Trison the Labrador’s Autumn Marathon

Mikhail Samarsky

Trison, the golden Labrador retriever whose extraordinary life has included guiding blind people, rescuing children, solving crimes, traveling around the world and even starring in a Hollywood film, is finally coming home.

After his adventures in Texas, where he received a special police distinction and helped rescue two kidnapped horses, the Labrador is looking forward to a quiet life with his family.

But Trison has long since discovered that fate rarely respects his plans.

His latest story will take him from a criminal investigation in Moscow to an unexpected friendship with a chinchilla and a wild fox, through exhausting athletic training and finally to the starting line of the Moscow Marathon.

This time he will not face armed criminals, dangerous animals or natural disasters. His greatest challenge will be something less spectacular but no less demanding: learning to endure, to work as part of a team and to discover that age does not necessarily determine what a living creature can achieve.

The story opens with Trison addressing his readers directly, as he often does. He recalls a letter from a young girl who was worried about the injuries he suffered during his previous Texas adventure. Her concern touches him deeply.

He explains that not every detail of his life can fit into a book and reassures her that his wounds were treated. His affectionate conversation with the reader reminds us that, for all his adventures and celebrity, Trison remains a dog who values compassion above recognition.

He also returns briefly to the ending of his Texas journey, describing the show-jumping competition in which his friend Tony, the magnificent black stallion, competes with his owner Veronika.

Tony initially refuses to travel to the competition without his beloved white mare, Lightning. Trison helps the humans understand the reason for his stubbornness, and the two horses are allowed to travel together.

Inspired by love and the presence of his companion, Tony delivers a magnificent performance.

The experience reinforces one of Trison's favorite convictions: affection and loyalty are not exclusively human qualities.

When he and Alexandra finally leave Texas, their friend Christopher, the Hollywood actor whose life Trison saved in the Swiss Alps, once again lends them his private aircraft.

During the flight, Trison reflects on the curious way kindness returns to those who practice it.

He once saved Christopher without expecting anything in return. Yet that simple act of rescue has brought him an extraordinary friendship, a film career and experiences he could never have imagined.

At Moscow Airport, Maksim Yeliseyev is waiting for his wife and their four-legged companion.

The reunion is joyful, but Trison's greatest excitement is reserved for someone waiting at home: Marcel, the young chocolate-colored Labrador whom he considers his younger brother and pupil.

The family has moved into a spacious new apartment, purchased partly with the money Trison earned for his Hollywood film.

For the first time, the two Labradors have a room of their own, complete with comfortable beds.

Trison is proud of this achievement. His work has contributed to the family's well-being, and he feels that he has finally earned a place where he can enjoy a little peace.

But the word peace means something very different to Marcel.

During Trison's absence, the younger Labrador has grown almost to his mentor's size. His body may resemble that of an adult dog, but his character is as exuberant and unpredictable as ever.

He runs through the apartment, demands attention, asks endless questions and eagerly describes everything that happened while Trison was away.

He has also begun training as a search dog.

Trison is delighted to discover that his pupil is making progress. Although Marcel remains mischievous, his professional education is developing discipline and valuable new abilities.

The relationship between the two dogs becomes one of the novel's emotional foundations.

Trison sees himself as an experienced teacher, responsible for passing on the wisdom acquired over years of service. Marcel admires his older companion but has little patience for lectures, restrictions or unnecessary caution.

Their conversations are affectionate, sarcastic and frequently hilarious.

Trison hopes that his return will allow the family to enjoy a period of stability.

Instead, a new complication appears almost immediately.

Maksim's cousin Dmitry is getting married in Italy, and the family wants Maksim and Alexandra to attend the wedding.

Maksim initially refuses because of his police duties, but Alexandra does not want to travel without her husband.

Trison quickly realizes that a temporary separation may be approaching.

He dislikes the idea intensely.

After spending months away from home, the last thing he wants is to be sent somewhere else.

Before Maksim can obtain leave, however, he must solve an urgent criminal case.

A mysterious thief has been breaking into expensive cars parked outside shopping centers and stealing valuable possessions.

Among the stolen items is a briefcase belonging to a senior military officer. The loss has attracted attention from high-ranking authorities, putting considerable pressure on the investigators.

