FSE

Furry search engine

formerly SoFurry search engine

Murreki and Sinopa are © their players.

Story and Alex © Bark Twain, 2013.

Chapter 1 - First Introductions

As I pulled up to the house, I checked the scrap of paper in my passenger seat and made sure I had the correct address: 16423 Kingfisher Dr. This was the place. Glancing at the digital clock on my radio as I put the car in park, I noted that I was a few minutes early. Shrugging, I turned my car off and stepped out, manually locking the door behind me. If this gig turned out to be as lucrative as the man said it would be, I'd be able to get this hunk of crap off my hands and get into some newer wheels. I shook the thought out of my head as I walked up the brick driveway; best not to count my chickens before they've hatched.

I reached the door of the property and hesitated for a moment. I had two younger siblings, so babysitting wasn't really a big deal to me, but I'd never taken care of someone else's cubs before. This was going to be a new experience, and one that I hoped I wouldn't come to regret. I pushed the doorbell and waited, staring at my shoes as my heart beat nervously in my chest.

After a couple of minutes, a male fox came to the door. He was older than me, maybe in his late 20s or early 30s, and stood half-a-foot or more above me. He was a handsome fellow. His fur was the same rusty red that you'd expect a fox to be, his ears dipped in black, with a head full of shaggy, white hair. As I looked him over through the screen door, I noticed that his left hand wasn't black like the other, however, but was a stark white. I quietly wondered if he had mixed parents, like me.

Oh, I'm sorry. I suppose that I should introduce myself. My name is Alexis Dimitri Ashcroft. Naturally, everyone calls me Alex. I'm your average, starving college student, freshly 20 years of age, and I'm standing where I am now because I have a desperate need to keep eating, and I'd love to stop relying so heavily on my parents for spending cash while I'm in school. I responded to an ad on a website for babysitters and those looking to hire them, in which a single father was looking for someone to take care of his two sons during the evening. We exchanged information, and here I am. Now, back to it.

"Yes?" the fox before me asked, plainly.

"Uh, hi. I'm Alex, I'm here for the..."

"Oh! You're the boy who responded to my ad. My apologies, I just got home from work. Still a little bit frazzled. Well, come on in."

As he opened the screen door and I stepped around it and into the house, I could see that, indeed, I had probably caught him just as he was getting out of his work clothes. He was wearing a plain, tan t-shirt and desert camouflage army pants that tucked into his tan-colored boots. Well, it was clear to me already what the fox did for a living.

He closed the door behind me and led me down a short entryway into the living room. There, one of his sons sat, in the middle of the floor, playing with LEGO blocks and idly watching cartoons. The young fox kit looked up at me briefly and then continued about building whatever he was working on. Clearly, my presence neither surprised nor impressed him.

"This is my son, Murreki. He's one of the two boys you'll be watching for me tonight, and longer if things work out."

I smiled and nodded to the cub, who continued paying me no mind. "Pleasure to meet you, Murreki."

The father, clearly annoyed with his son's lack of manners, scolded the cub lightly. "Murreki! Don't be rude. Stand up and greet our guest."

The young fox reluctantly did as he was told, scrambling up to his feet and forcing a smile in my direction. "Hello. You're our new babysitter, right?"

I nodded again. "Yes, with any luck I will be. My name is Alex, Murreki." I held my hand out to the cub. He swiftly stepped forward and shook it, then looked up to his father for approval before sitting back down.

"I'm sorry. He's probably a little disillusioned with the notion of babysitters right now. We've gone through 4 in the last week and a half."

Not really sure of what to say, I nodded again and bit my bottom lip nervously.

"Oh! Where are my manners? I'm Sinopa." He extended his hand to me and I shook it politely and smiled. He had a firm grip, and it surprised me and made my hand a little sore.

"Alex. Alex Ashcroft. It's nice to meet you, Sinopa." I looked around the room and asked, "So, where's your other son? It would probably be a good idea to meet them both before you head out."

Sinopa nodded in agreement.

"He's taking a nap in the other room at the moment. I'll fetch him in a bit, but let's have a seat in the dining room first and go over the details of this position." With that, he led me through to the dining room, and we both took a seat at the table.

"Alright, so tell me a little bit about yourself, Alex. Have you been babysitting for long?"

