The Longest Day (9 page)

Lusa spotted an unused dip at the edge of the clearing, wide and shallow and already filled with dry leaves. “Ossi, put Chula here.” She nodded to the other end of the dip. “Rudi, rest here. Sheena, stay beside him—I haven't checked you for cuts and bruises. I must make sure every bear's wounds are treated. The weather's warm, and they could turn sour.”

There was no point checking the bears for injuries until she had collected some herbs that would help. Summoning the last dregs of energy, Lusa pushed her way out of the cluster of bears. They were all firing questions at the injured bears now, demanding to know what had happened.

Lusa felt a stab of relief as she left the chatter behind and plunged into the quiet forest. Her nose twitched as she sought out the herbs that Ujurak had shown her before. Was he watching her now, urging her toward the leaves she would need?
I'm doing my best!

Guilt pricked her fur. Her best wasn't good enough.

Darkness settled on the forest like a heavy pelt. All around Lusa, the black bears were asleep, even the wounded. Lusa had found enough herbs for all their injuries. She'd rewrapped Chula's swollen leg. She'd even found a precious plant that would bring them sleep, despite their pain and grief. Sheena had been the last to close her eyes, insisting that Hala sleep between her and Tibik for one last night. Lusa had sat beside her, pressing close until the she-bear's breath had finally deepened into sleep. Now Lusa stared into the trees, aware that she was the only bear left awake. Her body was weary,
but her mind buzzed with worry. Miki was still out there. He must be so afraid.

She pushed herself to her paws and crept out of the hollow where the injured bears slept. Ossi was snoring at the edge, his nose dangling over the rim. Chula rested against Rudi, who snuffled gently beside her.

Lusa picked her way between the nests of the other bears, treading lightly over the leaf-strewn forest floor. Through the trees, the lake was starting to gleam milky-pale, heralding the return of dawn after the short night. Lusa turned her back on the water and walked into the forest. Following the fresh-made trail, scented with the blood of her friends, she headed toward the BlackPath once more.

As Lusa wove through the trees,
her pelt tingled anxiously. What if she found Miki
dead
? Fear pushed back her exhaustion, and she kept moving through the forest, her gaze fixed on the trail ahead.
I have to find him.

“Lusa?”

A soft bark made her jump.

She recognized it at once and spun around in delight. “Toklo!” She ran toward him—a dark shape between the trees—and rubbed her head along his jaw. “It's been such a terrible day!” Her throat tightened.

“I know.” He rested his muzzle on her head for a moment, and then pulled away. “News traveled along the shore like wildfire. That's why I came to find you. I was scared you might be hurt.”

“I'm fine. But I have to find Miki.”

“Miki?” Toklo repeated the name thoughtfully. “Was he the bear you made friends with at the last gathering?”

Lusa nodded. “He was traveling with the group that was
injured today. But we couldn't find him. We had to leave without him. So I'm going back.” She lifted her chin, daring Toklo to change her mind.

“I'll come with you.”

Lusa blinked. She thought he would try to persuade her to wait until morning.

Toklo went on. “I know what it's like when a friend goes missing. We nearly lost you, remember?”

“I couldn't forget.” Lusa's thoughts flitted back to the final part of their journey. Mules had stampeded through their group and kicked her in the head. Dazed, she'd wandered in the forest until flat-faces had found her and taken her away in a firebeast. It had taken nearly a moon for her friends to find her again. Was that what had happened to Miki?

She stared wide-eyed at Toklo. “I don't know what would have happened if you'd stopped looking for me!”

Toklo met her gaze. “We would
never
have stopped looking for you.” He straightened up and looked around. “Which way do we go?”

“This way.” Lusa began to lead him along the blood-scented trail.

Toklo's nose twitched. “I can smell Kallik and Yakone.”

“They came to help,” Lusa explained. “They moved the logs we couldn't shift by ourselves.”

“I wish I'd been there to help, too.” Was that jealousy edging Toklo's growl?

Lusa glanced at him. “So do I.” Beside them, the undergrowth rustled as a weasel scurried along the ground. An owl
hooted in the distance, and down by the lake, a snipe began to chirp. “How are you getting on with the brown bears?”

“Okay, I guess.” Toklo sounded unsure. “Oogrook died during earthsleep.”

Lusa remembered Pokkoli's warning about the tension among the brown bears. Was it because of Oogrook's death?

Toklo went on. “It's strange that the black bears have lost their leader as well.”

“But they're only leaders during the Longest Day gathering,” Lusa pointed out. “Do we really need a leader to help us share with the spirits? They'll hear us anyway, won't they?”

Toklo grunted. “It's not the sharing with spirits I'm worried about. We need a strong bear to keep peace among the others. It feels like everyone is arguing, trying to prove who's the best.”

Lusa nudged him. “But surely you're the best bear,” she teased. “Shouldn't
you
be the leader?” She was only half joking. Toklo was young, but he was as strong and brave as any bear she'd ever known. And good-hearted, too. He'd make a great leader.

Toklo snorted and pushed through a web of broken branches. Lusa slid through after him, ducking to stop the twigs from flicking her muzzle. “Toklo?” Her mouth felt numb with tiredness. “Slow down.”

“You must be worn out.” He hurried back to her. “Lean on me.”