The thief is unusually skillful. Security cameras show only a slender figure whose face is carefully concealed.

He appears to open vehicles without damaging them and leaves almost no useful evidence.

Maksim's superior, Alexander Alexandrovich, known to his colleagues as San Sanych, gives the investigators three days to find the offender and recover the briefcase.

If they succeed, Maksim will be allowed to take a short holiday and attend the wedding.

Trison immediately understands the unpleasant consequences of success.

Solving the case will help his beloved partner — but it will also bring the family's temporary separation closer.

Nevertheless, professional duty prevails.

With Maksim and his colleague Demin, the Labrador begins searching for the thief.

Another expensive vehicle has been robbed, this time belonging to a demanding woman who is furious about the loss of her jewelry.

While examining the car, Trison detects an unfamiliar scent and discovers a crucial object left by the criminal: a corkscrew.

The officers realize that the young thief has been using improvised tools to open car doors.

The investigation leads them through parking areas, pawnshops and shopping centers.

Progress is slow.

Then, while walking near a school, Trison detects the same scent on a teenager standing with a group of classmates.

The Labrador recognizes him immediately.

The suspect is a boy known as Joe.

Maksim and Trison follow the students into the school, where the police officer explains the situation to the headmaster.

The search eventually leads them to a classroom.

There, Trison recognizes the boy among the pupils.

But the Labrador is troubled by the teenager's fear.

He knows the boy has committed crimes, yet he feels uncomfortable at the thought of publicly humiliating him in front of his classmates.

Maksim also shows restraint.

Rather than accusing the boy before the whole class, he produces the corkscrew and asks whether anyone knows its owner.

Another student identifies the object as belonging to Artyom, the boy nicknamed Joe.

Maksim invites him to speak privately in the headmaster's office.

The investigation reveals an astonishing motive.

Artyom is not stealing because he needs money.

Breaking into cars has become a dangerous hobby, a game through which he tests his ingenuity and enjoys the excitement of avoiding detection.

He keeps the stolen possessions at home and takes pride in opening locked vehicles without leaving scratches.

Trison is bewildered.

After everything he has witnessed about real poverty, suffering and human need, he finds it difficult to understand someone who commits crimes merely to entertain himself.

The officers recover the stolen property, including the military officer's briefcase.

The case is solved.

Maksim receives permission to travel to Italy.

And Trison's next ordeal begins.

Since the family cannot take the two Labradors abroad, Maksim asks his friend Prokhor Yemelyanov to care for them during their absence.

Prokhor, usually called Prosha, lives in a comfortable house outside Moscow.

He is a serious amateur athlete, a passionate long-distance runner and a man who values physical fitness and self-discipline.

He is preparing for the Moscow Marathon.

When Maksim worries about leaving two lively dogs with him, Prokhor responds enthusiastically.

He will take them running.

In fact, he jokes that he intends to turn them into champions.

Trison is horrified.

He has survived dangerous journeys and performed extraordinary feats of endurance, but deliberately running enormous distances for pleasure seems to him one of humanity's stranger inventions.

Marcel, on the other hand, is delighted by the prospect of visiting a new place.

The two Labradors arrive at Prokhor's house and discover that he is hospitable, good-humored and surprisingly tolerant of animals.

He has plenty of space, a garden and a large collection of books.

But he also imposes rules.

The dogs must not climb onto the furniture, steal food or disturb his routine.

Trison considers these demands reasonable.

Marcel regards them as negotiable.

The situation becomes still more complicated when they meet Prokhor's unusual housemate.

His name is Leonid, or Lyonya.

He is a chinchilla.

The small South American rodent lives in an elaborate cage, enjoys expensive treats and considers himself a creature of considerable intelligence and importance.

Lyonya was originally a birthday present for Prokhor's former girlfriend. When the couple separated, the woman left the chinchilla behind.

The little animal has since become a permanent resident of the house.

Unfortunately, he has one major problem: loneliness.

Chinchillas are active during the hours when the Labradors would much rather be sleeping.

Lyonya repeatedly wakes his visitors at night, demanding conversation, entertainment and games.

Marcel responds with his usual mixture of curiosity and mischief.

Trison, who desperately values uninterrupted sleep, finds the situation unbearable.

The three animals form a strange friendship based on teasing arguments, practical jokes and endless disputes about food.

