Matt hated how out of shape he was. After the bunny finished filling the document Dr. Snow asked him to join two ferals so he could show Matt a few exercises that they should do at home between visits. It wasn't anything complicated like he saw the lynx doing. The doctor was doing specific movements with the boy's limbs. Matt was supposed to make sure that Kyle was doing the right movements and Kyle had to do all the work. But there was a whole set of exercises that the doctor suggested that they do together so the kit would stay motivated. Most of the exercises were yoga positions, something that was safe to do at home. It would help build Kyle's core strength and stretch his muscles. The bunny was winded when they finally finished their appointment.
"It was a really good first session." Dr. Snow said as he got up on two feet. "You both did great."
"Thank you," Matt said as he tried to get his breathing under control.
Kyle was next to them on all fours also breathing heavily but he was smiling with his teeth showing. The boy watched the doctor's legs with great fascination. The lynx gave Matt a curious look when he noticed the boy smiling. His bandaged ear flicked.
"Keep doing the exercises that I showed you and I'll see you next week." He said with a big smile on his muzzle.
Matt grabbed the crutch and gave it to Kyle. He grabbed the boy's paw on the other side for support. Kyle's legs were shaking a little. The bunny planned to do some shopping but it seemed that it might be a little too much for the boy to follow him around the shop.
"Thank you very much. Goodbye." Matt said.
"Goodbye." The doctor said and waved to Kyle. The boy waved back with his paw resting on the crutch.
They were moving much slower as they were going back to the car. But that was expected after an hour of exercise. Vivien smiled widely as she saw them and pulled out a bowl of candy from under her desk for them.
"I see that the doctor didn't go easy on you." She said softly.
"I'm afraid that he was easy on us and we're just that out of shape." Matt smiled at her.
Kyle gently pulled Matt towards the dest to grab candy.
"Thank you." The fox said softly.
"You earned it." She said and turned towards Matt. "I'll see you on Friday."
"Of course. We wouldn't want to miss it." He said as they walked towards the car and Kyle waved at Vivian.
It didn't take them long to get into the car and Matt's head was already filled with plans for the celebration. He started the engine and looked at Kyle in the mirror.
"Are you excited for this Friday?" Matt smiled widely. "We would have missed it if Missus Wilde didn't tell me about it. Next time tell me about things like that. I'm still learning about foxes. It would be a shame if we had missed it. I already ordered everything so we should be good and doing it with a local community of foxes will be so much fun! Do you do anything special? So I will remember to include it."
To Matt's surprise, Kyle tilted his head to the side and furrowed his brow confused. One of the fox's ears tilted as he was thinking. Matt did his best to keep his eyes on the road rather than turning back to look at the kit. The bunny knew that the boy was neglected but surely they wouldn't go that far, right? Matt was afraid that he already knew the answer.
"Kyle, do you know what is happening on Friday?" Matt asked.
The boy looked up as he was thinking. Oh, he had to think about it. It wasn't something that he was excited about. It might not mean anything. They probably didn't do anything fancy at the orphanage. They probably celebrated common holidays and only did small things for the species-specific ones. Matt would also have a problem remembering when the harvest day was happening if rather than going to the Carrot Day Fair, he would just eat more fancy meals and play a few games.
Matt's heart sank when Kyle casually shook his head. The boy had no idea, not even a clue. "It's a fox holiday."
Kyle's eyes went wide but that information didn't seem to affect him in any other way.
"Do you know what it is about?" Matt gripped the steering wheel harder.
Kyle shrugged. "No."
Matt took a deep breath. He should have expected that even if he was hoping for the best. The bunny felt the rays of sun on his fur to remind him that he couldn't explain it while he was driving, but that gave him an idea. It could be fun to experience it for the first time not knowing what it was about. "You'll love it."
"""
Kyle was sitting on the couch ready to leave as Matt was running around the apartment making sure that he got everything. It had been an interesting few days. They were going to visit a park at night to do some fox thing that the boy wasn't aware of.
He was curious about it but not enough to ask about it. Most of the celebrations at the orphanages weren't that fun. People working there did the bare minimum for it to pass so they would get funding from Zootopia for it. It always felt like a chore. Kyle had to attend it when he preferred to stay in his room.
This time around it was different. Matt was so excited that it lifted his mood ever since he learned about it and he was so secretive too. He squeaked when the package arrived and right away put it in his room. Earlier that day Kyle also heard the sound of Matt moving his furniture around the bunny's bedroom.
Ding Dong
"I'm coming," Matt shouted as he ran to the door and opened it quickly. "Come in."
Kyle stood up on the couch and saw Matt waving at Liam to get.
"I'm not late, right?" Liam sounded confused as he looked at the bunny who was clearly in a rush.
