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Chapter 13: New Normal

Lily parked her red mid-size SUV in front of the temporary police station. The concrete block structure was an old office building, slated to be torn down but now serving as the base of operations for the Maplesburg police department. The actual police station had been ransacked and torched, gutting the inside. Records were fortunately backed up online, but most of the confiscated items and physical evidence had been stolen or destroyed. Only the few items in Lily's personal fire-proof safe had survived, and if they had been lost, Lily truly would have despaired. The safe contained all of the physical evidence against the Duchess of Gooseberry, insurance should Lily's life ever be threatened by the murderous fox and also an opportunity. One day, the vixen might be vulnerable to political attack though, at the moment, she was more unassailable than ever.

While the destruction of their base, as well as their official police vehicles, which had also been set ablaze, was disturbing, even more disturbing was the disappearance of the prisoners from the station's jail. None had been found among the wreckage. The predators, perhaps, had been set free and used the chaos to escape, but Lily assumed any prey had been devoured. The concrete and steel cells were still operational, but with the rest of the station opened to the outside, it had been decided that the ancient Courthouse dungeon would have to serve instead.

Older than City Hall, the Courthouse was the original government building in Maplesburg. The reigning member of the nobility had once ruled over criminal, civil, and legal matters from the grim limestone edifice, an arrangement the Duchess seemed determined to recreate today. Lily was disturbed by the lack of resistance coming from the remaining members of City Council, but at least, Lily felt she herself had a small measure of control. The Duchess couldn't enforce her ridiculous laws herself, and following their announcement Thursday morning, Lily had instructed her officers to let off anyone breaking these edicts with a warning. So far, none of her officers had pushed back on her decision to disregard the Duchess' pronouncements, for which Lily was very grateful. In the past, she'd met officers practically frothing at the mouth with loyalty to the Crown, and she was glad none of hers seemed so sycophantic to the red fox ruling class. Even the new recruits, who the Duchess had picked herself, seemed like the typical product of Maplesburg's Police Academy. They were ideological and naive. However, in a few years, the injustices of the vulpine-centric, capitalistic system would grind them down until they were as jaded and cynical as anyone else on the force.

That change seemed to have happened faster for Katya than for the average officer. Even after their "heroics" during the occupation, Katya would hardly look at Lily. Lily knew as well as anyone that the prey evacuation had been largely self-organized with the few officers acting as glorified bodyguards for a tiny fraction of the escaping prey. If not for Flint, they mightn't have been involved at all. Regardless of the importance of their role, it had felt good to actually help people. They'd saved lives--Lily knew that--and while there had been a sense of euphoria among the officers when the terrorists had been defeated, Katya hadn't joined in that celebration, remaining distant, sullen. Lily desperately wanted to hug the ginger cat and ask her what was wrong, but she wasn't good at that kind of thing. Moreover, she was afraid of the answer.

Lily tromped across the blacktop to the crooked glass front door of the office building. Lily's office was down a hall behind the reception area. One of the new recruits, a sable, was stationed at the desk, and he saluted Lily as she walked by.

"Good morning, Chief!" he chirped.

Lily nodded in response and made her way to her office, sitting gingerly in the old folding chair she'd found for the scratched and stained office desk. It wasn't long before her phone rang: City Hall again. Lily sighed wearily, but at least it wasn't the Duchess' extension. She answered the call.

"Yes? This is Officer Schulz."

She recognized the voice on the other end as one of the members of City Council, a gray fox whose name she couldn't remember. "I'm sorry to disturb you, Officer." Lie. "But we're having some trouble at City Hall."

"What kind of trouble?"

"Protesters blocking the entrance. They're upset about the Duchess' new laws."

"Makes sense; they're idiotic," Lily returned boredly.

There was a lengthy pause, and for a moment, Lily thought maybe he'd given up. "I think

you should come set up a barrier. They have a right to protest, of course, but Her Grace is concerned people won't be able to enter to attend her court."

