FSE

Furry search engine

formerly SoFurry search engine

This is just the beginning, just the start, just the first. Please rate and comment. As it is my first story (sorry it is so long), I would appreciate all feedback and criticisms. Please forgive the errors in grammar and syntax, I have not had the time to edit it to perfection.

I hope you enjoy, sorry no yiff in the first chapter, but I sincerely hope you enjoy it anyways.

"Yo Cyborg!" I turned, spittle hit my face, I wiped it away. Irrelevant, I kept on walking, dragging the two bound bullies behind me.

The halls were lined with angry faces, furs and humans alike. Needless to say, I was not appreciated here. Irrelevant, I had my duties. I stepped into the principal's office, and his secretary grinned at me: "More for the mill Jason?"

"Affirmative" I answered and brought the two large apes into the room.

"Just wait a moment; he's in a meeting with senior staff. Please have a seat," said Mrs. Allen, our volunteer secretary. Being a public school, in a poor neighborhood, we could not afford professional help. As such, unemployed parents (like Mrs. Allen) would volunteer their time for the sake of the school, and the sake of their children who attended Westcon High. Because of this she was one of the few who truly appreciated my position.

I attempted a smile. I have still not perfected the technique, but the school's counselor insisted that it was the key to proper social interaction. "Thank you Mrs. Allen."

"Please Jason, we see each other often enough, you can call me Valerie." I nodded. After a period of silence while she finished typing some information into the computer, she pulled out a paper form and proceeded to initiate the usual interrogative conversation that always follows one of my "visits" to her office.

"Names?"

"Jackson Maul and Damon Varl"

"Offence?"

"Assault. Act committed at 8:13am. Victim, first year freshman: Saber Jones, human. Apparent objective: lunch and lunch money."

She grinned again: "you know the form by heart now. Any more boxes that need to be filled?"

"None."

"Very well then, cookie?" she asked. The question caught me off guard, I rapidly reviewed the scenarios memorized from my social training classes, and this situation was not amongst them. "Just take it" she said, and handed me a chocolate chip cookie.

"Very nourishing, thank you" I said, which elicited a giggle out of her. "Have I said something wrong?" I was wondering whether I should mention the fact that there were unhealthy levels of sugar in the food.

"No, no, darling its fine, don't worry about it." She said with yet another giggle. "Anyways, I was wondering --"

"The meeting has finished" I interrupted. I stood just before the doors to the principal's office opened to emit a score of senior teachers and heads of departments from the office. Most were engaged in either reflection or conversation with their colleagues, but a few noticed me. I nodded to my mathematics teacher as he greeted me: "Ah, Jason, just the freshmen I was looking for. If you wouldn't mind, I could use your help when you have a free period; there is a problem I could use your insight with."

"Of course sir, period 4?"

"Sufficient," he smiled, "see you then."

As they left, I reflected upon the fact that smiling, in all its various forms did indeed seem to be present in almost every positive social interaction. I made a mental note to set aside some time tonight to practice smiling.

"Well, well, Jason. You have more criminals for me!" Said a rather plump weasel from the doorway, "please, bring them in."

"I sense your sarcasm Principal Crone, have I done something wrong?"

Mr. Crone gave a nasal sigh as he sank into his plush futon: "Jason, Jason, you have only been here two weeks, and already you are readily making enemies left and right."

"It is in the nature of my position sir."

"Ah yes, your position, for which I note you still do not have a proper title. I wanted â€"

"I do believe that head of the committee for the preservation of efficient inter student relations is my proper, official, title sir."

"Proper title indeed" I heard him mutter inaudibly into his double chin. "Of course, my apologies Jason, it is just such a mouthful that it slips my mind. I wanted to ask, are you sure you still want to hold that position?"

"Sir? I volunteered for this position. A position which I created myself. What gives you the indication that I wish to resign at this time?"

"Never mind, just bring those apes in, I will speak to them. But before you go, I would like you to escort our new freshman around; he will be arriving Monday morning."

"Very well sir."

......................................................................................................................................

I got you babe, I got you ba- Crash,

"Jeez alarm clock, you could have been more creative this morning" I yawned as I squirmed in my bed, the covers too comfortable to abandon so easily.

"Darling! Darling get up! It's the first day of your new high school today, don't be late!" came my Mother's voice from downstairs.

"Yes mother" I shouted from my bed as I pulled myself out of the luxurious warmth of the blanket. I yelped as the cold hit my bare fur. I quickly grabbed some clothes as I sped to the bathroom for a shower.

"Oooooh! Maxie's only in his undies!" shouted my little sister from down the hall.

"Beat it Jules" I said as I turned to stick out my tongue at her, "the shower is mine! You're juuust jeeaalous!" I added, mimicking her playful rhyming whine.

She grinned as she stuck her tongue out at me in turn.

I love my family I thought as I slid into the shower stall, turning on the warm water and letting it whisk away the morning cold lodged in my fur. What must it be like not to have one? I wondered as my thoughts wandered to my new school: Westcon High. Apparently, there were almost 20 students there from the local orphanage. It being the only public school in this area, it was the only one he could attend now that his dad was out of work. They were lucky they could keep the house, but they had to save where they could. Westcon High: the only high school of West Concord city, and infamous for the fact that it did not separate the talented from its ordinary students. Not that there were many with talents, they usually could afford the private schools.

I sighed as I rubbed the foaming soap through my fur, well I will be one among few then. I tried to consider how most students would react to my abilities as a PsychoVocalist, or as my sister would say: "A Supreme Mean Singing Machine". I snorted, and a gay one at that.

No matter, I am sure the school is full of great people who will happily be my friend, gay soloist or not. I grinned, momentarily picturing my friends from my old private school as they would cheer wildly for an encore of whatever random piece I chose to fill the school halls with.

