A gentle breeze from the slightly opened window in the cottage was chilly enough for Balto to wake up at around sunrise. It was still early, as the dawn was breaking out there and then again, he was the only one awake. His friends from Seppala's team were sleeping on one side of the room, Max cuddling Molly closely to him. His friends from Kaasan's team were sleeping on the other side of the room.
The entire night Balto was dreaming of Jenna and how the two of them had all the time in the world… and happiness. Aurora appeared only once, where she was seen talking to other females from Nome, including his friends here. From a ruggedy and bruised stray to an elegant house dog despite being half wolf like him. Still, Jenna was the one he focused on the most.
He missed her so much. It wasn't a lie that he missed the others in Nome, but he wanted to be with Jenna the most. Max had Molly by his side and it made him feel lonely when it came to love life. It wasn't the same being single like Audrey, Nikki, Kaltag and Star and at the same time, being apart from his love.
He felt like he wanted to find something to eat, even if Kaasan was still asleep. He got on all his fours and headed towards the cottage door, opening them with his head and breaking outside. The sun was just to the east, hardly over the horizon. He was not sure if any of the senior sled dogs were awake at the moment.
He took a walk by the river, noticing some kind of fish net on the pole and it was filled with fish that looked a lot like a salmon. However, he wasn't the only one there when he noticed a plump tan brown male husky sniffing the net and noticing it was Roger, Balto decided to talk to the senior sled dog down there.
"Good morning, Roger!" Balto greeted him, catching the tan dog off the guard. "Whoah! Hi, Balto! I didn't really expect someone would find me here… looking." He looked like he was hiding something from not just him, but anyone who'd come. The curiosity burned brightly in Balto's eyes when he asked: "What's going on in here?"
"I, uh… well, decided to get a salmon for breakfast, for me and Shanice and I… why don't you take one? You like fish, don't you?" Roger didn't know how to handle this so he compensated it with some sort of bribery. Thankfully, Balto told him: "Do I like it? I use to hunt them near Nome whenever I could! Well, the sea fish that is."
"Then try this one. You have no idea how tasty salmon is!" Roger tossed him one and held one for him and his mate. Balto caught the river fish with his jaws and under his fangs he could already feel how juicy it was. Roger told him: "Come on, let's get back to the street before someone spots us here! By the way, there's someone you should get to know in Kaltag."
"Huh?" Balto wasn't really sure what he meant by that, since he'd met each one of them last night and meeting someone else seemed… odd. Getting to the first houses, Roger let him know: "This dog is around your age and he… hold on, I hear Indiana waking up… and… wait here! I have a surprise for him!"
"Oh, okay. What are you doing?" Balto asked him when he noticed Roger dropping the salmon on the porch and then going a few steps behind, only to say: "Good morning, Indiana! It's a lovely day outside and there's a surprise for you in front of the doors!" Balto noticed the older husky chuckling for some reason.
"Gee, I really missed your surprises, Roger! I don't remember when it was the… GAAAAAHHHHHH!" Indiana was heard speaking, pushing the doors open with his sarcastic tone. However, as soon as he saw a salmon on the porch, he winced while shouting and back down, almost hitting the wall behind him. Balto found it funny how Indiana shouted, but no one was laughing as hard as Roger, almost crying from laughter.
"For the millionth time, Roger, it's not FUNNY!" Indiana growled, being pranked with something he disliked the most as a food - fish, especially his worst being salmon. Roger caught some breath to ask him: "Then why… am I… still laughing, Indy?!" Of course, he saw it coming when Indiana threw him back the fish, almost getting slapped by the salmon in mid-air.
"Oh, you brought Balto to see this, uh? I'm almost surprised you didn't bring my son and my daughter!" Indiana laid off his sarcasm sharply when he realized that there were others who knew about his strong dislike of fish. Speaking of the devil, Audrey was seen coming up and asking: "What's going on there? Who's yelling this early?"
