Long overdue: here is the new chapter. Enjoy! =D

Chap 11: Trouble

Like all bakers, Gideon had learned to become an early riser. If customers were to get fresh-out-of-the-oven goods, he needed to bake it in the morning, before he opened at seven thirty. Just in time for people on their way to work to step in for a fresh brew and a morning scone. The alarm set for five o clock was more symbolic now, the later years his inner clock had adjusted to the rhythm, and he was already awake when it went off, paw hovering, ready to silence it before it woke the wonderful addition to his bed.

He had woken with a warm weight on his chest; the first thing in his line of vision when he opened his eyes had been a dark ruffle of wool. They had shifted positions during the night; he was on his back, one arm above his head, his other around Mary as she lay against his side with her head on his chest.

Her features were soft with sleep as she breathed deep calm breaths across his t-shirt. Her nose would sometimes twitch in her sleep, as if she was on the verge of waking, but she never did. In his mind, he remembered the time she had fallen asleep in his van, wet with rain and wrapped in his blanket. That sight had touched something deep inside him; that she had trusted him enough to fall asleep alone with him.

After the confrontation with Travis, Gideon had dutifully stored away every memory, every moment including Mary somewhere deep and safe in his brain. Certain that he would not experience any of it again, but here she was now: Asleep in his bed as if it was the most natural occurrence in the world. He had even lost track of their kisses over the past month; they all blurred together in his mind, forming one sweet intangible memory of Mary in his arms.
Glancing at his bedside clock, he found he was already ten minutes behind his usual morning routine.
Gideon carefully shifted between the sheets, trying to maneuver out of the bed without waking the sleeping ewe. She mumbled something inaudible as she rolled onto her side, finding his pillow as a replacement for his chest.

"Sorry Darlin'" it felt wonderful to able to call her that, even if just in a low whisper at the crack of dawn. He quickly placed a kiss on her cheek before finding his pants and shirt draped over their usual chair.

Stepping out on the external staircase, he was careful not to rattle his keys as he locked the door behind him. If it was one thing he would never be again, it was careless with locking his doors.

The two big ovens slowly heated up, the dull orange light from their heat resistant bulbs shining over the worn but clean floor in the bakery's kitchen.
Getting out the bowl for his largest mixer, Gideon got started on the dough for his scones. They had become a breakfast staple, and he was quite proud to say that he had several regulars that started their morning with this his scones and a coffee. The ingredients were going in the bowl by memory, the recipe perfected by years of practice.

Looking up through the window over his workbench, he gave a friendly wave to the young bunny doing the early morning paper rounds. He did not know the boy's name, but he had been passing Gideon's window every morning for nearly a year now, taking over after one of Judy's younger brothers. It would rude not to acknowledge his presence; it was very likely they were the only two mammals in town at work at this hour.

As the bunny waved back with a rolled up newspaper in his paw, Gideon wondered if he could tell something was different. If he could see in his face that he had a secret sleeping upstairs, and what he would say if he knew.
Doubt was ever present in Gideon's mind, forming deep furrows in his forehead as he watched the paper-bunny turn the corner.
There were no laws, had not been since his parents had been kits themselves, but that did not mean the prejudice was gone. True, the school could not fire Mary for dating a fox, but it would not surprise him if other valid reasons would magically appear if the school found out. Alongside the damming argument of setting a bad example for the children, no doubt.

"What crazy world am I livin' in…" he mumbled as he measured out the sugar for his scones.

He should not be asking this of her, it was too much. He had said it himself: He would take what he could get, and this was more than he deserved, really.
Disheartened, he rubbed the back of his paw over the furrows in his forehead, allowing some flour to stain his fur in the process. He could not help but feel that this was wrong somehow, sneaking about, hiding as if they were committing some offence.

He could handle broken windows and he could handle harsh words, heck; if it came to it, he could even take a punch or two. It was just that he could not shake the feeling that he should not have to.

It was going to be a good day for a ride, no doubt about it. The skies were pale and grey; the light clouds bore no threat of rain, and shielded his sensitive eyes from the glaring sun. Fastening his helmet under his chin, Rex kicked his motorcycle to life, the thundering sound of the engine echoing between the brick buildings of down town Tundratown. Behind him, two other engines roared to life.
It was going to be a good day indeed.

The morning was creeping towards six thirty when Gideon made his way back up the stairs to his apartment. He slowly opened his apartment door, careful as not to wake Mary. Walking as softly as he could over the creaky linoleum covered floorboards, he headed towards the coffee maker, planning to get it brewing before Mary woke up.

A rustle from the bed interrupted his plan. Looking over, he wished he had his phone on him to take a picture, because the sight that greeted him was one he was sure he would want to remember for the rest of his life.

Mary was sleepily sitting up in the middle of his bed, her bushy wool bathed in the grey light of early morning. His too big baseball shirt draped around her, exposing her left shoulder to him as she rubbed the sleep out of her eyes with one hoof, leaning on the other.