I shook my head and nervously looked around the room, unintentionally not meeting his gaze. "Not really, no. I've got a sister and brother who're both several years younger than me, so I babysat for my parents when they were just cubs, and every so often now, but this would be my first time sitting for someone else."

The fox nodded a couple times, watching my face as I spoke.

"Alright. Tell me more about yourself. What your family is like, what types of things you enjoy... You're in college, right? What are you studying?"

I chuckled and looked up at the ceiling, thinking for a moment.

"To be honest? Bikinis. I haven't exactly figured out what direction I want to take my education in yet, so I've just been getting my pre-reqs out of the way, and enjoying the college life while it's still to be enjoyed. Umm, what is my family like..." I lowered my gaze just to the side of him and thought of what to say.

"Well, my father's name is Dimitri, which is also my middle name. His side of the family is all Russian, and he's the first of his siblings to live away from home. He's an attorney for the prosecutor's office. My mother is Tabitha, and she's a nursing professor at my school. As for what I enjoy, I was on the swim team in high school but haven't wanted to add anything more to my schedule since I've been at the university. I try to get out to as many live shows as I can, I play video games, go to the movies with friends... Normal stuff, I guess?" I shrugged, not really sure of what else to tell him.

Sinopa looked into the distance behind me, his head cocked and nodding idly. He looked lost in thought and took an uncomfortable couple of moments to respond, during which time I straightened up in my seat and tried to look presentable.

"Alright, Alex. Well, let me tell you a little about our family. I'm a single father, raising my two boys; Murreki, and little Sinopa. You could probably tell by my clothes that I work on the base outside of town. I try to run a tight ship around here, but I don't want to deprive my boys of a childhood, so I try to keep things pretty easy-going. They know to put their toys away when they're done with them, they can get their own drinks and such out of the fridge, etc. They're both still in training pants, so you'll need to be comfortable changing them when they have accidents, but neither of them has had a messy diaper in quite some time."

I wish I hadn't cringed a bit when he mentioned needing to change the boys, but I did. I remembered how much I detested cleaning up after my brother and sister when they were cubs, and wasn't especially looking forward to having to go through that business again. But, the fact that they only sounded to have occasional wetting accidents didn't sound too bad. I straightened my face and nodded.

He added, "Now, what we need is someone to watch them during the evenings, Mondays through Thursdays. I get out of work at 4, pick the boys up from kindergarten and get home around 4:30 every day. However, I have to turn around and leave just about as soon as I get home, which is why you're here. I may also need to keep you on call for the occasional weekend, but you'll get extra compensation if and when that happens. You'll earn $16 an hour to start and more later, depending on how things work out. That all sound kosher to you?"

I smiled when he finally mentioned how much I'd be making, and nodded my head a couple times.

"Sounds perfect to me! If I may ask, though, why are you offering so much for just a babysitting gig?"

Chuckling, he put his hand on my shoulder. "Let's just say that, for all that they're good boys, they can be a bit of a handful sometimes. You'll definitely earn every penny, don't worry." With that, he stood up and extended his hand again. "So, do you think you can do the job?"

I quickly got up to my feet and took his hand, wincing slightly again as he squeezed it. "I think that I can, sir."

"Good! Alright, well I'll go get the other one up from his nap now, but then I'm going to have to leave you. I should be back around 10 or 11, tonight. The boys have already been fed, they can have dessert later, but they shouldn't eat anything after 8 o'clock and need to be bathed and in bed by 9:30. After that, you can sit back, kick your feet up and relax for a little while until I get home."

As he disappeared down the hallway that led to the bedrooms, I slowly meandered into the living room.

Taking a seat on the couch just behind where Murreki was playing, I idly sat and watched the cartoon on the television while working out in my mind how I was going to get this kid to warm up to me. I had no idea what this crap on TV was, or how anyone could watch it, but I shook the thoughts out of my head and slinked down onto the floor behind and to the side of him.

"Whatcha makin, lil guy? Can I call ya Murr?"

Keeping his eyes on his toys, and taking a minute to respond, the kit's irritation was palpable.

"A truck. And, I guess."

I forced a smile and picked up one of the blocks, then another, and fit the two together aimlessly.

"I see. Well, do you think I could help you?"

Murreki looked around at the blocks scattered out on the carpet around him, then at the ones in my hand. Reaching out, he took the blocks, broke them apart, and popped one of them onto the truck he was building.

"Sure. Do you ever play with LEGOs?"

