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Soren

was worrying. This was far from abnormal though. He worried about

everything. He just over thought everything. But this kind of

worrying was different. The thought of meeting Eli's parents

intimidated Soren, no matter how many times Eli reassured him that

his parents were nice. It wasn't that he doubted his claims, but he

was afraid he'd make a bad first impression. Officially, he and Eli

had only been dating for 5 months, and they had been living together

since September. He was afraid all this would seem rushed.The

Thanksgiving weekend traffic was nightmarish. They should have gotten

started earlier. That was another thing that was on Soren's mind.

They were going to be late, likely so late that Eli's parents would

need to stay up to wait for them. He willed the traffic to go faster,

as if his mental projections could sweep the mass of cars aside. At

least the music was good. It was the swing playlist that they would

be dancing to in a few days.Eli was

asleep right now, resting on his shoulder. This nap was well

deserved, as he had slammed his nose to the grinder trying to finish

a bunch of paintings, not to mention teaching Soren swing while

learning the violin routines. Soren didn't begrudge him some rest,

but someone to talk to right now would be nice. He reached down and

grabbed his fourth coke from the drink cooler. Traffic was still

going nowhere, so he rested his head on Eli's hair for a second, then

stroked his soft cheek.Soren

watched the time drag by, moving at a similar speed to how fast they

were driving. It was past 10:30 and they were still over two hours

away. Eli was up now, chatting happily about games. He was always

snooping around the internet trying to find a new board game that

would be fun to play with groups or just themselves. His phone rang,

playing a few bars of an Ella Fitzgerald tune.

Eli picked it up."Hey Dad!"Soren

jumped at these words. He really didn't want to talk to Logan, not

when they were so late in arriving. Soren focused on the road, but

still listened keenly to see if he could hear Logan's voice through

the speakers. Eli explained where they were, and Soren thought he

heard Logan's gravelly voice saying not to worry about it. Eli

continued, "Don't wait for us. I can get ourselves in. Go to bed.

We won't bother you." Eli hung up."We

can probably get there a bit after midnight if we put the pedal to

the metal" said Soren."There's

no need to get a speeding ticket," said Eli. "Cops are everywhere

this time of year. Relax. They understood traffic was bad." Eli

stroked a silver forearm. He reached into the drink cooler and

grabbed an iced tea. "Sorry I was conked out for so long. It was

must've been so boring for you to sit in traffic with no one to talk

to. Especially since I can't drive your car. We keep forgetting about

stick shift lessons."Soren

smiled. "It's fine. The swing was good enough company for a while.""I'm

surprised you're not sick of it," said Eli, now laying his head on

Soren's upper arm. "We've been practicing to it for so long. After

a minute passed by, a new song was brought up by the shuffle,

Washington Square by

The Correspondents. The two foxes decided to sing along for shits and

giggles. "your best friend

asked if I am straight or gay, I can understand the question when I

dance this way. Straight I said, he said 'that's OK' ..." Eli

and Soren rolled their eyes together at this line. Soren noticed that

Eli had a really good voice. Soren's voice wasn't much worse, but he

could sing for longer due to his greater experience with brass

instruments. He contemplated trying voice lessons with Eli after this

swing event was over. It was

close to 1am as the two foxes pulled into the driveway. Eli and Soren

didn't pack too much stuff for themselves (just a backpack each), but

they had 3 coolers full of assorted foodstuffs for thanksgiving

dinner. Though he would never admit it to anyone but Eli, he kinda

wanted to show off a bit in the kitchen. He brought supplies for his

grandmother's rolls, two types of cranberry sauce, two sweet potato

recipes, and materials for two fantastic pies. He was afraid he might

overload the Vatras with his cooking, but Soren was sure everyone

would be willing to keep leftovers.Eli let

them in the front door. The cozy living room was filled with a soft

light coming from the right side of the front door. A short but very attractive

female houndoom slipped gracefully out of one of the more comfortable

looking armchairs, her black-orange hair hanging past her shoulders.

