Ursa


 * I will be AFK for a while, my stupid computer won't let me on the internet, but I'm trying to fix it, please don't delete this due to lack of posts as soon as I fix it I'll be going back on and making edits!* (I was on my friends laptop to post that)

This fanfiction is about a polar-grizzly cross named Ursa, to tell the truth I haven't really come up with a storyline yet, but I'm working on it (polar-grizzly hybrids do exist, look it up on wikipedia :P) alright, so the story starts on the ice, when Ursa is with her morher Nita, I've got a basic idea of what's going to happen... well, anyhoo, read on and, please, enjoy,

Ursa lay on this ice beside her mother, Nita, “Mother,” she asked quietly, “Yes, Ursa?” Nita whispered, “Will you tell me a story, about land or brown bears? I mean, I know what white bears are like, but what about brown bears? I'm part brown bear too, and I really want to know what it's like,” “I never really knew much about brown bears, they live on land and hunt for prey, like we do, but they stay away from the ice. They can be any color from brown to gold, they are bigger than black bears but smaller than white bears, when you grow up, you'll be bigger than a brown bear, but smaller than a white bear.” “What's it like on land, mother?” “It's very different to the ice, there's dirt and plants and animals that don't live near the ice,” “What are the animals like?” “There are a lot of animals, Caribou, rabbit, hare, fox, black bear, brown bear, squirrel, deer, frog, I could go on for a long time, but the ice is beginning to melt, and we should start going to land, so you'll see soon enough,” Ursa looked up at the sky, she didn't know what the land was like, but she couldn't wait to go there and see all the animals her mother talked about, and plants, and rocks, and dirt, but most of all brown bears, her father was a brown bear, although she had never met him. Excitement filled her body as she snuggled down into Nita's warm fur, tomorrow they would begin their journey to land to land! Maybe I'll see brown bears; maybe I'll see my father! Ursa though excitedly, and with her head filled with thoughts of the land, she fell asleep.

The next morning Ursa was woken by a cold wind drifting in from her side, bringing with it fresh scents of salt and fish, Ursa looked up; her mother had gone, allowing the wind to blow on her. Ursa got to her paws and sniffed the air, she could scent blood faintly, and seal, and her mother! Using her powerful black nose to follow the scent Ursa found her mother by a breathing hole with a plump, juicy seal in her mouth, “Mother!” Ursa smiled, “Oh, hello Ursa,” Nita greeted her cub, her voice muffled by the large, spotted grey seal in her mouth, “I was just about to bring this to you,” Nita dropped the seal on the ice and invited her daughter to come and eat, suddenly Ursa stopped herself, I forgot to thank the spirits! She gasped silently and touched her muzzle to the ice, ”I thank you, Spirits of The Ice,” she mumbled, “For guiding our paw's to this meal,” then she began to devour the seal. “Well done on remembering to thank the ice spirit's” her mother smiled, “I didn't even have to drop a hint,” Ursa looked up, her muzzle stained slightly with blood from the meal, “I couldn't exactly eat without thanking them, and you hadn't done it, I couldn't have exactly eaten anything knowing that the ice spirit's had not been thanked,” Ursa smiled, “Actually, I thanked them as I caught the seal,” she laughed, “But it's good that you remembered, one day when you're an adult you'll need to remember things like this,” “I know, mother,” Ursa sighed as she pulled her muzzle away from the half-eaten seal, signaling that she was full, “Mother,” Ursa sighed as Nita began to eat the remains of her prey, “Tell me more about the pathway star,” Nita looked up, “You know everything already,” Nita smiled, “Well,” Ursa rolled onto her back as she spoke, “One day I'm going to follow the pathway star all the way to the endless ice and see all the spirits dancing in multi colored and hunt seals and fish and whales and never ever leave the ice, and I'll teach my cubs how to hunt and swim and everything else bears have to know,” Ursa waved her brown legs in the air, and suddenly remembered how different she was from other bears, she didn't often think of her difference but when she did her head was always filled with troubling thoughts, “Mother,” she sighed, “If White Bear spirits go into the ice, and brown bears go into the trees... where will my spirit go?” Nita looked up at her daughter, the seal was now just a pile of bones, “Don't worry about that, Ursa” she soothed, “Now come along, we have to go, the ice is getting thinner and I fear we will be swimming by Sun-high, it's a two day walk to get to land,” Nita looked off in the distance, “Sniff,” she murmured, “Surely you can scent the land,” Ursa raised her head and moved her black nose from side to side, in one direction she could scent the open sea, the water, the salt and the fish, in the opposite direction she could scent plants, and growing things and strange animals, mixed with other scents Ursa didn't know yet, and the two other directions where icy and salty, “We go that way,” Ursa declared proudly and pointed with a paw to the direction of the unusual, and to Ursa, unknown scents. Nita padded past her daughter and rubbed her muzzle on her cubs, “Well done, Ursa, you learn quickly,” Ursa padded on proudly at her mothers praise, by sunset tomorrow they would be on land!

