FSE

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It's been a long damn while since I posted here, but then again, it's also been a long damn while since I had a shred of creativity in my head. What's below could be described as the final sputtering of my tired mind, but I've finished it. Just over 52,000 words, novella length, and what I believe to be the crowning achievement in my literary life so far. I do realise that it's more of a rough diamond in the state it is, but it's a diamond nonetheless (at least to me). I didn't actually manage to go beyond 100 pages in Word - only got to 98 - but then again, we can't have everything, now can we? :P

_I do have plans to rewrite this at some point, but that'd be more work for myself on something I couldn't really use in the future. I mean, a story about anthropomorphic animals coexisting with humans would make one hell of a strange conversation in an interview room, and I wouldn't be surprised if accusations of beastiality spread. Maybe, just maybe, I'll come back to Then and Now in a decade or two and enjoy reading what took me so long to write, something in which I invested so much emotion and mental power. For now, I want to thank all the people who stuck with it and waited for this slug of a writer to grow a pair and finish what he started; thank y'all, and you all have first-class tickets with the Bunny airlines, on me. _

Now, I feel like getting something to drink, fruit tea maybe, and getting some rest. To one and all, thank you.

~ Venator (Simon).

P.S. You might want to glance back at the previous chapter to refresh your memories. I had to do it a few times to get in the right frame of mind for writing, and I admit I went into this without much concern for keeping people in the loop. Basically, this picks up exactly where the last part left off, and it won't make a lot of sense without that previous part. And I apologise for any mistakes or errors; I did my best to finish this, I really did.

Tuesday, 22nd October 2010

***

Rain. Thunder. Dark clouds above, miniature streams of muddy water racing away under my feet. No umbrella - the rain had soaked my hair, ran down the back of my neck and down the front of my shirt. White shirt. Black tie. Black jacket. Black trousers. Black shoes. A single white rose in my hand, wilting from the cold just like me.

The scene in front of me was one I'd seen before. A graveyard in the evening. It was always raining here. A place of distant memories, faded pain and no resolve. The gravestones held the names of all the patients I'd failed, be that by my fault or else. But it was always my fault. Whenever someone in my care died, it was me who was to blame. Not nature, not fate, only me, the man who was supposed to keep them on this side of the void.

In this place, I always wore black. I never smiled. I never laughed or talked. I just stood there while the rain soaked through my clothes and made me shiver from the cold. There was nothing to warm me; I didn't deserve that. If they were to be eternally cold, then I would receive no better.

A little bit to the left was a polished gravestone with golden lettering. "Morgan O. Hammet. Beloved daughter and friend. May she Rest In Peace." I'd attended the funeral. Judy came with me. I was quiet for the whole ceremony, but I was glad to have someone there to support me.

Not here.

Right in front of me was another stone. This one was set in the ground, black as night, its letters silver. I didn't want to read them, but I couldn't look away. Tears were rolling down my face, and they were so cold. The rose fell from my hand, landing on the face of the tombstone and rolling off into the muck below.

"Here lies Leanne-"

Chapter 1

"-up! Wake up, Richard!" A voice shouted. The shaking I felt on my arm wasn't soft, it was restless and scared. My eyes flipped open and I realised what was happening. I was hyperventilating and in a cold-sweat, probably muttering utter nonsense in my sleep. My eyes were burning, and the pillow was wet with tears. After a few seconds, when my mind became aware that I was in reality again, my heart calmed down and my breathing evened out.

Turning my head put my face to face with Li. She was terrified to the point of crying. I didn't know what to say. I didn't know if I'd warned her about the nightmares. I didn't know what-

Li wrapped her arms around my neck and back and hugged onto me. Her gasping breaths were so much louder when her muzzle was next to my ear, and I felt that her heart was still beating hard enough to break its way out.

"Shhh... Shh..." I started, one hand in her hair and the other stroking her back. "It's okay. I'm alright."

It took both of us a few minutes, but eventually, we'd both calmed down enough to be able to let go and talk, or get up. The former came first.

"I'm sorry about that." I told her, sitting up in bed. She didn't want to move away from me, so her head stayed on my chest. Probably just listening to my heart beat.

