A/N: Hey everyone! I hope you're doing well and staying safe! Sorry for taking such a long time to update. Life has finally slowed down and now I can write again! Here is the next chapter! Enjoy :)

Chapter 5: It's Us Or Them

Back in Nome….

"Oh no!"

Jenna watched as Rosie's hat flew off her head and landed in the middle of the snow strip where the sled dogs were coming hard and fast.

"My hat!" Rosie cried out, trying to reach for it, but Jenna grabbed her coat sleeve in her teeth and pulled her back.

Steele saw the hat in the middle of the snow strip and pounded his body even faster. Saving the hat was a simple gesture. And he knew it would win the husky's heart. She was meant to be his afterall.

Steele locked eyes with the tan snow cap and grabbed it off the snow as he flew past.

A whistle was blown alerting the dogs to stop and gradually they slowed down. Steele's chest heaved as he breathed heavily holding the hat in his mouth like a meaty bone to give to his prized possession, Jenna.

Kaltag and the other huskies sat on the snow, panting heavily. They had run for days, nights. Weeks it seemed like as the white masses surrounded there every waking minute.

Kaltag smirked as he watched Steele saunter his way over to Jenna, holding his head up pridefully.

"Steele, you saved my hat! Thank you!" Rosie smiled big and wrapped her arms around his neck. Steele paid her no attention as he locked eyes with Jenna, licking his chops.

"Jenna."

"Steele."

"Thanks for getting Rosie's hat."

"Anything for you, Jenna." Steele smirked and made sure to flex his muscles while he was around her, acting like he had to stretch.

Jenna watched as his eyes roamed over her body, drinking her in, and she shifted uncomfortably under his intense stare. To say she felt disgusted would be an understatement.

Luckily, Rosie called her over and Jenna perked her ears up hearing the familiar voice of the little girl she fell in love with.

"Going so soon?" Steele asked, stepping in front of her.

"My girl is calling me."

"Jenna girl! C'mon!" Rosie shouted, waving her arm up.

Jenna started walking past Steele and she could hear him growling. She quickened her pace, but Steele burst in front of her causing her to gasp in fear.

"You shouldn't leave when you have guests." Steele drew out every word as he drooled. He dropped his snarl and stood in front of her, his chest heaving up and down.

"Let me through." Jenna grounds out, emphasizing each word, her hair sticking up from the tip of her head to the edges of her tail, as she feels a fiery rage course through her body.

"Jenna! Come here girl!" Rosie's father called out for her while holding his daughter's hand. Rosie kept spinning her head around, looking in every direction for her beautiful red furred husky.

"Some day, you won't get out of my paws this easily." Steele whispers harshly, allowing his hot breath to hit her ear.

Jenna shudders in disgust and hurriedly brushes past his side, but she freezes at the last thing he says.

"The good ones always put up a fight."

Jenna reels back on her paws as quick as lightning and smashes her claws into the side of Steele's face with a loud growl.

Steele shakes his head from the blow for a moment, but then he plasters that stupid smirk back on his face.

"You can't escape me Jenna!" Steele shouts as she runs over to Rosie.

He watches as the girl greets Jenna with soft touches and gentle kisses. He wonders what that would feel like. It looked like it was real enough to be good. It looked like it was worth it.

With a groan, he rolls his shoulders and presses his paw against the cut on his cheek to staunch the blood. He pulls his paw back and scoffs darkly, seeing the blood staining his paw pads.

"I'll make sure of that." He whispers darkly, his green eyes locked on the husky's form as she barks happily and wags her tail playing with the girl.

"Because I don't feel like going." Jenna argues back, rolling on her back staring at the ceiling in Rosie's room.

Rosie had left with her parents to go out to dinner so Jenna enjoyed these quiet hours in the house. By herself. Alone. Unless of course her friends decided to stop by unexpectedly….

"Yeah, but it's a town council meeting and you know he's gonna be there." Dixie huskily replies, emphasizing on the word "he''.

