Dealing with Delta

It was evening by the time a certain painted dog finally returned to Nick's tower. The day had been surprisingly uneventful. Well, if you didn't count the scene between Delta and Trisha. And the tranquilizer induced dream. And let's not forget waking up in bed with Trisha laying on top of him as well. So maybe the day had been eventful after all. Thankfully things quieted down with the departure of Delta and Trisha.

Judy had reported that the telephone cable had been repaired and asked Nick what he had been up to. The fox had lied and had regaled her with tales of his adventurous time staring out his window. He felt bad lying to Judy but he wanted to keep his cards close to his chest for the moment. Judy had no idea he had come across Trisha and Delta getting rather heated in the woods. She was also unaware that Delta had accidently tranqed Nick in an act of self-defense when the fox charged at him, and he intended to keep it that way. A lot was riding on his chance at convincing Delta to go along with his plan.

"I don't know, I am sure the city looks beautiful at sunset. All we have are a bunch of trees," Judy said over the radio, continuing the friendly debates the two had been having about the scenery.

"Well maybe when the summer is over we can go and compare the sights," Nick suggested slyly when he heard a series of footsteps begin to ascend his tower. At first Nick was a little nervous and eyed the windows to his tower. It wasn't until he saw Delta appear that he relaxed. "Hey Judy, I have to take care of something, I'll talk to ya in a bit," Nick said hurriedly as he waved the painted ranger into the tower.

"Nick if you have to go poop you can just tell me," Judy said playfully over the radio. Nick chuckled at the comment.

"I'll talk to you later," he repeated which signaled the end of the conversation. Nick then set the walkie down and nodded at Delta.

"How's the chest?" Delta asked as he strolled over to the kitchen area and pulled a canteen from his belt. The ranger set down his pack on the floor and waved the empty canteen over at Nick and then nodded to the water jug on the counter.

Nick nodded and smiled, "help yourself."

"Thanks, worked up quite a thirst."

"For a dog that went to dunk a certain bunny in the lake you sure don't look very wet," Nick pointed out as he raised an eyebrow.

Delta had been taking a swig from his recently filled canteen and the fox's words caught him off guard. The canine began to cough up some water and took a minute to collect himself. "Oh, well I didn't get very wet?" The canine said with a weak smile.

"You two never made it to the lake, did you?" Nick asked with an evil grin.

"Got as far as the comfort station," Delta admitted with a wink. "Those bunnies…when they want it they really want it!"

Nick rolled his eyes, "I'll take your word for it. So where is Trisha anyways?"

"Well after having some fun at the station she had to head south to check on a local summer camp. She will be back through the region later heading back to our main base. I, however, have to check in with a science team nearby so I am your primary."

"Wait…" Nick began to process all the information and looked at Delta nervously. "What is it you did at the comfort station?" Delta just grinned which caused Nick to grow even more nervous. "Which shower did you use?!" He asked in a mild panic.

"We normally use stall 7 since it's the perfect size for me and…" Delta trailed off as he studied Nick's horrified expression. The fox began to gag and rushed over to his bed and produced the confiscated bottle of liquor. "What in the..." Delta mumbled as he watched the fox take a rather large swig. "You ok?"

"Stall 7 is built for mammals our size!" Nick explained as he took another swig, "which means…"

Delta suddenly roared with laughter and shook his head. "Ok before you end up drinking so much you pass out just know this was the first time in that stall..." The painted dog began to explain but it didn't do much to calm the fox who just rolled his eyes. "Plus, we cleaned up afterwards I promise!"

Nick wasn't convinced and made a mental note never to use stall 7 again. Maybe not even use that comfort station again. He was suddenly tempted to see just how far the next one was. Of course, he could always use that waterfall he found out in the meadowlands. Or maybe just skinny dip in the lake.

"First you tranq me, now you mess up my comfort station." Nick asked with a playful tone. The painted dog scoffed and folded his arms. "What next? Gonna burn down my tower? Put me out of a job?"

"First off it's my job to protect the forest, not burn it down," Delta said with a laugh. "Second, if your tower did burn down they would probably reassign you. Maybe even double you up with another watcher so there is a 24 hour tower."

