Chapter 1

A few weeks later

“Come on, at least try to eat it.”

Tovah tried not to look at the scrap of meat that Sitka pushed over to her. Her gut rebelled and she curled up in a ball as she faced the other way. “I’m sorry, but I just can’t." She groaned. "I know you worked hard to get it by yourself, but I can’t eat it. It won’t stay down.”

Sitka ate the scrap himself and stared worriedly at his mate as she fell asleep. It had been only two weeks since they had become mates, and now he really hoped that she wasn’t becoming sick. It had been three days since she had been able to keep down anything.

After a little while of thinking he padded to her side and nuzzled her awake. “I’m going for your mother or father. Maybe they can figure out what’s wrong with you.”

Tovah nodded and watched him leave. She tried to stay awake for his return, but suddenly she awoke to her mother’s touch. “Tovah? Sitka said you were sick.” Jenna said as she peered at her worridly.

Tovah moaned as she tried to sit up, battling the sudden wave of nausea. “I feel terrible. I wouldn’t wish this on my worst enemy.”

Jenna scrutinized her daughter and then began to smile. “I need to ask you some questions so I can find out for sure what might be wrong with you. The first thing I need to know is whether or not you and Sitka have been intimate recently.”

Tovah frowned. “You mean the talking kind of intimate, or… that kind of intimate?”

“That kind of intimate.”

“Do I have to answer that?”

Jenna chuckled. “It would help me find out why you feel sick.”

Tovah nodded. “Yeah, I could say more then once. I began to feel really bad the day before yesterday.” She willed her stomach to calm down before looking curiously at Jenna. “Wait, you mean I’m pregnant? Why would I feel so bad then?”

“Ever heard of morning sickness?”

Tovah’s eyes widened as she looked at her waist. I’m pregnant! She felt a slight wisp of a sensation within her as if a feather’s tip had brushed her, and she felt happy. But then she frowned. “What if Sitka isn’t happy about it? And how will I ever be strong enough to give birth if I constantly have to fight to keep anything but water in me for more then an hour?”

Jenna frowned thoughtfully. “I know that Sitka will be happy, but I’m not so sure how long morning sickness lasts. Some dogs get it for a whole week, while others don’t get it much at all. When I had my first litter, I was so tired and nauseated that I just wanted to sleep. But when I had you and the others in the second litter I was feeling just fine, only I was hungry for the strangest things.” Jenna made her lay down again. “I think the best thing to do for now is rest, then when you feel better you can break it to Sitka in your own way. I’ll tell the others at home.” Her mother’s eyes sparkled with mischief, and Tovah wanted to laugh. She thought of the perfect way to break the news to him.

Chapter 2

Kodi wandered around town, looking for something to do when he heard some dogs talking. They were in the alleyway near the barber shop, and he stopped to listen. “…Listen, Kodi and his family can’t hear of this, or we’ll never accomplish our-“

“Accomplish what?”

The dogs jumped in surprise as they caught sight of Kodi. “Kodi! What are you doing here?”

Kodi glared at the strays, and felt his ears fold back. These four strays were well known wolf haters, and he had gotten into more then one fight with them. “I think the real question is what are you doing? What is it that I’m not supposed to know?” He waited as they shifted nervously around. “Sorry, classified information. We can’t let you know about it."They retorted. Suddenly one of them looked up, a sly look forming across his face. "...Why don’t you ask Kirby about it? He knows more then we do.”

Kirby? “Fine then, just don’t let me catch you around here again, got it?”

The dogs slunk away, and Kodi went out to look for Kirby. What in the world did he do this time? Kirby was notorious for saying the wrong thing, and getting dogs into trouble when he didn’t really mean it. It had happened once before, and almost ended in a disaster. Kodi vowed after that to never again let Kirby plan things behind his back.

Deep inside his troubled his thoughts, he didn’t notice his mother until they bumped together. “Oh, hi Mom.”

“Hi Kodi. Where’s your Dad? I’ve been by the boat house already, but he wasn’t there.” She looked at the rather irritated expression on his face and frowned. “What’s up? Something I should know about?”

