by Sable Sylvan
“By having your farmhands pick the fruit from the tops of the trees, you kill two birds with one stone,” explained Oliver. “It means you won’t have bears or regular humans trying to climb up into those trees to reach the fruits. It’s annoying at first. Nobody wants to set up a ladder, pick fruit, come back down the ladder, pack the ladder up, and repeat the process dozens and dozens of times. It means you might have to hire more farmhands for more hours, buy some ladders, and add another thing to your docket…but, you won’t have problems with bears or people going up the trees for the good stuff.”
“That’s a really great idea,” said Grandma Petunia. “I’ll talk with my husband about it before I make a decision. We’re partners, you see, and I always like to hear what he has to say and have a good chat with him before we make any major decisions. Just for that, the three of you can each have a bushel of apples!”
“You know, we never got a map of the orchard,” said Pepper. “Would you be able to recommend some apple varieties to us?”
“Well, it depends on what you wanna do with the apples,” said Grandma Petunia, eyes sparkling.
“I want to make some cider,” said Oliver.
“Then you’re going to want to get some of our Dabinett apples, very popular this season, but…if I were you, I’d go a step further, and try the crab apples,” said Grandma Petunia. “The flavor is strong, and they’re not eating apples, but…they’re wild, and I think shifters like you two might enjoy it.”
“What if I just wanted some to snack on?” asked Peter.
“Well, you can’t go wrong with gala apples,” said Grandma Petunia. “Those are in our ‘table apple’ section.”
“And for baking?” asked Pepper.
“Call me old fashioned, but, I love a good Granny Smith!” said Grandma Petunia. “Slap those in a pie, and you’ll have two very happy bears!”
Grandma Petunia took the axes back and went back to her cottage to check on her husband. Pepper picked up the baskets and passed them out to the bears.
“Alright — which section do we want to hit up first?” asked Pepper.
“Eating apples — I’m famished,” said Peter.
“Why do we need to get your apples first?” asked Oliver. “I need the cider apples so I can start brewing the cider.”
“What difference does it make if you get your apples twenty minutes earlier than I get mine?” asked Peter. “It’s not like you’re going to be brewing the cider any frikkin’ faster!”
“Well, it’s not my fault you didn’t beef up for the winter,” said Oliver. “I did most of the hard work, and I say we pick the cider apples first.”
“You know what? I think we all need to take a huge step back,” said Pepper.
“How big of a step?” asked Oliver.
“Like…I don’t know what I can do until you two stop fighting, entirely, one-hundred-percent,” said Pepper. “I cannot live my life surrounded by two strong-willed men who want to tear each other to bits, who find various bullshizz things to argue over. I cannot live a noisy, loud life.”
“But we — ” started Peter.
Oliver shot Peter a look.
“What?” asked Peter.
“We’ll talk about it later,” said Oliver.
“Talk about it now,” said Pepper, crossing her arms.
“You just said you don’t want to hear our drama,” said Oliver.
“I don’t want there to be drama at all,” said Pepper. “But, if there is drama, I don’t want decisions being made about me or this relationship behind my back.”
“Fine — then I’ll just say it in front of you,” said Oliver. “It’s obvious that Peter and I, neither of us has thought about being a ménage before. Neither of us has ever had to think about sharing our mate. Maybe it’s because our bears naturally assume we won’t have to share — because our bears are solitary, and primal, and don’t always take Fate into consideration, although obviously, Fate sure thinks about us.”
Oliver put a hand on his chest and hand on Peter’s chest.
“Although the two of us are fated to share a mate, that doesn’t mean shizz,” continued Oliver. “Peter — what was it like, when you first got your shift?”
“Amazing — but scary,” admitted Peter. “It…it took me a long time to get used to the idea of sharing my body, my soul, with another being. It was hard to hear someone else’s ideas and opinions about every little stupid thing I did. It was hard to deal with the changes to my life, but…
“But what?” asked Oliver, removing his hand.
“But I honestly wouldn’t change a dang thing,” said Peter.
“But you were fated to be a bear,” said Oliver.
