The Longest Day by Erin Hunter

lurched. Had Akocha gone hurtling into the path of a firebeast?
    Panic flaring through his pelt, Toklo leaped down the hill. Tearing through brambles, bouncing off trees, he half skidded, half bounded down the slope, bursting from the forest hot and scared. “Akocha!”
    Instead of a BlackPath, the trees gave way to a riverbank. The water swirled fast and clear, a bearlength below his paws. Had Akocha fallen in? Toklo hurried to the edge and gazed downstream.
    â€œToklo! Look!” Akocha’s bark sounded behind him. Toklo turned and saw the young bear staring wide-eyed at a pool where the river opened up between steep banks. The pool ended in a stony cliff, twice the height of the trees around it. A sunlit waterfall poured down the cliff, making rainbows where it plunged into the pool.
    â€œIsn’t it beautiful?” Akocha shouted over the noise.
    The roar of water stung Toklo’s ear fur. “I thought you’d fallen in.”
    Akocha frowned at him. “Why would I do that?”
    Toklo growled softly to himself. He should be sleeping on the shore now. And yet the river was beautiful. Enclosed by dark-green forest, it glittered in the burn-sky sunshine.
    â€œLet’s swim,” Akocha suggested.
    Toklo surveyed the smooth water. The pool looked cool and peaceful, despite the thundering of the falls. “Okay.” Slithering down the bank, he plunged in and let the cold water fold around him.
    Bubbles exploded next to him, fizzing around a small brown shape that bobbed swiftly upward, shaking droplets from its muzzle. “Let’s see who can swim to the other side first!” Without waiting, Akocha struck out across the pool.
    Toklo swam after him, pushing slowly through the water as Akocha raced ahead. As they neared the far bank, Akocha veered toward the falls.
    â€œI want to swim through a rainbow!” Akocha called, paddling for the frothing water where the spray made colorful arcs in the air.
    â€œBe careful!” Toklo warned. “Akocha, stop!” His bark was drowned by the bellow of the falls. Toklo stiffened with alarm as Akocha vanished beneath the foam. The current had sucked him under!
    Gulping in a deep breath, Toklo dove beneath the churning water, eyes wide as he searched for the cub. The waterfall hit his back like a stone and pushed him down farther. Tumbling, he struck out with all four paws, fighting for calmer water. And then, as suddenly as the falls had grabbed him, they let him go. Bobbing up, he broke the surface, gasping with relief.
    â€œAkocha!” Was the cub still swirling in the depths, pinned by the force of the falls? Toklo whipped his head around, scanning the surface. Taking another gulp of air, he prepared to dive again.
    A brown head popped up beside him. “That was fun!” Spitting out water, Akocha huffed with delight. Then his eyes stretched wide. “Whoa! Look where we are!”
    Toklo shook away droplets from his head and blinkedwith surprise. The falls had pulled them into another world. Here, screened from the forest by the silver waterfall, a huge cave stretched deep beneath the hillside. Akocha was already swimming for a broad stone ledge at the back of the cave. He heaved himself out of the water and barked with excitement. His call echoed around the stone walls.
    Toklo climbed onto the ledge beside the cub and shook his drenched pelt. The watery light that shone through the falls rippled on the sides of the cave.
    â€œLet’s explore!” Akocha darted into the shadows.
    Toklo followed more slowly, sniffing the cool, wet air as the cave darkened around him. The scents of moss and stone filled his nose. “How far back does it go?” he called.
    Akocha’s echoing bark replied. “It stops here.” He was just visible at the back of the cave, a solid black shape in the half dark.
    This would have made a great den on our journey, Toklo thought. Kallik and Yakone would have loved the