{"sf1_id":2032987,"sf2_id":"k1VKpDQe","title":"Chapter 1: Goodbye Willowdale","author":"HeatherOBunn","words":5027,"posted_at":"2023-08-03T19:28:00.000Z","tags":["Bittersweet","Chapter","College","Fox","Novel","Parents","Predator/Prey","Prejudice","Romance","Vixen","departure"],"url":"https://fse.anthro.fr/stories/2032987-chapter-1-goodbye-willowdale","original_url":"https://sofurry.com/s/k1VKpDQe","image_url":"https://cdn.sofurryfiles.com/submissions/thumbnails/44/da/44da7603-84b5-4fd0-84dc-d6b38d146f50","description":"#1 of Flora: A Tale from Vulpineva\n\nMy third novel is different from my first two as it is not a thriller. Instead, it is a YA romance novel. The entire novel is SFW with some mild kink. It is a prequel of sorts in that it deals with some secondary characters from the second novel a decade prior to the events of that novel.\nFlora is anxious about starting undergrad at the prestigious Royal College of Vulpineva, and when she immediately clashes with her roommate, Isabelle, things don't seem to be going well. She soon meets some like-minded friends, but will Isabelle let go of Flora's slight against her? How will this grudge affect Flora's studies and her search for romance?","content":"_Flora: A Tale from Vulpineva_  \nHeather O. Bunn\n\n© Heather O. Bunn 2021\n\n_In memory of all of the animal victims of human violence. May we finally understand that their  \nlives are their own and not for us to take or exploit._\n\nChapter 1: Goodbye Willowdale  \nFlora shoved the final cardboard box into the back of the metallic blue minivan. Stepping  \nback, she grabbed the overhead door and slammed it down with a heavy whump. She dusted  \nher black-padded hands on the light blue pleated skirt that encircled the hips and upper thighs  \nof her furry mottled gray, light brown, and white legs. Her bushy tail also emerged from the  \nbottom of her skirt, its black tip brushing back and forth across the pavement as she regarded  \nthe packed van with a churning mixture of excitement and trepidation.  \nFlora was a gray fox, Urocyon cinereoargenteus. Typical in coloration and stature for her  \nspecies, she had fluffy white cheeks, neck, and belly ringed with a warm light brown that crept  \naround her face and up her black-tipped ears. Her back, sides, forehead, and muzzle were  \nblack-flecked gray, and additional black lined her green eyes, extended down her muzzle to her  \nblack lips and nose, and wrapped around the underside of her jaw. Solid black also tipped her  \ntail and extended in a narrow stripe up the gray top side of the bottle-brush-like appendage.  \nLithe of figure, she weighed nine and a half pounds, and like all terrestrial mammals had for  \nuncounted millenia, she stood comfortably on two hind legs.  \n\"Hard to believe it's the big day!\" her mother's lilting voice interrupted her brooding.  \nFlora turned toward her mother, who stood in front of their inconspicuous Cape Cod  \nstyle home. Her mother stepped forward and embraced her in a tight hug. She'd been doing that  \na lot lately. Flora knew seeing her last kit preparing to leave home was bitter-sweet for her.  \nFlora's four older brothers had moved out years ago, attended college, begun careers, and even  \nstarted families of their own. Flora was the baby of the family, several years younger than her  \nsiblings, but now it was time for her to leave as well. She returned her mother's hug.  \n\"I'll call you every day, Mom,\" she promised.  \nHer mother broke the hug and took her hands, stepping back to regard Flora knowingly,  \nher smile warm but not without a hint of amusement, \"You can call me whenever you like, but  \nyou don't need to worry about us. Your father and I couldn't be prouder. Just promise me you'll  \nstudy hard! The Royal College of Vulpineva is no Willowdale High!\"  \n\"I will,\" Flora answered. The last thing she wanted was to get into the most prestigious  \nschool in the country only to flunk out! To tell the truth, she could still barely believe she'd gotten  \nin. No one else in her graduating class had, and she was certain some of them were smarter.  \nMaybe they didn't apply.  \nHer mother gave Flora's ear an affectionate nuzzle, \"I'm sure you'll be outstanding.  \nYou're my brilliant girl!