By Sun-high Ursa's paw's began to grow tired and clumsy as she staggered around the ice, but she couldn't ignore the fact that the ice was growing thinner, as the day drew on Ursa noticed the scents of more white bears all travelling towards land, and there was a thin layer of water on top op the ice. Then suddenly there was a deafening crack and without warning the ice split in two right under Nita's paws. Ursa stood, glued to the spot with fear as her mothers great white head fell beneath the water, in the distance a mother polar bear with her two cubs picked up their pace into a run, trying to get away from the cracking ice and to the land. There was another crack. The ice split behind Ursa until she had been separated from the ice and was floating away on a small ice floe, just then her mother's head popped out of the water and she swam over to the floe, “Ursa!” Her mother gasped as her mouth filled with water, “You'll have to swim!” Ursa looked down at the swirling dark water beneath her; the ice she stood on was thin as a sheet. Ursa bunched up her muscles and leapt, crashing loudly into the water, suddenly the entire world seemed to be that dizzying, strong water, help me, Spirits of the Ice! She begged silently, then a muzzle pushed her up, at first Ursa thought it was her brother, who had been killed by a male polar bear when they where younger, answering her prayer to the Ice Spirits, but then she realized that it was the large, thick muzzle of her mother! Nita pushed up her daughter to the surface, “Kick with your legs!” She called, “Push the water behind you as you go,” Ursa began to kick, using her hind feet to propel herself forward and her front legs to keep herself going and steady herself. After she knew what to do Ursa found swimming quite easy, and pushed gracefully glided through the water until she came back to the ice and collapsed,. Nita's soft muzzle gently rubbed along her back and then her flank, “Well done,” she whispered into Ursa's thick fur, “You're a natural, it took me all of burn-sky to learn how to swim, you stay there, I think I can scent a breathing hole,” Ursa watched her mother pad off, feeling warm with pride, Ursa fell into a light sleep and rested her exhausted paws.

“Ursa!” Nita called softly, interrupting Ursa's quiet dreams of running through the snow, “Ursa, wake up,” Ursa blinked open her eyes, her mother had two seal pups in her mouth, “There was a seal den,” she explained, “I dug them up easily,” Ursa thanked the spirits of the ice before beginning to wolf down her meal. Ursa wasn't even half way through when her mother looked up, Ursa flicked her gaze towards her mother, but didn't move her muzzle from the warm seal fat, “Come along, Ursa,” her mother said and nudged Ursa away from her meal, Ursa wondered what had made her mother so frightened, then she saw it, in the distance there was a huge male white bear, prowling towards them with his lips drawn back, showing his yellow fangs. Ursa ran, she ran towards the land for she knew it would be the only place she would be safe, she hoped. She had seen what males could do before, and suddenly images began to flick through her mind, her brother, Inuk, who had been killed, she remembered his broken body, his brown and white fur stained with blood, then she imagined herself like that, swimming with the spirits with Inuk, but the ice was melting, would Inuk be in the sky already, or on his way up, but what if he wasn't there, what if the spirits of half-breeds didn't go anywhere. Nita ran past her daughter and called back for her to catch up, but didn't stop or slow down. Ursa worked her paws as quickly as she could but her fur was still wet and heavy from her swim and she was still tired, but her fear drove her on until she caught up with her mother.

The sun had fallen below the horizon and it was already half-way to moon high, Ursa continued to follow her mother, the scent of land was stronger now, and Ursa knew they'd get there tomorrow. Suddenly Nita stopped, “We've travelled enough for one day,” she sighed, “We'll rest for the night, I'll make a den in that clump of snow,” Nita pointed with her muzzle towards a small clump of snow and began to dig, eventually Nita stepped back from the den and called her cub over, “Go on,” Nita murmured, “Get as much rest as you can, we'll leave at dawn tomorrow,” Ursa padded into the den and curled up by the wall as her mother settled down beside her.

