Hey there, readers! Here we are with the next installment of Found! I hope that you enjoy it!

 

 

Found (Chapter 28)

 

 

by

 

 

Elite Shade

 

 

 

BOOM!

 

Zach sat up with a start, practically falling out of bed. A groggy Vanna, a baby bump apparent through her pajama top, sat up. She blinked a couple of times before a bright yellow light flashed through the curtain of the bedroom window, immediately followed by another BOOM!

 

"Sweet sawgrass, what in the name of Oldwyn is that?!" Zach asked, throwing open the curtain. It only took the wolf a second before he saw the source of the sounds and lights. Over in the distance, perched on a hill, was the old Bellwether Manor. All of the lights were on, and fireworks were going off in the night sky near the building. "Fireworks?! That Dice fella better have all the permits in place, or Pa'll tear him a new one fer this!"

 

The two froze when they heard a loud thump and yelp coming from down the hall, in Marcus' room. Without hesitating, Zach bolted out of the room, tripping on the bed first but quickly getting up and practically sprinting to his pup's door, Vanna, worried about her cub, right behind her mate.

 

"Marcus, son, y'all alright?" Zach asked as he opened the door. Marcus wasn't in his bed, but was instead curled up a ball next to it. With each bang and boom from the fireworks, he flinched.

 

"Marcus, honey?" Vanna asked as she entered the room. Marcus looked up at his mother, tears streaming down his face, his shoulders shuddering.

 

"I... I thought I was back on the ship, and we were being fired upon and sinking again," Marcus croaked out through sobs. Vanna reached down and scooped him into her arms, cuddling her son close as she took a seat on his bed. Zach, his heart aching for his pup's pain, sat next to them and threw his arms around both of them, hugging his mate and his pup close.

 

"You're okay, sweetie," Vanna said, "it's just some fireworks at a neighbor's house. Don't worry, you're safe and sound."

 

They sat there a moment, Vanna and Zach hugging Marcus close, the boy's sobs becoming hiccups. In a voice barely above a whisper, they both heard Marcus say "All my fault."

 

"Hush, son," Zach said, flashing Marcus a reassuring smile. "It was just an inconsiderate neighbor. Y'all didn't wake us up."

 

"... N-no... not that..." Marcus said, looking down. Vanna hugged him tighter and nuzzled the top of his head.

 

"What then?" Zach pried, his voice gentle.

 

"Th-the ship... Captain Blackthorne and his crew... they wouldn't have been attacked if they hadn't taken me with them..." Silent fresh tears made their way down Marcus' cheeks, which Vanna was quick to wipe away with her thumb.

 

"Marcus, we've been over this, you are not responsible for that. The mammals in charge at the time were," Vanna said. She looked to Zach, her mate appearing just as worried as she felt.

 

"But... if I hadn't b-been on the ship... if I h-hadn't signed the--" An even bigger BOOM caused Marcus to flinch and reflexively lean in closer to Vanna.

 

"Marcus, that whole city was sittin' on a powder keg, the way things were bein' run. Somethin' was gunna set off a spark, no matter what you did or woulda done." Zach's voice was firm, but still gentle, while he tightened his own hug. "What's important is that yer safe, those that were in charge're gone, and Imma call up yer grandpaw and sic him on that neighbor, assumin' he ain't already gettin' into his cruiser to tell 'em off right now." Marcus looked to Zach and smiled. It was a small smile, but it was enough to set Zach's tail wagging.

 

"How about, after your father gets off the phone, we both stay here with you until you fall asleep?" Vanna offered, still nuzzling Marcus' head. Marcus nodded, letting out a yawn. Zach shared a smile with his mate before getting up and heading back into their room to grab his phone.

 

 

Less than ten minutes later...

 

 

Dorian was in his cruiser, the older white law wolf rubbing sleep from his eyes. He was muttering darkly as he drove up the winding road towards the brightly lit manor. He took note of the freshly manicured cubed topiaries that lined both sides of the road, having not seen them the last few times he had driven by the property. As he pulled up to the driveway, he winced at the sight of a well-lit marble fountain just past the steps leading up to the doors, carved in the image of a fox with its muzzle pointed straight at the sky, spitting an endless stream of water. In the U-shaped driveway, there were numerous cars and three limos.

 

Walking up the steps he could hear raucous laughter, and gave a side-eye to the coyote and wolverine, flanking either side of the door, both wearing identical expensive black suits. They looked calmly at the sheriff, one of them speaking softly into his cuff. Dorin didn't have to wait long before the new master of the manor threw open the oak double-doors. Kirin Dice was wearing a tailored dark blue pinstripe suit with a matching fedora, leading Dorian to believe that that was a common theme with the human in question. His cane with the silver human skull and its ruby eyes glinted in the light. Just beyond the scrawny, wiry frame of the mammal, Dorian could see various other mammals drinking what appeared to be champagne and celebrating, with gold and silver confetti still drifting downward from above.

