Down in the room she shared with the twins, Tasha lay curled up in a ball on her bed, crying her eyes out while thinking of all the things Mr. Nick had said. She still had a hard time believing her sisters didn't wish her dead. It was her fault their parents and brothers were killed, so it was only natural that the twins hated her and wished her dead, wasn't it?

Wiping at her eyes (again), she knew it would have been better if one of the others had survived instead of her. If only their mom had survived, everything would have been okay and her sisters wouldn't have been neglected. They needed their mom, not her. She was useless and only knew how to be scared and cry.

While wallowing in her self-doubt, Tasha almost missed the soft creak of the door opening. Looking up, she saw her Aunt Melanie slip into the room.

"Are you okay?" Melanie asked as she met her niece's tear-streaked face, even as she slipped inside the room and closed the door behind her.

"I'm fine," Tasha mumbled as she wiped at her tears again, then rolled over and faced the wall. She hoped her aunt would get the message and leave her alone.

"Liar," Melanie said. Seeing her niece like this broke her heart and made her realize how selfish she'd been to ignore Tasha for so long. Her niece was hurting all alone and no one reached out to her.

Tasha half-turned to look at her aunt over her shoulder with a complicated expression. She didn't like being called up for lying about her feelings, but at the same time, she was surprised. This was the first time someone had called her a liar for claiming she was fine.

Walking over to the bed, Melanie met her niece's gaze and said, "Liar, liar, pants on fire."

Tasha's jaw dropped. What was her aunt? A kid or something? Because that was something only a kid would say.

Seeing as she now had Tasha's attention, Melanie stopped at the bed and reached over to brush Tasha's fur between her ears. "You wouldn't be in here crying if everything was fine."

With a roll of her eyes, Tasha turned back to the wall, saying, "Leave me alone."

Ignoring her niece, Melanie bent down and scooped the young bunny up in her arms and carried her over to the large, overstuffed rocking chair they used when calming the girls down when they were upset or reading them bedtime stories.

"Aunt Melanie!" Tasha cried at being scooped up. Flailing her arms around, she said, "What are you doing! Put me down! I'm not a baby!"

With a grin, Melanie plopped down on the chair with Tasha still in her arms. "You're right, you're not a baby." Looking down at her niece as she settled down in her lap, Melanie added, "But you are still a kit, and we shouldn't have ignored you like we have. That was bad on our part."

Folding her paws, Tasha glared at the wall, saying, "You don't need to worry about me. I can take care of myself."

"Maybe you can," Melanie said, then added, "But you shouldn't have to. It's us adults' job to take of you."

With a shrug, Tasha mumbled, "I'm fine so you don't need to worry about me."

Melanie opened her mouth to repeat that Tasha wasn't fine, but then she paused. Taking a deep breath, she considered what the best thing to say was. This wasn't her forte (she wasn't even a mother yet!), so she wasn't completely sure what to say. Thinking back over what Nick had said, Melanie finally asked, "Was Uncle Nick right? Do you blame yourself for your parents' and brothers' deaths?"

Tasha didn't say anything at first, and Melanie had just opened her mouth to question her again when Tasha finally said bitterly, "Of course, it's my fault! If…if…I hadn't had that dumb recital, Mom and Dad would still be alive! Kory and Markus and Nate would still be alive!" As she covered her face with her paws and started sobbing again, Tasha cried, "It's all my fault they're dead!"

Melanie's ears drooped as she gathered her niece up in her arms and held her to her chest, saying, "Shhh, no, it's not your fault, Tasha. Believe me, it's not your fault. Shhh. It's, okay."

"But it is my fault!" Tasha sobbed into her aunt's shoulder. "It was my recital we were coming back from. If…if I wasn't a ballerina, they wouldn't be dead! It's all my fault!" Burying her chest into her aunt's chest, she sobbed out again, "It's all my fault!"

"Shh, no, Tasha. You being a ballerina had nothing to do with it. Your momma loved the fact you were a ballerina. She would talk for hours and hours about you and how beautiful and graceful you were. She must have watched all your dance movies she recorded a hundred times. You being a ballerina was your momma's greatest pride and joy."

With a sniffle, Tasha glanced up and asked, "Really? She…did?"

Nodding, Melanie said, "Yes. She thought you were the prettiest little ballerina and loved to watch you practice. Her only regret was that Cotton and Sable didn't have any interest in being a ballerina." Melanie remembered all the times her sister, Jenny, had complained about the twins taking too much after Judy.

Although the twins loved getting dressed up like a 'princess', if you didn't watch them, it wouldn't take them long to slip outside and ruin the dresses rolling around in the grass, ripping them while running through the bushes, or getting them filthy chasing the juvenile dodos around their pen—just like Judy did when she was their age. In essence, Cotton and Sable were total tomboys just like their Aunt Judy.