Ursa crouched beside a breathing hole, suddenly a small grey head popped up for a split second, but that was more than enough time for Ursa to throw the seal across the ice with a swipe of her mighty paw, she prowled over to it, where the seal lay, dazed, on the ice, as Ursa was about to sink her teeth into the seals flesh and finish it off, the ice melted beneath her feet and water stuck to her paws. “Ursa! Wake up, Ursa!” Nita's anxious roar broke into her dream, Ursa blinked her eyes open, there was a layer of water underneath her, just like there had been in her dream, “Ursa!” Nita's roar was cut off by a rumble. The walls of the den collapsed and fell on Ursa, the sheer weight of the snow kept her down, and then she heard scratching above her and moved her head up, her mother was digging through to get to her, but then a huge dark paw, bigger than Ursa's head swiped away the she-bear with a single blow. With a sudden feel of terror Ursa realized what the paw belonged to – a male bear. The same white bear that had taken their seal! Ursa felt her blood turn to ice as she realized – the seal hadn't been enough to satisfy his hunger – she was next!

Kicking with all her might Ursa managed to propel herself away with her hind paws, she scrambled through the snow as fast as she could but as soon as she broke cover the huge paws of the male dropped down beside her and raked her with his thistle-sharp claws. Wincing with pain Ursa leapt into the sea, she heard the male splash and swim after her, after a few hours of running, the paw steps died down and the male turned away. Ursa curled up on the ice, where was her mother? 'Urrsaaaa' a voice groaned, it was her brother! “Inuk?” Ursa gasped, “Where is our mother?” 'She followed you, Ursa,' Inuk whispered, 'but she could not keep up. She was certain you had been killed' Inuk's voice died down, 'She had headed toward the land... the mountain...' then Inuk's voice completely died away. Anger flared in Ursa's paws, one day she'd take revenge. One day. But Ursa knew that there was no time for that now. She headed toward the land. She had heard of mountains from her mother. Huge things that jutted out from the ground. Her heart filled with certainty, she followed her nose.

The sun had already sunk beneath the horizon by the time Ursa got to land, she saw the mountain in the distance, and it was incredible! But it was too late to continue to walk, Ursa sniffed around and took one step onto the land, it was stony on the beach, and Ursa secretly hoped that it wouldn't always be this hard on her paws, as she padded further the ground became softer until it was soft and brown, a bit like snow, and strange green shoots where sticking up, Ursa recognized them from her mothers stories, This brown snow must be dirt! And these plants must be grass! And that must be the color green! Ursa padded over to a huge stick coming up out of the ground, a tree! She realized, they must be the branches! And soon the leaves will come out! Ursa remembered something else her mother had told her – Grizzlies. At first the thought excited her, but then she remembered something her mother has said: “When you're on land, be sure to check tree's for claw marks.” She has said, “That is how male grizzlies mark their territory. You must never pass a tree with claw marks on it, instead go around it. A grizzly doesn't like to share their prey with anybody, not even kin.” Ursa climbed onto her hind paws and rested her front paws on the tree, there where no claw marks on this side, she checked the other tree's around there, none at all, Ursa guessed that grizzlies liked to stay nearer land, and away from all the white bears. Ursa found a deep hole under some tree roots that went deeper until she was in a little cave underground, she curled up and fell into an uneasy sleep.

Ursa crept through the undergrowth, she was in a forest, she could smell prey all around her, but she could smell other bears too, Ursa shook her head to determine the scents, Black bear, brown bear, white bear, fish... suddenly a golden she-bear, a grizzly, emerged from the water with a fish hanging from her jaws, she couldn't have been any old than Ursa, then there was the shouting of a strange creature in the distance, Ursa didn't recognize the scent of the creature, then they emerged from the forest, strange creatures, they had strange, hairless pelts and tufts of fur on their foreheads and had no claws... Ursa guessed they where No-claws, her mother had told her about them, they carried strange shiny, black sticks in their hairless paws, the sticks scented of smoke and other things Ursa did not yet know, then suddenly one of the sticks let out a bang! It was like thunder, and there was smoke everywhere, a small, shiny thing flew through the air towards the grizzly cub, but a furious mother bounded out of the forest and towards the No-claws, the shiny thing hit her and the grizzly fell to the ground... dead... Ursa gasped as the red blood of the tawny-coloured grizzly began to spread across the ground, staining Ursa's brown paws with the red, sticky liquid, the scent of blood was everywhere, but when she tried to run, her paws where stuck to the ground. Ursa let out a cry for help.

