Chapter 6: Home Sweet Home

As Richard and the others escaped from Steele's little posse, they ran all the way to the outskirts of town. Once they reached there, they stopped and turned around to look behind them.

"I think we lost them," Richard panted.

Balto was relieved to hear that, being far away from Steele.

Richard turned his head to Balto. "Are you hurt?"

Balto slowly shook his head in response.

"No, but thanks for asking," Balto said, barely cracking a smile

Richard smiled too and watched as Balto and Boris headed their way home. He yanked out his crystal from inside his jacket and stared at it with remorse. He exhaled deeply and shook his head in disappointment.

"Why would you do this to me?" he whispered to the crystal.

Richard felt nothing but frustration trying to figure out why he was here in the first place. He quickly stuffed his crystal back into his jacket and continued to follow the others. He saw Balto in the distance with his glum look and began to wonder: When will Balto become happy again?

All of a sudden, Richard stopped short in their path when he noticed Balto raising his snout in the air, sniffing his surroundings. Balto caught a whiff of a particular scent and kept sniffing until he recognized it as a wolf's scent. His eyes opened wide, and he turned his head in the direction of the scent. Standing on a hill in front of him was a pack of three wolves and one pup staring back at him.

The leader of the pack greeted Balto with a howl, but Balto did not respond back. He frowned at them and pulled his ears back in shame. The pack kept waiting and looked at each other in confusion. Balto averted his eyes back and forth and slowly walked away, turning his back away from them. Richard and Boris stared at the pack as they walked off.

Boris looked back at Balto and sighed a little. "Not a dog, not a wolf. All he knows is what he's not."

Richard looked down at Boris and wholeheartedly agreed with what he said.

"So, where is your home?" Richard asked.

"Right there," Boris pointed at a boat nearby.

Richard saw the boat near the shore and was caught off guard by their odd housing. This wasn't the type of home he had in mind.

"You can't be serious," Richard said in disbelief.

"I am serious," Boris replied.

"Okay, well, that's quite an interesting...boat," Richard shrugged as he saw Balto enter the boat by climbing on a wooden plank. "It must suck to be part wolf."

Boris lowered his head in agreement. "If only he could see what he is."

"We gotta cheer him up somehow," Richard suggested.

"Oy, oy," Boris nodded in agreement.

Boris thought hard for a moment and suddenly, he snapped his fingers and got an idea! He ran through the hole on the boat's hull, and Richard climbed up the wooden plank after he unexpectedly left. After Richard reached the top of the boat, he watched from behind what Boris' plan was. Boris popped up from a hole like a gopher and grabbed a bone nearby. He chomped on it, imitating a dog. Balto walked past him and didn't pay attention. Disappointed in his failed attempt, he looked down and got another idea.

He slid in front of Balto near his water bowl, pretending it was soup and lapped the water like a dog. That didn't work either, and Boris swallowed his mouthful of water. Balto reached for a rugged blanket, wrapped himself in it, and laid down.

Richard rolled his eyes at Boris' pathetic attempts to cheer up Balto. Boris turned around and ran back to Richard. He leaned over and whispered something in his ear. Richard listened carefully and nodded a couple times. He went to the higher deck next to Balto and found what Boris told him to look for. He grabbed the wind-up toy and wound it up a few times.

While Balto laid down with his blanket, he heard a squeaking sound and noticed an orange wind-up cat toy sliding across from his view. He watched as it popped up continuously until it crashed at the other side of the boat. Balto looked up in annoyance to where the toy came from. Boris appeared from behind and wiggled his feathered fingers, grinning ear to ear.

Boris stepped in front of Balto and did the last thing that could elicit a reaction from Balto. He did a Russian dance, crossing his arms and hopping both of his legs. His dance made Richard cringe and look away. When Boris finished, Balto became more saddened and shut his eyes in agony. Boris looked down in defeat, and Richard put his fingers on his chin, thinking hard of what a dog would enjoy.

This gave him an idea! Something that dogs couldn't resist.

"Balto, would you like a belly rub?" Richard asked.

Balto's ears perked up, and he raised his head up to Richard. He hadn't gotten one in a long while.