Wiping her eyes with her arms, Tasha thought about it a minute, but then she shook her head again. "But…but it was me being a ballerina that got them killed! And now Cotton and Sable hate me and…and wish I was dead, too."

Melanie blinked. She thought she was making some headway with Tasha, but now she was back to blaming herself again. Sighing, Melanie wondered how Nick would handle this. Wiping at Tasha's eyes, she asked, "Did Cotton or Sable ever say they hated you? Have they ever told you they wished you were dead?"

Tasha sniffled again as she thought over the last three years. Wiping at her eyes, she finally shook her head. "Well, no." With a soft sob, she then added, "But I know they blame me. I know they do." With another soft sob, Tasha wiped at her eyes again while saying, "If I wasn't here, Mom and Dad would still—"

Melanie put her finger over Tasha's mouth. "Hush. Stop talking like that. Cotton and Sable don't blame you. I don't blame you. Grandma and Grandpa don't blame you. No one does. It's not your fault. This was just a freak accident. It was no one's fault. I don't know why you were spared when the others were taken, but I know that you are loved and you are still needed." Meeting Tasha's deep blue eyes, Melanie stated, "I need you. I already lost my sister, brother-in-law, and nephews—I can't lose you, too."

Giving her a big hug, Melanie started petting Tasha's ears where they rested against her back. "I love you, Tasha. And your sisters, Cotton and Sable, love you, too. I know grandma and grandpa love you, as well." Rubbing her cheek against the top of Tasha's head, she added, "I'm sorry we haven't been telling you often enough or doing a good job of showing it."

Taking a deep breath as her niece considered her words, Melanie then said, "I don't think you realize how happy we were when we found out you had survived and how worried we were while you were in a coma. We were terrified you might not make it, that you would just slip away in your sleep." Giving her niece another tight squeeze, Melanie added, "We were terrified by the idea you would die, too." Rubbing her back, she murmured, "Sorry we've all been rotten about showing you just how glad we are that you're still with us."

Tasha was quiet for several long moments. She didn't think anyone was happy that she survived. Everyone said they were happy when she woke up in the hospital, and when they brought her home, but after a while, everyone seemed to forget about her. Well, not Aunt Judy. She spent a lot of time with her whenever she was home for her summer breaks, but that was only during the summer. Aunt Judy was gone the rest of the time. Even so, Aunt Judy always seemed really happy to see her whenever she came home—all except this last time. But then, Aunt Judy wasn't happy about anything.

After thinking for several minutes, Tasha finally spoke up again. "But still…if…if I hadn't gone to the recital, then…"

Melanie put her finger back over Tasha's lips. "You don't know that for sure." At Tasha's confused look, Melanie explained, "Did you know that your dad was planning to take your brothers to the lake that day? He was kinda bummed out that they would have to postpone the outing when he found out the date of your recital."

Tasha blinked in surprise and confusion as this was the first time she had heard about this outing. Tilting her head, her brows scrunched up as she asked, "How come I never heard daddy talk about it?"

Melanie brushed her paw back down Tasha's ears as she answered, "You're dad knew you didn't like hiking through the bushes and dealing with the bugs, so he wasn't going to bring you. He figured you'd have more fun staying here and playing with your cousins." With a smirk, she added, "He wanted to take Cotton and Sable, too, since that was something they enjoyed, but your mother absolutely forbade him. If it was just the boys watching them, Jenny knew they would end up losing the twins."

Tasha gave a watery laugh at the image. Although the girls didn't intentionally disappear back when their parents were still alive, they did have a bad habit of wondering off when they saw something interesting. Her dad and brothers were forever losing track of the twins if they were outside and supposed to be watching them.

Still looking down at her niece while petting her ears, Melanie then said, "Your mom's friend Caroline was sick at that time, too, and your mom was going to visit her that day. She lives in the town not far from the lake, so your mom planned to drop the boys off at the lake, spend a couple of hours with her friend, then swing back by and pick the boys up on her way back home."

Lifting Tasha's chin so their gazes met, Melanie explained, "So saying it was your fault they died is faulty logic. Whether you had the recital or not might not have changed anything, except you wouldn't have been there to witness it." Wiping her thumb under Tasha's eye where another tear slipped down her cheek, Melanie added, "If your dad and mom had gone up there like they originally planned and were still caught in the mudslide, would you be blaming your dad for planning the trip? Or your brothers for wanting to go?"

Tasha immediately shook her head. There's no way she would have blamed them for wanting to go the lake. That was just silly.

Seeing Tasha's response, Melanie then asked, "Well, then, would you blame your mom for wanting to visit her friend? Or should we blame her friend for being sick?"

Tasha shook her head again. "That's silly, Aunt Melanie. Why would I blame them? That doesn't make sense."

