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Coming Together By Green A Commission for DumPaup

Laughs and cheers arose from the small audience as the two combatants climbed into the ring, clad in traditional boxing attire. It was a humble affair; the referee wasn't even wearing a uniform, and there were only about two dozen people in the crowd, but the energy was as high as their spirits, and things were looking to be exciting as the opponents stepped forward, bopped gloves as a sign of respect, and retreated to their corners. One was a golden retriever, who actually looked quite formidable, in spite of his breed's stereotype for being too adorable to take seriously, but to the small observer hovering around the edge of the ring, the only person who mattered was the dog's foe, a tall, lean Iriomote cat whose youth belied the skills he'd been learning since childhood. He bounced from one foot to the other, eager and ready, his long ponytail, the same grey-brown as his fur, swaying like a pendulum as he awaited the bell. His name was Yori Hartmüt, and while the referee recited the traditional rules, Yori looked down to the small male just outside the ring and winked, grinning as best he could with his mouthguard in place. This small fan had drawn a few looks as he approached the ring, but he had long since grown used to it, as that tended to happen wherever he went, since he was the only member of his species, the only representative of an entire way of life, that these people had ever seen outside of pictures and old videos. His name was Running Water, though he went by 'Ran' these days, and to him, Yori Hartmüt wasn't just his best friend, he was the personal hero who had changed his life forever.

Ran was a member of the Wyvram Clan, one group of the tribals who chose to live apart from what the outsiders referred to as 'the civilized world', and when he was just a boy, after a fateful meeting with Yori, Ran had come to understand that his path lay in the outside, not with his people, who were fearful and xenophobic. In the years that had passed since that day, Yori had grown up into a strong, confident adult, still lithe and not especially tall, but a far cry from the skinny boy whose parents hadn't let him participate in sports because of his frail, willowy frame. When they met, Ran and Yori were almost exactly the same height, but now, Yori stood head and shoulders over his friend, for while Running Water had matured as well, his muscles growing more defined and his hips becoming slightly wider, almost feminine, he'd barely grown a couple of inches in height since he was a boy, which wasn't entirely unheard of for the Wyvram, who were not an especially imposing species. Claiming ancestry from the legendary dragons, Ran's body was a curious mixture of soft blue skin and a white, fluffy 'leotard' of fleece that covered his torso as well as his forearms, with patches of rough, dark blue scales on his hips, the backs of his hands, and across the bridge of his nose. His eyes were big, expressive, and bright yellow, and his pupils were little horizontal rectangles, something that most outsiders seemed to find off-putting when they first met Ran face-to-face. His short, wide tail, curiously untouched by the wool it poked out of, wiggled from side to side now as he stood as tall as his compact frame allowed, pumping his fist in the air excitedly. "You can do it, Yori!" he cheered, "Knock his block off!" Years of living among the outsiders had given Ran a mastery of their language to the point where he was finally growing comfortable with slang, and he was proud of it, even if he hadn't quite gotten the hang of some of it. He wore a T-shirt with a simple logo plastered across the front, 'Hartmüt's', only slightly obscured by the shawl he wore proudly at almost all times, bearing the unique design that represented Running Water's family pattern, something he hoped made his departed parents proud. At the moment, though, his thoughts couldn't be further from his people as he looked around at the crowd. It had been about a year since Yori had opened his own personal fitness gym, admittedly a small, humble place, but he was proud of it, and Ran was delighted to serve as his personal assistant... and the gym's unofficial mascot, since the tribal was still seen by many as a bit of a curiosity. Today, Yori was fighting a representative from a similar gym in the city, a friendly rivalry they'd built up since they both trained people in boxing. Most of the people who were here were trainees from one gym or the other, with a few peers mixed in here and there, most notably, Yori's parents, watching from the other side of the ring from Ran, and no one had a bigger grin on his face than Svenn Hartmüt, Yori's father and a renowned lightweight boxer. Even as Ran glanced over to him, a nervous-looking boy of about fifteen was getting an autograph from the man, but then the bell was ringing, and Ran's attention was otherwise engaged...

As soon as the two boxers went at it, Ran's adrenaline spiked, and the Wyvram boy began cheering and hooting, jumping up and down and yelling his friend's name. Watching Yori duck and bob and trade punches with the other man may actually have been the most thrilling thing the tribal had ever experienced. Except, possibly, for the innocent kiss he'd shared with the other boy when they were younger. Well, it wasn't really a kiss, they'd been hugging and Yori had impulsively licked Ran's lips and then gotten very embarrassed, pretended it hadn't happened, but it had stayed in the goat-dragon's memory. The truth was that though he hadn't been worldly enough to understand it at the time, Ran had had a crush on Yori when they met and became friends, and that boyish crush had blossomed into much stronger feelings as they grew older. It probably helped that even now, Yori was very protective of Ran, making sure the researchers who craved Running Water's knowledge of tribal life kept their enquiries at a reasonable pace, shooing off untrustworthy types who wanted to exploit Ran's uniqueness in the outside. He still remembered how angry Yori had gotten at the man who wanted to make a reality show about the Wyvram male... But none of that was in his mind now, he just admired Yori's combat form, the agile way the cat danced about the ring, and yes, he also admired Yori, full stop. The Iriomote cat was just so handsome and self-assured, even if he hadn't been Ran's best friend and confidante, he would find it difficult to take his eyes off him. Ran began shadow boxing, miming Yori's movements with swipes of his fists. He might not look it, but Ran packed a mean punch, since he'd been training with Yori since they were kids, though he preferred to let Yori take the spotlight in actual matches. As Running Water bounced from one foot to the other, the boxers continued to throw their best at each other. The retriever couldn't manage to land more than a light, glancing punch, as Yori was putting his feline agility to its full use, but every time Yori tried an attack of his own, the big dog would block it with his forearms and shrug it off, pressing forward. The crowd was pretty evenly split with whose name they were cheering, but the match finally started becoming unbalanced as Yori feinted left, then bounced right and hooked behind his opponent's guard, which faced the wrong way. "Yeeeeaaaaah! Get him, Yori!" Ran cheered, "Show him what you're made of!" Across the ring, Svenn laughed, made eye contact with Ran, and nodded. "Yeah, show 'em what you're made of, son!" the boxer called ,"That's my boy!" Svenn hadn't wanted anything to do with Ran at first, harbouring a deep distrust for tribals ever since being attacked by some when he was a little younger than Yori was now. But as he saw how close they'd become, and how happy Ran made Yori, especially after learning Running Water had nowhere else to go, having been exiled by his people for being 'tainted' by the outside, he gradually came to accept Ran's presence, and treated the boy respectfully, if not entirely warmly. That nod and strained smile, not to mention repeating his cheer, was Svenn's way of showing there were no hard feelings between them, and Ran appreciated it.