 

"Sheriff, how wonderful to see you again! Care to come inside and join the party? It's just a small get-together between myself, some friends, as well as my new business partners." Kirin said, his voice, while jovial, still sounded oily to the experienced law wolf's ears. Dorian saw more than one female, and male, dressed in very 'revealing' outfits, suggesting to Dorian that they were ladies and gentlemammals of the night.

 

"Business partners?" Dorian asked, not liking the sound of that one bit. Kirin nodded, his smile growing wider in excitement.

 

"Oh yes, my good sheriff! Why, we have just finalized the agreement and shall be breaking ground soon on my newest project, a casino! It's going to be named The Zoodoo Lounge!"

 

"Casino?! Y'all can't be openin' a casino here in the Meadowlands, north or south!" Dorian said, struggling to keep a snarl out of his voice. He had just known that the shady human in question had been up to something. Kirin let out a laugh and shook his head.

 

"No, no, no, dear sheriff," Kirin said, removing his hat and revealing the shock of raven black hair while Kirin pulled out a red silk handkerchief and dabbed at his forehead. "I'm not building a casino here. I'm building it in the Nocturnal District."

 

Dorian winced, knowing that while still a difficult feat, if anyone was going to build a legal casino in Zootopia, the Nocturnal District was where it was going to be. Although there hadn't been one since the MGM Ram had to shut its doors after a fire had claimed over eighty lives and left another six hundred mammals injured.

 

"So, I suppose that that means that y'all are plannin' on movin' down there once things're up and runnin'?" Dorian inquired, more than a little hopefully that Kirin Dice would soon be moving elsewhere.

 

"Oh, not at all, dear sheriff," Kirin said, his grin taking on a subtly darker tone. It was easy for Dorian to forget that, as omnivores, humans were still predators like himself. Looking at Kirin's face right then and there was a perfect reminder, as it was most certainly a predatory expression on his face. Dorian felt his hackles raise. "I've grown quite accustomed to my new abode and the lovely countryside. I'm simply going to be living here, and doing all my casino-related business in the Nocturnal District."

 

Dorian sighed internally, but took some consolation in the fact that at least it wasn't going to be here in his jurisdiction. "See that y'all do. Also, the reason I came callin' tonight is that I couldn't help but notice the fireworks."

 

"Oh, yes, those. Well, I happen to have a permit for them right here," Kirin said, reaching into his coat pocket and pulling out all the proper documentation, which Dorian carefully looked over.

 

"Seems like y'all knew ahead of time that yer new business partners were gunna be agreein' to yer terms," Dorian said, handing the papers back to Kirin, who made them disappear up his sleeve. The human gave Dorian a wink.

 

"I like to think it was more... positive thinking." Dorian snorted at that.

 

"Right, well, permits or no permits, that is just too loud and we can't have that at this time of night. So I'm gunna have to ask y'all to keep the noise level down."

 

"Yes sir, understood," Kirin said with a chuckle, "as it just so happens, we used up the last of our fireworks, and things do seem to be winding down." A female voice giggled and called out to Kirin to return. "I shall be right there, my dear." Kirin then gave Dorian another smile. "Was that all, dear sheriff?"

 

"... Yeah, fer now," Dorian said as he turned on his heel and started to walk down the steps back to his cruiser. He felt Kirin's eyes on him as he walked, not bothering to turn around and see for himself.

 

 

The Next Day...

 

 

"Alright, class," Ms. Growliette said, clapping her paws. The female mountain lion looked about the room with a smile on her muzzle. "Everyone pair up, we'll be doing duets today." The assembled young mammals all shuffled about before they were standing in various pairs. Marcus smiled down at his red panda friend, Aiko, who stood next to him holding her violin just as he was getting his out of the case. Near them was Travis, the deer boy having already gotten out his acoustic guitar. His partner was Lizzy, the large young grizzly bear now sporting a green fauxhawk. Mina and her brother Ty were also sharing the class with the rest of their friend group, as had been discovered by the pre-teens, to be a happy coincidence.

 

"Try to keep up with me this time, little brother," the goat girl said, pulling out her flute, while the sleepy-looking raccoon boy simply rolled his eyes.

 

"Hey now, you're the one who went off the rails last time, getting lost in your own little world," Ty said, situating himself at the piano right next to his adopted sister.

