Worlds Apart - 18. Empty House, Full House

Shivay sat in his car early Monday morning just down the street from Siku’s house. He was in a spot where he was sure the bear couldn’t see him, and when he left his driveway would be headed in the opposite direction to get to work at Fisherman’s Wharf.

His mother had warned him not to speak or interact with the bear when he returned to claim his computer and clothing, simply wait for him to leave, collect his things, and go. He would head straight to work from here.

He would have to explain to his manager John that after the trial week, things didn’t work out, and so he was back home again and would need to resume working in the office, despite his productivity the week before. There simply wasn’t room for a distraction-free office with nine other people under the same roof.

He saw Siku’s truck backing out of the driveway and instinctively ducked his head, hoping that the bear wouldn’t notice his car parked farther down his street. Once the truck had departed the house and disappeared after turning the corner at the end of the block, Shivay took a deep breath and sat upright again, starting his car, and pulling slowly down the street and into Siku’s driveway.

He crept to the main door, hoping that none of the neighbors were watching, and used his key to let himself inside.

Sitting in the middle of the foyer, looking at the weretiger with a serious expression was Charlie the cat. Siku had left her behind today to greet Shivay when he returned for his things, and to deliver an important message.

Shivay stood looking at the cat with his hand still on the knob of the door, and two pairs of green eyes locked onto each other, sharing a mixture of pain, sorrow, and hope.

“Charlie,” Shivay said finally, breaking eye contact with the cat and shutting the door behind him, “I’m sorry that I can’t stay for a longer visit. I’m just here to get my things and leave.”

“Meow,” Charlie replied and trotted over to the tiger to rub against and around his legs in a weaving pattern.

Shivay looked down at the cat and saw that there was an envelope with his name on it in Siku’s handwriting tied around her neck with a red ribbon.

“Charlie, if you’re here to deliver that note from Siku, you can save us both some time. I’m not interested in anything that bear has to say about the ordeal he put me through on Saturday night.”

“Meow!” Charlie replied, leaping to his shoulder so the note was practically hanging in front of his face.

“No, Charlie,” Shivay said sadly and gave the cat a gentle shove, knocking her from her perch on his shoulder back to the floor. He stepped around the indignant animal and strode across the foyer to the room that had been his home office. He sat down at the desk and began packing his laptop and supplies into his work satchel. As he worked on winding the cord for the laptop’s power supply, Charlie jumped up onto the desk in front of him and stared him in the eyes once again. She said nothing but scratched at her neck until the ribbon bearing the envelope was pulled over her head and the note from Siku was laying on the desk. She batted at the envelope with her paw a couple of times, tapping it across the surface of the desk in Shivay’s direction. She looked up and into the tiger’s eyes one last time before turning to leap from the desk, run through the foyer and up the stairs.

Shivay sighed and sat looking at the cream-colored envelope bearing his name. He picked it up and opened it, finding a handwritten note in Siku’s clean, precise cursive.

He read:

Shivay, my love,

Mere words cannot express my sorrow for the events of Saturday night. I traveled half-way across this continent to find my Mate, and when I found him, it was my own naiveite which caused him irreparable harm.

I assumed when I came to this city and encountered other bears of my kind, that they would have the same noble characters as my brothers I left behind in our enclave in Canada. I never expected a group of werebears, created by Odin as protectors of others, to brutally assault the one most special to me, or even worse, to pay for the opportunity to do so.

I knew that Colt was flawed and imperfect, but I attributed this to his nature as a Kodiak bear. One of my best friends is also a Kodiak, and while he can often be abrasive, he still knows his duty and obligations to defend and protect all creatures under his care. I never suspected that Colt’s nature was so corrupted that he has lost the way of the bear, nor did I suspect that the other bears in this city were so deeply under his influence that they shared his corruption.

My failure to verify the intentions of these bears before allowing you to be alone with them was entirely my fault, as was pressuring you into a social interaction for which neither of us were prepared. I accept the blame and understand that this means that the Mate I have traveled so far to find may now be lost to me forever.

I want you to know that the heinous deeds committed by Colt and his accomplices will not go unpunished. Even as I write this, a contingent of good and noble bears from Wisconsin, including a member of the Lycan Council, are on their way to apprehend Colt and set things right in San Francisco. The bears who assaulted you will most likely face sentencing within a Lycan Council prison, and the other bears who have been living under Colt’s corrupt influence will be rehabilitated and provided with new means of supporting themselves in a manner that does not violate the noble nature for which the bears were created.