Ursa's eyes blinked open... it had been a dream... the forest, the grizzlies, the no-claws... the sticks that shot fire and thunder, and the shiny things that could kill a bear... Ursa scrambled to her paws and shook her pelt, she could see the shape of a huge white bear padding towards her, Ursa slunk back into her den and watched as the huge bear stopped right outside her den and swung her great head around, scenting the air. Ursa recognized the she-bear, it was Nita! “Ursa?” Nita murmured into the breeze, “Where are you? I'm sure I can scent you here somewhere?” Ursa was surprised by the seriousness in her mothers voice, “Ursa, this isn't a game, come out here at once! We're in danger!” Ursa leapt out of her den and scrambled across the ground to her mothers paws, “Mother!” She gasped and rubbed her muzzle into her mothers thick white fur, “Oh Ursa,” Nita whispered, her voice weak with relief, “I thought I'd never see you again!” Ursa pulled her head out from her mothers snowy-white pelt, “Come along now, Ursa,” her mother's tone grew serious, “We have to get out of here,” at once her mother began to bound off, “What is it, mother?” Ursa asked as she struggled to catch up with Nita, “No-claws. I can scent them.” was the reply, “Mother...” Ursa murmured and slowed down, remembering her dream, “Mother, what are those sticks the No-claws have? The ones that shoot fire and thunder and tiny shiny things that kill bears?” Nita stopped dead, “How do you know about those?” She asked nervously, “Well...” Ursa mumbled, “I... I had a dream and... and a brown bear was killed and... and I want to know what they are...” “Deathsticks.” Nita growled, “Those shiny black sticks are deathsticks.” Ursa looked back, “Do the No-claws you scented have deathsticks with them?” She asked, “I don't know, I think so.” Ursa began to run faster, overtaking her mother, “Come on then!” She called, “I don't want to end up as prey!” Nita bounded after her cub. Ursa's paws carried her into a hollow surrounded by brambles, Ursa landed in the bottom of the hollow, she looked up and pulled a few thorns out of her pelt and sat, waiting for Nita. Ursa sat, waiting, for a long time, it was halfway to sun-high by the time she had done waiting. Ursa got to her paws and poked her head through the brambles, she saw blood... and... Nita... The no-claws stood proudly with their deathsticks above the motionless body of the great white bear. Ursa withdrew her head and curled up in the bottom of the hollow, swallowing her sobs. It couldn't be! It couldn't be true! Nita couldn't be dead! She'd only just found her again, why did they have to get Nita. I can't believe it, Ursa cried silently, ''Nita's dead! What will I do?''

Ursa waited until the No-claws had gone, taking Nita's body with them, Ursa ran towards the place where her mother had been shot, she was all alone, it couldn't be! It couldn't! Ursa lay on her side and rolled over once, as if trying to bury into Nita's fur. She remembered the times before, when she was on the ice, And to think I was excited about going to land she growled at herself silently, ''The land is terrible! This would never happen back on the ice. Oh Nita... mother... why? Why you? Why did I have to run so fast, why didn't I et her find the hollow instead of me?! Why couldn't the no-claws have gotten me with their deathsticks instead of her?! Why... Why? WHY?! ''Ursa sobbed silently and rolled over a few more times before she had no more tears to cry, and then she lay down motionless, half-hoping to wake up and find out this had all been a dream, half-hoping the no-claws would come back and shoot her as well.

A small paw prodded her in the side, “Hello?” a high-pitched voice squeaked, “Hello? Are you awake?... Are you alive?” Ursa blinked open her eyes, it was night, she'd been lying there all day, there was a tiny black bear standing above her, it was a young male, a little younger than her, he had a dark brown pelt and black, sparkling eyes, “What happened to you?” The cub asked, “My... my mother was killed... by no-claws and deathsticks...” The black bear cub continued to stare at her, “What's a no-claws?” “A no-claw is a murdering, stupid, small-minded, sealbrained, evil-hearted, cruel, horrible, ignorant-” “Alright, alright,” the black bear cut in, “Skipping out the offences, what are they?” “They're tall animals that have no claws and tufts of fur on their heads and they wear strange, fake pelts and they're fur-less and they bark in a strange language.” “Oh, alright... I think that's Smooth-pelts... and I know what deathsticks are,” the black bear cub settled down beside me, “I'm Nanertak.” He explained. I raised my head to look at the small cub, normally I'd shoo away another cub at a time like this. But now, today, I didn't mind. Sitting here with him, in my mothers death spot, lying in her blood on this cold night, out body-warmth pressing into one another's pelts, maybe Nanertak would help me, so what if I barley knew him, he seemed nice enough, I'd travel on with him, maybe, just maybe, we could reach the endless ice. Together.

