Ania looked around her. Oni was lying dead, and she had cried herself to sleep earlier that day. It was now mid-afternoon, and Ania was starving. She did not eat. She simply laid down beside Oni and licked his ear. She was too sad to speak, and her mind was numbed with shock. Oni's death had been very sudden, although Ania had been expecting it. She dragged him outside the den by the scruff of his neck. It was easy because Oni had not eaten much in the last weeks of his life. Ania took him to the brook and dug a hole by a tree. She gently placed Oni in it. "Goodbye, Oni," she said quietly aloud. She suddenly picked up the scent of fox. Ania waited. A fox trotted into sight. The fox looked at Ania, then at dead Oni, and said, ''I-uhmmm, don't mean to interfere, but who are you burying?" Ania's eyes filled with tears. "Oh, I'm so sorry. I-" the fox faltered. She felt that she was needed here, so she would stay. Fox remembered that she should introduce herself to this greif-posessed wolf. "I don't really have a name. I've always called myself Fox." Ania aknowleged this with a small nod. She looked at Oni for the last time. Slowly she covered him up with the dirt she had unearthed to dig the hole. Ania walked slowly into the den with her nose almost touching the ground. Fox followed her. She felt sympathy for the greiving wolf and wanted to comfort her. Ania lay down and did not pay a bit of attention to Fox. "I'm so sorry your friend died.'' Fox said gently. "My mother died, just recently. I was so sad. Sometimes you just need to be able to get over it.'' That was the wrong thing to say. " GET OVER IT?" Ania howled. ''GET OVER IT?! THAT DOG WAS THE BEST FRIEND I EVER HAD! HE DIDN'T HAVE TO DIE!" Ania laid her head down on her paws again. Her greif now seemed beyond tears, but her eyes told Fox everything. "You know he had to die sometime,'' Fox soothed. "Everyone has a time to die." Ania looked at Fox again and said quietly, ''But did he have to die so soon?" Ania's eyes glazed over, as if she was looking at something beyond Fox, some long-forgotten memory. "Are you hungry?" said Fox, anxious to change the subject. Ania nodded, but when Fox brought her something, she did not touch it. Fox ate her rabbit and laid down beside Ania. The wolf did not make an effort to talk to Fox. After about ten minutes, Fox heard Ania's steady breathing and knew she was asleep.

"Look. All you have to do is pick out the scent, find where it is, and jump at the prey.'' Six days later, Ania was trying to teach Fox to hunt. Fox had told her that before she had met Ania, she had depended on garbage cans in a town for food. Ania would have gone on letting her do this, it was just that she didn't think she could bear Fox going into town. Fox sighed. ''Ania, I don't think I can do this. I've been eating out of garbage cans all my life.''  Ania shook her head. "Get in some practice, I'm tired." She walked into the den. Ania spent most of her time in the den now. She hardly ever ate, unless she was starving. Fox would hunt a little bit, for Ania's sake. She would catch something and make Ania eat the whole thing......Fox shook her head. This was impossible. Ania would not eat much, if she ate any at all. Fox sighed. She would catch something for Ania's sake. Fox walked into the woods. She scented nothing at the moment, so first she would go into town and get some sausages. Fox trotted off. When she came to the edge of the woods, she saw a big bush. Some familiar scent came from it, but Fox decided not to bother with it. She picked up her pace. Then, she saw the big buildings of Nenana looming over her. Fox smiled. That was more like it. She had gotten sick of the forest. No buildings in sight! She was about to jump onto a trashcan when she smelled fresh sausages. She looked around. No vendor in sight! What was she thinking?! Then, she saw a small, all black puppy. She was crouched behind the trashcan. Fox looked at the puppy. The pup had not noticed her. "Are you okay?" Fox asked the pup gently. The pup jumped. "Oh, I'm sorry!" it yelped, almost hysterically. "I bet my father's spread rumors all around town by now about- who are you." Fox laughed and told the pup her name. "You're aptly christened." the pup said dryly. "I'm Lulu. Get away from me!" Fox rolled her eyes. "Okay, I will." she said. "I have important buisness to attend to, anyway." Fox bounded away, ignoring Lulu's "What? What? Whaaaaaat?!"

Fox entered Ania's den. "I'm back!" she said cheerfully, though she was anything but cheerful. "Me, too!" a voice said. Then, shivering as though something had slipped a bit of ice down her fur, she turned around. She almost exploded with anger. It was Lulu! "I followed you!" she announced proudly. Fox growled. "Let her stay." Ania said wearily. She had an expression on her face that Fox couldn't read, as if she was reliving some long-forgotten memory. Fox looked at Ania. She was looking at Lulu with an eager, almost hungry, expression on her face. "Are you okay?" she asked Ania. She gave a shuddering sigh and nodded. Fox lay down and almost immediately went to sleep.

