Chapter 4
The next few months flew by faster than expected. General Pepper had announced to the whole Academy that James and Maverick were doing one of the advanced training plans. Andross also stopped bothering James and Maverick. It was the last day at the Academy before Thanksgiving and everybody is excited to go see their families. James was still waiting patiently for Maverick to decide if he wants to join his family for Thanksgiving. The two were sitting at their usual table for lunch and James said, "So, Mav, tomorrow's Thanksgiving."
"That it is, James" Maverick replied, "What's your point?"
"I was just thinking, you haven't told me whether or not you're going to bring Lana and Wolf over for Thanksgiving" he explained.
"I haven't?" he asked, "I thought it was obvious that I agreed to joining you, if not then, yes Lana, Wolf, and I would love to join your family."
"That's great!" James exclaimed, "I can't wait to meet them!"
"What are you boys talking about?" Pepper asked, as he and Bandit joined them.
"Just talking about tomorrow" Maverick stated.
"Ah, that's fun!" he nodded, "I can't believe it's Thanksgiving tomorrow."
"I know what you mean, Theo!" Bandit commented, "Thanksgiving is my favorite holiday!"
"I can't believe it's been four months since we started here" Maverick acknowledged.
"You boys have been doing a great job following that training plan of yours, so far" Pepper complemented.
"The toughest part about doing it so far is everyone looking at us like we're insane" James admitted.
"Well, you are insane, but I can see why that would be difficult" Bandit stated, "no one likes to be judged for doing something different."
"I wouldn't go as far as to call us insane" Maverick argued, "just that we have higher expectations of what we do compared to others here."
"So, explain to us, again, what's the big change between doing the normal six-years and the four-year plan you're trying to do?" Pepper asked.
"As far as we can tell, the first two years of the plan are the same as everyone else" James explained, "but the third and fourth years of the normal plan get pushed together in year three of the advanced plan and same thing for years five and six for year four."
"Oh, so the truly challenging part doesn't start for two more years?" the hare clarified.
"That doesn't freak you guys out?" Pepper asked.
"Not at all" James smiled.
"Okay, I was wrong you're not insane" Bandit replied, "you're psychopaths."
The younger canines laughed, "So, what are your plans for Thanksgiving?" Maverick asked.
"Oh, just the usual" Pepper replied, "since it's a day off for my father, we get to sleep in. Then, while we're waiting for the meal to be prepared, the men in the family all go outside and play a little bit of Earth style football. The one where there's lots of full body tackles, not the one where they're kicking a ball the whole time. Then we have dinner."
"That's what we do, except we go to my grandparents' place" Bandit added.
"That sounds eventful" James stated, "My family normally just spend most of the day watching the same style of Earth football."
"How about you, Maverick, what does your family usually do for Thanksgiving?" Pepper asked.
"Well, before we had Wolf, the orphanage didn't do much for Thanksgiving" Maverick stated, "of course, we had a Thanksgiving dinner, but nothing else."
"How is it now that you have a kid?" Bandit asked.
"It's the same tradition as before, just a lot more awkward silence because Lana's father hates us for having a kid at sixteen" Maverick replied, lowering his head.
"Don't let it get to you, Mav" James stated, "I've never met her, but I'm sure you and Lana are a cute couple."
"I hope when Lana and I get married, the two of us remain best friends" Maverick stated.
"I'm sure we will be" James replied, "I even see Wolf and my future kid being friends."
At the end of the day, the residents of the Academy began leaving for the holiday weekend. Maverick and James had said their goodbyes and said they'd see each other the next day. "I hope your time at home tonight isn't too unbearable" James commented.
"Don't worry, I get to see Lana and my little boy" Maverick stated, "I'll be stuck with her dad for a bit, but those two are worth it."
"Well, it'll only be for the night, right?" James asked.
"What do you mean?" he replied, "Did you think that Lana, Wolf, and I would be staying at your house the rest of the weekend?"
"No, of course not" James answered, "I guess I just didn't realize that you guys would still be living at the orphanage."
"Unfortunately, that's the only place Lana can afford to live at while going to college and practically a single mother, since I'm at the Academy" he lowered his head.
"I'm sure everything will be fine, but having said that, I'll see you tomorrow" James said, giving the lupine a hug.
When James got home that night, Marian and Robin were surprised to see him. "James, why are you home?" Marian asked, "Did you drop out of the Academy?"
"What? No, I didn't drop out" he replied, "they let us go home for Thanksgiving."
"Oh, that's wonderful" Robin smiled, "so how are things going at the Academy?"