A new idea popped into Nick's mind. If he lost his tower then maybe he could request to be transferred over to Judy's tower. The thought of no longer needing a radio during their long talks was very tempting. Nick looked out his tower window towards Judy's tower. Delta must have read his mind however.

"Don't you be getting any ideas now lover fox!" Delta laughed.

Nick took in a deep breath and remembered why he had asked Delta to come by in the first place. He set the nearly empty bottle back down under his bed. The spirits starting to take hold as he sat down on his bed.

"I actually did have an idea of sorts," Nick began. The look on the painted dogs face was priceless. "I don't mean about burning down the tower. I mean about earlier. When you said you wanted to make up for shooting me."

"Tranqing you," Delta corrected.

"You and Trisha are a great couple you know that?" Nick said slyly at the comment.

"Thank you!" Delta said, unphased by the jab. "So. What was this idea of yours?"

"I need someone to watch my tower," Nick said simply.

The entire time Delta had been in the tower, Nick had been gauging the ranger. Watching his ticks and how he worded things. Though Delta seemed friendly and a bit of a joker, he also had a no-nonsense essence about him. Nick could tell there would be no beating around the bush on this one. He would just state things simply and get to the point.

Delta smirked and a rather unsurprised look crossed his face. Nick had been right in diving right in. "Gonna go on a little hike?" The painted dog asked smugly. "Maybe head north?"

Nick said nothing. He was comfortable asking Delta to babysit his tower, but as to the real plans…he suddenly became hesitant.

"Judy is an amazing mammal. I have a feeling I don't need to tell you that," Delta began as he strolled over to Nick's desk and spun the seat so it was looking at the bed. The ranger made himself comfortable and stretched his legs out as he slouched down in the chair. "She has a lot of friends out here..."

Nick felt his ears fold back into his head. A sign of hesitation. Normally he was good at hiding his emotions but when it came to Judy he found it difficult to keep a calm and confident personality.

"Of course, none like you," Delta added which earned him a raised eyebrow. "Which is why I gotta ask ya something."

"What's that?"

"What the hell does she see in a bum like you?" Delta asked and gave Nick a wink and began to laugh.

Nick hadn't realized it but he had been holding his breath. The tension had been forming in the room but thanks to Deltas comment it suddenly dissipated. "Probably my sharp wit and charm," Nick said as he waggled his eyebrows.

"Oh gosh. Judy what are you getting yourself into?" Delta said as he rubbed his eyes. The canine took in a deep breath and then looked back at Nick. "On a more serious note, I know Trisha is very defensive of Judy. So am I. So, if you do plan to go north I expect to hear nothing but happy reports from Judy. If I call that tower and get a sad tone…"

"You won't, I promise." Nick said quickly as he looked Delta tight in the eyes. He had a feeling his word as a fox wouldn't go far but it's all he had.

"Well alright then," Delta said as he clapped his paws together. Nick was somewhat surprised that the painted dog trusted Nick so easily. "Worst comes to worst I get to watch Trisha drown you in the lake."

Nick had to remind himself he wasn't in the city anymore. These mammals were different out here. A fox wasn't treated like a fox out in these parts. He was treated like a friend. Nick felt a little worried he was letting his guard down but decided it might not be the worst thing.

"She actually gonna make it to the lake this time or are you two gonna ruin more stalls at the comfort station?" Nick asked with a smirk.

Delta nearly fell out of his chair as he burst out laughing. Nick joined in and chuckled happily. He realized he hadn't done this in a while. He didn't have many friends back in the city. Sure, he had Finnick but he didn't normally go for jokes or sharing a laugh. To be sitting here with another canine and laughing like friends, it meant a lot.

"Nick? How long does it take you to poop?!" Came Judy's annoyed voice over the radio.

Delta laughed as he looked over at the walkie on the desk. He picked it up and tossed it over to Nick. The fox gave the painted dog a friendly nod before keying up. "Well I eat a lot. Gotta have the energy for all the fires I keep having to stop. Think I am up to 3 now."

"You are up to one at most!" Judy giggled.

"How many are you up to again?" Nick asked and stuck out his tongue. Nick looked up from the walkie and saw Delta collecting his gear. Nick felt sad to see the ranger go. Which was odd. Delta secured the canteen to his belt and tapped his tranq gun before looking at Nick.

