The next day, mom, dad, and Taisley shake me awake. The kits also help to wake me up. I blink my eye open. The sunlight comes in from outside and hits my eye. I blink at the unexpected light. I rub my eye tiredly, sitting up. "'ey. Are we gonna leave soon? Is that why ya woke me up?" I ask.
"Yeah. We're just getting ready to go. Ellie says that you can ride on her," Taisley says.
"Normally, I'd say that I'll just walk. But…I'd just slow everyone down. Besides, I could nevah walk wi' two broken legs," I laugh a little. "At least th' pain level is somewhat down."
"Well, that's good. We'll be leaving in a little while," Taisley kisses my cheek, amid the sounds of our kits acting grossed out.
Ellie comes over towards us. "Alright, Buck. Up you come," Ellie picks me up and places me on her head. She turns to my kits. "Come on, kits. You can ride on me, too." My kits squeal and clamber on top of Ellie. They sit next to me.
"Hi, daddy!" Raska squeals.
"'ey, li'l ones. 'ow are ya doin'?" I ask.
"We're fine! Are your legs hurting a lot?" Frost asks.
"No. They'll be fine. They 'urt a lot less than when they were first broken," I smile lovingly at my kits.
"That's good, daddy," Whisper smiles. All four of my kits yawn, their mouths opening wide, with their tiny teeth showing.
"Why don't ya four get some sleep," I suggest.
"Awww…But we're no' tired!" Talo whines, with the others joining in.
"If ya go ta sleep, I'll sleep next ta ya," I promise.
My kits yawn again. "Okay, daddy…" Frost whispers while yawning. They curl up next to me and fall asleep. Frost and Whisper both fall asleep with their heads resting on my chest. I smile down at them. I yawn. I close my eye. It isn't long before I fall asleep, snoring softly beside my kits.
I wake up again when mom and dad shake me awake. I crack my single eye open. I look at them groggily. "Wot is 't this time?" I groan. I sit up, rubbing the tiredness from my eye.
"Well, we're stopping fer a li'l break. We 'ave food ta enjoy fer lunch," dad explains. He hands me some fruit.
I take the offered food. "Are th' kits bein' fed?" I ask around a mouthful of fresh fruit. This has been the only time that I ate today, after all.
"Don't worry. They're eating even as we speak," mom assures me. I look over to see Taisley and our kits digging in to the grub.
I squirm a little. Thankfully, my parents don't notice. I look down at Ellie. "Can ya put me down fer a while. I want ta speak ta Taisley alone. Can ya leave us alone fer at least ten minutes?" I ask, speaking the last parts to everybody.
Ellie grabs me with her trunk and places me on the ground. Everyone around leaves our sight so that I can talk to Taisley without them seeing or hearing. "What is it, Buck?" Taisley asks.
I look up at her. "It's…sorta embarrassing…um…Tais, I…I 'ave ta go, an'…well…wi' two broken legs…can ya 'elp me?" I ask. My cheeks turn a bright shade of red. I'm embarrassed and Taisley knows it.
Taisley understands exactly what I'm trying to ask of her. "Of course I'll help you. Don't be embarrassed. You don't have to be. Come on," Taisley lifts me up. I'm astonished by that. I know that I can't be a lightweight. She takes me further in the woods.
Taisley places me under a tree. She helps me to stand, supporting the majority of my weight. My legs hurt from the small amount of pressure being put on them. Still, I manage to get into the 'proper' position. I let myself go. A puddle forms. I look towards Taisley. I'm grateful that she's looking away, or this would really be embarrassing. My bladder empties after a short time.
I open my mouth. However, I can't fine the words to speak. Thankfully, I don't need to. Taisley speaks first. "Buck, don't be embarrassed. Your legs are broken. I kind of expected that you'd need this kind of help," Taisley kisses my cheek. She carries me back to the place where the herd left us.
We wait there for only a couple of minutes before my family and the herd returns. "Hey, Buck. Are you okay?" Ellie asks.
"Yeah. Of course I am," I assure her. I look around the area. "We should probably head out again," I suggest.
"Alright," Ellie replies. She picks me up and places me back on her head where my kits are resting.
Frost giggles at the sight of me. "Hi, daddy!" She hugs me.
"Hi, kits. How're ya doin'?" I ask, addressing all four of the kits.
"We're fine, daddy. We love you!" Whisper squeals. She, Raska, and Talo join Frost in hugging me.
"I love ya, too," I smile. We lay back into Ellie's fur and enjoy our nice, warm ride.
A few hours later, we stop at a cave. We'll stay at the cave for the night. Manny and Ellie bring some fruit here. We eat up. Mom and dad go fishing. They bring all us weasels some fish. We dig in, grateful for our buffet.
When we finish eating, my family starts forming their nests. Taisley works on my nest alone, considering I have a limited range of motion. The only reason that I have my own nest is because of my broken legs. I need more room in order to heal well.
I curl up on the nest. I look up at Taisley. "Thanks. I wish my legs were healed. I miss sleepin' wi' ya," I whine.
"I know, Buck. Don't worry. Your legs will heal in no time," Taisley strokes my forehead. I smile up at Taisley. I close my eye and fall asleep.
I wake up maybe a couple of hours later. Everyone else is still asleep. I squirm a little, finding that I have to go. I am afraid of waking Taisley up because the others might wake up, too. I don't want to crawl out for the same exact reason. In the end, I just close my eye. I barely manage to drift off to sleep, ignoring my own discomfort.
I wake up about an hour later. I still have to go. I feel like I'm bursting! I squirm uncomfortably. I only hope that I can wait until Taisley wakes up. As it is, though, I doubt it. I squirm some more, my face tight with discomfort. My eye waters a little with the strain. I know that I can't hold it for long. Without warning, all the contents of my bladder gush out. A puddle forms in my nest. After that, my bowels decide that they can't hold their contents either. I end up with a messier accident than I would've originally guessed. My face turns beet red from the humiliation. My single eye is wide with horror.
I look around the cave. Everyone is still asleep, thank goodness. I see that Taisley is also asleep. "Tais! Tais, wake up!" I call in a hoarse whisper.
Taisley stirs as she wakes up. She gets up from her nest and comes over towards me. "Buck? What is…oh…" Taisley can clearly see what has happened.
I look away. "Please…don't say anythin'…Just…can ya 'elp me without waking th' others?" I ask.
"Of course I will, Buck. Just hold tight. No need to be embarrassed. It happens to everyone," Taisley tries to soothe me.
I nod my head. "'kay…" I mumble. Taisley carries me outside and places me on a flat rock. She goes back inside. Taisley comes out a moment later with an armful of soiled leaves. After she disposes of the leaves in the forest somewhere, she returns with a pawful of new leaves.
Taisley looks at me. "I'll go clean up the place where your old nest was. I'll make your new nest. Then, I'll come back and help you get cleaned up." She heads inside.
Taisley comes back out a minute later. She lifts me up and carries me to the nearby pond. She uses wet leaves and helps me clean myself up. When that task is finished, Taisley carries me back to my nest. Thankfully, everyone else is still asleep.
I curl back up in my new nest. I look at Taisley, my single eye gleaming. "Thanks, Tais," I whisper while smiling.
Taisley smiles back. "Your welcome. Now, get some more rest."
I nod my head. I lay my head back down on my nest. I close my one eye. I'm soon asleep, snoring softly in this temporary home.