Chapter 2

“WHY THE FUCK DOES IT SMELL LIKE A WHOREHOUSE IN HERE!”

Goldie and Arthur’s eyes flew open.

After their late-night tryst, Arthur remained human as they drifted off. He shifted to Bellator as he rolled off the bed. Facing the door, he tried to hide the human with his body. Goldie shrieked in fear and crawled into the corner like yesterday, covering herself with the sheet.

Two more werebears stood by the front door. The bigger one’s coat had a red tint, while the smaller sported an impressive set of breasts and rich brown fur that bordered on black.

The larger werebear went ballistic when he saw Goldie.

“What the fuck is that!” he bellowed.

“She’s a hiker, Owen. I spooked her up on the trail, and she ran here—”

Owen crossed the cabin in two strides. A bear-sized left hook crashed into the side of Arthur’s head, sending him flying onto the next bed over. “What did I tell you to call me!” Owen roared. “I’m Papa Bear to you, you tiny dicked little bastard! This is my house! Your cock doesn’t go in anything besides your hand without my fucking say so. You little piece of shit!”

As Owen screamed at a dazed Arthur, the female bear Goldie assumed was Marion rushed over to her. She acted for a moment like she would gather the human up in her arms but froze when she got close. Sniffing the air, the werebear’s eyes widened in surprise, “She’s pregnant.”

“What?!” Goldie shrieked. The question was quickly echoed by Owen and Arthur.

“I can smell it. She’s pregnant.”

“No...” growled Owen. When he turned toward her, she could see the hatred and jealousy in his eyes. “I’ve been through two mates and been trying for the past two years with Mama Bear. And this little fuck knocks up the first whore to spread her legs for him ... IN MY FUCKING HOUSE! NO! The only cubs conceived under this roof will be MINE!” Roaring, Owen lunged toward her, his maw wide open.

Goldie’s world seemed to slow down as the red werebear’s jaw snapped closed centimeters from her nose. Arthur had grabbed ahold of his arm, keeping him from killing her. But the enraged Were whipped around, landing another heavy blow on the side of Arthur’s head and dropping him to one knee. Owen spun around and lunged at her second time, but again fell short as Arthur grabbed his leg.

Snarling, the younger werebear stood, jerking Owen’s leg upward in the process to make his other foot lose traction and send him crashing to the floor. Goldie saw the fur on Arthur’s arms ripple from the bunching muscles beneath as he stepped to the side and swung the larger werebear around by his leg. Marion’s body obstructed her view as the female Lycan wrapped her in a protective hug. That didn’t save Goldie from the sound of splintering wood and plates, pots, and pans spilling onto the floor as Owen slammed into the other side of the cabin.

“Cover your ears, sweetheart. It will all be over soon,” whispered Marion.

She took the Were’s suggestion and clapped her hands over her ears. But werebears were powerful beasts, and her hands only deadened the roars of rage and pain as the Owen and Arthur fought. Another loud crash signaled the two smashing through the back door. A few seconds later, they heard a series of increasingly desperate grunts and howls from the other side of the cabin wall. A crunching noise followed a loud pop, and then there was silence.

Tears fell onto Goldie’s hair as Marion whispered “Please...” over and over above her.

Arthur’s voice came from the shattered door “Marion? He’s...”

Above Goldie, Marion sobbed with relief before looking back toward the door, “He tried to kill a human. I’ll vouch for you at the next Run.”

“Alright,” said Arthur. “Keep her there. I don’t want her to see me like this.”

“Understood,” said Marion.

Goldie’s sexy and fun dream had turned into a nightmare. Still covering her ears, she quietly cried herself to sleep.

She slowly woke up to Marion and Arthur, both in human form, in the middle of a heated argument.

“I just fucking killed a man, and now you’re telling me I didn’t need to?! That you fucking lied just to get us to fight?”

“No, Arthur. I lied because one of these times, you were going to piss him off, and he was going to kill you. Like me, you don’t have anyone to turn to and nowhere to run out here in the middle of fucking nowhere. If you did, you would have left the moment you came of age. That fucker brainwashed both of us into thinking we had nowhere else to go.”

“If you knew all this, why the hell didn’t you just leave instead of becoming his fuck toy?” he snapped.