"Everything is great" James replied, "Maverick and I have become close friends and are even following the same advanced training plan."
"That's fantastic!" Marian exclaimed, "So, what's Maverick doing for turkey day?"
"About that, I actually invited him and his girlfriend to come join us for dinner, if that's okay" James admitted.
"What about their families, don't you think they'll want to spend time with them?" his mom asked.
"See the thing is, Maverick is actually an orphan and his girlfriend's parents are the heads of the orphanage" James explained, "also the dad doesn't like Maverick."
"Why's that?" they asked.
"Because, because Maverick got his girlfriend pregnant two years ago" he stated.
Robin and Marian stared at James, shocked "He has a two-year-old and he's going to the Academy?" Marian asked, "Doesn't seem like the best thing to be doing. He should be working or getting some other kind of degree not trying to get into the army."
"It's okay, mom" James stated, "Maverick wouldn't be at the Academy if Lana wasn't okay with it."
Robin spoke up, "Since you already invited them, it's fine, but a little more warning next time would be nice."
"Sorry, I guess I forgot to call, but I've been distracted by our daily routines and next thing I knew it was November" James stated, "also, just so you know the General told me that sometime this year there's going to be a family visitation day where you come visit me. I'll try to remember to let you know when."
"So, have you met Maverick's girlfriend and kid yet?" Marian asked.
"No, tomorrow will be the first time" he replied, "I'm excited to meet them. From what Mav's said about them, they sound great."
"We look forward to meeting them" Robin smiled.
The next morning was the same routine as any other Thanksgiving. It wasn't until they heard a knock on the door that the day grew eventful. James looked through the peephole and saw what looked to be a small family of wolves at the door. He recognized one of them as Maverick, opening the door. "Maverick! So happy you could make it" James whispered, noticing the sleeping pup in his arms.
"Thanks again for inviting us, James" he whispered, gesturing to the other wolf with him "Lana, this is James, my friend from the Academy. James, this is Lana."
James held out his paw to the female wolf, "Ah, the lovely Lana, it's so nice to finally meet you. Maverick has told me so much about you."
"Really?" she giggled, as she shook his paw "He talks about me that much?"
"Well, you and this little guy" James said, lightly brushing his paw across my small head.
James led the wolves into the living room where his dad was sitting. Robin noticed the young adults walking in and stood up. "Maverick, it's nice to see you again" he stated walking over to the young lupine.
"You as well, sir" he smiled, "thank you for inviting us into your home on a day like today."
"It's my pleasure, even though I'm sure you know that this was all James' idea to invite you" Robin replied.
"Of course, I knew that" he smiled, "James invited me several months ago when we were just starting the first few days and I knew he hadn't talked to you since we spent nearly the whole day together."
"Is there a room I can put Wolf in while he's sleeping?" Lana asked.
"Yes, there is" James said, motioning for her to follow.
As the two of them were leaving the living room, Marian walked in from the kitchen. "Oh, Maverick, I thought I heard you in here! Where's your girlfriend?"
"She just went with James to find a room to let little Wolf continue taking his nap" Maverick explained.
"I hear that you and James have become very close friends" Marian stated, "thank you for looking out for him."
"Honestly, he's been looking out for me about as much as I've been looking out for him" Maverick replied, "we're an unbreakable team."
James and Lana walked back into the living room. Lana was holding a baby monitor. Marian turned and saw the female wolf. "Wow, Maverick, your girlfriend is so pretty!"
"Thank you" Lana smiled, sniffing the air "something in the kitchen smells good."
"Indeed, would you like any help with meal preparation?" Maverick asked, "If so, Lana is an amazing cook."
She blushed, "Oh, I'm not that good."
"I could use some help preparing some potatoes for dinner" Marian stated, "if you'd like to put your own spin on them, you're more than welcome."
"Really?" she asked, "I've been told I make a mean cheesy mashed potatoes."
"That's wonderful! I can't wait to try them" Marian stated, gesturing toward the kitchen.
Before Lana went with Marian, she looked at Maverick saying, "If Wolf wakes up while I'm cooking, will you take care of him?"
"What are fathers for, Love?" he smiled, taking the baby monitor from her paw.
While the women were in the kitchen, getting the Thanksgiving meal prepared, the men were watching the football game between the Kansas City Chiefs and Detroit Lions. Suddenly, some noise started coming from the baby monitor "Sounds like Wolf's awake" James stated.
"Yeah, what room did you put him in?" Maverick asked.
"Lana and I put him in my room" James stated.
