Author’s Notes #2:

**Read this before continuing!** 

The next six parts of this story are each continuations of the Prologue; however, each part has its own similarities and differences:

- The puppy that survives in each story is different, since in “Wolf Quest”, Jenna gives birth to six puppies (which is mentioned in the Prologue and five of the pups end up dead at birth), and hence why there is six separate tales of a father’s struggle to continue onward and a child’s search for self-worth and a true place where they truly belong.  

- Since one pup looks more like a wolf (Aleu) while the other five had more domestic features and markings (three of them had markings just like Jenna’s, the other two’s markings seemed more wolf-like IMO), each of their personalities are much different than what you may remember from the Balto sequels. Of course, only two of the pups, Aleu and Kodiak, became the main focus of the sequels (Aleu in “Wolf Quest” and Kodi in “Wings of Change”), so the tales of the other four are totally fictional and are the creation of the author, Juuchan17 (which is, of course, myself).

- The personalities of the puppies are mainly based on how they are raised after they are born, so some of the personality traits that were once seen in the sequels are expected to change, especially since now the surviving child has no one else except for Rosy and Balto (and occasionally Boris, Muk, and Luk) to take care of them. Some of them may become headstrong, hoping for a chance to become independent; others might go as far as physically escaping from the safety of home in order to find what they truly want; and a couple may just do the impossible to prove a point and take a stand for what they believe is right. 

- One thing that really hasn’t changed is Balto’s everlasting love for Jenna. Although she is no longer with him in life, her spirit remains within his dreams somehow. At times, any object that she once had (like her trademark bandanna, for example) or something that resembles her likeness in his eyes can cause him to undergo a sudden breakdown of tears (which he would prefer to not do in public, but sometimes it’s hard to hold back how he really feels inside). A major situation becomes caused by Balto’s heartbreak of losing his mate, and others may be instigated by his feelings and actions after his meeting with his only pup face-to-face. He tries to keep the fact that the mother of his only child isn’t there anymore from the pup, hoping that it will put the past behind him, but it seems that he can never escape his loss.

- Also, I have recently gotten into writing “song-fics” – a fanfiction that somehow incorporates a song’s lyrics within it – so each individual story has a different song that is featured within the pup’s tale. Sometimes it’s heard in a dream or a vision; other times, it may be heard in reality by one of the characters – either way, the song has special meaning to Balto, Jenna, or to the surviving pup (Mainly, it’ll be connected to both the pup and Balto). 

I had someone to tell me that this story’s premise reminded them of the animated masterpiece, “Finding Nemo”. Now that I think about it, he was right! The loss of the maternal side of a couple really does change the way the remaining parent to care for the children (or in this case, child) that is left behind. The only major difference to this epic tale and “Finding Nemo” is the fact that Jenna dies of natural complications that occurred while she gave birth. However, these tales are much different than that movie is.

Now that that’s all said and done, let the next part begin! 

- Juuchan17

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Part I

Balto looked at the child that was wrapped inside his lover’s bandanna, now spotted with blood and a bit of water that was used to clean the pup. Once his eyes saw the full body of the tiny newborn, he gasped and then lowered his eyelids in sadness. 

No . . . It is truly a curse . . . His eyes grew large in shock. Now I’ve only made things worse . . .

Rosy squeezed her arms around his furry neck. “It’s a girl, Balto! Isn’t she beautiful?” She spoke softly to him as she leaned her face into his neck; Balto could feel a few teardrops land on his coat as the next words that she said made him worried. “You know, she reminds me of you.” 

The hybrid let out a sigh, realizing that nothing was going to change that. Rosy’s right . . . she obviously takes after my cursed half of my breeding. He glanced at the pup again. The newborn’s coat was still drying after only being minutes old, but it was a beautiful shade of light brown. Her markings on her face, body, paws and underneath her tiny nub of a tail were beige-tan. Her eyes were tightly shut and her mousy-brown ears were flopped forward as she whimpered and squirmed against the soft fabric in the doctor’s palm, blind and deaf to the new world around her. But perhaps Rosy was right about another thing . . .  His tan eyelids lowered, causing him to glance at the child with a look of love. She is quite beautiful too . . .

