by Sky Winters
“I guess I am getting a bit ahead of myself. Sure, let’s get some hiking in. Let me change and get my pack.”
“Sounds good.”
An hour later, they were headed up a mountain side behind Blake’s home, a large cabin every bit as remote as Zebe’s, but across the river. It was well known that the river served as a dividing point between their people, and Zebe felt just a bit of trepidation about being on the wrong side of it, especially after what had happened to his brother. Everyone knew the rules about staying on their own side of Montana. Now that he was sober, he realized what a bad idea this all might be.
“Blake, I think I should turn back and head home.”
“What? Why? You’ve come all this way already.”
“We both know I don’t belong here. It could bring a lot of trouble for the both of us.”
“This is my private property, five hundred acres of it. No one will bother you here.”
“I’m just getting more uncomfortable with it. You know, all my brother did was drift toward the wrong side of the river when his boat stalled. Next thing I know, I’m down at the county coroner’s office identifying his body. We both know those weren’t wild animals that attacked him.”
“Look, Zebe, I know nothing about your brother’s death. I had nothing to do with it. Our families, the hate between them goes back to times long before you and I came into the picture, but I’m not about that. I have no animosity toward anyone who doesn’t bring it upon themselves.”
“I feel the same, but it doesn’t change the way things are. We can never be a couple. It would never be accepted. Why waste time and get too involved in a hopeless situation?”
“It is only hopeless if we make it that way. Let’s just enjoy it one day at a time and see where it takes us. I’d really like to see our families get along again and if that has to start with just the two of us, then I’ll take it.”
“Okay, Blake. I’ll try to get past it, but only because you are so insanely hot.”
“That’s the spirit,” Blake laughed, leaning in and kissing him softly.
Zebe felt something, something real, down in the pit of his stomach. Maybe it was just anxiety or nerves, but it felt more like butterflies. Getting attached to Blake was a bad idea, but damn it if he didn’t feel a pull toward him that went far deeper than his looks.
“Let’s get moving then. This trail isn’t going to turn into a moving sidewalk and take us to the top of the mountain.”
“Indeed it isn’t.”
They chatted some more along the way, mostly about how their families had come to be so at odds with one another. It had taken place well before they had been brought into the world, but it was one of many stories handed down through the ages that served to remind each of them why it was important not to befriend one another. At least, it was intended to do so.
“My father says he can remember when our families used to run on both sides of the river together. They played together, fought together. There was no difference in our people other than the obvious physical aspects.”
“Mine says the same. It was his father that started this. He and a man named Pete Featherskull used to be best friends until they fell in love with the same girl, my grandmother. He used to tell me the story when I was young. She and Pete grew up together and he was in love with her from the time he first lay eyes on her as a little girl, but she didn’t feel the same about him and though our families were friends, they were forbidden to intermarry.”
“Yes, I’ve heard the story, but had no idea if it was just folklore or true.”
“It is very true, according to my grandfather. He came here when he was thirteen from another territory. He and Pete became best friends almost endlessly. They used to hunt together and run through the forests as a pair. Then, Pete introduced him to a young woman named Hilda and it was love at first sight. Of course, Pete never told my grandfather that, but it became obvious that he had feelings for her later on.”
“I wonder why he never told him? Surely if they were best friends, your grandfather would have backed off.”
“Maybe. I don’t know. His feelings for my grandmother were very strong from the start. He said it was like waking up one morning and realizing he had been missing half of himself all his life. I’m not sure he could have stopped himself from loving her and perhaps he would have thought there was no reason to since Pete couldn’t be with her anyway.”
“I can see that. I guess it boils down to love or friendship, which was more important.”
“Guess no one will ever know. My grandfather didn’t realize Pete was in love with her until the end. He said he thought the jealousy was more about him spending so much time with her and neglecting their friendship, so he tried to spend more time with Pete, but he could see something had changed and it was too late, so he withdrew. Time passed and he and my grandmother got married. That was when the tragic events we are told about took place.”
“Yes. I heard that the two men had an argument over a woman and it ended in a fight which was joined by members of both families, losing dozens in the clash and more in the years afterward as the hostilities continued.”
“Pretty much. My grandfather said that he was walking home with my grandmother. They had only been married for a week and were still in that state of bliss. They encountered Pete on the street and he was very drunk, began insulting my grandfather and eventually attacked. My grandfather told my grandmother to run rather than fight and she did, but she circled back, with family members she had quickly gathered from nearby houses. Pete’s family had heard the commotion and done the same.”
“I can only imagine a fight like that, both families in mass. I hope to never see one first hand. I am not afraid to fight, but I don’t really see the point in it all. To have our families at odds for so many years over a romantic slight is bad enough. I’m glad they at least called a truce and agreed to stay on our own sides of the river.”
“Me too. I’d love to be able to repair that rift between all of us, but I’ve no idea where to even start. I’m afraid it may even get worse again with the death of your brother.”
