e
laughed to see how his knees flew up, first one, then the other, as
white clouds sprayed from his snowshoes. Strong as he was, he could
never outrun a bear. Especially not this bear.

As for herself, she was surely doomed. She thought, _May this be a
better death than drowning under the ice_.

And she turned to face the spirit bear.

3

Claw Marks

The white bear was out of the forest now. Redbird had seen bears run,
and she knew it could cover the distance that separated them in a few
bounds.

It did not seem to be looking at her, and she wondered if it saw her. It
sparkled in the moonlight. Its breath came in huge frosty clouds,
obscuring its head. Did spirit bears breathe?

She looked around again to see where Wolf Paw was. He had become a
small, dark spot against the white at the edge of the village. His
snowshoes had carried him far quickly. She, too, would have run, if she
could run like Wolf Paw.

She did not think Wolf Paw a coward. His courage was well known. Facing
a being like this, the bravest man in the world would run.

_It doesn't seem to see me. Maybe it is best to stand still._

She trembled from head to foot, unable to decide what to do. She felt
dizzy, as if she might collapse into the snow. The bright light that
seemed to come from the bear dazzled her.

But would a spirit bear attack people in the night and kill them? Devils
and cannibal giants would, but she had never heard of a spirit doing any
such thing.

She was learning to be a medicine woman, and a medicine woman must deal
unafraid with the beings of the other world. Talk the bad spirits out of
a sick person's body and call upon the good spirits to aid in healing.

She took a deep breath. Whether this be a good spirit or a devil, she
would stand here holding herself proudly. Wolf Paw, if he looked back,
would see the maiden he had threatened standing in the place he had run
from.

The white bear took a step toward her.

In spite of her fear, she made herself look at the spirit as it came on.
It walked so slowly. Perhaps, after all, she could run away from it.

Under the pointed snout she saw eyes that seemed to glow out of a
shadowed face.

It was a man she was facing.

She saw that its path was taking it past her. It--he--did not seem to
see her at all. But he was close enough now for her to see the face
under the bear's skull. The large, round eyes, the long, thin features
ending in a pointed chin, the bon