"You had a nightmare." Li murmured. "We all get those. I thought it was hurting you, that's why I woke you up."

"Thank you." I sighed. "Yeah, it was. It's a recurring nightmare, and it doesn't hurt any less each time I see it."

Some silence. Then, "What is it about?"

I obviously couldn't tell her the last part. Both because that would have scared her even more and because I'd promised her parents not to fall to pieces. Great goddamn job I was doing...

"It's the same each time; I'm standing in a graveyard. It's filled with tombstones, and all the ones I see bear the name of the patients who died while under my care at the hospital." I explained, avoiding the tombstone with her name.

"And it's that rough on you every time?" She asked, looking up at me.

"Losing patients or getting nightmares?"

"Both."

"Yes. It is."

"I'm sorry." She hugged me tight. "If I stayed with you instead of leaving, I'd have been able to at least hug you when you woke up from a nightmare."

I wasn't able to argue with that. God knows, someone to hug when you're lonely and afraid and in pain is worth more than anything else. "You're here now. That's what matters."

Li nodded, sighing softly. "Do you think you could get some more sleep tonight?"

"No. Usually, I'd go downstairs and watch TV until the sun came up, but I'd rather stay up here and just cuddle with you." I looked at her. "You wouldn't mind that, would you?"

The Wolf smiled, pulling herself up to be level with me and pulling me closer to her body, sharing warmth and love. "No, never. If it were possible, I'd never ever let you go. You know how much I love cuddling with you."

I smiled back, resting my head on her collarbone, me listening to her heart this time. It was steady and strong, relaxing. "Yeah, I do."

"You've always made me feel safe. Whenever you're around, I know I can just be myself. That I can just flirt as much as I like, that I can get hugs just by asking, same with kisses." The smile in her tone was really strong at this point. "And unlike other men I dated years ago, I know that if I ever feel, ahem,hot and bothered, I just need to say so and you'll take good care of me. And if I lose the mood during foreplay, I know you won't get mad at me. The last time that happened, you just smiled, gave me a kiss and said that it was okay. _Despite_the fact that you weren't able to zip up your jeans."

I actually laughed at that. I'd never been able to even smile after one of my nightmares in the past, and here, Li was able to make me feel that much better.

"But, back to the point; I want you to know that I'm here for you, just like you're here for me. Richard, if you ever need to talk about anything, I'll always listen. If you want a hug or kiss, don't feel that you need to hide it. I'm just as much your girl as you're my man." She took my hand and squeezed it. "I'm here for you, okay?"

"Okay." I nodded, the smile returning to my face. Gently pulling her paw up, I gave it a soft kiss, which made Li blush, judging by the way her heart reacted.

It was still dark outside. My bedside clock claimed that it was just past five in the morning, meaning that I had gotten a measly three hours of sleep. I certainly didn't feel well; not being able to recall the exact time I'd actually gotten proper rest was worrying. As I was thinking about that, Li let out a deep sigh, starting to run her paw through my hair.

"How... How much did I tell you about my past boyfriends when we met?" She asked, her voice soft and a little solemn.

I frowned, my train of thought having been turned around. "Besides saying that you'd had a bad luck streak? You didn't tell me about any of them. Aside from that last one." It was an odd question, but I felt that there was something important she wanted to say, so I didn't stop her.

"The first one, Dan, came along when I was just sixteen. I was... Young. Young and stupid. Twice I saw him making out with other girls, and yet I kept taking him back. I guess I thought it'd get better." Another sigh. "Eventually, he dumped me for another girl. You know, even though he didn't treat me with any respect, I still felt awful when he left me."

While she spoke, I placed my hand over Li's. For those with fragile hearts, it's difficult to look back at painful memories and keep themselves together. I'd had the pleasure of remembering very vividly every single patient I'd lost, be that through nightmares or sometimes visiting their graves. The latter was to pay my respect, shame and pain be damned. Either way, having someone there who truly loves you, and to just feel their touch... It's difficult to put into words how much strength that provides.

