Fred knew he wasn't the smartest squirrel ever to grace the surface of Mother Earth but despite what others believed he wasn't the stupidest either.
Sure he didn't bluntly advertise his intelligence- maybe once or twice in a Blue Moon- but he had his reasons.
After all, just look at his Father and his Grandparents, all of which had been murdered before their time. Any Kit foolish enough to show a higher mentality then that of a toddler would disappear for a week and be fount dead not long after. Sometimes they didn't even disappear, the whole family would be murder in their own homes.
Soon it became rather clear to every squirrel:
Smart Squirrels where Dead Squirrels.
And thus began the acts, the attempts to make theirselves appear less and less intelligence with every passing year.
And then there was his Uncle Red.
His uncle... Well his Uncle was a 'special case' so to speak. Even he knew the elder was no Saint but he was a good person when he wished to be. His Uncle was just a bit... Broken so to speak.
But things had been getting better and Fred had fount himself beginning to hope- maybe things would finally get better- but now they where once more falling apart.
The woman was dead. His Uncle was missing and Fred had no doubts that someone would soon be coming for him.
Maybe it was time he got out of the country but where would he go? Red was his only family left and while he had connections, none of them extended far enough.
Still if there was one thing Fred had learned from his Uncle, it was to never just roll over and accept things- such as defeat -without even trying to change it.
There was something about the chase that always sent a thrill up the British Spy's spine- especially when he was chasing a Squirrel.
Sure it wasn't the same red bushy tail he was used to chasing but the Lad- Red's nephew- was much like his Uncle when it came to running; Clever, vindicated and cautious.
Even if the younger didn't even realize why he was running, it was obvious he was running, probably out of a hard driven survival instinct Red had pounded into the younger's thick skull.
Emerald eyes ablaze, the spy all too happily followed.
What could he say?
He loved it when they decided to play hard and fight back- or in this case: Run.
Private was worried.
Though it wasn't well known, every other day the youngest of the Central Park Unit would usually go out and have tea and breakfast with a young brown squirrel that lived in the nearby park.
Fred was a strange squirrel to anyone who knew him. At first glance he seemed like a brainless idiot- to be blunt- but Private fount he enjoyed the order's company and that Fred wasn't as dumb as he pretended to be. While he sure wasn't the smartest person Private knew he wasn't the dumbest either and he had always held manners almost as tightly as Private himself.
Which was why it was such a surprise that when he arrived for his usual breakfast and tea, the young brown squirrel was no where to be seen.
While many would have assumed the other was out and left for the day, Private wasn't many. Fred always left a notice when he left home saying how long he would be gone, when he would be back and a way to contact him should it be necessary.
Yet there was no notice.
He wasn't quite sure why but the young Brit fount himself reaching for the doorknob, despite knowing Fred always locked it when he left, so when the door creaked open by a slight touch:
Private knew instantly something was wrong.
A fact soon proven when he stepped inside softly calling out the brown squirrel's name only to find the usually tidy home ransacked and precious valuables such as old photo- the only one Fred owned and had personally claimed as his most valuable possession- containing his Father, Mother and Uncle as children shattered upon the floor like yesterdays trash.
He knew then:
Something was dreadfully wrong.