She was silent for a while, licking his forehead. But then he said. “Oh, sorry. Of course I didn’t mean it. It just… happened. Don’t back there.”

“But I must back there.” Whispered Flame. “How else I could persuade you to be my son again if not recalling times where you loved me.”

“I’m still your son.” Said Ian. “And I still love you. I am from the Pack and I love my packmates. I love aunt Ea I loved uncle Steele. But nothing could change I’m your son.”

The decision was made. Flame was amazed that took her so long. After all the choice was hard but unavoidable. She looked on son’s paw.

“Does it hurt? When you expect to be all right?”

“I don’t know…” murmured Ian. “In ten days maybe…”

Flame closed her eyes and thought. “That won’t be a betrayal. That will be payment for a betrayal. Fixing of it!”

*

For the very first time January wasn’t a small pup. He was just January, almost three years old wolf and was dreaming being completely aware of it. That time father was much closer and – what was the most important – malawolf could understand him. It wasn’t easy – hybrid felt no strength to answer his parent, but he was able to hear and comprehend and that was enough.

“Welcome, son.” Said Steele. His silhouette was radiating with both black and white (is light could be black too?) on… well, January preferred not to think what the background was and where exactly that talk was taking place. He recognised some landscape marks, but they suggested that father and son were somewhere… high above the ground. That brought January not too optimistic connotations.

“No, not quite.” Said Steele. “You are not dead, but I would lie, telling you are far from it. You almost killed yourself in extraordinary stupid way.”

“I’m sorry, father.” Whispered January and surprisingly that thought was audible.

“But after all you used your head.” Smiled malamute. “I’m proud of you, son.” He came closer and nuzzled his muzzle to muzzle of lying January. Malawolf felt mixture of heat and cold.

“I was missing you, dad.” Said uncertainly.

“That was stupid too.” Replied Steele. “I was always so close to you and your mother… But yes, you’re right. It bad you grew up without father. That’s one of sacrifices you made on the altar of my fight. I felt like a tyrant, involving you all in it.”

“What is your fight, is mine too!” called January with sudden emotion in his voice. Flood of untold forces, hidden in his soul deluged his throat and made it clenched. He couldn’t speak anymore, just felt how he always missed a voice of father, praising him for his efforts.

“I saw it all from here.” Said Steele. “And I am proud… But you told that you will do anything. It’s easy to say it now… but soon you will stand against trials beyond your imagination where every choice will be a bad one.”

“Trust me, I won’t fail you!” sobbed January, failing to control his voice.

“Not, the problem is for you not to fail yourself. To stay honest with your spirit and judgement. I simply hope that my dreams are your dreams too.”

“They will, father!”

“Listen to me.” Said Steele with decisive voice. “You are on the doorstep of great choices. They could mean something wonderful, but are also the great danger. Whatever happen, remember my words: your faith, your heart, your family are always first and most important. All sublime ideas are just to serve those three. If your dream are betraying what you have deepest in your heart, leave those dreams. The closest treasure you have, matters most. Remember it… Your family. And don’t be surprised that others think that way. And don’t judge them – they are doing what they think is best and most noble. Right, son?”

“Right…” whispered a bit lost January.

“Good…” smiled Steele. “Soon you will wake up… eventually and you won’t be sure if that all was just a dream. Perhaps it is a dream, but still you could remember my words. So now…” he looked down with concern in his stare. “We will have to think, how to get you out of that blasted river.”

Vision of father was cut away and the piercing frost returned. January again felt well-known feeling of drowning.

*

“WERK!” yelled – or better to say – gurgled January.

Water was assaulting his muzzle from every side, including the upper side, so malawolf made a desperate attempt, and kicked with hind legs to reach the surface. He succeeded and he his a ice-layer with his forehead. Thankfully, he was too confused to panic. But then he recalled about something important.

“Maya!” he screamed, looking around for brownfurred.

Somehow she managed to stay on the surface. She was drifting with current just next to hybrid, unconsciousness, but what January checked in one tough, still alive. Steele’s son grabbed her into his jaws and lifted her muzzle above the water. She started to cough, what sounded for hybrid as the most beautiful music.

