(*A tale of the Yorwa People)
It was the longest, coldest night of year.
The mouth of the cave was hidden by snow.
The moon was full, making everything bright.
Three members of the Red-claw Tribe arrived outside.
They had traveled for days to find this place.
First came Strong-bone the hunter, and his bear Oochuff.
Instead of a spear, tonight Strong-bone was carrying a stout staff.
Next was Grandma Snow-paw, wrapped in chalk-colored elk pelt.
Last was Reed-boy, Strong-bone's son.
He was very excited because tonight
he would learn a Great Secret of the tribe.
"Strong-bone and Oochuff," said Grandma Snow-paw,
"Make the challenge! Reed-boy, come with me."
At Strong-bone's hand-signal, Oochuff reared on his
hind legs and roared. His breath was like smoke in the air.
At first there was no response.
There came an answering groan from another bear.
They saw her come running out of the cave.
She ran at Oochuff, her heavy breath coming out in white puffs too.
He dropped back down on all fours to meet her attack.
Reed-boy wanted to watch but Grandma Snow-paw
led him away. She said, "You must lead a cub out, now."
"But how do I do that, Grandma?" asked Reed-boy. "With my flute...?"
Grandma Snow-paw whispered,"Not now. You will soon learn
a great secret of our tribe..."
At the entrance to the cave, now visible as a black
gap in the snow, she opened one of her tiny bags and dumped its
contents onto his palm: a dry dead bee. "Chew this while
I chant, and then swallow it when I am done."
The she-bear plowed into Oochuff, paws swinging. She
was bigger.
Strong-bone stayed back but kept his staff ready.
Oochuff dodged one set of black talons after another,
and slowly backed off. She stood up on her back paws
and bellowed at him.
He would have been happy to let her go back to sleep
but Strong-bone called out,"Play, Oochuff! Play!"
His bear friend loped around, and roared at the she-bear,
making it clear that he was not leaving. She would
have to stay and fight.
The bee tasted strange. It was crunchy, with tiny hairs,
and Reed-boy could feel the dry little legs breaking off.
He wondered if he was going to get a stinger stuck
in his tongue.
He could hear Grandma Snow-paw singing, and it
sounded like nonsense. Something about "finding two,
and taking one. One in darkness, meant for sun..."
There was an unpleasant taste in Reed-boy's mouth, now,
like a tiny piece of sour grease.
Suddenly he could feel his body and limbs grow thicker.
His nose stretched down and away from his eyes. He
brought his hands up to touch it and discovered he now
had clawed paws. He was covered all over in dark red fur.
He looked at Grandma Snow-paw and discovered he only came
up to her knee. Everything beyond her was hazy now. He
dropped down onto all fours. When he tried to talk, it
came out a little honking groan.
"Shhh," said Grandma. "Into the den you go. Bring out a cub."
The new bear nodded and clambered down the gap. The
passage within angled so that a breeze from outside could not go far.
The cave walls were marked with countless parallel scratches.
They were marks made by the cave bears of the past.
He could clearly hear the two adult bears outside fighting fiercely.
Reed-boy was struck by the pleasant musky odor
coming from deeper inside. It was earthy and comforting.
He followed it until there was no more light. He was
padding around in complete darkness. The air was
no longer cold here.
He blundered into a stalagmite growing from the ground,
and after that, he moved slowly. He began to hear
sounds he had not noticed before: slow breathing and
brief snoring. His ears were so sharp that
he started to get a sense of where the walls were from
the various echoes. He went over to the breathing.
A ragged gash was opened on Oochuff's chest, and
the mother bear was not the least bit tired. To keep her
engaged, Strong-bone thrust with his staff, a light thump
to her flank. This nuisance made her snap at her side.
At first she missed, but after a moment, she caught the
pole and wrested it from Strong-bone's grip.
She was going to swipe at Strong-bone himself when
Oochuff gave a roar and put himself between her and
the human hunter. Exhausted by her spirit-magic earlier,
Grandma Snow-paw could only stand and watch and worry.
With sensitive nose, Reed-boy in bear form could
sense the heat from two round bodies. He picked the
closest one, reaching over with a paw to gently shake
its shoulder. That cub woke up and yawned. It made
a noise like, "Wahh!" Reed-boy understood this to
mean, 'I'm thirsty!'
Reed-boy whispered, "Then come with me." It came out
a little noise like 'Ooooooor," but the other bear understood.
Reed-boy padded up the passageway and his new friend
followed him.
'Who are you?' the cub asked.
'I am your brother,' Reed-boy answered. In the
lore of the Red-Claws, the songs and ritual phrases
sometimes proclaimed their brotherhood to the cave bear,
but until now, Reed-boy had never felt the truth of it.
He nudged his new bear pal with his shoulder, and
heard him answer with a little, "Wff."
At the cave's mouth, they could hear Oochuff and the
mother bear trading roars, bites, and blows.
Reed-boy knew what was happening but the bear
cub behind him did not.
They emerged from the cave and the second bear
took a mouthful of snow. Grandma Snow-paw was
waiting, and she said something, pointing and then
herding the two young bears in some direction.
When they were out of sight, Grandma Snow-paw
called happily to Strong-bone, "It is done!"
The snow was stained with blood but the mother
bear was unhurt. Strong-bone said, "Oochuff!
Back off! Back off!" They lowered their heads
and showed their profiles, a sign that they were
retreating. Huffing and tired, the mother bear let
them go, then galloped back for the den.
Strong-bone and Grandma Snow-paw followed
the tracks which romped around in random
circles and squiggles. Eventually they found two
young bears in a little heap between some rocks,
both sound asleep.
It was powerful spirit-magic that might even
last for days. They let the youngsters sleep for
now. Strong-bone fed Oochuff many raisins while
Grandma Snow-paw tended to his wounds.
Grandma Snow-paw remembered the story that her teacher
Bright-stone had told her. A mother bear usually bore twins, but
only one survived. Then, her mentor had made a deal
with the Cave Bear Spirit to always treat those baby
bears they took, as family. It was a good bargain.
The End