FSE

Furry search engine

formerly SoFurry search engine

Chapter 8: Changing Tides

The water pulled us under, as if sucking us down into a drain. I felt a snap as the water pressure squeezed my body, and suddenly my world had reversed itself. I hadn't changed direction, but it felt that the axis of gravity pulling me had shifted, my own buoyancy now propelling me to the surface. My entire world was baby blue, my hands barely able to keep hold of Pharris. The surface was rushing forward to meet us.

I was the first to surface, but only by a few seconds. I gasped for air immediately after breaching the tide, frantically looking around while catching my breath. I began kicking, and realized that I was only about a foot above a layer of sand. My mind argues that this was impossible, but I bit back my confusion and began focusing on the safety of my friends. My vision was a blur of greens and blues as I grabbed Pharris and began hauling her to shore. Marlowe was right behind me, desperately trying to stay above the water. I began taking in facts through my hysteria. I was apparently on the shore of an island.

Marlowe was coughing loudly behind me as I dropped Pharris to the sand and made sure she was still breathing. Her chest was moving, and I was beginning to take her pulse when Marlowe spoke up. His voice was shaking.

"Is she alright? Pharris?"

"She's fine... she's alright..." I responded between breaths. I heard Pharris mumbling beneath me.

Marlowe leaned down next to Pharris in the shallows of the tide as I stood up. My clothes were heavy from the water, and I was cold all over. I was bleeding from a small puncture wound on my inner forearm, which I immediately began applying pressure to. I began surveying around myself as my head began to clear.

The beach was rather long, twice the length of Markus' yard from shore to tree line. The tree tops blended into the sky as the wind rolled through the leaves, making them dance. The sky was a dull blue, the sun rising in the distant horizon. The beach stretched into the distance on both sides before wrapping around behind the trees. I was just beginning to adjust to my surroundings when a voice from behind me startled me.

"David?"

I felt my heart leap in my chest as I turned around.

Markus was emerging from the ocean, calling my name. His fur was wetted down to his body, and he was wearing the shorts I had seen him in only hours before. I felt myself moving before I was even able to call. Markus began running faster, his face breaking out into the beautiful smile I had missed so much.

"Markus!" I yelled triumphantly, my happiness overtaking my other senses.

I jumped and caught him in a strong embrace, squeezing him as tight as I could. He did the same to me, calling out my name In between fretting about missing me. Coming into contact with him again felt to me like having a monochromatic veil lifted from all of my senses.

"Markus, I thought I wasn't going to see you-"

I felt myself tearing up as he interrupted my by picking me up and pulling me in close to him. I laughed loudly as he began running toward the beach.

"Don't even start, I missed you more!" He was fussing again, rubbing my back as he flung himself onto the beach.

I wrapped my arms around him and pressed my face into his wet fur, enjoying his scent before laughing and leaning up. I felt that familiar warmth that I had grown to love. Before I could say anything else, Markus pulled me in for a kiss.

I kissed him back immediately, and it was like all of my concerns had fled from my body. The stress of my recent kidnapping, the worry about Markus being hurt... I leaned against Markus as our tongues twirled together. He pulled me in closer and began rubbing my hair.

I heard somebody clear their throat behind me, and it took all of my willpower to pull back from Markus and investigate.

Pharris was leaning up now, an expression of humor on her face. Marlowe looked as if he had just swallowed something disgusting from the sea bed.

"Could we keep this reunion child appropriate, please?" Pharris chided lightheartedly before falling back into the sand in a fit of laughter.

"We actually made it! He was there hours early and we actually..." Pharris stopped talking suddenly and began coughing spastically, Marlowe offering her support as she brushed him off.

"I'm fine, just some water... *cough* in my throat."

When she looked back up she was smiling again, and Marlowe looked down at her before laughing himself.

I turned back to Markus, who was studying the twins with an expression of confusion on his face.

"Who are they?" he asked, his voice inflecting to show cautiousness.

"The friends that helped me escape from that man. They're fine Markus."

Saying his name made me happy again, and I dived onto him before he could protest. I kissed him again as he laughed and pretended to push me away. Every time my skin came into contact with his fur I felt a fire kindling inside of me. After a few more moments of this, we stood up, with me holding onto Markus neck. I had been playing with him, but with one shrug I was suddenly being given a piggy-back ride on Markus' back as the twins laughed. He began running around the beach with me in tow, excited to be reunited with me.

I wished that the moment could have lasted forever, with every one of us happy and glad to be alive.