“Yes — but that didn’t make me ready to be one,” said Peter with a laugh. “We’re all fated to do so many things that Fate and life don’t prepare us for.”
“Being fated to have or do or be something…” started Oliver.
“…It doesn’t mean it’s easy,” finished Peter.
“You two agree on this?” asked Pepper.
“That’s like asking us if we both agree apples are frikkin’ delicious,” said Peter.
“We might like different apples — but at the end of the day, we both like apples,” said Oliver.
“So if you agree on things like that, why can’t you agree on things like which frikkin’ apples to pick?” asked Pepper.
“Because we’re not clones! We’re still two different guys who don’t know shizz about each other, or frankly, about you,” admitted Peter.
“We don’t know what it’s like dating you,” corrected Oliver. “What about you, Pepper?”
“What about me?” asked Pepper.
“What do you know about dating two guys? About ménages? Heck, about dating werebears — about dating shifters?” asked Oliver.
“I…” started Pepper. “I went to a Halloween party with each of you.”
“A single date is not the same as dating, and two dates doesn’t exactly make you qualified to teach a master class in dating,” said Oliver. “We’ve got some learning to do…but so do you, Pepper.”
“And how exactly do you think I can learn this?” asked Pepper.
“By dating us,” said Oliver.
“Well…” started Peter.
“What?” asked Pepper.
“Oliver and I can talk to each other about these issues, but you…you don’t exactly have another woman in this relationship who you can shizztalk us with,” said Peter.
“And I’m not interested in you making this group any more complicated,” said Pepper, folding her arms.
“But…you can talk to your friends about their experiences dating shifters,” said Peter. “Get their perspective. See what they have to say.”
“That’s…actually a really good idea,” admitted Pepper.
“I always have my best ideas when I’m horn-gry,” said Peter. “You know — horny and hungry. Now, are we going to claim you here…or are we going to pick some frikkin’ apples?”
Chapter Eight
Pepper wasn’t sure if she was close to the finish line in terms of finalizing her gingerbread pumpkin pie recipe. At some points, she thought the pie was perfect. At other points, well…she felt that the pie could use some extra work. She wasn’t sure what to do. She had multiple versions of the recipe and couldn’t tell what was missing.
As Pepper waited for her most recent batch of pies to bake, she worked the front counter of the bakery…when in came a witch.
Curvy, with a black pointed hat and a dark green swampy wig and an emerald green dress with bell sleeves, the witch was a familiar face to Pepper.
“Hey, Jasmine,” said Pepper. “Having a ‘magical’ day?”
“Ha, ha, ha,” said Jasmine sarcastically, rolling her eyes. “I’m stuck working in town while you get to have all the fun up here!”
“Uh…I wouldn’t call my job fun,” said Pepper. “I love pumpkins, but…this pumpkin patch, well, it’s been a lot o
f hard work to run and set up. I’m heading back out there after my next batch of pies comes out of the oven.”
“At least you get to spend your time outdoors, in cute clothes, with two hunky bears,” whined Jasmine. “I have to wear this silly witch costume, and help with a haunted frikkin’ house!”
“I still can’t believe Patricia has you working down at the location in town — you’re a candles and bubble baths kinda gal! The only cauldrons you should be stirring are cauldrons of wax to make our birthday candles,” joked Pepper. “I’ll admit — having two handsome guys working near me…it’s nice, but also, well…can you keep a secret?”
“Of course not,” said Jasmine. “Dish.”
“The two guys out there…one of them’s Oliver, the one from Grizzlyfir, and the other one, from Hemlock, his name’s Peter,” explained Pepper. “Well…they kinda sorta have the same mate mark.”
“So they need to find a mate together,” said Jasmine, crossing her arms. “Let me guess — the mark, it’s a pie?”
“Worse — pumpkin,” groaned Pepper. “It’s totally about me. Not to sound self-centered, but…well, I think Fate’s made herself a regular at this here Bear Claw Bakery location.”
“Uh…can you keep a secret?” asked Jasmine,.
