Chapter Three: Limits Crossed
"Please?"
"No,"
"Please?"
"No!"
"PLEASE?"
"N.O. NO!"
Buddi sighed deeply and slumped down in a patch of clovers. Ursa looked at him,
"Don't give me that look, Buddi Barbic." She threatened. "My answer stands."
"But, she's my girlfriend!"
Ursa's glare would kill the undead.
"Stay. Away. From. Her."
Buddi sighed, "But Ursa…"
"Don't you argue!"
Buddi said nothing more but raised his palms in defeat. Ursa walked off. Buddi picked up a rock and threw it at a tree. But it missed the trunk and sailed past. A figure stepped from the branches and was tossing the stone up and down.
"Lose something?"
Buddi blushed, got up and walked over,
"Sorry Grubbi."
"No problem. I'm used to being slugged with rocks. I helped raise Ursa."
Buddi didn't laugh. Grubbi gestured the cub over.
"Come with me Buddi; I wanna talk to you."
The cub, sensing Grubbi may well have become his sole ally, followed.
The eldest Barbic led him to a creek, nearly out of the woods, before the creek turned into the river. Buddi sat down and rubbed his feet. Grubbi chuckled and sat down by the cub.
"You've got it bad Buddi."
"You gonna yell at me too?"
Grubbi shook his head, "No, I'm not. It isn't your fault."
Buddi stared at him. Grubbi smiled,
"Try to understand Buddi. Ursa's forgotten what it's like to be a cub. She had Gritty as a friend from the day she was born."
"Grubbi?"
"Hmm?"
The cub leaned against the adult, "Tell me about that, huh? I know Ursa won't because she doesn't remember and Gritty probably doesn't either, does he?"
"Probably not, he was just three years old."
"Can ya tell me?"
Grubbi smiled,
Flashback: 33 Years Ago
"Not going!"
Yalo Barbic ground his teeth and tugged his three-year-old son along.
"You know for a fact you have to come, gritty!"
The small black cub pouted. He looked a lot like his father although his fur was a tad bit darker and he had the stubbornness of his mother, who had died in childbirth. She had been in a battle prior, although not by her own will, and lost so much blood that they nearly hadn't gotten the boy out in time.
"Gritty Barbic! Enough! The girl is the daughter of my best friend, and you have to see her!"
Gritty pouted, crossed his arms and sat down, refusing to move. Yalo grabbed the boy by the scuff of his neck, forcing him up. The boy began to yelp, protest in pain. Yalo ignored the boy's protests and only released him when they reached the hut. He hissed,
"You…behave!"
Gritty nodded and his father released him. The two entered.
Warrio greeted his friend,
"Yalo."
The two males greeted one another with grasped hands on each other's elbows, the Barbic gesture of friendship. Yalo led his son over to Una's bedside. The Barbic female looked up, a rare expression of weakness on her face.
"Well, how are you, Una?"
"I'll survive Yalo," the female replied. "But this little one put up a fight, she did. I didn't think she was ever gonna come out."
"She's got your fighting spirit."
Gritty growled. Yalo lifted him up so he could see. He was stunned; he'd expected a puny girl. This female cub was well sized, not obese but not a puny one either. She had a sprout of red hair and she was squirming. She seemed to notice him and stretched her hand out. Gritty touched it and she squeezed, hard.
Gritty smiled, she was a fighter, he could tell. He turned to Una.
"Name?"
The Barbic smiled. "Ursa."
"Ursa…"
In two years, Ursa was running about, getting into everything. One day, Gritty, now five years old, walked into her hut. Una was sharpening her sword. She smiled.
"Hey there, Little Gritty."
Gritty greeted her but then was bowled over.
"Itty!"
The Barbic female chuckled and then got up. Lifting her daughter off the black cub, she turned her girl to face her,
"No Ursa! Don't knock people over, it isn't nice."
"Itty like."
