(The first section of this chapter is the same as the end of the previous chapter)
I'm cuddled up between warm bodies, my arms hugging two of them. Without even looking, I know that all four bears are with me. My awareness has increased dramatically over the past few days; I can even hear their heartbeats now. And I'm pretty sure that even without hearing them, I'd be able to sense them. Through our bond, I can feel their emotions. It's all contentment and sleepiness, just the way I'm feeling right now.
We're still on the living room floor which we got to know very well last night. The bed isn't big enough for all five of us, sadly. I explored all their bodies and they mine. We became one, the lines blurred between our minds for just a moment, but the echo of it is still vivid in my memory. I want to feel that again, even if I have to chain them all to my bed. That actually sounds like a pretty good idea.
I concur Alis adds with a laugh. Keep them close, they're worth the effort and heartache.
I smile at that, remembering how the last bit of anger at Torben dissolved when he moved in me. Several times. I almost wish I'd feel a little sore after all our activity, but my shifter healing must have kicked in. So did my stamina. I lost count at how often I took them inside me. We had fun, that's for sure.
I stretch and hug the closest bear, enjoying the feel of my naked warm skin against his. I sniff. Húnn. He blinks open one eye and smiles when he sees me looking at him.
"Good morning, little one."
"Good morning," I whisper back. "I have a feeling something exciting is going to happen today."
He chuckles. "More exciting than yesterday?"
I nod. "I've got a tingling all over. Call it a premonition. Maybe it's nothing, but I feel like something is going to change."
Now he frowns. "Good or bad change?"
I shrug. "I'm not a soothsayer."
What you're feeling is because of me. My connection to the Fates is trembling. They're up to something. Húnn is asking a valid question. With the Fates, you never know if it's going to be good or bad.
The Fates? What are they?
Seriously? Where has all the knowledge gone? They weave the thread of life and control all our destinies. Their strings aren't rigid as people think, they give us leeway to make our own decisions, but that also means that sometimes, a thread gets so loose that it forms a knot. There are even tales of people ripping their own thread out of the fabric, taking their destiny into their own hands, but that may just be a story to make people think that they have a choice. The Fates sent me here to deal with one of the knots. I believe it's why the bear shifters have been disappearing. They made a mistake and now we have to deal with it.
So what I'm feeling now, this tingling... it means they're changing a thread?
Yes, or preparing to add a new one. The Fates like to amuse themselves from time to time. It must be boring to watch us all live our lives happily - so they add a bit of chaos once in a while. They're not malicious, just bored.
So the bear shifters are disappearing because some random women are bored?!
Don't insult the Fates, you never know if they're listening... but yes. Pretty much.
"Talking to your bear?" Húnn asks, pulling a loose strand of hair out of my face. His hand stays on my cheek, his thumb drawing small circles on my skin. I smile at this gentle gesture. I need to spend more time with Húnn. More time with all of them, alone. Usually, they're all together, but to get to know them properly, we need some one-on-one time. Maybe I should come up with a schedule. A bear a day...
"Yes, she's telling me about the Fates."
"Oh." He's quiet for a moment. "I didn't think that old belief was still around. I've only come across it in books, but my bear says he knows more about them than what I've read. I wonder why he hasn't spoken of them before."
"Ask him?"
"He's a little annoyed at me right now," Húnn mumbles. "I shut him out last night and now he's jealous."
I laugh. "Luckily Alis disappeared without me having to force her to."
You wouldn't be able to force me.
A knock against the door makes me sit up. A chorus of yawns signal that the other bears have awoken. I smile at their slightly grumpy faces. Winter is almost over, but they're still in hibernation mode.
"The trading ship has arrived!" Arnold shouts from the hallway. "We're about to head to the beach, are you coming with us?"
I wouldn't miss this for the world. Ever since the Drowning and moving to Salvation Island, the only new people I've met have been men from other islands coming to join ours, and the six men in this house. Excitement grips me and I jump up, not caring that my bears are seeing me naked. They all know my body inside out by now. No reason to be embarrassed.
"We're coming, just give us a moment to get dressed!" I shout, already rummaging through the pile of clothes that we discarded on the sofa.
"Do you have to get dressed?" Torben complains, staring at me hungrily.
I give him a stern glance. "Get up, I want to see this ship. Or stay if you want, but I'm going."
With groans of protest, they all get dressed eventually. Instead of running as bears, we're walking to the beach where Bertrand spotted the ship. These people are humans and we don't want them to know that we're shifters.
Strange, how I'm already seeing them as different. I was a human a few days ago, but now I'm a new Isla. And I somehow acquired a bear spirit in the process.
Not a spirit, Alis protests but I ignore her. I'm too excited by the large ship that's anchored in the distance. It's massive, bigger even than the cruise liners I remember seeing as a child before the Drowning. There must be thousands of people living onboard.
"What are you going to trade with them?"
Arnold smiles sheepishly and points at his large backpack. "Batteries. There used to be a factory nearby and we managed to acquire a large stockpile when it closed. It's been our trading currency for years. We used to trade with antibiotics, but we're now keeping the rest of them for emergencies. I think we've got enough batteries for another few years, and then we'll have to find something else."
