Hello there, readers! Got the motivation bug again and cranked out another chapter for, hopefully, your reading pleasure! And please, consider taking the time to leave a comment or review. They really make for great pick-me-ups from time to time!
Found (Chapter 26)
by
Elite Shade
"I don't get why we had to have another family get-together this year just because the summer's 'bout to end," Yuri grumbled from where he sat on the bench of the picnic table.
"Oh please," his mate chimed in, the large hyena female nudging him in the ribs, "Mookie, you's was so excited you was practically trippin' over yerself gettin' some time off, and findin' the right gifts fer all yer nieces and nephews." Ada cackled as she spotted the red blush beneath Yuri's black fur.
"Hey, I wasn't gunna let Ma guilt me fer missin' it, is all," he said defensively, "besides, I wasn't about to let any of my brothers show me up."
"Riiight," Ada said with disbelief lacing her voice. "Anyways, dis ain't just a celebration of the start of a new school year. It's also ta celebrate Marcus' first day of goin' ta public school and, more importantly, the upcoming court date ta finalize his adoption." The hyena smiled as she looked over to where Marcus was sitting with Xavier on the porch swing, the two talking excitedly.
"I'm surprised that you didn't also get some kitten clothes as well," Vanna said while standing next to a tree next to the picnic table. She looked down at her own bump and gave it a rub. She still couldn't believe what the doctor had told her. At that, Yuri let out a snort.
"Oh please," he said, looking over to the picnic blanket where a very pregnant Dawn was sitting, talking to an excited Qali who was taking the opportunity to hold a paw to her belly, her wagging tail becoming a blur as she apparently felt a kick. "Dumb and Verm actually makin' their own pup? I'll believe it when I see it."
"When you see her," Honey corrected. She and Ulric were sitting on the other side of the bench, her mate slumped over, resting his head on his paws. "And as we proved, it happened at least once before. Granted, we are still banned from both Norwulf and Schottsram for exposing their national secrets... and I guess technically for defiling the tomb of the ancient Schottish and Norwulf monarchs..."
"Ain't nothin' technical 'bout it!" Yuri let out a loud cackle, while Honey smiled wistfully, blushing a little beneath her fur.
"We were excited and... it was a moment of weakness on my part!" Ully defended before slumping back over, with his badger mate rubbing his back.
"Whatever. I figured that they'd rope a few of y'all in on it to try and trick me, but I ain't fallin' fer it," Yuri said with a smug smirk before looking over at his brother, and then turning to address Honey. "He still upset 'cause that boy Pa talked to pointed out that a bunch of his so-called experts were just some kids playin' a prank?"
"It's called Troll-posting... and... yes... poor Ully's been taking it rather hard..." Honey said, still rubbing Ulric's back. The wolf with the emo-styled hair looked up at his brother balefully.
"I've spent years making discoveries based on the proof and info they provided me, and now I've learned it's all a lie..." He laid his head back down and whined. Honey leaned over to whisper without her mate hearing.
"He's mainly been hiding under his bed out of sheer embarrassment, subsisting mostly on cartons of ice cream," she said.
In the twilight of late afternoon, with the clouds in the west taking on bright oranges and pinks floating lazily along in the blue-green, the Hunter ranch was abuzz with activity. Dorian and Trent were mammaling the grills, the scents of grilling bugburgers and dogs mingling with the scents from their herbivore brethren on the next grill over. Princess Callibrie was sitting near them, watching the grills with rapt attention, as Bruno, who had already grown twice as big as when he had first joined the family, sat atop her head doing the same. The two had become quick friends upon introduction. Shortly afterwards, Princess Callibrie had to be shooed off by Ada when she had started to use Yuri's tail for a chew toy. And then Bruno was next after he perched on the black wolf's head... and started to rapidly peck. Vernon and Zach both lightly scolded the pets while in earshot before giving them each a treat.
