Tom wandered the resort for a solid 90 minutes, smiling softly to himself as he basked in the atmosphere. He found himself lost in memories as he watched more and more vacationers fill the space. A small family of white foxes rushed past--a mother and her three kits, all laughing and pointing at each other's fur and tails--obviously still a novelty to the young travelers. Tom laughed, though his chest filled with emotion as he remember the first time he changed those many years ago....
He blinked and shook his head, trying to distract himself with some window watching, all the while trying to ignore the pull he'd felt in his chest since he had arrived the day before. He purposefully avoided looking at the large visitor's center--which he felt drawn towards.
A nearby food stand opened and he realized his stomach was growling, so he decided to distract himself and purchased some roasted chestnuts, making sure to tip the rabbit running the stall. "Merry Christmas!" he called as he continued to wander, idly munching on the treats before finding himself standing once again in front of the large building as his fingers danced across the amulet in his pocket, its warmth growing by the second.
"Fuck," he sighed. "I guess I can't put this off any longer. Here goes nothing." He shook his head and pushed through the door.
He saw Lars immediately as he stood behind the counter, speaking to a confused looking man holding a map. Lars must've felt him approach as his eyes darted quickly in his direction and his ears splayed. He cleared his throat quickly and turned back to the man, resorting to drawing directly on the map with his claw and wishing him luck with a smile Tom knew was forced. Lars' tail flicked back and forth as he turned back to Tom and looked over him for a moment before Tom noticed a colorful aura begin to surround the fox as blues and purples flashed briefly, the fox's eyes sparkling.
Without saying anything, Lars promptly turned and disappeared from view, the colors going with him. Tom felt his stomach drop as he stood there, unbelieving. Forlorn, he turned and headed towards the exit. Mentally kicking himself, he stepped into the plaza before stopping abruptly as a familiar white paw took his hand to stop him.
"Sorry. I had to let Fiia know she needed to cover my shift today. You're buying coffee." The fox flashed a bright smile and Tom sputtered, following a few paces behind and feeling emotional whiplash.
Lars led in silence for several minutes, his tail wagging back and forth, taking Tom to a cozy, less populated corner of the resort before stopping at a rustic looking shop and holding the door with a wink. Tom couldn't help but chuckle as he stepped inside. "Crème Brûlée, with 2 pumps of Peppermint, right?" Lars simply nodded with a bright smile. "Two please," he turned to the barista, who prepared their drinks immediately.
Tom payed and they took their drinks outside, sitting near a firepit out of the way where they could talk in private.
"Welcome back, Tommy." Lars broke the silence first, his bright voice giving Tom pause. "It's been seven years, yes? Are you here for your brother?"
Tom took a moment, considering his words, though he didn't correct the fox on his name. "Yes. Well...yeah. That's why I came..." He took a sip of his coffee to buy himself some time while he thought of what to say. His usual ease of conversation failing him for the moment. "It's partly why I came, that is."
"To take him home?" The fox's words were loaded with disappointment, which killed Tom inside.
"No. To stop him from making the same mistake I did." He sniffled, ashamed of himself. "Lars, I'm so sorry. I didn't mean to hurt you. I panicked....I was just a kid and it was all happening so fast I..." He stared at his coffee, unwilling to meet the fox's gaze. "I'm sorry..."
Lars surprised him by leaning forward to take his hand in his beautiful paws. "You really hurt me, Tommy. I loved you. With everything I had." Tom could only nod, his ears burning. "But I understand. It took me a long time, but I understand." He crouched down, looking up so Tom couldn't avoid his gaze. "I forgive you, Tommy." He smiled sadly, his eyes twinkling in the firelight as Tom struggled to hold back tears of shame.
They sat like that for a couple beats, lost in the moment as Tom was lost for words. On impulse he reached into his pocket and pulled out the pendant, to a gasp from the fox who took it in silence as the air around them began to glitter once more, a hazy but bright rainbow swirled around them.
"You kept your promise." It was Lars' turn to blink back tears.
"Of course, fuzzball. I said forever."
