Here I Am 

(started 1/11/07 -) 

Summary: Aleu is now the elected alpha of the Kawa clan, but the wolves seem to not be convinced that she, a yearling who was born only quarter wolf, can truly tackle the difficult job of being their leader. But when food becomes scarce, Aleu realizes that she is the key to their survival . . . if only the others would truly accept her for who she is . . . 

Rating: PG for hunting, blood, and a bit of bullying about being different. There’s possible violence too, but these are wolves that we’re talking about. Whoo-hoo, violence. ^___^  
 

Disclaimer: Balto, Wolf Quest, and any other characters and situations mentioned are the property of Universal Studios, Inc. and any other names used are fan-made by me, Juuchan17. 
 

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Author's Note:  

Yet again, I’ve written another one-shot Aleu-centric tale.

What can I say? She's quite an interesting character to write about! 

Anywho, I know this theme of story about Aleu has been done many times before, but I thought it would be interesting if I had a different approach to Aleu's first days as alpha. I hope no one else has written anything like this yet! (I haven’t read such a story yet, so I’m off the hook!) This is based on a song that I’ve heard from the animated movie “Spirit”, and I thought that the lyrics reminded me of Aleu’s wild and free spirit as well. I decided to use it in here, so don’t be surprised to see it a couple of times within the totality of the story. Since the Clan was told by Aniu to travel across the water for caribou, I thought it would be a turn of events if the caribou weren't so easy to find until the rest of the Clan were able to accept her first. Besides, it's perfectly normal for the Clan to take a while to accept someone whose very different (especially since Aleu has more husky blood than her father, yet she acts and looks more wolfish than her father), and since she's so young and such an amateur at living like a real wolf, this adds to the challenge.

Not only is this story about Aleu, but also I thought it would be nice to add some background to the history of the Kawa Clan – mainly focused on Nava’s leadership years before Aleu and Balto’s arrival. Developing of the Clan’s story was a lot of fun and I was able to use some mentions from “Wolf Quest” as well, so I hope it adds some interesting thoughts for you hard-core Balto fans out there! 

Plus, I added some more characters to the pack and got the chance to develop the characters of the other wolf members that were introduced in the last third of “Wolf Quest”, such as Niju’s trio: Nuk, the large wolf with a bottomless pit for a stomach; Sumac, the tan, skinny wolf who lacks a sense of humor (unfortunately, he never lacks fleas); and Yak, the slight sense of reason in the group, although he shows himself as nothing more than a follower of anyone who sounds more appealing to him. One of the newer characters is one who sort of reminds me of Zira from “TLK2: Simba’s Pride” – Riza (no, I didn’t base her name on Zira either . . . although her personality and actions resemble her to a point), a dark wolf female of the Kawa Clan who has an honest reason to hate Aleu . . . and it’s not just because she’s their new leader . . . And probably my favorite new character would have to be Scarlet, who helps teach Aleu how to be a leader, even though the leadership qualities are already inside her. He’s a bit of a slight love-interest too, so it makes things a little bit interesting . . .

Hmm, makes you think, don’t it? 

So I hope you enjoy it. And BTW, there's not much lovey-dovey stuff. Not until Niju returns in "Two Become One", that is . . . so I guess that makes this a companion piece to “Change of Heart”, right?

- Juuchan17 

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Part ONE – Destiny & Enemies

The sky was darkening blue, streaked with red and orange ribbons of setting sunlight against the streams of cirrus clouds. The air felt tense and cold, with the wind adding a sample of the piercing chills of the upcoming winter temperatures. The sea roughly lapped against the edge of the mountainous terrain, crashing liquid ice onto the shore. Tall pines lined a few dusty paths that led to the rocky shoreline, with each tree flooded with flocks of winged creatures of many colors; most of them reflected the color of the dusty earth, while others were cloaked with slight splashes of nature’s more colorful palette. However, not a single bird flew towards the sunset in the twilight hour – it was as if they knew the sky was not for them to fly in just yet, for a bigger purpose was meant for the colorful canvas right now.

