sacrificed her own life so that you would live.” 

Aleu let out a light gasp of wonder. I never realized that before, she thought. Based on what Papa and Ebony told me about her, she doesn’t seem like a husky that would sacrifice herself like that . . . She seems too good to do something like that . . . She let out a soft sigh. Maybe if I can see Papa again tonight . . . maybe he can tell me the rest of his story about what she was all about.

“He’s a nice guy, Aleu,” Geona concluded. “and I’m sure it must have been hard for him to raise you as not only a father but also as a mother. Maybe . . . maybe the emotions he’s going through are just as big as the ones you’re dealing with too.” 

Aleu sighed deeply. “I think you might be right. Do you think White Feather would let me see my Papa again tonight?” Aleu asked her friend.

“I don’t know,” Geona shrugged. “I know we’re summoned to heal your father after she talks with him, but there might be a chance that you can sneak in tonight if I volunteer for prisoner guard duty.” 

“Oh, would you?” Aleu begged her. “I’d really appreciate it, Geona.”

“I can only try,” Geona answered back with a yawn. “but right now, let’s get a bit of sleep. I don’t know why, but I have a feeling today’s going to be something big now that you’re here.” 

Aleu only sighed as she placed her head on top of her front paws. Geona had done the same, but unlike the quarter-wolf, the she-wolf had instantly fallen asleep out of exhaustion. She’s been busy since early this morning, Aleu thought to herself as her eyelids began to droop. I know Geona’s tired, so she can easily fall asleep . . . She let out a sigh. But I can’t sleep a wink . . . not after everything that’s happened today. I’m just so worried about Papa . . . and what he might mention to White Feather—

Her thoughts were interrupted by soft-padded footsteps approaching from the nearby walkway. Aleu let out a little gasp as she quickly shut her eyes to pretend to be asleep until the wolf passed by. She sniffed the air, hoping to use her newfound wolf sense of smell that Everett had helped awaken within her. She could hear his words of advice in her mind as she caught a whiff of scent. 

“Concentrate on the scent, Aleu . . . Let it linger for a moment and recognize something about it that reminds you of something you’ve encountered or someone you’ve met . . . Then, once it’s come to you, the picture of what the scent is will appear in your mind . . .”

A form of a familiar white wolf appeared in her mind’s eye, for the scent smelt of sparkling starlight and strong oak bark. It’s White Feather . . . Aleu told herself. She’s probably on her way to speak with Papa, which means that she’ll be waking us up in about an hour to help him. Maybe . . . A soft yawn suddenly escaped her lips by accident, causing the paw-steps to halt for a moment then get closer to the entrance of Geona’s den. 

“Aleu?” The soft tinkling voice murmured into the quarter-wolf’s ears. “Are you still awake?”

Embarrassingly, the near-yearling opened her eyes and gave the Alpha a bashful grin. “Yeah, how did you guess?” She let out a silent snicker and cleared her throat before continuing. “I just couldn’t sleep somehow, but I don’t know why actually,” Aleu replied back. 

The regal Alpha gazed down at the quarter-wolf, lowering her eyelids halfway in a look of trust. “Would you like to come with me to the prison chambers?” She asked after taking a few moments to have a mental break, almost as if she was having some sort of a change of heart to the previous schedule she had planned.

“Wouldn’t you mind my presence with you, White Feather?” Aleu curiously asked, cocking her head to the side in confusion. “I thought you wanted to speak to him alone.” 

“Well,” The Alpha began to explain. “as much as that is true, I feel like you’d be useful as my guard . . .” She stopped for a second before continuing. “I mean, if you want to do it, of course.”

Aleu gulped a bit, knowing that if her father revealed that she was his daughter, White Feather may go off and exile both of them . . . but she knew she had to do something to make sure that nothing happened to either of them . . . 

“Okay, sure,” the quarter-wolf agreed as she began to rise to her feet, speaking in an uneasy tone.

“Is something wrong? You sound a bit anxious, Aleu,” White Feather wondered as she began to walk a step down the hall. “You know, you don’t have to do it if you don’t feel comfortable.” 

“But you asked me, ma’am,” Aleu replied softly as she followed behind her out the chamber, leaving her sleeping friend inside. “A member of a pack can’t refuse the request of her Alpha, right?”

White Feather’s ears pricked up slightly, but she felt a light chuckle slip from her lips. “Yes, that is correct, my dear, but . . .” 

