Zootopia belongs to Disney. Spider-Man belongs to Sony.

This is it, it has to be. After cycling through fourteen synthases, this has to be it, or else he was going to crack.

His eyes were starting to blur from having to stare through this microscope for so long.

"Do it..." he willed the muscle cells to respond. "Do it."

...

Nothing happened. Huffing, the hyena roughly turned off the microscope light and removed the slide from its clamp. This time, he didn't care for protocol much. He simply washed it off in the sink.

"Didn't work?" asked his partner who was busy preparing the next sample.

He huffed a second time and bit his tongue to keep from shouting. His deadline was coming up rapidly and he was still no closer.

He'd drawn blood from that panther every month, but every synthase he'd tried had failed on every set of muscle cells he'd used, regardless of the species.

"I don't know what I'm missing!" he said in frustration as he sat down and rubbed his forehead.

"Well, science is all about study and observation. You haven't gone through all of your options yet, tried every angle."

"I have a deadline, Yvette," he enunciated to the African wild dog. "The Shark, for some reason, thinks that if you put enough pressure on a scientist, he'll give you perfect results on time, no questions asked!"

"Then all we can do is keep trying. Keep finding a different angle."

"Hmph, yeah," he said glumly while relaxing in his chair. He needed to rest his eyes for a second.

The Shark had promised that whoever got rid of Danny would be the first to receive the serum. However long that would take, he didn't know, but he didn't feel it would be long. The jaguar may have been strong but aside from that he was just a normal kit. So he needed to figure this out if he wanted to take part in the action.

"Are you hungry? You sit down and relax while I get some lunch started." She didn't want a nap so the only thing to do was go down the list.

Judy wondered where Nick was. He'd taken a lot longer than he said he would. She tried to rationalize that he and Ben were caught up with something, but if they were, it would be a first. If there was one thing Nick was very good at, it was being punctual.

Ah, Judy, let it go! she scolded herself. He's not perfect and it's not like you've spent every waking moment with each other. Besides... you don't always let him know where you are when you're out with friends. Why should he?

Judy heard the rustling of a sheet of paper. She looked behind her and saw Arya looking at an assignment folder with Arya's name on it, as well as the names of her foster parents. She looked through it curiously. While technically she wasn't allowed to look at it, what harm could it do? She was curious.

"I pulled that file yesterday after I heard that you'd gone missing. I figured I'd to do some research to see if I could find you. I guess it's safe to say, Mission Accomplished!" Arya smiled slightly at the older bunny, who turned to cook some food for herself and the little girl. How would Nick react to seeing Arya Nichelle in their house? As long as she was safe, that was all that mattered to her. If there was a problem, they'd work it out.

Judy made light conversation with the lamb as she made a few small sandwiches for Arya, though she didn't talk much. She was too busy.

The lamb picked up her fork and began to eat very quickly, shoveling one bite of egg after another while reading over the report.

"I bet you could be a detective one day," she said, appreciating how deeply engrossed she was in the report. Arya looked up at her with her tired eyes.

"Am I going to have to talk to the police?"

Judy put her hand on hers. "Yes, you will, Sweetheart." Her eyes widened. "Arya, it's ok, you're safe. The police won't let you get hurt."

"Judy, what if someone tries to kill me again?! The police couldn't do anything when... when..." she seemed lost for words.

"Listen," she said, sitting down and taking her hand, "Nick and I will take care of you until we can get you in a better home."

Her eyes slowly fell to the table. "So I can't stay here." Judy had no answer.

At that, Arya stood up from her chair and walked out of the kitchen, leaving the speechless bunny behind.

He never woke up easily.

Normally, Judy would be the first one up and running to get dressed for work. And somewhere between putting on her work pants and her tactical vest, Nick would roll out of bed to lumber into the restroom. Being a nocturnal species, he was generally wired to be most awake at night. And though he had trained himself since birth to be accustomed to daylight...

Mornings still sucked.

This morning, however, he woke up just fine. Aside from having one more day off, today was an exciting day.