I sighed again, rinsing all remaining traces of the fruity shampoo from my head fur.

Getting out of the shower, I glanced at myself in the mirror while putting my clothes on: "Well Mr. Red Fox, I am sure you wish you had more armor than these flimsy clothes today. But unfortunately, that's all you got Buster. Give it your best."

I glanced at my watch and used my remaining minutes in the bathroom to comb my fur and do my usual morning vocal warm up.

"Bang Bang! Times up Maxie!" shouted my sister from the other side of the door.

I opened the door and picked her up for a twirl to accompany the last few notes of the movement. She protested weakly, with a sloppy grin across her face. As I was walking away, towards the stairs: "You know Maxie, you might wanna consider singing something a little lower!" My only response was a high La directed at her as I backed down the stairs. She squeaked and ran into the bathroom, I grinned again, for the tenth time today; glad as always that I had a wonderful family to come back to no matter how bad school might be today.

"Maximillian Dasher! How many times must I tell you to stay away from that range! I could hear the glass rattling this time, and the last thing we need is a broken window. Or worse! Complaining neighbors trying to kick us out!" Scolded my mom as soon as I appeared on the stairs, her suit on, and briefcase at the ready, she was about to leave for work.

"Sorry Mother" I apologized as I kissed her on the cheek goodbye, "I'll get breakfast for me and Jules, have an as good as possible day at work."

"Thanks darling. Oh and don't forget to take Jules to the bus stop before you go to school!" she added as she swept out the door.

"Okay I will, bye mother" I shouted at the closing door.

The rest of the morning preceded smoothly, the bacon and eggs going over very well with Jules and our cat Neko-Chan. I hummed some random symphony on the way to the bus stop, holding her hand when we crossed a street, just like we always used to do.

"Maxie? Everything will be okay at our new schools right?"

"Of course Jules, and if there is something wrong, tell me tonight and we will make sure it is fixed by tomorrow!"

"Thanks Maxie" as she tip toed to give me a quick kiss, "See you latter" she yelled back at me as she ran the last few steps to her bus.

No bus for me, I thought, as I started walking towards my new school. I was lucky, it wasn't that far from where I lived, maybe 15 minutes max, but I had never seen it. While steeped in the reverie of my imagination, I continued to hum my impromptu symphony.

"What have we here boys" snarled a huge grey wolf, causing me to snap out of my daydreams, and stopping the song. "So tweedy bird has finally shut up with his stupid song!"

"Where you going all dressed up foxie? Not to school?" Piped up another one, he chuckled. I could see the school, it was only two blocks away.

I continued walking past them, trying to ignore their jibes. "Hey Babe! Come over here and give us a read on this new kid."

"Sure thing, big boy" said a distinctly feminine voice. A hand reached out and stopped me, I looked up and around into the eyes of tall jet black wolf. They were yellow, and they held me. Then she let go, and I had a very bad impression. "Well, well, well... wouldn't it be please you to know big boy," she said as she glided over to the first wolf "that your new little foxy friend is a fagotty little fox? Ain't that right Maxie boy?"

I stood there shocked, how did she know? Did she read my mind? What the hell?! I shouted inside as I stuttered on the outside, unable to hide my blush.

"Jackpot" the wolf sneered as he spat towards me, "that's right cock sucker, I could smell it on you from a half a mile away!"

Another wolf pushed me from behind towards the gang leader, but as he made a grab for me, I twisted away and started sprinting towards the school. Even with my athletes sprinting skills, they were right on my tail: "Nowhere to run fag! You're our prey now."

I beat them to the school grounds, but to my surprise they chased me right through the gate. My deceleration induced by my confidence in what I thought was certain safety caused them to catch me in the school's main courtyard: one wolf pushed me down onto the grass. He went behind me as the others formed a semicircle around me. I was flabbergasted that they would do this right here in plain sight. I could see students and teachers alike, turning away from the scene.

That's when a blond human boy pushed through the wolves and came to give me a hand up. The wolves were momentarily frozen in shock. But the leader of the group soon regained his voice: "Who the fucking hell are you, and what the fuck are you doing helping my prey?!"

The figure turned around to face the wolf perfectly calmly: "As head of the committee for the preservation of efficient inter student relations, it is my duty to inform you that bullying is strictly illegal on school premises, and that profanity is not an acceptable form of communication according to school regulations paragraph B) sub clause ii). As it is your first noted bullying activity on school grounds, you will be left with a warning. Next time due punishment will ensue as a consequence for your behavior."

All of our mouths were wide open: mine, the wolves and the majority of the passersby, who were slowly edging away from the conflict. The lead wolf was turning a disturbing shade of purple (had that hue been on a shirt, I would have found it very tasteful though): "Get the FUCK out of my way! MORON! Or I will have your head for snack."

"It would be unadvisable at this time for you to eat my head, as you would surely suffer massive internal damage to your digestive system" the boy responded coldly.

With a roar, the wolf charged at him. I cringed and closed my eyes, feeling sorry that I would never be able to thank the kid who had so foolishly tried to save me. Then I heard a gasp, I opened my eyes, the wolf was frozen in mid leap, the boy pointing towards him with an outstretched palm. The boy turned around towards me: "Are you okay Maximillian?" he said as the others started to charge at him, obviously recovered from their surprise. But to my amazement, they all instantaneously froze after two steps.

Seeing me staring at them he added, "They will be fine. But are you okay Maximillian, should I take you to the infirmary?"

"I am fine," I stammered, "just a little cut. But- but- how did you do that?"

"It is irrelevant. Come let us get you to the infirmary to treat that cut." he turned towards the school's main entrance. "Come" he repeated as I made no move to follow."

"Are you just going to leave them like that?" I asked as I turned to follow.

