Chapter Text
It was a pretty normal life for a bear, all things considered. At least, Kylo thought so. He ate. He slept. He scratched his back on trees and soaked in cold streams. But mostly, he hunted. Whether it be fish swimming upstream from the lake near his den, small burrows of rabbits he'd come across in meadows, or even deer he'd stalk through the woods. He hunted. And he was good at it.
He was so good, that he didn't always do it for food. He guessed maybe it was for fun, but it was mostly just on impulse. Especially when things were going wrong. If a tree fell on his den, he took it out on the possums nearby. If he sensed another bear in his territory, he would go on a rampage barreling through the woods, growling and raving and marking his scent, scratching the trees in his effort to claim them; these were his woods.
But it wasn't just territorial. No, it had become a habit, an angry way to cope with any and everything that he found displeasing. He'd knock down trees if they were in his way. He'd hunt the beavers he upset by that. If it was too cold out, he just got grumpier and slashed angrily at the salmon in the rivers. He had plenty for hibernation, but he was just so angry.
Most days found him snarling on his way through the woods; it was a wonder there were any animals around with all the noise he'd make. He'd managed to chase off any humans, hunters or settlers, that wandered into the wrong woods at the wrong time. But the small helpless creatures weren't always aware of the danger before it was too late.
He made his usual trek down to the lake for some water, crunching sticks beneath his huge paws and kicking particular stones out of the way. A fox's tail disappeared into the trees across the water. He'd get it later, he was sure. He stuck his face into the cool stream, taking delight in the scared way the minnows would flee from his sharp teeth. He snapped at a few of them, just because he could.
When he finished his drink, he stretched, sinking his claws into the crumbly sand and pebbles lining the shore. Maybe he'd go hunt that fox now. They put up quite a good fight usually, and he was looking for something like that after the squirrels that morning had been particularly uneventful. He glanced up, and the lake was blue.
Not that it wasn't usually blue, no, but it an unearthly blue. Glowing in the center. His eyes narrowed. That was not normal. He growled in preparation for a fight as the glow grew nearer. As it approached the water's edge, the water began to ripple more and more, more than he'd ever seen before. For a moment, just a brief one, he was almost... afraid. Which, frankly, he'd never been before and that made him angry just on principle.
Out of the water came a glistening figure. A blonde woman with wings, draped in the lightest blue and silver he'd ever seen. A fairy. He was sure of it. He'd never seen one before, but he'd heard other creatures mention them. With a loud snarl, he leapt at the fairy, claws out and ready to strike.
But Kylo passed straight through the glowing being, crashing painfully in the shallow rocky lake. He rolled over with a roar, furious and ready to jump again, to maul, to bite; all he felt was rage.
“Kylo Ren,” the fairy spoke, voice ringing clearly and sternly over the crash of the waterfall and rippling water.
Kylo froze. He'd never heard anyone speak his name. And there was something about her voice that held him captive.
“Remain still, Ren. You have been disrupting this forest for far too long. You've become harsh. Unforgiving. Relentless. You cannot continue this path,” she said.
Kylo grumbled, who was she to say these things?
“Hush, Ren,” she demanded, and Kylo found that his voice was gone. “Before you destroy this forest, I must intervene. I am putting a curse on you: for the next fifty days, you will live life as a human. You will walk on two legs, speak, hunt, and learn to control yourself. If you manage that in your fifty days, I will return you to your natural state and you can continue your life as a bear. However, if you fail, you will be cursed to remain human for the remainder of your life.”
Kylo was still immobile, but inside he was panicking. Fifty days?! How was he supposed to survive even one as a human, let alone fifty? Humans were weak. Pathetic. He'd surely die.
He felt a peculiar sensation in his claws and looked down to see that they were gone. He yelped as he jumped back, leaning on his back two legs as he stared at his paws, no, hands in horror. The pale human skin appearing on his fingers continued up his arms, most of his hair disappearing and small moles beginning to dot his bare skin. It felt odd to breathe as he felt his teeth shrink and his snout disappear, and a soft fluff brushed over ears that were now on the sides of his head. He felt the magic work its way through his torso and down his legs until he knew that all of his bear qualities were gone.
He gasped as he looked down again, seeing his reflection in the lake. He was still large, tall. Broad-chested with wide shoulders and strong looking arms. He had a long nose instead of a snout, and a soft looking mouth with teeth much less sharp than he was used to. The softness he had felt was a mane of nearly black hair, matching his fur coat that he missed so much already.
“For your comfort,” the fairy spoke again, seemingly satisfied with his transformation. She was holding out a pile of cloth. He had encountered enough humans to know that these were clothes, and somehow, instinctively, he seemed to know how they all worked. “I've made sure that you know enough things about mankind in order to function,” she explained. “There is an abandoned cabin about three miles due north of here. That is where you shall live for your fifty days.”
Kylo pulled on a pair of brownish pants, feeling embarrassment for the first time as he stumbled a bit. The suspenders fit perfectly over his shoulders. The fairy frowned for a moment, looking him over, until she pulled a fur out of thin air, draping it over his shoulders. It felt like his old fur, and it surprised him how much more comfortable he felt just being able to hold it around his shoulders.
“There,” she said, satisfied. “And one more thing!”
“What?” Kylo was taken aback momentarily by the deep tone of his voice.
“You will not learn unless you have something to care for. Something helpless.”
“...a rabbit?” Kylo asked begrudgingly.
“No. Something that you could hurt, but that would cause more impact to you if you did. Something you could trust. And that could trust you. Another human. You must learn to care for one of your own.”
The fairy reached down to the shore of the lake, picking up a brittle looking piece of driftwood. Just a stick really, something Kylo could have snapped easily.
“This should do,” the fairy decided. She placed the stick on top of a large rock, waved her hand over it until it began to glow, and stepped back. She turned to face Kylo again. He had never felt more confused or at a loss in his life. “Fifty days. I'll be watching, Kylo Ren. And at the end of your time, I will return to you. You must learn.”
He watched her walk back into the lake, wanting to ask a million questions and not knowing how to even begin to phrase a single one. What was he going to do? And how was he supposed to take care of a fragile stick?
When he turned around, he nearly jumped out of his newly-smooth skin. Instead of the driftwood there was a man. A tall, lanky man with hair brighter than autumn leaves, in a long white shirt he was clutching to himself. He looked as terrified as Kylo felt.
Fifty days. He wasn't sure if they'd make it.
What caused the wounds?
How large the teeth?
I saw new eyes were watching me