FSE

Furry search engine

formerly SoFurry search engine

_ Foundations _

_ Part 1 _

(Alen)

Swipe after swipe, I grabbed the bedsheets to pull myself forwards. The mattress below kept on shifting. Straining. It made it tough to stay upright. Tougher still to carry on crawling.

"I'll find you," came the rumble from above, beyond the blanket hiding me away.

Something heavy slammed down ahead. Forced me into a rapid left turn. The rising and sinking of the whining springs below intensified. Turned harsh. It put me down onto my stomach more than once.

"You can't outrun me, little otter."

Another crushing impact; either side of me this time. The fabric above sank. My arms gave way. Trapped here, sprawled out and defenseless, I sensed movement. Strong gusts of breath heated the sheets, and me along with them. I started to tremble, but not through fear.

The pressure lifted, bedcovers whipping away fast enough to roll me onto my back. A sky of golden-brown greeted me. As did the grin on my big boyfriend's masked face. "Got you."

I couldn't even blink before that sky fell. A wave of soft fur enveloped me, burying me beneath its warmth. I'd gotten well used to the sharp yet gentle musk of raccoon wafting in my nostrils, but that never stopped my heart from racing.

I rubbed and kneaded at Jonas' doughy stomach spread over my frame, its weight pinning me completely. Strong flexes of muscle came with every movement he made. Muscles well hidden but undeniably present beneath his bulk. They sent tremors through the bed beneath us. And through me. Even if I could somehow make a move, there's no way in the world I'd wanna be anyplace else.

A heavy grunt filled the air, the weight and warmth atop me easing and lifting away. Jonas rose back onto paws and knees, his glistening silver chain dangling from his neck catching my attention. Not for long. My focus moved down to his fluffy paunch, supported well by burly biceps and forearms.

I sucked a heavy breath in past my panting. The tightening in my crotch demanded I reach down for my boxers.

"Had enough?" Jonas cooed mockingly, beating me to the punch. A single finger pressed down upon my hardened shaft, kneading through straining fabric.

"As if." I aimed my tone for defiant, but only found docile with my reply. My handpaw did manage to find his finger. A slow scritching earned another smile down at me. "I'd stop you if I had."

"Would you?" He let out a low, guttural growl. That smile became a smirking scowl. The paw he'd been stroking me with splayed out, easily pressing down upon everything but my head and shoulders. "You sure?"

"Yeah--!" Another huge shift of the mattress cut me short. Jonas crawled up the bed, his grasp upon me staying firm. Soon, I found myself flanked by his golden thighs, each as thick as I stood tall. Everything sank as he shifted back. The springs surrendered without a fight as he parked his big rear to kneel high above me.

"Want to rethink that?"

I couldn't see it beyond the curve of his stomach, nor the expanding, strong scented bulge in his briefs, but the creasing of his black-masked eyes gave his delight away.

"...Maybe."

"Figured." The roaring eased into a chuckle, his deep yet sweet voice dancing in my ears. "Can't handle a big Visoka like me."

I loosened along with his clamp-like hold, enjoying the caressing of my fur with his fingerpads. "Can't handle you?"

"Yeah." Jonas lifted me effortlessly from the bed. "That's right."

I eyed up his stiffened, barely hidden shaft as I passed his hips. "You've never complained about how well I've _handled_you before."

He snorted out a laugh, leaning down to meet me with a lick. "Don't make me pin you again... Harder."

"Like you would." I patted his nose before stroking the short fur of his milky muzzle. "You're a big softy, really."

"If you say so," he cooed, without the mocking this time. I reached up to lick him back, only to have him nose me right back down again. A light nuzzling tickled me into his soft palm pad. The soothing kiss we shared started me melting within it.

My stomach lurched with Jonas' flop back onto the bed. He'd made sure to keep me tight to his muzzle tip, leaving us plenty of opportunity to carry on kissing all the way down.

A dreadful pang started in my chest the moment he did eventually move away, parting me from the wonderful taste of his lips. Not that it'd last long.

Our mattress groaned, shifting and rolling as Jonas heaved himself up onto his side. The simple act of a raccoon as tall and as broad as my boyfriend moving was always an event in itself.

He pulled me into the soft twin peaks of his chest, letting me hear his powerful heart beat beneath cream-coloured fur. I spread my arms and hugged him as best I could. That won from him a growl of pleasure as he pulled our sheets back over us, though probably not as much as my idle hip grinding against him. "Thank you for this. It was fun."

"It's nothing." He placed his protective paws around me. "I know how much you like it when I act all big for you."

"I do," I sang back, wriggling under his grasp. "Though, judging by how you were... reacting, I reckon you were enjoying it, too." Jonas didn't answer, but the subtle flick of his ears combined with a delicate squeeze told me everything.

Relaxing in his paws, giving Jonas free rein to rub over me with intimate affection, only heightened my delight, my thankfulness for being here. Not just in his hold, nor his bedroom; but here, in his apartment. The placed I called home, and had done since we first met three months ago. Compared to that small bed in the cramped, scaled down area of my awful, abusive ex-boyfriend's bedroom, everything here was an improvement tenfold. An example? The little room that might have been mine here in Jonas' apartment sat unused, buried under clothes, magazines, and a few awards he'd not found space for with the rest of his old high school wrestling trophies. Not that it mattered. Since the very start of what some might call our whirlwind romance, Jonas' bed; _our_bed, was the only one I ever saw myself sleeping in.

