Waiting for the Longest Day around Great Bear Lake, Lusa and Miki decided to go foraging.
"Hey! Look at this!" Miki called.
He was standing beside a small nimble tree, and on the top of the tree was a bee hive overflowing with honey.
"Come on," Miki said, "Let's go get it!"
Miki started climbing the tree. As he did so, it began to tip under his weight until the whole thing was tipped over to the ground.
"Here, hold it down." Miki said.
"Got it," Replied Lusa, putting both paws down on the tree, holding it down.
Now Miki was able to walk along the tree with all four paws on the ground on either side of it. Miki reached the hive and pulled it free with his teeth. The bees buzzed, but through his thick fur, they barely bothered him.
"Okay, hold it for a moment more," Miki said.
Miki took a couple of steps forward, hive in his teeth, only his back legs were over the tree now, one on each side…
…And Lusa's paws slipped.
CRACK! The tree snapped upright, Miki's body nothing to halter its ascent.
Miki crumpled over on the ground moaning in agony, instantly forgetting why he was here.
Lusa held back her breath. She had just hurt Miki in his… Lusa clinched her legs together. Oh no, she was a… She had no idea what he was going through, but even as a she-bear… Ooh, it was just too painful to think. He got hit in the-! She couldn't even finish the thought. It was too embarrassing for her to think about.
Lusa didn't know whether to laugh or pity Miki.
Maybe I should just slip away…
With any luck, he wouldn't remember how he got there anyway.
So Lusa ran to see if she could find her other friends. She'd leave the honey hive with Miki. He deserved at least one good thing after going through what he was going through.