Before Shesh could answer, angry snarls erupted behind him.
An old male swiped a paw at a younger bear. “You know nothing about where to hunt!”
“I know better than you!” the young bear snapped back. “Only a cloud-brain thinks that pine forests are good for hunting.”
“The prey is rich there.”
“But what bear can run through such thick forest?”
“You must be clumsy!”
“Any bear is clumsy compared with a deer.”
The two bears glared angrily at each other.
Toklo looked around for Oogrook. The wise old bear could put a stop to the argument before it turned nasty.
But Oogrook wasn’t here.
Toklo lifted his muzzle. “All forest is good for hunting. We should thank Arcturus for the prey it brings us.”
Shesh nodded. “Toklo’s right, Tuari.” He caught the young male’s eye before glancing at the older bear. “Holata, you should be teaching Tuari instead of arguing with him.”
Holata dropped onto all fours, grunting. “It’s impossible to teach a young bear anything.” His gaze flashed to Toklo. “They think they know everything already.”
“And you don’t?” Tuari sank grumpily onto his front paws.
The other bears shifted around them, pelts twitching uneasily.
“Where’s Oogrook?” Toklo asked.
Shesh looked down at his paws. “Oogrook died.”
Toklo blinked. “How?”
Shesh shrugged. “He was old. He didn’t wake up from his long sleep.”
Toklo didn’t want to believe it. He wanted to tell Oogrook about his journey. The old bear would understand how brave he’d been, how much he’d lost, and how much he’d achieved. With Ujurak, Kallik, and Lusa, Toklo had brought the spirits back so the wild would be safe. He’d helped Ujurak return to his home among the stars. Oogrook would have realized that he’d been right to put his faith in the young cub who had swum to Pawprint Island and carried a salmon back to shore.
Sadness pierced Toklo’s belly. “Are you sure he’s dead?”
“Wenona saw his body. She lives in the territory beside his.” Shesh beckoned Toklo with a jerk of his muzzle. “Come, we have laid a tribute to him.”
Toklo followed Shesh through the bears. They stopped near the spot at the lake’s edge where Oogrook used to sit. Water lapped at a small pile of rocks and sticks, placed there deliberately. “His spirit runs with the currents now,” Shesh murmured.
As Toklo stared at the ripples, he heard a friendly growl. “Are you the bear who swam to Pawprint Island?”
Tuari had followed them to the pile of stones. Two cubs peered from behind his wide haunches; they looked so similar that Toklo guessed they were denmates.
“He can’t be! He’s too young!” the she-cub huffed.
“That’s what made it so special,” her brother chuffed.
“Elki! Elsu! Be quiet!” Holata lumbered over and scolded the cubs.
“We’re only talking to Toklo!” protested the she-cub.
“They’re not bothering me—” Toklo began.
Holata cut him off. “Come away,” he snapped. Elki and Elsu trotted obediently over to him.
Tuari stayed where he was, gazing at Toklo. “You made the fish come back!”
A she-bear hurried closer. “That’s what I heard, too! You made Arcturus send them back to the rivers and the lakes.”
More bears gathered around him. Toklo’s pelt twitched self-consciously as they stared at him.
“Thanks to you, I’ve had a full belly since last fishleap!” Tuari barked.
Toklo backed toward the water, his hindpaw grazing Oogrook’s memorial of sticks and stones.
“Don’t be shy.” Shesh nudged his shoulder. “We’re grateful to you. You were a brave cub.”
Toklo was proud, but the gaze of so many bears felt hotter than the burn-sky sun. “I was happy I could do it,” he mumbled. “I just wanted to help—” His voice trailed away as he caught sight of a huge brown bear with glossy fur the color of bark. Toklo recognized him at once, and his heart sank.
“You wanted to prove you were better than anyone else!” Hattack snarled, his black eyes glittering with dislike. “I was going to swim to the island, but you butted in before I could offer.”
“That’s not true!” Toklo growled. Hattack had claimed he couldn’t swim to Pawprint Island because he had cramps in his legs. He’d been the bears’ strongest swimmer, but he’d let Toklo take his place.
