Wren Ch 4
#4 of Wren
Cherrywood
The heat from the sun lightly touched down on Lance's face as he walked outside. At first, his eyes were closed. Wren soon noticed his fear. She lightly pressed her hands on his shoulders and said.
"Just relax. Take a deep breath."
Lance inhaled and exhaled.
"Now, open your eyes." She continued.
Lance did as followed. The first thing that caught his eye was the rising sun in the trees. A scene Lance would only see in a picture. The next thing that caught his attention was the bustling field of crops filled with carrots, lettuce, and many more colorful plants and all of this surrounded by the endless forest, which was filled with many woodland creatures scurrying around. The place as a whole was simply perfect.
"I hope you feel more welcomed now." Wren said cheerfully.
Lance smiled and said
"I guess I do."
"Good. Now, how are you with heights?"
Lance took a moment to think then said.
"Well, considering that I fly a lot, I guess I'm pretty used to it."
"Good, then hang on." Wren said as she spread out her wings.
Lance lost his smile.
"Wait, what do you..." Before Lance could say anything, Wren held him tight and lunged into the air.
Lance let out a short heckle as they ascended. Soon, they were in they air reaching high over the trees and soaring strong. The wind flowed around them and made Lance excited.
"Whoa!" He said. "This is amazing!"
Wren Laughed.
"You know," Lance said. "Your stronger than you look!"
Wren laughed again and said.
"Well Lance, you're really not that heavy."
Even Lance had to laugh.
Then, they both began to hear the thundering of a river.
"Oooo, We're close." Wren said.
"Close to what?" Asked Lance.
"You'll see."
Wren started flying a little faster and going towards the river. Lance closed his eyes again. The wind blew in his face harder and harder, but his eyes remained closed. Suddenly, little drops of water began hitting his face. He finally opened his eyes and gazed upon the powerful river. The majestic flow of the water put Lance in awe. Then, like a curious child, he reached out to touch it as they flew over. Wren smiled then said.
"Alright then. Off we go to Cherrywood!"
She once again flew high above the trees leaving the river behind. Lance still had the vision of the river stuck in his head. Then Wren yelled.
"We're here!"
Lance looked and saw the small town. It was filled with life, with children playing, people laughing, bike riders, and much more. What Lance thought would be a run down and old town turned out to be very much alive.
Wren soon landed on the side of a street. She let go of Lance and cleaned his shirt off a bit. Lance looked around and said.
"This is Cherrywood?"
"Yes." Said Wren. "It's beautiful, isn't it?"
Wren began to look around too.
Then, a small group of little children ran to them. The children jumped around them, greeting Wren.
"Wren! Wren! Wren!" Each child yelled.
Wren smiled and gave them all handshakes and hi-fives. Lance stood there as if he was out of place.
"We saw you fly in and carry that man." One little girl said as she pointed at Lance.
"Can you make me fly?" One child said.
"Yea, me too." Another child said.
Wren laughed and said.
"In another time, I promise. Right now I need to help my friend."
She directed the children's attention to Lance and said.
"He's new here."
Then, one by one, the children shook Lance's hand and told him their names. Lance greeted all of them with a smile. Then a woman called out to the children and they all left and said goodbye.
"Well, that was some welcome." Said Lance in shock.
"The people here love newcomers." Said Wren. "I told you that you would fit in."
Then Wren's face lit up as she just remembered something.
"Oh wait." She said. "Your car. I almost forget."
Lance started to panic.
"Oh no! No no no no no, my car! Was it stolen? Did it wreck?"
"Whoa, easy there." Said Wren. "Your car is okay. I had my friend take it to his shop."
Lance calmed down.
"You...you put it where?" He said.
"At the shop. The mechanic is very nice. Come on, we can meet him if you want."
Wren then turned around and flew back in the air. Lance stood there confused, but smiling a little.
"Uh...Wren." He said.
"Oh." Wren said as she turned back around and flew back down to Lance.
"I'm sorry. Um...we can walk."
"I would like that." Lance said nearly laughing.
The two began to walk through the town. Lance seemed uncomfortable with the whole scene. A man from the city isn't introduced to any anthros. He soon came across an anthro dog who was surrounded by children. Lance thought that she was babysitting the children, but the odd thing that caught his eye was how calm and cheery the children were. They ran around her, hugged her leg, and played with her tail and she laughed in response. Then Lance glanced at Wren, who shared the same enthusiasm as the dog. Just her gingerly walk gave a peaceful feeling. Lance began to wonder what made this town so happy and filled with bliss.
