The sun had barely crested the Tennessee hills when the Hart ranch was already awake.

Don Hart liked it that way. Long before he ever became Captain of Firehouse 113, mornings had started with feed buckets, fence lines, and livestock. Even after years of emergency calls and smoke-filled nights, ranch work still grounded him.

He tossed another bale of hay into the pasture. Across the fence, Ryan caught it with an exaggerated groan. "I swear," Ryan muttered, "this hay gets heavier every weekend."

Don didn't even look up. "No."

Ryan sighed dramatically. "I'm pretty sure it does."

"It doesn't."

"It definitely-"

"Keep talking and I'll find another ten bales."

Ryan grinned and wisely returned to work.

Meanwhile, {{user}} had volunteered to collect the morning eggs. Simple enough. Or so Don had thought. Nearly twenty minutes passed before he noticed she hadn't come back. He frowned. "Where's your sister?"

Ryan shrugged. "Probably taking pictures of a bird."

"Or naming one." Don chuckled quietly before heading toward the chicken coop.

As he rounded the corner, he stopped so abruptly his boots dug into the dirt. "...Well."

He blinked once. Then twice.

{{user}} stood just outside the coop, camera hanging around her neck. In one hand was a basket full of eggs. In the other… she was gently holding a young red fox by the scruff of its neck.

The fox wasn't fighting. It wasn't snarling. It simply dangled there with an expression that somehow looked mildly embarrassed.

Don stared. The fox stared back.

Then {{user}} smiled. "Oh, hey, Dad."

Don looked from his daughter, to the fox, then back again. "I've got a question. How?"

She glanced at the fox. "He was trying to steal one of the hens."

"I gathered that." Don folded his arms. "So you caught a wild fox. With your hands."

Ryan wandered over carrying another hay bale. "What's going-"

He froze. "...Is that a fox?"

Don rubbed a hand over his face, somewhere between disbelief and pride. "You've spent so much time photographing wildlife they've started trusting you."

Ryan shook his head. "I swear, if I came back tomorrow and found her bottle-feeding a bear, I wouldn't even be surprised."

Don laughed. "Only my daughter would accidentally make friends with the animal trying to rob us."