"It makes the same amount of sense as blaming yourself for the accident simply because you had to drive through that pass to get to your dance recital." With a shrug, Melanie said, "So if you wouldn't blame your parents or brothers for wanting to drive through the pass for their own activities, why do you blame yourself? Your parents were super happy to go to your dance recital, and the twins were all upset they couldn't go and watch you. If your dance recital had been another day, it wouldn't have stopped your family from driving through that pass and getting caught in the mudslide, so you need to stop blaming yourself. With or without you, it still would have happened."

Although there was a chance Tasha's family might have escaped the mudslide if they had driven through the pass an hour earlier or later, Melanie didn't feel like complicating her lesson by pointing it out to her niece. If this is what her niece needed to hear to stop blaming herself, then so be it. Furthermore, she was glad Nick showed up and gave her this opportunity. When she was first introduced to the fox, Melanie thought it would just be a good thing for Judy, but now, it was obvious Nick was sent to their burrow to help more than just Judy. Her nieces needed his timely intervention, as well.

Thinking of Judy's fox marriage to Nick, as well as how captivated the twins were with Nick, Melanie wondered if Judy might not want to adopt the girls now? And if so, would Tasha agree to having a fox as a new daddy? Her niece was pretty scared of Nick when they first met. Running her paw back down Tasha's ears, Melanie figured she might need to help Tasha overcome her fear of the fox.

Sitting in silence for a few minutes, Melanie let Tasha sit and reflect, then asked, "Tasha, what do you think about Uncle Nick?"

Tasha blinked as she looked up at her aunt. "Huh?" This question came way out of the back pasture, and she wasn't sure what Melanie was getting at.

"Your Uncle Nick," Melanie repeated. "What do you think about him? Are you still scared of him because he's a fox?"

Tasha wasn't sure what to say at first. She hadn't known the fox long, so how was she supposed to answer? With a shrug, she replied, "I don't know. I guess I'm not as scared as I was at first." At Melanie's nod, Tasha asked, "Why do you ask? And why are you calling him Uncle Nick?"

With a grin, Melanie answered, "Well, would it be so bad if he was your uncle?"

Tasha blinked again. With her gray nose twitching, she pointed out, "But he's a fox."

Melanie shrugged. "Yes, that's true, but your Aunt Judy is pretty crazy about him, and he's pretty crazy about her. So, if they hooked up, that would make him your uncle, wouldn't it? So I was just wondering how you felt about him as a mammal—not as his species."

Tasha opened her mouth to refute the claim that her aunt would ever consider hooking up with a fox—but the words got stuck in her throat. This was Aunt Judy they were talking about, and she did a lot of things other rabbits would never—never—do. She was a big city cop, for Pete's sake! And how many times had Tasha listened to some of her aunts, uncles, and great-grandparents complaining about all of Judy's predator friends and how it wasn't rabbit-like to get all cozy with them 'bloody preds'.

With a slight shake of her head, Tasha wiped at her cheeks again. Her tears had stopped by now, but her cheeks were still wet. "I don't know, Aunt Melanie. Nick seems really nice and Cotton and Sable actually listen to him, so I guess he's not a bad mammal." With her nose still twitching, she asked, "Does Aunt Judy really like him like that? She never wanted to hook up with anyone before."

With a laugh while remembering how Judy had pulled Nick into a passionate goodbye kiss, Melanie replied, "Oh, yes, Judy is head-over-tail in love with Nick. If he asked her to, I have no doubt Judy would dress in white and walk down the aisle just to be his wife." Lifting her paw, Melanie waved her arm as if motioning to Judy dressed all in white.

Tasha wasn't sure how to take this news. Grandma Bonnie had been trying for years—years—to convince Judy to settle down and get married, but Judy always refused. Judy never had time for boys, so hearing how she was now in love with a fox and wanted to marry him was hard to take. But again, this was Aunt Judy, so it was possible…maybe.

But even if Judy wanted to be with Nick, would he really want to marry her, a rabbit? Tilting her head slightly, Tasha asked, "And…Nick wants to be with Judy? A fox wants to be with a bunny?" After everything she'd been told about foxes and predators in general, she couldn't imagine a fox who wanted to be with a rabbit. The fact Nick was such good friends with Aunt Judy was surprising enough.

"It sounds weird, I know, but it is what it is," Melanie replied. "Judy hurt Nick really bad during the press conference 4 months ago, but he still drove all the way out here to see her. A boy wouldn't do that unless the girl was special to him."

Tasha was quiet again while thinking about the fox whom her younger sisters had claimed as their own. Did they know Aunt Judy already had a claim on Nick? Tasha wasn't sure. But more than that, what did she think about him? Tasha had just met the fox, so thinking of him as her uncle was hard to swallow. Twiddling her thumbs, Tasha finally answered, "I don't know how to feel about Nick being my uncle. It just seems really weird. But I'm glad he gets along well with the twins. They need someone who will listen and play with them."

Melanie's smile widened. "I'm glad you're open to the idea, at least. I know it'll take some getting used to, but I think you'll come to really like Nick. Besides, you both have a lot in common."