"You're on time." Matt closed the door behind the hyena. "I just need to triple-check everything. It needs to be perfect."
As soon as he finished talking Matt ran to his room and came back with a backpack. Kyle's ears turned when he heard the sound of glass and metal coming from it. The fox jumped off the couch and followed the bunny on all fours to see what it was all about. The bunny placed the back next to the door and opened it to check its content.
"The thing, the first aid kit, bellyache medication, power bank, spare keys, a bottle of water, wet wipes," The bunny was talking to himself as he was pointing to the things in his bag.
Liam stood awkwardly next to the door not sure what to do. The hyena waved at Kyle who was sneaking on Matt.
"Hi," Liam said cheerfully which caused Matt's head to shoot up, and quickly closed the backpack.
The bunny turned to the kit with a big grin and waved his finger. "No, peeking. It's a surprise."
Kyle narrowed his eyes. He was still undecided if he liked it. The closer they got to the event, the more curious he got and Matt wasn't telling him anything. Maybe he should ask about it? It can't be that much better than what they did at the orphanage. Kyle flicked the tip of his tail. He was no longer at the orphanage. He was in a TV home with Matt and they have been doing TV things together, like eating together, playing together, exercising together, and watching TV together. Holidays always looked so much better on the TV.
"We're missing one thing." Matt bolted towards the kitchen and was opening drawers looking for something.
Kyle sat next to the bag and started sniffing it. Matt said nothing about smelling what was inside. But it didn't help too much. The only unusual thing that he smelled was paint and something metallic so it didn't help too much. And then a soft laugh came from above him.
"I saw that," Liam said with a smile.
Kyle folded his ears and stepped away from the bag.
"Don't worry. You're not in trouble. If that makes you feel better I also don't know what it is about."
"Ah! I found it!" Matt returned with a wooden spoon and was holding it above his head towards Liam. "Do you smell any glue or anything other than wood from it?"
Liam blinked confused but leaned down to sniff it. Because Matt was holding it, the hyena also drew in the scent of the bunny. Kyle tilted his head as he noticed the hyena's ears getting redder and him quickly pulling away. Matt had a nice scent but maybe the Liam didn't like it
"Only a lingering scent of food," Liam said.
"Great! I was a little worried. It wouldn't count if I got something new." Matt unzipped the backpack enough to slide the spoon in and closed it again.
"Ok, I think that I have everything." Matt put on the backpack and grabbed Kyle's crutch. "Are you ready?"
Kyle nodded.
"You're missing something," Liam said solemnly and pointed at Matt's waist.
"Right," Matt said, a little deflated, and went to the leaving room to get his taser.
Kyle's eyes went wide. For how long was it laying on the coffee table? Something could have happened to the bunny in that time.
"Before I forget." Matt pulled out his business card and handed it to the fox. "It has my number on it. In case you get lost, stay in one place and ask someone for help. You can show it to them so they could call me"
Kyle nodded and put it in his pocket. He had heard that before and a few unused cards were somewhere in his room.
"Do you want a ride, little guy?" Liam extended his paw towards Kyle.
The fox looked at Matt for directions and the bunny nodded. "Yes," Kyle said as he extended his paws with a grabbing motion.
Liam chuckled as he picked up the boy. "Oh someone is very excited if you're talking already."
Kyle shrugged. He was interested, for sure but he shouldn't get his hopes up. There was a small chance that it would be like a TV holiday. But despite all that doubt, he was swaying his tail.
"""
Liam cracked his back as he got out of Matt's car. The rabbit had a bigger car but they still needed to lean the seat back and push it back for the hyena to fit in it. It wasn't that uncomfortable but it was an unusual way to travel for sure. The small parking lot in front of the park was unusually full for such a late hour. However, with the number of cars present, the park was rather quiet. The only thing that suggests that some event was happening was an ambulance, a fire truck, and a police car parked nearby. Kyle's nose was glued to the window, watching those interesting cars.
"I'll get the backpack and the crutch. Can you get Kyle?" Matt said.
"Sure."
The little fox let Liam pick him up, wanting to get a better view of the area.
"Ok, we have everything. Let's go!" The bunny said cheerfully and jogged towards the entrance of the park as his backpack made a jingling noise.
Kyle's heart beat faster and gripped Liam's t-shirt nervously. It was something that they had to do because he was a fox. It was just a chore. But it didn't seem like a chore to Matt. The bunny stood next to a wolf in a police uniform next to the entrance to the park and was filling something before he handed it to the police and pointed to Liam and Kyle. The wolf lifted his eyebrow and sighed.