A beaming Audrey, despite her significant belly, was still carrying out side dishes, with Malcolm and Giselle assisting, the less-than-graceful giraffe being given responsibility for carrying the silverware, napkins, and the like. Zach was in the cornfield, giving his nephew Trevor a ride on his shoulders, as Alice was playing catch with her uncle Wade and her father. Vernon's eyes kept drifting towards his mate and their youngest pup, for another couple of months at least as the doctors have estimated. Ever since Lily had found out that she was going to be a big sister, the little human girl, who was still insisting she was a wolf like her Daddy, had been sticking to Dawn like glue, citing that a big sister was always there to protect her little brother or sister. With relief, Dawn and Vern had not had to resort to using the harness and leash to keep Lily from wandering off.
"Alright, food's done!" Dorian loudly announced, just as Audrey took a seat to rest her swollen ankles, everything but the burgers and dogs on the large picnic table. The two white law-wolves made quick work of transferring the food from the grill to the two large platters nearby with tongs, and the rest of the family began their approach. From the porch swing came Marcus and his uncle Xavier.
"And so our client was dismissed from their place of work for 'potentially going savage', which is a violation of the Species Protection Act," Xavier said, having been excited to find one member of his family who actually seemed interested in all his legal talk. The human boy nodded along looking thoughtful.
"And from what you told me earlier, the manager in question who fired your client, knowingly being publicly filmed when he gave that reason, also broke the company's own contract with their employee," Marcus said, noticing that Xavier's tail was wagging.
"Precisely, young Marcus," Xavier said, "sometimes a discrimination case like this can be a veritable uphill battle in the court system. And sometimes, your opponent gives you everything you need for what my colleagues refer to as a 'slam dunk'."
Marcus nodded at that. "Part of my tutoring involved learning about legal matters and contract law, back in Kartakka. I was even required to sit in and witness some court proceedings... before certain sweeping changes to the legal system were made..."
"Well, perhaps you might consider a career as a lawyer in your future?" Xavier said as they approached the table.
"Now don't go pushin' my boy to start pickin' out a career already, he's just a pup," Zach said to his brother while Xavier rolled his eyes.
"Aww, ma Fluffybuns can't help himself when legal matters're involved," Malcolm said as he carried over the cherry pie he had baked. The chubby wolf leaned over to kiss the corner of Xavier's muzzle. Marcus took a seat next to Vanna, the tigress smiling at her kitten. She draped an arm around his shoulder before giving him a gentle squeeze, and put aside her worry about her news. Lily happily sat between Dawn and Vernon, proudly wearing her wolf-coat.
"Alright, now before we gotta catch the evenin' train back home, how about the pups all get ta openin' their presents?" Vernon offered.
"YAY!" Lily and Trevor both cheered, turning to look at the foldable table with the gifts on them. What had started as a simple back-to-school supply suggestion by Audrey had more or less cascaded into a full-blown competition between the aunts and uncles to see who would get the pups, Marcus included, the best gifts. With several of the adults clearing a spot for them at the picnic table, Trevor and Lily darted off with the slightest encouragement. Alice was right behind them, followed by an unsure-looking Marcus. Dawn took note of how Alice didn't seem to have her usual pep, which while not a match for Lily or Trevor's, still usually showed in its own subtle way. Each carried back an armload of the gifts, each with their own names on them.
The gifts ranged from themed notebooks from Qali and gel pens from Trent, to a sheriff hat and badge from Yuri (much to Vernon's annoyance) and books on infamous crimes (with both Dawn and Vernon worrying a little about that but still not wanting to squash Trevor's creativity for his writing, and hoping his delving into the horror genre was just a phase.) It was when Marcus opened his gift that there was an audible lull in the conversation. Marcus sat there, frozen, before he gingerly pulled out a hooded coat, that was orange with black stripes and round black ears with a creamy white inside them at the head of the hood. It was apparent that the stripe pattern and orange color, and even the ears, matched Vanna perfectly. Marcus stared at it for a few heartbeats, before his face lit up with a wide smile, and he quickly put it on while Vanna blushed and let out a happy chuff.