Lyonya is clever enough to manipulate the two dogs into helping him reach places he cannot access himself.

Marcel, meanwhile, possesses an extraordinary ability to open doors and investigate cupboards.

Their combined talents will eventually produce a domestic catastrophe.

But first, they must begin training.

Prokhor takes both dogs on an early morning run through parks, along paths and past a nearby lake.

Trison quickly realizes that marathon preparation is far more demanding than he expected.

Prokhor sets a steady pace and insists that his companions maintain discipline.

Marcel repeatedly destroys this orderly plan.

He chases cats, investigates bushes, interrupts fishermen and treats every movement in the surrounding countryside as an invitation to adventure.

During one outing, he steals fish from an angler.

The embarrassed Prokhor apologizes, but the fisherman responds with good humor and reminds him that energetic dogs need adequate food.

Trison privately agrees.

His human trainer appears determined to turn them into athletes, but the Labrador suspects that the portions they receive are insufficient for the exercise demanded of them.

Further trouble follows when Marcel discovers a fox's den.

The fox introduces herself as Marya.

She is independent, sharp-tongued and understandably suspicious of dogs. In her experience, humans and their canine companions are often dangerous.

Marcel, however, insists that he merely wants to make friends.

Trison intervenes, reassuring the fox that they have no intention of harming her.

Gradually Marya begins trusting them.

She learns that these peculiar domestic Labradors can converse with a wild animal without immediately trying to catch it.

The friendship becomes one of the most unusual relationships in the book.

Through Marya, Trison encounters a life profoundly different from his own.

The fox has no owner, comfortable bed or guaranteed meals.

She must find food, defend herself and survive through her own intelligence.

Yet she treasures her independence and cannot imagine accepting permanent confinement in a human home.

Trison is fascinated by her idea of freedom.

He has devoted most of his life to serving humans, obeying rules and trusting others to provide shelter and food.

Is he truly free?

And would freedom necessarily make him happier?

The question remains unresolved, but Marya helps him understand that different creatures can find dignity and contentment in radically different ways of life.

One evening Prokhor leaves the animals alone.

Lyonya proposes a grand adventure.

Why not explore the kitchen?

Marcel knows how to open the refrigerator, while the little chinchilla can climb onto cupboards and identify the most promising hiding places.

Trison initially resists.

He knows perfectly well that stealing food violates his professional education and Prokhor's rules.

But the temptation proves stronger than his objections.

Soon the animals are conducting an elaborate raid on the refrigerator.

They eat sausages, hide the empty packaging and investigate the cupboards in search of biscuits and other treats.

Marya, who has arrived through a small passage beneath the garden fence, joins the expedition.

For a while the four friends behave like an organized criminal gang, with Lyonya issuing instructions and Marcel supplying the physical strength.

Trison is both amused and ashamed.

The dog who recently helped the police catch a thief has now become a participant in a theft himself.

Their conspiracy collapses when Prokhor unexpectedly returns.

He finds the kitchen in disarray, the cupboards open and the animals feasting on his supplies.

The criminals freeze.

Trison expects a terrible punishment.

But Prokhor does something completely unexpected.

He laughs.

He is astonished by their ingenuity and delighted by their unlikely friendship.

After discovering the missing sausages and the packaging hidden beneath the refrigerator, he merely orders his guests to go to sleep.

He even treats Marya kindly, recognizing that the wild fox has found a place where she feels safe.

The episode reveals an important distinction between discipline and cruelty.

Prokhor values rules, but he also understands that kindness and humor can be more effective than anger.

His indulgence strengthens Trison's affection for him.

The following day, however, Prokhor makes a practical decision.

Marcel will no longer accompany them on serious marathon training runs.

The younger Labrador's curiosity and lack of discipline make him impossible to control over long distances.

Trison will become Prokhor's running partner.

The decision surprises the older dog.

Marcel possesses youthful energy, but Trison has experience, professional discipline and an ability to maintain concentration.

For the first time, he fully appreciates how much his guide-dog education has prepared him for activities far beyond helping blind people.

Prokhor explains that they must train for a marathon of forty-two kilometers.

The Labrador is alarmed by the distance.

But he also feels an unexpected desire to prove something.