"Good morning" she smiled, slightly bashful.
"Mornin' Lovely" he replied softly, feeling a smile of his own spread across his face.

Abandoning the coffee maker, he made his way over to her, intent on placing a kiss on her adorable bushy head. As he sat down on the edge of his bed, the scent rolling of Mary hit him like a wave, making him freeze mid movement. He had not noticed it when he woke up, having slept in it most of the night most likely, but now, having been outside and cleared his senses, the scent was intense, drawing him to her.

"You should take a shower" he mumbled, too transfixed to notice Mary's surprised expression as he crawled up on the bed, helplessly drawn to her. He ran his nose over her exposed shoulder, making her shiver at the contact.
"You smell like me" he explained while drinking her in. "Like your mine" the hint of a growl in his voice as he spoke.

He must have done it in his sleep, because it had not been a conscious action. Still, there was no mistaking the strong territorial musk that marked her. To him it was intoxicating. To others it sent a clear message: Back off, she's mine.
She might as well go to work wearing a sign that read: I just spent the night with Gideon Grey.

Mary's sleepy mind needed some time to process what Gideon was telling her, but when she understood she became wide-awake.
"Oh…" she felt heat rise to her cheeks and nose, and as she watched Gideon hover above her, the heat spread through the rest of her body as well.
His mouth was hanging open as if tasting the very the air around her. The row of sharp teeth peeking out under his lips made him look oh so perfectly predatory. His pupils were impossibly large, a thin circle of icy blue the only thing left of his irises.

"Oh, mercy" Gideon breathed and closed his eyes, clutching the sheets in his paws, almost tearing through the fabric with his claws. Mary's own sweet, sweet scent of arousal was cutting through and mixing with his mark on her. Gideon had never known that anything could smell this wonderfully tantalizing; it threatened to drive him mad.

Mary hesitantly reached her hoof up to his jaw, gently running the tips of her digits through his fur. She watched his face closely, observing every twitch of his nose as they sat in silence for several long minutes while Gideon tried to collect himself.

"S-sorry" he finally said as he brought one paw up to hold her hoof against the thick fur on his cheek. "You just woken up, n' a fox's crawlin' all over you already".
He spoke with a soft smile, but it did not quite reach his eyes.
"I happen to love this fox" Mary whispered, placing a soft kiss on his lips. "So there's no need to apologise" Gideon shot her a thankful smile, giving her palm a quick kiss.

"It's just-" Gideon drew the scent around them yet again. "I didn't mean to, I haven't even asked you" he gave her an apologetic look. "It's mighty old fashioned anyway, but it smells so right on you" he added longingly.

He was gently pulling up the baseball shirt she was wearing while he spoke, covering up her shoulder again.
Mary bit her lip as she smiled at his gesture, it never ceased to amaze her how considerate he was.

"Thank you, I guess" she glanced up at him with a smile, meeting his gaze. "But it may not be the best way to tell our parents we're dating"
Gideon barked a short laugh, before his features fell back into seriousness again.
"Mary, 'bout that. If you wanna wait-"
"No" she assured him. "I think we should tell them, and if you think your mom's going to take it well… I'm just not ready to deal with everyone else knowing. Not yet"
"Yea" Gideon nodded. "At's prolly a good idea"
As if he finally remembered why he had come over to the bed in the first place, he placed a soft kiss on her forehead, stroking his paw over the busy curls on her head.

"But this conversation's to serious to have on an empty stomach" Gideon stated. "I'll get breakfast started"
He made to get out of bed, but not before lingering just long enough to draw the scent of his own mark on her one last time.
"Towels are under the sink" he added, before turning his attention to the previously abandoned coffee maker.

Only when he heard Mary running the shower did he turn around again. Abandoning his self-control, he dove face first into the bed, rolling around and rubbing his snout into the sheets like a cat with a bag of catnip. The mattress was still warm where Mary had been, and the scent was almost as strong as it had been on her.

Rolling over on his back, he ran his paws through his bangs, pulling hard at fistfuls of his own fur. He needed to calm down, he needed to think about something else, anything else than the enthralling scent that lingered in the sheets. His mind obliged, instead focusing his hearing on the water falling over Mary's body in the shower just a few steps away from him.

Get your head out of the gutter Gid!

He groaned, rubbing his paws over his eyes. Resolutely and without hesitation, he got to his feet, opening the window over his bed and the front door. The chilly September draft slowly erased the scent, only leaving some faint traces between his sheets that were not too distracting. Gideon could instead concentrate on the pancake batter, while his mother's old skillet was heating up on his stovetop.

Mary leaned her head against the chilly tiles inside Gideon's shower as the hot water soaked her wool. She could feel her own pulse throbbing through her limbs, though it was slowly calming down. She smiled what she knew had to be a stupid looking smile down at the bathroom tiles.