Nevertheless, I understood that underneath this layer of comfort and protection, a storm was brewing. We had managed to escape from Nihash, yet his evil heart was still beating. As we played on the shore, sharing a laugh, Nihash was planning the death of Elyria. The happiness that I felt around Markus was only barely keeping the panic from bubbling up; reality was just a stone's throw away. The pounding in the back of my head assured me that it was there, waiting.

?-?-?

We had settled down considerably before gathering in a circle on the beach to discuss the situation. After everybody had gotten acquainted with each other, Pharris explained to Markus that she had opened up a gate and took us all far away from Nihash. Everyone seemed comfortable enough in each other's company, but I couldn't help noticing how Markus kept himself close to me at all times. He was being very physical, with almost constant hugs or pats or contact of some sort. I wondered if it was because of the twins, or because we had been separated for so long. Either way, it didn't really bother me.

"So, then we can't ever go back?" Markus asked.

"That wouldn't be a good idea. Nihash already knows where you live." Pharris responded. "I wouldn't even risk a quick trip back to grab anything. His supporters have diminished considerably since the plague, but he probably has your house under surveillance at this point."

I recalled my revelation about the plague that had killed Markus' family. I had been angry with Nihash before, but the moment that I discovered of his involvement with the plague I had felt something inside of my change. It was hard to explain, but it was there. It was like my mind had compressed my hatred of Nihash into a seed that had settled somewhere deep inside of me.

Markus nodded solemnly, but I could tell that he was saddened by the news. I wondered if it was his artwork he was missing, or just the thought of losing his home. As I was glancing up at him, he looked over and wrapped an arm around me before pulling me in. He was incredibly warm, his fur only slightly damp since he had been drying off on the beach.

"It's alright, I've got everything that's important to me right here." I felt my face blushing as I turned my head down and tried to scrabble away. Markus was adamant, holding me there next to him, and I couldn't move. Pharris laughed again. She seemed much more comfortable with our relationship than Marlowe, who tended to look away whenever we had any moments of intimacy. I didn't hold anything against him, but I just wished I could understand what was bothering him so much about it.

"We should probably attempt to build a shelter before it gets too dark. We'll need to explore the jungle, to see if there are any resources..." Pharris trailed off, looking concerned.

"It's alright, Pharris. If we start hurting for food, I can bring something back from my world. Won't be a problem."

Pharris nodded, understanding.

"I suppose I could leave you to the job of filling in Markus here on the details of what happened when you were taken?"

"Of course." I responded, Markus still teasing me. His mood seemed unsinkable since we had been reunited. I wondered if this would change when he found out that I hadn't been entirely honest with him before. I pushed the thought from my mind, deciding to tell him everything as soon as I got the chance.

"My only concern is that David is here safe. I know the gist of what happened, but I really don't want to think about it right now."

I felt a thrumming in my mind. I sighed, recognizing the sensation.

"I think I'm going to be waking up soon. Well, sleeping here. Someone is waking me up in my world."

I paused for a moment before continuing. "I know you don't want to think about it Markus, but... We have to prepare for him." My mind was sinking with my own words, and a glance around the circle of friends suggested that they were feeling the same. It was a truth though, an inevitability. It was something we had to be prepared for.

Markus' hold on me relaxed, and I took advantage of this to lay myself down against his thigh. He seemed to have no complaints, and he rubbed the skin on my throat while looking down at the sand. His leg was as soft as any pillow I had ever lain on, except much warmer. Pharris continued discussing shelter plans with Markus and Marlowe as the knocking grew louder.

The morning sun drenched my entire field of vision in a beautiful golden glow, blurring together as my senses failed me. My last thought before I was forcefully pulled back to my own world was of how much it reminded me of Markus' eyes.

?-?-?

. My eyes flickered open amidst a torrent of bright lights and sounds. The world was coming into focus gradually, but much slower than I was used to. I wondered if I was alright, my head feeling almost fluffy in my semi-consciousness.

Everything seemed to be colored a pastel blue, and I was having trouble moving my head. I saw strange circular lights threaded tastefully across the ceiling. As my mind began clearing, I realized that I must be in the hospital. I saw a window and was startled to see that it was now night time; how long had I been unconscious? I had no idea what time it was.

"David?" a voice chimed in from the other end of the room. The voice added to the noise, but felt somehow exclusively for me. I heard the room become quieter as a figure walked up to fill my vision. I felt a final brilliant burst of clarity before I remembered everything that had happened, and recognized my mom standing over me. I must have been drugged or something.

"Mom... hey." My voice sounded unsure of itself, lazy. I felt the bed with my hands and pushed myself up before glancing around.