He is no longer young, and his family occasionally jokes about his growing age and comfortable lifestyle.

Does being older mean that he must stop attempting extraordinary things?

Trison decides that it does not.

He agrees to train seriously.

Their daily running distances increase, and the work becomes increasingly demanding.

At times Trison returns home so exhausted that he can scarcely imagine completing the race.

But he also begins discovering unexpected pleasures in the routine: autumn leaves, the sounds of birds, the scent of damp earth and the quiet companionship of a human being who genuinely loves running.

Prokhor speaks passionately about the sensation of long-distance exercise.

He describes the clarity of thought, heightened awareness of nature and intense joy that follow a demanding run.

Trison, initially skeptical, gradually begins to understand him.

The marathon is not merely a competition for Prokhor.

It is a way of feeling alive.

Meanwhile, Marcel, Lyonya and Marya continue their adventures.

Their growing friendship eventually leads to a dangerous excursion into the nearby forest.

Marya offers to demonstrate how foxes hunt.

The two Labradors accompany her, curious about a world in which food must be pursued rather than placed in a bowl.

When a hare appears, Marya gives chase.

Trison and Marcel follow, initially caught up in the excitement.

But the pursuit takes a frightening turn when they encounter a hungry wolf.

The hare is trapped.

The wolf intends to eat him.

Marya also regards the hare as legitimate prey, and Trison suddenly realizes that the animals' game has become a matter of life and death.

His instincts rebel.

He cannot watch a terrified, helpless creature be killed.

Marcel agrees that they must intervene.

Unable to defeat a wolf by force, Trison relies on his intelligence.

He invents a story about a dangerous disease supposedly spreading among hares.

According to the Labrador, anyone who eats an infected hare risks becoming seriously ill.

The wolf is suspicious.

But Trison presents the warning with such confidence, claiming to have learned about the danger from human television news, that the predator begins to doubt whether his dinner is worth the risk.

At last the wolf abandons the hare.

The frightened animal escapes.

Trison has saved another life, this time without needing to fight or call human rescuers.

He has used language, imagination and an understanding of fear.

The episode is comic, but it also introduces a genuine moral dilemma.

Trison is a dog who values honesty and obedience, yet he has deliberately lied to save a vulnerable creature.

The novel suggests that moral choices cannot always be reduced to simple rules.

A falsehood told to prevent cruelty may be more humane than strict devotion to the truth.

In a strangely touching conclusion to the encounter, Trison even joins the wolf in a brief duet of howling before returning to his companions.

For the Labrador, it is another reminder that appearances and instinctive prejudice do not always tell the whole story about another creature.

Life at Prokhor's house continues.

Marya becomes a regular visitor, although she refuses to surrender her independent life in the forest.

Lyonya continues his comic arguments with Marcel.

The young Labrador proudly describes the things he is learning at the search-dog school, sometimes astonishing the others with his growing knowledge.

Trison tells his companions stories from his previous adventures, while Prokhor continues to prepare him for the race.

Through these conversations, the animals discover that education is not merely a human privilege. Dogs learn professional skills, horses can respond to astonishingly subtle signals, and even a mischievous chinchilla can demonstrate remarkable planning abilities.

The days pass quickly.

Then the morning of the marathon arrives.

Trison is nervous.

Not because he fears running — he has crossed enormous distances during previous adventures — but because he is about to participate in an organized competition with rules, officials and experienced human athletes.

Prokhor drives him into Moscow.

During the journey he explains why he loves marathon running: the personal challenge, the freedom of movement and the almost indescribable satisfaction of overcoming exhaustion.

At the starting area, however, an unexpected obstacle awaits.

An official initially refuses to allow Trison to participate.

The marathon is intended for people, not dogs.

Prokhor argues that his companion is an exceptionally well-trained working animal, capable of completing the course safely.

Other runners, impressed by the Labrador's calm behavior and remarkable history, begin supporting him.

Finally a senior organizer makes an exception.

Trison will be permitted to run.

But he must have a race number.

The organizers improvise a way of fastening one to his body with ribbons.

When the Labrador finally walks toward the starting line wearing his number, he feels like a legitimate competitor.

The crowd greets him warmly.

Some runners wish him luck. Others shake his paw.

Prokhor has already warned him not to become distracted by spectators or unfamiliar surroundings.

