Sorry for the super-long wait guys, but I've been really busy at school lately what with Track practice and all. Now that spring Break is here, however, I've finally found the time to upload all these sweet chapters! I really hope you guys like these! I worked really hard on them - I've been profreading all day, though nobody's perfect and there are probably a few errors that I missed - just so I could make a few more subtle connections with some of my fav. Balto fanfics! I love all my fans and I want to thank you guys SO much for staying with me...as I know you probably think I'm undependable as far as updating goes... Well, gotta run; I'm hoping to get chapter 8 of 'Newfound Emotion' up and done by Friday! Please, remember to review...as I seem to have prescious few of those at the moment! They inspire my creative mind! Hope you enjoy the tale!

Chapter 6
Lakota

An immediate uproar followed this bland statement, just as Kavik had feared. All around the room, dogs were calling out bits of advice to one another on what to do. Some said that Juji should be found and killed before he tried to take the town or something like a wolf by the name of Broadsword had tried to a while back. Others that he should at least be run out, and even one or two who said they should 'just give this Juji what he wants!' This last seemed to punch an almost physical hole in Kavik. So…there were still dogs that disliked him, even here…

One dog, a young and cocky Husky/Malamute mix, managed to make his voice heard through the cacophony of noise. "I say we go out there, find this Juji, and nail his furry hide to the wall!" A general low call of agreement rose from the rest.

Kavik couldn't take it.

He could understand the reasoning behind some of their statements that he should be driven out to confront Juji alone; these dogs had no obligation to lay their lives on the line or to die for him, nor would he have asked it of them. But the nerve of some of the others…to think they had even the slightest chance of beating someone like Juji…that he couldn't stand. But then again, he reminded himself, they didn't know what sort of wolf Juji was, or what kind of devilry he was capable of…Time to open their eyes for them.

"SILEEENCE!" he bellowed suddenly, his roar cutting though the conversations like a hot knife though butter. "That's enough, from all of you!" he said, sweeping the room with his blue-eyed gaze. "You don't know Juji like I do…you haven't got the slightest idea what he's capable of…He's as big as I am and almost as strong, only he's a lot faster when it comes to combat and he'll have numbers on his side before too long…"

He started to pace slowly around the room, making sure to keep eye contact. "And even if you somehow found the guts or were stupid enough to challenge him by yourself, he'd beat you to a pulp. He'd make you beg for death…but he wouldn't kill you…no, not yet…" He paused to allow his next words to gain some deeper cosmic meaning.

"First, he'd kill your mate, then…your pups. After that he'd kill your parents, if they were still alive. Then he'd kill your friends, and then their pups and so on." His voice rose as he spoke, became something that could almost be called a shout. His tone was colder than Polar Ice and harder than granite. "And none of them would die peacefully, oh no…"

Kavik shook his head slightly, eyes seeming to flash with a malignant sort of dark humor. "He'd torture them, make them beg for mercy, cry until they don't have any voice left to cry with…and then…he'd rip their tongues out, just to hear them scream some more…" Again, another one of those ominous pauses, letting the next words gain more significance. "You, he'd save for last…but he'd make sure your death was a thousand times more agonizing…"

Kavik returned to his original position, taking up his seat between Kaltag and Balto. Then, in an almost conversational tone completely opposite of the one in which he'd been speaking, Kavik asked lightly, "Now…who still wants to try and take on Juji one-on-one…?" Not a paw stirred, or an ear nor nose did twitch; his message had gotten through to even the most thickheaded of them. Kavik turned a softened gaze upon the wolf/dog sitting to his right. "You can go on now Balto…I think I've said all I can or need to for now…"

It took a few swallows of saliva along with a comforting lick and nuzzle from the red Husky beside him before Balto was able to cajole his voice box into working. "Alright," he said, and his voice held the slightest note of unease. The wolf Kavik had just described didn't sound like a wolf – or any other animal for that matter – that Balto could ever recall hearing about. 'This Juji guy must be something out of Hell rather than Earth. From the sound of it anyway.' he thought with bitter dismay. And then, heart sinking ever lower; 'More like a demon than any wolf'

"The point is," he finally continued, "that no one dog alone is going to be able to take this Juji down." He swept his gaze around the room. "It's going to take all of us working as a team to beat him if he ever comes calling."

"If?" a beige Samoyed suddenly spluttered, in a slightly crazed tone. "What do you mean, if?" His name was Max, and he had a reputation among the dogs of Nome as somewhat of a suspicious paranoid. Although, the fact that he had been forced to watch his entire family be slaughtered by wolves might've had something to do with it. "Course he's gonna' come!" Max continued, eyes bugging out slightly. "And we've only got one choice if we wanna live!"

"And…what would that be?" Kaltag asked. He didn't like where this was going. No, not one bit…

"We've gotta give him what he wants!" Max's voice cracked, and he pointed a shaky paw at Kavik. "We've gotta' give him the wolf/dog!" Almost all the dogs turned and regarded the Samoyed with narrowed eyes, growls issuing from a few whose lips had writhed back to expose fangs. Max's ears drooped – as did his shakily pointing paw – and he let out a low whine of placation.

"You want to send Kavik out there to confront Juji all by himself!" Angel cried, her eyes gleaming dangerously. "That's crazy!"

"You're insane!" Star seconded, brows furrowed in uncharacteristic anger.

A few other such statements arose from the dogs gathered. Kavik held up his paw for silence and the room quieted.

"No Star," he said, choosing his words very carefully, "…I think he's got a point…" he finished, eyes and face thoughtful.

