For the past couple months I have been working on a couple fanfics of my own, and I have finally finished my first one. It is titled "The First Day", and takes place right after the first movie ends. It follows Balto and Jenna during (as the title suggests) the first day after he returns with the medicine. During that day, Balto also remembers the events of his life after his mother disappeared, and how they shaped him into what he is now.
I have already started posting the first couple chapters on Fanfiction.net, adding a new chapter every couple of days. As I post, I'm also doing some fine tuning to it, to make sure it's as good as it can be. Once I have finished posting all the chapters there, I will post the final version on Balto Source.
As a sneek peek, here's the entire prologue for the story:
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Prologue: A Hero’s WelcomeAll it took was a few moments for a small town on the edge of Alaska to erupt in celebration. It was the early hours of the morning, and yet the people were wide-awake. All around there was hugging, cheering and crying. Each had their own separate way of showing their joy, for their salvation had arrived. For days, parents had watched while their children slowly and painfully succumbed to diphtheria. They had called for crucial medicine to be delivered, but in the storms, the team had gotten lost. Their only hope had disappeared, and so all they could do was watch as their children slowly suffocated under the grip of the disease.
Then, out of the dark, came a long howl. But this was not a howl from a wild wolf. It was the howl from the leader of the dog team. The medicine was not lost. The people gathered in the streets, and got the biggest surprise of their lives. The team was not being led by the dog they had sent out. Their champion, Steele, was no where to be found. Instead, the team was led by another creature the townspeople knew. It was a wolfdog they had come to call Balto.
Balto was a scruffy, brown hybrid that to most people, was a nuisance, nothing more than a stray dog. He belonged to no one for no one would have him. They feared and hated his wolf side. It didn’t matter that he also had husky breeding in him; all they saw was a wolf, and that was enough for them to deem him a threat to their safety. But now, this wolf was in sled traces, and had saved many children from a slow death.
“Balto, I’d be lost without you.”For Balto, all this attention was overwhelming. Up until now, people would have yelled at him and chased him off, or tried to avoid him altogether, but now they all wanted to pet him and hug him for his deed. One grown man even broke down and sobbed his thanks to him for saving his two sons. The rest of the dogs on the team were getting their share of attention too. So much, that some of them tried to run away to escape the mob.
The team’s musher, who had been knocked unconscious, was carefully lifted out of the sled and taken into the hospital for care, leaving the dogs alone outside. The dogs Balto knew on the team were a tan Chinook named Kaltag, a red-brown Chow named Nikki, and a small, grey husky known as Star. With them were the other dogs on the team that Balto had not been introduced to, along with half of the town’s resident dogs. But out of all the dogs in the town, there was one who stood out to him. A red and white husky named Jenna.
She had always had a special place in Balto’s heart. She was the only dog in the town that was willing to talk to him. She had even followed him on his journey to find the team, helping him fend off an angry grizzly. For the longest time, they only considered each other friends, due to Balto’s outcast status. But recently, they had shown signs that they felt more towards each other. While the rest of the dogs were congratulating each other, Jenna had collapsed into Balto’s shoulder, crying out of sheer joy. Her human girl, Rosy, was one of the children who had fallen ill. She meant the whole world to Jenna, and she came very close to losing her, but Balto had come through and saved her, along with all the other children. While she cried, Balto tried to soothe her.
“Shhhhh, shhhh Jenna. Don’t cry, it’s over. It’s all over. Rosy’s safe now, she’s going to be okay.”
“It’s not just that Balto. I thought I had lost you as well. I thought I had lost my best friend.”
Balto put his paw under her chin and tilted her head so that she was looking into his golden eyes, “Hey, I promised I would come back didn’t I?”
“But Steele said you were dead. He said you were all dead!” the rest of the team overheard this, and they all stopped in shock.
“He………. What?” Kaltag said.
“When he came back to the town, he said that you had all died………… one by one,” a smaller dog named Dixie replied.
“You mean……… he’s here?” Balto asked. Soon, all the dogs on the team started growling in anger.
“Yes, he’s at the old mill, but why are you all so upset? He made it back too - safe and sound,” replied an old St. Bernard known as Doc.
