Summary

Chapter 1 brings us back to the myth of the bear. The sisters and their brother-turned-bear have vanished. In the days and weeks following their disappearance, the people come out at dusk and wait for the stars. They are filled with wonder and loneliness when the stars become visible and some of the people make exclamations, while others remain reverently silent. After a great storm rolls through the camp and the skies are darkened for four days, the people no longer convene in the evening to mark the disappearance of the sisters and the transformation of the brother. Now they go on with their lives as if nothing has happened, including the parents of the lost children. It is decided that the parents will not grieve and nobody faults them for their decision. Only the old woman Koi-ehm-toya grieves again; one morning, as it snows...