"Other than the bruised ribs he seems to be perfectly healthy. Slightly elevated cortisol levels so it could have been a stress reaction." The voice was unfamiliar to Chris as he let the words filter into his just waking mind, the response however, that deep gruff tone, that could only be one person.
"So you have no idea what happened?" Frank said, maybe with a bit more anger in his tone than Chris was used to being there.
"Once he wakes up we can talk to him, but best we can do is keep him for observation for a bit, or send him home."
"Chris?" That was not a voice he expected to hear, but it was a welcome one. He must have noticed Chris' eyes opening to stare at the white paneled ceiling. Mason's face popped into view, followed by his mother and his father. The first two looked worried, the third had his brows slightly scrunched which on Frank White meant he was deeply worried. A rough, calloused hand rested on his forehead, his father seemingly checking his temperature the old fashioned way.
The doctor let out a small cough. "Chris, how are you feeling?" The others backed off as a feline face with cheetah markings came into view, holding a penlight and flashing it in his eyes.
"Alright I think.." Chris tried pushing himself up in the bed a little, but found the doctor gently pushing him back down.
"Do you remember what happened?" The doctor asked as he continued to prod at Chris. "And let me know if this hurts."
"I, um.." Chris started then stopped. How was he to explain a memory he never had before had suddenly popped into his brain and overwhelmed him to the point of passing out. But he grabbed onto something the doctor said. "I was just telling Mason about some.. stressful stuff going on back in the city and I guess I just.. felt a little overwhelmed."
"A little?" His mother said, though Chris caught Mason off to the side, suddenly looking guilty. Crap, he was probably going to blame himself for prying and bringing up stressful topics. He wanted to reach out and reassure the husky but he couldn't from his bed.
"I'm gonna grab us some coffees. This seems like a family thing." Mason said suddenly, dipping out of the room.
Chris wanted to shout for him to stay, but suddenly the doctor's prodding felt wrong. "That feels weird." He said, looking to the doctor at the foot of the bed, checking his feet.
"Painful?"
"No, just weird." The doctor prodded and poked a bit more up Chris' feet and lower legs but only ever got the same response. No pain, just something weird.
"Might be just from laying down so long." Finally, he was allowed to sit up, the doctor helping to adjust the back of the bed and instantly Chris could see what was wrong. With the sheet pulled up so the doc could check his feet, Chris didn't have feet. Well, not the feet he was used to. Instead from about mid-calf down his feet had rearranged themselves into a pair of heavy, cloven hooves, covered in bown and white fur from the ankle down. He gave them a wiggle and they responded. He wanted to shout out, ask what was happening, but he knew no one would even notice something being off. To them he was how he was supposed to look.
For the first time since arriving, he thought about leaving town, seeing if that could fix everything.
His father, never the expressive one, but surprisingly able to pick up what other around him needed gave him another of his 'slightly concerned' glances. "You okay, buckaroo?"
Hearing his childhood nickname perked him up a little, it was the same in this world and the other, were they even two different worlds? But it brought a small smile to his face. "Yeah, I.. I'll tell you and mom when we're somewhere more comfortable."
"Not if it's going to stress you out again." Carol White answered from the other side of the bed. "You'll just relax, watch Christmas movies, and enjoy the holiday. You don't even need to worry about bakin.."
"No!" Chris found himself vehemently interrupting his mother, getting a startled wide-eyed glance. "Sorry, you know I like to bake, it calms me."
The doctor just let out a soft chuckle. "You heard the man, let him do what calms him."
Chris' mother let out a little "Tsk." Something she did when she was overridden but knew there was no point fighting. It was so strange to see. The familiar mannerisms, the way they tilted their heads, even their little vocal ticks, still all as they were, just with animal faces. "I'll call Jake, let him know everything is alright, he's probably worried."
About an hour later he was standing the hospital entrance with Mason at his side, almost hovering to make sure Chris didn't fall again as the orderly went off with the wheelchair they had pushed him out in. His parents had gone to get the car and pull it up in front of the hospital. The new feet were an experience though, at first it felt like he was walking on tiptoe, but once he stopped thinking about it, it felt perfectly natural. Oddly, his pile of clothes didn't contain the shoes he had been wearing, those were just missing. Just as odd, his new gait seemed to put him at eye level with Mason. Mason had always been on the taller side, Chris pretty average, but now..
"I'm sorry." Mason said, looking almost sheepish.
"For what?" That only got a look from the canine, and Chris reached out to take his hand. "It wasn't your fault. I bottled everything up and I guess it just.." Chris shook his head. "Why don't you come over and keep me company? If I'm going to be stuck on the couch for a bit I'd like someone to suffer with." He added a small laugh, one that made Mason brighten up.
