Hello there, readers! I'm super excited to bring to you the newest chapter of Found! I hope that you enjoy it!

 

 

 

 

 

Found (Chapter 7)

 

by

 

Elite Shade

 

 

 

 

 

"After Alice's match is when we were thinkin' of bringin' the pups up to the ranch fer a visit, Ma," Vernon said as Dawn lay beside him in their bed, smiling contentedly as his free arm held her small body close to his much larger frame. Vernon was presently on the phone with his mother. He smiled down at Dawn before continuing.

"Well of course we were plannin' on filmin' the game, Ma, it's gunna be her first match. Yeah, we'll send ya an' Pa a copy." Dawn smiled as she listened to Vernon's half of the conversation, the Lovecloptian book she had been reading forgotten for the moment. She nuzzled closer to her mate when, out of the corner of her eye, she saw movement.

"Love you and Pa too, Ma. Talk to ya soon," Vernon said, ending the call and setting his phone on the nightstand. "Alright, so after Alice's game is when we take advantage of the upcomin' three day weekend fer the pups and introduce 'em to some more of their family," Vernon said aloud for confirmation of their plans. Not hearing a peep out of his ewe, the wolf looked down at her, staring at the door to their bedroom. "Something wrong, Floofy?" Vernon asked, his ears perking up at the sound of stifled giggling coming from the door. He noticed a certain furless paw holding onto the slightly ajar door.

"Somethin' funny, Lily?" Vernon asked with a smile forming on his muzzle. The little mammal poked her head into the room, looking guilty.

"I-I wasn't trying to listen, Daddy," she said. Vernon's tail thumped.

"We believe you, sweetie," Dawn said, "but I recall tucking you in a while ago. Did you want me to read you another bedtime story?"

Lily shook her head and gazed down at her feet, looking a bit uncomfortable. Dawn thought for a moment, an idea striking her.

"Did you have a bad dream?" Dawn asked, her youngest daughter's answer coming in the form of a sudden and rapid nodding of her head.

"And did you want to sleep with Daddy and me tonight?"

"Please?" Lily asked, looking up, Dawn seeing a touch of fear in her deep blue eyes. She and Vernon shared a brief look before scooting aside to make a space for her, with Dawn patting the space with a hoof. Lily wasted no time hurrying over to the bed and climbing up to crawl between them.

"Th-thank you," she said as she got herself situated, finding Dawn wrapping her arms around her in a protective embrace.

"Anytime, princess," Vernon rumbled, leaning down to give Lily a gentle kiss on her forehead. She mumbled something that neither Dawn nor Vernon could easily hear.

"What was that, Lily?" Vernon asked. Lily looked away before looking back up at their concerned faces.

"C-can I stay?" she asked in a small voice.

"Well of course," Vernon said, ruffling her headfur with a massive paw. Lily smiled a little, but shook her head.

"N-no... c-can I stay... here... with Alice and Trevor?" She clarified. It took a second for the two parents to figure out just what she meant, and both looked even more concerned before giving the little scared mystery mammal between them a hug.

"Well of course, sweetie," Dawn said, tightening her grip a little.

"Would you like to talk about it?" Vernon asked. Lily took a moment to think about it, and simply shook her head. "Alright, we won't go pushin' ya," Vernon replied, giving her another squeeze. "Just know that if you ever do wanna talk about it, yer mother and I are both willin' to listen." Dawn nodded in agreement, which brought the smile back to Lily's face.

"And you should know that you and your brother and sister are all here to stay. You're our little lambs now, and you always will be, even when you're all grown up," Dawn said, smiling as she felt Lily hug her back.

"Does that mean you'll still read me bedtime stories, even when I'm a grown-up?" Lily earnestly asked, causing a rumbling chuckle from the large wolf.

