Bear that Bellows

by Boulders

Tribe of Floating Stones

A LARGE, THICK-FURRED TABBY AND WHITE TOM CAT

Standing 15” at the shoulder and weighing in at 32 pounds in times of famine and even more in times of plenty, Bear that Bellows by Boulders is a massive tom cat that seems to have grown to try and fit his name; his large size is only further accentuated by the thick, three-layered coat of fur that covers him. He seems to prowl rather than walk, with long lazy-seeming strides, and Bear’s whereabouts can be easily traced by the wide, heavy paw-prints left in his wake. While his frame has certainly benefited him with his duties, its primary and most taxing cost is the nearly constant rumbling that emanates from Bear’s perpetually ravenous stomach. He is a cat that eats and eats… and not even the smallest of bones are left of whatever creature he consumes.

Bald streaks have etched themselves across his nose and around his temples; the backs of Bear’s ears are a veritable network of crisscrossed scars and the occasional recent scabbing. His skull and shoulders function as a well-practiced shield during combat, and because of the size of his jowls and the thick muscles surrounding his neck and shoulders, he seems more resistant than most to blows to the head. Put simply… Bear is about as hard-headed as a billie goat.

While it’s easy to calculate his mass, it’s much harder to determine Bear’s depth. Not much seems to phase Bear that Bellows by Boulders, and it seems to be easy for the tom cat to maintain a generally positive attitude… and incredibly difficult for him to pick up on most social queues. He hides nothing in social situations and demonstrates an abrasive sense of honesty in his interactions with other members of the Tribe. Because he has never thought to lie or hide things from others, Bear has also never really considered the fact that others might engage in those practices themselves and trusts other cats far too easily.

Sociable beyond reason at times, Bear makes a practice of visiting and checking-in on as many members of the Tribe as he possibly can, usually trying to remain with different family units for a couple of nights before bouncing to the next family’s nest in an effort to not wear out his welcome with his tribemates. Helping his tribemates with anything and everything brings Bear a sense of purpose and peace, but he can often be overly helpful… sometimes to detrimental and insulting effects. This is most often the case with mollies and has-beens, as Bear’s upbringing and family life instilled an almost sexist sense of protectiveness towards she-cats. He finds himself easily attached to other cats and often mistakes exactly how close his relationship with another cat truly is.

He is a straight-forward sort of fellow in all things, including his decision making. There is never a plan B or C with Bear… only Plan A. To him, the first plan is always the best plan… so much so that Bear could easily be described as rather narrow-minded, unimaginative, and short-sighted. He does not seem capable of pausing to rationalize or consider the distant ramifications of his immediate actions, and abstract concepts such as the butterfly effect and more complicated effect-causation relationships are completely lost on him and virtually impossible to effectively explain to Bear.

“Don’t worry, I’m going to help you with them. You’re not going to be alone,” a grizzly old tom cat spoke, leaning over to lick comfortingly at a young molly’s forehead while she fretted over her bulging belly. It was a tragedy that the tribe seemed too familiar with, he felt, that a father might die before setting eyes on their kits… that a kit-mother might find herself newly alone.

And so, he decided that she wouldn’t be. He took the young molly into his own nest, hunting for her as she grew larger and larger… and mrrowling his encouragement when the time came for her to finally bear her kits into the world.


“He will be called Bear that Bellows by Boulders,” and so, he was named.

It had been a bleak vision; a starved and wounded mother bear roaring and trying desperately to defend her cubs from an unknown aggressor; bellowing so loudly that it seemed her heart might burst. The young tom would grow… and he would defend his tribe to the death. This part, the Teller did not tell.

Unaware of the final aspect of the vision, Bear’s proud young mother dipped her head down and nuzzled her newly named son. “I love you, Bear,” she whispered into his downy kitten fur.

“You keep working hard, hear?” the grizzly old tom cat wheezed.

It seemed that with each day, the mere act of breathing became more and more difficult for the has-been. His life was seeping away, and the smell of death had already begun to drift from his fur… it would not be long before he joined the Tribe of Endless Life. Bear that Bellows by Boulders knew this, but it didn’t make it any easier on his heart. He would miss the old cat that had helped raise and shape him.

“Look after your mother,” Bear wanted to tell him to stop speaking, as it seemed that the words merely stole more and more of his precious breath, but the old tom cat wouldn’t be interrupted, “and watch out for your sister… keep them safe, keep every… everyone safe…” the old cat wheezed.

Nodding vigorously, Bear stooped to press his forehead to the has-been’s gaunt and pitted skull. “I will,” he promised, “I can take care of them.”

The old tom cat nodded, nearly sightless eyes struggling to seek out Bear even as close as the young tom cat was. “You’ve… you’ve done really, really well…” he paused to suck in another ragged breath, “with your training… won’t be long now before you’re a… a proper stone-guard…!” the has-been seemed to choke on his breath for a moment, growling with frustration as he struggled to say the most important part,

“I’m… proud… of you.”

“You really like him, huh?” Bear grinned lazily at his sister, leaning over to bump his shoulder into hers. It nearly knocked the tiny molly over. “Do you think that there’s a shared nest in the future?” he said.

Her smile was warm as her eyes followed after the tom cat in question. “I hope so…!” she had been paws-over-head for the tom since she had been a to-be, and it was no secret that the other tom cat had been making a habit of being near her as much as he could. Bear was happy for his sister; she had gained confidence in recent moons and the shy, timid molly she had been as a kit and to-be seemed to be a false memory at this point. He knew that before too long, they would need to expand the family’s den to welcome a new member into the fold… and then to welcome his future nieces and nephews.

A big, big family… he liked the idea of it more than he could say.

“You’ll make a great mom,” Bear purred, nuzzling his sister.

He hadn’t been wrong, she would have been one of the best mothers in the Tribe… but she died during the kitting process when the kittens came too early.

Bear and his mother buried her and the kits together with the rest of the Tribe.

The den began to feel too big after that.

“I need to see her,” Bear that Bellows by Boulders pleaded, his voice choking. “Please, she’s… she’s all I have – I’m all she has!” he cried.

His pleas were met with a grieved pity from his tribemates. Bear was one of few healthy warriors that had managed to resist the strange plague that afflicted their Tribe, but his mother had been stricken rather severely with the illness. Her breath rattled in an ominous way and the weakened molly could scarcely maintain consciousness. The Tribe knew that she would die soon… healing measures had ceased in favor of anything that could be done to ease her pain and help her pass peacefully to the Tribe of Endless Life.

Anything other than exposing her healthy son. He needed his strength to serve the Tribe while so many were ill… they couldn’t afford to have any further sick cats.

“I can’t let her die alone,” Bear tried again to wade farther, finding his path blocked with several shoulder-checks and resistant pushes to prevent his passage.

“She’s not alone, Bear!” a voice tried to reason with him, “Please, try to understand!” another voice tried. Bear’s muscles began to quiver and the fur along his spine bristled… but then a smaller paw than the rest pushed at his chest and a pair of eyes held him still.

“Please, Bear… we still need you.”

His mother passed into the Tribe of Endless Life that night without her son beside her.

Bear slept outside of the family den, unable to bear it alone.