Smiling and pleased with myself, I scooted around to better face the cub, and moved a little closer.

"Do I! Back at my parents' house, I've got a big red tub just FULL of them! I don't play with them much anymore, though. I could bring them over sometime though, if you wanted to play with 'em."

That was the ticket! His head whipped up to look at me, and his eyes lit up like those of a fat kid at an all-you-can-eat buffet.

"You do?! Bring em over! Please bring em over!"

I chuckled and ruffled the kid between the ears, nodding my head and smiling at his enthusiasm.

"Alright! I will, I will. If you and your brother like me enough to keep me, I'll bring them back with me tomorrow."

I must have said something wrong, then. His excited smile turned into a slight frown, and he looked back down at the floor and started working on his truck again, dejectedly. I frowned in turn, wondering what I said, and rubbed his back comfortingly. I sighed and stood up, clapping my hands nervously and looking down the back hallway. It had been several minutes since Sinopa disappeared into the back rooms, and I wondered if he might need some help. I took a few steps in that direction and was nearly floored when I saw what came around the corner at me.

There was Sinopa - the adult, not the little boy - in the same t-shirt he had on earlier, no pants, no boots, and a diaper, scrambling down the hall toward me.

I wish that I could say that my reaction was graceful, and that I reached out my arms and gracefully accepted the hug that he was running at me for. Buuuuuut, I didn't. I'm not entirely sure, now, what it was that escaped my lips as I watched the grown man in a diaper running toward me in what seemed like dramatic slow-motion, but I'm pretty sure it would have made my mother slap the back of my head like I was misbehaving in church again.

Before I could react, "little" Sinopa was upon me, his head tucked down as he hugged tight around my waist. I kept my arms raised awkwardly for a moment before slowly lowering them to pat him on the back and head.

"Are you our new babysitter?" he asked excitedly, his fluffy red, black-tipped tail wagging furiously behind him.

"I, uh... Yes, I... Guess I am."

I barely managed to get the words out, staring straight in front of me, still in a state of shock. Despite the obvious apprehension in my voice, his tail wagged faster. Murreki came over to us now, clearly just as happy to see his "brother" as his brother was to see me.

"Sinopa!" he exclaimed, and hugged one of his father's legs as well as one of mine.

"Murreki!" Sinopa excitedly exclaimed back, and hugged the kit like the two were just reuniting after being away for some days or weeks. Then, it clicked.

Sinopa didn't need a babysitter for his two sons; he needed a babysitter for his son and himself. The other sitters he mentioned probably took off running when they realized what they would be dealing with and, without someone to watch over the two cubs, he had no choice but to put his need to be a cub aside, and behave as Murreki's father. Murreki was so excited to see his brother because he probably hadn't in several days, without someone to sit for them.

No wonder he'd been irritated when I walked in.

The two scrambled off behind me and sat down on the floor where Murreki had been playing with his LEGO blocks before, showing his brother the truck he was building.

"I... Need to use the bathroom real quick, guys. I'll be back in a minute," and I escorted myself down the hall and into the restroom.

I closed and locked the door behind me and turned the water on for some background noise. Standing over the counter with my hands on either side of the sink, I stared blankly at the running water and thought to myself.

Can I deal with this? How freaked out am I by a grown man in a diaper, running around like a 4-year-old? Watching after a cub is one thing, but watching after a cub and his father, behaving like a cub? That seems like a completely different animal. But, I do need the money, and he is paying me really well. My car doesn't have many miles left before the rust spots dissolve and the whole thing falls apart while I'm driving down the highway, and I don't want to have to keep asking mom and dad for money, even if they are happy to give it.

I lifted my head and looked at myself in the mirror for a bit. For a moment, I forgot what I was dealing with and just admired myself. Somehow, I ended up with the perfect mix of my father and mother's genes: tall for being my mother's son, with a long torso and slightly short arms and legs like my polecat mother, but with a certain muscular stockiness from my black bear father. A small, somewhat rounded white face set against black that covered the rest of my body, with a black "mask" over my eyes. Finally, two barely noticeable little white ears jutting out of black fur on either side of my head. I was handsome. I'd never been with a guy before, but if I ran into myself at a party... I'd do me.

