The music was soft and lights dim, a romantic hue being cast over the reception hall. The Arctic todd clinked his scotch glass with his wife's wine glass before turning back to the dance floor. The smile he had given his wife melted and became slightly sad and disappointed when he turned his blue eyes towards the dance floor. There, his little vixen was wrapped in the arms of the last mammal he would have chosen for her. And he had given it several shots throughout the years.
Daniel Frost remembered the day his nine year old daughter had brought her new friend over after school. At first he felt pride. His daughter had not only taken his words to heart but had gone out her way to unalienate the new kit in her class. He had called into work for the day to catch up on house repairs, and was finishing up repainting the kitchen when Skye came home from school with Jack. Standing at the sink, rinsing the paint roller, his ears perked at the sound of the door opening. A glance at the clock and he figured who it could be.
"Welcome home, sweetie! I'm in the kitchen!"
He set the roller aside to scrub his paws, only to pause at the sound of two sets of footsteps. Mixed with an unfamiliar male scent, his daddy instincts kicked in. Turning around, he was greeted by his Skye and an unfamiliar rabbit kit. The most ridiculous, little rabbit kit he had ever seen.
"Hi, Daddy!" greeted his little vixen happily. She put an arm around the small buck, who looked up at him with a shy smile, and gestured between the two males. "This is my friend Jack! He's in my class. Jack, this is my dad."
With eyes that took up most of his face and ears that were nearly as big as he was, the rabbit took a breath and stepped forward. Daniel blinked down at him and his tiny, outstretched paw. Combined with the dark stripes framing his face and running down his arms, it was a lot to take in. Fortunately, his astonishment lasted only a mere moment before he shook it off to accept the pawshake.
Such a formal, serious, weird little thing, he thought.
"It's a pleasure to meet you, Jack," he said out loud, with a smile. Jack smiled back, his large teeth distracting him for a moment.
"Pleasure to meet you, too, Mr. Frost."
Fantastic manners, though.
"Can Jack stay over for a while?" Skye asked, clasping her paws together in a pleading manner. "Please? I don't have any activities today and Jack said he can help me with my math homework."
"And I could really use Skye's help with our vocabulary homework."
Both kits looked up at him, Skye's big blue eyes combined with Jack's hitting him in a very unfair manner. Daniel looked from one to the other and saw no harm in saying:
"Sure! Go get started on your homework and I'll get a snack ready for you two."
Watching with bemusement as they grinned and darted to the living room, he thought about what an odd pair they made. Giving a final shake of his head, he chuckled, happy that his daughter had made a new friend. And knowing she was willing to risk her reputation to stick up for others made him proud as hell. The few times he had met that skunk had been less than pleasant so he wouldn't be sad if she was out of his daughter's friend circle. But kids changed a lot as they grew up, so who knew how long a friendship with a bunny buck would last.
"I give it a month, tops," he muttered with a smile.
Cutting up some veggies and making a couple of peanut butter and jelly sandwiches, he set everything onto plates just as the door opened again.
"Hi, Honey! Hi, Jenny Benny!"
His wife called back a greeting, followed by his youngest and echoed by Skye from the living room. Both plates were gathered up while his ears picked up sounds of his daughter introducing Jack to her mother and little sister. Daniel was secretly glad Marie was staying the night at her friend's house. She wouldn't be able to stop herself from making snarky comments. He passed his wife on the way to the living room, the vixen giving him an odd look as she went by. It confused him for a moment until the reason became all too clear.
Skye and Jack were set up at the coffee table, workbooks, papers, and pencils spread out. Jack stood over Skye, who had remained seated, and explained the math problem to her, totally and completely in his daughter's space. The young vixen was happily unbothered by it. She elbowed him, her own father, away on a regular basis due to her love of space. Jenny sat on the other side of the table with her own little workbooks (courtesy of the first grade), watching her sister and this new… friend with stunned curiosity. Daniel was immediately put off by how close the pair were but kept his mouth shut.
"Here you go, you two." He set the plates down in front of them and received a pair of smiles and thank yous in return. Unease filled him when his daughter passed Jack half of one sandwich before taking the other.
Skye NEVER shares food!
"I'll bring one out for you, too, Jenny Benny," he assured his youngest, his eyes still on the odd pair, now working and munching.
