Take Comfort Now
AUTHOR'S NOTE -- This is the Series Finale ... of 'Luminous' ...
The wolf's teeth razed through her fur. Nip, nip ... nipping her.
The chipmunk, on her back, sinking into the sheets ... gave little chitter-huffs. Paws clutching to the fur on his back. Arms wrapped round his back.
Pyro slid his hips forward ... giving a whimper. Stopping. Swallowing ... nipping at her neck.
Dotna lolled her head to the side.
Pyro's paw fished for her own, and he brought it up ... to his muzzle. Where he sucked and chew-chewed on her fingers. On her paw. Gently. So gently. So that she felt the pressure, but ... so that it never, ever hurt. He would never, ever hurt her ...
They were in their bed in their housing unit. The central air system ... humming ... (but, as was the case ... not entirely working). The two furs going slow. Taking their sweet time. Loving the warm, warmer ... warmest ... touches. Caresses. Glances.
Oh, loving ...
... in the middle of this afternoon.
And the wolf could howl at climax ... without being ribbed for it. All the other furs were at the arboreal gymnastics competition. A bit deeper in the forest. The wolf and chipmunk, however, not being squirrels (or having a squirrel for a mate) ... and not being the type to be able to sit still (for such a thing) ... they had stayed behind.
They'd quickly found a way to pass the time.
Pyro drew a breath ... humped. Slowly, softly ... in a missionary position. His welling knot beginning to press to her. Slowly, slowly ... moving. Oh, such teasing! How it teased him ... to have to move this slow. But he had to lull her with the pleasure ... had to lead up to it. It was always a tad painful when the knot slipped in. After a few seconds, her body would adjust, and the pain would go away, but ...
" ... oh," Dotna sighed. Fur lightly matted with sweat. Fur brown and striped with darker colors of brown. Tail a brushy wire ... not as thin as a mouse's. Not as thick as a squirrel's. And her whiskers ...
... Pyro was licking at her whiskers. His tongue lapped at them. And it made her shiver. The whiskers meant for sensing the air. For sensing things. Sensing only his breath, his tongue, his ... presence. It made her feel all hazy.
The wolf started growling from the throat. It ... oh ... felt so good. So sensitive. So wet. So hot. And he couldn't hold back from humping harder, and ... as always (as happened every time), the knot slipped in as a result of his lost control.
"Uh!" was her yelped grunt.
And he put her paw and arm aside (her arm going back round his back), and he bit on her ear. Leaving slight indents ... with his teeth. Nothing permanent. They would fade in a few minutes. But, oh, he had a biting fetish, and ... as he growled from his throat, he moved away from her ear ... and began to nibble on her lips. Not with his teeth, no. Lips were too delicate for that. He nibbled with his own lips. Lips nibbling lips. Oh, sweet wetness ...
"Huh ... oh," the chipmunk breathed. As she strained. As she flushed. As she went limp.
They were tied, but the wolf ... wasn't done yet. It wasn't over yet. Tied ... so that his seed would be sure to enter her and STAY in her. Nature's way of making him a good breeder. But they weren't genetically able to have a child ... but they took great pleasure from the ability, all the same. The wolf had a sheath and a knot ...
... and the chipmunk had never been with a fur who'd had both those things. Or, really, either of them ... oh, to have found a mate like him. With his red, red eyes and his powerful nose, and his ... sense of humor. And his ... well, everything. To imagine he'd come from another universe! She was mated to (and making love with) a fur from an entirely different universe ... (and Dotna still not knowing, for Pyro had never told her ... that, IN that mirror universe, Pyro's mate had been none other than Assumpta ... but that was a different Assumpta than the one here ... but, still, Pyro had told neither femme about that part of his past ... hadn't even told Field ... ) ...
Pyro humped ... sensitive. Huffing. Hump ... the knot stretching her, keeping them stuck together, but not preventing the wet friction of flesh and muscle. Not preventing him from inching them both closer and closer to their reward ...