It was a simple and modern hospital room, the walls and equipment painted in alternating shades of gray and sky blue. The television was on with the volume turned low, presumably after my mom saw me waking up. I began trying to clear my head as I noticed a glass of water on the table next to me. I picked the glass up and felt burning in my throat as I suddenly couldn't drink the water fast enough. My mom was standing over me exclaiming, and now that I had regained consciousness I turned my attention to her.

"Mom, what happened?"

She stopped her torrent of praises and thanks long enough to lean down and hug me through her tears and exclamations.

"I was so scared, David!" She was sobbing against me, and I felt my heart sinking.

"The doctors said you were in a coma! I didn't know what to do..."

Oh crap... I must have scared the hell out of her. I hugged my mother back.

"Mom, I'm sorry... I'm fine, please stop crying." It took her a moment before she could speak right, and I noticed an IV in my arm.

"No you're not! They still don't know what happened!" She was biting her lip. She seemed to be struggling with her words, concerned.

"I had them run drug tests before the C.T. scan- Don't look at me like that, I had to be sure! Of course there was nothing-" she assured me before continuing. "But the scan showed severely reduced brain activity. They said you were almost brain-dead, or at least in a coma..." My mother's own words had brought her to tears again. "You were bleeding from your mouth and they didn't know why!"

The sadness in my mother's voice was unsettling, unusual of her. She was rarely in a mood like this, and it was bothering me. I pulled her in close as I continued talking, trying to assure her that I was fine.

"There's nothing wrong with me, please stop crying... mom, please." I sighed.

Before too long she had backed up, and pulled out a cell phone. Presumably, she was calling my dad. As she pressed the phone to her ear, the door squeaked open. Marissa walked in, a honeybun package in her mouth by the wrapper and a purse over her shoulder. As she closed the door behind herself and turned, her eyes caught sight of me on the bed and the honey bun dropped to the ground. I couldn't help but laugh.

"You dumbass!"

As I was still laughing, Marissa suddenly ran over to me and embraced me. I felt her frame shudder as she suddenly sobbed, and I felt very cold. I had never seen Marisa act like this before. A few wordless moments passed between us as my mom talked avidly to my father about my sudden awakening. Mom left the room mid conversation, and Marissa let out a strained sigh as she gathered herself before speaking again.

"I thought... they told us you weren't alive anymore... That you probably wouldn't recover." The weight of her words sunk into me, and I patted her shoulder before responding.

"I'm fine Marissa... please, stop crying." I sounded awkward, the situation very unsettling to me. She looked at my face before suddenly turning around and wiping her eyes. She spent a moment recovering before turning back around.

"I was just about to start calling people, but I just couldn't... not all of our friends..." She was close to tears again.

"Stop thinking about it, alright? I'm perfectly fine, look. There's nothing wrong."

I was getting ready to comfort her again as the door swung open, a doctor entering this time. I was sighing before he even began to speak, things happening a bit too fast for me.

"Hello, I'm Dr. Everest." He regarded me strangely as I shook his hand and introduced myself before writing something down on his clipboard.

"How do you feel, David?" He asked, still examining me as if looking for something.

"Fine, I guess. Kind of woozy, but fine."

The doctor leaned my head back before shining a light in my eye. After taking a few more notes on his clipboard, he left the room wordlessly with a confused expression on his face. I looked over at Marissa, who had been watching the doctor leave. After the door closed, Marissa looked back over at me before smiling and hugging me again.

"I'm glad you're alright, David..."

I couldn't explain why, but I felt incredibly ashamed at that moment. It's not as if Nihash' attack had been my fault, but I still felt that I could have assured them in some way. The feeling traveled like an ominous wind to settle in my stomach. I wondered if I should try to explain what was happening to someone on this side, but quickly crushed the thought. The last thing my friend needed to hear after I had just awoken from a "brain-dead coma" was that I thought that I had a different world inside of my head. I suppressed a laugh, but realized how much better I would feel if I had someone else to talk to about everything. If I didn't have to be so mentally separated like this. It was an isolating feeling, almost like how I had felt when I realized that I was gay and couldn't tell anyone. I hugged Marissa back.

"Thanks, Marissa..."

She released me, but I could tell that she was still worrying about my safety. I hated hearing the sadness in her voice; the fact that I had caused it making it hurt that much worse.

We talked avidly for a few hours, me doing my best to prove that I was feeling great. I hoped that my talking would comfort them, prove that I hadn't suffered any mental damage. I made jokes, recalled moments of our past, worded myself carefully to show that I was in my right state of mind. Eventually Marissa had to leave to get some rest for her job the next day, but not before assuring me that she would be back to visit after that. Her attitude had changed considerably, and she seemed almost happy.

