Chapter Fourteen: The Menacing Miss Mary Mustelidae

A/N: Welcome to a "story within a story" chapter! Meaning this chapter, while still being part of the overall narrative, has its own story inside.

In "Small mammals, big changes". I had that short scene with Mary Mustelidae (a Mustelidae being a family of mammals that stoats, weasels, ferrets, and others fall into) because I was making it way too easy for Nick and Judy to adopt whatever kids they wanted. I needed to show that it was more difficult than that. But I also had every intention of bringing back Mary to the end of this story.

However, in my original script (in my head), I treated her like a joke. PARTIAL CHAPTER SPOILERS AHEAD: She's this strong-willed, snobbish woman who tells others how to raise their kids without having any of her own, she meets Duke. gets horny for him, they have sex and oops! She gets knocked up and she becomes miss Suzie Housemaker and in the end, I realized it was incredibly sexist and destroyed who she was. I decided to change the story by having her start strong-willed and end strong-willed. She does not change who she is. She's a bit mean and bossy, but ultimately, a good person.

This also gave me the chance to show some maturity in Duke's character. He's still an idiot, but he knows this. He also knows who's smarter than him. This is why he tells Judy that he will follow her orders without question. He also shows how loving he can be.

In the end, both characters are flawed but good people, and putting flaws in characters tends to make them more appealing IMO.

Just a warning, this chapter does have quite a few sex jokes and off-camera sex scenes. This means the scenes are just before and just after. I had a scene with Finnick and Vivian in mind where he shrinks down to an inch, but even in its censored form, it was a little too dirty for my tastes.

If I could draw, I'd really like to go into the details of how I see the Hopps' family home. It's large. Very large.

We have just one more chapter to go after this, then it's epilogues.

8:05 pm On the night of the SuperPower war…

Mary Mustelidae, one of the heads of child services, was furious at what she saw on the news.

There was Judy Hopps on TV once again. Telling everyone that they just dropped off all these super-powered children at the local orphanage. "I'm sure the nuns there LOVE dealing with new children with insane abilities! This is so like her. So irresponsible! On top of all that, she just asks everyone to just drop everything going on in their lives to pick up a baby clone of themselves! I can't even legally fight that because of their biological connection! What if the clone's parent is dead or...or a criminal?! Does she ever consider that?!"

Mary's sister, June wasn't paying close attention as she was dealing with two of her own kids. "I-I'm sorry, Mary, what?! Put that down, Marcus!"

"I was saying, this Judy Wilde infuriates me! She finds loopholes to adopt children without much issue, then, she drops off hundreds of children at a local orphanage that I'm sure can't handle that amount of children and tells everyone to go pick up their clone, like it's a prize!"

"I'm sure she wants what's best for these children. She's just going about it all wrong. Give that back, Marcus! Don't make me chase you!"

"And now, she just drops off some paperwork and takes a bat orphan home with her, and this Weaselton fellow has two orphaned children that have been missing for almost two years! Tomorrow, I'm going down to Bunnyburrow and take those children from her! She has no right to just pick up these kids like she's in a supermarket. You have to go through the system!"

June had gotten the glass mug away from her toddler son with one paw as she was holding her baby daughter in the other. "But what if the bat is in a good environment? If the children are happy, isn't that what's most important?"

"June, you don't know what it's like to care for children."

"Excuse me?!"

"Legally I mean. You are responsible for those two while I have to care for thousands. Making sure they go to the right homes. Making sure they're cared for. It's a daunting task!"

"I know it is, sis! But most of these folks want what's best for the children too. I think you'll understand that more when you become a parent yourself one day."

Mary chuckled. "Perish the thought! I see what you go through each day and it's like a contraceptive to me. Not that I have much luck with men anyway. They find me too…"

"Bossy?"

"Intimidating. I'm a very strong woman and a lot of men are put off by that." She watches the TV some more. "And now, her blasted fox husband is making an advertisement for the children like they're a used car! That's it! I'm going down there first thing tomorrow and giving them a piece of my mind!"

Hours later, at Stu's home…

Finnick had arrived with his family in tow. He parked at the Hopps family parking lot which consisted of hundreds of vehicles. The family walked across the street. Vivian had the pups all in a basket. "Now, remember dear. We're parked at E6."

"This house has too many damn people."

Nick greeted them outside. "Hey, guys! You finally made it! Stu can't wait to show us around. Did you get a chance to eat yet?"

"We went through a drive-thru on the way."

