Same Ship, New Story
Chapter 4: Heart-To-Heart
A/N: Some references to the movie here. So, again, I own nothing of Titanic.
A woman yelling in the room next to theirs woke Balto up that morning. Umberto, being the early riser, was already up and about not seeming to be bothered by the lady who was yelling.
"Balto! You're not going to spend all day lying around like that are you?" Umberto asked teasingly.
"Yeah, well I'm up. The loony alarm went off." Balto replied gesturing towards the wall.
"Well, just don't listen to her."
"How can I not?"
Umberto walked out the door to go to breakfast, and Balto was still annoyed by the person yakking behind the wall. She tried to ignore her and carry on, but to no avail. She tried putting her pillow over her head, but that didn't work either. She kept trying until finally, she couldn't take it anymore. She banged her fist on the wall several times and yelled…
"HEY LADY! SHUT UP!"
Codie Alaska had already woken up and was on his way to breakfast with his mother and, of course, Aurora. Although, he'd much rather be spending time with Balto than listening to their boring, first class conversations with the other ladies his mother was acquainted with. He felt very uncomfortable being around all those women, and really wanted to go talk to Balto, who was seemingly his only friend. Balto cared about him and his thoughts and feelings, whereas Aurora just wanted a handsome fiancée to show off anywhere she could. Aurora didn't give a shit about his thoughts or how he felt towards things. He decided that after breakfast, he would go down to the third class deck and look for Balto.
After Balto finished breakfast, she went into what she called the "commons area." She then sat down on a bench and began drawing whatever caught her eye. A half hour later, Kirby arrived with Flynn and sat down next to her.
"Hi Balto!" Kirby said cheerfully. "Whatcha drawin'?"
"You see that man over there?" Balto asked, pointing to a man with a mustache and short black hair. Kirby nodded. "I'm drawing him."
"Why do you draw people so much, Balto?" Kirby inquired.
"I don't know, really. I've been drawing people ever since I was twelve years old. Before that, I drew animals. Mostly wolves and dogs, though. Nothing really special." Balto shrugged and went back to drawing. Kirby watched in amazement as her hands began creating a beautiful drawing with just a pencil and paper.
Flynn just stood in a corner, watching the scene in front of him. His little boy had become very close friends with somebody at least three times his age in a matter of hours. Little kids tended to be very social, and Flynn was glad that Kirby had made a new friend on this voyage. Balto loved that kid like a little brother she never had, and was rather fond of Flynn. After a while, the area started filling up with people. Marcus came in and saw Balto and a little boy, and had to smile at how perfect they looked. Balto was drawing, of course, and Marcus walked over to say hello.
"Hey there, Kodiak! I see you're drawin' again." Marcus shook her hand and looked over to her portfolio. "Mind at all if I take some out of that portfolio of yours and have a look at 'em?"
"Not at all. Go ahead," Balto answered, handing him the portfolio, while she signed and dated her drawing.
Marcus put a cigarette up to his lips and lit it while he flipped through Balto's drawings. He was amazed by her talent and swore that if he didn't know better, he'd think it was a black and white photograph. He came across one of two people who looked to be in their forties smiling and holding hands. Marcus noticed that it was dated November 11, 1907, five years ago. Balto had to be about… 15 years old. He knew that Balto was an orphan and wondered if these were her parents. He decided to go over and ask her about it.
"Hey, Balto. Who are these people?" He asked, pointing to the drawing. Balto snatched the drawing out of his hand, causing Marcus to jump back, startled.
"Gimme that!" Balto exclaimed, holding the drawing close to her. "Sorry, it's just that this drawing is very important to me. I drew it the day before my parents died." Balto's eyes saddened as she looked down at the drawing, appearing to be very distant.
"Oh. I'm… sorry." Marcus said, as he lowered his head.
"Hey, no worries. You didn't do anything wrong. I don't really like to think about my parents much." Balto replied. Kale and Kyra Kodiak died from diphtheria on November 12, 1907; a week after Balto turned fifteen. They caught the disease about two weeks before, but didn't know about it until that day. They died overnight, leaving Balto and her brother Kavu, who was 17 at the time, orphaned. Not long afterwards, Balto and her brother parted ways and never saw each other again. They didn't exactly part on the best terms, so they thought it best to not make contact with the other "until the time was right."