“Really, White Feather— I mean, my Alpha,” Aleu quickly corrected herself. “I accept your offer to accompany you to my Pa— I mean, to the prisoner, ma’am.” She let out a sigh of relief knowing that she caught her tongue before messing up everything. “It’s part of my duty to do as you’ve asked.”

“All right then,” the Alpha knew that her sudden change of mind was a good choice. “Come on now; I’ll show you to your duties as my guard.” 

Aleu nodded as she followed closely behind the white she-wolf, leaving her resting friend behind to catch up on sleep. They walked to the end of the hall where the prison chamber held the quarter-wolf’s resting patriarch, stretched out on the rocky floor with his wounded shoulder pointing upward. His ears flickered as his nose twitched, detecting the strange scent of someone he knew . . .

“Uh . . .” Balto’s voice was a quiet groan of pain as his eyes opened to the sight of his daughter and the white Alpha of the Clan. He had slept for a little while, but it was better than nothing. 

“Arise, Prisoner,” White Feather commanded him with a warm yet short howl. The hybrid did as told, lifting his head to see the beautiful form of the wolf in front of him. Aleu stood beside the Alpha, watching how her father and the she-wolf interacted with one another . . . and seeing when she could find the perfect opportunity to make a crucial move that could save both of their lives.

“Hi, my name is Balto,” he introduced himself, hoping that everyone would stop calling him a prisoner. He had been called too many names years ago, but this recent title of Prisoner was just the last straw. “So, you must be the Alpha I have heard so much about,” Balto cleared his throat before speaking this with a light chuckle. “I hear from the others that you’re a lot like me.” 

White Feather was slightly taken aback by the prisoner’s comment about her. “How dare you compare me to yourself!” She growled, her silky fur was beginning to prick up like needles. The Alpha’s reaction made Balto lower himself back to the ground in fear. “However, that is not the subject of this discussion.” She had begun to calm down by this time, clearing her throat. Aleu breathed a soft sigh of relief. “You were taken as our prisoner because you were trespassing on our territory and acting very strangely when the guards on duty near our secret shelter.”

“Oh, I’m sorry,” Balto’s ears lowered apologetically. “I’ve avoided the woods for over a year, so I didn’t know about your boundaries and all. I was just searching for my – ow!” 

A small rock had hit the cut on his shoulder, making Balto wince in pain. Aleu hoped that White Feather didn’t notice that it was her doing, but she had to stall him for as long as she could from revealing the truth of his relationship with her.

Sorry, Papa . . . but this is the only way . . .  

“Oh dear, are you all right?” White Feather offered a kind gesture to the one that she was once angry at only moments prior. To the quarter-wolf child, this was seen as a strangely sudden change of heart, but at least Aleu was assured that right now the Alpha wasn’t completely heartless.

“Y . . . yeah,” Balto whimpered out. “I think I am . . . ouch!” Another small pebble bounced off of his cut, making him jerk slightly as the hybrid tried to endure the pain by collapsing back onto the ground. “Well, maybe I could use . . . something for the pain . . .” He let out a slight hiss of anguish. 

“Well, I have a healer here if you need some help with that wound,” The Alpha told him, stepping backwards to let the light gray-brown female into the light. She bowed lightly to show her appreciation, but inside she was chuckling, knowing that her plan was in full motion.

“Her?” Balto gazed at the sight of his daughter beside the snow-white Alpha, watching the lupine turn her muzzle towards the now blushing quarter-wolf. “But she’s–” 

“I know, she’s only a beginner at healing and this is her first time, but I trust her. I’m sure she’ll keep you in the best of care,” the Alpha smiled confidently, interrupting the hybrid’s sentence. She turned again to Aleu and told her what to do. “All you have to do is just make sure to keep the wound clean by licking it and place a nice piece of Thin Leaf on it to help ease the pain. I trust you to keep watch over him while I get that Thin Leaf for you, okay, Aleu?”

Her young face had a slight look of disgust for a second after hearing what her job was, but she coughed and gave White Feather a convincing smile. “I think I can handle that, ma’am,” Aleu spoke with a forced voice as she grinned. “There’s no need to worry about me. Take your time, I insist.” 

“Well, all right then,” the Alpha agreed. As if the Great Spirits were on Aleu’s favor, a yelping cry came from the main chamber down the long hall. White Feather’s faded black-tipped ears pricked up at the sound as