Tasha's eyes widened for a moment, then her brows scrunched together in confusion. After she asked what her aunt was talking about, Melanie reminded her about how they both lost their family when they were young, but unlike Tasha, who still had a home to come home to, even after she lost her parents, Nick didn't have anyone, nor did he have a home left to go home to.

Tasha felt sad about this. For the first time in 3 years, she was starting to feel a little lucky. She couldn't imagine losing her parents and brothers, and then not having any place to go. How would she and her sisters have survived!? Or would they have been separated? Both these ideas were awful, so how did Nick do it?

While Tasha was pondering this deep question, Melanie then pointed out that like Tasha, Nick had nearly died, too. Not once, but twice, three weeks ago. First, from being stabbed in the back and nearly bleeding to death, and then again when the wound became severely infected.

Tasha just sat there stunned when she learned about Nick's brush with death. She had a hard time believing she had so much in common with a fox, but at the same time, it made her feel a little less alone. That there really was someone out there who truly understood her.

Letting this knowledge sink in, Melanie then pointed out how Tasha and Nick were both picked on and bullied. Some of the bunnies in the burrow even wanted to hurt Nick and drive him out of town because he was friends with Judy and knew Judy wanted to be more than friends with the fox.

While listening to Melanie talk about some of the things she had experienced with the fox since meeting him at the rodeo grounds, including how Daryl and his group tried to put Nick in the hospital, Tasha was starting to think maybe her life wasn't so bad. On top of that, she had been told her whole life that foxes and other predators were bad mammals because of what their ancestors had done, yet now, she could tell that it was some of her own uncles and aunts who were the bad mammals.

While thinking this, Tasha thought that it might not be a bad thing to get to know the fox better. She still wasn't 100 percent sure about the fox but decided to watch him tonight and see what kind of mammal he really was. She would decide after that.

-/-/-

As Nick and company left the dining hall, several pairs of angry and disgusted looks followed them out the door. Daryl, Jerry, Roger, and Billy, along with several of their like-minded siblings, were disgusted that the fox was so readily accepted, and angry that no one saw the danger the fox presented. Their bullheaded, birdbrained sister, Judy, was emotionally invested and physically captivated by the fox and no one seemed to care!

No matter that few other rabbits in the burrow realized this, the fact that a fox was in their rabbit burrow should have put everyone on edge, and yet the pelt was allowed to wonder the burrow with very little supervision! The fact the filthy pelt had already brainwashed two of their nieces should have had their parents scrabbling to remove the young twins from the fox's clutches. The fact nothing was done grated on their nerves. And now the fox was left to 'entertain' everyone. What was the world coming to? And what would happen when Judy finally arrived?

Daryl was seriously wanting to blab to the whole burrow that Judy was wanting to pursue the fox as a lover, but feared it might give the fox ideas about their birdbrained sister if he didn't already have them. He also feared that if he simply blurted it out, the pelt might accuse him of trying to sabotage his work today on the bleachers. Enough of the rabbits working on the bleachers knew what Daryl and his cohorts were up to, so they wouldn't be able to deny the accusation.

If that happened, it would turn everyone's attention away from the main issue of Judy wanting a romantic relationship with the fox and make the fox out to be a martyr. Daryl couldn't stand the thought of the pelt receiving any more sympathy and so swallowed his words with gritted teeth. His best course of action would be to get his mom alone and convince her of the fox's negative influence on Judy, that the pelt would destroy any chance Judy had of ever marrying a buck and settling down.

With this thought in mind, Daryl rested his arm on the table and strummed his fingers while shifting his gaze to where his parents sat. Stu seemed impressed with the fox and appeared to be completely won over, while Bonnie obviously held onto some reservations about the red pelt. Daryl hoped he could convince her before it was too late for his sister.

-/-/-

Daryl wasn't the only one watching with a disgusted look. Mandy had also been watching the red fox with utter disgust. Although her opinion of the fox had risen slightly at seeing how she had convinced the trouble twins to turn over a new leaf, it just gave Judy more reasons to fall for the tall todd! Judy didn't need any more reasons to be with the fox! A rabbit falling in love with a fox was just wrong! Judy's instincts had fallen for her to want a predator, one which once ate their own.

What if the fox figured it out how Judy felt about him and decided he wanted a taste of rabbit!? Couldn't her parents see the problem having the fox around presented? Judy was the most un-bunny-like rabbit that ever existed, so how could her parents not see that she would grow overly attached to the fox if they let him into the burrow? Did they not feel any sort of self-preservation for their oddball daughter who had a thing for predators? What were her parents thinking!?

If Judy only saw Nick was a friend, Mandy wouldn't have much a problem with the fox being here. It was weird having a fox in a rabbit burrow, but Nick seemed nice enough and he certainly had a way with the twins. But why, oh, why, did Judy have to fall for him!? He was a predator with sharp teeth and claws—sharp teeth and claws that should never be anywhere near a rabbit's delicate skin and soft flesh.

