Tuesday Morning
Otto beat even Judy to his breakfast table. "Trudy! good morning grandkit."
Standing next to him, Judy said, "Pop Pop, it's Judy, she corrected him…"It's Judy!"
"You know I do that on purpose, I hope"...Otto laughed, "fun to watch the youngun's giving me the 'crazy old buck' look when they don't think I can see em.'"
"Yes my dear, I know it's Judy, did you talk with Nick last night?...actually, did Nick talk with you? I told him some things he could tell you."
Judy gave her grandfather a tight hug and sniffled just a bit, pulling back with teary eyes on his.
"Guess he did then," with his own sniffling after Judy's hug. "You really are my warrior doe, I'm so proud of you."
"Well, that's enough of all this, I've got a reputation as a grumpy curmudgeon of a buck to uphold." Otto laughed, "Your boy is still in bed? Nice to see you wore out your fox!"
"Pop Pop!" She squeeked! Judy's ears were now bright red, "When did you learn to smirk like that? You were only around nick for an afternoon!"
"What'd I miss?" Nick asked, "must have been good just looking at the color of your ears Fluff?"
Judy just stared and quipped, "Oh, not too much Slick, something about wearing out my fox last night."
"Ptttbyt!, That was a terrible waste of coffee Carrots! Think I swallowed my spoon" "Nice smirk Otto!"
Smiling, Otto noted, "Not one of my best, a low II on a good day, haven't been working on them much last 50 years. Smirking is an unappreciated skill, even an artform for some mammals."
Nick was nodding now, "Saw a Level V once, thought I'd go blind, couldn't talk for a hour afterwards."
"In 1943 had a sergeant do a Level V, scared the mules something fierce" Otto recalled.
"Ok, Ok," Judy said rolling her eyes, "It's getting deep in here and you two are really bringing out the best? Worst? Um, Fox in both of you…be kind to your bunny of tender years."
Judy had to admit, 'I've never seen Nick and Pop Pop having so much fun just chatting like two old friends…what am I missing?' 'Or maybe, what has Pop Pop been missing, he really is a new Buck, he's got a sparkle to him I've never seen, he's always been…sad I guess, or, just not happy. Nick too! It's almost like Nick's talking to his Dad.'
Giving Nick a hug and patting Pop Pop on the arm, "I hope you both have a good time today, bring your coffee with you, don't want the kits getting into it. I'm off to Gideon's to pick up some pie."
Nick looked at Otto, "Why didn't ever share with Gideon?"
Otto just stared a bit at Nick, "Son, do you really see Gideon as a warrior? Do you see him as noble, fighting for what's right, protecting others?" "He's the stereotype of a country bumpkin, a fox with no Reynard blood left in him, if it ever was in his family line."
"Nick, you're a Reynard Fox, it's a difference, I can see it in you…grab your coffee, let's go for a walk and talk…even better, grab a truck, let's go to the lake."
Kit's in school, older bucks and does working, the lake was empty and quiet. Nick brought a thermos of badger coffee and they found a pair of folding chairs in the truck bed. "First Class! All the way! I'll take fox luck anytime." Nick snarked!
March 1942
Otto stared at the lake…."Nick, I always hated being in the water, not a swimmer, I'm a sinker at heart…Basic Training showed me something important…keep this Hare out of water. Take a Hare, add a helmet, pack, ammo belt, pistol and a rifle…just add water…you get a drowned Hare. I think I swallowed half the lake."
Remembering the obstacle course…Otto laughed, "I could sneak, hide, crawl, burrow, go dead still and keep quiet…if it was dry, I was your Hare. Water, just kill this cotton tail now, wasn't happening. Luckily I was good enough in other things they worked around me getting wet." "Common consensus was, good thing I didn't join the Navy, would've probably been a pretty good anchor though."
"In Basic Training I met a lot of amazing mammals I'd never seen before. The predators were called 'Chompers' and the prey were called 'Cud Chewers'. I always got along better with Chompers. If you could do your job and didn't whine or make excuses, they were great. Cud Chewers, they were a weird bunch, most really big, but not friendly and almost never laughed". "Something about herd animals, just seemed to make for dumb and wanted to stay with "like" mammals.