"I saved up my wool to make it," Dawn explained to her nephew, delighted by his reaction, "and my mom contributed her own as well. We... well, we figured that with summer almost being over, you could use a new coat to keep warm..."
"Th-thank you, Aunt Dawn!" Marcus said, leaning over and pulling the diminutive ewe into a hug, while his Uncle Vernon reached over to clap him on the back. His ears perked up when he heard Zach mumble under his breath.
"Y'all coulda made a wolf one too..."
Vernon rolled his eyes, and noticed how Zach's grumbling stopped when he spotted Marcus' wide grin. When all the gifts had been opened, all of the pups together had enough school supplies to fill an office supply closet. The dishes were washed, while Dawn and Vern gathered up their pups and Princess Callibrie on her leash. Goodbyes were said, family was hugged, and soon, the Bell-Hunter section of the family was being driven by Dorian in the trusty pick-up truck.
The Next Morning...
The sheriff cruiser pulled up near the curb of North Meadowlands Middle School, attracting the eyes of many students and a few teachers. In the front was Zach and Vanna, the tigress behind the wheel, both taking deep breaths as they got out. Somehow, Zach had talked his mate into dropping Marcus off on his first day with a station cruiser, in their uniforms. This was done in the hope that the knowledge that Marcus was the pup of a pair of local sheriff deputies would help keep troublemakers from hassling him. Vanna opened the door for Marcus, who had his new deep green backpack on already. He was wearing a basic red and black flannel shirt over a white tank-top and a pair of jeans, as well as a pair of black sneakers.
Thanks to the hidden human settlement underneath the Nocturnal District coming forward and revealing their existence to the mammals of Zootopia, at the same time as other human settlements across the world did the same near the beginning of summer, all of the initial hubbub had more or less calmed down. Mammalian society was stunned the world over, to learn of a hidden species of mammals that had, mostly successfully, managed to hide their settlements and even entire cities for thousands of years, going to great lengths not only to stay hidden but even to coordinate with each other in order to do so.
While not all nations welcomed these hidden humans with open arms, Zootopia had swiftly made the settlement beneath the Nocturnal District, into an official district all its own, known as the Lower Nocturnal District. It was about as large and as bustling as Savanah Central, and even had its own hidden port. There were residential areas and business areas and municipal areas, all built on massive stalactites and stalagmites and into the sides of massive cave walls. There were paved streets, several underground lakes of varying sizes, parks, and even elevators that were quickly connected to the surface.
Zach and Vanna, as well as Dawn and Vernon, had been surprised to learn that humans usually wore shoes to protect their feet, and made quick work of getting some for their adopted human pups. Lily hadn't known about shoes and had been a little adverse to wearing them, insisting that because her Daddy didn't need shoes, she didn't either. That changed the instant she got a look at glittery pink ones with the velcro straps, much to Dawn and Vernon's relief. Zach and Vanna had been a little dismayed to find out that Marcus, after losing the only pair of shoes he had in the mud somewhere in the forest before being found, had elected to not bring it up initially for fear of punishment, and later simply because he didn't know how to broach the subject and not worry his soon-to-be-officially-new parents.
"So... whatcha think, son," Zach asked, his tail tucking itself between his legs. Marcus looked a little nervous... but also a little excited as he looked at the manicured lawn outside the brown building with the forest green roof. It was big, and many different species of students were entering, some being dropped off by parents, others still piling off the school busses.
"It's really big," he said, "but... it looks nice."
"Just know that we'll be here to pick you up when school lets out," Vanna said, putting her large paw on her kitten's shoulder, giving him an affectionate squeeze.
"And that if y'all don't feel ready, we can just get back in the car and go home and homeschool ya until the next semester... or even the one after!" Zach said, hopeful, Vana frowning at him.
