either her father, mother, or babysitter would tell her to cease her howling. They just couldn’t understand her singing voice – not even her half-wolf father or part-wolf siblings thought it was nothing more than loud noise. Actually, at her age of eight-weeks old, she couldn’t understand her howling either; she only howled when she was happy and excited, but listening to the sound coming from her lips just made her feel good deep down inside.

 

Aleu let out a sigh as the sound and the images faded away into the darkness of her mind and she began to sleep. However, sleep was not meant for her yet.

 

“Hey, Aleu,” A male’s voice spoke calmly in her ears as she felt a slightly violent nudge against her neck. “Wake up!”

 

Her eyes shot open as she looked at the wolf that was beside her. He was a reddish-brown wolf, the one that she had remembered from when she and her father had attended that meeting the previous night. “What is it? Is something wrong?”

 

“No, I . . .” he tried not to blush at her beauty, but his polite demeanor cloaked his true thoughts. “I just wanted to apologize for Riza’s behavior earlier.”

 

“Riza?” Aleu repeated. “Is that her name?”

 

“Yeah. She can be a bit of a bully, but she shouldn’t be a bother for you,” he blushed slightly at the sound of her voice, but again contained himself. “Oh, dear, where are my manners? My name is Scarlet, by the way. In the absence of my father, I am honored to welcome you as the new alpha of the Kawa Clan.” He lowered his head and tail in a sign of respect, then quickly returned to his standing position.

 

“Your . . . father?” Aleu questioned. She saw the changing expression on his face as she continued. “You mean, Nava is . . .”

 

“Yes,” Scarlet closed his eyes and sniffled.

 

“Oh.” Aleu paused, lowering her ears in respect of the friend that she also had to leave behind. He must be very strong to leave his own father behind. I guess I am too . . . “Oh, I’m so sorry for reminding you of him.” Aleu comforted the red wolf with a nuzzle against his neck. “He was a wise and kind wolf. I’m glad to have befriended him . . . and you.”

 

Her warm fur against his own caused a slight smile to come over him. “Thank you. It is an honor to hear that my father’s words have touched you.”

 

Aleu, surprised that such a creature could be so polite and well-mannered in the wilderness, began to smile. “So, I guess you are here to show me around the Clan?”

 

“Well, not yet. Not until we arrive in our new home,” Scarlet lit up, staring at the lovely creature that gave him such a glowing grin. “I have been given the task of teaching you the basics of living in this lifestyle once we settle down. I’m sure you must be wondering how we live and survive in the wilderness.”

 

“Yes,” She replied. “I’ve never been officially on my own before, so I really want to learn. My father had always forbid me to roam outside without some sort of supervision.” The mousy-brown yearling let out a quick giggle and a light sigh before beginning to question the red wolf. “So, Scarlet, when do I get to learn how to pounce or hunt or do things like that? Huh? I’m ready!”

 

Now noticing that the yearling might not taking the situation seriously, his face quickly became straight and strict. “No.”

 

“Huh?” Aleu answered back, surprised by Scarlet’s sudden change of tone. “What do you mean, ‘No?’ I’m the alpha now, right? I am ready for this!”

 

“No, you’re not ready at all.” His sharp repetitive comment silenced Aleu on the spot, causing her to take a couple of paces backward while Scarlet stepped towards her as he continued to speak. “This is serious, Aleu. It’s no laughing matter, not a game – it’s a matter of survival, life and possibly death.” His voice began to rise, causing some of the other wolves to take notice. “Listen up! We don’t exactly live an easy life in the wild as you think it may be! We have to deal with weather, enemies, and many other unpredictable situations that threaten our lives every day! Sometimes there are some dangers that occur that cause us to make sacrifices for our Clan, sometimes even going as far as giving our own lives in the process. As long as our Clan is protected, by the grace of the Great Aniu herself, we will not let our brothers and sisters die in vain. Do you understand?”

 

Aleu sat down, her ears perked up at Scarlet’s sudden attentive tone. “I – I  understand.” She managed to stammer sadly. “I’m sorry for not being serious. I guess I was thinking that living as a full wolf was going to be simple. I suppose that I’m being too naïve and immature for not understanding the real dangers of the wild.” Her ears lowered in shame for how she acted. “Please continue, Scarlet. I am listening.” She lifted her ears up again, allowing the male to know that she meant what she stated.