"That would indeed be inappropriate," he said as he turned to face the frozen wolves. As I watched, they all slumped to the floor, forming heaps of immobile fur. My eyes widened. "Do not worry, they are simply unconscious, and can be woken easily."

As we walked to the infirmary, he introduced himself: "I am Jason. I was asked by the principal to be your guide for today. I must apologize for the poor welcoming our school has given you. I would have been at the gate to greet you, but you rapidly accelerated your speed of approach towards the school at an inappropriate (and he gestured the toilets) moment, and I was therefore unavailable when you entered the gate, for which I am again, sincerely sorry." With which he turned and gave a rather deep bow before continuing on in the hallway.

"Umm...please there is no need to apologize; in fact I have yet to thank you properly for saving me back there."

"Irrelevant, I was simply doing my duty, the fault is mine and I must thank you for being so forgiving of my shortcomings." He continued talking as he walked; telling me what each room was as we passed it, giving me the names of every teacher we crossed, and filling me in on the names of the various administrative staff and even of some of the students. I must admit I spaced out almost entirely, retaining very few of the names whizzing past my ears. Instead I was looking at the people around me, their faces, their bodies, their clothes, but I kept coming back to staring at the curious, yet extraordinary boy who had saved me. He had this aura about him, that exuded power and control and yet simplicity and efficiency. He was the second student I had met here with obvious talents, yet his outstripped all talents I had ever heard of. His abilities were amazing, and I could not help wonder what more he had in store behind that cool exterior.

He wasn't that tall, around 10cm above me, but I was noticeable short. He had a lean athlete's build, like a runner or a swimmer. Ever for a human however, he seemed to move rather gracelessly, almost as if he was not completely comfortable in his skin.

After briefly visiting the infirmary, Jason pulled out my schedule: "First period, IB HL Math. Excellent, I am glad to see there is another freshmen capable of taking that course. We will be in the same class. It is unfortunately at the other end of the school."

As we started calmly walking down another long hallway, I took a look at the clock: "Umm... are we not going to be late at this rate?"

He frowned: "Indeed we will be." He stopped walking. "Please place one arm on my shoulder." I felt weird but I did as instructed, there was something about his voice that made me feel compelled to comply.

As I did, I noticed two things in rapid succession, the second so strange that it made me forget the first. The first was that his shoulder was unusually hard, almost metallic. The second was that we were now in front of the math classroom, and having crossed the school in a matter of nanoseconds, we were now on time. No, we were early.

"Please, do not discuss what just occurred with anyone." He stated as he turned to open the door to the class.

"O-o-okay" I stammered, and I followed him through the door.

Math class was a breath of fresh air and normality. Well, except for the fact that the two freshmen in the class appeared to be the brightest students. I had to struggle a bit to keep up, but in the end, I was certain my understanding was more solid than anyone save Jason, who appeared to know it all already, and was working on some strange problem with the teacher while we did exercises.

Jason accompanied me to all my classes that day. By the end of the day, I knew for certain he did not take all those classes however. My proof was in French. I took intro to French, but I knew that was no class of his; for he often jabbered away in perfect French with the teacher, with whom he seemed to be on first name terms. His vocabulary was even superior to the teacher's, who had to look words up in a dictionary. There is no way he should have been in that class.

Strangely enough however, he did not stay with me at break or lunch, he just guided me to the cafeteria and then left, reappearing at the end to show me to my next class. When I probed his about it, he said he had his "duties".

During my classes however, he did not stick to me like the glue that he was in the hallways, even if he was there the whole time. He left me to my own devices; reverting to the social introvert he seemed to normally be during classes. So I made friends with other students. Except for math, they were all freshmen, and although at least half of the school seemed to be composed of lazy troublemakers and obnoxious sport jocks, there were plenty of fine students and individuals worth knowing and worth befriending. Most of us were all in the same classes together, so by the end of the first day, I had already made some solid friendships.

Although one thing bothered me still, and it kept coming back to me through the eyes of the yellow eyed wolf who had read my mind like a book earlier. She had not chased after me with the wolf pack, but I had no indication whether or not she would reveal the secrets she had gleamed from my mind. It wasn't that the truth bothered me, it's just that I always pictured the truth as a tool, something of mine to use, but now that I knew it was also held within another's hands, it seemed more like a weapon than a tool, and I was more afraid of the ways in which the weapon could be used, rather than the weapon itself.

As we left French class, the last period of the day, Jason asked me to wait while he went to the bathroom, I said bye to the other friends I had made and twiddled my thumbs in the hallway, looking down at the floor and reflecting upon the nature of truth as a weapon. That's when the wielder stepped into my field of vision and stopped right in front of me.

I looked up, once again into those captivating yellow eyes, but this time they were soft not cold, compassionate not disdainful: "Look kid," she started, "I'd like to apologize for earlier, the situation was much more complicated than you can imagine. I had to tell him what he wanted to hear. If it's any consolation, I will not tell anyone else, and I have acquired a potion to make all of the wolves forget what happened today." She rubbed her temples like she had a headache, "they cannot be sidetracked by you, I need them for something. Like I said, it's too complicated. Please, don't ask questions."

She extended her hand to me, I took it, though still in somewhat of a daze: "My name is Helen, and I am sure we will be great friends in time." She smiled a very disarming smile and started walking away.

She was about 10metres away by the time I regained my senses and realized I had not told her my name: "Helen â€"

"Your name is Maximillian, but you liked to be called Max" she shouted from the end of the hall, "Never forget I can read your mind" and then she was gone. I shook my head. This day, this school, these kids were something.

"Are you alright?" came Jason's voice, I jumped, I hadn't seen him leave the bathroom.

