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"Are you two all packed?" questioned the wolf, Nate sneaking up behind the otters in the crowded hallway. The final bell for the school day had just wrung, and with no school following next week because of Chymerage, the students were more than excited to get of the school grounds and out doing what they wanted.

"We still have two days, Nate," answered Rye, glancing over his shoulder at the wolf. He smiled at the tall wolf. "Are you going to stop bother us about it?"

"It's the first time Cloud will be at the cabin," Nate commented, being led towards the exits with the otters by the crowd. "You have to be excited."

Cloud smiled weakly at the wolf and meekly said, "I am." The white otter has been growing quieter over the past week. He claimed it was stress from work and school but Rye felt there was another reason behind the white otter's lack of enthusiasm.

"I'll be at your apartment before sunrise in two days so be sure to be up," Nate said, dodging the otters and the rest of the crowd as he backtracked into the school.

The sky was clear and the air blowing with a crisp and refreshing breeze, so the otters walked back to their apartment. Before long they were far enough from the other groups of students to talk privately.

"Do you all go camping every year?" asked Cloud, his voice quieter than it normally would have been.

"Yes, but not always to the same spot," answered Rye, remaining cheerful in hopes that Cloud would be his normal self. "We started this years ago by sleeping over at Nate's place but when his parents but a cabin in the mountains, we started camping there before the Amor Games started."

"What will we be doing there?" Cloud asked directly. His gaze remained at the ground in front of him.

"We celebrate Chymerage there together before we come back to the city for the actual holiday," Rye said with more enthusiasm. "The cabin borders a lake that's full of evasive fish, and upstream of that lake is a waterfall where Nate likes to jump off of. He tries to convince all of us to go with him." They walked in silence for a few minutes before Rye asked, "Did you not want to go?"

"No, I do," Cloud answered immediately, and finally turning towards Rye with a smile, even if it was a weak one. "I really want to go with you Rye. It'll be a lot of fun. Have you jumped off the waterfall?"

"Once but I think that was enough," Rye responded, smiling weakly back at Cloud. He wasn't sure if the otter was putting up a front or if he really did want to go.

"It sounds a little like fun," said Cloud with a more reassuring smile. "I want to see if I'll be brave enough to jump off, but only if you'll go with me."

"Jumping isn't the worse part," chuckled Rye, happy to see Cloud being closer to normal again. "It's climbing up that's terrifying."

"Have you caught any of the fish?" asked Cloud, showing some interest in their camping trip. For the remainder of the walk, they talked more lightly.

After they arrived back home and ate an afterschool snack, the otters went out to buy a few extra supplies for the trip. Before they went to sleep that night, they ensured that all of their schoolwork was completed.

The following day went by rather quick as the two otters finished packing all the gear they would need for the trip. During their breaks, they watched movies together but considering that they had to rise before sunrise the next morning, the otters turned in early for the night. Even with Cloud seemingly distracted, he cuddled close with Rye when they slept on their bed.

Before the sun rose the next morning, the otters woke and prepared for traveling. When the sky turned from black to a dark blue, a knock on the door alerted them.

"Good morning," Nate said, standing behind the front door. "Need a paw?"

"We don't travel heavy," Rye said, still feeling tired it being so early in the morning. The otters followed Nate to his vehicle, carrying a small pack each. The two otters shared the passengers' seat near the back of the vehicle and rested against each other while Nate started to drive them over to Ariel's home.

The otters were tired, and didn't pay much attention as they were ferried from one vehicle to another. Within an hour they were in one of Ariel's family vehicles driving out of the city and toward the rural mountains.

The sun was starting to come up and Rye was starting to wake up finally. Staring out the window, there wasn't much to see because of the underground road but the walls were lit by natural sunlight due to the glass roof of the tunnel. In his lap rested the white otter, who had fallen asleep early at the start of the drive.

"I hope Cloud likes this trip," mentioned Nate, who was now sitting next to the two of them now that Ariel was driving. In front of them were Shasta and Marvin, and in front of them were Ariel and Patrick. "He hasn't really been to enthusiastic about it."

