40 Welcome Home

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I found a spurt of inspiration while reading over some of the stories that I subscribe to and thought I'd try to put out a chapter good enough to post by Christmas.

I'm also planning on dropping another chapter of Unexpected Consequences by New Years.

Enjoy.

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"Would you happen to have a sample of their music we could listen to?" asks Judy.

"We actually have included some cd's in the shipment that we brought for the store, as well as several of their cd's in the van." answers Yvonne.

"We'll give them a listen and let you know, probably by the time you get home." admits Nick.

"Thank you, Iron Eyes and Wolf Spirit. The trip has been both memorable and enjoyable. We will be leaving for the reservation when we finish our meal. Stay well."

"And you as well, Sees Far and Stands With A Fist. Mitakuye Oyasin!"

"Mitakuye Oyasin." echo Michael and Yvonne as they get set to make their trip home.

~0~

On a whim, Nick and Judy decide to stop by the new store to see how things are progressing.

Although the windows are blanked out with paper, the door is unlocked and the two enter, slightly surprised to see Bright eyes and Short Tail, but Morning Sun is nowhere to be seen.

"Iron Eyes, Wolf Spirit, what a pleasant surprise!" greet the two young mammals as the couple enters.

"Apetu-wašté cicala." (ahn-pay–due Kitala Wanji chee-chah-lah - Good day young mammals) replies Nick.

"Apologies Iron Eyes," quickly remarks Short Tail "we didn't think to address you in Lakota."

"It's fine Short tail," Judy quickly tells the young feline "Iron Eyes and I need to practice our Lakota, just as you two need to practice your Standard."

"We just thought we'd stop by to see how the store is coming along … but where is Morning Sun?" asks Nick.

"She went to visit with She Always Laughs and the vixen known as Skye to get some regalia to wear here at the store." volunteers Bright eyes, who is slightly apprehensive.

"It's fine, no one's in trouble." Judy assures the young cubs. "We had already told Morning Sun that it would be okay to dress in regalia at the store, and you may as well when you help if you wish." affirms Judy with a smile to reassure them.

"Really?" asks a surprised Bright Eyes. "We didn't bring much in the way of regalia; we didn't think we'd need any."

"Well, maybe She Always Laughs and Skye would be willing to make you some new regalia as well." suggests Judy.

"Actually, She Always Laughs and Skye gave me a couple of sets for the two of them." comes Sylvia's voice from the doorway.

"Syl-Morning Sun!" remarks a stunned Judy as she sees her younger sibling now dressed in a set of stunning regalia.

"You like?" asks the tan doe.

"Absolutely!" answers Nick "You definitely give Fluff here a run for her money! OOOOFFF!" he remarks and receives an elbow for his trouble.

Seeing Sylvia in a set of well-made Ladies Fancy Shawl regalia, Judy is speechless – for a short bit.

"It … it's gorgeous!" she finally admits.

"I also have a … Jingle Dress? … and some ummmm Northern Traditional in the works?" admits Sylvia.

"The yellow, orange and gold in the sunburst really do your fur color and your name justice." complements Judy when she can finally find her tongue.

"And the reds, greens and blues along the bottom really stand out too!" adds Bright Eyes.

Blushing more than a little, Sylvia tells Judy and the rest thanks.

"So, umm," continues Sylvia "I though that we could play some of these cd's to listen to set more ambiance in to store as well?" as she sets her old boom box on a section of bare counter space.

With that, she places a cd by Brulé entitled We The Mammals (We The People) in the machine and turns it on.

As the gathered mammals listen to the new age style music with flute and drums being the central musical instruments and old tongue Lakota being sung to the music, they all instantly fall in love with the songs.

"Sees Far and Stands With A Fist left several copies of about a half dozen different copies of Brulé as well as some traditional powwow cd's." Short Tail informs Nick and Judy.

"If they're anything like what we heard at the reservation during lodge, you can just play whatever your heart desires!" Nick enthusiastically tells the young cougar.

"I guess tha means we can call Michael and tell him that we'd be happy to have Brulé play in our little get-together!" Judy tells Nick.

"Absolutely!" is the quick answer, much to the glee of two young mammals.

Grinning, Nick pulls out his phone to call Michael when he suddenly gets an incoming call

Suddenly turning serious, Nick tells the assembled mammals "It's the sheriff …"

"Hello … Yes, this is Nick Wilde … I see …. Yes … Yes, I believe that's been taken care of … of course. I'll let everyone know, thank you for calling."