She left a hefty science textbook and battered notebook on the table

next to her."Heya,

sis," said Eli smiling, "There was no need to wait for us. You

had no idea how late we'd be.""It's

fine. I had work to do anyway," said Eleanor, "So... this is the

famous Soren Saul... Eli, you're a dirty liar. Soren's

much hotter than you led me to believe"

She grinned mischievously at the silver fox. Soren's blush wasn't

visible through his silver fur this time, but he gave his

embarrassment away when his tail fur bristled. "There's plenty of

room in the downstairs fridge for your stuff. I'm off to bed. Night!"

She took the stairs up three at a time, jumping with incredible grace

as well as being completely silent."If

Elly is teasing you already, it means that she likes you," smiled

Eli, a bit awkwardly. "Don't take it too seriously." The pair

walked towards the back of the house, doing their very best to stay

quiet. A spacious and well-equipped kitchen was connected to a

comfortable den with a nice TV and sound system. Between the den and

the kitchen was a door that led to the basement. The two stepped

softly through the kitchen till they got to the downstairs fridge.

They emptied the contents of the coolers, leaving the containers down

next to the fridge. They then moved up to the second floor as quietly

as they could. Soren felt like an elephant thundering through the

house compared to the grace that Elly displayed.Eli

opened the door to what was once his room. It was being converted

into a guest room. Eli chuckled. "How lazy. They didn't get rid of

the twin bed yet. It looks like we'll be stuck together tonight."

Neither of the two foxes seemed particularly bothered by this. They

changed into their night attire. "Pajamas," queried Eli with a

grin. "You never wear pajamas."Soren

was dressed in a pair of too-short red plaid pajamas. Eli was in

boxer shorts, which was what they normally wore when they slept

together. "Well," said Soren awkwardly, the blush now visible

through his fur. "Since we're right by your parents, I thought

boxers might be... too casual."Eli

grinned. "Honey, my parents are smart enough to infer that we have

sex." This remark made Soren blush even more vividly. Eli swept up

the silver fox and kissed him. Soren was normally relaxed when this

happened, but this time he tensed up. Eli was visibly confused.

"What's up sweetie?"Soren

scratched the back of his head. "I dunno. It's just that such

public displays of affection around your parents just feels... a

little weird, I guess. I dunno how to put it."Eli

kissed Soren again. "Soren, you're not in public. You're with

family."Soren

sighed. "I'm with your

family."Eli

kissed Soren on the cheek. "Close enough." Soren closed his eyes

as Eli guided them onto the bed. The bed was rather narrow. It was

really only comfortable if Soren was on his back and Eli lay on top

of him. Still, their legs and some of their tails poked out beneath

the sheets. This wasn't really a problem for either of them. They

wrapped their tails and arms around each other. They kissed each

other for a few minutes before falling asleep.The

lights in the room flicked on. "C'mon boys, it's after 10:00,"

said Elly. She laughed. "Are you blind, Eli? There was a futon made

up for you right behind the door... unless you wanted to sleep like

that." she winked at both of them. The two foxes blushed. "See

you downstairs in a few."Eli

chuckled a bit. "Let's go, I know you wanna get cooking." He

lifted himself of Soren's silver body and shut the door so they could

both get changed. Soren dressed in cargo shorts and one of his less

fancy red polos. He would change once he was out of the kitchen. Eli,

who was prohibited from the kitchen in times such as these, dressed

in khakis and a green collared shirt. He insisted that they didn't

need to overdress for a dinner with just 5 people.Soren

walked into the kitchen. "You know, we have our own knives" said

a short, slim ninetales. She had short hair on the top of her head,

slightly spiked, almost boyish in style. Her hair and tail tips were

crimson rather than the more common orange, like Eli's. She wore

half-moon glasses. "You didn't need to bring those."Soren

smiled, slightly embarrassed. "I'm sorry," he said, "I feel I

never cook as well when I don't use Grandma Jeanne's knives. You must

be Mrs-... I mean Lyra." Soren placed the knife block on the

counter and scratched the back of his head nervously. An austere

looking houndoom walked in behind Soren. Everything about that dark

dog was sharp: his face, his horns, the claws on his paws, his square

glasses, and the look in his eyes. Soren sidled out of the way and

smiled. This was the first time he had ever seen that canine out of a

suit, instead dressed in a Hawkeye jersey. "And you must be Logan."

the silver fox awkwardly held out a hand to shake.Eli's

parents looked at the hand, then at each other. They stepped up and

hugged the tall silver fox. His tail fur bristled with surprise and

slight embarrassment.Logan

grinned. "Don't be so formal. You're completely welcome here."Soren

scratched the back of his head, one of his numerous nervous tics. He

looked around awkwardly, trying to find a topic of conversation. "Oh,

thank goodness," he exclaimed, "You have a double oven! That

makes my life easier. Now we don't have to jockey the turkey."