Matt's smile dropped as the wolf shook his head. In return the bunny gestured to the taser on his belt and handed it to the police officer, explaining something out of Kyle's earshot. Did Matt do something bad? When they finally got closer, the police officer was reading labels on the taser and pressed a button which made the light on the side of the taser glow green. The wolf lifted his head and his eyes met Liam's.
"Do you think that your friend can…" The police officer glanced at Kyle. "take care of you if he has to?"
Kyle could feel Liam's heart speeding up. The fox looked at the hyena's face as his scent got a hint of worry? Was Liam in trouble too?
"Yes. Look at him, he's crazy." Liam gave Matt a toothy smile. "He managed to convince me to give up my Friday evening to help him. He wants to make the first celebration with his foster son special."
The smile on Liam's muzzle didn't smell right but the wolf had turned towards Matt when Liam bared his teeth.
"Hey!" Matt punched Liam on the hip." I'm not crazy."
"You see, officer. He is 100% crazy."
The wolf narrowed his eyes as he looked at the two adults but his nuzzle softened when he looked at the confused fox. He handed the taser back to Matt.
"Ok, just stay safe." The wolf smiled at Kyle. "We want your kit to have a great time."
"Thank you, sir." Matt grabbed the taser. "May the Sun warm your home." The bunny said awkwardly.
"And yours too." The wolf chuckled and motioned for them to get in. Matt and Liam didn't wait in case the police officer would change his mind.
Kyle was arching his back and extending his neck, wanting to get a glimpse of the park. It had to be something special. Matt and Liam almost got in trouble to get in. Kyle flicked the tip of his tail. They finally passed the hedge around the park.
It looked like a regular park illuminated by street lamps. It was even more boring than the regular park. When he visited one with the kids from the orphanage, there was a lot of laughing, shouting, and running around. This park was almost silent. There were so many fox families just calmly walking around. There were a few other predators but Kyle had never seen so many foxes in one place.
Kyle looked at Matt. The bunny was running a few minutes before but now he was smiling as he calmly walked towards the center of the park. Was that fun for him? Adults always liked boring things but Matt and Liam didn't seem like boring adults. They did so many TV things but it wasn't one of those TV things.
As they got closer to the center of the park, there were a few odd things. There were small flags with numbers in a line on the grass that lead to a big pile of wooden things in the middle of the park. Around them, there were rows of green tents that were the same shade of green as the grass around them. To the point that he didn't notice them until they got closer. And then the wind blew in their direction carrying the scent of foxes. Kyle blinked. They were excited but they acted so calmly. Were foxes as boring as adults? Liam was also looking around and he also looked and smelled confused.
Someone was waving. Kyle turned his head and next to the pile of the wooden things he saw Missus Wilde standing with another fox. Matt sped up but he was making sure that it didn't turn into a run. The bunny was grinning as he stopped Liam a few feet away from the foxes and the pile. From the backpack, he pulled the wooden spoon.
"Could you put Kyle down?" Matt asked.
"Ok." Liam knelt to let the kit down. Matt was quickly at the boy's side, handing him the crutch and supporting him from the other side.
"Could you give Missus Wilde our spoon so she could check it?" The bunny was smiling brightly as he held the spoon in front of Kyle.
Kyle tilted his head. It was odd but at least it wasn't boring. The kit nodded and he grabbed the wooden spoon. They slowly made it to the two foxes that stood straight and smiled warmly at him. The fox next to Missus Wilde was around her age. He was a chubbier male and he was holding a list.
Kyle folded his ears back as he stood in front of the two adults not sure what to do. Matt motioned to him to lift the spoon up. As he did, the vixen sniffed.
"It's such a wonderful gift for the Sun. You can add it to other offerings." She smiled.
Matt gently pulled on Kyle's paw to get him to move toward the pile. "Toss it onto the pile." The bunny said as they got closer.
It was an odd collection of things. Kyle could see wooden cups, spoons, forks, cutting boards, and much more. He tossed the spoon and it tumbled down the pile until it stopped next to a wooden plate.
"Are you Kyle Wildfire?" The older male asked as he checked the list but it was clear that he already knew what was on it.
The kit nodded slowly. The Male wagged his tail as he looked back at the small table behind him with a single candle. The male grabbed it. "That is for you."
Kyle gently took the candle with number one on it. When Matt saw, he smiled widely. "What should you say?"
"Thank you." The kit said softly.
"You're welcomed." The older fox checked his watch as he saw fox families lining up. "It's almost time. You should take your place."
Matt mouthed 'Thank you' to Vivian as they were walking away to the flag with number one. Which was right next to the pile. The bunny got behind the boy and grabbed him under the armpits for support while Kyle was still using the crutch to stay upright.
"Could you film it or take a few photos?" Matt asked Liam.
"Of course!" Liam pulled out his phone and sat on the grass in front of them to get a better angle.