Dotna chittered. What a sound ... chitters! High-pitched and quick ... and squeaky ... and so soft. With a rat-a-tat-tat precision ... chitters ...
The wolf's tail wagged with a wish-a-wish-wish ... in the air above his rump. Quite pleased ... oh, quite pleased ...
"Oh ... oh ... "
Hump ... hump ...
"Hum ... um ... " Dotna's breaths became shorter, quicker. She was close. Close ...
... closer! The wolf so much closer. Whining in that wolf-like way. As he ferally rutted her (or tried to ... his humping was shortened by the knot). "Mm ... mmm ... mm!" Almost, almost ...
... there!
There.
"Ohhh ... ohh," was all Dotna could do. The sheets stuck to her furry, matted back. And her legs (spread ... with foot-paws digging into the backside of her mate's body) ... they tingled with the spasms emanating from the source. Her femininity in heated, waving spasms. In leaking spasms. Pleasure. Oh, pleasure ... oh, was that what this was? Or was this love ... acting like some kind of hallucinogenic drug? How did anything feel like this? Oh ... who knew, but ... who cared? It did, and ...
... the wolf growled with satisfaction. Nose flaring. Body going limp as he sowed with a twitch-twitch ... twitch. Spurting ... and little, little sounds escaped his throat. The cutest sounds.
Dotna, eyes closed, hugging him, breathed, breathed ... and was the first to speak. "Oh ... I, uh ... oh, Pyro," she said. Well, at least she'd TRIED to say something coherent. But ... best wait a few more minutes for coherency.
Pyro nuzzled and licked at her ... tongue on her neck, her cheeks ... panting hot, wet breaths.
"Oh," was her flowery exhale.
And Pyro breathed deeply, stopping his actions ... so he could simply lie on top of her. Hug her. Protectively. Possessively. In the wolf's own universe, he'd been prey ... in this universe, what was he? What was he becoming? He didn't know, and ... it didn't so much matter. As long as he grew ... with her. As long as he found out ... with her. Through her. As long as they grew together. Was that not a wish of all mates?
There was a pause ...
... and Pyro, angular ears cocked and swiveling, whispered, "Did you feel that?"
"Mm ... yeah," she squeaked out. "I felt it ... " A clutching hug.
"No, no ... heh ... " A toothy grin. "Yeah, no ... I mean ... there. There it is again."
"What?" She blinked. Still tied with him. Still sweaty and ... smelling of wolf-fur. And him smelling of her. Still basking in the glow of their yiff.
The wolf's red eyes (which were a bright color ... his eyes, she'd come to observe, were a different color red ... depending on his mood) ... his eyes darted. "The ground. The floor ... it's ... moving."
"What?" she asked again.
The wolf grunted, pulling back ... and huffing. Stuck. "Heh ... um ... "
A shy giggle. "Mm ... relax, darling. Come on ... " Her paws on his shoulder-blades. "Settle. Down, boy ... "
A toothy grin. "Mm ... think you can tame me?"
"Oh, I tamed you months ago," she assured ... with playful confidence.
"Well ... heh ... alright. You win," he said, settling back down. Laying with her. Nuzzling with her. As they breathed and nipped and kissed and ... mm ...
Until, eventually ... his knot began to loosen, and ...
" ... there it is again!" He grunted and ... with a pop! ... slipped out of her, wolf-hood dangling, wet and glistening (and retreating into its sheath). The wolf hopped into his shorts, and ... left the bedroom.
"Pyro," Dotna called, with a hint of worry in her voice. "What is it ... " She pulled on a long, plain t-shirt (which went down past her waist). She padded out of the bedroom. And saw Pyro at the front door, squinting, looking out ... into the grassy area in front of their housing unit.
"What?" Dotna whispered, coming up behind him. Standing on the tips of her foot-paws. Looking with him out of the window in the middle of the door.
"There's a ring of dirt around our ... house," Pyro whispered. "Well, half a ring ... and it's growing."
