Chapter 2

Sleet spent the rest of the evening teaching Manic how to temper the chocolate the right way to give it a nice, bright shine. He expected the queen to make some objections. There were several aspects of the relationship that most parents would object to and he would allow her the right to disapprove so long as she didn't actively try to separate them.

That night, he spent an hour composing an email to his brother, explaining the situation. "Dingo, you and I both knew that one day we would have to part ways. Siblings don't live together forever and it's simply time to find my own life, to find out who I am outside of the Lobos Brothers. After the last couple of years, I want something less destructive. I want a job where I can create something. Tell his lordship that I apologize for leaving when he needs us most but Manic needs me more. I end this with a piece of advice. Stop mooning over Sonia. You always knew that was a pipe dream that could only end in pain. There is someone special out there for you but you will never meet them if you only focus on the wrong girls. There's no hurry to settle down. Go back to school, get your GED, go to college or get an apprenticeship somewhere. Find out who you are and the rest will fall into place. - Brothers always." He sighed as he hit the send button. This was the end of an era.

Aleena remembered her daughter's conditions but she just couldn't let this happen without some form of protest. If only because it would look odd if she did. She made dinner while Manic cleaned up from doing his homework. "So… your friend seems… nice." She said awkwardly.

Manic nodded. "He is. And he's really helping me understand the recipes. Though he's had to revise every single recipe she's given us so far." He looked at the original notecard and compared it to the notecard Fenri had written out.

The hedgehog read through the notecard. "I will admit that he impressed me in that area. Nothing is right in this notecard." She sighed. "Manic, sit down. We need to have a talk." She directed him into a chair and sat across from him. "I realize that you are a bright young man. I know you are capable of making your own choices. But I would be remiss as a mother if I didn't urge you to proceed with caution. I love you and I don't want you to get hurt. Be careful with Fenri, don't ever allow yourself to be alone with him. Do you understand?"

Manic shrugged. "If it concerns you that much, I'll do my best but I can't explain it, Mom. It feels like I can trust Fenri. I feel no fear around him. He's kind of an inspiration. I mean from being a cop to cooking? It takes a lot of courage to make that kind of change so late."

"You're right but…" Aleena sighed deeply. "Son, sometimes we meet people who are very good at getting people to trust them and yet, they themselves are not trustworthy at all. I just ask that you keep your eyes and ears open and you use your best judgment. And if he says or does anything that you don't like, you have the right to ask him to stop and if he doesn't stop, you have my permission to kick his… his ass." She said, unused to using such words.

Sonic nodded in agreement as he looked up from his homework (a worksheet identifying the key points of a website). "And then tell me so I can kick it again." He chuckled at his brother. His phone made a beeping noise and he looked. "Hey, Mom, Sally asked me to go to a movie with her tomorrow. Can I go? It's the new Astral Explorers movie."

Aleena nodded. "You can but I will tell you the same thing. Use your best judgment and treat her like the princess she is. Nothing less than respect. And you should take someone else with you as a chaperone. Never put yourself in a position where you are alone with her."

Manic perked up. "I'll ask Fenri and we can tag-team them Mom. We'll make sure they behave themselves."

The hedgehog woman felt her head meet the kitchen table in a frustrating defeat. "Yeah, great idea, son."

Sonia cuddled with Bartleby in their honeymoon sleeper car. She trembled in her sleep. Bartleby looked down at her, stroking her hair lovingly. Her mother's betrayal had cut her deeply. She had given up two years of her life for that woman and her war. He kissed her as his bladder made him get up and go into the bathroom.

Suddenly, she sat up and looked around in fear. "Where? Where am I? Bartleby, where are you?" She called. The bathroom door opened and he came back to her. "Oh, thank heaven… Where are we?"

He smiled sadly. Her mother's potion had wreaked havoc on her memory processes and he could only hope that the fog would continue to clear when they got home. "We're still on the train darling. We just passed through Knothole and soon we'll be crossing the water. Look out the window, the view of the ocean is amazing."

Sonia turned her head to look out the window at his gentle urging. She let him pull her to his chest, the top of her head touching his chin. She let the gentle click-clack of the wheels and rocking of the car lure her back into sleep.

The next day, Manic showed his homework to the teacher and she sampled one of the cookies. "Yes, these are much better than the ones you made yesterday. Tell me, Hedgehog, what did you do differently?"

Manic smirked at Fenri and nodded. "Your recipe said baking powder but shortbread doesn't use baking powder and 400 is too high. I also took some creative license and threw in some fresh ginger."

The teacher, a crane by the name of Mrs. Lark, eyed him. "Hmmm… you may be one to watch, Hedgehog." She went on to sample the others while giving them their newest assignment.