"Cloud is excited for the trip," Rye said, glancing over the sleeping otter at Nate. He kept his voice low as he spoke. "He even said he wants to jump off of that waterfall you enjoy so much Nate. We'll see what he says when he actually sees it though."

"It doesn't look that bad," Nate declared.

"It looks like a suicide jump onto a bunch of jagged rocks," remarked Rye.

"Besides that part its not really that bad," the wolf chuckled, rolling his eyes.

The white otter between them stirred slightly, nuzzling himself against Rye before slowly opening his eyes.

"Morning sleepy otter," said Rye gently, looking down at Cloud. The sleepy otter blinked a few times before smiling up at him.

"Now don't you two look adorable," remarked Nate, drawing the attention of both otters he was mocking.

"You're just jealous, Nate," Cloud replied sleepily, before stifling a yawn.

"Of sleeping as comfortably as you, maybe," admitted Nate. The wolf turned and glanced out the window. With the sun up, the natural landscape painted on the walls was becoming visible. The lighting on the painting changed with the sun's position in the sky, giving them a realistic appearance.

"Are we nearly there?" asked the sleepy otter to no one in particular. He slowly sat up and supported himself between the other otter and wolf, rather than resting on Rye.

"There's about another hour left to go," answered Ariel from the front of the vehicle. "We're making good time."

"So Rye tells me you might be interested in jumping off the waterfall near the cabin," said Nate, turning his attention on the waking otter.

For nearly the rest of the hour the wolf pestered the waking otter with talking about the waterfall and other dangerous activities that he enjoyed doing while camping. Eventually the vehicle slowed down, drove out of the underground roads and drove on a small and obscured road through the trees.

Now with real trees to gaze upon, most of the friends stared out the window. The sun was still low in the sky, starting off the long day, casting long shadows from the trees. Nearly fifteen minutes passed before a large cabin appeared through the trees. Parking in front of it, they all started to jump out of the vehicle. Cloud followed Rye out, the white otter's gaze taking in the surrounding area. Trees were surrounding the road, making it almost hidden but stopped when they came up to the cabin. Beyond the cabin was a large lake that could be seen stretching out into the distance on both sides.

"Rye, Cloud," Ariel said approaching the two otters. "You'll be taking the spare bedroom. You remember where it is Rye?"

"I do," answered the otter, grabbing his bag from the back of the vehicle.

"Normally Rye shares a room with Nate but we thought you two would want your own room," the lynx explained to the Cloud. "Nate will be getting his own room too."

"I hope it wasn't too much trouble to give us our own room," remarked Cloud.

"Not at all," Ariel reassured him. "If you're still tired you can take a nap. I think some of us will be but if not feel free to go exploring or for a swim."

"Thanks Ariel," Rye said. He left her at the vehicle, and led Cloud toward the cabin. "I'll show you our room, and where everything is. Are you still tired?"

"I've slept enough," Cloud admitted, following the otter into the cabin.

Nate and Shasta were playing around already but the others followed the otters into the cabin. After dropping off their camping bags off in their designated room, Rye gave the white otter a quick tour of the cabin. Even though Cloud had slept through the ride, Rye was still tired and decided to take a quick nap like the two felines.

"Go out for a swim," suggested Rye, yawning while he sat on the bed. "I don't want to keep you cooped up in here."

"I don't really mind," Cloud attempted to persuade Rye, sitting down next to him.

"I appreciate that you want to lie down with me, Cloud," said Rye, smiling at the white otter. "But I feel like I'm being selfish if I make you stay in the room with me when we're camping."

"Okay, I'll let you sleep," Cloud surprisingly agreed. He wrapped his paws around the otter and squeezed gently before giving him a lick across the cheek. "I'll wait to swim in the lake until you're ready to go with me though."

Rye smiled, squeezing the white otter too. "I'll take a short nap, I promise."

Cloud changed into some of his swim shorts regardless, and went out on the patio that extended over the shore of the lake. There he lied down on one of the long seats where he stared at the horizon separating the lake from the sky. His fur protected him from the direct sunlight, and warmed up acting more like a warm and comfortable blanket instead of overheating the otter.

"Mind if I join you?"

Turning around, Cloud noticed the caribou coming from inside the cabin wearing only his own pair of swimming shorts.