"Alen?"

"Yeah?" I nuzzled into his fur. "What's up?"

"Before we settle down for the night... I wanted to run something by you."

"Okay." Pressing back against his comfortable pads, I got a better view of Jonas' shrunken smile. "What's on your mind?"

He petted over me, glancing away to something across the bedroom. "I spoke to my parents today. About heading back to visit them."

"Right," I mumbled, closing my eyes and leaning into his handpaw. "You said you were gonna a few days back. How'd it go?" "Decently. Looks like it'll be happening in a couple of weeks. I'll move some shifts around at work, cover a couple of nights behind the bar. Maybe take some vacation time, too. Make a long weekend of it."

"Sounds nice." I ran my fingers through his fur. Its coarse softness against my webbing never failed to relax me. "I know you've been looking forward to seeing them again."

"Yeah. A lot." Strangely, he didn't react to my squeezing at his chest. "I actually suggested that I'd bring you along with me."

My eyes sprang open. "Me?"

"If you want to."

"Right... Oh." I hated how Jonas' ears began to splay. "You think they'd want me there?"

"Of course," he answered, half laughing. "Why wouldn't they? I've told them all about you."

"Like what?"

"What do you think?" A full laugh came that time. "That you're my boyfriend, an otter, who I met at work back in the springtime."

"What about the fact that I'm Maleni?"

"That, too."

"How'd they take it?"

He frowned. "What do you mean?"

"I mean... Did they take it well?"

"Why wouldn't they?" He started to grin, drawing another loud protest from the mattress as he adjusted himself. "They're well aware you're smaller than me."

"That's not hard." I snickered, massaging at and pressing my hips into his chest. "Most _everyone's_smaller than you."

"Don't hear you complaining."

"That's right." I kissed him on the muzzle. "You don't."

My derailment of the conversation didn't last all that long. Jonas had rolled onto his back, leaving me perched in the valley of his chest and looking up at him.

His thick brown mitt of a paw slid into my periphery. "I'd love to have you come back home to Padinica with me. Show you round where I grew up. It's real nice in the summer." The jabbing of his blunt claw into the small of my back pressed me deeper into his fur. "It'd be a great excuse for a getaway together, too."

"Getaway, huh?"

He mumbled a confirmation, running his claw down to my tail base. "It'd be a lot of fun." It ran beyond, tugging my boxers. The thrill of him finding the flesh of my rear forced me to shudder and squirm. "What do you say?"

"I'd say you're trying your best to convince me." We grinned at one another, but he didn't let up. Thankfully. "I have to admit... A mini-break away together sounds pretty tempting."

"So... Is that a yes?"

I gazed into hopeful hazel eyes. No way I could disappoint him. "Sure."

"Great!" He gave me one last squeeze, then a firm cuddle deep into his fur. "I'll let my parents know. It'll be good to introduce you to my family. And them to you."

I smiled back, unable to miss my crotch starting to stir all over again. "Wanna pick up from where we left off? Finish off our fun?"

Jonas grinned, offering a massive, echoing growl that made me go weak at the knees. I sprawled out, breathed deep, and waited for him to roll over and bury me all over again.

---

Maybe my libido had distracted me, kept my focus firmly on finishing what we'd started that night a couple weeks back, but when the day came to join Jonas on his drive back home, I certainly wasn't smiling.

"Alen, are you okay?"

"Sure," I replied from my seat in his cupped paws, yanking the strap of my backpack tighter. "Never better. You?"

"I'm great." He stepped out through the main doors of our apartment building. His sky blue shirt shone bright in the midday sun. "Glad you are, too... Just you're a little quiet is all."

I caught sight of one of our Maleni neighbours; a wolf, enjoying the weather from the balcony of his fifth storey apartment level here with Jonas' chest.

"Are you sure you're okay--?"

"I am." I peered back up to him. "Guess I'm just tired."

"You_were_ up pretty early. Lowering the bed, shuffling around long before eight. Couldn't you sleep?"

"Yes and no... I was up early making sure I'd packed everything. And that you had, too."

Jonas started to smirk. "Had I?"

"...Yeah."

"Knew it. You worry too much."

"So you always say, but _you'd_be the one upset if you'd forgotten something."

"Not really. Anything I did manage to forget probably wouldn't have been all that important to start with."

"If you say so." I made sure to fold my arms hard enough for Jonas to know about it.

"I do." He ruffled the longer fur of my head, forcing me to smile through my fake outrage. "Besides. It's not like we're going out into the wilderness. I'm fairly sure we could replace anything we might leave behind down in Padinica."

"Wish I could be as laid back as you."

"I don't think I'm all that laid back." His paw curled around me, tugging me to his chest. "Not really."

I nosed into him. "Are"

"You just overthink things too much."

That I couldn't argue with. Not that day at least.

We headed into the near empty car park. Being Friday, most of our neighbours were off at work. It made Jonas' faded-yellow, two-door coupe easy to spot in its regular space on the far side of the lot.

"You sure we'll get there in that old thing?"

"Oh, you've got jokes today?" He tapped a finger at my side, forcing me to flinch with a giggle. "It's not _that_old, and it's not let me down yet... Not majorly at least."