“Because of you.”

“Don’t blame this bullshit on me—”

“I’m not. I stayed because I was worried if I ran off, he might blame you. I’m not kidding when I say Owen fucking hated you. He constantly thought you would steal me away or sneak around and knock me up when I was in heat. As bad as his paranoia was getting, I have no doubt if he found a good excuse for the Run, you would be dead already.”

“But why lie?”

“Because he convinced you years ago, you could never win against him. Why do you think he insisted on the Baby Bear crap? To make you think you weren’t shit compared to him. You would never beat him in a fight. He messed with your head so much, you would have convinced yourself you lost before the first punch. But if he threatened your mate and cub...” said Marion with a wave in Goldie’s direction.

“What’s going on?” she asked, sitting up in the bed and pulling the sheet up over her breasts.

Arthur crossed his arms. “Tell her,” he growled at the female Were.

Marion walked over and sat on the foot of the bed. The hair on her head, as well as the bush above her sex, matched her Bellator form’s dark brown fur. It took a moment for Goldie to remember Arthur saying they didn’t wear much clothing. Marion had the same kind of tall but stocky build as Arthur and reminded Goldie of Olympian shotputters. At least those that didn’t muscle their breasts into nonexistence because human Marion’s boobs made Goldie feel small. The Were wasn’t unattractive but fell more into ‘handsome’ territory instead of ‘beautiful.’

“I don’t know if this is good or bad news,” she said, “but you aren’t pregnant.”

“Oh, that’s good, I suppose. It does make me a little sad,” said Goldie as a hand dropped to her belly.

Arthur walked up behind Marion, “I’m sorry, Goldie, but it’s time for you to go home. As much as I hate asking you to leave. I have some big messes to clean up,” he said, pointing over at the cabin’s thoroughly destroyed kitchen area and the blanket covering the broken door. “Since you aren’t pregnant, I can’t justify letting you stay.”

She gave him a weak smile, “Time to wake up, is it?”

“Wake up?” asked Marion.

“It’s The Veil,” said Arthur. “It’s making her think this is all a dream, and the longer she stays, the bigger the chances it might crack. I don’t want her to leave, but with Owen dead, I think we need to avoid pissing off the Run.” Breathing deep, Arthur let out a long sigh, “I imagine once she gets home and goes to sleep again, she’ll forget about all the last two days.”

“And she’s your first. Oh, Arthur, I’m so sorry,” said Marion looking up at him with sympathy.

“I don’t want to think about it,” he said before turning to Goldie. “Let’s get you packed up.”

As Goldie put her hiking pack back together, Arthur pulled his tablet off a shelf and tapped the button for a video call.

A few seconds later, a gray bear with only a few wisps of brown left in his fur popped up on the screen. “Artie! Good to see you! What can I do for you?” asked the bear on the screen.

“I’m sorry, Chancellor, but this isn’t a courtesy call. Owen is dead. We got into a fight, and I killed him.”

“No, you don’t, Arthur!” yelled Marion bouncing up from the bed and yanking the screen from him. “I’m the one who instigated the fight. It’s my fault, not his. Arthur didn’t even want to fight him.” she told the Were on the screen.

The gray Lycan frowned, “Arthur isn’t the first to kill another over a mate, but with such a small population, we expect restraint settling these matters. Since both of your admissions are now recorded, I’ll call a Run so we can discuss punishments, as well as succession for Owen’s holdings. I’ll contact you with the time.”

“Yes, Sir,” they said in unison.

“What did he mean by Run?” Goldie asked.

Thankful for something to break the mood, Arthur chuckled. “A Run is just our name for a council of werebears. A long, long time ago, someone commented that the only time you could get a bunch of bears to act civil in one place was a Salmon Run. I’ll let you figure out the rest.”

“There’s my walking stick, leaning up against that boulder,” said Goldie running ahead and leaving the two werebears behind.

Arthur sighed heavily, and Marion patted him on a furry shoulder. “We’ll have to be at the Run in a few days. You could ask about bringing her in.”

“I think you and I are in enough trouble already. ‘If you love someone, set them free. If they come back, they’re yours; if they don’t, they never were.’”

“That’s a lot of faith to put in an old saying.”