"You just startled me out of my reflections, sorry. Anyways, why did you want me to stay late?"

"It was my assumption that you would wish to participate in today's after school activities," he turned and smiled : " choir and orchestra practice."I stopped in shock. "Do you not wish to participate? Is my assumption false?" he seemed worried.

"No, I would love to," I stammered, "that's brilliant, thanks for thinking about that."

"You are welcome," he said and turned and smiled again. My heart almost stopped, I had never seen a smile like that. If Helen's was disarming with its charm, Jason's was the nuclear bomb of charm. It was perfect; it had perfect balance between warmth, confidence and joy, the perfect shape, the perfect teeth. That's when I realized, that despite his awkward gracelessness, despite his dorky nerdiness, he was really quite handsome. Nobody must ever glance at him twice though; no one ever took the time to notice that even though the mask was ice cold, it was a damn beautiful mask.

My train of thought was interrupted by the approaching sound of an orchestra warming up. Jason stopped in front of two large double doors: "the music department" he gestured to the doors, "I am afraid that my musical talents are insufficient to be able to join, so I will leave you here." And he just started to walk away.

"Hey, Jason, wait up" I caught up with him, "thanks so much for everything today."

"I was only doing my duty" he replied and then started away again. Where was the smile, the your welcome, the warmth and charm of two minutes ago?

"See you tomorrow,"

"See you" came the reply, but he didn't even turn around.

‘Smile damn you' I thought to myself, "bye" I shouted.

As if he had red my mind, he turned and smiled again: "bye." My heart did a little summersault and my brain cried hoorah. With a sloppy grin plastered on my face, I entered the music department. Just then, I probably could have burst into such a song as would melt the hardest heart.

.......................................................................................................................................

"Bye," I shouted back after smiling just like he wanted. I had received a direct mental transmission from him right before he shouted bye at me from down the hallway. There had been desperation in his telepathic message, but hope and worry as well. Now I was troubled. Was a smile so necessary for proper social interaction that my new friend needed to see it when they said their goodbyes? Yet I had already smiled at two appropriate moments as indicated in his study guide on social behavior, surely that should be sufficient. There had been no clear mention that goodbyes also necessitated smiles as well.

It was then that I realized that the intricate social complexities of human interactions would be much harder to decipher than the Fourier transformations I had waiting in my bag.

As I walked away from school, I proceeded to review the events of the day behind closed eyes as I set my systems on autopilot to home.

I was looking over my lunch time patrols when I realized that something had hit my exterior shielding. I opened my eyes and turned off the autopilot command. I had been surrounded by Jackson, Damon and some more Ape cronies of theirs. I looked down at the ground to see a rather large stone, certainly the projectile that had impacted my shields.

"That hurt Cybo-trash?" shouted Damon, "here have another one," and from behind me he hurled a stone with his classic Baseball pitch that had earned him the admiration of the school. It had earned nothing from me; I swung around and caught it, two centimeters from my head: "Too slow" I said and continued on my way home, away from the bullies.

In the corner of my eye I caught a little nod from Damon to Jackson, and turned to see what the result would be. Based on the fireball tearing towards me, the safe assumption was that Jackson was a Pyroplayer. No matter, nothing could penetrate my shields. I turned again back home, letting the hoots of success from the apes turn to stunned gazes as they noticed that the fireball which had perfectly impacted my back, had done absolutely nothing.

I continued walking, they were Irrelevant and to be ignored. I switched back on the autopilot system, and reinforced by 10% the strength of the magical barrier which I called my shields. They pelted me some more with vocal and physical projectiles, but they were irrelevant and soon they ceased their efforts.

I stopped, I had arrived home: the West Concord City Orphanage.

.......................................................................................................................................

"Auditions were over last week Max, nothing much I can do" said the young choral assistant.

"Please, I just arrived today miss, and I promise I am talented enough to be a member of the choir," I was desperate, might I really not be able to participate simply because I was too late? Never, I could sing better than anyone in the room and I knew it. Nothing was going to stop me, my desperation turned to determination, and she could read in my eyes.

"Very well, follow me." And she led me into the large hall that held our school's choir program. The bleachers were already packed with humans and furs, boys and girls, all in uniform, who were gently humming as the beginning to their warm up. The conductor turned around, "Leticia, I thought we said no more late auditions!"

"My apologies sir, but I have a feeling about this kid, and he just arrived today." I smiled up at her, mouthing a silent ‘thanks'.

"Very well then. SIT!" he shouted and all the choir members sat in unison. There must have been over 200 hundred of them, this school really was immense. "Come up front son!"

As I walked in front of all the other kids, right to the center, directly in front of the imposing, ageing, conductor (who was a very tall crane), my heart was pounding way too fast, my nerves were on edge. So on edge, in fact, that I stumbled as I walked up onto the central podium. A few students laughed, and the conductor frowned.

"We are the best choir in all of Concord City, and even the state! We have therefore a very rigorous audition system. WE choose the song, not you. You normally have twenty minutes to read your line before we ask you to start. But I am afraid you will only get the time it takes us to complete our warm up. You have five minutes! Wait, my apologies, do you want to be a soloist?"

I nodded, my voice stuck in my throat. Some more of the students laughed at my obvious inability to vocalize the simple "yes" required.

"Very well then," he frowned again "since our school will be performing an Opera as our major production, and since you claim to want to be a soloist, please perform "O soave fanciulla" from Puccini's La Bohème. Leticia please get a copy of the music for our aspiring freshmen here." He looked up at the choir: "STAND â€"

"Sir," I managed to squeak out.

"Is there a problem?" he almost whispered, his voice obviously echoing the anger caused by my interruption.

"Um, no sir, but she need not get the script sir."

"And why is that? Is it too difficult for you?" several snickers followed his acid question.

