For anyone who has not read "Guide Me Home", a few parts of this might be a bit confusing. This ended up being more of a sequel than I thought it would be. You should still be able to read it as a stand-alone.

Planning to continue writing today and post updates regularly over the weekend. Stay tuned!

Chasing Strays: Ch 2

Dreams were a strange thing. Slim didn't know what would have possessed him to dream about riding around in the darkness, in the middle of a thunderstorm, without his hat, but there he was. The water pelting his face threatened to suffocate him. He could feel the steady drizzle of ice running down his neck and under the collar of his slicker, soaking him to the skin and chilling him to the bone. Lightning cracked across the sky, immediately followed by a crack of thunder so close Slim felt it reverberate through his chest. It all felt so real.

His missing hat was what finally brought him up short. No self-respecting, experienced rancher would be out in weather like this without his hat. Slim himself had never once done it, not even as a kid. Why would his mind have conjured this up in a dream?

It's a dream, right? It had to be.

He decided to pull back on the reins. When his hands moved and Alamo actually responded, stopping in the middle of their path, Slim felt his stomach drop out of his body. The numbness in his limbs had nothing to do with the rain or the wind as he started to panic.

Real. It was real. He had no memory of where he was, why he was there, or how he'd managed to get there in the first place.

He squinted through the downpour and frantically turned in the saddle. The land around was lit up sporadically by small flashes of lighting that cast everything in an eerie grayscale. Spotting the shadowy outline of who could only be Jess a few lengths behind him, Slim let out his breath in relief. He may be lost, but at least he wasn't alone. Jess always knew where he was, with no small thanks to his sentinel awareness. Slim turned his shoulders around and shouted to Jess over the storm.

"Where are we going?" he called. He could barely hear himself, but Jess should have heard him easily.

The incredulous, dumbfounded look on Jess's face nearly sent Slim spiraling all over again. Jess stared back at him, his mouth opening and closing as he seemed to search for the right response as Traveler nervously sidestepped around the water-filled ruts in the road. Slim noticed that Jess, unlike himself, had his black hat firmly in place. Finally, Jess seemed to gather himself. The shock Slim could feel pouring off of his partner quickly turned to indignance.

"You," He shouted, raising an accusing finger to point at Slim, "waltz out of the house in the middle of this," he continued, waving his arm around dramatically, "and you expect me to know where we're going?!"

Well, yeah, Slim thought, as he brought Alamo around to face Jess properly. More aware now, Slim took stock of his circumstances. His own uncertainty soon rose to match Jess's outburst as he realized he wasn't even wearing pants, let alone a belt or a gun.

"You," Slim yelled, pointing right back at Jess and nearly spooking Alamo in the process, "mean to tell me you blindly followed me out here, while I was in nothing but by long johns? Really, Jess?"

Jess didn't have to say a word. Slim saw the answer flash across his features with the next flash of lighting just as easily as if he'd spoken.

Well, yeah, Jess's eyes said.

Slim shook his head in disbelief.

"What did you expect me to do?" Jess called back, his raised voice losing some of its edge. They were now even with each other, their knees almost brushing, and Slim could hear the worry slip into Jess's tone. "I tried to stop you, but it's like you weren't there. What did you want me to do? Let you wander out here alone?" The stubborn set of Jess's jaw made it clear that that particular course of action would never have happened.

Slim tried in vain to push his hair and the rain off his forehead and out of his eyes. Jess wordlessly retrieved Slim's hat from where he'd had it tied to his saddle and handed it over.

"'Spose not," Slim answered, relishing the respite from the rain that his hat offered. The storm seemed to be moving off a bit. "Thanks, Jess."

Jess scoffed and shook his head in exasperation. Slim couldn't blame him as he felt his cheeks heat up in embarrassment. He'd really made a mess of things, and like always, Jess had waded in right behind him without hesitation.

"What do you remember, anyway?" Jess asked.

"Dinner, and going to bed," Slim said, with another twinge of shame. He remembered being childishly silent toward Jess after their fight that afternoon. "And after that, I think I was having a dream…" he trailed off. Jess waited.

"Someone was in trouble. I thought it was Andy, at first, but it can't be Andy, right?" Slim asked, the memory of that strange fear creeping back into his mind.

Jess, as usual, read his need for reassurance effortlessly. He was shaking his head before Slim even finished the question.

"If it was Andy, you'd feel it through your bond," Jess said confidently. "That's what you guides do, right? To keep tabs on the rest of us?"

Slim nodded. Jess was right. Slim could feel his bond with Andy, stretched thin with distance, but it was as sturdy as always. His bond with Andy was safe and secure next to his bond with Jess. Slim would know if something was really wrong. Andy was fine.

Speaking of bonds… A half-remembered feeling tugged at Slim's thoughts.

"It was something, though," Jess continued, quirking his lips into a concerned frown. "You were way outta your head. I've seen men sleepwalk before. They're sorta aimless. You were… Focused. Determined," he finished.

The storm had finally slacked off to more of a shower, allowing the moon to peek through the clouds.

"It reminded me," Slim said slowly, "of the first time we met."

"The pond?"

"No, in the war. Before I knew it was you," Slim said. His numb fingers ghosted over the scar on his cheek. Jess cocked his head to the side in response, sending a stream of water off the brim of his hat.

"Another sentinel?" he asked. His tone was casual, but he couldn't hide his unease from Slim.

Slim just shrugged. "It wasn't quite the same. Maybe it was a sentinel, or maybe it really was a dream. It's been… stressful, lately," he said. He thought he saw Jess smile, but it was hidden in shadows. Slim shivered under his slicker. "Whatever it was, it's gone now," he said. "We best head back if we want any sleep before the sun – "

Jess suddenly held up his hand, silencing Slim in an instant, and went completely still. Slim knew that look. Jess was listening. Really listening hard, trying to block out everything else and pinpoint some tiny sound. In a routine born out of many successful hunting trips, Slim softly laid a hand on Jess's knee to ground him and held his breath. He waited.

"C'mon," Jess said suddenly, snapping back to life in a way only he could.

"What now?" Slim asked, even as he seamlessly guided Alamo into line behind Jess and Trav.

"It's not gone."