The thought of Gideon marking her, intentionally or not, was exotic. Sheep did not do that. Sure, family members often smelled similar, a natural result of living close together. However, rams never marked their mates. That was territorial behaviour, a trait rarely seen in sheep or in prey at all. It was a trait far more common in predators, and foxes.

Mary resolutely turned the temperature on the shower down until the water gave her goose bumps.

Gideon did not have many products in his bathroom, apart from the basic scent neutraliser there was just one bottle of fur-shampoo, a tube of toothpaste and soap. The fur-shampoo would not be great for her wool, but it would not be too bad for just one day, though she wished he could have had some form of conditioner. Sometimes, she envied other mammals for their naturally soft fur. Without proper conditioner and special wool-shampoo, her wool became coarse and impossible to manage.

The shampoo was not bad, it had a fresh pine smell to it, and while using it she realised she had noticed it as part of Gideon's scent before. Though often overpowered by the constant scent of sweet pastry that always stuck to him.

After thoroughly drying her wool and combing through it with the big comb she always kept in her purse, she gave herself a long look in the mirror. She was pretty sure no one would be able to tell she had not slept at her own apartment. With her wool in its usual bun, it did not look too bad, and she had changed before coming here last night, so she would not be wearing the same clothes either. Happy with her appearance, Mary stepped back out into Gideon's apartment.

The wonderful smell of fresh coffee and pancakes with syrup filled Gideon's small apartment. Mary climbed up on the bar stool facing the kitchen, resting her head in her hoofs as she watched Gideon flip the last pancake, adding it to the two impressive towers of evenly sized pancakes already on the plates beside the stovetop.

"Breakfast is served" he smiled, setting her plate down in front of her.
"This looks delicious" Mary praised, reaching for her cutlery.
"Don't praise before you've tried it" Gideon mumbled modestly as he sat down across from her.
"Gideon, everything I've tasted that you've made has been delicious" Mary reminded him, putting a forkful of pancakes into her mouth, closing her eyes in appreciation. "And this is no exception"

Gideon chuckled into his coffee, his eyes lovingly watching as Mary continued eating the breakfast he had made her. She only stopped to take a sip of her own coffee. Pausing for a second, she sent him a quick glance and he could see the hint of a blush on her nose; he had already put milk in it.

"So…" Mary begun as she poured herself another cup of coffee. "When am I meeting your mother?"
Gideon swallowed a piece of pancake, giving her an examining look.
"You sure?"
Mary nodded, giving him a reassuring smile.
"I was thinkin', maybe invite her here?" Gideon ventured. "I don't wanna involve Pa yet"

To be honest, Gideon was worried his father would do something violent. He had reacted with violence before, though not often. However, Gideon had enough memories of Joff Grey lashing out that it made him think twice about introducing him to Mary without some kind of backup plan.

"We could have coffee down in the bakery?" Mary suggested, relieved Gideon's father was out of the equation for the time being.

"Yea" Gideon agreed. "We could meet on Sunday?"
Mary nodded, nervously sucking her lower lip. "Ok. Sunday. It's a date"
"It's a date" Gideon repeated, chuckling nervously.

Gideon took Mary's hoof over the breakfast bar, giving it a reassuring squeeze. They shared a nervous but excited smile as they both realised how pivotal of a moment this would turn out to be.

"I'll call her this afternoon" Gideon leaned over to her, giving her forehead a quick peck.

Even though she was nervous, Mary was happier than she could ever remember being. Gideon was clearing away their plates, and wanting to do something useful she decided to make the bed. Glancing over at him standing in the kitchen, rinsing off the dirty dishes, Mary wished every morning could be like this. And maybe it would, in the future. They would see how their parents handled it, and take it slow, but Mary was certain about one thing: There would come a day when she started her mornings like this every day.

Gideon walked outside first; checking that the coast was clear before waving Mary down the stairs into the alley behind the bakery. After stealing a quick kiss at the bottom of the stairs, Mary snuck out of the alley. Hurrying up Market Street towards Schoolhouse Road, she ran a nervous hoof over her bun, hoping it would stay smooth. She had to suppress the skip sneaking into her step as she made her way to work. The morning may have been overcast, but in her mind, everything was bathing in sunshine.

In the seconds after the bell rang for first recess, the classroom was alive with noise and movement as twenty children hurriedly packed their backpacks and put on their coats and sweaters. Mary's clear voice cut through the chatter as the children pooled up around the classroom door.

"Benjamin, could you help me clean the blackboard please?"

The young wolf cub halted with his jacket already sipped up. Ellie sent him sympathetic shrug; she had already helped Mary clean the blackboard twice.
"Yes Miss Mary" Benjamin nodded, folding his jacket over the back of his chair again. He had the same distant look in his eyes as he had yesterday.

Mary handed him the sponge, and continued to sort through her papers on the desk while she wondered how to begin this conversation without sounding to probing.

"Benjamin," she begun. "How are you doing?"
"Ok" he shrugged, continuing to clean the chalk of the blackboard.
"No one's bothering you?"
"No"
"Well, that's good" Mary realised she was not going to get anywhere asking questions, and she was certainly not going to force him to tell her what was troubling him.