After Codie had finished breakfast, he announced that he was going to take a walk on the boat deck. It wasn't a whole lie. He was going to take a walk, but he was going down to the third class area to go find Balto. He began walking quickly out of the first class dining area and made his way to the gate that kept him and Balto apart. He was amazed by how much power a small gate could have, as if it were a borderline between two completely different countries. When he got down to the third class deck, he ignored all the stares he was receiving and went down to the commons area. As he entered, it got quiet and quite a few of the women were staring at him. Umberto turned around when he noticed some people were staring and, somehow, wasn't surprised that Balto was so interested in that boy. Balto, being too caught up in another drawing, didn't notice Codie come in.
"Balto!" Umberto said, barely above a whisper. He tapped her on the shoulder and pointed at Codie. Balto's eyes grew wide and she immediately stood up and put on her hat. Codie walked over to her and gulped as he nervously tugged at his shirt collar.
"Hello, Ms. Kodiak." He greeted anxiously.
"Hello again." Balto returned the greeting, for once not minding that he addressed her formally.
"May I speak with you?" He inquired.
"Of course," she replied.
"Alone?"
"Oh! Yeah. Right." Balto gathered her drawing supplies and began walking away. Marcus whispered something incomprehensible and Balto gave him a teasing pat on the shoulder. A few seconds later, Marcus and Umberto both erupted into laughter.
Once Balto and Codie were up on the first class deck, they began talking about how great the weather's been and stuff like that. This wasn't why Codie wanted to talk to her, but he figured it'd suffice for the time being.
"Nice weather, huh?" He asked.
"Yeah. It wasn't always this nice back in Vancouver. It rained a lot and when it wasn't raining, it was either cloudy, or snowing. The sun did shine, though, but not as much in the winter." Balto answered.
"Vancouver?" Codie was curious about her life and how she grew up.
"Yep. I was born and raised in Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada. Ya know, that big hunk o' land just north of America?" Codie nodded as Balto continued.
"My parents' names were Kale and Kyra, and I had an older brother named Kavu."
"Kale, Kyra, and Kavu Kodiak?" Codie could hardly say it, because of the alliteration.
"Lots of tongue twisters in my family. Sorry for just going on about me, when I don't really see how you'd be interested in my life." Balto said.
"No, go on. I'm actually very interested in your life. Normally people in my crowd won't even stand within a ten-foot radius of people like you, but I'm intrigued." Codie responded.
"Okay, well, I didn't exactly get along well with my brother. We were constantly arguing over the stupidest things. Since my mother wasn't fond of the idea of me being a little more boyish than most girls we knew, she was constantly putting me in dresses and stuff. I hated it, so I was always borrowing my brother's clothes and he would lose his marbles over it. When I was six years old, Ma finally gave up and let me wear boys' clothes." Codie listened intently as Balto kept on explaining her childhood to him. He wondered why his life couldn't be like hers, because she seemed to be so lucky. He was proved wrong a few seconds later.
"I had to quit school when I was a teenager and after that, my brother and I decided to separate. We haven't seen, nor spoken to each other since then. After that, I started traveling all throughout Canada and eventually went to America, Europe, and Italy, where I met Umberto, Norway, Alaska, and Russia."
"You certainly get around don't you?" Codie joked.
"Yeah, I've been on my own since my ma and pop died when I was fifteen. It was because of that that I couldn't further my education, and my brother and I parted ways. I haven't been back to Vancouver since then. It holds too many memories. I don't even think our old house is still there. Well, Codie, we've walked at least a mile around this boat deck, yakking about how great the weather's been, and how I grew up, but I don't think that's why you wanted to talk to me, is it?" Balto said.
"Ms. Kodiak, I-" He started.
"Balto." Balto still hated being addressed formally, even if it was coming from him.
"Balto… I wanted to thank you for calming me down last night. If you hadn't showed up, I think I would've jumped off the ship." Codie replied.
"Well, you're welcome." Balto responded.
"Listen, I know what you're probably thinking. 'Poor little rich boy. What could he possibly know about misery?'" Codie said, averting his eyes from Balto's.