"Of course, Princess," was his answer, which Dawn was quick to sincerely echo. Satisfied with their answer, Lily let out a yawn, and closed her eyes, curling in close to Dawn, who slightly tightened her hug on Lily. Dawn rested her chin on her daughter's head while Vernon smiled. He reached to turn off the lamp and stopped when he noticed a hoof and a paw on the still partially ajar door, and let out another low rumbling chuckle.

"I think that we got us two more who might wanna join their little sister, Floofy," he said, smiling at the failed concealed snickers emanating not only from behind the door, but also coming from his side. Dawn rolled her eyes, also entertained by how amused the children seemed to be by her nickname.

"I think that you're right, Puppy," was her response, which garnered some more snickers.

 

The next day...

 

Vernon yawned a little and stretched, happy to still find Alice and Trevor in his arms. The little lamb and pup were curled up and only just now starting to stir. Looking over, Vernon saw Lily curled tightly against Dawn, the ewe awake and smiling down at the little mystery mammal. The smile on her face was quick to disappear, however, upon hearing some faint whimpers coming from their youngest. Dawn shifted a little, which resulted in another whimper and Lily curling even closer into her. Dawn started to look worried as Alice sat up and started to rub her eyes.

"Lily sometimes has nightmares," the young she-wolf sleepily mumbled, letting out a tired yawn and hugging her grey stuffed bunny, "of her mo -- her old mommy leaving and never coming back."

Vernon and Dawn shared a look, the wolf seeing the concern in Dawn's eyes. Resting her chin back on top of Lily's head mane, Dawn started to rock the little mammal, which was a bit of a feat considering that Lily was almost as big as she was, humming a lullaby she remembered her mother singing when she had been a little lamb. The whimpering stopped and Lily began to sleep much more peacefully, while Trevor started to open his eyes and Alice just watched.

"How about we go downstairs and get breakfast started?" Vernon said, giving the now awake Trevor and Alice both a nudge. Trevor nodded, his mind still a little foggy, while Alice started to get up, suddenly realizing something. Panicking, she swept her bunny behind her back, looking embarrassed, before hopping down off the bed and running out of the room.

"Allie gets embarrassed when people find out she still sleeps with Princess Floppington," Trevor said as he let out a yawn, looking surprised to find himself being carried out of the room, being transferred to a chuckling Vernon's shoulder.

"Well now, there's nothin' embarrasin' about having a special friend to go to bed with. Yer Ma will tell you that that's what I'm mostly for," Vernon's voice carried in from the hallway, bringing a smile and a semi-suppressed giggle from the ewe. She looked back down at her youngest daughter, still sleeping peacefully in her arms. She felt the unease at Lily's distress returning and simply resolved to lay there with her for as long as she needed. It was another few minutes before Lily started to wake up as well. She looked a little confused before looking up into Dawn's smiling face.

"Good morning, sleepyhead," Dawn said, planting a kiss on Lily's forehead, which brought a bright and happy smile, along with a tight hug from her.

"Good morning, Mommy!" Dawn still felt a rush of excitement upon hearing her new title. The two shared a hug, before Dawn finally decided to ask the question.

"You seemed to be having a bad dream there for a minute, would you like to talk about it?" Lily looked away, unsure of just what to say. "It's okay if you don't, I just want you to know that no one will be angry with you, not one bit."

"Promise?" Lily asked in a squeak.

"I promise," Dawn said, nuzzling her daughter. It was a few more moments before Lily started.

"I dreamt of when I was littler... and m-my... uhm... old m-mommy... went away..." Dawn noticed Lily curl into herself a little bit, as though she were bracing herself. Once Dawn started rocking her, though, Lily seemed to relax a bit, which in turn encouraged her to open up a little bit more.

"We were at a park. I remember that she seemed really sad and scared. She set me down at a playground, under a jungle gym, and told me to wait there... she said she was gunna come right back, but that she had to go away for a little while... but she was gone for a really long time... and she never came back..." Lily sniffled as Dawn just held her.

"Sweetie... did that really happen?" Dawn asked, perturbed.