“He won’t be for long!” Kaltag shouted. He ran towards the old mill, with the other dogs on the team in tow. Jenna and the others were shocked at their sudden departure, and decided to follow as well. They ran after them with Jenna running side by side with Balto.
“Hey, what’s gotten you guys so upset?” Dixie asked
“Yeah Balto, what’s going on?” Jenna asked him.
“I’ll tell youse what’s going on,” Nikki cut in, “Where going to that two-timing backstabber and tearings him a new ones.”
“Steele tried to prevent Balto from helping us by attacking him, but he ended up going over the edge of the cliff,” Star continued.
“And if that wasn’t bad enough, he sabotaged the marks I had left to guide us home, causing us to go off course,” Balto said.
“He never cared about those kids. He was in it just for the glory, and that almost cost us and those kids their lives!” Kaltag finished, “Oh I can’t wait to get my paws on him. And to think we called him a champion.”
This was a lot for the dogs to take in. Steele getting separated from the team they would have understood, but if what the team was saying was true, then he purposely tried to stop Balto from helping them get home. He may as well have tried to kill those kids himself.
“So, Balto, what do you want to do to him first?” Kaltag asked.
“What do you mean?” he replied.
“Well since Steele had made your life a living hell, I was thinking you’d want to take the first crack at him. You know, get back at him for all he did to you?” Kaltag said.
“You would think that, but no.”
“No? Even after everything he did to you, after he made your life a living hell, and even after trying to kill you, you’re gonna let him go?”
“I don’t want him set free, but I won’t do anything to him. You can do what you wish, but I won’t take any part in harming Steele,” Balto looked over at Jenna, “ I promised someone a long ago that revenge would not be my way.” she smiled at him, happy that he was not a vengeful dog.
“If that’s what you want,” Kaltag replied. The pack of dogs rounded the final corner, and stopped in front of the closed door to the old mill.
“So he’s in here?” Star asked
“Yep. We left him when we realized he was a fraud,” Sylvie replied. Kaltag and Nikki went up to the door and burst it open. All of the dogs streamed in, ready to take down their former leader, but Balto hung back. He didn’t want to take part in the messy business that would ensue. At any moment he expected to hear the sounds of fighting start, but it never did.
“Where is he?!” Kaltag screamed. Balto stuck his head in and saw all the dogs had spread around the large room. He walked in, and joined the search for him.
“Sniff around, he’s probably hiding from us,” Balto suggested.
“Yeah, he knows he’s in big trouble now,” Star replied.
“Star, trouble is what you get when you track mud in the house. What Steele did is not trouble. It’s treason,” Kaltag said.
“Gah, this is useless,” Nikki said, “Steele’s scent is too mixed up with everyones else’s, I can’t find wheres he went.”
“And he’s not in the building,” Doc said, “He’s run off.”
“Coward,” Balto growled, “He’s not dog enough to take responsibility for what he did,” The other dogs nodded in agreement.
On the other side of town, a black and white husky ducked underneath a porch, his large bulk making it a tight fit. He had just made a quick escape, and was gasping for breath after his dash. This was the first time he had felt genuine fear, and he hated it. He hated that he was afraid of the same dogs who, last week, worshiped him like a god. Now, those same dogs were out for his head, and it was all because of one meddling half-breed.
“You won’t get away with this wolfdog. No one makes a fool out of Steele and gets away with it.”
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As you can see, the story will also feature Steele, but he will mostly appear in the flashback scenes, only making sporadic appearances in the present scenes.
Here's another scene from the first chapter, this one involving just Balto and Jenna.
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Balto rubbed her head with his cheek, and for a while, they were both silent. Jenna had always been there when he needed a friend, and for the longest time, she was the only dog that talked to him without insulting him. He had known her since they were small pups. In fact, she was his first friend after his mother disappeared. If it wasn’t for her and her human girl, Balto might not have gone out to find the medicine at all.
Jenna knew that it would take time for Balto to adjust to his new status and she resolved to stand by him through it all. She rubbed into his thick fur and took in his scent. From the start, she had had a soft spot for the lonely wolfdog. Her belief was that everyone should have at least one friend, and when she first heard that he was on his own, she resolved to be his friend when no one else would. Even when everyone else had given up on him and the team, she remained vigilant, setting up a signal light on a hill to guide them home.
