"Father, is something wrong?" asked a black and white Siberian husky. "Elias said you wished to speak with me."
"My son, there is something you must know," the elder Siberian husky said, weakly. "My time on this earth is not long, and there is something in which you must know."
"Father-" the husky began to say, only to be interrupted by his father coughing.
"Listen to me, my son," the old husky said. He could see his grandson, Eli, walking in the door. He had told Eli to slip in quietly after he and his father began talking. "You have a brother, Siraj."
Siraj gasped. This was something he had not expected to hear from his father while his father was on his death bed. Both anger and confusion circulated through his body. He didn't know what to say, or how to respond to what his father had just said.
"I understand you are angered at me," the old husky said. "But there are reasons that I never told you about this."
"Like what?"Siraj asked, hatefully. "What else have you neglected to tell me?!"
When Eli heard his father speak to his grandfather like this and raise his voice, he couldn't stop himself. "Dad!" a voice interrupted. "Don't speak to grandpa like that."
"Elias, what are you doing here?" Siraj asked, trying to hold back his anger.
"I wanted him here, when I told you about your brother," the old husky said, "and your heritage."
"Heritage? What do you mean?" Sirja asked.
"My son, you are part wolf."
Upon hearing those words, Siraj started to back away from his father. It took several minutes until he understood what his father had said. And, slowly, it all made sense as he looked up at his son, Eli.
"That explains why you, Eli, look so much like a wolf. You get it from your grandmother," the old husky said. Then, he began on a coughing fit. Luckily, it only lasted a few minutes.
Eli walked over to a mirror that was on the floor. He inspected himself, noticing his wolf-like characteristics. Besides the color of his fur, a dark gray from his back to the front part of his legs and a lighter gray from his belly to the back part of his legs, he began to notice his yellow eyes, wolf-like teeth, and big paws. Though he had seen himself before, he had never really paid a lot of attention on what he looked like. But, now that he thought about it, it made a lot of sense. His brothers and sisters were either the color of his father, black and white; his mother, brown and white; or a mixture of black, brown, and white.
However, he was different. He always knew he was when he was never chosen as a pup for adoption, but to find out that he was part wolf worried him. Worried, and excited. He felt both emotions. He now understood.
"Father? Why were we separated?" Siraj asked, finally calmed down.
"Because your mother and I decided it would be best if you each grew up the way you looked," the old husky answered. "I know that it sounds bad, but you must understand the predicament we were in. I did not want to give both of you up to your mother, nor did she want to give you both up to me. So, at three weeks, we parted ways."
Siraj was in shock. He didn't know what to say. It was Eli that broke the ice.
"Why tell us now, grandpa?" he asked.
"Because I've seen the segregation between you and the other dogs. They do not treat you well, because of the way you look. I decided that it would be best to tell you upon my death bed so I would not have to suffer the two of you hating me for very long."
"Grandpa," Eli said, softly, "I could never hate you." He walked over to his grandfather and nuzzled him.
"Father," Siraj said as he walked up to the old husky. "I'm sorry."
The old husky just smiled. "All is forgiven, my son," he said, quietly.
"Grandpa? Do you know where he is?" Eli asked, still speaking softly. This got Siraj's attention.
The old dog just smiled. "Balto," he whispered. And then, the old dog laid his head down and closed his eyes.
"Grandpa?" Eli asked. He was about to panic.
"Relax, Eli," Siraj said. "He is just resting."
Eli sighed. "Dad, isn't Balto-?"