Foreword 

First off, I want to thank Xaqtly, as he has helped the development of this story in more ways than one. It was his great story "Balto: Son" that inspired me to start writing this in the first place, and he was also my beta reader for this story, helping to put in a few final adjustments before its release. Thanks Zak, for all of your help and inspiration.

If the summary for this story is any indication, this story deals with Aniu and everything that led up to Balto being born and her untimely death. There is actually something interesting about the writing of this story that I want to tell. While this story is the third I have released, it is actually the first Balto story I ever wrote. I started way back in March 2009, and finished a first draft by the end of June. However, I decided to put this on hold in order to work on "The First Day" and "A Second Chance". During that break, I was able to think of improvements for this story, and when it came time to bring this out for editing, I had new ideas along with greatly improved writing skills.

The result is a much more refined and compelling story than what I had originally written last year. That's right, once everything is said and done, I will have been developing this story for a whole year. However, I think the wait was worth it, as time only improved the story. Ah, but I've gone on long enough about this; you came here to read a great story, not my ramblings. So, sit back and enjoy iWolf231's third Balto fanfiction – "Like His Father". Who knows, there may be a few familiar faces that will pop up in this story. ;)

----------------------------

Prologue: Heritage of the Wolf

"I didn't want this to happen to you. I never wanted anything like this to happen to you my son, but I had no choice. I was torn away from you too soon; I just hope that it hasn't hurt you too much. You have grown up so much since I left you. You shouldn't lose hope in yourself. You still have so much potential; you just need to get up," the lone white wolf thought as she watched a brown wolfdog resign himself to his own misery.

The wolfdog sitting before her was known as Balto. He had been so noble, embarking on a mission to help deliver medicine to those in need. He wasn't doing it for his own glory; he was doing it for those he cared about. However, during the return journey, he had gotten lost and had fallen off a cliff with the cargo. He thought that he had failed everyone and would remain the outcast of the town. He wasn't a dog, but he wasn't a wolf. He was neither and it was because of that he had failed his mission. However, there was someone who thought otherwise.

"Please, don't fall into despair my son. You can succeed, but you must get up first."

She appeared to him and he looked up in shock. He didn't say anything and looked as though he had seen a ghost. He was looking at a snow white wolf with golden eyes – the same golden eyes as his own. She arched her head back and let out a long, lonely howl, to remind him of his heritage; his wolf heritage. She let the howl fall, hoping that he would respond, "Get up my son. Come out of the darkness of prejudice and know who you are," she thought as he stared at the sight before him, "Get up now; it's the only way my son."

Instead, he looked away, not wanting to admit the part of him that had caused him to be an outcast. He was ashamed of what he was and there was nothing else the wolf could do to convince him otherwise, "No, you cant give up on yourself now. You're so close," she thought as she looked over him, but he didn't respond. He continued to reject her, and by extension, his wolf side. Seeing that there was nothing else she could do, she left him, thinking she had failed. She had not been able to be there for him, and to show him who he really was. He was part husky and part wolf, but he saw himself as neither, when he was actually both. He had the best of both kinds in him, but any thought of that had been pushed out by his outcast status. 

"This is not the life I wanted for you. I wanted you to be proud of who were. I wanted you to be safe. If you only knew where you came from-" her thought was cut short by a new sound. It was another howl, and looking back, she saw that it was him. Her own son was howling his heart out, finally accepting who he was. Relieved, she returned to him and howled with him.

After they let their howls fall, they took a moment to look at each other. She couldn't help but feel a twinge of familiarity as she looked at him. His appearance reminded her of someone she had loved years ago. Someone who had been torn away from her, just like how she had been torn away from her son. He regarded her with curiosity; she seemed familiar to him, but he couldn't make the connection. However, their reunion would have to be brief; Balto still had a mission to complete, "Go," she urged, and he complied, grabbing hold of the straps on the medicine crate and dragging it away.

"Finally my son, you have accepted who are. I'm so proud of you," she thought as he dragged the crate up the cliff. Little did Balto know that he had encountered no ordinary wolf. It was the spirit of someone who had passed, but was still bound to this world by their duty. She had vowed to protect him and to guide him on his path, and she would only pass to the next life when her duty had been completed. This wolf was named Aniu, and her reason for wanting to protect Balto was simple: she was his mother. While she was a spirit now, she had not always been this way. Years ago she had lived like you and I do. She felt joy and sorrow, had known the cold of snow and the warmth of the sun. She had lived, and loved, before her life had been ripped away.

Now, she saw his determination to help those he loved and couldn't help but smile. His devotion to those he cared about, along with his selflessness, reminded her so much of his father. Balto's father had been a sled dog, and the chance meeting between her and him would change both of their lives forever. They may have been from two different worlds, but they saw past that, finding that their two kinds were very similar. He had always been there for her, which made it all the more painful when they had been ripped apart.

"If only you had known him my son," she thought, "If you only knew who your father was, then you would know how proud your heritage is. You would know that you have always been destined to be a champion..."

----------

Chapter 1: First Impressions

Aniu's life began as all life begins: being born small and helpless, dependent on her parents for food and shelter. Like all wolf cubs, she grew quickly and her youth seemed to fly by. One day, she was a small cub, stumbling around as she took her first, awkward steps. Later, she was big enough to join her parents on hunts, even being able to take down mice on her own. Before she knew it, she was a full grown adult, ready to leave her parents and find her place in the world. It is an instinct born into wolves that has been passed down for generations; the urge to leave the birth pack to find their own place in the world. It was hard for her at first, having to hunt and survive on her own, but she had been learning all her life and was able to adapt.

Soon, she would come across another group of wolves. It was small, with only four members, but they were more than eager to add a fifth. There was Faro and Atka, both around her age; Salin, who was only a year-old pup, and finally their alpha, Mayak. Mayak seemed to enjoy having her around more than the others; probably because she was the first female to join a previously all-male pack. 

From the offset, Aniu was able to get along well with Faro, Atka and Salin, but Mayak was a different story. He had a very short temper and wanted everyone to follow his and only his direction. If anyone tried otherwise, they would be snapped at. Fortunately, Faro, Atka and Salin had known him long enough to read his moods, and taught Aniu when it would be best to back off from him. It was because of this help that she formed good relations with the subordinate males of the pack. More than once she tried asking them why Mayak had such a short temper, but they would always change the subject. It was obviously something they didn't like to talk about.

For now, they mainly focused on ensuring that everyone had enough to eat. They would spend long days hunting caribou and other game for food, and on one of those hunts, she would see a sight that would change her life forever.

It was late winter, and they were tracking the caribou when Aniu caught a strange scent. She was curious and wanted to follow it, but the others seemed nervous about it, "I don't think we should follow that scent Aniu," Faro cautioned.

"And why not?" she replied. 

"You don't know what it is, or how dangerous it could be," Atka continued.

"That's why I want to follow it. How else am I supposed to know what it is if I don't take a look?" she said and started to follow the scent. However, Mayak quickly dashed in to block her path.

"Aniu, we're not going that way. You're going to follow me," he said, "After all, I am the alpha of the pack."

Behind her, she could hear the others cautioning her to not aggravate Mayak further, but she didn't listen to them. By now, she had taken enough of Mayak's attitude and decided to put her paw down, "Mayak, you may be the alpha male, but you're forgetting that I'm also the alpha female. In other words, I'm on equal ground with you, so you can't order me around like that," she replied. 

"You're the only female!" Mayak snapped back.

"Mayak, being the only female here makes her an alpha by default," Atka said, "Besides, she probably should know about… them at some point," Mayak thought the advice of his beta over and realized that he was right. However, Aniu could tell that he did not like the idea of straying from his path.

"Alright, we'll go take a look, but stay close. I don't want any of us to fall prey to them," he replied and the group set off. Aniu was curious about what they meant by 'them', and how they could fall prey to anything else. After all, they were wolves, the apex of life in these lands. They stopped at the top of a hill and looked at the scene beneath them. It was like nothing she had ever seen before; there was a creature walking on two legs in an area that had been cleared of trees to make a camp. The trees had been cut and arranged to form a cabin, which seemed to be this creature's den. Aniu was amazed at this new sight, but the others weren't. Mayak was even growling at them, and it wasn't just a defensive growl; it was a deep growl full of hatred towards this new creature.

"It's amazing. What is it?" she asked.

"It's called a human and they are probably the most dangerous things in the world!" growled Mayak.

She looked at the human and was a little confused as to what he meant. It didn't have large teeth or sharp claws. It was taller than them, but it wasn't very bulky. Compared to something like a bear or a deer, it was downright small, "It doesn't look very dangerous," she said.

"You don't know what they're capable of," said Atka.

"We weren't always a small pack you know," continued Mayak, "We used to be part of a large pack, almost two dozen strong, but then their kind came. We tried to escape them, but they came after us with their cruel devices. They hunted us down one by one and the four of us were the only ones to get away." 

"What cruel devices?" she asked.

"Look over there. See that thing that looks like a thick stick?" Faro said. She looked at where he had indicated and saw, leaning up against a tree, a long stick. One end was wood, but the other end was made of some grey, shiny material. It certainly wasn't like any stick she had seen before.

"That thing does look strange, but I don't see how it could harm us," she said.

"We don't know how it kills either," Atka replied, "All we know is that the humans point it at their prey and it makes an extremely loud noise, like thunder. Once that bang goes off, whatever they pointed it at is killed with a hole blown into their side. That was the fate of many of our packmates when they came."

"What's more, they didn't hunt us for food or defense. They just killed for the fun of it," Salin continued, "They are ruthless monsters with no regard for life."

Aniu wondered how humans could have harnessed such a power, but she wouldn't have to wait long before witnessing it firsthand. A stray wolverine, possibly attracted by the same smells that attracted her came wandering in. It was just sniffing about, but when the human spotted it, he picked up his weapon and pointed it at the wolverine. Just as Atka had said, there was a boom like thunder and the wolverine was blasted back, a hole the size of her paw in its side.

"How… how could he? It was just looking around. It didn't hurt anyone or steal anything," Aniu said, shocked with what she had witnessed. The fact that the wolverine had been killed in cold blood was one thing, but the fact that it had been done at a distance and with so little effort was another.

"No, it didn't do anything, but he doesn't care. Instead of chasing it away, he murdered it," said Faro, "Humans see themselves as higher than everything else."

"They also have this idea that wolves are monstrous animals that need to be wiped out, but we have done nothing to them. They are the ones who are the monsters!" said Atka.

Aniu's first impression of humans was scary to say the least, as she was terrified of these creatures and their power. She was about to run off, but she heard the sound of barking. It was similar to a wolf's bark, but had its own distinct tone. She looked to where the sound was coming from and it was then that she saw her first dogs. At first, she thought that they were wolves, but they seemed smaller, and they were under the service of another human, pulling what she would later learn to know as a sled.

"Are those…… wolves?" she asked.

"No, they are mere dogs," said Mayak, "That is another part of the humans I despise. They enslave some creatures for their hard labor. The dogs pull their supplies across the snow for them and they always tie them so that they cannot escape. While dogs do resemble us, they are nothing like us. They submit to the human's will without a second thought and they have been tainted by their hatred as well. They, like their masters, would attack us without a second thought. That is why we must never associate with them. They are almost as dangerous as the humans themselves!"

"Let's go," said Salin, "Those dogs might smell us. We don't want the humans to get us too."

The others turned to leave, but Aniu stayed a little longer, watching them all with curiosity. After the human had stopped, she watched as he rubbed the dogs behind their ears and showed them a lot of affection. The dogs returned this attention with their own gestures of affection, licking the human's hands and jumping up to lick his face. Shortly after stopping, the human got out some fish for them to eat. Mayak had made it sound like the humans were brutal taskmasters, but he was treating them so kindly, and the dogs seemed to love the human's company too. Then one dog – a male with a brown coat and pale white underside - turned and looked right at her. He was the one in the front, so she surmised that he was something like the group's alpha. Aniu ducked back behind the hill, but she didn't hear the dog bark out at her. She peeked back over the edge and saw that this dog was regarding her with curiosity, tilting his head to the side. He didn't show any signs of aggression towards her presence; in fact, he appeared as curious about her as she was of him. She only stayed for a few more moments before turning to follow her pack. As she walked, the memory of that brief encounter burned itself into her mind, "If that dog didn't react to me, then are they really as bad as Mayak made them out to be?"

----------------------------

The memories of her first encounter with humans would remain fresh in Aniu's mind for many days. She wanted to know why that one dog had acted contrary to how Mayak said they would, but Mayak would have nothing of it. He hated them so much that he wanted to stay as far as possible from them. Aniu had once tried sneaking away to see them, but Mayak quickly caught her and forced her to turn back. She tried to protest, but Mayak looked as though he was about to lose it at any second. Fortunately, Atka arrived at the scene and was able to diffuse the situation.

"You really should be more careful around him," Atka cautioned, "Mayak is not one you should cross."

"I only wanted to take a second look at them," she replied, "Why does Mayak always get overly dramatic anytime dogs are mentioned?"

"He had a particularly nasty run-in with them and that's all I'm going to say for now," he replied, "Look, I don't know what you think you saw there, but trust me on this one Aniu. Dogs are not something you should take lightly. A few members of our old pack fell when they were swarmed by half a dozen of them," Aniu took his words of advice and decided to keep her distance from the dogs from now on. 

A few days after her first human sighting, the caribou had started to move their herd towards better grazing. They would have to follow them in order to ensure that there was enough prey to hunt, but there was a catch. The day the caribou had moved off, a storm blew in, with the driving snow and howling winds making it difficult to track them. Aniu tried to stay with the others, but the snow was falling so thickly that she could barely see the tip of her nose.

"How are we going to find the caribou in this storm?" she shouted. 

"I don't know Aniu," Mayak replied, "They could be in anywhere in this and we wouldn't know it until we walked right into one."

"Maybe we should split up?" suggested Faro, "It would increase the chances that one of us would find them."

"How would we get back together? It's way too easy to get lost in a storm!" Salin put in.

"We'll use our howls. If you find anything or get into trouble, howl and we'll come to find you," Mayak suggested and everyone nodded in agreement.

Each one of them went off in a different direction in order to widen their search. While traveling alone in a storm is very risky, splitting up would allow the pack to cover more ground and increase the chances of success. Aniu went along her path, fighting the wind, driving snow and poor visibility, "Ugh, Mayak was right. At this point I won't find anything unless I bump right into it," she thought. 

Unfortunately, she was about to find out how true her words were when she walked right into the side of a full-grown bull moose. It was hard to tell who was more surprised: Aniu for suddenly finding something, or the moose, who realized that there was a predator right beside him. Moose were known for their nasty tempers and this one was no exception; it definitely did not like the idea of having a wolf so close to him. Aniu tried backing off, but the moose swung its head to club her with its deadly antlers. It continued to swing at her and charged, trying to do as much damage to her as possible. However, the poor visibility, combined with the fact that a wolf is much more nimble meant that its charges were often off. She knew that she couldn't take the moose on her own, so she snarled at it, to try to bluff it into backing off. Unfortunately, that only seemed to make it angrier, and it continued to swing at her.

Aniu tried darting away, but every time she'd dash in one direction, the moose would charge to cut her off. In desperation, she snapped right at the moose's long face, but that would prove to be a big mistake. Snapping at it brought her close enough for the moose to swing its heavy antlers at her, slamming into her side and sending her flying. Pain shot through her, first from the impact, and again when she crashed into the ground. Stars danced in front of her eyes while the moose, satisfied that he had subdued her, ran off. She lay on the ground and tried to get up, but the pain in her chest was too much and she fell right back down. Her vision started to dim at the sides and she could feel herself start to black out from the pain. She needed help, and in desperation, she howled out, hoping that any member of her pack was close enough to hear her. She held her howl for as long as she could, but soon her injuries overcame her and she slumped to the ground, out cold.

Fortunately, her howl would not go unheard. Someone did hear her call for help, but it was not someone from her own pack. In fact, her rescuer wasn't even another wolf… 

----------------------------

Aniu slowly came to, aching all over and with a slight ringing in her ears. She noticed that she wasn't out in the forest anymore. Instead, she was in a small cave. As she became more aware of her surroundings, she heard another creature shuffling about behind her. She sniffed the air to try to figure out who it was, but it wasn't anyone she recognized. The scent was similar to a wolf's, but there was something else about it… something familiar. 

"I'm glad to see you're awake. Not everyone can say they got hit by a moose and live to tell the tale," a voice said behind her.

Aniu turned her head around and saw who was with her. It was a dog – the same brown dog that she had exchanged glances with earlier, "A dog… oh no," she thought as panic shot through her. She remembered how Mayak had said that huskies would attack wolves instantly, along with Atka's warning. She jumped up in order to put more distance between her and him, but pain shot through her chest as she did, causing her to stumble back and fall back down to the ground.

"Hey, hey, take it easy there. You took a pretty hard hit to the chest and you need to rest," he said, and noticed the nervous look on her face, "What's wrong? What is it?"

"Stay back!" she cried out as she tried to crawl away from him, "Leave me alone!"

"No, don't worry. I'm not going to hurt you," he said.

"Why should I believe you?" she asked.

"Because I was the one who brought you here," he replied, "I brought you here so that you would be safe and out of the storm."

Despite his words, Aniu wasn't sure how to react to this dog. She had heard so many bad things about them, but despite having her weak and cornered in the cave, he sat down where he was, not making any move to approach her. As she thought about it, she realized that this dog could have killed her while she was knocked out, but instead he had brought her someplace sheltered. He may even have saved her life. 

While he was sitting, she could see more of the details that she had missed when she saw him from a distance. His general appearance and build was very similar to a wolf's, but there were some subtle differences as well. He appeared a little more compact, and his muzzle was shorter and broader than hers. In addition to his brown pelt and white underside, his paws were slightly smaller, his tail curled towards his back, and his eyes were bright blue, instead of a wolf's yellow-gold eyes. There was one other thing that set him apart - he had some sort of collar around his neck, which held a small ring around the front.

"Now, do you still want me to stay back, or can I come over there and check over your injuries?" he asked. Aniu thought for a moment, and decided to give him the benefit of the doubt. She nodded and allowed him to approach, keeping a watchful eye on him in case he tried anything.

"Hmm, none of the bones seem to be broken, but any impact like that is sure to smart for a few days," he said as he passed his paw over her chest, "How is your breathing?" he asked.

"A little sore, but it's not severe," she replied, "How did you find me?"

"I heard you howling for help," he said, "At first I thought it was another husky dog in trouble. I had no idea that I was coming to the rescue of a wolf."

"Husky?" she asked, confused about the term.

"That's the name of my breed - the Siberian Husky. As I was saying, when I heard the howl I went out to look and found you in a heap with moose tracks all around. You were still alive, but the storm was still raging, so I dragged you here for shelter," he replied.