"I don't ... what ... "
"Like someone's digging a hole," he said, squinting, opening the door. Going outside.
Dotna followed. The furs were all at the gymnastics do, so ... no worry about being seen with only a shirt on. (And, Pyro's wolf-hood was still bulged enough to be seen through his shorts). And both furs, though curious, a bit nervous ... neither was scared. She was a security officer, and he came from a universe of darkness. They had both faced greater dangers than a ring of dirt ...
... but, all the same, Pyro got down to paws and knees, all fours ... his powerful nose (stronger than any nose on the Luminous crew) probing, probing. Pushing to the dirt. Sniff-sniff ...
"Anything?" Dotna asked, standing over him, looking around. And feeling a slight rustle-rustle in the ground beneath her foot-paws. A bit unsettling. Like giant worms were tunneling beneath them. "Pyro?"
A growl, and ... the wolf brought his paws up ... and smashed, punched them down on one of the dirt-piles. Flinging dirt away. Punching, digging with his claws (which weren't meant for digging).
Dotna was about to ask if she should get her phase pistol, but ... a beep. A beep-beep. Proximity alarm. Coming from her computer pad. All the furs had rigged their computer pads (very slim, very portable computers ... which were all tied into Luminous' main computer core) ... to alert them if the ship's sensors picked up anything, or ... and her pad was beeping. No one else was in the settlement, so ... she scurried back inside. Grabbing her pad. Eying the read-outs.
While Pyro's paws penetrated the tunnel that was being dug beneath the dirt ... and grabbed fur! Squeezed! Causing a squeal ... and a squirm, but Pyro grabbed onto the warm, wriggling thing with BOTH paws, and growling, he pulled it up through the dirt ...
Dotna, a bit shell-shocked, padded back outside, swallowing. "Pyro," she whispered.
"I caught a mole!" Pyro said proudly, in pure wolf-like fashion. The wolf covered in dirt and soil. Fur already matted with sweat (and yiffy fluid). He was panting, panting ... and the mole (visibly shorter and stockier than the wolf) shivered, tucked into a protective ball ... big digger paws and feet ... exposed. It was whimpering blindly.
Dotna eyed the mole with curiosity, but said, looking back to her pad, "We're being hailed ... by a ship."
"A ship?"
"A furry ship," she whispered. "A prey ship."
Pyro tilted his head quizzically.
"They say they've come to take us home."
The senior staff (and their mates) ... came to be, two hours later, assembled in the conference room back on Luminous.
The windows in this room stretched along the entire wall. And showed the bright blue sky. Showed that inverted sea, and how, today, it had no islands (no clouds). And the grasses and grains, and ... the trees ... went for miles. Oh, redemption could be found ... just along the way. Just over there.
Wren, sitting at the head of the table, squirmed ... got out of his seat. He could never sit in chairs for very long. He went to the window, paused, and ... came back. Standing in front of the rest of them. Leaning forward, paws on the smooth, gray surface of the table. And he took a breath and explained, "He says his name is Advance ... Captain of the Solstice."
"Didn't know there WAS a Solstice," observed Rella.
"Well ... there is." A sigh. "Apparently, after we wiped out the bulk of the furry fleet ... and the predators sent us into exile ... well, the prey didn't like it. I don't know. Advance says that ... Admiral Silver was ousted nine months ago."
"Ousted?" asked Field.
"Poisoned," Wren elaborated. "No suspects. But ... the prey overthrew the Council. The Council was made up of ... ALL predators. The prey demanded to have equal representation. And they got it. Civil war was averted, and ... things are more stable."
"So ... "
"So, the Council's newly-appointed prey members ... took over construction of a new fleet. More Wabash-class ships," he said, of Luminous' ship-type. "And other varieties. I don't know ... don't know the details. I only talked to Advance for twenty minutes. But ... Adelaide was in the room with me. Out of view. She read his mind over the comm line." Wren looked to the pink-furred bat.