Star was struck utterly speechless – along with every other dog in the room. They were all unable to believe their ears. None of them had ever seen a dog – or any other canine – sign his own death warrant before.

The silence held for a few seconds before Star finally managed to say, "Are you a PSYCHO or something?"

"You're nuts if you think we're just gonna let you walk out into the Forest and risk your life fighting the guy you just described!" Balto said.

"He'd be too much to handle, even for you!" Jenna added.

Kavik seemed not to hear. "…Did I ever tell you why I tried to kill him in the first place…?" he asked lightly.

"…You said he took someone special away from you…" Tricksey said, uncomfortably aware of all the eyes in the room resting upon her. She hated the feeling of their weight on her fur.

"...True. He did…he took someone irreplaceable from me…" he was staring at the ceiling as though it were the most interesting thing in the world, blue bombardier's eyes burning holes in the ancient woodwork. "I don't think any normal dog – or wolf – could've done it and still remained sane. But then again, as I've already said, Juji isn't a normal wolf…"

Kavik suddenly stood and walked to the open door, claws scritch-scratching on the wooden floorboards as he crossed. Upon reaching the opening, he suddenly thrust his head up and out, nostrils flared, eyes closed as he inhaled the mixture of odors and aromas carried on the wind. He held it for a few seconds, almost as if savoring the scent, and then exhaled, breathe issuing from his mouth condensing into a vaporous steam, which was carted away on the wind, adding his own little message to an already crowded notice board.

Kavik turned around, taking a moment to regard his friends from his new vantage point. When he did, a single shaft of sunlight broke through the clouds, spilling across his fur and making it momentarily hard to look at without your eyes hurting. It lasted only for a space of two or three seconds, but in that time, Balto saw much. For a brief instant, many windows in his mind aligned and he could see far across his own experience.

Balto saw Kavik, not as a dog, but as what he truly was in his innermost form and truth. A wolf. One of the last great giants that only appear every 20 or 30 years due to the rarity of the conditions and genetics that are needed to make such a state of muscular and skeletal development physically possible. Balto's eyes widened and, deep inside himself, he felt his wolf heritage flex throughout his being. It was as if some amazing powerful voice were saying, 'Look. Look upon him, this miracle of nature, and a gentle and compassionate creature. See him and say True. See him for what he really is in his Heart and Mind and Soul; a wolf/dog, yes…but also, one of the last of his kind…one of the last Great Wolves who once roamed the Arctic and were masters of the Tundra…'

All this took place in less time than it takes to write down, and the actual message Balto received would have looked – had we but been on the receiving end instead of him – like nothing more than a flash of inner light and confused rush of images. But, as we know, Balto who saw the deeper meaning behind all this was in temporary awe. 'Wolf…' he thought, 'yes, he may have some dog in him, but it's the wolf which is his most dominant nature…'

The moment passed. Kavik walked back to his spot, his crucifix and the chain from which it hung clanking slightly. He sat down heavily, the floor creaking slightly under his surely massive bulk, and looking at him, Star guessed him must've weighed 140 pounds at least. Probably a little more, come to think of it.

"Still there…" Kavik said. He seemed to be talking only to himself, his eyes half-lidded, head slightly lowered. "By God…I can smell him in the wind…he's too close to here…too close by far…" He looked up then, as if suddenly remembering where he was and who was with him, and smiled as he once again swept the room with his gaze. "In order to understand why I tried to kill him – aside from the fact that he's simply a monster, cut-and-dry – I've got to backtrack to a little more than a year ago…" His eyes glowed, the irises seeming to shine with a sheen like pelt.

"I've got to go back to when I met Lakota for the first time…"

((()-()))

"First of all, you've got to understand that I've only been with Maverick for 9 months. One night, a month or two after I had 'killed' Juji and escaped the pack – I'll get to all that later – I went into a town, somewhere close to Anchorage. I don't remember exactly where."

"You went into a town? Were you crazy? Any human would've shot you on sight with your appearance had you been spotted!" Steele exclaimed, eyes slightly wider than usual.

Kavik smiled bitterly. "Didn't I know it? I usually avoided any and all human contact when I could, sticking mainly to the Forested areas for just that reason. But this night was different. I was injured in a fight with a Cougar, you see. I won, but I'd gotten a broken hind leg for my trouble that I'd been forced to run on for maybe two hours or more."

Balto winced. Running for two hours with a broken legouch. That must've felt like someone was ripping you apart slowly, one piece at a time.

"I limped my way into town, managed to pass unnoticed by using the back alleys and side streets, and got to the Butcher's shop. There wasn't much there, but I wasn't about to complain; I hadn't eaten hardly a scrap for almost a week. A dozen half-starved wolves had come around after I'd killed the big cat, and I hadn't had time to eat much of my kill before they drove me off."

"I ate what was there – maybe 2 and ½ pounds of meat and gristle at the most, and I think even that's pushing it. Afterwards, I ate some snow, and then tried to get out, back to the woods. But I made one big mistake…"

"Your leg." Kaltag said. "You pushed yourself too hard for too long and your body couldn't keep up."

Kavik's bitter smile resurfaced. "How right you are. I had been limping along, thinking my leg didn't hurt so badly anymore, when something inside it twisted. I heard a sort of popping sound, felt a sort of twang, and then my leg was worse then it had ever been. It was the worst pain I'd ever experienced in my life. Half conscious, I stumbled toward the outskirts, hoping to at least reach the Forest and find shelter before I dropped off completely. I never made it. I lost consciousness about three blocks from the end of town, in an alley surrounded by garbage. I remember thinking how furious my father would've been if he'd seen me in such a state."