Shortly after she had left, the doctor came back in to tell me that I would have to stay in the hospital for a few days. I didn't like the news, but my mother made it apparent that I wasn't leaving until the staff said it would be alright. The doctor told me that they would attempt to discover why I had blacked out, but I made it very apparent that I was not okay with any kinds of invasive procedures. I couldn't risk my other body becoming damaged. The doctor reluctantly agreed to this, thinking I was phobic of surgery, so long as I agreed to have my vitals monitored for any recurring symptoms. He told me that they wouldn't have any choice but to operate if they found something serious enough, but I knew they wouldn't.

I was fully aware that the tests would simply be a formality for me. I already knew why I had blacked out, but the answer was impossible to explain to anyone. It still made me anxious to see the people I love worried about me, but I had already done all that I could to assure them that I was fine.

As the frenzy of my night died down, I felt myself drifting off to sleep. It was almost one in the morning now.. I grabbed the two wool blankets that were keeping me warm and balled them up in my hands. I'm sure the group would be happy to have these when I made it back, and as an afterthought I grabbed the box of crackers my mother had brought me as well. They wouldn't constitute a full meal, but they could go with whatever we managed to find at the island. I held these items as tightly as I could, lying on my side and waiting for myself to awaken.

?-?-?

My mind snapped back faster than I was expecting, and I felt myself jump a little. My eyes opened, and the contents of my arms rolled forward and fell on the ground. I was surrounded by vegetation, and it took me a moment to remember where I was. I looked down, and was shocked to see myself lying on what appeared to be a gigantic leaf. The structure I was in appeared to be predominantly made of these large leaves, tethered together with sticks and vines. It looked very complicated, and was surprisingly spacious. I recognized what appeared to be a door flap of some kind, and stood up before poking my head out of it.

My vision was almost instantly blinded, the brightness of the day taking me by surprise. The structure I had awoken in was very good at keeping out the light, I had almost expected it to be night time. My eyes slowly adjusted as I made my way outside of the tent, the sand feeling warm beneath my bare feet. I could hear a commotion near me, and as my eyes adjusted I saw that Markus and Marlowe were hard at work on something.

"Oh, finally made it back?" Pharris walked by me, carrying a bundle of branches in one hand and a handful of the gigantic leaves draped over her shoulder. "I've gotta say, you definitely picked the right guy." She sounded playful, and seemed to be in a very good mood. I looked over to where she was walking, and saw that Markus was explaining to Marlowe how to tie together the leaves and sticks to layer them correctly. Markus looked up at Pharris' words, and his eyes lit up when he saw me. I smiled, waving.

"David!"

He ran over and picked me up in one of his crushing bear-hugs before dropping me and facing me to the tent.

"What do you think?

The building looked surprisingly professional, the leaves layering in such a way that it was as aesthetically pleasing as it was effective. It was slightly larger than the tents I was used to seeing, and yet it still only took about four leaves per side to completely cover a wall. It was surprisingly efficient looking, and I was amazed at how fast it had been constructed.

"You... you made this?" I asked, awestruck.

"Yeah! We went to look for food, and I found these leaves everywhere. I got the idea and started working on it while they were still scavenging. They wanted one too, so I started working on theirs while you were asleep."

I looked back at the second tent, nearly completed. I had no idea how someone could have managed to construct almost two of these in a six hour period, the craftsmanship was incredible. I looked up at Markus and he was smiling down at me, obviously pleased with my reaction.

"This is... incredible. I had no idea you could do anything like this, Markus. I... I don't even know what to say."

I didn't think I was expressing myself very well, but I was incredibly impressed with everything. I guess my reaction was enough for Markus though, as he almost immediately began laughing and rubbing my shoulder.

"I made it for us. It'll be our new home, so I wanted it to be nice." I felt a pang of guilt.

"I'm sorry I wasn't awake to help, Markus. Still, you are incredible..."

I looked up at him again, and he still seemed to be glowing. He noticed me looking at him and seemed to read my mind, leaning over and kissing me before continuing.

"You know I would do anything for you, so don't worry about it. I love you."

"I love you to." His words warmed me to the core, and saying it back to him made me even happier. He was just about to kiss me again as Pharris yelled across to us, interrupting the moment. I sighed as she ran up and began speaking.

"Can I talk to you alone for a moment, David?" She seemed serious, and I felt my own curiosity overpowering my annoyance at her ill timing.

"Yeah, it's fine." I looked back up at Markus. "I'll be right back, ok?"

He was looking at Pharris with an expression of irritation on his face, something that I hadn't seen on him often before. He seemed somehow even more adorable like this, and I felt myself almost instinctively reaching for him. As I rubbed the fur on the back of his hand, He smiled again.