As the retriever stepped backwards, Yori pressed his assault, keeping his opponent on the defensive, using his speed to slip past the other man's guard and weaken him with quick jabs to the chest or abdomen. With so much adrenaline coursing through his veins, the rest of the fight seemed either seconds or hours long to Ran, it was hard to tell, but suddenly, Yori closed the gap and drove several quick punches to the dog's abs in quick succession, using his left hand, and then, when the man recoiled, Yori quickly reared back and slugged him in the face with his right, giving him everything he had. As the canine boxer slumped backwards to the mat, and the ref started counting, a surprised Ran cheered loudest of all, feeling proud and delighted; he recognized that pattern as one he'd taught Yori during their frequent sparring matches, something he'd based on an attack commonly used by the Wyvram with their traditional weapon of choice, a pair of hardened leather gauntlets. And not only had Yori remembered the move, he'd put it to use to great effect! The retriever groaned and squirmed on the mat, but he didn't get up, and the cheers and sneers of the small crowd grew louder and louder with every number until... Standing up straight, the referee raised one of Yori's fists in the air, and the room erupted. Even the people from the other gym were applauding, showing good sportsmanship, and Svenn looked absolutely delighted. Yori may not have been a professional like his old man - yet - but his skills still made the elder Hartmüt proud. Yori helped the other boxer to his feet and eased him down onto a stool in the corner, where some of the retriever's supporters gathered to help ease his bruised ego and praise him for fighting as hard as he had. Meanwhile, Yori was climbing down from the ring, and the rest of the crowd surged forward to surround the Iriomote cat, congratulating him on his victory. Unfortunately, at his size, Ran found it rather difficult to move through the press, so he stuck a hand on the ring and pulled himself up a little to try and get his friend's attention. "Yori! Yori!" he called, waving. The cat turned to face him, smiling, just as someone draped a towel over his shoulders, but before Yori could say a word, or so much as beckon him over, one of the trainees from Hartmüt's, a bubbly young Bombay cat, ran up to Yori with a delighted squeal, threw her arms around him, and kissed the surprised boxer enthusiastically.

Yori had once shown Ran a movie where someone had accidentally blown a hole in the side of a spaceship, and the vacuum of space immediately began sucking everything in the room out into the void, the heroes narrowly escaping with their lives. That was about the best way the Wyvram could think to describe it as he watched the attractive female kissing and hugging the man Ran adored. Suddenly, it was like the room had gone utterly silent, like all the joy and excitement that had filled his body mere seconds before was gone, sucked out of his body entirely, and nothing was left behind except a cold ache in his chest. His mouth moved but no sound came out, and his eyes widened, his unusual, rectangular pupils shrinking into little horizontal lines. "Oh... oh no..." he breathed, and then, with a whimper, the Wyvram dropped down to the floor and did something he'd once promised himself he never would again; trembling uncontrollably, he turned his back on a problem and ran away, slipping away from the crowd unnoticed and fleeing out the side exit, into the street.

Ran's feet pounded pavement, his mind reeling, as he felt a warmth that had been inside him for almost as long as he could remember flickering and dying. He and Yori had never done anything overt, and they'd never said anything to express it, but Ran had always thought that - that the attraction he felt was mutual, that Yori felt the same way about him. He'd been so sure that there was more to those smiles, to those casual touches and hugs when they were spending time together. He remembered the first night the two of them had tried alcohol, and they'd woken up in the morning cuddled together on the couch. That picture had ended up online, thanks to one of Yori's friends, but neither of them had seemed to mind, they were comfortable with it, with the position they'd found themselves in, and Ran had thought... maybe he had thought wrong. Maybe that innocent lick when they were boys had been a fluke, maybe it was just one of many feline behaviours Ran still didn't entirely understand. He turned down an alley, heading towards Hartmüt's, even as he was unsure why. Feeling tears brimming in his eyes, the Wyvram shook his head in embarrassment and shame. Although Ran's people were entirely accepting of such love, the outside still had such a hang-up for people who loved people of the same gender, so though Yori had never actually said that he was gay, as they called it, Ran had always thought... "Oh... oh, by my ancestors..." he whimpered to himself, in his native tongue, "Yori... I've been such a fool..." Yori didn't spend all of his time with Ran, and he'd been going out more often lately, so... had he gotten himself a girlfriend, and not told Ran about her? Had he deliberately not mentioned her because... because he knew Running Water had a childish crush on him, and was afraid the goat-dragon would react poorly? How long had he been living in a dream? Or worse... perhaps Yori was one of those people who didn't have a preference between the genders, and Ran had simply missed his chance by being a coward. He imagined Yori cutting his ties to Ran and moving on with his life with this girl, and Running Water shuddered. He hadn't felt this alone, this unwanted, since the day he was exiled from his village. As he reached the gym, which had closed early so the staff could watch the match, he struggled to get his keys out of his pocket and get the door open, but somehow he did it, and after stepping inside, in the silence of the empty building, Ran trembled, part of him wanting so badly to flee to the apartment he and Yori shared above the gym, to just curl up in his bed and disappear forever, but another part of him remembering a promise he'd made to Booming Thunder, his village chieftain, to be strong.

Trying to swallow his emotions, Running Water instead turned to a nearby sandbag, the classic surface on which to practice one's punches. As he had done so many times before, Ran fell back into a defensive stance and then lashed out at the bag, trying to take his frustrations out on it through punches and kicks (mostly punches, given Yori's area of expertise). Ran and Yori commonly did this as a form of training, in fact it was what Yori had been doing the first time Ran had ever laid eyes on him, when Ran woke up in Yori's father's personal training gym after being attacked by thugs known as the Trouble Trio. But where the Wyvram usually did this with a calm, focused mind, to relieve stress and relax, this time, Ran yelled and bleated aggressively as he swung his fists, pivoting to strike out with his feet, attacking the bag with more desperate passion and pain than any other target in his life, save perhaps for the Trouble Trio when they had tried to finish the job. With the hardened scales on his knuckles, Ran was always made to wear padding when he used the bags or sparred with others, but this time was different, this time he was putting his all into his attacks, not even pretending to practice dodging or blocking, as if he was actually trying to murder the sandbag. Despite his best efforts to vent his feelings, he felt sorrow and pain bubbling to the surface, drowning out the rage he'd tried to raise in their place, and his strikes grew weaker and slower, having less and less fire behind them, until finally, Ran just leaned against the bag, trembling. Tears were welling up in his eyes, as hard as he tried to fight them, and he couldn't help but whimper. The truth was, he felt a deep, burning shame, scolding himself and thinking that a good friend would be happy for Yori, glad that his best friend had found happiness with this girl... but even though he'd tried to downplay it in his mind many times, Ran knew how he felt about Yori, even if he'd never said the words... he'd always thought they were meant to be, but it seemed he was wrong. Slowly sinking to his knees, his memory replaying the taunts of other children making jokes about the name 'Running Water' belonging to such a crybaby, Ran sucked in a deep, shuddery breath and closed his eyes, picturing the handsome face of his best friend. "Yori..." he whispered, "...I love you." Breaking down into deep, heaving sobs, Ran buried his face in his hands, feeling broken, ashamed, and utterly, utterly alone.

* * *

Time passed, night fell, the gym grew dark, and silence filled the air. For a long time, there was nothing, and then, suddenly, the doors burst open and Yori Hartmüt ran in, looking incredibly worried. He'd been looking all over for his best friend, who had vanished without a trace while Yori was being ambush-hugged by one of the trainees from the gym, a rather nice girl named Stephanie. The Iriomote cat had been worrying himself sick wondering what the goat-dragon had thought, since he'd run off before it became apparent that Yori was just as shocked by the kiss as Ran had been. Even as those soft lips pressed against his own, the cat's focus had been on the profoundly pained look on Ran's face, the betrayal in his eyes... He'd (gently) pushed Stephanie away, and as she saw the look on his face, she started to stammer an apology, say that she just got carried away in the moment, but Yori was already searching the crowd, trying to find the Wyvram, and not seeing a hint of blue scales anywhere. Now, as he flew into the gym that doubled as his home, the last place he could think of to look, he was growing desperate. Had Ran just fled all the way back to the forest? He was an outcast from his people, he had nowhere to go, and Yori kept trying to reassure himself that Ran would never do that, but when you're afraid, your mind can play dirty. "Ran?" he called, flicking on the lights, "Ran?! Are you here?" Blinking against the sudden brightness, the cat's eyes adjusted quickly, and he was able to see the Wyvram curled up in a little ball on the floor next to a sandbag that looked like it had seen some serious punishment. Ran's head shot up quickly, alarmed, at the sudden sound of someone calling his name. "Yori!" he gasped, as the cat ran to his side. The tribal started to sit up, but as he reached the sandbag, Yori knelt down and pulled Ran into a tight hug, intensely relieved.