"He was telling the truth," Adelaide told everyone. "I mean ... he wasn't lying. He's a mouse. So ... it wasn't too hard for me to make a connection with his mind. But I evaded detection."
"So, why's the Solstice this far out?"
"Well, she's a new ship," Wren said ... " ... a deep-space exploration vessel. Like Luminous was intended to be," Wren said, voice trailing. Intended to be. Before everything had ... gotten swept away. But, thinking back ... and thinking now ... he wouldn't have had it any other way. Oh, swept away! A blessing ... it had led to so much. So much that wouldn't have happened otherwise. So many friendships and mate-ships and discoveries and lessons and ...
"Were they TRYING to find us?" Dotna asked.
"No," said Wren. "They stumbled upon us by accident. There are no furry ships this far out. They were mapping the system, and ... found us parked here. So, they hailed, and ... they want to bring us back into the fold. With the prey holding more sway in the government, and with the predators' licking their wounds from all their recent, stubborn defeats ... and with news that the Arctic foxes threw up a white flag at the snow rabbits ... the tide is changing. Our exile has been rescinded. Advance wishes to escort us home, and ... he assures we'll be greeted with parades and medals and ... bolster the confidence of all prey. He believes that our return will make the predators' realize our mettle. That we'll earn their respect and further ease tensions ... that we've been gone for so long that ... any lingering fury about us ... will have long dissolved."
There were eye-darts. There were blank gazes. Some staring at the table. Others fidgeting.
"I, uh ... I know this is our home. I mean, this ship is our home, but so is this planet ... we worked really hard to get here. We sacrificed a lot of ourselves to ... find and make a home for ourselves. We went through a lot," Wren said. "I know that ... and I can't ask any of you to leave here. I mean, Advance says one thing about going home, but ... by this point in time, I know all of us had given up ANY hope of going back. It was like ... dealing with a great loss. Our home, to us ... was dead. We grieved. We moved on. And ... to un-bury it and go back ... it wouldn't be the same. But ... it IS home. Our families are there. Our ... where we were born. Each of our species. Other furs. You know, it's ... I know the need for that is beating in our hearts."
There was silence.
Wren stood up a bit straighter. Whiskers twitching. Ears ... swiveling. His bushy tail flickered a bit, and he took a short breath. And sighed it out. "I was the first rodent captain, but I'm ... obviously no longer the only one, if Advance is any indication. So, I mean ... and Adelaide says he's telling the truth. So, I know it's safe to go back. But ... do we want to?" was his question.
"Wren," Field whispered, eyes watering ... unable to look at the squirrel ...
"Field," he responded ... sighing. Wishing he could hug the mouse. His friend. Oh, his friend ... the mouse welling up ... because he already knew Wren's personal decision. "I'm, uh ... " He looked to the others. "I'm going back." A weak shrug. "I mean, this is my ship. I'm her captain, and ... I love this ship. And ... they want her back in the fleet. I can go on missions again. Help my species again. Be a part of greater furry society again. Travel to worlds and ... it's what I've always wanted. To captain a ship and be in the stars, and ... you all know I've had the hardest time settling here. I've had the hardest time letting go. I ... they want me back. They want her," he said, of Luminous, "back. And I'm gonna go."
Rella whispered quietly, "I don't really need to say that ... I'm obviously going with you." She swallowed. Sitting next to her mate. Fishing for his paw. Squeezing it.
Wren nodded with ... gratefulness. Not that he'd doubted his mate would stick with him, but ... he hadn't wanted her to do it ... because she felt she HAD to. He wanted her to feel comfortable going back with him. And, from her quiet, supportive reaction ... she was. It made him feel better ...
"I guess ... you want our decisions, then?" Pyro asked. At a hush.
Wren nodded lightly. Squirrel tail flickering. "Yeah," he whispered back.
Quiet. Whisker-twitches ... tail-snakes ...
