Mouth Full of Cotton

Chapter Nine: Consideration [CES/CARKHA]

It's been quite a while, me and Mark had gotten along decently. He still wasn't on the calmest and best of terms with me, but it was good enough he'd let me hug him and hold his hand. Well, he'd even seek the contact from me, he wanted to hold my hand on some days. It's been, from what I remember, roughly half a year, or six months. I hadn't been checked in on by the Stuffiemaker ever since I met Mark, actually. We could both maybe get checked up on together, I thought, that sounds like it would be nice, I could introduce him to the maker, and we get checkups!

"Kit," I began, calling him the nickname we thought of for ourselves, Kit and Carkha. I loved them honestly, they were cute and brought me joy calling him Kit. Fox kit, he's my little fox kit. "We should go get checked up on. There's someone I go to every so often to get sewn up and looked after, and it's been a while since I went there. You can even meet him! Gabriel likes newcomers." I grinned, and his eyes widened and ears lowered.

It was his freeze response, and I knew that he wouldn't want to even step anywhere near the maker. It's like facing God: it's terrifying when it first happens. Well– just... no, terrifying forever, I believe.

"I– nno- n-no—" Kit shakes his head fast, so swift I grabbed and held his face in my hands, worried he'll get dizzy from such speed. "Kit, come on, please?" I grin softly, a silent plea.

He turned away and whined, still reluctant to go. "I promise it'll be okay! I'll even keep you safe, I'll be there every step of the way if you need me to be, I'll hold your hand, anything!"

I do my best to convince the other to go with me, yet he doesn't seem willing in the slightest. I tell him about my own experiences with the Stuffiemaker, telling him how gentle and caring he was with his touch, how observant he was with my hesitance and fears, accommodating my needs and adjusting to make sure I was comfortable with everything happening. I told him how nice he was, how he kept light conversation, and made sure the air in the room was cheery and joked around calmly, how he'd always be quick with everything, so he'd know that it would never take such a long time.

His ears were still low as he looked back into my eyes, and with a sigh, he grabbed a notepad and wrote down, before holding it to my focus. "Okay, fine. I'll let you take me there to him, but I really want this to be quick."

I beamed with joy and stood, my tail threatening to wag from excitement, but as the other times, I forced it static. "Let's go!" I took his hand, and began to lead him to the hallway, out to the far parts where the Stuffiemaker worked.

I'm glad I managed to convince him, honestly.