DISCLAIMER: I own this story. All characters and certain elements are the property of their respective owners.

Unpleasant Beginnings

The day was November the 17th, 1923. A young wolfdog named Balto had found himself sneaking through the alleys to get something to eat from the pile of leftover meat scraps the butcher conveniently left out for the town dogs. For Balto, it was his only option for food. He had never ventured into town before, and living off of herring and small game he could hunt was getting old.

With winter setting in, the cold weather kept many people in their homes. The streets were nearly empty today, which made Balto feel a bit better about being there. He didn't hate being around town, he just hated being harassed by the dogs and humans. Ever since he was discovered to be on the outskirts of Nome, his life became a living nightmare. "Why can't I just be in town without any trouble?" he thought. It was a simple question that he thought should have a simple answer. Of course, due to his hybrid status, he never got simple answers.

It took skillful navigation and a lot of patience, but Balto finally made it to the back of the butcher's shop. The sweet smell of meats invaded his nose as he trotted over to the pile of scraps, digging in. Balto questioned why he had never attempted this before. This meat was... good! It was recently cut and discarded, and still had its full flavor to it. And there was so much meat there that he could easily fill himself up now and take some back with him for later. Balto heartily ate, all thoughts of vulnerability out of mind.

"His scent is stronger this way, boss!"

A black and white Alaskan malamute emerged from the shadow of a building. "Find him, Nikki. Get Kaltag and Star involved. We'll find the wolf faster with them." Nikki, a large Chow Chow, quickly nodded. "You got it!" He then turned and took off running towards the boiler room, the 'hangout' place for dogs in Nome. The malamute lifted his nose to see if he could catch the strange new scent that came about. It smelled like wolf, but oddly enough had a hint of husky in it. Regardless, it was not welcome in his town.

Within minutes, Nikki had returned with two other dogs hot on his trail. He caught his breath before saying, "Steele! I got them!" The two additional dogs waited for their leader's orders. All they knew was that there was a new dog in town, and Steele asked them for help. Steele paced in front of the three dogs, filling them in on the situation.

"Alright boys, here's the deal. Earlier this morning, I was out walking around with Sylvie, Dixie, and Jenna and I caught a scent I have never smelled before. It was wolf for sure. Nikki and I have been all over trying to find the source, but we've had no luck. So here's your job. FIND THAT WOLF!"

The three flinched at Steele's yell, and immediately split up to search for the 'wolf.' Steele knew that any wild animal brave enough to venture into town during the day would be there for only one reason: food. The butcher frequently left meat out for the dogs, so he decided that would be the best place to start looking. With his second race coming up soon, he wanted to conserve his strength, so he opted to just walk there.

Balto was stuffed. His trip back to his trawler would involve him frequently giving his taste buds a treat, as the essence of beef still lingered on his chops. He wished he had time to savor the taste, but he remembered he would be in big trouble if anyone saw him. The scrap pile was now nothing more than bones mixed with snow. "Ok, pal. You got into town and got the grub. Half the battle's over," he said to himself. "Now all you need to do is get out of town." Balto decided the best way to do this was to retrace his steps since he had very little trouble on the way in. He did a quick but effective sweep of the courtyard where he ate to cover up his tracks, and then slipped off into an alley. He went in and out of the shadows, using anything he could to stay hidden. The last thing he wanted was to-

"THERE HE IS!" A chill went down Balto's spine, and he turned to see Nikki standing there, smirking. This was exactly what he didn't want to have happen. Before he could turn to run away, two other dogs appeared, blocking the other exits. They slowly crept towards him, forcing him into a corner. When Balto felt his tail hit the wall, he knew he had to do something quick to get out of there. His only option was to make them think he was a threat, which he was completely against doing, but he had no choice.

Balto entered into a defensive stance and bared his teeth and claws, growling. This would surely make them think he was dangerous. The dogs stopped in their tracks, afraid to approach further. Balto was filled with enough courage to start stepping toward them. The tables were turned now. The dogs slowly stepped back as Balto stepped forward. "You're gonna regret this, wolf," Nikki said. "YEAH! You're going to regret it, buddy!" the smaller husky exclaimed. "Be quiet, Star!" said Kaltag. He then proceeded to smack Star over the head, causing him to fall down in a daze. Balto stopped, and a slightly confused look appeared on his face. "I'm not a wolf. I'm half wolf, half dog." Nikki's jaw dropped. "A hybrid, eh? You've got guts to be here, kid. What's your name then, 'wolfdog'?"

"Balto. I don't want any trouble, so please just let me get back to my home.."