Ursa blinked open her eyes, she'd fallen asleep beside Nanertak, it was early in the morning, Nanertak had gotten up and was eating some plant-things, hunger gnawed at her stomach, it growled so loudly that Ursa was sure Nanertak must have heard it because he looked up from his eating, “You're finally awake,” he smiled, “Here,” he smiled and pushed a small pile of the small, strange, Ursa sniffed them, “Berries and roots,” Nanertak explained and grinned, “You eat them, you can eat other food too, like dandelions and bulbs and other plants and stuff, they'll do until we find some proper prey,” Ursa sniffed the roots and took a small bite, then a few berries, ''Ugh! She snarled silently, That's disgusting! ''But she swallowed them down, wrinkling her nose at the taste. By the time she'd forced herself to gulp down the roots and berries, Nanertak had also finished eating and was stretching in the sunlight, “So, what are you planning to do now that you're all alone?” he asked, “Well,” muttered, “I thought about going to the place where the first ice forms, but all the other white bears will be there, and without my mother, I'd feel very vulnerable... so, well, when... when I was back on the ice with my mother, she told me stories of the place of endless ice, if you follow the pathway star, I'm going to follow that... I think...” “Well,” Nanertak mumbled in his usual, high-pitched voice, “If other kinds of bear, other than white bears, are aloud to try and go to the place of endless ice, well, I could always journey with you? I mean, I don't live with my mother any more,” “Alright!” Ursa smiled, “Why don't you live with your mother any more? What happened to her?” Nanertak shuffled on his paws nervously, “Well, my mother and I where very skinny, and we wondered into a Smooth-pelt place with lots of their dens and they caught my mother and put her in a cage, I don't know where she is now, but I managed to hide in a bush so they didn't find me,” Ursa rubbed her muzzle on Nanertak's, “I know how it feels,” she murmured,”Why don't I go hunting for the rest of the day, and you look for more berries and roots and those other planty-stuff you mentioned, then after we're full we can sleep until the sky is dark and follow the pathway star until it fades,” Nanertak nodded and together, the two bear cubs padded off in search of food.

Ursa stalked through the rocks at the base of the mountain she was supposed to meet her mother at, fresh memories flooded her mind, of her mother, her brother, the male, Ursa shook her head to clear the thoughts and concentrated on the hare in front of her, she'd already caught a duck and it's three ducklings and a small rabbit, after this she'd finally be able to rest her paws, she'd been hunting for ages and soon she and Nanertak would meet up in the hollow to eat their fill and rest, before their great journey began. Ursa crept forward a few more steps until she was close enough to pounce, all of Ursa's muscles tensed as she prepared for her spring, then, the rabbit still nibbling on a small bit of grass sprouting in a crevice in a rock, suddenly a bird let out an alarm call as a fox, ready to pounce on the same hare, accidentally kicked a small rock, the rabbits ears pricked and it bounded off, the fox sprang and killed the rabbit with a swift bite, then it looked up at Ursa and let out a low growl, Ursa dipped her head and padded back, “Your kill,” she mumbled to the fox, So what if it doesn't understand me, She thought, ''anyway, I should go get the rest of my kills and find Nanertak. ''I bounded off to a stunted thorn bush where I'd buried my ducks, with a smile, I dug them up and padded back over to the hollow. As Ursa emerged from the brambles she saw Nanertak sitting there with a small pile of blueish-black and pinky coloured berries, a small collection of roots and something else that Ursa guessed was those bulbs Nanertak had mentioned, Nanertak nosed half of the berries, roots and bulbs towards Ursa, she pushed her duck over to him and settled down to eat, she eyed her meal, some berries, a few roots and bulbs, and three ducklings, she began to eat and then remembered, other than the food Nanertak had gathered, when her last meal had been, the baby seal Nita had caught before the male had come, another pang of mourning overcame Ursa as she continued to eat, tears rolling down her cheeks.

Ursa rolled onto her back, warming her fully-fed stomach in the sunlight as she drifted in-and-out of dozing, then, she let her tiredness overcome her and she rolled onto her side and closed her heavy eyelids as she began to dream.

Ursa stood on a beach, two white bears, one a cub, one an older cub, where arguing, “It's not my fault if you got that male angry!” The youngest, a female, growled, “That wasn't my fault!” The older male cub bellowed, “He stole our prey!” “Well you didn't have to steal his prey and try to fight him!” “I was doing that for you, Niviasar!” “What? Almost getting us killed? Forget it, Nukapiak! Everywhere we go you get us in danger!” “That's not my fault, I'm the one who always saved you!” “Nukapiak! You're just- you're so- It's no wonder mother abandoned us!” “So you're blaming me for her stupidity?!” “Nukapiak! You- I- It- Oh forget it! I'm leaving!” “Fine! Go and die alone!” “Ha. You're the one who'll die, Nukapiak! One day one of those sealbrained things you keep doing you'll end up a pile of bones!” “Oh just go, Niviasar! Unless you didn't mean what you said about leaving,” the male cub, Nukapiak, roared and crouched down, “What do you think I'm doing?” The female, Niviasar, sighed and padded off slowly, Ursa could see the upset in her eyes as she walked off, head lowered, Nukapiak watched her go, his lips drawn back in a snarl. Suddenly a strong wind blew Ursa's pelt, making her close her eyes.

