Winter's tale
(Written by Sergey Kozlov. Translated by Dmitry Samoshin)
In the morning snow was falling.
Bear was sitting on the edge of the forest on the stump, looking up, and counting, and licking snowflakes falling on the nose.
The snowflakes fell sweet, fluffy and, before falling completely, rose on tiptoe. Oh, how fun it was!
"Seventh," whispered Bear and, having admired the whole, licked his nose.
But the snowflakes were enchanted: they did not melt and continued to be the same fluffy in the Bear's belly.
"Oh, hello, deary!" said six snowflakes to their mate when she was next to them. "The forest still windless? Bear still sitting on the stump? Oh, what a funny Bear!"
Bear heard that someone was talking in his belly, but did not pay attention.
And the snow was falling and falling. The snowflakes more and more fell on the Bear's nose, crouched and said smiling: "Hello, Bear!"
"It's very pleasant," said Bear. "You are the sixty-eighth." and licked.
By the evening he ate three hundred snowflakes, and he dreamed that he was a fluffy, soft snowflake... and that he fell on a bear's nose and said: "Hello, Bear!" and in response he heard:
"It's very pleasant, you're three hundred and twentieth."
"Lam-pa-ra-pam!" the music began to play. And Bear whirled in a sweet, magical dance, and three hundred snowflakes whirled with him. They twinkled in front, behind, at the side and, when he was tired, picked him up, and he whirled, whirled...
All winter Bear was sick. His nose was dry and hot, and the snowflakes danced in his belly. And only in the spring, when the drops rang throughout the forest and birds came, he opened his eyes and saw Hedgehog on the stool. Hedgehog smiled and wiggled with needles.
"What are you doing here?" asked Bear.
"I'm waiting for you to get well," answered Hedgehog.
"How long?"
"All winter," said Hedgehog. "I immediately dragged all my supplies to you, as soon as I found out that you are full of snow..."
"And you were sitting next to me on a stool all winter?"
"Yes, I gave you a spruce broth and applied dried grass to the belly..."
"I do not remember," said Bear.
"You bet!" Hedgehog sighed. "You've been saying that you're a snowflake all winter. I was so afraid that you would melt by spring..."
