Chapter Seven

Just as Alaria promised all of the food served at the enormous outdoor table was fully cooked. More than that it was delicious. There were about a dozen human natives seated at the table, however there were many more people in the hidden village. They had missed this outpost of civilization on their first trip here because it was set far back from the Gate in a grove of impossibly large trees.

The wulf pack that had attacked Daniel walked peacefully through the village. The pack was larger than Sam had first thought. In fact there were wulves everywhere. For the dozen natives that sat at the table an equal number of wulves sat on the floor beside them. Each with their choice of the finest foods the table had to offer served to them in silver bowls.

Sam looked across the table where Jackson sat nervously next to Alaria. Daniel sat on the ground next to him, looking generally annoyed. He had not touched any of the food that had been offered to him. It gave Sam some idea of how upset he was about all of this, she had seen him eat some pretty disgusting things to avoid insulting their off world hosts.

"So, Alaria," Jack started after everyone seemed to have eaten their fill "I take it the dogs pretty much have the run of the place around here?"

"They are not dogs." Alaria corrected. "They are wulves and they are our Partners."

"Partners?" Sam asked.

"Yes. Our people have been breeding the wulves for hundreds of generations. As a result they have gained both larger stature than wild wolves and greater intelligence."

"Just how intelligent are they?" Jack asked.

"About the level of a five year old child."

"You said something about your son being a hybrid." Sam mentioned.

Alaria looked to Jackson and smiled sadly. Jackson smiled tentatively, however he down cast his gaze once more as the man sitting next to Alaria glared at him spitefully. At the man's side sat the darker wulf that had knocked Sam down. The dark wolf was giving Daniel the same disgusted stare as his owner was giving Jackson.

"He was a mistake." Alaria admitted. "I was visiting another planet when his father attacked me and I ended up pregnant."

"You use the Stargate?" Sam asked in surprise.

"Not anymore."

"Whoa, wait a minute...you said his father attacked you?" Jack asked. "I thought you said his father was a dog."

"He was."

"There is something here that I'm not getting." Jack admitted.

"I was Tanria at the time."

"You can exchange places with the wulves at will?" Sam asked in shock.

"We can only change places with our Partner wulf. That is why I introduce myself as Alaria of Tanria."

Daniel's ears perked up and he barked sharply.

"Can you teach Daniel how to change back?" Sam translated for Daniel.

"It may take a few days, but I believe that I can. If he is a good learner."

"He is." Sam smiled.

Daniel stood up, eager to learn this trick right away. Jack made a motion for him to sit back down. Daniel growled at being given a command like a common mutt. This caused Tanria to bristle and growl in return. Not wanting to start a fight Daniel grumbled and sat back down.

"What I don't understand is how this 'switch' happened in the first place." Jack said suspiciously.

"We do not choose our Partners, it is the wulves who choose us and they are the ones to first initiate the switch. After that the human half controls the change. As a hybrid however my son was feared by the unchossen people and despised by the pure wulves. As his mother I am his only friend. He has lived on the outskirts of our society for years."

"That's horrible." Sam said without thinking.

"It was either that or death for him." Alaria said defensively. "Tanria would not even raise him, I spent nearly a year in her body so that I could raise him."

"Why did you wish to raise an exile?" Teal'c asked coldly.

"His father's crimes are not his fault. And I was hoping that in time the others of my pack would learn to accept him. However his mental age is closer to that of a three year old and he has too many of his father's traits to be considered a true wulf."

"We noticed."

"He should have never formed a Bond with one of your kind, and I apologize for it, but the damage has been done."

Tears slipped from Alaria's eyes as she reached out and ran her hand through Jackson's hair. He got out of his chair and knelt beside her loyally. Tanria showed her disgust by baring her teeth at him. This time he paid no heed to the white wolf and just laid his head down in Alaria's lap.

"No real damage has been done." Jack said uncomfortable. "Just help Daniel get back to being himself again and we'll leave."

"You don't understand. Once the Bond is formed it can not be broken."

"What exactly do you mean by that?" Jack asked nervously.

"In order to imitate the first switch the wulf must give a part of himself to the one he has chosen. Your friend can still live on his own. However, without his Partner my son will die."

"It is for the best Alaria." The man sitting next to her spoke for the first time. "There is no place for your mongrel in our world. He should have been put to death long ago. He is just a dog, I do not see why you have such compassion for him."

Sam and Jack exchanged a horrified look with one another. Even Teal'c lowered his head in a slight gesture of sympathy for the hapless creature. All three turned their attention to Daniel. Daniel glared back at them icily and shook his head, it was no secret that he was not overly fond of dogs. Jack smiled innocently and gave Daniel his best pleading puppy dog eyes. Daniel still seemed unmoved.

"Oh come on, Danny, can we keep him? Pleeeease?"