Ursa blinked her eyes open again, she was in the hollow again, it had all been a dream... just like the other one... why was she having these strange dreams, did they mean anything? Was there any reason she was dreaming of random bear cubs she didn't know, each alone. Ursa looked up at the sky, it was a dark violet, Nanertak was standing at the top of the hollow, looking up at the sky, “Is that the pathway star?” He asked, nodding at a large, bright star shining above their heads, Ursa looked up and shook her head to clear her thoughts, “Oh,” Nanertak murmured and looked around, “No,” Ursa exclaimed and got to her paws, “That is the pathway star, I just had a dream,” “Oh,” Nanertak smiled, “Alright, let's go!” Nanertak bounded ahead, Ursa ran after him, excitement tingling in her paws and through her pelt, this was it, her journey had begun!

The first grey light of dawn began to show, and the sky was streaked with a pale, milky blue and pink. Nanertak looked up, “The stars fading,” he muttered and padded off, the two cubs had ended up in a forest, they'd passed through a male grizzlies territory and caught a rabbit on the way. Nanertak returned with a twig in his jaws, “Uhhh...” Ursa watched as he cleared away from leaves and twigs and placed the stick on the ground, it had two smaller twigs sticking out of the front, “Here,” he smiled as he placed a rock on it to stop it blowing off, “Now when we want to travel more, we follow the direction of the stick,” Ursa crouched down and looked at the stick, “Cool,” she smiled and stretched, “Well, I suppose we should rest for a while, my pads are bleeding, and that scratch along your flank is starting to get worse,” Nanertak turned to look at his shoulder, on the journey he had been scratched badly along his flank by a thorn. Nanertak nodded, “Alright,” Ursa smiled and gathered some moss from a tree root with her strong, pointed claws and made the moss to form a nest, then she curled up, secretly hoping that she wouldn't have another one of her strange dreams. She blinked open an eye and watched Nanertak climbing a tree with his hooked claws and settling in a fork between two branches. Ursa got up and decided to do a little hunting before going to sleep, she searched for a long time, her nose to the ground to pick up the scents of prey, but she couldn't smell a thing, eventually she returned to her nest and, with a heavy heart, she curled up and let sleep overcome her.

Ursa blinked open her eyes and stretched, for once she'd had a sleep undisturbed by her strange dreams, the sun was shining down through the thick canopy of leaves and branches, dappling the undergrowth with light. Nanertak still lay in the tree, Ursa guessed he hadn't moved since they rested at dawn. Ursa got up and padded through the forest until she came to a clearing, it was sun-high, Ursa suppressed a sigh and sat down, the loss of her mother was still heavy in her mind and she needed time to think, maybe her dreams did mean something, then she realized, The dream I had with the grizzly bears, one was a female cub about my age, one was a mother, and then the mother was shot, leaving the cub on it's own, she gasped, ''Then when I woke up, mother was shot, leaving me on my own... Maybe... maybe the dream was warning me, no, no that can't be it, it just can't... But, what about the second one, Nukapiak, Niviasar, Nukapiak left Niviasar! What if... what if that means that Nanertak will leave me, no, no no no no, no, it can't, Ursa shook her head to clear her mind, they where just dreams, just dreams! She couldn't go thinking things like that, all that had happened was that both times she'd had the dreams she'd been upset, and that must have made her dream about bad things happening to other bears, it had to be, she didn't have any kind of future-telling power, they where just dreams, I must have just eaten a rotten bit of prey, she convinced herself, They're just dreams, they can't mean anything... can they?''