A she-bear pushed in beside Hattack and glared at Toklo. “You came to show off at the last gathering, and now you’re here to show off again!”
“He’s not showing off, Wenona!” Tuari objected.
Anger surged through Toklo’s pelt. Why would he show off? He’d been scared half to death on the swim to Pawprint Island, and he hadn’t asked anyone to thank him for it now.
He felt Shesh shift beside him. “It’s too hot to argue. Let’s hunt instead.” The old bear nodded toward the trees. “We can find out if Holata is right about pine forests being the best place for prey.”
Holata snapped his head around as he heard his name. He narrowed his eyes warily.
Toklo didn’t like the tension that swirled around the gathering, as stifling as the hot wind whisking down from the hills. Oogrook should be here. He guessed that more than one of the bears was silently hoping to take the old leader’s place.
He said out loud, “That’s a good idea, Shesh. Let’s hunt.” Chasing prey might ease the bears’ hunger—for food and for leadership. At least it would take their minds off it for a while.
Toklo let Hattack, Holata, and Wenona take the lead, and walked between Shesh and Tuari as they climbed the shore and pushed their way into the ferns. Coolness swept over his pelt as he padded beneath the pines.
“Holata!” A young bear’s call sounded from behind. Elki and Elsu were scrambling through the ferns, their eyes shining with excitement.
“Go back to your mother!” Holata snapped. “We’re busy.”
“But you promised you’d teach us to hunt when we reached the lake!” Elsu protested.
Elki pushed past him and gazed at her father in dismay. “You said as soon as we reached the lake.”
“I said go back!” Holata sounded frustrated.
Hattack stopped. “Let them come! You can teach them how to catch rabbits while we catch some real prey.”
Holata scowled. “Go back to Muna!” he told the cubs.
Their eyes clouded with disappointment. Swapping glances, they turned and trudged back to the shore.
Shesh sighed. “If Hattack and Wenona weren’t trying to make this a competition, Holata would have let them come,” he murmured.
“Holata can teach his cubs to hunt anytime.” Tuari shrugged and followed Hattack deeper into the forest.
Toklo swallowed back a growl. “I wish Oogrook was here,” he grunted.
Shesh walked beside him. “Things change, Toklo.”
Toklo thought he’d seen enough change over the past suncircle to last his whole lifetime. He’d found friends and lost them. He’d hardly slept in the same den for more than a few nights. For once, I’d like everything to stay the same!
Ahead, the swish of ferns caught his eye. A red pelt flashed between the trees. Deer!
Wenona must have seen it, too. She charged forward, Hattack at her heels. Toklo watched them barge through the undergrowth, each struggling to get ahead. Hattack swerved into Wenona, sending the she-bear off balance. Wenona barked with anger and pushed back. The deer sprang over a fallen tree and pelted away. The two bears thundered after it, shoulder to shoulder. Toklo winced. Couldn’t they see the trees narrowing ahead of them? With a thump, Hattack’s flank hit a trunk. Needles showered down as he stumbled and fell. Reaching out, he caught Wenona’s hind leg with his front paw. Wenona lost her footing and tumbled over. Just in front of them, the deer disappeared through a swathe of brambles.
Toklo felt
a rush of frustration. The bears would do better if they worked together instead of competing.
Shesh grunted. “Perhaps we should hunt alone.”
“Is that how it’s going to be?” Toklo grumbled. “Each bear hunting alone because we can’t cooperate without a leader?”
“Once in a suncircle, we share territory with each other,” Shesh reminded him. “The spirits don’t ask any more than that.”
“Why not?” Toklo thought of his long journey with Lusa, Kallik, and Yakone. They would never have survived alone.
Toklo caught the sound of running water and headed toward it, relieved to have an excuse to be by himself. “I’m going to get a drink,” he told Shesh. “I’ll catch up to you.”
“No rush.” Shesh started to amble after the others. “By the time Wenona and Hattack have crashed into every tree in the forest,” he called over his shoulder, “there will be nothing left to hunt.”
Toklo followed a stale deer track through a thick patch of ferns, sniffing for the scent of a stream. As he smelled it, earthy and fresh, his thirst seemed to grow. Hurrying closer, he nearly tumbled into the narrow channel that opened in front of him. He dipped his snout into the cool water and drank deeply.