“Come on!” he called. “Hang on, we will…”

But saying that he opened his mouth and let her loose. She fell down to raging river and January again dived to grabbed her fur. When he emerged with her in tight grasp, he could finally think the situation over. And then he panicked.

There ware taken by current into pools of Reindeer Creek. Wide backwaters were going for miles north, but it was even good, because the normal run of river would drown them in minute. But still they were trapped under ice and quickly freezing. January consider himself as solid built and very resistant canine. Yet he was feeling how low temperature was consequently draining strength from his muscles. If he was about to faint, the question <how long would stand Maya?> was highly inappropriate. They were dying.

“Maya, wake up!” he murmured, clenching still fur oh nape in jaws. “Wake up, God dammit! We’re drowning!” sensing she was still motionless, he bit. Just plunged his teeth into her neck, hopping that pain with bring any response. He was right.

“No!” yelled Maya. “Lake, why?” but then she looked around and noticed where she was. A loud scream sounded under ice.

“Calm down!” gasped January. “I’m thinking how get up from here…”

“Jan… what… what…”

“Listen to me.” Said malawolf carefully. “We will try to pierce that ice… You will. I will push you up and you’ll break the surface, when we find some thinner place. Then… listen! Don’t fall asleep! When you break the ice, you grab the edge and keep it. Understand? If you have a good grab, I will climb up by your back… But if not, I will let you loose. In that way, simply… go on my bank, you will be safe. They won’t blame you for my death, because you will tell them password… or something like that. You will tell my mother, lady Ea that <Tro had grey fur>. Just that and she will know I sent you there. Ok?”

“No, wait!” she sobbed. “Don’t leave me… or I mean: don’t make me leave you here.”

“Do you think I had a heroic death in my schedule today?” smirked January. “Just go… Become the alpha and make your dreams real. I doubt if they are right, but at least it makes you happy.”

“January…”

“Here… be prepared… Three… two… one…” malawolf submerged and swam under Maya.

Then he summoned all the power he had and pushed his body up. Talbourne princess instinctively let him press on her underbelly. Then they both sprang up and hybrid pushed even stronger, prepared for resistance. But for what he was prepared, she wasn’t and brownfurred his the ice with her forehead. Frozen layer broke, letting her go higher. But it didn’t change a fact that impact hurt.

Hurt as hell.

Maya was screaming from pain, feeling burning volcano on her forehead. But words of January were still echoing in her mind, so she awkwardly grabbed edge of ice and kept her grasp. After a second she recalled about January, holding her paws. She remembered mainly because the additional weight was slowly taking her back down. She forced herself not to shake her saviour off. She grabbed the ice harder but that didn’t stop her sliding down. She understood she was going to die.

But then a miracle happened. Maybe it was just an impression, but she felt a warm tough of tongue of her rear paw, as January put a kiss on it. A second alter the weight was away. Maya understood that malawolf let her loose.

She stood up barely, trying to overcome the nauseating dizziness and pain in her head. She made few steps in shore’s direction, but then cried with all her might.

“January!”

She turned back to see newly made ice hole, then ran there and looked back. There was no malawolf, but two holes – after hitting ice with head she must had a real concussion, because her vision split in two and that double image was freely dancing before her – from almost merging in one to move aside by more than ten degrees. It wasn’t nice way to see the world and definitely wasn’t helping in saving January. But then a rescue came.

Crying from pain and because of confusing vision, she set to zigzag run to nearer bank. Some voice in her ear was repeating <Log! Log!> so she speeded where some log could be found. She entered frozen canes and fortunately found some heavy branch, not iced too deep in layer. She pulled it our and ran back to backwater.

She had no idea where January could had been taken, so she had to guess. She looked on ice hole, then drew in mind a line of eventual route for malawolf. She could only speculate where he was at that time exactly, but those voices in her mind suggested a point on ice. She ran there, still hobbling in confusion and barely holding the log.

Finally she stopped, lifted log as high as she could and hit with it into ice. Cracks appeared on white surface but it was still not enough. She again made attempt with branch, striking the same place. Finally ice cracked, opening a gap before her. She put a log into that hole.

“God!” she prayed. “Let he be conscious! Let he manage to grab the log!”

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