Bearly Christmas

by Becca Fanning

  "Lead on," she gestured to the door, and Joel managed a weak smile.

  They strode out to the courtyard, the one that overlooked the beach. Lisa had been so admiring it yesterday, before the storm hit and it looked like the place might be underwater in a few hours. Joel gestured for her to follow him, and found them a reasonably dry nook that allowed them a decent view across the hills.

  "Is that where they were?" Lisa asked nervously, suddenly realizing with a stab of panic that they could still be out here and she wouldn't know anything about it.

  "Yeah," Joel nodded. "They set up a camp over in the caves at the other end of the beach. I think they've gone back there, I'm not sure they're stupid enough to try any of that again."

  "You think you scared them off?"

  Joel pulled himself up to his full height, obviously trying his hardest to look imposing.

  "Yeah, I reckon so."

  "Did you shift to fight them?" Lisa asked casually. She needed to hear confirmation of that out of his own mouth before she'd believe it, even though she couldn't think of any reason for Tom to make up shit like that. Joel's mouth gaped open for a moment, and he turned to her.

  "How did you…?"

  "Tom told me. Is it true?" Lisa's words were brisk, and she didn't make eye contact with him. He paused for a moment before he replied, as if he was nervous about what her reaction might be.

  "Yes."

  "Huh."

  Another silence. Not an awkward one, just one where both parties were taking their time processing what had just been said.

  "Is that…a problem?" He asked eventually, squinting out over the cliffs as if expecting the wolves to come crashing towards them at any moment.

  "No, I can't see why it would be," Lisa shrugged. She'd encountered a couple of shifters before, here and there, and had never had a problem with them. Besides, as long as he wasn't threatening to tear a chunk out of her, she didn't see it causing an issue. But then she remembered what else Tom had told her, the thing that might actually cause a problem.

  "Tom…mentioned to me, about your separation," she began awkwardly. She couldn't believe the fact that this guy was married was a bigger deal than the fact he was basically a fairytale creature, but that was the situation, and she was going to power through it.

  "Oh," Joel winced. "I'm sorry. I didn't want to bring it up because…you know. It's kind of a downer."

  "Are you actually splitting up?" Lisa blurted, not stopping to think before the tactless words fell out of her mouth. "I mean, is it a trial separation, or…?"

  "No, we're done," Joel said, with a hint of pain in his voice. "We're not getting back together, I can promise you that."

  "What…what happened?" Lisa asked tentatively. She wasn't sure exactly how to go about getting what she needed out of him; all of it felt so grown-up and kind of scary.

  "We just fell out of love," he shrugged, as if that wasn't the scariest thing he could have possibly said. "It was amicable, we're still friends. But I just didn't want to be with her anymore."

  "Phew, okay," Lisa let out a breath.

  "Why?" He cocked his head at her with interest. "What's it to you?"

  "I just…" She paused. She wasn't sure how to phrase it in such a way that wouldn't come across as clingy. "I think you're cool. And I didn't want to get pulled into the middle of your marriage if you weren't sure it was over."

  "So, the shifter thing, you're fine with, but the marriage…?" He asked incredulously. She smiled, he was right.

  "Yeah, I know. I've just never…God, it's weird enough to me that my big brother is getting married, and the thought of…" she gestured towards him. "Sorry, I know I'm being forward. We only just met, and here I am, making assumptions…"

  "Trust me," Joel cut off her ramblings. "You're not making assumptions."

  Lisa felt a hot wash of delight pass over her body. He liked her back. She knew this wasn’t the time to get hung up on stupid middle school shit like that, but it was still sweet to hear.

  "Cool," she nodded, not sure what else to do with his statement. They looked at each other, making eye contact for the first time since the conversation started, and shared a small, shy smile. After a beat, he leaned forward, pausing for a moment when he was only an inch or so from her face. And then he kissed her.

  She was taken aback for a moment, she was still half-focused on everything else that was going on around them. The wolves, the attack, Dina and her brother and keeping them safe. But as soon as his lips came into contact with her own, it was as if those things simply melted away, it was a sweet, gentle kiss, the kind that seems to stretch out forever even though it only lasts a few moments. He placed a hand on her waist, steadying her, and drew her in deeper, their tongues moving against each other's at a leisurely pace. And then, in a moment, their reverie was broken.

  "Joel!" Someone was yelling at the top of their lungs, a man's voice, though Lisa couldn't place it. They quickly pulled back, exchanging chastened glances, before Joel stepped out of the nook and called back.

  "What? I'm over here!"

  "They're inside," the man's voice continued as Lisa scurried out of their hiding place. She felt a jolt of panic, they hadn't managed to get in because the two of them were busy assuaging her insecurities, were they? Joel had obviously had the same thought, and furrowed his brow as he sped towards the entrance.