"When I came too, I was lying wrapped in a blanket with my back to a cast-iron stove. I could smell burning wood – very strong, overpoweringly so – and then I could smell a human. Then the faint smell of steel and oily metal, a gun in other words. I was frightened, but when I tried to get up and run away, my leg hurt so badly I almost blacked out again. I lay there, panting, willing myself not to pass out again, telling myself that I if did I was as good as dead. It didn't work very well. I could feel myself slipping but couldn't do anything about it. Just before I dropped off, I saw Maverick's face, felt his hand stroke my head…" Kavik's eyes became wistful, as if recalling the old man's kind-hearted touch. "I remember the gentleness in that touch, and I never forgot it."

"Over the next few months, Maverick helped me to recover. At first I was mistrustful and suspicious; I'd had few experiences with Man before then, and the ones I'd had were bad more often than not. But, seeing as I was riddled with pain whenever I tried to move at all after he'd set my leg, I couldn't do much but try to growl and give him the 'Evil Eye', which only made him laugh. Day-by-day, he fed me soup and jerky and other good things, and day-by-day I started to trust him. Soon, I loved him. I even relinquished the ways of my heritage that had governed my whole life up until then and became his companion…and I've never regretted it. Not ever."

A single tear slipped from Tricksey's eye to splatter onto the floor. A story like that was just bound to make you sniffle. She saw Kavik wasn't crying, but his eyes looked suspiciously damp all the same.

"But all that was after the fact, and I'm jumping the gun." Kavik laughed shortly. "Let me start back at the very beginning…"

"My mother was a pure-bred wolf. She had the softest voice I can ever remember and her fur was like white fire. My father was a half-and-half wolf like Balto, only in his case he had Shepherd instead of Husky coursing through his veins. I believe my mother told me once that he was somehow descended from someone named either Buck or White Fang, both wolf/dog hybrids of great legend, the latter even more so than the former…. I got my eyes from him. He was white – a sort of unique albino type – like my mother, both of them around my current size, although I think my father might've been a bit bigger." Again, that wistful smile blazed out onto his face.

"However, I didn't know them for very long…fate, it seemed, had other plans in store for me and my siblings…." His brow creased slightly, face wrinkling as he tried to recall his own painful story. "Even I don't know the exact circumstances, but, for some reason or another, my father left us and shortly after, my mother followed suit. When I was only three or four months old, she was forced to leave all but one of us in the care of her brother, Serpico, who was the Alpha of her pack."

His eyes grew slightly wistful. "He was a bit stern, full of an almost royal sort of pride and noble dignity, always telling me to take strength from my roots and whatnot." Kavik smiled, thinking fondly of his foster parents. "I never actually met my real father, or if I ever did I've only the vaguest fleeting idea of what and who he was…or mayhap still is, I've no way of knowing for sure if he still lives…." He trailed off, gazing fixedly at nothing, his imagination seeming to have been captured by the idea that his father was still alive, alive and wandering the earth, thinking of the family he'd been forced to leave behind….

He suddenly blinked, and shook his head from side to side, his white cheeks flaring a dull pink as he realized he'd fallen prey to his optimistic nature. A thin smile touched his lips as he resumed his tale. "Sorry…my mind just sort of ran away with me for a second there…give me a moment…. Where was I? Ah, yes; my family…" The thin smile grew, maturing to a fully-fledged grin as he spoke his next few words. It was a rather remarkable change to behold.

"Serpico and Akasha, his mate, were kind and adoring parents. Though they and I were joined by blood-bondage to a lesser degree than that shared between themselves and their own kin, this meant little to them; My siblings and I were of their noble blood and therefore, I was as much a son to them as I had been to my own mother and father. They took us in willingly enough–despite the opinions of more than a few others of their order–and we were shown just as much love and affection as they showered upon their own son, a white wolf by the name of Kemo."

It should come as no surprise to us that, upon hearing the latter statement, Balto was severely taken aback. His eyes widened till he felt that they must surly pop from his skull to go rolling across the floor like great yellow/brown billiard balls. The breath caught in his chest and for perhaps a full minute, his body forgot to breathe. He stared, open-mouthed at Kavik, who, upon hearing the gasp uttered by his wolfish comrade had turned to look at him, a look of slight alarm briefly darkening his already troubled countenance. Balto, however, was for a moment completely unaware of his pale friend's worried expression, as his own mind was still grappling with the enormity of what Kavik's statement meant. So, that was how Kavik and Kemo had come to know each other? He had almost no trouble believing it–some inner part of him had been expecting something of this nature from the start…but now was not the time to engage in a game of twenty questions, as much as he wanted to; the hybrid before him had enough on his plate to deal with at the moment and Balto would be the last one to add anything more to that already overflowing mess.

Jenna was looking at him now too and–he noted with somewhat exaggerated degree of embarrassment–so were quite a few others crowded throughout the expansive room. Still trying to grasp this profoundly unexpected revelation, he forced his mouth to close and blinked several times, shaking his head slightly as he did so. Kavik was still looking at him, his faded blue eyes wordlessly asking the reason for his companion's somewhat concerning reaction. Not wanting to make a scene–and knowing such a topic was one best left to be discussed later in a more private place, and even then only with close friends present–Balto merely shook his head fractionally, indicating that now was not the time and that his friend should go on with his tale, lest he arouse suspicion from the already curious onlookers.