Fenri laughed. "Told you the ginger would be the kicker. Let's see, what are we doing today and what bad instructions did she give this time? Oh, interesting, lemon bars. Ahh, okay. And the winner is two cups of lemon juice," he said as he stuck out his tongue. "Well, that's fine if she likes her lemon bars extra sour and anyone else who likes sour should do it but, for us, young Hedgehog. We will use three-quarters of a cup."

"So… Mr. Lycon, you think my recipe is wrong, do you?" She asked him.

He nodded. "I do. Two cups of lemon juice will leave you with lemon bars too sour to eat more than a few bites."

"Maybe it's meant to be bite-size servings." The teacher challenged.

Fenri read through the recipe. "Except for the yield according to your recipe is 9-2inx2in squares. Now, the good thing about a recipe like this is that it can be easily cut down into bite sizes. Or you could use the correct amount which is three-quarters of a cup. Also, three cups of flour? Try two." He put together the bars as he discussed the finer points of the bake.

Aleena found her thoughts were lost elsewhere as she delivered food and drinks to the diners. She wondered where her daughter was at that moment. Was she safe and healthy? That mink was just taking her back to be roboticized. She was sure of it but her hands were tied. Her daughter didn't want her help.

"Aleena, are you alright?" Murray asked her as she sat in the office on her break. She realized she was crying.

"Oh, Murray, yeah. I'm fine. And I'm sorry about yesterday," she added. She knew she owed him some sort of explanation. "If… if you must know… Sonia eloped. Don't tell anyone but that busboy was her fiance and he was continuously trying to get me to give my blessing and I forbade her to marry him but… I told her brothers that she went away to school but… he knocked her up and she ran away with him."

The tiger nodded quietly, leaning against the wall. "Well, that explains your behavior yesterday. I'm sorry about that. But for what it's worth, he seemed like a good kid. Hard-working and honest."

Aleena sighed, "but Murray, I had just gotten them back and this kid and his family were why I lost them in the first place." She sat down. "Now she's gone and I might never see her again."

Murray pat her back. "I doubt that, Aleena. Never is a long time. Look, you know your daughter better than I do. Would you say that she's smart? Mature?"

The former queen pouted. "Yeah, she's wiser beyond her years. I trust her judgment but… She's my baby girl. We were supposed to get a little time together."

"And you still might. Hurried marriages like this rarely last. She may be back in as soon as a few weeks. And that's your worst-case scenario. Best case, your daughter is happy and you get grandkids to play with." Murray looked up as he heard a bell ringing indicating a new meal needed to be cooked. "Let's get back to work."

"That was great. Mrs. Lark's face was turning red! I swear smoke was coming out of her ears," Manic laughed as they left the classroom with easily the best batches of lemon bars. Some of the students let the wolf show them the correct way to make bars while the others decided the teacher must know her own job and followed her directions.

The wolf shrugged. "I said it. Two cups of lemon juice are too much. Three cups of flour are too much."

Manic nodded. "Yeah, seriously. Hey, um, tonight… Did you have any plans? My brother wants to go see Astral Explorers with Sally and Mom says he can't go alone with her so…" He blushed.

Sleet smiled. Only a few days in and the boy was already making the first move. "I would enjoy going to see the film with you and making sure your brother doesn't make a fool of himself. What time is the flick?"

"It starts at 6:30. We could go get dinner and go see the movie together." Manic said.

Sleet nodded. "Better idea, you three come to my new apartment and I'll make us dinner." He felt like dancing. "Be there about 5.

"Great, it's a date…" He froze as his face flushed and he laughed. "I mean… not that's it's a date-date but… that… ohhh… We'll be there." He looked away from the wolf, afraid of his reaction.

Sleet touched his chin. "It's in the green building across the street from your apartment. The third floor," he said. He wanted to kiss the boy but there were too many people and it wasn't the place for a first kiss. "Well, I should go then. I'll need to hit the grocery store." He was amused by the turn of events. He expected Aleena would be beside herself. He watched the object of his desire leave to find his brother.

At home, Manic told their mother about Fenri's plan for dinner before the movie. "Um, I don't think so!" Aleena shrieked. "You are not going to a strange man's apartment."

"But Mom, Sonic and Sally will be there. It's not a date or anything. We're just going to have dinner before the movie." Manic countered.

Aleena shook her head. "No, Now… if he wanted to come here and cook dinner, then he may but you are not going to a strange man's apartment. I need to know him much better before I let that happen." She was unwavering on this. It didn't matter who it was, she wouldn't let her children be in a strange man's home, especially with a young woman.

AN: Ending the chapter with Aleena putting her foot down. To be fair, her protest isn't without merit.