 

The red wolf nodded slightly as he continued his conversation. “By your response, I can tell that you understand my words . . . but I wonder,” he paused as he turned and looked up at the sky before gazing back at the young quarter-wolf. “I wonder if you truly understand your real purpose here.” He paused yet again, allowing a chance for his voice to recover. He began to speak with a powerful tone, facing his attention on Aleu’s wide eyes. “The Great Aniu has given you an important duty, one that my father held before you. You are to become the leader of the ‘Clan born of the River’ – the Kawa. This will not be an easy task, especially for a yearling such as yourself, but it is possible for you to succeed. You must dedicate your life to the Clan for as long as you live, for Aniu has selected you and only you as our rightful leader. Once you accept this fate, you can never return to the world from which you came. Are you ready to accept your destiny, Aleu?”

 

Scarlet’s words resounded in her head. Never return to Nome? I’ll never be able to see Papa or Mom or my siblings again . . . but, . . . She looked back at the other twenty-some wolves that were now staring at her and the red male that was speaking. This is much more important . . . this Clan needs me as their leader – this is my home now. This ‘Great Aniu’ must have seen something in me that this Clan needs. Sure, I may be different, but this is where I belong. I know that now. She saw the piercing glare of Riza in the back of the pack, along with the three wolves that brought her up onto the slab of ice. Another wolf stood beside Riza’s darker shade of coat, giving Aleu a look with such kind eyes of a youth, for the wolf’s eyes reminded herself of her own.

 

“Now I see,” Aleu murmured quietly under her breath. “I know why I’m here . . .”

 

“Aleu?” Scarlet brought her back down to his question. “Have you made your decision?”

 

“Yes I have, Scarlet,” She cleared her throat and stood up, facing her new pack-mates. “Before I arrived here, I was just a normal pup, hoping that one day a human would take me in as their own. Things changed after I turned a year old – I learned the truth about why people shunned and avoided me: I had wolf blood in me and unlike my brothers and sisters, it showed on the outside, making me seem more wolf than my own father. He had hidden this secret from me since my birth, and when he revealed it to me, it almost tore me apart. I had nowhere else to go but the place that my father had left behind – the wilderness beyond our town’s borders. I was confused and I felt that I had no purpose, no future, and no reason to continue living with my parents. When I decided to rest in a cave for the afternoon, my feelings changed and I never realized that it would lead me on a quest to find my true purpose in life.

 

“I learned something in there that made me curious about why I was here. Someone once told me, ‘Each of us has a destiny that sets us all apart. The path is different for you and me, but the journey begins in the heart.’” She began to smile and close her eyes as she remembered her spirit guide, Muru. A swirl of fog formed by the paws of one of the wolves closest to Aleu and Scarlet, revealing the tiny form of the brown field mouse. She opened her eyes and winked at her waving friend quickly before continuing. “I thought about it afterwards, only knowing that I was the child of a purebred husky and a half-wolf. What I knew was what I was, but not who I really was. It was at that moment that I chose to make a promise to my heart to find out who I am, whether my father accepted it or not. After arriving here in your Clan, I felt that I might have a purpose after all when I met all of you and learned of your problems. Unfortunately, my father refused to let me follow the path that was destined for me and me alone until the last possible moment.”

 

Riza couldn’t take much more of this talk. “Enough talk, tame-born!” She barked. “Get to the point already! We could care less about your tame-born life story, you know!”

 

Scarlet’s eyebrows lowered in outrage at Riza’s sudden outburst. “Please be quiet, Riza. Aleu is your new alpha as well, and it is her right to speak before she gives her answer.”

 

The gray wolf lowered her ears, growling as she turned away. Lorna glanced back at Aleu with a look of sorrow and with a longing to hear more, followed her sister, knowing that she would never allow it.

 

When the air cleared, the red wolf nodded to her, allowing her to continue. “When Scarlet mentioned that the Clan’s name meant that you were born by the river, I realized something – I was born by the water too, just as you all have . . . with the exception of me being born in a small town by the sea. It never once occurred to me before, but I feel that I now know who I am.” She paused for a moment before concluding her

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