"Later, it was Randall. He came around the time I was in my 'rebellious' stage. Even though I had no real reason to rebel, I just felt like it gave me more freedom. Mum and Dad never discouraged me. They've always said that I should do what makes me happy, and I guess, in a way, leather jackets and big boots gave me more confidence." Li chortled. "I was a bit of a bitch back then, though. Anyway, Randall still had some sense of morality about him, in that he didn't hurt me physically. But he was a show-off with his friends. A bad-boy. He always wanted to show everyone he was Alpha Male, and he made damn well sure that little Li knew it. He made me feel like he was doing me a favour by being with me. Until, eventually, he just got rid of me. Wanna know the funny part?"

"Sure." I smiled up at her, and she smiled down at me.

"I stumbled onto him when I was riding around with the bike gang. He was a little bit more mature then, and it turns out that he was actually gay, and I intimidated him. He hid it remarkably well, but I guess it explains why he never kissed me privately. Come to think of it, I don't actually remember ever being kissed by him."

"At least he admitted it later, right? Why he left you."

"Yeah, I guess that took a bit of guts." She nodded. "There were some other flings here and there in between those two and the next one, but nothing worth noting. The next, and last one before you, was Frank, the Wolf. He was the worst. This was around Uni time. Frank was quite literally a party animal, and an angry drunk towards me. I don't know if he hated me specifically or women in general, but he'd hurt me whenever he felt like it."

"Why didn't you leave him?" I asked.

"I was afraid. He'd made some suggestions as to what he'd do if I tried to leave. I eventually made up my mind to try and call the police, to report him for abuse and assault, but I was still unsure that the charges would stick. Either way, I was sure that I'd be done with men when I managed to get away from him. Every single time it was just pain and heartbreak with them. Honest to God, I thought I'd just go Lesbian and be done with it."

I laughed a little, giving her paw a squeeze and looking up at her. "Well, you'd be well-off. It's mostly us males that are actively persecuted for hooking up with other males. Girls are more widely accepted these days."

"Heh... I guess. And then you came along."

I could tell that Li was remembering that night very clearly, since she'd mostly brushed off my joke, looking down at me with adoration and a grateful smile.

"I've done my share of storytelling. And I know you want to tell me. Go on, Li. Have at it."

***

Frank was already stumbling around when I got back from working late at the store. I could smell the Whiskey on his breath, and thanks to my hyper-sensitive nose, it made me want to retch. I'd been with him for about a month, and this had only started because he actually seemed like a nice guy when I met him, and I only started living with him because I'd had a hard time finding a permanent place for myself. Anyway, I walked in, avoided him and went to the kitchen to make myself something to eat. He followed me.

"Aren't you going to say 'Hi' to your boyfriend, Li?" He slurred.

"I... I thought you were asleep." I answered, trying to avoid getting him angry. "I didn't want to disturb you."

"Heeeey... I don't mind it if my bitch disturbs me... Especially when I could really use a blowjob..."

At that point, he started trying to feel me up. It... It felt disgusting. I didn't want him touching me. Previously, I dealt with it because I was afraid he'd hit me. I don't know what made me do what I did that night.

"No." I told him, pushing his hand away, turning and taking a step back. The counter was in my way, but I still managed to put some distance between him and me. Not that it mattered.

"What?" His eyes almost popped out of his head from the shock. I don't think he'd ever accepted that word before. "What did you say to me, bitch?"

"I don't want you touching me. And I want to leave."

He blinked, then started laughing. It only made more of his putrid breath go in my face, and I was seriously getting sick. My heart was starting to go crazy; from adrenaline, I guess. While he was doing that, I tried to move past him, towards the door. He caught me by the wrist. He was strong, and big, a lot more so than I was back then.

"You're not going anywh-"

He didn't get to finish what he was saying. I swung my free arm and managed to clock him in the temple, just enough to stun him. The shock kept him rooted to the spot, and gave me a few seconds to run for the door. I got out, and started running down the stairwell. I remember crying and panting. I was so scared. Where we lived, nobody would come to help. It wasn't exactly a good apartment building.

