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Flink's snowmobile bumped over the ruts as he followed Krister's tracks. The vibration made his arms shake and his teeth rattle, and the icy wind stung his cheeks. With every bump he was afraid he'd flip the machine and kill himself. This was supposed to be fun?

"You're such a city boy, Flink!" the malamute had teased as they stood in line for the coffee machine. "You need to get back to nature. Come snowmobiling with me this weekend - we'll go up to my cabin, drink some beer, have a sauna."

Flink's idea of getting back to nature was wearing organic cotton underpants, and his sporting activities were usually limited to the Wii. However, he had jumped at the chance of getting to know his colleague better. The two dogs worked on the same floor and often exchanged a few words at the office, but to the husky's frustration it had never gone any further - not even as far as a quick drink after work.

Now he was regretting his decision.

There were orange flags to mark the trail, but Krister obviously knew where he was going as he flung his snowmobile around the bends, kicking up the snow in a fine spray. He rode standing up on the footboards, knees bent, shifting his weight to steer with his whole body. Flink, behind, had a tantalising view of the padded snowsuit taut against his companion's buttocks.

Occupied with watching the white arc of Krister's tail bob and quiver, Flink barely missed a pine tree. A branch lashed his face and whipped off his knitted bobble hat.

Flink didn't dare stop to retrieve it, in case he lost Krister and the trail. He had no idea where they were, how far they had come or how to get back to the town where they had left Krister's car, and in a couple of hours it would be dark.

He gripped the handlebars for dear life as he struggled to keep the malamute in sight. His fingers were numb, his neck and shoulders had been aching with tension ever since they set off, and now his ears were getting cold too.

Krister looked over his shoulder and grinned, closing the throttle to let the other snowmobile catch up. The two machines glided to a halt side by side.

"Oh, Flink, you lost your hat!" Krister chuckled. "Never mind - have mine."

It was a trapper-style cap, fur-lined, with flaps. Leaning across, Krister arranged it on Flink's head and fastened it under his chin.

"There! You can't lose that. Not far now!"

The cap smelled of old cloth and of Krister. It was still warm from his body. For the rest of the journey Flink thought of Krister's hot breath on his face as he buckled the strap, his brown eyes sparkling from the excitement of the ride.

*

The drill bit slipped and skittered on the ice as Flink leaned his whole weight on it, winding it round and round like a corkscrew. The ice drill was almost as tall as he was, and he could already feel the pads of his palms blistering.

"Fetch some water for the sauna while I chop the wood," Krister had said with such a winning smile that Flink didn't protest. The malamute was by the woodpile now, sawing logs into sections and splitting the sections with an axe.

Still turning the handle, Flink watched him swing the axe high and bring it down, the wood breaking cleanly in two with a crack that echoed in the stillness. He had rolled up his sleeves, revealing muscled arms.

Krister turned, caught Flink's eye and waved. At that moment the drill penetrated the thick crust and Flink nearly fell over in his efforts to haul it back before it could slip into the frozen lake. Hugging the drill to his chest, he managed a small wave back.

He filled two pails with the icy water and carried them carefully up the hill to the sauna, emptying them into the boiler above the stove. Meanwhile, Krister had lit the fire and was making a little pile of logs beside it. He trotted back and forth from woodshed to sauna, carrying the heavy wood with ease.

"A clear night," he said, pausing beside Flink and looking up. "Maybe we'll see the Northern Lights!"

Evening had crept down while Flink was working. He could still make out the snow on the black tree branches, standing out against the sky with its crisp, bright stars. In the window of the sauna, Krister had lit candles.

The malamute slipped out of his snowsuit and thermal underwear in the tiny porch, and Flink followed suit. He hopped naked after Krister, wincing at the cold under his feet.

Already the little room with its slatted pine walls was hot as an oven. Krister climbed to the topmost of the three benches, where the air was hottest, and threw Flink a can of beer. Flink seated himself on the lower bench, his lips parted as he panted gently.

The thermostat stood at 50°. Flink leaned back and let the chill of the snowmobile ride and the exertion of the ice drilling soak out of his bones.

The cold, weak lager was the perfect contrast to the heat. Flink felt himself relax, properly relax, for the first time in months. He sighed deeply.

"You like?" Krister asked, smiling.