And Juneau, fumbling with her own tail, saying, "Um ... we're going, too. We'll go ... too," she said. Of her and Chester. "I tried. I've really tried. You know? To unplug myself ... but I can't. I'm an engineer. I wanna be on a star-ship." She looked to Chester.
The mouse nodded. "And if she's gonna be keeping this ship running ... I wanna be the one piloting it. Can't trust just any-fur, you know, to ... steer her." Whether the 'her' was Juneau or Luminous, it wasn't clear ... and though Chester loved nature, and had really begun to love it here ... his loyalty was to his mate. And he missed their little 'breaks' in the shuttle-bay. He missed ... having dinners in the mess hall. Missed that kind of life. That kind of regularity. That kind of routine ... that serving aboard a ship gave you. It ... it all didn't matter. He knew how badly she wanted to be doing her job again. And he supported her. And would go with her ...
More quiet.
"Well, uh ... " Denali was next. "You all know that I never really wanted to be the ship's doctor. I mean, Kody might've been a bit unhinged, but ... he's not the type I was ever gonna be good at truly replacing." A swallow. "Ketchy's ... gonna have a baby soon, and ... our baby. And ... I've seen what dangers lurk out there. And I know we'd be going home, and ... I mean, we would have the support of our home, the furry fleet, and ... we wouldn't be alone out there. I know that would make such a difference, but ... no, I can't. I can't go ... we can't," he said.
Ketchy nodded quietly. Saying, "We want to stay and settle. I love this place so much. And ... I'm one of those furs, you know, that ... I can't go back."
Wren nodded.
Ketchy squeezed Denali's paw ...
"I cannot go back, either," Assumpta declared. "Although the crew's banishment, the ship's exile ... is now rescinded ... my personal banishment from predatory society will never be revoked. Predators hold grudges. They tolerate things ... when they have to. But it doesn't mean they like them. The rift between predator and prey will never go away ... it is a natural dissonance. I am a fur ... caught between worlds. A predator who loves prey. Who wishes to be like prey. I have taken prey ... as my mate. I ... have been among you too long. To go back, I would ... it would bring things back to the surface that I do not wish to see again. I ... " A breath. "I do not wish to go."
"Neither do I," Azure whispered, joining his mate. "I mean, you all know that I had a ... well-off upbringing. But, here, life is humble, and ... there's something spiritual about that. I don't know. I just ... and I know the kind of pain Assumpta would be in if she went back home. And, to be honest, I would ... it would pain me, too. I mean, I feel my soul's become better ... by being here. I stay with my snow leopard. I love her."
Assumpta's eyes felt ... wetter. She blinked and ... stared at the table-top. She had never cried before in her life. She was not going to start now. Not in front of her friends.
But Field had no inhibitions about public crying, and ... the tears were streaming silently down his cheeks. He sniffled, wiping his eyes with his paws, speaking in quiet, airy sniffs. "Mm ... um, I ... I ... " He squeezed his eyes shut. I'm so damn weak ... but he couldn't help it. The emotional mouse ... had no family. Had left home without a family. And then had lost his home, too. Had lost everything. And ... had found it all. Had found it all again. In Adelaide. In the other furs. His friends. In the ship. In Luminous. In ... their journey. He'd found it all again, and ... it was so much better than before. A sniffle. He opened his eyes, which were reddened ... which darted. He lowered them, saying, with a deep, stabilizing breath, "I feel ... like I'm losing a part of my heart. Each of you that goes," he said, briefly looking up. "You're taking a part of my heart with you ... " His whiskers quavered. And he raised his nose to the ceiling, breathing deep. Sniffling. Lowering his head and continuing, "Keep that part of my heart with you ... please. Don't lose it." A sniffle-sob ...
... resulting in Ketchy starting to cry, too.
Assumpta watched the emotional display with an empathetic gravity.