“Absolutely positively not,” said Pepper. “Don’t tell me, the two bears that are helping you out are — ”
“Definitely not supposed to be in a ménage with me for sure and it’s a mess,” said Jasmine. “Right now, that’s not the mess I’m worried about. I’m worried because people, well, they think our haunted house is really haunted!”
“Haunted? By what?” asked Pepper. “The ghost of your dignity?”
“Ha-ha,” said Jasmine. “No — The Butcher of Port Jameson. Maybe ‘haunted’ isn’t the right word. Maybe ‘cursed’ is better. People think that the house was occupied by a butcher that, well…let’s say he wasn’t using his tools to dice up chicken.”
“That makes the pumpkin patch’s ghost seem tame in comparison,” admitted Pepper.
“I knew that ghost was real,” said a voice. Pepper and Jasmine turned. There was a woman in a very loud pink and green uniform, curvy, like them, with a hand on her hip.
“Sorry. How rude of us. Welcome to Bear Claw Bakery — can I get you anything?” Pepper asked sweetly, knowing the interloper was not there to buy any dang cookies.
“I was just coming by to see what the competition was like,” said the woman, whose shirt read ‘Toad in the Hole Cafe’ and whose nametag read ‘Trinity.’
“Take a photo — it’ll last longer,” said Jasmine.
Trinity pulled out her phone and teased, “Don’t tempt me.”
“Do it,” said Pepper. “Be sure to tag us in your pics. We love to see what sorts of creative photos our fans take of our pastries.”
“I’m — I’m not a fan!” stammered Trinity.
“Well, you’re the one at our store, not the other way around, so…you do the math,” said Pepper, shrugging her shoulders.
“At least we don’t have ghosts at Toad in the Hole Cafe,” retorted Trinity.
“You mean even ghosts don’t want to haunt your little bake sale?” asked Jasmine.
“We might not have ghosts, but we have business from all the people scared of the ghosts — and of the serial killer that lived in your haunted house,” said Trinity. She took her phone and started snapping pics.
“Where were we?” asked Jasmine. “Oh — I forget. But. I was going to suggest something to you.”
“Well?” asked Pepper, raising her eyebrows.
“Maybe you should take the lead,” said Jasmine.
“No, no, no — I wanna be romanced,” said Pepper.
“Do you?” asked Jasmine. “In all the years I’ve known you, you’re a woman who figures out what she wants and gets it. You know what romancing is? Wasting time. If you know you want them, get them.”
“Is that you, Jasmine?” asked Patricia, cracking the door open. “I only just got your text. Come on in!”
“See you around, Pepper,” promised Jasmine. Soon, Trinity left, and it came time for Pepper to take her pies out of the oven. She took notes as they cooled and then forced herself to go outside to the pumpkin patch to survey the situation.
Although the pumpkin patch wasn’t as put together as she would’ve liked, she had to admit that it was better than she expected.
The sales booth was open and a baker from the cafe was working there, selling the iced gingerbread cookies and some pumpkin-themed treats like their pumpkin spices croissants, pumpkin pie bites, and pumpkin cheese Danishes, as well as hot apple cider.
Another set of tables and chairs had scales and pre-picked pumpkins and cash boxes and tablets for sales, manned by two more bakers from the bakery. They were part-time high school workers who had drawn their friends over to the patch, leading to more business.
The raised standalone deck looked good, and people were sitting at picnic tables constructed by Oliver and Peter, based on a stock design by Grizzlyfir. The two bears were still working on the covered deck.
“Can I get two ciders?” Pepper asked the concessions gal, and she grabbed the two cups for free and walked over to the deck.
“Hey you two,” said Pepper. “Cider?”
“Give us two seconds,” said Peter, holding the level for Oliver while Oliver did some measurements.
“Okay — everything’s looking clean,” said Oliver, getting up from the ground. We should have this up in two days, maybe three, depending on rain.” Pepper passed Oliver and Peter the cups of cider.
“Great — so after that, we can get down to the good stuff,” said Pepper.
“The what stuff?” asked Peter
“You know — you two will have time to claim me,” said Pepper.