Soren was genuinely pleased about this development, and not just

fishing for a change of subject.Lyra

turned to look at Logan. "What the hell are you doing here? You

make food burn by looking at it. Get in the den with Eli." Giving

her husband a light push, she then turned back to Soren. "Good

thing too. Eli said you planned to cook half our dinner for us. Elly

is getting your stuff from the fridge."As if on

cue, Elly came up the basement stairs, huffing a bit under the

massive pile of ingredients that Soren had brought. "What, did you

bring your whole kitchen with you," teased Elly as she also saw

that Soren had brought his own knives.Soren

deftly drew out a chef's knife and traced the cutting edge with a

claw. Keen enough to cut a thread laid on top of it. He had sharpened

them before he left and always kept them in meticulously good

condition. These knives were 50 years old, and Soren wanted them to

last for at least another 30. He felt the stainless steel handle,

slightly worn down so that it now fit the contours of his hand

exactly. He twirled it in his hand. The kitchen was probably the only

place where he had any personal dexterity. The silver fox smiled at

the two ladies. "I like these knives," he said simply.Returning

the chef's knife to the block, Soren went to the first and smallest

cooler. "Can I steal two of your burners," asked Soren. "I

wanna get the cranberry sauce out of the way before we need to use

the burners for other stuff." Soren was intrigued that the kitchen

in Eli's apartment was set up just like the one in his parent's

house. He had no trouble finding anything. Elly and Lyra looked at

each other, impressed and slightly freaked out by his uncanny

familiarity with all things culinary.Soren

pulled out two bowls and the ingredients for a cranberry sauce. He

emptied a large bag of pre-washed cranberries into both bowls,

combining the cranberries with a healthy amount of white sugar and

water. Mixing quickly, he threw the contents of each bowl into a

different sauce pan. He then placed the rest of his ingredients by

the stove: a sweet dessert wine, raspberries, a juice cocktail, and a

mix of spices.Elly was

curious. "You making two sauces today?"Soren

smiled as he stirred the contents of both pots simultaneously. "Yeah.

You'll taste the difference tonight." After about five minutes of

stirring, Soren took the spice mix (mostly ginger and cinnamon) and

threw it into one of the pots and added the dessert wine. A tangy,

spicy aroma filled the air. Both ladies were looking over Soren's

silver shoulders.Still

absently stirring the first pot, Soren added a bit more sugar, the

cran-apple juice mix, and raspberries into the second pot. A

powerful, saccharine smell drifted from the second pot, mixing

pleasantly with the first sauce. Soren threw the lid on both pots and

let them stew for a minute or two. He smiled as he heard the

satisfying pop of bursting cranberries. He liked his sauces smooth.

Lyra and Elly had already gotten him dishes to put the sauce in. They

both looked impressed.Soren

smiled. "My Grandma Jeanne taught me everything I know. One is

dryer and spicier. The other is super sweet. Both go well with

turkey. Neither of us was big on gravy, so she always was super

creative with sauces." Soren pivoted, turned off the burners, gave

a few final stirs, and moved the sauces into the tureens that Elly

and Lyra had provided. He stuck them in an out of the way corner of

the fridge.Not

wanting to hog the kitchen spotlight, he got out of the way for Elly

and Lyra and let them get started on the turkey. He picked up his

cranberry sauce ingredients and took the long way to the basement. He

wanted to see what Eli and Logan were doing. Both of them shared the

trait of destroying any culinary work in progress by standing too

close to it, so they were forbidden from the kitchen."Gogogogogogogogogo!!"