"And what a pity that would be," Lily responded dryly. "Alright. We'll be over there." She hung up.

Lily collected Zeta, Joel, David, and one of the new recruits--a fennec fox named Felix--and they piled in her SUV. When they arrived outside of City Hall, Lily could see why they had called: the protesters were right outside the glass front doors, and through the cacophony of yowling, barking, screeching, and squealing, Lily could hear some of them pounding on the thick glass. Apparently, the doors had been locked to prevent them from storming the building. Lily grabbed a roll of yellow police tape, and her officers followed her over to address the crowd.

Putting on her most fierce voice, Lily yowled, "Alright, listen up!"

A few of the protesters regarded her momentarily then looked away.

Lily growled. "Cover your ears," she warned her officers. She withdrew her handgun and

shot it into the air. BANG!

The crowd immediately fell silent, the protesters looking at her with expressions ranging

from fear to indignation to shock to anger.

She holstered her gun. "Glad I have your attention," Lily drawled dryly. "I need you to

move back away from the door, down to the sidewalk."

Some of the protesters began to move while others glared at her in defiance. Lily glared

back, daring them to disobey.

"Come on, folks. We just need you away from the doors so that people can get in and

out. I'm sure City Council will hear your concerns," Zeta mollified.

Grumbling, more of the protesters moved back. Lily glared at each of the remaining few

then nonchalantly examined her claws, extending the wickedly sharp black needles. The last of the protesters seemed to think better of their disobedience and joined the others. Lily tromped over to the cement stairs that climbed to the red granite edifice and ran the yellow tape across

the bottom of the three handrails, wrapping it around the post of the middle one and tying it on either end. She waved her officers over and led them to the top of the stairs.

"Alright, no one crosses the tape, and we don't have any problems, understand?" Lily growled.

"You think these laws aren't a problem?" a hare shouted. "I got a warning for chewing gum! For chewing gum!"

Lily growled in frustration. That bitch ought to be out here defending her own stupidity!"No one has been arrested," she responded. "I don't get to make the rules, but I do get to enforce them. This garbage won't last once the Duchess is gone. Save yourselves the trouble and go home. This is all a waste of time. Go home and let the politicians sort it out."

"We're not leaving until they're overturned!" a raccoon rejoined. "I want to smoke a cigarette without getting a scolding from the cops!"

Lily growled, "Fine. Waste your time. But anything gets thrown, and I'm arresting the lot of you." She turned to Felix, or rather looked down at his oversized triangular ears. The fennec fox was a head shorter even than Zeta and only came to Lily's belly. "Felix, call to have them let you in and then get us a table and some chairs. I'm not standing here all day because some animals decided they couldn't do without their nicotine fix."

"Yes, Chief!" he chirped. He pulled his phone from a pocket in his blue uniform top and called inside.

Before long, Lily and the officers were sitting around a circular folding table on mismatched folding chairs, playing poker and sipping iced tea, soda, or coffee while the protests continued. The protesters had settled on a chant of "Not our nanny!", which Lily found banal as well as childish. Her mood was not improved by David's relentless winning streak; the taciturn badger was utterly unreadable, and while, several times, Lily wanted to call what had to be bluffs, her terrible luck left her unable to do anything but fold.

The protest continued into the afternoon. At last, around 1:30, someone opened one of the brass-handled glass doors. To Lily's surprise, the first person who stepped out wasn't a member of City Council but the Duchess herself, garishly attired in a ridiculous golden gown. I'm sure she thinks she's Aphrodite herself, Lily thought snidely. The vixen was followed closely by an enormous puma in a knee-length black skirt and short-sleeve white dress shirt and a badger in a white shirt, black jacket, and orange argyle tie. Lily found the presence of the big cat unnerving and eyed the puma warily. Even if many of the terrorists hadn't been big cats, such large animals were uncommon in the city center, which, aside from big stores and government buildings, was built to accommodate smaller species. Lily wondered where she had come from.