After ending the call, Nick turns and relays the contents of the call to everyone "That, obviously, was the sheriff. He just got word from the coroner that all of the tox screens came back as normal for the meds that Lefty was on, so he's calling the cause of death as natural. No foul play or accidental or intentional overdose is suspected. The coroner is going to release the body to the Hopps funeral director since he was already notified that Lefty was going to buried in the Hopps cemetery."

"I'll let mom, dad and Tina know right away." Judy tells Nick as she grabs her own phone. Once everything is set up, we can get a celebration of life set up after the funeral."

"And Tina is …." prods Nick.

"Tina is the head undertaker for the warren. It'll be a bit of a challenge for her, considering Lefty's size difference, but I'm sure she'll manage."

"Then I guess you need to get in touch with her and get things started." Sadly replies Nick.

As Nick and Judy exit the building, Sylvia, Short Tail and Bright Eyes set about getting the store completely finished for the opening in less than 2 weeks, with the two younger mammals glancing back and forth between each other and Sylvia, finally coming to an unspoken agreement.

"Morning Sun," hesitantly begins Short Tail "Bright Eyes and I have a question …"

"Okay …"

"The coyote you were talking to Iron Eyes and Wolf Spirit about, Mr. Lefty … he has no blood (relatives) to see him off to his ancestors?"

"Not that we know of, no." answers the doe, not all sure where the conversation was headed.

Taking off a small pendant from around his neck, Short Tail tells Sylvia "Morning Sun, please take this turquois and get it to Mr. Lefty. It is for Mr. Lefty's safe journey to the spirit world, it will help to keep him safe."

Removing the necklace that she was wearing, Bright Eyes paws her necklace to Sylvia telling her "This turquois is for you fursonally. I see that you have none, and I wish for you to be safe. Short Tail and I each have some in our medicine bags, so we will not be without protection."

Overcome by the generosity of the young mammals who she barely know, Sylvia can only stare.

Seeing the doe begin to tear up with emotion, the young cubs from the reservation move forward and envelope the doe in a joint hug, that's when the tears really flow.

The last few days have had such an emotional toll on Sylvia, especially considering that she has never had the support of anyone, even most of her family until just recently, that she can't help but break down.

As the sobs and tears lessen, Sylvia knows that the young ones are concerned for her. "Don-don't worry," she tells them with a soft smile "I'm actually fine, these are tears of joy. Please don't fret."

Visibly relieved, both cubs lessen their concern "As you wish Morning Sun." remarks Short Tail.

Looking around the store, Sylvia decides that there's really nothing more that can be done. All the display cases and walls are full of merchandise that has been inventoried and priced.

"Let's close up the store and take the rest of the day off." suddenly decides Sylvia as she turns off the cd player "I'll give you two a lift back to the warren where I can give the necklace to my sister so she can get Lefty ready for his journey."

After the short drive from town to the main Hopps compound, Sylvia drops the cubs off and heads into the warren to change out of her regalia into some normal street clothes and to leave the small necklace off.

Cautiously entering the embalming area, Sylvia sees Tina in the process of laying out her needed implements that she'll need to get Lefty ready.

Sensing someone enter her domain, Tina turns and at first a slightly surprised look crosses her muzzle, which is quickly replaced with a warm smile.

"Sylvie!" remarks the doe "It's great to see you, but … just why are you here? They haven't brought the coyote here yet, he's still on the way…"

"Yeah … umm … the cubs from the reservation gave me something that they feel should be buried with Lefty. I – I see that someone left some clothes?"

"Yeah, the panther, Midnight I think his name was, brought an old uniform by and dropped it off. Since Lefty was a vet, they figured that him being buried in his old uniform would be appropriate. So, what did the cubs give you?" asks the dark brown doe.

Holding up the necklace, Sylvia explains the meaning behind the item to her sister.

"I guess it makes a bit of sense, at least to them, no offense." returns Tina rather glibly.

"And you wonder why mammals are standoffish around you." counters Sylvia "And it has nothing to do with your profession!"

"What the hell are you trying to say?" asks Tina a bit hotly.

"Instead of being such a bitch, have some faith in mammals and respect what they believe in! I speak from experience, so believe me when I tell you that a little positivity will get you a long way. Take a long hard look at what it's done for me if you don't believe it."

And with that, Sylvia leaves the stunned doe to her thoughts.

As a slightly perturbed Sylvia makes her way through the warren, she happens upon her mother.

"Sylvie, what's wrong sweetie?" asks the elder doe.

