The Broken Mould Black And White

by Sandsstill

To find a future, you have to live in the moment. To live in the moment; you must know and understand the past...There are only two things in the world that are truly Black and White; Life, and Death.

9. Chapter 9

Within the Kuiper Belt*

Judy/ Nick; Sigma ft. Birdy - Find me

Chance/ Skye; Taylor Swift; Breathe

Nicholas shook his head watching Rose turn circles. She looked back at him whining when she didn't know which way to turn. He stepped closer to her and frowned as she whimpered, placing his paws on her shoulders hoping it would calm her enough that the armor would help. She almost screamed as his eyes turned white and lit like stars. The vixen stood in aww as he straightened his back and pulled the robe from her shoulders like he was in a trance. She stepped away as he threw the cape out and let her jaw drop watching it twist into a familiar shape as the tie that held the hood in place pulled away and split in half along its length. Nicholas moved like he'd done it a million times, even though she'd never seen it form into the arch of a bow. One section of the tie became a string that hooked both ends of the twisted fabric together, setting like a taught string as the fabric that had twisted tightly locked into a semi solid material. He took hold of the other strand that had looped around his paw and grabbed it between his finger and thumb, pulling it through his other finger and thumb as he held the makeshift bow with his other fingers on the opposite paw. Rose stepped back again, shaking her head as it became rigid, and gaped as he pulled the string back, letting the other strand of the fabric rest like an arrow. She cupped a paw over her ears and winced as what she was wearing lit up and sent a million voices through her mind as Nicholas looked up and fired the 'arrow'.

She shook her head as the voices faded and heard only one thought as she managed to look back and see her mate mouthing the same words. "Find my son." Her breath shuttered as she watched his eyes stay lit, and she turned her vision to the arrow as it flew straight above them and started spinning. It moved like it was suspended as it hit its highest point, and spun in mid-air before it stopped and shot in another direction as if it had been fired from a different angle. "Follow."

Rose blinked the mist from her eyes as the voice rang in her mind again and the arrow left a trail she had a hard time seeing as Nicholas moved his head with each twist it made and chased after it like it was a painted path of neon in the sky. The 'bow' was tossed over his shoulder and the string hung across his chest as he turned. She followed him by staying a pace behind after he'd changed direction and raced to keep up. The vixen stopped, panting as Nicholas stopped in front of a building that looked as abandoned and empty as her heart had felt when Skye had told them what happened. He held a paw up and pointed to the door before his eyes closed. Rose tried to jump as he clutched his head and stumbled several times, shaking it off as the piece of cloth that had pulled and formed the arrow slithered back to the bow and flashed as the cape unraveled and curled around his shoulders. The cape, and clothing Rose was wearing shifted back to looking like it belonged in a museum or trash can when he pressed a paw to the door. Rose looked around shaking her head as Nicholas opened the door and looked back watching her sign she didn't see anything. It just looked like the back of a building no one used. The silver fox curled his lip and cringed as his eyes scanned into the dark building. "He's here Rose. I know he is."

The vixen clutched the back of his arm as he stepped inside and gasped as they stepped passed an area littered with bodies scattered along the floor. She clung to his arm as he walked through the place like he'd been there before and grabbed the door handle of a room tucked away from where the place looked like it would open into a larger area. Rose clutched his arm as he reached back and grabbed one of the daggers from her hip, and jolted as he shoved it through the lock. The door swung open and his feet refused to move as he looked into the room, almost losing his breath at the sight. "Oh Gods."

Rose rushed around him and landed next to Nick, whining as she ran her paws along his muzzle. She looked back watching Nicholas heaving as he stayed locked to the door. After trying to sign to him several times and seeing his eyes glued to their son, she stood up and snarled loud enough that his head jerked to her. "NICHOLAS!" she signed in force and he jerked into the room pulling the cape from his shoulders and wrapping it around Nick as Rose looked him over. If it weren't for the fact that she was in a state of mind that was aimed towards protection and survival she would have lost it already as Nicholas gently picked him up from the corner he'd crawled into and stood trying not to let his knees give out. The silver foxes ears tilted several times as Rose looked around and turned back seeing his ears pin to his head. "Sirens. Someone called the cops Rose, we have to get out of here without being seen."

She tipped her head towards the way they'd come in and Nicholas was rushing the best he could with the weight of their son in his arms as he tried to step around several of the mammals laid out on the floor. They crept out of the building staying close to the shadows as several squad cars with flashing lights and blaring sirens rushed right by them, either being unfamiliar with the building layout or ignoring the back entrance as they screeched to a halt in front of the building and rushed in with tasers and firearms at the ready. Nicholas kept his back to the wall as they carefully moved away from the street along the back of the building and stepped into some kind of alcove built into a building another block over. His arms were aching as Nick laid limp and he was having a hard time catching his breath after managing to get far enough away they could slow down, but it still wasn't far enough. He looked at Rose and closed his eyes as she pulled the cape away from his chest and curled her lip looking at their son. "Not now Rose. Not yet. We haven't put enough space between us to fall apart. I need you to get the car over here so we can take him to the hospital."

