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Mymblemamma woke slowly, becoming aware by degrees that there was someone in the bed with her, pressed up against her and softly vibrating, a quiet rumble filling the room.
Who...? No one had been in her bed last night...
She shifted, and a soft “Mrrrpt?” came from the body at her side.
She knew the astonishment was showing on her face, and yet she had never mastered the art of hiding what she was feeling.
But no one had ever stayed the entire night before without them doing something the night before, leaving them too exhausted to leave until morning. No one had ever crept into her bed just to...to cuddle.
Not that she wouldn't welcome it, just...most didn't see Mymbles that way.
And yet...Joxter's dark head popped up from beside Mymblemamma, his hair ruffled in a dozen different directions, normally sharp eyes still bleary with sleep.
His hair was usually a scruffy mess, but somehow it was cuter this way, all ruffled from sleep and soft in a way she couldn't define as he blinked sleepily up at Mymblemamma.
He yawned widely as Mymblemamma stared in fascination, her cheek propped up on her fist as she reclined back in the bed to watch. A little mlep, a lick of his tongue, before his mouth opened widely, showing the fangs he tended to keep hidden, more sharp fangs than most would think the lazy Joxter possessed.
Joxter smacked his lips a few times, shaking his head as he tried to wake up.
He blinked up at her, slow and fond, before cuddling against her side again.
Mymblemamma giggled. “It's time to get up,” she scolded gently. “The children need fed. When did you get here?”
Joxter grumbled, stretching, arching his back as the stretch passed through him. Shoulders, back, legs, through his tail, and all the while Mymblemamma enjoyed the show.
“Goodness, you're adorable like this,” she said. She ruffled through Joxter's hair, cupping his face. “You are a remarkable Joxter, aren't you?”
He purred a little louder, half opening his eyes before leaning forward to press his nose to hers.
Mymblemamma giggled, enjoying the sleepy affection. It was something she'd silently wished for, but none of her other lovers thus far had given her. Most of them weren't there for tenderness, but then again, they all knew what they were there for from the beginning. It was mutual, but she found she'd been craving this, as well.
There was something softer about Joxter like this. Oh, he slept around other people, certainly enough. He did it quite often, really.
But it was still somehow...as if he still had to be ready to wake up at a moment's notice around them. As if he could fully relax and wake slowly around Mymble. It made her heart swell with another surge of love, running a thumb across his cheekbone.
“...how are you so endearing when you're still half asleep?” she wondered. Joxter chirped softly, still too close to sleep to speak, and Mymblemamma melted, nuzzling him back, her paws running through that tousled hair. Joxter went boneless against her, his purr kicking up yet another notch as he rubbed his cheek against her shoulder.
She wanted, so badly, to just stay here with him for awhile longer, enjoy the sleepy, affectionate cuddles, the soft, gentle, loving that wanted nothing more than to be close to her.
But it was morning, and though many would claim she wasn't a good one, she was still a mother, and she could hear her children waking.
Reluctantly, she got up, and Joxter stretched again behind her.
“Mym...?”
“The children need fed, dear. We didn't get up early enough for any extra fun,” she said over her shoulder. “Or cuddles.”
“Right. Kids. Feeding time,” Joxter managed. He slid out of bed and started to dress, which was primarily shoes and smock, as he hadn't bothered taking off much else.
Mymblemamma, tying up her hair, paused. “You...don't have to help.”
Joxter ran his hands through his hair, making Mymblemamma wish to take a brush to it...maybe later, she thought, thinking fondly of how he'd melted when she'd run fingers through his hair.
He popped his red hat on, and, fully awake now, shrugged. “That many kids? Seems to me you could use all hands on deck for that.” His ear flickered and he turned towards the door. “Sounds like the Horde is restless. Let's get them fed, huh?”
Well. Another first, as Joxter moved to the door.
She might have to try and see if she could keep this one, if this kept up, if it wasn't some way to try and earn her favor. A few had tried to be nice to the kids to stay for longer, but this easy acceptance hadn't been tried before. She hadn't expected it from lazy, easygoing Joxter, but she wasn't going to turn it down either.
Given he'd already gotten what most of her lovers wanted, she doubted he was trying it as an act. So far, Joxter hid by avoiding things, not by pretending to be anything he wasn't. Joxter was exactly as he seemed without pretense, Mymblemamma was finding.
Joxter was still yawning as they came to the kitchen, into the chaos of a morning in the Mymble house. As always, he balked a little at the noise and rampage that her children could cause, as if it took him off guard each time.
Still, he set to work once it was clear what was needed, churning out scrambled eggs for the kids, which were happily devoured along with the fruit from the trees outside. For all he disliked work, all it took was the children wibbling at him over being hungry to get him moving, to Mymblemamma's amusement.
Mymble Jr. had the smaller children on a chore chart, one that usually only really worked when she was there, but it meant a small group stayed to help clean up before they all dispersed. Amazingly.
Mymblemamma had a feeling it was more so they'd have an excuse to watch Joxter a little longer before dispersing.
---XXX---
Mid-afternoon, Mymblemamma went looking for her Joxter.
She had to cover her mouth to keep the giggles from escaping once she found him and risk disturbing the scene she'd found.
He was loosely curled in a beam of sunlight, taking a nap. That wasn't the part that had caught her off guard – she'd more than half expected it.
It was the roughly half dozen of her children surrounding him that did.
