Nava looked at Rush. "I love you, son." he said. Then the light in his eyes faded away and the great legend died.

"No!" Rush screamed, "Don’t leave me! Please!" Rush stayed where he was and just pouted the rest of the day. That night, under the full moon, Rush emerged from Nava’s den and climbed the highest cliff in the territory where Rush first met Nava. Rush let out a long and lonesome howl. "I will never forget you." He whispered to himself as the stars circled around Rush.

Star heard the howl. She walked up to Rush and whispered in his ears, "Let’s go home."

Rush didn’t say anything for a minute but said, "I met him for the first time up here." Rush sighed than continued, "He saved me and fathered me. One day, he told me I was going to be the leader of the pack. But, I didn’t want to." Rush looked to the stars, "I ran away."

Rush turned to Star with a love gaze, "Will you be my mate?"

Star looked at him. "Rush........ don’t make me make the decision right now. I will tell you on the next full moon. For now. Let’s help bury Nava and go home. Unless you want to stay here."

"Aleu will be the alpha. I have no reason to stay here anymore." Rush explained, "I am a part of your pack." Rush sighed and continued, "We should bury Nava."

They walked down the cliff and to Nava’s den, where Aleu was waiting for them. Star nodded and helped Aleu and the others.

Rush lead the way to the burial. "He should be buried in the woods, where he took me every day when I was a pup." Rush lead them all to a clearing in the woods. Rush began to dig a hole in the ground.

After he was buried Star looked at Rush. "Home?" she asked.

"Yah." Rush answered, "But, not by glacier."

Star looked at him, confused. "Whaaa?"

Rush grinned and answered, "There’s a trail that leads to the Nome Pack. It’s more direct and you don’t have to starve yourself." Rush explained, "I found it the day I ran away and I followed it. It leads me through many pack territories and it ended in the Nome Pack’s territory." Rush then turned to Aleu and said, "I trust you will be a better leader, than I would have been. After all, Nava had faith in you."

"Oh." Starseeker said, feeling like an idiot and said her goodbyes to the pack.

Aleu nodded her thanks. "Thank you Rush. Come visit us any time." She said and smiled.

Rush nodded back to Aleu and said goodbye. He followed a trail towards the ocean with Star right behind him.

"How do you know Aleu?" Rush asked on the trail.

"You know Liberty?" Star asked.

"The alpha that let me into your pack?" Rush replied.

"Yes. She is Aleu’s aunt. Balto is her half-brother. They share the same mothers but different fathers. Balto’s father was a Husky and Liberty’s was a wolf. Liberty is one year older than Balto."

"Oh." Rush said and then asked, "So you have never seen this trail?"

"Nope." Star admitted, blushing.

"Well it’s a short one." Rush said, "It’s-" Rush cut himself off and sank to the ground. "Shhh." Rush hushed, "We’re in another wolf pack’s territory."

Star copied him and sank to the ground, a bit afraid.

Rush sniffed the air, there was no wolf nearby. "We have to get out of here fast. I tried to be a part of this pack but, they almost killed me." Rush signaled with his tail for Star to follow him as they ran through the territory. "Hurry!" He called to Star, "We don’t want any attention."

Star followed Rush, swiftly and quietly, through the territory in silence.

Rush, rushed out of the territory with Star right behind him. When they got far away he slowed down and stopped. "We should eat." He suggested.

Star nodded in agreement and licked her lips, practically starved.

Rush heard a rattle in the bush next to him. He leapt inside it and chased a hare out. He caught it and killed it. Rush brought it over to Star and said, "I’ll get another." And that’s just what Rush did.

Star smiled, she slowly felt herself falling for him. He was such a gentleman; letting her eat first even if he was just as hungry and tired.

Rush came back with another hare and sat down to eat with Star. They ate quickly and continued on their journey, back home.

When they arrived, the pack was overjoyed with their return. Fuze was scared that he had lost his only daughter, while Serenity just smiled at Rush with trust.

"I guess they missed us." Rush commented sarcasically while everyone came up to Star and Rush.

Star smiled back at Rush's sarcasm and joked. "I guess they did."

