she had the deepest feelings for him, but now he was a part of her very existence. She had never been fully aware of what she didn't have in her life. To her, everything was settled as soon as she had become a successful doctor, but the feelings she had for him from the moment they saw each other only grew stronger and stronger. Now she couldn't imagine losing their love. That was what she needed more than anything, and he was a part of her now. He occupied a significant part of her that never existed before. It made her stronger as a person, but at the moment she was feeling a little conflicted, and weak. She needed to think, she hoped Sully was home, and she very much wanted to go home to ease the burden of responsibility she had encountered. She found Brian and Colleen and they started home. Much to their surprise, Preston was on the side of the road near the kissing tree when they made their way through the countryside. Through his arrogance, they had discovered that he had bought the land, and he had plans to cut down the kissing tree. This was a great oak that the townsfolk adored for its sentimental value. Just as quickly as she had found blissful happiness on her honeymoon, it was now being taken away piece by piece. It made her uncomfortable.
When they arrived at their new homestead, she went into the house to see if Sully was back yet, but he had not returned. She remained calm, she knew he was very capable of handling any situation he may come across. Surely he was fine, but the more she wondered, the more unsure she became. The more unsure she became, the more she wondered about her marriage and what it was quickly becoming. They were so very close on their honeymoon, and she knew it couldn't be that way forever, but as the days continued it felt like Sully was pulling away from her and she longed for the connection they had established between them. She was trying so very hard to fulfill all her roles as a doctor, mother, wife, and lover, and Sully felt so far away. They needed to talk but she didn't want to force him to conform, that certainly hadn't been her goal when she married him. She heard a horse outside, maybe that was him.
When she stepped out of the door, she saw a small black carriage to the side of the barn, and she tried to remain calm as she moved to the open doors of the barn calling out for reassurance that everything was alright. She hoped against everything that no one had been injured again and she needed answers as her mind raced to the worst conclusion she could imagine for a stranger's horse and carriage to be sitting next to their barn. Calling out for Sully, she had a sinking feeling in her stomach.