one-eight wolf and quarter Alaskan husky. God!” murmured fox “I wonder how you seat your family on Christmas-table!”

“I never tried to gather my family, because many of them want to kill some others.” Replied dog with voice full of both irony serious sadness.

“You mean your father and grandfather?” asked Kitty.

“Not only.” Said Cris. “Now, when Ami is in Niju’s pack and Spark and Mark are in Galena sled...things got a bit tangled.”

“Anyway, could can always invite me on Christmas-dinner. Just warn your mother about it, because she tried to eat me last time.”

“I always do it.” Murmured wolfdog. “You are feasting on our prey for two years.”

“Yeah, yeah, yeah...” snorted Kitty. “Should I everyday thank you that you don’t eat me and you allow me to eat some of your leftovers?”

“No, just... I’m sorry, Kitty. Today I’m mad on everything, although I shouldn’t” he said.

“What’s up, man?” asked fox. “See the bright side of life. For example – you even haven’t noticed that I moulted recently. How do you like my new coat?” She straighten her back up to show her white fur, but when god just nodded his head, she looked on him with suspicious stare. “Just spit it out.” She nudged wolfdog friendly, although she had to stand on her rear-paws to reach his side.

“I’m rotting here.” Said Cris, jumping on fallen pine-trunk. “Ami went to live with wolfpack. Spark and Mark are running in the sled in Galena. And I’m still living here with mom and dad, without even getting my nose outside peninsula...”

“Well...” said Kitty. “Why do you say it’s bad life? Also I think that is very noble that you help your parents...”

“Yeah...” murmured Cris. “I even can’t thinking about leave. Dad needs a help in huntings and he could just have problems to manage with mom if I go away... But still I wish to... I don’t know.”

 

[“I wish” song. Tune is fast, lively and a bit mysterious.]

[Cris and Kitty are standing on the brink of forest. Dog goes to fallen trunk and bases his front-paws on pine stem. He strokes the trunk and sings with pensive, looking on horizon in clearing’s direction.]

I wish to leave my home, sweet home and see where I am not
I wish to know where I could roam, what I could reach in fact.

[He raises his paw to forehead, shielding his eyes from sunrays, to see better. Kitty looks on him with surprise and a bit confused stare.]

Maybe somewhere, far from here there is a world for me
I wish to taste it - what is near get old so fast, you see

[On words <So fast, you see> Cris again strokes trunk, but then he scratches it with claws. Tune is disrupted by false tone of that scratch. Kitty raises her paws and plug her ears.]

I feel just like a blind cub when
Is still inside the mother’s den
But feels it is the time to open eyes

[Cris is standing under a trunk, that might looks like he is in some den. So dog jumps up on stem and slides from it. With impetus he slides further on snow, then he gets to frozen lake. Kitty is trying to keep up with dog, but she “drowns” in the snow. Finally, when she gets to lake, she is exhausted. She shake the snow off her fur.]

I hope to go out - guess, for long
Cause only way could make me strong
And only run could make me reach the skies

[Cris is sliding further on the lake. Then he gets to air hole and stops in last moment. Some crack shows on ice, but dog seems to ignore it and goes over the hole, looking up, on the sky.]

Chorus:
Leave my den and go ahead
Being still is being dead
I want live so fast instead
To see and taste the wildness’s bread
To leave the den

[Kitty runs to Cris. She pass next to air hole, but ice is already broken. Fox stands on one of small ice-floats and it suddenly overturns upside-down, putting white-furred underwater. Cris is singing few seconds further, but when he notices he has no more audience, he turns back and see that Kitty is not there. Capture of fox knocking in layer of ice from below. In spite of charming smile, she is clearly fainting.]

If God created that world to be
Surely to taste, not just to see
To march thought it, to feel so free
Outside my shell, to open sea
To leave the den

[With decisive push of paws Cris overturns the ice-float once again, getting Kitty on surface. She jumps on solid ice, shivering and shocking off her fur. On words <to open sea> dog grabs her and takes her to the shore. Seeing he is cold, he hugs her to chest and wrings water from her furry tail. Fox is looking on it with irritation, but she anyway nestle in warm dog’s fur.]

