Page 4 of To Ride the Wind

The animal was speaking—and in perfectly intelligible words.

“You…you can talk,” she said, her voice trembling.

The bear made such a terrifying rumbling sound that she nearly ran, but a certain brightness to his eyes gave her pause. Was he laughing?

“I’m sorry,” he said. “I didn’t mean to startle you, but I couldn’t think of any other way to communicate.”

“No,” she said blinking, “I suppose not.”

Silence fell as she tried to think what else to say. While she had never been excessively talkative like some children, she had rarely been at a complete loss. But what sort of conversation was one supposed to have with a bear? The entire interaction was inconceivable.

Or was it? Her thoughts stopped in their wild spinning as she remembered a story Daisy used to tell. The tale had been about a girl from a kingdom across the desert—a girl who had become a princess with the help of a talking cat.

According to the story, the cat had come from the High King’s lands. It made sense, of course. Something as fantastical as a talking animal had to come from the Palace of Light. In fact, hadn’t one of her cousins claimed to hear stories of a talking horse who had spent some time in Rangmere? Her cousin had never met the steed himself, but he had insisted the story was true. And in that tale, the creature had come from the Palace of Light as well. If the High King’s lands contained a talking cat and a talking horse, why not a talking white bear?

She relaxed. It still didn’t explain what such an animal was doing here, in their valley. But at least she was in no danger from a companion of the High King. However long his claws and sharp his teeth, no animal from the Palace of Light would eat a human.

At least, she didn’t think one would.

She considered how to phrase a query about the bear’s origins. She didn’t want to offend him by appearing too suspicious.

“Aren’t you afraid of me?” he asked while she was still debating the matter internally.

“Should I be?” she asked back, still marveling at the way his head cocked to the side in curiosity and at the intelligence in his dark eyes. It was no wonder she had sensed from the first that he was no ordinary bear.

“You have nothing to fear from me,” he said promptly, and somehow his words comforted her, despite the deep, gravelly tone.

“Thank you.” She offered him a small curtsy. She wasn’t entirely sure if you were supposed to curtsy to anyone from the Palace of Light or only to the High King himself. But it seemed better to be safe than risk offending such a very large creature.

The bear dipped his head in response, seeming pleased with her action.

Silence fell again as she considered how she was going to tell this story to her family. She could already hear her sisters’ ridicule. They would never believe the bear was friendly, let alone that it could talk. Especially not after their excessive—and apparently unnecessary—fear the day before.

She bit her lip.

“Does something trouble you?” The bear took several steps toward her before halting abruptly, as if he had suddenly realized she might not welcome his approach.

She smiled, touched by his thoughtfulness.

“It’s nothing of importance,” she said. “Merely that my sisters don’t like me, and that’s hardly new.”

She blinked, surprised by her own words. Whatever had led her to blurt out her problems? She had to be badly starved of companionship if she was turning to a bear as her confidante.

He gazed at her with such quiet patience that somehow her mouth opened and more words poured out.

“I do nothing to antagonize them. Quite the opposite! But the two of them are so close in age and temperament, and they’ve always been willing to close ranks against me at the smallest perceived slight.” She sighed heavily. “I thought we were making progress when we moved out here. I even began to think of them as friends. I guess that’s why it hurt so much more when they turned against me this time. I’ve been doing my best not to provoke them, but it makes no difference when they’re in this mood. They see fault in everything I do and say.” Her voice dropped. “I suppose they don’t need me. They have each other. But that leaves me all alone.”

The day before, she would have said it was impossible for a bear to frown. But there was no denying his frown in response to her words. His intense gaze fixed even more closely on her face.

“I’ve been watching you all for days,” he admitted after a moment, making her start. “Even I, a stranger, have been able to see your sisters’ feelings toward you.” His eyes narrowed, and his voice dropped so low it was practically a growl. “Shall I teach them some manners?”

Her eyes widened, a strange rush washing through her—half fear and half imagined delight at the thought of the bear confronting her sisters. But she couldn’t encourage the dark turn of his mood.

“Oh no!” she exclaimed. “You need to stay away from them! They’re already afraid of you as it is. If you frighten them too badly, they’ll never leave the house again.”

“And then you’ll have to gather food on your own,” he said in a milder tone, looking disappointed. “I suppose that will only make everything worse.”

She tried to hide her smile and didn’t quite succeed. He sounded almost like a child denied a favorite sweet. But a moment later, he brightened, as if struck by a new thought.

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