Lulu was alone with Ania. She looked at this thin wolf, puzzled. Ania noticed her gaze, and said, "There is no need to look at me, young dog. I am nothing. I have nothing to live for." Lulu stood up and stretched. With a jolt, Ania realized that she recognized that profile. She didn't know from where, though. Lulu sat down again, and said, "I have nothing to live for, too. My dad's best friend was lost in an avalanche-" Lulu was cut off by Ania's gasp. "What!" Ania almost shrieked. Lulu looked at her suspiciously. "Carry on." Ania said, a little embarrased. Lulu went on, "As I was saying, my dad's best friend was lost in an avalanche, and now my dad doesn't play with me any more. That race dog was real nice to me. Me, my dad, and him used to race through the fields outside Nenana. We would always stop at this really cool bush. We would steal some sausages and eat them there. The first time we went there, there was a link of sausages. I almost ate them, but the race dog told me not to." Ania was staring at Lulu with wide eyes. Lulu didn't seem to notice. Then, she said, "I'm tired. I'm going to sleep." It was almost dusk, Ania realized. After she was sure that Lulu was asleep, she crept outside of the den. She padded over to the place by the stream where she knew Oni was buried. She scraped away the dirt covering him. It had been a long time since she had looked at him. Then, she heard soft footfalls behing her. Lulu came to stand beside her. "Dad's friend used to tell stories about this beautiful white wolf who's fur glistened in the moonlight. He said she had dark blue eyes, and that you could see all of the stars reflected in them. He said that she had lived in that very same bush that we ran to almost every day. He said that then, she just disappeared. I say that wolf is you." Ania, for the first time in about a week, smiled.

Lulu looked at Fox. "Ready?" she asked. Fox nodded. "Daa-aaad?" Lulu called. Fox looked around the spooky alleyway. Why would a human want to live here? Suddenly, a deep voice interrupted her thoughts. "Lulu! Where've ya been? Yah've been gone fer days!" A big, all black husky emerged out of the shadows. "Yes!" Lulu said eagerly. "I know. I've found Oni's body! And, I've found the wolf." The husky looked at her sadly. "Oni's body?" he said. "Oni's dead?" Lulu nodded sadly. Then she said, "Dad, I think you missed when I said I'd found the wolf." The husky looked up. He said, "Yer mean.......?" Lulu nodded. At that moment, Fox stepped out. "I hate to interrupt this little chat, but could you mind explaining things to me more thoroughly?" The husky jerked his head. Fox supposed that meant yes. The husky began, "Oni was a friend o' mine. He had a mate, a wolf, named Ania.  I met her. I wasn't very nice to her. Oni and me'd been in a fight. He had told me 'bout her. Don't even 'member what that fight was about. Any way, they got in some sorta argument. I never knew about what. Oni used to talk 'bout that wolf a lot. Ever since he was buried in that avalanche, I been searchin' ev'rywhere for that wolf. I want to find her." Fox kept on looking at the husky, wondering. "I think Ania needs to see you." She said finally. "By the way, what's your name?" "Bandit." the husky said.

Meanwhile, back at the den, Ania was thinking.  She had not been out of the den a lot, only to hunt and drink. That didn't matter, though. She had made up her mind. She stood up, walked out of the den, and sniffed. She smelled nothing. Then she walked a little farther and sniffed again. She could smell a faint scent of sausages, not very fresh, but still sausages. She trotted in the direction of the scent. Then, she began to run. She suddenly stumbled out of the woods into the bright sunlight. She saw, in the snowy field, with the town in the background, a big bush. She rushed down the slope, rolling and tumbling like a tiny pup. When she got to the bush, she stopped. She walked inside. Sausages! There were three links of them. They weren't very fresh, but she ate them anyway. Then, she caught a whiff of Oni's scent. She coughed; again and again. Her coughing became more violent. She couldn't stop coughing! She was hot, so hot, and everything around her was cold. The world seemed to spin. She saw Lulu and Fox rushing up to her, felt them helping her to lie down. She heard them talking, but didn't know what they were saying. She was vauguely aware of Lulu rushing off, and she felt Fox's tongue on her ears. Everything hurt. She coughed and coughed. Then, the forms of Lulu and a big, all black husky rushed up. One thought was clear in her mind: This was Bandit, the dog who had been so rude to her in the alley so long ago! She tried to stand up, but collapsed. "Rest now, white wolf." He said. Everything dissolved into blackness.

Ania woke later to find Bandit and Fox smiling at her. She looked at Bandit. Something was wrong. He did not look so formidable and mean as he had in the alley. Suddenly Ania knew what it was. He was smiling. She opened her mouth to say something, but Fox said, "Ask questions later, Ania. You need to rest. Are you hungry?" Ania nodded, surprised at how hungry she really was. Sausages were brought to her by Bandit. She scarfed them down very quickly. Fox smilied and said samething to Bandit in a whisper. Then Bandit looked at Ania and said, "I think I need ter explain somethin' to you." Ania nodded slowly. He said, "I guess ya think I'm a mean and rude alley dog. Well, I ain't. I got a human and life's good. Oni and I had gotten in a fight that day. He told me 'bout you. I don't even 'member what that argument was about. I was in a bad mood, and I was actin' ugly. Do ya understand what I been tryin' ter tell ya." Ania nodded and smiled.

Ania stood up. She was tired and weak, but she did it. Fox, Bandit and Lulu cheered. Bandit took some sausages out of a pile in the bush. He laid them down a few feet from Ania. Lulu, however, jumped and scarfed them down as quick as a flash. "Those were for Ania, Lulu." Bandit growled. Then, for the first time in weeks, almost a month, Ania laughed aloud, and her eyed sparkled with joy.