"I just want you to know that you can always talk to me or Mrs. Claudia if anything is bothering you, anything at all"

Benjamin turned from the blackboard, and for a moment, Mary could see a sadness in his eyes that nearly broke her heart, but he quickly concealed it again.
Benjamin kept his eyes cast down as he handed her the sponge, his voice low and determined.

"I finished cleaning the board"
"Thank you" Mary smiled warmly at him.

Without another word. he walked back to his desk, grabbing his jacket of the chair.

"Benjamin" Mary called after him as he headed for the door.
"You know, sometimes problems are easier to carry if you have someone to share them with"

Benjamin seemed to think this over for a moment, before giving her a short nod, leaving the classroom without as much as a good bye.
Had Mary been Marnie, she would have scolded him for disrespectful behaviour, but Mary understood there was something else behind this young cub's behaviour than just lack of manners.
Something was troubling him, and Mary only wished she could be able to break through the protective layer Benjamin had spun around himself.

"Mary, you do remember to cover my gate-duty?" Claudia asked as she buttoned up her coat, coming down the empty hall, ready to pick up Kelly for her dentist appointment.

"I do, just remember to cover mine on Monday" Mary smiled over her coffee mug. The cheetah seldom seemed stressed, but Mary wondered if Claudia maybe was more nervous about visiting the dentist than her daughter.

"Thanks!"

Mary stepped aside to let Claudia pass her, but as she did, the cheetah halted right where she was nearest to her. Mary held her breath in terror as the big cat inhaled the air just above her head, a curious furrow between her brows. Mary was sure she had been thorough with the scent neutraliser this morning, and she had shampooed her wool two times, even if that had not been strictly necessary.
Could she give any believable explanation to why she smelled like a fox? Her mind was racing with her pulse as she tried to think of something, but Claudia beat her to it.

"Did you change your shampoo?"
"Y-yeah" Mary could barely keep her voice from shaking.
"Forrest Pine?" Mary only managed a nod in response.
"Huh" Claudia looped her purse over her shoulder. "My husband uses that one"

Mary wished she could disappear into the wall behind her, her hoofs was shaking so badly she feared her coffee would spill.
"He, yea" Mary laughed nervously. "I-I read on this blog that-that it was great for wool, and I decided to give it a try"
"Really?" Claudia crooked an eyebrow at the nervous sheep.
"Yea" Mary nodded a little too eagerly. Luckily, she was literally saved by the bell as it chimed to announce the end of recess.
"That's the time already?!" Claudia checked her wristwatch as if the school bell could somehow chime early. She was already down the hallway and waving back at Mary.
"See you on Monday Mary!"

As the rush of children flooded into the hallway, Mary leaned against the wall, letting out a long sigh of relief.

Travis walked out from the gas station, happily sipping his hot coffee. Chuck had needed several new parts from the central car-part dealer, including a full carton of spark plugs. With all the farming equipment due to come into the shop after the harvest was over it would be best to be prepared. Travis agreed. It was a great opportunity to get out of the garage for a change. It was a lovely autumn day, overcast sure, but with the radio and heater on Travis had had quite the nice trip to Tri-central and back again.

Taking another sip from his tolerable gas station coffee, he strode over to the Beaver Dam Garage truck. Strictly speaking, it was too big for a ferret to drive, but with his own modifications, he managed to reach the pedals just fine.
The loud revving of engines made him jump out of the way, as three motorcycles pulled in by the gas pumps at an irresponsible high speed.
"Shit" he swore as the scolding hot coffee seeped through his pants.
"Hey, watch it!" He yelled at the bikers, earning him a rather lewd gesture from the smaller one. Under all their biker gear, their bushy grey tales was the only thing to expose their species.

Travis scoffed, throwing his now empty styrofoam cup in a nearby bin. He was not about to pick a fight with three wolves over a spilled cup of mediocre coffee. Anyway, he knew a place in town where he could get a free refill.
Giving himself a mental pat on the back for being the bigger mammal, then chuckling at the irony of that phrase, he jumped into the truck and started the engine.

"Hey kid!" Travis greeted as he entered Gideon's bakery. The owner himself was nowhere to be seen, but Elliot was familiar enough with Travis to know what to get him.

"Afternoon Mr. Mustela!" Elliot greeted as he poured the ferret a cup of coffee, setting it down on the counter.
"Didn't I tell ya to cut the Mr- stuff?" Travis said as he jumped up on the counter, dangling his feet as he took a sip from the large black coffee. "Sounds too fancy, Travis'll do"
"Sure Mr. Travis"
Travis rolled his eyes, but did not comment any further, looking up from his coffee as Gideon appeared from the kitchen with a tray full off milkshakes and pies. There was only three occupied tables in the bakery, the afternoon rush not having set in yet.

"Afternoon" Travis greeted, raising his coffee cup in a toast.
"Travis" Gideon sighed as he passed around the counter. "Will you please get your dirty work trousers off my countertop."

