Theta was wandering through the snow covered forests, pondering about the mistake he had made.
Well, the two mistakes.
Number one had been applying for a course of 'applied wildlife' without checking that it was held by the first priest of intellectual infamy, better known as the Lemming.
Yes, reincarnation is a dog of the female persuasion as they would say.
Taking a course by the Lemming Lord, as he was mockingly addressed by his fellow colleagues, was quite an experience.
Not only did in his theory wildlife revolve around eating lemmings, but his lectures were ever so often interrupted by him shouting "Hawk!" and diving for cover, if he had mistaken a swaying branch for a diving predator.
Theta's first mistake.
This afternoon's trip in the snow had ended prematurely, as the Lemming Lord had fainted after hearing the hooting of an owl and had to be carried back by some teacher's pets, though in Theta's opinion teacher's pet's pets would have been more appropriate.
At the sight of their teacher being wrapped up tightly in his various tiny robes and coats and taken back to the academy, the remaining students had decided on taking the afternoon off.
However, Theta had been captivated by the glistening forest and sparkling crystals, which was why he had decided on continuing his journey deeper into the romantically snow-covered woods.
Theta's second mistake.
There he was now. Sitting in the middle of the white hell a forest provided in the winter, with snow covering up his tracks, so that Theta had been unable to follow them back.
Here he was, lost and tired in the wildlife, condemned to starve to death.
If only there had been a lemming around...
Well he would probably get expelled for eating one of those, considering that the Lemming Lord was a faculty member.
Well if he froze to death...
Theta considered this for a while.
If he took off his coat and the three robes he was wearing underneath it, he might freeze to death. And probably regenerate.
And if, if he was to cut off his hand or possibly even leg during an early regeneration cycle, he might be able to grow it back.
So he could eat the spare hand...
Theta looked at his left hand for a while.
However his train of thoughts was interrupted by a snowstorm approaching him.
Not approaching in general.
It looked like some sort of local tornado thundering through the forest, sprinkling its surrounding with chunks of ice.
Theta was unable to move and stared at the thing as it moved closer at high speed only to miss him by inches as it came to a halt, showering him in a cloud of snow.
"Oi!"
There was a voice calling him and as the cloud settled and he had dusted off most of the snow, Theta was able to see a figure hopping down from some sort of sleigh and moving in his direction.
Funnily enough, there appeared to be no one pulling the sleigh, as the reins simply disappeared into the high snow without showing any animal attached to it.
The fashionable goggles and scarf covering the lower half of his face were removed to reveal Koschei as the mad driver of this monstrosity.
"What are you doing out here?" Koschei wanted to know as he brushed off some more snow from Theta's coat by tapping him, especially his backside rather vigorously and in Theta's opinion unnecessarily forceful.
"I'm just, taking a small walk, you know," he lied, as the snow melted off his blushing face, "getting inspired by nature coated in white."
"Thinking about eating your hand," Koschei added.
Theta sighed.
"I'm not going to argue with you," he stated exhausted, "You can mock me as much as you want, but please, can you give me a lift?"
"Sure," Koschei offered as he guided Theta over to his sleigh," How about this: I give you a lift now and then when we're back in the dorm warm and cosy, then I'll make fun of you."
"Agreed," Theta nodded.
Koschei removed a big broom from the sleigh and started sweeping away the snow drift he had manoeuvred into involuntarily as he had avoided running over Theta.
And revealed...
"You're using them to pull it?" Theta exclaimed.
"Didn't I tell you about the swift way of transportation in the snow?" Koschei chuckled while brushing off the snow off his five opossums, who were snarling threateningly and taking experimental bites out of the broom.
"Mind you it takes a while to free their fur from all the snow afterwards."
He attached the broom again.
"Which leads me to another of my little inventions, but enough of this for now."
Theta stared open mouthed at the assemblage of snow covered shaggy wild beasts growling at each other as Koschei hopped back on the sleigh.
Theta treated the opossums to a scrutinizing stare.
"Wait a minute."
Koschei was about to pick up the reins, but hesitated.
"I thought you sheltered only four opossums," Theta remarked puzzled.
"Yes, the one at the top isn't mine. It's yours."
"Wait, what?" Theta protested, "How dare you use my opossum as sleigh dog."
"I'm not, alright," Koschei tried to defend himself as he pointed at the complicated net of robes, "See, it's not even attached to a harness, it's just there to keep the rest going..."
He broke of ominously.
"Koschei, we're not talking about horses. Opossums, don't follow other opossums in a stampede. So why using mine as well?"
"Bait?" Koschei ventured carefully.
But before Theta could have protested they had already set off at high speed.
Four opossums running to catch their lunch and a fifth one ahead of them, trying to outrun the rest.