"Great! You have to go through this front door over here. The kitchen door is still a bit too small. Well, for mom. Definitely not for you."

"Shut yer face! Let's see this 'fox den' of his."

"Right. Bit ironic hunh? We go from Foxden to a fox den."

"Like Ray-yane on yer weddin' day. Hurry up."

They entered through the front door and into the living room. Vivian looked all around. "I still can't get over how big this living room is! It's part home theater, part open lobby of a hotel." She looked behind her at the columns holding several floors above her. "It's simply amazing!"

Stu finally came by. "Okay! Is everyone ready to see their new home? Where's Duke?"

Duke raised his paw. "Right here! We wuz just watchin' Floatzen' on da big screen. It's like bein' at 'da movies! I love it here!"

"Glad to hear that. Now, your new digs are nothing fancy. We took the old basement and hollowed it out some more. Had to be real careful not to dig too far into the cliffside or you'd fall right out. However, we found that we had dug so deep that when we dug out into the cliff we got to ground level. It's good for an emergency exit."

They went down the stairs where they found a new hallway with new rooms. Old, Hopps family paintings adorned the walls. "We pulled those out from the old basement. You can replace any of these you like. We just put them up here to have something to display. Over there is the first bedroom. It's for Finnick and Vivian."

Finnick peeked inside. "Nice! That's about the same size as our old bed. No furnishings, but we'll take care of that tomorrow."

"Sorry about that. Of course, we didn't know your house would be blown up."

"Sorry?! Look what you did for us, man! It's incredible!"

Stu chuckled. "If I may say so, I did outdo myself this time. Come. I put your nursery next door. There's a bathroom across from that room and then we go downstairs some more."

Nick was impressed. "You dug further in?!"

"We're bunnies, Nick! We burrow."

The stairs turned and from there was a massive hallway with many doors. "First up is the lounge."

"A lounge?! Are you serious?!"

"Yup. We got some old arcade machines that I was going to put in the ice cream parlor, but I realized I . Even got air hockey! There's a little bar with a locked liquor cabinet and a couch with a TV for relaxing."

Finnick loved it. "This is amazing!"

"We're not even done yet! C'mon!"

Stu led them down the hall. "Nick, Judy. This is your new room. I'm sure you'll find it much bigger than the old room, which by the way, is no longer yours."

Judy was a little upset. "You gave away my old bedroom?!"

"You don't need it anymore! This is your new room now. We even moved all of your stuff over. Except for that tiny bed of yours. I had to laugh when I heard Nick tried to sleep with you on that thing!"

Nick was embarrassed. "Yeah, that definitely didn't work out." Judy and Nick looked inside. Nick had to chuckle as they put up all of Judy's old posters as well. "I forgot that you used to be into 'Smash Mouse'. Did they even have another hit outside of 'All-Starfish'?"

Judy was embarrassed. "UGH! Don't remind me. Dad, did you… did you transfer EVERYTHING over?"

"If you're talking about your dirty magazines and fox… ummmm… toy. They're on the bottom shelf."

"DAD!"

Stu then whispered to Nick. "Are you really THAT big?"

Nick smiled. "Currently, I'm bigger."

"Goodness gracious! I hope you haven't torn my poor girl in half!"

Judy's face was becoming beet red. "Can we PLEASE leave and see the other rooms?!"

"Oh, sure!"

They went back out into the hallway. "Here's another bathroom and there's one more at the end."

"Why so many?" Duke asked.

"You have, let's see…. Three wives and how many girls?"

Nick did the counting. "Six total, including Bandit."

"That nine girls. In my opinion, I didn't give you enough bathrooms! Anyway just like upstairs, the nursery is next to your room and almost every kid can have their own room! I didn't account for the others, so they'll be in the two guest rooms downstairs."

Nick was surprised. "This is three levels?!"

"It certainly is! We were so close to the bottom of the cliffside that we decided to go for it. We've never been able to enjoy the back of the house without driving around to the other side,"

"What's at the back of the home, below the cliffside?"

"Come. I'll show you.

Stru followed them downstairs. "There's a room for Duke and a room for Bandit and Smokehouse."

Bandit corrected him. "Smokey. Although we're gonna start going by Wendy and Charlie again."

"Sorry. Now out this hallway is your emergency exit or just an area to get away for a bit."

He opened the door and they could not believe it. "It's a… forest?" Finnick asked.

"Not a forest. It's got a few trees, but the nice thing is the river about a quarter-mile out."

Finnick got real excited. "There's a river?!"