Understanding dawned in the snowy wolf's eyes and he gave a barely perceptible nod, and returned his gaze to the rest of the dogs, most of whom had been watching this little exchange with a rather disquietingly large degree of curiosity. Deciding it would be best to skip over his still-living brother's description, not to mention his current location, Kavik ignored the somewhat nosy spectators for now–there were more important matters at hand–and instead he searched his mind, trying to pick up his thread of thought from where it had been interrupted. After a few seconds, he continued from where he had left off. "Apart from Kemo, I had two other brothers, Lobo and Nig, and one sister. I can recall her a bit more easily than the other two, probably because she survived longer…." His face momentarily darkened, then cleared once more. "Her name was Ikea. She was white, like me, except she had my mother's golden eyes." He smiled fondly as he recalled her sweet visage. "We also had a habit of getting into all sorts of mischief together, although she was always the mastermind behind everything and I was just the obedient follower more often than not." He snorted with soft laughter, recalling all their shared misadventures together.

"Nig and Lobo were identical twins. Both of them were always the comedians of five of us, and they never failed to make us laugh. They both looked like my father, except their eyes were pink instead of blue or gold. True albinos, in other words." He grinned expansively. "We always used to wrestle together in the snow and sometimes in the fields if it was summer or spring and the woods were in full bloom. Ikea called them the 'Dim-Witted Duo'" He chuckled.

"My early life was fun and full of lessons on grooming, tracking, hunting and a bunch of other matters essential to the survival of any young wolf in the wilds of the North. My foster parents were good teachers, and were all more-than apt pupils…well, some of us were at any rate. They taught my siblings and I everything we needed to survive. Our life together was often difficult, but both my mother and father loved us all with a passion that we returned ten-fold. I spent two blissful years with them…then…"

Kavik swallowed, and when he did there was an audible click in his throat. "Then…then…one day, Man came…hunters with big guns and hard grins and breath that stank of tobacco and whiskey. We ran, making for the cover of the deeper wood but…somehow the pack was broken and the four of us found ourselves with no one but our parents to lead us…the rest were scattered, falling behind…we tried…" He paused, seeming to try to gather himself and Balto realized how much this must hurt him, having to recollect all this. He wanted to tell his friend to stop, that he didn't have to go to that one locked place in his heart that everyone has where we keep the things too terrible to bear, didn't have to if it hurt this much….

He didn't though. He could, Balto was well aware that he could tell him to stop, and he had no doubt Kavik probably would. But…Kavik needed to tell this to someone, anyone, it didn't matter who; he just had to drag it, kicking and screaming, into the Light for all to see.

"…They got my brother Lobo first. Shot him in the neck. He was killed instantly. Then, they got Nig twice. Once in the hind leg, once in the side and he fell down. My father dropped back to try and protect him. I remember the last words he said to me were 'Protect your mother and Ikea!'" Kavik paused, once again seemed to fight within himself and then went on.

"The three of us kept on going, me, Ikea and my mother. I remember…hoping that I would…see my father and my brother Nig again. We ran all out, and for about five minutes, we could hear him fighting off his would-be-killers. We heard him growling and snarling, heard the screams as he bit and tore into the men who had killed his sons. Then, we heard the blast of a shotgun and then his dying yowl of utter agony."

"My first impulse was…to…to turn around and fight. Turn and kill…but Ikea stopped me. She was crying, the tears streaming down her face, and yelling for me not to go. I almost went anyway, I was mad with rage, but she stepped in front of me…" Kavik smiled. The expression was bittersweet. "She always was the most level-headed of us. She reminded me of the sacrifice that our father had made. She told to not be blinded by my anger but to harness it and use it to protect mother. I couldn't bear to leave her, or disobey my father when he'd given me a direct order, so I ran on. We kept on and on and on, our mother running behind us, urging us on. First, it seemed like we were going to lose them; we had gotten into the deeper, more damaged part of our territory, and there were deadfalls everywhere, making it harder for the humans to keep up with us."

Again, he paused, and Balto felt the urge – now more strongly than ever – to tell him to stop. He felt – hell, knew – that what Kavik was forcing himself to do was ripping his soul apart. Yet, equal to this desire was the one to let him continue. Continue won out and so Balto remained silent.

"But…then I heard a shotgun blast, then two more. The humans had somehow gotten around us and were closing in. My mother made a decision then." Kavik took a deep, shaky breath. "She…she told us to split up. And then…she ran off to draw the humans' fire away from us…" Tears, large and unheeded, began to slip down Kavik's tortured face. He didn't seem to notice or if he did, he didn't care. They dripped from his cheeks and hit the floor with a steady 'tap…tap…tap…'

"Ikea and I called for her to come back and then another shot blew apart the tree between us and…we were forced to start off in the opposite direction. We ran on and on and on, dodging fallen trees and bullets, hearing the guns going off–along with the occasional curse and/or scream as one of them was bitten by my mother–in the direction she was headed. We both started to cry, both sure she was dead or…or worse. We didn't stop until nightfall and then dug a hole in the snow and huddled together in it to keep warm. We huddled and cried over our lost family, taking comfort from each other. Eventually we cried ourselves to sleep."

"The next morning we…we got up and slinked back to the place where my mother had been by following the scent of human and wolven blood. We came to the place where she'd fought them for us." Kavik's face shone with a momentary sort of pride that was both painful and touching to look at. "She was gone…though we couldn't find scent; the stench of Man had overpowered it. Dead she might've been but my mother took seven of them down with her, guns or no guns." A hard, bitter grin of triumph lit up his face for an instant.