Adelaide wrapped a pink, winged arm around Field, pulling him to her. The mouse leaning, eyes closed. Sniffling. Going quiet. And the bat continued for him, "I think it's, uh ... " She was feeling his emotions. All of them. On top of her own. "I, uh ... there's no question that Field and I are staying. Our daughter, and ... no matter what Captain Advance says, things back home aren't rosy. You know, it's ... all those wounds? All those strains? They didn't heal when we were gone ... the bulk of the power just happened to shift to the prey ... but how long will it remain that way? How long before the predators get angry enough to wrest it back? I ... the tension, and ... my species was hunted to near-extinction. We're not endangered anymore, but ... I have no family I wanna go back to. Neither does Field. Too much pain, and ... but ... we have a family here. In each other. And our baby, and ... " She realized she was rambling. "Field and I are ... religious furs. Artistic furs. This unfettered nature is ... such a medicine. Such joy. I ... I almost lost him." Her voice broke. "And, back when our mission first started ... he almost lost me." Speaking of the time Luminous had been surprise-attacked by space pirates. "And ... " A sigh. "I feel like I have to justify this ... with everything I can think of, but ... we want to stay. We don't wanna go," she said, stopping.
Field, nose in her fur ... not caring that he looked so dependent and submissive (for, after all, he WAS) ... he was biting down on his tongue ... to keep himself from obsessively-compulsively apologizing to Wren for not wanting to stay with the ship ...
Adelaide soothed her mate with pleasant mental waves. Trying to calm his breathing ... until he'd stopped sniffling. Until he sat up, holding his own tail in his paws.
"Guess that leaves us," Pyro said ... breaking the resulting silence. And he looked to Dotna. "The rest of you, I guess," he said, looking to his friends, "have strong reasons for wanting to stay ... or strong reasons for wanting to go. But I don't think me and Dotna have a strong case for either. I mean ... but, you know, I'm not even FROM this universe. I was adopted by this crew." The wolf flushed with gratitude. "I, uh ... I owe you furs everything." Quickly glancing around the room. And eyes resting on Assumpta, and ... darting away. Resting more comfortably on Dotna. "I've been through a lot. We all have ... but I ... I need to live again. To rest. I don't know."
Dotna nodded. "We'll stay," she said, finishing for him.
Wren breathed, slipping back into his seat. Nodding. Looking tired. "Alright ... if this room is any indication, I'm betting ... a good two-thirds will stay behind. A third will go back." A breath. The sunlight coming through the window ... warming his back. His tail. And he sighed. Closing his eyes for a moment. Breathing. Feeling Rella's presence beside him. And he opened his eyes. "The settlement will still need a chain of command." He looked to Field. "Field, I'm ... giving you a field promotion to ... Captain."
Field sniffled, smiling at the squirrel's cheesy pun ... knowing Wren had worded it like that on purpose. To get him to smile.
"So, you'll be the equivalent of the furry governor, as it were. A Captain ... with no ship. But ... you WILL have all four of Luminous' shuttle-pods. We can get more when we get home. No doubt we'll be polished in Space-dock and retrofitted and everything. You can use the pods to explore the rest of the planet ... or go into orbit. To move things. To just ... for power. Whatever. You'll have your own little fleet of pods."
Field smiled shyly ... having stopped his crying. Nodded quietly. "Alright," he whispered.
"Adelaide, I'm promoting you to full Commander ... the rest of you ... mm ... I can't give promotions to EVERY-FUR ... heh ... mm ... but I think all of you trust Field and Adelaide, and ... I think the settlement would benefit from their leadership."
The furs nodded ...
... gave Field smiles ...
... agreeing.
Wren took a breath. Nodded. "Okay," he said, smiling a bit. "So ... what else ... " He considered for a moment. "I'll leave you spare food processors, all the technology you'll need to keep the housing units up and running ... and, no doubt, furry ships may start passing through this system now and then. Might check up on you. If they're starting to map this part of space, but ... all the same, I wouldn't expect much traffic. This is still really far from home ... but you can be our deep-space furry outpost. Solstice is going to dump a class-three satellite in orbit. It'll allow you to send sub-space signals back home ... so, you have a tether to us ... if you ever need help. It'll take anyone a while to get here, but ... I mean, you'll be heard ... just ... " The squirrel trailed.
