FSE

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Bridget and Colin were being told by their parents to clean their rooms. When they had finished, they went back to the round room with the pink walls. Previously, they had put together a puzzle shaped like a star, which sent them to the desert where they became anthropomorphic coyotes and befriended another anthropomorphic coyote named Silver, who had assisted them in getting back home.

"Well, now that we are finished with cleaning our rooms, we can put together that puzzle again!" said Bridget.

"Yeah, maybe we can help Silver with cleaning his den!" said Colin.

"How messy do you think a coyote's den is?" laughed Bridget.

"I don't know, maybe he has lots of toys like we do!" said Colin.

"But maybe they are all chew toys!" laughed Bridget.

"And he probably has tons of bones all over the place!" laughed Colin.

Bridget reached under the couch and pulled out a blank white box. She emptied its contents onto the floor. Yellow puzzle pieces showered onto the floor.

"Now, wait, Colin," said Bridget, "remember, in order to get back to our house we have to find some sort of star. It might not be the same star we found. The desert only has so many things shaped like stars!"

"I'll be careful if you will," said Colin, slightly annoyed.

"Well, I promise to be careful. Do you promise?"

"Yes."

"Okay then! Let's put together this puzzle!"

The two began putting the puzzle together, piece by piece.

"You put in the last piece of the puzzle this time," said Bridget.

"Okay!" said Colin brightly as he put the final piece in.

The puzzle shone bright from the center and the shining eventually stretched to the entire star. Green stars projected from the puzzle onto the ceiling. Then a dial with all the colors of the rainbow appeared between the puzzle and the ceiling. The dial spun quickly and the arrow landed on a white tile. Then Bridget and Colin disappeared in a flash of white light!

"Hey, look, a Husky," said Bridget and Colin at the same time as they viewed each other. Then they both gasped. They were half wolf-half Husky hybrids, and they were standing on all fours this time!

"This is still probably going to take some getting used to," said Bridget.

"Wait," said Colin, "where's Silver?"

The two looked around. They were in a very small town in what appeared to be a constant snowfall.

"Where's anything?!" shouted Bridget, "This isn't the desert, we aren't coyotes, and I don't know where we are!"

"I think I know where we are!" beamed Colin.

"Really?" replied Bridget, "Where?"

"This town looks like the one in the movie Balto!" said Colin.

"Don't we own that movie?" asked Bridget.

"Yeah, the DVD is in the den downstairs!"

"So do you think Balto will help us get back home this time?" said Bridget, "I'd like to meet him!"

"I would, too!" said Colin, "Let's go see if we can find the abandoned boat that he lives in!"

"But where is it?" asked Bridget, "You have seen the movie more times than I have."

"I think it's far away from the town, somewhere on the shoreline!"

"Then let's go!"

Walking on four legs certainly was a challenge. After several attempts, they managed to be able to run. They ran through the streets of the town and managed to make it to the land that lied beyond it. In plain view was a shoreline, and the boat was a tiny speck in the distance. It looked like a rock in a blanket of fresh white snow.

"That was fun, running around like that!" beamed Bridget.

"Yeah!" said Colin, "Race ya to the boat!"

"You're on!"

The two ran through the snow, laughing as the cold wet snow tickled their paws.

Finally, they reached the boat. An orange-furred Alaskan Malamute poked her head from out of one of the windows.

"It's Jenna!" said Colin.

"How do you know my name?" replied Jenna.

Colin had to come up with something fast. If he revealed to everyone there that this world was a fantasy world that existed inside a video tape, the residents might think that he was insane. He couldn't tell Jenna that she was a fictional character. But what could he come up with? Then he remembered that Balto was famous. Maybe if he could somehow connect his way of figuring out her name with Balto?

"I...uh...we asked around town if we could find Balto, and the dogs all told us that he would be easy to find if we could find an orange Malamute named Jenna."

"Well," said Jenna kindly, "you have sniffed out the right dog. But it looks like you two have traveled a long way. If you pups are hungry we have plenty of bones here. Would you like some?"