“Nothing’s up.” Kodi snapped. “I don’t know where Dad is at the moment, and I don’t have time to look for him. I have things to do.” He pushed past her, but Jenna stepped in front of his way. “Kodi! All I asked was where your Dad was so I could tell him the news.”

Her eyes burned with indignation as Kodi still had his back to her. “What is wrong with you? You’ve been awful moody these past few weeks. I think I have the right to know, since I can help.”

Kodi bit back a growl as he turned around. Why is she being so darn stubborn? “Sorry, sorry. I just have things on my mind is all. I have to find Kirby and see what he said to make the dogs around town act strange when I’m nearby. I have a feeling that he said something really stupid, and now I’m going to find out for myself.”

Jenna nodded. “I see. Well, I have some news that’ll cheer you up a bit. I went over to see Tovah this morning when I bumped into Sitka. He wanted me to help him with something, so I went to see what the problem was. I found out that Tovah and Sitka are expecting puppies!" Her smile was so wide Kodi thought the corners were bound to meet at the back of her head. "Isn’t that great?”

“Tovah’s expecting what?” Kodi tried to hide the horror that he was sure was trying to sneak onto his face.

“Puppies! I know that Dingo and his mate had pups already, but Tovah is the youngest so far. It’s making me feel older then what I am!” Jenna chuckled. She didn’t notice Kodi slowly backing up. He laughed a little, though to him it sounded hollow and nervous. “Uh, wow! I guess I ought to go and congratulate her.”

He whirled around and dashed away as fast as he could to his kennel. How could Tovah do this to him? She was still a teenager right now, and of all the ones she chose to have pups with it had to be a wolf. Jealousy and hurt swirled inside him. He hated the fact that Sitka was always with her. He hated the fact that her mate was a wolf. And Kodi also hated the fact that his parents didn’t mind. Had Balto and Jenna forgotten that if Tovah had puppies they would be half breeds? Did they already forget that it hurt to be a wolf dog, and it was a hurt that would never ever go away, even for pups?

Still, he thought privately that it would be fun being an uncle to his favorite sister’s pups, but he didn’t want to think on that right now. He shook his head and peeked into the kennels at home. It’s time to focus on what I was supposed to be doing, looking for Kirby. I hope he didn’t say or do anything stupid.

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Kirby was busy chewing on a bone when Kodi strode up. “Alright Kirby, what did you do this time?”

“Do? What do you mean?” Kirby was a little confused.

“Do as in what did you say to get every one acting weird around me? I have a lot of dogs acting strange around me, and when I was trying to get information out of them, they said to ask you.”

Kirby suddenly stiffened. “Hey, I didn’t say or do nothin’ to rile anyone about you. I don’t know what you’re talkin’ about.” He spread his paw out innocently. “Really! I just told some buddies of mine about your little problem is all. They said they were going to help.”

Kodi groaned. What was Dusty thinking in telling Kirby about this? I told her to keep quiet about it! “You mean that you told them about Tovah and Sitka?”

“I told them what I understood from it. Don’t worry, it’ll all turn out! You’ll have everything back to normal soon.”

Kodi was about to ask Kirby what he meant, but then Mr. Simpson came out of the house. “Come on boys, let’s hitch up! Mail doesn’t deliver itself you know.”

Kodi wagged his tail for his Master, though he eyed Kirby with suspicion. What in the world had Kirby said?

Chapter 3

Sitka was surprised at how much Tovah improved in two evenings. She was able to sit up, and she actually was able to keep down a little meat, though she ate only a tiny bit. He laid next to her once darkness fell. “I’m surprised at how fast you recovered, luv. I suppose it was just a bug.”

Tovah had an odd smile that she tried to suppress. “Well, it isn’t a bug, but it was temporary. I guess by tomorrow night I should be over my nausea.”

Sitka nodded, though he began to wonder why Tovah looked as if she wasn’t saying what she wanted. Her bright eyes gave away the fact she had a secret. “Ok, what is it? You’re keeping something from me. You have that evasive look about you.”

