FSE

Furry search engine

formerly SoFurry search engine

I apologize for any and all grammar/spelling mistakes, I'm still learning. ^.^

I love comments so please share any and all thoughts in the comments section below.

All characters and ideas from this story are mine and are not to be used without my permission. The views expressed in this story are not necessarily my own, nor should they be construed as anything more than part of the fictional story they are presented in. This story series contains graphic sexual content between an underage fur and an adult.

Warning: The following chapter includes gang violence, blood and death.

Chapter 15

The sound of quietly heated voices wafted through the paper thin walls of the small trailer as Mikey shifted under his light blue blanket on the small mattress in his tiny bedroom. He began chewing on one corner of the thick cloth as he anxiously tried to go to sleep and wished that he was even remotely tired, but he wasn't, he was never tired. As he lay in bed with his eyes closed he did his best to pretend he was sleeping as he tried to ignore the muffled voices in the other room.

Despite his attempts to be polite and keep his nose out of his parents business, as his mother so often said, he noticed that Dad's voice was getting louder as the argument intensified. Mother was angry about something again, but she always seemed angry. The nine year old wolf's ears wilted as a pang of guilt spread through his chest. Every time he heard them arguing it was about him, like she disdained the very idea of him. Dad said she loved him but was just stressed out, but it didn't always feel that way.

As the voices began to get louder and louder, Mikey sunk back against the cold hard wall and disappeared under his blanket as he pulled his knees up to his chest, as if he where trying to hide from the voices that seemed to echo through the closed door to the right of the foot of his bed. "We don't have a choice here, he's going to be here soon and he wants the money!" The words came out in a booming voice, with a note of finality that tensed the small cub's spine. Dad was furious now and that voice meant that he was tired of arguing.

Mikey could count on one paw the number of times he'd ever heard him use that tone with him, specifically the time he'd found the gun in his closet. His dad had been livid and it was the first time he'd ever really been afraid. Even then, his dad had come to him later and explained how dangerous the gun was and that he was just upset because he could have accidently hurt himself with it. The silver white wolf clenched his eyes closed and pushed his head against the soft squishy pillow, unable to ignore the cold shiver of fear that crawled up his spine at the tone, even when it was clearly not directed at him.

A few moments passed before he heard his Dad's deep tenor voice echo through the walls once more. "How many times do I have to tell you! Jesus fucking Christ! I don't have all the money, I'll just have to ask for more time!" Mikey gasped at the vulgarity, knowing what the words meant, but surprised by his dad's use of them. He never said those things, not to anybody. The tiny wolf cub clenched his eyes closed and hunched his shoulders against the fear that reverberated through his chest. What was going on that had him so worked up?

Was it something he'd done? Or something he didn't do? No, that didn't seem to make sense. They were talking about money, which meant it didn't have anything to do with him. The cold hard sound of Mothers voice echoed through the room, harsh and irritable. As she spoke a soft thumping sound began to draw near the trailer and as the sound got louder his parent's voices momentarily died down in the other room.

"He's here. Grab your coat. Now!" Dad's words left no room for an argument and came out in such a demanding tone that Mikey almost jumped out of bed to do as he was told, even though he wasn't talking to him. The little wolf sighed as he shifted in bed and idly wondered if he could get up and play since it wasn't a school night.

Mikey bit his lip as he wondered if he could go outside with them and on a whim he climbed out of bed to find out. With a heavy tug the cub opened the 3rd drawer from the bottom on the brown chest of drawers next to his bed, removing a shirt and closing the drawer with a dull creak. He quickly tossed the shirt over his head and pulled forcing his head through the small neck hole and tugging the long locks of curly black hair that hung down into his mismatched eyes. As he adjusted the hem of the blue shirt the door to the trailer banged closed, shaking the entire structure.

Mikey yelped his protest as the loud noise made him jump but he quickly got over the fear that shot through his body at being startled as his heartbeat returned to its slow steady pace. He stepped easily into his old black shoes, forgoing socks, and checked that his short strings were tied before turning to the door, freezing in place for a moment while he listened to see if his dad was still yelling.