Balto looked up and saw the aurora, still shining against the hillside outside of town, “Thanks Jenna. I guess I’d be lost without you,” he said.
“Oh don’t you start too,” Jenna replied. Her owner had sad the same thing to Balto when he had returned with the medicine.
“No, really, I mean it. Without that light there, I might have missed the town entirely.”
“Well, I did use your trick,” she sheepishly replied, “Want to take a closer look?”
“Of course,” he replied. The two dogs walked together out the town and towards the hill were Jenna had set up her beacon. The lamp had been tilted by the fierce winds, but it still shone brightly through the glass, projecting the northern lights on the hillside. Balto and Jenna took a moment to admire the dancing lights. Balto in particular seemed captivated by the display.
“I remember a story my mum once told me about the northern lights,” Balto started, “She said that the lights in the sky were the spirits of those who had passed from this world. They would dance around in the sky and watch over us, protecting us in times of need, and guiding us when we had lost our way.”
“I guess she was right,” Jenna replied.
“Yeah. She was also the one who showed me how to create the lights with glass. She said that she learned it from someone special to her, and that when I was older, I should show it to someone who was special to me,” Balto said and looked over at Jenna, “And I’m glad I did.”
Underneath her fur, Jenna was blushing, but it wasn’t entirely a surprise to her. She knew that for a while, Balto had a bit of a crush on her, but he had never said anything openly. Until now at least, “Balto, how long have we known each other?’ she asked.
"Two, maybe two and a half years, I think. Why?” he replied.
“Do you remember back then, when we first met?” she asked.
“How could I forget………”
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After that, it goes into the first flashback where we see how the two met. During that day, he also accidentally gets on the bad side of one of the dogs in town. It's not until the second chapter that we learn that dog is Steele.
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“Watch where you’re going you little furball! Hey wait, I remember you,” he growled. Two other dogs, one who was grey and white, and another who had brown fur accompanied him. Balto tried to scamper away, but the husky he crashed into stomped down on his tail with his paw, preventing his escape, “Hey, what’s the rush little guy? I’d love to continue where we left off yesterday.”
“Hey Steele, you’d better be careful. That pup looks like a wolf, he might get ya,” said the brown husky, causing him and the grey husky to laugh.
“Wolf eh?” Steele snarled, as he bared his teeth, “I don’t like wolves in my town!”
“I’m not all wolf. I’m half-wolf, half-husky,” Balto relpied, as he tried to break free from Steele’s grip.
“Ohhhh, so you’re a half and half eh?” the grey husky taunted, “Where’s your mommy kid? Is she a dog out sledding, or a wolf out howling at the moon?”
“I -I don’t know where my mom is. She went out one day and didn’t come back,” Balto cried, “I don’t know what happened to her.”
“Hang on kid,” Steele said, “I think I might know what happened to her.”
“Really, what? Is she okay? Is she coming back soon?” Balto asked.
“Oh she’s fine. But she’s not coming back. You see, she left you because she doesn’t want you anymore,” the three dogs laughed cruelly at him.
“What?” Balto cried.
“Yeah, who would want a half-breed mutt anyways?” the brown husky replied, “You’re not a dog, but you’re not a wolf either. You’re nothing, and your precious mommy knew that!”
“THAT’S NOT TRUE! MY MOM LOVED ME! LET ME GO!” Balto screamed.
“Face it kid, she gone, and it’s all because she didn’t want to have to deal with a whiny mongrel like you,” Steele finished.
“NO! YOU’RE LYING! MY MOM LOVED ME!”
The other two huskies started to get nervous that Balto’s screaming would bring unwanted attention to them. They didn’t want to have to deal with witnesses, “Gah, this kid is starting to make a scene. Hey kid, shut up!” the brown husky shouted.
“YOU SHUT UP!” Balto screamed back before sinking his little puppy fangs into Steele’s paw. The sharp pain made Steele jump back and Balto broke free, dashing down the street to escape.
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That is only the first of many instances of Steele bullying him that will be featured in this story.
You can read all that I've put up so far here:
http://www.fanfiction.net/s/5369959/1/The_First_DayYou can expect the next chapter up on Thursday, and if all goes as hoped, I'll have a final version that I will put up on Balto Source by the end of September. Please take a look at it and tell me what you think.