I wish to step my father prints, but surely not the same
I wish to go without the hints, get know myself the aim
Maybe somewhere, far from here there is a quest of mine
Because my den is small but stirred – I’m sure I’ll choke in time

[Cris puts Kitty on pine trunk in well sunny place and then he looks down on his pawprints, that he made just a moment before. He puts his paw in one of prints. Change of capture: we see small paw (of tiny Cris in puppy times) in track of bigger paws. Small Cris raises his stare and sees Steele, calling to him and hastens him. Pup runs to his father, but he has problems to get through the deep snow. Change of capture to present time. Cris raises his paw from print.]

That urge drives me to look beyond
My tiny den, all day along
And wonder what is on the horizon

[He jumps high, pouncing over the trunk and Kitty and grabbing a cone from some other tree nearby. He lands in deep snow and shakes off it from fur. Then he turns his stare on trunk and Kitty.]

My paws burning with a fire
To run faster, to jump higher
I wish grab that day before it’s gone

[He sings still, pointing with paw on sun. it slowly starts to fade down over horizon.]

Chorus:
Leave my den and go ahead
Being still is being dead
I want live so fast instead
Until I can and I can yet
To leave the den

[He grabs Kitty with jaws and puts on his back. Then he bases with front-paws on the ground and presses with rear ones on trunk. It falls down to snow.]

If God made world our place to stay
Till our last breath, till judgment day
I wish to even go astray
Cause some day will fin my way
To leave the den

[Dog is looking on setting sun, singing, but apart of that he is totally indifferent on world around him. Kitty jumps down from Cris’s back then stands before him and waves her paw before his eyes. Dog makes no move, until songs ends and a howls sounds.]

 

Then a howl sounded in forest. Cris raised his ears to hear it clearer. Then he turned his head north, where howl was coming from. Wolfdog shook his head and looked on Kitty.

“That’s dad.” He said. “He woke up and want me to help him in hunt. I must go.”

“Wait!” called fox, coming to dog and climbing on his back. “You will get me to Green Valley.” When he tried to look on her (although it was rather difficult, because she was already on his back, she added. “Come on, this snow is much too deep for me.”

“What would you do, if you wouldn’t have known me?”

“I would tame some other wolf, who knows how to play tag!” she replied and when Cris shook his beck with anger, she added. “Right, I’m sorry, you are irreplaceable. And you are not a wolf, but half malamute, one-eight Siberian husky, one-eight...”

“Let’s go.” Snorted Cris and started to run in snow.

*

Steele waiting near the Northern Road. From unknown reasons he often goes it that particular place, near the pan, about ten miles from seashore. It was there, where Sky had died. Although it was four years earlier, somehow malamute was thinking like it happened just day before. Old dog often goes down to valley to spend at least few minutes next to grave of his sister. Or at least in place where she had made her final breath.

“Are hearing me, Sky?” asked in mind. “If you sometimes feel a little too heavenly there, look on me, down. I think it might amuse you... So, If you see me, what would you advice me? It got so complicated those days and...”

“Dad?” called Cris from hill nearby. “Dad, where...”

“I’m coming.” Replied Steele and started to climb on the slope of pan.

It wasn’t so easy as in his youth. Steele was almost thirteen year old and age started to claims for him. He was still strong and independent dog, but youthful agility and efficiency of his muscles had faded away forever. He was hobbling a little on front-left paw, due to rheumatism that was intensified during frosts and heavy winds. First heavy frosts of that winter had already come, so Steele no longer could hunt alone. If some of that ache got him in deeper forest, he would be in danger. Cris had to assist him.

“It’s a shame, that father of family is helpless without ones who he should take care.” Thought Steele. “But in fact Cris is no longer pup. He is almost three year old... I’m sure he stays with Alue and me only because he is afraid we can no longer live our own. Well... good he is worried about his mother... But I... I had my time, and I’m going to leave soon. This blasted paw is reminding it all the time.”

“Dad?” called Cris once again. But then he noticed Steele. “Wait there, I’m coming.” He said and started to go downhill.

“No.” barked malamute. “We are going up anyway. Not so old yet, that you have to drag me on the snow.”

“Sorry, father.” Said wolfdog, but then he ran to parent and supported his side, ignoring a murmur of irritation. They both went on hill and stood on

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