"Well well well... what do we have here?" All four dogs turned to see Steele as he made his entrance. "Good job, boys." The three dogs happily responded with "No prob, boss!" and "We'd do anything for you, Steele!" Star was still in la-la land, and he just giggled. Steele then returned his attention to Balto. "I have to agree with Nikki on this one. You do have guts to be here, mutt." Steele waltzed right up to Balto, and looked him dead in the eye. For a good thirty seconds, there was complete silence. Then, Steele made a move. Balto winced, anticipating a verbal confrontation.

The last thing he expected was feeling a sharp pain shoot through his back and left leg as Steele grabbed him and threw him down the alleyway. He tumbled for a few feet before sliding to a stop. "He's gonna feel that tomorrow!" said Kaltag. Nikki responded by saying, "I think he's feeling it now!"

Balto rose shakily, his left shoulder stinging. He looked back at it to see blood flowing out of a deep bite wound. "Oh man, Boris is going to give me an earful," he thought. He fearfully turned back to Steele and his gang. "Please just let me go home."

Steele snickered at him. "You're pathetic. Let this be a warning to you, Balto. Stay out of my town. If I see you around again, that bite on your shoulder is going to be nothing compared to what I'll do to you. Get out. Now."

Balto didn't need to be told twice. He limped past the dogs towards the main street down the alley. To add insult to injury, Steele kicked a piece of trash at him, hitting him and making him stumble. Balto managed to stay standing, and after a few more feet, he disappeared around a corner. Nikki, Kaltag, and Star just stood there silently throughout the entire ordeal. They felt bad for Balto; he was new around here and already got on Steele's bad side.

Taking a second to recompose himself, Steele then began to walk off, beaming with pride. "I'm going to find Jenna. You three get back to the boiler room and let everyone know that I have some news for them." Once he was gone, Nikki spoke up. "He didn't have to bite Balto like that!" Kaltag chimed in. "Yeah! That was the most disrespectful, unacceptable, oppressive thing-" "Yes! Steele is a bully!" Kaltag wanted to slap Star again, but he had to agree with him on that one. Balto did nothing to Steele, and Steele went way out of bounds on this one. "You're right Star, but please don't interrupt me." He slapped Star, just hard enough to get the message across. The three dogs then made their way to the boiler room, wondering what crazy story Steele was going to make up for the others.

"You're finally back, boychik! I was beginning to worry..."

Boris gasped as Balto made the last step over the plank onto the deck of the trawler. The fur on his left leg was stained with blood, and he was limping. "What happened, Balto?!" Boris rushed over to his pail of water and grabbed a rag, and immediately began tending to Balto's wound. "What did you do, boychik..." Boris thought. Once he cleaned up the area around the wound a bit more, he noticed bite marks that resembled those of a dog.

"Who bit you?" he said. Balto sighed. "It was a bigger dog.. a malamute. His name was- OWWWW!" Balto grimaced as Boris accidentally put too much pressure on his wound while cleaning it. "I'm sorry! Didn't mean to do that! Please.. continue." Boris hesitantly went back to his work. Balto winced, but resumed the conversation. "His name was Steele. Some of his friends cornered me and then he came in, bit me, and threw me like a rag doll. Then he told me to never go back there, and then he just let me go." Boris sighed. "I told you that the dogs would eventually go after you, boychik. It was only matter of time." The wound was now clean enough for a bandage, and Boris fetched a larger rag to use. "I have never even seen any of those dogs before!" Balto retorted. "They probably attacked me because I'm half wolf!" Boris was silent as he applied the bandage around Balto's shoulder. He decided to let him vent. "Why did they attack me, Boris? Why...?"

Balto started to whimper, and slowly limped into the cabin. He laid down, and Boris carefully pulled a blanket over him. "I don't know, Balto. But know this; you didn't do anything wrong. You are not to blame for their actions." Balto took a deep breath and wished he could just fall asleep and wake up with no more problems. He wished he could live without the constant feeling of being an outcast. Just because he was half wolf didn't mean he was a wolf. He just wanted to be accepted.

Later that night, Balto and Boris were lying down on the deck of the trawler, looking up at the stars. Balto spoke up in a soft voice. "Hey Boris... Do you think I'll ever be able to walk in town without dogs bullying me?" Boris looked over at Balto. "No, Balto. I don't think you will be able to do that." He leaned in closer, and grinned at Balto's confused look on his face.

"I know you will."

A/N: This story is going to serve as a foundation for a couple other Balto one shots that I have planned. I needed to have the 'Balto meets Steele' story, as some of the events of this story will be referenced in them. Hope you all enjoyed this one!