"Oh, Ran!" he said, "I was so worried! After you ran off, I - I thought I'd lost you!" Ran tensed up even more for a moment, and then he began to relax, clearly comforted by Yori's arms, and as he hugged the cat back, he pressed his muzzle against Yori's shoulder, inhaling deeply of his friend's scent. "I'm sorry, Yori..." he whispered, "I just..." He trailed off, shaking his head, avoiding Yori's gaze. "What happened, Ran?" the taller male asked gently, "There I was, ready to celebrate, and my best friend in the world takes off on me." "Am I really your best friend in the world, Yori?" Ran asked, repeating every syllable carefully. "Of course you are. That's why I've been searching all over town," the gym's manager replied immediately, "I have to admit, I didn't think you'd come back here, figured you'd avoid home for a while." "I... I needed some air," Ran lied, fairly obviously, "My h-head was spinning from all the excitement..." He looked up at Yori, who inhaled sharply at the sight of fresh tears on his friend's face, at the way Ran's eyes, normally so foreign, were red and swollen in an all-too-familiar way. If Yori hadn't been certain of what really happened at that point, Ran's next words would have cemented his suspicions, looking around the gym and finding no one else. "How come she's not... I mean, why are you alone?" The Wyvram asked, after a moment, "Did you leave everyone else?" Swallowing, his heart beating faster as a whirlwind of emotions ran through him, Yori took a deep breath to calm himself before he answered. "No, no, I had everybody looking, Mom, Dad, St- uh, the trainees... That reminds me, I should give them a call, let them know you're okay."

Standing up, helping Ran to his feet, Yori walked a few paces to a phone on the wall for the use of the gym's patrons, and dialled Svenn's number. "Dad wouldn't admit it, but he was worried about you, you know," he said to Ran, as the electronic dialling sound buzzed in his ear, "I still don't know how he feels about tribals, but he thinks you're okay, at least, and since you're important to me, that's important to him." Ran smiled shyly at that. "Really?" he asked. Yori nodded, but his father picked up at that point, and he looked away. As Ran stood nearby, poking at the floor with his toes - the Wyvram had hardened soles, enabling them to go barefoot in the forest, and Ran had never much cared for shoes since coming to the outside - Yori informed his father that he'd found Ran, that everything was okay, and asked him to tell everyone that they could stop looking and that they'd celebrate the win properly tomorrow. "I know, Dad, I know, tell Mom I'm looking forward to it. Talk to you later!" He finished, hanging up with a relieved sigh. "Apparently Mom made a sheet cake but didn't tell me in case it jinxed me," Yori said, grinning, "I convinced him to get her to keep it in the fridge until tomorrow." Ran frowned and sighed. "I'm sorry..." he muttered, "I didn't mean to be such an inconvenience..." Yori walked up and put his hand on his friend's shoulder, chuckling softly, not at all put off. "I remember a time when you would have just stared blankly if I used a word as long as 'inconvenience'..." The Iriomote cat said, "It's alright, Ran, I don't mind as long as you're okay. It's totally fine to have the party tomorrow, this way I'll be rested and clean, instead of, you know, just having had the fight of my life." A small grin graced his lips as he looked off to the side, towards the doors to the gym's changerooms. "Speaking of getting clean..." he said, an idea blooming in his mind that filled his heart with warmth, "Ran, do you wanna take a shower?" Ran's eyes widened and the Wyvram male raised a hand to his chest. "You - you mean, t-together?" he asked, nervously, "Like we used to when we were k-kids?" Yori nodded, forcing his tone to stay casual. "Sure," he said, as if it were no big deal at all, "I could use a wash, and you still seem a bit off, I remember a nice warm shower always used to make you perk right up." Grinning shyly, Ran nodded. "Okay, s-sounds good," he replied, very clearly trying to act casual, and mostly only succeeding in looking cute. Nodding towards the men's changeroom, Yori turned towards the locked door that lead to the stairs to the apartment the two men shared on the floor above the gym. "Let's use the showers in the locker room," he said, "There's more room in there. You go get the hot water going, and I'm gonna get the fur shampoo and stuff from upstairs." With a nod, the Wyvram hurried off towards the changerooms, and Yori lingered a moment to watch him go, his gaze drifting down to his friend's tail as he went. Then he went to get the shampoo from the cramped little cubicle in their apartment. He had a good feeling about this...

* * *

Ran had turned on two of the taps in the communal shower in the men's changeroom, but he couldn't bring himself to undress, as the idea of a fully-clothed Yori walking in on him, naked and bathing in the water already, filled him with conflicting emotions. He remembered the public bathing ponds in his home village, which didn't even have walls or ceilings, and the casual way he'd bathed with other Wyvram as a boy, and he briefly wondered if this was how the notoriously modest outsiders felt about nudity in general, and if it was starting to rub off on him. He suspected that right now, it had more to do with his increasingly tangled feelings about Yori Hartmüt... As the cat himself walked in, Ran swallowed and looked back to the water, extending a hand and testing the temperature, quietly pleased that he hadn't blushed. "Water's just fine," he said, belatedly taking off his family shawl and carefully setting it on top of a bench, making sure it wouldn't slip down to the questionable floor. Yori tried to keep a clean house, but some things are universal, and one of them is that you don't want important things spending time on the floor of a locker room. Running Water began undressing, and he could hear the sound of rustling fabric behind him as Yori followed suit - followed by a grunt of pain. Turning around, Ran found the cat wincing as he moved his arm to shrug off his shirt, and realized that there were several fresh bruises blossoming on Yori's chest and shoulder. "Oh, Yori!" he said, frowning. The boxer glanced over at his friend, then followed Ran's gaze to his own chest and shrugged nonchalantly. "Eh, it comes with the territory," he said, "You don't get into boxing if you're not willing to get punched. I'll be fine, I just, ah, might need your help washing my back, heh." Immediately after saying this, Yori unfastened his pants, and the combination of his words, his actions, and his handsome smirk briefly put an unspeakable image in the Wyvram's mind, one of a very different kind of shower, still featuring the two men, but with a lot more heavy breathing and tight embraces than this one was likely to feature. Swallowing, Ran banished the image from his mind, lest he become aroused, and smiled slightly, nodding. "Sure thing, Yori, as long as you return the favour."

Soon, the two men were nude, and Ran let out a long, gentle sigh as he stepped under the warm water, feeling it cascading down his body, running through his soft fleece and across and between his hard scales, the sensation soothing the Wyvram, whose people had always associated cleaning the body with a spiritual cleansing as well, even if day-to-day bathing wasn't considered a ritual. He smirked as his thoughts of the old days lead him to another memory. "Hey..." he said, looking over towards Yori," Do... do you remember the first time you saw me naked?" The cat laughed softly, nodding, as he freed his hair from its ponytail and tossed the cord towards the rest of his clothes, shaking his head and letting his hair hang freely. "How could I forget?" he replied, "For a minute there, I thought you tribals were really different, and you'd been a girl all along." Ran grinned, and then put on an exaggeratedly confused face. "Wait!" he said, making his voice slightly higher pitched, "Where the heck's your dong?!" Yori laughed, lowering his ears in embarrassment. "Aww, come on," the cat said, scratching the back of his neck," I'd never seen anyone built like that before, and you were parading all around in front of me when I'd been expecting you to put on the bathing suit first." Ran tensed up for a moment as, unmistakably, Yori's eyes dropped down and ran over the shorter male's body, taking in the full sight of his nudity. The 'leotard of fleece' effect was even stronger when Running Water was naked, since, owing to the dragon in his blood (at least according to the tribal elders), a Wyvram male's parts were contained inside a genital pouch when he wasn't aroused, hidden inside his body behind a thin slit in his flesh - a thin slit that was practically invisible behind the fleece covering that part of his body. Yori had never actually laid eyes on Ran's penis, because he'd never seen the Wyvram aroused. On the other hand, since Yori's own bits hung proudly out in the open, Ran had seen them quite a few times when they were showering after a sparring match or drill training. Ran gave a little start as he realized that his gaze had dropped to his friend's package while he'd been thinking about that, catching himself wondering idly how heavy Yori's testicles would feel in his hands. Averting his gaze and quickly focusing on scrubbing up his chest with suds, Ran bit his lip. By the spirits of his parents, if only he knew there was a chance! If Yori had ever said one thing about being attracted to other men... Ran would still probably remain silent with his affection, he thought, afraid of being rejected. He still wasn't clear on whether or not Yori was seeing that girl...