I managed to get to the exit and run out before he caught me. I think I was surprised that he could move so quickly, especially when inebriated. He spun me around and punched me in the cheek, making me fall down. I really thought he'd beat me to death then. It was... I was... I-...

***

Li was breaking down at that point. I pulled myself up and hugged her close.

"Shh... You're safe. He can't hurt you anymore." I murmured.

"I-... I know. It's just... Not a good memory."

"I know, baby. Do you want to leave it there?"

"N-no... I need to get this out."

"Alright."

***

After... After I fell down, he kicked me in the stomach. That took the wind out of me. I couldn't breathe. I felt the rain begin to fall, and one thing that remains so vivid is the sound of a distant thunderclap. Like a scene from a goddamn nightmare...

"I'm gunna show you what happens when you hit me." Frank growled.

Just then, I heard another voice. "Hey! That's enough!"

Tears were blurring my vision. When I looked up, Frank had turned around, and was looking somewhere into the darkness.

"You keep out of this!"

A man was jogging towards Frank. He had a brown leather jacket, short blonde hair... I remember that he was well-built, probably because he exercised. And he didn't look like he was going to abandon the situation. That gave me a little bit of hope.

"Leave her be." The man said.

"Or what? What're you gunna do about it?" Frank fired back.

"You don't want to go there. Just leave her alone and go back inside, and this'll be over for good."

"Nah... This here's my bitch, and I'm gunna treat her how I like. I think you'd best get out of here before I kick you to the curb."

The man's voice became quieter. "Does it get you off to hit a defenceless girl? Are you too much of a fucking coward to pick on someone who's the same size as you?"

"What did you just say to me?"

"You heard me, dickhead. You're a coward. A pussy._A yellow-bellied piece of mongrel _shit."

That sent Frank off. He started swinging wildly in utter rage. The man dodged a few hits, then, when he was close, he planted his elbow in Frank's jaw. I remember hearing this horrible crack. That stunned him. The next three hits sounded like someone punching a pillow, and by the way Frank bent over, I guessed that the man had just rearranged his guts a little. The last strike, the one I saw clearly, was an uppercut.

***

"You hit him so hard that it made his teeth crack. His head flew back, he stumbled a step, then fell backwards onto the pavement. Then you grabbed him by the collar and picked him up a bit, told him that if he ever so much as looked at me, you'd break all of his teeth and leave him an even sadder excuse for a Canine."

The tears were mostly gone. Li started to smile.

"The rain was falling harder, then. I remember how you pulled me up, put your jacket over me and lifted me up into your arms. You asked if I was okay, if he'd done any real damage. You asked if I was alright with coming home with you, somewhere where Frank couldn't find me until the morning, when you'd take me to a police station to report everything. I remember looking over your shoulder at the fading light of the apartment building's entrance, how good it felt to be leaving in the arms of someone who would protect me. For the first time, I felt_safe_. My nightmare was ending."

I was quiet. Stunned. I'd never thought that the night when I carried her away from the other wolf was the night when her life did a one-eighty. Li continued;

"After that, I remember when the police took the three of us in for questioning. I hid behind you when they pulled Frank into the station, but I saw the way he recoiled when he noticed you standing there. He was genuinely afraid of you."

"I never want people to fear me. But, sometimes, it's the only way to get through to them, when words don't cut it."

"Yes. Well, when that was over, and I gathered the courage to ask you if you'd want to date... That was when everything improved. Instead of living a nightmare, I was living a dream. In fact, it was even better. You were, and are, the perfect man, at least to me. You're always kind, always sweet and caring, romantic and unpredictable, you've never made the slightest reference towards being violent with me, you've never insulted me... Ever single memory I have of my time with you, Richard, is happy."

"Gosh darn it. My genuine love and courtesy stopped you from becoming a lesbian." I huffed. Li laughed , pulling me in for a hug.

"Yeah, they did. And I'm glad they did. Else, I'd have become a raging feminist. Thank you for showing me that not all men are complete pigs."

"A lot of us are." I shrugged. "But-" Sneakily, I placed a kiss on the corner of her mouth. "-you're welcome, sweetheart."