“There has been talk, but at the end of the day, I think my people prefer to live in peace and not have to look over their shoulders everywhere they go. No one is happy about my brother’s demise, but he was on the wrong side of the river, no matter how he got there.”
“True. Still, I don’t understand why he wasn’t merely warned and sent on his way. There was no need for what they did to him.”
“No, there wasn’t. I can only assume it was some of the teens who saw an opportunity to use skills in a real world situation. Your brother just landed in the wrong place at the wrong time and someone saw him as an opportunity to hone their attacks.”
“Well, it would be nice if we could all find peace again.”
“If nothing else, at least the two of us have found peace with one another.”
“True. Very true.”
The conversation lagged as they reached a steep incline and made their way up it, finally reaching the top after traversing some jagged rock facings and almost nonexistent foot paths. It had been a bit more strenuous than Zebe had expected but well worth the effort as the pair of them stood looking over the land below them.
“Wow. I can see why you love this place. The view is spectacular!”
“It certainly is,” Blake replied, smiling softly as Zebe turned and realized he was looking at him rather than the countryside below them.
“Flattery will get you everywhere,” Zebe said with a smile of his own.
“I sure hope so. Come here and I’ll show you something.”
Zebe walked over to where he stood and watched as he extended his arm across the river, pointing to an area that was immediately recognizable. It was his house.
“You have quite the keen sense of direction and sight.”
“I certainly do,” he laughed.
Zebe looked at his home for a minute before walking a
round the edge of the mountain top and getting a good view of his own around the area. There was a perfect view of the entire area from up here. He was marveling at how much he could see from just this one spot when a wave of weakness seemed to fall across him, followed by a feeling of nausea.
“I think we best be getting back.”
“What’s wrong?” Blake asked, noting that something didn’t quite seem right with him.
“I’m not sure. Perhaps just time to eat.”
“Here. I brought some snacks, munch on some of this jerky and we’ll head down. Maybe you can get your strength back up along the way.”
“Sounds good,” Zebe replied, but he wasn’t sure about that. Something was horribly wrong. He felt peculiar in a way that he had never experienced before. By the time they had made it down off the mountain, Blake was having to actively support his weight and help him walk. It was if he had no strength left and he felt increasingly ill.
“Sit down here and let me get you some juice,” Blake told him, seating him on the sofa in his massive den.
“I don’t know what happened. I was fine earlier and now I feel faint and my stomach is hurting so bad. My strength is zapped and I feel completely nauseated.”
“Yeah. I have that effect on men.”
“Oh please, don’t make me laugh. Even that takes more energy than I have,” Blake replied, stifling a chuckle.
“I think we have a problem, Zebe.”
“Well, I know I certainly seem to.”
“You know, there is a legend. I thought it was a myth.”
Blake looked at him with a puzzled expression and then his eyes opened wide as he realized what he was talking about.
“No way. It’s just not possible.”
“It is possible. Very possible. We used no protection last night, which was unsafe by anyone’s standards, but I never would have guessed it would lead to this.”
“I can’t be pregnant! That’s just an old story that is told.”
“You have all the symptoms.”
“I just don’t believe it. I need to go to the doctor.”
“And what happens when he confirms what I’m telling you? How will you explain your condition to people who don’t understand that people like us even exist? You’ll end up as the poster child for the National Query or in a lab somewhere.”
“I’ll go to the club doctor. He’s one of us.”
“Then let’s go. The sooner we know, the better. If we are right, you’re going to need a lot of supplements and proper care. Can he be trusted not to let this get out to the motor club just yet?”
“Yes. He knows not to talk about anything when it comes to me and the other members.”
“Come on then. We’ll take the car.”
Zebe let Blake help him out to the car and get him seated inside of it. It was surprising to find out that he drove something as upscale and classic as an old rolls Royce. It wasn’t exactly the sort of car you’d expect to see a biker driving.
“Nice car.”
“Mint. One owner, my grandfather. He left it to me when he parted.”
“I’m sorry to hear he is gone.”
“He’s not dead. He just went overseas and couldn’t take it with him.”
“You’ve a very weird sense of humor at times.”
“At all the times, really. Let’s get going.”
The two of them drove in silence to the doctor’s house. By the time they arrived, Zebe was pale and in considerable pain. Blake helped him to the door and knocked on it. An older man approached the door and squinted out at the two of them, wrinkling up his nose in distaste.
“Zebe, why have you brought this musty smelling creature to my house?”
“He brought me here, Doc. I’m sick and need you to look at me.”
“He fucking stinks.”
“Doc, I’ve no time for that. Help me.”
“Fine. Come in.”
Blake helped Zebe inside, following the doctor to another room that sat to one side of his living room. He pushed back a curtain and indicated for him to lay Zebe across the bed, still looking distastefully at the bear shifter in his midst as he instructed Zebe to get undressed.
“Alright, what are your symptoms?”
Zebe listed off all his symptoms and looked at Blake nervously as he waited for the doctor to finish his exam. The doctor shook his head ruefully and eyed the two of them.
“Well, the two of you are in quite a pickle.”
