other. "Looks like Dusty's found that special someone." they chuckled. Dusty didn't pay any attention to them. She gently brushed the melted snow off his face. 

A chat suddenly broke between Jenna, Balto and the pups. "Do you think he likes sledding, dad?" Kodi asked. "Probably. But since he's come from the wild, he might not know what a sled is." "Maybe he'll Anna play when he wakes up." Ralph said excitedly. "But if we do keep him, where's he gonna live? My girl's got enough on her plate at the moment. " Jenna said. I'll look after him. He can live here, or he can stay with me on the boat if he doesn't like here. We'll just let him decide when he gets up." Balto offered. Kirby suddenly gasped and pointed over to the basket.

The boy's eyes drifted open. He startled up and looked around quickly in a panic. "Wha- where am I? What's going on??" he rushed out. "Woah, calm down kiddo." Balto uttered jokingly as he stopped him with a limb. Looking up at the towering stranger, he cowered on the floor. Backing up, his hind leg came into contact with Kodi's front one. He shot round and cowered on the floor. Max looked around confused and scared. Whatever kind of cave he was in, he had never seen it before.

The questions were a little overwhelming. "What's your name?" "Where did you come from?" "Who are your parents?" "What breed are you?" But the huge dog lifted a paw and pointed a silencing finger at their lips. "Allow me to introduce myself. My name's Balto." he introduced. Maxwell gasped. "You're Balto? The Balto?" he exclaimed excitedly. "Yep. And this is my son, Kodi." he cuddled up to him. "And that's Kirby, Dusty, Ralph, Jasper and Dakota." he pointed. "G'day, mate. Hopes up you'll have a crackin' time here." Jasper almost sang. Balto stuttered. "He's- not from around here." Maxwell sighed in understanding.

His stomach grumbled loudly. He clutched it and sighed. Dusty carried him a slice of meat over. "Here, tuck in." she said happily and smiled at him. "Thanks." he appreciated. Maxwell chomped and wolfed down the meal surprisingly fast, almost giving himself hiccups. "I'm really sorry, but I haven't eaten for days." he apologized. Balto shook his head. "No, no, I insist, I know what it's like." he joked.

"Just wait until you meet our human, Mr Simpson." she expressed happily. "What's a human?" he asked politely as he devoured the piece of steak in front of him. "You've never seen a human before?" Kirby puzzled. The pups started laughing. "What's wrong? Is it like a toy or something?" he asked again. Dusty couldn't help but let out a giggle, just as the door creaked open. Cautiously, Maxwell ran into a dark corner. To his surprise, all six of the other pups rushed forward to greet the mailman, Mr Simpson. "How-do, pups?" it questioned friendly. Maxwell gazed protectively past a wooden post. A huge towering animal stepped forward. It was terrifying, at least 10 times his size. It had very weird fur, dark grey with white around the edges and buttons in the middle, and weird skin behind it. He had never seen anything so strange. And it carried a huge bowl of water. Strangely, all six of his friends playfully followed it's feet.

Dusty looked back at him. She ran up to him. "C'mon, Max, he's fun!" she called. "He looks... really scary..." he stammered. "Come on out, trust me!" she urged. He took a moment to look into her deep blue eyes to see if they were trustworthy.

"Dusty, what are you looking at?" the human quizzed. Dusty's face lit up and she happily barked. The human marched forward and gently bent over. Mr Simpson saw something move in the shadows. He reached into the blackness, where a harmless swipe caught his glove. He chuckled and picked it up by the scruff of it's neck. Dusty smiled at him persuasively, and rolled her head forward. To his confusion, he lifted a strange little pup, with no collar or identification. Judging by the way it swiped it's claws around, it was half or whole wolf. "How'd you get in?" he asked as he lifted it to eye level. Maxwell was so glad he wasn't scared of heights.

Mr Simpson looked at the somewhat enthusiastic Dusty. "Ahh, found a boyfriend already, ey girl?" he joked. Both of them blushed. He put the pup down, but surprisingly, it didn't run. "He seems alright. Maybe he'll adopt me." Max thought. The human turned for the door. 