Letting out a long sigh, Sylvia tells Bonnie about her conversation with her sister.

Listening patiently, Bonnie finally tells her daughter "Sylvie dear, I know that you must be a bit frustrated, but you've got to remember that not everybunny has had the exposure to the reservation mammals that some of you have, and haven't experienced what you have in life. It will take some time for everybunny to come to grips with those different customs and beliefs."

"I guess … but-"

"Anyway" interrupts the Bonnie "I'm glad I caught you when I did! Your father and I have been talking, and we've decided to give you the truck that you've been driving since you've come back to us."

"R-really?" gasps the younger doe. "Not that I'm complaining, but … why? Why now?"

"With you working at the store and looking to get your own place, we thought that maybe we could help you out a bit by giving you the truck. It's in good shape and shouldn't break down, and besides, after all you've been through, we thought that you deserve at least that from us."

"Mom … I-" as Sylvia begins to tear up.

Taking Sylvia into a tight hug while gently petting her ears, Bonnie quietly comforts her emotional daughter "Shhh, shhhh, shhh, it's okay Sylvie, everything's alright. I know it's been an emotional few days … but everything's gonna be alright. Welcome home sweetie, welcome home."

Finally managing to get at least a partial grip on her emotions, Sylvia tells her mother goodbye and returns to her truck and heads back to the store.

After a moments thought, the doe pulls a U-turn and heads toward Nick's shop.

Parking in the still almost empty lot (the grand opening is just over a week away after all) Sylvia enters the office and sees the usual crew going about their daily routine – with Skye, Tiffany and Josh hacking away on their computers doing whatever they were doing, and Judy gazing out into the shop through the large window that encompassed most of the east wall.

When they all looked up at the sound of the tinkling bell that hung just above the door, all went back to work except for Judy.

"Sylv-I mean Morning Sun, how are you today?" asks the slightly older doe with a large smile on her muzzle.

"It's okay Judes, I think we can use our regular names unless the situation warrants the use of or Lakota names." suggests Sylvia.

"I guess you're probably right." Judy admits "So, what do we owe the honor of this visit?"

"I … need to ask you for a favor." admits her sister somewhat timidly.

"And that would be … what?"

"Ummm, the space above the old store used to be an apartment before the store closed, and I – I was kinda wondering if I could use it as an apartment. Please."

Pondering the request for only a moment, Judy's answer not only surprised but actually shocked her sister. "Of course Sylvie. And since you're actually going to be working for Nick and I, we have a couple of stipulations that you'll need to consider. First, your cell plan needs to be added to the shop's plan, and you'll need to get at least a good laptop and probably a good tablet as well. It's actually shop policy that all of Nick's … and now my, employees are required to be in instant communication with us.

"Of course the shop will foot the bill for completely redoing the apartment any way you want it done. Nick did that for me before he really knew me and we weren't even dating at the time, so of course we'll do it for you. Plus, no rent since you'll be taking care of the store, all you'll need to take care of is the utilities. Do you think you can manage that?"

"… Judes, I don't know what to say!" remarks the stunned doe.

"Just say okay, then get your butt over there and figure out what you want done, then let us know so we can try and get it done before the store opens in a week or so."

"But it's so much …"

Taking her sibling into a hug, Judy whispers "Welcome home Sylvie, welcome home."

Pulling back slightly, Sylvia answers quietly "That's the same thing that mom said just a little while ago…"

Releasing her sister from the hug, Judy turns Sylvia and gives her a gentle push towards the front door. "Now, get moving so we can get in touch with Beaver Brothers Construction and get your place in order."

Giving the room a quick look, Sylvia gives her sister a quick hug and heads back to her truck.

When the door closes, Judy notices the other three mammals in the room giving her sly smiles "What?" she asks. "Get back to work, nothin' to see here…"

Hurrying back to her new digs (no pun intended) Sylvia parks in the back of the store and hurries up to what will soon become her new apartment.

While everything was actually in fairly good shape, it was all severely dated. Walls would need slight patching and then painting, new kitchen appliances (large and small) and counters would need to be installed, as the old appliances were in sorry shape and the counters and cabinets were falling apart.

As nasty as the neglected carpets were, the doe figured that Judy wouldn't mind if those were replaced, and hopefully new overhead lighting would be approved by her sister.

A quick phone call to Judy confirmed that anything and everything that she wanted would be approved, including new furniture including a kitchen table and chairs, carpeting, couch and love seat, end tables TV and stand etc. for the living room and all new bedroom furniture, all of which totally shocked Sylvia.