The race begins.

To Trison's amazement, his companion does not rush forward with the fastest athletes.

Instead, Prokhor begins at a deliberately restrained pace.

They remain near the back of the field.

The Labrador is puzzled and slightly indignant.

He knows he can run faster.

But he decides to trust the judgment of a man who understands marathon strategy far better than he does.

Gradually their patience pays off.

Without wasting energy at the beginning, they begin overtaking other runners.

Trison observes the city as they move along the route.

Autumn leaves drift from the trees. Crowds cheer along the streets. Cyclists, skaters and passersby create an atmosphere unlike anything he has experienced during ordinary training.

At one point, while running along the river, he sees a boat and unexpectedly stops to bark.

The sight reminds him of the terrible accident in the Mediterranean Sea, when he fell from a yacht and was rescued by a dolphin.

The memory briefly distracts him, but Prokhor calls him back to the race.

They continue.

Along the route they encounter two elderly runners whom Trison privately nicknames the old rogues.

Both are surprisingly strong and competitive.

One of them introduces himself as Ivan Savelyich.

The name strikes Trison with extraordinary emotional force.

His first blind companion, one of the kindest people he has ever known, was also named Ivan Savelyich.

For a moment, the marathon disappears from his thoughts.

He remembers the man who first taught him what human companionship could mean, who allowed him to share his bed and treated him with affection and respect.

The memory brings both tenderness and sorrow.

Trison knows that he will never forget his first friend.

At a water station, Prokhor offers the Labrador a drink before satisfying his own thirst.

The small gesture moves Trison deeply.

It confirms that his companion does not see him merely as a convenient running partner or a means of winning a competition.

He cares about him.

Then they resume the race.

As the kilometers pass, fatigue and monotony become serious obstacles.

Trison would like to increase the pace, but he must remain beside Prokhor.

His professional training helps him control the impulse to run ahead.

The endurance acquired during years of service proves as valuable as his physical strength.

Eventually Trison notices that no other runners remain in front of them.

Prokhor's strategy has worked.

They have overtaken the field.

The finish line approaches.

Over the loudspeaker comes an announcement that astonishes the Labrador:

The winners of the Moscow Marathon are Prokhor Yemelyanov and his dog Trison.

The crowd applauds.

Trison can hardly believe that his name has been announced alongside a human champion.

But an even greater surprise awaits him during the award ceremony.

Not only Prokhor but Trison himself receives a medal.

The Labrador is overwhelmed with happiness.

He has been celebrated for film acting, police work and rescues, but this victory feels different.

It has not depended on an extraordinary emergency or a sudden burst of courage.

It is the result of preparation, teamwork, patience and discipline.

Ivan Savelyich finishes second, while the other elderly runner arrives fourth. Another participant takes third place.

The successful competitors gather afterward for a traditional post-marathon meal.

Trison discovers that runners are offered pasta to replenish the energy expended during the long race.

He eats an enormous portion with delight.

And when someone offers him another serving, he happily accepts.

For the Labrador who spent so much of the story complaining about insufficient meals and demanding training, the celebration could hardly end more appropriately.

The book closes not with another danger or a dramatic rescue, but with the simple happiness of shared achievement.

Trison has proved that he is still capable of learning something new, facing unfamiliar challenges and becoming a champion.

More importantly, he has gained friendships with creatures whose lives are very different from his own: the disciplined athlete Prokhor, the restless chinchilla Lyonya, the independent fox Marya and, once again, the younger Labrador Marcel, whose education continues to give him both pride and headaches.

The autumn marathon becomes a metaphor for life itself.

Victory does not belong automatically to the strongest, the youngest or the fastest.

It may belong to those who know how to persevere, trust their companions, regulate their strength and continue when the journey becomes monotonous or difficult.

Through Trison's affectionate, witty and observant narration, Mikhail Samarsky explores friendship, freedom, discipline, aging, responsibility and the enduring value of kindness.

The Labrador begins his story longing for rest after extraordinary adventures.

He ends it discovering that a life devoted to others need not become smaller with age.

It can continue opening unexpected doors.

The greatest victory is not reaching the finish line ahead of everyone else, but proving that the will to learn, to love and to keep going can remain alive throughout one's life.