"Yes, I would love that!" Balto piped up.

Richard tugged away his blanket, and Balto rolled on his back, exposing his soft underbelly. Richard began to stroke it, and Balto's mouth gaped open from the soothing feeling. His body became relaxed, and all tension was lost. Balto panted as his right hind leg kicked in time to Richard's scratches.

"Ah, that hits the spot," Balto sighed.

"Glad you like it," Richard said, now scratching other areas of his belly. "You feeling better?"

"Much, much better," Balto smiled graciously.

Richard was pleased to see Balto brightened up after his affectionate gesture. Balto's eyes darted to the sunset sky and noticed a flock of geese migrating in a V formation. Richard stopped rubbing his belly after he saw Balto viewing the flying geese and stared at them too. Balto rolled onto his side and faced Boris.

"Homesick, Boris?" Balto asked with a smirk. "You ever think about going back?"

"Don't fret, fido," Boris comforted, rubbing Balto's head, "I'm sticking here until I'm sure you can stand on own four feet."

Boris waddled to a nearby wet mop and began to swab the deck. Balto smiled, content with Boris' caring nature

"You're taking care of me?" Balto asked.

"Don't thank me," Boris replied.

Balto chuckled a little and sniffed the air again, picking up another scent. "I smell...herring."

Boris dipped the mop into a bucket of water. "The herring are flying south too."

"Say, must be Muk and Luk!" Balto shouted cheerfully.

"Who?" Richard asked.

"You'll see," Balto said to him.

"Oh-ho, good news," Boris muttered sarcastically.

"Uncle Boris!" a voice shouted.

Boris nearly dropped his mop after getting startled and glanced around. Richard looked around and tried to locate the distant voice.

"Oh, no," Boris spoke nervously.

"How sweet. 'Uncle Boris'," Balto said with a wide grin.

Boris grabbed the bucket of water and emptied it, using it along with his mop as protection.

"No hugging, no licking!" he demanded.

Richard watched as a little polar bear appeared on the boat, running towards Boris. He cried in fear, closed his eyes, and turned his head back expecting the polar bear to ram into him. He shuddered a little but luckily for him, he felt no impact. He opened one eye and noticed that his mop stick poked the bear's belly, giving a safe distance between each other.

Boris wiped his forehead and let out a sigh of relief. He leaned back and hit something that felt huge and fluffy. It was the bear's much bigger brother. Before Boris could make a move, he was swiped from the ground and embraced tightly in a big bear hug.

The big bear made a few humming sounds and the smaller bear translated, "He says he's glad to see you."

He swung Boris side to side and gave him a big slobbering lick while some of his feathers dropped to the floor like flower petals.

"We love you, Uncle Boris," the smaller bear exclaimed to a struggling and sputtering Boris.

Boris finally squeezed himself free from the bear's clutches and landed hard on the deck floor.

"Wait, wait, wait. Which one's Muk and which one's Luk?" Richard asked Balto.

The small one's Muk and the big one's Luk," he answered, pointing to them.

"Ah, got it," Richard said in understanding.

Boris saw his feathers dropping everywhere and grabbed as many as he could, placing them back on multiple parts of his body. He looked at his left-wing and noticed that a large feather was missing. Luk hummed for his attention, and Boris turned around seeing him twirling his missing feather. Boris whipped the feather out of his claws, and Luk began to make small whimpers to Muk.

"What are you talking about? Of course he's glad to see us," Muk assured Luk. "He loves us. Don't you?"

Boris was in the middle of twisting his feather in like a screw and glared at them. Balto had his head turned to Boris, waiting for him to answer back.

Muk then noticed that there was a newcomer in their presence.

"Who's that fellow over there?" he pointed to Richard.

"Him? Well, he's a new friend we met today," Balto said to Muk.

"Oh, Luk loves meeting new friends!" Muk joyfully clapped his hands together.

Luk approached Richard, and he swallowed hard when he saw Luk's size from below. It sent chills down his spine on top of the ones from the weather. Luk reached out with open arms and gave him a big welcome hug, yet it felt anything but welcoming.