The two friends continued to talk idly as they washed up, focusing on the fight, with Ran complimenting Yori's technique, and Yori thanking Ran for teaching him that combo he'd finished the retriever off with, and admitting that he still needed work with some of his left-handed skills. "I just keep dropping my shoulder whenever I dodge. If he'd been faster, he probably could have creamed me," he said, briefly raising his hands and bobbing back and forth, envisioning himself in the ring, "I really need to work on that before I embarrass myself... I mean, Dad was there and everything." "Don't say that," Ran scoffed, "Svenn thought you were great, I could see it in his eyes. He said you were a stone fragment from his whole." Yori snickered and glanced at the shorter male with a grin. "You really are in a nostalgic mood tonight, aren't you?" the cat asked. For a while when he first started trying out outsider sayings, that mess had been Ran's attempt at the phrase 'a chip off the old block', which he'd read in a book, and Yori hadn't said anything at first for fear of discouraging him. "You know, I - Ow, dammit!" Yori flinched as he reached around to the small of his back, taking a step backwards and moving his hand. "Hey, Ran?" the boxer asked, sheepishly, "I was right, I need a hand washing my back..." He held a sponge out to his friend, who stepped forward somewhat nervously and took it. "S-sure thing, Yori..." Ran said, softly. His feline companion turned his back and obligingly knelt down a little, making it easier for his shorter friend to reach the whole of his back. Yori sighed happily as Ran gently rested one hand on his friend's less-bruised shoulder and used the other to wipe the sponge across his back, gently rubbing and pressing, making sure the shampoo was worked into the cat's fur evenly. "Ohhh, that feels so good, Ran," the Iriomote cat murmured, "I bet you give great backrubs." Ran swallowed, shivering at the tone in Yori's voice, so comfortable, so... pleasured. It almost sounded the way it did in the Wyvram's dreams... "I wouldn't know," Ran muttered, "I've, uh, I've never given one." Yori chuckled softly and rolled his shoulders as he sighed again, grinning. "Really?" he asked, "Could've fooled me..."

As he kept scrubbing at Yori's back, Ran took his time, making sure to get all those hard-to-reach places, but mostly so that he could savour his chance to run his hands across the cat's supple, muscular back. Finally, though, he could put it off no longer, and with one last daring caress of his friend's shoulder blade with his bare hand, Ran stepped back and smiled. "That should do it," he said, as Yori stepped up and turned his back to the water, which obediently rinsed all the suds out of his fur. When he was sparkling clean, Yori looked to Ran and spun a finger in a circle. "Turn around," he replied, "Let me get you." Handing over the soap, Ran did just that, preparing to close his eyes and savour the feeling of his best friend confidently rubbing his back... except that's not what happened. The Wyvram let out an adorably high-pitched eep as Yori instead chose to move forward and embrace his friend from behind, squeezing Ran tight and sighing happily. "God, I've wanted to do this for so long..." he murmured, "your fleece is so soft, Ran..." The tribal, blushing furiously, whimpered and trembled, feeling conflicted. "You c-can hug me later, Yori!" he said, "You sh-shouldn't do it when we're naked!" Back home, the Wyvram weren't actually that prudish about casual contact in the buff, but with this one, specific male, Ran felt a jumble of thoughts and feelings whirling around inside him. Yori didn't move, naturally, he just gave Ran a gentle squeeze. "No, I don't mean a hug," the cat said, "I mean... I mean a hug that I don't have to pretend is just a friendship thing. I've wanted to hold you for so long, Ran, I've dreamed about it..." That certainly got the Wyvram's attention, and he froze in place, his hands resting on his friend's arms. "Y-Yori?" he whispered. The Iriomote cat sighed again, murmuring softly into the trembling male's ears. "Did I ever tell you how much I look up to you?" Yori whispered. "Yori, that's not fu-" "It's not a height joke, I promise!" the boxer quickly amended, "I mean it, you turned your back on your people to come live out here and deal with people staring at you like you're an alien or something. The truth is, I've never known anyone else with the kind of courage you have. You're the bravest person I've ever met, and I... I sort of use you as a personal role model when I'm trying to man up and get things done." Ran didn't speak, could barely breathe, as he heard this confession. "Ran, all these years we've been together, you've been the most important person in my life," Yori told him, "When we were kids, I didn't entirely understand it, I just knew I never wanted to lose you. Now... now I know for sure." Yori took a deep, trembling breath, and the Wyvram realized that his friend was shivering too. "Oh God, Running Water..." Yori whispered, "I'm in love with you!"

Feeling light-headed, Ran yelped and looked over his shoulder, forcing himself to meet Yori's soft gaze. "By B-Booming Thunder's name... d-do you mean that, Yori?" he asked, his heart pounding in his chest. The cat gently nodded and smiled shyly. "I do. I love you, Ran." He shuddered against the Wyvram, and lowered his ears a little, adding "Jesus, I've wanted to tell you for so long..." Feeling a little dizzy, afraid he might actually pass out, Ran forced himself to reply quickly. "Oh, Yori!" he whimpered, "I - I love you too! I always have!" The goat-dragon yelped again as he felt the boxer's hands start moving on his chest. "I would say you have no idea how happy that makes me, Ran," Yori whispered, "But I'm pretty sure you do. No more pretending, no more pretext, I... I just want to touch you..." Yori's hands began wandering Ran's body, curiously rubbing and caressing at his friend's skin and scales, scritching his fingers through the soft white fleece. Ran fidgeted slightly, lost in the moment, and when Yori gently tweaked one of his nipples, the Wyvram bleated with pleasure, feeling light-headed. "I've w-wanted to hear you say those words for... for years, Yori..." Ran whispered, "I thought... when I saw you kissing that girl..." Yori loosened his embrace and turned Ran around so they were facing each other, and the Wyvram saw that his friend had lowered himself so they were eye-to-eye. "I know," Yori said, "When I saw the look on your face, when you disappeared, I knew that you felt the same way I did... and I was terrified that you'd just vanish from my life before I could tell you the truth. Before I could do... this..." He leaned in, gently pulling Ran closer, and there, in the growing mist from the gentle cascade of water, the two males embraced again, their lips meeting as they finally expressed their feelings for each other and kissed, deeply and passionately.