"Where did you get antibiotics from?" I ask in wonder. They'd been one of our most valuable possessions back on Salvation Island and we ran out years ago. Instead, we'd had to turn to herbal medicine, which was rarely as effective, if it had any effect at all.
"We used to work in a lab together," Arnold explains. "When it became clear that the world was going to change, we... ehm... took some of them."
"Good for you." He smiles in relief that I'm not judging them for stealing. It was chaos back then and I'm sure the drugs would never have reached the pharmacies anyway.
We watch as a small boat is let into the water and is rowed towards the beach where we're waiting. It's not very big, but there's at least six people on it. One of them is a woman with fiery red hair waving in the wind like a flag. I once knew someone with hair like that and the memory stifles my mood a little. Julie, my best friend who was one of the few who fled the island. If she actually managed to leave and didn't drown in the sea. I wonder what happened to her... I try to tell myself that she's living happily on some island with friends and maybe a partner, even children. But in today's world, that's unlikely.
Finally, the boat is almost here and two of the men jump out to pull it further up onto the beach.
"Good to see ya," one of them calls and waves at Bertrand and Arnold. "See you've got new people on Inchbrach?"
"Yes, relatives from the South!" Arnold calls back and I wonder why he's calling us his relatives. Is it because we're bear shifters like him or because he doesn't want the traders to know that we're just random strangers they took in?
The two men approach while the others climb out of the boat and wade the last remaining steps to the beach. Four men and two women, including the girl with the flaming hair. Now that she's coming closer, it's evident that she's a lot younger than I first thought. Maybe fifteen, sixteen? But something is off about her. She looks young but also… not. Her eyes are old like they've seen more than any fifteen-year-old ever should. She sniffs the air and looks straight at me. Weird.
She's not what she seems, Alis warns me, but I don't need her to tell me that.
"What do you have for us today, Ben?" Bertrand asks the man who first greeted us. He's large and it's not just muscle, it's a lot of belly fat as well. I haven't seen someone overweight in a long time. Not since the Drowning. Resources are scarce everywhere and there's not enough to eat in most places.
I eye the other men and women. They all look like they've been well fed. So different from the people on Salvation Island where the seamstress was constantly busy tightening clothes.
"The usual," Ben responds and signals the guys behind him to collect supplies from their boat. While they start heaving boxes and metal chests onto the beach, Ben takes out a list and reads it out loud.
It's mainly tinned food, dried goods like sugar and flour, some spices and tea. Arnold's eyes light up when Ben mentions jasmine tea while Bertie mumbles something about not getting Earl Grey. Those two are so cute.
"And we found some books on an abandoned island a little further West."
That makes both of them perk up. Ben points to one of the chests his mates have carried onto the beach.
"Take a look. They'll cost extra, of course, but I'm sure we'll come to an agreement."
Both of our hosts immediately head to the box and rummage through the books inside. I'm tempted to go and look as well, but I wouldn't have anything to trade with. We're relying on our hosts' generosity too much already. At least we've been able to supply them with some fresh meat. Alis is an excellent hunter and so are my guys. They've also started helping out with doing some repairs to the house that Bertrand and Arnold had put off. I've put some of the skills my father made me learn to good use and sewed some of their clothes. Back when he forced me to learn the 'things any woman should know' like sewing, cooking and knitting, I hated it. I still hate doing it, but at least it helps giving something back to the bears.
"So what brings ya to this island?" Ben asks.
"We wanted to check if our uncles were alright," Torben says immediately. He's already put together a story for us. Trust him to think of everything. "We'd not heard from them in a long time so we decided to take a trip up North and persuade them to come with us. No luck so far."
Ben laughs heartily. "I don't think ya'll ever get them off this island. We've been trying for years to have them join us on the ship but they keep refusing."
Torben plays along. "Yes, they've always been stubborn. But at least we now know that they're alright."
"Anyway, do ya want to trade as well?"
Torben shrugs. "We don't have anything with us that would be of interest to you. But thanks for the offer."
I'm beginning to find it strange that Ben is the only one of his crew to talk. The other three men are standing behind him, disinterested in what is being said. The woman is the same, examining her fingernails. The only one looking at us with obvious curiosity is the girl.
She meets my eyes and smiles. A shiver runs over my back. What is wrong with me? This is a young girl trying to be friendly and I feel… scared?
Listen to your instincts. She's trouble.
How can she be trouble? They're going to leave soon and then she'll be gone.
I don't know but she feels familiar. I don't like it.
Bertrand and Arnold join our little group, arms laden with books.
Ben smiles, his expression turning greedy.
"That's a lot of books. Tell you what, take the whole box in exchange for 200 of the small batteries."
"Done," Arnold agrees without even trying to haggle. I look at him curiously. He didn't strike me as someone who'd trade without driving a hard bargain. He puts his books back into the box which I guess is now his, except for one small book which he slips into his coat pocket with a smile.
He pats his pocket with a smile. "Reading for later," he explains to Ben but gives Bertie a meaningful look. This book must be special.