His ears searched for the voice he new so well and heard nothing. They perked up and his tail began to wag as he put his paw on the cold metal door handle, excited to see if he could come out and play. Maybe they could play a game on the xbox or read more of the Harry Potter book once they were done with what ever it was his parent's was doing. The little wolf ventured out of his bedroom and into the dark hallway that lead to the bathroom and his tiny room as excitement swelled in his chest, hoping that he could play since he so obviously wasn't tired. It was a Saturday after all.

The night was chilly and the hallway was always colder than his bedroom, but Mikey did his best to ignore the icy air that cut through his baggy t shirt and shorts as he slowly crept into the clean kitchenette and passed the large brown couch in the living room. The only light came from under his parent's bedroom door and it did little to illuminate his path but Mikey moved through the room without a problem, remembering exactly where everything in the room was placed and how best to navigate around the tidy room.

He made his way to the door as Mikey did his best to ignore the long scary shadows that stretched across the room like jagged claws as he told himself that there was no such thing as monsters. Even so his pace quickened as he ventured into the darkness, spurred on by an irrational fear that made him squirm just a bit as he finally made it to the front door.

The cold metal handle twisted easily in Mikey's paw as he pulled hard on the flimsy door and dislodged it from its crooked frame, allowing it to swing inwards. Mikey pushed at the screen door, being careful not to ruin the new screen the land lord had just installed as he clenched his mismatched eyes closed to guard them from the bright yellow porch light above his head.

His shoes scuffed and thumped noisily as he stepped out onto the green plastic carpeted landing and turned left, making his way down the sturdy wooden staircase and into the shadow cast by the trailer. Mikey stopped at the bottom of the stairs as the sound of a car tires screeched and the smell of burning rubber wafted through the air.

"Dad?" Mikey said. Unsure if he was interrupting as he hopped playfully over the crack in the sidewalk, flicking his untied shoe laces out in front of him so as not to trip on them as he walked. The little wolf didn't hear any voices as he came around the corner and saw his parents standing at the end of the driveway looking down the road as the sound of an engine roared towards them. Mikey spoke again, unsure if they'd heard him. "Excuse me?" After a few more moments of silence Mikey spoke again. "Dad?" He spoke louder this time, in an attempt to get his fathers attention.

The tall muscular white wolf turned his head as headlights flicked on down the road, flooding the dark trailer park in a glow of yellow light. "Go back in side Mikey, we'll play in just a minute." His dad said in a strained voice. The little cub's tail began to wag excitedly, he'd not been told to go back to bed. A moment later a loud bang erupted from down the road, the bang came again and again, exploding in quick succession as the car barreled towards the cub's parents.

The large black SUV that was making all the engine noise passed his parents at full speed. Mikey saw a dark mist explode from his dad's body as the tall wolf stumbled backwards and slumped to the ground. His mother went down a second later as Mikey's stomach dropped to his toes and fear exploded through his chest like a volcano, sending waves of terror roaring through his little body. "DADDY!" He screamed at the top of his lungs as he bolted towards the wolf, ignoring the continued bangs coming from the SUV as it drove off into the distance.

Mikey dove to the ground next to his dad and immediately put his paws down on the gaping wound on his fathers chest, trying to stop the gushing black blood from flowing down onto the cement sidewalk. It was no use, the wound was bigger than both of Mikey's paws put together and he was just making a mess as his dad's chest rose and fell in jerky forced movements.

Mikey gasped for breath and tears flooded his mismatched eyes as lights from neighboring trailers began to flick on around him. 911, he needed to call 911! The little wolf wailed in fear as he leapt to his footpads and ran as fast as his little legs could carry him back into the trailer, demolishing the screen door as he made a bee line to the cordless phone that sat on the coffee table.