They held each other close, their hands now wandering each others' bodies (Well, Ran's had yet to go past Yori's abs, but he was still just a touch nervous), and their tongues gently entwining, rubbing and twisting together, gently exploring each others' muzzles as the two males finally gave in to the desires that had been simmering beneath the surface for so, so long. Ran absolutely lost himself in the moment, closing his eyes and focusing the entirety of his being on what it felt like to kiss Yori Hartmüt. He finally only leaned away - after what felt like a span of time the length of the cretaceous period - when he felt a hand slipping through his fleece towards the joining of his legs. As Yori's curious fingers brushed over Ran's genital slit, the goat-dragon whimpered and broke the kiss. "Yori..." he whispered, "I didn't think you'd..." The cat pulled his hand away, lowering his ears apologetically. "Oh - oh God, I'm sorry," Yori replied, "It's just - I've been thinking about it for so long, and I got ahead of myself..." Taking a deep breath, gathering all that courage that Yori had apparently been admiring for so many years, Running Water reached forward and closed his fingers around his friend's wrist before gently bringing that hand back between his legs. "N-no one else has ever touched me like that," Ran admitted, "But... but I want this, I want you. I was just surprised... Please don't stop, Yori, touch me!" Reaching over with his free hand, Yori mirrored the gesture and placed Ran's other hand on the cat's flaccid penis. When Ran looked up into his eyes, Yori smiled. "Fair's fair, right?" the gym manager asked, rhetorically. The Wyvram nodded, grinning back, and took a firm hold of his friend's - no, his lover's cock, feeling it beginning to twitch and stir in his grip already.

As the two males kissed again, their hands began to rub and tease at each other's bodies. Ran curiously fondled every inch of Yori's dick, loving the sensation as it fattened in his grip, growing bigger and harder by the second. Meanwhile, Yori was tentatively running his fingertips up and down the length of Ran's sensitive slit, and it didn't take long - only about the time Yori himself was reaching half-mast - before Ran whimpered, the flesh of his slit parted, and his own manhood began to slide free of his body, wanting to get in on the fun. The cat's fingers curled around the shaft, rubbing back and forth, moving from the base to the tip of the tapered head and back again, and Yori churred quietly, breaking off the kiss with a smirk. "So that's what it looks like..." Yori whispered, "I've wondered." Ran wanted to say something back, felt like he should reply for some reason, but all that came out was a wordless murble of pleasure as Yori continued stroking him, those gentle fingers teasing along the sensitive flesh and encouraging him to get harder and harder, even as the cat's own prick followed suit. Before long at all, both of them stood at full pride, and as Yori paused a moment to admire his lover's rigid cock, Ran gave the Iriomote cat's tool a squeeze, winking at him. "C'mon, don't stop now," Ran whispered, "The fun's just getting started..." With that, Yori began stroking again, but his movements were different now. Before, the feline had just been exploring; rubbing and touching every inch of Ran's penis because he wanted to know all about it, wanted to know what the dick he'd been fantasizing about for so long felt like when he really held it in his hand. Ran was sure that's what had been going through Yori's mind... because that's what he had been thinking as he fondled the cat's genitals, fascinated by the way everything was outside Yori's body, on display at all times, and the testicles swayed freely in their wrinkled sac. Now, however, there was nothing exploratory about the way Yori was touching Ran, gripping and stroking along the goat-dragon's slick, red shaft, making the smaller male weak in the knees...The boxer was jerking him off. Yori wanted to make Ran come, right here, right now. And the only thing in the world that Ran wanted more than to enjoy a handjob from his best friend... was to return the favour. With a moan of pleasure, Running Water began stroking Yori's prick again, and the cat whimpered happily as Ran moved closer, standing right in front of Yori, and leaned in to playfully lick his friend's lips, the way Yori once had when they were young. The Wyvram's teasing smile was erased as he tensed up and inhaled sharply, feeling his cock pulse in Yori's hand, knowing without looking that it was drooling pre-come onto the floor. Seeing this, Yori moaned with desire, lowering his ears and instinctively humping into his lover's hand. "Let me guess, we've been s-so busy setting up and training for the fight that you haven't t-touched yourself in a few days," Ran teased, delight in his eyes, "Me neither. Don't worry, I'll help you with that..." Without ceasing his stroking, Ran leaned in and began to lick and nibble at the side of the kneeling cat's neck, and Yori moaned in pleasure again. Ran wasn't blushing any more, feeling much more relaxed, like showing this side of himself to Yori was the most natural thing in the world...

Several minutes passed as the two males continued to play with each other, leaning together for support. Sometimes they kissed, sometimes they licked and nibbled, and sometimes, they just stared at each other's cocks while they pulsed and twitched, reacting to their play. Ran ached to watch Yori's climax, almost as much as he desired his own. By now, they were both leaking pre to the smooth tile floor, where the long-ignored water from the showers whisked it away to the drain, and though he continued to resist with everything he had, Ran was a little embarrassed that he was approaching the point of no return so quickly. "Ran... relax, you d-don't need to impress me," whispered Yori, reading the Wyvram's face like a book, "Just let it happen, I want to s-see it..." Ran bleated softly, lowering his ears submissively as he nodded, unable to speak, but he forced his eyes to remain open as he took his lover's suggestion and relaxed, allowing the pleasure to wash over his resistance and burst forth to fill his body. The Wyvram leaned back and cried out in his native tongue as he succumbed to the pleasure, and his orgasm exploded into being. Ran's cock started throbbing and pulsing in the cat's gentle grip, and as Yori watched intently, it began spurting long, gooey strands of thick, wet Wyvram jism into the warm, misty air around them... but it had a bit more reach than Yori had been expecting, as he was clearly surprised when the semen reached his body, draping itself over his abs and stomach in sticky lines. This seemed to set the larger male off himself, and as his hand continued stroking and squeezing Ran's throbbing member, Yori let out a yowl, tensing up and hunching forward as he came. Running Water's eyes were glazed over with ecstasy, but he'd never forget the feeling of the boxer's prick spasming against his hand, the sight of that thick cock pumping out jets of hot, creamy seed that splattered against the smaller male's chest and added to his own pleasure. As the goat-dragon came and came and came, as Yori marked him with his seed and claimed the tribal as his own, Ran was deliriously happy, and wanted the moment to last forever.

When the stars in front of his eyes cleared, Ran blinked a few times and found himself in Yori's arms, the larger male frowning cutely. "What...?" Ran asked, confused. The cat sighed in relief before answering. "Are - are you okay?" Yori asked, looking a little concerned, "Your knees gave out, and you fell, but I was right here to catch you." As Ran stood up straight again, he nuzzled affectionately at the feline's cheek and nodded "Yeah, I'm fine... and I'm glad you were here for me. Listen, Yori, that was..." the Wyvram took a deep breath, "That was amazing. I..." Feeling braver now that he knew the truth, Ran trailed off and kissed Yori instead of finishing that thought. When his lifelong friend kissed him back, the tribal whimpered quietly, feeling infused with joy. Then, their chest fur happened to rub together, and Running Water belatedly remembered something, breaking off the smooch with a gasp. "Oh man, I'm - we're all covered in come!" he laughed, "I'm sorry, Yori, I -" The cat grinned bashfully, and stood up. "No, no, it's fine, uh, we're in the shower, remember?" he replied, waving dismissively, "Perfect spot for being messy. Let's get cleaned up and then get out of here before we go all wrinkly." Ran couldn't really argue with that, so the two men hurriedly re-shampooed their fur, scrubbing each other's jism out of their pelts. When they were finally clean, they turned off the taps, and as Ran returned to the bench to retrieve his clothes, Yori caught him off-guard by grabbing the smaller male and picking him up, scooping the Wyvram up into his arms like a bride he wanted to carry across the threshold. As it turns out, that wasn't far off from Yori's actual intentions. "We've got the rest of the night to ourselves," Yori said, "And I don't know about you, but I plan to spend a lot of it cuddling with you." There was just a hint of blush on his cheeks, as if he was still self-conscious about expressing this side of himself with Ran. "What about our clothes?" Running Water asked, squirming. Yori shrugged and started for the door. "We can come back and get them later," he said, "The gym's still closed, nobody's gonna take anything." The Wyvram bit his lip, his gaze dropping to the bundle he'd left on the bench. "But... my family shawl..." he whispered, conflicted. As much as he loved the idea of snuggling naked with the cat, that particular garment was very important to him. Yori smiled gently and nodded. "Alright, have it your way," he said, setting Ran down. The two men gathered their clothes without putting them on, and then headed out of the room together - but not before Ran gave the larger male's rump a playful swat, and Yori yelped adorably.