Travis held a paw over his chest, a mock hurt expression on his face before dutifully jumping down.

Gideon came back with the empty tray under his arm, sitting down by the table Travis had chosen to sit by now that the countertop was off limits. Not that he would not do it again next time he came by.

"You on your way outta town?" Gideon asked, enjoying getting to rest his legs for a moment.
"Into town" the ferret corrected. "Have actually been to the Tri-Burrows central car-part dealer today"
"Is that so" Gideon replied, having to bite his cheeks a little to keep from smiling.
"Yea" Travis took a sip of his coffee, a sly twinkle in his eye. "Speaking of; how's that new dynamo workin' out for ya?"
"It's workin' out just fine" Gideon said, smiling in spite of himself.
"Good ta hear" taking another sip from his coffee, Travis turned to Elliot behind the counter. "Hey kid! Possible to get a slice of somethin' sweet with this?"

Mary slipped on the orange high visibility vest as she trotted through the schoolyard, nodding to Marnie as she passed her. The old goat would watch the children in the schoolyard, leaving Mary to keep the gate by herself. Not that it was a problem; she had grown up in Bunnyburrow, there were not many mammals she did not know. She already recognized one wholesome looking ewe standing by the gates as she approached.

"Daryl!" Mary called over her shoulder to the swings. "Your mother is here!"
She smiled at Daryl's mother as she walked through the gate opening onto the small parking lot, just about big enough to room five medium sized cars.

"How has he behaved today?" The older ewe asked in a lowered voice as her son jumped off the swings.
"Oh, no trouble today Mrs. Dorper"

Daryl and Paul had been behaving quite well recently. Mary suspected it had a lot to do with the lack of victims, and luckily, they had not seemed interested in finding a new one after Benjamin had started fitting in.
She felt sorry for Daryl's mother, she had been in enough meetings with other parents and teachers over her son's behaviour to last a lifetime. Even if her son could be a mean little lamb, he was still her son, and Mary could only imagine what that had to be like.

"He's been behaving exemplary all week" she added, offering Mrs. Dorper a reassuring smile. Daryl came up to them then, his backpack nonchalantly thrown over his shoulder. His mother sent Mary a small thankful smile, before following her son to their car.

Mary glanced back over the gate. Benjamin was sitting on the edge of one of the sandboxes with Ellie, the latter trying to cheer him up with some elaborate tail of her siblings food fight the other evening. Mary wished she could reach through to him; the look in his eyes earlier still left her with a nagging feeling that something was very wrong.

"And then, just as dad got up, SMACK!" Ellie clapped her paws together. "Emma's gravy hit him right in his face!" She looked expectantly at her friend, waiting for a laugh that never came.
"Ben? Benjamin? Hello!" Ellie waved her paw in front of his eyes.
"What? Oh.. yea, that was really funny" Benjamin answered without a hint of a smile.
"What's wrong?"
"Nothing"
"Liar" Ellie got up in front of him, her paws on her hips as she leaned towards him; a pose her mother always used when she was being strict.
"You've barley talked to me for two days. Did Daryl do something?"
"No" the wolf sighed. Benjamin wanted to tell her about the phone call, but did not see what difference that would make. It would not change anything, but Miss Mary's kind voice sang through his mind again.
You know, sometimes problems are easier to carry if you have someone to share them with.

"I think my uncle called mom" he swallowed, keeping his eyes on the ground.
"Oh" Ellie lost her mother's strict stance. "The mean uncle?"

Benjamin nodded, about to continue when he froze, his ears standing straight up on his head. Seeing this, Ellie raised her own, listening intently. Far away, still a little too far for others to really pick it up, there was a rumble of engines and exhaust that was seldom heard in Bunnyburrow.
"Motorcycles?" Ellie wondered out loud as she angled her ears to hear better.
"Hey!" Benjamin had grabbed her arm in an almost painful grip, dragging her behind him as he ran towards the thick bushes by the swings.

Mary turned towards the uncommon sound of revving motorcycle engines. She could already see three figures riding towards the school, bushy grey tales in the wind behind them.

An uneasy feeling settled in her stomach as the tree wolves slowed down, parking their bikes in the middle of the small parking lot. Unclasping their helmets, and giving their surroundings a once over. Her unease grew as one of the wolves unstrapped a bat from the side of his motorcycle.

The largest of the trio, a dark grey wolf dressed in all black, strode towards her with a toothy smile. His eyes were nothing more than two yellow slits, and as he got closer, she noticed that his ears was missing pieces in several places, as if someone had bitten down and torn their teeth through them.