I blinked a few times as I remembered what I was doing, and I quickly splashed some water on my face. I turned the faucet off and looked up at myself in the mirror again, watching the water drip down my face as I thought again about my predicament. Coming to a decision, I nodded quietly, grabbed a hand towel from the ring next to the door to dry my face off, opened the door and stepped back out into the hallway.

Murreki and Sinopa seemed to have barely noticed my prolonged absence, and were now playfully arguing over how best to finish building Murreki's truck. I chuckled quietly to myself, reminiscing on the same joy that I used to get out of playing with my own LEGO sets, and stepped over into the entryway.

I unzipped the hoodie I'd been wearing over my t-shirt, and hung it on a rack just inside the door while I kicked my skate shoes off. I didn't actually skate, but the shoes were comfortable and I liked the way they looked on me. Down to just my t-shirt and jeans, I put my hands behind my head, arched my back and stretched my arms out above me before casually walking back into the living room.

I stood and watched the two cubs playing in the middle of the floor and smiled. If they were going to be this self-sufficient the entire time, I thought to myself, this could prove to be a pretty easy-going job. Looking around the living room, I noticed a shelf of blu-rays near the entertainment center that the big, flat-screen television sat on. I stepped over to it and took a look through the guys' collection.

"Some pretty good stuff here," I said quietly, and read off a few titles. "Pulp Fiction, Heavy Metal, The Fifth Element, a ton of Disney stuff, How to Train Your Dragon, Spirited Away..."

The last one caught both cubs' attention, and they quickly hopped up and skittered over to me, hugging my leg and tugging at my t-shirt.

"Ooh, can we watch that?! We wanna watch Spirited Away! Pretty please can we watch Spirited Away!"

I laughed and rubbed a paw between each cub's ears. As I did, I felt the slightest bit awkward, rubbing a grown man between the ears like a kit. I shrugged the feeling off and took the case down from the shelf, holding it above the two as I checked the time on my watch. It was just about 6 o'clock.

"Alright, we can watch this, but you two have to have your baths first, so you can go straight to bed when it's over. Deal?"

They both nodded their heads rapidly and scurried off toward the bathroom. I set the movie next to the television on the entertainment center and followed after them.

Stepping into the bathroom, the boys were already working on undressing themselves. Sinopa was down to just his diaper, and Murreki was having a problem with the last couple toggles on his corduroy overalls. I stood and watched him struggle for a moment, chuckling, before finally stepping forward and undoing the buttons for him. He quickly shirked the overalls and his shirt, and the two foxes stood before me in just their padding, apparently waiting for me to finish them.

I opted to handle Murreki's diaper first, and knelt down in front of him. Holding the crotch of the diaper in one hand, I untaped both sides with the other, then rolled the damp padding up and tossed it into the diaper pail next to the toilet. I was honestly a little surprised that he'd been sitting in a wet diaper for who knows how long, and hadn't complained yet. I shrugged, and turned to look at Sinopa.

Sinopa stood several feet over me now, but possessed every seeming of a cub of about four years. As I scooted towards him on my knees, my nose picked up the strong scent of musky adult male, and a faint odor of baby powder. The scent was unexpected, but unsurprising as I thought about it. The fox had been at work all day and hadn't had the opportunity to even take a quick shower before I came knocking on the door, and then got into cub mode for the evening. Still, the scent wasn't at all an unpleasant one, and I found myself taking deeper breaths than normal as I removed the cub's dry diaper and set it on the bathroom counter. I knew how expensive baby diapers were and could only therefore imagine how much diapers of this size would be, and how adult Sinopa would probably wish to save money on them where he could.

Stripped down to their birthday suits, both boys climbed into the oversized garden tub. I marveled at the size of it for a moment, thinking it could easily hold 3 or 4 full-grown people. I had to admit to myself, the boys had a pretty nice place. I reached over and turned the tub faucet on, waiting for the water to warm up before setting the stopper in the drain. The kits sat down in the tub as the water level slowly rose, and splashed at each other playfully. As I sat there on my knees laughing at them as they played, they turned in almost perfect unison and started splashing bits of water at me, as well. I laughed louder, trying to splash back at them as I covered my face with one hand.