Two of them were playing with Joxter's hair. There were three braids in it already, each tied at the end with a small, tidy bow. Another two were carefully doing his makeup, adding blush to his cheeks and shadow to his closed eyes. A fifth was doing his claws, pressing gently on the paw pads to extend them and holding each until they had fully dried, blowing gently on the exposed claw.
The sixth had flowers and beads that she was slowly braiding into his thick, fluffy tail. Each was examined carefully before being placed, the placement and quality of each decided upon at length.
The last two were curled against his side, sleeping against his warmth, out of the way of their siblings and clinging as he purred in his sleep.
And yet...the last time they had done something like this, her lover had gotten angry over it, had left after storming about and ranting furiously, yelling and snarling and frightening the children badly.
As if her thoughts were waking him, Joxter stretched, and the children scattered.
He arched his back, blinking slowly awake. He started to shake his head and paused, reaching up to touch his head as the beads and braids shook.
A look of confusion crossed his face. “Um...Mym? What...”
She crossed to a drawer and pulled out a mirror, holding it up so he could see his reflection. “I'm afraid the children got to you.”
There was a pause as Joxter studied his reflection, noticed the paint on his claws, twisting to examine the flowers in his tail.
“...Damn, I'm pretty,” he said finally. He winked up at Mymblemamma, already giggling and batting his eyes. “Like what you see?”
Mymblemamma couldn't contain her own giggles anymore, leaning down to collect a kiss. “Why yes, I do indeed.”
The children who'd been playing with Joxter emerged then, still clinging to their mother uncertainly, watching Joxter cautiously.
“You didn't finish this paw,” he said, holding out the right, where only two claws were finished. He'd been partially lying on it, keeping it out of their reach without knowing.
The children laughed and clapped, bouncing with joy before snatching up their paints and ribbons and flowers and going back to work, while Joxter lay back down so they could reach, letting them have their fun.
And Mymblemamma had a sudden feeling that things were going to work out this time. She hadn't really been looking for someone to stick around long term, but maybe...just maybe...
This one might come and go as he pleased, but given she'd finally found one that was gentle and loving with the children, who actually understood about following one's nature...she'd finally found one she'd welcome back when he did.
---XXX---
She waved Joxter off with good will when he set off for the winter, with no idea that she wouldn't see him again for years.
Not that it would be by either of their choice.
---XXX---
Things were a bit awkward at the moment.
Joxter had been gone for so long...and it wasn't his fault. It wasn't. They'd thought it was for a long time, that he'd gotten bored and left like so many had, but it was more complicated than that.
Joxter had the scars – both physical and mental – to attest to that.
And, well, so did they, in a way.
Mymblemamma was grateful that so much of Joxter remained the same despite everything. That they hadn't changed the core of him that she loved so much.
And one way she could tell was in how he was waiting for the children to come to him, rather than trying to push himself on them, despite how desperately he wanted a relationship with them – Snufkin, Little My, and Mymble Jr. most of all.
He hadn't been quite sure how to handle them before, and now, he was even less sure.
And they weren't sure how to handle him. The welcome had been warm, eager to find out about the mumrik Moominpappa told them about in his memoirs...but now, well...trying to figure out their places in each others' lives was proving to be slightly more difficult. They wanted each other there, they just...didn't know how to have a relationship at this point.
But they were both trying.
Mymblemamma and the children were visiting the Moomins, as Joxter was splitting his time fairly evenly between the two homes and they wanted their Joxter time. At least, Mymblemamma did, while the children – both those who remembered and those who didn't – were watching Joxter, almost testing him. They'd been let down one time to many to let someone in that easily.
At the moment the children were running rampant outside as Mymblemamma and the Moominparents, along with a harassed looking Moomin and Snorkmaiden, had tea.
Joxter, Little My, and Snufkin were out there as well, but it was hard to tell just what they were doing. Anything from trying to wrangle the children to hiding in the woods, given how overwhelmed the Horde at full rampage could get for the trio.
Slowly, unnoticed by those at tea, the sounds of the children died away, shrieks and shouts lowering to laughter and giggles before, in ones and twos, going silent.
It wasn't until the children been quiet for awhile that it registered, and they all looked at each other uneasily, not sure who would bring it up.
Silence from the little Mymbles couldn't mean anything good.
While she was usually one to let the children roam as they would and enjoy themselves, Moominmamma was the one to get up from the table and look out the window to check.
It took her a moment to find them, and when she did, her paw pressed to her mouth as her eyes went wide, sparkling with joy. “Oh. Oh my.”
The rest rushed to get up, afraid of what they were going to see as they couldn't see Moominmamma's joy from where they sat, only her movements.
Out in the lawn, Joxter was stretched out on the grass, fast asleep. Snufkin was draped on top of him, sleeping as well, while Little My was tucked in between them, where she could lean on them both at once.
And on top of, leaning against, curled into balls and tucked under arms and tails, against backs and sides, draped over arms and sides and wherever there was free space, were the rest of the mymble children.
Sleeping as soundly as their siblings and step father.
There were bows and braids in Joxter's hair, flowers braided into his tail. There were more in Snufkin's hair and tail, even some flowers and bows tucked into Little My's.
It seemed that, as far as the children were concerned, the tests were passed, promises accepted, all was forgiven, and Joxter had officially been re-adopted.
And this time, none of them were letting go.