"See?" She asked, even though I sensed a blush in her tone. "You've just got this... Way about you, being so cute and irresistible. I feel so lucky that you're mine."

"As do I." I smiled. "You're the most wonderful thing that's ever happened to me, Leanne. My little Wolf."

She laughed again, that blush more prominent. That stopped soon, though. We both knew what needed to happen then, and neither of us liked it.

"Why did you leave, Leanne?" I asked.

She sighed, breaking eye contact for a moment, before making it again. "When I went to the hospital for a checkup, the doctors decided to do an X-ray. They found a tumour on my right lung, and their tests later said that it was a malignant one."

I honestly don't know why I didn't lose it then. Something in me made me stay calm. My heart-rate didn't skyrocket, I didn't feel any emotion other than what I'd been left with from the previous conversation. I was utterly calm.

"I felt like everything was going backwards again. I'd finally found someone who loved me and I loved back, and life decided to screw me over. I was scared, and fear makes people stupid." She sighed softly. "I left because I didn't want to watch you living in pain because I was wasting away. I didn't want to admit to you that I was dying. Leaving broke my heart in two, but I thought that I'd at least take some of the weight off your shoulders." A single tear rolled down her cheek. "I'm so sorry, Richard."

My heart reacted, taking over from my mind. I wiped the tear away from her cheek, ignoring the implications of what she'd just admitted to me. I ignored the idea that I'd lose her again, I ignored that she was suffering from cancer, I ignored the idea that the tumour could have spread through her entire lung and even further. All of that, gone, with one simple act.

I leaned forward and kissed her.

It wasn't a steamy kiss, nor a short one. It was one that said, 'I'm here for you. And I always will be, no matter what.' When it was over, her eyes slowly drifted open, and she managed a tiny smile behind the worried frown.

"What now?" She asked me.

"Now, I'm going to take you to the hospital and get an MRI scan of your chest. It's been seven years, and my professional assessment as a Doctor is that the tumour was in fact benign, and that the other doctors got it wrong. If it is, then I'll put you on an operating table and personally get rid of it. As long as you take no issue with me operating on you?"

"Hey, it's not like you haven't been inside me before." She grinned. I grinned back. "But seriously, Richard; there's nobody I trust more with my life than you. I know you'll keep me safe."

We sat there, staring into one another's eyes once more, and Leanne had one final question to ask of me.

"How do you know that this will turn out good?"

I smiled. "I've saved so many lives, I can't even count them all anymore. And I've never asked for anything in return. Tonight, I'm asking whatever is up above to grant me you as recompense for all my good deeds. And for some reason, I think something heard me."

December, 2010

The hospital was mostly quiet. It was about two hours until I got off duty for the evening, but the sun had already dropped below the horizon outside. The streets were being covered by a fresh layer of snow, and Christmas lights were blinking obnoxiously in the windows of neighbouring buildings. I'd actually been persuaded to put up a small Christmas tree in my own office, breaking the seven year streak of not bothering with festivities.

As I sat there, watching the fat flakes of snow drift down past my window, I noticed my reflection in the glass. I looked... Different. There was no stubble on my face, my eyes seemed brighter, and I was actually smiling. In the past, I'd only cracked the faintest smile when a joke was told or I was having a nostalgic moment, but now? I did it all the time.

There was a knock at my door. I spun around in my chair, shutting the laptop on my desk.

"Come in!" I called.

A familiar sight greeted me as the door cracked open. A wolfish smile, holding a set of pearly white teeth, flame red hair and emerald eyes. Oh, and a Christmas hat with a big pom-pom on the end.

"Hey you." She smiled. I got up and walked to hug my girl. When we separated, I noticed that one paw was behind her back, while the other was hovering over my head and holding a mistletoe sprig. That smile stayed on her face, though a blush had joined it.

"Any excuse to get a smooch, huh?" I asked.

"Me? No! I hate kissing you. This is just for show." Li laughed. And then we kissed.

I'd been right about my guess at the tumour being benign. Though it had grown quite a bit since her first scan, it wasn't doing any major damage. It was pressing up against her ribcage, hence why coughing made her chest hurt. And the black phlegm was just tar from inside the lungs. As soon as we both stopped smoking, she cleared right up.