"She can have this one, Daddy," Skye offered, looking over at Jack, who smiled at the younger vixen and passed her the other plate. To Daniel's astonishment, Jenny blushed and giggled, accepting it with a shy smile at the rabbit buck.
"Ooookay," Daniel backed away slowly as the kits settled into their homework and snacks. He finally turned away when he reached the kitchen just as his wife Abigail was tying an apron on.
"Perfect timing," she began with a smile, scooping up another and throwing it at him. "I need someone to peel the veggies."
He caught it without a word, amazed at how undisturbed his wife was. All he could was gape as she started about the kitchen to make dinner. She paused, though, once she realized he was still staring at her in disbelief.
"What?" she asked with concern.
"Are you kidding me?" he asked. Glancing towards the living room, he got closer and lowered his voice. "What the hell is going on out there?"
Abby's eyebrows furrowed in confusion. "What do you mean?" His paws gestured towards the room, approximately where Jack and Skye were working. She snorted in amusement. "Danny, come on. They're kits. We raised a daughter who is so sweet and charming, she can put a bunny at ease. And let me tell you now, that kit looks like he needs some good friends."
"And a hell of a personality," Danny muttered under his breath. Abby snorted and gave him a light slap while chuckling.
"Just give it time," his wife assured. "Kits outgrow friends all the time. Jack only recently transferred to this school and he just needs to break out of his shell. Skye's great at helping others fit in! Once he finds his place in school, he and Skye will go their separate ways. Trust me! I'll be very surprised if they're still talking this time next year."
4 YEARS LATER
"I can't believe you're not in ANY of my classes!" Skye stared down in disbelief at Jack's school schedule. They sat in Skye's family kitchen, tucked away in the Bay window seat, the pair looking properly discouraged. Jack shook his head at Skye's schedule in his paws.
"This is so unfair. Our first year of high school and they expect us to not be together? We even have different lunch hours! That's sick!" Skye nodded in agreement before looking up when Jack snapped his fingers decisively. "I think I can get Trent to change it for me." Skye beamed at him hopefully and Jack grinned at her. "He owes me a favor after I covered him on Mom's birthday present. Mom would have killed him if she found out how much he spent on it!"
"She looked so good in that dress, though." Skye scooted closer to him and put the schedules together. "I might be able to convince my parents to fix mine, too!" Her chin moved to rest on his shoulder as the pair debated and argued and negotiated on how things could be rearranged.
Daniel sat at the breakfast bar with a coffee in paw and a plate of fresh eggs and toast in front of him, his eyes glued on the duo. Jack was a frequent visitor in the mornings and afternoons, whereas Skye was usually found at his house on the weekends. Both felt Jack's was too crowded to spend vast quantities of time at. Marie sat next to Danny, phone to her ear, jabbering away and oblivious to the resigned look her father had. Abby came to stand beside him, sipping from her own cup and gazing at the pair with her own brand of disbelief.
"She can't possibly think we're going to change her schedule to fit her friend in," he whispered to her. He met her eyes, hers just as troubled as his. "Can she?"
They exchanged shrugs before looking over at them again.
"You both are in some serious denial," came the voice of their youngest.
Jenny had entered the kitchen and bounced over to the stove to help herself to breakfast, Marie tuning in to briefly nod her head in agreement before jabbering away again. Everyone looked over to the pair when they started laughing with each other. Marie pulled the phone from her ear and pressed it to her chest to address her parents.
"Those two," she pointed one perfectly manicured claw between Skye and Jack, who were grinning at each other, "are going to be together forever."
"Get used to it," confirmed Jenny as she sat on the remaining stool with her food.
Danny and Abby looked back at their daughter and her friend.
Skye had blossomed- as Danny knew she would- getting taller and more willowy like her mother, and just as beautiful. She had those sparkling eyes that could melt even the coldest heart and a smile that welcomed anyone and everyone. Jack, however, had remained small and out of proportion. His ears and front teeth were still comically too big, and he had barely grown at all.
Until this summer.
One moment, he was just the nerdy, little bunny that his daughter insisted on spending her time with. The next, he was only slightly shorter than Skye, his mouth growing around his teeth and ears growing into the rest of him. His face, once dominated by his eyes and stripes, now began to wear them as a compliment to the rest of his features. He still had the air of an awkward teen (his body had grown longer, leaving him lanky in the arms and legs, with no real muscle structure to compliment it, yet), but the todd knew it wouldn't last forever.