I have left Charlie to greet you today, as I knew that you would be coming to collect the things necessary for your work. Since you are reading this note, I hope that it is the first small step along the path to forgiveness. I cannot promise that I will not attempt to contact you again later this week, but I will try to give you the time and space that you require to heal.

My home will be filled with the good bears from Wisconsin for the next several days. While I desperately wish that you could meet my actual friends to see and understand that all bears are not as evil and corrupt as Colt, I do understand if you would not wish to take part in any large gatherings of werebears any time soon.

I will leave you with this final thought. At the beginning of the week last week, after we had made love, you told me that you loved me. Before I could respond you instructed me to wait until the end of the week to think things over seriously and give you my answer then. Due to the circumstances on Saturday, you were forced to leave before I could give you my response. That answer is, I love you Shivay. I love you as my friend, lover, and Mate. I love you more than my own immortal life, and if I could change the past, I would have gladly sacrificed myself before ever allowing you to come to any harm.

If you can find room in your heart to love me once again, you know how to reach me, and I remain hopeful that we can be reunited again very soon.

Your love and Mate,

Siku

Shivay sat at the desk, with tears dripping down his face. There was nothing more he wanted at this moment than to feel Siku’s strong arms wrapped around him once again, to feel the heat and weight of his bear body as he made love to him. But he had made a deal with his mother that he would make a choice at the end of a week, and that choice had already been made. His bride was to attend Thanksgiving dinner with his family on Thursday, and they were to be married just two weeks later. There was no turning back from his mother’s destiny for him now. Perhaps if he had turned to Siku for help when he came to rescue him from his attackers in the basement instead of lashing out at him so harshly and running back home to his mother, the love of his life wouldn’t have slipped through his paws now.

He folded the note and slid it carefully back into the envelope, placing it into a pocket of his work satchel. He would keep this note and treasure it, as a remembrance of the bear he loved and who loved him in return.

****

Siku pulled his truck back into the garage with a sigh. The Captain was not pleased that the Ship’s Cat was not on duty today, and Siku had to make an excuse that she was dealing with a nasty hairball that prevented her from performing her tasks, but that she would be back on the job the next day.

The crew noted a difference in their Papa Bear’s spirits all day on the boat, especially at lunchtime when instead of the hearty burgers, sandwiches, or Indian food leftovers he usually brought with him in his grocery store tote bag, he instead had four bags of potato chips and six bottles of beer which he ate and drank methodically during their break, speaking to none of his crewmates.

Fishing was poor that day, which the Captain attributed to the lack of their lucky mascot, and shot Siku a glare when the boat pulled back to the dock for the day. After unloading their catch and securing the boat for the night, Siku plodded sadly back to his truck, feeling worn down by the day’s work for the first time since beginning his fishing career.

Before he could start the engine there was a tap on the window and he looked to his left to see the Captain standing beside his truck. He rolled down the window so that they could speak.

“Papa Bear,” the Captain said, “I know that your mood today is more than just a sick cat with a hairball. Are you having troubles at home?”

“Big time, Captain,” Siku replied, choosing his pronouns carefully before continuing. “I started seeing someone, and we’d been moving fast. They moved in with me last week, on the same day that I started working here, and it was the happiest week of my life.

“But I fucked everything up on Saturday night and they ran back home to their parents’ house in San Jose. This was my one true love and now I’m afraid that I’ve lost them forever.”

“Siku,” the Captain replied, reaching in and placing his hand on the big man’s shoulder, “If this boyfriend really is your one true love, he’ll come back to you. If he doesn’t then it just wasn’t fated to be.”

Siku looked at his Captain forlornly. He hadn’t told either the Captain or the crew that he was gay, but the Captain somehow knew anyway.

“I appreciate the thoughts, sir,” Siku said, “Does the rest of the crew know…”

“That you’re gay? Probably not, but you don’t spend your whole life in San Francisco like me around a bunch of sailors and fishermen without seeing the signs. I think things are going to work out just fine for you, son, so I want you to pull it together and be the Papa Bear we all love again.”

Siku nodded and turned back to the dashboard of his truck.

“And don’t come back without our lucky cat!” the Captain added before Siku could pull away. “There’s only two more fishing days this week before the long 4-day Thanksgiving weekend holiday, and we need all hands on deck! I only wish we had five more men just like you on the boat for the next two days.”

Siku smiled and nodded before rolling his window back up and leaving the Wharf for home. Now as he sat in his truck in the garage, he dreaded going inside. Did Shivay come to collect his things this morning as Gunnar predicted, and if he did, did he take the time to read the note he had written, and Charlie delivered?