"Do they know that they are in trouble? Do they even care?" The thoughts rang through Lance's head as they walked.
Soon they reached the car shop. The followed the sound of clanking metal as they walked in.
"Tony?" Wren called out. "Are you here?"
A man then rolled out from under a car and stood in front of them. He was wearing a gray, oil stained, t-shirt with jeans.
"Hey Wren." The man said in his deep voice. "What brings you here?"
"Do you remember that car I showed you last night?" Said Wren. "This is the owner. Tony, meet Lance."
Tony reached his hand out and said. "Nice to meet ya."
Lance shook his hand, not realizing that it was covered in a little oil. Lance let go and secretly wiped the oil on the wall.
"So, lets see that car huh?" Said Tony.
Tony led them through the garage until they finally came to Lance's car. The whole thing looked brand new. The paint was glossy, the windows were clean, and the interior was flawless.
"Wha...what did you do to it?" Said Lance.
"Well, I had the time, so, I fixed it up a little." Said Tony. "You like it?"
"It's amazing. Thank you."
Tony chuckled a little. Wren did the same. Then Lance went to Tony and said.
"Oh thank you so much. Uh...how much will this cost?"
Tony started to chuckle and said.
"Man, that was a freak storm last night. This one is on the house."
Lance's face lit up.
"Oh, oh thank you so much." He said.
"It's no problem at all." Tony said as he reached for the keys. He then threw the keys over to Lance.
"Thanks again." Said Lance as he went inside and started the car.
Tony just smiled and Wren looked at Lance through the window. She knocked on it and Lanced opened it to let her talk.
"It's a very nice car." She said.
"Yea." Said Lance nervously. "Thanks."
The two just stared at each other for a while. Lance was contemplating something in his head. He had his car, his papers, and his clothes, so why not leave? Why not stop this whole nightmare and go home? But did he really see it as a nightmare? Suddenly, Wren uttered a sound.
"So Lance." She said. "Do you like to read?"
Lance was silent for a while, until he finally said.
"Well, yes, very much so."
"Oh great. I know a good library here that will be just perfect."
Lance gave a fake smile as if he was excited, but he truthfully wanted to leave this place behind. Although, he seemed to enjoy playing Wren's game.
"Alright." He said. "Hop in, we'll drive there."
Wren giggled a little.
"Um, I don't think I quite fit." She said as she spread out her wings."
Lance looked a little embarrassed.
"It's okay." Said Wren. "I have my own transportation. Come on let's go."
Tony opened the garage and Wren flew out. Lance started to drive out and wave goodbye to Tony. Tony waved back and closed the garage as they left.
Lance started to drive out on the road and, for a while, he didn't see Wren. He then looked out his window and Wren swiftly flew close to the car and dashed to the front of it. Lance trembled in his seat as she fly in front of the car.
"Come on!" Said Wren. "Follow me!"
She flew to the road on the right and Lance quickly followed. As he turned, he saw Wren far in front of her. He drove a little faster to keep up with her. Wren laughed joyfully.
"Go left! Go left!" She said. Then she flew to the road on the left. Lance quickly turned again, gaining speed. He kept following Wren all throughout the town. Left, right, this way, and that way. Then, all of a sudden, the directions stopped. Lance looked around, but couldn't see Wren. He looked behind him for a second, but still couldn't see her. Once he looked back, he found her right in front of him.
"Stop!" She screamed.
Lance pounded on the brakes. The car abruptly stopped right in front of Wren, nearly hitting her. Lance breathed heavily and looked at Wren. He frantically got out of the car and said.
"Are you crazy? I could've hit you."
Wren just smiled and looked at Lance.
"Have you ever hit a bird while driving?"
"Well, no I haven't." Lance said confused.
"Then I guess I had nothing to worry about."
Wren winked at Lance and walked to the library. Lance soon caught his breath and followed Wren behind.
The two walked through the wooden front door and quietly stepped in. Wren started searching for her friends as Lance gazed around the library. It was a bit old, with some paint falling off and some squeaky floorboards, but was standing strong with a beautiful design.
"Will you just turn it off?" Said a familiar voice.
Wren quickly realized that it was Trent.
"Come on, this way." Said Wren as she grabbed Lance's arm.