It was only a small comfort that Skye hadn't noticed yet.
4 YEARS LATER
Jack balanced a stack of boxes as he followed Danny down the hall. Young students of all species rushed past them, most with parents trailing behind. Around them, joy and anxiety circling the first year of college radiated. It was an emotional day for everyone. Especially parents who were going to be apart from their babies for the first time ever.
"In here, guys!" Skye's voice called out.
Both males turned into the dorm room, greeted by Skye, who was setting up her side of the room with her mother. Abby smiled at them as she reached for the boxes her husband was carrying, though it became an eyeroll when her daughter ignored her father's outstretched arms to approach Jack instead, relieving him of the boxes and setting them aside. The two teens smiled happily at each other while she set the stack on the floor next to them and embraced her friend. Jack closed his eyes and hugged her back fiercely.
"Thank you so much for helping, Jackie," she muttered.
"I hate that name," he protested with a sad smile. "And don't thank me too much. You're helping me move next weekend, remember."
Skye loosened her grip and Danny smiled expectantly, re-raising his arms to accept a hug from her. But his face fell when she just held Jack at arms length and smiled at him sadly.
"But this is the first time we're not going to have any classes together." She sniffled and blinked away tears. "Or live next to each other!"
Jack's eyes became misty as Danny and Abby rolled theirs.
"I know," he choked out. "But if you start crying, then I'm going to cry, and if I start crying, you're going to tell Josie and then I owe her thirty bucks and I don't have that kind of money, Skye!"
She gave a small, watery laugh and hiccup as she tried to compose herself. "I would say, 'I would never', but you know me too well."
He laughed, too, pulling her back in for another hug. It was a long one, one that the parents were going to interrupt before they finally broke apart and wiped away their tears.
"Okay," began Jack, backing away with a sad smile. "Like a band-aid!" He gave her a wave and smile, before seeming to realize Danny and Abby were still there. His ears tinged pink but he still gave them a parting farewell. "Great seeing you two, Mr. and Mrs. Frost." His eyes moved back to Skye. He held his paw up to his ear in a phone sign. "Call me later?"
"Definitely," she assured with a nod. Jack grinned at her and gave her a thumbs up before turning to leave. He rushed out the door, past a pair of bunny does who gave him interested looks he didn't notice. Skye did, however, and glowered at them unconsciously until they passed by; only then did she remember her parents were still there.
"Thank you, guys." With tears still in her eyes, she moved to hug her mother and father.
"Of course, sweetheart," her mother mumbled, burying her nose into her daughter's head fur.
She still has that new baby smell, Abby thought sadly.
"Anything for you, princess," Danny said gruffly. He squeezed a bit tighter and looked to where Jack had vanished. "And don't forget-" Skye pulled away to look up at her father expectantly. "College is not just about grades and academics. It's about meeting new mammals. Experiencing different cultures. Making new friends." Skye blinked up at him. "Meeting new mammals." He grinned down at her only to be gifted with a look of confusion from Skye and a small kick from Abby.
"Ooookay then…" his daughter said, backing away.
"Okay then!" Abby pulled away and clapped her paws together. She gave her daughter a final smile and hooked her arm through Danny's. "We love you. Please be safe and call us if you need us."
After Skye agreed, the Frosts gave her a final goodbye and left. The door closed behind them and they began the walk back to the car.
"This is the year, right?" asked Danny with a hint of worry.
Abby simply smiled and shook her head. "Nope."
He looked down in alarm at her. "What makes you say that? It's college! She's bound to meet a TON of new mammals."
"And she will," Abby agreed. Her eyes looked up at Danny. "But Marie was right." She sighed heavily. "Those two will be together forever."
Danny groaned.
"That's what I thought."
5 YEARS LATER
"I think I claimed that apartment first," Skye argued with a grin. Jack smiled and shook his head in disagreement. This was their latest 'argument'.
"Considering I viewed the apartment first," he countered, grinning at her eye roll and playful slap to his arm, "and have already signed the paperwork, I get first dibs."
Skye leaned in to whisper something in his ear. Danny tried to not growl at their closeness, opting instead to drink deeply from the glass in his paw. Abby smiled at her husband and refilled his wine when he was done. The todd smiled his thanks before turning away from his middle child, towards his oldest in her wedding dress, greeting tables with her new husband. The handsome todd was positively radiating happiness, but the newlywed's love for each other seemed to be dimmed by the pair next to him.
