Page 59 of Tiger's Trek
“Yes,” answered the little girl. “And I think it’s got magic,” she added.
“Why do you say that?” asked Stacia.
“Because I wished for something, and it hopped right into the bag.”
“What did you wish for?” Stacia said, crouching down next to the little girl. “Will you let me see?”
Zakhar lowered his blanket to see as well but still wasn’t warm enough to do much more than that.
“I... I thought Belizna might be lonely out here with us.”
At that moment, something hissed and bucked inside the bag. Stacia thought it was probably the white ermine, but just then a sleepy Belizna crept out from Zakhar’s blanket and stared at the bag, whiskers twitching. Stacia got a bad feeling.
“Honey? Why don’t you hand that over to me?” The little girl was barely able to hold on to it. Whatever was inside it wanted out. “So you were saying you thought she was lonely...”
“Yes. So I wished for a boyfriend for her.”
“A boyfriend,” Stacia said. She glanced at Zakhar, who immediately sat up. “And you say he jumped right into the bag?”
“Yes. The minute I wished it, he came and scooted right inside. He was very angry about it too.”
“I imagine he was.”
Zakhar was standing next to her now, and he took hold of the other side of the bag. They walked several steps away from the camp, and then she mouthed, “Odin, dva,tri!” They pulled open the bag at the same time, leaving the top wide, but the creature inside remained as though there were an invisible window keeping him tucked down into it.
Like Belizna, he was a snow-white ermine but with a black-tipped tail. He was beautiful and huge and very, very mad. He hissed, kicking and bucking against the bag, but made no attempt to escape the top even though they’d opened it for him. Stacia dared not insert her hand or fingers lest he bite them.
“You can leave,” she said to him, but he remained inside. “Zima? I think you’re going to have to be the one to tell him he can go,” she said. “It’s a nice thought, but he’s a wild ermine. I don’t think a wild and a tame ermine would get along too well.”
“Yes. I think you’re right,” the little girl said. “Okay, boy, you can go.”
It was like the animal had been released from a trap. He screamed and leaped a foot in the air, twisting his body as he did so; then he plopped down in a snowdrift, did a little ermine dance, and was off as fast as he could go. Soon the only thing left to show he’d been there at all were his tiny footprints in the snow.
Zakhar took hold of the pannier. “Now that’s interesting. Do you think it will work with other animals?” he asked.
Before she could stop him, Zakhar said, “How about a nice big rabbit?”
Not a moment later, a fat, fluffy rabbit barreled out of a nearby hole they hadn’t even seen. It screeched madly as it did and leaped high just as he opened the bag, then fell right inside it. Once it was in, it seemed to rethink its decision and began bucking just as the other animal did.
“Well now, that’s a fine thing, isn’t it?” Zakhar said. “I fancy some rabbit for breakfast.”
With a quick twist of the neck, the rabbit was dead, and he was quickly able to get the fire going, skin the creature, and skewer it. It wasn’t long before she could smell the roasting meat.
Reaching down, Stacia picked up the pannier, folded it, and placed it in her bag. “We’re going to have to be very careful with this,” she said.
“Indeed,” replied Zakhar as he pulled off a piece of crisping leg meat and blew on his fingers before nibbling. “We will indeed,” he said.
When they’d eaten their fill, they broke camp, climbed back into their large balloon, and stowed all their gear. Zakhar and Zima plotted their course and summoned all the birds who’d just linked up when a winter storm hit. The sisters had warned them about storms and had even taught them how to use storms to travel, but never in her life had Stacia seen a squall move so quickly. The sky, already dim for morning, turned black as night.
They lost all sense of direction. That’s when the birds abandoned them, and the funnel descended. They began to spin.
Chapter16
IF YOU WANT TO SWEEP THE STEPS CLEAN, START AT THE TOP
Nik cracked open his eyes, but he couldn’t see much of anything. His lamp had broken, and the light had gone out. The space where he’d landed was damp; the earth beneath him soft. At least that had prevented him from breaking any bones. He cautiously moved his limbs and found them in working order, but the lump on the back of his head told him he hadn’t imagined the beating he’d taken. Someone had hit him. And it wasn’t a ghost. At least he didn’t think so.
He lay still, listening, but heard nothing. Nik was good at remaining still, even in the most uncomfortable and appalling places. After waiting a length of time he deemed appropriate, he shifted to a standing position, then stretched out his hands to feel around him. At first he attempted to climb the stairs and exit the tunnel, but the door was locked from the outside.