Turning back to her food, Mandy lost all appetite while fearing for her older sister's future. Although she wasn't sure how the fox thought of Judy on physical level, it was obvious the fox thought highly of her. Mandy doubted it would take much on Judy's part to convince the fox to take a taste of her. Dropping her face in her paws, she moaned which brought curious looks from her siblings sitting around her.

-/-/-

After making a quick trip out to Shaylee's jeep to grab Nick's guitar, the group then made their way down to the music room. Cotton and Sable sat on each of Nick's shoulders during the whole trip and were eagerly looking forward to listening to their Uncle Nick play while they sang along with him.

Walking down the winding, colorful corridors, Nick glanced beside him at Shaylee, who was walking beside him, even as Marty led them along several hallways and down a flight of stairs to the music room. Shaylee, like the twins, was eager to hear him play, but remained mostly quiet during the walk. Nick figured they had a lot on their minds and so he didn't disturb their thoughts with idle chatter.

As they entered the music room, Nick saw that it was a large room with the walls covered in thick, yellow, orange, and pink curtains to absorb the sound and prevent echoing. The curtains had several gaps in them at both the left and right side of the room where several doors with thick glass windows stood. Marty explained how they were smaller, sound-proofed practice rooms that were used so as not to disturb the other musicians. There was also a stage at the back of the room for setting up and practicing for events, while the rest of the room was littered with various instruments, several of which had a bunny sitting at them while practicing a song.

As soon as the rabbits in the room noticed the fox in their midst, all sound stopped. They had all been told that a fox would be joining them tonight and they were prepared for it, but it was still strange to see the fox appear in person. Seeing the burrows' two biggest troublemakers sitting on the fox's shoulders was even more shocking.

Seeing their stunned looks, Nick gave a slight wave, even as Marty introduced him. The rabbits waved back at him, then the lead guitarist on the stage hopped down and walked over to them. Holding his paw out, he introduced himself as Paul and then pointed out that he was Marty's older brother. Paul was a black and white brindled buck like his brother and eagerly shook Nick's paw.

After Nick said his hellos, Paul then introduced him to the rest of the rabbits in the room and stated whether any of them played a different instrument than the one they were currently using. About half the rabbits played a second instrument, with a pawful playing three or more instruments. Nick was impressed and was looking forward to playing together with the bunnies.

As Cotton and Sable had already helped Nick come up with a play list, it was simply a matter of seeing which songs the others were most familiar with. The main song and theme of the party was the Ugly Bug Ball that Disney came out with back in 1963. It was old, but Nick had watched it when he a kit and it had always stuck with him. But because it was so old, not everyone in the room had heard of it before, so Nick poked the song up on EweTube and let them listen to it several times to get the feel of the music.

The other old song Nick wanted to play was also by Disney and came out the same year as the Ugly Bug Ball. It was the Spectrum Song sang by Professor Ludwig Von Drake (Nick was sure Von Drake was a grandpa or uncle of Donald Duck). At any rate, after listening to the two songs a few times, they then ran through them several times. The impromptu band was able to pull it off, with Nick in the lead. The rest of the songs were newer songs that the band didn't have a problem playing.

The twins had picked the snowman song, 'In Summertime,' from Floatzen as they thought it was funny, along with 'Let It Go,' but their all-time favorite was 'When Can I See You Again' from Wreck-It Rhino. Although Floatzen was one of their favoritest movies, their most favoritest character and princess of all time was Penelope from Wreck-It Rhino as they related to her the most and loved the idea of glitching in and out of places. They also informed Nick that he would make an awesome Wreck-It Rhino due to his size and red fur.

Nick wasn't sure how to feel about being compared to Wreck-It Rhino as the guy went around breaking everything he touched, but Nick did like the idea of how close Rhino was to Penelope and hoped his own relationship with Cotton and Sable could be just as good. In the end, Nick said the song would make a good finish as it sang about seeing each other again. The rest of the rabbits in the band agreed with him.

The girls also chose 'How Far I'll Go' from Moana to which Nick found a mashup on EweTube of 'How Far I'll Go' and 'I'll Go the Distance' from Hercules called 'How Far I'll Go the Distance.' The twins really liked it and the band didn't have a problem playing it. The twins also wanted to hear 'Touch the Sky' from Brave. Nick had to wonder when they had seen Brave as it wasn't something he figured Bonnie would let the young kits watch—too many sharp teeth and claws. But since the girls wanted to sing it, Nick put it down and the band didn't see a problem with it, so Nick stopped worrying about it.

They chose a couple more songs, then decided the order the songs would be played in before practicing them in order several times before Marty got a text from Judy saying she was headed home and was there a way he could get Nick away from the others before sneaking him down to her room. Marty and Shaylee, along with the rest of the bunnies who had followed them from the dining hall, were all sitting near the door while they listened and watched the band practice.