He looked up at the malamute, who seemed to shimmer in the hazy air. Even at rest, the muscles on his arms and legs were well-defined. Broad, strong hands lay in his lap, and above them the white fur of his stomach rippled as he breathed.

"I like very much," Flink replied, thumping his tail on the bench.

They sipped their lager in silence for a few minutes. That was the way of the sauna: you could confess anything, you could philosophise, or you could stay silent.

"Thanks for coming out here," Krister said suddenly.

"Thanks for asking me!"

Krister laughed. "Flink, you're so polite! I drag you out on the snowmobile and make you afraid for your life, then I force you to saw ice and fetch water like a slave, and you thank me!"

"No, I liked it - well, I like being here now. But I can't help wondering why you asked me." Flink felt the skin around his muzzle flush pink, and hoped Krister would assume it was just the heat of the room.

"I wanted to get you out into the wilderness! Every Monday morning you say you spent your weekend playing video games and watching DVDs. You're a husky - you were meant to be out in the snow, like me. I wanted to see you work for your dinner. Doesn't it feel good to relax after all that exertion?"

Flink wasn't feeling good at all. Gazing through half-closed eyes at Krister, he felt hot prickles run up his back. The way the malamute sat there, so close yet out of reach, his toes curling and uncurling as they dangled, was unbearable. Flink wriggled on the hot bench.

So this whole exercise was about - exercise? That was all? Flink wasn't so sure about that. There were plenty of other couch potatoes in the office for Krister to pick on. He would call the malamute's bluff, and soon, or he was going to...pass out?

The discomfort he felt wasn't all related to Krister, he realised. Flink was baking. Breathing the dry air hurt his throat. He touched a finger to his nose; it was hot and dry. When he touched the bench his hand left a padprint of sweat, which evaporated swiftly.

"Krister..." he whined.

"Bear it just a few more minutes, then we cool off, OK? It's good for you!"

Krister jumped down from his perch to empty the last of his beer onto the stove. It hissed into steam, releasing a yeasty, hoppy smell. Casually he rested his hand on Flink's shoulder to help him climb back up.

Now or never. Flink reached over and put his own paw over the malamute's.

Those deep, brown eyes twinkled at him again, and the curly tail wagged. Krister put his head on one side, questioningly. Flink tightened his grip.

Krister swung himself up to the middle bench and sat with his legs around Flink's torso, gently squeezing him. His large hands moved to Flink's shoulders and began to massage.

The husky groaned and wriggled. He reached back and clasped Krister's knees, then began to stroke the insides of his thighs, where the fur was thick and soft, with his thumbs.

Krister laid his chin on Flink's shoulder, his breath hot against the other dog's neck. He began to lick Flink's ear, then to nibble, then nip. Flink felt the malamute's crotch press against the base of his spine and begin to grind.

The palm of his paw found Krister's diaphragm, which fluttered under his touch. He tweaked and teased the fur between his fingers. Krister, growling softly, wrapped his arms around the husky and ran his hands up and down Flink's ribs, then moved his fingers in exploratory circles through the fur of Flink's chest until he found the nipples. Flink gave a squeak and arched his back, pushing himself against the warm, furry bulk of Krister.

Krister put his hands under Flink's armpits and stood up, lifting the lighter dog off his feet. "And now it's time!" he announced, with a last nip to Flink's shoulder. He threw open the door, letting in the icy wind, and dragged Flink after him into the night.

"No! Ow! You nutter!" Flink shrieked, laughing. Clouds of steam were pouring from their backs, and he felt his fur go moist and flat as the cold reached through his downy undercoat to the skin.

They chased each other, sinking up to their ankles and yelping at the bright moon. Flink grabbed a handful of snow and threw it in Krister's direction. It disintegrated over his head, showering him with particles.

Then Krister leaped into one of the waist-high drifts, landing on his back and disappearing from view. Flink threw himself down beside him and gazed up at the sky through a tunnel of snow.

The sudden cold sent icy, delicious tingles up his back and thighs. His heart, beating as though it might explode, was loud in his ears.

He reached for Krister's hand and squeezed it.

"It's not so bad, is it, getting back to nature?" the malamute asked.

"I could get used to the nightlife," Flink agreed.

"Oh, but in the country we go to bed early!"

"Is that a promise?"

Flink tickled the inside of Krister's wrist with his thumb. Above them, the green glow of the aurora curved across the sky - like snowmobile tracks.