"We moved on quickly, fearful that the humans would still be around. We were together for a long time after that, one never letting the other out of their sight for a moment. We only had each other, you must understand, and we were both terrified that…that God would take the either of us away if we were too relaxed about it. We tried searching for our other brother Kemo, who alone had gone in search of our single departed sibling a few days before the hunting party attacked our pack…now, I thank God for his choice. Needless to say, we were unsuccessful and were left to our own defenses. We protected each other from everything, slept together, hunted and killed together, mourned and sang our songs to the moon together. We had no desire to join a pack, for we preferred to remain isolated from the rest of the world. Besides, no other clan would ever compare to the one we had been a part of…before the humans had come and caused us to scatter like leaves in an autumn wind. An unusually strong fear of Man had been put into us, and we shied away from them whenever we caught their scent on the breeze."

Kavik paused again, but for breath this time as well as grief. "…It…we went on like that for almost a year and a half. I was never separated from Ikea, and she never left me. Everything was good for a while. We wandered the woodlands, heedless of everything but each other and the other life around us."

"When we got into Alaska, we hit trouble. A famine had broken out among the area and many of the animals were starving to death. We managed to keep up our bodies by eating anything and everything save rocks and trees, no matter how disgusting it was. We would not eat our own kind though; cannibalism was within our ability to comprehend…it would have been seen as nothing but a disgrace to our kind. Then…one day…we came across another man, a hunter. We were weak with hunger, all but skin and bones and we weren't able to make it to safety in time. He saw us, and fired three shots. Two missed. The last…the last hit…hit Ikea in the…in the side." His tears flowed faster now and he had to stop for a few seconds, trying to deal with the grief that racked his body in spasmodic shudders. After a few deep breaths, he went on.

"I…I was furious, driven to a mad, convulsive rage." He said in a voice that shook the slightest bit. "I attacked him, the man who had shot Ikea, my only sister, the only close family I had left with me and tore him to pieces with all the ferocity of a grizzly. I remember the snow and my fur being stained red with his murder's blood." There was a hate burning in his voice, one so strong, it was a little scary. "Afterwards, I went back to Ikea. She was breathing, shallowly…and I told myself she'd be fine, but in my heart I knew…Knew she was going to die…"

Tricksey put her face to Kaltag's shoulder, tears running down her face, overcome with emotion. Balto was comforting Jenna in the same manner. They knew Kavik's life had been hard – he'd told them himself, minus the details – but hadn't suspected anything like this…

"I…dug us a hole in the snow as always and…helped her into it. We talked about our mother and father and lost brothers and I…started to cry. I didn't want to but I couldn't stop myself. She saw me crying and…licked away my tears. She said, 'Why you cryin' Kavik? I'm…not gonna' leave you…we'll always…be together. You and me against the world…' Then, she fell asleep. I tried to wake her, knew if I didn't she was gone forever. But then I fell asleep myself…"

Kaltag sat and listened and wondered how you could go on living through something like that and still be sane, how you could see it all and not just be content to curl up and die in a ditch. It was beyond his ability to comprehend.

"…When I woke up the next morning…I tried to wake her up…When she didn't move, I…I…knew she was d…dead…" Kavik suddenly let out a great shuddering breath, his tears growing from streams to rivers, then finally to rapids. After a great many shakes of the head and rapid blinking of his streaming eyes, he went on.

"After…after Ikea died, I…I pretty much went through life as a ghost. There isn't much to tell about that part of my life. I don't remember much because all I could feel were two emotions: Grief and Hate. I was crushed by Ikea's death, the flame in my wild heart all but burned out. At the same time, I was driven by a pure desire to live only to make Man's coming into the world as hard as I could. They had taken away anything and everything I'd ever loved or had…and I think it's safe to say…I was not very happy…" He gave a short humorless laugh.

"I don't know exactly how long I stayed that way, running through the woods, frothing with unbridled anger and my soul aching with grief." Kavik shrugged. "It might've been only a few months…or as long a year, I don't know. All I know is that by the time I met Lakota…my heart had hardened a bit."

((()-()))

1924
Anchorage, Alaska

Kavik pushed through another stand of snow-draped conifers and winced as he felt their needle filled branches slap his face. Stupid trees. He often wondered why God had made them so irritating, with the sticky sap, the prickly needles and those stupid pinecones…yes, he disliked that latter feature the most.

'Ikea loved them…so did Kemo, as a matter of fact…' a voice in his head muttered and he growled savagely at it to shut up. He didn't like to think about Ikea more than he had too…there were too many painful memories involved.

But it was too late and already her laughing, smiling face came swimming back up from the depths of his brain as it often did with all too much ease. She ran through the corridors of his mind, yipping playfully, summoning other memories, ones of Nig…and Lobo…he and Kemo, play-fighting together as pups as they often had…and of course, his mother and father…a single low whine of grief escaped him, but that was all. He was glad to say that he no longer started to cry whenever the thought of any of his family resurfaced.

With a grunt, he pushed past both tree and past, marching steadily toward wherever his paws were taking him. He hoped it was to food – he hadn't eaten for a week, and had been forced to eat bugs and mice and other such low creatures to survive. Yet, for all his size, hunger wasn't much of a problem for one of his kind He'd been living like this for over…He cast his mind back, something that was slightly difficult considering he rarely did it due to his mercifully brief, but painful history in the world. He found he'd been living this way for over two years, so hunger was no new tormenter in his life.

He breasted a gently rising slope, moving into a denser area of the current woodlands. He had no idea whose territory he was in, nor did it interest him very much to know of find out. He'd found that such things as clan territories and lands didn't matter much if you could make it through undetected. And that was easier than tracking deer – not that there were many to track nowadays – and as long as you took care not to get close enough for your scent to spook the resident pack then you were home free. Besides, even if he ran afoul of the pack or clan or whatever they referred to themselves as – which he was carefully almost never to do – there was never much of a fight. He didn't like to brag about his ability in combat, but let's just say he could've even taught the old-timers a thing or two if it came to that!