“I’m pregnant,” Zebe offered.
“Yes, you are. Everything seems normal. The pain and illness is just your body adjusting to a foreign entity. Not only is it an anomaly for a man to be pregnant, but you have the added dimension of your embryo being part bear shifter. Your wolf blood is reacting to that as if being attacked by a virus.”
“What’s going to happen?”
“Well, I have to say I’ve never encountered it before, but I’ve read about the process. Gestation will be short, only ten days. Your body is going to be racked with discomfort and illness the entire time, I’m afraid to say, but it’s not fatal. The child appears healthy and you were healthy when you conceived it, so your chances of having a healthy hybrid wolf/bear shifter are very good.”
“I don’t know how this could have happened,” Zebe said aloud.
“I’m guessing you had sex with that furrball over there. You’d have better served yourself and your family by having made a nice fireplace rug out of him. They aren’t going to take this very well.”
Blake scowled back at the doctor but said nothing. Zebe looked at him apologetically and began pulling his shirt over his head. He faltered a bit as he started to get off the exam table and Blake was quickly by his side to support him.
“Hmmph,” the doctor uttered. “I’ll get you some vitamins and supplements. You won’t be able to get what you need elsewhere so just come back to me if you run out . . . or send the bear, I guess.”
“Thank you, Doc.”
“How are you going to handle this with your family and with the club?”
“I don’t know yet, Doc. We have a lot to talk about. We’ll figure it out. In the meantime, this is just between us, okay?”
“Boy Scout’s honor.”
“I doubt you were ever a boy scout,” Zebe said with as much of a laugh as he could muster.
“You’d be surprised what I was in my day,” the doctor replied before leaving the room to retrieve whatever magic potions he intended for Zebe to take.
“This is unbelievable,” Zebe said to Blake after he was gone.
“Unbelievable and beautiful,” Blake said with a warm smile.
“I can’t believe you seem excited about this.”
“I can’t believe you aren’t.”
“I have some sort of wolf bear growing inside my . . . shit.” Blake turned toward the doctor as soon as he walked back in. “Where exactly is it growing?”
“You have a womb.”
“I have a what???”
“That’s right. You have a womb. Do you know what the odds of your being gay, having a womb and procreating with a bear shifter are? That’s why this hasn’t happened for thousands of years. No wonder everyone thinks it is just a fairy tale.”
“Why has no one ever noticed such an anomaly before?”
“Simple. You’ve always been healthy. Any injuries you’ve ever had have healed themselves so quickly there was never a need to see a doctor and get any kind of tests that would have revealed such a thing. Even if there had been, it lies dormant until such time as it is put to use. It’s not like the womb of a woman, but more like a . . . let’s say, collapsible water bottle waiting to be filled. It would have been lying to one side against muscle tissue, not bothering anything.”
“Okay. So I have a womb. Where precisely will the child be exiting?”
“Well, you may not like that part. Here, take these pads. You’re going to need them.”
“For?”
“Now that the bottle has been
filled, the neck of it will begin extending and making room. It will detach itself to the space between your testicles and rectum and create an exit for the newborn.”
“You’re fucking with me.”
“I’m not. Once the baby is born, the womb will exit with it and be clipped with the umbilical cord. The exit will heal up just like any other wound you’ve ever had and you’ll never bear another child. No pun intended.”
Zebe looked positively green at the thought of what the doctor was telling him. He looked at Blake, who appeared rapt with attention, hanging on the doctor’s every word.
“That is fantastic!”
“Easy for you to say, you aren’t growing a vagina!” Zebe exclaimed.
“It will be okay, Zebe. I will take good care of you.”
“You’re going to have to. This isn’t going to set well with folks and he’s not going to be in any condition to fight during his pregnancy. In fact, he won’t be able to shift at all until after the baby is born. He’ll need a lot of help and a lot of protection, even from his own, I’m afraid.”
“We’ll figure it out,” Blake said solemnly.
“You better do that quickly,” the doctor told both of them, handing them the supplies he had retrieved and seeing them to the door. “Just call me if you need anything or when it’s time. I’ll be there to make sure you get through this in one piece.”
“Thank you for everything, Doc,” Blake said.
“Not a problem. Not every day I get to deliver a mythical creature. I’m looking forward to it.”
“I’m glad one of us is,” Zebe replied.
“Two of us. You’ll join us when you have adjusted to the idea of it all,” Blake told him, opening the car door for him.
Looking down at his abdomen, Zebe could already see signs of swelling. The baby was growing fast thanks to his accelerated metabolism. He suspected that Blake’s was the same, so it would be a double dose of it, thus why the gestation period was so short he was guessing. Ten days wasn’t long to adjust to the idea and they still had to consider how they were going to break this to their respective families and motor clubs.
Back at Blake’s house, they sat on the sofa and just stared at the wall for a moment, adjusting to the idea and collecting their thoughts. It was Blake that finally broke the silence as he turned to Zebe and pulled his hand toward him, holding it gently as he spoke.