Her face fell and her paws were flying. "I can't drive! I've never driven a car!"

Nicholas kept a flat face on her and she froze as he locked eyes with her. "You can. You have to Rose. I can't keep carrying him like this and we can't take him to Mr. Bigs with the Weaselton's there and run the risk of someone there talking about seeing any of this and making some kind of connection between all of it."

Rose dropped her head and leaned forward placing a paw on Nick's head as Nicholas leaned closer. They pressed their heads together before she gathered herself and took off running. Nicholas looked back around the corner, curling his eyes tight as he took a breath and slowly lowered to the ground, keeping Nick in his lap as he folded his knees out and tried not to move him around anymore than he had to. He pulled the cape away looking at his face and shook his head. His lips were cracked and most of his face was caked in dried blood, both eyes were blackened shut and his jaw was swollen so much on one side of his face that he was almost unrecognizable. The silver fox felt his eyes burning as Nick's head stayed against his chest, his breath barely rustling the fur on his neck as he pressed his head to his son's and lost control of his own breathing as he cradled him closer, fighting not to make any noise as his voice seemed to take on a will of its own he was losing the battle with.

Rose pulled up as close to the little alcove as she could get after dragging the car to where they had been. She was still trying to get her heart to stop pounding from the intimidation of being behind the wheel of the vehicle and trying not to screw up on the few blocks it had taken to get back at a crawling pace when she threw it in park and looked up. Her face curled as she watched Nicholas curled around their son, his shoulders twitching as he moved back and forth in a slow rocking motion that broke her heart as much as finding him in this condition. She rushed from the car and pulled his head to hers as he slowly opened his eyes. One nod and he pulled it back and stood, with Rose guiding him to the car as she kept an eye on the directions anyone could approach from. She slipped into the backseat as Nicholas laid Nick in the passenger side. She was petting his ears before she stopped and started pulling the tattered old pieces off, shoving the daggers, swords, a shields under the seats before she pulled the cape from around Nicholas and used it to hide what wouldn't fit under the seats. Nicholas slid behind the wheel and drove as inconspicuously as possible as she pet his neck, until he reached an area he knew they were out of possible run ins with law enforcement and slammed his foot to the floor as fast as the tears were falling from his face…

In another town a phone rang and a small paw picked it up. "Adam." Lilith's ears swiveled as her eyes narrowed and she leaned forward rubbing her brow. "How was he injured?"

"Beaten badly. It was taken care of. He's already back with his parents."

"If you took care of it, how is he back with his parents? Will this cause a problem?" she asked chewing her lip.

"That I am unclear on. We placed a call to the police so they would find him. They arrived before the police did. It will not cause a future problem as we…dispersed the ones who too him."

"They took him for what reason? Do we need to worry about this being an issue later."

"They took him believing he could teach them something that isn't possible. No My Lady, we left no one there to cause a future problem."

Lilith giggled as she leaned back in her chair. "Dispersed… you mean you killed them?"

Adam growled and set her fur on end as she sat up in the chair. "Yes, and made sure he wasn't damaged in a way that might cause future problems."

"Exactly how did they get their paws on him to begin with?" she asked harshly, smirking as he growled again.

"A follower failed to alert us of a problem when it could have been stopped before it happened."

"And this follower is now…."

"Being dealt with My Lady. I'll not have anyone fucking up the future I've been working so hard to get to."

Lilith sat back sighing as Adam growled again. "Then make sure he never speaks of this again. What exactly were these mammals intentions who took him?"

"A safe house, My Lady."

Lilith bolted up in the chair and curled her lip . "A what?" The fox on the other end of the line sighed heavily, though it was half obscured as he did it through a growl. "Adam, you are aware of what a safe house means in the language of those hidden from the law."

"Yes, My Lady." He growled again as she scraped her blunt claws across the table in front of her, seething.

"Then make sure you remove the other things they could have taken that could have damaged our path to Nine, and see to it I have proof it was done."

"Done. Manny, record this..." He flipped a switch blade open and Revil leaned back in the chair as Adam growled…

The line clicked as she heard him growl and she stepped out of one room into another as several large ears perked her direction. The does ears rose as she took a seat and dialed another number. "Mr. Jackson….." Lilith listened and her ears set as she sat in the chair, looking around at a few other bunnies as she smiled. "The Grey boy has been sent to a detention center in Zootopia. There's one fox gone for you then, isn't there?" She sighed as she nodded. "No we still can't do that, you know they own nearly everything there and the….How old is your oldest son now? thirteen? He's already bonded to…" Lilith sat up beaming as the other does tilted their ears curiously. "What is her name and how old is she? Ten?" The doe leaned back smiling wider as she listened and nodded. "Do you think you can arrange for us to meet both of them? No - no. don't tell anyone we're coming. I need to talk to both of them alone. You arrange something and I promise we'll be there to talk to all of you together. Oh, and Mr. Jackson, make sure your son knows not to tell her parents we're talking and that she's not going to tell them. I don't want them to know about all this. Yes. Call me back when you have everything set up. If this goes well we'll get rid of all the predators in the Burroughs and everything will be as it should have stayed. The Hopps signed the contract with you right? Oh, good, good. Now you're the only distributor in the Burroughs for the farms? Seeds, equipment and fertilizers? Wonderful! Thank you, Bye."