"Oh yeah. Connects to the lake a few miles down. You can go swimming or even fish trout. Normally we either have to hike or take our trucks down over to get to it."

"Alright! Screw getting my own place! I'm living here for life!""

Vivian snapped at him. "Finnick!"

"Sorry. I-I mean, this is very generous of you and we'll try not to abuse your hospitality."

Moment's later…

"I no wanna room by myself!" Penny cried. "I get scared!"

"Grandpa got me another bunk bed because he knows I like heights," Greg replied. "You can still share a room with me if you want."

Penny hugged her brother. "Yaay!"

Nick then addressed Joseph. "And you are sharing a room with Fixer."

"No!" Joseph protested. "Yi vant my own room!"

"I know, but we don't trust you not to sneak Wendy or one of her dupes into your room. Stu's gonna put wire mesh along the ceiling tomorrow, but for now, he'll hang of this coat rack. Is that okay, Fixer?"

"Yes, daddy!" The bat cheerfully replied. "Joe! Daddy's gonna pay me $10 every time I snitch on you! Isn't that great?!"

"GRRR!"

Meanwhile, Duke helped tuck his kids into bed. 'Night, Sweetie. I'd say 'don't stay up too late, but we currently have nothing right now. Finn's done good enough with'dat 'Baby Fox' 'ting 'dat he's gonna help us buy some stuff 'dis weekend."

Wendy chuckled. "I don't know if I'm gonna get used to having a soft bed instead of a couch with a spring poking my back."

"Heh-heh! I 'tink you'll manage, kiddo." He then went over to Smokey's crib and patted his head. "You doin' okay, Charlie?"

"You daddy now?!"

"'Dat's right, little man!"

"When you get mommy?"

"Oh, ho-ho! Probably sooner 'dan later. I'm handsome now and I bet 'da chicks are gonna go nuts fer me in a uniform. Now, get 'ta sleep and don't keep yer big sister up, okay?"

"'Kay! Night-night!"

"Night-night."

Meanwhile, Finnick and Vivian put their puppies in the nursery and went to bed. Nick and Judy kissed their children goodnight and returned to their room. Nick gave Judy a pat on the rump. "So, you… wanna test out the new bed?"

"You wanna try my fox toy?"

"I'm not that adventurous… yet. I'm just wondering if it'll be safe For us to make love with us still having super-powers, even if they've been dulled."

"Only one way to find out."

Judy kissed Nick deeply and pulled him onto the bed.

Ten minutes later…

"Ow," Nick said.

They were lying naked side by side in the bed. Judy had some minor bruises while every fiber of Nick's fur was standing straight up like he was a pin cushion.

"We have to get rid of these powers," Judy said.

"Yeeeah. That was both glorious and painful."

"You were too rough! And a little too big!"

"I didn't know my own strength! You can't talk. Look what you did to me! I'm gonna be combing my fur down for days!"

"I'm sorry! I had the electricity under control until the orgasm hit."

"It was like sticking my junk into an electrical socket!"

"You didn't have to bite so hard!"

"I couldn't help that! My jaws locked when I was shocked! I'm sorry."

"I'm sorry too. Well, that was definitely one for the books."

"Yeah, cuz the power, your supplyin'..."

"Don't Nick!"

"It's electrifyin'! Lectrifyin! Lectrifyin! Lectrifyin!"

"Hee-Hee! You're so old."

"Just well-cultured, Fluff."

The next morning…

Breakfast was done and Judy was helping her brothers and sisters put away the dishes and help wash them in the three sinks of the kitchen. As long as the table was in the dining hall, it was almost nothing compared to the size of the kitchen. After all, it had to accommodate hundreds of bunnies and now, several predator members of the family.

Finnick ran into the kitchen. "Judy, you best hide!"

Judy was confused. "What's going on?"

"I saw her park in the lot! She's coming!"

"Who is?!"

"The ferret! Mary Musty-something! She's with child services! She came by the old house before and she does NOT like you!"

"Sweet cheese and crackers! I'll deal with her."

"Do you want me to hide the bat?"

"Not hide, but… maybe take the kids down to the lake to swim. Okay?"

"Sounds like a plan, except bats can't swim."

"Then let him hang from the trees! He'll like that. Also, don't let Greg swim."

"Why not?"

"I could only get him to drink enough diet Pupsi that he didn't need a containment suit. He can still bounce so his body is like a hard rubber. I weighed him this morning. He's super-heavy and will sink like a stone."

"Got it. See ya!"