Lily nodded. "I started to get hungry... but I didn't wanna leave the place she told me to stay, because she might not be able to find me again. But my tummy really started to hurt, so I went looking for something to eat. I left the spot, and it got dark out, but then the light came back, but the park looked different, and I couldn't find the jungle gym and... I got lost. So I hid, I didn't know what to do, and then a police officer, a great big grizzly bear, found me. He was nice, and offered to help me find my mommy... but..."

"They never found her?" Dawn asked, her heart breaking at the thought alone of how scared the little mammal in her arms must have been. Seeing the tears in her eyes prompted the ewe to give Lily another kiss.

"I'm so sorry, sweetheart," she said as she felt Lily renew her efforts to hug her close, offering whatever comfort she could to her daughter.

"I-I really wanna stay... with you and Daddy and Alice and Trevor... I d-don't wanna be alone again." Dawn was now holding Lily tightly against her chest.

"You won't be alone again, sweetheart," Dawn said, her own eyes prickling with tears that she was quick to blink away, focusing on reassuring Lily and trying to cheer her up. "You and your brother and sister are all here to stay, and I have no problem telling you that again and again."

"Thank you," Lily whispered, burying her face in Dawn's chest. They laid there, holding onto one another for a while yet, before they ended their embrace. Lily's mood had elevated back to its usual level of brightness. Dawn gave her one more hug and then let her run off to join the now audible giggles coming from downstairs. Dawn took a moment to wipe her eyes, smiling at the sounds of her happy children. She thought about what she had just learned from her youngest, and felt the pit of worry she had recently developed, ever since the adoption, return, not that it had ever really left. She reached for her phone and texted Judy, asking if she was going to be free this afternoon. She then took a second to compose herself, and then hopped out of bed.

Breakfast passed by in a happy blur, soon to be followed by a rush for everyone to get ready for their day. Vernon geared up for another day at work, having been hinting at his project and how it had been coming together. Dawn getting ready for an outing with Judy, after receiving confirmation from her about having the day off. And of course, they helped the kids prepare for school. Vernon took notice of how Dawn seemed to hover around the pups, especially Lily, and seemed to be more inclined to give them hugs and similar forms of physical affection today, but said nothing about it. At least not until he and Dawn were alone in the minivan, the ewe having returned after escorting each of the children to class, giving them all one last big hug on the way, much to Alice's seeming embarrassment, despite what her wagging tail may have been insisting.

"Is something the matter, Lamb Chop?" Vernon asked as he started to pull out of the school's parking lot.

"Oh, Puppy," Dawn said, before explaining to her mate what Lily had told her that morning. As he listened, making sure to pay attention to the road, of course, his ears started to droop and his tail tried, and failed, to tuck itself while he sat in the driver's seat.

"I can't believe that someone, a mother, would just abandon her baby like that! What was she thinking!" Dawn said, incensed.

"Well now, Honey Lamb, that does sound purty awful," Vernon agreed, "but to be fair, we don't know the whole story."

"She just left her, Vernon!" Dawn said, still unable to fathom how anyone could do such a thing.

"Accordin' to Lily, it seems that way," Vernon nodded, "but she was really little at the time, and, like I said, we don't know the whole story."

"Maybe," Dawn reluctantly agreed, "but I intend to find out the whole story. And when I find her... that female, I'm going to give her a piece of my mind for just up and abandoning my baby!"

"Hon'," Vernon started as he pulled back onto their street, "are you sure that that's a good idea? Whatever Lily is, she's almost as big as you, so I imagine that a full grown member of her species is probably purty big, maybe even bigger than me."

"Doesn't matter!" Dawn said, puffing out her cheeks in anger, which unfortunately, according to Vernon, and just about anyone else who'd seen Dawn's 'angry face', it was actually quite adorable, thus defeating its own purpose.