On Lily's left, Felix let out a gasp. "Her Grace!" he whispered.

Lily glanced at the tod, who was visibly starstruck, and rolled her eyes.

Flanked by her guards, the Duchess strode out boldly to the edge of the stairs, glaring

down at the protesters haughtily. "Now, what's all this?!" she demanded angrily. "Your laws are shit!"

"You're not our nanny!"

"We don't need some fox telling us what to do!"

"I just want a cigarette!"

The Duchess held up her hands, sighing wearily. She waited until the responses had

died down, before stating the obvious, "It sounds like you have some concerns about our new

laws. You do realize I was holding court again this afternoon, yes? What prevented you from coming to discuss things instead of causing trouble?"

A few of the protesters glanced at each other as if they hadn't realized this was a possibility. A cat yowled, "Let's discuss then!"

The Duchess nodded, "Go on then." She pointed to a chipmunk at the front. "What do you need?"

The diminutive rodent blinked at the Duchess, "I want to chew gum."

"Have you ever stuck it on anything or spat it on the ground?" the Duchess asked sternly.

"N-no," the chipmunk squeaked nervously.

"Well, some people do. That's why it's banned."

The hare from earlier shot back, "Then punish them! It's littering, isn't it? That's illegal!

Punish the people who do that and not all of us!"

"Littering is indeed illegal," the Duchess agreed gravely. "Very well, chewing gum is

allowed, but if it doesn't end up in the trash," she let the sentence hang ominously. The vixen pointed to a pug at the middle of the crowd, "What do you need?"

The portly dog bowed before answering, "I just need a smoke, Your Grace. I haven't had a cigarette in days!"

"You know they cause cancer, I assume," the Duchess returned haughtily.

"Yes, Your Grace," the pug answered. "But it's my body."

"The larger problem is that many people find it bothersome," the Duchess returned.

"Why should they have to suffer for your habit?"

"I-I don't suppose they should, Your Grace."

A crow cawed in reply, "There should be some places we can smoke! Who am I

bothering in my own house?!"

"Your spouse and chicks?" the Duchess suggested.

"I'm single!" the bird rejoined.

The vixen scratched an ear thoughtfully, "Alright, I suppose smoking can be allowed so

long as no one else is bothered."

"What does that mean?!" a blue bird chirped.

"It means that if someone complains you have to stop or go elsewhere," the Duchess

decided.

Some of the protesters grumbled, but no one else complained further.

The Duchess pointed to an orange tabby cat on the left, "You?"

"What's wrong with freaking skateboarding?!" the cat asked.

"It's dangerous," the Duchess replied. "Someone could be run over. Besides, it's still

legal in skateparks."

"I know what I'm doing!" the cat returned. "I've never hit anyone! Besides, roller skating

is still legal. How's that better?!"

"Do you think it would be fairer if I banned both?" the Duchess queried.

"What?! No!"

"The law was fine before," an opossum argued. "It was already illegal to be reckless

around pedestrians."

The Duchess nodded, "Very well, we'll return to the old law. Is there anything else?"

"Why in Tartarus is profanity illegal?!" a shrew shouted.

"Because it's uncouth," the Duchess returned sternly. "I won't budge on that one." "It's free speech!" the shrew argued.

"There's nothing you can't say without using ugly words," the Duchess returned.

"You still shouldn't be arrested for it!" a mink returned.

"If I must, I'll make it a forty credit fine, nothing less," the Duchess allowed reluctantly.

"It's important to be civil in public. If you really must curse, do it at home."

Few of the protesters looked happy about this decision, but Lily figured a city-wide swear

jar was better than arresting people. The city could use the funds right now.

"Does anyone object to the littering law?" the Duchess asked.

A fox squirrel raised their hand, answering embarrassedly, "I mean, a felony sounds a bit

harsh, Your Grace."