"Nothing, Audrey. Roger was just up to his old antics again." Indiana didn't want his daughter to know, but when she saw Roger holding a salmon in his jaws, she was like: "Oh dad, are you still falling for this? What's the big deal with you and fish?" Indiana knew that he was losing his ground here so he spoke: "Oh, you wouldn't want to know anyways."
"Hey, Audrey, I suggest that you wake your brother and Molly up. There's someone you should meet." Roger let them know and Balto was certain that it wasn't just him who was going to meet that someone. Audrey didn't complain but did what was asked and in a few minutes, Max and Molly were awake.
"What's with this someone we're meeting, Roger? I mean, isn't it a bit too early?" Max asked him, still yawning and his eyes showing "bags" below them. Roger said: "He usually wakes up early, sometimes earlier than us. Come on, I'm taking you to see someone important." Addressing that mysterious canine as "he", they wondered about that male now.
"But what does that he, as you say, have to do with us?" Molly asked him, not being sure where this was all leading to. He didn't speak about it but carried on to the house on the other end of this small town. He approached the doors and leaned his ear to hear better. His face was saying more than enough that the host was at home.
"One second, you four." Roger let them know, scratching the doors and eventually he moved back. Then, the doors slightly opened, revealing a young male husky on the entrance. He was a red Siberian husky with a unique feature - heterochromea. His left eye was blue whereas his right eye was brown. The husky talked to Roger first: "Morning, Roger!"
"Good morning, Kane! I have brought you someone you better get to meet! If you will excuse me, I have to take this breakfast to my Shanice!" Roger clearly wanted to make sure that both the dogs from Nome and this young husky Kane get introduced by themselves so he could go back home and have breakfast.
"Hello, my name is Kane! And you are…?" Kane came closer to them. He was curious how among four of them one was oddly resembling a wolf. However, Max got it first: "My name is Max. This is my sister Audrey and our friend Molly!" The girls didn't mind that Max introduced them in his name to his red husky.
"And I am Balto." The wolf-dog had his chance to introduce himself and quite unexpectedly, Kane asked: "You are Balto? That same Balto who saved the town of Nome back at the beginning of the year?!" Kane was showing his excitement when he heard him correctly. Molly leaned closer to whisper to Balto: "Looks like you've got yourself a fan, Balto!"
"I am he. It seems that my name isn't known only on a local scale, huh?" Balto amusingly asked Kane, who couldn't stop showing how excited he was to meet the hero of Nome, even saying: "Are you kidding?! I've always wanted to meet you! A dog… or a wolf-dog, who has made a history! This is outstanding!"
"I know, I know. Well, My friends get to reunite with their parents and I meet a fan, how convenient." Balto couldn't really stop thinking how amusing this was. Three of his friends found their friends, other three of his friends hoped to be forgiven and then he had a fan! Kane then asked: "I noticed that you three resemble Indiana, Justin and Hallie, right? You must be their pups?"
"Oh yes, I'm the daughter of Justin and Hallie." Molly let him know why she resembled these two so much and even Audrey spoke in her brother's name: "We're Dakota and Indiana's pups. It seems that you've been living here for a good while?" Kane answered: "Oh yeah. I looked up to them and I was hoping to be a sled dog in their team."
"You're a sled dog?" Max asked, finding it fascinating how this red husky was a sled dog in this place. He also asked him: "Are you in my parents' team too?" Well, the first question was positive, but a second one: "I am a sled dog, but I have no team. I mean, I would be in their team, but that's not the case."
"Don't our parents like you?" Audrey was shocked to think that her parents would even think about this! Kane answered her: "No, your parents are fine. I mean, their entire team is fine, but it's their musher who doesn't trust me. He thinks I'm too young for a sled dog in his team so he doesn't want me in!"
"I'm sorry to hear that. If you were in Nome, I guess you'd be in one team by now." Balto wished that someone like him was among other canines at around his age. Speaking of Nome, Kane just said: "You know, now that you mentioned Nome, did you know that I will be your teammate on your way back home?"
