A/N: This one is for kathknight, who requested/challenged me to write this. Hope you enjoy it hon!

"Look, Misto, if you sit here on that sparkly little ass of yours hoping he notices you someday you'll never get him to notice you," Tugger said with an encouraging smile.

"But what if he doesn't like toms? Or worse, what if he does and he doesn't like me?" I asked, looking down into the clearing behind the TSE1. "And what was that about my ass?"

"Only that it's absolutely adorable," he said before putting a peck on my cheek. I gave him a look, but he sat there smiling at me and I couldn't stay mad at him.

"Seriously Tug? You're still hitting on me?" I said with a chuckle.

"Come on Misto. Just because it didn't work out between us means we have to be any different than we were before. Hell, I'm giving you advice on how to hook up with my own brother for Everlasting's sake!"

I sighed as we smiled sadly at each other, both of us remembering all the good times we'd shared. We'd grown up together, been each other's first kiss, first romance, and we'd even given each other our virginity. It had been a whirlwind romance to say the least. For me, it began when we were both still kittens, only a few weeks away from becoming toms and attending our first Ball. We'd been alone, chatting late into the night, as we often did, when we both sheepishly admitted to not actually having had our first kiss. Naturally, then, the most logical thing for us to do was to solve that problem. It was simple and tender, but it was enough for me to fall madly in love with Tugger. Later on he'd admit that he'd fallen in love with me then as well. We ended up hooking up during the Ball and becoming an item after that. While we were together we were mating like crazy, twice, maybe even thrice, a day. We'd be seen all over the yard kissing and touching, never out of the other's sight for more than an hour at a time.

Eventually, the inferno of passion became a blaze, the blaze a fire, and eventually the fire nothing more than smouldering embers. We still loved each other, but more as brothers and best friends than mates. It just didn't have that something that made it so special in the beginning. We decided it was best to stop fooling ourselves and admit that it just wasn't going to work out for us. Of course that didn't exactly stop us from the occasional late night visit, but we agreed those would stop as well. We hadn't exactly determined when we would stop, but neither of us was in a particular hurry for that to occur.

I leaned in and nuzzled him, before giving him a little peck on his jaw. "You're right Tug. But we can't be doing this anymore if-"

"You know I'd never do that to you or my brother."

"I know," I said as I rested my head on his chest. "Thank you Tug."

"For what?"

"For everything. I can't think of anyone who'd be able to sit here like this, knowing what you know," I replied, looking up into his eyes.

He pushed me away and looked directly into me. "I made you a promise the night we got together. I promised you I'd be there for you, no matter what happened. I plan to keep that promise. Besides, now that we're not a thing anymore I've been getting so much extra action it isn't even-" I shut him up with a playful swat to his chest. Nobody ever understood how we were still friends. They saw how cavalier he was about our separation and they all assumed he'd dumped me and that I was so in love with him I couldn't stand to see him vilified for it. They never saw this side of Tugger. The side that genuinely cared for others. Only a select few ever saw it. "So have you figured out how you're going to tell him yet?"

"No, not yet. I was originally planning to just say it straight out, but now I'm not so sure," I responded, embarrassed, as I thoroughly investigated a small paint chip on the boot lid.

"Why not? I'm fairly certain that being direct with you worked out pretty well for me."

I rolled my eyes, it was amazing (and slightly annoying) how he could be so typically Tugger and still be right. "You expect me to walk up to him and say: hey tux, wanna bang?"

"Oh come on, I had a little more finesse than that!"

"Maybe in your mind, but that's all I heard."

"Maybe you were just hearing what you wanted to." There it was again. Tugger being Tugger and still being right.

"That still doesn't address him not liking toms and slash or not liking me."

"I can say fairly certainly that he does."

"And how would you know that? He's never been seen with anyone other than Demeter."

"Let's just say Alonzo may have slightly embarrassed himself the other night..."

"You're hooking up with Alonzo now?" I asked irritably. It wasn't that he was with someone else now that annoyed me so much as that he'd just been with me the night before, and hadn't exactly been forthcoming with that information. I didn't even catch the implication of what Tugger had said. "And what would Alonzo possibly say that- oh." My eyes widened as I caught on.

"I didn't say anything because I don't know if it's going anywhere. Besides, he told me our hookups aren't as much of a secret as we think they are, so he wasn't expecting exclusivity."

"Fine. Anyway, are you saying he...?"

"Called out the wrong name? Yup. Called it out clear as a bell. Not gonna lie it was kinda hot to think about how we-"

"Moving on Tugger," I said, really not wanting to know how that statement was going to end. "This still doesn't answer the second part."

"Oh come on Misto! You are the most stunning tom in the yard, aside from me of course. Your coat is soft and has a sheen to it that none of the others can match. Your body is... well... I think you know where I'm going there. On top of it all you're one of the most independent toms in the yard, all the while managing to be one of the nicest. There's no way he won't be interested." I felt my cheeks burning as he spoke. Even after everything, he still knew how to make me feel special. "Now, let's get you your tom."