The doctor wrapped the squeaking pup in the fabric and handed it to the young girl. The warm bottle of milk that Rosy’s father held was now placed in the girl’s other hand. “You can feed her, Rosy,” the physician told her. “She’s still a newborn and without some sort of nourishment, she won’t last very long.” 

Rosy’s eyes were fixing on the tiny child that was warming in her arms as she asked a question with a happier tone. “Can I go into the waiting room to feed her, Doc? It might be nice for her to get some fresh air.”

The Doc nodded. “Go ahead. Just don’t go outside, okay? There still might be a slight chill in the air that could be too much for her to handle.” 

Rosy responded with a slight smile as she walked out of the room and into the lobby. Balto followed right behind her, hoping that the dogs outside could welcome his and Jenna’s daughter into their town family.

The little girl sat on a bench near the window, allowing a few of the canines that peeked outside of the window to glance at Jenna’s surviving child. Balto, who sat down by the end of the bench, also looked much happier as he watched his daughter feed for the first time in her short life. Rosy placed the rubber nipple on the bottle to the pup’s light tan lips, helping her suck the liquid that would help her grow strong. The pup gave the nipple a tiny lick with her tongue; within seconds, she was attached to the bottle, drinking the warm milk until it was all gone. The wolf-like child let out a tiny burp – it sounded more like a little bark – and began to yawn, stretching out her miniscule legs and paws. As if she were in training to become a mother herself, Rosy rocked the wrapped puppy in her arms, softly humming a lullaby that her own mother sang to her as a baby. Balto listened to the tune as his daughter started to sleep; his ears pricked up, for he had a feeling that he had heard the melody before when he was a young pup. He felt at peace for once at that moment . . . actually, that moment was the calmest he had felt all day.  

As soon as the pup fell asleep, Rosy did as well, and Balto took this time to nuzzle his daughter one last time for the day. His large nose gently graced against her tiny wet one as she quietly snored. The doctor, who was smiling with the girl’s two parents, soon sauntered over to the half-breed and the two sleeping children. He lifted the pup from Rosy’s sheltering arms and picked up the empty bottle, returning to the back room. The father, knowing that today had been long, tiring, and extremely emotional for all of them, took the sleeping child in his long arms and with his wife in tow, they bid Balto farewell, leaving the clinic and heading for home through the swarm of canines outside near the stairway and the town street.

The clinic was quiet now, with exception of the wolf-dog’s whispering whimpers and the muffled crowd outside, still awaiting to hear the latest on the tragic situation. The doctor emerged from the back room and walked to the sitting mutt, kneeling beside him. 

“It’s all right, boy,” The Doc gave him a calm grin. “Your daughter will be okay for now. I’ve put her in a soft bed with a warm blanket around her, so you’ll have nothing to worry about.” He placed his hand on the wolf-dog’s scruffy head, ruffling up the hairs that still managed to stick up. “You know, you can sleep with her in here as long as you want to. I know that if you want to stay by her side until she’s strong enough to go home, our clinic will always be open to you. Besides,” The doctor walked to a back entrance that also led to an alleyway near the connecting boiler room. “there’s a dog door right here, so feel free to come and go as you please. I’ll even make a little bed for some additional comfort, in case you wish to watch over her overnight. This isn’t much repayment for you saving the town and all, but I think you might need it right now.” The doctor began to walk beside the wolf-dog up to the main entrance where all of the local dogs waited for Balto to come out. “I’ll let you go now, Balto. I have to clean the other rooms and all. I’ll see you later then.” He opened the door and allowed the gray-brown canine to be among the other huskies, closing the door behind him as he exited the building.

Not a dog spoke a word to the wolf-dog – not because they were still afraid of the wolf blood running through his veins, but because they had no idea on what to say to him after hearing the news of Jenna’s sudden death. However, there was one creature that had the courage to speak to him first. 

“Balto . . .” The Russian snow goose waddled up to him, placing a