Bridget and Colin agreed. After Jenna had invited them in and they had eaten their fill, Jenna asked, "Is there anything else I can do for you?"

It was now or never. Colin knew that he had to tell her the truth. If he didn't, he and Bridget would never get back home.

"Well," began Colin, "We need to get back home. But you see, we're actually humans that got turned into wolf dogs and our home is thousands of miles away from here! We need to find some sort of thing that is shaped like a star to transport us back home!"

"You poor things must be delirious from the cold!" gasped Jenna.

"No," said Bridget, "he's telling the truth!"

"Well," said Jenna, "I don't know if I believe you or not yet, but I certainly don't know where such a star could be found."

Then Colin decided to change the subject.

"Where is Balto?" he asked.

"He told me he was going out with Boris to meet with Star, Kaltag and Nikki," said Jenna, "They were going to throw a party for him to congratulate him on his success delivering medicine to the children suffering from diptheria. But I'm just spending time here. I need to get back to Rosie soon, but I'll stay with you here until Balto and Boris come back."

"Did someone say my name?" asked Balto playfully as he climbed the plank to the boat.

"Did someone say my name?" remarked Boris, "Did someone say my name?! Look at yourself! You may have saved lives but you are being more cocky than my uncle Barishnakov back in old country! You speak that way to females and next day they serve you undercooked borscht!"

"Be nice, Boris," said Jenna, "Hello, Balto. Welcome back."

"Jenna..." muttered Balto with a grin on his face.

"I have a job for you. These two pups are wolf dogs like yourself. Except they are actually human children that need to find their way back home. They got turned into wolf dogs in an unfortunate event that also sent them thousands of miles away from their house. They need to find some sort of star shaped object that will transport them home. I know you have a good heart, Balto. Go find them the star. Can you promise me that you'll do this?"

"I will. Anything to help kids in need!"

"Good. I'm leaving now. Rosie's waiting for me. Help those kids get back home."

With that, Jenna left the boat. Colin and Bridget stared at Balto, transfixed.

"Hi," said Balto, "You guys seem lost. Jenna said you need help finding a star. I know a place where there is one. But first I need to eat."

"There's plenty of bones left over," said Colin.

"Great," said Balto, "I'm starving! That party had meat, but it was rotten. Nobody touched it."

Balto began to chew on the bones.

"Are you going to just stuff your face or talk to them?" snapped Boris, "You are noshing down those bones faster than family on Maslenitsa, stuffing their faces full of blini crumbs like wild pigs!"

"Well, I was raised by wolves," said Balto through a mouthful of marrow.

"Oy," sighed Boris, "Dogs...no table manners..."

A few minutes passed. Boris was outside. Feeling cold, he decided to poke his head in the boat to tell Balto to get a move on. Balto was sharing bones with the two pups.

"And then," said Balto, "that's when I saw her. I think...no...I know it was my mother! I howled with her and somehow that gave me the strength I needed to haul that medicine back up the cliff that I fell down!"

"Wow!" said Bridget, "That's amazing! Did you make it?"

"Well yes," said Balto, "but I had a very difficult time. It was a long climb. But I kept thinking of Rosie. And Jenna. And my wolf heritage."

Boris smiled and went back outside to keep the three at peace.

"Dogs. Bad table manners, but hearts of gold...unless their name is Steele..."

Boris laughed at his little joke. But he wasn't laughing for long. For standing in front of him was a burly black and white male Husky. His eyes burned with revenge.

"S...S...S...Steele!" cried Boris, "I...uh...I was just...talking about how you...are...so...nice?" he squeaked.

"Save the smooth talk for later, goose boy," snarled Steele. Steele put his paws down hard on Boris's wings, pinning him to the ground.

"Now," began Steele, "do as I say, or I'll get to feel my fangs bite down on your soft tender neck. You're going to help me become famous again."

TO BE CONTINUED