"Where exactly is here?" she asked.

"This cave is about a five minute walk north from the cabin where my owner is staying," he replied, "I thought it would be best to put you up here so that the others won't catch you."

Instantly, more questions started buzzing around her head. Here, a husky dog was saving her – a creature that Mayak said would have attacked her without a second thought. Could he have been wrong? He had made it sound like the dogs would be very cruel, but this one was being so kind towards her. Were all of the dogs like him, or would they be closer to Mayak's description and attack wolves on sight? That would explain why this dog would want to keep her away from the other dogs, but what made this one different? What made him act so kindly towards wolves?

"Well, everything seems to check out," he said after he finished looking her over, "Now all you need is to get some more rest."

"But I have so many more questions for you," she replied.

"I thought you would, but right now you need to rest. I'll gladly answer any questions you have in the morning," he said.

"Can't I at least know your name?" she asked, "You do have a name right?"

The husky gave a small chuckle at this, "Okay, my name is Amak," he said smiling, "What's yours?"

"Aniu. Thank you for coming to help me Amak," she replied.

"It's nice to meet you Aniu, and you're welcome," he finished, before she lay down to go back to sleep. As she drifted off, she started to think that Mayak may have been wrong about dogs after all.

 ----------

Chapter 2: A Second Opinion

When Aniu woke up the next morning, she found that a present had been delivered to her in the night: a piece of meat. Naturally, she sniffed it to make sure it was okay before biting into it. Since her pack hadn't found any caribou to eat in a couple of days, she was quite hungry and made quick work of it.

"Heh, I guess I now know where the phrase 'wolfing it down' comes from," a voice said behind her. She turned and saw that it was only Amak.

"Thank you for the meat. Where did you get it?" she asked.

"I nicked it from my human's storage while he was sleeping, " he replied, "I'm not exactly sure what wolves like to eat, so I hope it was to your liking."

"It was, thank you, but won't you get in trouble for stealing?" she asked.

"Naw, no one saw me and he's used to us taking the odd piece here and there. As long as there's enough for him, we're okay," he replied, "Now, if I remember correctly, last night you wanted to ask me some questions. Well, what do you want to know?"

Aniu did have many questions for him, but there were so many of them that she had a hard time clearing out which one should be asked first. However, there was one pressing question that would prove whether or not she would be able to trust him, "I have to know; if you knew I was a wolf, why did you help me?" she asked.

"It's simple, I helped you because you were in trouble," he replied, "Is that so strange?" 

"A little; I've heard so many bad things about dogs," she said, "I was told that they would attack wolves instantly."

He paused for a moment before replying, "Ahh, so that's why you were so nervous around me last night. Well, I can assure you that I don't mean you any harm Aniu."

"Are all the dogs like you?" she asked.

At this, his face fell, "I'm not going to lie to you. Not every dog is like me. In fact, most of them probably match what you have heard about us," he said, "You're lucky that I was the one who found you and not someone else on my team."

"Why you?" she asked, "What makes you so different from the others?"

"Well, I suppose it's partly because of how I was raised," he replied, "My parents always told me that you never truly know someone until you meet them face-to-face. You have to spend time and actually talk to someone before you can truly know anything about them."

"Well, you've been talking to me for a little while. What do you know about me now?" she asked.

"I know that you're nowhere near as bad as the stories about wolves are," he said, "Heck, I'd even say I was talking to another dog instead of a wolf - and a pretty one at that."

She was a little embarrassed by his comment, but soon realized that she had been thinking the same about him. He may not have been a wolf, but she still thought that he was quite handsome, "Okay, if I'm not as bad as the stories about wolves are, then what are the stories like?" she asked.

"Oh, they're your typical traveler's tales," he started, "They usually feature a vicious wolf as an enemy and a human or his dogs as the brave heroes who kill the wolf."

"Are any of the stories true?" she asked.

"I really can't say myself whether they're true or not. I haven't witnessed any wolf attack people or dogs," he replied, "Unfortunately, it seems to be the only type of story that is told. Without anyone disputing them, they become accepted as truth."

"Is that why you brought me here?" she asked, "Is it to keep me away from the dogs that would attack me?"

"That's right. I'd hate all the effort I put into helping you to go to waste," he said, "I've tried to change some of my teammate's views, but most of them hold on to the prejudice they've been raised with. They won't listen to me, even though I am their lead dog."

"Lead?" she asked. 

"You were that white wolf that was watching my team come in a few days ago right?" he asked, and she nodded, "So you saw how I was in the front of my team right?" 

"Yes," she replied.

"That's my position; the lead dog. It is my job to direct the dogs behind me and make sure that we don't run into any obstacles on the way," he said, "However, it's not just me barking out orders. Everyone looks out for each other and we keep each other out of danger. That's what being part of a team is about." 

"When I saw you earlier, you were pulling something for the human," she started, "What was it?"

"That, my friend, is the sled. You see, humans don't travel very well over long distances in this climate, so they use a sled to help transport themselves and their supplies across the snow. However, they need something to pull the sled, and there's nothing else better to use than a dog," he said.

"Is that all you do?" she asked, "Pull sleds around for the humans?"

"Mostly; my owner's job is to help deliver supplies to other towns, and he needs us to get him there. However, sledding isn't all toil and work. Going out and working with a team is great fun, and our work doesn't go unrewarded. In return for our help, our owner feeds us and takes care of us. We look out for him and he looks out for us," he replied. It sounded to her as though Amak really enjoyed his work with the humans. They seemed to have a symbiotic relationship with each other, as they worked to benefit each other – a far cry from the master and slave relationship Mayak had described, "Now, while going out with him is fun and all, my true passion is dogsled racing," he continued. 

"Racing? Now you've lost me," she said. She may have started to understand the relationship between humans and dogs, but there was still much more that she didn't know about their world.

"In a dogsled race, there are many teams of dogs competing to see who is the fastest," he replied, "There are long days of almost nonstop running through the wilderness, with only your wits and your legs to guide you. It's rough, but it's also a real thrill for us, as it's a nice break from making deliveries. In fact, after my owner's hunting trip is finished here, my team is going to be taking part in one of the biggest races of the year: the Trans-Alaskan Derby," he said, excited, "Ah, but I've gone on long enough about myself; I want to hear about you. Are you feeling any better today?"

"Let's see," she said, and started to get to her feet. Her chest still hurt when she stood, but it wasn't as severe as the night before, "My chest still hurts, but I can stand up," she said. 

"Well, if you're still sore, then you shouldn't over-exert yourself. I've seen too many good sled dogs push themselves too far, only to end up hurting themselves worse than before," he said, "Though, I'm curious, what were you doing out on your own last night? I thought that wolves always traveled in packs."

"I was with my pack, but we had split up to find food," she said, "I had been wandering in the storm alone until I bumped into a moose. It was very upset that I had come so close and started to charge at me," she started.

"Yeah, those guys are known to be very grouchy," he said, "Go on, what happened next?"

"I tried to snap at it to make it back off, but I got too close and he slammed into my side. I tried to howl for my pack, but I blacked out shortly after. The next thing I know, I'm waking up here, with you," she finished.

"Do you know where your pack is right now?" he asked, "I'm sure they'll notice that you're missing, and you will want to get back to them."

Aniu thought about this. Her pack had been trying to find the caribou, but they hadn't had much luck before she had her run-in with the moose. The storm had interfered with her navigation, so she had no idea how far away they would be, or what direction they would go. They could be anywhere, "No, I don't. They would be following the caribou herd, but I don't know where they have gone," she said, "Do you know anything? Please, can you help me?" she asked. 

"I don't know," he replied, "After you fell asleep last night I went back out to see if your pack was nearby, but I didn't find anything. If they were following the caribou, then they probably kept on moving," Aniu's heart fell. She was completely lost now and had no way of returning to her pack, "Although…. there may be a way I can help you," he said.

"How?" she asked, hopeful.

"Well, like your pack, my human came to hunt the caribou herds as well. That's why my team is here in the first place. Now, while we haven't found the herds yet, we still make daily trips out to look for them," he said, "If my hunch is correct, then there's a good chance that the herd that my owner wants to find is the same one that your pack was following. If I can find the herd, then that would get you one step closer to home."

"Are you sure it will work?" she asked.

"It's the best lead I have, and I think we should take it," he said, "If I do find them, I might even be able to slip away and help you look for them. That is, if you don't mind."

"Really? You'd do all that for me?" she asked.

"Sure, it's the least I can do," he said, "I want to make sure you get back to where you belong." 

Aniu couldn't believe it. Amak had been a complete stranger to her less than a day ago, and yet he was volunteering to help her. He was taking such a big risk in helping her, considering the attitude of the other dogs, and yet he wasn't asking anything of her in return. "Thank you for all this. How can I ever repay you?" she asked. 

"You don't have to," he said, "I'd be more than happy to help any damsel in distress."

----------------------------

True to his word, Amak went out every day with his team in the hopes of finding the caribou. However, he now went out with a greater sense of urgency, as he had promised to help lead Aniu back to her pack. Unfortunately, the search wasn't going well and he would often come back to her in the evening with a disappointed face. There was another snag as well; Amak's owner would only be staying for a week and a half. After that time they would have to leave whether or not they found the caribou. This prompted Amak to increase his efforts, as failure could potentially leave Aniu stranded. 

While Amak would always be out during the day, he would come back to her in the evenings to check up on her. They took this time together to talk, getting to know each other and learning about each others kinds. It was from these talks that Aniu learned that dogs and wolves weren't all that different. Dogs had the same keen senses of smell and hearing that a wolf did, although a wolf's were slightly sharper (something Amak protested). Dogs and wolves both used very similar methods to survive in the cold, and they also had similar methods of organizing themselves into a hierarchy. For the sled dogs, there was the lead dog, while wolves had the alpha of the pack. Below the lead were the swing dogs, followed by the team dogs and then the wheel dogs in the back. As she started to build a better picture of how dogs lived, it seemed as though the biggest difference was that wolves lived wild, while dogs did not. However, that seemed to be enough to make most dogs hate wolves and vice-versa.

Aniu quickly came to enjoy the time she would spend with Amak. Even though she had only met him a couple of days before, his kind acts helped to build trust between them. She was glad that he was so open minded about wolves, because had she been found by any other dog, they probably would have killed her on sight. However, it wasn't just his noble character that she admired. As time went on, she started catching herself admiring his body, his eyes, the confident way he carried himself when walking…

"Hey, you still with me there?" he asked one night.

"Hm? Oh sorry, I guess I started to zone out a little," she replied, trying to cover the fact that she had spent most of that evening watching his sky-blue eyes.

"What is going on with me? It seems like I get excited every time I see him. I just met him and yet I can't seem to take my eyes off him. But, I have to admit, he is quite handsome; probably more so than any wolf I've seen before," she thought, "He so caring and he tells such wonderful stories. There's something else about him - I feel so safe anytime he's around. It's as though he could wrap me up in a warm embrace and…. oh there I go fantasizing again. The only other time I've heard of wolves acting like this is when they are in... love," Aniu stopped and took a moment to let that thought settle in, "Me, in love? No, it's way too fast. Or is it? Should I say something to him? No, it might put him off. Besides, I don't even know if he feels the same way about me," she thought about it and realized that over the past few days, Amak had started to act a little more affectionate towards her. Once he had even given her a small nuzzle goodnight, "Maybe he's just being nice. Besides, he's a dog and I'm a wolf; we're from two completely different worlds… even though those worlds are actually quite similar. Still, once he's gone, there wouldn't be any way that we could stay together…. or is there?"

After a few days of waiting, Aniu had recovered enough strength to leave the cave and stretch herself out. A short walk would do her some good, as she had spent the last few days lying about while recovering. She had waited until night to minimize the risk of being seen by any dogs or humans. During the walk, she passed by the cabin where she had first seen the dogs, taking care to not disturb anyone there. She noted the many small mounds in the snow, each of which held a sleeping dog. By burying themselves in the snow, dogs could trap in warmth for themselves during the cold night. It was yet another behavior that dogs and wolves shared. As she walked, she noticed a trail of prints leading away from the group of dogs and into the woods. She sniffed them and recognized the scent as Amak's. She followed it, wondering why he was wandering off on his own so late. Soon, she found him lying on his back in a clearing, gazing towards the sky and wearing a very content look on his face. She entered the clearing, and soon Amak heard the crunching of her feet in the snow.

"Hey there," he greeted when he saw it was her, "Glad to see you're up and about."

"Hello Amak. What are you doing out here?" she asked.

"Just stargazing. Here, come and watch with me," he motioned at the spot next to him, so she went over and laid down on her back beside him. It was a clear night, so the stars were out, along with the greatest spectacle of all: the northern lights. She had to admit, the mood was quite romantic….. and they were all alone.

"It's a beautiful night," she started.

"Yeah, I always liked watching the lights at night," he continued, "It's like watching a dance in the sky."

"A dance?"

"See how they swirl and move in almost perfect harmony. It's like watching dancing," he said, "Though, not everyone sees the same the same thing in the lights. For some, it's just a good light show. I'm curious Aniu, what do wolves see when they look at the lights?"

"Well, when I was very young, my parents told me a story about them after I first saw them. They said that the lights in the sky are the spirits of those who have passed before us. When the lights are out, that is the when the spirits come out to watch over us and protect us," she said.

"Spirits…. I haven't heard that one before," he said, "Is that the only way the spirits appear?"

"No, there are other stories of creatures whose spirits are bound to this world, instead of being able to pass on to the next life," she replied, "Usually, it is because they have a duty they must complete in this world before passing on to the next."

"Huh, that sounds like some of the ghost stories I've heard," he said turning to her.

"I suppose they could be seen as ghosts, but they more like guides - spirit guides," she replied, turning to him as well. They gazed at each other for a moment, and she saw how the lights above reflected in his bright eyes… she looked back up at the sky, a little embarrassed, and he soon followed suit. There was a bit of an awkward silence after that, "Was he admiring me? Maybe... I know I was getting caught up in his eyes… those pretty eyes….." "Amak, what is your team like?" she put in, wanting to break the silence.

"My team? Why, they're the best group of dogs I have ever run with," he replied, "We're so close with each other that I think of them as my family."

"Really?" she asked. 

"Yes. Being the lead of the team means that I'm responsible for everyone's safety. I look out for my teammates as though they were my own brothers and sisters," he said, "Unfortunately, I lost one of them once, a few years ago."

"What happened?" Aniu asked, "Who did you lose?" 

Amak took a breath as he prepared to tell his story, "Her name was… Sierra. She was one of the swing dogs and was probably my closest friend at the time. We trusted each other so well, that I was the only one that she told… about him. You see, Sierra was in love with a… wolf."

Amak paused as he let that fact sink in. "A wolf?" she asked, "Wolves and dogs have been involved with each other before?" 

"Yes, a wolf. Sierra was kind of like me - she didn't take things at face value and met a wolf that she soon fell in love with," he continued, "I helped her keep her secret safe, but even my efforts wouldn't be enough to protect them. One night, when he tried to visit her in town, the other dogs caught them. They freaked out when they saw the wolf in town and cornered them. I heard the commotion and soon I found Sierra and her love, standing side by side while facing down the mob. At first, all they wanted was the wolf, but when they found out that Sierra was in love with him they turned on her too."

"Why? Why would they do such a thing?" she asked.

"Because, they don't want to have anything to with wolves. The prejudice against them is so strong that they don't hate just the wolves; they hate anyone who is sympathetic to them. In most of the cases where they do find someone who is involved with a wolf, they're disowned and sent away from the town," he replied.

"That's horrible! They banish them simply because of who they love?" Aniu exclaimed.

"Unfortunately, yes. The thought is, 'If you want to run with a wolf, run with them in the wild, because we don't want the wolves here.' No one wants to associate with a 'lobo-lover'."

"I'm sorry for your loss Amak," Aniu said, and she rubbed her cheek onto his shoulder to show her sympathy. His fur was so soft and comforting…. "I could snuggle up to him right here."

"Wait, that's not the end of it," Amak continued, and she broke away from his shoulder, "Even though I tried to convince them otherwise, the dogs still banished Sierra, so she went off to live with her mate's pack. The strange thing is that she left without very much fuss. I guess she loved him so much that she was willing to start over with him. A few months passed, and after I started thinking that I wouldn't see Sierra again, she returns. However, the reunion was far from happy," he paused and took a breath in, "She came back because hunters had found the pack she was with. She had managed to get away from them, but she had been fatally shot in the process. She came back to me, and in her last moments, she once again showed me how much she trusted me," he continued, "You see, while she was away, she and her wolf love had a litter of pups - half-wolf pups. On that fateful night, she brought the one pup that she could save from the hunters to me and trusted me with her care. I took that scared little pup in, and when my owners found her, they named her Sonya."

"Do the others know that she's a half-wolf?" Aniu asked.

"Sadly, yes, and they use that as an excuse to pick on her relentlessly," Amak replied. "It's so hard for her, but she's such a good dog. Ever since I took her in, I've always thought of her as my little baby. In fact, she's on my team as well, in the same position her mother was in. Granted, the others don't like the idea of having a half-wolf on the team, but I'm sure that they'll come around eventually."

"It must be rough for her, to lose her parents and then to be the target of so much hate," Aniu said. 

"It is, and I've done what I can to try to change their minds, but they're so set in their views," he said, "I don't get it. Why do they have to hate wolves so much? They're so much like us. We share the same world, the same air, and the same sky. They, like us, have friends and families that they talk and joke with. They're only trying to live out their own lives, just like we are. Wolves aren't monsters; in fact, they're quite beautiful," he finished as he looked over at her.

Aniu noticed him look over at her, but he quickly turned his head back to the sky, "I wonder what he meant by that. Was he talking about wolves in general, or was he talking about me? Does he think I'm… beautiful?" 

They continued to watch the stars late into the night, and soon, Aniu started to drift off to sleep. Beside her, Amak continued to watch the sky and tried to sort out what was going on in his head. Like her, Amak was grappling with his own feelings, and he had also noticed the affection from Aniu, along with how he had started to admire her, "I don't know what to think anymore. I know I like her as a friend, but could there be more? I mean, she is beautiful, but I can't have fallen for her so quickly," he thought, "Oh, I'd really like some sort of sign to show me the way. What should I do now? How should I feel?" 

While he wished for something to show him the way, Aniu's head rolled over in her doze, coming to rest right on his shoulder. He looked down at her, resting at his side, and took it as the sign he wanted. Satisfied, he laid his head down on hers, and soon, they were both fast asleep with each other, while the lights danced above them.

