Tikani was biding his time. He's made his move and he won't stop until we are dead!" he continued, finally sitting down in defeat. His eyes were growing wider in panic, but they only stared off into space as he continued his fearful rant. "He'll storm the town and slaughter Kaltag, Spitz, Kari - anyone who gets in way. He won't stop until he finds us, and then he'll… oh no… what if he goes after Rosy too? No, not her. She has no idea what's going on. She's just a kid… she… like our pups… no way out… it's all over..."

By now, Jenna's patience with him was reaching its limit. Now was a time when she needed him most, but he was too caught up in his own fear. "I've had enough of this," she muttered as his speech became a rapid mess of doubts and what-ifs. She got up and in one motion, raised her paw and swiftly struck him across his muzzle. The sharp sting from the blow halted his rant, allowing her to speak her mind, "Alright you snap out of it right now mister! We can't change what happened. Second-guessing yourself won't help us and neither will worrying about what might or might not happen. I need you here, now, in the present!" she barked, before letting her tone soften. "It's not just me that needs you. Our pups need their father to be here for them, but you're not acting like him. What happened to the brave wolfdog I knew with the never say die attitude? What happened to the dog I fell in love with?" she finished, breaking her glare away from him as sadness replaced her frustration. Tears formed in her eyes and she took a few steps away before lying down, facing away from him.

Her strike finally set him right, allowing him to regain his composure and realize his foolishness. He heard a few sobs come from her, and that tore at him much deeper than his previous doubts. 'She's right - I need to focus on the present. We may be on the run, but what matters is that we're alive and together. I can't afford to break down - she needs me just as much as I need her. Ugh, how could I have been so foolish?' Clearing his throat, he approached her to make amends. "Jenna… you're right. I should be taking things one at a time instead of trying to handle everything at once. I thought I could be the hero all the time… but I guess I just proved myself wrong right now."

She didn't turn to him, but her crying quieted a little; he at least had her attention. "I hate seeing others in a bad spot and it makes me want to help them in any way I can. When I can't help and they continue to suffer, it... it makes me wonder if... I'm truly as good as I wanted to be."

"We're running for our lives and you're worried about proving yourself as a hero?" she said, a hint of venom in her voice.

He winced a little from how blunt she was being with him. "It's not like that. When you say it that way, you make it seem like I have some sort of ego."

"Then what it is really like?" she demanded, turning towards him, her expression a mix of sadness and anger. "Are you really worried about me, or how everyone thinks of you back home?"

"Don't say it like that; I care about you above everyone else," he replied, his voice cracking. He shut his eyes, trying to hold back his own emotional tears. "Above all, I put your safety and your happiness. It's just... even if I can keep you safe, something else might happen... and I'm worried that if it does... that you'd never forgive me. I'm scared that if I can't keep everyone safe… that you'd think less of me... that you'd think I'm a failure."

Something impacted him and knocked him onto his side, before pressing into the side of his muzzle. Opening his eyes, he saw Jenna rubbing him softly, her eyes shut tight to prevent a flood of tears from escaping. "That would never happen," she whispered. "You could never fail me and nothing would ever make me think less of you. You hear me, nothing. You're my hero just by being there when I need you."

"Thank you... I guess I just needed to be reminded that," he whispered back while returning her nuzzle. "You always were my inspiration, even in my darkest hours."

"Even heroes need heroes of their own," she returned, and he smiled in agreement. No further words were needed, as their actions spoke volumes about the trust and faith they had in each other. The warmth from having her so close calmed him, and he lifted one of his legs and placed it over her, holding her a little closer. Both drifted off to sleep that night, secure in their trust of each other. Being on the run had tested that trust, but it came out stronger in the end. They trusted that somehow, sometime, they would find a way out of this.

Little did they know that a way out was a lot closer than they thought… it was just in the last place they would think to look.

----------

"Are you sure it's true?" Salin demanded. "What if that old dog was just senile?"

"It's an awfully specific thing to mention, even if your mind wasn't sound."

"But why wouldn't Tikani want us to know that Jenna's-"

"Shhhh!" Atka cut in, not wanting his companion to speak too loudly. He'd waited until most of the pack was asleep before telling them everything he knew. He'd also moved them a short distance away and made it clear he didn't want wandering ears to hearing them. However, Salin was one who sometimes forgot how to act subtle. Atka's scathing glare towards his friend was a reminder of how discretion was vital. "I don't know why, but I have a few ideas."

"It's probably because he knows we'd question it," Faro put in. "Wolf or not, going after someone in her condition is wrong. I'm sure most of the folks here would agree with that too if they knew. As long as they don't, they'll just follow Tikani's orders as usual."

"Which is probably why he wanted me to keep it hush-hush," Atka continued. "He wants Balto and Jenna hunted down quickly and without any second thoughts."

"It's because of what happened to Kisa," Salin added. "I'll admit I want some closure too, but this… this would be going too far."

"Which is why we have to do everything in our power to help Balto and Jenna," Atka stated, but he was met with blank, wide-eyed stares from his friends.

"Help them? Are you nuts?" Salin exclaimed.

"We have to do something," Atka replied.

"But if Tikani finds out he'll have your head," Faro warned.

"What else am I supposed to do? Just sit on the sidelines and let Tikani have his way with them?" Atka countered. "C'mon, we've been down this road before and we didn't stand aside then."

"You mean with what happened to Mayak?" Salin asked, speaking the name with a hint of venom.

"I thought we agreed to never speak of him again," Faro cut in, before spitting in contempt of the wolf they used to know.

"We may have to start talking about it again because Tikani's trying to do what Mayak tried as well," Atka said.

"It's a good thing we ditched him," Salin continued. "It's too bad we never saw our other alpha either - she was really nice."

"Actually… I think I may have seen her," Atka said, making his companion's jaws drop. "It was only for a minute, but the way she looked at me… it was as though she knew what was going on and wanted me to stop it. I don't know how she would know, but she was there, and that's why I know what we have to do now."

"Wait, slow down. You actually saw Aniu?" Salin exclaimed.

"Keep it down," Atka hissed through clenched teeth. "Yes, but as I said, it was only for a minute."

"Hey, maybe when this is over we should find her?" Faro suggested.

"We can work that out later. Right now, we have to focus on what we can do," Atka countered. "Last time we had the advantage in numbers, but we don't have that luxury this time around. It's only us three against the rest of the pack and that's a fight we would never win."

"Maybe we should do what we did to trick Mayak last time?" Salin suggested. "We could lead everyone down a false path to give Balto and Jenna some breathing room."

"That may have worked last time, but I'm not sure we'd be able to pull it off again," Atka replied. "Tikani's a very sharp tracker so he'd know if we were leading him down a false path. Once he finds out, he'd go ballistic. He so desperately wants to find them... but his actions in spite of Jenna's condition show that he might not be stable enough to be our alpha."

"So what are you gonna do? Go up to his face and sock him?" Salin asked.

"As much as I'd like to, that wouldn't be enough," Atka replied. "If I tried to take any move against him, he'd call the rest of the pack against me. I'd get torn apart! No… I'm going to need something else."

"You'd be able to pull it off if you had the entire pack, or at least most of it on your side," Faro put in. "But you'd have to turn them against Tikani first."

"Hang on, aren't we forgetting that we know his secret?" Salin put in. "The fact that he's chasing after an