The Final Journey Page #12

stares at her in confusion and disgust.

ISHA (CONT’D)

Uk-thluk.

Isha smiles and disappears back into the cave. Tato looks at

his pack and shakes his head.

He peers in the direction the bear tracks lead before the

snow covered them, then heads the opposite direction.

ARCTIC FIELD - LATER

Tato staggers along, hot and tired. From the tracks behind

him, he has travelled a great distance.

He stops and sits for a rest, scooping up snow to eat. He

checks the sun’s position in the sky and shakes his head,

disappointed.

The landscape is empty in all directions.

Frustrated, he lays back in the snow and stretches out his

arms and legs as he blankly stares at the sky.

LATER:

Tato walks even further out, looking even more tired as he

eats dried ptarmigan. The sun is on its way back down the sky

and there is still no sign of food anywhere.

He stops and gazes at the distance he’s crossed. Glancing

around, trying to figure out what to do, he finally hangs his

head in defeat and starts back, following his own tracks.

LATER:

Tato passes a snow angel marking where he stopped earlier to

lay in the snow. He does not even glance at it.

52.

SNOW HILL - SUNSET

Tato travels along an incline that is steepening into the big

hill where the caves lies, not far ahead.

Crestfallen, he still stares around for any signs of food but

the situation looks hopeless.

A BLUR OF MOVEMENT AT THE TOP OF THE HILL causes him to

freeze. He waits, not moving a muscle.

It happens again! Something furry and white is up there, but

the glimpse was too quick to see what it was-- rabbit? Fox?

Paw of a frolicking polar bear?

Tato creeps up the incline, careful to stay low and quiet.

Near the top, two foxes suddenly appear-- the blur culprits!

Tato ducks, excited, but the foxes take no notice of him,

spooked by something on top of the incline.

Tato raises his spear.

The foxes bolt, one speeding away from Tato down the hill,

the other running straight at him, too unnerved by something

behind it to even care he is there.

Tato launches his spear, striking the fox dead before it

reaches him! He smiles, triumphant.

RUMBLE! TATO HEARS THE POUNDING OF MANY APPROACHING PAWS AT

THE TOP OF THE INCLINE AND HIS SMILE FADES.

Looking up, his eyes widen as five wolves pour over the hill

in pursuit of the foxes.

Three wolves chase after the escaping fox, but two come after

his and, finding Tato there, immediately BARK and circle him.

Tato grabs his knife and turns with the wolves, maintaining

eye contact as best he can.

He tries to grab his spear, BUT ONE OF THE WOLVES CHARGES!

Tato falls back, spilling his backpack and swinging his knife

at the wolf, clipping it’s nose!

THE WOLF SHRIEKS and takes off after the other fox.

The other wolf remains, BARKING FIERCELY AT TATO.

53.

Tato backs away, still on the ground, and the wolf charges,

but stops at the fox, sniffing it. The wolf opens its mouth

to grab the fox, but Tato YELLS.

THE WOLF ERUPTS ANOTHER BARRAGE OF VICIOUS BARKS and, moving

quicker than expected, charges forward, right on top of Tato!

Tato freezes as it creeps forward, GROWLING OMINOUSLY and

sniffing up his leg.

Tato is petrified as the wolf reaches his abdomen.

It suddenly stops, spooked by something.

The wolf sniffs down beneath Tato’s body to his open pack.

IT MAKES A NERVOUS WHINE.

The wolf backs away a few feet and EXPLODES WITH BARKS.

Tato cringes, petrified. The wolf turns and races off after

the rest of his pack.

Tato lays there a moment catching his breath, then moves,

confused, to see what spooked the wolf.

There in the snow, among the things that fell from his pack,

is the urine-soaked fox skull Isha had placed there.

Tato picks it up and stares at it, amazed.

EXT. CAVE - DUSK

Tato arrives back carrying the dead fox in one hand and the

fox skull in the other.

He sees no bear (or wolf) tracks anywhere and smiles at

Isha’s skull pyramid.

He glances where the bear tracks lead before the snow covered

them and, seeing nothing, enters the cave in good spirits.

INSIDE THE CAVE:

Tato finds all the bones have been piled in one corner, and

all wood and fuel stacked besides a small crackling fire.

Tending the fire, Isha claps when she sees Tato and his fox.

Tato holds up the fox skull and kisses it. Isha smiles.

54.

LATER THAT NIGHT

Isha and Tato sit around the fire, eating.

The fox’s fur and strips of meat are stretched on a driftwood

log behind them.

A melting snow pile in a far corner reveals various innards

buried there to keep fresh.

As they eat, Isha and Tato communicate in the sand between

them. From the wolf drawings, and lone figure facing them,

it’s obvious Tato has been telling the story of his hunt.

Tato suddenly BARKS at Isha, startling her into LAUGHTER.

Tato creeps towards her like a powerful, prowling wolf,

looking Isha in the eyes and smiling in a cocky way.

He sniffs her foot then works his way up her leg, the action

strangely erotic.

Isha stiffens, caught-off-guard. When Tato reaches her upper

thigh, his head very close to her breasts, he stops to look

at them, momentarily forgetting what he is doing.

After an awkward silence, Tato sits up straight, producing

the fox skull from behind him and acting surprised.

He stands and runs away, pretending to be a wolf again. Isha

LAUGHS and claps at his humorous ending.

Tato runs back, smiling, and sits beside her, eating more.

ISHA:

(in choppy Attopa)

Good, good! Very good Tato!

Tato blushes. Isha notices he is again sporting an erection.

Tato catches her looking, and Isha turns away, also blushing.

Tato shifts himself to hide his erection.

Changing the subject, Isha notices Tato wearing his mukluks

and waves his feet towards her.

ISHA (CONT’D)

Tato, give me your mukluks.

Catching her meaning, Tato takes off a mukluk and hands it to

her. Isha picks up her blunt stick from the night before and

rubs it down, biting back the aching in her hands.

55.

Tato notices her pain as he takes off his other mukluk.

TATO:

Isha...

He tries to take the mukluk from her, but Isha pulls it out

of his reach.

ISHA:

No!

She keeps working, avoiding his gaze.

Tato smiles and takes the opportunity to look her over. Isha

is old, yes, but beneath her skimpy clothes, he can see her

womanly form all too well in the firelight.

Especially the curve of her breasts, which he was so near

moments before...

Isha looks up and Tato turns away, embarrassed. He grabs a

stick and rubs down his other mukluk.

INT. CAVE - LATER

Isha lies on the straw bed beside Tato, staring at the

ceiling as the fire throws shadows across it.

Drifting toward sleep, she sees SILHOUETTED IMAGES OF WOMEN

APPEARING AND DISAPPEARING IN THE DANCING SHADOWS.

The images become more numerous as Isha fades until one

shadow of a woman becomes more distinct than all the others.

This shadow seems to originate from the wall behind Isha,

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