Tovah’s look suddenly dimmed, as if she was suddenly afraid of something. “Ah, I was going to tell you about a wonderful… surprise, but…I wasn’t sure how you would react to it.” She didn’t know if she could spit it out with out acting like a fool, so she rolled over on her side. “I want you to feel something. I’m not sure if you can feel it as well as I can, but…”

Sitka paused, and then he allowed her to guide his paw over her stomach. He wasn’t sure, but he thought for a moment he felt something move. He turned to her with wide, shocked eyes. “You’re pregnant??”

Tovah laughed nervously. “Well, yeah, I guess you could say that.” She looked up at him with a worried expression. “You aren’t angry about it, are you? I know it’s a little soon after being mates, but we could raise a family together now! I know that we’ll-“

Sitka laughed out loud, making her stop her flow of words. “Angry? Why would I of all canines be angry? I’m the happiest wolf alive!”

Had Tovah been feeling better, Sitka would have pulled her into his crazy dance of joy, but instead he settled for rushing out into the snowy trees outside the den and uttering a howl of joy. Tovah laughed even though it made her stomach sore. She had never seen Sitka act so much like a pup before!

He dashed in and grinned. “It’s a good thing that we’re so close to your family. They can hear the news a lot faster then my family will.” He smiled ruefully for a moment, and then he curled up by Tovah again. “Maybe once they’re born, we can go and visit my Father’s pack. They don’t even know that I have you yet, so I bet they’ll be shocked.” 

Tovah sighed and looked away towards the wall. “Do you suppose they will even like me at all? After all, I’m over 2/3 dog.”

Sitka sighed as he remembered. His parents would indeed be highly prejudiced against her and the pups. He would never be able to show off his new family to his relatives. “I forgot. Don’t worry about it. I’m sure that everyone else won’t mind, just rest for now.” He laid his head on her, and waited for her breathing to slow down until he was sure she was asleep. He stayed up a bit longer however. His feelings inside were a confusing mass of fright, worry, joy, and contentment. I’m going to be a father! I never thought I would be one, but here I am with my mate, and now I’m not sure what to think of it.

Chapter 4

Some time later

Kodi shifted around on his paws while Tovah came for a visit during an early evening. She was back to her normal self, completly fine and now completly happy. She chattered on to Balto about the big news.

“Oh, now you’ve done it.” Balto moaned with a mock scowl on his face. “You just had to make me older then I feel, didn’t you?” His eyes sparkled with the same look he always held about him, making him seem too young to be a grandfather. He had come back from an adventure that had taken him away from home for a while, so he had only just found out about Tovah’s big news.

Tovah giggled. “You can blame it on Sitka. It’s all his doing.”

Kodi’s eyes narrowed a tiny bit. You are so right. It is all his fault.

“I just wonder why everyone is looking at me so strangely when I pass through town. Dixie shook her head and left as soon as I walked by her!” Tovah looked unhappily at her paws. Balto and Jenna frowned at this while Kodi looked up sharply. “Did she say anything?” He asked, afraid of the answer he suddenly knew would be coming.

Tovah frowned as well. “Actually, she did. She murmured something to the effect of ‘you poor thing’. I wonder what she thought to make her say that? It’s not like I was kidnapped and taken against my will.”

Kodi suddenly had an enormous desire to find Kirby and tighten his collar about ten notches and watch his face turn blue. Kirby must have told the gossips a lie about Sitka and Tovah! But why?

“Kodi?” Balto looked at his son with a concerned look. “What’s wrong?” Suddenly Balto’s gold and brown eyes grew suspicious. “Out with it. What’s up? You have that look again.”

Kodi knew he couldn’t keep the secret forever, but he knew he couldn’t tell them just yet. Tovah would never speak to him again! “I have to go. I just remembered that I had to go and talk to Kirby.”

As Kodi dashed off, Tovah and Jenna were confused, but Balto was worried. He had seen Kodi’s reaction as a warning of something that could be very bad. “I’m going after him. I have a bad feeling about this.”