They all had to admit that Nick was an excellent guitarist and singer, though he wasn't the only one singing by any means. Paul was a decent singer, along with a few other bucks, and there were a couple of does that had a beautiful voice, so they were picking up the female vocals along with Cotton and Sable.

When Marty got the text from Judy, he showed it to Shaylee with a wide grin on his face. She gave him a knowing smile, then Marty stood up and snagged Nick, saying he needed to look at Ben's car project before the party started. The rabbits were sad to see him go, but Nick encouraged them to continue practicing and promised he'd be back when the party started.

With the twins once more sitting on his shoulders (they refused to be left behind) and his guitar slung over his back, Nick followed Marty outside to one of the car sheds out back where Ben and Aaron were tinkering around with Ben's silver jade mustang boss. The brothers were surprised to see Nick finally make an appearance (he was supposed to be practicing for the party tonight), but they were happy to see him.

Nick was glad to see the two bucks again, as well, and was further impressed with Ben's pale jade car. The paint was faded and peeling in places, but for as old as it was, the car was in pretty decent shape, even if it wasn't currently running.

Setting Cotton and Sable on the ground, Nick walked around it a couple of times and bent down to get a closer look here and there, and even opened the doors and trunk to peek inside, all while scratching his chin. Nick then pulled his phone out and called his small, crotchety friend on MuzzleTime seeing as Finnick wouldn't believe Nick was looking at a '69 Ford Mustang Boss unless he saw it for himself.

It wasn't long before Finnick's face came on the screen and without so much as a 'hello,' he asked, "Well, Nick, what's it like being in a rabbit town?" Finnick paused a moment, then said, "Did you screw your bunny yet?"

Nick's jaw dropped, as did his ears. Not only was Finn right on the money, but Nick wasn't alone and Finnick's voice was rather loud and obnoxious. It was a good thing none of the rabbits watching the band practice followed them outside. Nick was sure the reason no one followed him out was because Ben never let any of the other rabbits in the burrow touch his 'baby,' for which Nick was extremely grateful right now.

Finnick had been messing with his friend when he accused him of screwing his bunny, though the way Nick had been pining after the bunny cop ever since she left told Finnick his friend had been emotionally compromised. But seeing Nick's 'deer in the headlights' expression shocked him. He knew the tall, red todd long enough to recognize that his friend wasn't surprised that he was accused of something he didn't do (Nick would have immediately denied it), but that Nick was shocked to be caught red pawed!

With his own jaw going slack and his ears flicking back, Finnick then exclaimed, "No way, Nick! You seriously rutted the bunny cop! She actually let you! I can't believe—!"

"Shhh!" Nick exclaimed while waving his paw in front of the phone while trying to shush his loudmouthed friend. "Finnick, that's not why I called, so can we discuss this later?" Nick knew denying his relationship with Judy to the finnicky fennec was pointless as he knew Nick all too well, but at the same time, Nick didn't need some rabbit wondering around outside overhearing the small fox and then spreading it around the burrow. That was the last thing he and Judy needed right now.

Ignoring Nick, Finnick began cursing up and down at his friend's stupidity. Although he'd known Nick was pining away for the jerk of a bunny cop, he didn't think Nick would actually stoop to banging her! And certainly not this fast! He'd only left for the burrows on Monday! (Nick had kept in contact with him even after he left the city.) But this was ridiculous! Nick had gone too far too fast. And the bunny cop! What in tarnation was she thinking to so readily climb in bed with a fox!? Had both their brains gone to mush in the last few months?

Glaring at the phone and his friend's loud, obnoxious cursing, Nick then disconnected the call. He knew Finnick could be swearing for a while once he got his boxers in a bunch. With a flick of his ear while still glaring at the phone, he heard Marty hunched over laughing beside him. Cotton and Sable were looking at him curiously, too, as they didn't understand why Uncle Nick's friend was suddenly cursing him.

Glancing up, Nick met Ben and Aaron's stunned gazes. As they hadn't been with him when he met up with Judy, or had any contact afterwards, they were still in the dark on him claiming Judy. Well, the cat was out of the bag now, as it were.

Pointing to the tall todd standing in front of him, Ben stammered, "You…you've slept with…with Judy!?"

"No way!?" Aaron exclaimed beside him. "Judy has no physical interest in guys!" Although Shaylee assured them that Judy was in love with Nick, and Nick seemed to be open to the idea of having a relationship with their sister, hearing that Judy had already spread her legs to Nick left both Aaron and Ben flabbergasted. That isn't something they could picture their cop-crazy, buck-hating sister ever doing, especially not on their first meetup after such a long separation.

Folding his arms as his long, bushy tail swished behind him, Nick stared off over the roof of the silver jade mustang as he replied, "No, I pinned her to a tree, and in my defense, Judy had as much say in it as I did, maybe more so seeing as she scent marked me first."