"No sir, I do know it by heart sir that's all."

"Oh do you now?" he said sounding a little doubtful yet slightly impressed.

I was gaining confidence; he had picked one of my favorite pieces: "May I start sir?"

"SIT" he shouted at the choir (from which there were a few grumbles) "very well, Leticia, please turn on the playback."

I saw her going towards the stereo system, I grinned; time to let loose all the stops. As a PsychoVocalist, I had no need to actually open my mouth to sing, and I could make any sound I wanted simply be holding it in my mind and imagining the sound coming from me. In doing so, I could make the air vibrate with the exact frequencies required without even opening my mouth. Furthermore, so long as I held all the song in my head, there was no limit to the quantity of different sounds I could create.

So I grinned and started the song, the sound of the violins' introduction softly filling the hall before she had reached the stereo system, she looked around puzzled.

I jumped in on the intro, actually singing the tenor title line of the song: "O soave fanciulla" in a perfect Italian Opera singer's voice. Meanwhile, I never ceased to hold the patterns of the orchestra in the background, letting the Italian words of love roll over it in perfect harmonization. After the duplex bars of the clarinet's solo, I came in with the crescendo ending on the long "Sognar".

By now, my eyes were closed, so I did not realize that this is where the audition was meant to end, as they had not included Mimi's part in the playback. Assuming they had, I slammed right into those notes, singing both Mimi's wonderful high note intro and Rodolfo's accompanying tenor counterpart. It was beautiful I knew, had my eyes not been closed, they would have surely filled with tears. Had they also been open, I would have seen the confusion on the conductor's face, and noticed Leticia's gesturing that she had not in fact turned on the playback.

But I continued

.......................................................................................................................................

I chuckled as the poor kid stumbled his way to the podium. He was a young Red Fox, of a similar hue to his own nearly blood red fur, and I couldn't help but sympathize with his predicament, so similar to my own three years, when as a freshmen, I tried out for Concord's best choir.

Jimmy, the tenor soloist, a bit of an annoying chatter box, interrupted my thoughts to chat about some pretty soprano that had joined this year. As soloists, we sat apart from the main choir, on the tenth row up. Just my luck I thought, I am the bass who gets to sit closest to any girl, and I have some jerk tenor between me and the beautiful deep voiced Dalia who was our Alto soloist. I sighed.

And then the violin's started for the kids audition. Man, I thought, he must be so nervous with all of us here watching. But when he started signing I realized two things: first, he was more confident in his voice than any auditioner I had ever seen, including myself. Second, after the very first line, I knew that Jimmy was history, this kid had better pitch, better sound, better everything, and Jimmy knew it too, his mouth hung limp in shock. ‘lol' I thought to myself, at least it would be a change.

Then just as I was expecting the playback to end like usual, it continued, the freshmen was holding the note, and then the soprano came in and it was like a punch to my stomach. The sound was so perfect it took my breath away. But the playback didn't continue this far, the tenor was supposed to stop at the end of the first crescendo. I looked over at Gladys, our soprano soloist, but she hadn't joined in, she was just staring wide-eyed and slack jawed at the little fox.

"Damn" I whispered to myself "What the hell is happening?!"

That's when I heard the soft "Stop" of the conductor, but the freshmen seemed oblivious as he continued signing the perfect duet.

"STOP" the conductor shouted, and instantly, all the music stopped, the Tenor, the Soprano, the orchestra, as well as the breathing of the choir; we were all so breath taken by the beauty of the song.

The little fox opened his eyes and blushed a red almost as deep as his fur. But he was grinning too, and I could feel the confidence radiating from him. That's when I heard someone cheering and clapping, and realized it was me. I whistled, stood up, and applauded as the whole choir (except maybe Jimmy) joined me in a thunderous standing ovation.

The old crane at the front raised his hand and we all sat. "Would you care to explain what just happened young man, where is your soprano friend with the stereo system? She should certainly join our choir."

"Please sir I sang the tenor, the soprano and the entire orchestra sir."

I couldn't help it, I laughed out loud at the fox's cheekiness.

"We do not appreciate liars at this school Mr?"

"Dasher sir, Maximillian Dasher"

"Well Mr. Dasher, please explain to us what just happened, truthfully."

"It is my talent sir, I can sing anything and everything, orchestra and choir, soprano and mezzo, tenor and bass, individually or all at once. I am one of the ‘talented' sir."

"Very well," the old crane said, shock and disbelief still apparent in his voice, "you will be tenor soloist. Jimmy?" he gestured. Poor Jimmy got up ashen faced, not angry but in shock. He walked to the main tenor section where room was made for him out of sympathy. He had worked really hard for that seat; even I felt a little bad for him.

But the new kid who would replace him was amazing. Shy and cute, in a very freshmen way, he had already attracted the attention of the alti and soprani sections and, to my amusement, a large part of the tenor section as well. I motioned him towards his new seat, and smiled when he got there: "amazing performance kid, had he not been wearing suspenders, I am sure you would have knocked the pants of old Meistro up there." He blushed in response, and mumbled a "thank you, glad you liked it" in reply.

"Name's Justin, Justin Taylor, it's a pleasure to meet you kid" I said.

"Pleasure's mine," he muttered in reply.

During rehearsal, we made our acquaintances and chatted a bit. As we were at the top, the meistro would not hear us if we whispered. I noticed with an inward grin that he avoided talking much with the ravishing Dalia, despite her best attempts at flirtation. ‘Poor kid,' I thought, ‘she is way too much for him to handle'. We talked about his old school, and I had a gazillion questions about his abilities. He wasn't very forthcoming, but he warmed up to the conversation in the end, giving in to the singularly foxish need to boast.

.......................................................................................................................................

