River of Lost Bears (18 page)

“Then let Lusa have it.” Roots and grass were fine when a bear was starving, but forest prey was rich, and with five bears hunting together, it was easy to catch food before their bellies started to rumble. Toklo would save grass for when he had no choice.

Kallik splashed through the shallows toward him. Yakone was still plowing upstream, keeping abreast of Toklo despite the current. Toklo watched him, impressed. White bears were skillful swimmers. How come they couldn't walk through a wood without tripping? Of course, they must wonder why he swam so awkwardly when he could plunge so effortlessly through leafy undergrowth.

Kallik caught up with Toklo, her pelt glittering wet.

Toklo made room as she fell in beside him. “Are you cool now?”

“Yes, thanks.” Kallik glanced at Yakone. “But I don't know if he'll ever feel cold enough when he's not on the ice.” She pointed with her snout toward Chenoa and Lusa. The two she-bears had stopped chewing leaves and were scampering along the edge of the trees some way ahead. “I'm glad they get along so well,” she rumbled.

“Wow! A bear spirit!” Lusa stopped and pointed at an old pine. She huffed and hurried on, pointing to another.

“They're like littermates,” Toklo agreed warmly. The high spirits of the two younger bears made up for the dark cloud Yakone seemed to carry with him. The white bear had stopped complaining, but it was clear that he wasn't happy traveling inland.
Was
I
such a sore-paw when I was on the ice?

Kallik interrupted his thoughts. “Isn't it great to have friends traveling with us?”

“You mean Chenoa?”

“And Yakone.”

“Sure.” Toklo glanced at Kallik. Was she worried that he was still annoyed the white bear had joined them? “They're both great.” Yakone wasn't exactly fun, but he was easy to hunt with, loyal, and strong.

Kallik sighed. “I miss Ujurak. I know he's back where he belongs, but I wish he was still with us.”

Toklo grunted.
Back where he belongs.
Was it true that Ujurak had never been a
real
bear? That he came from the
stars
? Toklo's head buzzed, and he shoved the thought away.

“Look!” Lusa's excited bark sounded ahead. She was pointing to a flat-face pelt-den planted on the shore upstream.

Toklo bristled. Flat-face scent tinged the air. What if they were waiting inside the den with firesticks? He motioned Chenoa and Lusa toward the woods, where thick undergrowth spilled out.

As they scrambled up the bank, Toklo called to Yakone, “Flat-faces!”

Yakone waded from the river, shaking water from his pelt. He caught up with Toklo as the grizzly bear pushed through the thick bracken crowding the edge of the forest. “Is there any place
without
flat-faces?”

Chenoa was waiting with Kallik and Lusa underneath the pines. Her eyes were round with worry. “Did you see them?”

Toklo shook his head. The pelt-den fluttered in the breeze—he could see it through the trees—but there was no sign of flat-faces.

Lusa tasted the air. “I can't smell any.” Her eyes were bright. “But I
can
smell their food.”

Chenoa's pelt spiked. “Let's get out of here.”

Toklo shifted his paws uncertainly. The thick smell of flat-face treats was making his mouth water.

Lusa opened her mouth. “It smells delicious!” She began to creep nearer to the pelt-den. Toklo followed.

Behind them, Yakone growled. “Careful.”

Kallik shushed him. “Let them look.”

“Look?”
Lusa blinked. “Let's take it.”

“No!” Chenoa stiffened. “You remember what happened last time we tried to steal flat-face food.” She glared at Toklo.

Lusa blinked. “But I'm great at raiding flat-face dens. Just watch!” She charged forward, but Toklo caught her tail.

“Hold on.”

Lusa scowled at him.

“Let's see if there are any flat-faces in there.” He lifted his muzzle and roared. Then he peered at the den.

No flat-faces rushed out. No flicker of movement at all.

“Kallik, Yakone.” Toklo pointed his snout toward the trees. “Can you check for flat-face trails?” Kallik grunted, and they headed away.

Sniffing the ground, Toklo padded toward the shore. Lusa and Chenoa crept after him as he pushed through the thick bracken at the edge of the trees. The pelt-den was a few bearlengths away.

Lusa nosed in beside him. “Let me go first.”

“Lusa, be careful.” Chenoa's voice trembled.

“She's done this before,” Toklo reassured the black she-bear. “But we'll wait for Kallik and Yakone to report back.” As he spoke, fur swished through the undergrowth behind.

“We followed a flat-face trail,” Kallik hissed.

Yakone twitched his ears. “It was heading into the woods. It's quite stale. They left some time ago.”

“They'll be deep in the forest by now,” Lusa pleaded.

Toklo glanced at Kallik. “What do you think?” He licked his lips. The scent of flat-face food filled the air.

Kallik's nostrils twitched. “Let her try.”

Lusa huffed with excitement and darted from the bracken. Beside him, Toklo felt Chenoa stiffen as their friend galloped to the side of the den and, quick as a fox, slit open the pelt with her claws. She slid inside.

“She'll be okay,” Toklo promised Chenoa, praying it was true.

A few moments later, Lusa popped out, dragging a bundle. She hauled it back toward the trees.

“Let's get out of here!” Toklo nodded upstream and broke into a run. He veered past the pelt-den and raced beside the river. Behind him, he could hear pawsteps, and Lusa's bundle swishing against her legs.

As the river curved around a corner, Toklo slowed to a halt on a stretch of sandy shore. Yakone and Kallik slowed behind him, panting hot breath on his haunches. The pelt-den was hidden behind trees. Lusa dropped the bundle and ripped open the covering. Bright shapes tumbled out.