"It's a crime against Vulpineva!" the Duchess declared furiously. "Spoiling our beautiful

land with garbage ought to be a death sentence! Making it a felony was very merciful!"

The squirrel winced at her angry reply. Neither they nor anyone else offered a second

objection to the anti-littering law.

"I assume that's everything then," the Duchess concluded. "We could have discussed all

of this inside like civilized people if only you had attended my court. Next time, I hope you'll consider that." The vixen turned sharply and marched back into the building with her guards behind her.

The protesters began to disperse. Lily and the other officers watched until they were all gone, and then Lily stood and tromped down the stairs to remove the tape.

"She's amazing!" Felix chirped behind her.

Lily turned her head to glare back at him, "She made a mess, and then she cleaned it up. The swearing law is still ridiculous."

"Y-yes, Chief," he squeaked.

"At least we know she'll listen to people's concerns," Zeta put in optimistically. "That's better than the alternative."

"She does for now," Lily replied darkly. Who knows how long that will last?

They returned to the temporary station.

They hadn't been back long when Zeta knocked on the side of Lily's door, poking her

head through the opening, "Can I come in, Chief?"

Lily sighed and minimized the window of the missing person report she was reading.

While many prey had returned, no one really knew who was missing, and the police department was attempting to track everyone down. Given the sheer numbers, the task seemed interminable, and it was likely that some prey would never be accounted for, having simply been devoured without leaving the slightest trace.

Lily offered Zeta a wan smile, "Do you need something, Zeta?"

Zeta stepped into the room, briefly looked for another chair, and stopped in front of Lily's desk. "I just wanted to make sure you're doing alright, Chief," she stated frankly.

Lily frowned, "I'm fine."

Zeta didn't back down, "I can tell something's bothering you, Chief. You can tell me about it. Is it Officer Letova?"

Lily glared at the white and black-splotched rabbit. She didn't appreciate her personal matters being pried into. "I'm fine, Menten."

"Petunia's doing well," Zeta offered. "She said you can drop by the salon any time." "Glad to hear that. That she made it back okay, I mean," Lily returned stiffly.

Zeta looked at her sadly, "You know you can trust me, Chief, whatever it is."

Zeta's sad brown eyes made Lily uncomfortable, but she knew there were things she

couldn't tell the rabbit. Like how I'm complicit in that bitch's murders. How can she understand anything if she doesn't understand that? "I'm just worried about all the missing prey," Lily lied. "I have bigger concerns than Katya right now; she's only one officer."

"We're all worried about the missing people, and you're not the only one who's noticed Katya's off. I still think there's something more. There's a lot going on right now, a lot we didn't expect: Her Grace taking charge, her new laws, this new training that's supposed to be happening who-knows-when, that video by the missing PIs. You knew them, didn't you? Is that it?"

"No," Lily stated. "Those two are the farthest thing from my mind now."

"What is it then?" Zeta pressed.

Lily sighed resignedly, "Look, Zeta. If I could tell you, I would. I just want you to promise

me one thing."

Zeta blinked in surprise, "What's that?"

"Promise me you'll never trust the Duchess, not even for a second. Don't go anywhere

with her. Don't even go to her office if I'm not with you."

Zeta looked concerned, "Why?"

"She's dangerous. She views herself as above the law, and for all practical purposes,

she is. Just stay away from her."

Zeta still looked concerned as well as confused, but she answered, "Okay, Chief."

"Is that all?" Lily asked impatiently.

"I had one more question, Chief."

Lily sighed again, "What?"

"When they have this training or whatever, do you think we'll be allowed to choose which

predator we spend the week with?"

"I have no idea. No one's told me anything except that it's happening. I don't know more

than you."

"Well, if they do let us choose, would you mind if Petunia and I stayed with you?"

Lily blinked, "Uh, I guess that's fine if you want to."