He took off and got the kids who were watching TV in the living room to follow him. Suddenly, it became a party of kids as they headed down into the fox den.

There was a knock on the door. Judy steeled herself to answer it. She opened the door. "Mary! It's so good to see you! I've heard so many good things about.."

"Can it!" the ferret snapped. "It's Miss Mustelidae to you. Where's the bat?!"

"Bat?! What bat?!"

"Don't get coy with me! You think just because you help people obey the laws, it means that they don't apply to you!"

"That's not true!"

"You think you can just drop off some paperwork and take any child you like?! Or worse, fake it?!"

"Hold on! I talked to those nuns before I left with Fixer !"

"So you do admit you have the bat! You shoved all those baby clones and superpowered to the orphanage without thinking about how overwhelmed those nuns would be!"

"That's not true! I dropped them off at the downtown orphanage because it's weather neutral! I then suggested to chief Bogo to ask the mayor for some volunteers to help handle all of those kids!"

"Wait, you got the mayor to get volunteers?"

"Of course! I wasn't going to drop off all of those children to a few nuns! That's why I asked all of the blood donors to pick up their little clones and for people to help adopt some of the superpowered children. That way they wouldn't be so overrun!"

"Oh!... Well… That still makes it hard for those children who are without superpowers and are looking for a home."

"I know. I'm trying my best to do the right thing Ms. Mustang!"

"Mustelidae! There's also the matter of Wendy and Charles Canudiggit. Two orphans that have been missing for quite some time only to be found in the custody of.."

Suddenly, an unknowing Duke came into the kitchen. He was wearing denim shorts and his old, wife-beater tank top. "Hey Cottontail! I found a new use for my power! Check 'dis out!" He flexed his muscles and made them bulge out. "I can make myself look extra muscular-like!"

"Duke, this is really bad timing!"

"Why? Who's 'da cutie? Is 'dere somethin' wrong with her?"

Judy looked over to see Mary staring at Duke with a lustful glaze in her eyes. Drool forming at the mouth."Hominahominahomina."

"Mary? Are you okay? You're drooling."

"Wh-Who is this incredibly handsome man?!"

"This is Duke Weaselton. Foster father of Wendy and Charlie. Duke, this is Mary Mustelidae from child services."

Duke panicked. "Child services?!" He got down on his knees and grabbed Mary's paws. "Oh PLEASE don't take Wendy and Charlie from me! 'Dey mean everything 'ta me!"

"Duke! Calm down! I'm sorry, Mary. Duke is going to be one of my deputies."

"Th-that's quite alright! I… Oh my!"

"'Dat's right!" Duke said. "I'm gonna be an honest weasel! Oh, please! I'll do anything!"

Mary bit her lip. "A-Anything?!" She shook her head to try and fight against the urges that started to overwhelm her. "Get ahold of yourself Mary! You're better than this! You're strong! Your… My, God! That face! That body! I want him so bad!"

"A-are okay, miss? Yer kinda malfunctioning 'dere. I..SNIFF!-SNIFF!...Ooooh! Heh-heh."

Mary tried to hide her desires, but she could not hide her scent. Duke knew what she wanted. He stood back up. A gentle smile on his face. "I know what you want, miss. And I can give it to ya."

"G-Give it to me?! I-I mean, I do believe we can both come… to some arrangement."

Judy had a look of confusion. "What the hell is going on here?"

Duke flexed his fake muscles again. "I do believe our lovely ferret lady had got 'da hots fer me."

Mary started feeling his muscles. "I do. Tell me Mr. Weaselton, can you make all of your parts bulge and lengthen?"

Judy was shocked. "Miss Mustelidae!"

Duke smiled. "As long and thick as I want."

"Duke!"

Miss Mustelidae shushed Judy. "Hush, Mrs. Wilde! I have come…"

"I wouldn't be surprised."

"To a conclusion! It's obvious you do care about the children's well being and since Mr. Weaselton is going to be the first weasel cop, which will no doubt be a great example for others in the Mustelidae family of mammals, I will grant you two custody of your children as long as this gorgeous creature takes me into his bedroom and does the most sinful things imaginable to me! "

Judy was a bit shocked. "Well, I mean… That's fine with me. Duke?"

Duke picked Mary up in his arms and gave her a big, sloppy kiss. "Let's do it, baby!"

Duke sent tingles all down Miss Mustelidae's spine. "Oohohoho! Yes!"

"By 'da way, you are on 'da pill ain't ya?"

"No. Haven't had luck with the men so I never needed to. Do you have condoms?"