"No. That's not what I was thinking. What I was thinking was, what could've happened to this boy to make him so upset?"
"Well, uh, it was just my whole life and everything in it, and the inertia of my life. Being pulled ahead by some unseen force, and powerless to stop unless acted on by something else." Codie answered.
"When I saw you up on the deck yesterday, some girl walked up to you and took you back. She your girlfriend or somethin'?" Balto inquired.
"My fiancée, Aurora." Codie replied.
"Do you love her?" Balto asked, leaning against a rope.
"What?" Nobody ever asked him that before. No one really cared whether or not he loved Aurora; he was going to marry her regardless.
"Do you love her?" Balto repeated.
"You're being kind of rude. You really shouldn't be asking me this." Codie commented, trying to avoid answering a question he didn't know the answer to.
"Well, it's a simple question. Do you love the girl or not?" Balto countered.
"This is not a suitable conversation." Codie retorted.
"Why can't you just answer the question?" A smile was beginning to appear on her face. Codie began laughing and ran his fingers through his hair.
"This is absurd! You don't know me, and I don't know you, and we are not having this conversation at all!" He began. "You are rude, and uncouth, and presumptuous and I'm leaving. Balto. Ms. Kodiak, it's been a pleasure. I sought you out to thank you, and now I have thanked you and-" He held out his hand and she shook it.
"And you've insulted me." Balto added.
"Well, you deserved it." Codie replied.
"Right." Balto said sarcastically.
"Right." Codie repeated.
Balto looked down and noticed they were still shaking hands.
"I thought you were leaving."
"I am." He turned around and started walking. "You are so annoying!" Balto laughed in a deep tone and Codie turned around.
"Wait a minute! I don't have to leave! This is my part of the ship! You leave!"
"Ho ho ho! Well, well, well! Now who's being rude, huh?" Balto countered. Codie couldn't figure out what to say, so he diverted his attention to the portfolio she had tucked under her right arm.
"What is this thing you carry around all the time, anyway?" He snatched it out of her hand and began flipping through the drawings. "Oh, these are very good. Balto these are amazing!" Codie sat down on a lounge chair and balanced the portfolio on his lap. Balto sat down in the chair next to him and watched him flip through her drawings.
He came across several drawings of people in heavy coats on sleds with dogs attached to them in harnesses. Balto drew those in Alaska during sled dog training season. He also came across a few people ice fishing in Canada. She had drawings from every place she's traveled to, it seemed.
"You most certainly like to spend time in the north, don't you?" He said.
"Yup. I grew up in the north, and I'm gonna stay in the north." Balto replied.
"You do get around for a poor-" He quickly began to rethink his words. "Well, a person of limited…"
"Go on. A poor old mutt, you can say it." Balto said, smiling. Codie then came across the drawing of her parents.
"Who're these people?" He questioned. His brow furrowed as he ran his fingers over the charcoal drawing. He noticed Balto close her eyes tightly and sigh.
"My parents," she mumbled. "I drew that the day before they died. They had diphtheria and died a week after my birthday. My brother and I were supposed to be sent to our Uncle Joey, but I left right after the funeral. Uncle Joey didn't like me very much, because I was a 'tomboy,' is what he called me, and preferred my brother."
"My mother never cared for me, either. She acted like whatever I did wasn't good enough. My father cared for me more than my mother did." Codie responded. They had much more in common than they had expected.
"The only one who knew that I left was my brother, and everyone else assumed I was dead. They held a funeral for me soon afterward and I attended, of course, in disguise. I took my grandfather's blue hat, gathered up whatever I could carry on my back, and left."
After a few more minutes of talking, they got up and started walking again. Balto started talking about her adventures after leaving Vancouver. She told how she ran a dogsled race in the US Territory of Alaska, how she met Umberto, and about how she made money by selling drawings.
"When I was 17, I worked in Norway drawing pictures of landscapes. I mainly drew ones of these bright lights that fill up the sky almost every night. I remember someone telling me that the spirits of our ancestors live in those lights. I always believed that they were the spirits of animals that were supposed to guide you throughout life. At least that's what my grandpapa told me." Balto put her elbows on a rail and faced the setting sun. "Sometimes I would just stop drawing and watch the lights, and if I would go somewhere away from civilization, like a frozen lake, I swear I can hear a pack of wolves howling. It is the most amazing feeling to sleep underneath those lights in a tree."