Relieved, she rested against his shoulder and they moved on, walking more slowly. The warmth of Toklo's pelt seeped
into hers, making her drowsy; but she didn't mind, so long as she had him to lean against.

“Can you follow the scents?” she asked.

“Of course,” he answered. “I'd recognize Kallik's and Yakone's scents anywhere.”

Drowsily, Lusa let him lead the way until light glowed through the forest ahead. They were nearing the end of the trees. They had reached the BlackPath.

Shaking sleepiness from her pelt, Lusa ran out of the forest and looked up at the dove-gray sky. A few stars shone faintly, but she couldn't make out Ursa or Ujurak. The BlackPath was silent. Only the calls of night birds broke the still air. Lusa gazed toward the place on the shoulder where the firebeast had fallen. The great creature had gone, leaving gouges in the grass. The logs had been stacked into a neat, straight pile.

Lusa trotted across the BlackPath, which felt cool against her paws.

Toklo was lingering on the shoulder, staring up at the sky.

“Hurry up!” Lusa called.

He crossed the path toward her, a question in his eyes. “Did Ujurak help you today?”

“I saw him,” Lusa confessed. “He was among the trees. But he didn't do anything except tell me to stay calm.” She looked sadly at Toklo. “I thought he might turn into a moose and move the logs, but he didn't.”

“But Kallik and Yakone came,” Toklo reminded her. “Perhaps Ujurak knows that we don't need him so much now.” He padded around the stacked logs. “Do you know Miki's scent?”

“No,” Lusa admitted. It had been a whole suncircle since she'd seen him. “But I know the scents of the others, so I could spot a different one.” She sniffed the crushed grass where the logs had been. Had Miki been trapped among them? She smelled only the fear scents of Chula and Rudi—and Hala's blood. Grief seared Lusa's heart once more as she thought of the dead she-cub. She pushed it away. “He must have run into the woods,” she called to Toklo. “I can only smell the others here.”

“Come on.” Toklo was already shouldering his way past a thicket of brambles.

Lusa hurried after him as he disappeared among the pines. Her heart sank as she saw the trees stretch into shadow on every side. The forest was huge. “He could be anywhere,” she breathed.

Toklo brushed her ear with his muzzle. “He's smart—he's probably going to stay close to the BlackPath, where he last saw the others. We'll find him.”

Lusa rubbed her head affectionately against his fur. “Thank you for coming with me,” she murmured. “Miki must be wondering where his friends are.”

Toklo didn't answer. Lusa saw him frown.

He thinks Miki might be dead.
“Don't!” Lusa scolded. “We have to believe he's okay.” She walked forward, then stopped and looked up at Toklo. “Did you ever think
I
was dead?” she asked. “When I was missing?”

“Sometimes,” Toklo admitted. “But I never acted like you were. I vowed not to do that until I knew for sure.”

Lusa started walking again. “Then that's what we'll do for
Miki,” she vowed. “We brought the others home.”
Even Hala and Hashi.
“We can't leave him out here alone.”

“Do you think Ujurak's still watching?”

“Of course he is!” Lusa glanced up at the small snatches of sky she could glimpse through the canopy. “What else would he be doing up there?” As she spoke, a bear scent touched her nose. It wasn't Ossi's or Tibik's.

She darted forward, sniffing at the grass sprouting between the pine roots until she smelled it clear and strong. It was definitely black bear scent. “This way!” She broke into a run, stumbling over trailing brambles. Her legs were numb with tiredness, but she was so close. She had to keep going.

The ground sloped downward, and she skidded on pine needles as it dropped into a small clearing. A dark shape was slumped against a tree on the far side. In the weak dawn light, Lusa recognized Miki.

“He's here!” She raced toward Miki, her heart pounding. He wasn't moving.
Don't be dead! Oh, please don't be dead!
She braced herself for a fresh wave of grief as she scrambled to a halt beside him.

Warmth pulsed from the black bear's pelt. His flank touched Lusa's nose as it rose and fell. “He's alive!” Bright-eyed, she turned to Toklo.

Relief shone in his gaze. “Well done, Lusa!” he chuffed. “You found him!”

“I couldn't have done it without you.”

“Of course you could.” Toklo moved past her and nudged Miki's cheek gently with his snout.

Miki still didn't move.

Quickly, Lusa checked him for wounds. She smelled blood behind his ear and felt heat in the fur there. “He's been hit in the head.”

“He might not wake for a while,” Toklo warned.

“We have to get him back to the camp,” Lusa insisted. “He'll be safer, and I have herbs there to treat him with.” She had leaves left over from treating the others.

Toklo crouched down. “Can you heave him onto my back?”

Lusa had already grabbed Miki's scruff and was straining to lift him. Ducking lower, Toklo slid beneath the unconscious bear and jerked him onto his shoulders. He straightened up and walked carefully back across the clearing.

Lusa trotted beside him, her weariness swept away by relief. “Thank you, Toklo,” she whispered.

Toklo glanced at her. “No problem. It's what friends are for.”

Toklo slowed as he neared the
black bear camp. Miki lay heavily on his back. He didn't want to carry the injured bear past the brambles that marked the edge. Would Lusa want him to meet her new friends now, when they were still reeling from the firebeast disaster? She'd talked warmly of Pokkoli, Chula, Ossi, and Tibik as they'd trekked through the woods, but the black bears had more to think about now than getting to know a strange brown bear.