"Umm.. no. You're gonna be my foist."

"Really?! But you're so handsome!"

"Only as of yesterday thanks to 'da bat. He can produce fruit from his body and make people look attractive."

"Oh. But what about this incredibly strong musk of yours?"

"It's my natural stink. Even Judy says I still smell like a sewer."

"Is she crazy?! Your musk drives me wild!"

"Really?! Maybe 'dere's more to this meetin' than just lust. Maybe, we wuz meant fer each other."

"No. I just wanna fuck."

"Works fer me!" He kicked open his bedroom door, threw her onto the bed, and kicked the door behind him closed.

The next morning…

Everyone was at the table eating breakfast when Duke walked in. "Any of you's ladies got one 'a 'dem peein' sticks?"

Judy spit out her orange juice. "Duke! That's super inappropriate! Also, it's called a pregnancy test kit."

A few of Judy's bunny sisters raised their paw. "I always called it a peeing stick."

"Me too!"

"I thought that was a common name!" One of Judy's sisters dug through her purse. "Here you go!"

Judy was a bit surprised. "Wait. How many of you have pregnancy te- peeing sticks?"

A few dozen raised their paws. "My family. I swear. Umm… Duke, does this mean she's…"

"I ain't got a clue yet. But me and her wuz goin' at it like crazy yesterday without protection. I mean we wuz doin' all kinds 'a nasty stuff. I thought watersports wuz like, jet skis and stuff. Boy, was I wrong! 'Den, when I wuz sittin' on her face, she…"

"WE'RE EATING BREAKFAST!"

"Whoops! Sorry. TMI. Anyways, she's been hidin' in my room all day because she's afraid 'a what 'dis might do 'ta her career. I dunno what 'ta do. It wuz irresponsible a' both of us."

Judy's sister, Pam got up. "Just a moment, Duke." She ran up to her room and came back with two rings. "These are from the men I've divorced/proposed to over the years. I got a drawer full of them."

"Wow! 'Tanks! B-But proposal?!"

"If you don't, daddy's got a shotgun with your name on it. Don't matter if she's not kin. You knock a woman up, you marry her!"

"GULP!"

"Just do me one favor."

"What's 'dat?"

Pam had a naughty grin on her face. "Start recording the sex. ALL of it!"

"Uuuuh. I'll ask her?" Duke looked over at Judy. "Hey, Flatfoot. What's her deal?"

"Her nickname is 'Perverted Pam'. I think you can figure it out from there."

Moments later…

Duke came into the bedroom where Mary was sitting at the edge of the bed. "I gotcha one o' 'dem peein', I mean. 'pregnancy test kits'."

"Thank you," she said solemnly. "I can't believe I was so irresponsible!"

Duke sat next to her. "Well… takes two 'ta tango. I'm at fault as well."

"But I'm a child services agent! I look after the wellbeing of other people's children! I'm supposed to set an example! I should be more responsible than just giving into my base urges!"

"Yeah, I know. Bandi-Wendy likes Nick's jackal kid, Joseph. He's a hard worker, but also a bit of a perv and mysongin- massage-o…. sexist. I caught 'dem swappin' gum once, so I know 'dere inta' heavy kissin'. Here I go yellin' at her 'ta stay away from 'dat little perv and I'm given' into my baseball urgings as well. If yer pregnant, she's gonna see 'dat as a free ticket 'ta do whatever wit' him!"

"Does she know I'm in here?"

"Well, she knows I got a gal over, yeah. Can't lie 'ta her. I mean, I COULD, but I wanna make 'dose ones count. I don't wanna scare her with 'da whole 'child services' thing."

"I told you. I'm not going to take them from you. I'll make sure you'll be given the proper paperwork."

" 'Tanks."

She stood up to leave. "Well, I better head to the bathroom. Moment of truth."

Before she could leave, Duke grabbed her paw. "Wait! Please, sit down fer a moment. I need 'ta know somethin'."

"What is it?"

Duke showed the two rings, shocking Mary. "Are you insane?! I just met you yesterday!"

"I know, but… I wanted 'ta do 'dis before you find out. I don't wanna just marry someone cuz I knocked 'dem up. I really need someone like you! I ain't too bright, you are. I ain't a good decision-maker, you are. You're a leader. I'm a follower. Regardless 'o whether I put kits in ya 'er not, I'd love to have you in my life."

"That's very sweet of you, but we barely know each other. All we did yesterday is have sex. Incredibly kinky sex."