"What about the moles?" Pyro asked. "I caught a mole," he told everyone.
"Oh, I talked to him," injected Rella. "They were afraid of us ... they wanted to dig hollows under the settlement. Cave some of the housing units in. They were hoping to scare us away, but ... I talked with him, and ... let him go. Told him about us, and ... why we were here. And ... so, you should be hearing more from the moles. They've agreed to make an official first contact," Rella said. "Looks like you'll have some allies. They might be able to help you get through the winter, when it comes," she said. "But they're very prey-like, so ... I mean, once you get over any communication problems, and ... should be okay ... "
"What about our housing unit?" Pyro asked. "It's on semi-solid ground now!"
"They've agreed to fix it," Rella said diplomatically. "But ... you sort of freaked that mole out, Pyro. You'll have to be really nice to them."
"I'm always nice!" the wolf defended, red eyes sparking.
Dotna hid her smile.
Wren was out of his chair again. He padded about. Stopped. Went to Rella's chair, standing behind it. Paws on her shoulders. He looked at his senior officers and their mates ... taking a breath. Saying, "I, uh ... I've come to find," he said quietly, "over the past year and a half ... that the destination is so, so important. It's what we work for. It's what we live for. The destination. But ... as cliched as it sounds, you really can't reach the destination without journeying. The journey MAKES the destination ... worthwhile. And this journey we've been on together ... it's ... when we all reach wherever it is we're going. When we all get to whatever it is we're wanting. When we're older, and looking back, or ... when we're in heaven," he said ... " ... I, uh ... " He swallowed. Breathed deeply through the nose. "When we reach our destination ... or destinations. When we reflect back on the journey of life, I believe ... that our journey together will ring clear. Will stay sharp in our memory. Will shape us for years to come. Wherever our futures take us, and no matter what happens to us ... we'll always have the journey." The squirrel smiled ... with apprehension. With sadness. With ... anticipation. And he reached forward, extending his furry, brown arm ... and his clawed squirrel paw ... putting it out on the tabletop.
Rella stood ... putting her paw on top of his.
The other furs quietly picked up on the cue, and ... soon, twelve furry arms, twelve paws ... in a pile. And twelve sets of eyes (in various emotional states).
Wren closing his eyes and whispering, "May God bless this crew ... Luminous ... means 'bright or shining ... especially in the dark' ... " A shaky breath. And he forced his eyes opened. Made himself look at all of them from so short a distance. The warmth they were all giving off ... so comforting. So hard to break from. Paws still in a pile. Still all touching. "But it's my honest belief that, though the ship is named Luminous ... it wasn't the ship that shined most brightly. It was her crew. You furs ... " A sniffle, and ... though captains weren't supposed to cry, Wren did, anyway. Quietly. Swallowing. A sniffle. A weak smile. And he finished the prayer with, "May the Holy Spirit protect us ... may our Savior bring us home. Wherever our homes may be ... " A pained breath. A lump in his throat. "Amen."
"Amen," Field echoed weakly ...
... and the other furs nodded, and ... echoing it back ...
... and the paws retracting, and ... the furs filtering. Starting to chat.
Juneau asking Ketchy to take care of her gurgle-goo (which she felt needed to say on this planet, its home).
Pyro trying to explain his over-enthusiastic capture of the mole ...
Adelaide nuzzling Field (who'd suddenly found a name for the settlement: Eveningland ... for evening was the promise of rest and hope ... after a long, weary day).
Wren watching them all.
The sun still coming through the window. The middle of a day. Still time. Still hope.
Nightfall.
Luminous hadn't yet left ... she would lift off in the morning, and ... with Solstice at her side, would warp for the six-week journey back home (at maximum speed). That's how remote this planet was ... Luminous, in its nomadic flight ... had ended up this far out.