"Huh? How?" Molly was surprised when she heard him say that. "Does that mean, one of us is staying here?" Balto even asked him: "Hold on, hold on, there are already seven of us in the team. I mean, no offense, but how do you expect you'll be with us?" Obviously, none of them were thinking the way Kane was.
"I have my own harness that can be attached to your sled! That makes you like what, seven of you plus me?" Kane calculated the number of his teammates. Balto asked him: "Well, that's a good idea. But why are you coming with us?" This may have been the possible reason why this entire journey was for.
"You see this place where I live? I live here with a human, but he's not my real owner. He's just looking after me until I am off to Nome with you. My humans moved there last summer, but in a travelling inconvenience, I ended up being stuck here in Kaltag." Kane explained to them, unintentionally sparkling the memory in Balto's mind.
"Wait a minute… Star told me about this back in August! He told me that a family of humans was moving to Nome with a dog… but we've never seen a dog and now…" As he was putting the pieces of puzzle altogether, he and his friends all looked at Kane, who smugly answered them: "Yes, I am that dog."
"I'll be. If that's so, then we are welcoming you in the team, Kane." Max was surprised by the outcome of this riddle. Still, he welcomed him in a proper fashion, with females and Balto following. He told them: "Thanks, you four. I have been waiting for someone from Nome to bring me back with my masters. I can't wait to see them again!" If anything, these four at least were going to offer him that pleasure.
Just then, Molly noticed her mother coming from behind and telling them: "Good morning, young ones! Oh, I see that you've met young Kane!" Hallie showed enthusiasm for them doing so and Kane politely spoke to her: "How did you sleep, Hallie?" A courtesy in this red husky was larger than he was, getting the answer: "Pretty good I have to say. Also, I just need to talk to Molly about something."
"What is it, mom?" Molly asked her, not sure why for. Hallie further explained: "Actually, this also concerns you two and your parents. I'm sorry, young Balto, but this is merely a family talk here." He didn't seem like he was feeling left out, even telling her: "I understand, Hallie. I will go see my other teammates."
"You can also take Kane with you so you boys get to know each other better! And of course… have him meet your other teammates." Hallie said, showing less enthusiasm for Nikki, Kaltag and Star. Kane followed Balto, eager to ask him anything while Balto patiently laid down the topics what to discuss.
"Now, let's go find your parents, your father… and also Roger and Shanice. This is something important!" Hallie led them to that cottage they had gathered around, with Molly asking her confusedly: "Mom? I don't get it, why are you acting so mysterious? Does this have to do anything with Balto?"
"Actually, it does. No, no, don't think we don't like him! We actually think he's a very kind, gentle and brave young wolf-dog, but there's something we noticed about him." Hallie made sure they weren't going to lose their minds upon saying that this had their wolf-dog friend in mind. Once they reached the straw-covered cottage, other dogs were inside, save for Roger and Shanice.
"You've made it, kids. When Roger and Shanice are done with their breakfast, we have something important to share with you." Justin spoke to them when Hallie laid down next to him, all while Dakota was talking to Indiana: "You just have to stop falling for that trick, Indy. It's become pretty redundant that you're still losing your mind over a fish!"
"Oh boy… do you remember how dad hates fish, uh Max?" Audrey was amused when she heard her mother mentioning her father's biggest bogey. Max almost lost control of his laughing in front of his parents, saying: "Oh, when don't I? I am sure that Balto and dad won't get along when it comes to that."
"Hey, we've made it! Sorry we're late!" Shanice walked to the cottage with Roger, which was a good opportunity to have this family gathering, even if the last two guests weren't related to the others. Roger asked them: "So, are we going to tell them? I mean, it's just a possibility, right?" The mystery of this meeting had these three wondering what was going on.
"Kids, do you wonder why I spoke about Balto? Have you ever connected the dots with his looks and him being half wolf?" Hallie asked them. Max, Audrey and Molly knew of Balto being a half wolf and his looks, but they couldn't put them in the context, at least not until Dakota spoke: "And you heard us mentioning Beringo yesterday?"