----------

Chapter 3: Feelings Revealed 

More days would pass as Amak and his team continued their search for the caribou. Eventually, Aniu recovered fully from her injuries, so she would sometimes go out and look around the area herself. Trying to follow the team during the day would be too risky, as there was the chance that she would be spotted, so she would go off in a different direction. However, her searches yielded nothing as well, and in the evenings, she would meet up with Amak at the cave.

Ever since the night that they first went stargazing, they continued to meet and go out together in the night. Sometimes they watched the stars, and other times they took walks in the woods. As the days went by, she noticed that Amak was growing more open and affectionate with her. He would always greet her with a kind smile, and a few times, he had given her a quick nuzzle. Their conversations started to change over time as well. It progressed from how wolves and dogs were similar and different, to more personal topics, like friends and family. They grew closer to each other and every day and Aniu started to feel less of a desire to rejoin her pack, replaced by the desire to stay with Amak. 

"Wait, what am I thinking? Of course I want to rejoin my pack, that's the whole reason I asked for Amak's help. Besides, I kind of miss Faro, Atka and Salin too; they are such great friends. I met Amak no more than a week ago, but now, I don't like the idea of being away from him. What is going on with me? Part of me wants him, but another part wants to be with my pack. How could I be so conflicted? Could I have been right before; could I have fallen in love with him?"

She tried to push those thoughts away from her, but they remained, and they weren't helped much by Amak either. He had come to enjoy her company too, and many times since their first night stargazing, he would tell her that he would miss her when she was gone. More than once, she had thought about simply following Amak to where he lived in order to stay with him. She knew that she belonged with her pack, but she wanted him so much that she was willing to follow him into uncharted territory to be with him. These wild thoughts reminded her of Amak's story.

"The strange thing is that she left without very much fuss. I guess she loved him so much that she was willing to start over with him," Sierra had left to live with her wolf mate because she loved him. She wanted to stay with him, even though she would be entering a world she didn't know much about. She loved him and that was enough for her to want to start over with him.

"There's no other way to explain it; everything is pointing to the same thing. I love Amak. I love him, but now the question is… does he love me back?" she thought, "He has been very affectionate with me lately, but is that love, or is that just a dog's way of being nice?"

No sooner had she finished that thought, than when Amak entered the cave, panting and grinning wildly, "Aniu, I found them! I found the caribou! You can go back home tomorrow!"

"You found them? Oh thank you so much Amak," she replied, and she dove for him, nuzzling his chest.

"Oh, uh, you're very welcome," he said, a little off guard by her sudden action. However, he didn't pull away from her. The feeling of her head running through his fur was actually quite pleasant...

"Will you still be able to come with me to look for them?" she asked, snapping him out of his daze. 

"Oh, of course I will. I said I would didn't I?" he replied. Aniu smiled, and even though she was glad that he had succeeded, there was also a part of her that had wanted to stay with him, and that part was crying at the thought of leaving him behind.

----------------------------

The caribou herd had settled themselves several miles away from where Aniu was now. The best way for her to reach them would be if Amak and the team went first, while Aniu followed a few minutes behind them. Once the team had reached their destination, the dogs would be allowed to roam while their owner hunted the caribou with his friend. Amak would then slip away and meet up with Aniu so that he could help her in her search.

The night before, Aniu was restless, grappling with what she had realized. She had fallen in love with Amak, but she would have to leave him very soon. She wished that there was some way, any way for her to continue seeing Amak, but she didn't want to leave the friends she had made in her pack either. After tossing and turning for a couple of hours, she finally decided to try something. She prayed to the spirits. She prayed that they would give her some way of seeing Amak, without having to abandon her pack. Once she finished her prayer, she put her head back down, hoping that her words would be answered. 

----------------------------

Bright and early the next morning, Amak's team prepared to leave while Aniu watched from the nearby bushes. She waited for a few minutes after they had left before going out to follow them. The tracks left in the snow, combined with the scent of the dogs left an easy trail to follow. She knew that she had to be careful and keep her distance, or else the human and his dogs would think that she was coming for them. The trail cut through the woods and she followed alongside it, using the tress to cover her approach. An hour later, she found where they had stopped. The caribou herd had settled themselves in a large open field. The human had started to unload his gear after unhooking the dogs, and she found Amak waiting a short distance away.

"Psst," she whispered, "Amak, it's me."

He turned around and saw her peeking through the trees before coming up to join her, "There you are. So, where should we start?" he asked, "Where would a wolf pack hide themselves?"

"Near the caribou, but not too close to be seen by them," she replied, "They would be probably be somewhere in the forest, around the edge of the field."

"The field is huge. You're saying that they could be anywhere around it?" he asked.

"Yes, but it shouldn't be too hard to find them," she said, "Wolves leave scent signs to mark their territory and navigate around it. We just have to find a trace of them and follow it."

Amak nodded and soon they were off on their search. They walked around the field, sniffing trees and other objects to see if they carried her pack's scent. As they walked, they were both very quiet. Occasionally, she would hear Amak mutter something to himself, but she could never quite make it out. It seemed like he was thinking something over. However, he was not the only one who was facing a bit of a dilemma. Aniu herself wanted to tell him how she felt, but she couldn't find the right way to approach it. She didn't want to just blurt it out, but she couldn't keep it hidden forever, "Should I tell him? We might not see each other again, but I can't keep it locked up forever. Even if I do tell him, what if he doesn't feel the same way? I wouldn't want to leave him with a parting thought like that. If only I had a little more time with him; if only I could see him again after this..." 

Soon their search led into a riverbed, and as they walked along the ice, she couldn't hold it in any more. She had to say something, "Amak, if I haven't already, I want to thank you for all of your help," she started, "I'm very grateful for everything you've done for me."

"You're very welcome Aniu," he replied, "I'm happy that I got to meet you too."

"Yes, if only we had a little more time together," she said, "Time I could use to tell you how I feel." "I wish I could see you again after this."

He stopped walking, but it was not because of her comment. She looked at him and saw that he was looking around the area with an expression of wonder, "Oh my... I don't believe it..." he muttered. 

"Amak?"

He looked back at her, and took a deep breath, "Actually Aniu... there is something that I want to ask you," he started, with a hint of anxiety in his voice.

"What is it?" she asked.

"Well, it's just that... I've really come to enjoy your company and... if you wanted to see me again... I might have a way to make that happen..." he said nervously, "That is... if you don't mind."

"I... I'd love to see you again," she said, "Please let this be true; don't let this be a dream." "But how? How could we see each other after this? Don't you have to leave with your human soon?"

"I do have to leave here, but soon I'll be heading back to my home town. Have I told you about it?" he asked.

"No, I don't think so," she replied. In all of their discussions, she had forgotten to ask him where he lived, and she mentally kicked herself for overlooking it, "That's what you get when you spend all your time staring at his eyes Aniu."

"Well, I live in a town called White Mountain. It's actually not that far from here," he continued, "In fact, this riverbed leads right towards the town... so if you want to come..."

Aniu's jaw dropped. Amak would be within touching distance of her. This couldn't be real; this was way to easy, "Are you sure?"

"Of course I am. Some of our trips have taken us to a town called Nome, and one of the legs of the trip is this riverbed," he said, "So, if you wanted to drop by..."

Aniu was thrilled; she would have more time to be with Amak. She laughed in joy and came up to nuzzle into his chest, "Oh thank you. Thank you so much for this," she said.

"Woah, well… you're welcome," he replied, a little surprised by her outburst, "Do you remember that race that I told you about earlier? The Trans-Alaskan Derby?" he asked.

"You mean the race that you told me about shortly after I met you?" she said.

He paused as he remembered that day... the day he had first laid eyes on her, "Keep it together Amak, you don't know if she feels the same way... then again, she is pressed up into my chest," he thought, "Well, right after my owner finishes his hunting trip, we're going to be taking part in that race. The start is quite a distance from here, but the finish is in White Mountain, the town I live in," he said, "If you want... you can come by and watch. You can see me... do what I do best. Maybe you'll even see me become a champion."

"I'd love that Amak," she replied, "I'd love nothing more than to see you race."

"Really? I mean... that's great," he continued, still a little anxious, "I wasn't sure if it would mean that much for you to see me," he said.

"Oh it does, you have no idea how much it does," she said. 

"This is wonderful," he whispered. He had to say something; something that would show how much he cared.

"I can't believe it," she whispered as well. She couldn't hold back any longer; she had to tell him.

"Aniu..."

"Amak..."

"I love you."

They both froze when they realized what they had said. At the same time, they had both uttered those three little words that carried so much weight, "You… love me?" he asked.

"And you... love me too?" she asked and he nodded, "Yes Amak, I do love you. It started small, but now, after our time together, I don't want to be away from you. You're the most caring and handsome dog I have ever met and I want to be with you."

"I want to be with you too," he replied, "I love you Aniu, but I was afraid to admit it because I thought you'd be gone soon. I love everything about you. You're the most beautiful sight I've ever seen and you have a wonderful spirit to match," he said, "I wasn't sure about how you would react, but ever since that night we first watched the lights, I've been feeling like we were meant to be together."

"I wasn't sure how you would react either," she continued, "I didn't want to say it, only to leave you so soon."

"Well, now we've said it, and we don't have to worry about being apart," he said. Once they had both gotten what they wanted to say off their chests, they both breathed in a huge sigh of relief. Aniu no longer felt conflicted and Amak was no longer anxious about holding in what he wanted to say. She continued to nuzzle into his chest and he returned it with his own.

"So, what now?" she asked, "What do we do now?" 

"I know what we should do. We should make sure that our love doesn't fall apart. If you want to find my home town, you have to follow this riverbed to the south," he instructed, while pointing his head in the proper direction, "The riverbed will eventually lead to a wide open plain. The town will be smack in the middle of it, so it won't be hard to find from there," he said, "Now, I won't be there for the next several days, as I'm going to be in the race, but once I come back, we can visit each other as much as we want."

"When will you be back?" she asked.

"Let me think… we're not leaving for another couple of days. It'll take us some time to get there, but we'll be booking it to get back. I'd say about ten days before we come back home for the finish," he said.

"I'll be cheering for you there," she replied. They remained there, leaning against each other, and Aniu felt as though a large weight had been lifted off her shoulders. She had been able to tell him how she felt, and he had returned her feelings. Better yet, even after she had returned to her pack, she could continue to see Amak in town. Everything she had prayed for had come true, "Thank you, to whoever or whatever was looking out for me." 

Suddenly, a howl cut through the woods. It was quite distant but Aniu recognized it as Atka's; they were close to her pack.

"Is that a friend of yours?" Amak asked.

"Yes, it is, I really should go now. I guess that this is goodbye," she said.

"Hey, at least it's not goodbye forever," Amak replied and Aniu gave him a parting lick on the cheek before she dashed away in the direction of the howl, "Remember, south along the riverbed to the town in ten days!" Amak called out.

"I won't forget if you don't," Aniu replied. Amak chuckled and after seeing her disappear in the brush, he turned back towards his own team, "With her watching, I'll make sure I finish first. I'll be a champion for you Aniu." 

----------------------------

Aniu continued to trot through the woods and soon she picked up the scent markers of her pack. As she got closer to them, she wondered what she would tell them. The most obvious thing would be to tell the truth, but would they believe it? Their old pack had been hunted by humans and dogs, so the idea of a dog saving her and keeping her safe would sound preposterous to them. She thought about telling them everything she had learned from Amak, from the time she spent with him…

"We must never associate with them. They are almost as dangerous as the humans themselves!"

She stopped running and realized that her pack would probably look down on her if she told them she had made friends with a husky. She might even be banished, just like how Sierra was banished when she was found with a wolf, "Would that happen to me? Would I be labeled a 'husky-lover' and cast out from the pack, or would they attack Amak to ensure I would never be able to see him again?" It was clear that in order for her and him to stay safe, she couldn't tell them about her time with Amak, "Maybe I could tell them what had happened, but remove any mention of Amak. I could tell them that I had been injured by a moose, and had to wait a few days to recover, and that it took me some more time to track them down," That story was still mostly true, and it didn't make any mention of Amak. She continued running, but another thought came to her. How would she cover her time when she left to see Amak's race? Getting lost and injured is easy enough to explain, but running off for no reason would be much harder to cover. Packs always stayed together, and if she disappeared again, they might start to get suspicious. However, Amak did say that he wouldn't reach the town for another ten days; hopefully by then she could think of something.

She knew that she would have to announce her presence sooner or later, so she let out a howl to try to get their attention. After a short pause, she heard a reply as all four of them howled back. They were dead ahead, so she ran towards them, needing only a few more minutes to find them. Mayak was the first to meet her, "Aniu, where have you been?" he snapped.

"Trying to find you," she replied. Now she would see if her story would hold, "I was injured by a moose during that storm and I had to wait a few days to recover. It took me some more time to track down the caribou in order to find you guys."

"Are you sure there isn't anything else?" asked Faro. 

"Why would there be?" she asked.

"Well, it's just that after the storm, we looked around for you," Mayak continued, "The winds had scattered most of your scent, but there were still traces. In one spot, we found traces of your scent along with another; a dog's scent to be exact. Can you shed any light on this?"

"Um, no. I didn't meet any dogs. It could have been there, but not when I was there," she replied, growing a little nervous.

"Well, you were curious about them before. Maybe you found one?" Atka suggested.

"Nope. It's not like I would try to be friends with them, after what I've heard from you," she said, trying to steer the conversation away from anything related to Amak.

"Good. I'd hate for you to fall prey to their lies," Mayak growled.

"Oh Mayak, if only you knew how kind they could be. If you could put your bitterness behind you, you would see much more than a threat," she thought. "I can take care of myself."

"I'm sure you can, but I don't want to lose you again," Mayak said, this time much softer, "Actually, Aniu, there's something I want to ask you." 

"What is it?" she asked.

"Could you three leave us alone for a moment?" he said to the others. They moved away, leaving just the two of them in the area, "Alright, this is something I don't want them to hear yet, but Aniu, I've been thinking. You and I, we make a great pair, don't you think?"

"Well, we do work together quite well……"

"I'm not just talking about hunting together. I mean us, together," he said.

"What are you getting at?"

"Aniu, how would you feel if this year we became… mates?" he asked.

This was definitely a shock for her. Normally, this wouldn't be much of a problem, as it is customary in a wolf pack for the alpha male to become mates with the alpha female. However, in this case, there was a complication. Just minutes ago, she had professed her love for Amak. However, Mayak knew nothing of the husky. She had to keep her love for Amak a secret from him, but she couldn't simply turn her back on the one she loved in order to keep her cover. Besides, Mayak hadn't exactly done anything to impress her the way Amak did, "I… I don't know. It's all a little much," she replied.

"I know it is, but I want you to think about it," he said and came in closer to whisper in her ear, "Though, I'm sure you know that you don't have much of a choice here. I'm the alpha, so it's either me or one of those mangy dogs out there," he tried to lean in to nuzzle her, but she pulled away from him. He seemed a little surprised by her reluctance.

"I'll think about it," she said and ran off. Her face didn't show it, but she was starting to panic. Mayak wanted to be her mate, yet there was Amak. After everything Mayak had said, it was obvious that her love for Amak would be forbidden. She couldn't tell any of her pack or they might exile her... or worse. She knew that she was supposed to have a wolf mate, but the thought of being with Mayak made it feel as though she would be cheating on Amak.

"It's either me or one of those mangy dogs out there."

What did Mayak mean by that? Was he just trying to convince her to be his mate, or did he know something? Was he suspicious of her being with a husky? If he was, he didn't say anything about it, but there was something about his voice. Aniu didn't know exactly what it was, but something about it frightened her a little.

She knew that her love for Amak wouldn't be accepted by the others, but it was only now that she realized just how much trouble she would be in if she were caught. She could be exiled, or Mayak could make efforts to ensure that Aniu would be his; he might hurt Amak to stop him from being with her. However, she couldn't turn her back on Amak, not after all he had done for her and all the time they had spent together. She loved him, and there was nothing that anyone, not even Mayak, could do to change that.

 ----------

Chapter 4: Almost A Champion 

It didn't take long for Aniu to settle back into her routine with the pack, however there was something different from last time. Since they were still relatively new to the area, they would send someone out to scout around the area. By looking around their new territory, they could understand the lay of the land and the best ways to navigate around it. Aniu saw that this could serve as the perfect cover for her to sneak off and see Amak.

So, Aniu volunteered to go scouting on the day Amak was supposed to return so that she could leave to find the town called White Mountain. The time away would be good for her; not only would she get to see Amak, but she would also get some time away from Mayak. Every day since she had returned, he had been trying to spend every waking moment near her, trying to convince her to be his mate. She tried stalling him by saying she was still thinking, but she knew that tactic would only work for so long. The end of winter was coming and soon it would be her time to bear pups. She would have to either accept or deny his offer. Eventually, the day came for her to sneak off, but Mayak was being more persistent than ever.

"Aniu, let me come with you today. Some time alone would be good for us to get closer," he said.

"No Mayak, I'll be fine on my own," she snapped back.

"Oh Aniu, don't be like this. It's how it's supposed to be," he said, sidling up to her.

Aniu did not enjoy having him invade her space like this, "Mayak, if you don't leave me alone right now, my answer is a no," she barked. 

"You'd say no to me?" he muttered, his tone becoming a little more menacing, "You'd say no to the alpha male of your pack?"

Aniu knew she would have to think of something quickly; Mayak looked about ready to lose his temper. Also, if she delayed for too long, she risked missing Amak's return from the race, "Look, I just wanted you to give me some space. When I have an answer for you, you'll be the first to know. Until then, you don't have to constantly be breathing down my neck, so back off!" He considered her words, and after a short pause, he relented and allowed her to go. He turned around to join the others hunting, and she was free. Free at last to see Amak.

----------------------------

"If you want to find my home town, you have to follow this riverbed to the south. The riverbed will eventually lead to a wide open plain. The town will be smack in the middle of it, so it won't be hard to find from there," she thought as she remembered Amak's directions. Amak didn't say exactly what time he would come into town, so she raced through the forest, hoping that she hadn't missed it already. Soon, she had cleared the tree line and into a wide open plain. Just as Amak had said, the town wasn't too hard to spot in the flat, open expanse. She saw a collection of buildings similar to the cabin in the distance and continued trotting towards them.

"So this is what a human town is like," she thought as she approached the town. There wasn't much tree cover, so she had to use snow drifts to hide her approach. As she got closer, she saw that there were back alleys in between the buildings which she could use to move around the town undetected. As she entered one, she heard a commotion coming from the center of the town. She walked towards it, and every time she passed an alley that connected the one she was in to the main street, she saw people, lots of people, all looking in the same direction, waiting for something. Suddenly, she heard a loud bang above her and ducked, thinking it was gunshot. However, when she looked up, she saw that it was simply a flare in the sky. Its appearance caused the humans to cheer.

