Page 5 of Grizzly Sleuth
Conscious of the audience, he instead forced himself to watch the bear degrade itself for a bunch of drunks, dancing to the tune of the petite woman currently standing before him, arms crossed.
Not a hint of fear oozed from her, which he found interesting. Most females, alone at night, confronted by a stranger his size, would have shown panic. Svetlana, however, oozed annoyance.
“You animal activists are so annoying.” She rolled her eyes. “Yuri enjoys performing and is well taken care of because of it. Or do you think it’s easy and cheap to feed someone his size?”
Knowing the depths of his own appetite, Idris didn’t doubt it cost a fortune, but he’d not come here to chastise about her choice in career. Might as well get right to the point. “I know he’s a therianthrope.”
Her brow furrowed, her excellent English not extending to the uncommon word. “I don’t know what you mean, nor do I care. I would suggest you depart before something unpleasant happens.”
“Going to hit me again?” He couldn’t have said why he teased.
“And hurt my fist?” she scoffed. “I’ll leave the pummeling to Yuri.” She uttered a sharp whistle, and a grunt could be heard from inside the covered truck.
“I think Yuri might be a little drunk.” The amount of booze the bear downed had been impressive.
“Very definitely sotted and most likely irritated at being woken from his nap,” she added as the tarp covering the rear rustled.
“Listen, I’m not looking for trouble. I just want to t?—”
He never finished that sentence because a large furry body hurtled through the flap, smacking into Idris, sending him to the ground. The hard impact didn’t cause enough pain to shift him; however, the claws that dug into his shoulders did.
Ouchandbam. Idris shifted, shredding his clothes, which would be inconvenient later when he had to return to his apartment naked. But in good news, the injury from the claws healed, and his transformation caused enough surprise that the other bear slightly recoiled. It gave Idris the space he needed to place his paws against the other furry chest and shove. Idris then rolled to his four feet and engaged in a staring match with the other beast.
Would Yuri back off? Surely the other therianthrope would be curious and?—
Rawr.
The other bear lunged with its mouth wide open, showing impressive teeth. Rather than take the brunt of the charge, Idris side-stepped and quickly stood on his two hind legs. He leaned over to grab the other bear, digging claws into furry flesh, in the hopes of making Yuri change so they could have a civilized conversation.
Despite the bleeding wounds, Yuri remained a bear and thrashed wildly, tearing the wounds even wider. Idris retracted his grip, not wanting to seriously harm. Alas, Yuri didn’t recognize his attempt at concession. He lunged again, this time choosing to attack on two feet, swinging those massive paws.
Slug.Smack.Thud. The blows impacted, but Idris managed to hold on to this shape, the glasses of beer he’d had earlier helping him to not feel pain, a coping mechanism that he didn’t particularly care for but that somewhat worked.
Slap.Smack. Dodge.Thud.
The paws-icuffs might have gone on longer if Svetlana hadn’t laughed and said, “I wonder how much people would pay to watch you two fight?”
She thought this was funny?
Both Idris and Yuri ceased their grappling and found common ground glaring at her.
Svetlana smirked. “Are you done being animals? I’m hungry and thirsty. When you’re ready to be civilized, I’ll be in the truck.”
With that, she clambered past the canvas flap, leaving Idris and Yuri to stand there awkwardly. The other man shifted first, the wounds and fur disappearing to leave behind a large, golden-haired male with distinctive blue eyes. Would you look at that? The man could control his shape. Must be nice. As for Idris, he punched himself in the snout hard enough he blinked.
The sharp pain brought on the transformation, leaving him naked in the cold night.
“Why did you hit yourself?” Yuri asked in perfect English, staring at Idris in puzzlement.
“Pain is how I transform.”
“But that was barely a tap,” exclaimed Yuri.
“I’m aware,” his dry reply. “I have a problem where the slightest pain causes me to change shape. I’ve been working at having better control. Made some progress. I no longer spontaneously shift when I drink really hot coffee.”
Yuri’s mouth rounded. “How have you managed to survive this long without being shot?”
“Not easily, which is why I’m glad I found you. You’re the first bear therianthrope I’ve met.”