When Marie had sent out her wedding invites, the Frosts were eagerly hoping their middle daughter would find a proper date. But neither were surprised when Marie paw delivered Skye's invite on a day Jack was joining them for breakfast and announced she expected both to show up. Skye was a bridesmaid and Jack a groomsmale, Sam (Marie's fiance) having been a contractor who had worked with him at Jack's lab. The bunny was the reason the couple had met. And neither Marie nor Sam had thought twice about including them on the same invite.
And Jack and Skye hadn't thought twice about it either.
Danny had pretended to be resigned to the fact that his Skye and Jack were a permanent feature the day he dropped her off at college. But that was so it made it more natural to introduce her to any and every todd he met, any chance he got. A few times, she had even agreed to a meal with one or two, which made him optimistic. Only for the follow up to disappoint everytime. Her relationship with the rabbit confused him, to say the least. They were always together, they carried each other's scents, practically shared living spaces, yet had never announced their relationship to their families.
As far as Danny knew, Jack's parents had not spoken to him about his perpetual bachelorhood. Nor about his relationship with his daughter. Danny got the impression they didn't care one way or the other and the times they had gotten together with the Eairs-Savage clan, the rabbit couple only seemed to encourage it. As his fellow bunnies were settling down, Jack stayed by Skye's side. Danny had heard he had a doe from time to time (which made the todd confusingly upset), but nothing that had been enough to derail his relationship with his daughter.
With every passing year, they're relationship grew stronger.
And then, the day Daniel Frost had been fearing since Skye first brought him home at nine years old, was when Skye showed up with Jack for dinner at their house. That was not an unusual occurrence. But his arm around her shoulders and her paw on his leg combined with the occasional nuzzle, elevated things to a whole new level.
After an enjoyable meal filled with the usual laughter and chatter, it was more than obvious they had finally transcended 'just friends'. Daniel thought the news about Officers Hopps and Wilde getting married may have been the reason behind it. Which was a pity, because Danny remembered Nick Wilde from when he was in high school and had hoped to set Skye up, somehow. Marie, her husband, and their two kits had been visiting, and Jenny had come up from graduate school with her new partner to join them. As always, Jack charmed the vixens, bonded with Michael, and doted on the kits. But this time, Skye looked on with a naked look of love.
He could handle Jenny coming home with a vixen and declaring her love for her. His tongue was held when Marie had told him they were homeschooling their children and moving to the country for a more simple life. It was not his life they were living, afterall. He even grinned and beared it when his wife decided to rent out their free rooms to travelers for extra cash.
But he was entirely unprepared for his daughter, his little genius and prodigy, to lean into the rabbit buck she had spent the last twenty five with and kiss him. She kissed his lips and he returned it with equal love and devotion. A small quiet fell over the dinner table. Considering this was the first time either had been intimately demonstrative of their relationship, it was understandable.
"I love you," Skye told him, thumbing away a smudge of lip gloss from his bottom lip. Jack's blue eyes drank in every detail of her face.
"I love you, too." She beamed at him before realizing they had captured the family's attention. Together, they blushed and laughed, the night carrying on after a moment.
Later, after the plates had been cleared and leftovers stored away, the females had branched away to visit with each other, leaving Daniel with Sam and Jack. The trio moved into the living room, Danny trying to drag out the boring conversation he was trapped in with Michael to avoid Jack's questioning gaze in his direction. The buck sat at the piano and played a bit while waiting for an opening to jump in. It was to the older todd's dismay that his son-in-law excused himself for the restroom, leaving him alone with the bunny for the first time since he was a child.
Jack continued to play the melody he had chosen, looking over to Danny with a grin.
"This is our favorite song to play together," he explained. His finger's moved across the keys with skill and grace. "Skye loves this part, right here," he smiled and closed his eyes as the complicated notes echoed around them. The buck smiled, his eyes still closed. "I've been practicing for years and she can still play circles around me." His eyes opened as the piece started to wind down. But the smile remained. "She's way too good for me. But…" He played the final notes, pausing his fingers on the keys to let the sound play out. Once it faded, he lifted his paws and smiled again at the todd in his chair.
"I guess I'm a pretty lucky guy."