Lilith sat back glowing as she folded her paws on the table. "The first plan may not have worked, but I think this will. The Grey boy was sent to the detention center for Juveniles and will be staying there for a while. The only other fox family besides the Grey's in the Burroughs now are the Linebaughs. The Hopps have taken a firm stand on not allowing anymore foxes into the area because of the incident, it's a start. Since it didn't dissuade them from the other predators, we'll be going to meet with Mr. Jackson and his son D.J. It seems his son has bonded to a young bunny he told his father he wanted to marry when they were old enough." The other does looked at each other cringing as Lilith giggled. "No, he isn't a bunny, he's a hare too. I think what the Hopps have been teaching their children may backfire. Hares don't have the same….guidelines we do as a species, but they can form a bond. It's rare but you aren't going to believe who he's bonded to." They all tipped their ears with expectant brows as Lilith scrunched her nose, almost vibrating in her seat as she curled her fists excitedly. "Ashia Adi Hopps." They all blinked as she laughed. "Bonnie and Stu's first-born daughter. The eldest doe who should have been the one who inherited everything and lost out because of Violet and Judy. She seems to already have a jealous streak against her sister. They call her frosty because she bleaches the tips of her ears white, exactly the opposite of Judy's. And the Jackson family is now the sole distributor for all the seeds and farming equipment in the Burroughs.…. ohohohho it's falling into place! Let's keep an eye on things and see how it goes. Judy's still in the hospital, but from what I've gathered they haven't figured out why she won't wake up."

One of the does tilted her head and threw her paws up as Lilith sat back in her chair. "Why did you set that up then?"

Lilith frowned. "It's like Adam said about those damn foxes. I'm not underestimating them again. As much of a pain as they've been in our tails already, I'm not going to assume this will kill her. The little brat doesn't know when to just die. She should have died with the rest of the Hopps. She has no future with our people, she just doesn't know it yet….."

Bonnie stood as Doc Stevens came out and he glanced at the young buck as he took a seat in the chair next to them. Violet had stayed at home with her mate and the other kits as they stayed at the hospital as much as they could, hoping she would wake up again. Bonnie let her eyes gloss over as she looked at the rabbit who had delivered most of her kits and been there through the worst and best parts of their lives. "Why does it keep happening?"

Doc Stevens looked into the room and sighed. "It's psychosomatic for her. It's the only explanation I've been able to come up with. It's in her head."

"But she's not awake! She's been like this for almost a week! Is she …in pain or? Why won't she wake up?" Bonnie almost hissed as she shook her head.

Doc Stevens shrugged. "No more pain than what's normal for her, no. But she's still in there or it wouldn't be happening every time they try to clean her up or change things for her. There was no water in her lungs, but she did get a bad infection from it getting into her nose and sinus cavity. From what the kits explained to me I think the fox winded her before she fell into the water. It kept the water out of her lungs, but every time she comes into contact with any kind of water she stops breathing, her heart rate drops and it's like it's happening all over again. Some form of P.T.S.D. I suppose. It's one of the most drastic cases I've ever seen, but I know if she's having that reaction from someone just touching her with something that's wet, she's still in there, Bonnie." He looked back to the window, tipping his head to the young buck as Stu leaned forward letting his tears fall freely. "I know this may not be any of my business, but why are you keeping him here like this?"

Stu rubbed his eyes, fighting not to sob as he shook his head. "The only way we can get him to eat anything is if we bring him with us. He hasn't left that window since he's been here and he hasn't said a word to anyone since it happened. We don't know what else to do."

Doc Stevens ticked his cheek up looking at the buck who stared unblinking as he kept his eyes on the doe through the window. "He was there?"

Bonnie nodded as she wiped her nose on a tissue and let her chest bounce as her eyes spilled over again. "He pulled her from the water. Why won't she wake up?"

Doc Stevens looked back to the young buck as he narrowed his eyes. "Maybe she doesn't want to wake up or needs a reason to. If she recognizes water even though she's not awake, maybe she'll recognize something else too. I have an idea…." He pulled Bonnie and Stu aside as he whispered. "He's been here with you this whole time? If they're close maybe he can wake her up? Would it be alright if I let him try? I know he's young but he's old enough to understand what's going on. Do you think he'd do it?" Bonnie and Stu looked at each other as he kept his voice low and dropped their ears as he asked what they thought. Their ears perked straight and they turned when the young buck spoke.

"Yes." They all looked at him as he turned his head to them as he swallowed and nodded. "I will."

Stu stood as Bonnie shook her head and sobbed several times. The brown furred buck in overalls stepped to the window and bent on his knees as he kept swallowing, trying not to bawl as he looked into the blue eyes of the young buck they had taken into their family. "Chance, this may not end well. We don't want to put that responsibility on you."

The young black and white buck looked to the floor as he clenched his jaw. "But it already is. I left her alone, Pop. You asked me to watch out for her and I wasn't. She got hurt because I left her alone. I gotta try. She's mine and I'll be lost without her."