"I think I really want to go to school, Papa," Marcus said, spotting a familiar goat girl near the entrance, wearing a yellow sundress, waving to get his attention. He returned the wave and smiled. "Plus... I can be in school with my... friends." The word still felt a little foreign to the boy, but he was becoming more accustomed to saying it, and thinking it. He had regularly met up with the little group of goofy mammals his age in the woods many times over the summer, having quickly become one of their number.
Zach let out a quiet whine and pulled Marcus in for a hug. "We're here for ya, son, always remember that."
"I know, Papa," Marcus said, returning the hug. There was a chime from the school's PA system, signifying that the students had five minutes to get to their classes. Marcus let go and started forward... only to stop when he realized that his father had yet to let go. "Uhm... Papa? I need to go now or else I'll be late."
Zach's response to this was to simply tighten his grip. Vanna let out a sigh. "Goofball, let Marcus go," she said. Zach simply shook his head no, and Vanna sighed once more, before manually prising his arms off of Marcus.
"Thanks, Mama," Marcus said, starting to quickly jog towards the school entrance. "I love you both, see you after school!" He called this over his shoulder as he met up with Mina, who was holding the door for him, the two quickly entering.
"He's really gone..." Zach said despondent, seeming to deflate as his mate rolled her eyes, still holding his arms. She had been ready to pounce on him had Zach made any motion to try and tackle Marcus.
"Goofball, he's in school, and we'll see him at three," Vanna said, picking her mate up and tucking him under her arms as she walked them back to the cruiser.
"That's just how it starts, Kitten," Zach said, not noticing he had apparently become a piece of wolf luggage, to be loaded into the passenger seat. "Soon, he'll be off at parties and going on dates and then going off to college... and we'll have only gotten a taste of what it's like to be parents..." Zach whimpered. Vanna smiled and leaned over to kiss her mate on his cheek.
"We're going to have plenty of time with Marcus as a kitten. Sure, we got a late start with him, but we'll just have to make sure our time raising him is extra special." Vanna smiled as she saw Zach's tail start to wag and thump his seat. "Besides... remember that doctor's appointment I had yesterday, before the rest of the family showed up?"
"Yeah?"
A few late kids running by, desperate to get to class on time, were startled by the sudden loud howl that was heard coming from the cruiser, seeing what looked like a smaller deputy climb in the lap of a larger one, the two making out. Not wanting to get involved, they just leaned forward and ran even faster for the doors.
Meanwhile at North Mammalia Elementary...
Lily was smiling as she sat in her new desk, right up front, leaning over to look down at her new glittery pink princess shoes. Today was an exciting one, as she now sat in the second grade. What's more, her best friend Paul was still in the same class as her. The panther boy in question's desk was seated to Lily's right. While his first name was actually Andrew, he preferred to go by his middle name, mainly to avoid confusion due to one of his cousins who was also named Andrew going to the same school. Their eyes met and the two young mammals shared a smile.
"Okay, class," their teacher, and Trevor's previous one, Mr. Hornberg, said, giving them all a friendly smile. "I know that we're all excited for another year of school. So how about we get right to it, and start today off with a little math test. Now, don't worry, this is just to show me where you each might need a little improvement, that's all. So no grade." The rhinoceros in the light tan three piece suit pulled open a desk drawer and pulled out a sheaf of papers. He counted out stacks of six, and handed them out to each student in the front row, with the instruction to take one and pass the rest back. Lily nodded and did so dutifully. Once the papers were all passed out, Mr. Hornberg stood right back in front of his desk, and told them that they may begin.
In the Third Grade Room...
Trevor was happily scribbling away. His new teacher, a maternal meerkat names Ms. Spottson, was having her students write out an essay about their favorite book they read this summer. Trevor had been so excited when he had heard, he had practically jumped out of his seat. In reality, it had been more of a case of him almost tipping his desk over, but the little black ram had gotten his seat back under control. Then he had been quick to unzip his Samurai Snake-themed backpack and pull out a notebook to get started with.
My favorite book that I read this summer was titled Forensic Autopsies: A Guide to Pathology! It was a gift from my Auntie Ada, who is a coroner.
In the Fourth Grade Room...