Soren raised an eyebrow. He had never seen Eli this invested into

sports. He sometimes listened to sports radio when he painted, but he

was such a passive listener. "I

guess seeing the players makes a lot of difference."Logan

groaned as Eli cheered. "Traitor," muttered Logan. "You were

raised a Hawkeye. How dare you choose the Cyclones?""I

told you dad," said Eli as he punched his dad lightly on the

shoulder. "I had a bunch of friends who went there. Besides, you

were only there for undergraduate studies. You went all over the

place before you were ready for the bar."Soren

chuckled and continued down the stairs. He wanted to get back to

cooking. He just couldn't get into sports.He deposited the used

ingredients on top of the downstairs fridge and searched through it.

He grabbed a ginger ale from the fridge as well as some dough that

Elly had missed when she brought up his stash of ingredients.As he

climbed the stairs, he heard Logan and Eli going at it. "We'll beat

you this year, just like the last two." said Eli, punching his dad

in the shoulder again. "We've been going strong for ages now."Logan

smiled, "But the last time you faced us the Cyclones dropped the

ball. Hard. You let us score two touch downs today. It took you to

the 2nd quarter to tie us up. We'll beat you today."Eli

whipped out his wallet and pulled out a $50 bill. He waved it in his

dad's face. "Wanna bet?"Logan

matched his son's wager. "I won't be outdone by my own son!"

Soren smiled. Eli really knew how to light a fire under his dad's

ego.Elly and

Lyra were working on the turkey, but even if Soren offered help, they

would just get in each others way. "Do you mind," asked Soren,

gesturing at the ginger ale."Go

for it, honey," smiled Lyra, returning to the turkey.Soren

reached above the oven, guessing correctly that the above cabinet

contained large mixing bowls. He dumped the dough into the mixing

bowl and mixed in yeast. He then began kneading it with his paws. It

leavened rather quickly, and it didn't take long for the dough to be

ready for chilling. He put some plastic wrap over the ceramic bowl

and stuck it in the fridge in front of the sauce. Returning

from the fridge, he saw that Lyra and Elly had made significant

progress on the turkey. "Wow," said Soren, "I've never seen

someone work so fast on a turkey. You're almost done."Lyra

poked her head around the bulky bird. "You're really sweet. You're

a whiz with bread from what I've seen."Eli

smiled, poking his head in to get a whiff of the smells. "That's

'cause he's a total carbivore. He bakes bread for us every few

days."Lyra

pointed her carving knife at Eli. "Get out. I'll bring some snacks

out if that's what you're after."Eli

laughed and left. Soren chuckled as he washed his hands again. Eli

wasn't that

bad in the kitchen. He could chop things up adequately enough. Just

don't ask him to actually cook

anything and he'd be fine.

But it appeared that Eli being some sort of culinary bad luck token

was a running joke between both himself and the Vatras.Elly was

laughing. "Oh, I bet you spoil Eli. If he didn't have anyone to

cook for him, he'd have to live off easy mac."Soren

went to the second cooler and withdrew his next set of ingredients: 6

sweet potatoes, Vermont maple syrup, brown sugar, pecans, almonds,

more cinnamon, and his secret specialty. Whipping his grandmother's

paring knife from the block, he began deftly peeling only the top off

the sweet potatoes. He split the potatoes down the middle and then

carved "x" patterns into their exposed tops. He put them to the

side for now. Soren just needed the sauce.Grabbing

a pot from a cabinet above his head, he threw the syrup, sugar,

spices and a bit of milk in together, along with some water. He only

needed this to heat up for a bit. Elly was at the stove boiling green

beans. "Mind if I squeeze past?"Elly

gave him a wink as she moved out of the way, "I'll always make room

for you, sweetie."Soren

blushed. He slipped by her, trying not to get his tails in the way.

He put the stove on its lowest setting. If the sauce was heated too

long, it would caramelize. He just needed it to melt a bit more so it

would be more fluid. It took less than two minutes.Slipping

past Elly again, he took the pot of warm syrup and poured it into the

splits of three of the potatoes, pinching them so that crosses carved

in them would open up to absorb the sweet liquid and let its crevices

fill up. Then, he took the almonds and pecans and layered them on top

of the exposed flesh of the sweet potatoes. He kept the excess sauce

to pour on top of the potatoes once they were cooked.Lyra was

peering out from behind the bird again, making final touches and

adding the stuffing. "What about the other three?"Soren

smiled. "You'll see later." Luckily both the potato recipes and

the rolls could be cooked at the same temperature, so long as you

stayed on your toes about getting the stuff out at the right time.