Bonnie fell apart as Stu pulled him into his chest. The young buck looked up over his shoulder and pulled away as Doc Stevens opened the door and motioned into the room. Doc Stevens let him stay there as he removed the tubes and machines from Judy and Bonnie wrung her paws nervously as he stepped back out the door. She looked at Doc Stevens with her nose twitching as he motioned back to the window. "Are they bonded?" Bonnie nodded and he smiled lightly as he sighed. "Thought as much. It's a sensory thing too. Don't worry, Bonnie. She just needs to be able to smell him. If her heart rate spikes or her breathing changes the machines will go off and cause a racket that would wake up the dead here." Bonnie sighed as they stood at the window, watching as the young buck stepped closer to the bed and carefully took hold of her paw. "The Lad is quite the Jack isn't he?"

Bonnie stepped to the window with Stu and leaned her head into his shoulder as they watched. "They saved each other once before. Maybe they can do it again." She said as Stu wrapped an arm around her. The older doe sucked in a breath as she watched the young buck start to crawl into the bed. Doc Stevens held a paw up as his brows went down. The older rabbit smiled as the heart monitor slowed and Bonnie gasped as Judy's ear twitched. They watched for hours until they had worn themselves out enough that they both fell asleep in the chairs outside the room. Doc Stevens returned to an office looking over charts as the hours ticked away…..

Chance scooted closer as he cupped her cheek and pulled her face closer to his. "Tada. I won't know what to do if you aren't here. You stopped breathing, but I feel like I can't find any air. I don't want to see you hurting like this because it hurts me too. I've been griping about you not sleeping forever but this isn't what I wanted. Please wake up. You're the only reason I fit anywhere….. don't leave me in the dark, Can you hear me? Follow my voice. Do what you've always beat me at. Do what you do best." He dipped his head into her neck and sighed as he closed his eyes. Run with me, run to me. Run. Please…..come back. Run to me. We're lost without you…."

In an adjacent room, everyone stepped out leaving Nick lying in the silence. He was still and nothing stirred in his mind as his parents spoke with several wolves outside the door in a frantic conversation. Whispers started running through the room and his ears flicked several times at the sound of a voice he was trying to rouse to, just out of the range of understanding. They flowed through the vents between the rooms, obscured by the conditioned air being thrown into the hospital. The rushed sound faded and his ears flicked as a voice just above a whisper caught his ears. "Do what you do best. Run with me. Run to me. Run. Please…come back. Run to me. We're lost without you…."

His eyes curled as if he were in pain and a blinding flash caused him to recoil as another voice swam through his mind like a dream. 'Tell her to run. Tell her to run to me…' The light flashed behind his eyes again as a figure moved within it, a silhouette not defined enough to take shape he kept trying to see as it flashed and was gone from his mind before he shot up in the bed screaming. He grabbed the rails of the bed trying to catch his bearings and hold onto anything solid as his vision blurred from the light in the room. "RUN! RUN!" Nicholas shoved into the room with Rose tripping to get to the bed. She rushed to his side as he almost hyperventilated, still screaming. "RUN! TELL HER TO RUN! TELL HER TO RUN!"

Nicholas grabbed him and pulled him to his chest as Rose sat beside him petting his ears. "Tell her to run! Tell her to run!"

"Nick, it's alright! Skye is safe. You're safe." Finnick peeked into the room and dropped his eyes at Nick not having enough strength to do anything but try to keep his head on his father's shoulders and barely move his arms around as he tried to shake his head through bloodshot eyes.

"I'm lost! We're lost! We're all lost! Tell her to run, tell her to run! Run….run…. I have to find h…"

"You're safe, everyone is safe." Nicholas looked over his shoulder as Nick kept mumbling and huffing, and shook his head as Rose looked at him for a loss.

"No! No it's not! No one is safe!" He wasn't clearly awake as the silver fox laid him back on the pillows trying to get the erratic movements slowed as he placed his paws on his chest. "Run. Tell her… tell her…"

"Ok, ok." Nicholas lowered his voice and caught the lump in his throat as Nick kept trying to move his paws and shake his head. "I'll tell her Nicky. Just lay still and rest, I'll tell her."

The young red fox sighed and his breathing settled as Rose kept petting his ears. Finnick puckered his lips as he stepped into the hall to catch his breath.

Judy's brow curled as her ears twitched, catching voices in the darkness. "I'm lost! We're lost! We're all lost! Tell her to run, tell her to run! Run….run…. I have to find h… Run. Tell her … tell her… Run to me."

Doc Stevens shook himself as a loud alarm set his ears up. He rushed into the hall as several nurses came down the hall running the same way. The buck stopped and blinked as Bonnie and Stu stood holding each other, both of them bawling as they ticked their eyes back and forth between him and the window. He ran in front of them and froze as he reached the door, catching the doe who had been near comatose bawling as she shook her head and folded into the buck screaming. "I DID IT! YOU BIG STUPID!"

