Egaran Stars - 26. Galen- The Basement

"There should be plenty of light down there now."

The Xanar brushed a web off their shoulder, Galen shuddering at the loose strand falling to the ground.

"Ugh, I can't stand spiders… how much do I owe you?" the tiger asked.

"Oh, that was taken care of already. And there are some theorists that say Xanar evolved from spider-like creatures. We do have eight arms and legs after all."

The Xanar winked at the blue tiger, Galen gaping after them as they headed out of the house. Shaking his head to get the image of crawling Xanar out of his mind, Galen turned on the new lights in the basement. He could smell the cleaning supplies, mixing with the fishy smell of the ocean below, a scent that seemed conversely intense, yet gentle, a natural extension of the salty brine.

Pulling off his clothes, Galen headed into the bathroom to grab a towel. He needed to swim again, to feel the drag of the water as his coat was filled with the heavy liquid. The tiger knew Reinard would be home soon, but the Faro would just have to deal with a naked Egaro.

Galen stepped downstairs, the long trek taking him to the edge of the island and beyond. Daylight passed through the water, giving him light to see beyond where the artificial lighting left off. A switch pressed into a rocky wall was flicked off, the tiger playing with it for a moment to see what it went to. Lights flicked on, fluorescent greens shining around the bottom of the glass barrier between him and the ocean. It would have been nice to have when heading into the basement the first time. But Galen would take it now, gladly.

A shadow passed overhead, the tiger looking up at a large, green, shield-like body. The chelöna was hard at work, prowling the depths for any sign of the Cnidarian. Galen had been warned not to feed the creature for fear of taking away its hunting instincts, but as he watched it gliding through the water, the tiger wondered if he couldn’t get away with feeding a seaweed cake to it every once in a while.

Stepping into the water, Galen let his legs collapse, carrying him forward into the ocean. He took a deep breath, dunking his head briefly as his legs tread water. Sufficiently acclimated, the tiger kicked downward, speeding out from the basement proper. His legs pushed him toward the chelöna, a hand reaching out to grab the hard shell on its back.

Resting momentarily, Galen let himself enjoy the brief ride before his lungs reminded him that he was a mammal who needed air. He dropped off the creature, his legs kicking back toward the basement. Breaking the surface of the water, Galen let out a gasping breath, panting heavily as he flipped over to float on his back.

A sudden cough startled the tiger, Galen looking over at the fox that was intruding on his alone time.

“I hope you aren’t planning on swimming. Legends say a naked Egaro likes to bathe around here,” he said conversationally.

Reinard huffed quietly.

“I brought your clothes. Next time, don’t plan on wandering naked through the house.”

“Do you need Pater to come up and cook dinner for you?” Galen smirked.

“No.”

The fox dropped the pile of clothes onto the floor, Galen sighing quietly.

“Come here,” the tiger said, moving closer to the steps at the edge of the water.

“No thanks, I prefer life.”

“Huh, I heard otherwise,” Galen grunted. “Come on. You can’t live on a water world and not know how to swim.”

“I’ll manage.”

“Yeah, you managed so well with the waves the other day.”

“That was different!”

“Not really. You didn’t know how to move through them, and they almost killed you. Now, get your clothes off, or they are going to get wet.”

Reinard glared at the tiger.

“Don’t look.”

“Impossible. We are going to be in close contact. You have my word as an Egaro, I will only touch what is necessary. Now hurry up. We only have another hour of full daylight at best, and I’m not sticking around after dark.”

The Faro scowled at the tiger, but pulled off his shirt and his pants. Taking a breath to steel himself, Reinard slid his underpants off, kicking the clothes into a pile next to Galen’s.

“Good boy-”

“Don’t call me boy.”

Galen shook his head with an exasperated sigh.

“Fine. Now swim out to me.”

Reinard dipped a toe into the water, before backing up.

“No, that water is freezing.”

“Of course it is. It’s the ocean, not a spa. Come on Reinard. Don’t be a hydrophobe.”

Galen held out his arms, barely ten feet away from the fox. He tried his best not to stare at that tiny fox dick, imagine it pistoning into his fingers, the look of pure rapture that would no doubt be on its owner’s face.

Reinard backed up slowly, before sprinting toward the water. He leapt forward, splashing down with a near thunderous slap three feet away from Galen.

Instantly the fox began sinking, Galen lunging forward to grab his arm. Pulling the waterlogged Faro onto his belly, the tiger sighed.

“Well, that was disastrous,” he said as the fox coughed up water over his chest. “Catch your breath. And try not to puke on me. I know we’re in the ocean and I can just wash it off, but I really don’t want to smell like vomit.”

Kicking his feet as Reinard lay over him, Galen paddled them around the barrier, staying well inside as the fox on his chest recovered. Small arms wrapped around his torso, Reinard holding on for dear life as they moved, Galen constantly adjusting his body to compensate for the terrified fox.

“Come on Reinard, it’s not that bad,” he said, staring at the Faro.

Reinard’s fur clung to his tiny body like a second skin, Galen getting a good look at his roommate’s body.

“You know, I have no idea why you’re so scared of me. I don’t do vaginas,” the tiger added.

Reinard grunted tiredly, tail slapping Galen’s waist. The fox didn’t look too good, and the tiger doubted he would actually learn anything. Still, Galen was enjoying the body clinging to him. He was going to milk this for every second that he could get.