\"  \nThey headed back to the white vinyl house along the gravel path that led from the  \ndriveway to the maroon front door. The smooth stones were cool under Flora's calloused  \nfootpads, not yet warmed by the rising August sun. Inside, Flora's father was finishing his  \nbreakfast, toast and orange juice with turkey sausage links. The turkey was lab-grown, a meat  \nsubstitute cultivated in vats on an industrial scale. It was real animal tissue, in a sense.  \nGenetically, it was turkey, but no turkeys had been harmed in its production, which was the  \npoint. Predation had been outlawed in Vulpineva well over two centuries ago with the help of  \nthis very technology, and Flora's best friends were three rabbits and a red squirrel.  \n\"I just need to brush my teeth, and I'll be ready,\" he stated. \"Are the two of you ready to  \ngo? Don't forget to pee before we leave, Flora. It's a long drive.\"  \nFlora dipped her head in acknowledgement, though she would have rather rolled her  \neyes. She was well aware of how long the drive was. RCV was in Wolfsbane, Vulpineva's  \ncapital, centrally located but hundreds of miles South of the northerly Willowdale. They'd booked  \na hotel for the night in Maplesburg and wouldn't arrive at the college until tomorrow afternoon.  \nFlora was a bit nervous to be moving so far from home, but she was more nervous about the  \nsheer size of the city she was moving to. She'd checked the population: over fifteen million in  \nthe Wolfsbane metro area. Even though the college was located several miles from downtown,  \nthe idea of that many animals in one area was unfathomable. Willowdale had a population of  \ntwenty thousand, still qualifying it as a city, but as Flora's friend Ellie liked to complain, it felt  \nmore like a town or even a village.  \nFlora went to her room to check one last time that she hadn't forgotten anything she'd  \nneed. As she opened desk drawers and rifled through her closet, Flora couldn't help but notice  \nhow empty the room felt without her things: the pictures of her friends, her favorite books,  \nknicknacks she couldn't leave behind, clothes and jewelry. All were packed and loaded.  \nSearching a dresser drawer, she found a wooden bracelet her friend Charlotte had made her:  \ntwo intertwining rings, carefully carved, smoothed, and stained reddish brown. Flora slipped the  \nbracelet onto her left wrist.  \nOnce Flora had finished searching her room and using the bathroom one final time, she  \nheaded back out to the van. She was opening the back passenger-side door when she was  \ninterrupted by a high-pitched shout.  \n\"Hey! You don't think you're getting away without saying goodbye, do you?!\"  \nFlora whipped around to see Charlotte, Samantha, and Olivia dashing up the sidewalk  \ntoward her. The red squirrel was in front, but the two rabbits bounded past her, the albino rabbit,  \nSamantha, reaching Flora first. Samantha leapt on Flora and hugged her tight. Flora hugged her  \nback, resting her jaw on the smaller mammal's head as she smiled at her other friends. Olivia  \nwas white with black spots, and Charlotte, by far the smallest of the bunch, was rusty red with  \ntufted ears and a white belly. Flora hugged Olivia then snatched up Charlotte to squeeze the  \ndiminutive squirrel to her chest. Charlotte hugged Flora's neck and nuzzled her in return,  \nunperturbed at being captured by the carnivore.  \n\"I wasn't sure you'd come. I thought it might be too early,\" Flora murmured.  \n\"Of course we came, just like we saw Ellie off last week,\" Charlotte replied. \"By the way,  \nif you see her on your way through Maplesburg, tell her hi.\"  \nFlora didn't think that was likely. While University of Northern Vulpineva was between  \nMaplesburg and Willowdale, they wouldn't really get close to Ellie's school. \"I will,\" she said  \nanyway. She set Charlotte down as she was getting heavy.  \n\"It'll just be me and Sam left to see Charlotte off,\" Olivia noted.  \n\"Are you still planning to apply for next year?\" Flora asked the black and white rabbit.  \nOlivia nodded, \"Mmhm.\"  \n\"You should apply to RCV. If I can get in, I'm sure you can,\" Flora encouraged.  \nOlivia flicked a long ear, smiling self-consciously, \"Oh no, I'd never get in. Besides, it's  \nso far away. I'll try to get into UNV like Ellie or maybe Rowansburg; then I could live at home.\"  \nSamantha smiled at the other rabbit, \"That would be nice. We could still hang out then.