"Few times, more or less, why?" Max asked his mom. Then, she replied to him: "We think, after noticing some traits on him and his looks… that Beringo could be Balto's father." Clearly, this made them speechless, either because they weren't or were aware of this, but didn't think about it actively.
"Are you sure about this, mom? I mean, yeah, Beringo used to be gray furred, but Balto's fur is a mix of brown and gray!" Max didn't know how accurate her mother's thoughts could possibly be, but Indiana moved ahead: "But you do know that Beringo was in a love with a wolf and that day, when we found him… buried under snow and lifeless… that we were going to meet his puppies?"
"Only that we never met them… unless… Balto's fur color is oddly similar to Beringo's and Balto is a half-wolf… but wait, he's not the only one! Aurora! That's right! Aurora's fur is much closer to Beringo's looks! I got it!" Molly thought about these connections and then she had a memory of Beringo flashing in front of her eyes, followed by the one of Aurora.
"Aurora is Balto's sister and… it makes sense! These two are, as you say, possibly Beringo's pups?!" Audrey also connected to these dots, realizing that all this time, a female who resembled their puppyhood hero, lived among them and they didn't seem to acknowledge her familiar looks until after their parents brought him up in their discussions!
"Do you think you're going to tell him about this?" Roger asked them, even if he had the least knowledge about Beringo's secret mate, although he likely heard from his teammates from Beringo's post mortem. This was considered to be a test of credibility for these three. Whether they were going to tell him or not, this was between bad and worse.
"If we tell him, he will be crushed to find out that he and Aurora are the only known living members of the family! Don't you think he's suffered enough troubles in his life?!" The discussion between the three caught the steam when they had to decide whether to burden their wolf-dog friend with additional tragedies or not.
"But if we don't tell him, he could possibly find out one way and another and when he does, he could be upset that we were hiding all this from him!" Clearly this discussion wasn't dying down when they were out of the frying pan, into a boiling kettle, until Molly figured out: "I think we will tell him. Not now, but when the time is right. He should be in his prime, like us!"
Anyhow, if the theory of Beringo being Balto's father was proven to be true in the near future, then they could share this with Balto. Max looked at the senior dogs around the cottage and told them: "We've decided that we'll tell him when the time is right. I don't think it's a smart idea that we tell him the cruel truth now that he's having the best time in his life."
Everyone else in the cottage didn't seem to like the idea, but between bad and worse, they agreed with bad. Shanice let them know: "Just remember, don't let him know that we had this talk, at least not until he connects the dots himself, alright?" Bearing this painful and difficult burden was their duty, Max, Molly and Audrey feared the backlash that'd come from Balto!
"Yeah, though I had hoped we'd bury no secrets. Hey, I see him and Kane out there. Can we invite them inside now?" Max reluctantly agreed to keep this revelation secret and to keep it safe. Then, as the wolf dog and red furred husky were seen walking outside, Justin told him: "Now they may come in! I hope you get to meet young Kane better. He's a good pup."
"Of course, dad. Balto, Kane, you can come in now!" Molly answered her father, then invited her wolf-dog friend and a new friend to the cottage. Both of them knew their manners by greeting all those senior dogs once again and then Hallie asked: "So, did you get to know each other better while we were discussing here?"
"We did, Hallie. He told me about him having an older brother and sister who live in a distant town, in southern Alaska and how he misses them both. Then I told him about the Serum Run this year!" Balto let them know what these two were discussing earlier and even Kane told them: "Wait until I see my siblings again and tell them I got to meet the hero of Nome first!"
It was amusing to see a dog at their age to behave like the excited pup actually. However, Indiana had other things in mind, asking Balto: "We were just wondering, since we've heard from various humans about that Serum Run, that you could tell us about yourself, Balto. I mean, not just the Serum Run, but about yourself and your puppyhood, if you don't mind."