"Not at all, Marvin," answered Cloud. "Are all the rest napping too?"

"Everyone except Nate," Marvin answered. He also lied down on one of the many long seats provided on the patio. "He's in there hunting for some food. That wolf can eat more than me and Shasta combined."

"He certainly does have a passion for food," remarked Cloud, leaning back in his chair. "He's been coming over a lot cooking Rye and me food."

"That's right, you two live together now," commented Marvin. He sighed and glanced directly at Cloud. "Cloud, I'm sorry I've been avoiding you two. After what happened with Shasta, I was jealous of you both."

"Really?"

"Yeah, you two seem so right together," continued Marvin. "Honestly it was something I thought about when I first met you, Cloud."

"You two hungry?" Nate asked, walking out on the patio with them. In his paws he carried a platter of some cooked eggs, toasted breads and freshly cut fruit.

"We already have food stocked?" Cloud asked. He was too shy about his relationship with Rye to continue talking about it, so he was eager to change the topic.

"Ariel had the place stocked last night," answered the wolf. He pulled up a seat and sat between the two, offering the plate of food to both of them. "They won't be asleep for very long so we'll be going for a walk out to the waterfall if you want to see it Cloud."

"You're not thinking about jumping off of it?" questioned Marvin.

"Rye tells me it's scary but I want to at least give it a try," answered Cloud, smiling back at his friend.

"Rye is known to be a bit of a skittish otter," mocked Nate. Half the food on his plate was already missing. "It's really not that bad."

"You heard Rye in the car," remarked Marvin, giggling at Nate's blatant lie. "Stop lying to Cloud. Climbing it is easy, but once you look down from the top you'll wish you hadn't climbed it."

"Shasta jumps off of it."

"That's because he likes to climb!"

The three of them shared a laugh before the idly chatted while they finished their meal. Despite the long drive through the morning, and half of the pack taking a long nap, morning was not yet halfway through when the rest of them woke up and began preparing to hike out of the cabin.

They were all dressed in their swimwear, and a few of them carried extra bags with food and beach towels. Walking along the shore of the lake, they talked and occasionally chased each other while they walked more than a couple kilometers.

"Don't worry, I don't need any more sleep," said Rye who had just yawned. Cloud asked him if he was still tired but the blue otter insisted he wasn't. "I slept just about as long as you did on the ride here."

"Okay, I'll stop bothering you but if you get too tired, I wouldn't mind lying down on the beach with you," Cloud stated, glancing at the wolf who was chasing Shasta through the shoreline of the lake.

"I wouldn't mind that either," said Rye. He half hugged the otter briefly.

After a hour long hike, the group stopped on the far end of the lake, where it was being fed by the waterfall that ran up a tall cliff. The mountain continued going up steeply, blocking the view of half the sky.

"There it is," Nate said, coming up next to the two otters. At the base of the waterfall were a few scattered rocks but if you jumped from the top there wasn't much of a chance that you'd hit them.

"How do you get up?" asked Cloud. He glanced to both sides of the waterfall, seeing no clear path up.

Rye tapped him, drawing his attention before pointing up. Shasta was scaling a tree branch that was growing close to the waterfall already. Using the branch the squirrel crawled over the lake water, going up close to the cliff's edge before he jumped to the cliff, held on and started climbing up.

"There's a path up from the water so we don't have to jump from the tree branch," Rye informed the intimidated white otter. "It's a little slippery because we'll be climbing out of the water, and the mist from the waterfall wets the rock but it's safer than Shasta's and Nate's route."

Cloud noticed the wolf also climbing the tree, going much slower than the squirrel because of his more clumsy paws but he managed to reach the cliff face and he climbed up after Shasta.

The two felines and Marvin started splashing around in the water. The otters followed them into the lake, with Rye leading Cloud pass the waterfall and near the rocky edge. There they could see that it was a near twenty-meter high climb.

"You sure you want to climb up this?" Rye asked, holding onto the cliff to keep him afloat.

"I wanted to give it a try but only if you came with me," Cloud said, hesitantly. "I don't want to make you do something you don't want to either."

"I've done it before," replied the blue otter. "I don't enjoy it as much as that crazy wolf but I don't mind."