Gritty grabbed Una's hands, "I do,"
Una looked at the boy and noted he was waiting. Una set her daughter down. On her chubby legs, she grabbed the black boy for a moment to steady herself. Then she pushed away.
"Gritty?"
The boy looked up as Una knelt from her towering height to be at his level.
"Can you make sure Ursa doesn't go outside for about five minutes?"
Gritty nodded.
The female left the hut, swinging towards the meeting hall. Gritty turned to Ursa. She had run to the food storage room in their hut and was saying,
"Treat!"
Gritty followed her. "You're not tall 'nough," he stated simply. Ursa narrowed her eyes. Gritty tried to reasonable as he'd been left in charge, even though he wanted some maple candy too.
"'Sides, not allowed to eat now…sun's too low!"
Ursa cocked her head, "Mommy be mad?"
Gritty nodded. Ursa beamed, "Mommy not here."
Gritty stared at her. She walked over to the counter, where the candy sat on top. She opened a drawer and used it as stairs until she was sitting on the counter. She slid the jar over to the edge. Prying on the lid, she wasn't strong enough to budge it. Frustrated, she kicked it off the counter where it shattered when it hit the ground. Jumping down, knocking several drawers out in the process, the girl sat on the floor and proceeded to eat the maple candy straight off the ground. She handed a large piece to gritty.
"'Ere, itty. 'Or 'ou!"
The boy smiled, this was fine with him. He sat down and the two ate the candy until only crumbs were left. Ursa started to pick those up when Una returned.
"URSA MARIE! Gritty!"
The two cubs exchanged glances and laughed. Gritty didn't even care if he was in trouble. This gal was fun.
Una glared at Ursa and gritty, "Do I need to separate you two?"
"No!" Ursa hit her mother's arm and grabbed Gritty's arm. "My friend!"
Una turned to Gritty. The boy grabbed Ursa in a headlock and said,
"Best friend."
Present
Buddi laughed at that thought. Grubbi smirked,
"I thought that would cheer you up."
Grubbi ruffled the cub's hair, "Just be patient kiddo. Ursa's got her reasons, just try to push her limits, huh?"
Buddi nodded, "thanks." Then the branches parted and Ursa walked through. She knelt to Buddi's level.
"Buddi? I was thinking it over and decided you can see Sunni for three hours. The only reason I'm letting you is because the knights are at the Glen and I need you to ask them if heard anything new if they have any new tips about Igthorn or Celina, understand?"
Buddi nodded, beaming, before running off. Ursa called after him,
"Be back by ten at night at the latest!"
* * *
"Oh Buddi!"
Sunni inhaled the deep violet and white flowers he'd brought her before putting them in a vase. She dragged Buddi down the hall and into the library. Opening an ancient door, she led him down into the one empty room left.
"Thanks! I wanna talk to you alone. What kinda flowers are those? Did you talk to the knights already?"
Buddi chuckled, "Yes I talked to the knights, Firefly. Those are sunset blossoms. Flowers that only grown in the canopy of Barbic Woods."
Sunni smiled. "You know what I like don't you?"
She laid down by a fireplace. Throwing in some wood, she lit it, relieved that all the fireplaces worked now.
Buddi asked, "You fixed everything?"
"Yep, we all use the other living room mainly so this one's usually empty."
"Nice." He sat by the fire and Sunni laid her head in his lap.
'I missed you, lover."
"I missed you too, I have to go in about fifteen minutes though."
"But you just got here!"
"I know Firefly."
"Please, one more hour, please?"
Buddi sighed, comforted by the heat of the fire and Sunni's scent.
"I guess a while longer…"
A loud chime brought Buddi back to consciousness. Sitting up, he noted the fire had since died and that Sunni was asleep on his lap. He smiled a minute and then gently laid her down and raced to the wall clock.
"Buddi?" Sunni yawned as she sat up.
Buddi's heart stopped, the clock had to wrong but he knew that with Gruffi around it wasn't.
"Oh My Gum, it's six AM, Ursa's gonna kill me!"