Soren peered in the fridge to check his dough. It still wasn't ready.

Maybe in an hour or so. "You two need help with anything?"Lyra and

Elly both said no. Soren was ok with this. Now he could focus his

full attention on the best part. He went to the largest cooler. "Can

I steal some of your flour and such, Lyra," asked Soren."Go

for it, dear," smiled Lyra. "What's ours is yours right now."Soren

got out another mixing bowl. He had prepared much of the pie crust

ahead of time, but needed some extra dry ingredients on hand just in

case. It still didn't take too long to finish the pie crust. He

quickly pressed them into his grandmother's antique reusable pie

dishes. They were a pair of wonderful dishes, decorated with fall

colors.Soren

then reached back into the cooler. The first jar was tightly sealed,

holding premade pumpkin pie mix. Not the crap you get out of a can.

Soren was a purist. He didn't believe in instant mixes. He had gotten

a damn pumpkin back in Kansas and gutted it himself. It made a huge

mess, so Soren didn't want to do it in the Vatra's kitchen. He packed

the pumpkin mixture thickly in the pie tray.The

second pie was less traditional. Soren really hated pecan pie, and

also had a weakness for chocolate, so for the last few thanksgivings

he baked a French silk pie instead. The chocolate was mostly ready,

but needed another mixing, so he threw it into a bowl and ran the

electric mixer through it. He spooned it into the second pie tray.

Soren then quickly whipped up some heavy cream he had brought and set

it aside.Both

would be ready to bake once he got the oven preheated. Luckily, the

ideal pie baking temperature was the same as the rolls and potatoes,

so he could bake the pies now and do the other stuff later. Also,

since both pies were best when chilled, he could cook them now and

throw them in the fridge without sacrificing taste. Grandma Jeanne

called that "recipe choreography" when your recipes lined up so

you didn't have wait a long time or run all across the kitchen to

make them right.Soren

looked at the time. It was getting close to 3pm. "Lyra is that

turkey fully thawed?""Yes

Soren," she said as she was peeling potatoes to get them ready for

mashing. "Why do you ask?""It

should take about four and a half hours or so to cook it, so we

should preheat the oven now if we want to eat before eight."Lyra

checked the clock. "Oh, look at the time. You're right. Elly, can

you get the lower over up and running?"After

Elly finished, Soren went and set up the top oven. While he waited

for it to preheat, he took out some baking sheets from beneath the

oven and retrieved his roll dough. He kneaded it a couple of times

and then began rolling it into bite sized pieces.Elly

peered over his shoulder. "Aren't those a little small?"Soren

smiled. "People I know can't get enough of this recipe, so I make

them bite sized so there is more to go around. Wanna help me roll

some dough? You don't mind getting your hands dirty, do you?"Elly

punched him on the shoulder. "I'd love to get my hands dirty with

you."Soren

blushed, but he could see how he walked into that one. Elly was

almost as quick as he was, and they were making quick progress. After

a minute or two went by, Soren took a stab at conversation that

didn't make him feel embarrassed. "You're still in school. What are

you taking right now?"Elly

continued rolling dough with her hands. "Right now I still have

some gen eds to deal with. I needed to get my arts credit done, so I

took a music class. I decided to try out playing jazz."Soren's

eyes lit up. "What do you play? I've been playing jazz since I was

14!""String

bass," said Elly. "I don't have much talent with wind

instruments. Besides, since I'm just plucking, my mistakes are

overshadowed by the important parts, like the trumpet and stuff."Soren

waved a doughy finger in her direction. "Quite the contrary, Elly.