She pulled him through the many hallways of bookshelves until they reached the bickering brothers. They were sitting side by side at the front desk.
"J.C., just turn it off. You'll see her later." Complained Trent.
J.C. blushed and said. "I know, but I just want to know about her day."
"You've been texting her all day. I think you know everything." Said Trent.
J.C. just ignored him. Trent got annoyed and said.
"Alright, that's it, give me the phone!"
Trent started tackling J.C., but J.C. didn't let him get the phone. The two scuffled a bit until Lance and Wren stood in front of them. The two feuding foxes stopped and looked at both of them. Then the two fixed their fur and clothes to try to look neat.
"Uh...hello." Said J.C.
"Hey Wren, who's your friend?" Said Trent.
Wren just smiled and decided not to talk about the fight.
"Trent, J.C., this is my friend Lance." She said.
Lance shyly waved hi.
"Hey Lance, nice to meet you." Said Trent reaching out for a handshake.
Lance hesitated, but shook the fox's hand.
"He's looking for a book." Said Wren.
"Oh really?" Said J.C. "What is your favorite genre?"
"Oh, uh...well to be honest I...I like fantasy." Said Lance nervously as if he offended someone.
Trent just smiled and said.
"Oh, okay. The fantasy books are three rows that way."
Lance looked down the rows and looked back at Trent with a smile to show he understood, but he still stood there, his nerves preventing him from moving.
"Well, go on now." Said Wren. "Go explore, I won't bother you."
Then Wren giggled. Lance just smiled again then headed down the rows. Once he was gone, Trent leaned over to Wren and whispered.
"Okay Wren, who is this guy and why did you bring him here?"
Wren kept her smile and whispered.
"He's a man from the city who has come here to ask people to move."
Trent became a little mad. His ears leaned back and his eyes were scolding at Lance's general direction.
"Relax." Wren said. "My plan is working perfectly."
J.C. heard Wren then became confused.
"Plan?" He said. "What plan?"
Wren looked at J.C. and poked his nose playfully. J.C. twitched his nose and said.
"Hey, stop that."
Wren giggled and said.
"Look how happy he is. You think he will want to give this whole town reasons to leave?"
The two brothers shared some looks, but had no answer.
"Exactly." Said Wren sounding satisfied with herself.
Eventually, Lance returned with a book in his hand.
"Ah, found what you're looking for?" Said Wren.
Lance smiled a little and said.
"Well, it was just an interesting book I found, that's all."
"Do you want it? You can use my library card."
Lance was a little embarrassed to answer, so Wren took the book and gave it to Trent before he could say anything. Trent took Wren's card and recorded it in a book.
"So, how long have you two worked here?" Lance asked.
Trent laughed and said. "Pfft, worked here? We grew up here. This is our home."
Lance seemed shocked.
"What? You live here?" He said as he glanced around the library. "Oh, I'm so sorry."
Lance then got J.C.'s attention.
"What do you mean you're sorry?" He said.
"Well, living here in an old and rusty library can't be a dream home right?"
Trent just smiled and said.
"The quality of a home doesn't make it special. It's what you do with it that makes it special."
Wren smiled at the comment while Lance fell silent again. It was right then when Lance realized that there was something special about this town. He just didn't see it yet.
"Here you go sir." Said Trent.
"Thank you." Said Lance. "Nice meeting you."
Then Lance and Wren both waved goodbye as they walked out the door.
After their trip around town, Lance and Wren drove back to Wren's cozy little him in the forest. It was a peaceful ride, even though the bumpy ground wasn't as peaceful. Wren sat in the back seats so she would have room for her wings and Lance drove. Wren leaned forward to the front of the car and said.
"So sir Lance. What did you think of my home?"
Lance just smiled. He was thinking of the right thing to say at the moment.
"It was......it was peaceful, and...also a little fun." He said.
Wren smiled too and said.
"Well, I'm glad you think so."
"But I must know something."
"What is that?" Said Wren now interested.
"How are those so people happy?" Said Lance. "Don't they know their situation?"
Wren just laughed and said.
"Well there is a simple answer really. It's because we......"
Wren paused. The silence started to worry Lance as he turned around and looked at her. Wren was frozen in fear and staring in front of her. Lance looked in front of him and was also shocked at the scene. It was Wren's house, but three police cars with flashing sirens surrounded it. They were searching the house and standing right outside, watching it all, was Mr. Baxter.