"Good afternoon miss" he greeted, looking down on her with a condescending smile, his voice dripping with pretend politeness.
"I'm here to pick up my nephew; I believe he uses the name Wolfskinsky these days"

His eyes were searching the schoolyard behind her as he spoke, quickly snapping back to her when she started to speak.
"I'm sorry, but I can only allow children to be picked up by their legal guardian or someone already approved by their guardian"

Mary thanked herself for rehearsing that sentence in college, because this wolf was making her anxious. Something sinister flashed over his eyes before the condescending toothy smile was back on his lips. He crouched down, leaning on his left knee to be on eye level with her. Mary actually had to keep herself from taking a step back.

She had always found faux leather jackets to be extremely tasteless and insensitive for a number of reasons, and the one this wolf was wearing was one of the best imitations she had seen. As he crouched down however, an acrid smell stung in her nostrils, making her stomach turn. This was not faux leather.

"I totally understand miss, but Eva is held up at the hospital. And as a good brother in law, I volunteered to pick up little Benny" Mary froze in place as he reached out his clawed paws and sipped up the sipper on the front of her high visibility vest.

"Now, you're not going to be a problem, are you little miss cotton?"

Hidden beneath the prickly bush by the swings, Benjamin lay completely still, eyes wide as he watched his uncle crouch down in front of his teacher. Behind his uncle, his two usual sidekicks, Rocky and Dexter, came up to flank him. Dexter was holding a stained bat, chewing on some tobacco as his eyes searched the schoolyard, sending shivers down Benjamin's spine every time his eyes passed over the bush.

"That's your uncle?" Ellie whispered beside him. Benjamin just nodded. "What's he talking to Miss Mary for?"
"I think he wants to take me" Benjamin whispered back.
"Like, kidnap you?"
"Yeah" Benjamin shuddered.
Ellie put a comforting paw on her friends arm, but she could not help her nose twitching. Those wolves were big. But maybe Miss Mary could make them leave, Ellie did not know anyone who were as smart as her math-and science teacher.

"I-I'm sorry" Mary repeated, trying to keep her voice from shaking. "But I'll have to hear that from Mrs. Wolfskinsky herself"

She hoped Marnie had noticed what was happening at the gate, she was almost counting on the old goat's prejudice against predators, especially anything canine, to hold back the remaining children. Stealing a quick glance over her shoulder, she could not immediately see Benjamin, and hoped the three wolves had not either.

The large wolf rose to his feet with a sigh. To his left, a young wolf with several golden rings piercing his ears sent him a questioning look, lifting his bat a few inches. Rex shook his head slightly, before turning his attention back to the annoying sheep in front of him.

Before Mary had time to react, he raised his arm, the back of his paw coming down on her cheek with such force she was knocked over, hitting the back of her head against the asphalt.
Rex chuckled, clearly amused at how little was required to strike her down.

"I didn't hit that hard, did I Rocky?"
"Barley a slap boss" rumbled the wolf at his right.
"Thought so. Sheep are so weak" he sighed with fake disappointment.

Mary lay on the asphalt in shock as the pain sang through her head. She could hear some commotion in the schoolyard behind her, making out Marnie's stern but hurried voice as she gathered up the remaining children. Mary hoped Benjamin was with them.

Under the bush by the swings, the wolf cub and the bunny drew a unison breath in shock as their teacher hit the ground.
"Oh no" Benjamin whispered, tears starting to well up in his eyes.

Ellie wanted to flee; she needed to flee. She only hesitated for another second, the sight of Miss Mary lying motionless on the ground on the other side of the chain-link fence making the decision for her: She needed to keep her friend safe.

This time it was Ellie's turn to grab Benjamin's arm, dragging him behind her as she dashed from their hiding place and around the corner of the school.

Benjamin tried his best to keep himself from tumbling over as he was dragged out from under the bush. The three wolves at the gate were too busy snickering at Miss Mary to notice them. They turned the corner of the building, finding themselves behind the school. Behind here the chain- link fence was over six feet high; there was no way they would be able to jump over it.

Letting go of his arm, Ellie started to frantically look through the bushes lining the fence. There was no guarantee the hole her brother had told her about was still there, but save climbing the fence, is was their only way out.
"Here it is!" She breathed excitedly, looking back at Benjamin who was standing just were she had left him, tears streaming down his face.

With that, a hole cut in the fence by a pair of mischievous bullies over a decade prior allowed Ellie and Benjamin to escape.

Ellie wasted no time, grabbing Benjamin's paw again as soon as he crawled through the hole in the fence. Benjamin was crying as he ran behind Ellie, the latter never letting go of his paw, even when he knew he was slowing them down.

"It's gonna be ok" Ellie assured him as they turned the corner down Market Street, running as fast as their short legs would carry them. The air was burning in her lungs now, but she would get her friend to safety, and the safest place she knew in town was just down this road.

Tightening her grip on Benjamin's paw, Ellie ran to her big brother.

"Rocky" Rex did a sharp motion with his thumb, ordering the other wolf through the gate. As Rocky jogged through the now empty schoolyard towards the main entrance where an old goat had just locked the door behind her, Rex bent back towards the sheep laying on the ground.