The boys giggled and started splashing at each other again, and I looked down at my soaked t-shirt. Sighing, I grabbed the bottom hem and pulled the shirt up over my head, tossing it to the other side of the bathroom, away from the splish-splashing young foxes. When I turned back around, Murreki was standing in the half-full tub in front of me, holding a bottle of bubble bath out to me. I gave him a knowing nod, popped the cap, and poured a liberal amount into the torrent of water coming out of the faucet. As I did, I felt the cub touching my chest along the white chevron on my chest that stood in stark contrast to the black fur around it; a gift from my father's side. I smiled and let him ogle and paw at it for a moment before he sat back down in the tub and played with the mountain of bubbles that was quickly forming in the corner, under the faucet.

Looking around the tub, I tried to find some toys for the boys to play with. Coming up empty handed as plain view failed me, I turned back to the cubs.

"Do you guys not have any toys for bath time?"

Sinopa nodded and pointed to the linen closet just inside the door. "Over dere!"

I turned and pulled myself up, stepping over to the closet and pulling the door open. Inside, I found the motherload of bath toys. Zoo animals, boats, floating balls, squirty toys, letters and numbers with suction cups on the back, you name it. Far more toys than would fit in the tub with the two. I stared at the trove of toys with one eyebrow raised, surprised and trying to decide what to bring back to the tub. I scooped up a mix of everything in my arms and walked back over to the boys, who were now piling bubbles on each other's heads. I bent over and dropped the stuff in a pile of softly crashing plastic and rubber in front of the tub, then got back down to my knees to turn the water off.

Murreki leaned over the side and very selectively started pulling toys into the tub, as Sinopa took to playing with whatever floated closest to him. I smiled at him and grabbed a small plastic giraffe, making it prance around on top of his bubbled-covered head.

"Help! I can't see! The fog is too thick, and I'm lost!" The helpless giraffe trotted back and forth over the fox's head, eventually finding his way to an ear and climbing atop it. Sinopa giggled as the toy tickled his ear, making it flick out from under the giraffe.

"Ahhhhhhh!!" The giraffe, losing his footing, tumbled down the kit's shoulders and fell into the water.

"Help me, I can't swim! I'm drowning, glub glub glub!" Sinopa lifted the little toy out of the water in both paws, kissed the giraffe on the nose and set him on the side of the tub. I smiled and bumped the kit on the forehead with my nose. He giggled and blushed.

Murreki, by this time, had taken to trying to spell out his name in letters on the wall behind him. "MUr3Kl." I chuckled to myself, ruffled him between the ears and made a couple corrections. He smiled at me and grabbed a few more letters, trying to spell Sinopa. "s1M0dA." He looked up at me for approval, and again I helped him out. Using the "I" in "MUrReKi," I connected the two names into a small crossword. I grabbed another couple of letters out of the water and added "ALEx" off the "A" in "sInOPA." This elicited a squeal from the young fox, who wrapped his arms around my long torso and gave me a big, wet hug.

Laughing, I hugged Murreki back with one arm, pulling Sinopa over for a hug with the other. This was pretty cool, I thought to myself. They might not be your average pair of cubs, but they were adorable in their own right, and I could see myself coming back after tonight.

"Ok, time to get all clean!" I said, letting the two go and reaching over for a bath brush. "Who wants to go first?"

Murreki scooted over behind Sinopa and pushed him toward me, who blushed and lowered his head. Smiling, I lifted his chin with my paw and touched my forehead to his.

"You wanna be first, lil guy?" I asked. He blushed brighter and nodded, looking up at me with golden brown eyes, sparkling with innocence and delight.

"Ok, you can be first." I kissed the cub on the nose, and felt my heart melt a little bit.

Trying to hide my own blush as my heart pitterpattered in my chest, I looked around and found a bottle of shampoo. I poured a bit into my palm and began working it into the fur on Sinopa's head, then down and around his neck, and over both shoulders. He turned in the steaming water to face away from me, and sat perfectly still as I worked the shampoo into his fur, and began brushing him down with the groomer brush. Murreki sat quietly, idly playing with a plastic tugboat in the water and watching with a smile as I bathed his brother. Over both arms, down the back, across the chest and belly... I scrubbed every inch of the fox that stuck out of the water.

"Ok, stand up now. Time for your legs and paws!"

Sinopa nodded quietly, and I heard a faint murr coming from him as he stood up for me, water pouring off of him. I caught a blush from Murreki as he stared at his brother's naked bits, and chuckled quietly, shaking my head.