Alice sat at her desk, concentrating on the assignment before her. It was to write a story about what happened during your summer vacation. Alice rested her head in her left paw, looking at what she had written so far.
This summer, the mammals who had adopted us got pregnant, so now they won't be needing us anymore...
With a sigh, she erased the sentence and started over, deciding to write about something else.
One School Day Later...
Vanna sat in the cruiser behind the wheel, while Zach was standing outside, trying to look intimidating. The look was spoiled by his blur of a tail, as his excitement grew. Vanna smiled a little, feeling the small ball of worry within herself loosen. She felt just as excited as Zach looked, but was better at keeping herself under control. Case in point, shortly after the students began streaming out, Zack's tail started to tump hard against the side mirror when he spotted Marcus. The boy was in the group that Vanna identified as his friends, chatting amicably. The young mammals all started to go their own ways and, as Marcus was approaching the cruiser, Zach practically bowled him over with a hug.
"How was yer first day, son?" the wolf asked.
"It was really nice!" said Marcus, who had regained his footing. "My music teacher is really nice and she was impressed with my work on the piano. And at a school assembly today, they announced that there'll be tryouts for the baseball team! C-can I try for the team, Papa?"
Marcus looked up at Zach with a hopeful expression that just made the wolf's tail a blur once more.
"'Course you can, son. Heck, we'll even squeeze in some more practice today, after yer homework's done."
"Thanks, Papa!" Marcus hugged his adoptive father, and Zach let out a howl, which of course brought attention to them. They quickly loaded into the car, and were soon on their way back home. On the way, Zach questioned Marcus on all of his classes, and pushed to find if he had had any run-ins with any bullies, feeling relief when Marcus said no. Once back home, after Marcus went upstairs to drop off his backpack, Zach and Vanna shared a smile. Seeing their boy coming back down, they called him into the kitchen.
"Hey, buddy, take a seat. We got somethin' to tell ya," Zach said, his tail wagging slowly. Marcus took a seat at the kitchen table, with Zach and Vanna sitting across from him.
"Yesterday... I went to the doctor... and I..." Vanna started, blushing as she tried to continue.
"Yer Ma is pregnant!" Zach blurted out, stunning both Marcus and his mate simultaneously.
"G-GOOFBALL! We agreed to break it to Marcu gently!" Vanna reproached.
Zach smiled, looking guilty, but still his tail continued to wag. They turned to look at Marcus, who was standing, slowly trudging out of the kitchen.
"Th-that's wonderful news," the boy said, sounding miserable. "I-I'll begin packing my things."
After he said that, Vanna, acting quicker than her wolf, was out of her seat and picking a now surprised Marcus up, who let out a yelp as he was slung over her shoulder and carried back to his seat at the table. Carefully depositing him into his chair, she knelt down next to him.
"Marcus, you are not going anywhere," she said, both soothingly and firmly, brooking absolutely no argument.
"B-but... won't you need to make space for the b-baby?" Marcus asked, looking genuinely confused. Vanna felt like rolling her eyes and pulling her kitten into a hug, and chose to do the latter.
"Yes, but we'll simply clean out Zach's office," she said.
"Yeah, we'll... wait," Zach chimed in, "why my office? That's the place I conduct business in!"
"The only business you conduct in there is playing your old Rhintendo games," Vanna stated bluntly. Zach's ears laid flat on his head and nodded, smiling sheepishly.
"Point taken, Kitten," he said, before addressing Marcus. "But yeah, son, y'all ain't goin' nowhere. Especially now that yer about ta be a big brother!"
Marcus' eyes went wide, as that thought had never occurred to him.
"M-me... a b-big brother?" he asked, in wonder.
