At the shoreline, Muk and Luk kept splashing around in the shallow water, still under the impression that they were drowning. "We're drowning!" cried Muk, "Save us!"
Balto smiled with humor, while Qimmia crossed her arms and gave a smug look at the polar bears.
Boris frowned and called to the bears, "Bears! Fellas! Idiots! Balls of fluff!"
"Easy, Boris," said Balto, "You know how they are."
"Yeah, they don't know any better," added Qimmia.
Boris marched over to Muk and Luk, and Balto shouted to the polar bears, "Muk! Luk! Relax! Hey, come on! You're okay – you're not drowning!"
"You know that water is only an inch or two deep!" Qimmia added with a reassuring smile, "Just calm down, both of you!"
Muk and Luk stopped splashing and looked to see Boris looking at them. "They have points, bears!" said the snow goose, "Because if you were drowning, you would observe, perhaps." Then, Boris yelled angrily at them, "Tide is out!" Then, the snow goose waddled away.
As Boris moved on, Qimmia coaxed the polar bears, "He is right, Mukluk. To brave against drowning, the water would have to be at least three feet for you two! Seems to me like you two are getting in a little over your heads."
The two bears shuddered in fear at the Inuit girl's remark, but Qimmia smiled at them, "Not by water. It's an expression. Come on now!"
At that moment, Luk mumbled something to Muk.
Boris turned and asked, "He said what?"
"Oh, the shame of the polar bear who fears the water," Muk said as he moved an ice cube around in the water a bit, "No wonder why we are shamed by our fellow bear! Woe is us!"
Qimmia's smile dropped to sympathy at those words. "Balto and I know just how you feel," she sighed to herself.
"It's what he said," Muk finished to Boris, "Kind of pathetic, really."
Luk mumbled again, and Boris scoffed as he walked away with Balto and Qimmia, "What? More whimpering? Between Balto, Qimmia, and you, it's like Dustyesky novel around here! Lighten up!"
Later on, Balto and Qimmia were watching the sunset from their wrecked ship. "It's a beautiful sunset tonight, isn't it?" the Alaska Native girl sighed with content.
"Yeah," Balto grinned, "Beautiful." He then turned his attention to the skyline of Nome and thought about Jenna, the beautiful husky he had met earlier.
"What are you thinking about?" Qimmia asked him.
Before Balto could answer, Boris approached him and Qimmia. "And what is so interesting?" the goose asked the wolf-dog.
Balto sighed lovingly, "Jenna."
Qimmia sighed and started, "Balto, she…"
"It's love," Boris cut in to Balto, "So, go make move!" He turned to Qimmia and assured, "Qimmia, it is okay to let go of this fear of trusting others. Your furry friend is in love!"
"But, Boris, my people have taught me to be cautious," Qimmia said to the goose, "I've heard stories of my people getting kidnapped or even killed by the invading settlers!"
"Qimmia, you can't let yesterday use up too much of today and tomorrow," Boris said to her, "Look at Balto! He may have been raised by a wolf, but he's really taken on the dog's style quickly!" The snow goose grinned at the last few words.
Qimmia thought for a moment, and said, "Well… Balto has grown up quite a bit and learned to adapt. I've learned to adapt. Maybe change happens all the time?"
"Now we're talking!" Boris grinned before he turned back to Balto about his romantic dilemma, "When the angel's balalaika stums the sweet song of love, MAMBO!" He then did a little Latin-style dance at the last word.
Qimmia managed a small smile at the goose, and Balto said with disappointment, "I think Qimmia was right earlier. Jenna's not my type."
"This wolf business again," sighed Boris as he stopped dancing, "And what's wrong with being half-and-half, I'd like to know? Sometimes, I wish like crazy that I was half eagle!"
"Oh, Boris!" Qimmia chuckled.
"Why?" Balto asked with a smile.
"Better profile, for one thing," said Boris as he made a striking pose, "And no one eats you for another."
Qimmia then thought of something and smiled to Balto, "Balto, give me your paw."
"Why?" the wolf-dog asked with confusion.
"I want to show you something," the girl said, "I just remembered something my grandmother taught me when I was young." Balto held his paw up to Qimmia, and the girl gently held it. "Do you know what I see when I look at your paws?" she asked, "I see… strength of not one dog, but three or four; protection against deep snowdrifts; and the hand of a living creature. No matter what anyone says, we all have something that makes us unique, and lets us stand out from others. After all, it would be a boring world if everyone was all the same, wouldn't it?"
Balto chuckled, "Yes, it would."
"Now, you look at me," Qimmia said as she put the wolf-dog's paw down, "Do you think I'm a monster?"
"No!" Balto said, "You're very kind, and good, and…"
"And a human being like everyone else in Nome," Qimmia finished before she sighed, "So, maybe Steele and the white people in Nome are wrong about the both of us?"
"You know," said Boris, "The sun has just disappeared from the sky. Now's the time when most of the people of Nome are asleep! You think this would be a good time to find that dyevushka of yours, Balto?"
"As long as it's okay with Qimmia," said Balto before he asked his human friend, "You can trust me, right?"
"Of course," Qimmia nodded slowly, "But I'll come with you to keep you safe from any harm, okay?"
"It's a deal," Balto smiled with a wink.