"I have some things I have to take care of before I play tower sitter. Once I have them done I will head back here. I'll talk to Superintendent Flow personally so we can keep this under wraps. Otherwise, the main office may let slip and the last thing we need is a certain someone finding out I am playing favorites." Delta said this as he nodded at Judy's tower. Nick was grateful that Delta understood the importance of secrecy. If Judy found out it might ruin the surprise. "This won't be soon mind you. Lots to do. Could be a week or two, but I will find a way"

"Thanks partner," Nick said, using the phrase he had heard the ranger use earlier.

"Don't mention it," Delta said as he patted his side arm once more. "Seriously. Don't…"

-Day 19-

"I think mind reading is over rated. The last thing I want to do is end up knowing what everyone is thinking. Especially Trisha," Judy said with a giggle.

"Ok, but think of all the stuff you would know!" Nick shot back into the radio as he continued his trek down to the lake.

"Yeah exactly! I don't want to know what is going on in Trisha's mind!" Judy shouted before laughing.

Nick rolled his eyes but had to admit Judy had a point. The two had been spending a good part of the day talking about utter nonsense. Subjects seemed to just meld together. The conversation had started at the tower discussing favorite cereals and had lead them to this conversation about what super powers they would want.

"What about you? Mind reading?" Judy asked as she caught her breath.

"Oh heck yeah!" Nick answered excitedly. "Life would be so much easier if I knew what everyone was thinking!"

"Where is the mystery though? What about being surprised?"

"I hate being surprised!" Nick shot back quickly.

"So I should cancel the stripper gram?"

"Depends who ya sent."

"Atom!" Judy suggested with a laugh.

Nick shook his head as he proceeded with his stroll. He had no real destination. He just wanted to stretch his legs and get some fresh air. "Well if it's Atom then that is just fine by me!" Nick shot back without missing a beat.

"Good, I'll tell him."

"How about ya don't but we pretend ya did?" Nick suggested.

"Awww, you will break his heart," Judy playfully pouted over the radio.

"I'm just a regular heart breaker."

"Oh really? Got all the ladies falling for ya?"

"Just the red ones," Nick said smugly as he looked off in the distance towards Judy's tower. He had climbed a stepped hill which over looked Jonesy Lake. From there he could see several landmarks. Judy's tower however was the most important one.

"Just the red one…oh wait…ohhhhh...umm..." Judy began to stumble over her words as she remembered that today she was a red panda. Nick couldn't help but notice she didn't correct the fox. There was an awkward silence over the radio. Nick looked to the east and noticed the roof of his tower just above some trees.

"Hey so I can see my tower from just about anywhere huh?"

"Oh yeah," Judy said, gaining some composure once more. "We tested out these underground towers a while back to keep them hidden. But no one could see out the windows."

Nick froze and keyed his microphone up. "Wait, underground towers?" He normally knew better and slammed the walkie to his forehead the instant the words left his mouth. Judy however was roaring with laughter over the radio.

"Oh my gosh, really?!" Judy managed to get out through all the laughter. "Like, is it always this easy?!"

-Day 23-

"No…" Nick said plainly as he looked through a pair of binoculars out into the sea of trees.

"Aww, come on!" Judy pleaded.

"No!" Nick said firmly.

"But I really want to know!" Judy said as she tried to put on a sweet tone for Nick.

"Why does it matter?"

"It just does! I really want to know!" Judy giggled.

"It's just the phrase from a stupid song!"

"A catchy stupid song."

"So annoying…"

"Me or the song?" Judy asked softly.

"Keep asking and you may get the answer."

"Awww come on Nick," Judy said in such a sweet tone the fox wondered if his walkie would taste like a cookie. "For me?"

"You really want to know?"

"YES! What does the fox say?"

"Pinecone."

-Day 32-

Nick furrowed his brow as he stood and looked out in the distance. His tower was silent except for the occasional boom in the distance.

"It's kind of beautiful when you take a moment to take it all in..." Judy's voice came calmly over the radio.

