She had been traveling for a long time, following the dictates of the spirits. She had started in a land much different from the browns and reds that currently surrounded her. Her previous home was lush and green, filled with the scents of pine and spruce. But for some reason, this new land called to her.

The dry air filled her lungs with the scent of sage, the sun's path across the sky began and ended with colors she'd barely dreamt of. And the scrub and grass that stretched so far around her, was empty of people. That meant she could run. And she did.

With the sun streaming down around her, she slid into a new shape. While she preferred the shape of her black jaguar, today, that was not what she wanted.Today she wanted to run. It took her a few minutes to affect the transformation, but soon, in the place of the black haired, black eyed woman, there stood a black mare, whose only color was a ring of white around one hoof.

And then she ran.

***

Nathan let out a big yawn as he climbed down the stairs. It had taken some doing to convince Chris to get some sleep after staying up most of the night with the beautiful stranger who'd shown up shot in their barn, but by three in the morning, he'd managed to convince the gunslinger to get some rest.That meant Nathan had to sit with her the rest of the night.

Not that he minded or anything, but it did leave him a little worse for wear now that the sun was up and shining. At least Chris got some sleep and the patient was improving rapidly. Another yawn escaped as he hit the bottom of the stair case. Maybe he'd see if there was any coffee made yet. Hopefully Vin hadn't made it this morning. Actually, that might be a good thing, he needed something strong enough to strip paint if he was going to make it through the day.

He was supposed to go check on Mrs. Blanchard in town, her time was coming on rapidly and she was anxious for the birth of her first child. Then there was Mr. Reilly, the forman on the James spread who'd managed to break his leg trying to ride some green horse on a bet. That old geezer had no right getting on some wild stallion that had already thrown every cowboy they had on that ranch. Nathan tried to be compassionate about the man's pain, but there was a part of him that thought the guy got what he deserved for the stunt.

After all the house calls, he still had to go into town, to see what had happened over night and patch up any bullet holes, stab wounds and broken bones that occurred. If it was anything serious there was a boy in town who'd ride out, but otherwise people waited until he came out to town in the mornings. Or afternoon as it was turning out to be. He was getting as bad as Ezra, wanting to lollygag around in bed all day.

He shook himself sternly at the thought of his bed and headed into the kitchen before the temptation became too great. Three cups of coffee later (it tasted like JD had made it and it had been sitting on the stove for a few hours. Still better than Vin's) he rubbed the grit out of his eyes and went hunting for a clean shirt. Nettie said she'd done laundry yesterday and that the clean clothes should be hanging on the line.

As he stepped off the porch, the sun in his eyes, he thought he saw a flash of black, but it was gone by the time his eyes adjusted to the glare. Not thinking much of it, he wandered over to the laundry lines and started searching for his clothes. He thought he'd given Nettie three shirts, not two. Granted one of them was completely drenched with blood and Nettie might still be soaking it... No, that shirt was right in front of him. Maybe he was wrong.

He saw another flash of black, and this time followed it. There was some quick shuffling behind a sheet that he quickly ripped aside and then stopped and stared at the figure that greeted him, wearing nothing but his missing shirt.

"If you give me a moment, I'll finish getting dressed." The woman held out her hand that held a pair of JD's pants. Nathan flushed and started to turn around before he realized that that might not be the best idea. Who knew what that woman wanted and why she was stealing there clothes. She interrupted his thoughts "I'm not going anywhere, I just prefer not to walk around people naked."

She gave him a brilliant smile, took the sheet still gripped in his hand and put it back in place. A few minutes later, after some faint grumbling that he didn't understand, she stepped back around the sheet, grabbing the waist of the pants to hold them up. Nathan was still staring at her, waiting for his mind to catch up to the current events.

"I am sorry to have to borrow your clothing, but it is better than the alternative." Her soft accent washed over him and he shook his head, finally getting his mind off the glimpse of tanned leg he'd seen.

"Who are you and what are you doing here?"

"My name is Courtenay Richarde Druilliard, but I prefer Chat." the last word came out sounding like shat. "As for what I'm doing here? The spirits said I should come."

With that she turned around, leaving a stunned man in her wake, and headed into the ranch house.