Pawsteps sounded upslope. He looked up and saw Hattack heading toward him. Toklo stiffened. “What are you doing here?” he growled.
Hattack sniffed. “I’ll never catch anything with that great lump, Wenona,” he grumbled. “So I thought I’d join you. You look like you know how to hunt.” His gaze flickered over Toklo’s well-muscled shoulders.
Toklo shook the water from his muzzle. Why was Hattack being friendly now? Did he just want a hunting partner?
“Let’s try this way.” Hattack nodded toward a patch of woodland where the trees opened up enough to let a little sunlight through. The undergrowth was lusher there. “Where there are good leaves, there’s good prey.”
“I promised Shesh I’d catch up to him,” Toklo protested.
“You don’t want to hunt with him,” Hattack snorted. “He’s so old, he’ll have you doing all the running.”
I don’t mind. Before Toklo could argue, Hattack headed between the trees.
“Come on,” the other grizzly called. “Unless you’re scared that you’re not good enough to hunt with me?”
Toklo lifted his chin, annoyed with Hattack for challenging him, and annoyed with himself for being so easily goaded. Reluctantly he followed the other brown bear through the forest.
“Look!” Toklo saw a pale pelt race along the ground. “A weasel.”
“A weasel!” Hattack snorted. “We’re taking something better than that back to the shore.” He marched on, ignoring the rustle of leaves as the weasel disappeared into a patch of ferns.
Toklo followed, slowing expectantly each time he heard the call of a grouse or scented a raccoon. But Hattack seemed determined to lead them deeper and deeper into the forest, until the glimmer of the lake disappeared behind them and the pines closed around them. Toklo slowed, his paws growing heavy with apprehension. Was Hattack even looking for prey? Why was he leading them so far away from the others?
“Hattack,” he ventured. “We should head back. I don’t think there’ll be much deer here.” He could see spruce and birch among the trees ahead. “Besides, I think we’re getting near the black bears’ territory.”
Hattack turned, his gaze suddenly malicious.
Toklo tensed. Had Hattack led him here to fight? “We’re supposed to be hunting.” He held his ground as Hattack walked slowly toward him. Hattack had grown since the last gathering. Muscles bulked out his flanks, and the scars on his nose showed that he was used to fighting. “Come on,” Toklo reasoned. “Let’s head back and find a deer.”
Hattack narrowed his eyes. “You think you can just come here and proclaim yourself leader of the bears?” Anger rumbled in his growl.
“I haven’t!” Toklo shifted his paws, flustered. “That’s not why I came!”
But Hattack wasn’t listening. “Reminding everyone that it was you who swam to the island and caught the salmon.” He stopped a muzzle-length from Toklo. His eyes bored into Toklo’s, and his meaty breath bathed Toklo’s snout.
Toklo fought back anger. “I came to honor the spirits, and meet with brown bears, just like you did.”
“Really? Is that because you’re so devoted to your ancestors?” Hattack sneered. “And so loyal to your own kind?”
“Of course I am!” Toklo snapped.
“So why have you been living with black bears and white bears?” Hattack pushed past him, striding away through the undergrowth. He called over his shoulder, “Who wants a leader who prefers bears who live on ice or hide up trees? I’ll make sure everyone knows who you really are.”
Toklo stared after him. His paws were shaking, half with shock, half with rage. He’d only been here for one day and he’d already made an enemy! Why did Hattack assume he wanted to be leader of the brown bears? That wasn’t his plan! That wasn’t his plan at all!
CHAPTER THREE
Kallik
Kallik followed Yakone along the ridge above the water, feeling the sunshine burn into her pelt. She couldn’t wait to get to the lake and drench herself.
Yakone paused and looked over his shoulder. “Are you okay?”
“Yes.” Kallik realized she’d been lagging behind. She trotted to catch up. “I’m fine.”
Yakone tipped his head to one side. “Are you worried about leaving Toklo and Lusa?”
Kallik blinked. “Will we ever see them again?” The thought had been nagging in her belly like homesickness.