His wife lay still on top of him. Her cheek rested in a slight tilt on the middle of his chest. Her ears limply framed her face. Her mouth was open slightly, allowing her breath to sail in and out with a few more decibels than usual. That is to say, she breathed somewhat noisily, but in a cute way.

He hooked his arm around her rear and pulled her head up under his chin. She moaned slightly and stirred, turning over on her side and wresting her arm out from behind her. He held her close. The anticipation of what he was about to do was both scary and exciting beyond words. This could go either way - either she'd pass out from absolute euphoria, or she'd slap him. But he was certain of one thing: she wanted to be a mommy. So why not surprise her?

"Carrots," he whispered.

She didn't open her eyes. "Mm?"

"I'll be out for a while. You get more sleep, hm?"

"Whryging?" she mumbled, still laying there limp.

"...Ben and I're going to hang out for a little downtown..." he smoothly lied - or rather... well, he left some information out.

Nick kissed the top of her head and carefully began to slide her off of him. Judy shuffled around and wrapped her arms around his torso.

"Mm-mm, you aren't going anywhere," she said playfully. "You're too comfortable."

He rolled his eyes and smirked. Then, he stroked a claw under her armpit.

"AH!" she squealed. He did it again and she giggled before grabbing a pillow and repeatedly whacking his face with it. "Cheater!"

Nick blocked his face as she did so. "Mell it's mot-oof! mah fault mmur so tsicklish!" He grabbed the pillow and tossed it off the bed. She tried to tickle him back but he didn't react. "Ah, sorry, Carrots, I haven't grown any ticklish genes yet."

She grumbled. "Nick, it's our day off. Why don't I come with you?"

"Uh, eh, well..." he chuckled. This was the hard question he had anticipated. He gathered up all his willpower to keep his voice straight "...y'know, I do need guy time every once in a while."

It's only for a little while. I'll tell her what I'm up to later today.

"Ok, let me up." She didn't argue. Nick sighed when he saw the hint of dejection in her eyes. "Hey..." he smiled at her as he stroked her wrist. "Don't think I'm blowing you off, Hon. I just need a little time to blow off steam, you know?"

"Ok." She nodded with her own smile that quickly faded. "Have fun. But come back soon. I don't want to have our last day off all to myself."

"I'll be back in about an hour and a half. Promise."

She smiled again. This time, it stayed. "Ok."

Nick got up and went to the restroom. Meanwhile, Judy stayed in bed, thinking to herself, You did something wrong, you know you did. Stupid, stupid, stupid, DUMB bunny!

Once he emerged, he saluted her with his trademark two-finger swipe and walked out of their bedroom.

Judy's head fell back onto the pillow. She pursed her lips as she continued berating mentally berating. Again.

"Ugh," she covered her face and said, "stop it, Judy! He's just going out with a friend. What's the big deal?" He did that with Finnick all the time. So why was this different?

Because with the sole exception of Finnick, he never hangs out with anyone unless you're there too.

So why would that change today so abruptly?

All of a sudden, she heard, "You are my sunshine, my only sunshine. You make me happy when skies are gray..."

Without lifting her head, she reached for the alarm clock to shut it up.

"Every mother's prayer, every child knows..."

Annoyed, she tried to reach the right button. It was too far away!

"Because I was her baby..."

"Argh!" she growled.

"Baby, baby, baby, ohhh-oh..."

Judy leaned up and slammed the alarm clock on top of the mantle before slapping her palm onto the other button. Then, once again, her head fell back onto the pillow. Yep, that's it. The one bad thing about being on vacation: there was nothing to occupy her mind. That was probably why Nick needed to get out of the house. She was driving him mad.

Why couldn't she get this under control? She was a police officer, a detective, for cheesy crackers' sake. It was strange that she hadn't started feeling this way until her thirties; does were usually married by age sixteen and had children by seventeen. But not her. Not Judy Wilde nee Hopps. She wished it would all go away so she could focus on her job. A part of her was eager to get back to work so she wouldn't have to deal with this. Then maybe whatever's going on with Nick would get better. But he hadn't been distant like this before, had he?