"Not that old? I don't think they even make cars without extension ramps any more."

"As if you need one with me around." He slid me into his left paw, digging into his pocket for his keys with the other. "Anyhow, if my ride isn't up to your standards, you're free to find out how long a ninety minute drive'll take on foot."

"Pass, thanks."

"Figured." He opened the passenger door, giving another poke before lowering me down to the seat. "Come on. We'll be relaxing at my parents' in no time."

"Yeah... Can't wait."

Driving might have cut our travel time in half compared to the train, but being buckled up here in the car gave me a less than spectacular view. That is if you don't count brown seat fabric and plastic interior as appealing to the eyes.

Not that I missed out on much once we'd left the tall buildings of the capital behind. I'd made more trips up and down the coastside trainline than I could remember. Mostly up, when heading back to my own hometown. Just like always, the hills and mountains would still be inland. Meanwhile opposite, the shining blue water would stretch endlessly away from the shore.

All that aside, even if I had a window to the world down here, I'd still be focusing on this niggle in my stomach. It'd bothered me plenty back in our bed, before I agreed to this trip, and only did so more now I found myself hurtling down the highway.

"...need... be scared."

My ears twitched frantically to Jonas' muffled words. "What?"

"I said..." He reached out of sight to wind his window closed. He didn't need to shout over the cool air blasting in any longer. "There's no need to be scared. You've barely said a word since we left."

"I'm not." Well... 'Scared' wasn't the exact word I'd have used to explain my tension anyway.

"Good." Jonas reached to the simple centre console, dialling up the car's fan. Lukewarm air started pouring from the dashboard above. At least we could talk easier this way... for better or worse. "You really don't need to be."

"I'm just tired. I said that back at home."

"Yeah, you did." He flashed his eyes to me for a second. "That doesn't explain why you keep on fidgeting."

I wanted to question what he meant by that... until a look down at my lap gave the answer. "Listen..." I pulled my wringing paws apart, setting them on my knees. "I'm--"

"Is it the size thing? Because Padinica might not be a big city like Sturanja, but there are still _loads_of Maleni living there. Neighbours. Friends. In fact, there's a mixed-size couple a few doors away from my parents'... unless they've moved. I remember they were starting their appointments at the clinic, trying for a baby around about the time I left. Lot's of chatter about that."

"Chatter?"

Jonas nodded, eyes sticking to the road ahead this time. "All positive. Well wishing. No lynch mobs or anything like that."

"What, and that kinda thing happens regularly there?"

He grumbled, taking another quick glance away from the road. "All I'm saying is, my family'll hardly even mention it. They won't care at all."

"Alright... You know them better than I do."

"Just trust me. Please."

I disarmed as much of the edge from my voice as I could, answering, "You know I do."

_That_one thing would never be in dispute, but fact of the matter was, as nice and as positive his family might have been towards Maleni, I knew Jonas had never been _with_one of us before. Yes, his parents might have been supportive of their neighbours, but would they be so open towards a mixed-size relationship in their own family staring them in the face? What about his brothers? His other relatives? How would they all take it? So many questions that I _really_didn't want the answers to.

"There are plenty of Maleni up in Lucica, too, right?"

"Uh... of course," I replied, still half caught up within myself. "Probably not as many as Sturanja, maybe not even Padinica, but considering it's barely a town... Why?"

"Because if that's true, I'm not sure why you're getting yourself so worked up about all this..."

Suddenly I started missing that samey scenery beyond the passenger door. Something to focus on and pull me from the circles this conversation had started moving in.

"...You've told me all about your bigger friends back at school. How you used to hang out. Sail and swim with them on weekends, and--"

"Jonas, look." I sighed, wondering where to go now I'd finally stopped him talking. "It's not... I just..."

"Spit it out," he said with a chuckle. "You can tell me."

"I'm... It's the fact that... I want to make a good impression."

"Seriously?" Jonas flicked the indicator stick. "Is that all?"

No. "Pretty much."

We veered gently onto the exit road for Padinica, judging by the sign flashing past overhead. "Nothing else?"

"That, and... general nerves."

"Well, they can stop." My body started to lean as the car slowed. "I can't imagine you not making a good impression. All you have to do is act yourself, and my family will like you just as much as I do." Jonas yanked on the handbrake. I could see the stop light hovering beyond the dashboard. "Or maybe... almost as much."

My ears and cheeks began to warm. "Stop buttering me up." I grinned along with him. "It's not like I can go back home now anyhow."

"Honestly. Try not to worry." Jonas shifted in his seat, heaving his big frame over to stroke between my ears. "This'll be a great break away together. I know it."

_ Part 2 _

A slow, winding drive took us up and over the foothills; bringing Jonas' hometown into view. We'd pulled over along the way for a quick lunch and to refuel. The stop also gave him the chance to offer me a place in the collar of his shirt. He'd slipped me down to his bare chest, nursing my legs between two fastened buttons while his neck chain meanwhile offered me a seat. 'Padinica looks really pretty from the road in,' Jonas had said as we pulled away again, and to be fair, he'd not been lying.

Sitting on a hillside, overlooked by the mountains lying further inland, this large shoreside town seemed to glow in the August sun. Rows of white stone houses looked out over taller, close-knit buildings beside the coast. A dozen individual docks at least stretched out into the bay, offering launching points for all the yachts, fishing ships and sailboats dotting the water.

