As Michael sat on the sofa, he watched Tess begin donning her coat. With a carefully measured voice, he spoke up, "Tess...If you walk out that door tonight, you'll regret it. If you don't believe or trust anything else I've ever said to you, trust me on this. You. will. regret. it."
Tess snapped out as she rounded on him, "Insight from someone who's done a lot of it?"
Michael, surprisingly, nodded. "You could say that." The calmness in his voice was not what she expected and it was infuriating but he didn't give her time to retort. "Regardless of what else happened, there is one fact that has never changed, Tess. I love my sons. I missed them every day. But I always thought it would be better to not get in their way. In your way." There was a pining and grief reflected in those words she could not remember ever hearing before. "But I was wrong. I am not going to presume to try to make up for the time lost. I'm not going to force myself on them or try to push for what we lost... But what I am going to do is make sure that every bit of happiness they deserve, they get. It doesn't matter to me if they are human, fox, or reindeer. If it means they are happy, truly happy, I am going to do what I can support that."
Tess sniff as she turned away, "That's easy for you to say. You've been out of their lives so much how could you possibly know what's best for them?" She pulled on her coat the rest of the way and started to close it, "I've taken care of them their entire lives. I've done everything I could for them. And you want me to just... lose them now? Let some animal people walk in and take them away from me?"
Michael stood back up and walked over to her, "Tessy, you know better than that. I know you're a better reader of people than that. You've seen how crazy for each other they are. Are you really going to let the fact they have fur blind you to the love they have for our children? Can you really turn a blind eye to that?" He smiled, turned, and walked back to the sofa, "Like I said, you were right you know."
Tess shakes her head, the rapid change in direction of the conversation had taken her off guard again, "I usually am. But about what in particular?" She couldn't help but notice that Michael was seeming to grow more confident in his words the longer they talked. As if the years of hidden depression and self-loathing were slowly beginning to melt.
Michael sat back down, holding his tail, "That I wasn't happy with myself. That there was always something more. I felt it all my life. A feeling that I never knew how to describe." His tone turned introspective as his fingers played over the thick fur, "The flowers were from Otso. I think I understand how Eric and Michael felt. There is so much here, Tess. I think... I'm going to stay on a semi-permanent basis. I want to be here for our sons. And I'm starting find, I want to be here for my own reasons. I'm sure there is room for you here too. As human if that's what truly makes you happy, or something else if it turns out that way.."