 

"Now, now, you two. There's no need for surliness this early in the morning," Ms. Growliette said in her usual sunny disposition.She went to pairs of students, checking to see that each and every one had their own instruments out. Being a seasoned music teacher, she had been very excited to find so many of her students this year were musically talented. She had been especially curious about Marcus and what songs he had learned from human culture that he could share with the class.

 

"Now, each pair may play a song of their choosing. This is just a warm up exercise, so no pressure to play perfectly," she said, eyeing the young human boy. Each time Marcus had played, he had done so with precision and rigidly focused attention. At first the educator had been thrilled, until she had noticed how nervous the boy became around her. She had thought it was because she was a larger predator but, as unfortunate as it was, Ms. Growliette had soon seen the signs of past abuse. She made sure to pay him extra attention, and check to see if any fresh signs of abuse showed.

 

"Aiko, Marcus, would you two like to start us off?"

 

The duo both nodded and blushed and, after whispering to each other, seemed to settle on a song. After just a couple of notes, the teacher smiled, immediately recognizing Oxenbach's Porkeus in the Underworld. It was a nine minute song, and Ms. Growliette had intended for her class to play duets of 3 or 4 minute songs, but she let them play, having noticed a particular pattern when Marcus and Aiko were paired together. Watching she waited, and had to hold back a laugh as the two pre-teens looked to each other, their eyes taking on a competitive glint, and the song gradually began to speed up. The full song was played, but the time it took them to play it was only four minutes, according to the mountain lioness' watch. By the time they had reached the section with the cancan, their violin bows were blurs. They ended on the finale, still staring at one another, a playful smirk on Aiko's muzzle and a matching one on Marcus' face. And then both of their eyes went wide, and simultaneously they blushed and looked away.

 

"Those two need to just kiss and get it out of their systems," Lizzy whispered to Travis who held a hoof up to his muzzle, silencing his snickering.

 

Ms. Growliette congratulated the two, who hadn't missed a single note and matched one another easily, before moving on to the next duo. Class continued on normally from there, after each pair played their duets. Ms. Growliette then had them practice the basics, followed by a series of music sheets to play along to. She did have to stop Lizzy from going off tempo with her drums, the grizzly bear having a tendency to forgo the current sheet and go crazy on her drums. Travis was quick to reign her back in though.

 

After Music, Marcus had intro to chemistry, which he also shared with Aiko and Ty. Aiko noticed how Marcus flinched at the sound of the bang when Mr. Spottington demonstrated the effects of dropping a square of pure sodium into a bucket of water, but said nothing. The trio grouped up together for their lab assignment. Following along with the instructions, they were going to be creating a heated chemical solution that would make very old pennies (which had higher copper concentrations than current ones) a golden color. They took their notes and the class passed quickly.

 

Marcus then had algebra, having scored high when tested on his mathematic skills, which he shared with Mina, followed by P. E., where he, Travis, and Lizzy got to play dodgeball. At first, Marcus had been worried, but the soft felt balls didn't hurt at all, and the game proved to be quite fun for the boy, especially with how surprisingly skilled Lizzy proved to be. Being a much larger species, most would naturally assume she'd be an easier target to hit, but her movements proved to be practically graceful as she ducked, dipped, dove, and dodged, snatching balls out of the air.

 

At lunch, Marcus sat with his friends at a table, the group joking around and discussing potential band names. Travis had been surprised that Marcus hadn't heard about punk rock, and was quick to write out and give his friend a list of bands and songs to search for and listen on ZooTube. From there, the young mammals discovered that Marcus was largely unaware of many different musical genres, and each made different lists. Marcus was actually quite excited at the prospect of trying so many new songs.

 

After lunch, Marcus had history with Ty, the raccoon boy electing to ride on Marcus' shoulder while playing his new Scritch, video games still a distracting novelty for Marcus. Zach had spent a lot of time teaching Marcus how to play games like Pyro: Reinflamed Trilogy, and Starmoo Valley. Unbeknownst to Marcus and Vanna, Zach had also gotten his son a copy of the remake of Destroy All Mammals and the special edition of Skyedge to try after he had gotten comfortable with the more tame games. Of course, into Ty's backpack the Scritch went once class started, and the racoon boy was seated at his own desk.

 

The only member of Marcus' friend group to share his sixth period class, Art, was Aiko. The two were often paired together. The class largely went by without incident, aside from the students having to pair off and practice sketching each other leading to both the human boy and the red panda girl blushing as they did just that. It was after the school day had officially ended and Marcus, along with Travis and Mina, made their way to the baseball field to learn the results of the tryouts held on Monday, that the boy had been in for a surprise. Standing there, wearing the coach's baseball uniform and hat with a shiny new whistle hanging from a lanyard on his neck stood Zach, holding a clipboard.