"Good view, right?"

"Very," I replied, peering out over the darker v-neck of his soft blue shirt. We rolled over the hillcrest, starting our descent towards the town proper. "Reminds me a little of Lucica. Except hilly... and bigger. Not that that's difficult."

"Big is not something I'd call Padinica," Jonas said, scoffing, "but, hopefully it's big enough to give you plenty to see while we're here."

Small side streets flanked by bright houses came first as we reached the town's outskirts. These houses soon gave way to larger buildings of stone and brick. Shops, offices and a grand church in particular led us into the the main town centre.

Our drive slowed to a crawl not long after that; the snarl of traffic standard for the heart of any town, I guess. Even so, with all these quaint old buildings, shoulder to shoulder along maze-like streets, Padinica still held that sleepy, small town atmosphere I'd grown up around back home. It's something you just didn't get in the city, no matter how big the park you took a walk through, or how peaceful the beach you kicked back to relax on. You could easily miss it, but by the same token, you could definitely get bored of it when back home for too long.

After our short road battle with the natives, we made it across town; entering the narrow side roads with even thinner traffic. I'd almost been sent dizzy by all the lefts and rights Jonas made, eventually stopping at the base of a street carving a curving path up the hillside.

"Here we are," Jonas said. "Home."

I followed his gaze through the window, admiring the two-storey house we'd pulled up in front of. Its white stone walls soaked in the early afternoon sun. Outside, set between two well-kept cypress trees in a small front garden, sat a short flight of steps with a Maleni-sized stairlift running up the side of them. They led up onto a raised terrace extending out from the right side of the building. Up there, a red wooden door lied in wait, resting half open as if to welcome us inside. I mustn't have looked all that convinced, judging by Jonas' big paw reaching to hold me to his chest.

"Things'll be fine," he insisted, slipping off his seatbelt. "In fact, they'll be better than fine. I promise."

I managed a nod, and a smile that must've looked more awkward than not.

"And remember, if for some strange, inexplicable reason they aren't, I'll be right there with you." He squeezed lightly, fingers stroking me through the fabric of his shirt collar. "Okay?"

"Okay." My smile came freer this time. It lasted right up until my ears twitched to the clunk of the car door opening.

My nerves bubbled stronger and stronger with every step Jonas took up the stone stairway. Nothing he could have said would've stopped it; a fact he must have known too, considering his own silence. All that said, as much as my anxiety would never go away... I still had a sense of excitement about all this. Sure, it might've been lodged deep beneath a whole load of negativity, but a sense it still was. Seeing where Jonas grew up, the places he'd visited and hung out at during his younger years; it'd give me the chance to learn even more about him. Maybe even help me get closer to him. For that alone, I had to give this a fair shot.

At the top of the steps, approaching the big red door, I got a good look at the outside terrace. A big collection of potted plants surrounded a set of wooden garden furniture. One seat stood away from the table, a used plate and glass suggesting it'd been in use not too long ago. No surprise on a hot day like this.

"Hello?" Jonas knocked twice, slowly pushing the door open. "Ma? I'm here."

We moved inside, greeted by a small, homely front room. Bars of sunlight filtered in through the vertical blinds of the full length front window. Jonas' boots clicked across the grey stone flooring, approaching a thick, red rug in the centre of the room.

"Anyone home?" he called out, louder, leaving his travel case in front of a floral patterned white couch set against the left-side wall. A collection of red and purple cushions sat arranged atop them, matching the second couch resting perpendicular along the shorter back wall. A set of corner shelves attached to the wall above them held a crowd of well-polished silver ornaments, sparkling whenever a ray of sun caught them just right. They reminded me of Jonas' smaller collection of shiny trinkets back at our apartment. No doubt in my mind that I'd entered the home of a family of raccoons.

"Jonas?" My ears perked to the voice beyond the ceiling. Footsteps on stairs followed next, sounding from the kitchen through the archway ahead. "Is that you?"

"Yeah, it's me." The creaking of wood drew closer. My stomach churned harder. I bit down on my lip and readied myself, focusing towards the top of the arch.

"You're here at last!" To my surprise, I had to readjust. She appeared from behind the wall, but barely stood more than half as tall as the opening. I peered down from Jonas' collar, watching her enter with a smile as bright as her lavender blouse. "Welcome home."

"Thanks, Ma."

Her golden brown fur shone just like her son's in the creeping sunlight. With reaching arms, she rushed towards us. "Oh, come here!"

"Sorry, Alen," Jonas muttered, carefully untangling me from his shirt and scooping me up. "I'll set you down if that's okay?"

"Sure." He bent down to deposit me upon the couch below. My back sank into one of the big red decorative cushions. It offered me support as I gazed up to watch mother and son hug tight.

"It's so good to see you," she sang, looking up to nose into her far taller son's chest.

"You too." Jonas lowered his head, almost crouching to rest his muzzle between her ears.

Their matching black and brown tails swayed slowly. My ears relaxed. As did my stomach. Height difference aside, he truly was his mother's son.

"How have you been?" She loosened her hold. "Is Sturanja treating you well?"

"I've been great," Jonas replied, sliding his paws away to step back and stand up. "And it is. Work's good. Home, too." His eyes flashed in my direction. "How about you?"