“It’s all I’ve got right now.”

Goldie trotted back to them, her expression sad. “I guess this is goodbye.”

Marion knelt down, and the blonde went over and wrapped her arms around the werebear’s thick neck, “Thank you for protecting me.”

“We’re a little harder to kill and heal a lot faster than you humans. It was an honor to protect Arthur’s first.”

“This feels a little strange to say since this is all a dream, but take care of him while I’m gone.”

“He’s still pretty pissed off at me right now, but if he ever forgives me, I’ll be happy to.”

Letting the female Lycan go, Goldie turned and threw her arms around Arthur. “I’ve known you for like ... less than a day, and most of that was spent in bed. So, why am I crying?”

Not trusting his voice, Arthur grunted in response. When she pulled away, she saw small patches of wet fur below the werebear’s green eyes.

“I know you won’t remember me, but I’m going to miss you. Yesterday will live in my memory until the day I die.”

Leaning forward, Goldie kissed him on the nose before turning and walking back to the hiking trail. Glancing one last time at the boulder where this all started, she started back toward the trailhead and her car.

A long string of notification tones announced her phone finding a signal, thankfully she set up her autoreply with “Out hiking” before she left. She briefly considered answering a few, especially the twenty or so from her mother. Instead, she put the phone on mute and savored the memories of yesterday as she drove home.

The following day Goldie awoke to the sound of an incoming call on her phone. She groaned at the name on the screen before tapping the answer button.

“Hi, Mom,” she croaked.

“How was your trip, dear?”

“What trip? My trips to the bathroom and back? I’ve been sick for the past two days, Mom.”

“Sick? Your autoreply said you were out hiking, and your car wasn’t there when I drove by.”

“You must’ve just caught me when I was out getting some Pepto or something, Mom. Believe me, I haven’t been in any condition to travel, much less hike.”

“Teddy at the gas station said he saw you, and you left heading north.”

“I—I think I started up that way, but then got to feeling sick and came home. Listen, Ma, the last couple of days are pretty fuzzy. Just know that I’m home now, and I’m feeling a little better. I’ll feel a lot better once I get some migraine meds for this headache from hell.”

“Okay then, I just wanted to check on you. If you need me to bring you some soup or anything, just let me know.”

“Thanks, Mom. Love you.”

“Love you too, Anna. Hope you’re feeling better soon.”

Tossing her phone back onto the nightstand, Goldie’s hand went to her throbbing head. Throwing her blankets off, she crawled out of bed and walked naked into her bathroom to grab a couple painkillers. On her way back to bed, she saw something blue peeking out beneath the covers. Lifting the blanket, she found her ‘big boy’ dildo sitting next to her little pink wand vibrator.

“What the fuck?” she asked out loud. She must have been really out of it last night to have used those and not remember. For that matter, why would she have used them at all? Getting off wasn’t high on her list of things to do when feeling sick.

Shaking her head in confusion, she dropped the toys into the bottom drawer of her nightstand and crawled back into bed to let the painkillers kick in.

“Arthur and Marion Redclaw, step forward,” said the gray-furred grizzly.

The two Lycans solemnly walked into the middle of the room under the watchful eyes of the Run. In Bellator form like the rest of the Were’s in the room, The Chancellor stood behind a podium that looked comically small for his size. To either side of him sat the polar bear and Kodiak representatives, the next eldest members of the Run. To the left sat two more grizzly bear Lycans, one each from Canada and the U.S., while on the right were two black bears, also representing their respective countries.

The old hunter’s lodge they stood in was sparsely decorated since the only time it got any use was for small meetings like this. Larger, more public Runs were held at a fancy lodge further north with its own hotel that pandered to Weres, specifically to werebears.

“The first order of business is the matter of succession. Arthur, you are officially the new head of house Redclaw, succeeding Owen Redclaw. That doesn’t—”

“What about Marion? She’s older than me,” Arthur asked.

“Marion Redclaw declined clan leadership citing her poor judgment involving Owen Redclaw’s death as well as personal reasons for not wanting the role. As I was saying, Clan Redclaw’s holding’s aren’t much, mainly a large swath of forest where your house is located.