"It's the one mile marker!" one human shouted.

"They're almost here!" another cried.

She was relieved that she was not too late, but with all the humans in the way, she had no way of seeing Amak; she would have to get higher. She eventually found a tall stack of crates and climbed up them to reach the roof of one of the buildings. It was a little awkward on the sloped roof at first, but she managed to find her balance and looked down at the street below her. It ran the length of the town, and in the center was a large banner with the word "Finish" on it. All of the humans seemed to be looking to the east, so Aniu did the same. Just coming over the horizon were two small dots, moving quickly towards the town. It was the racers, and they were running with all their might to the finish line.

As they got closer, she could make out the dogs in each team, and Amak's was one of them! There was another team, lead by a black and white dog that was following closely beside them. All the dogs on both teams looked like they were exhausted, panting heavily with their tongues rolling out, but they were still giving their all for the last stretch. Aniu wanted to let Amak know that she was there, so she let out a howl. Most of the crowd didn't notice it over their cheering and the barking of the dogs, but Amak did. He looked up at her and a huge smile came over his exhausted face. Once he knew that she was there, he seemed to gain new strength and started pulling farther ahead of the second team. He was getting closer; only a few more seconds and he would win. He would become a champion while his love watched on. 

"Go. Go Amak. GO!" she shouted.

However, the black and white dog wasn't out of tricks yet – he wanted to win just as badly as Amak did. He reared up and snapped at the legs of the dog right behind Amak - a grey and white female. She jumped away from his lunge, but stumbled on her landing. Amak was yanked back by his teammate, and that allowed the black and white dog's team to start pulling ahead. It took only a second for Amak's team to recover, but that second was all it took for the other team to take the lead from them. Amak's team kept running for the last few yards, desperate to regain their position. They were able to gain back some of their lost ground, but the damage had already been done. The other team crossed the finish first, with Amak only inches behind. He had lost, all because of one cheater.

Aniu groaned at this outcome, but despite this, she was still proud of Amak. He had done his best, and still managed to come in second. Both teams came to a stop, with some of the dogs collapsing from exhaustion. The dogs were unhooked while another human came over holding two large collars, "The first-place golden collar is awarded to Mr. Kassen and his lead dog Steele," he said and put a collar with golden studs on it around the black dog's neck, "While the runner-up silver collar is awarded to Mr. Vance and his lead dog Amak," he finished while putting the collar with the silver studs on Amak's neck. While he was doing this, Steele was strutting around the area, trying to look buff, which made all of the female dogs in the area swoon. Amak meanwhile was glaring at Steele. Finally, when the humans had left to celebrate the end of the race, Steele went down an alley while Amak followed him. Aniu climbed down from her perch to investigate and when she had gotten down to ground level, she could hear Amak's voice around a corner, along with another. She peeked around the corner and saw Amak fuming, while Steele wore an arrogant smirk on his face. 

"I don't care who you think you are! Just what gives you the right to pull a stunt like that!" Amak shouted. 

"Hey, I did what I had to in order to win," Steele scoffed. 

"But what you did was cheating!"

"Did I get caught? No. As far as the humans know, you just had a small snag."

"So you think you can just cheat your way through life?" he asked.

"If I can get away with it. Besides, my team will back me up; they always do," he replied.

"Yeah, they may back you up now, but I promise you, if you keep going the way you're going, they may not. There may come a day when you mess up so badly that neither your friends nor the humans will want to bail you out, even if you are their champion. I promise you, you'll go from champ to chump and it will all be because of your over inflated ego," he warned.

"Heh, yeah right," Steele sneered.

"Steele, where did you go?" a female voice called from the street.

"You'd better go. You wouldn't want to disappoint your adoring fans," Amak said with a hint of sarcasm. Steele scowled at him and walked away, leaving Amak behind.

"I take it this dog has a bit of a fan club," Aniu said as she came out from around the corner. Amak looked up, startled.

"Oh, Aniu, it's you," he said, "You made it." 

"Of course. I didn't want to miss your big race," she replied.

His ears drooped, "Even though I lost." 

"Amak, you only lost because of a dirty trick. I saw you out there; you were so close."

"I know. It's just…" he paused, "I wanted to win so that you'd see me as a champion, not the runner-up."

It was clear that he was disappointed with his loss, but Aniu knew just how to cheer him up, "Amak, in my eyes, you already are a champion," she said, giving him a nuzzle.

Her actions seemed to do the trick, "Thanks for that. You know what, getting second isn't so bad. It means I beat almost all of the teams; and I get this really nice collar," he said and started to show off his silver-studded collar to her. Soon, they decided to spend the day walking around the alleys. They weren't going anywhere in particular, just walking around the edge of the town while Amak told her all about the rest of the race. He told her how they had to cut through dangerous forests and across open fields, all the while trying to stay ahead of the other teams. It all seemed like quite an adventure to her.

"So there we were, in the middle of the forest and off the trail. I had no idea where to go, but there was someone on my team that did," he told.

"Who?" she asked.

"Sonya. Somehow, she was able to get a fix on another team's scent and we followed it. It turned out that she had found Steele's team, and soon enough, we burst through the brush and onto the trail, almost hitting him!" he said, "I swear, I thought Steele was going to jump right out of his harness when we appeared. I'm sure you saw the rest beyond that."

"Of course," she replied, "I saw you run your best, and you were so close to winning."

"I know. So, what about you? What have you been up to the past few days?" he asked. 

"Oh, not as much as you have," she replied, "Mostly day to day hunting. However, there is one thing…" Aniu told him all about Mayak's proposal to her, and what it would mean for her.

"So, he wants to be your mate, but…."

"I don't want to be his. I couldn't turn my back on you like that," she said, as she rubbed her head into his shoulder.

"Well, if you don't want him, why don't you simply say no?" he asked, "Wolves are allowed to say no right?" Aniu thought about it for a moment. Her parents had taught her that wolves chose each other, and every wolf has the right to say no if they're not interested. However, Mayak was one who sometimes lost it when things didn't go his way - how would he react if she turned him down? 

"I suppose I am, but it would be very unusual. It's very rare for an alpha female to reject the alpha male," she said, "It would take something very serious for that to happen."

"But it's not unheard of right?" he asked and she nodded, "Well then there's your solution. Besides, if this guy truly cared about you, then I'm sure he'd respect your choice."

"I don't know… Mayak isn't exactly the most stable wolf," she said, remembering his mood before she left.

"Hey, you shouldn't worry about it. If the worst happens, you can come straight to me and I'll help you out," he said, "If what you told me about this guy is true, then he wouldn't dare set foot in this town. You'd be safe here."

"You - you'd do that for me?" she asked.

"Of course I would. I love you, and I don't want anything bad to happen to you," he said and gave her a reassuring nuzzle.

"I love you too," she replied and they continued their walk around the town. Along their walk, Amak gave her a tour of the town's back alleys and explained some aspects of human life to her. She was able to understand most of it, but there were a few parts of it that went way over her head. Despite that, she enjoyed her time with Amak, and wanted it to last as long as possible. Soon, evening started to fall on the town, and the residents started to turn in for the night. 

"Let's see, I showed you the general store, the blacksmith, the chapel…" Amak listed, "There's one more thing I wanted to show you, but I can't put my paw on it… Ah, that's right! The butcher shop. How would a little dinner with me sound? My treat," he asked.

"I'd love that," she replied and followed him down the alley and towards the back of yet another building. As she approached, Aniu could smell the scent of meat and other seasonings.

"The great thing about any northern town," he started, "Is that the butcher knows that the dogs will want his scraps. So, he puts them out for us. That way, nothing is wasted," They reached the shop and Amak started looking inside a box lying beside the back door.

"Are you sure it's okay?" she asked. 

"It's fine. The dogs regularly visit for a snack, so nothing here is more than a few hours old. Sometimes the butcher purposely leaves some big pieces out, just for us. Ah-ha! Jackpot," Amak produced a large piece from the box and brought it to her, "Here, ladies first," he said, placing it in front of her.

"Aren't you the charmer," she replied and started eating while he went back to the box to get another piece for himself. By the time they had finished their meal, night had fallen.

"Amak, thanks for everything today. I had a great time today," she said as she started to get up. 

"Wait, why do you have to go so soon?" he asked, "C'mon, stay the night. I haven't seen you in a while. Please, stay with me."

Aniu felt the same way he did. She hadn't seen him in a while and she didn't want to leave him yet. Part of her warned her that the others may become suspicious if she came back quite late, but her desire for Amak was much stronger.

"Well…. okay, why not," she replied, "I haven't seen you in a long time either."

His eyes lit up at this, "Great! Follow me," he said and she followed him through the dark and empty streets. Soon, they had reached another building, this one smaller than the shops in the middle of town, and went around the side of it, "Here, this is my place," he said as they rounded around to the rear of it. Nearby was a small shed, and since the house was on the edge of the town, they had a wide open view of the surrounding plain and forests.

"I'll be right back, just wait here," he said as he dashed towards the nearby shed. While he rummaged inside it, Aniu gazed up towards the sky and saw that the northern lights were out, shining in all their glory. Soon Amak came back to her with a blanket from the shed, "It can get quite chilly at night, so I thought we'd need this," he said.

"Thanks," she replied, "Look, the lights are out tonight."

He looked up and saw the lights as well, "Just when I thought this day couldn't get any better," he said, lying down on his back to get the best view. Aniu lay down beside him and cuddled up against him, rubbing her muzzle into his neck. Once she had settled herself with him, he pulled the blanket over them, keeping them warm in the chilly winter air. As the lights continued their dance in the sky, the two lovers started to doze off, snuggled up with each other like mates.

"I love you Amak," she said.

"I love you too Aniu."

----------------------------

The next morning, Aniu woke up to the sound of the birds chirping away. It was still early and the sun had just started to peek over the horizon. As she came out of her drowse, she breathed deeply to take in Amak's scent. His chest rose and fell with his breathing, and it was quite soothing for her to listen to. She got out slowly from under the blanket and stretched herself out. While she had enjoyed the time with Amak, she knew she would have to return to her pack to avoid rousing too much suspicion. Amak was still asleep, snoring softly. Aniu came up to him to say her goodbyes.

"Amak," she said while poking him with her paw, "Amak, it's morning."

"Zzzzz… no, five more minutes ma…. it's Saturday…. zzzz," he mumbled in his sleep. She rolled her eyes and leaned down to lick him on his neck, in the hopes of waking him up. It took a few tries, but soon, he started giggling and woke up, "Hey, hey, I'm really ticklish there!" he cried out.

"Oh really? Maybe I should do that more often then," she teased.

"Ha ha, very funny," he said as he got up and stretched out while giving out a large yawn, "What time is it?" he asked. 

"It's early in the morning, I really must be getting back to the others," she said as she turned to leave.

"Wait up. Let me walk you at least part of the way," he said.

"You don't have to do that," she replied, "I can make it myself." 

"I know you could, but I insist. It's only polite for me to walk you home after a date," he said, "Besides, my humans aren't early risers. I can make it back before anyone notices."

"Okay, come along," she replied and they set off, finding the river and following it down to where her pack had settled. They walked along the ice, and Aniu could tell that the weather was warming. Soon spring would come and the river would thaw out, along with the rest of the world. 

"It's getting warmer, summer will be here soon," she said.

"Yeah, that means the snow will be gone and there won't be any more sledding for a while," Amak replied.

"But the summers are short. You'll be back out and sledding in a few months," she said. 

"I know. Besides, I could use a vacation," he continued. "I could take the time to visit you." 

"I'd like that," she said, "Though, I don't know when I could sneak off to see you next."

"There's no rush. I'd say wait a few days," he replied, "However, my advice would be to come at night, when there's a lower chance of anyone seeing us."

"Ohhh, planning secret nighttime visits are you?" she teased, "I never thought of you as the 'bad boy' type."

"Heh, you're one to talk," he teased back, "You're the one claiming to go on a scouting trip when you really went off to have a fun night with your secret lover; and you call me bad."

They continued walking through the woods until they reached the edge of the pack's territory, and once again bid each other goodbye, "Thanks for yesterday Amak. I'll try to come back in a few more days," she said as she nuzzled him.

"You're welcome, and I'll see you then," he replied, "In fact, I might have a little surprise for you."

She smiled at him before continuing into her territory while Amak turned back towards his home. As she ran, she wondered what sort of surprise Amak would have in store for her.

----------

Chapter 5: If You Look to the North…

Aniu had hoped that she would be able to return to her pack before they woke up in the morning, but unfortunately, her long absence would not go unnoticed. Mayak had waited for her clear through the night, and by the time she returned, he was quite cross, "Aniu, where have you been?!" he yelled as she came over a small hill. 

"So much for an easy getaway," she thought, "I was out scouting, just like I said I would be," she snapped back. 

"You sure took your time. You left yesterday morning," he said.

Aniu knew she would have to explain her absence, and quickly thought up a cover story, "Look, I got caught up and I had to spend the night to rest," she said.

"Oh really? Just what would you get caught up with?" he asked.

She figured that she might as well tell him about the town. In a way, she did explore it, and she would have to give him something to throw his suspicions off, "I found a human settlement after I followed the river to the south." 

His expression suddenly changed from anger to fear, "Humans? How far?"

"I'd say, twenty minutes by walking," she replied, "There was a point where I had to duck for cover to avoid being seen. It took me awhile before I felt safe enough to come out; that's why I'm late."

"Are you sure you weren't seen? They could have followed you here, to us!" he said, as panic started to add to the fear in his voice.

"Don't worry, no one followed me. I made sure to stay out of sight," she replied, "You sure get jumpy whenever they are mentioned."

"Yeah, well you'd be jumpy too if you went through what I had to," he mumbled.

They started walking back to the others through the woods and on the way, Mayak asked the question she knew would come eventually, "So, you've had a little more time to think about my proposal. Do you have an answer for me now?"

This was it, time to see if her plan would work, "Actually, I have thought about it Mayak. I'm sorry, but my answer is no."

Mayak stopped, "No?" he growled as he glared at her.

"Unfortunately. I think it would be best if we took more time to know each other. After all, I've only known you for about a month now," she said, hoping that reason would satisfy him.

Mayak continued to glare at her, but he also appeared to be thinking it over. Finally, he gave his response, "Alright, we don't have to mate this year. We'll take another year and get to know each other better," he replied, and then he came right up into her face, "But in the meantime, I don't want you trying anything with anyone else you hear me? I am the alpha of this pack, and so you will be MY mate! You won't be the mate of another wolf, you won't even be the bitch of one of those spineless dogs. You will be mine, and if I can't have you, then I'll make sure no one will!" he shouted. He stormed off, and Aniu realized that she had been holding her breath the entire time. She had a feeling that he would be disappointed with this, but his sudden outburst frightened her. The fact that he was being so possessive put her off. Amak would never act like this. 

"Amak. What if he suspects that there is another? No, he didn't ask anything about it. He doesn't know his name, or even that he exists. But why does he keep mentioning dogs? What is going on in his head?"

----------------------------

She found the other three from her pack around a fresh kill and they made room for her as she came up, "Aniu, it may not be any of our business, but I'm wondering how well things are going between you and Mayak?" Faro asked her.

"What exactly do you mean?"

"Well, he has taken quite an interest in you," he said, "I'm wondering what you think about it."

"I told him that I didn't think I was ready for something like that yet," she replied, "After all, we haven't known each other very long." 

"That's true; so how did he take it?" Atka asked.

"He agreed, but I don't think he really liked the idea of waiting," she replied.

"Did he get really upset or did he just storm off?" Faro asked. 

"He got very angry and started going on and on about how I was his and no other's," she replied, "Why?"

"Uh oh, I was afraid of this," Faro muttered and the three of them started to look very worried.

"What were you worried about? Is there something that you know that you're not telling me?" she asked, "Ever since I've met you, you always changed the subject whenever I asked about him. There is something you know about why Mayak has such a short temper, and I want to know it!"

Faro looked at the other two, then at her, "Alright, I'll tell you about it, but don't mention that you know. It's something that Mayak hates."

"I'm listening," she said.

"Okay, it happened last year, when we were still in our full pack. Mayak was the alpha male and he had his eyes on the current alpha female, Sami. However, she was very resistant to his advances, and she eventually told him that she wasn't interested in him. She left him with little reason for doing so, and he spent the next little while wondering why she rejected him. Then, one night, he found out why," he said, "The reason that Sami wasn't interested in him was because she already had another."

A twinge of fear shot through Aniu. She was much like Sami, not interested in Mayak because she already had someone she loved more, "Her lover was the beta male of the pack, and also Mayak's brother Mias. When he realized this, he took as a personal betrayal, disowned his brother, and almost attacked Sami in rage. Judging by how he reacted to you, I guess he hasn't quite gotten over that. You probably reminded him too much of that painful day," he continued, "Despite that, he still had feelings for Sami, but he would have to take another blow a few weeks later, when the hunters came for us. Mayak had to watch as his brother fell to the human traps, while Sami was killed by the dogs. Since then, he just hasn't been the same, and has developed an almost pathological hatred of dogs, along with the idea of rejection as well."

"Uh-oh, if Mayak ever found out about Amak, it would hurt him in more than one way and he'd probably lose it," she thought, "I had no idea that he had been hurt that way."

"And as far as he knows, you don't," Atka urged, "Sami's rejection and her death is a very painful thing for him, so you should never bring it up."

"I won't." 

"Good, I'd hate for anything to happen to you," Faro said, "Look, if you start to get any indication that Mayak is starting to get a little unhinged, you should come to us. We've been around him longer and we may be able to deal with him.

"I will, thank you," she replied, and felt a little safer knowing that the rest of her pack could back her up if things got messy. However, she wondered if they'd be as willing if they knew that she was involved with someone else; someone whom Mayak would hate.

----------------------------

Mayak had gotten the message that she wasn't interested and had started to back off, but anytime she saw him, he would glare at her with contempt. She figured that it was simply because he was disappointed by her answer, but there was also a part of her that feared that he suspected her of something.

After a few days had passed, Aniu decided that she would go off to see Amak again. She waited until everyone else had fallen asleep, including Mayak, and crept away into the night. She remembered the way into town from last time and had no trouble reaching it. She reached his yard first, but found that he wasn't there. She sniffed around and followed his scent along the outskirts of the town to a large barn. There was light coming out from inside, possibly from a lantern, and she could hear voices coming from inside. She crept around the side and found an opening in the boards that she could peek through. There were a few lanterns in the barn, illuminating the entire room with a soft, orange light. She looked around and saw many dogs inside, including Amak. All the dogs inside listened intently as one of them told a story to the others. She adjusted her view and saw that it was Steele telling the story. 