\"  \nFlora's stomach churned, contemplating once again how far she'd be from her friends  \nand family. Maybe she should have accepted UNV instead; she could have roomed with Ellie  \neven. However, when she'd mentioned the idea to the white and brown rabbit, Ellie had been  \nfirmly against it. As far as Ellie was concerned, getting accepted to RCV wasn't something you  \npassed up. Flora had figured she was right--Ellie was always certain in her convictions, which  \nmade it easier to agree with her than argue--but now Flora was worried she'd made the wrong  \nchoice after all.  \n\"I'm going to miss all of you,\" Flora confided wistfully.  \n\"We'll keep in touch!\" Charlotte vowed. \"Don't worry. You're going to make us all proud  \nshowing those snobs you don't have to be born with red fur to be clever!\"  \n\"I'm sure most of them are nice,\" Flora replied diplomatically.  \nCharlotte rolled her dark eyes, \"If by nice you mean spoiled rotten. Have you ever heard  \nof a red fox who wasn't born with a silver spoon in their mouth? Besides, everyone knows they  \nlet any red fox in. They didn't earn it like you.\"  \n\"Perhaps they only let me in for my species too,\" Flora suggested. \"I'm also a fox.\"  \n\"You know that's not true!\" Charlotte protested. \"They only care about their outdated  \nclub. They wouldn't let you in for being a fox any more than they'd let me in for having red fur.  \nIt's red foxes only; even arctic foxes are second class.\"  \n\"It's sounding more pleasant there all the time,\" Flora quipped dryly.  \nCharlotte looked embarrassed, \"Sorry, I'm sure you'll meet nice people too. Just as long  \nas you don't come back married to one of those speciesist snobs.\"  \nFlora smirked, \"I wouldn't want to disappoint my dear Charlotte,\" she returned with mock  \ngravity.  \nCharlotte shoved her, which didn't move her in the slightest.  \nFlora giggled, \"Heeheehee, alright, I promise I won't marry into nobility. Unless he's rich  \nand handsome and also really nice, then no promises,\" she teased.  \nCharlotte sighed and rolled her eyes. \"Alright, I assume you're coming home for winter  \nbreak before Saturnalia, yes?\"  \nFlora nodded.  \n\"Well, I'll see you then. Take care, Flora.\"  \nCharlotte turned back towards the rabbits, but Flora picked her up again and gave her  \nanother hug. \"You take care too, squirrely squirrel.\"  \nFlora set Charlotte back down, who flicked her bushy tail in slight annoyance. She  \npeered back at Flora over her shoulder to make sure she wasn't going to pick her up again.  \nFlora giggled, and Charlotte snorted and then grinned. Flora watched her friends leisurely lope  \naway down the sidewalk. Once they had rounded the corner, she turned and climbed into the  \nvan.  \n\\* \\* \\*  \nThe drive was long and boring as long drives tended to be. They arrived at the  \nMaplesburg hotel at five that evening. After checking into their room, they had dinner at a  \nnearby Ethiopian restaurant, and then Flora's parents turned in, exhausted from gripping the  \nwheel. They only had to do the same thing three more days out of the next four.  \nFlora took a shower then sat in her bed, browsing social media on her phone until she  \nfelt tired. The hotel pillows were too fluffy, but eventually she fell asleep.  \n\\* \\* \\*  \nSunday's drive was much like Saturdays, but finally, around two in the afternoon, they  \narrived at Royal College of Vulpineva. While the vast nest of skyscrapers demarking central  \nWolfsbane was visible from the top of any reasonably tall hill, bridge, or highrise, Flora was  \nrelieved that the area around the school was more reminiscent of Willowdale. There were  \nhighrises as well as houses. Restaurants and shops crowded the perimeter of the college, and  \nthe Fox Claw River wound its way between the college and the city proper. The buildings of the  \ncollege itself were constructed of heavy white marble blocks, a few having matching columns  \nadorning their façades. The campus also featured a number of massive trees, oaks, maples,  \nsycamores, and beaches, though none of them were as ancient as the architecture itself. If any  \nof the buildings had been built in the past three hundred years, the architects must have taken  \ngreat pains to make them match the existing buildings. To Flora, it actually looked a bit grim.  \nThe marble was streaked and eroded by centuries of rain; although, someone had meticulously  \nkept the buildings free of vines.  \nHer mother parked the van in the lot beside one of the towered edifices. She looked  \nback across the car at Flora, \"This is it, Brush Hall. It certainly looks fancy for a dorm!