Jack gulped and stood from his seat. He strode over to where Danny sat, the todd's jaw set and eyes narrowed with suspicion. His blue eyes looked up at the handsome, successful buck in front of him, remembering the odd, almost ugly little kit he had once been, and braced himself.
" ," Jack started after clearing his throat. "I love your daughter. I think I've loved her ever since the day I met her. She's the most beautiful, wonderful, amazing, smartest mammal I have ever known. And I don't want to spend another moment without her knowing I'm hers." Jack shrugged. "For the rest of my life. I was hoping you would give me your blessing to ask her to marry me."
Daniel Frost took a sip of his drink to gather his thoughts.
"No," he said simply.
The way it was said, without hesitation or thought, had the buck blinking in response, obviously thrown by his answer. Jack opened his mouth to speak only to be cut off.
"My daughter can do better than you, Jack," Daniel continued, his lips becoming more pursed with every sip of his drink. "And I'm happy to bide my time waiting for that day to come." With a grin, he reached down to release the footstool on the recliner and gave a satisfied sigh when he reclined back and settled in. "I know tons of todds who would be a better match for her." He gave the rabbit a smug look and shrugged. "It's just a matter of time until she meets someone better." A wink was tipped to Jack over the rim of his glass. "So, don't get too comfortable, Stripes."
The younger male gave him a look of disbelief before opening his mouth to argue.
"Asking you is just a formality."
Both males jumped and looked over to the living room entryway. Skye stood, looking at her father with angry eyes. Behind her, Abby gave her husband a sympathetic look. Danny lowered the footrest and stood from his seat.
"Now, sweetheart," he started, the paw not holding his drink out stretched, "I'm just looking out for you. You're young, brillant, and beautiful. Do you really want to waste your best years with a rabbit?" Her eyes widened at him but her father wasn't done. "What about kits? Do you think you'd be able to start a family with him?" He saw Jack's expression fall out of the corner of his eye and fought off the guilt. "I won't let you throw your life away for someone who won't be able to give you the life you deserve. And you deserve a husband who can provide for you and give you children and with whom you can grow old with."
Skye's eyes were filled with tears, but she nodded before turning her gaze to Jack. Jack's own tears fell freely as his paws fiddled with the box in his paws. Daniel hadn't noticed him pulling it from his pocket when he stood from the piano.
"If we gross you out so badly, Dad, you may want to look away." Skye stepped closer to Jack and grinned, still teary eyed.
"Jack," she got down on one knee and took his free paw, pulling her own ring box from her jean's pocket, "I love you, so, so much. And the idea of you not being mine for the rest of our lives sucks." Both mammals laughed, Jack gripping her paw, bending to kiss it. "You're my best friend, my confidant, my partner." She gently tugged her paw free to open her ring box, Jack sob laughing at the sight of the silver ring hidden inside. It was removed and his left paw taken up for the ring to be slipped onto his finger. " Jack Edmond Savage, love of my life. Will you marry me?"
Danny's jaw dropped and his eyes went to his daughter on her knee, to his family watching with happy astonishment from the hall. Jack laughed through his tears of happiness and nodded, joining her on his own knees. His ring box was opened, Skye gifting him with a gasp of joy at the tasteful, vintage ring inside. He took her paw again and slipped it onto her finger with a smile.
"Yes, Skye Abigail Frost," they exchanged looks of pure love, paws now clasped together, "I will marry you."
There was no further discussion, Daniel realizing there was nothing he could do but sit with his mouth agape as his daughter embraced her new fiance. His wife, daughters, and their partners impatiently waited for the chance to congratulate the couple.
Which brought him to this moment.
The second moment he had been dreading since the day his little vixen brought that odd, awkward, unfortunate looking little rabbit kit home. His daughter was marrying a rabbit. He walked her down the aisle to the buck, whose eyes were alight with happiness at the sight of his bride. And he knew he was wrong. He wasn't happy about it, but as he reluctantly released his daughter's paw and stepped aside for Jack, Danny knew their lives were made for this moment. The disaster he had hoped for, never happened. They were together, for richer or poorer. In sickness and in health. It only made Skye and Jack's bond stronger. Danny was used to it by Christmastime, when his wife opened the door to the happy couple. In his opinion, their relationship had desensitized himself from a lot of things life threw at him.
But not the positive pregnancy test the couple had gifted them for the holiday.