Chance was laughing as he looked out the window, lost somewhere between sorrow and elation as she started screaming about him being an idiot for thinking it was his fault. Doc Stevens was chuckling as he rushed into the room and jerked back as Judy slapped his paws away, curling around the buck who was still chuckling as he purred and wrapped around her, ticking his eyes to Bonnie and Stu as they both laughed and shook their heads. "Judy. I really need to look you over. I can't do that if you don't let go of him."

The bunny narrowed her eyes, peeking over Chance's shoulder and shook her head as she curled around him tighter. "No. I am not letting go. I am not losing him again!"

Chance chuckled as he lifted his head and raised his brows at her. "Tada? Lost me?! You were the one who was gone!"

"And I am not leaving you again! I saw a light in the darkness and I heard your voice! I heard you!" she cried as she dipped her head back into his neck sobbing. The buck ran his paws down her ears and brushed his chin along hers as she kept sobbing. She'd folded her legs around his waist as he sat on the bed with his legs folded under them. Judy was threatening to choke him if she curled any tighter. Doc Stevens chuckled and Chance rolled his eyes.

"You know I'm going to have to get up to pee soon."

"NO!" she groaned into his neck as he smiled and laid his head over hers.

"I promise I'll be right back."

Stu stepped closer and lifted his brows as he clutched his hat in his paws. "Bunny doe, we really want to know if you're alright and can't know for sure if Doc can't look at you."

"NO!"

Bonnie giggled as Stu rolled his eyes and pulled her back out of the room. Doc Stevens shook his head as he stepped out with them and chuckled as he looked in, watching the buck whispering as Judy kept shaking her head in his shoulder. Doc looked back at Bonnie and Stu and sighed. "I can wait a little while to look her over. To be honest I couldn't find anything wrong with her after the infection was cleared up and as …. insistent as she is right now, I don't see any damage to her mind either. I can only think of one other time I've seen her get that emotional though. Isn't he similar in that way? Stubborn?"

Bonnie wiped her cheek and sighed as she looked back in, smiling. "Yes, they're both a little closed off emotionally. Stubborn? Those two? You have no idea."

Doc Stevens sighed as he took a seat and both rabbits looked at him curiously as he rubbed his neck. "You uhm, haven't been home much the last week so I'm assuming you haven't heard about the Grey boy?"

Bonnie let her face fall as Stu bristled. "I don't really care about the Grey boy. He's been picking on her for a long time and this was the last straw. He almost killed her. I don't want that fox or any other fox anywhere near my daughter or my other kits."

Doc Stevens nodded as he cupped a paw over his muzzle and sighed. "I don't think you're going to have to worry about that. I spoke to Sherriff Catmull. Deputy Wen took him into the city the day after it happened. We're still under Zootopia's district so he…fell into the Predator and Prey protection act under speciest laws. They can't charge him as an adult because of his age, but he isn't going to be coming back to the Burroughs until after he's twenty-one."

"Good." Stu growled as he looked back in the room, watching Judy close her eyes as Chance curled around her again.

Doc Stevens stood sighing as he rubbed his back. "I know you're upset Stu, but I feel kind of sorry for the boy. Deputy Wen said he was taken to a juvenile detention center for criminal offenders and was one of the smallest species there. She said they were going to have him for breakfast lunch and dinner."

Stu scoffed as he shook his head. "Well what comes around goes around doesn't it?" Bonnie sighed as she looked into the room and cringed as Stu looked at her with a raised brow. "We aren't going to feel sorry for that kit, Bonnie. Not after all the things he's done. There's no call for that kind of thing."

Bonnie shook her head as she watched Judy sigh. "No, but I already know how she's going to feel about it."

Stu cringed as he looked into the room and sighed. "Yeah, guess I didn't think about that part. I'll keep it to myself." Bonnie nodded and he tipped his eyes back to the window as she smiled. He chuckled as Chance slipped from the bed, moving about as slow as a sloth as he snuck into the bathroom. Bonnie cupped a paw over her mouth as they heard the buck sigh heavily and Judy's nose twitched as her eyes shot open.

"CHANCE!"

"WHAT!?" he asked as he ran back from the bathroom, struggling to get his pants zipped up.

"DON'T YOU EVER LEAVE ME AGAIN!" The buck snickered as she grabbed him and pulled him back into the bed.

"OOF!" he looked at her with a tipped brow as she curled her arms around him, purring as she nudged his chin. "Well this is new. Going to start sleeping with me now that I'm around?" Doc Stevens turned to Bonnie and Stu as they both cringed. The doe sighed as she shrugged. "They've been sharing a room since she was nine. We couldn't keep them apart. He would sneak in there with her every night anyway so we just let it go. He always griped because she didn't stay with him very long at night. He would wake up and go looking for her again."

Doc Stevens chuckled. "You'll have to tell me how that got started sometime."

Stu scratched his head snickering as they caught Chance groaning. "Tada! I promise I won't leave again but if you don't stop squeezing me I'm going to pee again!"

"Shut up and keep me warm."

The buck was hissing as he laughed and curled around her again. "You're going to give everyone a bad idea doing this you know?" He asked, still trying to get his laughing under control.