Thick black blood dripped down his arms and smeared across the phone buttons as he punched the numbers 9-1-1 into the phone. The line rang once and as soon as he heard a voice he began screaming into the receiver. He chanted his address like a prayer, punctuating the ending by screaming for someone to send an ambulance as he ran back outside with a blanket from the couch to try put pressure on his dad's bleeding chest.

His neighbors where kneeling on the sidewalk, trying to help his mom as he came around the corner of the trailer but Mikey ignored them all as he barreled through the small crowd of fur's and dove back on his dad, splashing in a pool of blood that covered the entire sidewalk as he pushed the blanket against the still puddle of blood that sat in the crater that was all that was left of his fathers chest

The sound of police sirens wailed in the distance, droning out the cubs screams as tears flooded like a torrent down either cheek. Time lost all meaning and the metallic stench of blood filled the wolfs senses as Mikey fought against the paws that where trying to pull him away as he tried to put pressure on his fathers wound, unwilling to admit what he already knew.

Liz was jarred awake as an ear splitting wail erupted through the early morning air like a banshee and a sharp pain lanced through her ribs as Mikey's elbow jammed hard against her body, bruising the skin under her deep rich red fur. The vixen jumped and instinctively shifted away from the cubs flailing arms as he awoke and sat bolt upright with a look of complete terror on his muzzle. The cub's mismatched blue and yellow eyes gleamed with unshed tears in the moonlight as he looked around.

"He's dead!" Mikey finally screamed as he continued to search the darkness. His mismatched eyes were flooded with unbridled fear and pain, unseeing even as his eyelids flicked closed, clearing the tears flooding his vision. The vixen's heart dropped in her chest as the little wolf collapsed against her and fell to pieces in her arms. Tears gushed down his cheeks and his body shock as he wailed uncontrollably.

Liz looked around helplessly as she tried to comfort the cub but could find no way to console him as he writhed in pain and agony against her breast. Her own tears welled up in her eyes at the pain of watching the love of her life so devastated and frustration swelled in her chest as she was unable to even confirm what she suspected had happened. Unable to do anything else, she simply sat there with the silver white wolf cradled in her arms, hugging him and rubbing his back as she tried her best to give him what little comfort she could.

After a few moments the sound of thumping footpads alerted Liz to her mom's ascent up the stairs. Her stomach lurched in fear as she looked down at the shadowed pile of clothing on the ground next to her bed and then at the silver cub's naked body nested between her large white furry breasts. She and Mikey where both still very naked and she was sure her mom was coming to investigate the screams. The thumping got louder in time with her beating heart as the hurried footsteps traveled down the hall and stopped in front of her door.

A loud knock reverberated through Liz's bedroom door, causing her to jump even though she new it was coming. The vixen pulled her blanket up to her chin and hooked an arm under Mikey's bottom, lifting the quaking cub up to her shoulder in a last ditch effort to cover herself. She clenched her eyes closed and took a long shaky breath as the knock came again, more forceful and urgent this time.

"Come in", Liz said in a shaky fearful voice. The fur held her breath and her paws began to shake as the fear of being caught in such an unexplainable situation washed over her body. Her heart began to boom in her ears as her mom's elderly muzzle appeared around the door illuminated by a slash of warm white light that cut across her bedroom and missed the pile of discarded clothing by a few scant inches.

"Is everything ok? I heard screaming from my room." Her mother's voice came in a sleepy concerned whisper that Liz could barely hear over the loud sobs coming from her breast. Her muzzle went dry and her tongue began to stick to the roof of her mouth as she tried to speak.

After her third attempt she finally managed to string a coherent sentence together in a voice laced with fear and uncertainty. "Yes, I... I think he had a nightmare about his dad... He passed away a few years ago." Liz said as she hoped against hope that her mother could not see them sitting in the bed. Even so she pulled the blanket up tighter around her maw as she searched for an explanation that would explain her lack of clothing and worse, Mikey's, if it came to that.

"Don't turn on the light I'll explain later." She blurted out as her mom's paw appeared through the slit in the door. Her face began to warm and her body began to sweat as her mom gave her a curious look but let her paw drop back out of sight behind the door. "Alright, is everything ok?"

