Chapter 8

Playtime at the Park

The male barked at Ragen. Ragen moved to attack. The girls watched them. I knew Ragen was just out of post rut so maybe it wouldn't as bad, but he disliked other Alphas. We had to do something or it would get out of hand fast.

"RAGEN, NO!" I yelled.

"Mistress!" Zara smiled. Ragen looked at me.

"Dis my territory!" Ragen yelled.

"No mark." The male said.

"It mine!" Ragen insisted.

"My den now!" He provoked.

Alex grabbed Ragen's collar. "No fighting."

"He bad fox." Ragen pointed.

"What do we do now?" Sanuye asked.

"Call Owen." Alex tugged Ragen away from the other fox.

"Zara, come." Renee called.

Zara sniffed the female fox again before coming. She sat at Renee's feet. Renee petted her. The male fox made the female get behind him. She did so now that Zara was gone. But she still seemed interested. Ragen was not happy. He barked and gekkered. It was a clicky sorta ahh sound. Alex tried to calm him, but it wasn't working. Adri petted and soothed him. Owen came.

"What seems to be the problem?" He asked.

"Ragen wants to fight the strays." Alex told him.

"MY territory!" Ragen yelled.

"No, MINE!" The male said.

"I see. I will take care of this. You go take the Pets to the park." Owen said.

"C'mon, Ragen, let's go." Renee told him.

"But Mama…" He whined.

"It will be fine." She reassured him.

"Pet." Zara went up to Owen. He scratched her ears. Then she sniffed his pocket.

"Leave it." Owen told her.

"Treat!" She barked.

"Zara…" Sanuye sighed.

Owen gave her a treat. Ragen scooted closer, he wanted one too. Owen made him sit. The stray foxes perked up at the sight of treats. We went back to the car. Alex rechecked everything. Then we went to the park.

Ragen's mood improved as we got closer to the park. When we stopped, Zara was excited and ran ahead. Alex and Renee unpacked the car. Sanuye took some toys and we went to play with Ragen and Zara. Zara was waiting for us. Ragen was playing with his rope.

"Throw Frisbee!" Zara yelled.

"Ok, Zara. You ready? You ready?" I wiggled the Frisbee.

"I ready! Throw, throw!" Her tail wagged.

"Go get it!" I threw it.

Zara ran after it. It landed a few yards away. She picked it up and brought it back. I tossed it a few more times. She dropped it at my feet and scratched her side. I gave her some scratchies as well. She rolled on her back. I rubbed her tummy.

"Mistress!" Ragen came over.

"Mine!" Zara barked.

"Want pets." Ragen sat next to me.

"No!" Zara rolled onto her stomach.

"Hey, play nice." I frowned at them.

Zara huffed and scooted closer to me. I petted both of them so they wouldn't get upset. It worked for a little bit. Then Ragen realized Zara was still there and tried to nip her. She snapped at him. He whined. Alex came over.

"Zara, don't be mean." He told her.

"It my turn. I play." She said.

"Ok, but Ragen gets a turn soon too." Alex rubbed her cheek.

Zara spent the next few minutes marking me. I sat on the ground while she rubbed her face on me. She bonked me with a tennis ball. I rolled it around her. Then she was satisfied. Zara went over to her mom and they played with a squeaky toy. It was a purple dog. Ragen licked my face.

"Ugh! Ragen." I groaned.

Ragen got his rope with two balls on either end. We played with that for bit. Sometimes he wouldn't let go of it and I had to make him drop it. He brought his turquoise Stegosaurus to me next. Then we played catch the dinosaur. Ragen yipped as he ran. I was thirsty after our game so we went over to the cooler.

I drank some juice. Adri sat next to me. The others came over and got snacks. Zara ate some apples and peanut butter. Ragen ate a turkey sandwich. Alex ate barbecue chips. Renee and Sanuye were looking for napkins. Zara got peanut butter on her face. They got it off.

We talked for bit. Zara was feeling more friendly now so she and Ragen played, rolled in the grass, and groomed each other. We watched them. Then they wanted pets so we petted them. After one last game of chase, Alex started to pack up. Then we went home. It took a little bit. When Alex parked, we took everything inside. I carried some toys. The lobby door was opened for us. We rode the elevator up. Zara and Ragen were a little sleepy. Sanuye let Zara lean on her. The elevator dinged.

Owen was waiting for us in front of the elevators. The two foxes were still here, but now they had collars and new shirts. The female fox's collar was red and the male's was blue. The male had his face shaved so he looked a little different. His hair was combed and neat. I think they had been given baths as well. Ragen barked.

"Hello, human." The female said.

"Owen-" Alex started to ask.

"The shelter is full and they don't want to separate mated pairs. I'll find them a foster home." He explained.

"Did you take them to the vet?" Alex asked.

"I got their shots and checkups done. They don't seem to have any fleas or ticks, but I have used some medicine during bath time. Caitlyn had her heat last month and the pregnancy test came up negative-" Owen said.

"No kits?" She asked. The male gekkered.

"Kai, you were there while she was getting her checkup. Remember the tummy wand? There were no kits at all." Owen told him.

"Ok, no kits." Caity shrugged.

Kai whined. She nuzzled his face.

"The veterinarian said they needed more minerals in their diet. He would like to see them gain some weight. Their fur will look better once they have regular food and baths." Owen explained.

"Mr. Owen, gimme more treats." Caity pawed his leg.

"No, it's almost dinner time. This is Caity and Kai. They will live with me until I find them a home." He introduced us.

"I'm Alex, that's my sister, Talia, and that's Adri." Alex waved at us.

"No, Ragen, sit, sit." Renee stopped him from going after Kai.

"Kai mark my territory!" Ragen shouted.

"You can fix it later. Behave or no dessert for you." She hissed.

"Yes, Mama." He intoned, but glared at Kai.

"I'm Sanuye and this is Zara. That's Ragen and his mommy, Renee." Sanuye smiled.

"Hi, I Caity." Her tail wagged.

"I Kai. Am good boy." He told us.

Then they sniffed us. I rubbed their ears. They liked it. Zara was a little upset that Caity gave me kisses. I reassured that I loved her. Ragen barked when Kai got to Renee. She scolded him. Then we let the Pets sniff each other. Ragen and Kai didn't want to. Zara playfully nipped at Caity. I had feeling that things would change around here.