Moomin brought him up to Moominhouse. Mamma and Pappa were about to go up to bed, but they leapt up and hugged Snufkin and rung his hand and slapped his back and ruffled his hair when they saw him. He beamed at them, letting their love wash over him, warming him all the way through. His fingertips tingled- a little like they had done when they had first gone invisible- but this time it was with joyful adrenaline.

Moominmamma fussed over the deep cuts in his arms, cleaning them with a strong smelling ointment from her first aid kit and bandaging them. Snufkin felt very hot around the face as Moomintroll worriedly watched her carefully bind his arms, but he was very grateful to Moominmamma. The cuts didn't hurt anymore.

Moominmamma made them all some tea and they sat down at the table so Moomintroll and Snufkin could tell them what had happened. After not being able to speak for months, Snufkin suddenly found himself talking almost non stop. Moominmamma gasped when she heard that the Groke had made contact with him, but he waved away her worry and reassured her that he was fine.

Another thing that had happened as soon as Snufkin had become visible and himself again was that his appetite had returned. Moominmamma reheated some leftover stew and they all had some, and Moominpappa even cracked open a bottle of his favourite whiskey to celebrate the occasion. This made Snufkin feel very touched.

They woke Little My up and she bounded down the stairs, hugging Snufkin tightly and then sitting on top of his hat for the rest of the evening. She was given a thimble of whiskey and was soon swinging from the brim of Snufkin's hat and singing loudly.

When they had all eaten Moominpappa requested that Snufkin tell them some of his stories from his Winter travels, to which Snufkin happily obliged.
They all listened intently to Snufkin's yarns, oohing and ahhing and gasping and laughing at all in the right moments. He told them about the time he had been arrested for stealing a melon, leading to his escape from prison using only a tin opener, and his subsequent meeting with Snorkmaiden and Snork; him and Moomintroll happily relived when they had met for the first time in the Lonely Mountains; Little My and Snufkin told the story of their revenge on the Park Keeper, which was met with peels of hysterical laughter from Moominmamma and Moominpappa, who had never heard that particular tale in full. They all got very jolly and soon the large bottle of whiskey was empty.

Then they all asked Snufkin to play some songs on his mouth organ. He protested feebly, saying that he hadn't played it in months and was too out of practise, but eventually Little My and Moomintroll begged him and nagged him enough, and he gave in. He took the small silver I instrument out of his pocket, grinned sheepishly, and said,

"Well, alright, but I warn you- it won't be much good. What song do you want?"

Moomin requested his favourite- 'All Small Beasts Should Have Bows in Their Tails'- just as Snufkin knew he would- and as soon as he began playing, it all rushed back to him and he felt like he had played it every day since last Summer. The others burst into loud and excited song. Snufkin's playing was excellent as always, and a few misplaced notes here and their only made the songs more endearing and personal, in Moomin's opinion at least.

They talked and sung late into the night and when the candles had begun to burn down to their stumps Snufkin finally dismissed himself from the table. It had been a long day and he was looking forward to a dreamless sleep.

He snuggled down in his tent, feeling full for the first time in ages, and feeling very warm and content. His head was a little unfocused from the whiskey, which masked the sharp pain in his side from where the Groke had struck him. He placed a hand on his stomach and found that while it was still thin and bony, he could feel it beginning to fill out a little, the large meal doing some good, and he saw no reason why he couldn't reach a healthy weight again soon if he kept up a good eating schedule.

He had the best night's sleep he had had in ages, and awoke early to listen to the birds singing and see the light from the new sun dancing off the river. He smiled. He was truly home.

-

A few weeks past. Snufkin's feeling of happiness didn't waver, just sank back into normality.
He didn't think much about his father. He figured, if his father cared so little for him that he would abandon him, then he, Snufkin, shouldn't care so much about him in return. His father wasn't worth that. And anyway, Moominmamma and Moominpappa were as good as parents to him- and he much preferred it like that.
While the pain in his side persisted, as long as Snufkin slept on the other side, he couldn't feel it too badly. He hadn't mentioned it to anyone and hoped it wouldn't stay. But he wasn't too worried about it.
His eating had improved. His stomach was no longer concave, his face had filled out, his pelvis and jaw gone didn't jut out anymore. Moomin noticed- one Summer afternoon they were sunbathing by the river- Moomin had his head in Snufkin's lap and was lying on his back while Snufkin sat with his legs stuck out, smoking his raspberry leaves and making a flower garland. Tentatively, Moomin moved a paw over Snufkin's stomach, and felt it soft and plump, a nice change from it being jagged and hollow. He smiled softly, infinitely relieved that Snufkin had managed to put on some weight and maintain it. He knew he didn't have to worry about his friend any more.

"What are you doing Moomintroll?" Snufkin murmured, his pipe stuck between his teeth, laughter in his voice.

Moomin blushed and glanced up at Snufkin, who was focused on the flower crown.

"I was... Just... Um..."

"I haven't got fat, have I?" Snufkin grinned.

"No! No, you haven't!" Moomin exclaimed.

Snufkin laughed.

"I'm only joking, Moomin. I'm aware of my weight. Don't worry- I'm keeping myself in check, eating every day. I don't want a repeat of last Winter any more than you do."

His words turned serious as he spoke, and Moomin knew not to persue the subject. They hadn't talked much about Snufkin's invisibility, and Moomintroll sensed that this was as much as he was going to get. And if Snufkin felt comfortable with that, so did Moomin- it was closure and reassurance enough. He trusted Snufkin to be honest with him. And Snufkin didn't think he would feel that low again. If he did, it wouldn't be for a long time.

"Oh, Moomintroll?" Snufkin said.
"Yes?" Moomin asked, playing with a bit of frayed material on the edge of Snufkin's old green dress.

"I... Wanted to say something. Something I couldn't say at the time... When... I had no voice. Remember when we shared your bed?"

Moomin nodded automatically.

"Well... I don't think I've ever properly thanked you for everything. Without you, I..." Snufkin shuddered, despite the warm day. "I won't want to think what might have become of me if I didn't have an amazing friend like you. And... I, well, Moomintroll, I love you too."

-

One night Moomin went to say goodnight to Snufkin before bed. Snufkin was having a quiet smoke down by the river.

"Everything alright?" Moomin asked.

"Absolutely everything," Snufkin said, blowing a smoke ring.

"I'm going to bed now," Moomintroll said, patting his friend on the back. "I'll see you tomorrow."

"Yip yip," replied Snufkin.

The end.