"Oh who cares what they think. They already see us as…whatever they see us as anyway."

He chuckled and as he shook his head. "Can't argue with that logic can I?"

"Warm, now!" Judy growled as she pulled him closer. Chance slipped lower on the bed as she tried to curl into his fur.

Bonnie lifted her brows as Chance pulled the covers over their heads. She started to go into the room and Stu stopped her, ticking his ears up as he blinked. Doc Stevens tipped his head to one side as he shot his eyes to them. "How old are they now?"

Bonnie's lip twitched as Stu lowered his brows. "She's twelve and we think he's fifteen."

"They're cousins, right?"

"By Marriage only. So, not really." Bonnie shook her head slowly as all their ears trained on the room.

Chance laughed as he shuffled around under the blankets and pulled it up high enough that he could see her staring at him as she blinked. "Marry me?"

Judy busted out laughing as she shoved him. "Get real."

The buck let his face fall as she tipped her head staring at him. "I'm serious Tada. Marry me? Be my girl."

Judy tipped her head to one side as he leaned closer and they both pressed their lips together and blinked as they pulled apart. Each of them had an odd expression on their faces as Chance threw the blanket back over them. They sat up staring at each other before Chance's lip curled up and Judy shivered like she had witnessed the most disturbing criminal act on the planet. Bonnie, Stu, and Doc Stevens all raised their brows as they gawked at each other, pointed a finger at the other and screamed… "Eww! Gross!"

"I think I'm going to puke!" Chance spat as they looked at each other before cringing and trying to scrub their mouths off with their arms and paws.

Bonnie nearly fell into the chair laughing as Stu and Doc Stevens scrunched their muzzles and shook their heads. "Well I guess I don't have to worry about that anymore!" Bonnie laughed as she fanned herself, giggling again as she looked into the room and saw Chance and Judy making sour faces at each other. She fell back laughing as Judy grabbed him and curled around him again screaming. "WARM NOW!"

"O.K! JUST DON'T KISS ME AGAIN!"

Judy peeked up at him as he looked at her flat faced. "I'll still be your girl, but that was sooo gross!"

"It wasn't a picnic for me either Tada."

"Keep me warm or I'll do it again just to make you sick!" Chance hissed as he curled around the bunny and was jostling in laughter again as she nudged under his chin purring….

Nick stared blankly out the window, watching Skye arguing with his parents. He rolled over as she looked in with her ears perked. "Why won't you tell me what's going on and let me see him!? He's been here for three days!"

Nicholas sighed as Rose chewed her lip. He tipped his head as Jasper and Mel rounded the corner and Skye turned frowning as she watched them dip their ears back and turn back the way they'd come from. He motioned to the door and Skye narrowed her eyes as Rose looked in another direction. "He didn't want to see you with anyone else around, and he's…not the same Skye."

"Not the same? What happened!"

Nicholas opened the door and Skye looked in watching Nick standing from the bed, clutching the rail as he tried to balance himself. He was wearing a pair of loose hospital pants and no shirt, turning slowly as she rushed in and curled around him. Nick hissed as she loosened her arms. "I thought I lost you. What did they do? Look at you, you're…" she stood back flipping a piece of stray fur behind her ear as Nick cringed.

"Aside from beating the hell out of me, nothing."

Skye looked at him and dropped her ears as he sighed. "Nick, why wouldn't you let me see you before? I don't ever want to have you gone like that again. I want you to…be with me all the time. Will you-" He grabbed her paws as they raised above his ears and looked at her in a way that made her heart ache as he shook his head. "Nick?"

"I can't… be with you anymore Skye."

"Why?" she asked as her lips trembled. "You said you loved me. Are you mad because of what happened? Do you think it's my fau-

"No. It wasn't your fault."

"Then why? I don't understand."

Nick sighed as he pulled her paws down and ran his fingers over hers. "People who see species together that aren't the same think they only want one thing, and it's all they see. We would never be able to have kits. We'd never be able to go somewhere people wouldn't be whispering about us. There would never be a place they wouldn't see you as someone who doesn't care about who you're with."

Skye rolled her eyes and laughed. "I don't want kits and you know I don't."

"You might change your mind someday, and if you were with me, it would never happen. Someone would always be in the shadows, talking about us, you. Maybe try to hurt you again."

"Nick, I can take care of myself and I don't care about that kind of stuff! Who cares what everyone else thinks?"

"I do Skye."

She yanked her paws away from him and tried to pull them over his ears again, and blinked as he grabbed her wrists and growled at her.

Nicholas and Rose had backed away from the room to give them privacy and Finnick sighed as he leaned against a chair. As soon as they heard a sharp barking Nicholas stood and Finnick turned his head in a deep frown, watching Skye back out of the room with her paws held out as she started breathing faster. Rose stood as Nick stepped out of the room, growling as he walked on all fours. She tried to step forward and Nicholas stuck an arm in front of her shaking his head. She plastered her ears to her head as Nick barked another primal warning that set Skye's fur on end as she backed away from the young red fox driving her away from him. Skye stumbled back several steps and glanced down the hall, watching Nicholas, Rose, and Finnick tilt their ears back and turn their eyes. She looked back at Nick and sobbed as he snapped at her again, and turned running down the hall as her chest caught fire.