With Rye's approval, he hoisted himself out of the water and started to climb the cliff. Cloud followed, trying to use the same pawholds that Rye used. While the fur kept most of the water out and they weren't weighed down extra by it, their paws were wet which made them have less traction on the rocks and slowing their progress.

When they were approximately ten meters above the water, Rye stopped as he felt himself losing traction.

"Are you okay, Rye?" Cloud asked, halting below the otter.

Rye's paws shifted around, trying to find traction. "Yeah, I'm just reach--"

With a wet slip, Rye's right hindpaw lost all traction causing the otter to fall half a meter. Only holding on by one paw, his leg slid against the rocks and was cut open. With only one paw still holding on, he felt it starting to slip too. The otter did the only thing he could think of and he kicked off the cliff wall with his good leg and fell back towards the lake.

"Rye!" Cloud hugged the wall when Rye fell from the cliff. Terrified of what might have happened, he tried to look below him where he saw the otter land harshly in the water and causing a large splash. He looked down, not wanting to jump for fear of landing on Rye, and only saw a thin streak of red in the water.

Patrick and Marvin hurried over to where Rye landed. The cougar dived and brought Rye up with him a few moments later. They started to swim toward the shore.

Cloud jumped from the cliff once he knew it was safe to do so and hurriedly swam after the cougar. He reached the shore just as Patrick and Marvin were dragging Rye out of the water. The otter was gritting his teeth in pain and it wasn't clear if he was crying or it was just the water dripping from his eyes.

"Rye," Cloud yelled near frantically as he approaching the otter lying in the sand. His chest started to feel tight as he saw blood leaking through Rye's fur on his leg. "I'm sorry, Rye. I'm sorry."

"I'm fine Cloud," Rye said through his gritted teeth. "Gah!"

Ariel had started to comb the fur aside on Rye's leg, causing the otter to jump painfully. "Hold still Rye. The cut is deep."

Shasta and Nate had jumped off the waterfall when they noticed something was wrong, and they came over wondering what was going on. Cloud ignored them all. Tears were filling his eyes and he started to sob, feeling guilty for Rye's injury. Kneeling next to the lying otter, Cloud gripped the blue paw and held onto it tightly. Rye squeezed Cloud's paw as he attempted to ignore the pain.

"Are you okay Cloud?" Rye asked ignoring the lynx who was working on his leg. Pain-induced tears filled and spilled from his eyes but he smiled regardless.

Cloud's words caught in his throat and all he could do was nod.

A ripping sound distracted the otters, and they could see Nate ripping up one of his shirts into a bunch of strips.

"We have some medical paste back at the cabin but we're going have to carry you there," informed Ariel, accepting the strips of the shirt. She used the lake water to clear the wound of excess blood before trying to dry it off and wrapping it up.

Rye squirmed as the bandage was tightened but he did his best not to show his pain in front of Cloud.

"He's ready to move," Ariel announced, stepping back from the otter. "Let's get back as fast as we can so the wound doesn't become infected."

When Nate moved to pick Rye up, Cloud helped and grabbed the other side of him before hoisting him up onto their shoulders.

"You don't all have to come," said Rye, hopping between the wolf and his otter. "Don't let my mistake ruin your fun."

"Nonsense Rye," Nate said, walking slowly in pace with Cloud. The white otter was still crying but his sobs had stopped and he was staring at the ground. "Even at the best of times you're too weak to walk very far. You'll need all our help."

Rye chuckled lightly, the small movements make his pain fire up enough to put and end to his laughter. "You're a jerk, Nate."

Occasionally Rye would test his leg by touching his hindpaw to the ground but it always summoned the pain and he could only do his best to at least hop between his two supports. After a few minutes, Ariel decided to go with Patrick and walk ahead of them to bring back some of the medical supplies.

"Sorry for messing up the climb, Cloud," he apologized after they've gone back two kilometers. "I hope I didn't scare you by nearly falling on you."

"I never should have asked you to go up there," Cloud said, still staring at the ground.

"It's not your fault you didn't know I was so clumsy," said Rye. He was now able to speak without the interruption of the burning pain now that it dulled, as long as he didn't move his leg sharply. "Normally I'm much more graceful than that."

