Page 86 of Found in Obscurity

He swallowed Kit’s gasp and kissed him for real, pulling him closer until their bodies were glued to one another. He used the grip he had on Kit’s cheek to tilt his head and angle the kiss better, desperate to push everything he felt into it.

All the things he wasn’t sure he could voice properly. He hoped Kit would get it. He hoped the way he kissed him back meant that he did.

Fur sprouted under his fingers and Lorin broke the kiss, breath staggered and heavy as he watched the shift take over.

“Tomorrow,” he whispered, and Kit nodded before his fox took over completely, Lorin’s palm still on his fluffy head, their eyes still locked together.

Kit

They cleared the room together while the snow fell steadily outside the window over the next few days.

Lorin struggled with it at first. Kit could see the guilt and sadness weighing down his shoulders as soon as he moved even the smallest object. But Kit didn’t think it was healthy to constantly live in a shrine to those they had lost. Lorin would never be able to move on, to make this place truly his if he was scared to embrace and change what had come before.

It got easier though. Kit didn’t rush him, and eventually more and more things were moved out of the way into what used to be the nursery. Clothes were boxed up reverently from the wardrobe, and Lorin’s clothes took their place.

The bedding was stripped off and changed for the spare set they had been using on the sofa. The nightstands were emptied. Some of Lorin’s books joined his mother’s on the bookshelf, andthe gifts Kit had found for Lorin were put in pride of place next to some of the wooden carvings Lorin’s father had made, while the rest of the knickknacks were carefully packed away.

They hadn’t actually slept in the bed yet, but Kit knew Lorin was closer to taking the leap with every small change.

It even extended outside of the bedroom.

Lorin was finally considering what he liked about the cabin instead of keeping everything exactly the same for fear of losing his parents’ essence. They were written into the very beams of the house Lorin’s father had made. The house had been given life through Lorin’s mother’s magic. Lorin would never lose them, and it seemed like Lorin was finding a little peace in that finally, after so long running from it.

He asked for Kit’s input too. What his favorite color was. What he thought about replacing the armchair because it creaked so much it actually set Lorin’s teeth on edge. What he wanted to add to the place. If there was anything he needed.

It was beginning to feel a lot liketheirhome.

Between all of that, Lorin continued to practice magic, and Kit continued to try and hold his shift for longer periods. They’d gotten it down to almost a science by this point, able to time roughly when he would shift.

Kit used this to his extreme advantage, flirting with Lorin any chance he could get. The kisses they’d shared only pushed him further, longing for more but understanding that the timing wasn’t exactly great.

Flirting was fun though, alongside the kisses he often stole. It made Lorin’s cheeks pink and left him off-kilter. It lightened the heavy atmosphere on harder days and left a zing of excitement in the air. It was bursting and full of promise. Kit wanted to pop that bubble, but he didn’t want to push for something Lorin wasn’t ready for.

The snow let up on the fourth day, the sun shining brightly down and starting to melt a little of it.

Kit was sitting crossed-legged at the window in the bedroom after shifting to human, drinking in the sun with half-closed eyes as he drank his tea. He was dressed in another of Lorin’s sweaters, this one a light blue cable knit, and he’d reluctantly put on some plaid pajama pants.

Lorin was cooking in the kitchen, the bursts of magic fizzing through their bond. The smell of bacon and toasted bread drifted through the house.

Kit finished his tea in one last gulp, letting it soothe the small ache he still felt there before testing his voice. He’d been doing it privately for a few days while Lorin wasn’t looking. He worried a lot, which was lovely, but Kit was getting impatient.

He started off with some smaller vocalizations, simply testing lower and higher sounds like scales. The sounds were weak and hoarse, but they were noticeably stronger than the pathetic squeak he’d managed when he’d first tried.

He opened his mouth and tried, “H-i…”

It broke in the middle, but it was a word!

“Hi.”

This time he managed to fully say it, but it was airy and hoarse.

“Hi. Hi—”

“Hi,” Lorin said.

Kit whipped his head around and saw Lorin frozen in the doorway with two plates in hand. His messy hair was falling all over his forehead, and the sleeves of his black sweater were rolled up to his elbows in an attractive way. Kit couldn’t pinpoint why, it just did something to him. He was also staring at Kit like he was something amazing, and frowning at him like he was mad too.

Kit grinned sheepishly at him and waved. “Hi.”