River of Lost Bears (5 page)

“We?”

“Me and Lusa, Kallik, and Yakone. And Ujurak.” He stopped, the pain in his cheek suddenly numb as his mind swirled. He missed Ujurak. The young bear had left them moons ago, but his spirit was still traveling with them. He had been a special bear, like no other. When he'd been alive, he had changed into other creatures, shifting his shape to become whales or birds—whatever he wanted. And now he still visited in dreams and visions.

Toklo tugged his thoughts back to Chenoa. She was watching him with round eyes. “We've been to the Endless Ice, and now we're traveling home. Well, Lusa and I are going home. Kallik and Yakone are traveling with us till we get there.”

Chenoa gazed at him steadily. “Where is your home?”

“In the mountains. I was born there.”

Chenoa sat down. “You've really been to the Endless Ice?” Her words were hardly more than a breath. “Everyone's heard of it, but I never believed it existed.” She stared away through the trees. “I'd like to travel, far away from here. Perhaps if I wasn't around, Hakan wouldn't be so angry all the time.”

Toklo wasn't convinced. “Really?”

“I remind him of our mother.” Chenoa shrugged.

Toklo stared at the young bear. She looked more like a cub than a mother. “I've got to get back to my friends.” His pelt prickled. This wasn't his problem. He wanted to get home. “We need to move on.”

Chenoa jumped to her paws. “I could show you the way.”

“No, thanks.” Toklo turned away. “We're following the river.” He began clambering away over the mossy hummocks. “Don't let Hakan push you around,” he called over his shoulder. “It's a big territory. Stay out of his way.”

He broke into a run, bounding between the trees, his scratches stinging once more. The air tasted damp with dew, and the shadows were growing longer. Toklo bushed his fur out against the evening chill as he hurried from the trees. They'd have to move fast. He wanted to be clear of Hakan's territory before nightfall. There wasn't time for any distractions.

He crossed the sedge, climbed the rocks edging the pebbly beach, and paused. Below, Lusa was scampering around Kallik, the stones clattering beneath her paws. Toklo glanced over his shoulder. Had Chenoa followed him? He searched the shadows of the forest. Nothing moved among the trees.

Good.

He didn't have time to worry about other bears. Shaking out his fur, he jumped down onto the beach.

“Where have you been?” Kallik hurried
to meet Toklo as he landed on the pebbles. The scent of blood hit her nose. “What happened?” His cheek was scratched, and clumps stuck out of his fur. Kallik's pelt prickled with worry. “Did something
attack
you?” She glanced toward the forest. Were there more bears there?

“It was that black bear,” Toklo huffed.

Kallik blinked in surprise. The bear had acted tough when they'd met him earlier, but he must be crazy to attack a brown bear.

Lusa bounded over. “Are you okay, Toklo?”

Kallik shifted her paws. “He had a run-in with that black bear.”

“I had no choice.” Toklo's pelt was still ruffled. “He started it because I told him to stop bullying his sister. He nearly ripped her ear off.”

Lusa's eyes widened. “He attacked his sister?”

Yakone was dozing in the shade of the cave. He opened an eye. “What's going on?” His nose twitched. “Who's bleeding?”

“Toklo.” Kallik sniffed Toklo's stained ear. “He had a fight with that black bear.”

Yakone sat up. “So you
did
chase him off after all. I thought you—”

“He started it,” Toklo interrupted him.

Lusa paced in front of the cave. “Toklo was defending another bear.”

“His sister,” Toklo explained. “Hakan was angry with her for trying to leave his territory.”

Kallik bristled. “Surely she can go where she likes?”

Toklo frowned. “Chenoa's only one suncircle old. Hakan thinks she has to do what he says.”

Lusa dragged her claws through the pebbles. “I knew he was a bully the first time we saw him.”

Toklo turned away and gazed at the sky. “The sun's sinking,” he growled. “We should get moving.”

Kallik watched Toklo's pelt twitch. Was he uncertain about leaving? “We can stay if you're worried about Chenoa,” she offered.

Toklo's pelt twitched harder. “If Chenoa wants to leave, she can leave by herself. She doesn't need us.”

Kallik shifted on the pebbles uncertainly. It wasn't like Toklo to ignore a bear in trouble. “Why don't you go splash in the river before we leave? The water will cool your wounds.”

“I'm fine.” Toklo looked away.

“It'll just take a minute,” she urged. “You can wash Hakan's stench off.”

Growling under his breath, Toklo stalked into the river.

Lusa looked at Kallik. “Why's he so grumpy?” She watched Toklo as he stood stiffly in the water, waves washing his back.

“I'm not sure.” Kallik felt a wave of sympathy for the young brown bear. The call of home must be getting stronger now that he was surrounded by woodland scents. Was he torn between moving on and staying to help Chenoa? “Come on, slow-paw.” She dipped her head to Lusa. “Let's get moving.”