The light around them dimmed and Lars sat back down, taking the amulet with him as his claws traced the sloppy lettering on the back. The look of wonder in his beautiful, bright eyes moved Tom to do something he didn't intend to, but before he knew it, they were kissing, lost in each other for a moment.
Lars broke away and cleared his throat before standing up abruptly. "I can't do this again, Tommy. I can't lose you again."
Tom sighed and stood up as well, gesturing apologetically. "I don't know what came over me. I, ugh. Look, I just wanted to see you again while I'm here. I don't know what's going to happen, but I'm determined to prevent Eric from making the same mistake I did. I could use your help. I need your help."
Lars smiled sadly and simply reached out to brush the silvery white fur of one of Tom's newly regrown fox ears, as they stuck out adorably from his brown hair. "You have a deal. Let's just be careful, OK? I'm going to be careful." He handed back the amulet and started back towards the plaza. "You coming?"
Tom flicked his ears in shock, running his finger over the soft fur he had dreamed about every night. Fuck. This was going to be a lot harder than he thought.
------
Eric stirred softly, basking under the warm weight of Clyde's protective arm. The deer was snoring softly, and Eric couldn't help but smile at the fact that he was lucky enough to wake up next to Clyde's dopey, adorable face. He shifted lightly, careful not to wake Clyde, as he pressed his face to Clyde's fur, relishing his scent: woodsy and musky, with a hint of pine and...peppermint? God, he couldn't get enough. A sleepy chuckle pulled him from his reverie.
"How did you sleep, Söpö?" Clyde reached over to softly pull Eric's antlers to rest against his own.
"Wonderfully," Eric admitted. "You have a very comfortable bed. It's big, too!" Clyde chuckled and pulled him into a tight embrace as Eric buried his face once again into Clyde's fur, the scent driving him wild, a familiar stirring in his sheath. He couldn't help but press himself into the reindeer, realizing with a deep contentment that they were both quickly becoming aroused as their cocks grinded against each other.
Encouraged and in the moment, Clyde rolled Eric onto his back, careful of his antlers and positioned himself on top of him, straddling him and leaning down to rub his soft muzzle against Eric as they began to kiss, frotting with a deep bellow of satisfaction. This tender display of dominance went straight to Eric's cock and a familiar sensation in his skull brought him rocketing back to reality as he jolted under Clyde's weight. "What's wrong? Did I hurt you?"
"Not at all. Uh... Sorry, maybe we should put this on hold? I don't know if you've noticed but..." Eric pointed to his antlers as another prong began to sprout. Clyde grimaced and nodded, quickly climbing out of bed and pulling a blanket around his waist like a towel, willing the obscene tent to go down. Eric began to laugh, but Clyde looked serious.
"Actually, we should probably talk." Clyde sighed, looking downtrodden as he tapped at his antlers. "According to the doctor, you have a limited amount of time before we get to a place where you can't go back. I know things are good, but the last thing I want to do is force you into a position where you don't have that choice anymore, ei? And just look how far you've come already."
Eric nodded sullenly. "You're right. How much longer do you think I have? You'd know better than me."
"I don't know for sure, but I wouldn't risk more than a day or two at the very most. And the try-outs aren't for another two weeks."
Eric sighed and let his head fall to the pillow, accidentally bumping his antlers on the headboard. Under different circumstances it would have been hilarious, but he was starting to feel a bit defeated. "I haven't been able to make the decision yet. I mean, I want to stay. I do. I want to be with you, Clyde. I just...it's a lot." He felt stupid for not being able to better verbalize his feelings, though he was relieved when Clyde nodded sympathetically.
"Well, with that in mind, I was able to pull a few favors and get the day off. If we do have limited time, I'd like to make the most of it. I have a couple of surprises for you, but you'll need to put on the collar so we can fly there together. What do you think?" His eyes danced across Eric's face, looking adorably excited and eager.
"Absolutely." He grinned widely. "But you get to tell Tag that I won't be able to work out with him today."
Clyde snorted, looking relieved and excited. "Fantastinen. I have to work all day tomorrow, so this will be perfect. I will go and let Tag know you'll be busy today while you get ready."
He clomped out of the room before immediately returning. "Come here." He grinned and pulled Eric into another tight embrace before he rushed out of the room.