“After going over your video interviews, the Run wishes to extend its deepest apologies to Marion Redclaw. Though there were indications Owen would take you as a mate, the Run let its sympathy for his lack of children cloud our judgment. We also did not believe him capable of the psychological manipulation you were both subjected to and would not have agreed to your adoptions were we given any inclination he would keep you in sexual slavery once you came of age. Again we are deeply sorry and will be more vigilant of these kinds of situations in the future.

“However, a werebear has been killed, and that is no small matter. But we must also understand why. The Lycan community has strict rules against killing humans, and Owen was quite aware of this. In your statement, Arthur, you said that you did not take action against Owen until he attempted to attack your human companion.”

Arthur winced. It had been less than a week since she left, and his memories of Goldie still hurt. “That is correct, Chancellor.”

The gray grizzly gave Arthur an odd look before continuing. “And Marion, you feel that Arthur’s belief Owen was threatening his mate and cub was the only reason he won the altercation?”

“I do.”

“Do either of you believe that the human would have been allowed to live had Owen won instead?”

Marion and Arthur looked at each other and replied in unison, “No.”

“Do you feel Owen would have harmed the human without believing she was pregnant with Arthur’s child?”

By the look on his face, Arthur plainly had no answer, but Marion spoke up. “Given how unbalanced he had become, I think there is a good chance he would have tried mating with the human by force to reduce the chances of her getting pregnant by Arthur.”

“Like hell that would have happened,” Arthur snarled.

The polar bear looked up at the gray grizzly, “It sounds as though this outcome was inevitable,” she said in a heavy Inuit accent.

The Chancellor nodded, as did a number of the other Lycans sitting around the room. “I believe that we must look at this as the best possible outcome, as the other would have likely led to both Arthur’s death and that of the human.”

“A werebear’s death cannot go unpunished,” said the grizzly from the U.S.

“That is true.” Said the Chancellor. “However, we choose the severity of the sentence and when it is carried out. In this situation, we have a very young clan leader who needs the opportunity to grow his clan into more than a cabin out in the woods, and we all believe that harsher punishments are unwarranted. I recommend we withhold sentencing for three years, during which Marion and Arthur will be on probation. Is this acceptable to the Run?”

Those in the room nodded their heads, muttering various versions of “Aye.”

“In that case, I believe we are adjourned. Thank you all for coming,” said the Chancellor before stepping around the podium and coming over to the young Redclaws.

“Thank you, Jaques,” said Arthur.

“Don’t thank me, young man. I withheld my vote since I didn’t think I could be impartial. Marion, the Run recommends some kind of counseling to help with what you’ve gone through, and because we feel partially responsible for putting you in that situation, we will cover any costs should you go that route. It’s up to you.”

“I think I’m needed at home right now. The Run may have forgiven me, but Arthur hasn’t yet. But more than that, Owen kept Arthur from learning a lot of things he will need to know as a clan leader.”

“Oh? Like what?” asked the gray-furred bear.

Arthur looked down in embarrassment, “Marion had to drive us here.”

Goldie stared into the trunk of her car.

Where the fuck was her walking stick? It’s not like someone could just lose a five-foot-long wooden staff. Frustrated, she tossed her pack in the trunk and slammed it closed.

This week had been a complete shit-show. She kept on bouncing between pissed at everything and feeling like she was missing something important. She also went home on her lunch breaks more than once just to get off and had no idea why she was so horny. On top of that were the mounting claims that she left last weekend even though she knew damn well she had been sick in bed. By Friday, she felt so frazzled her boss sent her home early and told her to get some rest.

Rest wasn’t what she needed. She needed to be naked out in the woods with a vibrator shoved up her pussy while the wind caressed her body. She needed some big-cocked stranger to walk up behind her and fuck the hell out of her. Then afterward, she needed to be held tightly to a warm furry chest as a huge cock speared into her sex—

Goldie growled, she didn’t know where these thoughts of fucking some furry beast with a massive prick were coming from, but they were starting to piss her off. The fantasies themselves were pleasant, but it annoyed her how they kept seeping into her ‘normal’ repertoire of hot images she jilled off to.

Great, now she was pissed because she lost her walking stick and horny from the images of getting fucked by some big hairy creature.

Climbing into the driver’s seat, she slammed the door closed. Her tires squealed as she pulled out of her apartment complex’s parking lot and onto the street.