I poured a little more shampoo in my paw and lathered up Sinopa's bum and legs, then turned him around and stared at his naked bits, myself, for a moment. I wasn't gay, but... This kid was hung! My mouth went agape for a second as I stared, and the fox turned an almost neon shade of red and covered his modesty with both paws, crossing his legs together. I shook my head and tried to pretend like nothing happened, gently pushing his hands out of the way so I could scrub down his groin area. I tried to be strictly professional as I washed the cub's penis and furry scrotum, realizing only after I'd finished that he probably showered himself when he wasn't a kit, and likely didn't need my paws washing over his junk. I felt a little stupid, but kept at my task, eventually getting his tail, both of his legs and feet.

"Ok, you can sit down again, and I'll wash you off in a minute, Sinopa. Murr, you ready?"

Murreki, an expression on his face that hinted at greater wisdom and experience than I'd have guessed for a 4-year-old, waded through the water over to me. I quickly rinsed stray, rust-colored hairs off my hands in the water, and poured some more shampoo into my palm. I gave him the same treatment as his brother, scrubbing through the pile of blonde hair on his head, down his shoulders and back, over his arms and down his chest and tummy. He giggled and pawed at my hands as I scrubbed his tender belly, obviously quite ticklish. I tickled at him a little more before going back about what I was doing.

This kit was a little darker than the other. His fur was a deep red, and his ears, tail tip and all four paws were black as me. I made dorky faces at no one as I washed over Murreki's genitals, making both boys laugh at my dumbness. I smiled, and chuckled softly as I finished up with the cub.

"Alright, all done with you. Now let's get you boys rinsed off, and we can go watch our movie."

However calm they were until that point, mentioning the movie again made them both start squirming around excitedly, splashing soapy water everywhere again. I turned the faucet on again and reached my arm into the tub to pull the plug and let the tub start draining down. Grabbing a big plastic cup that sat on the side of the tub, I collected some water and started rinsing Murreki off first. He stood patiently, his tail wagging slowly behind him, and waited until I was finished to hop out of the tub and stand on the mat beside me, dripping water and waiting to be dried down. Next, Sinopa. I had to stand up to rinse the shampoo out of the fur on his head and upper body, but he also stood patiently for me, smiling and blushing at me like a kid with a crush. I smiled back and gave him a wink. He giggled and hid his face in his paws.

"Alright, go ahead and get out and we'll get you two dry."

I went back to the linen closet and grabbed a pair of fluffy bath sheets. I set one on the counter and opened the other up, moving over to Murreki to rub over him and get him as dry as I could. Eventually satisfied, I gave him a playful swat on the rump and he scurried off to the living room. Grabbing the other towel, I opened it up and started drying Sinopa off. I still felt a little odd, as the back of my mind told me I was rubbing down a grown fox with a towel. I fought the thoughts back, though, and reminded myself that, for all that he appeared, this was another 4-year-old kit; Murreki's brother. I finished, rubbed him between the ears and we walked out to the living room together.

Murreki already had the blu-ray in the player by the time we arrived - obviously having done this before - and was seated on the floor in front of the couch, watching the first preview before the movie. I sat down next to him and patted the spot on the other side of me for Sinopa, who was already skittering off toward the back room again.

"Sinopa? Are you going to watch the movie with us?" I shouted softly down the hallway.

I got no reply, and sat there for a moment with my head cocked, ears swiveling like radars at the sounds of drawers opening and closing, and the distinct crinkle of diapers. He came scrambling back down the hall then, carrying a fresh change for himself, a smaller one for his brother, and a bottle of scented baby powder. I nodded understandingly and scooted over to a bare spot on the floor where the two could lay down.

I took the stuff from the fox and set it to the side of me, patting the floor in front of me. Sinopa squealed a little bit and quickly got down on the floor before me, laying back and spreading his legs. I chuckled again, half at how eager he was, half at how big he was. I picked up the diaper he'd been in earlier and slipped it under him, sprinkled a little powder over his bits, and pulled the front up over him. As I taped the sides onto the front, I noticed that the tapes were removable. "Huh. That's pretty clever," I thought to myself. I fastened him up and he quickly sat up to give me a hug, pressing his head against my chest like before. This time, I wasted no time in hugging him back warmly, giving him a gentle squeeze and stroking down his back.