"Alright mutton chops" he said, the mock politeness from earlier gone from his voice. "We can do this one of two ways"
Mary bleated in shock as his strong paw took a hold around her throat, lifting her to her feet, and then some.

"Either you tell me where I can find my nephew, or Rocky over there is going to start tearing through that building brick by brick until we find him"

In the case of an emergency as this one, the drill was to gather the children in the school gym, bar the doors and call the police. Chances were that Benjamin was in there with the rest of the pupils and teachers. Even as her feet left the ground, Mary was determined to keep that little piece of information to herself.

"Elliot!"

Elliot looked up from behind the counter in alarm as his little sister crashed through the bakery door, making the bell chime shrilly. Seeing the look of terror on his sister's face, and the crying cub behind her, which he recognised as one of her classmates, he swiftly jumped over the counter towards her.

"Ellie, what's the matter?" he knelt down in front of her, laying a steady big brother paw on her shoulder.
"We must hide Benjamin, they're gonna kidnap him!"
Elliot gave his sister a confused look. "Who?"

"You little critters out 'a school already?"

Gideon came around a table with a tray of used plates and coffee cups, his friendly smile fading into an unsure frown as he recognized the fear on the faces of the two children standing panting in front of Elliot.

"Mr. Grey!" Ellie nearly shouted. Not as familiar with the fox as her cousins, she never called him "Giddy" as they sometimes did.
"You must hide Benjamin! They're going to take him!"
"Who? Ellie, what are you talking about?" Elliot urged his little sister.
"Big wolves! His uncle wants to take him" the little bunny rushed, still out of breath from the wild dash through town. She was clutching Benjamin's arm, the cub standing behind her anxiously watching Market Street through the window.

Travis had hopped down from his chair, joining the group by the door. He shared a concerned glance with Gideon as the bunny explained. The little gathering by the entrance was starting to draw the attention of some of the patrons in the bakery as well.

"They hit Miss Mary! Really hard" Ellie said wide eyed, the shock of seeing her teacher flung to the ground still making her nose twitch.
"What?!" Travis said in disbelief. Gideon looked like someone had flung a bucket of ice water over his head.
"She-she didn't get up again" Benjamin let out a soft sob as he turned to the ferret.
He was hoping against hope that his teacher would be ok, but he knew the wolf he was running from too well.

The abrupt sound of shattering porcelain against the bakery's floor tiles made everyone's heads turn, but the catalyst of the sound was already gone. The bell over the door chimed sharply as Gideon flung it open, the fox in full sprint up the street before anyone had time to react.

"Shit!" Travis hissed, already on his way after him. "Call the cops!" the ferret ordered Elliot, before he ran after Gideon up Market Street.

Back in the day, Travis could easily outrun Gideon in a dead sprint, but the fox had a head start, and he was not fourteen anymore.

Gideon's knee long apron was hindering his movements, so he unceremoniously ripped it off, letting it float to the ground somewhere behind him. Turning the corner of the last block, he was down on all fours, the air burning in his lungs. He could hear Travis shouting somewhere behind him, but all his senses were focusing in on the emerging school building down the stretch of road in front of him.

Dread hit him like cold waves as he closed in on the parking lot. He could make out two large wolves dressed in black standing by the gate, but he could not see Mary anywhere. Then the smaller wolf moved to the side, revealing the other lifting Mary with an iron grip around her neck and jaw. He was holding her inches from his face, his teeth bared in a snarl. Gideon's claws unsheathed to full length without him giving it a conscious thought.

"Dammit Gid! Stop!" Travis shouted behind him, realising that he would not be able to reach him before his friend reached the school's small parking lot.

"Look here mutton chops" Rex snarled as he lifted Mary up to his face. His horrible breath mixing with the strong odour from his leather jacket.
"I haven't had lunch today, and you're lookin' awfully tasty right about now"

Mary let out an involuntary whimper as she felt the claws on his thumb and index fingers dig into her cheeks. She tried her best to hold on to his wrist, keeping the strain of her neck but at the same time twisting desperately in an attempt to loosen his grip.

"So I suggest you tell me where the cub is"

Even in his tight grip, Mary managed a tiny shake of the head. She needed to buy them time. Marnie would probably have managed to gather the remaining kids inside by now, and called the cops from one of the landlines. To her knowledge, the old goat did not own a cell phone. Nevertheless, it would take time, even for a speeding police car, to drive from the Tri-Burrows police station two miles from here.

Her continued resolve seemed to piss the large wolf off even more. With a low snarl, he mercilessly tightened his grip on her cheeks. A muffled scream seeped through her locked jaws. The sharp pain from his claws brought tears to her eyes, but the sound was the worst. Two hollow pops in quick succession, followed by the rusty taste of blood flowing over her tongue.

The pain and taste of her own blood brought on a panic unlike anything Mary had ever experienced. Her vision tunneled and she started to desperately kick and wiggle in his grip, her breathing rapid and hitched as she made every effort to escape. Her failing effort amused Rex as he lifted her closer to his face, snickering.