Liz's blood ran cold as she realized she had just drawn her mother's curiosity. She chewed her lip and racked her brain for an explanation and finally blurted out the first thing that came to mind in a shaky voice as her heart began to boom in her ears. "I'm not wearing a top and I don't want Mikey to see." The words where out of her muzzle before she'd had time to think them through but as she watched her mom's reaction, it seemed to do the trick and Liz hoped it would end the conversation.

"The poor thing. Is there anything I can do?" Her mom asked after a few moments. Liz shook her head as she realized her mom may not be able to see her do so. She cleared her throat and took another deep shaky breath. "No. There doesn't seem to be anything I can do right now." Admitting that she couldn't help sent a bolt of pain and helplessness through the vixen's chest, burning away the fear of being caught naked with a naked 11 year old cub in her bed, but the pain was a drop of water in the ocean compared to the agony distorting the little cub's face as tears streamed down his muzzle.

The silver white fur on his face was already soaking wet and his paws had curled into the blanket and where clenching it like a life raft as he curled against her body. "Well I'll be in my room if you need me and I'll check in from time to time." Her mom said before disappearing back behind the door and closing it behind her. The soft click of the latch was like a breath of fresh air as Liz began to relax and let the blanket settle back down in her lap. Her attention returned to the inconsolable wolf as she settled down to wait for him to calm down. To pass the time she rubbed his back and stroked his head with a paw, trying to keep his hair out of his bloodshot mismatched eyes.

Linda sighed tiredly as she moved back down the hall in a stiff shuffle. The high pitched scream had ripped through the entire house, sending a wave of panic through her chest as her groggy mind tried to comprehend the sound. It had taken a full minute for her to remember Liz was upstairs with Mikey and it had taken her another full minute to get dressed and make her way up the stairs in the night.

She frowned as she stopped and turned back to look down the hallway. It was lucky it was so dark in there. If Liz was going to be a mother she needed to learn that privacy was a thing of the past. Sleeping without a top was never acceptable when there was the possibility that a cub might turn up at your bedside, scared, upset or hungry.

The elderly vixen frowned as she stood there at the edge of the stairs with the moonlight from the kitchen windows reflecting up the stairs and down the hallway. Her bedroom was in the basement, but she'd expected to find some sign that Mikey had passed through the hallway, even after not hearing his movements above her, but she'd not heard anybody move down the hall and the door to the room Mikey had been sleeping in was closed. Linda sighed softly as she turned back to the stairs, making her way back to the bed she'd hastily left. That was a question for the morning, when she could think clearly.

Liz shifted uncomfortably as her joints and muscles throbbed and burned in protest of her sitting position. The sun was beginning to rise above the mountains and light was flooding into her bedroom from the window above her bed but she'd not moved a muscle since Mikey had awoken.

She did her best not to jostle the tortured wolf cub in her lap as she reached down and began massaging the toned calf muscle in an attempt to work the cramp out of it. She'd spent the rest of the night watching helplessly as Mikey wallowed in an agony that she barely understood. The report she'd read about his father's death had been poorly written and extremely short with only a few scant details.

The wolf had been involved in a gang shooting after an argument over drug money. He'd taken 12 AK-47 bullets through the chest at close range, killing him almost instantly. Mikey's mom had been wounded but not seriously injured as a bullet grazed her temple. The only mention of the cub had been that he'd been the one to call 911.

The information she'd been able to piece together from Mikey's wailing and crying painted a strikingly different picture. One that sent a shiver up her spine and pang of heart ache that still radiated through her body and brought tears to her eyes. The poor wolf had actually witnessed his father's death, standing only a few yards away when the gang member had shot him.

Liz groaned as she gave in and moved her legs out from under the little wolf as her massage failed to work any kind of feeling back into her footpads. A large knot was building in her back and her deep green eyes where dry and rough, like sandpaper against her eyelids.

