Grateful that he was letting me do this, I lowered my nose to his ribs and began carefully licking off the fresh blood and cleaning up the mess of his injuries. Ashe was stiff as I worked, but I didn't know if it was from the pain or because he didn't quite trust me yet.
Ashe shivered as my tongue moved over his skin. He let out a soft sound beneath his breath that almost sounded like a sigh of pleasure.
At once, it struck me how intimate this position was. That curious sensation from earlier flared up in my chest, turning my whole body warm.
Two urges battled inside me: one to keep going, and the other to stop immediately.
His wounds were clean enough. I drew back with a grunt to indicate I was finished.
Ashe examined himself. "Huh. I'm not bloody anymore." He cleared his throat as if there was something stuck in it. "Thanks, Mr. Bear."
Mister? Hell no, that kind of formality wasn't going to fly. I shook my head.
"You don't like being called Mr. Bear?" Ashe asked.
I confirmed my previous answer.
"Which part of it don't you like? Mister?"
I nodded.
Ashe pieced together this new information. "So just Bear?"
I chuffed contentedly.
A slow smile spread over Ashe's face. "Okay, Bear. Not the most original name in the world, is it?"
Ouch. That was a sore spot. I let out a low rumbling sound to communicate my discontent.
Ashe winced, almost as if he was still afraid of me. That hurt my feelings more than his words did.
"All right. No more comments like that either," Ashe said.
I met his eyes. They were curious and warm. Despite the flicker of lingering anxiety, Ashe had calmed down, which I was happy about. It was nice to have company for once in my life.
But my job wasn't done yet. Now that the wound was clean, I needed to apply a poultice to help the injuries heal. I picked up the pile of herbs between my teeth and crushed them into a paste, then spat them out on a large leaf. This was the tricky part. Even though bear paws were vaguely human shaped, they weren't dexterous enough to perform actions this intricate. Besides, I didn't want to accidentally jab Ashe with my claws.
That meant I had to shift into human form. It wasn't something I did often. Life was simpler as a bear. Being human opened up too many avenues of feeling self-conscious. At least as a bear, nobody expected me to talk. But when you were human, every sentient creature assumed you were dumb or incompetent if you couldn't speak.
I sighed. No point in delaying the inevitable. Even if Ashe thought I was a freak, I wanted to heal him. I was grateful for his company, if only for just one afternoon.
Though in the depths of my heart, I knew I wanted him to stay.
I pushed those feelings away. I knew better than to wish for something that wasn't going to happen. I'd never find a friend or a mate without being able to speak, and to do that, I needed to find a spirit.
Once I'm done with Ashe, I can do that,I thought.But right now, he needs me.
Ignoring my own doubts, I shifted. The powerful, large body of my bear folded itself away, sinking back into my soul as it was replaced by the disused shape of my human form.
I groaned. When was the last time I looked like this? I felt weak and powerless, but when I looked down at Ashe, I noticed that he was still much smaller than me.
He stared up at me with wide, unblinking eyes.
"Bear?" he asked quietly. "Is that you?"
5
Ashe