"So there we were, neck and neck with the finish line only yards away. It seemed like Amak would win, so I thought to myself 'Steele, you can do this. You just have to believe in yourself.' I summoned all my inner strength, and pushed myself harder than I thought I could before and by some miracle, I was able to pull ahead and win the race," The other dogs 'ooohed' and 'aaahed' at this while Steele grinned and started walking around holding his head high, like he owned the place. Aniu saw that Amak was rolling his eyes before stepping up to add his two cents.

"Well, that's a very riveting tale Steele," he cut in, "But I remember that race too and there's a small part at the end that you missed."

Steele's grin changed to a scowl, "Like what?"

"Oh I don't know…" a grey and white female shot in, "How about the part where you tried to snap my feet off at the end?" 

"Uh, uh….. I don't recall ever doing anything that horrible," he replied, putting on his best good-dog face, "I would never try something like-" 

"Oh cut the crap Steele, you're no hero or superdog," she shot back, "You're nothing but a cheater and a liar. You're lucky I didn't rip you apart then!"

"Rip me apart eh? I knew it. I knew you were like that Sonya. Even though you're only half of it, you're still a wild wolf," he taunted.

"So this is the Sonya that Amak told me about," she thought as Steele continued his taunting.

"Why don't you go back and howl with your pack? That is, if they'd even want a half-breed like you," he said before giving out a mocking impression of a howl. However, his howl would be cut short by Sonya as she lunged at him, knocking him over. Steele was quick to retaliate and they both snapped at each other, trying to gain the upper hand. Finally, Amak jumped into the fray and tried to break them up. 

"THAT"S ENOUGH!" he turned to her, "You should know better than that. You know he's only doing it to get a reaction so don't give him what he wants."

"Oh, but I don't blame her Amak. After all, she is a wolf and they are known to be temperamental," Steele shot in.

"YOU SHUT UP!" she cried and tried to lunge at Steele again, but Amak stopped her. Steele kept on laughing at her, so Amak turned on him next.

"Oh, are you going to give me a talking-to too?" Steele asked. Amak said nothing and simply grabbed Steele's neck in his jaws and slammed him into the ground, "Hey what are you doing?" Steele cried out.

"Well talking to you wasn't working, so I'm trying this," he replied. Steele tried to get up but Amak held him down with his paws pressing on his chest, "Listen to me, and listen to me well because I'm only going to say this once. You may be the champion now, but that doesn't mean that the rules don't apply to you. You will stop bullying my teammate and you will stop acting like an arrogant, stuck-up ass all the time! Understand!?" Steele nodded, but he still held the scowl on his face. Amak let him up and he decided to get out of there before there was any more trouble. Seeing that the story was over, the other dogs left too, leaving only Amak and Sonya.

"Nothing's changed," she said dejected, "Even after I got our team out of that blizzard, he still picks on me. What can I do?"

"There really isn't much you can do other than tough it out," Amak replied, "Giving him a reaction is only what he wants."

"But he'll still pick on me even if I don't react to him! I've tried ignoring him but he simply follows me around," she said, "I can't sit and do nothing forever. Why can't I beat him up? Why can't I fight back? Why can't I show him to not mess with me?"

"Because you'd get yourself in even more trouble. He has friends and if they saw you attacking him, they would fight back. You may be able to fight off one, but certainly not his whole team at once."

"But it's not fair!"

"I know," Amak replied, and Aniu could see that this was upsetting him as well, "I know it's hard for you; heck, it's even hard for me to watch you go through this. I know Steele is persistent, but fighting back with violence will never solve the problem once and for all. If anything, it'll only lead to more hurt."

There was a pause, then Sonya spoke again, "I bet Steele wouldn't be so happy if he hadn't won that race. We were so close… and I was the one that tripped up."

"Hey, don't beat yourself up about that. You only tripped because Steele cheated, and despite that, we still managed to get second place. Considering this was your first big race that's amazing. We got second place, even though everyone said that you were only a scrub dog, good enough for pulling freight. Even dogs on our own team were saying that you would never be a racing dog and you proved them all wrong. You got us to second place and I'm proud of you for that. I'm sure your parents would be proud of you too," he finished. 

"But my parents are gone," she said sadly, "They would never know about this."

"Actually, they might," Amak said, "You know how on some nights, the aurora comes out?"

"Of course," she replied.

"Well, I have heard a story that says that the spirits of those who have passed watch over us when the aurora shines in the night sky. If that's the case, then I'm sure that your parents have been watching over you for a long time," Aniu couldn't help but smile at this. Amak had remembered the story from their first night stargazing.

"Really?" she said, and he nodded in reply, "Where did you hear something like that? I don't think I've ever heard any of the sled dogs talk about anything like that."

"Oh, you wouldn't believe me if I told you." 

"Oh she might Amak," Aniu thought, "She seems like a sharp kid." 

"Well, thanks for telling me that Amak," she replied, "I-I don't think I've ever told you this, but you've been like a father to me. You've always been there for me and I don't know how I'll ever thank you for that."

"Here's how: Try not to get yourself into any more trouble with Steele okay?" he replied, and she nodded, "Now go on, you should be getting home," Sonya ran off, leaving Amak alone in the barn. Once she was sure that the coast was clear, Aniu crept around and poked her head in.

"So, I take it you had a bit of an exciting night," she said.

Amak looked up in surprise, "Aniu? I wasn't expecting you," he said, "I guess you saw that little skirmish there?"

"Yes. Are you always the one breaking up the fights?" she asked. 

"Oh, you don't know the half of it. What you saw was only a small taste of the prejudice towards wolves," he replied, "I've done my best, but the others are so set in their ways, which doesn't help Sonya's mood much. The race that you saw was actually her first and she was looking forward so much to winning, but then Steele ruined it for her. For the past couple of years, he's been constantly harassing her, all because she's a wolfdog."

"It must be so hard for her," she said. "At least she has someone like you to look after her. I guess I know why you once called her 'your baby'."

"Yeah, she may be grown up, but I still think of her as my little girl. However, it's not all bad now; after the race, the others on my team have started to accept her more. Besides, she's always been a tough girl; she'd probably do okay without me. But enough about her; you're here, and I should be a good host for you," he said and leaned in to nuzzle her. She returned it with her own, and then the two left the barn.

"Last time I saw you, you said that you would have a surprise for me," she started, "What is it?" she asked. 

"I can't tell you; it wouldn't be a surprise then," he replied coyly, "Don't worry, you'll find out soon enough, but we have to get to my house first." They reached his yard and when they got there, Aniu took a moment to look up at the sky. The dark sky was dotted with stars, but the northern lights that she enjoyed watching so much were absent tonight.

"It's a nice night," she said, "Though, it's a shame the lights aren't out."

"Yeah, I would've enjoyed seeing the dancing spirits tonight," he said, "But I think I have something better in store for you. Wait here," he finished before dashing into his shed. He came out of it carrying a bag in his mouth that rattled when he dropped it. He went back into the shed for something else while she examined what he had first brought. Inside the bag was a set of colored, translucent chunks. They were somewhat like ice, except they didn't feel as cold and they were much clearer than ice was. While she wondered what he had planned that could possibly be better than the northern light, Amak soon came back out of the shed carrying a lit lantern in his mouth. 

"Amak, what are you doing?" she asked, "What's all this for?" 

"Creating the northern lights," he replied. 

"Creating the lights? How?"

"Well, if these pieces of glass are the polar ice caps…" he said as the arranged the glass in front of a small hill, "And if this lantern is the sun…" he continued, placing the lantern down on the ground so that he was in between it and the glass.

"I really don't see what you're getting at," she said.

"I'm not finished. Now, you have the ice caps and the sun, so if you look to the north…" he said as he moved to the side. When he was out of the way, the light shone through the glass and a dazzling array of color appeared on the hill. The reds, greens and blues all mixed with each other in an impressive show. They may not have been in the sky, but they were the close enough to the real northern lights that they left her breathless.

"Amak it's…… it's so beautiful," she said, amazed at the show playing out before her.

"Yeah…… beautiful," he said, not staring at the lights, but at her. She turned and looked at him, and as the light shone onto his face, it reflected off his eyes, making them glow. He was absolutely the most handsome sight that she had ever seen. His one ear drooped a little and he had a grin on his face. Not a large grin, just a small one that showed peace and contentment. She leaned in and nuzzled into his chest, and he licked the top of her head. She wanted this moment to last forever; it was just so perfect.

She didn't know what it was, but at that moment something clicked in her. That something told her that now was the right time. It was time for her to cement her bond with Amak. There's no need to go into details, but it can be safely said that on that night, it felt to her as though she and him were the only creatures in this world.

----------

Chapter 6: A New Surprise

In the early hours of the next morning, Aniu slowly woke up and found herself lying on something soft. Amak was fast asleep on his back, and she had fallen asleep with her head on his warm chest. As she lay there, listening to his heartbeat, the memories of the night before rushed over her. Every action, every feeling and every thought came back in full force. They were now mates, bonded for life. She started to get up and her motion stirred Amak out of his sleep as well.

"Good morning beautiful," he said as he opened his eyes.

"Good morning," she replied, giving his face a nuzzle.

"Is it morning already?" he asked.

"Unfortunately," she replied, "I wish I could stay longer, but I really don't want to arouse any more suspicion than necessary."

"That's true," he said before getting up, "While we're on the subject, how are things going with your pack? The last I heard from you, Mayak was giving you a little trouble."

"He was, but I told him that I wasn't interested in him," she replied, "He seemed a little put off by it, but I think he got the message."

"That's good to hear," he replied, "Well, shall we be off?" he asked, and she nodded.

The two walked side by side, occasionally stopping to nuzzle each other. They didn't need to say anything to each other by now; they could tell what the other was thinking simply by glancing at them. Amak seemed to have a new spring in his step, and Aniu felt like she had limitless energy. 

"So Aniu," he started, "Did you ever think you'd end up like this? Becoming mates with a sled dog?"

"Truth be told, I didn't even know dogs existed a couple of months ago," she replied, "So no, nothing like this was ever in my wildest dreams, but I wouldn't have it any other way. You will be the only one for me."

"Same here," he replied, "Besides, not many girls can say that they get to cuddle up with their champion at night."

"Amak, you could be one of the wheel dogs for all I cared; I'd still love you all the same," she said.

"Aw, thanks," he said, giving her a lick on the cheek. She returned it with her own and soon, their walk came to the edge of her pack's territory. It was time for her to say goodbye again, "Take care Aniu," he said, giving her a goodbye nuzzle.

"I will, and I promise I'll come back to you soon," she replied. She gave him one last lick on the cheek before dashing deeper into her pack's territory. It was just before sunrise, so she was sure the others would still be asleep when she had gotten there. She didn't count on one of them waking up early, and noticing that she was missing.

"Where were you?" a voice called. She turned and saw that it was Salin, "I woke up to, well, relieve myself and you weren't here. Where did you go?"

"I….. I couldn't sleep," she said, "I went out for an early morning walk."

"Uh huh, yeah. Did I mention that I got up in the middle of the night?" he said. 

"Darn it, he's good," she thought, "Look, it's nothing you should worry about."

"Alright, if you won't tell me, maybe you'll tell him," he said, motioning towards Mayak's sleeping body. A twinge of panic shot through her. Mayak was already in a foul mood about her and if he found out about her nighttime trips, he might put two and two together without even seeing Amak, "I'm going to have to tell him something, but it will have to be a watered down version. The full story might turn him against me."

"Okay Salin, I'll tell you, but not here. Follow me," she said and took Salin a few yards away. Despite the risk of telling him about Amak, she figured that if she left out the part about them becoming mates, then Salin might be willing to keep her secret, "Salin, I was simply out visiting a friend, that's all," she started.

"But there are no other wolves in the area," he replied, "Who would you be visiting?"

"My friend… is one of the husky dogs from the town I went to a few days ago," she said.

It took a moment for this to sink in, and when it did, his eyes widened, "D-dog? But, they- they're dangerous!" he cried.

"Not this one, he's very kind. Remember when I had disappeared that week after the big storm?" she said, "I didn't tell you this before, but I was actually saved by a dog; the same dog I was visiting last night."

"Why would a dog save you? Mayak said that they would kill us," he said.

"This one is different from the others. He doesn't buy in to the prejudice that causes the other huskies to attack us," she replied, "After we met, we found that wolves and dogs weren't all that different." 

"Are you sure he's okay? What if it's all some kind of trick?" 

"It's not a trick; Amak would never do something like that. He has never made any attempt to hurt me. He cares about me and he listens to me," she said.

"He listens to you? Heh, it sounds as though you really like this guy," Salin chuckled, "Are you sure you aren't more than just friends?"

Aniu knew that she had told him enough, "Don't jump to conclusions Salin. Now, can I trust you to not tell anyone?"

He took a moment to think it over, "Well, if you're absolutely sure that this dog is okay, then I suppose I can keep your secret. I won't tell anyone about your friend," he said.

"Thank you Salin," she replied.

"Though, you really should be careful about sneaking off like that again," Salin said, "You wouldn't want Mayak to find out about this. He'd go completely ballistic." Aniu knew he was right, but she also knew that if the worst should happen, Amak would be there to protect her.

---------------------------- 

For the next few weeks, things went by quite peacefully. Her pack continued to hunt for food during the day, while lounging in the evenings. Mayak was still acting quite distant to her, but she didn't mind at all. Not having to deal with his commanding attitude was actually quite refreshing. Every few days, she would sneak off during the night to visit Amak. Sometimes they went for walks around town, other times they explored the woods, while some nights had them just relaxing under the stars cuddled up with each other. It was during those weeks that winter finally ended. The warm weather melted the snow and ice, transforming the landscape and freeing it from its icy prison.

It was also during these weeks that Aniu started to notice something was different about her. She was hungrier than usual, and would sometimes feel a strange cramping in her belly. She would also sometimes wake up in the morning feeling woozy and nauseous. "It's probably just a stomach bug," Amak said after she had told him about it, "I get them every now and then and they always clear up after a little while. You just need to wait it out, that's all."

She followed his advice and tried to wait it out, but the symptoms remained. Soon, she noticed that she had a slight bulge growing in her abdomen. It wasn't much, but it was still there. However, she brushed this one off as just putting on a little extra weight. A little extra weight never hurt; in fact, it would help if game were to become scarce. However, the weight gain didn't explain the cramping or morning nausea. She tried think about what would cause all of those symptoms, but none of the illnesses that she knew about matched it exactly.

One night, she was fast asleep, dreaming about her youth. She was remembering the day that she asked the one question that all curious cubs eventually ask.

"Momma, where do cubs come from?"

"Ah, I had a feeling you'd want to know that at some point. Well, when you and your siblings were born, you came out from inside of me."

"Huh?"

"Yes, all creatures in this world start their lives inside their mothers, eventually coming out into the world."

"But wouldn't we all be too big to fit inside of you?"

"You were much, much smaller then; small enough that all of you could fit in me."

"What was it like having us inside you?"

"Well, at first I didn't notice anything, except that I was hungrier than usual. That's because I was eating for myself and your siblings as well. Sometimes I would wake up feeling a little sick or with cramps, but that went away shortly. Soon after, I started to feel you move around as you grew inside of me."

"Okay, but if we were growing in you, wouldn't you get bigger too?"

"Yes, I did get a little bigger, and it's good for a mother to get bigger because it means her cubs are growing and healthy."

"Do cubs just appear in you and start growing?"

"Not exactly. In order for cubs to start out, there needs to be a meeting of two; in this case your father and I. It is a sacred moment that mates share only with each other. But you don't have to think about that now. You are still young and have all your years ahead of you….."

A sudden cramp snapped her from her dream. She groaned, and rolled over as it passed. As she thought about her dream, it suddenly dawned on her. She now knew what was happening to her. She and Amak had shared that special moment together, the moment that only mates have. The cramping, appetite, and weight gain all fit together now…

----------------------------

As she dashed through the dark woods towards the town, she felt an intense mix of fear and joy. She was carrying pups; her's and Amak's, and they would be born to parents who loved each other. While this brought her joy, there was also something about it that frightened her; what if her pack found out about this?

"You won't even be the bitch of one of those spineless dogs. You will be mine, and if I can't have you, then I'll make sure no one will!"

If Mayak found out about this, it would all be over. As far as he knew, she was simply not interested this year. If he found out that she was having the pups of another, let alone a husky - she couldn't imagine his rage. What would he do with a litter of half-husky pups? He hated dogs so much that he would surely kill them – and maybe her with them.

As she left the woods, she wondered how Amak would take it. Would he still be his usual chipper self, or would he be scared like she was? "Would he be happy about being a father, or would he see our pups as a liability and leave me?" she thought, "No, he'd never leave me. He loves me, and he said that he'd do anything to protect me," She had no idea how he would react to the news, but she would find out soon as she had reached his home. The door to his shed was closed and inside she could hear his faint snoring, "Amak, it's me," she called as she scratched at the door, "Amak, please wake up. I need to see you."

Finally, she heard his snoring stop, followed by the sound of him shuffling about. The door to the shed creaked open and he stepped out, a little bleary-eyed from being woken up in the middle of the night, "Aniu? I wasn't expecting you tonight," he yawned, and soon noticed the worried look on her face, "What is it, what's wrong? I don't think I've ever seen you look so scared."

"Amak, I…. it's-" she started, but the sheer gravity of the situation overwhelmed her, and she broke down, nuzzling into his chest for comfort.

"Shh, shh, it's okay. You can tell me what it is," he comforted, "What is it? Did the others find out about us? Did that Mayak try to hurt you?" he asked, placing his front leg around her in an embrace, "What's wrong, tell me."

"No Amak, it's not that. In fact, things might be going right, but it's still a little much for me," she said. She looked up into his eyes and summed up all her courage to tell him. This was it, the moment of truth, "Amak, I'm carrying pups."

"Pups?"

"Yes, pups. Our pups," she replied.

Amak stood there with his mouth slightly open as the news washed over him, "You and I….. pups….. you mean…. I'm going to be a…… father?"

"Yes," she replied, "We're going to be parents." 

His mouth started to curl up into a growing smile and he started laughing, softly at first, but then it grew and grew. He squeezed her close to him and covered her with nuzzles and licks, all the while laughing his head off out of joy, "Wow, me a dad, who would've thought? Wow," he said, but noticed that she wasn't taking it as lightly as he was, "Hey, why the long face? Aren't you happy about this too?"

"I am happy about this, but I'm scared too," she replied, "What if Mayak finds out about this? Or worse, what if the other dogs in your town find out?"

"Then we won't let them find out," he replied, "Aniu, I swear I will protect you, no matter what. I don't care how big or mean Mayak is, but if he wants to lay a paw on you or our pups, then he'll have to answer to me. As long as you're with me, you'll always be safe."