Was she jumping to conclusions? She lay there for a few seconds longer before opening her eyes and deciding that she needed some sunlight. She had the house to herself; she'd make the most of it.

After getting up and making herself coffee, she walked outside and sat down on the rocking bench in her front yard. The bench gently rocked back and forth as she sipped her coffee.

She looked around at the other houses and watched as kids played in their front yards, joggers jogged by. They waved at her. That's what she loved about this place. The mammals here were so friendly. They'd welcomed her with open arms. She was glad they'd gotten this house. It had belonged to a wealthy businessmammal who had owned five houses in three different states, but had been forced to sell it for less than he'd bought it for when his business began to tank. Judy later heard he'd gotten himself back on his feet but... well, the house was hers now, so...

It was a beautiful day. She might as well take a quick jog as she waited for Nick to get back home.

The sound of a grunt caused her ears to extend. "Go away, Baldy! Go back to your momma!" Judy turned toward the source of the voice. Her eyes widened at the sight of the young boy, a jaguar, leaning over a someone in the front yard of the house two doors down. She heard faint whimpering coming from her but couldn't see her behind the tree in their yard. His back was turned to her, but her ears picked up what he was saying. "Oh yeah, she's in prison. Because she tried to get rid of predators like me. That's pretty bad, you ask me, turning predators into prey."

Judy's ears and bottom jaw fell simultaneously. No. No. No, Judy thought angrily as she stood up and marched toward the jaguar. This kid was no stranger to her; though his family showed no signs of aggression toward prey, their son, for whatever reason, showed great hostility. As she approached, she saw the little girl, a small lamb, and recognized her - virtually identical to Dawn Bellwether, except for her brown, wet eyes. She tried to get up but he shoved her down again, hard. Stumbling back further, she tripped over the ground and landed on her elbow on the sidewalk. She cried out in pain from the impact and the scrape that was sure to be there - especially given the sparse wool on her body. Any inquiries she might have had as to her baldness vanished. Wake up, Judy, he's bullying her! She broke out into a jog toward them.

"Hey!" Judy called out as she ran toward them but neither seemed to hear her.

"Ew, look at that scar!" The lamb covered the side of her head, trying to obscure the pink line running around her head. "See this?" the jaguar pointed to something on his arm. "A predator scratched me and gave me this scar a long time ago because your mom gave him Nighthowlers. So I think I'll return the favor." He extended his claws.

Judy immediately flashed back. "...just a stupid carrot farming..." She immediately found herself sprinting.

The little girl gasped. He extended his arm to swipe his claws toward her.

A hand grasped his wrist from behind. And in the span of half a second, his knee buckled and he was thrown backward and off his feet. He fell on the ground and wheezed from the force of the impact driving the air from his lungs. Looking up, Judy stood between him and the crying girl like a guard. Her eyebrows were turned down in righteous anger. Her hands were on her hips. He had crossed her on the wrong day.

She reached down to grip his wrist firmly and said through clenched teeth, "Come with me." Despite their identical size, she managed to force the boy to his feet and to drag him to his front door. He didn't say a single word. Knocking on the door, she turned toward him and put her finger in his face. "You stay still, you hear me?"

"Hey, let me go, lady!"

"Don't move!"

Just then the door opened and Athena, a pretty female jaguar, stood there, a look of understanding immediately forming on her face. She knew what was going on, and it was confirmed to her by the sheep lying down on the sidewalk, staring up at them.

"Nathan! Are you tormenting her again!" He just looked to the side. He didn't have a word to say. "Get in here!" she barked, pointing into the house. Nathan's sister stood behind her, watching the exchange.

Nathan looked between Judy and his mother several times before dropping his head and walking inside. "Arya." she called out to the girl. "Come on."

The girl's head shook no. She just looked down at the sidewalk. "Arya!" Her face dropped lower.

She's living here? wondered Judy. Why? "Listen," she said, turning to Athena. "She might need a little time. I could take her home and make sure she's ok, bring her back afterward."

"Yeah, I think that would help, especially right now. He just won't stop!" she practically yelled into the house to make sure he heard. "Thanks, Judy. You know... oh you know he's gonna get it."