  "Where did they get in?"

  "They just walked in the front…we tried to stop them, but Dina thought if we talked it out then maybe…" The man sounded dazed, just as Dina had when Lisa had last spoken to her.

  "Fuck," Joel cursed, grabbing Lisa's hand and pulling her next to him. "You, you need to get as far away as you can as soon as you can, alright?"

  "Is Tom in there with them?" She asked, ignoring Joel.

  "Yeah, he wouldn't leave," The man shrugged.

  "Then I'm going in," she replied firmly.

  "Lisa, you don't know what they're-" Joel tried to protest, but Lisa wasn't interested, striding back towards the door with certainty.

  "Joel, I'm not leaving my brother in there alone and there's nothing you can do to convince me otherwise. Is that clear?"

  Joel held his hands up, and allowed her to lead the way. She pushed the door open, her heart rattling against her ribs, and immediately looked around to try and locate Tom. But she was distracted by the fact that, standing between her and her brother, there were a pack of four wolves flanking a tall, imposing man.

  Joel and Lisa stood at the back of the room, trying their hardest not to be seen. The atmosphere in the room was beyond tense, it felt like the air was brittle and thin around them. Dina was talking with the man in the centre of the room, and none of what she was saying sounded particularly flattering. Lisa could feel her scalp prickling, this wasn't good. This really, really wasn't good. If those wolves had attacked before, who was to say they wouldn't do it again now, and that it might be worse? Lisa was beginning to think Joel was right and that she'd made a mistake coming in. The thought of being trapped right in the middle of some shifter turf war made her breath catch in her throat. She could barely focus on what Dina was saying, but the two of them were closer now, standing only a few feet apart, as if they were sizing each other up.

  And suddenly, it happened.

  Lisa had never seen anything like it before, they both went so quickly, turning from human to animal in the blink of an eye. Lisa let out an audible gasp as they lunged for each other, two wolves, tearing and scratching and biting at each other as if winning that fight was the only thing that mattered. Dina had never mentioned this before, she'd never even hinted at it. How long had she been like this? And did she realize how terrifying it was for everyone around her to see the beast inside her?

  Lisa was so focused on Dina's sudden shift that she had barely taken in what was happening in the rest of the room, it wasn't until she caught a glimpse of Joel from the corner of her eye, and turned to see that he too had suddenly shifted into his bear form. What
the fuck? Lisa ducked out of the way as he barged past her, pushing her back against the door as if trying to shield her from the rest of the chaos in the room. There were four bears now, their enormity and presence taking up almost the entire room, and they soon came up against the rest of the wolves in a vicious clash that was marked by the sound of tearing fur, whimpers, barks, and bites. Lisa was frozen, stock-still, half-praying that she could find a way out of there without being seen, the other bridesmaids had been quickly hustled up the stairs, but she was too far away to make it up with them. She was stuck, the only human in a room full of crazed animals. And then she remembered, remembered the reason she'd come in there in the first place. Tom.

  Her head snapped up, and she scanned the room, narrowing her eyes and trying to locate him. After a moment, she found her brother, like her, he was pressed up against one of the doors, trying his hardest not to be noticed. But his luck had run short, one of the wolves, having successfully wounded it's attacker, had zeroed in on him and wasn't taking no for an answer.

  Lisa lunged towards her brother, praying that everyone was too distracted to notice her, and dragged him below the stairs, slipping into the narrow space and pushing him behind her.

  "Lisa?" He asked, dazed, as if he'd just realized she was there.

  "Shhh," she muttered, peering round the edge of the stairs and noting with relief that the wolf was too busy being accosted by one of the bears too take up chase again. She turned back to Tom, examining him closely, gripping his shoulders as she did so.

  "Are you okay?" She demanded. He didn't look hurt, but surely this must all have come as as much of a shock to him as it did to her. Unless he knew…?"

  "I'm fine," he shook his head, and tried to push past her. "But I have to get out there, Dina, I need to-"

  "The last thing she needs right now is to have to worry about you," Lisa pointed out firmly, barring his way. "Did you know about her? Her…wolf…stuff?"

  "Of course I did," he brushed her off. "We're getting married. She's told me everything."

  "And you're okay with all of that?"

  "Yes," he replied tersely, struggling to push past her once again." Lis, you have to let me out there. We were meant to be getting married today, and if she gets hurt or…"

  He tailed off, as if the thought was horrible to consider. Lisa stared at her brother, it was clear that even the thought of his wife-to-be in danger, just knowing that she was out there alone, terrified him, and she couldn't blame him. She felt a small uptick of fear in her chest when she remembered that Joel was out there, too, she knew that she could do nothing but get in the way of a creature his size, but she found herself subconsciously crossing her fingers and praying he would be alright. And she'd only known him a couple of days, this was the love of her brother's life, the woman he wanted to be with forever. And she was out there, fighting her crazy ex, while the two of them were hiding inside.

