Beastly Little Boy

Chapter 3

The other bear closed the distance between them. Bernard yelped and jerked his head back as the other bear's jaws snapped together an inch from his face.

"That should teach you a little respect," his attacker said. "Now, explain yourself."

The only thing more terrifying than the bulky male's anger was the rush of indignation that suddenly surged through Bernard. He had only been trying to eat. This behemoth had clearly eaten more than enough to last him through winter already. With those thick layers of fat under his fur, he could probably hibernate through five winters. He hadn't even bothered to finish eating his kill for crying out loud!

Bernard winced as his headache pounded harder, spreading from the back of his head to behind his eyes. He squeezed his eyes shut against the pain, but nothing could block it out. When he opened his eyes again, darkness rimmed his vision. He was in no condition to fight anyone, much less an adult who looked more than willing to use his bones as toothpicks.

He forced his hackles to lay flat, unable to remember when he had raised them.

He had to stay calm. He had to focus. This situation was tricky enough without anger clouding his mind. Bernard inched backward, away from the doe and her owner.

A warning snarl stopped Bernard from moving farther away from the kill. He lowered his head and crouched down, trying to make himself look as small as possible. He had no experience with combat, but Bernard had years of practice keeping himself from being punished. Most people had been willing to forgive his mischief in the past as long as he had tried his best to act like an angel. Only his permanently vigilant father had been able to see through his false apologies with any regularity, and a well-placed sniffle had still been more than enough to soften him up.

Bernard cast his eyes to the ground and shifted his paws nervously before saying as softly as he could, "I'm sorry. I was really hungry, and the deer smelled so delicious that I couldn't help myself. I should have been more careful before touching it, but I haven't had a real meal in days." He gave his widest puppy dog eyes and whimpered. "Will you please let me go? I promise I'll never bother you again."

The other bear paused, staring at Bernard with his head cocked. Then, he huffed and snorted a blast of warm air into Bernard's face. To a human, this was nothing noteworthy, but Bernard's ears heard the noise as a chuckle.

The acrid scent of the older bear's anger faded slightly, only to be joined by the scent of confusion. "You're sorry? You, a dirty little thief who dared to enter my territory and eat part of my kill, are sorry?" The bear chuckled again, shaking his head. He clicked his teeth together. "Oh, I'll make you sorry alright!"

The towering wall of bristling fur lunged at Bernard.

Bernard let out a panicked cry as claws tore into his shoulders. He struggled against the larger bear's grip, but the claws dug in deeper and deeper until blood ran down his forelimbs. Finally, he jerked himself free, screaming as claws ripped away large chunks of fur. The larger bear's teeth snapped together so close to Bernard that the resulting rush of air ruffled his fur.

Bernard fled. His attacker laughed, giving chase. "That's right, Runt. Go back to your nursing den." Bernard howled in pain as heavy paws battered his haunches, threatening to knock him over. Desperate for the onslaught to end, he wheeled around and struck out at the larger bear with a paw.

The barrage of slaps and scratches stopped as Bernard's claws slashed the other bear's face just above his eye. As the other bear swore, Bernard ran for his life. He increased the gap between them until only the other bear's hot, rancid breath touched him.

With the dead deer out of sight, Bernard was almost ready to puke the meat he had eaten as the taste of bile crept to his mouth. His full belly weighed him down as he ran, seeming to sink closer to the ground with each step he took. It burned with guilt and shame. He had barely been out on his own, yet he had already ended up in a huge mess.

Bernard yelped as his pursuer lunged forward and nicked his rump with his teeth. The fresh, stinging wound whispered threats of greater agony to come if he was caught as he scrambled away. The scent of blood spurred Bernard on, giving him an extra burst of speed. His pursuer screamed obscenities after him as Bernard's paws flung dirt into his eyes.

The two bears dashed through the forest, completely ignoring the low hanging boughs that slapped them. The area was deathly quiet save for the sound of their labored breathing. The squirrels Bernard had encountered earlier had hidden themselves in their nests to watch the spectacle below from the safety of their treetop sanctuaries.

The rest of Bernard's audience was composed of crows. Their beady black eyes glared down at him as he passed, waiting to see if the other bear would make the thief who had stolen his kill their next meal. One of them shifted its wings as Bernard's pursuer raked his claws down the back of his leg, only to caw in irritation when Bernard showed no signs of giving up.

Bernard's limbs ached, but he forced himself to keep going despite his pain. He was covered in scratches that spread searing pain throughout his entire body. His lungs strained as air wheezed in and out of his lips, adding their complaints to the ever-growing list in the back of his mind. Even after the other bear's breathless curses faded into the distance, Bernard refused to risk a glance over his shoulder.

Gasping for breath, Bernard came to an abrupt halt after his legs threatened to collapse under him. He gave in to his trembling legs, flopped onto the ground, and closed his eyes. His sides heaved as he gasped for breath.

Bernard let out a sigh of relief. Since nothing was exploding out of the underbrush to pummel him into a bloody pulp, he should be safe.

Forcing himself to roll over into a more suitable position, Bernard looked himself over. Almost all of his injuries were on his hindquarters and back since he had managed to run away before the other bear had done too much to his front. Most of his wounds were minor; however, his shoulders had some nasty gashes, and his paw pads were raw and bleeding.

Bernard gently licked his paw pads before grooming himself. He focused on getting all of the dirt out of his injuries in the hopes of avoiding getting them infected.

Wincing as dozens of scrapes and puncture wounds sent pain radiating through his body, Bernard hauled himself onto his paws. He plodded onward despite his injuries. No matter how much he wanted to curl up into a ball and sleep for a few hours, Bernard knew he had to find a safe spot where he wouldn't be bothered while he rested and allowed his injuries to start healing. Judging from the water that splashed into his face a few minutes later, he also needed to watch where he was going.

Bernard jumped slightly at the shock of the chilly water. He shook his paw, sending drops of water back to their source. He scowled briefly before looking back at his paw in surprise. Was this a hallucination meant to add insult to injury? Bernard bent down, letting his muzzle touch the surface of the pond below. That amazingly wonderful water was definitely real.

Bernard gulped down mouthful after mouthful of the liquid relief he had been desperately craving until he was ready to burst. Unable to contain his joy, Bernard dove into the water. He splashed around until his fur clung to his body, laughing as tiny fish tickled his belly fur. The water soothed his injuries, reducing his pain to a dull throbbing. The reopening of a handful of his scratches was well worth the relief that the soaking brought to his body.

Grinning widely, Bernard waded back out of the pond. He was too exhausted to wait for the sun to set before going to sleep.

This was far from an ideal home for him. The small pond didn't have any fish large enough to be worth trying to catch, and there weren't any other obvious sources of food nearby. Bernard would need to move on as soon as the worst of his wounds were healed. Nonetheless, his escape today had been an impressive feat. For the time being, Bernard was content.