Judy nodded once to show her staunch approval. "By the way, are her parents living here too?"

"...no... it's just her."

"Do you know where they are?" asked Judy, looking down to the lamb.

"I'm sorry, I don't. She showed up on our doorstep last night and... waited there until morning."

"Why didn't she-"

"She tried, but couldn't reach it," she interrupted with a low voice to keep it between them. She lowered her voice further: "And we didn't hear her knocking so she couldn't do anything but wait."

Judy's heart sunk. As if things couldn't get harder for her... "Well, I'll get her cleaned up and bring her back in a few minutes." The door closed quietly.

Judy walked down toward the lamb, who continued crying silently. Her eyelids drooped tiredly as if she hadn't slept for days. She held one hand over the side of her face and the other on her elbow. Her eyes were closed. "Here, let me see," she said softly. She lifted Arya's hand off of her elbow. A small amount of blood covered her hand. Not much, but the bruise forming under it looked very painful. It needed to be cleaned. "Come on, Honey," she said as she picked her up and walked toward her house to clean her arm and maybe... get a few answers as to why she was here rather than with her foster parents.

Arya didn't take her hand off of her face, but she wrapped her arm around Judy's neck.

"AAAAAW!" squealed Clawhauser. "I can't believe you two are having a baby!"

Nick rubbed his hand down his face, though a part of him was trying not to laugh. He wondered whether Ben was teasing or not.

"Oh-oh right, of course, I forgot. Bunnies can't get pregnant with a fox."

"Right, thanks for the reminder, Ben. I'm so forgetful."

"Mm... right." He rubbed his neck, thinking of a way to change the subject. "Anyway, why are we both going together? I mean, not that I'm complaining." For emphasis, he tapped the side of the door. "But... why do you need my help? Shouldn't Judy be the one going with you?"

Nick turned at the light. "It's not so much that I need your help as I need an alibi."

"Alibi? So Judy doesn't know what you're doing?"

"Nnnnnnnot really... I want it to be a surprise." He couldn't help but wince inwardly. Though it was subtle, that Judy had not taken the answer as well as he'd like was clear to him. Still, he kept in mind that he was doing something that would change her life for the best - both their lives, really. That line of thinking encouraged him to continue with the charade for now.

"But shouldn't you at least talk about it first? I mean, it's a pretty big step."

Nick rolled his eyes, thinking to himself that the advice sounded ridiculous coming from someone who wasn't exactly a savvy ladies' man. "You know, I'm not actually thinking of signing the papers today. I'm taking a look - shopping, if you will."

"Ah, I get it."

"I stayed up late last night researching this place. Huh! Hard to believe there's only one place!

"That is weird. But it makes sense. Mayor Pink wasn't exactly the best of mayors. Even when Mayor Lionheart took office, he didn't help much to reestablish relief programs; he was more concerned with equality.

"Ironic, since he chose Bellwether as a token."

"At least she signed this program back into the fold - see what I did there? - before she was arrested."

"Yeah. I want to make sure I find the best for us. And for whomever we raise."

Making sure you find the best for the two of you, Ben mentally repeated with the barest hint of skepticism. He may not have been the most tactful, but he knew that it wasn't necessarily the best move to go behind the back of one's significant other on a decision so life-changing. Still, he kept his mouth closed; this was between them.

Judy was amazed at the odds that Arya Nichelle would have been brought to this neighborhood. After hearing that her apartment was burned down, she had printed out the report of the arson and the lamb's disappearance on a whim in order to do some research and see if she could help in the search. And now here she was! Her question was, why were her foster parents not here with her?

The good thing was that she was in a good neighborhood, certainly better than the one she was in. Being as small as she was, she was easy prey, no pun intended. She had no ability to defend herself.

Judy opened her front door and brought Arya into the kitchen. She set her down in a chair and reached down in the cabinet next to the sink for some rubbing alcohol and a roll of paper towels. Arya had taken her hand away from her head, but she still kept that side turned away from Judy.

Arya's red eyes widened. "Is it gonna sting?" she asked.