"I know, but I'm still scared," she said, with tears starting to run down her cheeks. She started to cry into his chest; not out of fear for herself, but for her unborn children, "They won't notice it now, but when the pups start to grow, they will see. They'll see that I cheated on Mayak. He'll - he'll be so angry. I don't know what he'll do to me if he finds out that I went behind his back and mated with a husky. He hates them so much and I'm so scared about what he might do to me… or to you." 

"I know, but I'm here for you," he comforted, "I'll always be there for you, looking out for you." They remained together for a few moments while she cried herself out into his chest, "Okay, I know this is a bit overwhelming, but don't be scared. This is a happy moment for us right?" he said.

"Yes," she replied.

"Then you shouldn't be so sad. I'm happy about being a father, and you should be happy about being a mother," he said, "Now, do you want to go back to your pack tonight, or do you want to stay with me?"

She thought for a moment, and knew that it would be best if she her pack never found out about this. Salin may have been willing to keep her secret, but she wasn't so sure about Faro and Atka. They had offered to help her if Mayak ever gave her any trouble, but would they be as willing if they knew what she had done with Amak? "I want to stay with you," she replied, "I want to be with you."

"Okay, we'll figure something out. My goodness, you're shaking," he said, and Aniu realized that she had been trembling since she had arrived, "C'mon, maybe a quick walk would do you some good. It'll help you calm down from this crazy night," he suggested.

She nodded her head and they started to walk down the dark streets of the town, "Amak, if I do have to leave my pack to hide my pups, where should I go?" she asked.

"Well, I'd be happy to take you in," he replied, "I did it once before, and I'll be more than happy to do it again. Heck, I'd even be willing to share my little shed with you. Though, I will warn you, I sometimes snore at night." 

"Thank you, that's very kind, but how would you hide me?" she asked, "It won't be like the last time you took me in. You're in a town, with many people and dogs."

"Well, there's more than one way I can think of to keep you safe. You could settle yourself on the other side of town, far away from the other wolves, but still relatively close to me, " he suggested, "Or, and this may be a stretch, but bear with me; we could see if we could disguise you as a husky and hide you in plain sight."

"Are you sure? Won't they see that I'm a wolf?" she asked.

"Maybe, maybe not. Huskies and wolves are so similar that I have heard of cases where one has been mistaken for the other," he replied, "If not that, then maybe saying you're only part wolf would do the trick. Granted, it might earn you a few funny looks, but at least you won't have to hide."

"I don't know….. so much could go wrong," she said.

"Maybe, but what's important now is that you're safe with me," he replied, "We can work out the fine details in the morning."

Aniu was grateful that once again, he was sticking out his neck to help her. As they walked, she nuzzled into his side, and he stopped so that he could return it. After it ended, they took a moment to gaze at each other. Both wore a look of complete content, but before he could lean in to give her another nuzzle, his face suddenly became alert as he saw something over her shoulder. She noticed his reaction and when she looked back, her blood froze. They weren't alone on that dark street.

Standing no more than ten feet away was a husky with piercing blue eyes. It was Steele; they had been caught, "Oh, this is yet another unexpected twist," he sneered, "I didn't know you liked those kinds of girls Amak," Amak didn't respond and only glared at his rival, "I thought a respectable sled dog like you would be above this," Steele continued, "But, I guess no one's perfect. Oh, I'm going to enjoy this," he finished before lunging at them. Amak reacted quickly and intercepted the strike, knocking Steele to the ground.

"Aniu, RUN! NOW!" he yelled and she did not hesitate. She took off, with Amak following closely behind. Soon, they heard Steele barking his head off, which alerted more of the dogs that something was up.

"At this rate, we're going to be surrounded soon," she said.

"Not if I have anything to say about it," he replied before they turned down an alley to evade the inevitable mob.

 ----------

Chapter 7: A Husky's Bravery

They ran through the alleys of the town, trying to throw their pursuers off, but Steele and his gang were persistent. Every minute, more and more dogs joined in the chase, barking their heads off. Aniu and Amak would start to think that they had found a clean break, but they would then see one of the dogs nearby and would be forced to turn around to avoid being caught.

"These guys are everywhere," Aniu said, gulping in air after their latest sprint away from Steele, "Steele must really have it in for wolves."

"You don't know the half of it," he said as he looked around. They were near the edge of town and surrounded by old, abandoned buildings. Amak looked around the area, occasionally peeking into the empty buildings, "Aniu, over here," he called after stopping in front of one of the cabins, "This one has a clear path out of here," he said and they crept inside. Years of neglect had worn on the cabin, putting holes in the walls and floorboards. The only sound they heard was the creaking of their steps on the old boards.

"It's so quiet here," she thought, "Wait, it's quiet; where are the sounds from the dogs that were chasing us? They can't have given up that easily."

At the opposite end of the building was an open door frame. Through it, they could see the open plain around the town, with the forest visible in the distance, "We're almost home free!" Amak cried and they both picked up their pace.

However, their relief would be cut short as three dogs, led by Steele, jumped in front of the doorway, blocking their exit, "Surprise wolfy!" he said, causing Aniu and Amak to backpedal in order to get away from him. However, when they turned back, they saw that at least half a dozen dogs had already come in through the same way they did. That was why they had gone quiet; they were planning an ambush.

They were completely surrounded and the encroaching mob pushed them against a wall, "Steele, she has done nothing to you, or to any of them," Amak called out, "Please, don't do this." However, his plea would only be met by savage growls as the dogs crept closer. Some of them even licked their chops in anticipation as they planned on sinking their fangs into a wild wolf. Faced with so many opponents at once, Aniu was overcome by terror. Seeing her tremble, Amak placed himself directly in between her and the mob. His head swung back and forth, trying to find an opening, but there was none. They were cornered by the pack of dogs.

"Well well Amak, what's wrong here with this picture?' Steele sneered as he led the snarling group.

"You all leave her alone!" Amak barked, causing them to laugh cruelly at him.

"Oh Amak, you of all dogs should know that wolves aren't welcome in this town," Steele said.

"But she has no where else to go," Amak replied, "Please, it won't be for very long."

Aniu knew that they were in a tough situation, and to the side, she saw another dog burst into the room. However, this dog was not an enemy; rather, it was Sonya, "What's going on?" she asked.

"No, Sonya don't. Get out of here," Amak cried, but Sonya did not listen. Instead, she faced Steele directly.

"Steele, what are you doing?" she asked. 

"Well Sonya, it seems like your pal Amak seems to enjoy things on the wild side, if you get my drift," Steele sneered, causing Amak to snarl at him, "Oh, did I hit a nerve there? I guess your wolfy friend must have had more of an influence on you than I thought."

"So what if I am with a wolf?" Amak replied, "You guys never got this upset when I was sticking up for Sonya and she's half wolf."

"That's true, but in order for there to be any half-wolves, a wolf and a dog have to come together," Steele said, "There's more than enough of those mutts running around our towns, so if you want to keep yourself and your sweetheart safe, you'll get out of here."

"NO!" Sonya screamed and tried to lunge at Steele, but two of the dogs with him caught her and held her down before she could reach them, "You can't do this! Let me go!" she yelled as she struggled to break free.

"C'mon, lets get that wolf!" a stocky malamute called out, but Amak reared up, knocking him down. However, that was only one dog and two more started to advance on Aniu. She snarled at them, and Amak tried chasing them away, but that allowed the first malamute to get up. They were completely surrounded, and both of them were quickly running out of options.

"Steele, stop this!" he called out, but his plea was only met by cruel laughter. Steele was taking much pleasure in seeing his rival in such a tight spot.

"No way lobo lover. This town isn't big enough for wolves," he sneered. His team was getting closer, Sonya couldn't get up and no one else was coming to their aid. In desperation, Aniu lunged at one of the dogs to make an opening, but instantly, four dogs were on her, biting and scratching at her. Amak jumped in to pull them off her, but there were too many for him to fight off, and he ended up getting swarmed by them as well. Aniu struggled with her assailants, but there were too many for her to handle at once. Finally, as suddenly as the attack had started, it ended when Steele barked to call them off. Amak shakily got up from the attack, and Steele approached him, "I'm sorry it has to be this way Amak, but you know the rules. We can't have wolves and their spawn running around town."

"Steele, please, don't hurt her. You can do what you want to me, but don't hurt her," he pleaded. Aniu got up as well, and glared at Steele with contempt. The larger husky smirked as he watched Amak shakily plead for her. He had finally found a way to defeat him.

"Alright Amak, we won't hurt her," he said, "But you have to get out of this town with that fleabag. You can run around in the wild all you want. In my eyes, you're not a sled dog anymore," he finished. 

"NO!" Sonya screamed, but Amak knew that this would be only way to protect his mate and unborn children. He looked over at her, and his expression told her that this was the only way they would be together.

"…Alright, I'll go. Just let me say goodbye before I do," he said, defeated.

Steele nodded, calling the two dogs holding Sonya off. She got to her feet, livid, but Amak held her back as she tried to lunge for Steele, "Sonya don't, it won't change anything," he said sadly.

"But you can't leave Amak, you can't," she said.

"I don't have much choice here. It's the only way I can keep her safe," he said, pointing his head towards Aniu.

"But why? Why her?" she asked.

"She's very important to me, and I'm important to her. Right now, she needs me," he replied.

"I need you too," she said, her voice sounding like she was close to tears.

"Sonya, you've come a long way since I found you. You've grown up so much," he said and he too looked like he was about to break down crying, "But you're a real sled dog now. You're one of the team, and I know you'll do fine without me. You're tough - no matter what you'll always make it through."

"But what about the rest of the team? Who will lead them?" she asked.

"You will," he replied. Using his paw he managed to loosen his collar - the same silver-studded collar he had won only a few weeks before - and pulled it off his neck before placing it on Sonya's shoulders. 

"Me? But I can't…... I don't know if I'm ready," she said.

"Trust me, I wouldn't be doing this if I didn't think you were," he replied, "You have what it takes to lead and I'm sure the others will follow you."

Finally, Sonya broke down crying while Amak nuzzled her to comfort her, "I don't want you to go," she sobbed, "I won't let them do this. I'll make him pay for this!" 

"No Sonya, it won't change anything. You can't change the past. Taking revenge won't undo what has already been done. It never has and in most cases has only led to more hurt," he replied. Aniu had to admire this; even having suffered a terrible defeat, he still held on to his morals, "I know you're going to miss me, but I want you to know this: I have always thought of you as my baby and I always will. You'll always be my little baby," he finished.

For Sonya, this was the final blow and she raced out of the room, sobbing her eyes out. Aniu could only feel for her as she had just lost someone who had been very close to her. Amak looked back at Aniu sadly, and they started to walk out of the room. The dogs glared at them as they left, and a few knocked Amak around as he walked past. Finally, they reached the door and stared out into the night. 

"Remember, if I see either of your sorry hides in this town," Steele growled, "I'll tear you apart."

Without another word, Amak and Aniu dashed out of the building and towards the forest. They did not stop until they were deep in the woods, and Amak collapsed, not out of exhaustion, but out of misery. Aniu could hear him start to sob over what had happened, "No, I'm so sorry Sonya," he cried, "I'm so sorry I failed you." She came over to comfort him by nuzzling into his side, licking away his tears, "She was like my own daughter Aniu. She was my little baby and now she's on her own," he said, "Oh why did she have to see that?" 

"Amak, it wasn't your fault," she said, "You said it yourself that she'll be fine." 

"I know, but still…. I'm going to miss her," he said, "She's so much like her mother."

After taking a few minutes to regain his composure, he wiped his nose with his paw and got up to plan their next move, "Well, where do we go from now?" she asked.

"I don't know. We could try to tough it out here in the woods, or we could try to make it to another town," he replied, "The closest town is Nome, and it'll be a bit of a walk to get there. However, it will have shelter for us, and our pups. I still remember the way, and I can take you there," he finished.

"You won't take her anywhere, dog," a voice called out, causing Aniu's blood to run cold. It was Mayak. She turned and saw him approaching, his face contorted with rage.

"Ah hell," Amak said, realizing that they had been caught for the second time in a row, "Tonight just isn't my night."

"A dog…. it all fits now," Mayak growled, "All those times you would disappear, all the time you spent trying to stay away from me. It wasn't because you weren't ready for me; it was because you had another. All this time I thought you were playing hard to get, when really you were out mating with a dirty husky!"

"Mayak, it's not what you think," she said. 

"It's not what you think," he taunted, "That's what all cheating whores say!"

"HEY! What gives you the right to treat her like that!?" Amak shouted.

Mayak turned to him, "Shut up you dog! I am the alpha male of my pack and I can do what I want," he turned back to her, "Oh, I know what I heard. I know about your little half-breed pups. I know about your plan to run off with this dog and I won't stand for it!" he yelled, "I won't let that weak dog in my pack and I'm certainly not going to let any half-breed whelps in either. There's only one way to deal with something like this..."

"Mayak, please don't, don't do this," she pleaded, "I beg of you, don't hurt them."

"Beg? So you're begging now? Begging like one of the dogs for scraps. Oh, I'm going to hurt them all right. It's what the little mutts deserve and it's what you deserve for cheating on me with this dog," he growled.

"Hey, we don't need to rush things here," Amak cut in, "Hurting her won't change a thing. Look, I can tell that you don't like me, but let's talk this out, one on one." 

"And if I don't want to talk?" Mayak asked.

"Then you should know that I'm willing to do anything to protect her," Amak said flatly, "I won't lose my pups or the love of my life without a fight." 

"Mayak, Amak is a very kind dog, and he'd never do anything to hurt you," she pleaded, "Please, if you ever cared about me, you'd do this for me."

"For you?" Mayak muttered, coming right up to her face, "You think, after this, I'll do something for you?!" he bellowed, and then in one motion, he raised his paw and struck it across her face, knocking her down. Normally, Amak remained cool under pressure, but that single blow set him off. He vowed he would never let anyone hurt Aniu, and with that strike, Mayak had just crossed the line. 

The instant Mayak struck her, Amak lunged at him and snapped his jaw around the wolf's muzzle, digging his claws into his neck. As she recovered from the blow, she could hear Mayak's screams of terror through his closed muzzle and Amak's growls of anger. In shock, Mayak backed off, dragging Amak with him. Amak had latched himself onto Mayak's face and Mayak twisted around, trying to shake him off. When he finally did, blood streamed down his muzzle from where Amak had bit into him. Mayak tried to charge for Aniu again, but Amak bit down into his flank. He held on with his jaws, while using his back legs to drag him away from her. Mayak couldn't twist his body enough to bite Amak, so he kicked out with his back legs, hitting Amak square in the throat. 

"I've had enough of you!" Mayak shouted out as Amak coughed from the blow to his neck. Mayak turned all his attention to him, leaving his back exposed for Aniu to spring into action. Mayak bit into Amak's shoulder, but she got to her feet and came in from behind to bite into his rear, while Amak bit into the back of his neck, locking the three of them together. Mayak tried to kick out at her, but she had learned from Amak's first attempt and moved to the side to avoid his kicks. Mayak was trying desperately to break free while Amak, his mouth still around Mayak's neck, pushed all his weight on him to try to knock him over. Seeing this, Aniu joined in the shoving match too, and eventually, Mayak was toppled to the ground.

Even on the ground and against two opponents, Mayak would not give up the fight. He kept biting and thrashing, trying to break free. By now, all three fighters were covered in bites and scratches, but that didn't stop them. Mayak grabbed a hold of Amak's paw in his jaws and bit down. The pain made Amak stumble, allowing Mayak to push him off. Aniu tried to get at Mayak's throat to finish the fight, but he knocked her legs out from under her and she fell off him. In his split-second of freedom, he got up, grabbed onto her neck and threw her, slamming her into a rock. Amak had recovered from Mayak's last attack, and when he saw her get thrown around, he flew into a rage. Snarling, he jumped right on top of Mayak, knocking him into the ground. He held down on his throat with his paws, pressing all his weight onto his throat.

"You. Won't. Hurt. Her!" Amak gasped as he strangled Mayak with his paws. Mayak gasped for air and tried slashing him with his claws, but Amak seemed oblivious to it. All that mattered to him now was that he stopped the wolf that was trying to kill his mate and unborn pups.

"Wait…" Mayak gasped and stopped struggling under Amak, "I give," he said, and that was all Amak wanted to hear. He let go of Mayak's neck, and the alpha wolf gasped for air while putting himself into a submissive position under Amak.

"There, not so tough now when you're facing an angry father," Amak said as he stepped away from his defeated opponent, "Aniu, are you okay there?" he asked.

"I'm fine," she replied as she recovered from the impact on the rock.

"What should I do with the psycho over there?" he asked.

"Leave him be," she replied, "I think you've proven your point."

Right beside him, Mayak glared at Amak; he would not let himself be beaten by any dog. While Amak was focused on Aniu, he took advantage of that distraction. He kicked out his legs, tripping Amak, and before either of them could react, he had sunk his fangs into Amak's neck, causing it to let out a sickening crunch. Aniu could only watch in paralyzed horror as Amak's eyes bulged out in pain from the attack. He tried to scream, but all that came out was a strangled gurgle. Once the blow had been dealt, Mayak tore his fangs out, destroying Amak's throat. Mayak had needed only four seconds to turn the tables on them.

Amak was still breathing, but it was in short gasps as his shattered windpipe struggled to deliver air to his lungs. Blood oozed out of his torn neck and dripped from Mayak's fangs as the wolf laughed evilly. Adrenaline surged through Aniu as she watched Amak struggle to hold onto his life, "No, no, NOOOO!" she screamed and lunged at Mayak. He was caught off guard by her sudden attack as she bit into his shoulder. Instead of stopping, she kept on charging, pushing Mayak along until she slammed his head into a tree. He grunted and was knocked out by the blow. Aniu was about to deal her own fatal strike when she heard someone call for her. 

"Aniu…." Amak weakly called, "Where…. are you?"

"Amak, I'm right here," she said as she came to his side. Blood was pooling around him as his life was slowly sapped away, "No Amak, not you. Please not you," she said. 

"Aniu…… you have …… to get out of here. It's not safe," he said.

"No, I'm not leaving you. I can't," she replied, as tears started welling up in her eyes.

"Aniu…… please promise me…… one thing…" he said, his breathing becoming lower.

"No, just stay still," she said, "Please don't go. Don't leave me Amak." 

"It's too late…"

"No."

"Promise me…"

"You can't die Amak."

"Promise me you'll tell our pups …… about their papa….. make sure they know…… who they are."

"Amak, no. Don't leave me," she cried, "I can't do this alone. I need you."

"I will…… always look out for you…… while dancing…… with the spirits," he said. 

"No, this can't be happening. You can't die," she pleaded. 