Ursa got to her paws, they where heavy, Ursa wasn't sure if it was exhaustion from her journey or the memories of her mother, and the link she had made with her dreams and reality, if there was a link between them at all, but she had to get back to Nanertak to see if he'd woken. When she got to the spot they'd slept she reared up on her hind legs to look for him in his tree perch, but he wasn't there! Ursa dropped to all fours again and began to walk around, barking his name nervously, suddenly a weight fell on her from a tree, Ursa instinctively fought back, she rolled onto her side to try and get her opponent off her back, but it didn't work, she reared up on her hind paws and slammed back against the tree, success, her opponent had let go, Ursa turned around and saw Nanertak sitting there, looking up, “Nanertak!” She snarled, “What where you doing, you seal-brain, I could've killed you!” Nanertak got to his paws and shook his shadowy pelt, “Well,” he smiled, “I was bored, and anyway, I didn't have time to look to see what was there, it could have been a wolf, or another bear, or a mountain lion or-” Ursa interrupted him with laughter, “Black bears can't take then on!” She chuckled, “They're too small!” “Oh yeah?” Nanertak growled playfully and crouched down, “Prove it.” Ursa smiled, at last something to take her mind off her mother and her crazy dreams, she crouched down and pounced at him, but he dodged out of the way just in time, Ursa landed in a heap of fur on the ground, with a laugh, Nanertak leapt onto his back and chuffed with laughter, “Hahaha!” he cried triumphantly, “I win, prey,” Ursa jumped to her paws, throwing the small cub off her back, “Think again,” she snarled and leapt on him, pinning him to the ground with her large, mighty paws, it was then that she realized how much bigger than him she was, her paws where the size of his head! Suddenly Nanertak's body went limp, Ursa climbed off him, had she hurt him? Why hadn't she realized how small he was! What if he was dead! Suddenly Nanertak sprang to his paws and bounded over to her, “ha!” he laughed, “Fooled you!” Ursa sighed, how could she have been so gullible, just then Nanertak stopped playing and sniffed the air, then ran up a tree, “What?” Ursa hissed, “What is it?” “Smooth-pelts,” came the reply, Ursa pressed her body to the ground, where could she hide? There was nowhere, she didn't have hooked claws like black bears, like Nanertak, so she knew she shouldn't even try to climb a tree for safety, Oh no, Spirits of the ice, are you there, can you hear me, Ursa begged silently, ''Can you hear me from the sky, can you still help me? ''Suddenly the deathstick thunder sounded in the distance, “They've got deathsticks!” Nanertak gasped, climbing higher into the fresh growing leaves of the tree, “I know, sealbrain,” Ursa growled, there had to be somewhere to hide, there just had to.

Ursa's blood ran through her veins, cold as ice, fear gripped her body and planted her paw's to the spot, No! She cried silently, ''Please don't see me, please, please, please, please. I can't die here I won't die like mother. I can't. She can't see how much of a failure I am. Ursa heard Nanertak slowly edging up the tree, she wished she had hooked claws and that she was small and agile so she could follow him to a safer place, but she didn't even know what ''she was, what was the point of being a half-blood, she wasn't as big as strong as white bears, or as forceful and muscular as a grizzly. Ursa tried to ignore her thoughts, she barley ever thought about her differences, she only thought about what she would do next, where she would explore first, but she knew she couldn't have the same wandering, free spirit she had on the ice while she followed the pathway star. At least not until she found the endless ice, but what would happen to Nanertak then? Where would he live? Could a black bear survive on the ice? What about food? What would he eat? Could he hunt seals? There wouldn't be any plants there, Ursa shook her head, there'd be plenty of time to think about the endless ice after she was out of danger, if she could get out of it at all, Ursa's muscles tensed, ready to run off or spring, her eyes flicked wildly around for shelter, where, where could she shelter from the no-claws? There just had to be somewhere, she knew it. Success! Ursa spotted a deep hollow, sheltered by overhanging ferns, she crept back carefully, one pawstep at a time, if she so much as stepped on a twig or alerted a bird the no-claws where bound to find her and then she'd end up like the bear in her dream, and her mother. Ursa was almost there, just a few more steps to go, then suddenly a dry leaf cracked beneath her pad and a small bird that was digging up worms nearby fled up to a tree branch, screaming out an alarm call, Ursa's body froze as the no-claws turned to see her, they're guns pointed straight at her, this is it, she gasped, ''I'm going to join Inuk and mother! 'I'm going to die!'''

Ursa turned and ran, her short, strong legs carried her through the undergrowth as quickly as she could go but she heard the No-claws behind her, just then one of the no-claws let off one of their deathsticks, it skimmed Ursa's pelt, narrowly missing her flesh, Ursa silently thanked the spirits of the ice, but there was no time to slow down, the no-claws where still after her, Ursa bounded into a small clearing a paused, looking around for the quickest way out, she turned around, planning to run back just to the side of where the no-claws where to confuse them, but then suddenly they burst out of the forest, forcing Ursa to run to the nearest edge of the forest, a second deathstick went off, it went underneath Ursa's leg as she raised it in her running, ''Yes! ''She smiled as she ran on, but her smile didn't last much longer, she found herself cornered against a huge boulder, Ursa began to run around the side but another deathstick fired, the small thing it fired hit her ear, pain spread through Ursa's body as she felt her ear bleeding, then she collapsed. Not caring if she woke up or not, just caring that it might help the pain.