"Of course," Vanna said, hugging Marcus close to herself. She felt the tears rolling down his cheeks and could feel the hot prickling sensation of her own tears forming, though she simply blinked them away. Leaping across from the table, Zach glomped onto them. They stayed like that, Vanna having let out a few more happy chuffs before they let go. It was then that Vanna realized that her phone was buzzing. Pulling it out, she was surprised to see that it was her Dad wanting to MuzzleTime. Seeing that Zach had everything covered by electing to help Marcus practice for his upcoming tryout right then instead of waiting until after his homework was finished, Vanna waited until they had left the kitchen and were outside before picking up.
"H-hi, Dad!" she said.
"There's my little girl!" Lucero said, his voice laced with his Mane accent. The large tiger was grinning wide, sitting next to him was Vanna's mother, Padaprascha.
"Hello, sweetie!" her mother said, her Binti accent also audible through the phone. Vanna noticed that they appeared to be sitting on a bench out on a sidewalk, with luggage sitting next to them.
"Uh... h-hi Mom... uhm, are you two going somewhere?" she asked, feeling nervous.
"We're actually almost there!" Lucero chimed in. "We decided to surprise you and Zach with a visit, as well as take the opportunity to meet our new Grandkitten in person!"
"We wanted to be there when you officially adopted him!" her mother said, letting out her own happy chuff.
"O-oh! Well, we certainly weren't expecting you two to drop by all of a sudden..." Vanna said, her voice trailing off as she realized something. She could see both of her parents' arms, and neither one was holding the phone to MuzzleTime with her. "Wait... who's holding your phone?"
A feminine voice started laughing and Vanna's insides turned to ice as she instantly recognized the voice. The picture jiggled and quickly turned around to show the smiling face of her sister.
"M-Myra?!" Vanna exclaimed, feeling the color beneath her fur drain.
"Hiya, big sis!" the tigress chirped, oblivious to Vanna's reaction. "I came along for the ride too! Gotta meet my new nephew!"
Inwardly, Vanna groaned. She loved her sister very much. But she knew that Myra could be a little... much, especially for a shy and skittish boy like her Marcus. She tended to be a little too open about things, things that Zach and especially Vanna didn't think Marcus was old enough to hear.
"G-great! So do you think that you'll arrive tomorrow?"
Lucero chuckled and the picture swung back over to the bench.
"Not at all, honey! We're already here in Zootopia! We're just waiting on the next train to the North Meadowlands! Should be here in about five minutes! We just wanted to call ahead and see if you wanted to come pick us up or have us call a Zuber or something."
"O-oh... I'll ask one of Zach's brothers if they wouldn't mind picking you up in their truck," Vanna offered.
"Great! Can't wait to see you and your pride soon," Vanna's mother said, smiling demurely. Vanna blushed and smiled a little back before the call ended.
"Okay," she said to herself, subconsciously rubbing her baby bump, "okay... just gotta talk to Zach and maybe come up with a strategy... try to run interference between Myra and Marcus." The tigress had her work cut out for her.
At that Moment...
"Oh, Dori, y'all didn't have to take me out," Audrey said as her mate helped her out of his cruiser. He had just ended his shift and gone home to take his mate on a little surprise late-lunch date to their favorite diner, Rusty's.
"Oh hush now, Auddey," he said with a smile, "'Course I'm gunna take my favorite gal out."
Audrey giggled and took his offered arm, her tail wagging much like Zach's earlier that day. After they entered, with the pair nodding to various friends and acquaintances from around town, they started to head towards their usual booth... when Audrey felt her mate stop. She followed the white law wolf's ice blue gaze over to the far end of the diner, to see a human sitting at a table, finishing off a bowl of soup. Said human appeared to be male and not much older than Marcus.
"Oh! Is that the boy ya told me about, Dori?" Audrey asked.
"Yeah," Dorian said with a light frown; from where he stood the boy's clothes looked rather... rumpled. And he had struck Dorian as the kind of mammal who preferred to keep his appearance neat and tidy. "Tim Sheltly. He was supposed to have gone back home a couple of months ago."
Audrey spied the state of his clothes and was now also frowning. She surprised Dorian by tugging him along, approaching the booth the boy was sitting at. She put on her warmest smile just before they got there.
