Crystal glared at Blaze. The big, black husky glared right back at her. "Crystal," he said. "You know you are crazy about me. I love you."

"No," Crystal hissed. "You love my looks and my popularity, NOT me."

Blaze scuffed the ground uneasily, and Crystal smirked to herself. She had hit Blaze's weak spot.

Blaze looked imploringly into Crystal's face. "Crystal," he argued. "What makes you think that?"

Crystal locked her eyes with his."Only the obvious," she growled, and stalked off.

 Blaze snarled to himself, left alone in the boiler room. 'Fat lotta help your argument is,' he thought savagely to himself, not sure if he was thinking about Crystal or himself. Suddenly, it hit him. He knew of one dog who sympathized his aims, and fortunately that dog was quite close to Crystal...

Blaze paced Keesha's living room. Crystal's mother looked at Blaze haughtily. The young race dog intrigued her, yet she wasn't sure if she could trust him.

She continued to look at the pacing Blaze until the husky looked down at her. "Do you want Crystal to mate me?" he asked suddenly.

Keesha stared at Blaze, and suddenly decided to respond truthfully. "I think she is going he wrong way with Linder..." Keesha said slowly.

Blaze quickly realized the way he would have to go. "Yes," he said. "That's exactly what I think. I've always felt a brotherly affection towards her," he smirked, hoping with all his heart that Crystal would go along with his little game.

Keesha raised her eyebrows. "Crystal has always told me that you were a pain in the neck."

This wasn't threatening, only slightly interested. Encouraged, Blaze was tempted to bypass this comment, but he knew that if he didn't deal with it, it would cause problems later.

"Well," he began hesitantly. "She doesn't approve of me, sometimes. Like, one time, when I tried to give her sausages, she snapped, 'I can look after myself!'," Blaze invented wildly.

Keesha gazed at Blaze with renewed interest. Maybe her daughter didn't know how Blaze felt about her: he was just trying to look out for her, like a brother. "Did you come to this house just to tell me that?" Keesha asked, knowing what the answer would be.

Blaze shook his head. "I was thinking, maybe we could help Crystal, together, you know, steer her in the, you know, right direction. I have her best interests at heart."

Keesha guessed that was the only truthful thing Blaze had said tonight, but, she thought, she wouldn't mind helping a lovesick jerk.

Being careful not to reveal her feelings, Keesha interrogated him still further. "In what way?" she asked cooly.

Blaze breathed a sigh of relief. Keesha beleived him! "Well, you know, you have a lot of influence on her, as her mother, you know. You could tell her about me, how I really feel."

Keesha looked dubious. "I've tried that many a time, and it has never worked. What I was thinking, is just that we should wait for a few days. I'm rather good at hiding myself. I'll watch how you behave to Crystal in the next few days. Meet me here in a couple of days, and have an excuse ready if Crystal were to be here."

'Keesha seems to be glad to be helping me,' Blaze thought to himself. 'This will be eaiser than I thought!'

What Keesha really was thinking was, 'Maybe, if I give Blaze some counciling, not really a plan to get Crystal's affection, my daughter will be more attracted to him!' Keesha knew that she was only trying to reassure herself, but she pushed it to the back of her mind.

Crystal rushed toward Linder's bush, fuming. What did Blaze think he was doing? When she finally reached Linder's bush, he was asleep on his blanket. She quietly creeped into the bush and pounced.

Linder jolted awake. "Crystal? Crystal, don't do that!"

Crystal grinned. "Awake?"

Linder stretched and yawned. When he stumbled out of the bush, he gave a little yelp of surprise. "Noon, already? I said I'd meet Cody today Crystal, I've got to go!"

He bounded out of the bush. Crystal felt a little offended that he hadn't stayed with her, or at least brought her along, but she stopped herself. Was she feeling jealous toward Cody?

To take her mind off of things, she decided to go and visit Lucy. As she walked down the street, Riana sauntered over to her. "Hey, Crystal, started flirtin' around with Blaze, yet?" she smirked.

Crystal whirled around to face Riana. "You are just acting like that because you are jealous of my popularity with him! He hates you! You are just greedy for something you don't deserve!" Crystal said in a low, fierce voice.