There was a fair amount of giggling and laughing as the two males - clean, damp, and as naked as the day they were born - fled across the floor of the gym, hoping not to be seen; though the place was closed, there were sizable windows in the front wall to encourage people to come in and train or work out. Once they made it to the door in the far corner, Ran breathed a sigh of relief as he began to climb the narrow stairs, and he felt even more secure as he heard Yori locking the door to the gym behind them. Within minutes, they were safely ensconced in their shared apartment above the gym, cuddled together in Yori's bed. It was only a twin, barely long enough for the lanky feline by himself, but with how closely they were holding each other, the mattress felt positively spacious. Ran rested his cheek against Yori's chest as the larger male rubbed his back. Ran couldn't remember a time when he'd felt this content, just lying there, feeling Yori's warmth against him, listening to his friend - and now lover - purring softly from his own happiness. "I was so afraid to tell you..." Ran whispered, one finger toying through Yori's fur, "I was afraid that if you didn't feel the same way, it would ruin everything, that it would change the way you thought of me, the way you look at me..." The cat reached down and scratched soothingly behind one of Ran's floppy ears, teasing the tips of his claws against the thin skin. "It's okay," Yori replied, "Why do you think I never told you before? I know you see me as this... pillar of strength or something, but... I didn't know if you were into guys, I was afraid it might scare you off, and I couldn't stand to lose you, Ran." He leaned down and planted a kiss on the top of the Wyvram's head before chuckling softly. "Man, nobody is going to believe it started tonight," Yori mused, "We've always been close, and we've been living together for years now, everyone's gonna think we've been shagging on the sly since we turned legal." When he lifted his head, Ran wasn't smiling. "D-do you think your father will be mad?" The tribal asked, "That you love men? That you love me?" Sitting up, Yori pulled Ran onto his lap and began scruffing his fingers through the fleece on his friend's back, something the goat-dragon found rather soothing. "No, no, of course not," the cat assured him, "Mom and Dad are really open-minded about that kinda thing, they'd never get all judgemental over it. As for being with you, well... like I said, it's not going to be that big a surprise for most of the people we know." This time, Ran giggled, looking at his lover with a shy grin, and Yori leaned down to kiss him on the nose. "Yeah, my parents will be happy for us," Yori reiterated, "Just as long as our kids don't come out as blue kittens with rectangular pupils." Ran snickered and gave him a perplexed look. "But Yori, we're both men, we can't..." he trailed off and then blushed fetchingly. "...That was a joke, wasn't it?" Yori laughed and nodded, rubbing his hands along the smaller male's back again. "You'll get the hang of deadpan sarcasm sooner or later."

The huge grin on Yori's face suddenly fell away as his eyes widened in embarrassment. It wasn't hard for Ran to figure out the reason, either, as from his perch in Yori's lap, the goat-dragon could feel Yori's penis, which had apparently recovered from their play in the shower, twitching and growing, lifting up against the Wyvram... snugly pressing itself between Ran's buttocks, like a hot dog with a blue bun. Gently (but quickly) lifting Ran away, Yori blushed and hid his shame self-consciously with both hands. "Oh - oh jeez, I'm sorry, Ran..." he mumbled, "I swear I'm not trying to pressure you or anything, I'm not in a hurry, you know? W-we don't have to do anything you don't want to. We'll just, uh, cuddle tonight, and if you just want to stick to handjobs for a while, I'm totally fine with that!" Getting up on his knees, Ran reached forward and placed one of his hands on one of Yori's, still cupped over his package. "It's okay, Yori," Ran whispered, "But you don't have to worry... because I want this." The cat bit his lip for a moment, lowering his ears nervously. "Y-you mean, uh..." Yori trailed off, his tone uncertain, like he didn't want to say the wrong thing and offend Ran. Scootching forward, Ran sat down on the larger male's thighs, now pressing both of his hands against Yori's. "I've loved you for years, Yori," Running Water whispered, "Maybe since I met you. All I've ever wanted, before I even knew what couples do, was to be with you. And now that... now that I know you want that too... Oh, Yori, please... make love to me." The Iriomote cat's mouth fell open in shock, and when he closed it again, Yori looked downright embarrassed. "Ran... I... You're the first person I've ever t-told I was gay..." Yori whispered, "I've never been more than just friends with anyone... I - I'm a virgin." Ran swallowed and then nodded. "If you want to wait, then, I'm okay with that," Ran assured him, taking great lengths to keep his disappointment out of his voice. But Yori shook his head, his hair flicking back and forth. Distantly, Ran wondered when the cat had returned the cord to his hair and re-formed his ponytail. "No, no, I - I want you too, Ran," Yori said, emphatically, "It's just... I've never done it before, and I... might not be any good." "Oh." said Ran, blinking slowly, before grinning and adding "Well, if it helps... I've never done it either, so... I won't know the difference." The gym manager snorted in amusement, surprised, and looked up into the playful grin on his lover's blue face, seeing nothing but the love and supportiveness Ran felt. As his ears slowly went upright again, Yori smiled back and nodded, allowing Ran to pull his hands away from his groin before the two males embraced each other again, seeking out each other's lips and holding each other tight.

They broke off the kiss after only a short while, and after some (very) brief discussions made it clear that Ran would prefer to be on the receiving end, at least for their first time, they separated so that Yori could (somewhat reluctantly) climb out of bed and go to get something to make it easier on Ran's backside. He returned with a tube of 'personal lubricant' that made the Wyvram grin slyly. "Yori... that's actual sex lube," he teased, pointing to the logo, "Someone's been having fun!" To his delight, Yori blushed self-consciously and pouted cutely. "Shut up..." he muttered, "Or would you rather I go in dry?" There was no fire behind his words, though, and Ran snickered to himself as he rolled over onto his stomach and got on all fours, wiggling his tush at the larger male. The Wyvram trembled with anticipation as Yori squeezed some lube onto his fingers, and as the cat shuffled closer, Ran took a deep breath and raised his stubby tail, shivering as Yori's dry hand gently touched a soft buttock. "Relax," Yori whispered, "They say it's easier for the, uh, the bottom if he's not all tense." Nodding silently, Ran let out a long breath, reminding himself that this was Yori, reminding himself of how the cat made him feel, and knowing, beyond the shadow of a doubt, that he was safe in the taller man's arms. That helped a lot, and Yori murmured some encouragement as he gently touched his slicked-up fingers to Ran's anus, smearing the lube around the Wyvram's back door. Running Water sighed happily as the cat began to play with his butt, practically vibrating with enthusiasm. At first, those fingers just rubbed and massaged, almost teasingly, but soon the pressure began to increase, and Ran whimpered softly as his tight, virgin entrance surrendered to his lover's insistence, and Yori's fingers slid into his rump. "Oh... oh, Yori..." Ran breathed, his shaking hands gripping fistfuls of the sheets below him as he felt those digits probing around in his rear. "Easy, Ran, it's okay," Yori whispered, "I p-promise I won't hurt you..." His nerves showed in his voice, and Ran thought it was incredibly endearing. To be fair, Ran thought that about most things related to Yori Hartmüt. Closing his eyes and taking a deep, shuddery breath, the goat-dragon lowered his chest to the bed, keeping his rump high in the air, making it easier for the feline boxer to access it. At first Yori's movements were tentative, almost reluctant, but as he kept rubbing and kneading along Ran's immaculate inner walls to spread lubricant inside the smaller male, he grew more confident and began to press harder, reach further. "By my ancestors, this - this feels so good..." Ran whispered. In his own private explorations, Ran had curiously prodded under his tail, but without lubrication, he'd always found his backside too tight to get even one finger deep into. This, this was something else entirely, and the fact that it wasn't his own fingers, the fact that it was Yori doing this to him, had the Wyvram whimpering and churring with pleasure. He was really getting hard by now, could feel his shaft pulsing and twitching as Yori's probing digits rubbed along his walls, but all too soon, the cat suddenly pulled his hand away, and the goat-dragon's rump clenched in on itself, suddenly feeling emptier than it ever had before. "Noooo..." Ran moaned, instinctively pushing his hips backwards, pouting as he squirmed with need. Yori placed his dry hand on Ran's ass again. "Relax, sweetie, it won't be long now." The tribal looked over his shoulder and grinned. 'Sweetie'. He liked the sound of that. He also liked the sight of Yori rubbing whatever lube remained on his fingers onto his own prick, getting the proud flesh nice and slick for The Deed ahead.