"Yes, everything's fine. Much the same as when we spoke last weekend." They shuffled over to the couches together, Jonas diverting towards mine, his mother to the one on my left. "I finished cleaning and redecorating the terrace yesterday. Found some beautiful violets down at the florist to go with what we already have out there." She eased herself down to into her seat, settling back. "Did you see them as you came in?"

"Yeah," Jonas replied, positioning himself to sit to my right. "They look nice."

"Only nice?"

"Okay... They look great. It all looks great."

"I swear." She huffed with a half smile. "Just like your father, and your brothers."

"Ma, I saw it for all of two seconds." He slapped a paw to his hip, a whip of his tail sending a soft breeze past me. "Gimme a chance."

"Well, we'll head back out there in a moment. I only came in to get my sandals." She looked over at the half-open front door. "It's far too nice out to stay cooped up indoors. Plus it'll give you a chance to tell me what you really think of what I've done out there."

"Alright," Jonas half-grumbled. "Can I at least take a seat for a minute?"

"Of course." She gestured towards the couch, starting him smiling down past his side at me. I returned it, scooting to my left in silent confirmation for what would follow. I wasn't sure how much his mother would appreciate it, though.

I watched him push his broad hips back intently, letting himself drop right next to me. The weight of his impact pounded down the cushions beneath him, forcing up the area beneath me in unison. It sprang me half my height into the air; far enough for Jonas' paw to catch me on my descent.

I had no idea if his mother had caught my amateur acrobatics. She never passed comment on them specifically at least.

"Jonas! What have I told you!?"

He chuckled. "What?"

"Seats are for _sitting_in." She sighed, glancing my way as Jonas placed me atop his thigh. "I hope he doesn't throw himself around like that at home."

"Oh... No." I just about kept my grin hidden. "Not at all."

"See, Ma?" Jonas smirked down at me. "I'm _always_gentle."

"Mmhm." She folded her arms, corners of her mouth creasing. "My couch would prefer it if 'always' extended to here, too." With a shake of the head and the widening of her eyes, Jonas' mother turned back to me. "But please, forgive my manners. You must be Alen."

My tail curled around to rest against my leg. Her voice was soft, expression even more so, but with attention firmly on me, something compelled me to trace them both for hostility.

"Sorry," Jonas said, placing a paw to his face for a moment. "Alen, this is my mother." He sat forward, shifting me closer to her. "Ma, this is Alen."

"Nice to meet you." I kept my voice mostly even while adjusting the neck of my shirt. "Mrs. Devic."

"Nice to meet you, too." Her broad smile pushed up her cheeks. Much the same way Jonas' often did. "Please though, call me Marta."

"Sure." I let go of my collar, taking in an easier breath. "Mrs-- Marta."

"I've heard _all_about you."

"Oh." The next one came harder. "And me... about you."

"I hope the journey down here was okay?"

"Yeah... Yes. No problems..." I searched for something else to say. Damn it, this shouldn't have been hard! "Thank you."

"Would you like something to eat? Drink?"

"I... no. That's fine. I'm okay. Thank you." Thank you. Thank you. Is that all I could say? She'd think I'm an idiot for sure. My stomach went from churning to trembling to twisting itself into knots.

Still smiling, she nodded. "Okay." I hoped I hadn't offended her somehow. My paw found my collar again.

Mercifully, attention drifted away from me not long after. Mrs. Devic... I mean, Marta, looked back up to Jonas, preparing to ply him with questions instead.

"So, you're still enjoying work?"

"Yeah, definitely." He draped his arm across his lap in front of me. The extra cover helped me settle down at least a bit. "It's a job of course, but I'm real happy at Riki's. Haven't figured out any place else I'd like to work at at least."

"Haven't thought about coming back to join your Dad out on the water?"

"Ma, come on." Jonas shifted in his seat, forcing me to grab two pawfuls of his arm fur. I could hear his tail flitting frantically behind us. "You know I'm not cut out for that."

"I know, I know." His mother grinned. "You know how your Dad gets. He'd love to have you there with Denis and Toni." She reached out to pat his knee. "But he's happy as long as you are."

"I really am, Ma." Jonas settled. Finally I could let him go. "I wouldn't stay there if I wasn't."

"Good." With a nod, Mrs. Devic sat back. "Is your friend still working there with you?"

"Franko?"

"Is he the beaver? The one I met when we came to visit?"

"Yeah, that's him. He's the one covering a couple of my shifts this weekend, actually."

"Oh good. I do like Franko. He's funny..."

I started fading out from their conversation, focusing instead on my cramping stomach. Jonas' mother must have noticed I wasn't comfortable. If so, she'd been nice enough to leave me be... Unless she just didn't see the point in having any more of a conversation with me.

Damn all this negativity. I rubbed circles around my stomach, arching my back in the hopes of loosening up. I ordered myself not to be so stupid. Yeah, I might have only been here at Jonas' parents' house for five minutes at best, but nothing terrible had happened. I'd not said or done anything to upset, offend or annoy anyone. I had to take a leaf outta Jonas' book by trying to relaxing for once in my life.

"How's that sound, Alen?"

My ears sprang up. "What was that?"

"Ma suggested we head back outside."