\"  \nFlora nodded, but she was more preoccupied with her rising nervousness as the fact  \nshe'd be staying here solidified from ephemeral concept to concrete reality. Her heart pitter-  \npattered at a rapid rate as she examined the austere dormitory. Would her roommate be here  \nalready? What would they be like? Would she be able to make friends? What if the classes  \nwere too hard? What if she couldn't find her class?! Her parents exited the van, and Flora  \nfollowed in a trance-like state.  \nOn the tan brick sidewalk in front of the dormitory, a pair of the university staff were  \nsitting at a white folding table. One was a red fox, and the other was a mink with jet black fur  \nand sharp eyes.  \nThe red fox smiled at them amiably. \"Moving in?\" she asked. \"I'll just need to scan your  \npaw, and then you'll have access, just wave your hand over the readers.\"  \nFlora held out her left hand back side up, and the red fox used a hand-held reader to  \nscan the microchip implanted under her skin. There was no need for cash or any other form of  \nidentification in Vulpineva; everything was linked through one's unique chip. The red fox  \nexamined a tablet on the table in front of her then looked up.  \n\"Miss Flora Mason, yes?\"  \nFlora nodded.  \nThe red vixen gave Flora a friendly smile and glanced at each of her parents before  \nglancing back at the screen. \"With Jeff and Caroline, I assume,\" she added.  \n\"That's right,\" Flora's father answered.  \n\"You didn't happen to write that book about the frog, did you?\" the vixen asked him.  \nFlora's father smiled amusedly, \"I get asked that sometimes, and like I always say, out of  \nthe million other Jeff Masons, you've just won the jackpot. Yes, that was me.\"  \nThe vixen beamed at him, \"My children love that one!\" She turned back to Flora, whose  \nembarrassment over her father being recognized wasn't improving her mental state. \"Just pick  \nup a packet from Dennis, and you're good to go.\"  \nFlora stepped over to the mink who eyed her suspiciously before thrusting a thick  \nstapled stack of paper in her direction.  \n\"Make sure you read through that,\" he snapped.  \nFlora accepted the packet, which had a coral-colored title page reading \"Orientation  \nInformation and College Policies\".  \n\"Have fun!\" the vixen called as they proceeded back down the sidewalk.  \nThey went to the van to collect some of Flora's things, and then, each carrying a box,  \nthey made their way into the building. Still holding her box, Flora leaned her hand toward the  \nreader to the left of the door. The reader beeped and turned from red to blue, the lock clicking  \nsimultaneously. Her father pulled open the door, and they took the worn marble stairs in the  \nEast stairwell--they didn't see an elevator--to the second floor. The college had emailed Flora  \nwith her room number and the name of her roommate, Isabelle Bouillier. Flora had tried to  \ncontact Isabelle on social media, but she hadn't responded. Her photos had been private and  \nher profile picture an ocean sunset, so Flora didn't even know what species she was. They  \nfound room 222 and repeated the door opening procedure. Flora stepped into the room with her  \nparents on her heels.  \nSitting on a bed with pale pink covers was a red vixen in a lavender cami. She looked up  \nfrom her phone in surprise as Flora entered. Flora stopped in the doorway, regarding her  \nnervously.  \n\"Hi,\" Flora greeted shyly. \"I'm Flora. Are you Isabelle?\"  \nThe vixen nodded, staring at her with undisguised interest. It made Flora even more  \nuncomfortable.  \n\"I tried to contact you,\" Flora murmured. \"Did-\"  \n\"What kind of fox are you?!\" the red vixen chirped.  \n\"I, I'm a gray fox,\" Flora murmured embarrassedly.  \nThe red vixen hopped up from her bed, and Flora quickly set her box on the dark blue  \nmattress of the unmade bed, which was adjacent to the left wall. She stepped farther into the  \nsmall room so that her parents could follow, also setting down their boxes.  \n\"We'll keep bringing up your things while you get introduced,\" Flora's mother chirped  \ncheerfully.  \nHer parents left.  \nFlora held out her hand, but the other vixen ignored it, curiously examining her from  \nhead to tail. She was a head taller than Flora with typical red fox coloring. Most of her fur was  \nauburn, and she had black forearms, lower legs, and ears. Her bushy tail had a white tip and  \nblack guard hairs dispersed among the red. Finally, the red vixen thrust out her own hand,  \nwhich Flora shook.  \n\"I've never met a gray fox before!\" she exclaimed. \"You said your name's Flora?\"  \nFlora nodded, smiling self-consciously, \"I've never met a red fox before today either,\"  \nshe admitted.  \nIsabelle's amber eyes widened in shock, \"Wha?! But there are so many of us! We're,  \nlike, a fifth of Wolfsbane, half of RCV!\"  \n\"I'm not from Wolfsbane,\" Flora replied embarrassedly. \"I'm from Willowdale.\"  \nIsabelle looked at her blankly, \"I've never heard of it.\"  \n\"It's in Northern Vulpineva,\" Flora explained.  \n\"Near Maplesburg?\"  \n\"Farther North than that.\"  \nIsabelle shook her head, \"No wonder you've never seen a red fox! Are there a lot of gray  \nfoxes in, where did you say, Willowsdale?\"  \n\"Willowdale,\" Flora corrected. \"There are some. There were several in my class at  \nschool. Willowdale is mostly rabbits though.\"  \nIsabelle gawked at her in horror, \"Great Zeus! That sounds awful! All of those rodents  \njust, just hopping everywhere!\"  \nIf there was one way to make Flora furious, it was to insult her friends. She glowered  \nback at the red vixen. \"Rabbits aren't rodents,\" she stated angrily. \"And even if they were, it  \nwouldn't make a difference! One of my best friends is a squirrel, and the other three are rabbits!\"  \nIsabelle looked taken aback by Flora's anger, and she took a step back, \"Sorry, I didn't  \nmean to insult you. I'm sure you'll make some vulpine friends at RCV.\"  \nFlora was going to snap back that it hadn't been her who the vixen had insulted, but her  \nmother pushed through the open door.  \n\"Sorry, we got stuck outside until Beth let us in,\" she stated. She set another box on the  \nbed as did Flora's father.  \n\"Oops,\" Flora murmured. \"I'll come help, so you won't get locked out again.\"  \nFlora followed her parents back to the van to collect more of her things. Only as she was  \nmaking her way down the stairs did she have the sinking feeling that she might have just blown  \nit with her roommate.  \nThey brought up the rest of Flora's things and unpacked the boxes, putting everything in  \nher closet or desk and making her bed. The doorless closets were located on either side of the  \nentrance, Flora's on the left like her bed. Isabelle's bed was on the back wall by the only  \nwindow, and the veneer wood desks were next to each other on the right wall, Flora's closer to  \nthe door.  \nFlora had a pair of framed photographs of her with her friends, which she placed on the  \nback right edge of her desk, away from Isabelle's. One photo showed the group at the beach  \nwith the ocean behind them. They were posing with Olivia making the peace sign and Ellie  \ngiving Samantha a second pair of rabbit ears. Charlotte was perched on Flora's shoulders with  \nFlora grasping one of the squirrel's ankles in each hand. The other photo was of the five of them  \nat their senior prom, each decked out in sparkling, frilly gowns, except for Charlotte who had  \nworn a tuxedo top. The squirrel's midnight blue jacket and sparkly silver bow tie matched Flora's  \nmidnight blue velvet dress, the bottom half of which was studded with silver sequins. The  \nmatching pair were holding hands in the middle while the rabbits goofed off on either side, Olivia  \nand Sam pretending to kiss and Ellie sticking out her tongue and crossing her eyes. The rabbits  \nhad each come with a date but had ditched them for the picture. Flora and Charlotte hadn't had  \ndates and had decided to come as each other's date, which was why Charlotte had worn the  \ntuxedo.  \nOnce everything was put away, they took the boxes back to the car then went to dinner  \nat a nearby pizza parlor. Flora's parents dropped her back at her dorm and went to their hotel.  \nThey would have breakfast together in the morning before her parents went home. Flora wanted  \nto ask if she could spend the night with them in the hotel room, but she didn't want them to know  \nanything was wrong. She opened the door to her room cautiously and peeked inside: Isabelle  \nwas sitting on her bed again. Flora couldn't tell whether she had left, but she assumed she had  \nfor dinner. She crept into the room and sat on the edge of her own bed.  \n\"It looks like you have fun together,\" Isabelle stated awkwardly.  \nFlora turned her head to look at the red vixen, \"Huh?