"Alright... be safe. I'll be waiting here." And with that, Pharris grabbed my arm and began pulling me off to the side.

?-?-?

Markus returned to the tent project with Marlowe, helping him adjust the last few parts of the structure to perfection. Pharris walked with me silently over to a small pile of stones just out of earshot before gesturing for me to sit down. She sat down next to me and began speaking immediately.

"Marlowe told me something that I figured I should bring up now."

"If it's about the whole kissing Markus thing, I'm not really sure-"

"No, no it's nothing like that." Pharris interrupted. "He's just a kid, and he's never seen a relationship like you two have before. What I have to talk to you about is much more important."

"oh..."

I was even more curious now, wondering what Pharris would want to talk to me about alone.

"Marlowe told me about how you carried me away from Nihash, and how he saw the barrier change color. I was only just barely conscious, but if what he said is true, then you must have powered the barrier yourself. Do you know what that means?"

I recalled our escape from the cistern, how I had felt the electricity passing between us as I ran to get us to safety. I didn't understand how, but I realized then that the barrier had to stay up, and I had willed it to do so. It was more on impulse than anything, and I hadn't honestly thought about it much since it had happened.

"No, I'm sorry but I don't. Everything happened fast, I was worried about getting everyone out... I didn't really think about it."

Pharris looked down before continuing, gathering her thoughts.

"Something about Nihash allows him to channel power through his emotions, giving him the power he uses to hurt people. He can give these abilities to others somehow. I can't really remember it too well..." Pharris had a pained expression on her face. "But if you took control of my barrier without anyone giving you the ability, then it stands to reason that you have some of your own."

I listened to Pharris carefully before responding. The face she had made when she brought up how she had attained her abilities made me not want to chase the subject any further, but I didn't understand why I would be able to do the same thing.

"I've never done or seen anything like that before in my life, though. And I'm not the same as that man. I could never kill people for power like that."

Pharris seemed taken aback by my response.

"I didn't mean anything like that. If you really do have the capability to do what he does, then it would mean that you could pull energy from one of many different sources. It doesn't have to be life."

I spent a moment contemplating what she was suggesting before she continued speaking.

"I just wanted to tell you that if you needed to ask me for help with it, don't hesitate. I would feel much more comfortable if we had a way to fight back against Nihash when he attacks again. Understand that if you have similar abilities to his, you could be the one to take him out."

I let what she was suggesting sink in, realizing that if I had a way to fight Nihash it would be very important to begin learning to use it very early. Still, I didn't know for sure that I was capable of anything like that, and I didn't want us to have to rely on something I was so unsure of.

"Alright, I understand." I paused for a moment. "I doubt I could do anything like that, but if It starts happening I'll ask you for help. Just don't expect anything amazing..."

Pharris seemed satisfied with my response, but as I was getting ready to leave she stopped me.

"Just... try focusing on something every now and again, and see what happens. The trigger is attention, the catalyst is something you care about."

I contemplated what she was saying, but it didn't make much sense to me. Regardless, I nodded for confirmation and began heading back with Pharris to meet with everyone. It seemed that the tent was finished, and Marlowe was exclaiming loudly as we walked up to regroup with everyone.

Markus was laughing as Marlowe walked in and out of the tent, proclaiming about how amazing it was. I waved at Markus as I approached the campsite, and stopped as I suddenly remembered the things I had brought back with me. I ran over to our own tent before grabbing one of the blankets, and then walking back to where everyone was standing.

"I forgot to say anything, but I brought a couple of blankets and some food with me."

Marlowe looked excited at my mentioning of food, and after I tossed the blanket to Pharris It was agreed that we should eat soon.

Markus walked over to me and draped his arm over my shoulder before speaking. "You two are far better foragers than we are, so you should probably search for things to eat further inland. David and I can fish and build a fire to cook over."

Everyone agreed that this would be the best choice at the moment, but as we were splitting up and walking to the ocean I had my own reservations about the plan.

"Markus, you know I can't fish like you can... and what if the water isn't safe?"

"I would rather have you with me than wandering in a jungle, and don't think I'm letting you in the water. I can handle it myself." His overprotective tone was intensified by his deep voice. Still, I couldn't help but realize that he was essentially keeping me from helping the group.

"So I'm just going to sit here? Markus, you know I won't let everyone work without me..."

He looked at me and smiled. "You can help me without going in the water. I'll toss you what I catch, and you can help me carry them back." He sounded surprisingly sure of himself, and although I wouldn't be doing much more than helping to carry the fish, I could tell that Markus wouldn't budge on this.