Judy siphoned some into the paper towel and reached for her elbow. "It'll hurt a little bit for a second."

"No, don't, can I just get a band-aid?"

"We have to clean it. You don't want it to get infected, do you? I'll do it fast, I promise."

"No, I don't want that!" She pushed her hand away.

"Arya!" she said, causing her to freeze. She looked her in the eye. "Let me see it. Now." Slowly, she lifted her hand from her elbow. "You ready?" She didn't answer, but she did cringe. "Here we go," she said before pressing it to her elbow.

"Ooh, ow ow ow ow owww-ooh-ooh!" she yelped, pulling into herself.

Judy blew on the scrape and pulled out a bandage. "There. We're done." Judy smiled and threw away the paper towel before putting a band-aid on the scrape. "All better," she said, patting her elbow for emphasis.

She looked down at the bandage, a simple light brown one, with a flash of relief. Ha! Kids and their band-aids. She never used band-aids except for serious wounds. In retrospect, Judy was surprised she never got an infection.

It was then that Judy saw the scar that Nathan had pointed out... her surgery incision, colored a darker pink than the surrounding flesh. It wasn't as noticeable as that mean boy had made it out to be - and it certainly wasn't ugly. It was just there. Though... bullies were weak; they would always target the easiest things to tease. In Arya's case, that was her family and her medical condition.

It had been big news - Dawn Bellwether's daughter had been diagnosed with stage II cancer nearly five years ago. Unsurprisingly, conspiracy theories were drawn, Arya was bombarded with interviews. But she managed to beat it over the course of horrendous radiation and chemotherapy treatments, not to mention surgery... and the media made sure to gulp down all of it. Former Mayor Bellwether had demanded to be with her during her daughter's treatment, but both of them were denied even that. Life had not been easy for either of them, even if the one had attempted a hostile takeover. Everything she had faced - near-fatal brain cancer, crosshairs on her back from all sides at all times - it made for a situation Judy couldn't imagine facing. But she'd made it. That was all that mattered.

Arya noticed that Judy could see her scar so she quickly turned her head and sat there with a blank expression.

Judy then wet a washcloth from the laundry room and sat back down to clean her little face, talking to the silent girl. The dirt came off easily, since there was little wool to catch it. That boy... she growled inwardly. He must have done more than she'd seen; Athena would have made sure to take good care of her, only for Nathan to ruin that hard work. She felt no anger toward Athena; her son was the neighborhood troublemaker, the kind who never seemed to learn his lesson, with no regard to how hard that lesson came crashing down on him. Some mammals just never learned. It caused his mother enough grief, especially to see how his superiority complex affected the other kids in the neighborhood, not to mention the lamb sitting before her.

Judy snorted at how cute she was. She looked like a younger version of the former mayor, the same awkwardness with a bit of timidity. Well... genuine timidity.

Judy thought back to the news she'd heard through the grapevine. Curiosity gnawed at her, but she refused to refer to anything she was as of yet unsure of. There was no telling as to why she was here. There had been no plans announced by her family - understandably - no news, no leaked info, no secret meetings, no nothing. She and her parents altogether disappeared until she appeared alone on Athena's doorstep.

Judy was about to ask Arya if she would like to take a nap, but then her face tightened and her eyes watered. Judy's ears fell. She was always prepared for this, but oh! it still hurt to see it every time. Her hand went to her face as she broke down. "Ohhhh..." Judy whispered, "come here." She pulled her into her lap and rubbed her back as she cried and sobbed. "It's ok, Honey," she said softly. Her heart went out to this girl who had been through so much. Good thing she'd grown up with hundreds of them back home in her own family.

"You're ok. That boy isn't here." She hugged her close. "He's wrong, by the way. I think your incision looks really cool. It tells everyone how strong you are."

Arya continued sobbing. Judy wrapped her up to guard her from anything else that might come her way. She quieted down after a few minutes.

"This is a much nicer place than I thought it would be," said Nick as they walked into the lobby of the building.

"Eh... these places aren't like what you see in the movies," said Ben. "They're not all razor blade fences and hideous mammals with whips."

"Was that way when I was in school," muttered Nick.