Mikey lay unmoving as she shifted her legs out from under him and rearranged so that the blood could reach her toes once more, making them tingle and burn. His muzzle was a massacre of snot and tears. His deep blue and bright yellow eyes blood shot, hallow and empty. His voice was raspy and rough from crying and his brow was furrowed with the pain of a loss he'd never come to terms with. His pointed silver white ears folded flat against his black curly hair and his paws were tucked between his knees and chest.

Over the next hour the wolf's tears slowed from a tide to a trickle that eventually stopped all together as the sun inched its way into the sky, filling the room with a brilliant yellow light and sending a beam of warm light cutting across the room. Through it all Liz sat with her paw wresting on the cub's head, gently stroking his curly black hair and wiping at his nose with the comforter that covered the bed as it ran. On a number of occasions she'd tried to come up with something to say, but she was at a loss for words.

She new the procedures, she was familiar the basics of handling a cub that was going through a crisis like this, but it seemed so much more real, so much more vivid, sitting there watching as a cub she loved more than life itself wallowed in anguish that she could do nothing to end. More than anything she wished she could go back in time and protect him somehow, but instead she sat helplessly, watching as the wolf battled with a demon that she could not help him fight.

Mikey lay in a cold sweat as wave after wave of agony burned through his chest like a wild fire through a forest, devouring every feeling, sensation and thought that blossomed in him. The fire left his mind empty and unthinking and his body felt limp and tired as he fought to push the pain from his mind. Not since the night of his fathers passing had he been unable to keep that pain hidden away, tucked back into a hole in his mind that he only ever ventured near accidently, and even then he always forced it down as soon as he possibly could.

But this time had been different, the dream had been so real that he woke up thinking his paws were still wet from the sticky dark red blood that had covered them, his ears where filled with the wailing sirens and blue and red lights flashing in his eyes. In the first moments of coherency he was sure he could still smell the pungent aroma of gun powder and burning rubber, that he could feel the icy winter air and hear the distant sirens as the police and ambulance sped towards him.

The memories had come flooding back so quickly that he'd been unable to even respond to the tide, instead he simply lay in bed, dead to the world as the anguish and pain washed over him, paralyzing him in every possible way. He barely noticed as his body shifted and was lifted up in the air and a moment later a glimmer of light was staring back at him in Liz's concerned deep green eyes. "Please talk to me sweetheart. Tell me what I can do to help you." Her warm soprano voice was like siren song in a storm, drawing him away from the pain, if only slightly.

Liz watched as she saw some reaction in Mikey's eyes at the sound of her voice and felt a glimmer of hope in her breast as she watched the cub in her arms. It was nearly eight AM and Mikey still hadn't moved a muscle since he'd awoken. She tried again, wondering if simply talking to him would help and desperate to try anything to get a reaction out of him, even if it was more screaming and wailing.

She hugged him close to her chest and entangled her paw in the fur on his back as she began to gently rub, massaging the muscles that felt like iron against her finger pads. "Would you like to go play with some of your toys?" She cooed the offer, hoping that she may be able to distract him, if only slightly.

"We've got that neat Porsche model my mom got you and that PS Vita with those games. We could play with your hotwheels." Liz shifted her paw and gently stroked it up the cubs leg, discretely seeing if he was aroused and not the least bit surprised to find his cubhood completely limp. The thought had been a long shot but as she sat there trying to comfort the poor cub, she began to get more and more desperate for a way to help him.

Frustration welled up in her chest as she searched for any signs of a response to her words, and found nothing. With a disheartened sigh she gave up trying to talk to him and settled on simply kissing the cub, caressing his muzzle with her pink tongue. She began to rock back and forth gently as she slipped back under the deep red covers, hiding both the fur's naked bodies incase her mom came back in.

The concerned vixen slid her paw up Mikey's spine and curled it back in the hair on the back of his head as she rolled onto her side, pressing his head against her chest, just above her heart as she nuzzled his ear and whispered softly. "We can do anything you want sweet heart." As she spoke the vixen searched desperately for an idea that might break him from this stuper and after a few moments a thought came to her. Something that she'd never thought to suggest before, but that she hoped might actually stir the cub into reacting.