"Even more of a reason not to go."

"Oh C'mon Jenna! You just have to give him a sniff."

Jenna throws her head back with a laugh.

"Believe me, I would never allow him to be close enough to even get a sniff."

"I don't get it. He's handsome, he's strong, he's the leader of the whole sled team, he's handsome…"

"You said handsome twice." Slyvie interrupts, disinterested.

Jenna stifles a chuckle and glances at the afghan hound. She smirks back at her.

"He's just so...perfect!" Dixie squeals, bouncing on her four paws.

Jenna sighs and rolls on her side before sitting up. She looks over at Slyvie and exchanges a glance with her.

"He's not my perfect."

Dixie gasps and places a paw on her head as if she's about to faint.

"He's a genuine hero. How could that not be perfect?" Dixie asks in disbelief, looking into the brown eyes that seem to be earnest and honest in their answer.

"Okay...I'm grateful...for.. to him for saving the town. Saving Rosie. I mean he saved her life, but that doesn't change who he is, Dixie. He's still arrogant and prideful. Just because you do something good doesn't mean you're a good person."

"Wow...that got depressing quickly." Slyvie mocks with a smirk.

"Steele is good. You just don't know him like I do." Dixie argues back, playing with the diamond on her collar.

"I'm glad I don't.''

Slyvie looks at Jenna and then back at Dixie and sighs. She stands up and shakes her fur out, her fluffy ears hitting her cheeks.

"Well there's not much to do here so I say we go to the meeting. Who knows? Doc might have something important to say."

"Yeah and if not we can just stare at Steele." Dixie says in a flirty voice, twirling her ear.

"I guess…" Jenna begrudgingly agrees and walks slowly behind the pair as they make their way out of the house and to the boiler room.

They walk out, feeling the cold air sink into their bones. The snow was blowing harder each night. The air whispered that a blizzard would soon be coming. As they walk down the path, the snow paints all the different sizes of paw prints as they near a shed with a light shining inside. The door is wide open and howls can be heard against the harsh wind alerting the dogs of Nome that a meeting was taking place.

Jenna walks in and shakes the snow off her fur with a shiver. She notes Steele's eyes on her body as soon as she walks in. She groans inwardly, but allows a small smirk to form on her face when she sees her handy work on his cheek, bright and shiny.

She makes her way over to the corner with Sylvie and rolls her eyes when he hears Dixie's peppy voice fill the silence of the shed.

"You were so fast today! In the race...I mean.. I couldn't even keep my eyes off you!" Dixie gushes and pushes her chest up as she gazes into Steele's green eyes.

"Yeah...thanks." Steele replies casually and looks over her head at Jenna.

"You were absolutely positively magnesium!" Dixie squeals out, jumping up.

"Beat it, you prissy bitch." Kaltag snarls, earning a laugh from the dogs around him.

Dixie seems unaffected by the insult and looks directly at Steele.

"You're gonna let him talk to me like that?"

Steele huffs and looks down at the purple pooch in front of him. She was so desperately needy for him and constantly clinging to him. At first he appreciated the attention when he first started racing. Plus this peppy pooch was Jenna's friend so it gave him an in. But then she became more annoying. And was constantly shoving her chest in his face. She might as well have worn a sign around her neck that said "Do me now"

He looks her over up and down, noting a shiver course through her body.

"Nah, I think he nailed it. You are a prissy bitch." He laughs darkly and slaps his paw against Kaltag's.

Dixie's eyes water up as she watches the two of them laugh.

"Hey!"

Steele looks up, knowing that voice well and his heart starts fluttering.

"You can't talk to her like that!" Jenna growls, coming forth from the shadows.

DIxie might be a clutz, a dolt, a whiny desperate hound, but she was still her friend.

"Oh, and what are you going to do about it?" Steele asks, standing up and meeting her halfway.

Jenna's brown eyes held fire as she looked at Steele.

"Finish what I started." She threatens, her eyes boring a hole into his skull.