Kyle looked at the line of kits with their families. All of them were holding a candle and the line seemed to be stretching towards the setting sun. The kits were bouncing from excitement which was very odd. So far it was one of the most boring events that he had to attend. They just put Matt's spoon onto the pile and walked for a little bit. But all those foxes were waiting for something. Kyle's eyes darted from one family to another looking for any clue about what was going to happen.
"Relax, it'll start soon," Matt said softly behind him.
Suddenly all lamps in the park turned off, leaving the whole park in the dim light of the last rays of the setting sun.
"Look" The bunny pointed to the end of the line.
Matt's watch pinged and at the same time at the far edge of the park a small glimmer of flame appeared. Matt was smiling widely.
"Long time ago, when the world was still new. The Sun was ruling over every mammal, big or small." Matt's voice was calm as he was telling his story. "The Sun enjoyed his power over mammals and made sure that they would never forget how important his gift of warmth was. So he decided to move around the sky causing the seasons to change."
Kyle's eyes were fixed on the speck of light as it seemed to move around.
"It was a time when a lot of mammals froze during winter. That only strengthened their devotion to the Sun, the only source of warmth in their life. But there was one fox couple who had a daughter. She was a small and sickly kit and her parents knew that she wouldn't survive a harsh winter."
"Many mammals in the past begged the Sun for his flame or tried to steal it but it never succeeded. But the fox parents didn't have a choice if they wanted their daughter to survive. So they devised a cunning plan." Kyle looked with big eyes at the bunny. It wasn't boring anymore.
"They knew that during winter the Sun was vigilant because so many desperate mammals tried to steal his flame. So they needed to steal it when he was least expecting it. At the beginning of summer when the day was the longest." Liam was taking their photos as he was also listening with great interest to Matt's tale.
"The parents convinced their local community of foxes to help them. They needed to prepare a place where they could feed the flame and let it grow. The Sun would know that something was going on if the foxes would start gathering wood. So they decided to offer wooden gifts to the Sun and store it on one pile, celebrating and praising the sun on the day of his triumph. When he was the strongest. They used his pride against him. When the Sun was setting after feeling so powerful and loved, he didn't check if someone was following him as he was close to the ground." Kyle nervously wagged his tali as the red dot was getting bigger in the dark.
"The father grabbed the flame from the unsuspecting Sun. It was a small flame because they didn't want the Sun to notice it and they had to carry it away from the sun. All foxes prepared small sticks to carry the flame and they passed the flame to each other to get it to the pile." He could see fox kits passing a flame from one to another. When a new kit got the flame the previous one snuffed their candle.
"Some of the foxes were unlucky and flames caught their paws and ears." Matt gently rubbed Kyle's dark paw. The kit's heart beat fast as a swift fox girl was getting closer to him with a candle. Matt was holding Kyle's paw and moved it up to offer the candle to the girl. She smiled as she lit it. When the flame was strong she blew out her candle.
The bunny gently guided Kyle toward the pile. There was a bowl with smelly water in front of him. Matt guided the flame to it and to the kit's surprise that water caught fire and a thin line of it carried the flame to the pile, igniting it.
"But by working together they managed to do it. They didn't want to keep the flame to themselves. They knew that mammals wouldn't trust a gift from a fox. So they were celebrating loudly to get the attention of other mammals."
Kyle watched the now raging bonfire with open mouth. Warmth of the flame gently swam through his fur as the flames danced in front of him. A loud happy yelp startled the kit. His ears shot up looking for the source of the sound. It was coming from behind the fire. It was joined by another yelp and bark. Kyle's eyes went wide as a flame seemed to jump off the bonfire but as his eyes adjusted a shape of a fox holding a torch manifested. He was yelping, barking, spinning and dancing with the torch as he ran away from the bonfire. And then more laughing, yelping and dancing foxes joined him.
Matt was hugging Kyle from behind as foxes with torches were dancing around them as they ran to lanterns that the kit didn't notice before, lighting them up. Replacing the previous artificial light of street lamps with the warm glow of an ember illuminating the park. Some of them run to those weird green tents, pulling down the fabric and revealing structures beneath them, lighting the lamps on them. Kyle wagged his tail, hitting Matt's legs as the boy noticed that those were food stands and game booths. Excited fox kits laughed around them as they pulled their parents towards them.
Some of the revealed stands belonged to other mammals. When all the places which belonged to foxes were lit up, other species grabbed their torches and went to light them up from the bonfire.
Matt continued with a smile as he watched the amazed look on Kyle's muzzle. "Each fox family took the part of the flame home with them and ran away before they could be caught. So other mammals attracted by the flame could catch a glimpse of fox tails in the forest near the wildfire."
