Forgive Thy Enemy

The Gray Wolf Pup

Steele.

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Steele was motionless on the ground under a tree. His blood stained the snow around him and he knew he probably would never leave that spot again. His vision was fading but he could still make out his attacker, a large, and angry, grizzly bear. Steele may have had endurance and skill when it came to mushing, but he put up a pitiful fight against the bear. It wasn't much for the bear to fend off his attacks anyway, but Steele was in no way a match for it. He closed his eyes one last time as he saw the bear lift up a paw, preparing to do the final deed to end Steele's life.

"This is where I end, where my entire life of accomplishment turns meaningless, I only regret that I could not apologize for my egotistical ways". Steele thought.

Almost impatient by the bear taking its time to kill him off, he opened one eye just in time to see the bear being fought off by... Something... His senses blinded by pain, he could not see, smell or hear very much of anything, but he made out a wolf-like animal, it was much smaller than Balto would have been, but for reasons he would never know, he perceived it as the very wolfdog that he has hated his entire life.

"Thank you... Balto" his last thoughts before slipping out of the conscious world. From this point in time, and on, Steele would learn that he had to put his ways behind him, and respect Balto for his deeds.

But it wasn't Balto, was it? No, Balto woke up right as Steele slipped into a dreamless sleep.

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Balto.

The clouds overhead looked like the bottom of an ocean. It was chilly, as always, but when the sun chose to peek through, it got hot. So it was another one of those days that would be freezing in the shade, and hot in sunlight.

"What a beautiful day" Balto said with a hint of sarcasm.

He got up to survey the horizon. Balto was awake early today; he went over and sat out on the front of his boat like he does every morning. He was looking and smelling into the distance, his powerful senses reaching the town, along the far coast and to the other side of the plain where it met dense forest. He wasn't smelling for just anything, but was honing his senses on Jenna.

Luckily his vision wasn't one of the things to use against him to show his age. His sense of vision and smell were just as good as they were when he was a young pup, and because of his half-wolf heritage he could use his nose to "see" things that his eyes can't. He "watched" as Jenna and Rosie walked from the store back home, he loved her scent, it was a scent he would not forget for all of eternity. His eyes closed and enjoyed the cool Alaskan air flow through his scruffy coat as he continued to sniff about.

Balto chuckled as he knew he no longer had to steal her scent from afar. He could actually go up and talk to her, and nuzzle her as they kissed, to feel her fur against his and not forgetting being able to take in her scent at point blank as it stuns him. He smiled, not believing how it was possible, how he accomplished something that made Jenna his mate, and lets not forget his six beautiful pups. His smile grew larger as he began to mentally plan his trip to Jenna when suddenly something foul hit his nose like a kick to the muzzle.

______

Steele.

The smell was faint, but for some reason to Balto it felt like Steele was hiding right behind his boat. Balto waddled over to investigate, but when he got there, Steele was nowhere to be found. Balto took another whiff of the air then realized that the scent was much farther away, towards the forest behind his boat.