She had a point. The darkened clouds and the occasional flash of light were quite beautiful out here in nature. It made things feel somewhat lonely though. Nick had grown used to being on his own. Every day he looked out at the sea of trees and he felt like it was his own personal park. The trees just added to the tranquility.

The storm however made him feel alone. As if was just him and the impending storm. There was nothing else out here...no one. Well almost no one.

Judy was keeping an eye on the storm as it approached the region. Nick had originally thought it would be fun. The chance to maybe have a rain shower or just sit and enjoy the cool air. However it wasn't until Judy pointed out it was going to bring lighting that Nick started to realize they may be in trouble.

"So, we taking bets?" Nick asked as he saw another lighting strike in the distance. Every flash of light had the chance to spark a fire out in the distance. With every passing moment the storm came closer and closer to them and so did the chances of a forest fire.

"Oh you are on!" Judy said, sounding surprisingly chipper.

"What's the bet?"

"Oh that's right you have never been here for a storm!" Judy said excitedly as the sound of her rummaging around her desk filled the radio. "We used to play this all the time. Was kind of fun!"

"Forest fires are fun?" Nick asked nervously.

"Well no, that part stinks," Judy began to explain. "However it is something completely out of our paws. Our job is to call in fires, not stop Mother Nature and control the weather. I mean if we can stop the occasional fire that's great. But sometimes you just don't have control."

"First off, I have stopped 3 fires!" Nick pointed out. "Second, if you had taken our super power talk more seriously you would remember I wanted to control weather."

"You wanted all the super powers though! You had to pick just one."

"My super power is I have all the super powers," Nick teased as another flash of light in the distance signaled another strike. Nick held his breath and looked through the binoculars. There was no smoke trail though meaning the likelihood of a fire was minimal.

"Ok, you can keep dreaming..." Judy grumbled.

Before Judy continued Nick mumbled to himself "of you, sure thing..."

"In the meantime, I will be drawing out our betting chart for this storm...crap we need to name the storm."

"Rainy Mcstormington" Nick said confidently.

"New super power, the ability to name storms with awesome names."

"Why do I want a power I already possess?" Nick asked as he looked over his shoulder and raised his binoculars in the direction of Judy's tower. Sadly she was just out of range for him to make out anything in the tower. He had tried this before with little to no luck. He needed a more powerful pair. He made a mental note to talk to Delta about that next time the painted dog came and checked in.

"Alright so I got it all drawn out." Judy announced. "Here is how it goes. We can bet on landmarks in our regions and whoever gets the closest fire wins. If there is no fire we both win."

"So what do we win?"

"Beer?" Judy suggested.

"What about a favor?" Nick chimed in.

"A favor?" Judy asked with some hesitation. Nick worried he may have to explain that he didn't mean anything risqué or- "sure, I'm game!"

"Well that was easy," Nick mumbled.

"Yeah it was easy. Mainly because I normally win at this game!"

"We shall see."

"Yes. We will!"

Hours later the sun had set and the storm had passed. The sky overhead was devoid of clouds and the stars illuminated the valley. Not that it was necessary. The large fire out in the distance was doing a pretty good job of it.

Nick was outside his tower leaning against the railing by his door. A look of both annoyance and anger on his face. After all his hard work the past few weeks he was completely helpless when it came to stopping this fire. That was the part that angered him. What annoyed him was-

"So, remind me again," Judy's voice came over the radio gleefully. "Did you bet south of Jonesy Lake or north?"

"Hate you…" Nick grumbled.

"Because looking at my sheet here it says you bet north...but...hold on..."

"So much hate..."

"According to my compass that fire is to the South, which is where I bet."

"I am gonna dunk you in the lake."

"Better not, the fire service will be using that lake to supply the planes to fight that fire," Judy explained calmly before adding in, "which is south of the lake."

"Gonna dunk your head in a sink at the comfort station then," Nick suggested.

Judy began to giggle which caused Nick to look over his shoulder in the direction of Judy's tower.

"Tell ya what, since I am so awesome I am gonna let you name it," Judy teased.

Nick thought for a moment and then smirked as he looked back at the fire.

"How about the Judy fire?"

"Dork!"

"I was just kidding," Nick shot back quickly.