Zeta smiled, "Thanks, Chief. I'm a little nervous about this whole thing to be honest. I

mean, am I supposed to stay with someone I don't know? Petunia is really worried, but she'll be relieved to know you said it's okay."

Lily nodded in acknowledgement. She hadn't thought much about the planned training and whether prey would be nervous to live with predators they'd never met; she'd only seen it as an inconvenience to her having to house them. "I'll talk to City Council to see if they can make that part of the program. I'd rather not get stuck with a complete stranger either."

Zeta's smile widened, showing her large incisors, "Thanks, Chief. We're lucky we have someone like you to look out for us."

Lily nodded in embarrassed acknowledgement.

"Well, see you later, Chief." Zeta turned and hopped out of the room.

Lily watched the empty doorway for a moment after she'd gone. Why can't I be who she thinks I am?

***

A few days later, Lily found herself once again in the Duchess' office. The red fox leered

at her as she entered. Lily shut the door behind her. "What now?" Lily growled.

"What now, Your Grace?" the snide vixen corrected. "I'm just wondering how long it will be before all of the remaining prey are accounted for."

Lily scowled, "Months? It's hard to separate those who might have decided to stay away from those who are dead. We might never account for everyone."

The Duchess frowned, "Months is too long. I'm anxious to test the efficacy of the new training exercise. We'll just have to use the records we have. If prey don't report to their assigned predator's home, we'll investigate further."

Lily flipped her short tail, annoyed at the fact she was about to ask the vixen for something. She didn't think she'd get it for free. "About that, I have some suggestions about the new training program."

The Duchess cocked a triangular ear to the side, "Oh?"

"I think we should let prey decide who they want to stay with and allow two prey at a time. I think the way it's setup currently puts prey at risk. Even some of my prey officers have expressed concern."

The Duchess frowned again, "The point is for prey to learn to trust predators. I don't see how spending a week at their friend's house accomplishes that."

"If they have a predator friend, doesn't that mean they already know how to trust predators?" Lily argued. "Besides, being abused isn't likely to make them more trusting."

"Heather and Terrance didn't seem to think this would be a problem," the Duchess rejoined. "You don't think there are more predators like those awful cultists, do you?"

"Predators don't have to want to eat prey to abuse them, especially if they feel burdened by the responsibility of taking them in, which is another reason to allow prey to choose who they stay with."

"What if larger prey decide to stay with small predators, and then predators get abused?" the vixen returned.

Lily rolled her eyes, "I don't know. Let them mutually agree if you're worried about that or scrap the whole thing. Enforcing this is going to be Tartarus if people don't want to comply."

"I think most of our citizens want what's best for Vulpineva," the Duchess replied haughtily. "This training could be a breakthrough in predator-prey relations, but I do see your point. We should minimize conflict among those most amenable to the program. I'll have Heather draw up a form predators and prey can submit to request to be paired together, buteveryone still has to participate in the program. No predator can hog all the prey to themself."

"There are four times as many of them," Lily stated dryly. "I'm sure there will be enough prey to go around."

"Do you have any in mind yourself?" the Duchess asked curiously.

Lily frowned, wondering if she should tell the fox, but decided it was harmless enough, "One of my officers and her friend wanted to stay with me," she admitted.

The Duchess grinned toothily, "How nice. What species, may I ask?"

"Rabbits, both of them," Lily answered perfunctorily.

The Duchess' grin widened unpleasantly, not that Lily ever found the fox pleasant,

"Lovely, you are still keeping an eye out for my poor lost bunny, aren't you?"

"Yes, Your Grace," Lily lied. In fact, not a single officer was tasked with looking for the

escaped private inspectors, and Lily didn't plan to look herself. Hopefully, they've left the country by now.

The vixen nodded, seeming satisfied. "One more thing before you go, Officer. I saw some cigarette butts on the sidewalk on my way in today."

Lily rolled her eyes, "You made smoking legal again, remember?"