"Yeah. 'Dat reminds me, I gotta turn 'da mattress over and wash the sheets. But we did talk a lot last night. You love yer sister, but think yer a burden on her. You worry you might be gettin' chubby. FYI, yer not. You love yer job, but worry 'dat people don't take yer advice seriously because you ain't got kids of yer own. You like 'dat 'East Wing' show on Hitflix and you love purple grapes the most."

Mary was stunned. "How do you know all of this?!"

"You were tellin' me in bed yesterday! Y'know, between 'da raunchy sex."

She swooned and touched his cheek. "You listened! Even the insignificant things! Do you know how rare that is in a man?! Okay. I'll do it."

"You'll go to 'da bathroom?!"

"I'll marry you, stupid!"

"Oh! Oh, 'dat! Really?! Cuz you can do better."

"Maybe, but I don't want 'better'. I want you."

Duke teared up. " 'Dat's 'da nicest 'ting anyone's said 'ta me!"

She took the ring. "Woah! Is that real diamond?!"

"I ain't sure, but it comes with a caviar."

"A caveat, you mean?"

"Yeah. Judy's pervy sister wants us to film ourselves gettin' freaky."

"I'm not doing that and risking the video getting out. I'll have a talk with her later. Time for the moment of truth."

She walked out of the room and over to the bathroom. During that time, Bandit sneaked past her to talk to her father. She had Smokey in her arms. "Okay, you finally gotta tell me who… what's that funky smell in here?!"

"Trust me, you don't wanna know. Look, I'm gonna introduce you to her in a moment. But first, I need you 'ta know somethin'."

"What's with the ring?"

"...Shit. I was gonna lead up to 'dat. I'm marrying her."

"WHAT?! You just met yesterday!"

"I know! I know! But I 'tink she's 'da one for me and besides, I… I wanted 'ta make sure she'd marry me for me before… before I had to."

"Why would you?... Oh my God! You got her pregnant?!"

"We don't know 'dat yet!"

"You get on my case for Joseph slipping me the tongue, but…"

" 'Dat's different! You two are kids!"

"How is it different?! It's almost worse!"

"I know! But… I was stupid, okay?! But I was also a thief! Are you gonna hang 'dat over my head forever?! 'Da reason I'm so hard on you about him is 'dat… It's so easy 'ta give into temptation. I know I'm settin' a bad example, but… I love you and I don't wanna be a grandpa in five years!"

Mary heard them arguing as she returned. "I hope my presence didn't cause too much friction."

Bandit got in Mary's face. "Okay, just who the hell are you?!"

"Do not swear in my presence! I am Mary Mustelidae. I work with child services."

Bandit hugged Smokey tight. "Y-You're not going to…"

"No. I am going to be your father's wife and your mother, and I am NOT pregnant."

Duke let out a huge breath. " 'Dat's a relief!"

"It is. Because what you showed me was how much you care for both me and her. I am not pregnant now, but I am going to make an effort to get pregnant as soon as possible."

"R-Really?"

"Yes, my love. But now, it will be for the right reasons. Not by accident." She then turned to Bandit. "Now, Wendy, Charles. I know it will be hard to accept me, but.."

Smokey leaped from Bandit's arms to Mary's "Mommy!"

This surprised Mary. "Oh! Ho-Ho! Well! I wasn't expecting this so soon!" Smokey nuzzled his head into her neck. "Aww! What a sweet child! He does smell of sulfur though."

Bandit explained. "He had the power to turn into smoke. We've been giving him the diet Pupsi to kill the power, but he still has a little left. Hey, ummm… If he accepts you, then okay."

"Okay?"

"Okay. I'll try to make it work. For him."

"Wonderful!" She got on her knees and hugged the possum girl. But then, she put a claw on her chin. "Now, let me tell you this. If I find that you and that jackal have been touching tongues again, I'll have both yours and his removed. Do I make myself clear?"

"Y-Yes, ma'am!"

"Not 'ma'am', mom. Now, get out of those pajamas go upstairs and get breakfast before it gets cold. I'm going up now to introduce myself. Can I take Charles with me?"

"S-Sure!"

"Thank you. He's a widdle sweetie-pie!"

Bandit watched her leave. "She's bossy and scary."

Duke agreed. "Yeah."

"But, I gotta admit, she's good at taking charge."

"Yeah. Our family needs someone 'ta make good decisions and 'dat ain't me. So. You like her?"

" I dunno, but I'll give her a chance."

"You'll have ta' once I marry her, and pump her full 'a kits."

"Daad! Eww!"