"No you weren't," Judy said softly. "Which makes it even sweeter." She was right. Why not name it after her? A little memory of their summer together watching the Judy fire glow in the night. Was almost poetic. "As much fun as it would be having a fire named after me burning up the forest I think we should name it something else."

"What's your middle name?" Nick asked as he watched the orange glow of the fire as a large smoke trail ascended into the sky.

"June..."

"The June fire it is." Nick said firmly. Driving the point home that this was the new name.

"The June fire, I like it," Judy admitted.

Nick turned around so his back was to the fire. His eyes resting on Judy's tower. The lights glowing from her window a constant reminder she was there for him. "The June fire, in July. Sounds about right."

"Oh hush. You picked the name."

The two fell into a calm silence. Nick staring at Judy's tower and wondering what the mammal inside was up to. "It's so beautiful, ya know?" Judy said quietly, apparently lost in the sight of the fire.

"Yeah, it sure is," Nick responded, still gazing at Judy's tower.

"You're looking at the fire right?"

"Nope," Nick said quickly. Not planning on hiding it.

"Nick…" Judy whispered happily. "Well when you get a chance try, pry your eyes away and just look at the June fire."

Nick turned around and stared at the orange glow in the distance. "Okay, I'm looking," Nick informed over the radio.

"I love looking at them at night ya know. It's so peaceful."

"The burning inferno is peaceful?"

"You know what I mean!"

"I do, I just like teasing you."

"I know, it's one of the things I lov-like about you."

Nick froze and felt his heart race. His eyes darted over his shoulder and then back to the fire.

"You know what I like to do on nights like this?"

"Besides talking to your handsome firewatcher?" Nick asked. Waiting to see if she corrected him in anyway. Happily, she did not.

"Well besides that. I like to go down to the river near my tower. I keep some bottles of liquor in the river so they get chilled during the day. Then on nights like this when it's so disgustingly hot I have some nice to drink."

"Why didn't I think of that?" Nick asked, a little annoyed at himself for not thinking of using some of the local streams as drink chillers.

"Dumb fox," Judy teased.

"Sly spots," Nick shot back. Hinting at her new species for the day, an ocelot.

"I like my spots! Gonna get them colored in one of these days," Judy hinted.

"Rainbow spots!" Nick exclaimed with a laugh.

The two shared a moment of laughter before the radios fell silent again.

"Nick…?"

"Yeah Judy?"

"I am glad you're here," Judy whispered.

"Me too," Nick responded.

This same sentence had been said countless times during Nick's stay at the tower. However he never got tired of hearing it. Or responding to it. He felt like the sentence was a medicine and with every use he felt better.

"I…" Judy began to speak but froze. Nick noticed the frequency was still busy so Judy had the microphone button pressed. The fox waited for Judy to finish her sentence or release the mic.

A few more moments of silence filled the radio till Judy got her courage together. "I wish I was there..."

Nick didn't even hesitate, "I wish you were here too."

Judy let out a sigh of relief as she heard Nick's response. Maybe it was his response or the way he said it. Nick noticed however a change in Judy's tone, it sounded sweet with a hint of longing.

"We could sit outside. We could talk. Without these radios. We could umm…you know..."

"What? What could we do?" Nick asked slowly. Wanting to hear the same thoughts that were forming in his mind come out of the walkie.

"Well. Let me tell you."

Hey there Firewatchers.

So first off before everyone starts attacking me about that last bit about leaving it hanging like that I just wanna explain something. That scene right there. One of the best scenes in the game. I did the last few transmissions word for word. I will admit that wasnt all me. That was the amazing writers of the Firewatch game. So take a second an appreciate the awesome work they put into the game...but also me...for writing this :P

Special thanks time. Because you know...it takes a village.

Fox in the hen house for editing the many mistakes I am sure you found. Thanks dude!

xNirox for taking the time to reformat the original picture. Thats right folks we got a new cover picture again! The artist took some time to edit it down so it would fit on here. She is awesome!

Finally thanks to all of you. Seriously the amount of messages and reviews I have gotten are awesome and I really need them right now. So please keep them coming! It helps me get through my week!

Oh and to answer the question that has been burning in the back of your minds...Pinecone.

-Blue