Ran pushed himself back up to all fours as Yori got up onto his knees, and when the cat put a hand on his lover's butt to steady himself, taking hold of his cock with the other hand and leaning closer, Ran looked forward, feeling almost dizzy with excitement for a moment as he realized this is really about to happen. Then, he felt the tip of Yori's penis poking at his entrance, and the Wyvram tensed up and moaned out loud. "Hurry, Yori, I need you..." He'd waited years to admit his feelings for the other male, but he suddenly felt impatient now that they were almost there. Fortunately, Yori did not hurry, as that would certainly hurt Ran's inexperienced backside, and instead, after adjusting his legs to make himself more comfortable, the cat took a deep breath and began to push forward. "D-don't fight it, Ran, just relax," he said, nervously, "I don't want this to hurt..." "Okay..." Ran distantly found it amusing that Yori seemed more nervous than he did, given their roles, but the thought fell away as he felt the pressure increasing against his tight ring of muscle again. The moment seemed to stretch out forever, and then, without warning, Yori's erection shoved forward, burying its crown in Running Water's tight rump. Arching his back, Ran bleated wordlessly, as that had actually hurt him just a little, but the larger male began rubbing his back and whispering to him soothingly. "Hey hey hey, it's alright, Ran... Do you remember that, uh, that barbecue my Dad had last summer?" Yori asked, "There was beer and fireworks and stuff... Y-you always look so happy when people set off fireworks, you s-still get that delight in your eyes you had when we were kids, like it's magic or something... God, I wanted to kiss you. I wanted so badly to tell you how I feel, but I was afraid I'd lose you..." Carefully looking over his shoulder, trying very hard not to move his body, Ran looked back at Yori and managed a small smile. "I wish you had..." he said, "That would have made those fireworks really magical." He kept his eyes locked on the feline's as the pain began to ebb. "I... I love you, Yori." "I love you too, Ran." he replied, "Sh-should I keep going?" Sighing with relief as the sharp ache under his tail eased, Ran nodded and looked down at the bed again. "Absolutely," he whispered. Yori began to push forward once more, and the smaller male moaned softly, even though he tried to hold it in. Ran couldn't help but shiver and shake as he felt Yori's dick - which felt huge now that it was inside him - slowly pushing into his rear, bit by bit, spreading his tight channel and making its way inside, despite the mild reflexive resistance by Ran's inner muscles. An outsider phrase popped into Ran's head, and he smiled to himself as he thought that Yori's prick had suddenly 'barged inside like it owned the place'. After all, since he'd already given his heart to the Iriomote cat, why not throw his butt in as a bonus? Ran almost giggled at that, but his silly thoughts fell away as another twinge of pain distracted him. They popped up a couple more times as Yori slowly buried himself in the goat-dragon's virgin rear, and each time, the boxer stopped, rubbing his lover's back and murmuring to him about times he'd thought Ran had looked particularly handsome, or he'd been especially tempted to confess his love. It definitely helped Ran feel better, reminded him that this really was the man he'd grown up with, his best friend since he was a boy, and the anchor that had held Running Water to the world after he'd been exiled from his home. As the larger male finally hilted himself entirely under Ran's tail, the Wyvram groaned his partner's name, not out of pleasure, but out of love. "Y-Yori..." He lifted one hand from the bed, reaching back blindly, and Yori took it in his own, giving it a gentle squeeze before letting go. "Take it easy, Ran," the cat breathed, his voice as tight as his lover, "The hardest part's over."

Ran let out a sigh as he shivered, just taking in the experience of feeling Yori's full length inside him. As he squirmed, trying to get used to it, the cat bent forward, pressing his chest against his lover's back, and loosely wrapped an arm around him, leaning forward to kiss the Wyvram on the shoulder. "Your fleece feels good against me," Yori murmured, "And God, you're so tight... Are you okay?" He licked at Ran's cheek, and the smaller male sighed happily and nodded. "Ohhh, by my tribe, Yori, it feels incredible..." Ran was emotional to the point where normally he might name a specific Wyvram he deeply respected, like Chieftain Booming Thunder, or one of his late parents... but the idea of invoking their names while having sex was tremendously embarrassing. The goat-dragon inhaled sharply as he shifted his position and the feline prick inside him rubbed against his walls, making his backside reflexively clench down on Yori's shaft. The boxer grunted with pleasure at the sensation, and Ran smiled slightly, pleased that his lover was enjoying this too. For as the ache in his rear subsided, the Wyvram began to feel a delightful, toe-curling pleasure from that rigid cock rubbing along his slick channel. "Let's do this, Yori," he said, his eagerness growing, "You can start moving now." "Ran, I -" Yori said, but Ran interrupted him, his ears twitching. "Wait, do you hear that?" he asked, looking over his shoulder. A smile grew across his face as he realized what the rumbling sound was. "You're purring again," he giggled, deliberately squeezing down on Yori, who laughed self-consciously. "You feel really good, okay?" the Iriomote cat replied, grinning, "Now hold on..." Ran nodded and looked forward again, taking a deep breath as Yori began to pull back, slowly, slowly withdrawing from the smaller male's tight rear. The Wyvram moaned unashamedly as he felt his lover's cock rubbing against his inner walls, his toes curling up as the boxer's prick slid out of his rear until only the head remained inside, and then, after a heartbeat's pause, the nervous cat reversed direction and began to sheathe himself again. Ran sighed happily, pushing back against the thrust, and Yori sighed with him as their bodies met once more. "How was..." Yori started, but Ran looked over his shoulder excitedly and gestured for the cat to continue. "Don't stop now, Yori!" he said, "Come on!" He winked at the other man and clenched down on his length to encourage him, and though he blushed, Yori smiled back and began to move again, this time without stopping, gently thrusting into Ran's tight rump again and again, gradually picking up speed as both of them sighed with pleasure.