"What?"

"Nothing."

They approached the front desk. The otter looked up at the two. "Officer Wilde? Nick?!"

Nick performed a double-take at the woman at the desk. "M-Mrs. Otterton?"

Her face lit up as she stood up from her chair and went around the desk. Nick leaned down to give her a hug, laughing along with her.

Ben watched the exchange with his hands clasped and a polite smile.

"It's been years!" said Sadie.

"It has. I haven't seen you since... oh, since your husband went back to work. How's he doing?"

"He's fine. He's watching the boys right now. Unfortunately the shop was closed up a few weeks ago and he's looking for another job."

"Ah," he said with a wave of his paw. "He's always been one of the best decorators in the city... internal design, professional art, homemaking... his prospects are endless. I imagine he's already gotten job offers."

"Oh, yes, our mailbox is fit to burst! Now, I have a business to run, so I would assume you're here to see about adoption?" Nick smiled appreciatively at the tactful redirection of the conversation.

"You are correct," said Nick. "And, just so you know -" he nodded toward Clawhauser "- he's just tagging along."

"Ac-actually, the term is 'dragging along,'" quipped Ben in good humor. "His wife doesn't know what he's up to and he told her he's having some guy time with me. So, here I am!" They all laughed at that.

"Still doesn't change the fact that you're a bad boy for lying, Nicholas," she said.

"I am a bad boy. Can't you tell?" As he said this, he slipped his aviators on and crossed his arms.

After wheezing out one more chuckle, Sadie waved toward the two of them. "Well, come back with me. Let's take a look at who we have. Tommy!" she called to the back. A moment later an elderly donkey arrived. "I'm taking these two back so take the desk, would you?" He nodded silently before sitting down.

Fun guy, thought Nick before turning to follow Sadie.

The three of them strolled through the building that smelled of fresh paint. "Is this a new place?" asked Nick.

"How could you tell?"

I can smell the fresh paint."

"Really? Two weeks after drying? A fox's nose really is strong," she remarked.

"Oh trust me, you have no idea. What's going on right now, by the way? Where are all the kids?" Nick looked around. He wondered if this was a bunch of offices. Indeed, there was a lot of doors in this hallway.

"The kids are still sleeping. It is about eight in the morning after all. By the way, what are you two... is there, you know, a certain species you're looking for? A vulpine, maybe?"

Nick pursed his lips for a moment. "Would you happen to have a lupine?"

"A bunny!" She looked at him for a moment. Then her face turned upward into a wide smile. "Come with me."

Sadie led them down the hallway and down some stairs into another hallway. "How do you all keep track of everything?"

"I started this business after the Crisis ended. And once you've worked here for a while, you get used to it."

"Yeah," interjected Ben, "but shouldn't there be signs or room designations?"

"We'll be getting those soon. Remember, as you pointed out, Nick, this is a new building. We didn't just have a new building on our hands when we started this business. We had to build it from scratch."

"Looks like whoever designed it did a wonderful job. I wish there were places like this where I grew up."

"Mr. Big's been trying to go legit the past few years so he's a major stockholder in the charity. The only one in Zootopia I might add."

"Mr. Big! Y'don't say," said a flummoxed Nick. He never would have pegged that shrew as the charitable type. Respectful, definitely. Generous, even. But not charitable. This was new.

"Oh yes, he's really changed over the past few years. I think he started thinking about after it after his first granddaughter was born. He can't help but be a 'Big' softy around them. He loves them so much. And the fact that his life is as dangerous as it is... he's been trying to settle his debts so he can retire and be with them. I know what you're thinking, by the way," she said, turning around, "yes, he's done a lot of bad things, but he's really trying to change. We're all hoping that change is permanent."

"That... well that's great. I'm proud of the guy. Maybe he won't wanna ice me anymore," he chuckled.

Ben matched his chuckle uncomfortably. His and Judy's past dealings with the shrew was no secret. After nearly a decade, it was an elephant in the room that no one wanted to address. Nonetheless, Nick was happy to hear he was transitioning to a better life for himself and his family. Maybe his life wouldn't be so stressful now. Assuming the TTPD were willing to absolve him of his crimes - which, if he was honest, was quite a bit to hope for.