"Well, I don't see a problem here. Though, I don't really remember much of my puppyhood." Balto let them know where he was going to begin from and others seemed like they were fine with it so they let him speak: "My only memory from my early puppyhood was my mother, who had a white fur, as white as snow and her voice was warm… her eyes were golden and black."
While he was letting those precious memories flow back to him, this not only made senior sled dogs realize that Balto could very possibly be Beringo's son, but even Balto's peers, save for Kane, started seeing the truth by themselves! Balto carried on: "I was separated from her in a blizzard and I thought that I wasn't going to make it, but a Russian snow goose by the name Boris looked after me and I lived with him on the old boat outside Nome."
The mention of the blizzard and the old boat further ignited the memories of seniors, but no one said a thing when they were listening: "Boris was also taking care of two polar bear cubs by the name of Muk and Luk. When I was old enough, I went to the first time in town and met Nikki, Kaltag and Star, led by Steele, who was behind everything to make my life as miserable as possible. Thankfully, Max, Molly and one husky, Jenna, were by my side."
"I'm sorry if I interrupt, but is that same Jenna the daughter of Scottia and Koyuk?" Dakota tried to remember her classy friends who used to live in Nome. Balto only gazed at her in confusion when he heard those two names, but Max let her know: "That's her, mom! I still remember Scottia and Koyuk living in Nome until they moved away, leaving only Jenna in the town."
"One question, you said that my son, Molly and Jenna were by your side, but did you forget Audrey?" Indiana found it curious if omitting Audrey's name was an accident or not. Audrey sighed, looking down on the floor as the embarrassing memories were coming back to her and she even admitted: "No, dad, he didn't. I only became his friend back in January."
"Huh?" Indiana didn't understand how his daughter did this and why was she so late? He knew that she was a little bit uptight compared to her older brother. Did she simply not like him or…? Well, he got his answer: "I didn't get along well with Max, or even Molly, until the same time either. I did something pretty… something pretty regretful."
"What did you do, Audrey?" Dakota didn't like where this was heading to, but the truth had to surface. She admitted: "I was blinded by Steele's false honeyed words and… I admired him… at the cost of my relationship with Max, Molly and… even openly disliked Balto because of that… Steele!" She couldn't keep herself calm when she mentioned his name.
This made the senior dogs look at one another in disbelief, sigh in disappointment or even say something like: "She can't possibly be serious!" Yet she was, looking down in embarrassment, all while Max looked at her and looked as if he was going to say: "You know that some things can't be swept under a rug."
"Audrey, what you did by admiring Steele was just wrong. His father and the fathers of your other teammates did a pretty heinous thing to our late teammate and this felt like you were secretly supporting them in further gossiping! At least you've made a good thing by seeing what kind of mutt that Steele was, even if we didn't know him enough!" Indiana didn't hide his dislike for his former rivals or their offsprings.
"I know…" Audrey was facing the embarrassment after everything had been revealed. As for Balto, who wished he didn't have to relive those moments, just asked: "Is it alright if I move on? Well, the three of them were my only friends while I was living as a stray in Nome, shunned and hated by humans but one, Rosy, who's Jenna's human."
He let himself relive that memory when he first met Rosy and how she was genuinely sweet and kind to him compared to any other human at the time. Balto continued: "I wished to become a sled dog like your pups, but the musher shooed me away for being a half-wolf… all while your pups and Steele in the other team had that chance…
...but mine came with that Serum run. Jenna's human Rosy had fallen ill to diphtheria and if she was to be left on the mercy of that illness, I'd lose the only human who ever cared for me. I set off to find the medicine and the team, led by Steele. If it wasn't for Boris' words, Jenna keeping me warm and knowing that my wolf heritage is my strength… I'd have never returned to save the town and Rosy."
Kane silently muttered his admiration for the hero of Nome and how he could see him in his own paws doing so. Before anyone could ask, Balto moved on: "But Steele couldn't face the defeat and even violently attacked me, but for the first time I found out that Audrey had enough of Steele and attacked him as he attacked Max who was defending me."