"We are done for now" said the crane at the front, "very good, very good everybody." And he left to one of the back rooms.

As everyone started climbing off the bleachers and towards the doors, I quickly started packing my stuff up to go. Finally its over I thought, phew, and good thing too, I don't have much time to spare either. Then came Justin's deep bass voice: "Think we're done kido? Think again, that was only the first half." He chuckled, his eyes gleaming with the humor that so easily rolled off his tongue.

"But I have to pick up my sister after her drama practice; it ends in ten minutes!" I started to panic.

"Sorry kido, but meistro here will take for a quitter if you bail now. And I really don't feel like having to sit next to Jimmy again."

Great! Just absolutely fantastic! I either go, and lose singing, the heart of my life, not to mention many new friends, and if I stay my mom will murder me with guilt and disappointment. ‘Help' I screamed inside my head.

"I'll take care of it," came Jason's reply.

I almost fell down backwards, over the bleachers. Justin caught me "Steady there kido." He started down the stairs: "Just come have a glass of water and some biscuits, your sis will be fine."

I spun around, no Jason in sight. Then the voice came again, and this time I noticed it was inside my head: "You made a mental transmission. Having received it I probed your mind for an indication of your need, and have proceeded to mark a course for your sister's school. Do not worry, I know where your home is, I will take her there."

"Thanks", I said out loud, not knowing what else to do. My brain was reeling.

"For what?" came the mezzo voice of the alto soloist was still on our row, "Are you okay?"

"Fine thank you" I replied, turning away to hide my embarrassment. ‘Okay Jason,' I said to myself, ‘I hope you know what you are doing.' There was no reply this time. I sighed and joined the others milling around the hall for a glass of water.

.......................................................................................................................................

Once home, I decided to investigate the bizarre phenomenon that caused my non-telepathic brain to receive transmissions from a non-telepath. It was certainly a puzzle.

I knocked on her door. "Helen, your assistance is required."

"Always so cold Jason", came the reply, "you should learn to say please more often," she said as she opened the door to her room. "That's it just barge right in like you normally do."

"Your request for a please has been noted." I said as I sat down on her bed, ignoring the second comment.

"So what can I do for my favorite mind-blocker?"

"That is precisely the issue. You have told me that my mind blocks telepathic communication yet earlier today, I was spoken to mentally."

"Impossible, I have probed your head a hundred times at least and you are absolutely one hundred percent resistance to telepathy. Who was it you ‘received' this transmission from anyways?"

"Maximillian Dasher."

"The new kid? Well I read his mind clear as a book earlier; there was not a hint of telepathic talent in him. His talent is as a PsychoVocalist, and last I checked, being able to sing does not allow them to communicate telepathically."

"What then is the explanation behind today's previous incident?"

"I have no idea," with that she sat on the only chair in the tiny room, and both stared out into space, trying to work through the paradoxical incident.

Their thinking was interrupted by a knock from one of the sisters who worked at the orphanage: "Helen, there is a very large wolf downstairs to see you."

Helen jumped up, a surprised look on her face: "sorry Jason, but I really should get this one. I'll be out for a few hours; I'll help you when I get back."

"Acceptable," I said and went back to my room, wondering now why someone as bright and sensitive as Helen would hang out with a bully like the wolf that was waiting downstairs.

Irrelevant, I had some interesting math problems to do to occupy my time.

About an hour later, she came back, a little spark in her eye. She just barged right it, making me suffer a moment of discomfort has I had removed my shirt because of the heat. She only giggled and turned around for a second, giving me time to put a shirt back on: "you see why it might be impolite to barge right into someone's room?"

"Irrelevant," I muttered under my breath, but I noticed with slight consternation that there was an increase in blood flow to my head, making my skin take on a slightly reddish tinge that was most uncomfortable. "What was it you wanted?" I asked.

"Hah!" she said after turning back towards me "you are human after all! You are blushing" and she started giggling again.

"irrelevant," I repeated with a small sigh.

"Very well, down to business. I wanted to perform another mind read of our friend Max, to try to see exactly what he was thinking when he sent whatever message he sent."

"Acceptable, how to you propose we proceed, we are nowhere near his current location?"

"Well, that is what I need you for, I think I could use your immense power generation to extend my telepathic field wide enough to include his house."

"He is at the school, not his house."

"Well that's even easier then. Common, fork that power over here," she grinned, "I want to know what it feels like to even have a fraction of your puissance mate."

"Place your hand on my shoulder" I said, "tell me when it's enough" I added and started a steady stream from my magical reserves through our contact."

"Wow, it tingles. Feels great though, okay that's enough, I found him, he's at choir. Jeez, I never knew how complex singing could be, he's got some real potential in that choir boy brain of his. Oh ho, he's done pretty good for himself, he made soloist on his first day. He's made some friends, a bass named Sam, I think I know him, and â€""

"You are being inefficient Helen."

"Very well, I will keep my commentary to myself. Okay, time to look at what happened, ok here we go..." and she started laughing, almost uncontrollably. She started pounding my desk with her free fist and was immersed in almost violent fits of laughter. I simply raised my eyebrow.

"Sometime, you will have to smile for me," was all she could manage during that outburst. Needless to say I was extremely confused, my understanding of the situation was clearly insufficient as I could not read Max's mind like she could.

"Hmmm, I think I might have an idea, yes, yes this works! Wait, what's happening, their finishing up, no he's panicking, something about his sister, oh, that's bad."

That's when I heard it, a loud shout, again in Max's voice: "Help!"

Helen shouted: "Reply! Just fill your head with the thought: ‘I'll take care of it', and imagine that message being sent" I did as commanded, and she smiled.

Wait now think this message: "You made a mental transmission. Having received it I probed your mind for an indication of your need, and have proceeded to mark a course for your sister's school. Do not worry, I know where your home is, I will take her there."