“Fill ‘er up, Ted,” she said as she climbed out of her little sedan.

“Heading North again, Goldie?” asked the old man.

She bit back a sharp reply and instead smiled, “I didn’t make it very far the last time, so this is take two. I’m trying some new trails, though. The last one didn’t have good reviews to begin with, and since I got sick on the way there, I’m figuring it’s a sign I should hike somewhere else.”

“Sounds like a plan. Be sure to get some more bear spray. It looks like the can on your keyring is empty. I feel sorry for whatever you used that on.”

“Wha—?” pulling up her car keys, she saw the safety tab was missing and could even make out some dried spray around the nozzle. “But I never used it...”

“If that thing went off, you’d know. That stuff is no joke. Maybe it was defective. Best go inside and get yourself a new one.

“I will. Thanks, Teddy.” Still staring in confusion at the canister, Goldie wandered into the store for a new one.

Why was she here?

More importantly, how the hell did she know how to get here. The GPS on her phone finally stopped bitching at her to turn around and get back on the main road when her phone lost signal. And without any electronic help or even a map, she somehow found herself at the head of the hiking trail she planned on visiting last week.

“Well, I’m here,” she muttered to herself. Getting her pack out of the trunk, she went through her mental pre-hike checklist ticking every box except for her walking stick. Maybe she’d find a replacement on the trail. Goldie made that stick back when she was a teen, and it sucked that she somehow lost it. Weaving between the posts keeping ATVs and snowmobiles out, she smiled at the sense of peace that came over her as she made her way into the woods.

This was it, this was the place.

Setting her pack down next to a boulder, she stared up and down the trail just to be sure no one was coming. Already breathing hard with arousal, she leaned against the rock and reached down to unbutton and unzip her khaki hiking shorts. She moaned quietly as her fingers slipped under her panties and across the golden hair above her sex. Spreading her pussy lips with two fingers, she used a third to just barely brush across her clit.

Goldie’s hand jerked out of her panties like she burned it. Wide-eyed, she looked around, taking in the scenery around her. This wasn’t some strange sense of déjà vu. She had been here before and done the same thing in this very place. She knew she had ... but why couldn’t she remember it?

Buttoning up her shorts again, she walked around the boulder, searching for anything else that might trip a memory. She didn’t make it very far before freezing in her tracks and staring hard at a couple of small bushes on the side of the rock facing the trail. Kneeling, she reached between the thin branches and leaves and pulled out her walking stick. At the same time, she remembered putting it there as a deep voice behind her said, “If you love someone, set them free. If they come back, they’re yours; if they don’t, they never were.”

“I ... put this here,” she said, standing up and staring at the lacquered piece of wood. “I put this here so I would find it again.”

Looking toward the trail and the crest of the hill, she got the feeling something terrifying came from that direction.

“And I grabbed my pack and my clothes ... and ran that direction,” she said, looking through the trees and down the gradual slope. Shouldering her pack, she grabbed her walking stick and started down the hill.

The sense of déjà vu returned with a vengeance when she saw the cabin through the trees. There was no denying she had been here. As she approached the edge of the log cabin’s clearing, she darted to the side and hid behind a tree as a light brown grizzly bear came running around the side of the house, barreling towards her as it grunted and roared its warning. She heard it come to a skidding halt a short distance away.

Huffing and woofing, the grizzly paced back and forth until Goldie peeked out from behind the tree. When it saw her face, it charged a few steps closer, baring its teeth and roaring at her.

Goldie dropped her pack to the ground and propped her walking stick against the tree. Stepping out, she cautiously took a few steps toward the bear. The beast continued its rant, roaring in her direction, standing on its hind legs, then dropping to the ground with a loud thump. As she got closer, it started snapping its teeth at her, but not once did it come any closer. When she stood right in front of the grizzly, it roared one last time right in her face. She could see every tooth in its maw, and all it needed to do was move forward a little, and it could have taken her head off.

Every one of her instincts told her to run away as far and fast as she could, but something in her gut told her...

“You won’t hurt me. Will you?”

The grizzly’s mouth snapped shut, and it stood there glaring at her. Breathing heavily from the exertion of its display, puffs of air from its nose ruffled her shirt.

