Chapter 2 – Dingo

The morning eventually came with time’s slow progression, the temperature creeping up to a comfortable degree but remaining just cold enough to keep the snow intact on the ground.  The sheltered portion of the ship’s deck, which previously was protecting its inhabitants from the cold wind, was now protecting them from the gleaming sun as it split the horizon.  Even still, the old wolf-dog’s biological clock had instinctively awakened him.  He slowly opened his eyes and lifted himself, stretching and yawning before scanning the deck.  Looking down a bit, Balto found Dingo still asleep on his side and slightly curled up in the blanket.  The sight of his son brought another smile to his face, and after deciding to let him sleep a little longer he padded off onto the unsheltered deck.  His feet and paws continued to carry him down the plank and into the soft chilly snow, leaving Dingo without reminding him that the ship’s other regulars would be stopping by.

A different set of paws soon after transitioned from the snow to the wooden planks of the ship.  They pittered and pattered across the sturdy wood slightly warmed by the sunlight, slowly sneaking across the deck to approach the shelter.  Keeping their bodies low and navigating with their active noses, the two sets of paws slowly and stealthily approached the shelter.  They entered and looked to the figure they’d anticipated: a wolf-dog covered completely by the blanket, still deep in slumber.  The smaller form just grinned and motioned for the larger one to follow, nearing closer and closer to the covered canine.

“Oh Balto…” The smaller one muttered, giggling quietly to perhaps notify the form of their presence, but to no avail.

They menacingly and playfully approached the form engulfed in the sheets, and once close enough they lifted the protection away.  The form underneath however was not who they expected, and they froze in fear as well as suspicion.

The unexpected movement of his blanket had unintentionally nudged Dingo into an eventually awakened state, retaining his lying position while he released a yawn and with it his eyelids’ tight grasp on his gold-based eyes.  Naturally he was brought to looking straight ahead, and he froze up as well when he found the eyes of two arbitrarily-sized polar bears looking frozen back into his.

Balto had traveled a while away from his home when he heard an abrupt then lengthy masculine yell coming from the ship.  He just as quickly turned back to his view of the vessel, looking on with curiosity and naturally surprise.

“What the-?”

As the sound was coming from his own residence, the wolf-dog felt responsible for whatever situation was taking place there.  He quickly darted back towards the boat as a result in order to investigate.

Dingo had backed into a corner of the shelter, cowering in fear of the two polar bears that have come barging in.  The two bears, one smaller and the other larger than the hero’s son, kept a distance from the canine in their own corner as they were just as afraid of him.  The bears tried to ask questions of their own in between Dingo’s panicked commands and queries.

“Get away from me!  What are you doing here?!  What do you want?!  J-Just get away!”

“Well w-who are you?!  What are YOU doing here?!”

Balto was coming up the plank and onto the ship, beginning to hear the conversation further in.  Having been reminded of who it could be on the way back and up, he continued on rather calmly and looked into the shelter.  From his entering angle, he first saw the intruding cause of the uproar in one corner, then as he stopped in the doorway he saw the source of the yell in the opposite one.  Despite his presence, the three figures but two opposing sides had not noticed Balto yet and therefore resumed their back-and-forth.

“We don’t want any trouble,” the smaller bear resumed while in trembling fear, “w-we were just looking for…”

The same figure then noticed the strange shadows on the ground, followed them and by doing so found the familiar wolf-dog in the doorway.

“…Balto!”

Both the bears came running to him for safety from this stranger in their midst; once reaching Balto they took their place hiding behind him.

“Oh Balto, thank goodness you came!  T-There’s this strange dog on your house!  H-He tried to eat us.”

“I always have to come to the rescue for you two, huh?” The hero stated, rolling his eyes both in disappointment in the both of them as well as himself.

He left their side and approached Dingo, who was lying in the corner still cringed in fear and covering his eyes with his paws.  His father nudged the paws from his eyes once again, and the red canine looked up to him.

“Dingo,” Balto said as he turned back to the two bears, “this is Muk and Luk.  They were around the last time you were here, back when you were a pup.”

His son looked to the bears as well, now much more relaxed having regained his composure around his father.

“…Muk…and Luk?”

With the mention of Dingo’s name, the bears had calmed and remembered him too.

“Dingo?”

Balto gave Muk and Luk a nod for clarification, and afterwards the bears came running over to give a welcoming back embrace to the wolf-dog’s son.

“Dingo!”

The red canine was rested against Luk’s large soft belly in the embrace, the bigger bear licking him while Muk bounced up and down around him.

“Oh Dingo, it’s been so long!  Look at you, all grown up!  Look at you, look at you!”

Luk the larger bear held him tighter, murmuring with his kazoo-esque speech leaving Muk to translate and Dingo almost having to gasp for air.

“Luk says that he’s glad to see you too, which is why he hugged you tighter, and he’s wondering what you’re doing here.”

The large bear’s grasp was released and all four of Dingo’s paws were allowed back onto the solid ground, leaving him to take a few gaping breaths of air before answering.  Even as he spoke, however, the subject was very well something he didn’t want to discuss.

“Umm…well uh…I…”

Desperate for an escape plan from the conversation, he looked to his father.  Still unusually keen on picking up on his son’s signs, Balto cut in.

“Uh, guys…he…doesn’t want to talk about it.  All you need to know is that Dingo will be staying with us for a while.”

“Oh…I see…”

Muk looked to Dingo’s neck, noticing the distinct absence of a collar while knowing full well that he was adopted.  He then quietly shared this information with his bigger relative, after which they both nodded in understanding and decided to drop the subject.

“Alright, well in any case, it’s great to have you back Dingo.”

“T-Thanks.” Dingo replied, matching their smiles even though his had a blush attached.

Balto stepped closer to cut in again, once more acknowledging and acting on his son’s nervousness.

“Uh, why don’t you two go see your Uncle Boris?  Let him know that we have a special visitor.”

“Ah, right you are Balto.  Come on Luk, let’s go tell Uncle Boris!”

The larger bear just whistled in agreement as he was pushed away from them, over to the plank and down it to leave the two wolf-dogs alone again.

“S-Sorry I freaked out a little back there,” Dingo said in embarrassment with his head held low, “it’s uh…just not every day that a couple of polar bears show up like that…”

“Well actually, that’s just about every day over here.” Balto replied in his traditional clever fashion, smiling at his pup. “Don’t worry, they’re harmless.  They’re the fun out here I was talking about, and so is Boris really.”

“Yeah…and who’s Boris again?”

“You knew each other when you were a pup too, just like with Muk and Luk.  Heck, he’s been around so long that he’s taken care of me.”

Balto himself even blushed a bit at that, but it was worth it as his son felt a little better about things and brought his head up again.

“So…we’re waiting for Boris then?”

“Yep, that’s the plan.  Boris has a knack for taking care of people, he makes it his business and done it with me as well as the bears.  I figured he’d probably want to take you in too.”

“T-Take me in?”

“Relax, he’s just going to try and help you out.  Nothing serious.”

“Help me out?  How?”

“Oh, he has ways…”

Balto just kept his grin while looking out to the front of the ship, and as if on cue the old goose came waddling up the plank into sight.  Muk and Luk were following close behind, bouncing up the plank soon after.

“Balto!” Boris proclaimed. “I came as soon as I heard; where is the boy-chick?”

“He’s right here.”

The wolf-dog nudged his head in his son’s direction, Boris picking up on this and turning to see Dingo.

“Well would you look at him!”

The goose then took a bit of a double-take, taking alternating glances at the newly