"I know that you can be a force to be reckoned with," Vernon said, holding back a chuckle, "but... maybe it just wouldn't be a good idea to make contact with Lily's birth mother. Maybe there was a reason, or maybe she never intended on abandonin' her in the first place but somthin' happened or... maybe she's... y'know... no longer around..."

Dawn's anger deflated a little, and she let out her held breath. "I guess you do make a good point, Puppy Love," Dawn conceded, "but... Lily still deserves to know more about what species she is... I don't know, I thought that maybe..."

"Information about her birth mother might give you somethin' to go on?" Vernon offered as he pulled into their driveway.

"Well... yeah. This piece of information that Lily provided might just be the lead we need to move forward," Dawn said as she unbuckled herself and opened her door.

"I agree, Floofs," Vernon said, his tail breaking free to wag as he leaned over to share a kiss with his mate. "And just remember, Dawn, if anyone can do it, it'll be ewe," Vernon said, smiling smugly at the snort he got from Dawn.

"Vernon! You promised that you would stop with those jokes!" Dawn said, reaching over to playfully swat the wolf on his arm.

"Hey now, ewe told me to stop, I never said that I would," he chuckled. Dawn rolled her eyes, smiling as she muttered about him and his dad jokes, and how they were now much more appropriate for him. With a quick goodbye, Vernon pulled back out and headed on into work, while Dawn waited for Judy to pull up. She didn't have to wait too long before Judy zipped up in the bunny-sized beat-up-looking truck her parents had given her last year. Dawn smiled as she greeted one of her closest friends, climbing into the passenger seat.

They started with the usual idle chatter as they made their way to their destination, Dawn talking about the most recent developments of being a parent, Judy excitedly talking about her police work, as well as news from the family farm back in Bunnyburrow. They pulled up to the newest cafe to have caught Dawn's eye, as it also doubled as a bookstore. Stopping to claim a table by the large window and placing their orders, the ewe and the bunny then softly spoke to one another as they perused the aisles, looking through various titles. Dawn told Judy about the children sleeping with them the previous night, which the officer found to be adorable, followed up by waking up and learning more of Lily's mysterious origin.

"So Lily was picked up two years ago, after her mother just left her in a park?" Judy asked. Dawn had known Judy long enough to be able to tell that the gears in Judy's mind were already starting to turn.

"Yes. It just made me so mad to think about... but... on the other hoof, now I have a little more information to work with for my research." Dawn picked up a small book of children's fairy tales.

"Has she given a description of her biological mother?" Judy asked, taking note of the frown on her friend's muzzle as she asked.

"Well, no, but out of fairness, a species this rare is going to stand out. All I have to do is find the park she was found in, and then start to ask around," Dawn said, putting the book back.

"Or Nick and I could do it," Judy offered, spying a detective book she had read when she was a child, her personal favorite of the Herdy Boys books, and grabbed it.

Dawn looked over at Judy in surprise. "Judy, I couldn't ask you to do that!"

"Why not?" was the bunny's response. "Nick and I can easily find and talk to the officer who picked Lily up, as well as ask around, And Nick is a natural when it comes to interviewing mammals."

Dawn rubbed her arm with her hoof. "It does sound like you can get further than I can on my own, but would that be allowed?"

"No rule against asking around if some mammals had seen a strange-looking mammal two years ago," Judy said with a shrug, noticing Dawn's growing excitement out of the corner of her amethyst eyes. "Besides," Judy casually continued, "as a potential godparent candidate, I of course want to help all three of your kits in any way I can."

Dawn froze, looking very much like a deer jogger she had seen once who had almost been run over after he had frozen in place, mid run, upon looking into a set of headlights from one of her neighbors' cars.

Sweet sawgrass, we haven't even discussed who the godparents will be! Dawn thought, feeling a momentary surge of panic.

 

 

 

 

Thank you very much for reading the newest chapter! This chapter was proofread by my very good friend, Trismegistus Shandy, a very talented author whose stories I absolutely recommend! Please feel free to tell me what you think of the new chapter!