"I'll just have to search the entire building then, and I can't promise what I'll do with whoever else I find" His snarl mixing with his smile.
"As I said; haven't had my lunch yet" this earned him a laugh from his sidekick, the smaller wolf swinging his bat playfully over his shoulder with a sinister smile.

Mary shut her eyes tightly as Rex brought his bared teeth down to her face. She expected sharp teeth to clamp down on her; instead, she felt a warm rough tongue lap up the blood streaming from her cheeks and down her chin. It made nausea well up in the middle of her panic.

"Oooooh, mutton chops, you're tastier than you loo- OHF!"

Something hit Rex with such force that he was flung to the side, letting go of Mary in his surprise.

Mary was not prepared for the sudden drop, and landed roughly on her back. The impact knocking the air out of her lungs. She instinctively rolled over on her side, trying to catch her breath and at the same time feebly shield herself from the second blow. Her cheeks throbbed and stung, the blood slowly trickling down to pool in her wool and staining her pink sweater.

There was no second blow; instead, a now familiar warmth surrounded her as a rumbling growl filled her ears. Opening her eyes, Mary saw a blur of red fur and a blue plaid against the grey sky above her.
"Gideon" she winced when her cheeks stung by the motion of speaking.

Gideon did not offer her a glance, but kept his eyes fixed on the wolf in front of him. He crouched over her on all fours, effectively shielding her under him. A constant low growl that sent shivers down Mary's spine sounded from somewhere deep in his chest.

For a moment, no one moved a muscle. Rex sat dumbstruck on the ground, shaking his head as he tried to figure out what had just hit him. Dexter, unable to perform even the simplest task without the direct order from his boss, looked on in shock as the boss in question sat staring at the growling fox that had appeared out of nowhere.

"The hell!?" Rex exclaimed as he got back on his feet. Discovering the fox, his expression quickly shifted from disbelief to anger.

Gideon never took his eyes of the large wolf.
This was nothing like the blinding anger he had experienced during his teenage years. What he felt now was a burning rage surging through every fibre of his body, together with a strong need to protect and defend. He had never felt so focused in his life.
The scent of Mary's blood and fear filled the air around him, fuelling his rage. The source of her pain was right in front of him, and he would stop at nothing to keep her safe from it. There was nothing else in the world that mattered to him at that moment. As the alpha wolf got up and charged at them, Gideon bared his teeth in a loud snarl, ready to stand his ground.

"Oh shit"
Travis skidded inelegantly to a halt as he came running into the parking lot. Gideon was so focused on the wolf that had held Mary that he had completely forgotten about the one with the bat. The smaller wolf was raising the bat in his arms, ready to leap forward and bring it down on the snarling fox crouching protectively over the black sheep on the ground.

Travis had nothing that even resembled a plan as he ran towards the wolf. Sinking his small sharp claws into his biker-jacket, Travis scaled the wolf's back, closing his teeth around two of the golden rings piercing his ear.
Dexter let out an alarmed yowl as a sharp pain shot down from his ear. He begun to dance around the parking lot waving his arms, trying to reach the creature hanging from his ear. Travis wrung his body away from the wolf every time, bracing his feet against his neck, pulling on the piercings as hard as he could manage while Dexter leaped about the parking lot.

Even though Gideon was large for a fox, he was nothing compared to a full-grown wolf. He managed to dodge Rex's first blow, but it was swiftly followed by a second. The wolf's claws dug deep into his neck and shoulder, mercilessly tearing through his skin before they caught in his collarbone, hurling him through the air.

"No!"
Mary scrambled to get on her feet as Gideon hit the ground with a pained yelp, but before she could even move an inch towards him, a strong paw closed around her leg. Panic blurred her vision as she screamed and kicked, trying to get away from the iron grip around her leg.

Mary's scream cut through his own pain as a jolt of electricity, acute and agonising. With a snarl so animalistic it bordered on prehistoric, Gideon leaped at the alpha, sinking his teeth into the base of his neck.
Rex stumbled backwards, foaming through his teeth as he tried to loosen the fox's jaws that was locket around the base of his neck.

The distant but recognisable sound of sirens reached the parking lot as Rocky came running back across the schoolyard from his fruitless search.
"Boss!" he yelled. "The fuzz!"
"Get this fucker off me!"

Finally managing to get a hold of the ferret on his back, Dexter ripped the small mammal off him, pulling out a few of his earrings in the process. Finding his grip on his bat again, he rushed to his boss's aid, bringing his bat down on Gideon's head with a sickening crack.

For a split second, Gideon felt a sharp jolt of pain shooting out from the back of his head, wrapping around his skull. Then darkness crept in from the corners of his eyes, like curtains closing over a window. The sounds around him grew distant and muddled together in one faint cacophony of noise. He had no control of his limbs; he could feel himself falling, but was unable to brace for the impact with the ground he knew would come. But it never came.

As the last flimsy string of consciousness left him, Gideon thought he could hear someone scream his name.