After taking more than a few minutes to totally absorb what she'd heard, Sylvia totally understood how Judy had fallen in love with her todd so quickly and completely.

With that realization fresh in her mind, the doe gathers her wits and heads back down to her truck, and heads off down to the local Horizon store to get a new laptop and transfer her cell plan to Nick's business account. Her next stop is the Lowse store to get ideas and prices on carpeting, flooring, kitchen appliances both large (range, fridge, microwave, and dishwasher sets, cabinets and countertops) and small (mixers, blenders, toaster, etc.) and estimates on when everything can be installed.

Armed with the knowledge that all of that will be installed and set in place in the next couple of days, her next stop is the local Furniture World store. Finding a great deal on new and expensive mis-matched living room items at a very discounted price (the store owner really wanted to get rid of all of the odd pieces) including end tables, lamps and the like, as well as a kitchen table and chairs and finally a quaint 4-poster bedroom suite, all of which will be delivered a day or so after her Lowse purchases were installed, a very worn out but extremely happy bunny doe finally stops by Gideon's Really Great Restaurant for a bite to eat before heading back to her little room in the Hopps warren.

"H-hey Miss Sylvia…" greets Gid as she enters the eatery.

"Hey Gid."

"How-how is ya doin' t'day?"

"Great Gid. Ummm, I see you're kinda busy, do you have a spot at the counter that's free?"

"Sh-sure, Darla is cleanin' off a spot now, so go-go an' have a seat."

"Thanks, I really hate to bother you when you're so busy…"

"Naw, it's okay, really. Wh-what kin I git fer ya?"

I guess a nice chef's salad 'll do for now, is that okay?"

"Su-sure thing. Miss Judy allay's has one a muh specials, will thet be okay?"

"I guess … sure why not! Raspberry vinaigrette dressing with it please."

"Ah'll git thet rite out fer ya, jus' a sec, okay?"

Nodding her thanks, Sylvia only has to wait a few minutes before her salad is set before her.

Reaching for the dressing, Sylvia's phone rings, and noticing that it's Judy she answers while pouring dressing on the salad.

Letting Judy know that everything for her apartment has been ordered and is scheduled to be installed in the next few days, the conversation goes on for several minutes until the doe makes a startling discovery-

"Oh my stars!" she exclaims in horror as she looks down and discovers-

"What?" asks Judy, concern plain in her voice.

"I – I've just eaten half of a chef's salad with chicken in it … I'm gonna die!" comes the frantic reply.

"Calm down Sylvie," comes the now amused response "you are not gonna die."

"But…"

"Sylvie, listen to me." commands Judy, just stern enough to settle her sister down a bit "First of all, a little protein is absolutely not gonna hurt you. Second, since I'm gonna assume that you're at Gids, I've got a pretty good idea how much chicken you've eaten and if you're not already sick or having a problem with diarrhea, you're probably not gonna have any issues at all. With all that said, you, like me, have adapted enough so you can eat meat without any adverse effects."

"Really?"

"Yes, really. So, here's the good news/bad news … when, not if, but when you start dating, if you start messing around it won't matter the species, you are apt to get pregnant unless you use protection. Do you understand?"

Stunned, a gasp escapes the does lips "R-really? You-you're not messing with me are you Judes?"

"Of course not! To begin with, I already know that you're not gonna mess around until you're married because of, well … you know. But you need to remember, Nick got me pregnant not once but twice already, and he's a fox, so dating outside your species won't matter when it comes to a finding good mate and the ability to have kits. Do you understand?"

"Y-yes…"

"Good. You've opened up a whole new world sis, like it or not. If you'd like come over to the house sometime I can give you a few pointers on cooking pred stuff, it's time you get used to the idea and the wonderful world that awaits you just in case you happen to fall in love with one like I did."

"I-I'll give it some thought. Thanks Judy…"

"Anytime. Don't be a stranger Morning Sun, Nick still needs to work with you on lodge stuff after all."

"I promise to stop by, I'm not sure when, but I will."

"Looking forward to it. By the way, the chicken chef's salad tastes best with Gid's special jalapeno ranch dressing. Bye…" as Judy breaks the connection.

~0~

AN: Turquoise is a symbol of protection, truth, and courage. According to Native Americans, the person who wears the stone is protected from harm, especially when fighting battles, while animals carry the rider safely and prevent falling off.

Merry Christmas everyone and please have a safe and prosperous New Year.