Riana bared her teeth. "I'd watch out, Crystal, or you might find you're a little less shiny than before. What a gripping story it would make, if I came away from this street, grieviously injured, with a tale of how you attacked me while I was defenseless and vulnerable, and I, being your former friend, didn't have the heart to attack you back..."

She couldn't finish the rest of her 'story', for Crystal had leaped at Riana, but Riana, knowing that this had been coming, darted aside with the speed of a jackrabbit. Crystal skidded to a stop in the snow.

She struggled to her feet, and with horribly coincedential timing, Blaze sauntered out of a sidestreet. He hurried over to Crystal, who looked like the yeti, covered in snow. She scowled, but he seemed not to notice.

"Crystal, honey," he crooned. "Did Riana throw you to the ground?"

Crystal looked furious at his sudden appearance. "Do NOT," she snarled. "Call me 'honey'!",

just as Riana said indignantly, "She attacked me!"

Crystal shook snow all over Blaze, looking at him with contempt. "Haven't you caused enough trouble?" she growled. "Get out!"

Riana snarled at Crystal, but Blaze turned on her. "I can look after myself, thank you! I don't need your help! You get out of here and stop being a nuisance!"

All of Riana's saunter and spunk seemed to dissapear at this. She narrowed her eyes at Crystal before slinking away into the sidestreet Blaze had just come out of.

Blaze smirked at Crystal. "Now we've got rid of her, Crystal, we can-"

Before he could say anymore, Crystal had whisked herself down the street toward Lucy's house, leaving Blaze angry and confused.

Linder stared uncomfortably at the ground. "I didn't..."

Keesha glared at him. Her eyes seemed to pierce him. Sometimes it seemed like she could read his mind. "Linder, please," Keesha spat. "You know it. You cannot get anywhere with Crystal. You were clowning around all the time. I don't know why you've stopped, but Crystal deserves better."

Linder felt a sudden desire to rip Keesha to shreds. "I stopped being silly and stupid because I understood that Crystal didn't appreciate that!" he said, fighting to control his temper.

Keesha looked annoyed. "I am her mother, and I have a lot of influence over her. Mark my words, I am going to do something about you!"

Linder didn't take this as a genuine threat, but he thought he detected an ominous ring in her tone. "Until later, Linder," she said curtly.

As Linder watched her stalk off, something told him that this wasn't the last he was going to see of Crystal's mother.

Crystal paced up and down in front of Lucy. "And then," she raged. "Blaze is like, 'Now we're rid of her, we can-" or something like that, like I was going to nuzzle up to him because he was rude to my archen-"

She stopped. Lucy knew what was bothering her at once. Crystal was unwilling to call Riana her archenemy.

Lucy looked reassuringly at Crystal. "I'm sure everything will turn out OK. In the meantime, I would suggest just taking everything as it comes, and reacting to what does happen, instead of what you think will happen."

Crystal shot Lucy a withering look. "But I don't want to be passenger in my own life, Lucy," she protested.

Lucy sighed. "But Crystal," she said. "This is everyone else's life, too. They don't want to be passenger any more than you do."

Crystal rolled her eyes, but smiled slightly in spite of herself. "What a lot of comfort!"she said sarcastically."But, thanks Lucy. You're a really good friend."

Lucy smiled.

Cody's grin dissapeared as her saw Linder walk into the clearing, looking depressed and  beaten. Linder looked up at Cody. The ghost of a smile flickered on his face and died.

Cody padded softly over to him.  "What's happened?" he asked quietly. "Blaze?" 

Linder shook his head.  "Keesha," he said thickly. 

Cody looked puzzled. "Crystal's mother?"

Linder nodded. "Apparently she thinks Crystal too good for me."

Cody smiled at Linder. "Don't listen to her for one minute, Linder. You're good enough for anyone!"

That smile-ghost flickered once more, and was extinguished. Linder knew something Cody didn't.

Suddenly, Linder decided to confide in his friend. "Cody," he began. "When Keesha was talking to me, she said, 'I'm her mother, and I'm going to do something about you!' or something like that. It sounded so...forceful."

Cody didn't show his discomfort. "I'm sure Keesha just means that she will talk to Crystal about making good choices, and stuff like that, you know how our mother's did when we were pups-"

He stopped, for Linder had suddenly flinched. "What's wrong?" Cody asked.