"What do you mean, he attacked Max?" Dakota raised on her legs, having that motherly instinct ignited after hearing that her son was attacked! Max also raised on his legs and turned the side of the face where the bite marks were still visible, but to a lesser extent, explaining to his mom: "Do you see those bite marks, mom? Steele did that to me."
"Well, if I see that mutt with my own eyes, he's going to regret attacking you two boys!" Dakota growled, letting the anger out with a spit on the floor after hearing what happened to her son and his friend. No one wanted to say anything to Dakota, letting her calm down for a minute before she laid down. So did Max and thus, Balto could finish his story.
"Jenna was by my side while I was recovering. Soon enough, I realized that Jenna is the one I truly love and we have been together for months now! Some other things happened, like my sister Aurora returning back to Nome and me looking after her." Balto finished there. He didn't have to go to the details and he knew that it was pointless to do so.
"Your life sounds like a story, Balto. You even get to be in a relationship as a reward for the good ending in the story!" Roger found it funny how Balto's story could have been in any fable out there. Justin spoke: "Then again, you are the hero of Nome, aren't you? You now have a puppyhood friend whom you're dating, like Hallie and me or Dakota and Indiana."
"But dad, Balto isn't the only one among us to be in a relationship!" Molly amusingly told her father, which made him look at his daughter in surprise and ask: "Molly, are you saying that you have a boyfriend on your own?" It was everything or nothing in here and after making her decision, Molly went all in: "And he's here, with us… laying down next to me."
She darted with her green eyes at Max and now the two pairs of parents got on their legs, gasping in surprise and Hallie telling Dakota: "Do you hear that?! Our daughter and your son are dating one another?!" Whereas Indiana and Justin were heard saying: "This is just like us! We met our loves when we were puppies and now the legacy has carried on our pups!"
"Something tells me they're taking this pretty well." Kane was amused to see their reactions and he was actually right when Dakota said: "Congratulations to both of you! Max, you have no idea how proud I am at you!" As they were finally paying attention to their pups, save for Audrey, the latter leaned to Balto and asked: "Think I should be silent about my status?"
"Audrey, you will find your right male some day! Well, I figured out that you have no interest in my teammates." Balto amusingly asked her, knowing it was a complete baloney for her to choose them and even she replied: "Nah, there's too much Steele legacy left in them. If I were to be with one, I'd keep seeing him!" Some things just had to leave a mark.
"Well, we were going to tell you anyhow. We were also planning to have our date one of these nights by the river. Now that we know that you all live here, we were hoping that you're going to be fine with us dating." Max admitted to his and Molly's parents. Roger and Shanice were left out, being the only couple here not to be related with younger dogs.
"Why, certainly! If you truly love her, then I will not stand in your way, my son." Dakota showed that she was eager to see her son and Molly dating and even Justin spoke to his daughter: "Molly, my daughter, you and Max have been knowing each other ever since you were little and honestly, I was hoping that there was going to be something between you, one day, if you know what I mean."
"Oh dad, please!" Molly's face went red when her father was giving out the remarks. Indiana spoke: "Come on, Justin! We know a good place not far from town where you two can have your night. It helped us with moving on when he settled in Kaltag." This seemed like a great idea for Max and Molly, all while Balto and Audrey, as well as Kane, sat aside.
"I won't lie, this entire stay in Kaltag is now a path down the memory lane. I miss the old days." Audrey admitted to the boys. Balto noticed that as she was talking to Kane as well, she wasn't showing much interest in him. It was interesting how she and Balto just talked about her still being single. Maybe Kane wasn't the one for her?
"What do you say all about this, Audrey?" Indiana moved to talk to his daughter for a little bit as her brother was receiving his spotlight. She let him know: "Oh, I just told boys about how this entire talk brought me some good and some bad memories. I wish there were more of those good ones, dad."
"And I think I know what might help. Do you remember, when you were little, Beringo's friend Lewis?" Indiana reminded him, whereas Balto and Kane watched the father and daughter with interest. Audrey, as soon as she heard that name, heard a distinctive Scottish accent in her head and even asked: "Lewis? You mean, that grumpy shepherd?! What's with him?"