Ursa's eyes flicked open, she saw Nanertak crouched nervously on a nearby branch, he must have followed the chase through the tree branches, her ear was still bleeding, and the pain was still unbearable. Suddenly a no-claws paw clutched her scruff and picked her up, Ursa closed her eyes again as she swang helplessly in the air, reminding her of when she was younger and her mother had carried her, but never this roughly, a deathstick poked her side, Ursa lashed out at it, then at the no-claw's paw who held her, the no-claw let out a yelp of pain and dropped her, while the others stood there in shock. She ran as hard as she could, her brown legs working hard, Come on, come on, She growled silently, ''Don't let them catch up! ''She looked up and saw Nanertak running along the branches, leaping from tree to tree as nimbly as she was on land. Ursa leapt over fallen trees and branches, ignoring the constantly stinging pain in her ear, willing her paws to go faster. Eventually she couldn't continue, the no-claws had stopped following, at least one danger had gone, she watched Nanertak clamber down from the tree he was in and pad over to her, “Are you ok?” He asked, his eyes round with shock and fear, “Just tired,” Ursa croaked in reply, “But what about your ear?” “It's fine, it just stings.” Ursa panted, trying to catch her breath “It's still bleeding and there's a hole in it!” Nanertak still sounded scared, “What? A hole?” she gasped, “I'll flay those no-claws!” Anger rose up inside Ursa, something a kind of anger she'd never felt before, I've had it with those no-claws, she snarled silently, ''First they kill my mother, then they try to kill me and make a hole in my ear! I'm not even safe from them in my dreams! She paced the ground furiously, ripping up the mud with every pawstep, imagining it was the flesh of a no-claw, the next no-claw I see will get it! Revenge for my mother and my ear! She turned and looked at Nanertak, her was crouched back, his eyes wide with shock at Ursa's ferocity, “I'm sorry,” Ursa sighed, “It's just... they... I... They killed ''my mother and then tried to kill us! I... I just...” Ursa didn't have the strength to continue, she collapsed for the second time, dizzy from her tiredness and blood loss.

When Ursa woke up again it was late at night, Nanertak had fallen asleep and left a few berries beside her, Ursa reluctantly ate the berries and struggled to her paws, she stumbled around a bit and then padded, still clumsily, further into the undergrowth in search of water, she was so thirsty that she felt as if she could hardly move on, and she wanted to look at her reflection, to see the damage the no-claw had done to her ear. Ursa's claws scraped lazily across the ground, kicking up leaves, twigs and stones, eventually she came to a small lake, Ursa crouched on the shore and felt the cold waves lapping upon her paws, cooling them down, then she lowered her head and began to drink, Today was so... so... strange, she thought, ''All of the time on land has been, is it always like this? Are there always all these no-claws and deathsticks. But, this journey so far has been so strange, and I'm nowhere near the end of my travels, Ursa began to reflect on what had happened, First, mother and me got separated, then I found here again, and before I did I had that strange dream, and then the no-claws killed her... Ursa paused in her thoughts, the pain of her mother's loss filled her mind again, reminding her off her ear, and then I met Nanertak, and then I had that other strange dream with the white bears, and then we walked all night and came here, and then the no-claws came...'' Ursa raised her head to sniff the air, checking to make sure the last of the no-claws had gone, they had. Then Ursa lowered her head again to gaze at her reflection, everything seemed normal, but her ear was tightly rapped in cobwebs, “Nanertak” Ursa sighed and cut through the stick cobwebs, pink with blood, careful not to cut her ear and make the hole worse, after Ursa had kicked the cobwebs into a pile of thorns, she looked at the full extent of her ear damage. Sure enough, there was a small hole there, Ursa gasped, not because of the dried blood covering the entire ear, because of the fact that she knew that her ear would stay like that... forever... ''What will other bears think of my ear?! She cried, What if they never want anything to do with me again?! ''Then another memory flooded back to her, the dreams! Maybe they did mean something after all, after the dream with the brown bear being killed by the no-claws and the deathstick then her mother was shot, and then she had the dream with the male cub leaving the female, it can't mean that... Ursa gasped as she realized what her dream could mean, ''What if Nanertak abandons me because of my ear?! What if he doesn't like me because of it?! Ursa shook her head, they where just dreams, just dreams! ''They didn't mean anything... or did they?

Thank you kindly for reading my story

To find out more about Polar-grizzly hybrids, visit: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Grizzly%E2%80%93polar_bear_hybrid