“What do you think is wrong with him?” Jenna asked worriedly. “He’s not like this usually.”

Balto’s expression was grim. “I’m not sure. I would feel better if you both went home until I can discover what is up with him.” Tovah nodded and left, while Jenna watched Balto stalk into town. His words had left a cold feeling inside her. What ever Balto sensed, it was something that was bigger then they thought.

Chapter 5

It wasn’t the first time that Balto was grateful for his wolfish ability to slip into town and sneak around unnoticed. He had come into town countless times following whoever he was after, whether it was for food, or discovering things. The only thing that was wrong was that he should never have to be following his own son. What was Kodi up to?

He stopped a little distance away once Kodi paused by his kennel. His son’s voice was a little hard to hear, but Balto managed to catch most of the words.

“Where’s Kirby?”

“I dunno. I think he went out to look for someone. He had some business to do he said.” Ralph.

Balto could hear the irritated sigh Kodi huffed. “I don’t have time for this! I have a feeling Kirby’s stirring up trouble, and I gotta get the facts straight right now. I have the feeling that it involves my sister and her mate.” Kodi started to walk off again. “Anyway, thanks.”

Kodi hurried away, and Balto began to try to figure out what he heard as he followed him. Well, he knew the who to this mystery, but not the why. Why would it involve Kirby of all dogs? And why would it be about Tovah and Sitka?

He inwardly sighed as Kodi wandered around for a long while, then at last they both spotted Kirby in an alleyway. Balto could feel the sudden anger roll off his son in waves. “Kirby! What in the world did you say?!”

No pretense at lowering his voice. This wasn’t good. Balto inched closer to hear Kirby better.

Kirby backed away from his teammate. “Sheesh, what got you so hot under the collar? I already told you what I said. I just told some buddies of mine about your problem and they said they would fix it. What’s so wrong about that?”

“What’s wrong about that is I think I know who your ‘buddies’ are. They’re the local alley dogs who happen to be the local wolf haters. What’s more you spread a lie about Sitka abducting and hurting my sister when that wasn’t true at all! What in the world are you up to? I know whatever it is it’s something bad!”

Kirby’s voice became a hurried tone of panic. “Ok, so I had the idea that if I could get enough dogs to think that your sister was taken against her will, everyone would be feeling sorry for her. My buddies said that if I do that, they’ll go and make sure your sister will have to come back to Nome. You’ll have your sister back, and you can stop being so hard to be with. See?”

“So what is it they’re planning?” Balto could hear the worry in Kodi’s tone.

Kirby shrugged. “I don’t know. They already left to do whatever it was they were planning to do.” He finally grasped the gravity of the situation. “You think that they’ll kill Sitka?”

Kodi was already running. “I hope not. If they do, I’m blaming you!”

Chapter 6

Kodi’s mind was a swirl of pure panic as he sped away from town and into the forest. How could things have happened this way? One little seed of jealousy on his part and some wrong things said had created a monster of a problem, one he was afraid he wouldn’t be able to stop. His thoughts went in rapid succession, with no way of stopping it.

What if the dogs do kill Sitka? What if they decided to harm Tovah as well? Everyone would eventually find out that I was the one who had complained about her choice of mates. I’ll probably be an outcast most likely, and my Family wouldn’t want anything to do with me!

“Kodi, stop!”

The voice halted Kodi in his tracks, and he turned to see Balto run up to him. He looked at him, and suddenly Kodi knew by the expression that his Father knew everything. How could this get any worse?

“No time for this Dad, I gotta go and"-

“Kodi, I already know what’s wrong.” Balto growled. “I had to follow you to get to the bottom of this. I’m not going to tell you right now how I wish you had talked to me about this in the very beginning, I’m going to tell you to stop acting on your own, and to let me help you stop this before things get out of paw. If those dogs already left, we’ll have to go as fast as we can before they reach Tovah’s den. Now let’s move!”

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To be Contiued...