Chris looked up a little more and saw over their heads in the hospital entryway hung a spray of green leaves and white berries. "Mistletoe." He found himself pointing out, pulling Mason's gaze upwards as well. Both looked back at each other almost at the same time, Mason began to lean in a little..
A car honked from outside, a soft beep just to get their attention and the moment was gone. Mason instead started helping Chris out to the car. "I need to swing by home first, but I'll come visit a little later. If that's okay with your folks?" He asked, as with the door open to let Chris in, they were certainly able to hear that part.
Carol just smiled. "You're always welcome, Mason."
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Back home. Chris realized he still thought of it as home despite not really having lived here in eight years. The apartment back in the city had almost felt right, but never quite did. He made right for the stairs up, earning a glare from his mother. "Should you be trying stairs?"
"I'm fine, I just need something from my room. Then I'll sit quietly in the couch like promised." Chris tried his most charming smile.
"Tell your father what you need, he can go.." But she was cut off by Frank's gruff interjection.
"Let the boy do it, Carol. We bucks need to do things ourselves. We're right here in case he needs us." Frank nodded at Chris then went right into the kitchen, probably to get back to work on the daily crossword. He didn't migrate to the living room and his TV shows until he had that solved.
He paused on the bottom step for a moment, "Mom. I was thinking, you know Mason is kind of alone and with the holiday coming.."
"I was already going to invite him." She replied with a small smile, a smile that definitely had something behind it. It was the Jake smile. She didn't show it as often, but his brother definitely got it from her. She was up to something. "Maybe you should ask though." And with that she went off to the kitchen, probably to pester her husband about something.
Chris made it up to his room without a problem, and stopped just inside the door. Something was different. Most things were as he left them, everything in its place. His brain kept telling him everything was normal and something was off at the same time. Then it popped into his brain. On one wall were a pair of wooden plaques, each with a set of antlers on them. The top one bigger than the lower one, though neither that impressive. Not like what Frank sported downstairs.
He stepped over and tapped one with a finger. Carved into the wood was, "Chris' First Antlers", and a date roughly somewhere near the beginning of high school. The upper set were labeled as his second pair, and the date.. yeah.. that was near the end of senior year. He reached up and rubbed the velvet covered protrusions on his head, did they feel larger than last night? He sighed and dropped his hand.
Mason had mentioned the yearbook last night.. and he went over to where he had left the book when checking it the other day. He was about to pick it up when there was a knock on the door. Not downstairs, but his bedroom door.
"Come in." He assumed it'd just be one of his parents, but as the door creaked open, Mason's head popped into view. Chris forgot all about the book and instead just sat down on his bed, motioning to Mason to come in.
"So, this is your room?" The husky asked as he stepped in and looked around, seemingly fascinated.
"Yeah, mom pretty much left it as is, other than the keepsakes I took with me when I moved." Chris watched Mason as he slowly moved around the small space, then stopped at the antlers on display. He looked from them to Chris, curiously, and all Chris could do was shrug.
"So, which number are those." Mason asked, nodding towards Chris.
"Five." Mason answered without even thinking, then nearly choked which turned into a small cough. It was true, he didn't know how it was, or even remembered the other four other than the memory gained last night, but he knew it was true.
"At least its not every year like with wild ones." Mason said as he came over to the bed, motioning to the spot next to Chris and waiting for a nod before seating himself. "Seems like a pain."
Chris just shook his head. "Actually, it's kind of nice, you don't have to worry about poking someone or scratching up door frames." Chris meant it as a joke, but the comment floated in that space between not real and real all the same.
"I dunno, getting close might be worth getting poked a time or two." Mason replied with a chuckle, his tail thwap-thwapping against the bed.
"I think it's my turn for a question?" Chris teased, laying back on his bed and looking up at the ceiling, only to see Mason's canine mug come into view as he leaned over.
"Well, I guess I owe you a couple at this point." Mason propped his head up with his hand as he lay on Chris' bed next to him.
"You said you never acted on your crush in high school, who was it?" Chris asked, getting a skeptical look from Mason. Instead of answering, Mason leaned over, his muzzle just inches from Chris' mouth, a paw hand coming to rest on Chris' chest. He could feel Mason's warm breath, smell his mouthwash even.
"You boys want some lunch?!" Came Carol's call from downstairs. Mason flinched away and shot up like a kid sticking his hand in the cookie jar. Chris just found himself giggling. It answered his question even if it didn't go as far as he'd like, but seeing Mason flustered was its own pleasure.
"Sure! Be down in a min!" Chris called back as he sat up. He leaned in a placed a quick peck of the lips on Mason's furry cheek. "Come on, she'll come bursting in if we don't come down, soon." Chris murmured as he stood up. Mason followed, rubbing his cheek and grinning.