"You'll make a mighty fine sled dog. You can stay with me." he said friendly. Max looked at the human with a faint smile.

I don't belong here, I gotta move on dear,

Escape from this Afterlife,

'Cause this time I'm right to move on and on,

Far away from here

Chapter 3 

"That went well." Max said cheerfully. Everyone smiled at him. "Better than my first time. I nearly got swept away by a mop." Balto chuckled. "You'll be meeting a lot more humans in time. First you should get to know the town and who's safe to be friends with." Jenna advised. "I won't mention any names, but there is one dog who were are particularly hateful of." Looking at Balto, he understood, but refused to nod.

"Mr Simpson's a great human. He gives us treats, lets us sleep in comfy beds, but he's got a bit of a habit of peeing into our big white drinking bowl." Dusty chatted with a smile. Max nodded, trusting her words. Kirby butted in. "He'll train you how to be a good dog aswell, like how to play dead, fetch and all that. He did that with us, and we love it!" he exclaimed. "Sounds like a nice person." Max agreed.

It was Dakota's turn to speak. "But he's a bit sensitive about breed. If you're a husky, he'll train you in a certain way, if you're a malamute, he'll train you differently." he informed. Max was about to speak, but paused. He nodded, but in his mind, he was crawling over and dying. If they found out he was part wolf...

Dusty looked at him and smiled again. "So, what breed are you?" she asked politely. Max looked up at the eyes waiting for answers. He groaned suspiciously. "I, uhhh..." he mumbled. "Well?" Dusty asked. Max pointed at the door nervously. "Can I..." he stammered, then ran out before awaiting a reply. Dusty attempted to follow him, but Balto's leg held her back gently but not forcefully. "I'm sure he's got reason to run." 

Max ran around the side of the building, away from the light of the sun. He sat down on a dry spot next to a pile of grass. He swished his paw through the green blades. They tickled him, but he wasn't in the mood to laugh. "What should I say?" he thought to himself. "I could lie and say I was a husky... no, I don't really look like one. I look more like a wolf-dog instead of a dog. What if I told them I was a wolf? Dogs hate wolves, so that wouldn't work." he suggested. He turned at the sound of crunching snow. It was Balto. He could tell by the silhouette behind the sunlight.

"Hey Max." he said. Maxwell forced a smile, which quickly retreated back into his mouth. Balto sat down next to him. "You know if there's anything troubling you, you can talk to me." he chatted. Max shook his head slowly. "No. There's nothing anyone can do." Max whispered. Balto bent down as came close to the pup's face. "I don't know if you took that question the wrong way, or if it offended you in some way, but Dusty's a lovely little girl, and she would never mean to hurt anyone, physically or mentally." he explained. Max sighed. Balto put a paw on his shoulder. "It's okay, you can talk to me. Now, tell Balto what's troubling you." he assured with a supportive tone. "Well, the thing is, I'm half dog, half wolf. I don't tell many people 'cos I might get bullied because of it." he confessed. "Really? I never knew that." Balto said with growing interest. "You won't tell anyone, will you?" he asked, losing confidence. "Listen, I'm half wolf as well." he whispered. "I get bullied a lot, and it's not very nice. But, believe me, you should be proud of your heritage and don't be negative about it." he assured. "You think so?" he replied quietly. "I know so." he convinced. He tickled his chin and he giggled for the first time in a while. "C'mon, we should tell them about it. Don't worry." he urged. Max nodded and they both turned back to the kennel.

"Why'd he shy away for?" Dusty asked. "Yeah, I mean, breed isn't that much of a sensitive thing, isn't it?" Kirby puzzled. Suddenly, the door creaked open. Max had a troubled look on his face. "What's up with you?" Kodi asked. "Max has something so say." Balto urged, lightly holding Max's shoulder. "I guess I should tell you guys that I'm part wolf." he sighed. His ears folded in humiliation. Dusty raised an eyebrow. "What's wrong with that?" she asked friendly. Maxwell looked up, surprised. "Wha-?" he stuttered. "You got half a dog and half a wolf in you, so

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