shock. "But... why? When?"

She gently sobbed and rubbed her face against his. "T-tomorrow, Balto. We're leaving tomorrow. I don't want to leave you," she cried, and pushed her face into his chest.

Balto held her head against his chest and he began to feel the crushing weight of despair. He couldn't even imagine living without her now, they had been together for years. Their pups were grown up, and Jenna was all he had, and all he wanted.

"Isn't there some way I can go with you?" he asked as he cradled her head against his body. "I - I would leave everything behind for you, Jenna."

Jenna closed her eyes. "Rosy asked her parents about you, but... they said you weren't part of the family. They don't want to take you with us. They said... they couldn't take a half wolf to a new town."

"I don't think I can live without you, Jenna," Balto said quietly as a tear rolled down his muzzle. "What will I do without you...?"

Jenna nuzzled her mate's chest and breathed deeply, taking in his scent. She promised herself she would never forget what he smelled like, or what it felt like when he held her. "Rosy said there's a chance we could come back to Nome, because her father's job may just be temporary... but even if it is, it will still be months before we find out. And I don't think I can live without you either..."

Balto sniffed and held Jenna tighter. "Where are you going? Maybe if it's not too far away..."

Jenna trembled as she began to cry again. "We're going to Anchorage. It's a thousand miles away, Balto..." She pushed herself against Balto and wept. Even though they were pressed against each other, she could not get close enough to him and he couldn't hold her tightly enough.

No more words were spoken as Balto held her as tight as he could, and she cried into his fur. His own tears began to fall as he tried to imagine living in Nome without her, and he knew he couldn't do it. Jenna was a part of him, not just his mate, and he could not and would not be separated from her.

"Jenna..." Balto began to speak quietly. "There may be another answer."

She looked up at him with her tear-filled eyes. "What do you mean...?"

Balto was silent for a moment before responding. "You could stay here. With me."

Jenna's eyes widened as the concept of leaving Rosy and her family entered her mind for the first time. To her own surprise she didn't immediately dismiss the idea, and her mind tried to grasp the concept of living with Balto without a home of her own, without her humans, and without the girl who had been her owner and friend since she was only eight weeks old.

"But Balto," she said as she tried to comprehend the implications of what Balto was suggesting, "I can't just run away from Rosy... can I?"

Balto lowered his head and nuzzled her face. "I don't know. I love Rosy too, but this... I think you're going to have to choose between her and me. I would go with you if I could, but since they don't want me to..."

"...the only way for us to be together is if I run away," she finished. "But... I've never lived alone before, without a home, without my owners... I wouldn't know what to do." She pressed her face against his and closed her eyes.

"You wouldn't be alone, Jenna. You would never be alone," he said quietly into her ear.

"Oh Balto," she said sadly. "I don't know what to do. Running away just seems wrong to me, Rosy's home is the only home I've ever known. How can I abandon them, when they've been so good to me? And I love Rosy. But... how can I leave you?"

She looked up at Balto, then nuzzled his face again. "I don't think I can leave you. You have become the most important thing in my life, you have been for years now. It.... it would tear me apart to leave you."

Balto pulled her to his chest again and held her. He didn't want to let go, now or ever. "It would tear me apart too, Jenna. Just like it would if you tore the spirit from my body. I love you, and I couldn't bear to be separated from you."

"So then... what do I do...?" She asked as she leaned into his chest.

"We can leave tonight. We'll go to our special spot in the mountains and stay there for a couple of days. If Rosy and her parents are leaving tomorrow because her father has a job in Anchorage, they won't be able to stay here and look for you. I know it will be hard for you, but... I think it's the only way we can be together."

"I don't know, Balto," she said as she lay down on the floor. "I don't know if I can do that to Rosy, she loves me. This is too much, I need some time to think about what I'm going to do. Just... just remember that I love you no matter what happens, okay?"

"I'll remember," Balto said softly, "as long as you remember that you're the only thing in my life that matters besides our children. They're grown up and have homes so I don't need to worry about them too much any more. But you..."

Balto lowered his head. "I won't be separated from you, Jenna. I don't care what it takes. If I have to run all the way to Anchorage to be with you, then that's what I'll do." He leaned down to nuzzle her.

"I want to stay with you," she said as she nuzzled him back, "but the thought of leaving my humans, especially Rosy, is terrifying to me. I've never known anything other than this house, and this shed. And she would be lonely without me... without us. How can I do that to her when she's been so good to me?"

"I know. I don't like it either. But if they really don't want to take me along with you..." Balto sighed. "I wish Rosy's father would just accept me. Haven't I proven that I'm not going to be some huge burden on him by now? And that I won't bite him or Rosy?"

Jenna looked down at the floor. "I don't know why he still doesn't want to adopt you, Balto. Rosy and I have been wishing you could live with us for so long now, and he still just - you would think after saving his daughter that he would change his mind. And if not that, then us having a family together should have done it. It's not that he doesn't like you, he just... doesn't want you to live with us."

Balto looked down at the floor. "Jenna, listen. I know it will hurt Rosy, and I don't want to hurt her. You know I love her, but I can't live without you. Please come and stay with me. I'll take care of you and love you, and give you everything you need. I promise."

Jenna said nothing as she listened to Balto and tried to sort out all the feelings she was experiencing right then. As much as she didn't want to hurt Rosy by abandoning her , she knew Rosy would understand that the reason she ran away was so that she could stay with Balto. And when she thought about what it would be like to move away to a new place without Balto... she felt a hint of the loneliness it would cause her, and she made up her mind.

"I'm... I'm going to stay here with you, Balto," Jenna said quietly. "And I hope Rosy will understand why I have to run away."

Balto closed his eyes and sighed in relief. "Thank you, Jenna. Everything will work out, I promise. I'm going to go back to the boat now, and I'll be back to get you later tonight, okay? Probably about midnight."

"Balto, please... please tell me again that everything will be all right."

"I'll be by your side the entire time," Balto said as he leaned down to kiss her. "Everything will be fine. Besides, you said the move might be temporary, so there's a chance they'll come back and we - I mean you can move back in with Rosy."

"And if they don't come back?" she asked softly.

Balto lay down in front of her and nuzzled her face. "Then we'll be able to live together for the rest of our lives. Rosy will understand, she knows how much we love each other." He got up to leave, and walked towards the door. "I'll be back for you tonight. I love you."

"I love you too," she said as Balto disappeared around the corner.

###

Balto came back late that night, and Jenna was waiting for him when he scratched at the shed door. She opened the door, and he walked in and nudged the door closed behind him. Without saying a word, he walked up to Jenna and nuzzled her. "Are you ready to go?" he asked.

Jenna nodded, still not quite believing that she was going to run away from Rosy. "I guess so. It still feels wrong, and I'm still scared. But I know it's the only way we can be together."

"I'm sorry, Jenna. If there were any other way..."

"I know. It's not your fault. I just hope Rosy will be okay without me, and I hope I'll be okay without her."

Balto nuzzled her. "I'm sure Rosy will be fine, and you'll have me to take care of you. I am going to miss her though."

"Me too," Jenna said, as tears began to form in her eyes. "Let's go... "

The two of them left the shed and closed the door. Jenna stopped as they walked away, and turned to look back at the house that had been her home since she was a tiny puppy. Tears began to roll down her face as she thought about Rosy and how much she loved her, and Balto licked the tears from her muzzle. Jenna began to cry softly