"Aniu, you…… must remain strong…… for me …… and for our pups."

"…… I will," she said, "I'll always protect them. I love you."

"I'll see you on the other side......"

"I love you Amak. I love you so much." 

" I…… love………… you," those were his last words before his eyes glazed over and his chest fell for the last time. She finally broke down sobbing beside his body. She rubbed into his chest hoping that there was still some trace of life, but she heard no heartbeat from inside him. He was gone. 

She looked up and saw that nearby were the other members of her pack. Faro, Ataka and Salin looked at her in shock as she sobbed over a husky's body. However, it was not an angry shock, but one of sadness. Salin was the first to approach her, and he looked over Amak's body, "Aniu, I'm so sorry," he said, "He was the husky friend you told me about wasn't he?" She nodded and Faro and Atka come over as well to console her, "You were right, he wasn't that bad. He just wanted to protect you," Salin continued. However they soon heard Mayak's groans as he recovered from her last blow. 

"Oh no, he's going to be awake soon," Atka said.

"Aniu, you've got to get out of here," Faro warned, "We can cover your escape, but you've got to run now!"

"No, I can't leave him," she cried, "I can't leave Amak."

"Aniu, he died protecting you; don't let his sacrifice be in vain," Salin replied, "Go, get out of here! Run while you can! RUN!" 

She knew that they were right and took off into the brush, while Faro covered up her tracks. Behind her, she heard Mayak yell out while the others told him that she had gone the other way. His shouts became more and more distant as he was led the wrong way, but she kept on going. It didn't matter where she went, just that she got as far away from Mayak as possible. Finally, after hours of running, her legs gave out. She didn't know how far she had run, or in what direction, but that didn't matter. She broke down and sobbed for hours over her loss. Amak was gone and there was no way to bring him back. She was now alone in the world.

 ----------

Chapter 8: A Champion's Legacy

Time didn't seem to apply to Aniu anymore. A day, a week, it all seemed the same to her as she wandered through the woods. She didn't care which direction she went; she had nowhere to go. Mayak had turned against her and Amak had been killed, so she couldn't go to her pack or White Mountain for comfort. She was an outcast, with nowhere and no one to call her own. 

"Aniu, you…… must remain strong…… for me …… and for our pups."

Another creature in her situation might have given up and folded from this loss, but Amak's dying wish had been that she would stay strong. She stayed strong for him and for her children. Alone, she was only able to take down small game, but it was enough to keep her going in the days ahead.

"I will…… always look out for you…… while dancing…… with the spirits."

Every night, she would look up at the sky hoping that the northern lights would be out. They didn't come every night, but when they did, she would imagine that Amak was in them, watching over her and making sure that she was safe. Even though Amak would be watching her with the other spirits, he could not be there to physically protect her from danger. Despite the best efforts of him and her other packmates, she was still in danger. Mayak was still out there, and it didn't take him long to realize that he had been deceived. Every now and then, she would hear him howl as he tried to find her. He seemed to be alone, as she never heard the howls of her other packmates, but the fact that he was still out there terrified her.

Many days after her flight, she heard the sound of paws running across the ground. They were coming towards her and they were moving fast. There was only one wolf it could have been - Mayak. She broke into a run to try to lose him, but he was still gaining on her. Her stomach had swelled a little more over the past few days; a sure sign she was with puppy, and that slowed her progress. With every second, she could hear him getting closer. Finally, she broke through the brush and was faced with a swift river in front of her. Soon, Mayak broke out of the brush as well, and the two wolves faced off against each other.

"Aniu, stop!" he growled, "Come on, we can't do this forever."

"You're right, we can't, so why don't you leave me alone!" she barked.

"I'm afraid I can't do that Aniu," he said, "You ruined me. My own pack betrayed me and tried to lead me away. When I realized their deception, they turned on me and cast me out! You turned them against me!"

"I did no such thing," she replied as she edged towards the river, "If they cast you out, then that's because they didn't see you as a leader. They saw you as what you are – a murderer!"

"I only killed that husky because his kind are a threat to us!" he yelled, "I can't believe you fell in love with a flea-bitten dog like that." 

"Well believe it or not, I did love him and he loved me!" she cried, "Just because someone loves another isn't a good enough reason for a wolf to kill another. You're nothing but a petty psychopath!" she cried, causing him to snarl. She took a few more steps closer to the river. She would have to act fast if she was going to escape him.

"Shut up! You betrayed me for a dirty husky and what's worse, you're carrying his mongrel children," he growled, "They won't be all dog, but they won't be all wolf either. No wolf would accept them, and neither will the humans. They'll be nothing; in fact, killing them might actually be a mercy to them."

"You're insane!" she screamed, "Only a sick, perverted wolf would think that killing innocent pups would be a service to the world." she edged closer to the river bank and felt her paw brush the shore. She needed only a few more seconds…

"Give it up Aniu, there's nowhere you can run," he warned.

"Don't be so sure," she replied before jumping backwards, right into the river. The swift current pulled her away and she pushed her head above the surface to see Mayak running to try to catch her. The current was pushing her faster than he could run and Aniu laughed as he grew more and more distant.

"You may be laughing now, but I won't stop!" he shouted, "You betrayed me Aniu, and you will pay! You can run, you can hide, but I'll never stop…" he kept on shouting, but he was soon drowned out by the sound of crashing water. She looked down the river and gasped when she saw only open sky ahead. It was a waterfall; the same current that had saved her from Mayak was now drawing her towards a sheer drop. She tried desperately to swim to the opposite shore, but the current was too strong and she was pushed over the edge.

Going over a waterfall was a very curious sensation for her. One moment, she was supported by the water beneath her, and the next, nothing. In reality, she was constantly gaining speed in free fall, but in her terror, she seemed to fall very slowly, as though time itself had slowed down. The fall felt like an eternity, with the lake below gradually growing larger and larger until it filled her entire field of vision. Moments before impact, she could even see the fish darting away from her falling form. And then, it all went black.

----------------------------

The first thing that woke her up was not the sound of the river beside her, nor was it the feel of the grass under her body. Instead, it was a soft kicking at her underside. As she gradually came too, she realized that the kicking was actually coming from inside of her. She was startled at first, having never felt anything like this before, but soon she realized what it was. It was her cub or cubs kicking, probably in protest from being flung over a waterfall. She cried out in joy; it was the first signs of the life within her, and it was kicking strong.

The kicks calmed down after a few minutes and she finally worked up the strength to get up and take in her surroundings. Every part of her ached from the impact with the water, but all things considered, she was in very good shape. She looked around and saw that she was on the bank of the river, and far upstream was the cliff with the waterfall. She had been pushed downstream several miles by the current while unconscious. She sniffed the air, and there was no sign of Mayak. There was only the smell of the trees and the mist from the river. Another kick from inside her urged her to get moving, and so she started to follow the river.

----------------------------

Aniu followed the river for several more days. She kept on moving, partially out of a fear of Mayak, and partially to find a safe haven to settle down. She was growing every day and would soon need to find a den site to settle into to have her pups. There was plenty of small game for her to hunt in the early spring, which was fortunate as she was eating for more than one now.

Soon the forest ended, and she could only see a flat expanse. She had followed the river to its end at the sea, and on the shore she could see another human town. There was no other place for cover, so she approached the town slowly, veering off to the east. On the side of a hill, she found a sheltered bay, which had an old, ruined, something lying on the beach. It seemed to be of human design, but it didn't look like any of the human homes she had seen before. Nonetheless, it was empty and could provide shelter, so she decided settle in.

What she had settled in was an old fishing trawler that had been beached in a storm many years ago. The town that she had found was one Amak had suggested they try to reach. Aniu may have taken a detour while evading Mayak, but in the end, she made it to Nome.

----------------------------

At first, she was still on her guard, expecting Mayak to come out at any moment. When she wasn't out hunting, she would perch herself on the bow of the boat and keep watch for anything that might be approaching. Days grew into weeks, and there was still no sign of him. The winds didn't bring traces of his scent, and she wouldn't hear his howl in the night, "Maybe he thought I had perished when I went over the waterfall. If he thinks I'm dead….. then that means I'm free. I'm free to live my own life and to raise my pups." 

She knew that the time for her pups to be born was getting close and finally, in mid-spring, the day came. Truth be told, giving birth was one of the most painful experiences in her life, as it probably is with most mothers. Aniu felt like her entire body was on fire as she pushed, but her pain and effort would not go unrewarded. Soon, she was licking the tiny brown body of a male cub as he nursed. From the start, she thought that he looked like a miniature version of Amak. He had the same fur markings, but her son had lighter brown fur on his underside and bright yellow-gold eyes. While most wolves have litters with many pups, he was the only one she had been carrying. This made him all the more special to her, and she vowed that she would do everything in her power to protect him.

----------------------------

Her young son's youth flew by much like her own did. One day, he was a defenseless pup, dependent on her for food and warmth. Another day, she woke up to find he had toddled down to the beach to chase a butterfly around. Soon he was becoming quite a handful for her, always wanting to go off and explore new areas.

"Oh, what will I do with you?" she asked, as she carried him back home for the umpteenth time.

"Um, let me run around?" he replied.

She chuckled a little at his remark, "Nice try kiddo, but you should stay here when I'm not around."

"Aww, but I want to run around," he whined. 

They returned to the boat and soon, she heard the sound of barking approaching. She recognized it instantly as a dog team, but her son was unfamiliar with the sound and darted under her for safety.

"Momma, what is that?" he asked nervously.

"It's only a dog team my son. Come, let's go watch them," she said and took him over to the side of the boat to watch the passing team. They weren't tied up to a sled, but they were still running in formation. They were probably out for some summer training. 

"Are those other wolves momma?" he asked.

"No, they're called dogs. They are very much like us, except they live with the humans," she told him everything that she had learned from Amak about the humans and the dogs, and her son was fascinated by it all, "Your father was a sled-dog too you know. In fact he was a lead dog, and in my eyes, he was the greatest champion of them all," she finished. 

"My dad was a dog?" he asked.

"Yes, and you look so much like him too," she replied, smiling.

"If he was a dog, and you're a wolf, then what am I?"

"You are both; a mix of the two. While you may come from two different worlds, that doesn't mean you are inferior to anyone. You have the strengths of both in you, and you can choose which path you wish to follow," she said. 

He looked out as the team passed by again, "They're so fast; I wanna be as fast as them! I'm gonna be a racing dog," he said excitedly. "I'm gonna be the fastest and the strongest of them all and I can be champion for you momma, just like dad."

It was now that she could fully see how much of Amak had been inherited in her son. He had his spirit and the drive to race bred into him, "Tell you what, if you want to run around, why don't we race around the beach. A champion has to start somewhere," she suggested and his eyes lit up. They spent the rest of the day chasing each other along the shoreline, with her son bouncing along as fast as his little puppy legs would carry him. She would always let him get ahead to give him confidence. However, being a pup, he wanted to explore, and he eventually grew bored of the beach, darting away towards the town.

"No, don't go that way!" she shouted, but he was already out of earshot. He may have been small, but he was quick on his feet. She ran after him and by the time she had caught up with him, they were at the edge of the town, "Gotcha!" she said as she grabbed him by the scruff of his neck and picked him up. Even in the air, his legs were still flying around, trying to run, "You shouldn't just run off like that!" she scolded.

"But I want to see what's here!" he protested, still trying to break free, "Why can't I see the town?"

Aniu could think of at least a dozen reasons, but if they were going to live here, then they probably should know what to expect in this town. She put him down, "Alright, we'll look at the town, but you stay right by my side and don't run off again, okay?"

"Okay momma," he replied and he stuck by her side while they entered the town. The layout was different than White Mountain, but there were the same wooden buildings with alleys behind them. Aniu knew to stick to the alleys in order to stay safe. The little pup did stay close, but would sometimes take an extra second to examine something. Finally, he stopped at a hole in the side of a building and peeked inside, "Momma, look what's inside here," he said and trotted inside.

Aniu was quick to follow him into the crawlspace. The small space was no problem for the pup, but she had to crouch inside the confined space, occasionally getting cobwebs in her face. There were other grates above her, letting light in from the room above. When she caught up with him, he had found pieces of broken glass and was batting them around with his little paw. Eventually, he swatted one piece far enough that it landed under one of the grates and it shone in the light, projecting a small spot on a nearby beam.

"Wow," he said, and took other bits of glass and started putting them with the first, making the colored spot bigger and more beautiful, "Look momma, look! Look what I can do," he yipped, and she helped him push the rest of the glass into the light. Soon, the small space was filled with a bright, multicolored projection. Aniu quickly recognized it; it was the same trick that Amak had used that one night - that one magical night.

"Do you know what this is my son?" she asked him.

"No, but it sure is pretty," he replied. 

"Well, say that the glass is like the polar ice caps, and the light is like the sun," she started, "If you put the two together and look to the north, you get…" 

"The lights! The northern lights!" he said.

"Yes, the northern lights. Your father knew this trick as well, and he was the one who showed me how to do it," she continued, "Your father was very special to me, and when you're older and have someone who has a special place in your heart, you can show them this too. In fact, these lights were the second greatest gift he gave me."

"Second greatest? Then what was the greatest gift he gave you?" he asked.

"You, of course. You were the greatest gift he gave me," she replied, "It's a shame that he isn't here to see you now. He would have loved to know that he had a son." She looked back at the lights, remembering all the time she had with Amak, and was bitterly reminded of how he had been taken from her so violently. 

"Momma, where is dad?" he asked. 

"He's… he's somewhere I can't follow. Somewhere where he is at peace," she replied, holding back tears. She couldn't bring herself to tell her son that his father was dead. He was still young, and she didn't want to burden him with that knowledge. They watched the lights for a little while longer before leaving for home. That night, her son settled himself beside her and was soon out like a light, tired from the day's adventure. While he slept, she stayed awake and watched as the real northern lights had come out in full force that night. Watching them brought back all those memories of Amak to her. Not just the time he created the lights for her, but when they first went stargazing, when the first hints of their love had started to show.

"I'm curious Aniu, what do wolves see when they look at the lights?"

"Well, when I was very young, my parents told me a story about them after I first saw them. They said that the lights in the sky are the spirits of those who have passed before us. When the lights are out, that is the when the spirits come out to watch over us and protect us."

"Spirits…. I haven't heard that one before."

"Oh Amak, I hope you're up there. I hope you're watching over us," she said and looked down at her son's sleeping form, "We have a son Amak. He looks so much like you and already, he wants to be just like you. He wants to be a champion, and maybe he will be. You'd be so proud of him if you saw him," she looked back up at the sky, "Oh Amak, why did you have to be taken away from me? I want to be next to you, I want to breathe in your scent again. That was the only time I truly felt safe. I want to be with you, wherever you are," she finished, but there was no reply from the night. She laid her head down and fell asleep while above her, the lights watched over her, as they had always done.

 ----------

Chapter 9: "I Will Always Protect You"

It had been a few months since her son had been born and by now, Aniu had mostly forgotten about the threat from Mayak. Now, her main concern was watching over her son as he grew. Being a growing pup, his need to explore seemed endless. That, along with his love for running made him quite a rambunctious pup. Having no one else to look after him, she would have to leave him alone whenever she went out hunting. In order to allow him to amuse himself while she was gone, she had nicked a few things from some of the old, abandoned buildings in town. She had found a wind-up cat toy that he loved to chase around the deck of the boat, an old, tattered blanket to keep him warm, and an old bone that he could chew on while his milk teeth came in.

She had decided that it was time to start him on solid foods, so she had brought back a whole rabbit for him to start out on. She walked up the gangplank, noting how quiet the boat was, "Maybe he took a nap while I was out," she thought. However, when she reached the boat deck, she found that the place was empty. She dropped the rabbit and looked around for him, her panic increasing by the second, "Oh no, where is he? Where could he be? What if he's hurt; what if someone else finds him?" that last thought suddenly brought back the memory of Mayak. If that maniac found him….

"NO!" she cried and sniffed for his trail. It led off the boat and towards the woods. She raced after his trail, praying that all of her fears were unfounded. She dashed through the woods as his path twisted and turned through the trees, "Wow, he sure can cover a lot of distance for such a small guy," she thought until the path took her into a small clearing with a pond. Here, her pup had stopped and was taking a drink from the pond, "He's okay. Oh thank goodness he's okay."

She came up to him, "There you are!" she cried out, "Do you have any idea how worried I was?"

He looked up in surprise, and when he saw the cross look on his mother's face, his ears drooped, "I-I'm sorry," he replied, "I only wanted to look around." 

"Come on, we're going home," she said and nipped his rear to start him moving. He followed her, knowing that he was in trouble. As they walked, he held his head down and his tail was between his legs. Noticing this, Aniu decided to give him a little talk, "My son, I know you want to go and explore, but when I saw that you were missing, it really scared me." 

"Scared you?" he replied, "Why did it scare you? I wasn't that far."

"You weren't, but I didn't know that. I was worried that something might have happened to you, or that someone might have hurt you," she continued, "You're still small and there are a lot of things out there that could hurt a pup like you."

"I'm sorry," he said again.

"Now, let this be a lesson for next time," she said, "I'm okay with you going out to explore as long as I know where you are. If you want to go out, all you have to do is ask me. If I'm not around, then you should stay put so that I know where you are."

"Okay, I will momma," he said. She could tell that he was still a little down about being caught, but she knew the perfect way to cheer him up.

"Hey, I'm just glad that you are safe. Now, do you want to race back home?" she suggested.

"You're on!" he shouted, and darted back towards the boat. In the weeks since he had first seen the dog team, he would get very excited anytime the word 'race' or 'run' was mentioned. He loved running, and even Aniu was starting to have trouble keeping up with him. His determination made her so proud of him - he truly was his father's son.

She let him run ahead while she enjoyed the scenery. The area she had settled in was a beautiful place to live, with a wide forest, open fields and a beach near the water. The boat they had settled on was far enough from the town that they didn't attract much attention from the residents. She truly felt safe here; there had been no sign of Mayak for months now, and she felt confident that he had given up the chase for her.

As she walked through the trees, she spied something in the dirt. It was a pawprint - a wolf print to be exact. At first she thought that it might be her own son's, but on closer examination, she saw that the print was too large to be from her pup. It was big enough to be from a full grown male. She sniffed at it, noting that it was still fresh; maybe they had some new neighbors in the area. However, she couldn't help but feel as though the scent was familiar…

"Mom! Where are you!" her son called out from a short distance away.

"I'm back here, just wait for me!" she replied. She sniffed the print again, and then it suddenly hit her. She knew who this print was from, and the realization of it made her fur stand on end.

It was Mayak. He was here.