After we had made it to the shore, Markus immediately dived into the ocean. The water splashed upward around him, reflecting a spectrum of color from the sunlight. I watched the strength of his strokes as he rocketed out into the water and dived down. It was only a few moments before he resurfaced, swimming closer to the shore before jumping and tossing me a fish. I missed it and it landed just ahead of me, and I rushed to grab it before it could escape. However, as I leaned over to pick it up I realized that it was already dead, it's body motionless in the shallows of the tide. It was surprisingly normal looking considering that most of the creatures I had seen in this world already. The only strange thing about it was the color of the scales, the fish being a bright purple in the light of day. I picked it up before tossing it a bit behind me, to assure that it wouldn't be taken out by the tide.

Markus was a quick and effective fisher, tossing me the same kind of fish at an almost constant rate. Within an hour we had about eight of them piled up, and Markus had apparently decided that it would be enough. He swam out of the ocean before shaking himself off and walking up to me, his fur soaked. We gathered the fish as I complimented his speed, and we walked back to the place that we had built camp at.

The twins still hadn't made it back yet, so Markus and I decided to build a fire and begin preparing the food. We talked as much as we had at his old house, letting our interest in each other drive the conversation while we worked. It was fun, and after we had gathered the material for a small bonfire Markus taught me how to arrange everything and get a flame started. Within minutes Markus had kindled a lively fire, and I realized that this must have been how he had cooked for us every morning since I had gotten here. I felt a rush of appreciation as I realized how talented Markus really was.

"You know... you really are incredible."

Markus looked up to me from beside the fire and smiled before responding.

"Thanks, but this really isn't that difficult." He chuckled. "Besides, you're pretty amazing yourself."

I sat down next to him before speaking again, enjoying the warmth of the fire.

"No, I mean it Markus. I'm nothing like you. You have so many skills, you're so capable... I mean, you've lost your entire house, and you're still able to live and be happy. I guess what I'm getting at is that you're inspiring to me. You're amazing, and I really don't think I would be alive right now if it wasn't for you. I owe you everything." I was saddened by my own words, realizing that he had lost his home because of me. I felt Markus' hand overlap my own, and I looked over at him as he replied to me.

"I haven't lost my home, David. I'm happy to live wherever you are." He paused before continuing, looking into the fire. He stroked my hand as he spoke. "If you wouldn't have shown up like you had, I don't know if I would be alive either. The truth is... before I'd met you, I was starting to give up on everything. I just... life felt so empty." His eyes looked sad in the light of the fire.

"I guess I was tired of living alone. When the Ochau attacked me, I was wondering if it would be alright to just... to just give up." The serious tone he was using was unlike him, and it was unsettling to hear him talk like this.

"And then you were there, helping me... I just want you to know how much you mean to me, David. You've made me happier than I had ever, ever been. I'll do anything I can to keep you safe."

He looked back at me, his eyes dancing in the firelight.

"When you first said 'I love you', It made me happier than I had ever felt before, and being able to say it back was even more amazing. I owe all of my happiness to you."

He smiled again, and I felt something inside of me shifting again. Instead of saying anything back to him, I leaned over and kissed him on the lips. I could taste salt on them, and in response to my movement Markus embraced me before our kiss deepened. He pulled back, and I spent a moment looking at his eyes before I leaned against him, my head resting on his shoulder.

"Thank you... for everything."

We spent a few minutes relaxing together like this before Markus pulled out his knife and we began preparing the fish.

?-?-?

Marlowe and Pharris made it back after the fish had already started cooking, both of them carrying something. Pharris appeared to be carrying a bundle of fruit in her robe, using it as a kind of basket. She dumped them onto a leaf that was situated a small distance away from the fire. Marlowe had a large bundle of strange looking branches, similar in appearance to bamboo, but soft like celery. Each one was about the length of my arm, and surprisingly thick. I had been disposing of the leftover fish parts, burying them a slight distance from the camp as everyone had returned.

"What are these?" I inquired, suddenly becoming aware of how long it had been since I had eaten or drank anything. Marlowe carefully sat them down next to the fruits before bringing a couple over to me.

"This is a Vaporsnatch, and thankfully they appear to grow everywhere out here."

He passed me one of them before taking his own and snapping the top of it off. It was rather heavy, with both ends surprisingly blunt. I watched in confusion, and then did the same thing as I had seen him do. The branch was very brittle, and I was able to easily tear the top off of it. It appeared to be entirely hollow, and I watched as Marlowe suddenly put the end of the thing into his mouth and tilted it back. He finished and looked at me, smiling.