"So, you gunna show me the way or do you want Wolf to start crying?" Maverick smirked.
James laughed, getting up from the couch "Are you insinuating that I might want your kid to be upset?"
James led Maverick to his room, before I could get too fussy, and the two of them brought me to the living room.
"Looks like someone's happy to be up from his nap" Robin stated, when James and Maverick returned.
"Yeah, I just hope he'll be ready for some food when it's dinnertime" Maverick replied.
"I'm sure he will be" Robin smiled, "I know I will."
James and Maverick sat down on the couch, while Maverick sat me in his lap. "So, how old is this little guy?" Robin asked.
"He turned two earlier this year" Maverick stated, "it's been a weird two years since he came into the world, but every day that I've been there has been great. Which makes being at the Academy so hard sometimes."
"I can imagine" Robin nodded, "but at least when you get to see him on those few days the Academy is closed, must be special."
"It is" Maverick smiled, "when I got home yesterday, Lana rushed up to me. I hadn't told her that I was coming home because I wanted to surprise her, and boy was she happy to see me."
"The two of you must truly love each other to be that happy to see one another after four months" Robin inquired.
"I think we do" Maverick agreed, "honestly, I can see myself spending the rest of my life with her."
"It's refreshing to see a young man wanting to be there for his kid" Robin stated, "you don't see too much of that these days."
"Trust me, I know all about that" Maverick replied, "that's why I want to be there for them, and I know me being at the Academy might not seem like I'm being there for them, but I believe that me being able to provide them protection from this world is the most important thing."
James smiled when he saw his dad's nod of approval. "You've got a good head on your shoulder there, Maverick" Robin stated, "I know you're doing the right thing."
Before anything else could be said, Marian spoke up from the kitchen, "Robin, can you guys get the table set, the meal is almost ready."
"Maverick is a bit preoccupied at the moment, but James and I can get it set up for you" he replied.
As the two foxes were setting the table, James asked, "Hey dad, do you know if we have a highchair or something for Wolf to sit in?"
"I'm sure we have one in the basement" he stated, "I don't think we ever got rid of it after you grew out of it, even though you were our only child."
"Okay, can you hold down the fort here while I look for it?" James asked.
"You got it, bud" his dad smiled.
A few minutes later, James came back carrying a highchair with a fox pattern. "I think I actually remember sitting in this chair" James smiled.
Lana walked out of the kitchen carrying some of the dishes, including her cheesy mashed potatoes. She noticed James holding the highchair saying, "Oh, wow, I wasn't expecting you guys to have a highchair."
"I guess my parents never had the heart to give it away" James smiled.
"Maybe they're holding out for the possibility of you having a pup of your own" Lana stated.
"That'll most likely be a few years off for me" James blushed.
"You never know" Lana winked, "life likes to throw curveballs at us."
"I'd be extremely impressed if I had a pup any time soon" James stated, "I don't even have a girlfriend yet."
"Don't worry about it" she stated, "it'll happen when it's meant to."
"I just hope whoever my future girlfriend is, she's as great for me as you are for Maverick" James admitted.
"Oh, I'm nothing special" she denied, "I'm just the girl that Maverick accidentally got pregnant."
"That's not true!" Maverick stated, walking into the dining room carrying me.
"What's not true?" James asked.
"What Lana just said" he replied, "sure I accidentally got her pregnant, but I have loved her for years."
Marian and Lana finished bringing the rest of the prepared meal out to the table and us six canines all sat and enjoyed each other's company. Maverick and James sat next to each other, with Lana sitting on the other side of Maverick and me next to her, so she could help feed me. "Wow, Mrs. McCloud, this is one of the best Thanksgiving meals I've ever had" Lana stated.
"Thank you, Lana" Marian replied, "your cheesy mashed potatoes are fabulous!"
"I told you she was a good cook" Maverick smirked.
"Mav told me you've been going to college" James began, "what are you studying?"
"Would you believe me if I told you I was going to college to be a chef?" she asked.
"Absolutely!" Robin stated, "Your potatoes are amazing."
"I thought you were undecided" Maverick said, surprised.
"I technically still am for this year, because I'm currently getting all my lame basics out of the way" she explained, "but in the past few months I've decided that I'd like to go into the culinary arts program that's being offered at Corneria University."
"That's great to hear!" Maverick exclaimed, supportively.
"Yeah and thank God the University has a little daycare for students who are attending or else Maverick and I wouldn't be able to be chasing our dream careers" she admitted.
"I know" Maverick agreed, "though I'd likely have you still going to school, and I'd stay home to make sure your dad didn't try something irrational."