Liz spoke in an ominous whisper as she tread into territory that could very easily send the cub back into full on hysterics. Desperate to get a response she said "We could go see your dad's grave." The words fell from her muzzle so delicately that even she had a hard time hearing them, but even as she finished the sentence she felt the small cub tense and shudder against her body. She looked down into the darkness between her firm round breasts and the thick squishy red comforter, searching for the cub's eyes to see if the suggestion yielded a response but after a few second he still didn't say anything.

"Would you like to do that?" She murred into his ear. "I could make some calls if you don't know where he's buried." Liz swallowed as frustration burst back into her chest, sending a fresh flood of tears trickling into her deep red fur. She choked back a sob as the silence drilled into her ears, ringing them with the lack of noise and hammering home the pain of being unable to help him.

"I know where he's buried." Mikey whispered as a new kind of pain tore into his chest ripping a hole in his body that was eerily similar to the crater he'd seen in his father's chest. The new hole made it difficult for him to breathe or speak as it burned into him with the intensity of a thousand suns. "Can we?" He whispered into the darkness that surrounded him. He didn't know when Liz had covered him with a blanket and lied down, but his head was nestled between her breasts and the dull even thump of her heart boomed in his ears.

The question sent a shockwave exploding through his chest as he asked, sending a plethora of feelings radiating through his body. It was like someone had turned the lights on in his mind and all the sudden he could think and feel again, even if it was just to feel unending agony and loss coupled with a an empty . The thought of seeing his dad again, even if it was his grave was like a beacon that he could look to, a light house that would lead him out of the pit he'd fallen into upon waking up.

A fresh flood of tears streamed from the wolf's eyes as he lay there, wondering if he could actually go to see his dad. The last memory he had of his father was him on the ground, covered in his own blood with cold lifeless eyes and limp unmoving arms. His mother had not let him go to the burial, nor the cemetery afterwards. He only knew where his dad was at because he'd seen it written down once with the words grave site written above them.

Liz nearly jumped for joy as the words came from Mikey's muzzle. She had to struggle to keep still as she felt a sudden urge to run to the car right then and go to the place that had gotten a response from the cub. Relief spread through her like a river and a moment later she felt the cub settle against her body slightly. "Let's get dressed and go." She said, hoping to keep the cub thinking on the suggestion.

She felt the small cub shift and move for the first time and a moment later the blanket slipped down her shoulder as he pulled it back with a small silver white furred paw, exposing the bloodshot mismatched eyes, full of hope even as they flooded and overfilled with tears again and again.

Both furs sat up simultaneously and Liz lifted the cub from her breast and sat him down on the ground next to the twin sized bed. The cubs footpads hit the ground with a soft thump and the small cub's knees began to wobble under his weight, but Liz's arm was already there under his, supporting his thin frame as he adjusted to standing on the tired achy legs.

Mikey's muscles throbbed and burned from being stationary for so long as he looked around at the brightly lit room, wondering when the sun had come up. He swallowed back a lump in his throat, struggling to maintain some composure as he told himself again and again that he would find his dad's grave. This wasn't one of his mother's empty promises or outright lies. Liz had never lied or misled him before and she would take him to go find his dad. He looked up at the slim lithe fox as she climbed out of bed, completely naked with large wet spots on her chest and shoulder where he'd been crying. As soon as she was standing he hooked his arm around her waist, clinging to her resting his head on her tummy as the sensation of her silky warm fur soothed a small amount of the pain he was feeling.

After only a few minutes Liz was dressed in a pair of Levi's that where so tight she felt almost embarrassed to be in them. She'd picked clothing that would draw Mikey's eye because it made her feel good to know he was looking, but in her tight dark blue levi's and short belly shirt, she suddenly felt disrespectful, like her scantily clad form would somehow offend the cubs feelings.