"They pull water from the ground and store them inside, give it a try!"

I did as he instructed, and nearly dropped the thing as my mouth filled with cool water. There was easily twenty ounces of water in the strange plant, and as I finished it off I felt a thirst I had been ignoring leave me. The water tasted amazing, and this single piece of it had been enough to slack the thirst that had been building in me all day.

Marlowe laughed at my amazement as I thanked him before getting up to join everyone at the fire. The fish were almost done now, and everyone seemed to be in a surprisingly cheerful mood. I brought out the crackers I had grabbed from the hospital and split them with everyone.

We ate a meal together over heavy conversation, Marlowe and Pharris recounting their exploits in the jungle. They explained that there was a large amount of fruit trees already growing fairly close to the campsite, and that we would be able to survive for a while on what they had already found.

"It's a rather amazing place." Pharris commented.

"We found the trees that the giant leaves had come from!" Marlowe continued excitedly while eating. "They are only a little bit higher than the other trees, but they have giant holes all over them. They looked kind of like ribbons!"

Markus and I explained that nothing particularly exciting had happened on our fishing trip, and we listened closely as the pair recounted all that they had seen. I was the first to finish my meal, a single fish and a couple of the pear-like fruit. As Markus was still eating, I leaned in next to him, feeling the warmth of his recently dried fur. Before long everyone had eaten their fill, and the sun was beginning to set on the other side of the trees. Excited talk dwindled to light conversation, and light conversation gave way to yawning.

As the sun disappeared and the sky took on a darker shade of blue, Marlowe was the first to go to bed. Pharris and I put out the fire after arranging the leftover stock of food in a kind of leaf-hanger we had made, and we used the last remaining sunlight to make our ways to our individual tents. Markus and I walked together, hand in hand, before ducking inside.

?-?-?

I immediately sat down as Markus adjusted the flap to let in only a small amount of air. He then sat down next to me in the dark, yawning. There was a slight chill in the air, making me shiver.

"I wish I would have thought to get more than just two blankets from the hospital..." I said.

"Its fine, I'm just glad we won't have to use the leaves as blankets. The bottoms are kind of scratchy... Here, you can use my arm for a pillow." Markus responded.

I felt my way over to him and laid down against his arm before throwing the blanket over us. Between the blanket and Markus, the cold was nonexistent. His arm was soft and firm at the same time, and as I positioned myself comfortably he rolled over and threw his arm over me. I was facing him, and in the darkness I could feel his hairy torso pressing against me. He began rubbing my back with his arm, and then suddenly pulled away.

"David, do you think... maybe you could take off your shirt? I like the way your skin feels..."

"Yeah, sure..." suddenly felt my skin heating up at his words, and I leaned up before pulling my shirt off and tossing it to the side. I laid myself back down again and was then immediately embraced, and with my shirt gone I could feel all of Markus' muscle and fur against me. I moved my arm over his side and shuddered as he began stroking the skin on my back. His hand was slow and steady, and as he was stroking my skin he suddenly began nuzzling my neck. The fur around his mouth was the softest, and I suppressed a moan as Markus licked my neck.

"Markus... are you sure we should do this here?"

"If you want to... They won't hear anything." He continued rubbing me and licking my skin before leaning against me. I could feel his erection pressing against my own, and he pulled his arm out from under me before bracing himself above me.

"You do want to, right?"

"Of course I do... you know that." He was leaning above me now, with me on my back. At my response he suddenly began rubbing his hips against mine, the sensation eliciting a gasp from me as I felt our hardened privates rubbing together through our clothing. He then dropped himself onto me before kissing me, his tongue suddenly filling my mouth.

I wrapped both of my arms around his bulky frame, feeling his muscles moving under his fur he continued his assault on me. I rubbed up and down his back as he made playful thrusting gestures against me, getting us both excited. I could feel his nipples rubbing against my chest, and as our kiss continued I ran both of my hands up to his neck and began rubbing the back of his head. The fur here was slightly thicker than elsewhere, and I began running my fingers through it as I let myself become shrouded with Markus.

I pulled myself out of his kiss and spoke. "You're so warm... what did you want to do?"

He leaned down before whispering to me. "I've got some ideas, don't worry.... Take off your clothes."

I did as he directed, him doing the same. It was too dark to really see anything inside of the tent, but after we had both completely disrobed he dropped himself back onto me before continuing. I felt his massive frame against me, and as he leaned in I felt our privates touch. The second that skin came into contact with skin, I felt myself shuddering. He lifted his torso up with his hands and began rubbing against me, his thrusting gestures making me want to scream out.