 

"P-papa?" Marcus asked, confused. There were some snickers at Marcus calling Zach 'Papa', but he was oblivious. "What are you doing here? And where's coach Suricata?" Other pre-teen mammals in the assembled group also looked concerned.

 

"Hey there, Marcus," Zach excitedly said, his tail once more a blur. "Coach Suricata had a bit of an... accident... that happened after the tryouts ended on Monday. Now don't worry, he's gunna be just fine, but he's decided to take early retirement, and I've volunteered to be the new baseball coach. And, I've got the list of mammals who made the team!" Zach then went to the cork board that was on the little concession building near the bleachers. He removed a sheet of paper from his clipboard that he was quick to display prominently on said cork board. The young mammals crowded around it, some groaning and stalking off, others pleased with the news. Macus, leaning over some smaller species, was pleased to find that he, Travis, and Mina had all made the team, and was quick to inform his friends as much.

 

"I knew we could do it," Travis said, upbeat as always while Mina nodded.

 

"Agreed, especially Marcus. His sprint times were almost as good as yours and he kept hitting every ball pitched to him." The goat girl elected to mention how all but two of the balls Marcus had hit had also hit someone else, including Vice Principal Thumps, who had been sitting in his car, preparing to back out, when said baseball clocked the hare right in the forehead, knocking him out. In the process, his car ended up backing right into Coach Suricata's, knocking the bumper clean off. The baseball before that one had mysteriously vanished from sight, also having sailed over near the faculty parking lot. Having seen the coach's face, Marcus had been certain he would be one of the mammals cut from the list of tryouts.

 

"Alright, everyone!" Zach said, clapping his paws together for emphasis. "We're gunna start off with some sprints, and then practice throwing and catching!"

 

 

At that very moment...

 

 

Audrey smiled as she sniffed the freshly baked cherry pie she had just pulled out of the oven. Walking carefully due to the size of her pregnant belly, she carried the pie with potholders to her special windowsill. Setting it down, she made her way out of the kitchen, needing to relieve herself yet again. That was one aspect of being pregnant that she hadn't missed, although she was still bursting with joy and excitement that her girls were almost here. Shortly after the older she-wolf left, a certain woodpecker landed on the windowsill next to the pie.

 

Bruno hopped about the pastry and let out an excited chirp. Many mammals were unaware that woodpeckers, when they had been domesticated, had been bred largely for the use of woodsmammals and with tree farming. Their roles had been, and in some cases still were, to fly about carrying brightly colored small wooden poles with their legs. They would alight on tree after tree and peck at them to inspect the quality of the wood. If a tree was old enough and not suffering from parasites or other tree-related maladies, the trained woodpeckers would use the strength of their legs to jab one of the poles into the tree where it could be visibly displayed to mark the tree for harvesting.

 

The average carry weight of most modern domesticated woodpeckers was up to five pounds. With another happy chirp, Bruno hopped up onto the edge of the pie tin and secured his grip. With a few flaps, the woodpecker flew off with the pie. A short while later, Audrey returned to the kitchen, her tail wagging. Looking to the windowsill, her tail stopped, and she hurried over to check and see if the pie had fallen. Looking all around the window and checking outside, she found no trace of the pie. She knew that Zach was at the school, having volunteered to be the new baseball coach, and Vanna would never just swipe her pies. Then she heard Dorian humming as he worked upstairs furnishing the new nursery for their upcoming litter. Audrey let out a growl and already prepared her infamous Glare.

 

"DORI!!!" Her shout could be heard for quite a ways in the district. Bruno, off in the corn field heard it, but didn't pay it any mind. He was already covered in cherry pie filling and pie crust fragments, and was still pecking away at the rest of his ill-gotten gain, oblivious to the older law wolf's plight.

 

 

Meanwhile in the Bell-Hunter Household...

 

 

Lily skipped along the hall, holding up a new picture she drew for her Daddy. It was of him as a king with a staff, the top of which was an ice cream cone with sprinkles. She had left the living room where her Mommy was sitting on the couch, Princess Callibrie's head resting on her belly, to search for Vernon. She headed upstairs to what had been the guest bedroom that was being converted into Paige's new nursery. She stopped at the door to Alice's room, spying her big sister angrily stuffing clothes into her backpack.

 

"Alice?" Lily asked, entering.