You play one of the most important parts of an ensemble." Elly gave

him a questioning look but let him continue. "You and the drums are

the heartbeat of the band. If you get off rhythm, the whole ensemble

falls apart."Elly

giggled. "Way to put all the pressure on me."Soren

smiled. "It's true. If Eli fell apart on a clarinet solo, it would

be noticeable, but he would be the only one to have to recover from

his mistakes. If you lose pace, it subtly affects the whole group,

making them faster or slower than you should be. Besides, I'm a

sucker for bass solos. You should ask for one. You've got a fun

instrument in your hands. I enjoy playing it."Elly

grinned. "What do you play?"Soren

tapped his thumb on the dough bowl with each instrument. "

Clarinet, electric and acoustic violin, electric and acoustic guitar,

string bass, cello, trumpet, trombone, tenor and alto saxophone,

piano, and I can play

the bassoon and flute, but I do not own either of those."Elly's

mouth dropped. "You could be a one fox orchestra! Where did you

learn all this stuff?"Soren

indicated at his treasured knife block on the counter. "From the

same person who taught me to cook.""I

wish I could meet her," said Elly."So do

I," said Soren, reverence layering his voice as well as a hint of

melancholy. "We're almost done with the third tray. Can you finish

up while I grab the pies?" Soren turned to the sink and washed his

hands. He finished drying just as the timer alerted him that the pies

were ready. Grabbing some oven mitts, he took out the two pies and

let Elly put the first round of rolls in. leaving the pies to cool on

the counter, Soren put in all 6 potatoes and the rest of the rolls.

Soren set 3 timers on his watch.Lyra had

the turkey in the oven by now, and had completed the mashed potatoes

and green beans ages ago. The three chefs washed their hands a final

time and sat down with Eli and Logan. They watched the game for a

bit, but soon Ely and Lyra were getting bored, so Lyra dug out

Scrabble.The five

way game started out strong, and Soren had a strong opening with

"vexing." after a few turns, his first timer rang, "Elly, can

you help me with the rolls?"Elly

nodded and got up. Retrieving oven mitts for the two of them, Soren

opened the oven door. Elly poked her nose in over her shoulder.

"Those are hardly done," she said."Of

course not," said Soren. "Can you get some soft butter for me?"

Elly reached into the fridge and got a tub of butter and some knives.

Soren began adding a small amount of butter on the top of each roll.

Elly imitated him. Soren put the trays aside. "These need a few

more minutes, but shouldn't go back in till dinner is closer. They

can wait until the potatoes are done in a few minutes." Soren

and Elly returned to the Scrabble board to see a dire chain of events

unfold. Logan had played "zenith," which had landed on a double

letter, but also opened up the triple word score for Lyra. She smiled

and laid down "query." she was winning by a hair before, but this

skyrocketed her to the top. There was a collective groan. The game

ended decisively when Lyra played her final letter, forming "ax"

with a single A she tacked on to Soren's "vexing," allowing her

to gain the point bonus and wipe the floor with all of them. Eli

vowed revenge and dashed down to the game closet as Soren's timer

rang.Soren

went in alone and took out the sweet potatoes. He let them sit there

and cool. None of them were completely baked, but like the rolls,

they were going back in. He placed them in a pot and covered the lid

so they wouldn't lose all their heat. The Turkey smelled like it was

close to being ready, perhaps in an hour or so. Eli brought up

Settlers of Catan and quickly set up the board for 5 people.They

game was fast and dirty. Logan, Soren, and Eli took the lead quickly

while Lyra became the mistress of the ports, not being able to win

herself but being able to decide who got what resources in trades.

Elly was trailing from the start, so she became a force of mayhem,

using her massive army of knights to harass all the other players.It soon

came down to just Soren and Eli. Both had their winning turns lined

up, but Logan was up first, and it was clear that he was in a

position to stop one, but not the other. Both the foxes began

pleading desperately, trying to convince Logan to undo the other. The

game was going on behind them, and the clock counted to zero. "And

the Hawkeyes go down to the Cyclones in the final seconds."Logan

smiled. "You may have won the bet Eli, but now you're gonna lose

this game." He played a knight card and covered Eli's key port. Eli

groaned. He took his turn, but was still too far from a victory. He

passed the dice to Soren, who rolled for unnecessary resources and

constructed his final city for a victory. Soren's final timer rang,

and he asked Elly for help again. As he got up he heard Logan groan

"I can't believe I lost a bet to my own son."He

pulled the sweet potatoes out of the pot, and then took his specialty

out of the final cooler. "Marshmallows," asked Elly

inquisitively."Yup,"