April 1942
"I was paired with a Fox as my 'training buddy', I think it was done as a mean joke, Hare and Fox, not a pairing made in heaven or nature." "Fooled them though, we were the smallest recruits, both from the country and we weren't expected to survive Basic Training."
"My partner was a big red fox named Toddy Reynard, "Yes, Son, he was one of the famous Reynard family of foxes going back hundreds of years. It's how I know what a Reynard Fox should look like, and act."
"Remember the enlistment ad I showed you, "No Rabbits" garbage…turns out foxes weren't really welcome either…not officially mind you, but not truly welcomed. I'm guessing they paired us two gonna' fails together so we'd both be gone at the same time."
Looking at the Rabbit, the Fox wasn't sure what he was seeing, "OK Bunny…"
"I'm a Hare!" I said.
"OK Bun Bun…" Toddy smirked.
"I'm a Hare you toilet brush tailed, red hide made by the Devil, fur bearin' varmint!" I growled at the Fox.
"What are going to do, be a bore swab for artillery Fluff Butt?" the Fox smirked.
"I'm a HARE!" I yelled at the Fox.
"No, you're a Rabbit, I know the difference, I know Hares, you ain't a Hare bunny." The Fox quietly said.
"No, I'm a Hare," I softly told the Fox, "I'm a Hare, I can't serve if I'm a Rabbit, only Hares can serve and I'll be damned if I can't fight and do whatever I can do for us to beat these damn Devils." I just got very quiet as the Fox stared at me. He was confused, he'd not seen a warrior rabbit before.
"I was wrong, you're a Hare, I'm proud to meet you Otto, I'm Toddy, we are going to beat these REMFs, and go kick ass…and you've got the feet for it Buck!...Partners Otto?"
"Partners Toddy!"
At Hopps Lake Present
"Nick, it turns out that Toddy and I made a famous pair of partners…kind've like my grandkit Judy and a certain Red Fox have too! Sometimes mammals just click and have are greater than the sum of their parts…that was us."
"Toddy was a warrior, makes all the difference" Otto sighed, "but it can sure be hard on both team members at times. We didn't have a lot of spare anything between the two of us…both needed to work to keep the partnership humming like an 8 cylinder."
Otto laughed to himself, commenting quietly, "Good thing we were both young, immortal and kinda' stupid…sure helps in the Army at times."
May 1942
The early parts of the war were a truly experimental times, the Army was trying everything it could to stop what was, up till them, a route with a lot of lost mammals and materials. Turns out the Army, in its' infinite wisdom, noticed that with Toddy as a spotter, and me as a shooter made a great sniper team.
"Otto, we're good, me at seeing some mammal to shoot, you at hearing some mammal to shoot, and then you actually putting a hole in that mammal." Toddy snickered.
Scratching my head and pulling an ear down, a nervous habit I'd developed when I took off my helmet, I appeared to wisely be pondering Toddy's comment, "Think it's too late to work in supplies?"
"Otto, have you seen this crap? They want the two of us to train, not fight!" Toddy complained. "The Fox was mad, he didn't' sign up to train and sit home, they were partners, they could fight!"
I patted Toddy on the arm…"Fox, we may have a chance yet, if you trust me."
Toddy stared at his friend and partner, "You got it, we're a team, where you go, I go…BUT, they're not splitting us up…that won't be happening, that's my one condition."
June 1942
We wound up at Camp X, with the Office of Strategic Services, (OSS), unofficially the "School of Mayhem and Murder" officially named "Assassination and Elimination" by the SOE instructors….and the pair, Fox and Hare were together.
"Otto, what the hell were we thinking?" Toddy asked for the 10th time that day.
"What? Thinking? I thought you were the thinker, not me Fox?" I smirked back.
Toddy laughed, "Damn, Hare, you're getting a downright Foxy quality smirk going there, Level II at least, still not so good with the eyes. Looks like you're constipated or at least have bad gas…gotta' work on the eyes more."
"Ahem, gentlemammals", growled the Badger, "If we could get back to our exercise..now, where would you put the knife blade in the zebra (pronounced zebb-bra) if he was facing away from you?"
I smirked, "Do I like him or is he an officer?"
