Welcome to Gaia! ::

Tam laughs, pouring a tiny bit of olive oil soap onto the area in question and works it into his fur. "Ye should have been a water creature... though when ye were smaller ye hated baths... just happy I don't have to force ye anymore."

Tam smiles and continues to work his long fingers through the fur, giving him a vigorous massage as he moves up and down the back When he is d one he steps back and sighs. "I'm a bit tired, dulcha. Why don't you finish up while I go put another log on the fire and put up my feet. Let me know when you are done and we can dump the tub together."

Tam comes and wraps him in a huge fluffy towel, then drags the tub out to the garden to dump. But rather than pour it on the flowers he empties it out onto a bed of stone that leads to ditch running away from the village. Coming back inside, he asks Kero if he wants any cider or cocoa before going to bed, then shoves the tub in it's storage place.

Tam mulls some on the stove for all the older lions and himself, then takes his own to go sit by the fire and sip. This was one of his favorite times of the year. Winter was not yet upon them, so they didn't have to deal with drafts and the chilly gusts rattling the windows. But it was cool enough for him to keep a roaring fire going , at least during the evening hours. Putting his feet up on a stool, he leans back in his chair and slowly sips his cider, letting it warm his insides as it goes down. As he sat there, he thinks back on their earlier years, when he and Kero were always on the road.

"Reminiscing... mostly about how things were when you were small... Do ye remember that time we got caught in that blizzard and had to tough it out in an old abandoned bear den? I had to keep a fire going non-stop and your job was to wake me up each time it started to go low." laughs Tm softly, sipping his cider with renewed gratitude. He would have done anything to have had a cup of cider then, but melted snow was all they had to drink.

Tam pretends to rub his rump and nods. "Yeah... and sometimes I thought ye were having a bit too much fun doing it also, ye little monster." But his tone is gentle and Kero knows he doesn't mean anything by calling him that name.

Tam watches him with a thoughtful frown. "That's not even funny, Kero... " he warns in a dead voice. "It's a bit too real, kid... for my tastes." he adds thinking that Kero must be drawing on some buried memories for the design.

"Ye have demons in yer bedroom?" laughs Tam with a shudder. "I think I'll sleep out here, thank you..." He winks and shakes his head. "I thought I chased those out years ago."