the pile of fish used to be was a small, white, fluffy seal pup with eyes as big as full moons. He looked at her guiltily, knowing he had been caught trying to steal a fish.
Haibu asked, “Now, who might you be, mister?”
The seal lowered his head like he was being scolded.
Haibu pointed at him and then at the fish. “No. Not yours! You better skedaddle, or I will make you into a fur cap!”
The seal turned his big eyes back to Haibu, as if to say he was sorry. That surprised her, and she melted a bit inside. To make the seal feel a little better, Haibu grabbed one of the fish and threw it in front of him. The seal settled in for this snack while Haibu gathered all the tools. When she looked back, the seal was no longer eating the fish. Instead, he was staring intently at Haibu.
“Go on!” Haibu urged. “I gave you a fish! Now eat it and go!”
As Haibu continued to pick up tools, she heard a noise behind her. She spun around to find the seal’s face inches from hers. Surprised, but not scared, Haibu dropped the tools just as the little seal planted a big wet kiss right in the middle of her forehead!
Wiping the slobber away, Haibu sternly replied, “No, Mr. Seal! You need to go home!”
That did not happen.
The seal scooted even closer to Haibu’s face and smothered her with kisses and more kisses. When he was done, he lay his head on Haibu’s shoulder and stared innocently at her with his perfectly round, midnight-black eyes.
Haibu snuggled into him for a moment. It felt good. It made her think of good thoughts. Be Happy, Be Friendly, Be Family.
“Okay, fine. You can have another fish if you’d like.”
Happily accepting the offer, the seal continued to eat. “You’re lucky you’re so cute, Mr. Seal. I wouldn’t give just anybody my fish. I need these to prove to my family and my village that I am as strong as they are!”
With his head cocked to the side, the seal seemed to be trying to understand all the words that were coming out of her mouth.
“My name is Haibu. What’s your name? Nosey? Because you do seem a little nosey.” Haibu giggled. “Maybe I’ll just call you Kanuux,” she said, saying the word like Kuh-new. “Kanuux means heart! Your cute little black nose is shaped just like a heart.”
The seal nodded at Haibu.
“You like it? Great! That’s what I’ll call you then—Kanuux! By the way, a heart is my favorite shape, so you are now my favorite Kanuux. Do you want to come home with me? You can help me fish, and everyone in the village will know who we are! The dynamic duo!”
Soon, it was midday, and Haibu had been fishing since early morning, pulling out huge fish that weighed nearly as much as Kanuux the seal. All that work made Haibu exhausted. Likewise, Kanuux was sleepy from all the fish he had eaten. Haibu yawned as loud as a ship’s horn. Kanuux’s eyelids grew heavy.
Haibu turned to Kanuux with a good idea. “I think we should have a nap before our trip back.”
She lay down on the ice and Kanuux lay his head across her stomach, and they both drifted off into their own little dreamlands.
POLAR SHIFT
Haibu’s eyes opened suddenly to an unfamiliar crunching noise. Confused, she whispered to herself, “What could that be?”
Kanuux was still fast asleep beside her. As Haibu sat up to look around, she was horrified to see a large, full-grown, nine-hundred-pound polar bear just a few feet away. And it was eating all of her fish!
Before she even thought about what she was doing, Haibu screamed at the bear, “Nanuq, NO! Not yours! Shoo!”
The polar bear swung his head in Haibu’s direction and snarled, showing his large fangs.
Haibu instantly regretted her actions. “Oh no…”
There are many things for a Mayok to fear in the north, but none more terrifying nor dangerous than an angry polar bear. The ferocious bear lunged straight toward Haibu, stopping directly in front of her! Haibu heard the loud crack of the ice beneath them. She froze.
Growling, the bear showed how tough he was by flashing his dangerous teeth directly in front of Haibu’s face. His growl was so deep that it shook Haibu’s entire body, making her teeth chatter and her hair stand up on her arms.
“P-p-please,” Haibu begged.
The bear leaned in closer to Haibu and with a voice that sounded like it was coming from somewhere deep, deep, deep in a cave, answered, “Please, what?”
Yesterday was a long day and last night was a short night, so Haibu was more than a little surprised by the polar bear encounter. And now this … Did that polar bear just speak to me? And did I just understand him?
Haibu wasn’t sure what was happening. She wondered if she was in a state of shock. “P-P-Please don’t hurt us. Just take the fish.”
Now, bears are not known for their manners, nor have they ever been caught using a napkin. The hungry bear leaned even closer, baring his large, razor-sharp teeth and dripping saliva onto Haibu’s feet. He roared, “Do you think I need your permission?”
The bear stood on his hind legs, towering over Haibu. Then he crashed back down on all fours and shouted, “I will take what I want, human!”
Needless to say, the crash knocked Haibu to the ground. Kanuux, who was wide awake now, whimpered and scurried backward a few feet. Haibu couldn’t take her eyes off of the bear.
She whispered to herself, “He can talk.” Slowly, she crawled to her feet, “I’m trying to be nice and offer you fish.”
“And I am not asking you for permission! I will take what I want, just like you did!” the bear snarled.
“Then take it and please leave,” Haibu shouted back.
The bear began to circle around Haibu. “You humans are weak and pathetic. You take all you can, even when you’ve had enough.”
“I’m not trying—”
“I did not ask you to speak!” the bear roared.
Haibu was terrified. She knew the bear could gobble her up in seconds, then turn around and do the same to Kanuux. Still circling Haibu, the polar bear continued, “You humans are the reason I have to resort to stealing fish. Day and night, I see you pulling fish from the great waters, taking them all with no regard to any other animal out here.”
He stopped in front of Haibu and raised a paw in the air. Haibu squeezed her eyes shut, sure this was the end.
CRASH!