  Lisa took a deep breath. She couldn't quite believe that she was about to do this.

  "Okay," she nodded. "We can go out there. But I'm going too, and you've got to promise me you'll do everything you can not to get hurt."

  Tom's eyes widened.

  "I don't want to drag you into this-"

  "Tough luck, you already have, " she shot back briskly, and stepped aside. "Come on. We've got your future wife to save."

  Tom looked at her, and managed a smile, despite the fear in his eyes.

  "Thank you."

  Lisa pulled in close to the stairs, peering round again, trying to locate Dina. They were the only two wolves fighting, so it wasn't hard to pick them out, Dina, the smaller of the two, looked as if she was trying to pull back, but the bigger wolf kept going for her, nipping and tearing and scratching at her, drawing blood. Lisa heard Tom's sharp intake of breath, and knew that he wouldn't be able to hide out there much longer. Before she knew it, he'd pushed by her and was charging towards Dina and her assailant. Lisa sprinted after him. She had never seen her brother like this before, he was far from a scrapper in high school, always a goody two-shoes who never got into an ounce of trouble. But here he was, charging head-on into a fight that he must have known he had little chance of winning.

  Tom managed to take the wolf by surprise, approaching from behind and landing a solid kick to the side of it's head. Dina looked up at the two of them, her eyes burning with an emotion Lisa couldn't quite put her finger on, relief, maybe, or anger? Lisa didn't have time to figure it out, as the wolf quickly turned on them.

  Tom lifted his leg again, kicking the wolf square in the face, there was a crack of teeth and bone, and in a moment, Tom's foot was trapped between the beast's jaws. He let out a yell of pain and attempt to back away, jumping on one foot in the opposite direction, but the wolf had him trapped fast. Lisa stared for a second, watching as the blood began to leak out down the creature's teeth and lips, before she even thought to act. Before she could talk herself out of it, she lunged forward and brought her fist down hard, landing a blow to the side of the creature's face. In it's surprise, it dropped Tom's foot, and Lisa pulled her brother away before it could do any more damage. The wolf rounded on them, it's eyes flashing with a very human anger, and began to stalk towards them, taking it's time, tracking them like prey. Just as it leaned back on it's paws, preparing for an attack, Dina shot forward and sank her teeth deeply into the back of it's neck.

  Lisa could hear Tom's breath, it was coming in short, sharp gasps, panic personified, even over the chaos in the rest of the room. It was all she could focus on. She stared at Dina, watched as she tore her head from side to side, leaving the other wolf doing everything it could to try and get rid of her, but there was nothing it could do. Lisa wasn't sure if Dina was protecting her or Tom or herself or all three of them, but there was a certainty in her eyes that told Lisa this was the end. The wolf let out a long, shrill whimper, the sound echoing off the walls, and slipped back into his human form. Dina immediately let go, dropping him with a heavy thump on to the ground, and standing above him. She didn't shift back as quickly, it was obvious that she didn't trust him, wasn't ready to take her victory until he had handed it to her.

  Two of the other wolves, the ones who had managed to shake free their attackers, scurried over to his side. The bears, twisting around to see what the commotion was about, quickly let go of their prey as soon as they saw that the ringleader had shifted back to human, Lisa felt pulse of relief in her brain when she saw Joel, relatively unharmed, hurrying to dress himself once again. Soon, everyone had crowded round Dina and her ex, who was still crumpled in a naked pile on the floor. The blood that had been oozing from his head was starting to slow, but he still looked terrified. After a long beat, Dina shifted back, and Tom hurried forward with his coat to protect her modesty.

  "Are we done?" She snarled, and Lisa could still see the wolf within her, the passion and danger of it beating in her eyes. Lisa held her breath. Please, please, let this be over now, finally. He didn't answer, and Dina leaned down so she was only a few inches from his ear.

  "Are. We. Done." She repeated, phrasing it less as a question that as an outright threat. Eventually, after a pause that seemed to last a lifetime, the ex drew himself to his feet. And then he nodded.

  "We're done," he agreed, through gritted teeth, and Lisa could tell how much it pained him to admit that.

  "If I ever see you again, I, we, will kill you." Dina continued firmly. And it didn't sound like she was messing around. Lisa was taken aback by her words, but looking around the room, she knew they were true. This fight had become about more than just some territorial ex, it had been a group of shifters, coming together as allies and warriors for the first time. And it wasn't a bond that would be quickly forgotten. The man nodded, and Lisa could have sworn he was trembling slightly. Tom rocked to one side, placing his weight on his good foot, and Lisa hurried to offer him support.