"Wait a minute," Ben said, "Judy scent marked you!?" The fact Judy let Nick pin her to a tree was beyond shocking, but hearing how she scent marked him first was just as shocking. Scent marking for rabbits was special and only done to the mammal they decided to spend the rest of their life with. If Judy was already this committed to Nick, then it wasn't so surprising she'd let him pin her to a tree.

Nick nodded, even as Marty stood up and slapped the fox on the back. "Not only did Judy scent mark Nick, but scent marking for foxes is part of their marriage ceremony, so Judy is now Nick's wife."

Ben and Aaron didn't know what to say. Judy had been adamant that she was never getting married, so to hear she now was, was hard to swallow. Of course, they assumed she would want to marry Nick eventually since she was already in love with him—and had even scent marked him—but not on their first meeting!

Pointing to the tall, red fox across from him, Aaron said, "Judy actually agreed to be your wife?" Although Judy had scent marked Nick (which was shocking), he didn't think she would want to marry him so soon. Getting engaged to Nick, Aaron could understand—but married? Although Judy was impatient and tended to leap before she looked, this was a little fast even for her…wasn't it?

Hearing Aaron's question, Cotton and Sable, who were standing at Nick's side, immediately wrapped their small arms around his shins and said proudly, "Yep, yep! Uncle Nick is our uncle now!" The two small bunnies couldn't be happier to have the tall, fun todd as their uncle, and with some major luck, he might just become their daddy soon. Without a single thought for what the ramifications of having a fox daddy would be, this was the twins' deepest wish right now.

Nick flicked his ear as he reached down and rubbed both of the little buns' heads as they beamed up at him. Glancing back up at Ben and Aaron, Nick shrugged, then explained that having Judy scent mark him completely blindsided him, so he didn't really have time to explain what it meant. Judy never once questioned his actions, but after explaining things to her afterwards, Judy was ecstatic to be his wife.

Ben and Aaron still had a hard time believing it, so Marty pulled out his phone and showed them the goodbye 'kiss' Judy gave to Nick. The two bucks were expecting to see Judy giving Nick a simple kiss on the lips, possibly even a passionate kiss on the lips—not one where she was swapping so much saliva with the red todd!

As Ben and Aaron ogled the pictures on Marty's phone, Sable tugged on Nick's pants, saying, "I want to see!" She had missed seeing the pictures earlier when her sister was looking at them, so she wasn't about to miss them now.

Reaching down, Nick picked both girls up so they could see the pictures, but then his phone rang with Finnick's familiar jingle. Setting the twins on the hood of the mustang, Nick watched them steal Marty's phone to look at the photos even as he answered his own. "Hey, Big Guy," Nick said, "you called me back a lot sooner than I expected."

With a wave of his paw, Finnick grumbled, "Yeah, my sister got after me for swearing around the kits." Finnick had two nieces and two nephews and his sister about chewed his ears off for swearing around them.

In the background, Nick heard his friend's sister still chewing him out, saying, "I mean it, Finn, if I hear you swearing like a sailor around my kits again, I'm pouring a whole bottle of dish soap down your throat. And don't think I won't!"

"Yeah, yeah, yeah," Finnick grumbled as he waved his sister off, even as he made his way towards the backdoor.

With a wide grin, Nick spoke loudly, saying, "Hi Cindy, I'm glad to see you're in good health."

There was a pause, and then Cindy exclaimed, "Nick, is that you?" With an exasperated groan, she then added, "I should have known my brother was swearing up a storm because of you." With a shake of her sandy head (not that Nick could see her), she added, "What did you do this time? Sale one Finn's prized baseball bats?" Her brother had a collection of prized bats, most were wooden, but a few were aluminum, that he always kept on hand should he need to threaten someone.

Nick chuckled, even as Finnick rolled his eyes before saying, "No, this dumb-dumb here wants to get his picture flashed across the news after being brutally murdered by a bunch of bunnies."

It was Nick's turn to roll his eyes as Cindy said, "Huh?" Ignoring both, Finnick stepped outside and shut the door behind him before walking towards a shady tree in the back yard.

Staring at his friend through the phone, Nick said, "Can we set my love-life aside for a moment and get back to why I called?" Finnick grumbled under his breath again and Nick continued, saying, "There's this awesome opportunity I got for you, but if you're not interested, that's fine, my bunny should be arriving any minute now and I kinda want to spend more time alone with her."

Scowling at the red todd, Finnick growled, "Just get to the point, Nick, and stop wasting my time."

With a grin, Nick said, "Before we get to that, I'd like you to meet my new nieces, Cotton and Sable." Flipping the phone around, Nick showed them to Finnick, saying, "Girls, say hi to your Uncle Finnick."

Waving their black and white paws, the girls said, "Hi, Uncle Finnick." They were curious about the new fox their uncle was talking to. He reminded them of a few of their great-uncles who always seemed to have a sour attitude.

Finnick waved back to the two small, black and white bunny kits, then said, "Wait, why are you calling them your nieces?"