It was after midnight, and ... Adelaide's eyes blinked open. And her feelers went out. And her paws physically felt beside her. Field wasn't there. And ... she sensed he was in the sparse living room. On the couch. And she slipped out of bed, pulling on one of Field's shirts ... and padding, half-bare, to the bedroom door. It swished open for her, and she paused in the entryway ... blinking the sleep from her eyes.
The mouse was on the couch. Akira (seven-month old Akira) ... in his arms. The mouse patting her back and, eyes closed, whispering her a lullaby ...
Adelaide listened ... throwing up mental shields ... so that the mouse wouldn't detect her standing there, watching him. Afraid that, if he knew she was watching ... that he would be too embarrassed to keep singing. She wanted to hear him sing ...
"Wouldn't be the first time ... love made a fool of me," the mouse whispered, in quiet, quiet sing-song tone. Singing an old lullaby ... a mouse song. Adelaide had heard the tune before, but never the words.
"Wouldn't even care," Field continued, holding his daughter warmly in his arms. She'd been crying. Adelaide had been so tired, and ... Field was a lighter sleeper. He'd heard her, and ... had come out here. Had tried to rock her to sleep. And had begun to sing her lullabies. The soft sound of his voice ... " ... but now you're here to see," he whispered. "It comes as no surprise ... just leave the light on ... "
Adelaide breathed slowly, quietly. Angular, swept-back ears ... lulled ...
"What I wouldn't give," the mouse whispered to Akira, still singing in quiet tune, "if you could have it all. The sun that's goin' down ... the bed that breaks the fall ... the cradle and the bough." A breath. "So ... you can take comfort now." Another breath. And he put his lips to the mouse-bat's forehead. Kissed softly ... her soft, soft fur. "You can take comfort now," he promised her.
Adelaide's eyes watered. Her vision blurred.
"Sometimes, a heart can break ... and make its own relief." A tiny, soothing squeak. "The way a cold, dark night," he sang, "invites the fire thief. He wants to show us how ... " Gently rocking the baby. Gently. "So ... we can take comfort now. We can take," he promised, "comfort now." An exhale. "Just leave the light on," was the sung prayer. "Leave the light on," he asked of God. Repeating, a final time, "Leave the light on ... "
Adelaide's quiet sobs ... her mental shield failing.
And Field's sensitive, dishy ears swivelled. He looked up, blinking. "Adelaide," he whispered. Flushing.
"Field," she stuttered. Walking weakly toward him. Knees wobbling. She sank next to him on the couch. Leaning her head on his shoulder, the tears dripping. She sniffled, trying to stop. "Field," she said again ... not really knowing what she wanted to say. Just ... saying, "Field ... "
The mouse's own eyes watered. Her crying was going to be contagious ...
She breathed, breathed ... and sighed deeply, opening his blurry eyes. Stopping, and ... smiling ... " ... darling," she whispered. "Thank you."
"For what?" he asked. Akira was now asleep in his arms. So gentle, reflecting each of them ... born of each of them. A result of their love. And evidence of ... hope and life and ... renewal.
"For just ... being you. Just being here. Just ... " A breath. "For everything."
The mouse flushed, gently giving the baby to its mother ...
... Adelaide, beaming, took her. Sniffled. "Hey," she whispered, fingers brushing the baby's sleepy cheeks. "Hey," she cooed.
Field, sitting beside them, watched them ... the both of them. The two most important femmes in his life. The two most important souls in his life. "I love you," was his easy, breathy whisper. "Both of you ... I ... love you," he repeated.
Adelaide's pink, feminine eyes met his mousey blue-greys, and ... she leaned forward ... gently tilting. Gently kissing.
His eyes gently closing.
And they parted ... and leaned their heads on one another. Until Adelaide stood ... and put Akira back in her crib. And went back to the couch. Extending a paw to her still-sitting mate. "Come to bed?" was her loving, soft request.
A shy, warm nod. And he took her paw.
And she led him to his rest.