She helped pick out a pair of blue plaid boxer shorts and a pair of black levi's for Mikey and then helped him with the light blue shirt and the button down black shirt that he put on over the top of it, leaving it unbuttoned and loose on his shoulders. He put on his own socks and shoes in clunky wooden movements as Liz packed up his clothing and hers in the bags they'd brought and slung them over her shoulder as Mikey finished his shoes and stood up.

Linda paced back and forth across the kitchen floor, her nails clicking against the hard dark wood as she contemplated the strange feeling in the pit of her stomach. She looked up at the thin stairwell and dark hallway that lead to her daughters bedroom and the unused bed that she'd made up for Mikey. Something didn't add up, but she couldn't put her finger on what it was.

She turned to go back upstairs and see if Liz and Mikey where still awake when she could see them in the light, but stopped after only a few paces. No, there was nothing to see, Mikey had come to Liz in the night after a nightmare, that was all. "But why was his bed unused?" She said aloud, speaking to herself in hushed tones as she grappled with the problem in front of her.

Maybe Liz had simply put Mikey on top of the comforter and covered him with a different blanket from her bedroom. The elderly vixen looked nervously up the stairs, yes that made some sense. Maybe Liz hadn't turned down the bed because she didn't want to make a mess, it did sound like her daughter.

As Linda tried to talk herself into believing that idea she heard the door upstairs click and the soft patter of footpads move slowly down the hall. A moment later Liz and Mikey appeared at the top of the stairs, there hair quickly combed but still showing the lingering affects of bed head.

The sight of Mikey's blurry bloodshot eyes sent a pang of guilt and sympathy through Linda's chest as she looked from her new grandcub to her daughter, who looked exhausted. Liz's bags hung loosely over her shoulder, leaving an ominous pang in her chest. They where leaving and she would, once again, be all alone in the big house with just an ungrateful son living in the basement.

The elderly vixen sighed and looked down at the ground, feeling selfish for wanting them to stay when Mikey was so upset. A pang of disappointment shot through her chest, she could be there to help try and cheer him up and she'd had so much she wanted to do with him and Liz, the time they'd spent here was just too short and they didn't have to leave just because Mikey was sad.

As her daughter came over to them she didn't have to ask, or say anything. She could read the apology in her daughter's eyes and see the guilt painted clearly on her daughter's muzzle. "Promise you'll come back soon?" Linda asked as her tail sunk low behind her and her ears folded back against her hair.

Liz stopped mid-step as guilt spread through her chest at lying to her mom, but it was necessary and there where no other options. The question her mom asked was not what she expected and she stuttered for a second, searching for a response. After a second's she finally nodding her head yes as she wondered if she may have actually convinced her mom with the poorly made up explanation for not wanting the lights on. Mikey whimpered softly against her side and she looked down, cupping his muzzle with a paw and stroking it tenderly as he looked pleading up at her. "We're going to go find a grave. I'll do everything I can to come back soon Mom, hopefully next weekend." She said to her mom.

She gave her mom a warm hug and then smiled warmly as Mikey stepped forward and hugged her mom as well, wrapping his thin arms around her waist and squeezing her abdomen to his cheek. The smile on her mom's face when Mikey stepped away from her said more about how much she cared about Mikey than anything she could say and a single tear of joy trickled down the elderly fur's face as she tenderly cupped the cub's muzzle.

"We'll see you soon sweetheart. You're part of the family now and you're always welcome." Linda said as a wave of joy blossomed through her chest. She wasn't going to ask for a hug goodbye from Mikey, not in his current predicament. The fact that he'd given her one on her own touched her in a way that she could barely describe and she suddenly felt ok with them leaving, like it wasn't the end of the world.

The little wolf simply nodded as he slunk back to Liz and clung to her. He'd come to her house shy and nervous, but she'd won him over. The two furs left quickly afterwards, not even staying for breakfast, but promising to come back as soon as possible. Laying on the bedside table in Liz's bedroom sat her cellphone, still charging with an x in the signal indicator box.