He took a deep breath and exited his truck, entering the house through the garage door into the hallway leading to the kitchen and butler’s quarters which was most recently Shivay’s home office.

Charlie heard the door opening and an orange streak raced through the house, coming to a stop atop Siku’s shoulder.

“Hey there Charlie girl,” Siku said, scratching the cat between the ears, making her purr. “I see that the envelope I left around your neck this morning is gone. Should I take that as a good sign?”

“Meow!” Charlie replied, and Siku walked into Shivay’s office.

His computer and work satchel were gone, as expected, and he found the ribbon that had been tied around Charlie’s neck discarded on the desk. The envelope containing his note was gone.

Siku checked the wastebasket and fireplace, and not finding the note crumpled into a ball in either spot, he took this as a good sign that Shivay had not only read it but kept it when he departed this morning.

“Good job, Charlie,” Siku said, rubbing the orange cat under her chin. “If anyone could have convinced that tiger to read my apology letter it was you. I’m glad I listened to Gunnar’s advice.”

“Meow, meow!” Charlie replied again proudly, before her ears twitched at a new sound outside. She sprang from Siku’s shoulder and ran through the foyer a second before a loud banging on the main door began.

“Please let that be the cavalry,” Siku said walking briskly to answer it. “I don’t think I can handle any more surprises.”

He opened the door and was immediately caught up in a double bear hug, with Barry on his right and Dom on his left, squeezing his ribs so forcefully he couldn’t help but let out a laugh as the air was forced from his lungs.

“Laddie!” Dom cried, loosening his grip just a bit. “It feels like it’s been ages!”

“It has just been a little over three weeks, Dom!” Siku replied with a big grin on his face for the first time in two days, “You can’t possibly have missed me that much yet!”

“It hasn’t been the same around Sturgeon Bay without you,” Barry said from his other side. “We really grew to like having you around!”

“I don’t suppose you’ve mended things with your sexy tiger boyfriend just yet, eh laddie?” Dom asked tentatively.

“No,” Siku replied, “But I left for work this morning knowing that he’d be back to get this things, and I left Charlie here to give him a note that I wrote for him last night.”

“Charlie…” Barry commented. “Is that the…”

But before he could even finish his sentence, a sleek orange ball of fur streaked up his side on nimble claws and perched atop his shoulder, sniffing him closely and scrutinizing him with her piercing green eyes.”

“The cat,” Siku finished for him, “Yes. Apparently, I’m her person. Her soulmate.”

“Soulmate you say!” Dom said with a chuckle as Charlie pounced from Barry’s shoulder to his own and she proceeded to give him the same scrutiny. “First a tiger boyfriend and now an orange tabby soulmate! If I didn’t know better, I’d swear you have a ‘type’ Siku!”

“He does seem to be leaving a trail of love-struck felines in his wake,” a voice called from the doorway. It was Gunnar, carrying a load of bags, followed by Mike, who was equally loaded down.

“Gunnar!” Siku shouted and strode over to pick the big bear up in a hug, bags and all.

Charlie saw her person hugging a third stranger, and immediately bounded over Siku’s shoulders and head to land on Gunnar’s shoulder, smelling him and staring intently with wide eyes.

Siku let Gunnar back down onto the floor and turned to hug Mike as Gunnar turned his attention to the cat upon his shoulder.

“You must be Charlie,” Gunnar said to the cat. “I’ve heard so much about you. It’s nice to finally meet you.”

“Meow,” Charlie replied, and for a brief moment, her eyes flashed green, startling Gunnar, although he didn’t jump or move in any way that would jostle the cat. He reached up and gave her a scritch under her chin and she closed her eyes in contentment and began to purr.

“Siku,” Gunnar said as the polar bear began to greet the rest of the Sturgeon Bay werebear contingent who were pouring in through the door, “This cat is… special.”

“Well, she’s certainly unique, I’ll give you that,” Siku replied as he hugged one bear after another and started gesturing for the crowd to move into the living room.

“No,” Gunnar countered, “I mean this is no ordinary cat. I have enough experience in the last few years dealing with people, kindred, and were-creatures who have been touched by Odin, and this cat…”

He paused. Charlie was staring into his eyes again as if she understood what he was saying now.

“Gunnar, are you saying that Odin sent this cat to find me?” Siku asked as the crowd shuffled through the foyer into the living room.

“No, not Odin,” Gunnar replied, and stroked the top of the orange head, “But close. Not Aesir… Vanir.

“Tell me little one, are you one of Frejya’s cats?” he asked Charlie directly.