smiled Soren as he layered them on top of the three undressed sweet

potatoes, along with liberal amounts of cinnamon and brown sugar. He

put all of the potatoes back in. they didn't need to be in for more

than ten minutes. Otherwise the marshmallows would make a terrible

mess in the oven. Elly helped him with the buttered rolls, and they

both stuck around for the little amount of time it took for the food

to cook. Lyra followed them in to wait for the turkey as Eli and

Logan cleaned up and set the table.In a few

minutes, the banquet was ready. Soren had removed the potatoes,

bisected them, and redressed them with extra topping. The rolls were

steaming and smelling of melted butter. The turkey was emitting an

intoxicating savory aroma, and the table was set and groaning under

the weight of food. Soren

sat between Eli and Elly. The food was passed around, and they soon

tucked in. Soren surreptitiously watched the Vatras as they tried his

potatoes, his sauces, and his rolls. Their faces lit up with each

bite. He would never admit it, but he loved to show off in the

kitchen. It was one of the only places where he was truly in his

element. Eli noticed though. "Everything is wonderful," he said

as he hugged his mother and kissed Soren on the cheek. "show

off," He whispered into

his ear. Soren smiled but blushed a bit at the open display of

affection, but none of the other members of the table were bothered

at all. The

first few minutes passed in relative silence. They were all too busy

eating. Eli opened the conversation. "How's work, Dad?" "OK,"

said Logan. "The current case on my hands is a bit hazy. The

patient had surgery but got an infection afterward. That's not

uncommon, but when they prescribed antibiotics, it only escalated. I

think the surgical equipment wasn't properly treated, but the jury is

out on that till the testing comes back." "Medical

Malpractice," queried Soren. Logan

nodded and continued. "Generally, surgical equipment like scalpels

and the like are sterilized, recycled, and sterilized again after a

single use. The materials are used to make the same stuff, but the

recycling process is much more sanitary. I think that there was a mix

up and that the surgical equipment got reused. Hence the infection.

My client got pretty sick from that infection. I won't go into

details while we eat. How was your last auction, Eli? Was it well

received like the last one?"Eli

smiled, "Yeah. I seem to find people who start bidding wars. But

still, I always joke that people have bad taste. The best selling

stuff are the pieces I hate." Lyra

smiled. "I know that feeling. My best-selling book was awful. Thank

goodness that it's under Piros, my maiden name." Soren's

brain suddenly lit up. "Piros... Lyra... Piros." He pointed his

finger across the table at Lyra. "YOU! You wrote Chasing the Sun!

That series was what sparked my love for fantasy! You wrote an

enormous part of my childhood! I made my first D&D character just

like Soluh!!"Lyra

smiled. "I'm glad my work influenced you in such a way. It's

nice to know people enjoy what I write. That was my first stab at a

more serious novel."Logan

was also smiling. "Eli, you never said Soren was one of us." Eli

laughed. "I thought I did. We were in an ongoing game for three

years while I was at school. I guess I never mentioned who played

what." Soren saw Elly and Lyra were giving each other looks. It was

a look that was often made by nearby people when Eli and Soren geeked

out about anything, but he was too curious about Logan to care. He

never imagined him to be so nerdy. "What

did you play," asked Soren, "Do you still play?" "I was

old D&D," said Logan. "I started with first edition, and

worked my way up to third. I still occasionally play with some

friends, but we're always so busy. It's hard to set time aside. ""I'm

a sucker for 3.5," said Soren, "But I may switch to Pathfinder.

It fixed so many problems. I'm just too attached to my stack of 3.5

books." Soren

noticed that Elly and Lyra were looking kind of bored, so he changed

the topic. "I haven't had any time to game though. Eli and I have

been learning swing in our spare time." Elly

raised an eyebrow at Soren. "You don't look like the type of guy

who'd dance." The

silver fox scratched the back of his head. "Not really," he said,

then giving a quick faux glare at Eli. "Eli threw me under the bus.