Nick's mind drifted back to where he was. He jingled his keys in his pocket in an attempt to quell his excitement. The thought of taking a child home was growing more and more euphoric by the minute, especially as Sadie led them toward a very possible prospect. He'd never thought that he'd actually want to be a daddy. Sadie's voice broke him out of his thoughts. He'd lost track of the conversation.

"I know. There were shelters fifteen years ago but now, this is the only children's shelter in the city."

"You're kidding! It's always the common schmucks who have to do all the good work around here, isn't it?" said Ben. "Zootopia needs a good mayor for once."

"Oh, yes," she replied. Nick nodded sadly. Poverty was all too common in Zootopia. Mayor Lionheart - Nick had to give him credit. He had been a good mayor for the most part, despite his scandal. He'd inherited the fallout of a much more insidious scandal that zapped the poorer mammals in Zootopia of common resources such as the shelters Sadie and Ben had mentioned. Nick had never made use of them, since his species essentially excommunicated him by proxy from any such charity, but he had to see everyone else in his position forced onto the streets along with him with no one to help.

Things had gotten exponentially better over the past several years, especially after the Nighthowler Crisis. This shelter was part of that "exponentially better". Nick was happy to see that the city was being given back what it needed most - animals who had the means to help.

She stopped at a door that was identical to all the others. The light inside was dim. Quietly, she opened the door and waved them inside.

"This is the nursery for smaller prey," she whispered quietly. She pointed at a tiny pink crib at the very back. A blanket lined the sides of it, giving it a cozy appearance. Whoever was in that crib was probably very comfortable. "This is our only bunny," she said.

The only one? Wow, how that was possible was beyond him. Nick eyed the crib and approached it as if he were taking part in a special ceremony. But he didn't see anyone inside. He started looking around the crib, and then around the room, but did not see a bunny.

Sadie saw his confusion and took the corner of the blanket lying in the middle and lifted it up delicately. He looked down into the crib again.

Nick exhaled deeply at the sight of the tiny kit sleeping on her belly. The kitten couldn't have been more than a week old. No fur covered her tube-like body, or even fuzz. Miniscule ears flexed back onto her bare neck. Her pink nose twitched rapidly. Nick heard a sniffle and looked at Ben, who had completely lost any self-control. He gripped the fur on his cheeks, as if he was about to pull it out. His eyes sparkled with a fountain of tears. Thankfully, he kept himself quiet.

Then, he looked at Sadie with a question in mind. She smiled up at him.

"Yes, of course you can hold her. But be careful; she's only about three days old."

"Three days old," Ben breathed. "She's so cute!" he squeaked quietly while bouncing on his toes.

Nervously, Nick reached down and wrapped his fingers carefully around the baby's tiny body. She began to whimper and squirm, and he hesitated. Sadie touched his arm.

"It's fine. She has to get used to you."

He nodded slightly and picked up the fussing kitten, holding her softly in his hands. She was so tiny... she could snugly fit in his palm.

"Does she have a name?" asked Nick, virtually unable to take his eyes off of her.

"... the girl who left her here... I think she called her Lily."

"Lily." Nick stared down at the kitten, rocking her back and forth. She had stopped fussing and had relaxed in Nick's warm hands, fallen fast asleep. He held her close to his chest. He could feel her tiny chest moving up and down rapidly to fill and empty her tiny lungs. He found himself breathing deeply.

She was perfect.

Oh, I can't wait till Judy sees her, he thought.

Arya held on tight to Judy's hand as the latter rang the doorbell. She knelt down to her and held her shoulders. "Arya, if Nathan keeps hurting you, I want you to come to me and I'll handle him. Ok?"

Her head hung low, but she still nodded. "Thank you," she said quietly, causing Judy to smile.

The door opened and Nathan stood there with his own head hung low. His mother stood behind him.

"Tell her you're sorry," she said strictly.

He shifted uncomfortably on his feet and looked at her with the barest hint of a sneer. She smacked him on the rear and he stumbled forward slightly.