After they got done eating dinner, Lana noticed I was getting tired again "Maybe we should get going so this little rascal can get some sleep."
"Lana, it's only seven o'clock" Maverick countered, "I'm sure we can let Wolf sleep in James' room again and stay for another hour or two."
"Of course, Wolf can take another nap in my room" James agreed, "maybe the five of us can play a game or something."
"We don't have much in the way of games to play" Robin stated, "mostly just a deck of cards."
"We can always play Rummy or Spoons" James suggested.
"Spoons is way too crazy for me" Marian replied, "but Rummy would be fun."
"So, how about it?" James asked, turning to Maverick and Lana.
Maverick smiled, hearing James' game suggestion "Rummy happens to be my favorite card game to play I've beaten Lana every time we've played."
She rolled her eyes, "You know what, yes we can stay so that I can finally beat you in this dumb game."
"Sounds like you two are very competitive with each other" James pointed out.
"Oh yes" Maverick nodded, laughing "especially when it comes to card games."
"I love it!" James approved, "The competitiveness only makes playing card games more fun than they already are."
"Alright, let me go put Wolf down and we can play the one card game that Maverick magically wins all the time" Lana stated.
While Lana was putting me to sleep and Robin was looking for the deck of cards, Maverick leaned over to James, saying "You've got to help me beat Lana in this game."
"Are you asking me to help you win the whole game?" James asked, "If so, that ain't happening. I'm way too competitive to lose on purpose."
"No, I don't care if I don't win the whole game" Maverick stated, "I just want to get more points than Lana."
"You're evil" James stated, smiling "I like it. Of course, I've got your back."
"Awesome!" he cheered.
"Just don't expect me to put you first" James winked.
"I wouldn't expect anything less from my best bud" Maverick stated, holding out his paw for a high-five "let's rock!"
"James and Maverick teaming up like always" James replied, returning the high-five "let's roll!"
Lana returned to the living room, "What are you two high-fiving for?"
"No reason" Maverick smiled, "just us being best friends."
The five of them spent the next hour playing Rummy and James kept his word by helping out Maverick and Maverick even returned the favor. Lana, being suspicious, asked "Is there a reason why the two of you are only connecting your matches and sequences with each other and nobody else?"
"I guess we're just that in sync with each other" James responded, glancing at his roommate.
"But, James, I have three queens and you just matched your queen of hearts with Maverick's Jack, 10, and 9 of hearts" she debated.
"Because I'm great at strategizing" James declared.
"I think we have time for one more hand before we call it a night" Robin stated.
"What are the scores looking like, dad?" James asked.
"Looks like James leads with 200 points, Maverick and Lana are tied for second with 180, then me and Marian are in fourth and fifth with 150 and 140" he stated.
James knew that he had to play smart to stay in the lead, but still needed to make sure that Maverick just out scores Lana. As the final hand was being played, Lana noticed James still matching his cards with Maverick. "You know, James" she stated, "you really should learn to pay attention to how many cards others have in their hand." James looked at her, unsure of what she was getting at and noticed that she had two cards left while he had five face cards and no way to match them with any of his piles or Maverick's. He tried to keep a poker face to not show a slight panic knowing that not only might Maverick get beat, but he himself might lose too. Luckily, it was Maverick's turn. He started laying down a few different cards James knew he could match with, and Lana rolled her eyes, seeing that he only had two cards left. James smiled, "Mav, you rock!"
"The bromance the two of you share is intense" she stated, drawing a card unable to make a play with what she had "I know the two of you were teaming up with each other to make sure that I don't win."
"Mav, I'm going to end this here by using some other matches that are available" James warned, "I think since you have two cards and she had to draw a third card means you'll just out score her."
"Do your thing, James" Maverick approved, "you did all you can. If I end up having less points than her, then it just wasn't my day today."
As if he was waiting for Maverick's approval, James got to his turn and immediately had all of the cards in his hand put down matching cards Maverick, Robin and Marian had played. After all the points were tallied, Robin read the final scores. "So, in 5th place with 165 points is Marian" he stated.
"Not surprising" she admitted, "it was hard enough to win just against James and Robin, now I have two more competitors."
"In 4th place with 170 points is me" he continued. The three young canines looked at Robin, anxiously "that's it, time to pack it up!"
"Dad, that is so not funny!" James laughed.
"Seriously, Mr. McCloud, you can't just leave us hanging" Maverick agreed.
"Fine" he caved, "just so you know the points for the three of you were really close. But in 3rd place with 215 points is… Lana."