Panic rushed through her. He had been here recently, and with the comings and goings of her and her son, it was only a matter of time before he would trace their scent back to the boat. She heard someone rustling through the trees and jumped back, expecting it to be Mayak. Fortunately for her, it was not him, only her son. He had grown tired of waiting for her and had come back to find her.

"There you are mom. I thought you had gotten lost," he said.

"No, I just……"

"Are you okay mom? You look worried," he asked, noticing her expression.

"I'm fine," she replied. She couldn't bring herself to tell him about Mayak. Doing so would cause him to panic, "I just wanted to walk instead of run. Besides, you go off so quickly, I'm having trouble keeping up with you."

"Sorry about that," he said sheepishly.

"There's nothing to be sorry about," she reassured, "I'm proud that you love running around. Just don't get too far."

"Okay mom," he replied and they walked back to the beach. While he spent the rest of the afternoon running and splashing about in the shallows, she kept a vigilant watch from the boat. As the sun set, he came in and settled himself down under the blanket to sleep. Aniu tried to sleep as well, but the thought of Mayak kept her awake. He was here, and that put both of them in danger.

"You betrayed me for a dirty husky and what's worse, you're carrying his mongrel children. They won't be all dog, but they won't be all wolf either. No wolf would accept them, and neither will the humans. They'll be nothing; in fact, killing them might actually be a mercy to them."

If he found them, he would surely kill her son for what she had done. It wasn't a matter of if he would find them, but when. She looked around the surrounding area. All around was open field - he would easily see them if they tried to run to the town for cover. Even if they did make it to the town, they wouldn't be able to stay forever. They could get caught by the humans as well and would be chased right into Mayak's waiting jaws. She kept on trying to think of a way to escape, but nothing she thought of ensured a clean getaway. She stayed up the entire night, and as the first tiny rays of the sun started to peek over the horizon, a howl rang out. Fear shot through her as she recognized the howl as Mayak's. He knew they were here and used his howl to send her a message.

I know you're here. I'm coming for you.

She did not reply, knowing that doing so would give her away in an instant. After a few moments, another howl came out. 

You can't hide forever. I'm here, and I know you are too. It's only a matter of time…

She stayed silent, but in the back of her mind, she knew it was ultimately futile. Mayak would find her eventually. She looked over at her son. He was still fast asleep, and his legs swung lazily in his doze, as though he was trying to run. 

"He even runs in his sleep. He must dream about being a champion. I can't let that dream go to waste. Well, if Mayak wants you, he'll have to go through me first. I have to stop running and hiding. If you are going to have any chance my son, I'm going to have to deal with Mayak directly. I can't let you pay for my mistakes," Knowing what she had to do, she went up to her son and poked him awake.

"Zzzzzzz…….. hm, what is it mom?" he sleepily mumbled.

"My son, I am going to go out," she said, "I don't know how long I will be."

"Are you going hunting? Can I come?" he asked.

"No, you can't come. You must stay here," she said, "No matter how long I am, I want you to stay here. Understand?"

"Okay mom," he replied.

She came and gave and gave him one last nuzzle, "Stay safe my son. Please stay safe."

"I will mom. You're always watching out for me," he said.

"Yes, and I always will. I will always be there to look after you," she said, "I love you so much. You make me so proud. You'll be always be my little baby."

"I know mom. I love you too," he replied, and gave her a small lick on the cheek. She hopped off the boat and ran in the direction Mayak's howl had come from. A few tears ran down her face and she took one last look back. She saw him, perched on the bow, watching her leave.

"I promise my son, I won't let anything hurt you. I will always protect you," she said as she entered the woods to face her enemy.

----------------------------

She charged towards Mayak's howl, with each second bringing her closer and closer to the inevitable confrontation. Her fear of him had been replaced by another, more potent feeling: hate. She hated Mayak; she hated him for what he had done to Amak, and she hated him for what he wanted to do to her son. Aniu was no longer a scared wolf running for her life. Now, she was an angry mother whose child had been threatened, and the one who threatened him would pay dearly.

She picked up Mayak's scent; he was only a few feet away now. Her eyes burned with fire as she leapt over a log and right into the surprised wolf. The force of the impact knocked him off his feet and she sank her teeth into his shoulder. He rolled over and kicked her off, but she quickly got up and the two faced off. They were in a clearing at the edge of a cliff, with trees and rocks one side, and open air on the other. 

"Aniu, I knew you couldn't ignore me. I must admit, your change in demeanor has surprised me," he started, "Whatever happened to the scared wolf, begging for her life like some whimpering dog?"

"She's gone Mayak, replaced by me, a mother who will do anything for her son," she snapped back. They started circling around each other, each waiting for the other to make the first move.

"Ah, so you have a son, eh? Does the little whelp know that he's the product of a dishonest wolf and some mangy dog?" Mayak spat.

"Oh he knows who he is Mayak. He knows that his mother is a wolf and that his father was a proud sled-dog," she replied, "His father was a champion, and that's more I can say about you!" 

"Some champion he was. He couldn't take on a wolf, even with your help," he sneered, "I'll make sure to tell that to your precious little boy before I put him down!" She had had enough of Mayak and leaped at him. He tried to evade her, but she managed to bite into his flank. He twisted himself around to attack her, with his fangs digging into her flesh, but she ignored the pain and shifted her attack to the back of his neck. While her fangs bit into him, she slashed at his back with her front claws, trying to do as much damage as possible.

He released her shoulder from his jaw and started thrashing around to try to throw her off. She held on with her jaws, but his thrashing knocked her off her feet and he was dragged down with her. She quickly let go and they rolled away from each other to put some distance between them. They got back on their feet and circled each other, before leaping in for another attack. They continued exchanging blows, but neither could gain a clear advantage. No matter how much they bit, slashed and snapped at each other, they would not yield to each other. On one of their charges, they caught each other in mid-jump, and were both on their hind legs, snapping at each other. They both grabbed onto each other's necks, trying to gain the upper hand. Aniu was trying to push him over, but Mayak used his bulk to resist her pushing. He however, was using a different tactic. Instead of trying to knock her down or attack her vitals, he was squeezing her windpipe with his jaw. Aniu kept trying to push him over, but the lack of air was starting to affect her. Her vision was dimming at the edges, and she knew that if she passed out, she would lose.

She let go of his neck and gasped for air, but his hold was too tight and she couldn't get anything into her lungs. Mayak took advantage of the break in her attack and pushed her down to the ground. Now, he was using his full weight to suffocate her. Aniu's legs flailed wildly as he strangled her, but she still had a little strength left in her. She had not survived storms, waterfalls, and his previous attack for it to end like this. She would not allow him to win. Using her last shred of focus, she swung her claws right at his face and they hit their mark. He released his grip, screaming while he stumbled away from her. She sucked in air, and looked over at Mayak to see him stumbling towards a rock from his new wound. Her attack had directly hit his eye, and out of the barely open eyelid, blood oozed out. He was stunned, and now it was her turn to go on the offensive.

She ran full force at him, and the impact knocked him onto his back. She tried to go for his neck, but he put his front legs up to protect it, so she bit into them instead. She tried again and again to get at his neck, but she couldn't get through his legs. Finally, Mayak grabbed onto her with his torn up limbs and rolled over, slammed her back right into the rock they were beside. She was stunned from the hard impact, and that allowed Mayak to slowly get up. Both wolves were completely exhausted from fighting, and their bodies were covered in scratches and punctures from each others fangs and claws. Mayak's legs were shaking from being attacked so viciously, and his injured eye had now swollen completely shut. She was exhausted from the pain and the constant exertion from the fight. Both of them were on their last legs; one of them would have to fall soon.

Aniu tried to get herself off the ground, but her exhausted body wouldn't support her and she simply fell back down. Seeing her weakness, Mayak limped over to her and grabbed onto the back of her neck. Then, using his entire body weight, he slammed her head into the rock. Pain shot through her head and she saw stars, while Mayak reared back and slammed her into the rock again. Her head was bleeding from the hits, and as she fell, he stood over her and started to laugh. Her head was swimming with the pain from being hit into the rock, and she could barely see straight in front of her. She heard Mayak laughing, and could feel herself being rolled over onto her back.

"Mayak…… don't," she gasped. She could barely focus from the pain, and she was too exhausted to put her legs up to defend against what she knew was coming. Mayak kept laughing, and it rang in her pounding head, making the pain worse. Suddenly a stabbing fire in her neck replaced the pain in her head. Mayak had sunk his fangs into her neck and he shook his head, tearing it apart. She screamed as blood poured out of her body and onto the ground. Satisfied with his job, Mayak yanked his fangs out of her and watched as she bled out. 

"Oh Aniu," Mayak said softly, "Why did it have to end this way?" 

She rolled onto her side and tried to get up, but her body felt as heavy as a moose as blood kept leaking out from the wound in her neck. It wasn't large enough to cause instant death, but it was enough to ensure that she would die soon.

"Why did it have to come to this Aniu? Why did you have to betray me?" he continued, "Why did you have to fall for a dog? Another wolf I might have understood, but a dog? You're a disgrace!"

"That dog…… did more for me…… than you ever did," she gasped, "He saved me…… he sheltered me……. he started out as just a friend, but soon, we became…… more than that," her vision was starting to blur, and it became increasingly difficult for her to breathe in, "We were mates…… and we loved each other…… You killed my mate…… You're the disgrace!"

"I am not the disgrace, you are, and so is your son!" he snapped, "I've removed the dog and I've dealt with you, so that just leaves your little mongrel pup." 

"You say the dogs are monsters…….. and yet here you are…… planning on killing a defenseless pup! Besides, you don't even know where he is," she said. 

"Oh, that's where you're wrong Aniu. You left him to find me didn't you?" he asked, "All I have to do is follow your scent, and I'll find him."

"No………" she could now hear her heart pounding in her head as it struggled to pump what little blood she still had.

"Oh yes. I can find him, all thanks to you," he sneered.

"Please, no. Don't do it Mayak. Don't kill him. Don't make him pay…… for my mistake," she struggled to get up, but she was so weak from the blood loss, and the world was starting to spin around her.

"No, I won't kill your pup at first," he said, "I promise I'll bring him back to you. I'll bring him back to his mummy so that he can say goodbye."

"No…"

"Oh yes. I've won Aniu. I've won, and you and your pup have lost."

Somewhere inside of her, a fire burst into life. Mayak had started laughing again, and through her blurring vision, she saw that the cliff was directly behind him. A low growl grew in her throat, eventually becoming a loud roar. Mayak didn't pay any attention to it and started walking away to follow her trail, but she was going to make sure he wouldn't make it. She may have lost, but she would make sure that her son wouldn't suffer because of it. The fire inside her gave her the strength for one last lunge at him. He was too surprised to react when she bit into his neck and started pushing him. She kept pushing forwards until he went right over the ledge, dragging her down with him. As they fell, she faced him one more time, and saw the look of horror on his face, "You lose Mayak," she said and he screamed in terror. The rocky ground below was growing closer and closer, along with her end, but all that mattered was that her son remained safe, and that he would get a chance to grow up. Moments from impact, she closed her eyes.

"I'm sorry I won't be there for him. I hope he grows up to be like his papa. I hope my little boy becomes a champion………"

 ----------

Epilogue: A Guide's Duty

Soon, Balto had finished dragging the crate up the sled and was met by the cheering of the other dogs. While the others grabbed onto the crate, he took a moment to catch his breath. Taking one more look over his shoulder, he saw that the wolf he had howled with earlier had disappeared. 

Aniu had completed another part of her duty. While her life as wolf had ended, her new life as a spirit guide had begun. Her duty was now to guide her son in his life, and to show him who he really was. Today, she had done just that, and her actions had not only saved Balto from his own misery, but had saved countless other lives as well, "Who knows, maybe those dogs on that team or the children in town each have their own destiny. By saving them, I have given them all of them a chance to become champions in their own way," While she was glad that a part of her duty had been completed, her time as a spirit had not been without sacrifice. 

----------------------------

After her fall, everything had gone black, but soon, she found herself opening her eyes on the ground. Beside her lay Mayak's body, broken in multiple places, his eyes still wide open in shock. She got up and found, to her surprise, that she could get up easily. It was as though her fight with Mayak had never happened. She was a little disoriented, but felt strangely okay. She had no idea what to make of this. The wound that Mayak had inflicted on her, combined with the fall, should have killed her instantly and yet here she was. Was this some kind of miracle the spirits had given her? She stepped back, but her paw bumped into something else on the ground. Her heart skipped a beat at this, "Mayak and I were the only one's here. Who else could it be?" She slowly looked back and the second she saw who it was, she screamed.

It was her body; her broken and shattered body was lying on the ground as well.

Terrified, she ran away from the scene until she came to a river. She tried to run from what she knew, but there was no escaping it. She had been killed, and now she was a mere spirit, a ghost of her former self. She stopped and looked at her reflection in a stream. Her face stared back at her, showing no signs of the wounds Mayak had inflicted on her. Taking a deep breath, she took stock of her situation, and remembered the stories she heard about things like this.

"There are other stories of creatures whose spirits are still bound to this world, instead of being able to pass on to the next life. Usually it is because they have a duty they must complete in this world before passing on to the next." 

"Huh, that sounds like some of the ghost stories I've heard." 

"I suppose they could be seen as ghosts, but they more like guides - spirit guides." 

So that's what it was; she was now one of the spirit guides that she had heard so much about as a cub. She had vowed to protect her son, and her promise had bound her to this world. "My son; he's probably wondering where I am. What will I tell him? Would he understand what has happened? Would he be happy about this or would he be terrified?" She debated her next move and eventually decided that it would be best to be with her son. She dashed back to the boat where she had left him, finding the travel much easier this time. When she returned, she found that her son was looking out at the forest, waiting for her to return. She walked up the gangplank, but he didn't react to her approach, "My son," she said softly, but he did not reply, "My son, I have returned."

However, her son did not reply to her. Instead, he whined, "Where are you momma? You said you wouldn't be long. You're never this long."

"I'm right here little one," she said, "Can't you hear me?"

However, he could not hear her at all. Time passed, and soon her cub retreated under his blanket. Aniu could see tears form in his eyes as he walked right by her. It was as though she wasn't even there, "I miss you momma."

Aniu couldn't take much more of this, and left the boat, "Why is this happening? If I have stayed behind to guide him, then why can't he see me?" she asked out loud. 

"Because it is not yet time for him to see you," a distant voice called. 

Aniu looked around frantically, searching for the source of the voice, "Who are you? What makes you say something like that?" She couldn't help but feel as though the voice was familiar.

"Don't you recognize my voice? I thought it always made you feel safe."

"Amak…" 

"Yes my love."

"Amak, where are you? I need your help," she asked.

"You said it yourself Aniu, I'm somewhere you can't follow, at least not yet."

"How come I can hear you now, when I couldn't before?" she asked.

"I'm don't fully know myself, but my guess is that you are somewhere in between this world and the next, just like those spirit guides you told me about. You can partly access both worlds, but not fully. However, there are more important things to worry about. Aniu, you must guide him, you must guide our son."

"Amak, I can't do this alone. Why can't you come help me?" she asked.

"Because, I have already passed on. I completed my duty in my life, but you still need to complete yours."

"But what can I do?" she said, "How can I complete my duty if he can't see me?"

"You must be patient. There will come a time when he will need to see you. When that time comes, you must to remind him of who he is." 

"How will I know?" she asked, "How will I know when the time is right?"

"Trust me, you'll know."

"But what then?" she asked, "What will happen after that?"

"What happens after that is up to you. You can continue to be with him, or you can pass on to the next life with me."

"I miss you Amak," she said.

"I know. I miss you too, but don't worry about me right now; our little guy needs you more than I do. I'm not going anywhere. I'll be waiting for you; just reach for the light…"

Aniu trusted his words, and so she returned to her son and watched over him. She watched him grow, always wanting to be by his side. However, in her current form, she couldn't physically interact with him, and she was forced to watch from the sidelines. That fact made her son's early life a hard thing to watch. Early on, the humans and the other dogs pushed him around due to his half-wolf breeding. This constant mistreatment and exclusion wore on him, and Aniu felt her heart break as she watched him give up on his dream of being a champion like his father. Gone was the pup wanting to be the fastest sled dog of them all, replaced by a hybrid who had resigned himself to misery over being an outcast.

However, what truly made her blood boil was that one of his tormentors was none other than Steele. That husky had banished Amak from his own town, leading him to his death. More often than not, she had wanted to jump in and tear the husky apart for what he had done to Amak, and what he was doing to her son. His torment had destroyed her son's aspirations, and she vowed that at the first chance she got, she would exact vengeance on him.

However, the situation was not all bad, as her son had also found some friends, with one who seemed more affectionate with him than the other dogs. Time passed and she waited for the chance when she would show herself to him. That chance would came after Balto went out to find the missing sled team, and when he was at his most desperate.

After his fall from the cliff, she watched as he covered his face in misery. She wanted desperately to help him, but up until now, she had no way of communicating with him. Then, he looked up at her, staring right into her eyes. He saw the majestic wolf before him, and Aniu knew that now would be the time to make her move. Now, she could remind him of his true heritage. She howled for him, and after he overcame his doubts, he howled back. As they howled together, she couldn't help but notice how much her son had grown by now. She had seen the exchanges between him and Jenna, and in many ways, they reminded her of herself and Amak. They were two creatures from different worlds who saw past their differences and started to grow closer to each other.

With the confidence given to him by her appearance, Balto was able to lead the team back to Nome in time. The medicine was delivered, and her own son won the heart of the town, along with the heart of a certain red husky he had a liking for. Soon, Steele was disgraced and sent away from the town. Aniu couldn't help but think that Steele's punishment was rather cathartic. He had banished Amak from his own home, and three years later, Amak's son Balto had come around and banished him. With him gone, Balto could finally live in peace with Jenna.

Aniu thought that with this, her duty would be complete. However, as Balto and Jenna snuggled up to each other for their first night as a couple, she couldn't help but feel like there was something else. There was something more that she would need to help her son with.

"Well done my love…. you have guided our son to where he is supposed to be."

"I know, but I can't shake the feeling that there's something else coming," she replied, "I can put my paw on it, but I don't think I'm quite finished here." 

"If that is what you feel, then I can wait a little longer. Do what you need to do…. I'll be here when you're finished." 

"I love you Amak," she said.

"I love you too Aniu."

"And I love you my son," she continued, "I have a feeling that this won't be the last time we meet. Your life is going to get a little more difficult my son, but no matter what, I will always be there for you. I will help guide you along the next part of your path…"

"…And you'll always be my baby……"

----------------------------

Mayak, Faro, Atka, Salin, Amak, Sierra and Sonya belong to iWolf231, and may not be used in any way without my direct permission.

Balto, Jenna, Steele and Aniu belong to Universal Studios and Amblimation