Then he saw the woman turn to look in his direction. He saw her knee-length black serape, her black gambler’s hat, her short black hair, her gold-toothed smile.

He saw her red eyes. Her beautiful red eyes.

He didn’t wait for the cart to stop. He leapt over the side, stumbled, fell, got back up, and ran towards her, even as she started to run towards him.

He was crying before he even got to her.

When he did, he leapt up into her arms, and she swung him around, pulled him in tight against her. Her hat tumbled off the back of her head, and for a long moment she just held on to him, held him close to her, his muzzle tucked in at the base of her neck, his feet dangling just a few inches above the ground.

He took a deep breath, inhaled her scent. She smelled like he remembered.