Countless heartbeats passed, sunrises and sunsets, the moon waxed and then waned. Moons passed and Salim and his kitten grew in their strengths and weaknesses.

The lynx was proud of himself that he had actually managed to raise Valja and Akuma, had nursed them with the help of milk from prey and then later caught them deer and hares, which they had eaten with glee. And then, finally, the time had come for the little ones to leave the den for the first time. It had been the best feeling ever when Salim had felt the curiosity of his kittens, as he had once carried it within him.

Valja and Akuma had become handsome young lynxes, even if it was still a long time before they were allowed to set off in search of their own territory.

And right now, he wanted to show his two charges the endless lake that stretched out at the end of his territory. Until now, he had kept them away from there because the ice was thin and if you took one wrong step, you could get under the surface. But now that the dead time was behind them, the snow had thawed and the ice had melted, the flowers were blooming again and insects were crawling out of their nests, he could dare. He trusted the little ones, but sometimes they came up with the odd idea to make life out here more exciting.

Salim grinned as he thought of how Valja had once imitated a wolf howl, something she was good at, and had woken Akuma and him from their sleep in the middle of the night. And yes, Akuma had also taken revenge on his sister. When she had suddenly fallen asleep in the forest, he had let a bug crawl into her ear. What a scream that had been.

"Valja, stay here with us”, the lynx admonished his daughter as she frolicked wildly around the spruce trees, whose new needles had already begun to sprout.

But Valja didn't listen to him, she just whooped even louder in anticipation of the lake. Salim didn't want to disturb her euphoria, because he could understand her. He had often told them about the lake to ease the ban on going there.

"Valja will plunge into the water very quickly”, Akuma said in a lowered voice and grinned broadly, infecting Salim. It was a funny thought, but letting her fur dry afterwards and listening to her whine wouldn't be so amusing.

The little lynxess turned her head when she noticed the whispering. "Hey, what are you talking about? Are you talking about me?" In three short jumps, she jumped back to her brother and father and looked at them reproachfully.

Salim could see Akuma's grin widen and then he said with amusement, "Oh. We're just imagining you falling into the lake." He dangled his tail back and forth hypocritically and Valja's eyes widened indignantly.

"What? Well, just wait until I don't push you into the lake first." The only lynxess in the family nipped her brother's ear with her teeth and Akuma squeaked in surprise. But then he also snatched at Valja's fur, but she laughed and dodged his jaws and took off in long leaps. Akuma followed immediately, still wearing that mischievous grin on his face.

"Don't run too far!", Salim called after the two and followed them so as not to let them out of his sight. Involuntarily, the image of Miles' dead body flashed through his mind. No, he would not lose these two kittens too. Better to be careful than to have to count two new lynxes among the dead.

Salim dodged a fir tree that jumped into his path and tried to keep an eye on the shrieking and laughing siblings, who were getting further and further away. He could just make out the tip of Valja's tail, which was restlessly chasing after its owner so as not to be left behind.

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"Valja! Akuma! Not so fast! Wait!" Faster and faster the lynx went as his kittens didn't react and just kept running. He could already smell the path of the Baldskins coming closer and closer. Hopefully no one was out and about who could see, hear or even take them away.

Panting, he ran on, leaping through bushes and shrubs in a single bound until he could finally see the two of them.

"What did I tell you?", he grumbled angrily and stepped towards the siblings, who were huddled close together. They looked at him with wide eyes and the lynx involuntarily felt some sympathy for the kittens.

"One more thing like that and you won't leave the cave for a moon!", he threatened. Valja opened her mouth to grunt in protest and Akuma's gaze darkened as well. But Salim showed no mercy this time. He couldn't stand it when his kittens did what they wanted without paying attention to possible dangers. Miles was already dead, killed by Salims carelessness, and it wouldn't happen a second time.

He made an effort to soften his features a little and, with a twitch of his ears, pointed to the few trees just a few foxes' bodies away, signaling the end of the forest. "There's a path over there that the Baldskins often use to get to the lake. You know that." Anything could have happened. "What if they had seen you? I have no desire to free you from one of their caves."

Valja didn't take her eyes off him and somehow he couldn't read anything clear from her gaze. Her dark pupils searched his fur for something that didn't seem to be there, scrutinizing him extensively without even hiding it. She saw something on, or in, him that he couldn't recognize.

And Akuma, who had only lowered his head briefly, didn't seem to see anything of this invisible thing either. "Sorry", he mumbled, and Valja hastily agreed with him.

"Shall we go on now? Oh please! We want to see the lake so much!", she cried excitedly and the strange shadow disappeared from her eyes instantly. She stood up and wagged her tail excitedly. "Those stupid Baldskins won't hurt us! We're far too clever and fast for them."

A smile crept onto Salim's lips then, and he nodded slightly to clear the anger from his pelt. "Follow me", he whispered with an ominous undertone, walking slowly and carefully to the edge of the forest, which led along a Baldskin’s path and made a meadow appear beyond.

Salim ducked down into the grass, which seemed to tickle his fur, and his eyes flashed playfully for a moment. "Copy me." Out of the corner of his eye, he could see the kittens duck and slink towards him as well. Carefully, but not too quietly, as would have been best.

But the lynx didn't let that bother him, just nodded. "Very well." He lowered his voice. "Smell the Baldskins and take a good look around."

"But you can't smell anything here except that stench!", Valja complained, wrinkling her nose in disgust, but Akuma nudged her flank with his paw. "Shh. You're shouting like a herd of deer!"

"I'm much quieter than you! And you smell just like those Baldskins with their yapping beasts. Maybe you should offer yourself as one? I'm sure they'd love to have you." The lynxess grinned and then turned back to the path.

Salim, however, didn't allow Akuma to backpedal and possibly draw the attention of all the creatures in the forest. He pushed his way between the siblings and ended the little argument, to which Akuma only murmured his agreement.

"On the count of three, we'll run into the meadow. Make sure no one sees or smells you."