\"  \nIsabelle nodded toward Flora's photos, \"You and your friends, it looks like you have fun.\"  \n\"We do.\"  \nIsabelle looked away embarrassedly, \"I'm, um, sorry about what I said. Most of my  \nfriends are red foxes; I didn't think about other foxes being different.\"  \n\"I'm sure we're not so different,\" Flora returned diplomatically. In truth, she wasn't really  \nsure what the other vixen meant. Different how?  \nIsabelle turned back toward her with a frown, \"You must be. I could never have prey  \nfriends.\"  \nFeeling increasingly uncomfortable, Flora replied, \"I'm sure you could if you wanted to.  \nPrey are just like us.\"  \nIsabelle looked at her like she'd sprouted weeds out of her ears, \"'Just like us?!' We're  \ncompletely different! We used to eat them!\"  \nThe final statement piqued Flora's anger. Her friends were not someone's meal! \"Okay,\"  \nshe sniped. \"They're not carnivores. If that's what you mean by 'different', then I guess you're  \nright, but I hardly think diet is all that important!\"  \n\"It's not about diet; it's about history,\" Isabelle sniped back.  \nOnce again Flora wasn't sure what she meant, \"History? I know history is important, but  \nno one I know lets what carnivores used to do prevent them from being friends.\"  \n\"It's not about that either,\" Isabelle returned snootily. \"This is what I meant when I said  \nyou're different. Our history is very important for red foxes. It defines us and our place in  \nVulpineva. Gray foxes didn't have the same role we did, so for you, perhaps it is just, 'We ate  \nprey, and then we didn't.' But who was responsible for that?! It was us!\"  \nFlora could imagine Charlotte giving her a look that said, I told you so. However, Flora  \nwasn't ready to concede. These were her friends they were talking about! \"I still don't see why  \nthat means you can't have prey friends,\" Flora replied. \"Yes, the ruling class was instrumental in  \nthe transition to lab-grown meat. But shouldn't that mean you'd be more likely to have prey  \nfriends? If your species' history of liberating prey is an important part of your identity, why  \nwouldn't you want to be friends with them?\"  \n\"Because they're completely ungrateful,\" Isabelle sniped. \"They expect predators to  \ngrovel. They expect us to do everything to make them comfortable while they do nothing. They  \ncould still be getting eaten if it weren't for us, so we won't grovel. They should conform to our  \nsensibilities.\"  \n\"I've never met anyone who expected me to grovel!\" Flora shot back. \"My friends treat  \nme just like anyone else!\"  \n\"I'm sure they do,\" Isabelle replied, her tone snidely condescending. \"I'm sure they're  \npleased with their tame vixen.\"  \nI'd rather be 'tame' than a speciesist jerk! Flora restrained herself from returning the  \ninsult. There was no point in arguing further. You couldn't change someone's mind if they were  \nsimply a bigot. She looked away from the red vixen, \"My friends are my friends. We have to live  \ntogether, so let's not talk about them.\"  \n\"Agreed,\" Isabelle acquiesced. \"I'm sure you'll learn how to be a proper fox before long  \nhere anyway.\"  \nFlora wanted to tell her she didn't want to be a 'proper fox', but she bit her tongue. \"I'm  \ngoing to take a shower,\" was all she said. She grabbed a yellow towel from her closet and  \ntromped down the hall to the bathroom.  \nFlora spent a bit longer than usual in the shower, letting the hot water soothe her nerves.  \nShe patted herself dry and brushed her teeth then returned to the room to use her blow dryer.  \nIsabelle was gone. Flora hadn't seen her in the bathroom, so she didn't know where. She took  \none of her favorite books, Poppy by Avi, off of the middle shelf of her closet and spent some  \ntime reading about the brave little mouse before turning off the light. Isabelle still hadn't  \nreturned. Flora pulled her blankets over her head in case Isabelle turned on the lights and went  \nto sleep.  \n\\* \\* \\*  \nWhen Flora awoke, Isabelle was curled up in her bed. Flora could see her side rise and  \nfall under the pink sheet. Quietly as she could, Flora donned a lacy white midi skirt and left the  \nroom. She texted her parents to let them know she was ready, and the minivan pulled into the  \nBrush Hall lot fifteen minutes later.  \n\"How was your first night?\" her mother chirped as Flora climbed into the seat behind  \nhers.  \n\"Okay,\" Flora murmured.  \n\"Tell us about your roommate. Did you talk to her more?\"  \nFlora wasn't sure what to say. Should she say Isabelle was a jerk? Should she tell her  \nparents they'd argued? She didn't want them to worry. \"We talked. She was interested in my  \npictures with the girls.\"  \n\"It sounds like she was trying to get to know you. Did you ask about her friends?\"  \nSort of. \"Yes, she said they're mostly red foxes like her. She was surprised mine were all  \nprey.\"  \n\"Hmm, it sounds like she might be a little uncomfortable around prey. Maybe you can  \nhelp her meet some.\"  \nYeah right. \"Yeah.\"  \nHer mother turned to smile at her knowingly, \"And it won't hurt for you to make some fox  \nfriends, like a nice gray tod, for instance.\"  \n\"I guess,\" Flora replied noncommittally.  \n\"We just want you to be happy, Honey, but I think you might like to have a family  \nsomeday. Your dad and I are happy.\"  \n\"I just haven't met a boy I like,\" Flora replied wearily. How many times had they had this  \ndiscussion?! It wasn't her fault the gray fox guys at Willowdale High were jerks! She'd tried  \ndating a tomcat, but it hadn't lasted long. Flora also knew the next question and preemptively bit  \nher tongue.  \n\"We'll be just as happy if you find a nice vixen. You know you can tell us anything, right?\"  \nAnnoyed even though she'd known the question was coming, Flora sighed, \"I'm not into  \ngirls, Mom. Charlotte and I did that as a joke.\"  \nThe longer story was that Charlotte had realized she preferred girls early in middle  \nschool and told Flora soon after. The fact had never bothered Flora; they were friends and  \nwhether or not Charlotte was attracted to her didn't change that. Besides, predators and prey  \ndidn't usually mix in that way. There were many interspecies couples, but they tended to involve  \nclosely related species. For a while, Flora had thought Charlotte and Ellie might get together,  \nbut when Ellie had finally gotten a date shortly before senior prom, he'd been a buck. The buck,  \nCliff, was a somewhat parochial rabbit, and Flora hadn't been disappointed when Ellie had  \nbroken up with him. Ellie could do better.  \nThey had breakfast at a local café. Her mother questioned her more about Isabelle, but  \nFlora deflected, saying they hadn't discussed much else. Her mother made her promise to ask  \nher roommate more about herself and interests. Flora was fairly certain any hope of them being  \nfriends was spoiled at this point, but she pretended to take the suggestions seriously. Not that  \nI'd want to be friends with someone like that anyway!  \nAll too soon, it was time for her parents to return home. Her mother had taken today and  \ntomorrow off, but Wednesday, she'd be back at the law firm. Flora wished they could stay  \nthrough orientation, but she also knew this was her time to begin to get accustomed to college  \nlife before the real work started. She couldn't do that with her parents here to coddle her.  \nThey returned to Brush Hall, and her parents both got out of the van to say goodbye.  \nFlora hugged each of them tightly, and as she did, hot tears welled in the corners of her eyes. A  \nlump rose in her throat, threatening to choke her. As she broke away from her mother, a fat pair  \nof tears ran down her fluffy cheeks. Her mother brought her right hand up--her left still on  \nFlora's back--and brushed away Flora's tears with her thumb. Her mother smiled a bitter-sweet  \nsmile, regretful but also happy. Flora noticed tears glistening in her eyes as well.  \n\"I'm going to miss you, Flora,\" she murmured. \"You be safe and make some friends, and  \nwe'll see you in a few months. It seems like forever now, but when it's here it'll seem like no time  \nat all.\" She smiled again.  \n\"I will, Mom,\" Flora murmured back.  \nShe could feel even more tears coming, and she tried to hold them back. She hugged  \nher mother again then stepped over to the lawn while her parents got into the minivan, pulled  \nout of the parking lot with a final wave, and turned onto the street. Then they were gone. Flora  \nwatched the street where they'd disappeared, tears streaming down her face. She took a deep  \nbreath, trying to fortify herself, and turned back toward Brush Hall.\n\n  \n  \n\n","series":{"name":"Flora: A Tale from Vulpineva","next":"https://fse.anthro.fr/stories/2032989-chapter-2-the-royal-college-of-vulpineva.json"}}