He stopped abruptly, ears perking as they picked up some distant noise…growls, perhaps? And was that a roar he'd just heard? Or maybe…Then the wind blew in his direction and everything became clear; a bear, of course. Headed his way. And – oh, this was just magical – it was a Grizzly to boot. And it wasn't more than 200 yards away.

He told himself to calm down, just take it easy. After all, it wasn't like he was at risk or anything. All he had to do was make sure he didn't get too close or make it mad somehow. Shrugging his muscular shoulders, he started to move on again, paws crunching in the snow, tail swishing from side to side in the only way he could ever dispose of nerves.

He continued on for about five minutes or so, gently increasing his pace as the seconds dragged by. He'd almost lost the animal completely when, suddenly, he heard a low growl and then a snarl, followed by a yelp of pain. Sniffing delicately, he discovered another wolf, not like himself, had been unfortunate enough to stumble upon the huge omnivore. Or, Kavik considered, maybe it had simply been desperate and/or foolish enough to tackle a creature almost surely three to four times its own body weight. That last seemed more likely than the first.

Kavik stood, considering, the wheels turning in his head, weighing his options, and decided against going to the assistance of the canine engaged in fatal combat. He wasn't cruel or anything – the last thing anyone who'd known him would've called him was cruel – it was just common sense of the Wild. If he did go and help, he might win or he and this unknown wolf might both be killed. Or – and this was the real kicker – even if he and his canine brother somehow managed to slay the great beast, there was no guarantee that the assisted wolf would prove to be grateful. Quite the contrary; the rescued might turn upon the rescuer.

That did it. He turned and started to walk off, wishing his comrade the best of luck. 'He'll need it too.' He thought with a slight twinge. Besides, it was really none of his business anyway…

The wind blew once more, and Kavik, catching the aroma again, turned and raced in the direction of the combatants, cursing himself a thousand times for a fool. How could he have been so ignorant? It wasn't a male fighting the Grizzly it was a female! His mother had taught him the Wolf's Code of Honor: protect the young, do what needed to be done for the good of the pack, never kill or battle females, and to help them if they needed aid. And, judging from the rapidly growing smell of blood, the unknown female certainly needed it.

Kavik put on a burst of speed, half consciously blessing his father for his sled dog agility, and crashed through the trees. He had come not a second too soon; the bear had the wolf pinned with on massive forepaw and was preparing to either rip the young she-wolf open or disembowel her. Either way, it came to the same thing; a bloody and agonizing death for this unfortunate wolf.

'Not if I have anything to say about it!' he thought and snarled menacingly, hackles rising in an unmistakable offensive posture. The bear's attention turned to him and as it did, he coiled his hind legs beneath him and, using his tremendous strength, propelled himself at the enormous creature. The bear moved to swipe a claw at him, as if intending to rip his face wide open. Kavik's movements were fast, but not quite fast enough. He managed to dodge the bulk of the attack, but was slashed along his right flank, deep enough to draw blood.

A normal wolf would've perhaps simply shied away to lick this potentially grievous wound, but Kavik had his mother's blood running through him and the surge of pain he felt did not send him limping away; it merely mad him all the angrier. This fury at being so wounded, coupled with the pent up after-rage of Ikea's death, transformed him from a simple animal to a killing machine with no 'off' switch.

With an infuriated roar followed by a flash of white, Kavik leaped upon the offending beast, sinking both fangs and claws deep into the shoulder and torso of his adversary. The bear cried out in surprised pain, and attempted to shake and/or strike him off, battening him with its six-inch talons as it dug into his angelic fur, staining it a crimson red.

Kavik felt them not at all.

He was burning with impersonal anger, his mind frantic with the urge to rip, to tear, to kill. All the emotional trauma of losing his family came back again in an adrenaline rush of images. With a snarl of utter fury and utmost wrath, he wrenched his bloody jaws from the Grizzly's shoulder and buried his jagged maw in its face, his teeth battening upon the thing's muzzle.

The bear's fury only grew and with a scream of mingled outrage and agony, it jerked him from his purchase and hurled him bodily into a tree, where he hit with a sickening 'thud!' and then sank down into the snow. He starred out at the world through eyes made momentarily blurry with his collision with the tree. And saw the bear coming for him…

((()-()))

The young she-wolf lay in the snow, breathing heavily and staring at the animal towering above her. She couldn't believe it had come to this! Now she, daughter of Roland, Alpha Male of their pack, was about to be killed by a bear! She couldn't accept it…no, more; she refused to accept it. And so she got to her feet, panting and made for the Grizzly's throat again. Her strength and stamina were starting to fail, thus were her attacks becoming all the more sluggish. The bear saw her intended target and countered with a blow to the side of the head that sent Lakota reeling back to earth, where she landed in a heap.

'This is it,' she thought, miserably trying to find the strength to move, to retreat, and finding none. 'I'm done for…sorry father…I let you down…please forgive me…' a tear trickled from her eye as she squeezed them shut, not wanting to see how she was going to die.

Her eyes snapped open as she heard the rapidly growing growl of another wolf moving swiftly towards her.

Lakota was at first unable to comprehend what her eyes were telling her. One moment, she was pinned to the ground with a yelp of pain as the bear was getting ready to gut her, the next, an enormous white wolf had come careening out of the trees and proceed to rip into her aggravator. She lay in stunned silence, temporarily frozen in shock, as he sank his teeth into the other's shoulder, oblivious to the claws that were beginning to rip into him.