"Just give her what she wants, Steele." Kaltag taunts raising his eyebrows suggestively. Hoots and hollers fill the room.

"Silence!" The Saint Bernard's voice booms against the wooden walls of the shed as he walks in.

Steele drops his snarl and smirks at Jenna.

"Bite me." She spits out as she walks back over to her corner.

"Only if you do me first." Steele taunts back and goes back over to his side.

"Enough!" Doc shouts angrily.

"It isn't enough that our very existence is in danger...and yet I find you two in here squabbling like children!"

Jenna flattens her ears against her head, ashamed of how she was acting. Steele made her feel anger in all kinds of twisted ways.

She could hear Dixie stifling her sobs sitting next to her and felt her anger renew in her entire body.

Steele doesn't look the least bit concerned as he holds his head up pridefully and lets out an exaggerated yawn.

"D-danger?" A black lab asks, her voice fearful.

"Yes. We've all felt it, haven't we? This wind. It's harsher, colder. I smell it in the air. A bad storm is coming and we need to prepare."

"Prepare?" One brown husky asks.

"Prepare for what?" Another mutt asks, his voice raspy and old.

"The wolves." Doc states firmly.

"The wolves?"

"What wolves?"

"There are no wolves here!"

"Silence!" Doc booms again, quieting the panic and fear that had erupted in the room.

All eyes fall on him, wide and fearful.

"When the storm comes, the wolves will come. To find food. To find blood. They have to survive. We must prepare to be safe."

"Prepare how?" Slyvie asks and then shrinks back realizing she has spoken out loud.

"We have to hide the food. Hide it wherever we can. And we must hide ourselves. If they come and they don't find food, they will kill us all. Because they need blood to survive as a pack."

Jenna lowers her eyes, processing what the Saint Bernard has just said. Hushed whispers echo throughout the room.

"I know it won't be easy, but if we work together...we will survive. It's us or them."

Doc stays silent for a moment, watching as dogs turn into fearful pups. Shaking and cowering from words.

"That's all I had to say." Doc says before walking out of the shed, the cold air rushing in the shed when the door opens and shuts.

The dogs murmur amongst themselves. The news was unsettling and uncertain. No one was sure what to do. How would they survive? How would they survive against wolves?

"I can't believe wolves would actually come here." Slyvie says as they make their way into the crowd exiting the shed.

Jenna stays silent following behind her friends as they are the last ones to leave.

"Hey, they're having some bones and a bonfire down by the beach! Let's go!" Dixie yells happily, seeing the group of hounds head down to the beach.

Probably to talk some more about what they just heard.

Slyvie follows Dixie eagerly, but she notices Jenna isn't following.

"Jenna?" She asks, turning around. Dixie looks back too.

"You guys go on, I'm gonna head home to Rosie."

"Oh c'mon Jenna, don't be such a sour pooch! How are you ever gonna meet your Mr. perfect" if you never put yourself out there?" Dixie mocks, rolling her eyes.

"I'm fine not putting myself out there. I'll see you later." Jenna smirks and turns around and starts walking past the shed into the trees.

"She's never gonna meet the one with that attitude."

"Life is more than just the one, Dixie."

Dixie shrugs her shoulders and skips off to the beach with Sylvie.

Steele watches the exchange behind the pile of wood beside the shed. He was hiding, waiting to see what would happen. Waiting for his chance with the husky. He can't help the heat coursing through his body when he realizes what has just happened. Jenna was going home. Alone.

He turns his head around and can see Jenna's slim form making her way into the trees.

"So she's not going home?" He whispers with a wicked grin on his face.

He laughs to himself before following her into the trees. Keeping his distance and yet staying close enough to hear her heart beating under him.

Alright so that's chapter 5! I hope you enjoyed it. Please review and let me know your thoughts. I was going to continue but this chapter sort of ended itself, but the very first Balto and Jenna interaction is coming in the next Chapter. Thanks for reading!