I performed the operation myself. I was the last person Li saw before going into anaesthesia, and the first person she saw when she awoke. All through the procedure, her heart rate never spiked or dropped; it was completely calm. She told me later that she knew I wouldn't let her go, so she was never afraid of what was going to happen. While we were working, Mike told me that he'd never seen a patient go into an operation with a smile.

After that, we found her a job working in a local garage via Al the Bear's friend. He asked Li to show him what she knew when it came to bikes, and she showed him how she disassembled one, then put it back together sparkling clean, and even tuned it up to make it work better. I'd describe the process with more detail, but my expertise is on the human body, not so much on machines.

"You wouldn't mind if I had a look at how you're healing up, would you?" I asked, after I'd satisfied her with a kiss.

"Of course not." Li said. While I grabbed a pen-light from my desk, she took off her coat and pulled up her shirt, all the way up over her chest, giving me a splendid view of a thermal sports bra and some cleavage.

"You love to tease me, don't you?" I chuckled, crouching down to get a better angle. Under the light, it was difficult to even see a mark left over from the surgery. Then again, I'd always found that Wolves healed faster than most other races when it came to physical injury.

"Every chance I get!" Li quipped in return, giggling to herself as well. It came to my attention that one paw was still behind her back.

"Hiding something, sweetie?" I asked, putting back my light and pulling her shirt back down for her, but not without keeping my hands under it for a little while to stroke her tummy.

"Aw, shucks, you caught me." With another giggle, she held out a box. It wasn't very wide, but it was certainly long. Deep brown in colour, with a velvet bow tie on its top. The tag attached to the velvet addressed the box to me.

"What's this?" I asked.

"It's a little something from me and all of your co-workers. Call it an early Christmas gift." Li explained. I reached out and pulled the ribbon to unbind the box, then gently lifted the lid. Underneath was a gorgeous chain of silver colour, attached to which was an intricate Celtic symbol, too complicated for my eyes to decode.

"Oh..." I breathed, looking at the pendant in stunned silence.

"Do you like it?" The Wolf asked, a little bit of concern in her tone.

"I... Of course. I love it." I nodded, going on tiptoes to kiss her on the cheek. "Thank you, Li."

"It wasn't just me. Also, Judy and I made the final decision of what the symbol should be. The guys, rightfully, said that us girls are better at picking out accessories."

"Well, it's silver-"

"It's white gold, honey."

The breath nearly caught in my throat. "That's even more expensive."

"The price doesn't matter." Ever so gently, Li took the pendant from its box and unclipped its lock, putting it around my neck. "The symbol on the chain means three things. The three corners of the triangle, the triquetra, represent them. They're; Healer, Friend and Lover. We were told that when the goldsmith made it, he kept those three things in mind, so they're cast into the metal."

When the necklace was clipped in place, I wrapped my arms around Leanne and hugged her tight. She hugged back.

"A Healer to all, a Friend to many..." She began.

"But a Lover to only one." I finished. Li nodded, smiling. "Thank you, Leanne."

"You're more than welcome, Richard. Feel like coming home with me to get your other present?" She winked.

"How could I say no?" I grinned.

After signing out, Li and I walked home to our apartment. Hand in paw, we trudged through the snow, talking quietly, laughing at random jokes and wisecracks each of us would make in turn. As we neared a corner which led to our street, she squeezed my hand and pulled me a little closer for a moment.

"I want you to know how much fun our relationship is, Rich." She told me, eyes a-twinkle. "Hell, I'd be content with you just being my friend. But the fact that I get you in bed too? I couldn't ask for anything more. Which isn't to say that the sex is the only fun part! I mean, when I'm with you, I'm always laughing and smiling... I'm starting to blabber again. Just know I love you very, very, very much."

I couldn't help but smile at that. Silly Wolf. "And I, you. I'd definitely be your friend if you were another's girl, but I'd still be really jealous."

"A tall, big-tittied redhead? I'd make _women_jealous." Li laughed. We moved to the side of the pavement and hugged again. While we were close, she murmured a few words to me; "When we get home, there's something I want to tell you."