Her mind went blank with shock as he rescuer, after removing his teeth from the bear's shoulder, sank them instead clean to the bone of the bear's muzzle, it letting out a roar of pain and surprise. A low cry ripped itself from her chest as the bear ripped the stranger from it's face and hurled him through the air to slam side-first into a tree with a low yelp before slumping to the snow.

The bear spared her a single, mindless glance, before turning to finish of her would-be rescuer first. As it did, she saw – with a mingled feeling of shock and revulsion – that the entire right side of its face had been ripped open from eye to jaw. She could actually see the bones in its muzzle…

It was this grotesque vision that seemed to give her back her strength, for she rose quickly, and with a little shake of her head, leaped at the animal's unprotected back, sinking her teeth into the base of it's neck, feeling a primal sort of satisfaction as its blood soaked her muzzle and face and neck.

The bear roared again in surprise and tried madly to rip her from her itself, standing upright and attempting to use its forelimbs to reach behind it and strike her down. It was at this opportunistic moment that Kavik struck for the throat…

((()-()))

Kavik lay, vision clearing but his body seemingly unable to move momentarily. He knew he would be able to soon, but not soon enough with the way the bear was advancing on him, face horribly mauled as a mark of his fangs. He couldn't help but smile bitterly. 'Got you, you dirty piece of trash. Ripped you a new mouth…' he thought but froze as he saw the young she-wolf suddenly leap onto the back of the wounded behemoth, biting to the bone at the base of its neck. The bear, rising to stand on its hind legs, tried to claw her off using its deadly forelimbs.

An overwhelmingly powerful voice within him abruptly burst out 'Now! Strike NOW! You won't get another chance!' Only later, when he took time to consider it, would he realize that it had been the voice of both his mother and his father, speaking as one. Now however, such thoughts were far from his mind, and he forced his legs to propel his lacerated body forward and he sank his jaws into the place where the Life's Blood bubbled just beneath the surface, and rejoiced when he felt his teeth strike home.

((()-()))

Lakota leaped clear as the Grizzly tumbled over backwards, with the white wolf's jaws still clamped onto its throat. She watched as he stayed there; even though his prey was now too weak to do anything but twitch slightly as its life ebbed away, jaws still locked in his death-grip. At last when the last faint vestiges of life had left the great monster, the white wolf released his hold and turned his head to look at her, panting.

She was shocked not by his sheer size, but by his eyes. Such eyes…she had never seen the like. They were like twin balls of blue fire burning out at the world from the core of his soul. They were hardened to glimmering chunks of ice, but now softened to the kind, gentle eyes of one who, since birth, has never in life turned refused to help anyone, no matter the personal cost. They were…familiar in some way that was both touching and slightly mesmerizing.

His fur was as white as the snow around him, save for the spots where the bear had scarred him with its claws. She was both amazed and touched when she saw the flicker of a smile play its way across his face. After a few more breaths he said, "Hi…"

That was all just 'Hi' as if the two of them had met on some forest path whilst on the hunt for the evening's meal instead of having just killed an animal easily twice his weight. She smiled, green eyes shining, lips quirking into a smile. "Hi yourself…"

He licked his chops and spat out a mouthful of obsidian fur before saying, "…Sorry I didn't get here sooner…"

She couldn't help but chuckle at a remark like that. He acted as though he were late for a clan meeting or something. "I'm just glad you got here when you did…"

He chuckled before attempting to rise, almost fell, but then gained his feet. He walked steadily over and sat down before her, letting out a great huff of air as he did so. "Thanks for the help back there…"

She was startled. "I'm the one who should be thanking you!" she said, flustered and clearly somewhat embarrassed. "After all, it would've killed me if you hadn't come along…" His smile broadened the tinniest bit.

"Yeah, but if you hadn't bitten him on the back of the neck, we both would've been goners…" he chuckled. His voice, she noted, was a bit deep and held a sort of inbred authority, yet soft and gentle at the same time. He sounded like her father…

"Alright, but you were the one who dealt the finishing blow…" she replied and that got them smiling again, seeing as both were took weak to do much else but chuckle. And movement? Ha, the idea was a bitter joke…

"So…" he ventured after a moment's pause to catch his wind. "What's your name?"

"Lakota." She replied automatically. "And yours?"

"Kavik." He said and smiled. "Now that the introductions are out of the way, just what were you doing, fighting that bear anyway?"

((()-()))

Kavik was aware of the she-wolf's escape as the bear crashed to earth, but only peripherally. He knew the bear was dead, he'd ripped its throat out after all, but he hung on nevertheless. His father had always taught him to hang on until the kill was dead, and he had no intentions of releasing his death-grip until every ounce of life was driven out of this beast. Finally, when at last the last vestiges of life had fallen away from the thing on the ground, he looked towards the she-wolf he'd saved.

And he stared.

She was the most beautiful creature he'd ever seen, even coated in blood and injured as well. Her fur was a light silver, almost like the material he'd seen cultivated in rocks, though a bit lighter, now splashed throughout with blood. Her underbelly was a sort of snowy white, a few shades darker than his own overall coat. Her eyes were a deep emerald green and glinted with a shine like rough-hewn diamonds. Her tail was long and bushy, ending in a white tip, and she had about her a sort of queenly heir about the way she did things, however small. In a way, she unconsciously made ever move of her body look and flow like liquid mercury.

'If she's this pretty when she's injured,' he thought numbly, 'then she must look beautiful when she's not all covered in blood.' It came to him that some of the blood now staining her coat may very well have been his, and this seemed to snap him back to reality for some reason and he knew he had to say something. He couldn't just stand there gawking at her or she'd think him a fool or worse.