"You flatter yourself," remarked Nate.

"Shut up."

Cloud smiled weakly, and it didn't go unnoticed by the injured otter. Rye continued to attempt to cheer him up which slowly worked while they made the long and painfully slow walk back to the cabin after only spending a few minutes out on the lake.

Still another two kilometers away, the felines returned with a bag. They set the otter down on a nearby rock, and allowed Ariel to unravel the wound. Instead of a burning sensation, the cut felt more like it was stinging now. The lynx cleaned the wound before applying a thick plaster-like paste to it.

"That'll disinfect the wound and keep it clean," she said, placing the extra medicine in the bag. "It'll keep it from opening up and help it heal properly. Just don't rip it off after it dries otherwise you'll reopen the wound and tear out a chunk of your fur."

"I know what Mud is," commented Rye referring to the medical paste. With the help of the wolf and the other otter, Rye was lifted back to his hindpaws and they continued toward the cabin. "I'll have to shower and wash it a hundred times before it'll disappear. Thank you for going ahead though, Ariel."

"You are all going so slow I had to do something," mocked the lynx. "Patrick and I are going to head back and clear a spot for you to rest."

"We'll go ahead too," said Shasta, the small squirrel leaped past the otters and wolf. "No offense Rye but I don't think I'd be able to support your weight."

"That's fine Shasta, go ahead of us," said Rye.

The otter hobbled forward, now able to put his paw down for a little support. It was noon by the time they reached the cabin once again. The others were already playing in the lake near the cabin but Ariel jumped out of the lake and led Rye into the cabin.

Not being too seriously injured, Rye was able to spend most of the day with Cloud and their friends. He wasn't able to do anything too strenuous but the rest of the day passed without the otters becoming too bored.

By the time night had fallen, Rye was resting on a lounge chair watching the moonrise. Cloud had gone to change into something warmer but he was taken longer than expected. When Rye was about to decide to go in looking for him, he heard the glass door open and close.

"Rye, I've been wanting to ask you something," Cloud's voice said.

The injured otter sat up and turned toward the cabin entrance, but when he saw Cloud his heart dropped. The white otter was staring at the ground, and his eyes looked like they were starting to glaze over. His paws were fidgeting nervously.

"What is it Cloud?" he asked, not knowing what to expect.

The white otter hesitated, glancing back through the glass window at the other friends who were eating dinner while watching a movie.

"Can you... I..." Cloud stumbled, starting to shift his weight for hindpaw to hindpaw. "I don't want you to go. To military camp, after Chymerage."

"Cloud," Rye moaned sadly, quickly realizing how serious this conversation was. He sighed while he thought of how to respond. "Please, come sit with me."

Cloud hurried over and sat on the lounge chair with Rye, quickly wrapping his paws around the blue otter and hugging him tightly.

"I'm sorry," he sobbed his voice cracking. "Please don't go."

"Is this because of what happened today?" asked Rye, gently placing his paws around the white otter. He did his best to soothe him but Cloud only shook his head in response.

"It's not just because you got hurt today," muttered Cloud, speaking into Rye's shirt. "I just don't want you to go."

"I don't want to either," Rye admitted. He felt a heavy weight on his heart because it was the second time he saw Cloud in so much pain that day. "I have to go."

"No you don't," the white otter pleaded, burying his face in Rye's shirt more. "Stay with me, please."

"Joining the military is not a commitment taking lightly Cloud," said Rye, rubbing Cloud's back gently. "If I don't follow through then no one will take my commitments seriously."

"What about your commitment to me?" Cloud asked, looking up at Rye through his tear-stained eyes.

"Cloud, you are the biggest reason why I cannot ignore my commitment," said Rye, his ears falling slightly. "I thought I'd be good in the military, gain some respect and renown while learning valuable experiences that'll help me later with my employment with Beach Lagoon. Now, I'm going because I don't want you to think that my commitment to you is something that can easily be broken, because it's not. You make me feel in a way that I have never felt before, Cloud. And I will do everything I can to make sure that you are protected here."

"You can't protect me if you're away," muttered Cloud, leaning against Rye once again. "And what if you get hurt, like you did today but worse?"