Linder scuffed the ground with his paws, apparently in extreme embarrasment. "My mother and father were outcasts, you know, streetdogs. Something happened to them when I was a pup. One day they went out to find food, and I never saw them again."

Cody was appalled. Did this explain why Linder had been in Nome for as long as anyone could remeber? Is this why he didn't have an owner?

What Cody said was, "I'm sorry."

He looked down at his collar, and swallowed. Linder, preoccupied with his thoughts, did not notice.

Crystal said goodbye to Lucy and headed down the street. She needed to go home and think things over for a bit. Crystal saw Riana heading her way, she ducked into an alley to avoid her. She'd take the back way home.

As soon as Crystal walked through the dog door, she wished she hadn't. Keefie was in a corner, looking guilty, The Cat was hissing on the counter, there was spaghetti sauce all over the floor, and Dad was on the floor and in the middle of it, uttering some very impressive swear words.

Crystal sidled over to The Cat, and muttered, "What happened?" 

The Cat smirked. "Dad was going to serve us spaghetti for dinner, and Keefie got a little overexcited."

Crystal grinned. "Is Dad OK?" she asked. 

The Cat nodded. "He wouldn't be talking like he is if he wasn't!"

Crystal grinned again, but gulped as Dad picked himself up from the floor, looking murderous. "It is time for me to depart the scene, huh?" Crystal backed away from Dad. 

"Just what I was thinking!"

Cat and Crystal hightailed it out, and they left just in time to hear Dad shrieking, "You darn dog, I'll skin your hide!" and along with it an excited slurping.

Crystal poked her head inside the dog door again. She giggled. Keefie had her face in the spilled spaghetti, and Dad was still swearing.

She turned back to TCat and grinned. "You know Keefie, in there. The model of self-shame and humbility!"

TCat poked her head in, and drew it back again as a glob of noodles hit her in the face. Crystal laughed.

Cat sat down serenly and purred, "Some may laugh, but spaghetti sauce actually enhances the fur."

Feline and canine lapsed into helpless giggles. "Seriously, though," Crystal giggled. "Dad could've been hurt!"

Cat laughed harder and said, "I'll hafta remember those swears! I never knew there were so many different ones!"

They collapsed into laughter again.

When her laughter had subsided, Crystal hailed TCat: "Well, comrade," Crystal grinned. "The time is ripe for me to depart!"

Cat giggled and said, "Yes, friend! I feel the wind of travel ruffle my fur. Farewell!"

Crystal turned from The Cat, and started to Keesha's. Crystal hadn't seen her mother in days.

When Crystal scratched at Keesha's door, her mother's human, Ken, opened the door. "Crystal," he greeted. "Keesh and another of your doggie friends are in there."

Cyrstal was puzzled. Who could be visiting her mother? Crystal stepped over the doorstep, and saw Blaze and Keesha sitting on the couch together, looking serious. "Blaze," Crystal said. "What are you doing here?"

Blaze gulped. "I...um... I'm trying to find you!" he said.

Crystal rolled her eyes. "Well," she said. "I'm not here, OK?"

Blaze narrowed his eyes, but remained on the couch. Crystal looked suspiciously from Blaze to Keesha. What in the world was going on? And why was Blaze sitting on her mom's couch without showing any inclination to move?

"Blaze," said Crystal. "Why don't you get out of here? Keesha's my mother, you see."

Blaze faltered, but Keesha came to his rescue. "Blaze is here to get some advice on dogsledding. I thought, since your dad was a racedog, Crystal, I could give him some advice," she said smoothly.

Crystal stiffened. She suddenly became very interested in a bluebottle out the window. Why did Keesha have to mention her father? She didn't really care about Keesha giving Blaze racing advice. Cody would always be a better sled dog. Deciding to go hang out in the boiler room, Crystal departed the scene.

Blaze looked at Keesha curiously. He had never heard anything about Crystal's unknown father.

Sensing Blaze's stare, Keesha glared at him and said a little too briskly, "So, Blaze, we were saying that you were a little too, uh, pushy, with Crystal. Maybe if you just backed off a little, were more yourself..."

Lucy, Cody(c)Blackwolf123