“Of course.” Yakone turned to head down onto softer ground. Around them, stunted bushes and spiky grass covered the sandy earth. They were nearing the shoreline, where white bears lay in the shade of a stand of pines.
“Lusa and Toklo would never leave you without a proper good-bye,” Yakone murmured, his flank brushing hers.
Kallik hoped it was true. The brown bears looked small from here. Would they allow a white bear to wander onto their stretch of shore? She couldn’t see Toklo among the others, and by now Lusa would be lost in the shelter of the forest with the other black bears.
They slithered down a steep slope and crossed a marshy pool. Muddy water sloshed around Kallik’s legs. Instinctively she glanced at Yakone’s injured paw. The wound from the flat-face trap, which had ripped away two of his toes, had healed now, but the scar was still delicate.
Yakone caught her eye. “It’s not hurting,” he grunted, reading her thoughts.
“I just like to make sure you’re okay.”
He splashed water at her playfully. “I can look after myself, you know.”
Kallik lifted her muzzle. “Of course you can. But you like that I care.” As she climbed onto harder ground, she felt her spirits lift. They were finally here! Which familiar faces would they see? Anticipation sparked beneath her pelt, and she quickened her pace.
Their path took them close to a strange flat-face construction, a tall thin tower built of white stone. This is where my journey began! Kallik had first met the others here, when Lusa had rescued a black bear cub from Taqqiq and his friends. Brambles had grown around the tower since last suncircle. Kallik couldn’t make out the hole that led into the hollowed-out stone.
A whole suncircle of traveling! The journey had taken her farther than she could ever have imagined; it had led her to Yakone. And now she was back, with Yakone still at her side. “Come on!” She broke into a run.
Crossing the stones, Kallik splashed into the lake and sank joyfully into the water. It flooded over her flanks, quenching the heat in her fur. Yakone waded in after her and flopped down in the shallows. Kallik rolled over, rubbing her dusty pelt among the pebbles and feeling the grit float free. Water flooded into her nose and eyes as she dipped her head underneath.
“Yakone? Is that you?”
A voice from the shore made her sit up. Her fur streaming, she blinked at the white bear calling fr
om the edge of the lake.
Yakone heaved himself to his paws. “Illa?” he barked in disbelief. “What are you doing here? The Star Island bears haven’t been to the Longest Day gathering for suncircles!”
Kallik pushed herself up. Yakone and Illa had lived together on Star Island, before Kallik had met them. And Tunerq was with her.
Yakone gazed at the young male. “You’ve grown!”
“We’ve eaten well since you taught us how to hunt musk ox,” Tunerq answered.
“Great!” Yakone’s gaze slid past Tunerq. “Is Unalaq here?”
Kallik felt her heart sink. Unalaq was Yakone’s brother. He had objected to everything she, Toklo, and Lusa had suggested when they’d tried to help the bears of Star Island. He’d even fought with Toklo.
She felt secretly relieved when Illa shook her head. “He stayed with Aga. She said that she was far too old for such a journey, and Unalaq decided that she shouldn’t be left alone. Of course, Aga objected and said she could look after herself, but you know how stubborn Unalaq can be.”
Yakone snorted. “I remember. But Aga’s stubborn, too. They’re probably quarreling right now about the best ice hole to fish at.” He paused. “Is Aga well?”
“She’s fine,” Illa assured him. “She told me which route to follow to find the lake. We didn’t get lost once.”
Yakone gazed at her proudly. “I’m so pleased you came. There have been times when I wondered if I’d ever see you again.”
Kallik shivered, the coldness of the water reaching through her pelt. Was Yakone thinking of the times when he’d nearly died on the journey? Injured and bleeding, he’d faked death to lure out the coyotes that were tracking them. And the injury itself had almost killed him.
Kallik pulled her thoughts back and scanned the shore. Was Taqqiq here? She wanted to see her brother and know he was well. Her gaze flicked from one bear to another. Taqqiq wasn’t the only familiar face she was hoping to see again. Kallik pictured a young cub gazing trustingly up at her. No, she told herself. He’s too young to have made the journey. But even as she thought it, she saw a young bear bounding from the shade of the pines. Her heart soared. She could hardly believe her eyes. Kissimi was racing toward her.