I nodded. "Okay, honey."

We arrived at the apartment just as the snowfall started to pick up a bit. After putting away our coats, we both trudged upstairs.

Li took a seat on the bed, facing me, paws clasped together between her knees. Once again, there was that look of adoration on her face as she sat there, looking me up and down. I stopped in my tracks when I saw that.

"What?" I asked, looking down at myself to check if my fly was undone or something.

"Your pecs are starting to show again." She smiled. "And your biceps are coming back. That workout regimen is bringing back the younger you."

I put on a grin. "Soon, I'll have better tits than you do!"

Li burst out laughing. It took her a while to stop, and little beads were on the corners of her eyes when she did. "Believe me, they're more of a curse than a blessing. I mean, I need a designer sports top to keep the girls from getting in the way. And the only reason I don't get back problems is because I'm big."

"Well, I guess you're right."

"I considered getting them shrunk a few times, but I keep remembering that you love them oh-so much." Li winked. "And I'm not about to go and spoil your fun."

"Aren't you considerate." I laughed.

"Yes I am!"

I went to take off my shirt, then I realised that the little black box was still on my desk. The one I'd rudely slammed into the kitchen's counter before storming upstairs a few months back. I picked it up as if it was the most fragile thing in the world and turned it over in my hand.

"Did you like it?" I asked Li.

"Did I like what?" She replied. She'd only just taken off her own shirt, and I'd stopped her in the middle of removing the bra.

"The engagement ring I got for you." I showed her the box.

"Oh... I didn't look at it. Both because I was too upset to back then, but also because I thought... Well... You might change your mind and want to actually use it. And I didn't want to spoil the surprise."

While she spoke, I moved towards her, and crouched down right in front of her, the little box still in my hand.

"I love you more than words could ever begin to describe." Li said, simply.

I smiled. "Close your eyes for me?"

She complied without hesitation. I carefully adjusted myself to be on one knee, the box perched in my left palm.

"You can open them again, sweetheart."

Li opened her eyes. They glanced around me, and when she realised what was happening, a whole different kind of smile appeared.

"Would you be my girl, now and forever?"

She nodded, wordless at first. Then, "Of course. Of course I will!"

"Don't you want to at least look at the ring, then?" I smiled.

Her ears drooped a little from embarrassment. "Oh... Right, yes. Sorry, I'm so happy that I forgot about the box." Ever so gently, she pulled the lid up. Underneath lay a silver ring, a thin circlet of silver topped by the purest Emerald I could get my hands on back then. It had put one hell of a dent in my wallet, but I felt that it would be more than worth it. The fact that I didn't return it afterwards should tell you exactly how I felt.

"It's... Amazing. Beautiful." Leanne whispered.

"You might have some trouble putting it on, though. It was made to measure for you seven years ago." I frowned. Li leaned down and kissed me.

"Then I'll just wear it on my pinkie until I can get it enlarged."

That frown faded away into a smile again. "Speaking of which, do you still have the necklace I got you for your birthday?"

"Oh, yeah. It's in the other bedroom, with my bike gear. I used to wear it all the time, until the chain got a little bit too tight. I was too afraid of breaking it to wear it on my wrist instead, so I just kept it in the knapsack and went to sleep with it between my hands." She looked down, closing the little box and taking my free hand in the two of hers. "It... It reminded me of you. I realised a month into the breakup that there was no getting over the love of my life, so I settled on dreaming of you whenever that necklace was with me."

I put the box away onto the bedside table, so that I could get a free hand to cup her cheek with. "And I guess seven years was enough."

"Yes... I wanted to see you again. I didn't know how much time I had left, and all I wanted was another hug or kiss from you before I..." She took a deep breath, holding back tears. I got up, sat on the bed next to her and gently pulled her head into my chest, where I held her tight.

"It's all in the past, baby." I murmured, running a hand through her hair. "We've got plenty of time to get sick of one another again."

She laughed softly. "You think I'd still be with you if I didn't love everything about you? I don't think I could ever get sick of your sense of humour. More so your hugging." Under her breath, jokingly; "And the sex."