Rose curled her brow watching her son's head fall as Skye rushed behind a door that led to a flight of stairs. Her face curled as Nick dropped the aggressive stance and paced back to the door to his room on all fours, pulling himself off the floor as he leaned into the frame. Rose jumped as he slid down the door and curled around him as he rolled into silent sobbing. "I'm sorry. I'm Sorry. I'm sorry." He kept whispering as Rose pulled him closer, fighting tears as he curled his arms around her and buried his head in her neck. She pet Nick's ears looking back at Nicholas as he pulled his phone from his pocket, and the silver fox ticked his head to Finnick as Rose looked the direction Skye fled in. Finnick looked back at Nick and their mother, flipping his ears to his head before him and Nicholas rushed down another hall.

They came out in the parking lot looking around and Nicholas shook his head as he tried to call her. No answer was coming from Skye's father either. He shook his head as Finnick tugged his pant leg and pointed to a little white car on the other side of the parking lot. Skye sat behind the wheel looking like she was trying to remember how to breathe as she heaved several times and wiped her face off. Nicholas and Finnick both tried to walk closer as she looked up, and she curled her lips at them as she revved the engine and threw the car in gear, peeling away from the parking lot as Nicholas cringed. Finnick sighed as he looked up and shook his head. The taillights were gone before they ever reached the doors again.

Several hours had passed when Roger finally made it home. He listened to the voicemails from Nick's father several times and tried to call Skye, but she wasn't picking up. When he pulled into the driveway his ears dipped back at the house being completely dark with her car parked in the garage. He took a breath and opened the door expecting to find a massacre, but everything was exactly the opposite. Almost pristine as he walked down the hallway and tapped on her door. "Angel?"

The door creaked as he slowly pushed it open and the arctic fox tipped his head sadly as she sat there, just staring at the guitar at the end of her bed. "I'm going to smash it."

"No you aren't." Roger smiled as she looked at him snarling.

"HE BROKE UP WITH ME! HE THINKS ITS MY FAULT HE GOT HURT! HE CARES MORE ABOUT WHAT OTHER PEOPLE THINK THAN WHAT I THINK OR HOW I FEEL!"

"Did he say that?"

"YES!"

"What exactly was it he said?" Roger asked in a soft voice as she stood up and started storming through her room ranting. He took a seat on her bed listening as she rattled off.

"THAT EVERYONE WOULD ALWAYS SEE US AS PEOPLE WHO DIDN'T CARE WHO WE WERE WITH! THAT HE CARED ABOUT WHAT EVERYONE ELSE THOUGHT! THAT I MIGHT CHANGE MY MIND ABOUT HAVING KITS WHEN HE KNOWS I CAN'T STAND THEM! THAT EVERYTIME WE WENT SOMEWHERE PEOPLE WOULD LOOK AT ME AND SEE-

"They would look at you? Or both of you?"

"WHAT DIFFERENCE DOES THAT MAKE EVEN THOUGH HE SAID IT WASN'T MY FAULT! WHY COULDN'T HE JUST TELL ME HE DIDN'T WANT ME AND THAT HE DIDN'T LOVE ME ANYMORE!" Skye blinked as she turned back to her father still heaving.

"Because foxes don't lie." Roger smiled as he pat the spot on the bed next to him and she sat shaking her head when he shrugged.

"Dad, it doesn't make any sense!"

Her father chuckled as Skye rubbed her temples, fighting not to growl as she glared at him. "He doesn't blame you, and he cares about what others think for one reason Angel." Skye shook her head and curled her lip as Roger looked at the ceiling. He reached up and placed a paw around her cheek as she looked at him through glassy eyes. "He's still a prince in my book. That could have been you and not him. He knows that and wants to make sure it never happens."

"He…broke up with me because he doesn't want me to get hurt…because he loves me?" Roger nodded as she leaned into his paw. "Maybe I can get him back."

"Heaven…" Skye looked up at him sucking in a few short breaths as he tipped his ears back. "Did he give you the impression he would change his mind?" Her father curled his lip in a sad tilt as Skye shook her head and let the tears spill.

"It wasn't supposed to end like this! We had a future together! I don't know what to do! It's not fair!"

Roger curled around her as she fell into his chest sobbing. "I'm sorry. Sometimes love…just isn't enough. People change their minds sometimes, and sometimes it just doesn't work. You just have to breath and try to get past every little bump to make it to the next day."

Skye sobbed as she shook her head. "HOW! I just lost my m-

"Angel." She looked up hiccupping as her father sniffled. "I can try to be Jolly all the time, but I'm just 'A Roger'. There's a bright sky if you can get to the next day, and heaven is always around the corner, if you're looking." Skye fell apart as she got the message and Roger looked out the window letting his head rest over hers as he blew out a slow breath, wondering if the boy that had spent so much time in their home was doing any better….