Oliver nearly choked on his hot cider. “You mean you — ”
“You two are never going to stop fighting, and I’ll never stop wanting you two,” admitted Pepper. “I don’t like drama — and I’m not saying claiming me is gonna solve anything — but I want to give this ménage a real shot and see if it’s even frikkin’ fated. I’m sure it is. You two are sure it is. But, if it’s not — all this fighting, it’s been for nothing. So…get this frikkin’ covered deck finished, and we can get down and dirty with a new project. Sound good?”
“Uh…yes, but, before we do, I have a confession,” said Oliver.
“What?” asked Pepper.
“I meant to tell you before, but…uh…I’m the reason that people think the pumpkin patch is haunted,” said Oliver, cringing.
“You’re…wait…what…how?” asked Pepper, rubbing her temples.
“So, it’s a funny story, but…I came down to the patch this summer to do a lot of thinking,” explained Oliver. “I wanted to find my mate, and well, you saw the mark. Pumpkin patch. Maybe I’d meet my mate in the pumpkin patch. I wasn’t too far off the mark. But…”
“But what?” asked Pepper.
“I might’ve also been practicing my bear singing, and it’s not very good,” said Oliver.
“Bears can’t sing,” said Peter.
“I can’t sing — that doesn’t mean bears can’t sing,” insisted Oliver. “I found that out the hard way.”
“Is that it?” asked Pepper.
“And…I also might’ve gotten tangled up in a bed sheet on my way down and been goofing around the pumpkin patch, and that might’ve been why people thought they saw a real ghost,” said Oliver.
“So the two of you…you two are the reason people think the whole frikkin’ patch is haunted?” asked Pepper.
“Yes,” said Oliver and Peter at the same time.
“And so this whole time…it was just you two goobers?” asked Pepper.
“Yeah,” said Oliver. “How mad are you?”
“I’m mad people think the patch is haunted, but really, more annoyed. I’m glad you two told me the truth — and I’d say I wish you told me sooner, but it wouldn’
t’ve changed matters,” admitted Pepper. “What’s done is done. More than anything, I’m relieved.”
“Relieved?” asked Peter.
“Yeah — because if you two are the reason people thought the patch was haunted, there’s no ghost, and none of the pumpkin patch haunting issues are my fault or anything I could’ve controlled,” said Pepper. “It’s not my problem — it’s yours. I expect you two to help me figure out a way to fix this ghost rumor.”
“I think that’s more than fair,” said Peter. “But — you still want us to claim you?”
“Yeah — so get that deck built fast, and you’ll get to eat this pie faster,” said Pepper, giving the two bears a wink before going into the actual patch of pumpkins to figure out her game plan…and to think about what frikkin’ lingerie she’d wear for when she ended up in bed with the two lumber bears.
Chapter Nine
“Welcome to Hemlock Lodge,” said Peter
“I’ve been here before,” said Pepper.
“Me too,” said Oliver, raising a brow. “For work, of course.”
“Of course,” said Peter, rolling his eyes. “Anyway, this way. My room’s right this way.”
Peter led the other two through the halls of the lodge. The lodge was old, with dark wood and dark purple and red fabric-like wallpaper on some parts of the walls. Peter’s room was fancier than Pepper’s bedroom and fancier than Oliver’s, but, it was not the best room in the house — at least, according to the other members of Hemlock Crew.
What it had was a big bed with black and grey plaid flannel sheets, and what was needed was a big bed. The fact the room was empty and had a bed made it the best room in the house, as far as the ménage was concerned.
“Here we are,” said Peter. “Are you sure you’re ready?”
“Why wouldn’t I be?” asked Pepper.
“I don’t know — that’s why I’m asking,” said Peter, crossing his arms.
“Uh, okay…I guess…hmm,” said Pepper. “This is silly, but…can I ask you two some questions?”
“Sure,” said Oliver.
“The answers to these questions don’t mean anything about what we’ll do here tonight,” said Pepper. “I just…I was thinking last night, about this, about being your mate. I think it’d be a little weird if I didn’t know some basic things about you two before we did this. I know I’m your fated mate. I just…ugh. I feel silly, but…I just wanna have a little breather before we do what I frikkin’ initiated.”