The vixen's amber eyes gleamed dangerously, "But not littering. I think people have had long enough to change their ways. I expect to see some arrests by tomorrow morning. Otherwise, I'll know you're refusing to do your job, and I'll find someone else."

After all she'd sacrificed for her position, Lily couldn't bear the thought of being demoted over litterbugs. "Yes, Your Grace."

***

Lily put her officers to the task, and by morning, there were a dozen angry animals being

held for littering in the Courthouse dungeon. The Duchess decided to visit the damp limestone prison herself rather than having the accused delivered to her office. Lily had the unenviable task of escorting the vixen though she was more comfortable dealing with the vixen herself than handing one of her officers over to the fox. She certainly wouldn't have sent one of the prey into the secluded dungeon with the murderer.

The dungeon had been fitted with new light bulbs, so despite the cold dampness, it was very well lit. The bright white lights contrasted strangely with the grim, grimy iron and stone cells. Lily escorted the Duchess, who was quite cheerful about the whole thing, to the block of cells holding the prisoners. The vixen was dressed in a strapless red and black dress, the velvety black overlaid with red lace featuring vines of roses. The poofy bottom flared out from her waist, and she was also wearing matching red lace fingerless gloves that extended to her shoulders. Lily thought she looked like a tart.

They stopped in front of the occupied cells, and the Duchess surveyed the prisoners. "All of these are for littering?" she queried.

Lily nodded.

The Duchess stepped forward to the nearest cell, which held a grumpy looking gray Persian cat. "One thousand hours of community service," the Duchess declared. "They can clean up Maplesburg as punishment for polluting it."

Lily thought that sounded like a lot of hours, but she decided not to argue. The cat in question wasn't so restrained.

"A thousand hours! That's ridiculous!" he yowled. "It was just a cigarette butt!"

The Duchess narrowed her amber eyes dangerously, "It could be two thousand hours," she growled.

The cat blanched, his nose and ears turning white, "A-a thousand hours is v-very reasonable, Your Grace. I'm sorry."

"Let's hope so," the vixen warned.

"Do you want the same for all of them?" Lily inquired.

The Duchess nodded looking over the prisoners again, "No one did anything particularly egregious, did they?"

Lily wasn't sure what that would be, so she shook her head, "No."

"Then it's one thousand hours of community service for all of them except," she held out the final word until her eyes settled on a chipmunk a few cells down. The vixen pointed, "That one."

A stone dropped into Lily's stomach. She might have guessed this would happen. "I think it'd be fairer if everyone got the thousand hours," she returned lamely. She knew the vixen's mind wouldn't be changed by an appeal to her better nature.

The Duchess smirked slyly, "Oh, I don't think our friend's punishment will last anywhere near that long. Fetch him for me, would you?"

Reluctantly, Lily trudged over to the cell, unlocked the door, and then led the tiny rodent to the leering fox. The chipmunk didn't even stand as tall as the vixen's waist, ears included. The fox crouched down and lifted him under the arms, grinning toothily as she held him in front of her face.

"What's your name, Dear?" the Duchess asked in a matronly tone; it made Lily's stomach churn.

Just tell him he's going to die. Somehow the falseness of the vixen's kindness made everything that much worse.

"James Harker," he squeaked.

"Well, James, you've done a very bad thing, and I'm going to have to punish you," the vixen explained gently. "I'm afraid I can't go easy on you, but you won't have to worry about collecting rubbish for the next several months." She set him back down in front of her and gestured deeper into the dungeon, "We'll discuss things more away from the others. Lead on, James." She briefly glanced at Lily, "Have a good morning, Officer."

Her body lead, Lily watched as the vixen ushered the chipmunk away, eventually disappearing around a corner.

"Why does he get less punishment?!" the Persian groused. "That's not fair!"