Not waiting for Nick to answer, the girls immediately replied, "Uncle Nick married our Aunt Judy, so that makes him our uncle!" The little buns couldn't be happier or prouder to have the large fox as their uncle and they each flashed him a blinding smile.

Finnick was speechless for several heartbeats before he exploded in another loud round of profanity at Nick's idiotic move. Claiming a rabbit was crazy, stupid, and could cost him his life once her family found out about it! Rutting the bunny was bad enough, but claiming her was idiocy of the highest order. What was Nick thinking!?

Trying to stem the foul tide coming from his friend's mouth, Nick hollered, "Forget that and look at what the girls are sitting on!" Taking several steps back, he panned the camera to get a better look at the car.

Finnick hadn't been paying much attention to his friend's words as his actions had been completely ludicrous, but the moment the car came into full view all other thoughts fled his mind and words deserted him. Finn stared greedily at the light, silvery green jade car with the blue tint, with its large, square functional scoop sitting atop the hood, the dual pair of headlights, along with the black Boss 429 emblazoned on its sides as Nick walked around the car, showing him its full body.

Raising his phone closer to his face, Finnick finally asked, "Is that seriously a '69 Mustang Boss?" Finn knew it was a '69 model instead of a '70 model because of the dual headlights. The '70 model only had one set of headlights instead of two. And opposed to the Boss 302, which was built as more of a sports/sedan, the 402 was built strictly for racing. It won 26 NASCAR races the first year, but then was regulated out competition by the end of 1971 because the non-Ford teams complained the engine was a little too competitive. Talk about sore losers!

As his greedy little eyes ate up the car showing through the phone, Finn added, "How did you find one? They only made like 800 of them, and only about 10 of them were bunny sized!" Although the cars weren't made specifically for rabbits, that was the size-bracket 10 of the cars were made in—which made this particular Mustang Boss super rare and nigh-on impossible to find.

Nick grinned widely, showing off his canines, as he panned the phone over to Judy's brothers. "Finnick, meet Judy's brother, Ben, who owns the car, and their brother Aaron, who's been helping him rebuild the car." The rabbits waved to the large-eared fox on the phone, and then Nick flipped the phone back around so he could see his friend as he added, "You can exchange numbers with Ben and ask him all the questions you want, but the real reason I'm calling is because Ben is looking for some help in rebuilding his mustang. Since you did most of the rebuild on my Triumph, Ben wants to know if you'll come down and help him get his Boss up and running."

"Yes," Finnick immediately answered without a second thought. A moment later, he shook his head and asked, "Judy's brother's really want my help—a fox's help—in fixing up their car?" He had a hard time believing a couple of rabbit bucks would trust a fox with something so valuable, even if it the car wasn't running at the moment, it would be worth a fortune once it was restored.

"Why don't you ask them yourself?" Nick said, then pawed his phone over to Ben. As the two bucks began talking shop with Finnick, with Cotton and Sable listening in as they were full of curiosity about their uncle's friend, Nick turned to Marty and asked him how much longer it would be before he could sneak down to Judy's room. Taking his phone back from the twins, Marty brought up the text Judy had sent him. With a shrug, Marty said it could be any minute now.

Marty was still looking at his phone when a new text from Judy popped up saying she had made it to her room unseen, and could he please sneak Nick down as well. With a wide grin, Marty showed Nick the text which had the red fox's long, bushy tail wagging behind him.

Turning back to Ben and Aaron, Nick told them to exchange numbers with Finnick so they could continue talking because his bunny was home and he needed to see her again before the whole burrow realized she was back. Finnick grumbled about Nick's insanity again, but did give his number to Ben and Aaron, and once the number was in their phones, Nick took his phone back, said goodbye to Finnick and disconnected the call.

Next, Nick turned to the twins. Meeting their gazes as they still sat on the hood of the Boss, he said, "Girls, there's somethings I still need to discuss with your aunt about our marriage, but when we're done, it'll be time for the Ugly Bug Ball." Reaching over to pet them between the ears, Nick added, "So why don't you two go pick out your outfits for the ball, and if some of the other little kits are needing help putting on their wings, can you help them out?"

Cotton and Sable immediately agreed, even as they began discussing what they wanted to be. Cotton wanted to a beautiful butterfly while Sable wanted to be a ladybug. Scooping them up and putting them back on his shoulders, they made their way towards the house while Nick assured the girls that he couldn't wait to see them in their costumes.

FYI: The YouTube channel that did the Moana/Hercules mashup is Scott & Ryceejo. They have a ton of Disney mashups, so if your interested in their music, you can check them out.

WingedKatt here. I hope you enjoyed the chapter. Nick and Judy will finally meet back up in the next chapter. We'll also see how Ryan and Daisy are fairing. Expect lots of spicy cotton candy.

Ch. 38 will post in 2 weeks. If you have any thoughts or comments, let me know. Have a great weekend.