"Well, hello there," she said, the auburn she-wolf surprising the young human boy.
"O-oh! Uhm, hello there!" Timothy said, quickly attempting to straighten out his appearance. "A pleasure seeing you here, sheriff, and to meet you... eh... Mrs. Hunter?" Tim said, standing, offering his hand to shake. Audrey took it and surprised him with the strength behind it, not that she was trying to squeeze too hard.
"Well hey there, Tim," Dorian said, not smiling, but looking concerned. "I thought that y'all were supposed to have made arrangements to head on back home to be with yer folks."
"Ah... y-yes, that," Tim said, looking embarrassed. "Well... as it turns out, as a result of the... political upheaval, my family's businesses have been severely damaged. And, well, the small fortune I had spent to get here in the first place... it would seem as though that that was all that my father had stashed away for savings... he and mother rather did enjoy throwing expensive parties for them and their business partners... And, if that weren't enough... after all that I had said in defense of my brother as well as my critiquing of their parenting ability, combined with my accidentally absconding with the measly savings has put us a bit at odds... in that they have made it clear I am no longer welcome back. They stated they weren't even going to tell me where they were moving to... since they had to sell the family manor."
"So you've been livin' out of a cheap motel this entire time?" Audrey said, her heart going out for the teenaged boy, who looked even more uncomfortable and embarrassed.
"Well... yes... but the good news is that I have made contact with my uncle, who had left the family business years ago, and is living in what is now the Lower Nocturnal District. His name is Cyrus, and he said he'll be happy to come and pick me up... but due to things still needing to calm down first, it's going to be about a week. Two at the most..."
"Got enough cash to foot the bill until then?" Dorian asked, knowing that Henry, the owner and operator of The Beets Motel would evict at the drop of a hat. At this, Timothy blushed.
"I have had to look for some new lodgings..." he said, his hand resting on a single suitcase with a rolled up green cloth resting right next to it sitting next to him in the booth. "And so, I've purchased this here tent, which has proven to be slightly more comfortable than my previous housing."
"What about yer companion?" Dorian asked.
"He... is a member of a religious organization, and they tend to be an odd sort. He simply said that our time traveling together has reached its conclusion, and set off to continue his research."
"Uh-huh," Dorian said, not detecting a lie coming from the boy, and making a mental note to ask more about this odd human he had been traveling with. "So yer livin' out of a tent, orderin' dollar specials fer food."
Tim blushed and nodded. "It is far from ideal, I will admit. However, I can survive living in a tent until my uncle comes to get me."
"Nonsense," Audrey said, waving a dismissive paw. "Y'all are too young to be sleeping in a tent as a place to stay. Y'all will come home to the ranch with us, and we'll put ya up in a spare guest room."
Dorian had been surprised by the offer from his mate and opened his mouth to protest, before Timothy beat him to it.
"I appreciate the generous offer, Mrs. Hunter, I'm afraid that I must respectfully refuse. While I may be a tad young by most mammals' standards, I can and shall take care of myself until such time as I may relocate to my Uncle's home. So, thank you, but I am just fine." He said it with a tone of finality, standing straight and tall, looking proud. Dorian simply clapped a paw to his forehead.
A few minutes later, a series of loud yelps could be heard outside Rusty's diner. Dorian opened the door leading down the steps, holding it open for his mate.
"Thanks, Dori!" she said with a chipper voice, as though she wasn't carrying Tim's suitcase and tent roll under one arm, her free one tugging the yelping human boy by the ear down the steps.
"This is MOST undignified for a mammal of my staturYELP!" Tim cried out as he was tugged along.
"'Nother average day, sheriff?" Rusty, the bobcat owner with the pot belly beneath his apron called out, smirking in amusement. Dorian simply rolled his eyes and nodded his head.
"It would seem so, Rust," he said. After Audrey mammalhandled Tim into the back of the cruiser, she set about putting his things in the trunk. Dorian sighed, and smiled.
And there you have it folks! I hope that you enjoyed the new chapter!