Toddy smirked back, "Hmmmm, well, the zebbbra does have more sensitive parts a bit lower we can get to nicely…bollocks are handy targets or the carrot and cabbages…perfect Hare targets Leftenant."
The badger gave a Level V smirk, stunning both Toddy and Otto…
"Damn, he's bloody well good smirker mate!" Toddy was impressed.
"Bluddy Hell! I feel like a kit again." Was all I could mumble.
"Now then mammals….the zebbbra" the badger quietly laughed to himself…"I like these mammals, too bad they don't have a chance."
July 1942
"We graduated, we've got a….patch…a patch of something sewn on our beret" Toddy smiled.
I wasn't happy, "Beret, great…try and wear one of those flat French things with my ears…taint' going to happen…think I'll carry it under my epaulets and wear a regular cap."
"I'm going home for a 2 week leave before we ship out, c'mon partner, come along. Toddy invited. "You'll love my kits."
"You've got kits?! Why are you here…now I feel guilty having you here at the pointy end of the stick." 'Oh jeeze, I really screwed this up, I didn't know'.
I sat there for a minute thinking if I really wanted to meet his family…stupid Rabbit…"Toddy, I'd love to meet your family…long as I'm the guest, not the entre'"
I got a good smack from Toddy, "Friends don't' eat friends…well, unless they're really hungry, or you've got good gravy and bread…Yummmm, good thing you're a Hare, they're bad to eat…too chewy. Now, if you were a bunny…with carrots and onions, that's good eating." Feeling Otto's arm, "I dunno, with meat rationing, you might be edible?"
Smack! "Damn Hare!" What I lacked in upper arm strength I had in foot power.
"New Reynard here we come!" Both partners announced howling as they left Camp X for the last time.
Twenty four hours later Toddy and I pulled into New Reynard and Toddy's house, we were dusty and sore. Two young fox kits came running out, yelling "Daddy!"
Toddy picked them up, swinging his little vixens round and round, small red tails trailing behind them.
Toddy looked at Me, giving a bow and saying, "Victoria and Molly, this is my very good friend and partner, Otto Hopps. He is a very noble Hare and very brave…he is my good friend and protects your daddy."
'I was in shock…I looked at these two beautiful little vixens, both with bright green eyes, gave them a bow and called them, "My ladies, I am pleased to meet such beautiful Vixens; Lady Victoria, and I kissed her paw, Lady Molly, and I kissed her paw." 'Evidently, I did the right thing…both little kits just looked at their paws, giggled and ran to their mother to show her their kissed paws.'
Toddy gave me a wink, "Sure you're not a Reynard Fox? You've certainly won the hearts of my little vixens" he laughed.
Toddy gave his mate a hug, wrapping her in his tail. He turned to me and bowed. "Abigail, this is my very good friend and partner, Otto Hopps, he is brave, a noble animal and a warrior Hare…I consider him family and a Reynard in his heart."
I looked at his lovely vixen, she was smiling at me and gave me her paw to kiss…she had amazing green eyes like her daughters, and looked so sad.
"I am proud to meet a fellow Reynard from my mate, you are always welcome and a part of my family."
"I'll admit it, I teared up like a doe," I'd never had a prouder moment or two mammals who thought so highly of me and made me a member of their family."
"Two small red vixens hugged me"
"Does this make him our Uncle Otto?" they both asked.
"Sure does! Go show your Uncle the house my vixens" he laughed as I looked behind me as his two little girls each had one of my paws and were leading me into an amazing house.
What a happy family the Reynards are…uncles and aunts stopped by, old family friends and even some Hares of their acquaintance.
"Which family are you from?" one of the Hares asked me, giving a rather odd look at this mystery longear.
"I'm from the Hopps family, were a bit greyer than the normal Hares". "I don't know if he believed me or not, I was accepted and part of the Reynard Family, that was good enough for me." I thought.
Hopps Lake, Present Day
To say Nick was amazed was an understatement. "You know the Reynards? You were, uh, are part of that family? You knew Toddy and Abigail Reynard, Molly and Victoria…Really, when they were little vixens? They're the closest things there are to Fox royalty. What about Samantha, the youngest vixen?"
"She wasn't born yet, but she was a lovely thing, very sweet to her Uncle Otto."