Richard struggled and fought hard to break free, but he just couldn't escape from his tight grasp. He then gave up and stopped thrashing around. Not too long after, he realized that Luk felt pretty soft and fluffy. It was actually quite comforting. He made himself snug in his big arms until Luk let him go.

"You know, I wouldn't mind doing that again," Richard admitted.

Luk leaned over to Muk and whimpered some more sounds, pointing at Richard.

"Yes, well, of course humans can't talk to us!" Muk exclaimed to him.

"Actually, I can," Richard responded to them.

They both slowly turned to him and let out a surprised gasp.

"Did you just speak to us?" Muk asked, astounded.

Richard smiled playfully and answered them with a quick nod.

"Oh, goody! I've never spoken to a human before!" Muk cried out.

Both Muk and Luk bounced around in joy after discovering Richard's unique ability. Balto along with Richard couldn't help but giggle at their silly antics.

Richard then noticed Balto's elated reaction, and a smile of relief spread across his face. "Looks like these two goofballs have cheered you up."

All of a sudden, he heard a faint gurgle. It was his stomach growling with hunger.

"Oh, I'm hungry," Richard groaned, clutching his belly. "I haven't eaten anything in a while."

"Is there something in that bag you can munch on?" Balto pointed to the bag he was carrying.

"Oh, yeah," Richard glanced behind his back. "I forgot about my backpack. There should be food in here if I recall."

Richard removed the bag from his back and plopped it on the ground. He unzipped it and quickly rummaged through his backpack. The others waited patiently, curious about what treats awaited them. Richard flipped over his backpack upside down and emptied out its contents. Everyone looked down with curiosity at what was on the ground, which consisted of two plastic water bottles, two fiber bars, and a silver Thermos canister.

Richard first grabbed a water bottle and squeezed it a little. To his relief, it hadn't been frozen into ice yet. He twisted the cap open and took one big chug of nearly freezing water. It quenched his thirst but made his chest tingle and teeth chatter. He then took one of the fiber bars and tore off the top part of the wrapping. He took a big bite and chewed slowly. The crunchy granola didn't taste as good as he remembered, but it was at least better than nothing.

As Richard noticed Balto and the gang watching him eat, he stretched his arm out towards them. "You guys want some?"

They all shook their heads in refusal.

"Eh, suit yourself." Richard shrugged as he took another bite out of his fiber bar.

After finishing the rest of the bar, he tossed the wrapping back into his backpack. Then, he reached for the other bar and gobbled up the entire thing after tearing off the wrapping. Soon after, he grabbed the water bottle again and drank more to wash down his dry meal. Finally, he had saved the best for last. He grabbed the metal canister and unscrewed the top lid. A sweet aroma flowed out from the can, and some caught a whiff.

"What's that smell?" Muk asked.

"It's hot chocolate," Richard answered.

Balto stepped close to him and sniffed his canister. "It smells delicious."

Richard quickly jerked it away from Balto's snout. "Uh-uh! You can't drink it. Chocolate is poisonous for dogs."

"Really?"

Richard nodded assuringly. Balto turned his head to Boris, and he also lowered his head in agreement. He raised the can to his lips and could still feel the warm steam escaping. He took a small sip and realized that it was still pretty warm! This time, he took a big swig of his hot cocoa and let out a relieved sigh, satisfied with the savory flavor.

"Does it taste good?" Balto asked.

"Definitely!" Richard answered, licking his lips.

Before he could take another sip, he felt a tap on his shoulder. He looked over and saw that it was Muk.

"Could we try some too?" he asked with a cheeky grin.

At first, Richard was hesitant about this, initially declining their offer, but after staring at their pleading expressions, it was very difficult to say no.

"Umm...sure I guess," Richard finally caved in. "But, you both get one sip only. One sip. You got that?"

Both bears nodded swiftly in response. He turned the lid upside down which was shaped like a cup and filled it to the brim with his drink. He passed the lid to Muk, and he tried a sip. His reaction was similar to when Richard tasted the drink, and he eagerly offered it to Luk. He grabbed it from Muk and also took a small sip.

