Page 15 of Cuddles for the Bear
“When would I have had the chance to ask him anything? He hadn’t slept in three days when we got to him. He spent three damn days scrubbing the apartment with a toothbrush. Excuse me for thinking his welfare was more important than anything else. If Wren’s never shifted, and Michael confirmed that was true, then he’s not going to know what he is either. Why does it matter? We accepted you in our band of merry men, and you barely shift at all. Do you see any of us complaining about it, or mocking you because of it?”
“I’d shift more often, but my damn demon only ever wants to come out when there’s food around,” Python grumbled. “That just makes me feel I’m missing out.”
“I love you, no matter what form you’re in,” Cyrus soothed. “And Devon, I’m sorry. I guess the question about what Wren is stems more from professional curiosity than any concern. I checked in with the others. None of them – Levi, Calvin, Storm, Pax, or Flint - could recognize Wren’s scent signature.”
“If he’s a prey shifter then that would make sense.” Devon kept his finger on the pulse of Wren’s neck. “Most of the assholes we go after are predatory shifters or other paranormal types. Besides, Python, I thought your demon knew all paranormal types and could recognize them easily.”
“Believe me, my demon’s pissed because he can’t tell either. Your Wren has ruined his perfect identification record.” Python sniffed. “It’s possible that the little one is a water-based shifter.” He glanced at Cyrus. “Maybe Wren hasn’t shifted yet because he hasn’t had the opportunity.”
“That could be problematic if it’s true.” Devon looked down at his mate. Wren looked as though he was sleeping, and his pulse was a lot slower than before. “It’s not like I can even get a bath installed and hope he gets the hint and shifts that way. Withoutknowing if he’s a freshwater or saltwater shifter – if he’s water based at all – I could do him real harm.”
“Yeah, especially if he turns out to be a killer whale shifter or something similar.” Cyrus chuckled. “I’m not sure a bath would cut it in that situation.” He patted Python’s knee. “Come on, mate. I think we need to leave Devon and Wren alone for a bit. We’ll go and visit your cars in the workshop. That always puts you in a better mood.”
“Buying a new car would put me in a better mood,” Python grumbled as he stood up. “You know I care about you, Devon, as much as a cold-hearted demon is capable of caring. Believe me, I only had the best of intentions.”
Letting out a long huff, Devon nodded. “I know, but I still think Cyrus should report you for sensitivity training or some such shit. I’m sure the agency does that sort of thing. Not everyone appreciates being slapped around the head with the truth, especially when they’re already struggling to come to terms with not dying in the last twenty-four hours.”
“I love that idea. Sensitivity training for assassins.” Cyrus burst out laughing. “I’ll be sure to mention it next time the agency gets in touch with me.”
“Nobody appreciates me.” Python flounced across the kitchen and wrenched the door open. “I’ll be with my cars.” He stalked off.
“We’ll be around.” Cyrus made to leave as well. “We’re here for you and Wren – all of us. I hope you know that.”
“I do.” Devon sighed again. “I just… This is hard enough on my bear as it is. Seeing him on that ledge last night…” He blew out a long breath. “My focus has to be on Wren. I’m not going to apologize for being protective.”
“Your mate is stronger than he looks,” Cyrus said softly. “He survived Michael, and he survived that ledge. Don’t forget that, my friend.”
Devon nodded, waiting until Cyrus had left, closing the door behind him, before standing up and taking Wren back into his bedroom.
Let’s try this again,he thought as he placed Wren on the mattress, checking his pulse and under his eyelid again. Everything seemed normal, and Devon assumed Wren had gone from a faint into sleep again.He definitely needs it.He retrieved all the cushions, arranging them around his mate, so Wren would be warm and comfortable. Climbing on the mattress, Devon positioned his bulk between Wren and the door, resting his hand on his mate’s waist as he settled in to watch him sleep.
/~/~/~/~/
It was about an hour later when Devon saw Wren’s eyelids start to flutter and his limbs twitch. He quickly sat up, resting his back against the headboard. He figured lying next to a man, watching him sleep, could be perceived as creepy, even with the cushion mountain between them. The last thing Devon wanted was for Wren to feel unsafe, especially after the news that he’d been given so unceremoniously by that prick Python.
“Hey,” he said softly, as Wren opened his eyes and glanced around. Devon quickly noted Wren had frozen, not moving, just watching, like a startled animal. “Are you feeling okay?”
“Bear.” There was a flurry of movement as Wren scrambled up into a sitting position, grabbing one of the cushions and holding it close to his chest. “Can I even call you that now? Didn’t your friend say your name was Devon?”
Devon nodded. “It is. Bear was just my handle online, just like yours was BlueKnight64. I like it when you call me Bear, though. So you can use either, I don’t mind.”
“But you are a bear.”
Nodding again, Devon said, “I was born that way. I’m a bear shifter. What that means is that inside of me, I have two spirits. One is human, and one is an animal spirit. My animal spirit is a bear.” He really wasn’t sure how he could explain shifter existence. It’s not like he’d had to do it before. “The bear is me, and I’m the bear. For example, even in bear form, I would know who you were, and you’d always be safe around me. It’s just the way a shifter is. In a lot of ways I’m no different than you.”
To his surprise, Wren burst out laughing. “Excuse me, not much different?” He flapped a hand in Devon’s direction. “You’re twice as tall and three times as wide. That’s different enough for a start, even without the bear inside of you.”
“Okay, point taken.” Devon smiled. Wren didn’t seem as upset about the news as he had before. “I might be a bit bigger. I’m definitely older. But that’s another thing about shifters. We live for an extremely long time, so we don’t age as quickly as non-paranormal people do. I am really, really sorry that Python blurted all that stuff about our shifter status the way he did, though. That was really uncalled for.”
“Is he really a demon?”
“He really is, but they are just like everyone else. Wren, what you have to understand is this is why my friends were concerned. All of us here, including the men you met last night, are all shifters of some kind. Well, aside from Python. Oh, and Pax as well. Pax doesn’t shift into an animal, but you should see him when his wings are out. He can fly. He’s a pixie, which is one of the reasons he really loves donuts.”
“A real pixie, like in the story books?” Wren’s eyes looked like they were going to fall out of his head. “Magic, wings, and flying, too?”
“Just like that. Then there’s Flint. He’s a…” Devon hesitated, not sure how Wren might take the news. “Flint can turn into a snake, much like Michael did. But believe me, he is a far nicer person than Michael ever was.”
“Flint loaned me these clothes.” Wren plucked at the sweatshirt he was still wearing. “He didn’t even know me, only that I was a person you’d met online, but he found me clothes and gave them to me anyway. I’m not going to think he’s anything like Michael. It’s not like just because one snake is bad that they all are, isn’t that right?”