Rye gently placed his paw on Cloud's jaw and guided his gaze to look directly into Rye's. Rye's eyes were glazed over but the white otter had tear-soaked cheeks and red eyes already. "Cloud, I promise you that I will come back to you safely."

"You can't promi--"

"I will come back to you Cloud. I keep all my promises, don't I?"

Being forced to face directly at Rye, Cloud instead diverted his gaze and looked away. "Yes," he reluctantly admitted, the answer almost inaudible.

Releasing the white otter's jaw, Cloud was able to lean against Rye again.

"I am sorry Cloud," Rye said, his body shook as he fought back sobs. "You have no idea how much I regret signing up for the military. Whenever I come home from a tour, I hope you'll be there and we can spend all the time we have together."

"I will always be there for you, Rye," Cloud muttered, his sobs having stopped. He silently cried against the blue otter. "You better keep your promise. I won't forget it."

They held each other in silence for a few minutes before Rye asked, "Is this what's been bothering you the past couple weeks?"

Cloud nodded into Rye's chest before another sob escaped from him. Before he could regain control of himself, they both heard the cabin door open.

"Is everything okay?" Ariel asked, stepping out onto the patio.

Cloud heard her voice, and was ashamed being caught like that. His ear splayed flat against his head, and he buried his muzzle deeper into Rye, trying to hide from her.

"We're fine, Ariel," Rye answered, his eyes red with tears as well. "We'll be going to bed soon."

"Okay," responded the lynx. "The rest of us were going to play some video games but we'll stay quiet so you two can sleep. I'll check on that cut tomorrow morning so try to wash off the Mud when you shower."

"Thanks Ariel," said Rye before she turned back into the cabin.

After a few more minutes, Rye insisted that they go inside but Cloud was reluctant to walk pass all their friends in the state that he was in. With the injured otter's help, Cloud did enter back into the cabin and walked silently into their designated room.

"Is your leg bothering you?" asked Cloud, recovered somewhat. The white otter sat on the bed, after seeing Rye limping slightly.

"I'm just making sure I don't rip it open," remarked Rye, gathering a few things from his bag. "I'm going to go freshen up before I go to bed. I'll be back in a few minutes."

"Okay."

After Rye had prepared to sleep, he was heading back to their room when Ariel cut him off.

"Are you sure everything is all right?" she asked, gazing directly at Rye. "You two seemed pretty upset."

The otter sighed before he answered. "Cloud's pretty upset that I'm leaving for camp soon. He asked me to stay here with him."

"Oh, I forgot that was coming up," admitted Ariel, her expression softening up. "We're all going to miss you. I can imagine how upset Cloud is."

"I wish I never joined up," muttered Rye, glancing into a random dark corner.

"It can't be helped," Ariel said quietly. Her face lit up as an idea came to her mind. "But don't you worry. Nate and I will make sure Cloud doesn't feel too lonely."

Rye smiled weakly at her. "That'd mean a lot to me."

"You and Cloud are our friends," said Ariel, more reassuringly. "It's no trouble to barge in on him a little more often. Maybe I'll fix one of the guest rooms for him in case he wanted to stay over at my place."

"Thank you, Ariel," said Rye, feeling a bit better about the whole situation.

"Now go get some sleep," she suggested. "I hope Cloud is feeling better tomorrow. We're going out to the island for dinner and the Chymerage tradition."

The two of them wished each other a good night before Rye was allowed to return to his room. Cloud was lying under the covers, so Rye stripped off his clothes and crawled into bed with the white otter. Before he could even make himself comfortable, he felt the other otter's body press up against him. Cloud grabbed wrapped his arms around his torso and squeezed lightly in a comforting hug.

"I don't know how I'm going to be away from you for a month," Cloud muttered.

"Don't you worry about that Cloud," whispered Rye. Underneath the soft sheets, he rolled onto his back allowing Cloud to lie directly on top of him. "I hate thinking about it; it's hard to imagine. I want us to not worry about it so we can spend the holiday together and enjoy ourselves."

"You're right, Rye," Cloud said, wiggling a little bit against Rye as he readjusted. "I'll do my best to put it out of my mind." The white otter's tongue licked across Rye's nose briefly before he nuzzled into Rye's neck and rested his head on his shoulder.

