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Lakehouse chapter 1: Home at Last

It was midnight and it had been a long ride, and the two figures in camoflauged army fatigues stretched their backs after they had jumped off the softopped truck that brought them here; at the beginning of a winding dirt road on the outskirts of Indie Flats, a town in southern Michigain set very apart from the rest of the state; cradled in the woods. The two set off down the path, shouldering their duffel bags and waving to the truck as it sped away, the sound of singing men echoing from under the canvas. They set a brisk pace, as they had hours of hiking to do before they reached the house set apart from the most set apart town in Michigain: the Lakehouse. They said nothing, prefering instead to listen to the sounds of the night and the synchronised thumps of their footseps on the packed earth. after a little while they slowed to that speed just between walking and jogging that allowed a person with any stamina to steadily traverse almost any distance without the need to stop.

Two hours into the jog, one of them finally spoke: a broad, muscled siberian tiger "It is a bit farther than I remember." he said around his steady breathing, his voice heavy with Russian accent. His companion, a slim fox built for running, answered; barely affected by the distance they had traveled "Tired already? You're gettin' old, Dimitri." He was from Alabama, though most of his accent was gone; something he had worked on since he was in high school. When he was angry, however, his voice gave away his Irish heritage.

Dimitri pulled ahead, straightening his duffel "Old, you say? I'm younger than you are, Josiah."

"Yeah, by like, a month." Josiah easily matched his pace, and began to sing, further showing off, as it was difficult to sing and run at the same time.

"For it's over the mountain and over the main through Giberalter to France and Spain It's a feather to your bonnet and a gilder in your knee- enlist bonnie laddie and come awa' with me"

It was an older Scottish tune that he had learned in high school, but it was hard even for him to sing and jog at the same time, though he would never show it. They were only half way through, what would Dimitri say if he lagged behind? 'I'd never live it down...' he thought, but stopped singing; doing the wise thing and quitting while he was ahead. Dimitri shook his head "God damn showoff." he spat, and playfully kicked at the fox's heels. He had one thing the fox didn't: he could see well in the dark. His hard blue eyes saw obstacles from afar, giving him plenty of time to react. Josiah on the other hand had to trust his instincts and react as needed. Dimitri chuckled as the fox nearly tripped over a large rock, thinking about how funny it would have been had the fox's reaction time not been so finely tuned.

The remainder of the four hour hike was uneventful, and the two finally spotted their destination: the two story residence that had been their home for several years now. They came here whenever they were on leave, enjoying their two weeks of rest before taking the four mile hike downhill to be picked up by the soft topped truck again.

They stopped jogging at the start of the narrow cobblestone path that led to the front door. They smiled, happy to see something familiar after months overseas. They hesitated at the door, taking a moment to look back the other way down the path through the bamboo arch that had greeted them, past the beach and at the large lake, watching the moonlight dance on the softly moving surface of the clear blue water. Dimitri was the first to look away, placing a hand on his friend's shoulder before unhooking a key from his belt and unlocking the door. It opened without a sound, and the siberian tiger reached in to his left and flipped the first of many light switches, illuminating the room before them.

The room was flooded with warm light. It was large, and the side facing the lake was made entirely of glass; offering a perfect view of the lake. Against the wall opposite the glass, there was a brown leather couch that spanned the length of the entire wall. In the center of the room there was a huge, coushioned seat, essentially just a big round bed. Dimitri collapsed on said seat, letting out a sigh of relief. "It is good to be home." he said.

"It is indeed." the fox answered. In the warm light the two men's army fatigues were clearly visible, as well as the patches that labeled the as United States Airborne Rangers. They held themselves as such; standing up straight and proud, their heads held high when in public. But when they were here, at this place they called home, they let their posture slacken in the smallest way, and stayed casual. Here there was no one to salute, no one to say "Yes sir" or "No sir" to, and no one to give them orders they would have to follow without any delay. This was home; and it meant everything to them.

Attached to this large sunroom there was a well equipped kitchen: spotless and seemingly brand new, despite the fact that the house was twice as old as them and more. Josiah opened the refridgerator, pulling out turkey, ham, two kinds of cheese and mayonaise. He himself hated mayonaise, but Dimitri liked it. He yawned as he prepared the sandwhiches, stretching after the long jog. He wondered if Jamie was awake...

As the though passed through his head a white blur whipped by in the corner of his vision, and a young, feminine fennec fox darted into the sunroom, yelling "OHMYGAWDDIMITRI!!!" as he threw himself onto the tiger. Dimitri caught him, pulling the fox into a passionate kiss

"Hello, Weylin..." he purred, wrapping his arms around the young male. The fox wasn't wearing much of anything; just a pair of black briefs. He didn't care, he was just happy to be able to cuddle with Dimitri again.

Josiah smiled; they were a cute couple, all snuggly and happy. He murred, bringing Dimitri his sandwich and taking a large bite out of his own before walking back into the kitchen to put everything away again. The commotion Weylin caused did not go unnoticed though; a tall, muscled, black and white collie from Alabama, same as Josiah, leaned against the wall at the entrance to the sunroom, his arms wrapped around the waist of a smaller, slimmer white wolf. Josiah nodded to the collie "Hello Allen," then, to the wolf "Cody." "You're back." Allen yawned. "A little warning would have been nice."

"We called twice." Dimitri retorted.

"No voice message." Cody pointed out.

"Touche."

A light brown husky came down the stairs on the other end of the room, scratching his slim, creamy white belly. "Wha's all the ruckus..?" he said sleepily. Then, upon seeing the two returned soldiers, he smiled. "Ah, you're back." He walked into the kitchen, straightening his glasses and calling back to see if either of them wanted tea. Both refused, as neither needed to be up longer than was needed. Josiah kept glancing at the hallway, anxiously searching for a flash of red and white that would be his boyfriend, Jamie.

Allen, seeing Josiah's anxiety, stood next to him and placed a reassuring hand on the fox's shoulder. "He's had a rough week, after hearing about the latest battle over there. He was biting his nails to bits when they read the casualty list on the news yesterday. He hasn't slept in two days. Give him time, he'll come down." Josiah nodded to the collie, and stole one last glance at the hallway before finishing his sandwhich.

About twenty minutes of playful conversation later, the little fox did show. He walked into the room wearing a white bathrobe, his tail swishing a little. He smiled when he saw Dimitri, whispering a small, shy "hello" to him. When his eyes found Josiah, he smiled a bit wider.

Josiah moved first, wrapping his arms around the smaller red fox, wiping away the tears pooling in the fox's big, green eyes. Josiah gazed lovingly at his mate, and leaned down to give the younger male a deep, passionate kiss. "Hello..." he said, steadily rocking Jamie, who was suppressing his urge to cry out with joy.

"I... I thought you might have been... y-you know..." Jamie stuttered, his voice cracking as he tried to stop the tears from flowing.

Josiah rubbed Jamie's back comfortingly, kissing his young mate on the forehead. "Well, i'm not. And you can rest assured I won't be any time soon."

"P-promise...?"

"Promise." Josiah swept the smaller fox off his feet and carried him into their room at the end of the hallway.

"Well," said Dimitri, giving Weylin's plush, womanly rump a good squeeze "They have the right idea. I guess we should all go to bed, and in the morning we can catch up, da?" The rest of the males agreed, retreating to their respective rooms and quietly finishing what was left of the night in deep, thoughtful slumber.