"Ok, go have a seat while I take care of your brother." Sinopa nodded and crawled over to where Murreki was, giving his brother a poke in the side. Murreki stood up and walked over to me, keeping his eyes on the cartoon previews as he laid out in front of me. I hummed happily to myself as I wrapped him up in padding, and patted the front when I'd finished. His diapers had cute patterns on the front, while I noted that Sinopa's were simply a bare white. Still too distracted with what was now the start of the movie, I picked the cub up in my arms and moved over to the spot of floor next to Sinopa. I reclined against the couch and kicked my legs out in front of me, pulling a fox in on other side to snug against me. Murreki nuzzled against my side while Sinopa hugged around my waist, and I held both close with my arms around their shoulders. I looked up behind me at the back of the couch and found an oversized blanket to pull down. I spread the crocheted afghan out and covered the three of us with it, pulling both cubs in warmly again as we sat quietly and watched the movie together.

A couple of hours later, Chihiro reunited with her parents, and the three walked back to their car and drove off.

I smiled and looked down at the foxes; both fast asleep. Sighing happily and tiredly, I moved the blanket to the side and slipped out from under them. I stood and watched them for a moment while I decided what to do with them. I trotted quietly back down the hallway and inspected the sleeping situation. Two bedrooms, but one was simply full of brightly colored children's dressers, oversized stuffed animals, toys, and a small coloring table. Puzzled, I walked into the other bedroom, the master. Only one bed in here.

"Huh," I thought to myself. "Sinopa must have Murreki sleep with him." The bed certainly looked big enough. I shrugged and walked back out to the living room.

Carefully, I stepped over to the dark red, snoozing little fox and scooped him up into my arms. Cradling him against my chest, I carried him back to the master bedroom and gently laid him out in bed. I pulled the blanket up over him and tucked him in, gave him a sweet kiss on his cheek and turned to head back to the living room.

"Ok, how am I going to get Sinopa back here?" I wondered. I wasn't a weakling, but he'd certainly be a little more difficult to manhandle into bed. When I arrived back to the living room, I found that I no longer had to worry about it.

Sinopa stood where he'd been napping, stretching his arms above him in the blue light cast by the television. I took a few slow steps toward him, and he stood smiling at me for a moment before speaking.

"You did fantastic, kid," he said quietly. "I think the boys had a great time with you, and I don't think I'd be out of line in saying that they'd like you back tomorrow, if you want the job."

I smiled back at him and nodded, having long since made up my mind on the matter.

"Yeah, I'll be back tomorrow. With a big bucket of LEGO blocks for the boys to play with. Sinopa, you've got yourself a babysitter." Talking to him again felt somehow different, but somehow familiar. He was the same person he'd been just before we started watching the movie, but I no longer saw him as a cub. When he was an adult, he was an adult and when he was a cub, he was a cub.

I extended my hand to him and he shook it happily, and much more gently this time. He put his hand on my shoulder as he stepped around me and fetched something from the entryway. I stooped to gather up the blocks scattered around the floor into a pile and picked up the blanket to fold and toss over the back of the couch. He stood behind me, still wearing the diaper I'd put him in, smiling and scratching at his chest with one hand, holding some cash in the other.

I finished and straightened up, turning to face him. He took my paw in his and stuffed a few folded bills into it, curling my fingers up around it and holding my hand with both of his.

"Thank you so much, Alex. There's a little extra in there for doing such a great job tonight. Don't worry about the rest of the toys or the mess in the bathroom. I'll take care of them in the morning. Take this, and go enjoy the rest of your night. We'll see you tomorrow, alright?"

I nodded again and stuffed the bills into my pocket without looking at them. "Definitely, sir."

I smiled and quickly stepped into the bathroom to collect my still half-soaked shirt. He was tidying up a little and turning electronics off when I came back out, and I slipped my shoes back on over my bare feet, threw my hoodie over my shoulder and quietly let myself out.

I walked quickly to my decrepit old car, unlocked it, opened the door and climbed inside. I sat there silently for a moment, just smiling to myself at how my night had transpired. I put the key in the ignition and turned the engine over, flipping the lights and radio on. A Death Cab for Cutie song played out melodically, and I sighed softly, happily. I put my car in drive and started to pull away. Getting to the stop sign at the end of the street, I quickly pulled the bills from my pocket and counted them.

"Two hundred dollars?!" I exclaimed in my head.

I sat there for a moment, eyes and mouth both wide open in shock. A grin slowly spread across my face and I turned down the next street, heading back to my dorms.

Yeah, this was going to work out quite well...