I complied despite my confusion. "I demand an explanation Helen!"

"okay okay, keep your pants on Jason. Let me see where do I start." She took her hand off my shoulder, "well I figured out the mode of communication, it has something to do with one of the implants in your brain, the one that received communications from other drones?" I nodded; I knew what she was talking about. "Anyways, Max's abilities enable him to make sounds over the entire vocal range, well actually they do more than that; he can make a transmission at any frequency. Somehow, some of his thoughts are projected at whatever frequency your implants use. That is why you hear them. As to how you can transmit thoughts to him," she shrugged, "I still don't know, I just hoped it would work." She turned to leave.

"That is insufficient."

"Excuse me?"

"The sister?"

She turned bright red "right, I have still not explained the situation. The problem is Max's choir practice continues for another hour, but he was supposed to pick his sister up in 10 minutes, already he was going to be late as it was. Having read his mind, I know where his sister is, and where his house is. Get out a map and I will show you." I proceeded as instructed. "His sister's name is Julia. Anything else you need to know?"

"No."

She still stood there: "Aren't you forgetting something?"

I frowned, : "I do believe I understand the nature of the phenomenon, and the requirements of my mission. That is all the necessary information."

She sighed, "have they taught you nothing in those ‘social interaction classes' of yours?"

It was my turn to sigh: "Thank you Helen for your assistance" I added without turning to look back at the map I was using to memorize the locations I would soon be visiting.

"Common do it properly Jason, I know what Counselor Hutchinson told you to do, ‘turn and smile'."

"Thank you" I said, turning and smiling.

Had I not turned away immediately, I would have been perplexed to see Helen's eyes go wide in shock, and then see her break out into a wide grin of satisfaction.

But I had had to leave in just under a minute even If I were to teleport there in time. I took one last look at the maps and turned to stand in the middle of the room.

Upon my arrival I evaluated the situation. A small fox girl was crying on the ground, while several cats, also girls, danced around her laughing.

I walked up behind them, "This behavior is unacceptable." The cats turned and looked at me with big eyes, I stared back coldly: they ran.

Once they had left, I smiled to the fox girl: "My name is Jason, are you Julia?" She nodded in response. "Your brother Max asked me to pick you up." I stretched out a hand to help her up.

Taking it, the shyness she had been demonstrating seemed to vanish: "Maxie sent you? Are you Maxie's friend? Where is Maxie? Is he alright? He's not hurt is he?" she spoke extremely quickly and seemed to be working herself into a tearful state.

"Max is fine. I am indeed Max's friend. He is at choir practice, and is hence unable to walk you home as has been customary. He requested my assistance in getting you safely home."

Her eyes widened: "You speak funny, but I like you," she said and then hugged me around the waist, "thank you for saving me Jason."

"You are welcome" I said, a little uncomfortable with the present situation. To my pleasure, she broke off the hug and proceeded to drag me along the way home, never ceasing her constant chatter: "So how did you meet Maxie? Is Maxie doing okay at his new school? He shouldn't worry about me though, I am doing fine at school, its just those girls you saw there. They don't like me. They think I am too smart, and they won't stop laughing at my dress." She stuck her chin in the air, giving me time to speak.

"You brother is adjusting proficiently at his school. I was assigned to introduce him to the school and accompany him on his first day." Based on the limited knowledge of human psychology I had gleamed so far, I decided to add a further comment: "I do not believe your dress is an appropriate object of humor." After having said it though I regretted the perhaps awkward phrasing I had used.

To my surprise however, she understood my comment: "Oh why thank you. I agree, they had no right; it is an elegant dress"

"Indeed."

She giggled, she let go of my hand and started skipping and dancing around, still chattering about her day; describing in irrelevant detail her classes and every single moment of her breaks and lunches. Yet I felt strangely comfortable and satisfied by our trip. The discussion pertained to solely irrelevant personal material, and yet something about the simplicity and the innocence of it put me strangely at peace. I was surprised to find that after about ten minutes I had started to smile, without telling myself to. I decided that I would later have to review this moment to understand why it was affecting me so.

My thoughts and her stream of words were interrupted when she gave a shout and started crying: "Jason, Jason, I think I sprained my ankle."

I proceeded to examine her ankle with the latent medical implants in my arm: "Incorrect, your ankle is simply bruised, you will be fine."

This seemed to get her to stop crying, but she looked up at me with large watering eyes: "But it hurts! Carry me Jason." I hesitated, she continued her plea: "Maxie would have carried me back," she sniffed, "please Jason." Something in her plea caused a strange sensation in me, an urge to protect, I cannot explain why or how, but at that moment in time, I do very well believe that no matter how illogical, I would have laid down my life for her. I had never felt these emotions before, but my duty was clear.

I picked her up, she wrapped her arms around my neck, and I started to carry her the rest of the way home.

As I walked, she picked up where she left off in her chronology of the day's events, and the pain in her face was soon replaced with pleasant smiles and more giggles. Again, I felt to my confusion a smile creeping onto my face, the corners of my mouth twitching without my command.

When I walked through the gate of their house, and she noticed that she had arrived, she kissed me on the cheek and got down to run up to the door. I could not help but smile with the realization that she had completely forgotten her ankle and the pain it had caused her only minutes before. As I turned to leave, I heard her voice from behind: "You're not gonna leave Jason? Stay, stay! I don't want to be alone."

As I turned round, I felt a little hand grab my own and pull me back through the gate I had just left: "Let me show you around." I acquiesced, it seemed I had no other option.