"You said that you wanted to talk to me about something." I reminded her, changing the topic so that neither of us would forget.

"Yeah, I remember. You notice how my parents still look young, even though they're in their mid-fifties?"

"I always chalked it up to the fact that they're furs."

"You're right, more or less. It hasn't been properly explained yet, but if one or more of the people in a relationship are furs, sometimes, they both seem to age more slowly. The most logical explanation is some kind of natural pheromone. But what triggers it? That's what stumps science." Li looked up at me, smiling softly in the dim light. "My mom always told me that it's true love. That when I find my mate, be it he or she, fur or not, if I really, truly love them, then nature will want me to enjoy that love for as long as I can, and we'll both live longer. You're my true love, and I'm inclined to think that I'll make you live a decade or two longer than you would have under normal circumstances."

I stayed quiet for a moment, processing this new information. Only a few months back, I was worried that I wouldn't be able to spend much more time with my girl. And now, to add to the fact that she was with me and healthy and happy, I was going to have her for years and years more. With a soft 'Heh', I grinned at her. "In that case, we'll definitely have time to get sick of one another."

Li rolled her eyes. She then pushed me back onto the bed, and as I lay there, I felt her climb on and take a seat on my waist. Gently, she took hold of my hands, interlacing her fingers with mine, and started some playful wrestling. "You seem hellbent on getting sick and tired of me, Richard. Is that some foreshadowing I sense? I mean, I don't think you'd propose to me if you wanted to get rid of me."

"Well, to start with, you're pesky and demanding. Not to mention outright insatiable." I began, looking away from her but smiling nonetheless. "You take up space in the apartment, I have to take you for walks around the park, else you'll start asking for the _other_kind of exercise... Jeez, I'm not sure why I haven't put you in a shelter yet."

"Think you could come up with a good reason?" Li asked, smiling with me. I moved my hands to her hips, and she welcomed the contact.

That was her mistake.

I caught her off-guard by flipping us over, so that she was lying on her back and I was kneeling over her. She'd let out a surprised yelp when that happened, but laughed it off right after.

"Well, I managed to tame the beast!" I proclaimed. "My, isn't she a big catch. Like, one fifty kilos?"

"Pfft. Make that two hundred." Then, in a faked hurt tone, she added, "Hey! I'm sensitive about my weight! I get enough ass-talk at work!"

"Are you surprised? After all, you have such a _lovely_tushie."

Li had been faking a pout, but I saw that she was struggling to keep it there. The corners of her lips were already curling. It broke through a few seconds later, as she wrapped her arms around the back of my neck, and her legs around my waist, and asked, "You gunna compliment me to death, or come down here and_cum_ down there?"

"All in due time, sweetie." I chuckled, leaning on one elbow as I stroked her bare tummy with my other hand. "You wanted a reason for me not throwing you out, right?"

"Aye. That I did."

My voice died down to a murmur. I leaned over, mouth close to her ear, and spoke. "I'll never find another girl as smart, witty, flirty, funny, fiercely intelligent, beautiful, absolutely gorgeous_and amazing as you are. Meeting you that night felt like I was doing something stupid, getting myself involved in business I shouldn't have even considered getting involved in. Since then, I never regret a single day, because I know that you're perfect for me, because I trust you to no end, because something as simple as seeing you smile will make me happier than anything that exists in this world. You're silly, sexy, fantastic and _I love you."

When I moved my head back to look at her, I saw that her ears had completely drooped, and her blush was so vibrant that it was visible through the gray fur, despite the dim light.

"How's that for a reason?" I smiled.

"I'm the luckiest girl alive." She replied, barely whispering.

"Not_the_ luckiest. You could be going out with Travolta. Or some other famous dude."

Li snorted, shaking her head and laughing softly. Her hands ended up on my back, and the back of my head. "Fame doesn't give a man a good heart, a humble soul or a loving spirit. You've got those in aces, and plenty more. Now..." She pulled me down into a hug. "...I am _really_struggling to control myself after all those lovely things you said. Please please me, Richard?"

"I could never say 'no' to you, my little Wolf."