He reacted strongly and positively to the sweet taste and drank the remaining liquid. Before Richard knew it, Luk reached out his paw and attempted to snatch Richard's canister. Luckily, Richard caught him red-handed and slapped his paw away from his canister.

"Nice try," he smirked.

Balto snickered at his attentive response. Richard screwed the lid back on the canister and stuffed it back into his backpack.

As the bright sun set across the orange horizon, Richard shared his journey about how he arrived and where he came from. Everyone sat around Richard and listened closely. He even revealed his crystal to them beforehand, and they all gathered around, staring intently at his bright antique before he told his story.

"So there I was, sitting alone in my room. I stared closely at my crystal and noticed that it was gleaming. Before I knew it, I saw something flash in front of my eyes, and that's how I ended up here with you guys. And I can somehow talk to animals."

"So, where did you say you were from again?" Balto asked for clarification.

"I came from Minnesota," Richard repeated.

"Minnesota?" Balto slowly repeated back. "Never heard of it."

"It's a place that snows a lot just like yours."

"Really?"

Richard nodded. "But it's a lot colder here."

"Yeah, I can tell." Balto watched as Richard still rubbed his arms for warmth.

Something then crossed Richard's mind that was lingering for a while.

"You said you were half-wolf, right?" Richard pointed out, "Doesn't that mean you can howl like a wolf?"

Being reminded of his wolf heritage was like reopening the biggest wound of his entire life.

Balto heaved a sad sigh. "I haven't done that in years,"

"What about being in a wolf pack? Like the one you saw earlier?" Richard asked.

Balto shook his head. "I can't even remember anything like that. It's been so long since my parents left me when I was very young. All I remember was that one was a wolf and one was a dog."

"Is that how Boris ended up raising you?" Richard pointed at the goose.

Balto turned his head to Boris. "Yes. I don't know how he pulled it off, but here I am."

Boris wagged his index finger at him. "Oh, in old country, it was tough, yeah, but you almost took the cake. When you were just a wee bit, you used to chew my feathers off! So many feathers!"

A stifled chuckle escaped from Richard while Balto grinned shamefacedly, recalling those good old days.

"But you know what?" Boris stepped forward to him and smiled, looking up and down, "It was worth it. Look at you now all grown up."

He placed his wings on Balto's cheeks, and his eyes watered up. "I'm so proud to be your papa."

Balto looked down at him and shed some tears of joy. They embraced for a while and then suddenly, someone else was hugging Balto tightly around his neck. He let out a surprised gasp and turned to his side seeing Richard smiling at him. He smiled back and nuzzled his cheek. Richard looked back at the two big balls of fluff and waved for them to come over. Before they knew it, everyone had now joined their big group hug.

Even though it was an oddball group of friends consisting of a wolf-dog, goose, and two bears, Richard was willing to accept that they seemed to fit together rather well. After a few minutes, they disbanded. Balto and Richard walked off to the edge of the deck and watched the sunset. As they sat together, Richard pulled out his crystal and looked at it once more.

Balto never had seen a human reach this close of a friendship. Even Rosy had limits set by her parents. He was glad she wasn't the only one to think that it's what on the inside that counts.

"If only there were more people like you, life would be so much better for me," Balto confessed.

"Yeah, I know," Richard agreed. "I don't mind your wolf side. Why do people hate you for that? I mean, that's something out of your control."

"You're right," Balto nodded. "I'm not the one to blame for this."

Richard let out a long sigh. "I really miss my parents. They must be searching all over the place for me. I don't even know when I'm at."

"At least you still have me," Balto said, trying to be optimistic.

Richard smiled. That was true for him.

"Look, I have no clue how your crystal got you here, but we'll try to figure out a way to get you home," Balto assured him.

Richard brightened up. "You will?"

"Mmm-hmm," Balto slowly nodded. "Maybe your crystal could take you back home the same way that it got you here."

Richard wasn't completely sure about that, but it sounded like a plausible solution. Even though he felt stranded, at least he was lucky to have made some new friends along the way.

A/N: It would be great if you let me know your thoughts on this chapter. Don't be afraid to be brutally honest.