Dropping a shoulder underneath the bear’s jaw, she wrapped her arms around its furry neck.

The beast sat down, dragging her along while at the same time growing in size.

Furry arms wrapped around her back and held her close. “Idiot human. You should’ve run away,” said the bear.

“Arthur!” she gasped, squeezing him tighter. It was as though something cracked around her, and memories of their day together began slowly trickling in, filling in the gaps of her “sick days” last weekend.

The sound of laughter came from the direction of the cabin. Curious and a little worried, Goldie pulled herself up to look over Arthur’s shoulder. Near the back door stood another werebear with dark brown fur.

“Damn, that girl straight up handled you,” said the female Were.

“Don’t care, she came back,” he rumbled, holding Goldie a little tighter. “Despite The Veil, she came back.”

“Yeah ... the council isn’t going to be too happy she cracked it. But there’s no way we could have guessed she’d find her way back here. Before you two get naked and start sexing each other up, we should go back to her car and show her how to get here properly for her next visit.”

“Give us a few minutes,” said Arthur, as a content smile split his muzzle.

After Marion showed Goldie how to get to the little parking area in the valley below the cabin, the Lycans shifted to their human forms and they all sat down for a lunch of steak, roast beef hash, and, to the human’s delight, buttered biscuits with honey. Once they finished eating, Goldie donned the house attire with a little striptease that got Arthur’s undivided attention and catcalls from Marion.

“Ooohh pretty,” said Goldie as she examined the bear paw charm with red claws hanging from the female Were’s choker.

“Arthur’s idea,” she said proudly, “and the material is elastic so it won’t rip when I shift. I believe he’s thinking about getting a tattoo on his chest of it since he’s now the head of Clan Redclaw.”

“Not that that means anything, really,” he mumbled.

“Not yet, you mean. Goldie, I hope you don’t mind sharing Arthur. As the clan leader, he has mating rights to all untaken females within the clan. He also has a say over who the males of the clan breed with. Although in this day and age, it’s frowned upon to use that power.”

“So, he can fuck you any time he wants?”

“Yes, the difficult part seems to be getting him to do it,” she grumbled. “He’s still mad at me for lying about you being pregnant and forcing him to fight Owen.”

“I thought earlier you said the council ... err ... Run decided this was the best outcome?”

“They did, but I still killed the guy who took me in and raised me after my parents died. Even if he was a nutcase towards the end, he wasn’t always like that. Calling it a Council is fine. You don’t need to call it a Run.”

Goldie walked over and stood in front of him with her hands on her hips, “You’re a clan leader with one other member, and you’re not taking care of her needs.” She clapped a hand over her mouth, her eyes wide with shock. “Did I just tell you to fuck another woman?”

Arthur chuckled and pulled her into his lap, “I guess that answers Marion’s question about sharing.” He lifted her by the waist, and Goldie reached down to angle his hardening cock towards her entrance. She had been waiting for this moment since she took her clothes off and moaned as he slowly sat her back down in his lap. “What about being shared?” he asked as he moved her legs to the outside of his thighs then spread his legs. “what if I want to watch Marion lick you.”

Goldie giggled, “Let’s just say after I graduated high school, when a couple of my classmates came out as lesbians, it was no surprise to me. I enjoy girls but very much prefer boys.”

“Let’s save that for another time,” said Marion, sounding nervous. “I’ve never really thought about being with another woman.”

“Oh, sorry,” said Arthur. “I won’t bring it up then.”

“No ... that’s fine. The idea just caught me off guard. But I was thinking it should be just you two for your reunion. But if you let me, I’d like to watch.”

When Goldie didn’t object, Arthur nodded and carried the human woman over to his bed, still impaled on his prick. The next few hours were a replay of Goldie and Arthur’s first night together but with the addition of Marion sitting on her bed playing with herself and trying to cum when they did. They didn’t get as far as assfucking again, but it was a fair trade-off for seeing the look on Marion’s face as Goldie slowly sat down on Arthur’s Bellator-form cock.

Once he filled her pussy with cum they lay there, snuggled together as he slowly softened inside her.

As she hummed with happiness and contentment, Goldie caught a glimpse of longing in Marion’s eyes as she watched them.