Nicholas and Finnick stepped back to the door of Nick's room and Rose looked at them trying to smile as she kept petting Nick's ears. The silver fox looked at all the papers scattered everywhere and she waved a paw at them, keeping them at the door. She stood and pulled a blanket over his shoulder, running a paw over his ears as he sighed heavily.

"Rose, what is all that?" Nicholas asked as she looked back into the room and wilted.

"He wanted me to get as many city maps as I could find, he's memorizing them so he never gets lot's in the city again." She stepped outside, closing the door quietly as she looked back at Nicholas and shook her head as she raised her paws again. "Did he talk to you about this?"

"He just said he needed to talk to her alone." Nicholas looked down at Finnick and shook his head as the small fox shied his eyes. Rose bent to her knees and looked at Finnick sadly as she pressed a finger under his chin and pulled his eyes to her before she raised her paws to talk again. "Finnick? Is this why he didn't want her to come see him? We could have maybe-"

"Yeah it is. Naw, you couldn'ta changed it." Finnick huffed as he shook his head. "He made up his mind. I tried talkin to him. He said it was somethin he had to do alone. Just wanted us to stay outta the way."

"Why?" she asked.

Finnick curled his shoulders and looked back at Nicholas before they fell again. "He said some things just don't change. That there was nothin in the world that could make them change." Nicholas blinked at Rose as she stood up and shook her head.

They let him sleep until one of the nurses brought the discharge papers and waited as Finnick stayed with him. The small fox chewed his lip watching him trying to pull his clothes on and cringed each time he hissed. Rose was quick to curl under one of his arms when he winced and he stopped shaking his head as he looked back into the room. "Nick?" Nicholas asked as he kept ticking his eyes around the room.

"I just…feel like I'm forgetting something, or I lost something…."

"I'll check." Finnick went back into the room digging through drawers as Rose helped Nick get to the elevator.

"Did he forget something?" Nicholas asked as Finnick looked up and shook his head.

"Naw, he just lost somethin Dad."

Nicholas looked around shaking his head as Finnick stepped back into the hallway. "What did he lose? We should look for it if you know what it is. He's not-"

Finnick looked back and watched Rose press the button for the elevator as Nick kept his head and eyes low. "Kinda obvious ain't it Dad? He ain't gonna find it here."

Nicholas looked back where Finnick was watching Nick and sighed as his oldest son kept swallowing like he was fighting tears. He watched Finnick sigh and shake his head. "Ya can't find your heart when you're pushin it away or its runnin from ya Dad."

Nicholas cringed as they walked to the elevator and helped Rose get Nick in before the doors started closing. He sighed again as she ran her muzzle along Nick's face, collecting the tears he was trying to fight before he curled around his mother and closed his eyes….

Judy bounced around and Stu was laughing as Chance grabbed her bag and stepped out the door chuckling. She jumped out giggling and froze, Bonnie and Stu cocking their heads as her nose twitched with a distant look on her face. "Bun Bun?"

Judy jolted as she looked back into the room. "I feel like I'm forgetting something."

Chance shook his head and rolled his eyes. "I checked twice. Let's get out of her Tada." She sighed as they walked down the hall and stopped tipping her ears, all of them looking the same direction as she watched the elevator doors close and shivered. "Tada? What are you looking for?"

Judy shook herself frowning as Stu took to a knee and raised a brow. "Bunny Doe? Why so sad? We're going home."

Judy cringed as she looked back shaking her head. " I don't…"

She looked up raising her brows as Chance stepped in front of her, grinning as he leaned closer. Stu and Bonnie gasped as he licked the whole side of her face. She stood there with one eye ticking as Chance stood up grinning before she screamed. "Eww! You are so gross!" He laughed and took off with her chasing after him, screaming about how rabbits didn't do that.

Stu and Bonnie looked at each other shaking their heads before they chuckled and followed them to the stairs….

The Predator and Prey protection act in this story is a reference to hate crimes and laws. It doesn't matter what Species, color, religion or heritage you are, we can all fall under the protection of these laws. Even animals have fallen into this category as Pit bulls were recently outlawed in many areas, prejudice against these dogs still runs in many communities but it was made law they could not be discriminated against simply because of their species. (You will find good and bad in all kinds of animals, humans included - because we are just animals and are no better than any other species on the planet.) It all depends on the personality of the 'animal', its disposition and how it was treated or raised- people acting ignorantly is when these laws need to be used.

'A Roger' – Roger- what is said when someone is sending a message to acknowledge it has been received.

The Kuiper Belt is the dark area of space where the ninth object in our solar system sits outside of. A place objects barely miss hitting each other. Pluto was declassified as a planet and made into a dwarf in 2006. Really ticked off a lot of people. It may not be a planet and may stay hidden in this dark area, but our system wouldn't work the way it does without it where it is, or any other for that matter. As small a piece as it seems to be in our system, it still holds everything together. Is this relevant to the story- in a way, yes, as is the number nine and how they're all connected. Hidden and not thought of as important- not usually the case.

Damn hard to write all this. I don't think I need to explain what a 'safe house' is in underground terms. In the legal world it's to keep someone hidden and safe - a safe is just a box no one can break into - or out of –

May be taking a break and diving into another section after actually managing to write all this-