I looked up at Jonas, then over his arm to Mrs. Devic waiting expectantly ahead. She'd been nothing but nice so far. No need to be worried. None at all. I sucked in some air. "Sure. That sounds good."

Being back outside helped me breath easier at least. The cool sea breeze balanced out the summer heat. It felt good on my chest. What's more, this tiled terrace of theirs did have a certain charm about it. Cushions not unlike those in the house sat organised atop the wooden benches, surrounding the matching table. All around them, flowers of purple, red, yellow and more danced and swayed in terracotta pots. I might not have known much about gardening, but the sea of colour they produced was quite something.

"What do you think?" Mrs. Devic asked expectantly, directing us to the bench closest the low wall affording privacy from the neighbouring house.

"These are new," Jonas replied.

"Aren't they just lovely? We got them a few weeks ago from a little furniture shop we stumbled upon a short way up the hill." She reached to shift her tail aside, settling onto the bench across from ours. "It's owned by a wolf who moved here from Velika. He and his partner hand make everything themselves."

Jonas reached up to his collar, holding me in place as he carefully took a seat. The wood creaked beneath us, giving him pause before he sat back completely. "They're sturdy at least."

"Would you care for a seat, Alen?" Mrs. Devic gestured to the table. More precisely, to a smaller set of matching garden benches. I peered up to Jonas for his response.

"I'm sure it'll be more comfortable than being hooked up here in my shirt."

With a nod, I turned back. "Yes... please. That'd be great. Thank you."

Jonas scooped me up, seeming to take it extra slow as he brought me down to table level. I stood up and stepped out from his paw, opting for the seat closed to where he'd rested his arms.

Silence descended, save for the chugging of a car passing by the house. I wondered if I should have said something to break it. Make myself look less like some barely functioning Maleni otter from out of town. The garden really did looked pretty. I could've mentioned that--

"A drink either of you?" Oh, thank the stars for Jonas' mother. Maybe I'd figure out how to say something of my own volition sometime later that day.

"Berry juice please, Ma," said Jonas. "If you've got some."

"I do." She turned to me. "Alen?"

"Yep... For me too, please."

"We have soda if you prefer?"

"Oh... No, thank you. Juice is fine. Thank you."

"No problem." Her cheeks creased with her smile as she stood back up. "Here." She reached down beside my seat. My fur prickled. I twitched. Turned. Watched her pick up the used plate that'd been left here. "Let me give you some more room."

"Right." My fur settled, me along with it. "Thanks." She strolled back across the terrace, swaying, striped tail soon disappearing into the house behind her.

Twin walls of brown slid into view either side of me. I gazed up at Jonas, his fingers rubbing at my sides.

"Try and relax," he said softly.

"I am relaxed."

"You're_really_not." The growing grin on his muzzle moved closer. "Listen. You're doing fine." He leaned forward to nose at my cheek. "I can tell already that Ma likes you."

I managed to crack the starts of a smile. Did she really? I wasn't sure what I'd said or done to earn that... but if Jonas believed it... it must've been true.

One of his circling fingers found its way to my stomach, filling my insides with warmth. I reached for his paw, running my claws through its darker brown fur.

We kept up our tending to one another, right up until Mrs. Devic reappeared from the house carrying a tray.

"Here we are." She placed two glasses of juice on the table; one for herself and another for Jonas. I kept myself patient, waiting for her to reach back up for mine. "And for Alen."

To my surprise, a Maleni-sized glass appeared from between her thumb and finger. I caught myself gawking at it long after she'd placed it in front of me. I knew it was odd, but as I sat on this smaller chair, transfixed upon this smaller glass set atop this smaller table... it made me experience the same warmth that Jonas' rubbing had created all over again. "Thank you... very much."

"You're welcome." She sat back down in her own seat. Her beaming only added to my own.

"I really appreciate the glass."

"It's not a problem." Her smile faltered. "But... were you not expecting it?"

"I guess I--"

She didn't hesitate to toss a glare at Jonas. "Don't you have glasses for Alen at your apartment?"

"Of course!" He in turn shot me a bemused grin. "Since always."

"What I mean is." I sat up taller. "I know not everyone thinks like that. Sometimes we're only offered plastic containers or metal thimbles in place of proper glasses. Clumps of fabric for cushions instead of chairs." I picked up my glass of deep red juice. Piping up to speak my mind came pretty easy after all. "I guess you could say it's a little thing that makes a big difference."

She nodded gently. "I can understand that."

"So, thank you... again."

"I think you've been thankful enough to last the whole weekend," Jonas said, chuckling as he poked and stroked a finger over my shoulder.

"You're welcome, Alen." His mother snickered, eyes softening behind her black mask. "Again."

Finally, for the first time in days, I remembered what not carrying a weight on my shoulders felt like. Jonas' finger being the exception of course. I sat back in my chair, not all that averse to saying something else in fact. "This terrace looks real nice. Well worth the work you've put into it."

Marta hurried a sip of her drink to flash the broadest smile yet. "Oh, bless you! I'm happy you think so."

My ears and tail flicked away. The fading of my tension must have been visible, because the conversation flowed so much freer from then onwards.

"So, Alen. I'd love to know a little more about you." She set down her glass, clasping her paws. "Are you from Sturanja originally?"