"Well, he's still back in this country called Nebraska, with his family. His master and our master have remained in contact and even have sent letters! It wouldn't be a proper letter if Lewis doesn't leave his paw print on the paper!" Indiana laughed when he remembered the days how that grumpy Scottish shepherd made their days in Nome.
"How grumpy was he?" Balto was curious to know, thinking how Beringo had a grumpy friend and Balto had a grumpy father figure. Audrey admitted to him: "Oh, if you have Boris and Lewis put in the same room at the same time, that'd have been a majestic battle to prove who's grumpier!" The senior dog, his daughter and two of her friends broke into laughter when they were imagining the exact same thing!
That same night, Max and Molly had their date, for the first time outside Nome or the outskirts of the same town. They had a lovely sight on the waterfalls of river Yukon just upstream of Kaltag. The northern lights were present on the other side of the river and as the two had their night out, their parents had given them their "blessing".
It wasn't really that night to become "the night of the nights". It was a wonderful date between the two puppyhood friends and with them returning to their past, including Audrey, this journey to a small town of Kaltag was just what they needed. The night of the nights, as they were talking about, was to happen when they were to return home.
For the next few days, as the three sled dogs had reconnected to their past, the other three were seeking forgiveness. In fact, Shanice was the first one to warm up to them even if she knew the extent of evil deeds of their fathers. It wasn't until soon enough that Hallie and Justin were the first ones to calm the tensions between the offsprings of their heated rivals and themselves. Roger followed very soon enough.
The morning before the team's departure to Nome, Dakota finally announced that she was willing to let go of her animosities and for the entire day, everyone else wondered if Indiana was going to do the same thing, being a hard nut regarding this decision. Lo and behold, at the evening of the same day, he was the final one to finally forgive these three.
The next morning, the team was ready to return to Nome. They were pretty early on their paws and the new addition was the place next to Balto. His harness was rearranged that he was standing in front of Star whereas the harness next to him belonged to Kane. These two were to have a co-joined place as lead dogs of a sled team.
"You know, I can't wait to return to my masters! They're very kind humans and I have been waiting for months to see them again, Balto. Think that I will be a sled dog like you are? Or will I get to meet some new friends in Nome?" Kane was excited as a little puppy who was about to get a new chew toy after being adopted.
"Take it easy, Kane! I'm sure that our musher already sees some potential in you to be a sled dog, you know? Oh, as for meeting friends, there are many other dogs in Nome, but they're going to likely be friends with you more than me." Balto let him know what was waiting for him once he arrived in the town of Nome.
"I don't get it. You're a hero of Nome, right? I mean, everyone in Nome likes you, don't they?" Kane didn't understand his words quite clearly. Balto sighed, not because Kane had some many questions, but because of his status as a hero, even he had some issues: "The humans do love me for what I have done, but when it comes to dogs, not every dog in Nome is my friend. Some still overlook what I've done for the town and are blinded with prejudices."
"So they still like that Steele dog, don't they?" Kane couldn't believe that a hero of Nome would be still viewed in a negative light for being a half-breed. Balto let him know: "They actually don't like him either, as far as I know. You have to know that no matter what you do for someone, you can't be a friend to everyone."
Kane took those words silently, but made his choice that he was going to be Balto's friend anyhow. Both of them looked behind them and saw the senior dogs bidding their farewells to the others. Shanice spoke to the ones behind Balto: "You know, I hardly knew your fathers, but you three aren't that bad actually. I think that you could have been the most famous in the team actually, Kaltag."
"Yeah, I thought of the same, but I guess… I guess I wasn't that fortunate." Kaltag spoke, feeling positively anxious around the blonde female. Roger spoke to them: "In the end, I can imagine that the most evil thing you can pull off is steal someone's breakfast!" He found it funny how out of all bad things that came to his mind, it was related to food.