Soon enough, Yori had reached a comfortable pace, his thighs gently slapping against Ran's butt again and again as he drove himself home under the goat-dragon's tail. After so many nights of imagining what it would be like to lie in Yori's arms, what it might be like if they shared their bodies with each other, Ran was ecstatic as he thought to himself that it was finally happening, he was finally making love with the man of his dreams. Yori was still hunched over his back, and the feline's hot breath on his neck and shoulder just made it even more real for the Wyvram... though he can be forgiven if most of his attention was focused on the thick, rigid dick slipping into his rear and coaxing such delicious pleasure out of his tight channel. "Ohhhh, fuck," Ran whimpered, uncharacteristically using outsider profanity, "Yori, it's... it's amazing..." Chuckling a little self-consciously, the Iriomote cat nipped at his lover's shoulder playfully. "Such language," he faux-scolded, "And they say that you're a good role model for the kids..." Looking back, genuinely curious, even now, the Wyvram blinked, his big eyes no just as expressive in their inquisitiveness as any outsider's, even with their big, rectangular pupils. "Who says that?" he asked, totally earnestly. "What? Oh, uh, some of the p-people at the gym," Yori replied, his smile faltering slightly, "Look, never mind, that's not what we should be focusing on right n-now!" He seemed a little flustered, like he was having trouble keeping up his rhythm and speaking coherently at the same time. Ran giggled, making Yori blush, and then he looked forward again. "Whatever you say, lover," the tribal teased back, "Whatever you say." Clearly trying to get the smaller male's mind back on The Deed at hand, Yori, whose arms were wrapped around Ran's chest, holding him tight, slid one hand down to take hold of the Wyvram's stiff, neglected cock. Ran bleated in surprise and Yori nipped dominantly at the back of his neck. That wasn't really something the Wyvram did, but having read of the significance of that action to felines, Ran shuddered in delight from head to toe. "Easy, Ran," Yori whispered, as he began to stroke the goat-dragon's dripping cock, "I don't kn-know if they do this in Everschade, but out here, we c-call this the reach-around." Having been a child when he left, Ran had no idea if homosexual men jerked off the receiving partner in his culture, but as his lover's fingers rubbed and kneaded at his aching flesh, he couldn't help but moan again, and found it hard to care about the gap in his knowledge.

Within moments, Ran was pushing back to meet Yori's thrusts, and he was rather enjoying the lewd noises made as his pillowy buttocks were struck by the cat's pelvis in the gentle rhythm. The Wyvram lost himself, lost track of time, so that all there was in the world was his body and Yori's, intermingled, both of them panting and grunting and moaning as their pleasure built and built. All that mattered to Ran was Yori's hand wrapped around his hard-on, stroking and massaging the sensitive flesh, Yori's mouth, playfully kissing and nipping at the back of his neck, and Yori's thick, beautiful prick, driving itself to the hilt in his tight, formerly virginal rump in an endless cycle that was bringing the Wyvram so much pleasure that he couldn't stop twitching and shuddering. Eventually, he whimpered with need and glanced over his shoulder. "Y-Yori!" he gasped, "I - I'm so close, I'm gonna... you're gonna m-make me come!" Groaning, Yori hugged him tighter and changed his pace, pulling out only halfway before driving himself home in faster, shallower thrusts. "God, yes, I'm right b-behind you, Ran," the cat growled, "D-don't hold back, come with me!" With such a pleasant invitation, Running Water could hardly say no, and as he relaxed his muscles, allowing the pleasure to wash over him again, Yori bit down on his shoulder, so that Ran knew to the core of his being that he was Yori's, and Yori was his. He stiffened beneath the larger male and bleated his lifelong friend's name in a long, drawn-out cry as his orgasm overpowered him and his prick began to throb against the cat's fingers. 'Milked' out of his body by his lover's demanding hand, Ran began to spill his warm, gooey seed all over the sheets below him, ejaculating again and again as ecstasy tingled along his entire nervous system, making him shake and tremble from head to toe as he came so forcefully that all his thoughts were washed away in a glorious haze of bliss. As part of this, his backside was involuntarily and rhythmically clenching and squeezing down on Yori's dick, and as the goat-dragon came, hard, around his manhood, the boxer was dragged over the edge into a powerful climax of his own. Releasing his bite, Yori tensed up and slammed himself home one last time, crying out in helpless pleasure as his erection twitched and pulsed, emptying his balls into his lover's tight rump, painting Ran's bowels with thick, productive jets of hot, creamy jism, spurt after spurt flooding the smaller male's backside. Feeling the wet heat spreading inside him, Ran knew what was happening, that this beautiful feline was sharing this moment of rapture with him, and he started coming even harder, closing his eyes and seeing stars as the two males began to grind together, whimpering and gasping their way through the pleasurable crescendo of their first time with their true love.

When it was finally over, when they'd wrung every last drop of pleasure out of each other that they could, Ran went limp and almost slumped to the bed, but Yori held him tight, keeping him in the larger male's embrace. Yori released his grip on the Wyvram's slowly-softening penis and leaned that hand against the mattress to support them both as they panted and trembled with residual ecstasy. After they caught their breath, Yori kissed his lover on the back of the neck and then moved away, pulling out of the goat-dragon's rump with a gentle tug of his hips. Ran grunted at the sensation, and then shivered as he felt the cat's semen start leaking out of his backside, which just served to remind him, as if he could possibly have any doubt, that it had really happened. Looking down at his own come, still glistening on the sheets, Ran smiled slightly. "We made such a mess..." he whispered. Yori glanced down and chuckled. "So we did," he observed, "Well, screw it. We can wash the sheets in the morning, and until then, we can sleep in your bed... though we're all sweaty and covered in jizz, so I guess we're gonna have to get another shower before bed, huh?" For the time being, Yori moved to lie down, and Ran happily joined him, worming his way into the feline's embrace, nuzzling against his chest and listening to his lover purring. "That sounds fine to me, Yori," he replied, "But... let's do it separately this time. I don't think I've got a third round in me just yet..." The two of them laughed at that, and Ran hadn't felt so happy in years.

They cuddled in silence for a while, just savouring the afterglow, and then they began to talk about surprisingly innocent topics, things they'd heard on the radio, movies they wanted to see, general life stuff that had nothing to do with the fact that they'd just made love for the first time. "I forgot to mention," Yori was saying, "You know who called me the other day? Chet Bauer." Ran frowned as that name tickled the back of his mind. "Chet Bauer, Chet Bauer..." His eyes widened slightly as the pieces fell into place. "Wait, the Chet Bauer?" "Yeah, the one you clobbered the first time you met him, hehe." Yori smiled thinly at the memory. "It's been years since I've seen that guy. Apparently he's been in anger management for a while now, and he's calling up all the people he was shitty to so he can, you know, make amends. Wants to meet for coffee tomorrow and apologize in person for bullying me when we were kids. I said yes, figure I can squeeze it in before the party." Ran nodded and then let out a sigh. "The party..." he repeated, "Is that where we're gonna tell everyone?" Clearly sensing his nervousness, Yori stroked the Wyvram's cheek gently. "Hey, don't worry, it's not like people will get mad or make fun of us or anything," he assured the smaller male, "And we don't have to do it there, we can wait for a more private time, just tell the people close to us. I never want this relationship to make you uncomfortable, Ran." Looking up at his lover, the goat-dragon smiled. "My people like to say that love makes you stronger, that two hearts together are stronger than any one by itself," he said, "I never really understood that, to be honest, it just sounded like, you know, basic math... and then I heard you say the words, and it became so, so clear." Winking at him, the cat grinned. "I love you, Ran," he said, filling in the blank. Running Water shivered and hugged his lover - his mate - a little tighter. "I love you too, Yori," he replied, immediately, "As long as you live, I'll always be in your corner." The boxer laughed softly and kissed the Wyvram on the forehead. "I wouldn't have it any other way, sweetie," Yori whispered, "I wouldn't have it any other way." They sought out each other's lips, and found them eagerly offered, the two males kissing slowly, gently, unhurriedly, expressing the romance that had been slowly building between the two of them since they were twelve years old. Ran had never felt more loved, more wanted, in his entire life. There was a time when Running Water couldn't imagine wanting to be friends with an outsider, much less giving his heart to one, but though they had been born to different worlds, the love he shared with Yori Hartmüt had been the perfect bridge to let them come together.