It's not fair. Lily pushed the thought aside. There was nothing she could do. "We're lucky to have someone like you to look out for us," Zeta's words of confidence echoed in Lily's mind. She felt like she might throw up. How would she explain the prisoner's murder? I'm a fraud. Zeta would know. Everyone would know.

"Well? Are you going to just stand there, or are you going to let us out?" the Persian complained.

Lily barely even registered his question. I'm supposed to protect people. Without even looking at the gray cat, she bolted the way the fox and chipmunk had gone. Lily tore around the corner and spotted the vixen's bushy tail disappearing as she turned yet another corner in the labyrinth-like dungeon. Lily charged after her.

The vixen turned in surprise as Lily rounded the second corner, "Officer Schulz?"

Without slowing, Lily swung her right fist in a vicious uppercut. Her fist connected with the Duchess' chin, and the fox's head snapped back. She dropped to the floor in a heap, apparently unconscious.

The chipmunk squealed in shock, "What?! What are-"

Without answering, Lily snatched him up, slung him over her shoulder, and raced back the way they'd come.

The chipmunk squirmed frantically, trying to get away. "What did you do?! Is Her Graceokay?! Where are you taking me?!"

"She was going to kill you," Lily hissed. "Shut up. We're getting out of here."

This silenced the chipmunk until Lily had climbed into her SUV and tossed him into the passenger's seat. She pulled away from the Courthouse trying to think where to go. I can't stay here. If the Duchess was dead, Lily would be executed for her murder. If the fox was alive, she'd probably have Lily drawn and quartered, or worse.

"W-why was she going to kill me?" the chipmunk asked nervously.

"That's what she does," Lily answered perfunctorily.

After several more seconds, he asked, "Where are we going?"

"I don't know," Lily growled. "Somewhere she won't find us."

"W-we could take the tram," the chipmunk suggested. "Th-the one in the tunnels." Lily glanced at him warily, "I deleted my map. Do you know the way?"

He nodded, "I know the way."

"Where's the closest entrance?"

"I-I only know where I went in," he stammered.

"Where's that?" Lily pressed.

"A-across town. I can show you."

Lily nodded, "Tell me the way."

The chipmunk guided her to the South side of Maplesburg where they found a centuries-

old but well kept temple to Gaia. Lily parked behind the white marble edifice before stripping off her uniform top. She left this and her cell phone in the SUV, taking only her keys and her handgun on its belt. The chipmunk led her into the temple and past the altar to the very back. The chipmunk slipped into a secluded alcove and, reaching a claw into a crack where the walls met, triggered some mechanism that caused the back of the alcove to slide away behind the adjacent wall.

He glanced back at Lily, "This is it. Are you ready?"

Lily nodded. "Thanks for this. When we get to the tram, you can go home. I can go alone from there."

The chipmunk shook his head, "You saved me. I'll make sure you find someplace safe to stay. They won't be expecting you on the other side. I'll make sure they know it's okay."

Lily didn't like accepting even more help from the chipmunk, but she nodded once in reluctant agreement. "Alright, lead the way."

The chipmunk stepped into the rectangular opening of the pitch black tunnel before turning to look back at her. "It's James, by the way."

"Lily," Lily answered tersely.

He smiled slightly, "Nice to meet you, Lily. I guess we're both fugitives from justice now, huh?"

Lily grimaced at the thought. This was all that damned fox's fault. I hope she's rotting in Tartarus right now! "If it's justice we're fugitives from, I'm a naked mole rat," she growled. "I'll make that bitch pay for this somehow."

"I won't argue with that. I hardly think being hanged is a just punishment for littering."

"Being hanged would have been the least of your worries," Lily corrected grimly. "You would have been begging for a speedy death by the time that bitch was done with you. She's sick."

James looked a bit queasy at this revelation, "Th-thanks for saving me from that," he squeaked nervously.

"It was the right thing to do. Let's go," Lily returned curtly.

James nodded, and they entered the sloping tunnel, closing the door behind them. Together, they descended into the inky darkness.