 

"Go get Trevor and tell him to start packing his stuff," the young wolf said, grabbing her stuffed bunny and pushing it into the backpack as well.

 

"Why? Are we going somewhere?"

 

"Yeah, we're leaving." Alice wiped at her eyes.

 

"Leaving? ... But don't we have to tell Mommy and Daddy first?" Lily asked, starting to worry that the answer was no.

 

"No, we're just going, before they get rid of us first..." Alice said this, tears streaming down her muzzle, wiping at her eyes again.

 

"Mommy and Daddy won't get rid of us!" Lily said, indignantly stomping her right foot. Alice whirled around and growled.

 

"The only reason they adopted was 'cause they couldn't have a baby of their own. But now they are, so they won't need us anymore!" the black wolf pup practically barked out. Lily looked taken aback, but quickly recovered.

 

"That's not true! They love us and want the new baby too!"

 

"Come on, Lily! We're not their real kids! We're just... just... replacements! And now... they're gunna have a real baby!" Alice said, her voice breaking a little.

 

"Allie, no," Lily said, stepping forward to hug her big sister. The young human girl was already a few inches taller than the black wolf girl. "We're gunna have a baby sister."

 

Frustrated that Lily wasn't getting it, Alice snarled and pushed the younger girl down.

 

"If you wanna go back to the children's center, fine! But I'm gone!" she said, hopping over Lily while slinging her backpack on her shoulders and sprinting down the hall. She ran towards the front door, heading past the back of the couch. Suddenly, she was airborne, something having picked her up by the backpack. Alice saw the shocked look on Dawn's face as she was carried over the top of the couch. Alice looked around as she struggled to see that Princess Callibrie had caught her backpack in her mouth and picked her up. Alice was soon deposited right next to Dawn, the kowmodo dragon then curling up around the two.

 

"Alice, sweetie?" Dawn asked, looking at the over-stuffed backpack on her oldest daughter's back. "What were you up to?"

 

"Nothin'?" Alice said, looking down at her feet.

 

"Honey... were you trying to run away?"

 

"..." Alice had wanted to tell off Dawn and Vernon, but when confronted by the loving gaze of the ewe, she couldn't find her voice.

 

"Oh, baby, why?" Dawn asked, pulling Alice into a hug. Alice tried to squirm but was held firmly in place, feeling Dawn's bright green eyes boring into her. Finally, she couldn't keep it in any longer.

 

"Because I know that you're just gunna send us back!" she practically yelped.

 

"Back?" Dawn asked, confused. Then she looked down at her swollen belly and smiled. "Oh, Allie," she squeezed her daughter tighter, "we're not going to get rid of you or Trevor or Lily."

 

"But what about the baby?"

 

"She's gunna need her big brother and sisters," Dawn said, rocking herself and Alice in her arms.

 

"But..."

 

"No buts, Allie," Dawn said sternly. "You are our lamb. Just like Trevor, and Lily, and just like little Paige will be. Understood?"

 

Alice's eyes were still streaming tears as her shoulders hitched. She wanted to believe so badly, but spending so much time in the system had made her into a cynic, and her skepticism was warring with her desire to believe Dawn. It was then that Lily ran into the room, trailed by Trevor and Vernon. While Vernon and Trevor stopped, seeing Alice and Dawn hugging on the couch, Lily didn't see them, and continued towards the door. For the second time, Princess Callibrie's head darted out. Lily was picked up by her wolf coat and dropped right next to Dawn and Alice.

 

"ALLIE!" Lily said, suddenly seeing her big sister and practically bowling her and Dawn over in a tackle-hug. "Y'all can't leave!"

 

The inner stalemate for Alice broke, and, while still sniffling, she couldn't help but giggle. "L-Lily--"

 

"NO! If you try to run away I'll... track y'all down and arrest ya! And then I'll bring ya back! I'm gunna be a big sister soon, but I'm still gunna need the best big sister ever!" Lily's grip was like a vice, and Alice blushed beneath her fur, her tail slowly starting to thump on the couch.

 

"What's happenin' now?" Vernon asked, thoroughly confused. His clothes and fur were splattered with some lavender paint while he approached the couch and scratched the back of his head, Trevor walking right next to his father.

 

"Lily kicked my door open and said Allie was running away," Trevor said.

 

"She said that there was an emergency," Vernon drawled, taking a seat next to his mate and picking the black ram boy up and setting him on his lap. He then spread his arms and pulled his mate and daughters with Trevor into a big hug.

 

"Now, will someone explain to me what's goin' on?"

 

 

There we go, folks! I hope that you enjoyed the new chapter! Please consider leaving a comment or review! Have a happy late autumn holiday!