"Oh yeah, that's definitely the most evil thing we ever did!" Star anxiously spoke, trying not to spill beans on other things they had done. Nikki remained silent all because he had no idea what he was going to tell them. Besides, the focus was more on the dogs behind Kane, whose parents were treating their pups better while bidding them farewell. Bittersweet, but at least hopeful.
"Molly, we want you and Max the best in the future if you two ever settle down. We will miss you so much!" Justin spoke to his only daughter, possibly the only pup he got to see after the adoption, clearly indicating that none of three brothers of Molly's, or his sons, weren't living in Kaltag. Molly whispered: "I'm going to miss you two, mom, dad…!"
"At least we've got to see you again, sweetie. I hope that someday soon we'll get to see you in Nome!" Hallie was hopeful, since both her and her mate knew that she was the only pup from their litter to live in Nome. Even if their master's reputation was unfairly tarnished over Beringo's passing, nothing stood in their way to come to Nome one more time. Molly even told her: "Mom, we will see each other again! This isn't the last time!"
As for Max and Audrey, both of them had their group farewell from their parents. Indiana was talking to his daughter whereas Dakota was speaking to her son. Indiana was speaking: "Audrey, one day you will have a chance like your brother! And I am glad that both you and your brother have worked things out after all those troubling times."
"Dad, there will be a male for me one day, trust me! As for Max, I've made up to him for everything I've done to him and others. We will miss you." Audrey wished she could have spent some more with her parents, but even the good things had to come to the end. Dakota was trying to keep her tears behind when she was bidding her farewell.
"Max, my boy, I wish you and your friends and sister could stay another day with us, but again, we'll have to let you go." Dakota spoke, letting all those feelings flow through her veins. Max nuzzled his mother and assured her: "Mom, it isn't like the last time we're seeing one another! Besides, should we see each other again sometime soon, there could be a great surprise for you and dad!"
By surprise, she was possibly aware what he meant and she didn't bother in raising the dust here, letting the weak smile spread all over her face. Just then, Kaasan was ready to move on, but not before talking to Nash and his wife: "Peter, it was wonderful to spend here in Kaltag with you after so many times, but the duty is now calling me back to Nome! And Marjorie, thank you for your warm welcome!"
"Don't mention it, Gunnar. My Peter was talking about many great things you did in Nome." Marjorie didn't hide her good opinions towards Kaasan and even Nash let him know: "Gunnar, one day I hope to return to Nome, as long as my dogs are capable. That way I will see the town I had a successful career again… before I lost Beringo."
That way Nash could return to Nome and also visit the resting place of his most beloved sled dog. Kaasan shook hands with Marjorie and Nash and before taking the control of a sled, told them: "Peter, I know that you will come one day. I wish you and you too, Marjorie, luck in the future!" They were both thanking him before they moved on with their everyday duties.
"Before you leave, I just want to say… Kane, we wish you luck when you're reunited with your owners in Nome and Balto, give us our tribute to Beringo on his resting place and give Jenna many good wishes from us!" Indiana spoke in the name of all his teammates and friends, knowing that leaving Balto and Kane out was not their intention.
"Indiana, thank you! Roger, Shanice, Justin, Hallie, Dakota, I am thankful for your hospitality in Kaltag! We hope that we'll all meet again someday!" Balto spoke on the behalf of his team, whereas Kane decided not to say anything. He was thinking how his talk would not fit in as the only true lead dog here was Balto, not him.
"So do we, young Balto, so do we!" Shanice had spoken, being the first senior dog in Kaltag to speak to him and now the very last one because Gunnar yelled: "Alright, team! The journey to Nome is ahead of us! We are going to make sure we get home by the nightfall so… MUSH!"
Having a good grip of the leather harnesses in his hands, Kaasan and his team were ready to move! Max, Audrey and Molly, as the others, bid their farewells to their parents, Roger and Shanice before they moved to the west, waiting to see their hometown again after being absent for almost a week. At last Balto was going to see Jenna tonight and share a warm bed with her once he'd reach the post office of Nome and see Jenna coming to him!