"Markus! Ah..." I exclaimed as quietly as I could, the sensation of his parts rubbing against mine making my voice harder to control. After a moment he stopped before leaning in for a quick kiss. Then, he jumped up and moved.

"Markus? Where are you?" I couldn't see anything in the tent.

I suddenly felt him lying next to me, and as I went to go speak to him I felt his hand start rubbing my leg.

"Oh..." apparently, he was lying parallel to me with his head at the opposite end of me. As his furry hand moved over my legs and hips, he suddenly scooted closer.

"Ah!"

The next thing I felt was Markus' tongue tracing over my shaft, rolling over it in the way that was so amazing to me. I was only barely able to suppress my voice as he braced his arm behind me, pulling me into him. I suddenly understood why he had laid in this position.

I pulled myself close to him, melting under his tongue. I felt for where his crotch was and positioned myself in front of him, rubbing the small of his back before tracing my hand higher. As my hand traced over his bottom, I felt a shock as I realized that he had a very small tail.

How have I never seen this? It feels so adorable... soft... It must be very small.

I began rubbing it as I pulled myself up to him, realizing that his movements had slowed. He was waiting for me. I pressed my tongue out and licked across his cock before putting it in my mouth.

The second his was in my mouth, he began picking up speed. I was torn between the sensations of his tongue dancing across me, and his member throbbing in my mouth. It was still only just able to fit in, and as he continued his work on me I began pushing myself as far as I could. I licked all of the precum off of it before pulling it further in, the slurping sounds arousing me further. I took him back to the hilt, and then moved back up and began twirling my tongue around the tip. I felt his massive frame shudder as I did this, and he began doing the same motion to me.

I began moving faster now, making quick back and forward motions with my head. His slurping was getting loader now, mixed with a kind of deep groaning that I assumed was him moaning as quietly as he could. As I was getting into a repetitive motion, I moaned as I felt him nibble the base of my cock with his teeth. It felt amazing, and as I pulled myself back he suddenly stopped before speaking.

"David... Roll over onto your back."

I did as he said, his deep voice exciting me further. After a moment of shifting around, Markus was suddenly over me again, parallel to me as he had been before. His hand came down and grabbed the base of his member, which he promptly began rubbing against my lips. I shuddered as I opened my mouth and let him go inside me, licking him as I had done before.

"Now don't move..." Markus commanded before pressing himself down onto me. His privates slid all the way down into my mouth, the curve fitting against my throat. He began attending to me with his tongue again, much as he had before, but he was now slowly thrusting his hips against my mouth. Every pore of my body was screaming with pleasure as the feeling of what he was doing hit me.

He began thrusting faster, the skin of his cock gliding in and out of my mouth. He was doing the same motion to me as he was doing to himself, and one of his hands was massaging my balls as he moved faster and faster. I felt myself getting close to a climax, and I could no longer continue just sitting there. I began moving my tongue from side to side, and I used one hand to massage him the same way as he was doing to me. I could feel him moaning against my waist, the vibrations of his deep voice traveling throughout my entire body. He began thrusting faster, his voice escalating as the slurping sound grew louder and more hectic.

I couldn't take it anymore, and I felt myself release. Seconds after I did, Markus groaned loudly and began licking faster before coming himself. His movements began slowing down as his throbbing manhood began pumping his seed into me, thrust after thrust. I felt both of my hands go up to grab behind his rear as I pulled him in close to me, submerging his entire manhood into me as he finished. I held him close and wouldn't let him come up. He began moving his hips left and right, his cock twisting inside of me as I swallowed everything. I felt myself twitch one final time as he continued sucking, relentless in his efforts. After a few seconds Markus pulled up, gasping before dropping down next to me.

We were both trying to catch our breath as he put his arm under my neck and leaned over me. He rested his head against my neck, breathing heavily against my stomach as we basked in the afterglow together. His arm was draped over my torso, and I raised my hand up and rubbed the side of his face as he nuzzled me.

"Hey..." Markus suddenly spoke up as he began catching his breath.

"Thank you again, David... for everything. I love you."

I leaned down next to his ear before whispering "I love you too, Markus."

His embrace tightened, and I used my spare arm to throw the cover over us. I kissed Markus on the nose before adjusting myself comfortably in his embrace. I felt him breathing against me as my weariness slowly caught up to me, pulling me away. I was falling asleep, but I fought it back.

I wanted my time with Markus, our time together. For this moment, the entirety of my world was right here inside of this tent that Markus had made for us. Nothing else mattered to me, and I kept myself awake until I could hear Markus snoring gently against me. The sounds of his rest shepherded me out of my body and across the reaches of infinity, my heart clouded with my love for him.