He signed us up without telling me. But I got my revenge. The

routines at the end are Lindsey Stirling songs, and if Eli's gonna

make me dance, I'm gonna make him play the violin." Eli

smiled. "It's nice. We're teaching each other. The competition

is the Sunday after." He paused and noticed everyone was finishing

up. "Should Dad and I start cleanup? Soren

got up too. He started clearing the table with Logan and Eli, but

after his first trip, he stuck around the kitchen. He stuck his head

in the fridge and found his pies, the whipped cream he set aside, and

a slab of milk chocolate he had put in the fridge. He began dolloping

the cream on top of both pies, using a spoon to add a wavy pattern to

the top of the pies. Lyra came up behind him. "I was gonna ask you

if you needed help with the pies, but you seem to have it under

control. Need anything else?" Yeah,"

said Soren as he handed her the chocolate slab. "Hold this in your

hands and let it warm up." Lyra gave him a curious look but did as

she was asked. Soren retrieved a vegetable peeler from a drawer and

felt the chocolate in Lyra's hand. "Perfect," he exclaimed as

he took the slab and began to unwrap a single side. He then placed it

on a cutting board and ran the peeler across the exposed side. The

chocolate came off in curled pieces. Lyra's

eyes lit up. "I've never thought of that!! That's so clever!"

She then began placing the elegant curls atop the chocolate pie. When

the last piece was placed, Soren took a cheese grater and topped the

pie with tiny flakes of chocolate.The pies

were brought to the table and promptly devoured. No one went without

at least one slice from both pies, and Eli, Soren, and Elly went for

a second of the pumpkin. As Soren was starting his final slice, he

turned to Elly and said, "Eli told me you studied Personal Power

Applications. How far into that have you gotten?" Elly

smiled, "Well, I haven't been able to do much more than study the

theory right now. All the labs are handled by upperclassmen. But what

do you know about it? I thought you were in pharmaceuticals?" "Yeah,"

said Soren. "I was reading a journal about how personal powers

might be used in medicine soon. Personal recovery looks really

promising, but there isn't enough data as far as I read." Eli,

Lyra, and Logan looked at each other. They whistled in unison as they

waved their hands past their foreheads."Wow,

Eli," grinned Elly mischievously at Eli. "He's gorgeous and he

knows what he's talking about. Soren's a fine catch indeed." Soren

blushed again, but Eli threw his arms around his silver shoulders and

kissed his cheek. He gave Elly a fake pout. "If didn't know

better I'd say you were hitting on him. Get your own boyfriend.

Soren's mine." Soren felt a little awkward but laid his head on

Eli's arms. Eli let go of him so Soren could continue talking. Soren

continued, "I know some species can recover on their own, but that

personal power is exactly that: personal. I was reading how there are

plans to see if the power can be administered to an external subject.

Right now there's so little data because no one wants to be a test

subject that involves personal injury." "I

know," sighed Elly as she finished her pie. "I'd volunteer if I

could. I really wanna see this go further. Right now I'm working on

identifying Hidden Powers. It's already been done to death, but

it's a good experiment to do for beginners. I'd love to know what

type you

are, but I left my equipment at school. I already know I'm a

ghost.""Tricky,

mischievous, intelligent, and slightly playful," said Soren,

thinking back to one of the classes he took on Personal Power

Applications. "It suits you." Elly

tried to smile, but it turned into a yawn. Everyone around the table

mimicked her. It was clear the food coma was setting in. Soren got

up and began clearing the dishes, but Lyra threw up her hand. "Nope,"

she said, pointing at Logan and Eli. "Those two do the dishes. You

cooked more than half our dinner." Soren

smiled. "Fine, then. I'm going to bed. I am beat." He went for

the stairs, and Elly did the same. It didn't take too long for Eli

to come up. Soren was still in the pajama pants, but he was feeling

comfortable enough to take off the stifling shirt. "So my

parents weren't monsters after all," said Eli as he pulled off

his shirt and pants. "They really like you." Soren

hugged Eli and kissed him on the muzzle, steering them back to the

bed. "I knew they wouldn't be. I was just afraid. There was no

good reason for it. I'm glad I met them.""I

wish I could have met your parents," said Eli automatically, but

then he realized who he was talking to. "No

you don't," said Soren coldly. Eli began to apologize, but Soren

kissed him. "It's not your fault they're homophobic pricks. I'd

much rather have you." Eli was visibly overwhelmed by this, but

Soren kissed him on the muzzle. "They thought I was scum when I

stopped believing. They just made it official when I came out. You've

made me the happiest I've been for the longest time. I love being

with you." They kissed again as they wrapped the sheets about each

other. Between the fantastic food and their soft embraces, they were

both asleep in minutes.