"Uh, I'm not. No." I cleared my throat, mouth still on the dry side. "I'm from Lucica... if you've heard of it?"

She shook her head. "Geography... Not one of my strong points I'm afraid."

"You're not alone. It's only a small town up on the north coast." My brain chugged into life at last, ticking over onto my next topic of choice. "I moved to Sturanja after I finished school. Ended up falling into a job at a travel company, working in their head office."

"Oh, that sounds exciting. What is it you do there?"

"I work... just in marketing, I guess. Helping out with advertising and offers, stuff like that."

"Hey, come on now." Jonas' arms slid across the table towards me. "You do a lot more than just 'helping out'."

"I suppose."

"What about that promotion we were talking about a few weeks back?" He started to grin, his big shadow growing even larger as he leaned closer. "You spotted that mistake your boss made in the pricing."

"Yeah... yeah, I did."

"And saved the company thousands in the process."

"Now, I wouldn't go _that_far... Not such a big deal."

"I bet that comes in useful, Jonas," his mother suggested. "What with all those trips you find yourself on."

"Yeah." He chuckled back. "I said something similar when we first met." His prodding at me resumed. "Still waiting on that discount."

I pushed back against him, snickering myself. "Any discount I get you won't be all that much. A deal on a hotel. Maybe."

"That'd still be something." Poking eased into rubbing, Jonas' voice softening as he added, "We'll definitely have to look into booking a trip away someplace. While the good weather's still here."

"Definitely." I wanted to turn and cuddle up against him. Present company meant I'd have to hold off on that.

"That sounds wonderful," his mother sang, genuine in her tone. She took another sip from her glass. It reminded me my mouth had gone dry again. "But yes, Sturanja. It's a lovely city to visit. Much too big for me, I think, but so much to see and to do there. So many good beaches, too."

"Oh, yes." I took a long swig of my own juice. Sour, but tasty. "The beaches are great. We head down to them quite a lot to hang out. To swim."

"_You_swim," Jonas insisted. "I mostly just... float there alongside you."

My turn to bat a paw at him. "Maybe. Not to say I don't enjoy your company in the process." The view wasn't bad either, but revealing how good her son looked in nothing but a pair of swimming shorts probably wouldn't have impressed. Didn't mean that'd stop the image popping into my head. My big boyfriend, curves and muscles and fur packed tight into a skimpy piece of fabric... was_definitely_something to keep to myself. I just hoped the rest of my body agreed.

My inward daydreaming likely did me a favour, because by the time I'd snapped out of it, Marta had rolled our conversation onto its next port of call. "Do you have any brothers or sisters back home?"

"I don't." I spun around to face her again. "Just my parents. No brother or sisters for me."

"Oh... Well, it must have been peaceful for you at least. No chance of that here, when Jonas and his brothers were younger."

"C'mon, Ma." Jonas' huffing rustled my fur. "We weren't _that_bad. You talk like we used to tear the place apart."

"Between all your fighting and your dad yelling for you to stop, I'm amazed we never had the neighbours complain."

"Denis used to start it. Toni usually took his side." He threw his arms together so hard he might well have been channelling those younger years. I stopped myself from letting a laugh slip. "They'd gang up on me."

"Oh, don't moan. You managed to look after yourself plenty. Besides, you weren't blameless."

"Yeah, well..." A smirk crept onto his muzzle, ringed tail starting to wag against the bench. "They might've got put back in place a couple of times, but it wasn't my fault."

I shared his growing smile, but also pondered on what being 'put back in place' exactly entailed. The thought didn't linger long.

"No, you were good boys really. Mostly." Marta turned to me. "You'll meet them all this evening, I'm sure. Jonas' father as well."

There came another bout of chest tightening. Sitting here, I'd almost forgot about the rest of the family. "Sounds good."

"Don't worry. If you can survive Jonas, you'll survive them just fine."

"Ma!?" His jaw dropped open, a short scoff of a laugh escaping. "Just _what_are you trying to say?"

Up went her paws. "I've said nothing!"

"Yeah, not much. Not at all."

I appreciated their playing. It helped me forget myself. "Oh, I won't worry. I've done my fair share of coping with big raccoons. What's a few more?"

"Don't you start!" He snorted, pinning my tail to the table with the roll of a finger. Anyone else but Jonas and I'd have probably flinched.

With Jonas' mother snickering across from us, joking away as if I were an old friend of his rather than a new partner, it started me thinking that he'd been right all along. Maybe I really didn't need to have done all that fretting in preparation for the trip down here.

"So..." Marta drew our attention back to her. "You two." She clasped her paws again. "I'd love to hear more about how you met."

I pressed my own paws together, grasp likely far tighter her's. This swerve in the conversation could've tipped me right out of my seat. Luckily, I could count on Jonas to step up to the plate.

"We met while I was at work, Ma."

"I know. You said." Another car drifted on by behind me. "It's okay, I'm just interested to know more. From what Alen says about his job, I'm assume you weren't working together, right?"

"Right." He flicked his muzzle down at me, waiting either for guidance, a protest or something else entirely. Whatever he sought, without a response, he pushed on. "I was working. Alen was a customer. I'd seen him in a few times before that, ordering food from over in the Maleni section. But with me mostly working behind the bar at that point, we'd never spoken. That day though, when I saw Alen come in again, I spoke to Franko. We swapped places with each other so that while he worked the bar, I waited tables." As painfully romantic as it might sound, I never got tired of hearing this story. According to the creasing of his cheeks, Jonas enjoyed retelling it just as much. "And that's how I made sure we met... I didn't want to miss another opportunity."