He wanted to say something cool and suave, but when he opened his mouth and tried to speak, all that came out was "Hi…" 'Way to go Kavik!' he mentally berated himself. 'Great way to start off a conversation!'

He saw her smile and was relieved by the sight. "Hi yourself…" she replied, the edge of a girlish giggle evident in her words. Her voice was sweet and melodious, almost like the singing and chirping of the birds at sunrise.

He heard himself speaking and was horrified when he recognized the words spewing from his mouth. "Sorry I didn't get here sooner…"

She laughed again. "I'm just glad you got here when you did…"

He chuckled without knowing how or why but only knowing that it was right. "Thanks for the help back there…"

She replied something to the effect of how she should be thanking him and then the two of them began to volley that back and forth. After of few plays at this, he asked, "So…what's your name?"

"Lakota." She replied. He instantly liked the name. He thought it suited her perfectly.

After she returned the question and he answered with his own name, he felt the need to ask a more important question; "Now that the introductions are out of the way, just what were you doing fighting that bear anyway?"

((()-()))

1925
Nome, Alaska

Kavik paused for breath, and Balto sat in the utter silence that pervaded the room. Most of them had thought Kavik to be just an ordinary dog in most respects. Sure, he had a little wolf in him, but what can you do? You are who you are. But now they knew different. Kavik's life so far sounded like the sort of thing you heard whispered about in corners and told to pups as bedtime stories; A legend, in other words.

Something had been nagging at Balto all through the story, something about Kavik's mother. He couldn't put his paw on it, but something about the description seemed so oddly familiar…He shook his head. Best to leave it be for now. He and Kavik could pursue it and the matter of Kemo's kinship with the two of them further when the time was right.

Kavik stretched, drank some water from a nearby bowl, and seemed on the verge of continuing when suddenly there was an abruptly startling 'thump' as something – or someone – collided with the now-closed door. (Nobody knew exactly who had done it, but almost all took it to simply be the wind afterwards.)

Kaltag moved forward and pushed open the door. A medium-sized golden dog of nondescript breed came shambling in. Taking in his wide, bloodshot brown eyes, jittery way of walking, and the quick way with which his head snapped around at every little noise, he looked to be the most frightened dog any of them had ever seen – and that included Star.

Balto, Jenna, Star, Kaltag, Angel, Tricksey, and Kavik all moved toward the dog, concern and puzzlement scrawled across all their faces. At their movements, the small dog shrank back, eyes wide with a convulsed cry of fear. He muttered incoherently with his paws covering his head as if to ward off a blow.

"Move back guys," Balto called, "give him some space."

After seeing he wasn't going to be ripped to pieces the small dog stood, eyes jumping from side to side, a small whine building in his throat. Finally, very slowly, Balto moved forward.

In his gentlest voice he said, "Hey…what's wrong? Are you hurt? Did something happen to you?"

For a moment, it didn't seem as though the stranger had heard him, then he muttered something Balto couldn't make out.

"What?" Balto asked, straining to hear.

"I…I…I…I asked…is…o-one of you n-named K-K-Kavik?" The message was louder this time, but so disjointed and stuttery it was almost impossible to understand.

"Yes…" Kavik said, taking a small step forward. "My name's Kavik…"

"I g-g-got-t a m-m-message for y-you." The dog said.

"Tell us your name." Jenna said, also in a gentle voice. "We won't hurt you., I promise."

"M-m-my name's A-Axel and I g-got a m-m-message for M-mr. K-Kavik over t-there." Axel replied, still like he was about to pass out.

"A message?" Kavik asked, puzzled. How could it be? They were all here…except. "Who's it from?" He asked, heart pounding. 'Please, let me be wrong, let me be wrong. Oh God in Heaven, let me be wrong!' he silently prayed, although his heart knew the answer even before Axel spoke.

"It's f-f-from a w-w-wolf n-named J-J-J-Juji." Axel replied, stutter now so bad you almost couldn't understand him. "H-he says f-for you t-to c-c-come and m-meet him at the e-edge of the F-F-Forest. N-no t-t-tricks. T-three of f-f-four can g-g-go w-with him, b-but n-no more."

"Why?" Kavik asked, heart beating wildly. "Why does he want to talk to me?"

"W-Wouldn't say. H-he said he just wants t-to talk." Axel said, starting to calm down now noticing that he was actually going to live to see another sunrise.

"…What happens if he says 'no'?" Jenna asked.

Axel shuddered violently before replying, his eyes bugging out slightly as he said, "I-if Kavik d-doesn't show up, t-then he'll k-kill the 12 pups on the b-boat…"

((()-()))

Author's Note:

Balto: OMG! I can't believe you're using my pups as an evil 'Juji bargaining-chip' plot device!

Jenna & Tricksey: (in UNISON) My poor babies! (CRY)

VTS63: Oh calm DOWN you dinosaur heads! I can't let anything happen to any of the pups because if I do, then it'd mess with my other stories…I think…I hope.

Kavik: That's it. I gonna' kick Juji's head into the ground!

Steele: Hey! No fair! I didn't get a big part in this chapter!

VTS63: No, but I DID spend three hours of my time DRAWING a highly detailed sketch of you so don't complain!

Oh. My. God. I'm SO evil! I can't believe I'm making you guys wait so long to find out what happens (not really; already posted next one)! As always, review or no updates! I'm serious! (Not really!) And a free Kavik plushie to whoever can get the closest to guessing the right answer about what Balto's familiar feeling about Kavik's mom is!