Otto closed his eyes, "Nick, they're my other family, my foxes."
Nick just sat there staring at this old Buck, 'Bogo was right, just listen and let him talk, he deserves it…he actually knew the Reynards! He knew Toddy and Abigail…the legends."
July 1942
"The Reynard family are archers, those foxes can shoot a bow. Toddy used a very very old longbow made of yew wood. I borrowed a bow, Victoria's I think, I couldn't pull Toddy's bow. Vicki thought it hilarious watching me try to shoot her bow. There's no sights on a bow, it's a real art to shoot one. Over a weeks time and a lot of laughing and being silly, I learned to be a terrible archer..but I did learn."
Toddy said, "Don't worry Otto, we'll work on your shooting when we got back to camp…we're bringing these bows along, better than a silenced rifle, deadly too!" He smirked, "Remember your classes on psychological warfare…an arrow sticking out of a mammal's throat you were just talking to as he gurgles his last…very sweet!"
"My bow is awfully light" I asked, "can I still use it?"
"Absolutely…we just need to get lighter and very sharp arrows…like butter through a…hmmm, well like butter through something I guess. Oh hell, it'll scare the pellets out of them."
I just smiled, "you mean like a carnivorous Hare and a Red Fox with an ancient weapon…they won't know what hit them!"
It was time to head back to camp. I really had become an uncle to these two lovely vixens…Molly and Vicki were crying, I was crying, Toddy was watching the three of us smiling away while he held Abigail. I had the first real family I had ever had, and they were foxes.
Abigail did something I didn't expect. She came to me, knelt down and gave me a tight hug…then, she marked me, as if I were a kit she was worried about losing.
Toddy just watched his mate, still smiling. "You're one of her warriors, one of her fighting kits, her Tod going to war with her mate!" "It's her honor to claim you as her's, to show she values you and your sacrifice, you're my brother."
"Hard to be a warrior when I keep crying," I laughed. The girls gave me another hug adding their own little marks. 'I don't know if a kit can mark anyone, but they did claim me as their Daddy's brother and their warrior.'
We left New Reynard and several days later were on a ship heading to war….bows, arrows and all. The Reynard brothers were off to fight.
Hopps Lake, Present Time
Otto was sitting quietly, very quietly. Whatever was going through his head was his alone.
Nick, didn't know what to say, 'I can't even work up a smirk' he laughed to himself. 'I have got to write this down, don't know if Otto will let me have his logs/diaries'. 'I don't even want to talk to disturb this old Buck, I have nothing to compare with what he's seen and the, Oh Cheese and Crackers, jeeze, I sound like Judy. He's a Reynard, this old Buck is actually a combat warrior Reynard, marked by Abigail, Vicki and Molly…and called a brother by Toddy."
"Otto, would you like to go back to the warren? It's getting late and time for dinner", Nick said quietly.
"Sure son, that'll be fine, they probably thought we stole the truck you being a Red Devil made Fox and all." He laughed, "jeeze that sounds so stupid, first time I said that to Toddy he broke up laughing..I'll admit, my smirks back then really were poor, it's the eyes, just not good with the slightly closed eyes, guess it's a Hare thing."
By the time they arrived back at the Hopps burrow, everybody was wondering where they were. Judy admitted, "I tracked you down and could see you two off by the lake," she sighed, "and no, I didn't listen in, I just wanted to make sure you were OK."
"Trudy, that's OK" Pop Pop snickered at his Trudy/Judy joke. "Feel better you know it's a joke cutie?"
"Wait, what…Cutie, he's calling you cutie!?" Nick squeeked.
"Nick, he's a rabbit, he can do that…remember?" Judy said, "Yes, in fact I do feel a lot better. I do love you, cranky and all my old Grandbuck" "I'm so happy you and Nick are talking and getting along."
"He's a warrior like you Judy, Fox or not, he's a warrior first, I'll always talk to a warrior". "Now what's for dinner, we have any chicken?"
Judy asked, "Pop Pop, you ever tried Buffalo Chicken Pizza with Red Beer?...it's really good!"
Otto just stared at his grandkit, 'Damn girl, you are a warrior!',"Nick, go get the truck, we three warriors are going out for dinner…think Bailey and Riina are available to add two more warriors to the crowd?"