Taking the Bullet

Taking the Bullet is the eighth chapter of Blazin' Trails and the second serious chapter in the story thus far.

Plot
While at a party in Hoop 'n Holler, Droop-a-Long Coyote laments the fact that he's never going to be as popular as Ricochet and finds himself envying the rabbit's popularity and skills. His thoughts are interrupted with the arrival of A.T. Sam Jose, who attempts to assassinate Ricochet while he's distracted. Deciding to place more value over his friend's life over his desire for fame, Droop-a-Long rushes in and shoves Ricochet out of the way just in time, only to end up being shot instead. A.T. Sam Jose takes off, and Droop-a-Long urges Ricochet to run, but the sheriff refuses, instead giving chase after Sam Jose. Droop-a-Long soon passes out.

After an epic chase, Ricochet finally catches up to Sam Jose, and it is here that the outlaw learns just how grave of a mistake he made in shooting Droop-a-Long--Ricochet tells him that he's only going to sentence him to ten years for what he'd done, but that he won't hesitate to kill him if the outlaw says anything demeaning about Droop-a-Long again. He then calls in Quick Draw McGraw and his deputy Baba Looey to keep an eye on him while he checks in on Droop-a-Long. Thankfully, Droop-a-Long survives his injuries, but Ricochet feels guilty that his lack of attention to his surroundings caused his deputy to jump in to save his life.

The next morning, Droop-a-Long awakens to find Ricochet sleeping next to his bed. After a bit of playful banter, Ricochet tells Droop-a-Long what happened to Sam Jose, and Droop-a-Long thanks him for saving him. Ricochet loses his composure and gives the coyote a hug, telling him how worried he was and how upset he'd been. Droop-a-Long does the best he can to comfort the shaken sheriff, although when Ricochet leaves, it's apparent that what almost happened to his deputy affected him a lot.

Weeks later, Droop-a-Long is released from the hospital and returns to work, despite Ricochet wanting him to take it easy. Droop-a-Long complains of having been restless, and Ricochet blurts out that if he hadn't jumped in to save his life, he wouldn't have had to get put in the hospital. When Droop-a-Long asks Ricochet if he should've left him to die, Ricochet lashes out at Droop-a-Long because of all the worry and anger that had been gnawing at him for weeks--not only was he angry at Droop-a-Long for running out to save the day, but he was also angry at himself. Droop-a-Long then explains that he did it because he would never forgive himself if Ricochet died because he was too slow to stop the assassin, and that he'd take a bullet for him because Ricochet's his best friend. Ricochet is so moved by this, he becomes teary and he apologizes for blowing up at Droop-a-Long. Droop-a-Long apologizes as well for making Ricochet so worried, and resolves to never run out without his friend again.

Trivia

 * This is the first appearance of A.T. Sam Jose, and marks the first time a character from the cartoon series was reused for the series.
 * This is the first time Ricochet has openly cried. As noted by Droop-a-Long, he hardly cries and keeps a hold on his emotions so that nobody can worry about him.
 * This is the first short in which both Ricochet and Droop-a-Long were the heroes.
 * This is the seventh short in the story that focuses on Droop-a-Long as a whole.