Chenoa approached them, nostrils twitching. “What prey is that?”

“Wait and see,” Lusa declared.

Toklo licked his lips, remembering the sweet and salty morsels Lusa had stolen from flat-face dens before.

Kallik clearly remembered, too. She padded toward Lusa, eyes bright with excitement. “What did you get?”

Lusa ripped open a bright red shape and scattered round, yellow flakes onto the shore. They looked like pale crispy leaves. Kallik grabbed one delicately between her teeth and passed it to Yakone. Lusa nosed a few flakes toward Chenoa. Toklo leaned forward and lapped up a tongueful, leaving plenty for Lusa. The salt tasted delicious on his tongue, and he crunched and swallowed the flakes eagerly.

Lusa was already ripping the shiny skin from another treat. She tasted it, snuffling with delight, then turned to another and began scooping out sweet-smelling goo.

Toklo's belly rumbled. Each new flavor tasted better than the last. He watched Yakone and Chenoa, guessing they'd never tasted flat-face food before, and huffed with pleasure as he saw their wary gazes light up.

“What's this?” Chenoa rolled a shiny cylinder beneath her paw.

Yakone sniffed it. “It doesn't smell like food.”

Toklo recognized the shape. “You have to open it. Like clams.”

Yakone pulled the cylinder away from Chenoa and examined it. “There's no place to get your claw in.”

Toklo reached for a stone. It slipped in his claws, and he curled them more firmly around it. Concentrating hard, he dragged it toward him. “Put the shiny clam down on the sand.”

As Yakone dropped the cylinder, Toklo hit it with the stone. The cylinder exploded, spraying hissing orange water over Yakone. Yakone jerked away, his pelt stained.

Kallik snorted with laughter and began lapping at Yakone's fur. “It's like honey,” she told him between licks. “You should taste it.”

Yakone growled, his pelt bristling on his shoulders. Pulling away, he stamped to the river's edge and plunged in. Toklo watched him go, feeling a stab of sympathy. No bear liked losing his dignity.

As the shiny litter fluttered down the beach, Chenoa sat back on her haunches. “That was delicious, Lusa! How did you learn how to find food like that?”

Lusa burped. “When I first left the Bear Bowl, flat-face food was all I could find.”

Toklo nudged her with his nose. “Gathering it was a good skill to learn.” He turned to Chenoa. “Lusa saved us from starving more than once by stealing flat-face food. Didn't she, Kallik?”

“Huh?” Kallik wasn't listening. She was watching Yakone rinse his pelt in the shallows.

Toklo followed her gaze. Was Kallik wondering whether they'd made the right decision about coming so far inland?
So far.
The thought of the long journey behind them sparked thoughts of home. Toklo stood up.
We should get moving.
They'd lingered too long.

“Come on.” Toklo jerked his nose upstream. “Let's go.”

Lusa scrambled to her paws and
headed off with Chenoa. Toklo watched them go, their heads bobbing as they chatted happily. “Are you coming?” he called over his shoulder.

Kallik was still watching Yakone. “I thought the food might cheer him up,” she sighed.

Before Toklo could answer, Lusa called back to them. “Hey, Kallik! Chenoa wants to know if flat-face food tastes better than seal.”

Kallik dragged her gaze from Yakone. Toklo nudged her forward. “Go with Lusa,” he murmured. “I'll wait for Yakone. He'll feel better once he's clean.”

Kallik dipped her head and hurried away.

Toklo met Yakone as he waded out. “Okay?”

Yakone grunted and headed along the shore. Toklo fell in beside him. They padded on in silence, Yakone swinging his head. Beside them, the forest began to rise. The grassy verge turned to rocks, then cliffs on either side. Soon, they were following the river through a deep gorge.

Toklo glanced at Yakone. His eyes were dark. “Didn't you like the flat-face food?” he ventured.

“It tasted good,” Yakone conceded. “But it's not bear food, is it? Can you imagine having to eat it every day?”

“Not every day,” Toklo commented. “But once in a while's fun.”

“Bears should eat prey they share territory with,” Yakone huffed. “That's why it's there. It's unnatural, eating flat-face rubbish.”

“I guess you miss seal and saltwater fish.” Toklo glanced at Yakone. “I used to miss woodland prey. So I know how you feel. Perhaps you'll be more used to it by the time we reach the end of our journey.”

Yakone swung his head around. “When will that be?”

“Chenoa's shown me the mountains on the horizon,” Toklo told him. “Once we're there, I just need to find a good place to mark out my territory.” He could imagine woodland, stretching like a pelt over the mountainside. He pictured marking boundaries beneath the trees. His heart quickened. It wouldn't be long now.

“What about Lusa?” Yakone pointed out. “Will we have to find her home, too?”

Toklo's pelt started to prick. “You didn't
have
to come—”

“No, I didn't,” Yakone growled. “Kallik and I had found our own home on the Melting Sea. But she insisted on coming with you. Did you think I'd let her travel by herself?”

“I'm glad you
did
come,” Toklo confessed. “It would have been hard on Kallik to come so far inland and then travel back to the ice alone. It means a lot to me and Lusa that you're traveling with her.”

Yakone looked at him. “Really?” He sounded surprised. Toklo studied him. Did Yakone think they didn't want him there?

“Yakone! Toklo!” Kallik trotted toward them. “Have you seen that?” She gestured upriver with her snout. Ahead of them, just visible around a curve in the gorge, a wall of water pounded down into the river, abruptly ending it.