A lone raven let out a soft caw as it stood perched on a nearby cliff, gazing its red eyes at a solitary slab of ice where a few quadrupeds stood; in a few minutes, a momentous occasion was to take place there that would change many lives forever.

It felt like time was almost suspended to a halt ever since it had happened. Cries of worry, fear, and confusion filled the twilight air as a medium-sized pack of lupines looked like they were about to meet their doom without a leader at all onboard a flat piece of iceberg. Only moments ago, the one that was supposed to be their new leader leapt back into the frigid depths without warning. He had only arrived in the wolves’ territory when a raven had led him and his yearling daughter there the previous day, but everyone soon learned the real reason why the pair of strangers was brought here - he was to be their new leader!

Aniu, the sacred White Wolf of all Wolf culture and lore, had recently contacted their alpha, a male wolf of beige fur, through a series of repetitive dream visions. She had told him what he had known for years already – he was nearing his final months and with the chills of winter coming closer, food was going to be the main priority, as was the search for his successor. But she left him an important message that could make or break his Clan forever: the caribou herds that they had always hunted for many years had crossed the water beside their land and chose to remain there. Without their common prey to hunt, their Clan would be forced to choose between two options: either they could remain in the place of their birth without their winter supply of kill or they could follow the caribou and survive through another snowy season.

The shock of the elder leader’s announcement caused confusion amongst the Clan. However, one rebel pack-member disagreed with the idea of a half-breed outsider being an alpha, especially since the only experience he had had of being a leader was when he was lead dog of a sled team. A few others started to agree with the loud and furious male and his ideas. The youthful male spoke of remaining where in their homeland and stealing other Clans’ food to survive the rough blizzards of winter, which was quite a risk, for the Clans’ would then be fighting for a limited amount of kill and possibly lose their own lives in the process; however, the longing for fresh caribou to hunt was too great - they had to find a way across the water to where their food was!

The half-breed, decked in faded brownish-gray fur and tan markings like his fellow brethren, looked back at the remaining canines that he was leaving behind. The light yellow-tan wolf, the previous alpha and a user of magic, stood weakly, obviously showing his years; however, he was hopeful that the half-breed visitor would lead his Clan to the thriving caribou herds across the rough waters. The other canine, born only part wolf, was more concerned about the elder’s condition and safety; she knew that he couldn’t cross the water alone and, much to her father’s dismay, stood her ground by his side. Mysteriously, she could translate the elder and the hybrid’s visions perfectly, for she had the same dream that night as well. This surprised both the elder and her father – what other unknown abilities did this young quarter-wolf possess that they didn’t expect?

Her father, who she was trying to run away from in the first place, had searched for many weeks for her, insisting that she return home with him. However, a spiritual intervention caused her to continue her personal journey deeper into the wilderness; unfortunately, her persistent patriarch followed behind, for he was worried about his yearling daughter from the day of her birth until the night when she ran away from home after he confessed about his wolf heritage and the fact that she looked more wild than tame.

The scene at the edge of the Clan’s former territory had begun to turn dangerous as the rebellious wolf, covered in navy-black fur lined with markings of gray-white, attacked the aging lupine without warning. Knocking the mystic onto the chilled island of ice, the young darkling wolf attacked him in rage and pinned him down. The female yearling, who had recently emerged from the icy depths after almost being crushed by two chunks of the frozen water, attempted to stand her ground and protect her new-found friend who had patiently listened to and answered her growing questions about their mysterious world and the untamed life of the wolf.

Yards away, the half-breed watched in horror as the darker and much larger male pounced onto the quarter-wolf female. He never liked the male ever since the time he and his daughter had entered the Kawa Clan’s territory – he was always rebellious, proud of his youth and the strength he possessed, and his goal to overthrow his elder leader and claiming the title for himself.

But as much as he wanted to fulfill this sudden destiny that he