With one otter lying on the other, they could feel each other breathing and occasionally even feel the other's heartbeat. With one arms around Cloud's back, Rye casually combed his blunted claws through the fur on the back of Cloud's neck.

Moonlight spilled into the room, allowing enough light for Rye's eyes to adjust enough to see the otter lying on him. He struggled too with the thoughts of their separation because he knew that it was coming and that it could not be avoided. The inevitability of it weighed down on his heart as if it were made of lead, and it tugged on his very emotions painfully. The only relief to that pain was feeling Cloud pressed against him the way he was now.

Cloud nuzzled into his neck in response to the touch of his claws. Rye hoped that it was helping him forget about the inevitable, at least for the night. After Rye closed his eyes, and his paw pet across Cloud's neck and across his shoulders in slow and soothing movements. His strokes ran down Cloud's spine and down to the base of his tail, each stroke moving to comb through all of his fur. Rye's blunted claws ran across the white otter's waist, and down onto the top of his tail.

Rye had started to doze off a little while he focused on brushing Cloud with his claws. A few of his strokes traced the side of the otter's body down to his thigh, and the movement roused Cloud to squirm slightly. With the squirm, he felt a small pressure pressing into him coming from the otter's groin.

Pleased to know that Cloud was enjoying the feel, and that he must not be worrying about the inevitable anymore, Rye continued to comb his fur. His paw moved to brush against Cloud's flanks and his lower back just above his tail. A few strokes even forced their way between the otters, and brushing against the fur near Cloud's lower abdomen. The pressure pressing into Rye grew, causing his own arousal to intensify and his own erection to grow free from his sheath.

The white otter was still resting his head against Rye's shoulder, allowing him to hear the heavy breathing coming from the otter. Clouds hips occasionally pushed up against Rye's but from the squirming coming from the white otter, it was obvious that he was resisting the temptation.

Their arousal had caused them both to become fully erect, and they could feel the effect pressing into each other's fur. After he had failed to resist a few times and feeling of their exposed flesh touch, Cloud pressed his paws into the sheets on either side of Rye and pushed himself up to look down on the other otter.

"Rye," he whined softly. Cloud's ears were splayed backwards and his expression showed his embarrassment and shyness, but also his arousal. "I..."

The otter lying in the sheets smiled up at Cloud, who had pushed himself up half way onto his his paws and knees. The position pressed his groin against Rye's, and also allowed them to look each other in the eyes. His tail draped back across their intertwined legs and flickered slightly against their hindpaws.

"Cloud," he whispered, still smiling up at him. Rye rested one paw on Cloud's hip and caressed the white otter's cheek with his other paw. He couldn't help from squirming a bit himself because of their exposed erections pressing against each other. "I... I am so, so sorry. Ever since I met you, I have regretted joining the military. It is tearing me up because all I want is to be close with you."

Tears filled the otters' eyes, and Cloud smiled weakly. Before Cloud could catch it, a tear fell from his eyes and onto Rye. He lied down on Rye again, careful so that he wouldn't hurt either of them because of their physical arousal.

The white otter licked Rye's neck before whispering: "Rye, your heartbeat supports my own. I don't know how I'll make it without you but I will always support you and your decisions."

Cloud raised his hips slightly, and reached down toward Rye's erection between the two otters. When he rubbed his paw against the sensitive skin, Rye shuttered and inhaled before letting out a quiet gasp. The white otter's paw moved in a rhythm to continue stimulating him, not allowing Rye to respond.

A thin sheet that had halfway covered their bodies eventually slipped off and ignored. Without the sheet they were exposed to the moonlight that shined through a top window. The beam of the dim light slowly tracked across the otters and the bed while they shared a private moment.

When the moment of ecstasy hit, the otters hugged one another in a crushing embrace and failed to stifle their moans even as they bit each other. The height of the ecstasy stayed with them until it very slowly faded away over the next couple of minutes. They were both exhausted enough that they fell asleep almost immediately after, still in each other's comforting embrace.

Their friends, who were already asleep remained ignorant to the otters' actions due to the thick walls of the rooms stopping the sounds of the otters actions and moans from travelling into another room.