Charlie did not answer, which Siku found unusual, since she almost always gave a ‘meow’ or two in response when spoken to directly. Instead, the cat booped her nose against Gunnar’s and leapt down to the floor, weaving her way in between the many bears’ legs as she walked into the living room to survey the men who had arrived in her home.

****

After consuming large quantities of food, prepared expertly by Gunnar and Mike, and equally large quantities of beer, and after the bears had thoroughly explored the house, basement, terraces, and the private cove, they settled together in the 3^rd floor den to plan a strategy for the upcoming week.

In all, there were 20 bears who had come to lend a paw to the situation, ten Papas and their ten Cubs. It was decided that Siku and Charlie should stick to their regular work schedule during the day on Tuesday and Wednesday while the visiting bears performed reconnaissance.

“We need to fan out across the city and look for Colt or any other bears who we can interrogate until they tell us where to find him,” Barry said before finishing his beer and fishing another out of the mini fridge built into the cabinetry on the wall underneath the giant TV.

“While I agree with the general plan,” Gunner replied, “Don’t you think it might be a little suspicious if 20 new bears were to suddenly appear on the scene? Colt may suspect that something is up and go on the run.”

“Colt has a one-track mind,” Siku said, “He’s either looking for his next fuck, his next paid client, or the next bear he can use and pimp out. When you go fishing, you have to use the right kind of bait for the fish you want to catch, and frankly, it’s your Cubs that will definitely get that dirty Kodiak’s attention.”

“Ten of us would definitely be less conspicuous then all twenty, especially if we’re trolling the city singly or in pairs,” Mike said, “Why don’t I take the other nine Cubs with me tomorrow morning? We’ll fan out across the Castro and Mission districts, hit all the coffee shops and lunch spots during the day when Colt may be out cruising for his next score, and then in the evening, if we haven’t spotted him yet, the Papas can join us when it’s time to hit the bars, clubs and gay hot-spots.”

“Good thinking Cub,” Gunnar replied.

“And what are the Papas supposed to do during the day when our Cubs are out wiggling their arses at any bear who crosses their path, boyo?” Dom asked, in an agitated and slightly inebriated state. “Are we supposed to sit here enjoying the view, chugging off and sooking each other’s knobs?”

“I agree,” Dom’s cub Ewan said, “Chugging off and sooking a big knob is how Papa spends an ordinary Saturday. He came here for some excitement!”

Dom’s face turned red with frustration, but the other bears roared with laughter, and he quickly relaxed and joined in laughing at his Cub’s joke at his own expense.

Siku suddenly remembered something that his Captain had said to him as they spoke in the parking lot after work.

“I know this is supposed to be your break, but would any of the Papas want to go fishing tomorrow and Wednesday?” he asked.

Five paws eagerly shot into the air. Dom and Barry even leapt to their feet.

“Aye, boyo,” Dom cried. “How are ye ginna manage that?”

“Well,” Siku replied, “When I was leaving work today, my Captain said that because it’s a short work week before the Thanksgiving long weekend, we need all hands on deck to try to catch a week’s worth of fish in just three days. He actually said that he wished that he had five more fishermen just like me to supplement the crew for the next two days.

“So,” Siku finished with a lopsided grin, “While the Cubs are tolling for Kodiak, we can be out on the open sea trolling for cod!”

“Whoo hoo!” Barry cheered and picked Siku up in a big hug again. “This adventure just got interesting!”

“Two rules,” Siku said sternly after the bear placed him back onto the floor again. “Number one, no changing into your bear on the boat in front of the rest of the crew. This is a human-only fishing trip, understood?”

“Aye laddie,” Dom replied, “And what’s the second rule?”

“Pack your own lunch to eat and bring it with you in the morning. No diving overboard to catch a snack!”

“Do we at least get to have some playtime on-deck after lunch?” Barry asked hopefully.

Siku sighed.

“Okay, three rules…”

The room full of bears erupted into raucous laughter and many beer bottles were clinked together in celebration.

“Now that the fishermen have a useful purpose during the day,” Gunnar interrupted as the levity began to die down once again, "The other four Papas and I will head down to San Jose for the day and do a little detective work. Remember that we have three main tasks to accomplish this week. Find Colt and his accomplices in Saturday night’s assault, make contact with all of the bears in this region who have been living under his influence and give them a new direction in life, and find Siku’s Mate Shivay so that true love can prevail. With the Cubs handling the detective work for the first two tasks, at least some of us should work on tracking down where Shivay’s family live to give Siku a fighting chance at getting him back. We’ll fan out in San Jose and see if we can infiltrate the weretiger community just enough to find where Siku’s tiger is hiding.”