Yakone hauled himself to his paws as the sun slowly sank behind the distant treetops. Shadows slid across the shore. Kallik relished the chill. She padded across the beach and leaped onto the rocks. They were smooth, but her pads still stung. She was used to the numbing coldness of ice; without it, every scratch and blister stung like fire.

Lusa scrambled up the rocks after her. “Aren't we waiting for Toklo?”

“He'll catch up when he's ready.” Kallik glanced back. Toklo was on the beach, shaking water from his pelt.

Yakone fell in beside her, gazing at the tree line as they passed. “I can't wait till we get back to the ice.”

Kallik nudged him affectionately with her shoulder as they walked. “I'm looking forward to our first burn-sky together.”

“We can hunt for each other,” Yakone murmured. “And watch the sun climb over our heads.”

“Be careful where you walk,” Kallik cautioned. The stones were smooth, but there were still plenty of cracks and crevices to catch careless paws.

Yakone ignored her. He was busy planning their future. “When snow-sky comes, we can share an ice-den and stay warm.” His paws slid suddenly from under him and thumped against a rock.

Kallik saw pain cloud his gaze.

“Spirits help me!” Yakone sounded more angry than hurt. “How did you survive your journey to the Endless Ice? Terrain like this is enough to break a bear's claws.”

Lusa dodged ahead of them. “You'll get used to it.”

“So you keep saying.” Yakone rubbed grit from his pads. “I guess if you and Toklo can get used to ice, then I can get used to rocks.”

Lusa scampered around him. “You might even get used to having warm paws!”

“Warm paws?” Kallik chuffed, amused by Lusa's enthusiasm. “Never!”

The shore between forest and river grew narrower. Kallik let Yakone take the lead as the bears slipped into single file and began to thread their way around the jutting tree roots.

Kallik glanced over her shoulder. Toklo had almost caught up to them. As he fell in behind her, she heard him sniffing the air. “What are you looking for?” she asked.

“I don't want to stumble into another bear's territory,” he growled.

As Yakone picked up the pace, Kallik glanced into the forest. Shadows pressed between the trees. How could bears live in such darkness? She suddenly longed for the wide stretches of the Endless Ice.

Pink clouds streaked the sky and deepened to purple as the sun disappeared. Before long they were walking through nightfall. Kallik's unease grew with every pawstep. At least there was more room beside the water as the trees drew back from the shore, and the river widened and calmed. Toklo hardly spoke, his attention fixed on the forest. Yakone was stomping along, growling each time he stumbled or his paws slid on loose rocks.

Only Lusa moved with ease, but even she was quiet.

Kallik squinted, trying to see the way ahead. The shore was hidden in shadow, and stones jabbed her pads. “We should rest,” she suggested.

“Yes, please,” Yakone puffed.

Kallik's shoulders loosened. Weariness flooded her.

“I'll find shelter.” Toklo disappeared into the trees.

“I'm not sleeping in the forest!” Yakone called after him. “I can hardly breathe in there.”

Toklo stuck his head out. “We can't sleep on stones.”

Kallik felt tension spark between the two bears. They were both tired and sore, Toklo from his fight, Yakone from days of paw-slips on the rough terrain.

“What about here?” called Lusa.

Kallik felt a rush of relief as Lusa scrambled across the rocks and stopped beside a straggling juniper bush that spilled out from the tree line.

Gingerly the black bear climbed onto the low, springy branches. “It's soft!” she called.

Yakone lumbered over and scrambled in beside her. “It's spiky, but not bad.”

Toklo huffed wearily. “I guess we can sleep in the open.” He circled beside Lusa, then settled on the juniper.

Kallik nosed her way in beside Yakone. The twigs pricked her pads, but when she lay down, she found the mesh of tiny branches was dense and comfortable beneath her. She rested her head on her paws and closed her eyes.

“How's a bear meant to sleep with the river roaring like a herd of hungry caribou?” Yakone muttered.

Kallik kept her eyes shut. “You'll get used to it.”

“It'd be quieter if we'd found a den in the forest,” Toklo muttered.

“With trees creaking and cracking like they're about to snap?” Yakone snorted.

“The ice used to creak, too, remember?” Lusa replied.

Kallik grunted. Tiredness was making everyone bad-tempered. “Let's go to sleep. We're all tired.” Her bones ached. Of course it was strange for Yakone, but she wished he'd stop drawing attention to how alien this environment felt to him. She tried to recall how
she'd
felt when she'd first left the ice, but the journey to Great Bear Lake had seemed such a desperate fight for survival, she could hardly remember the sound of trees and water.

Trees and water.

Trees and fish.

Her thoughts became jumbled as she drifted into sleep.

Kallik was dreaming. She felt rock
, smooth beneath her paws, and saw forest sprouting beyond a craggy slope. A river tumbled past. She had been here before.

“I've caught it!”

She jerked around as Ujurak scooped a salmon from a river, hooking it into the air with a curled paw while the shallow water flowed around his legs. The salmon flapped madly. Ujurak's muzzle opened in surprise as his catch leaped from his paw back into the river.