Silver ran over to them and said, "Where did you go?" Rush looked at Star.

She ignored her best friend. She called the pack. They milled around her and Liberty stepped up a bit. "Nava has died." Star announced. The pack gasped in amazement. "Rush and I went to see Aleu and Nava died before our eyes; Rush was his adopted son. We will all grieve over his death." Star explained.

Liberty stepped forward. "We will all leave at once! The whole pack! Even the pups!" the pack gasped again in astonishment. Never had the entire pack at once left without anyone to guard the territory.

"What for, Liberty?" Rush said. "We buried Nava and Aleu is the new alpha. We don’t need go anywhere."

"Our pack was very close to Nava. I will get my brother and we will leave tomorrow." Liberty ordered and explained with dominance in her voice, reminding Rush she was alpha.

Rush sighed and chocked back tears that began to well in his eyes as he remembered Nava. There was no use trying to argue with Liberty. Rush walked to the patrol rock alone and lay down.

The next day the pack, along with Balto, planned to go on the journey. "Ok. We are traveling by glacier. We always have and we always will." Liberty said.

All of the parents grabbed a pup. Latin, Tony, Kain, and Victor needed carriers. Fuze snagged Kain. Silver grabbed Latin. Star grabbed Victor, who squirmed like the devil.

"Get Tony, please Rush." Liberty ordered.

Rush picked up Tony. Tony squirmed but Rush calmed him. Rush walked next to Star, Silver and Balto. "So, Aleu’s your daughter?" Rush asked Balto.

Balto nodded. "Yes, she is. I haven’t seen her in two years. Brooke is my daughter too." he said pointing to a red and white wolf dog. You're carrying my grandson." Balto said and smiled proudly.

"You must be proud." Rush said, "I have no family. Nava was the closest thing I had to a father."

"I’m sorry." Balto said, as they started swimming. The pups squirmed when the water touched them. They got onto the glacier and put the pups down, they scurried to their mothers. Star shook off the icy water on he pelt.

"It’s ok." Rush finished on the glacier. Rush then went over to Star.

She smiled at him. A few days passed and all was calm. Seals kept the pack fed and they broke off chips of ice for water. One day they heard an awful commotion. Little Pele had been pushed by her nasty brother, Victor. She had fallen into the water. She was autistic and didn’t know how to swim. Star dove into the water after the young pup. She swam under the water and snatched the pup.

Star couldn’t keep Pele out of the water and the glacier was floating farther away from them. Rush dove into the water after both of them. He grabbed the pup and swam back to the glacier and set the pup on the ice. Rush turned back to help Star.

Star was scrambling onto the ice. Baleez looked at Rush. "Thank you for saving my daughter." he thanked Rush.

Rush lay down on the glacier and shivered to Baleez, "It was nothing."

Star lay down next to him and fell asleep. 6 days passed and they hit land.

When Rush got on to the land he stretched and yawned then said, "It feels like we were here a week ago."

She laughed at Rush's humor and happily replied. "We were!"

"So do you think Aleu might have had a hard time?" Rush asked Star, "It is her first time leading a wolf pack.”

"Well she was pretty much running it since she joined it. She is ready." Star told Rush.

They followed Liberty and the pack to Aleu’s Pack’s den site where they all had a great reunion. And they mourned for Nava.

*****

2 months later, Starseeker sat on her patrol rock, wishing that she could be with Rush. But, she had to patrol and he had to hunt.

Rush was in the forest hunting. He ran over to the patrol rock with two hares. 

She must be hungry." Rush thought as he appeared in sight of the patrol rock.

Star sat up and wagged her tail happily, when she saw Rush and the two rabbits he carried in his mouth.

When Rush got to the patrol rock he set down the hares and said, "One for you, and one for me. “Thanks." Star said and smiled cheerfully.

 "There’s going to be bright stars tonight." Rush informed Star, "Great for watching too."

Star smiled and said. "Can’t wait."

That night Rush and Star sat on the patrol rock and watched the stars. "Do you think there’s as many wolves are they are stars?"

She laughed at the random question.