“If the battle plan for tomorrow is decided,” Barry said, standing up again and raising his beer bottle, “I declare the meeting portion of this evening adjourned, and the playtime portion open! Some of us have to be at the Wharf at six in the morning, you know. If I’m going to fit in any fun time before bedtime, I’ll need to get started now!”

The bears cheered once again, and shirts and shorts were tossed around the den as playtime commenced. Siku smiled as his brothers and friends began getting naked and frisky, and quietly went downstairs to the master bedroom to be alone with his thoughts.

Charlie followed closely, as usual, and slipped through the bedroom doorway as he closed it behind him. The cat leapt to her soft chair by the window where she usually sat whenever Siku and Shivay were making love and sat looking at the bear.

“You might as well come on over to bed, Charlie,” Siku said a bit sadly. “I don’t think I’m feeling ready to join in any big playtime sessions again anytime soon.”

“Meow,” Charlie replied, but she settled herself into the soft upholstery of her chair and made no move to join Siku on the bed.

Just then, there was a soft knocking at the door. Siku sighed and walked over to open it and tell the party crew that he was going to sit out this night. Opening the door, however, he found Gunnar and Mike standing there looking at him nervously.

“Siku,” Gunnar said softly, “I know what you’ve been through in the last few days, and I understand if you don’t want to participate in a big group play session, but I wanted to see if you would at least mind if Mike and I joined you to keep you company in bed tonight? I think a little friendly companionship would do you a world of good.”

Siku grinned slightly, and stepped to the side, gesturing for the two bears to come in.

“It’s only fair,” he replied, “Technically, it is your master bedroom after all.”

“No, ice bear,” Mike countered, “As long as you’re living here, this is your home, not ours. We’re your guests.”

“Well then,” Siku said, shedding his clothing with a smile and climbing into the soft king-sized bed, “Be my guest and join me for the night!”

Gunnar and Mike each shed their clothing as well and they slid into the bed on either side of the big polar bear. They snuggled against his hard-muscled body and began rubbing his chest and belly while kissing his neck on either side. Siku wrapped his arms around the shoulders of the bear pair and turned his head from side to side, spending time to kiss each bear in turn.

Mike and Gunnar made sure that the foreplay was long and sensual to ease the pain of their sensitive friend and when Siku momentarily extracted himself from the pile to retrieve a bottle of lube from the nightstand, Gunnar lay on his back and pulled his cub on top of him so that they were laying face-to-face, kissing and rubbing their hard cocks together. Gunner reached down and grabbed Mike’s ass, pulling his round globes apart as he opened an eye to look at Siku in invitation.

Siku needed no verbal instruction as to what his companions wanted, and he slicked his mighty cock with the lube before positioning himself behind and over Mike’s back and eased himself into the cub’s tail hole.

“Oh Papa,” Mike moaned around Gunnar’s kisses as they ground their stiff members against each other, “He’s so big.”

“It’s all yours lucky Cub!” Gunnar whispered into his ear as Siku began to hump his rear in earnest. “Make our friend’s worries fade away, just for one night.”

Siku leaned forward, pressing his chest against Mike’s back and began to lick and nibble at his ear and the back of his neck as he increased his pace and the sweat dripped from his forehead onto the two bears below. After an eternity of blissful mating, Mike’s breathing began to increase and become ragged as he broke the kiss with his Papa and cried out.

“Papa, I’m going to come!”

“Do it, Cub,” Gunnar replied, “Come for Papa and Siku.”

Mike’s body tensed as he was struck with an intense orgasm, still grinding his hard cock against his Papa’s and spilling his semen onto their bellies. Siku was pushed over the edge by the muscular contractions within Mike’s tunnel and he too roared his release, bit forcefully into the cub’s shoulder, and emptied his pent-up load inside of his furry ass.

After pulling out, Siku and Mike laid on either side of Gunnar, licking his sticky cock and balls with both of their tongues in tandem until the grizzly roared with his own release, shooting his load onto his belly, chest, and the faces of his cub and friend.

Siku retrieved towels from the bathroom so that they could clean themselves up a bit, and then all three bears settled into bed for some sleep with Siku sandwiched in between the pair; Mike’s back resting comfortably against his chest and Gunnar’s chest pressed against his own back.

Charlie the cat had watched the whole scene with approval, of course, and once she was sure that the three bears were fast asleep, leapt from her comfy chair and curled up against Mike’s chest, completing the collection of friends and lovers in the bed sleeping soundly and peacefully for the night.