into her pack's territory. It was just before sunrise, so she was sure the others would still be asleep when she had gotten there. She didn't count on one of them waking up early, and noticing that she was missing.

"Where were you?" a voice called. She turned and saw that it was Salin, "I woke up to, well, relieve myself and you weren't here. Where did you go?"

"I….. I couldn't sleep," she said, "I went out for an early morning walk."

"Uh huh, yeah. Did I mention that I got up in the middle of the night?" he said. 

"Darn it, he's good," she thought, "Look, it's nothing you should worry about."

"Alright, if you won't tell me, maybe you'll tell him," he said, motioning towards Mayak's sleeping body. A twinge of panic shot through her. Mayak was already in a foul mood about her and if he found out about her nighttime trips, he might put two and two together without even seeing Amak, "I'm going to have to tell him something, but it will have to be a watered down version. The full story might turn him against me."

"Okay Salin, I'll tell you, but not here. Follow me," she said and took Salin a few yards away. Despite the risk of telling him about Amak, she figured that if she left out the part about them becoming mates, then Salin might be willing to keep her secret, "Salin, I was simply out visiting a friend, that's all," she started.

"But there are no other wolves in the area," he replied, "Who would you be visiting?"

"My friend… is one of the husky dogs from the town I went to a few days ago," she said.

It took a moment for this to sink in, and when it did, his eyes widened, "D-dog? But, they- they're dangerous!" he cried.

"Not this one, he's very kind. Remember when I had disappeared that week after the big storm?" she said, "I didn't tell you this before, but I was actually saved by a dog; the same dog I was visiting last night."

"Why would a dog save you? Mayak said that they would kill us," he said.

"This one is different from the others. He doesn't buy in to the prejudice that causes the other huskies to attack us," she replied, "After we met, we found that wolves and dogs weren't all that different." 

"Are you sure he's okay? What if it's all some kind of trick?" 

"It's not a trick; Amak would never do something like that. He has never made any attempt to hurt me. He cares about me and he listens to me," she said.

"He listens to you? Heh, it sounds as though you really like this guy," Salin chuckled, "Are you sure you aren't more than just friends?"

Aniu knew that she had told him enough, "Don't jump to conclusions Salin. Now, can I trust you to not tell anyone?"

He took a moment to think it over, "Well, if you're absolutely sure that this dog is okay, then I suppose I can keep your secret. I won't tell anyone about your friend," he said.

"Thank you Salin," she replied.

"Though, you really should be careful about sneaking off like that again," Salin said, "You wouldn't want Mayak to find out about this. He'd go completely ballistic." Aniu knew he was right, but she also knew that if the worst should happen, Amak would be there to protect her.

---------------------------- 

For the next few weeks, things went by quite peacefully. Her pack continued to hunt for food during the day, while lounging in the evenings. Mayak was still acting quite distant to her, but she didn't mind at all. Not having to deal with his commanding attitude was actually quite refreshing. Every few days, she would sneak off during the night to visit Amak. Sometimes they went for walks around town, other times they explored the woods, while some nights had them just relaxing under the stars cuddled up with each other. It was during those weeks that winter finally ended. The warm weather melted the snow and ice, transforming the landscape and freeing it from its icy prison.

It was also during these weeks that Aniu started to notice something was different about her. She was hungrier than usual, and would sometimes feel a strange cramping in her belly. She would also sometimes wake up in the morning feeling woozy and nauseous. "It's probably just a stomach bug," Amak said after she had told him about it, "I get them every now and then and they always clear up after a little while. You just need to wait it out, that's all."

She followed his advice and tried to wait it out, but the symptoms remained. Soon, she noticed that she had a slight bulge growing in her abdomen. It wasn't much, but it was still there. However, she brushed this one off as just putting on a little extra weight. A little extra weight never hurt; in fact, it would help if game were to become scarce. However, the weight gain didn't explain the cramping or morning nausea. She tried think about what would cause all of those symptoms, but none of the illnesses that she knew about matched it exactly.

One night, she was fast asleep, dreaming about her youth. She was remembering the day that she asked the one question that all curious cubs eventually ask.

"Momma, where do cubs come from?"

"Ah, I had a feeling you'd want to know that at some point. Well, when you and your siblings were born, you came out from inside of me."

"Huh?"

"Yes, all creatures in this world start their lives inside their mothers, eventually coming out into the world."

"But wouldn't we all be too big to fit inside of you?"

"You were much, much smaller then; small enough that all of you could fit in me."

"What was it like having us inside you?"

"Well, at first I didn't notice anything, except that I was hungrier than usual. That's because I was eating for myself and your siblings as well. Sometimes I would wake up feeling a little sick or with cramps, but that went away shortly. Soon after, I started to feel you move around as you grew inside of me."

"Okay, but if we were growing in you, wouldn't you get bigger too?"

"Yes, I did get a little bigger, and it's good for a mother to get bigger because it means her cubs are growing and healthy."

"Do cubs just appear in you and start growing?"

"Not exactly. In order for cubs to start out, there needs to be a meeting of two; in this case your father and I. It is a sacred moment that mates share only with each other. But you don't have to think about that now. You are still young and have all your years ahead of you….."

A sudden cramp snapped her from her dream. She groaned, and rolled over as it passed. As she thought about her dream, it suddenly dawned on her. She now knew what was happening to her. She and Amak had shared that special moment together, the moment that only mates have. The cramping, appetite, and weight gain all fit together now…

----------------------------

As she dashed through the dark woods towards the town, she felt an intense mix of fear and joy. She was carrying pups; her's and Amak's, and they would be born to parents who loved each other. While this brought her joy, there was also something about it that frightened her; what if her pack found out about this?

"You won't even be the bitch of one of those spineless dogs. You will be mine, and if I can't have you, then I'll make sure no one will!"

If Mayak found out about this, it would all be over. As far as he knew, she was simply not interested this year. If he found out that she was having the pups of another, let alone a husky - she couldn't imagine his rage. What would he do with a litter of half-husky pups? He hated dogs so much that he would surely kill them – and maybe her with them.

As she left the woods, she wondered how Amak would take it. Would he still be his usual chipper self, or would he be scared like she was? "Would he be happy about being a father, or would he see our pups as a liability and leave me?" she thought, "No, he'd never leave me. He loves me, and he said that he'd do anything to protect me," She had no idea how he would react to the news, but she would find out soon as she had reached his home. The door to his shed was closed and inside she could hear his faint snoring, "Amak, it's me," she called as she scratched at the door, "Amak, please wake up. I need to see you."

Finally, she heard his snoring stop, followed by the sound of him shuffling about. The door to the shed creaked open and he stepped out, a little bleary-eyed from being woken up in the middle of the night, "Aniu? I wasn't expecting you tonight," he yawned, and soon noticed the worried look on her face, "What is it, what's wrong? I don't think I've ever seen you look so scared."

"Amak, I…. it's-" she started, but the sheer gravity of the situation overwhelmed her, and she broke down, nuzzling into his chest for comfort.

"Shh, shh, it's okay. You can tell me what it is," he comforted, "What is it? Did the others find out about us? Did that Mayak try to hurt you?" he asked, placing his front leg around her in an embrace, "What's wrong, tell me."

"No Amak, it's not that.