"I said, 'Tell her you're sorry!'"

"I'm not going to apologize for the fact that she's going to get us killed!" he said, pointing to the little girl. Judy's jaw dropped in bewilderment. Looking at Arya, her face twisted in pain at the vicious insult. She turned and lay her head on Judy's shoulder. She could not believe this. "I mean, everyone knows her apartment was burned down because someone wanted to get to her. I don't want her living in this house with me!" Judy shook her head.

"You are in so much trouble," she said to him, grabbing his arm and shoving him inside. "Go upstairs, you're grounded again."

"Mom! I haven't been able to do anything for weeks now!"

"Groun-ded!" she enunciated. Judy heard him marching up the stairs without another word. The door slammed and there wasn't another sound for a moment.

Arya still didn't move.

"I am so sorry you had to see that," she said to the two of them. "Come on, Arya, I'll get you cleaned up."

"She's not going in there," said Judy with finality.

"I-I'm sorry?"

"I said, she's not going in there. She's staying with me." She picked Arya up and looked at Athena, whose eyes widened. "Are-are you... I mean, her foster parents left..." she looked very caught off guard, and more than a little insulted.

"Did they officially make you her guardian?" asked Judy.

"...No. But I can still take care of her. Nathan-"

"She's coming with me. I'm not going to let anyone do that to her anymore. I'm sorry, Athena, but she's been through enough. I'll try to see if I can find her a better home. She's not getting hurt again."

"Um... ok," she said simply. Judy nodded. She'd expected more of a fight - not that she was complaining. Arya needed a better place to stay than this. She was going to try to find her foster parents if she could. She couldn't fault the panther, but there was no way she was staying with someone who always reminded her of every bad thing in her life until now.

Arya hadn't lifted her head from her shoulder, but she had stopped crying. "Come on," she said to her as she carried her back to her house.

"...all muscle tissue is ablazed normally, restored to normal living conditions; ready for next trial." The canine turned off her recorder and wrote down some notes.

He'd needed a nap after hours upon hours of fruitless work. He stood up to stretch, causing his back to pop profusely.

"I hope that means you're ready for another round," she said.

"Yeah..." he knelt and looked through the enzymatic substances that he'd listed in his notebook as possible suitable mechanisms for the muscular substrate. He paused and slowly looked up at the lab tech.

"What?" she asked.

What if the synthases weren't the issue? What if the muscle fibers were?

Eagerly, he opened another drawer and extracted a pair of electrodes and a modified transducer.

"What's going on? You have an idea?" she asked.

"Oh yes. Here, connect these to either end of the fiber. Poles don't matter." As she did this, he connected the transducer to an outlet. "Here..." he grabbed a synthase and wrote down its identity "...don't unstop it until we have a good current." She nodded.

"Average... average voltage- what's the voltage of a-"

"Negative sixty-five millivolts," she answered him. He turned the knob and set the transducer to the appropriate voltage.

"Ok, go." The canine unstopped the bottle and squeezed two drops onto the muscle fibers. The doctor looked at her. "Now all we have to do is wait..."

Disclaimer: Any claims made here about the government are not necessarily my views. Remember, everything above this line is written for entertainment's sake. I'll save anything I have to say for down here.

The LORD watches over strangers; He supports the fatherless and the widow, but He thwarts the way of the wicked. Psalm 146:9

Religion that is pure and undefiled before God the Father is this: to visit orphans and widows in their affliction, and to keep oneself unstained from the world. James 1:27 (For all my Christian brothers and sisters, translation: Love others, meaning, minister generously, graciously, to everyone's needs, especially people who are suffering, with no regard to appearances. And by the way, God demands we do it by His word perfectly, and we can't, which is why we need a Savior to die on our behalf. And the best way to love them is by telling them the Gospel, which irreversibly transforms us and gives us eternal life so that we can serve better and better.)

For my mother and my father have forsaken me, but the LORD will take me in. Psalm 27:10

As for me, I am poor and needy, but the LORD takes thought for me. You are my help and my deliverer; do not delay, O my God! Psalm 40:17