"You slept in trees?" Codie asked, dumbfounded.
"Better than sleeping on the snow." Balto answered with a shrug.
"What if there was a storm?"
"Sleep under a bridge."
Codie raised his hands in defeat. She made it sound so easy. He was especially interested in those lights she was mentioning. He remembered hearing about a phenomenon like that from his teachers at school, but never considered going to see them. He was from New York, so he had hardly ever even seen the stars.
"I wish I could be like you, Balto. Just head out into the horizon whenever I feel like it. Say we'll go there someday and see those lights. Only if we ever just talk about it." Codie proclaimed.
"No, we'll do it!" Balto replied. "We'll watch the lights after dark, go ice fishing on a frozen lake, and go dogsledding. Right under the moonlight."
"Dogsledding?"
"Yeah. Dogsledding." Balto nodded, causing the visor of her hat to fall over her eyes. She adjusted her hat and looked into his eyes. She swore she could see the northern lights in his eyes right now.
"Can you show me how?" He questioned.
"Sure. If you like." Balto replied.
"Teach me to dogsled like Canadians." Codie requested.
"And hunt moose like Canadians." Balto said back, in a northern hillbilly accent.
"And… spit like Canadians." Codie played along. Even though it had nothing to do with what they were talking about, it was the first thing that came to mind.
"What? Your papa didn't teach you that when you were a kid?" Balto asked jokingly.
"No!" Codie answered, laughing as he spoke.
"Well c'mon, I'll show ya. Let's do it." Balto grabbed his hand and led him over to an "outdoor hallway", as she called it, and ignored his struggling.
"Alright watch closely." Balto instructed, as she snorted and spat out onto the deck.
"People do that?" Codie was beginning to have second thoughts, but quickly shoved them aside.
"Yeah. Spitting contests were a common pastime when I was a kid. Okay, pedigree, your turn." Balto set her drawing supplies and portfolio down on the rail next to her and hunched over in anticipation.
Codie looked around to see if anyone he knew was watching, and spat out onto the deck, rather pitifully.
"That was pitiful!" Balto exclaimed teasingly. "You gotta really hock it up, get some body to it. You gotta," she snorted, "arch your neck," then she spat out onto the deck. "There, you see how it works?"
"Mhm." Codie answered. He spat once more, trying to mimic Balto's actions.
"That was a little bit better. You gotta work on it. Now really try to hock it back, ya know? Now watch closely." Balto snorted and hocked up a lot of mucus and spit. She almost spat it out, when Codie frantically tapped her shoulder. She turned around quickly when she realized people were watching.
"Mom!" Codie said, surprised. "This is Balto Kodiak."
Balto nodded and smiled her same old charming smile, when Molly Brown noticed she still had some spit on her chin. Molly gestured toward her chin, and Balto wiped the spit off with her hand.
"Well, Balto, it's nice to meet you." Molly commented. Codie could tell his mother didn't like Balto at all, but decided to just let it go. He was just happy Aurora wasn't with them. Just then, they were "saved by the horn." The horn announcing dinner, that is.
"Now why do they always insist on announcing dinner like a damn cavalry charge?" Molly asked, annoyed. Codie laughed, but quickly regained his composure.
"Shall we return to the room, mother?" Codie's mother took his arm and he began walking back to his stateroom. "See you at dinner, Balto."
Balto did a salute-like gesture towards him off of her hat visor, and couldn't keep her eyes off of him.
"Balto? Balto!" Molly had to yell to get her attention. Balto blinked a few times, snapping out of her daze, before turning her attention to Molly. "Do you have the slightest comprehension what you're doin'?" Molly asked her.
"Not really," Balto admitted, shaking her head.
"Well, you're about to go into the snake pit. What are you plannin' to wear?"
Balto just spread out her arms, slightly, and Molly just shook her head.
"I figured. Come on." Balto followed Molly back to her stateroom. The whole walk back, Balto prayed Molly wouldn't try to put her in a dress.