I peeked over my shoulder, reaching to stroke at his paw.

"After I finished work that afternoon, that's when I decided to ask if he'd like to spend some time together. We had some drinks, chatted... and the afternoon quickly turned into an afternoon _and_an evening."

My stroking turned into squeezing. I hoped he'd leave out the part about Zoran, my ex, showing up partway through to be his abusive self before getting what he had coming. That was _definitely_a case of someone getting put back in line.

"Once done at Riki's, we moved on into town." He gazed down with the same gentleness that he'd held for most of that first day together. "We just got on so well, that we wound up going out for dinner that same night."

I kept ahold of Jonas' paw, enjoying the prickle of his fur against my webbing.

"Essentially... that day became a first date." He rolled his paw over, carefully holding mine between thumb and finger. "With a second following on right after."

My whole body loosened. Thankfully he'd glossed over how Zoran kicked me out after their fight outside Riki's; the clincher that started things moving full speed ahead. That night I spent with Jonas proved the best of my life. I didn't have to think twice about moving in with him after that. Since then, I'd refused to look back. Even when the prospect of counselling came up. I had no reason to think about the past. What came before with Zoran. None at all. Ever.

So caught up in the enchantment of Jonas' recollection of our first date, I'd almost forgotten who he'd been relaying it to. Ever since Jonas first mentioned this trip a fortnight prior, I'd been on tenterhooks over how his family would take his relationship with me, a Maleni. Now, suddenly, it was out there, clear as day for his mother to see. Oh... Gods above us!

"That's adorable," she cooed, beaming wide. "You two hit it off right away."

"We really did," Jonas replied, curling three fingers to tug both me, and my chair, back against his stomach. "Didn't we?"

I let out the biggest sigh, not even meaning to. So much tension just upped and left in that instant. There and then, I could have melted away into my chair. That is if I hadn't already started melting into his soothing hold.

"Alen?"

"Uh..." I smiled up at him, then to Marta watching on. Inhibitions be damned, I leaned in and squeezed tight against my big boyfriend's belly. "Yeah. It was a perfect day."

"So it sounds... You know, Jonas can't stop talking about you over the phone." She shot him a smirk. "What is it you called him? That one time?"

"Ma, no--"

"'My little ruddertail', wasn't it?"

His groan practically shook the table beneath me. He'd thrown a paw to his face so fast, that he didn't get to see my 'ruddertail' wag. I'd never heard him call me that to my face before. "That's sweet."

Jonas' fingers spread across his dark mask of fur, revealing the embarrassment in those hazel eyes. I nosed at his shirt, smile set, keeping it up until he wrapped me back up in his paws.

"You look very good together," Marta said delicately. "You're as nice as Jonas said you were."

My ears warmed, flicked. The anxiety of those past two weeks had become a memory. Finally. "You're very kind.... Just as Jonas said."

"Bless you." Her tail waved as she reached for her near empty glass of juice.

"How's Dad been?" Jonas called, nudging the conversation on from increasingly tender topics.

"He's well," she replied, unfazed by another sharp curve in the subject matter. "It's been a good fishing season, so that's helped keep him in high spirits. That and helping Denis finish up the renovations on his house."

"Wait, so he's _happy_to be doing handywork?"

"I can hardly believe it myself! Thirty years I've had to nag him into being useful, and all of a sudden he can't stop." Marta sighed, smiling. "I barely even had the chance to help decorate baby's bedroom."

Jonas put his own teeth on display, tail flitting against his seat. "How long until she's due?"

"Only two months now."

"That's all!?"

"Mid-October. Not long at all."

"Wow... I'm really not ready to have a niece... be an uncle."

"And I'm not ready to be a grandmother," she retorted, eyes bright, "but it's happening. We'll have the pitter patter of tiny paws around the house all over again."

We finished up our drinks as the conversation wound down. Both Jonas and his mother seemed occupied by their thoughts. My idle brain started rolling over what having a Visoka niece might be like. I waved the idea away, stopping short of a sarcastic snort at myself. Talk about getting ahead of myself, on so many levels.

"I was thinking about taking a walk into town," Jonas announced, pressing at my side. "We can see the sights. Explore."

"That's a nice idea," Marta replied, leaning across the table towards me. "Make sure he takes you to see the church. It's the oldest one still standing on the south coast."

"Alright," I answered, putting on an interested nod. "Sounds good.

"Ma," Jonas grumbled. "We saw that on the drive in."

"That doesn't count! You need to take him around the courtyard. Such pretty gardens there."

"Yeah, okay... Maybe... If we get time."

"Fine." She rolled her eyes. "If not that, your dad and your brothers will be finishing up for the day in a couple of hours or so. Might be nice to go meet them if you're down by the docks."

"Ah." The sun caught Jonas' silver watch as he checked it. "Yeah, I think we will. Should still give us plenty of time to look around." He looked back to me. "How's that sound?"

"Yeah... Sure. I'd love to see more of Padinica." Just like clockwork, that faint gnawing deep in my gut started back up. "...And meet the rest of your family."