"NO!" she shouted.
"YES!" James and Maverick exclaimed.
"James, you finished in 1st with 225 points and Maverick with 220, in case you were wondering" Robin interrupted.
After he said that James won, Maverick and James high-fived each other. "Good game, James!" Maverick stated.
"You as well, Mav" James smiled, "we should play Rummy more often."
Maverick looked at Lana, who was still disappointed to have lost. "Don't worry, Lana, I'll let you win next time."
"You'll LET me win?" she stated, crossing her arms "Uh no, the three of us are playing again during your Christmas break and next time you guys won't be able to team up."
"Do you guys want to come over here or am I going to your place for that rematch?" James asked.
"If it's not too much of a big deal, could we come back here for Christmas?" Lana asked.
The three young canines looked at Robin and Marian, as if asking for permission. "Now, James" Robin started, "you know our tradition of going to my side of the family after having opened presents here. Don't you think it would be good for the two of them to spend time with their own grandparents."
"You would normally be right, Mr. McCloud" Lana spoke up, "except my grandparents on both sides of my family are all gone and none of my aunts and uncles are really close with my parents."
"And I don't even know who my grandparents are" Maverick stated, reminding everyone that he's an orphan.
"Well, wouldn't Lana's parents want to spend some time with their grandson?" Marian asked.
"My dad still doesn't recognize Wolf as his only chance at having a grandson" Lana frowned, "my mom loves him, but she sees him every day and of course, we'll be having presents in the morning, but after that comes countless hours of sitting with my dad constantly telling us that we should've never had a baby at 16."
"Not to mention a lot of arguments between her dad and myself" Maverick added.
Robin and Marian looked at each other and Robin sighed, "If you really want to, you are more than welcome to join us."
"Do you know when we'll be heading to grandma's on Christmas day?" James asked.
"I'm not sure what time they're planning on this year" Robin stated, "but I'll let you know the closer Christmas comes round."
Lana quickly went to James' room to get me. As she was doing that, Maverick and James were discussing possible plans for hanging out tomorrow. "I don't know, James" Maverick said, "we see each other every day at the Academy. I think we can go one day without seeing each other."
"I know" James replied, "it's just tradition for me to go see a movie the day after Thanksgiving and while I know there might not be many good choices, it'd be nice to go with someone for a change."
"Your parents never went with you?" Maverick asked.
"No, they're not really big movie goers" James stated.
"Sure, I'll go see a movie with you, James" Maverick smiled, "maybe we can go Christmas shopping for a bit afterwards. See if we can find some presents for family and friends."
"I would love that!" James exclaimed, "Besides, this weekend will be the only time between now and Christmas that we'll have any chance of Christmas shopping."
Lana came in carrying me, as I had just woken up. "What are you two talking about, now?"
"Just talking about us going to see a movie tomorrow" Maverick replied.
"Really?" she asked, "What movie are you guys thinking of seeing?"
"I'm not even sure what there is" James said, pulling out his phone. "Looks like our best options are Cherry 2000, Teen Wolf Too, and Three Men and a Baby."
"To be honest, Teen Wolf Too sounds like it would be a lot of fun to see" Maverick stated, "Three Men and a Baby just sounds weird, and I don't even know what to think about Cherry 2000."
"Okay, I was thinking Three Men and a Baby" James admitted, "but Teen Wolf Too will be good too. I liked the Teen Wolf movie that came out two years ago, so I'm sure I'll like this one too."
"Who's the star of the movie?" Lana asked.
"It says his name is Jason Bateman" James replied, "did you want to join us at the movies?"
"You know, as much as I would love to" she started, "I don't want to impede your quality bro bonding time."
James and Maverick looked each other and smiled, "Lana, James and I get plenty of bonding time at the Academy, besides, I've missed out on having quality time with my girlfriend."
"Aww" James replied, automatically "Mav, I completely understand if you want to skip out on the movie and spend time with Lana and Wolf. I mean next time you'll see them is for Christmas and you'll see me Sunday evening."
"Dude, what about what we were planning on doing after the movie?" Maverick asked, "We won't have any other time to take care of it between now and Christmas."
"Way to be subtle about saying you need to go Christmas shopping tomorrow" Lana smirked, "look, we can spend some time together while James is at his movie, and he can call you when the movie finishes so you two can go find some presents."
"Alright, kids" Robin interrupted, "us old folks are going to bed now. It was nice meeting the two of you. Have a safe drive home."
"Good night, Mr. McCloud" Maverick replied, "thank you again, for letting us be part of your Thanksgiving Day celebration."