Upon entering the house, I was impressed with the luxury of their accommodations. Having only lived in the orphanage and a cube, this seemed quite elegant and comfortable. She led me to the kitchen, and gave me something to drink. She proceeded to drag me through the house, showing me every room. We spent a long time in her personal bedroom; it seemed she wanted to introduce me to several different stuffed toys; which she claimed had names and personalities. I resolved to ask the counselor many questions about children, Julia's behavior seemed superfluous, her activities irrelevant and inefficient, yet she had an endearing charm about her that stopped me from feeling the slightest disapproval.

"Here's Maxie's room," she said opening a door with a giggle, "he probably would be angry at me if he found out I showed it to you, so shhhh, don't say a word" she added with her finger pressed against her lips. Based on this preliminary statement and the stereotypes included in the series of ‘cultural videos' I had seen, I was expecting to find a messy typical ‘teenage boy's bedroom' as the video called it. But his room was as immaculate as mine, with the single exception of an unmade bed.

After completing the tour of the house, she brought me back downstairs and we had a ‘snack' that I was not supposed to tell her mother about. While we ate, Julia continued to talk: "So what do like to do for fun Jason? Do you play games? Watch TV? Play computer?" her questions were interrupted by a mouthful of cookie.

I was not sure how to answer that question. I examined my normal daily routine and decided on the best answer: "Math problems".

She burst out laughing, her mouth full, I was afraid she might choke. But she swallowed and her giggles were replaced by an inquisitive stare: "Have you never played a board game?" Unclear as to what that term referred to, I shook my head. She quickly stuffed the rest of the cookie in her mouth and dragged me to what she had called the ‘living room'. "Sit" she commanded.

Complying, I waited till she came back with a long rectangular box with the word: ‘Monopoly' written across the top and along the sides. She then explained the ‘rules' of the game, and the objective of the game, both of which seemed simple and pointless. But contrary to my expectations, I became enthralled in the simple game, experiencing actual emotions such as frustration and joy.

Julia had just landed on one of my hotels, ending the game when Max arrived through the front door. I turned around, a smile of triumph and joy still painted across my face.

.......................................................................................................................................

All the way home, Justin and I had been singing and humming a Tenor Bass duet for our choir, actually singing in the proper operatic tone and volume the final strain, earning us a shout from an elderly porcupine on her balcony, and a chase by a merchant whose customer we had apparently driven away.

We were laughing and panting hard as we reached the crossroads where our paths home diverged.

"Great meeting you kido, don't forget to be there on Thursday as well for practice," he shouted as he waved goodbye.

"I'll be there! Thanks for all your help Justin," I waved in turn and kept on straight, my house only a block away.

As I walked up to the door, I still could hear that final note ringing, yet cut short by the need to sprint away from the angry merchant. A little laugh was playing across my lips as I entered my house. And what was I greeted by? That smile. It knocked me completely out of orbit.

There he was: sitting on my living room carpet with my sister, playing monopoly, his smile filling the room like a small sun; radiating warmth and happiness in a way that surpassed his earlier smiles which now seemed wilted and artificial in comparison. My breath was completely gone in that one second.

Thankfully my sister saved me from my stupor. She ran up and hugged me around my waist: "Maxie! Your home!"

She let go and skipped back to her game: "You came just in time, the game is over. Jason won, but only because of luck" she added and stuck her tongue out playfully in Jason's direction. I was about to reprimand her for her rudeness when Jason did the unthinkable; he stuck his tongue out at her. No way, I thought, I had observed him all day and he was the coldest person I had ever seen. Awkward in social situations and blunt and disdainful in others, he was the last person I expected to see joining in with the antics of a 9 year old girl.

I set my bag down on a chair; Julia kept talking while cleaning up: "thanks so much Maxie for sending Jason to pick me up. He was so nice; he chased some bullies away and carried me home after I bruised my ankle. He was so strong, he didn't even complain once, unlike someone I know whose name starts with an M" she said suggestively, again sticking her tongue out in my direction.

I practically got a heart attack when I heard a strange unfamiliar noise coming from behind me, it sounded almost like a soft metallic screeching combined with a light hiccup. I thought someone might be choking, but to my immense surprise, I turned around to find Jason laughing. I just stood there my muzzle wide open. "Maxie the fishy" Julia started chanting in a childish rhyming jeer, "Maxie the fishy". She got tired of it after a few times, her attention diverted back to Jason.

As he was sitting down, she hugged him around the neck from behind. I noted his eyes were first wide with surprise, but rapidly became warm and friendly. "Thank you Jason for playing with me."

"Hey why don't we all three play another game," I found myself suggesting to my own surprise.

"Oh yes let's! Please Jason, let's play together. Please?" she looked at him with her best puppy eyes.

"Agreed, I will play" he answered.

In the end we decided on a more complex strategy game called Settlers. Jason understood it on the first try, despite the fact that it was Julia who insisted on explaining the game in her own haphazard way. Over the course of the game, we had lots of fun, Julia seeming to be the catalyst necessary to melt Jason's ice cold exterior. He was warm and friendly, occasionally playful. In the end I won the game, but we had all enjoyed it, and Jules made Jason promise he would come over to play again sometime.

"It was a pleasure meeting you Julia" he said as he was leaving, "I will see you tomorrow Max. Thank you both of you." And with a smile and a wave he was gone.

I couldn't help staring at the door, that smile lingering in my eyes. Jules waved a hand in front of my face: "earth to Maxie, earth to Maxie!" I shook my head clear of the image. But Jules had already got a sheepish grin on her face: "Maxie's in love! Maxie loves Jason, Maxie loves Jason." She chanted.

My face became ashen white immediately, I was livid in seconds and horror chased the smile off my face. She stopped chanting, looking puzzled: "Don't try to fool me," she shook her finger at me, "I could see it in your eyes!"

"Jules, we need to talk, my bedroom now!"

"What's wrong Maxie?"

"I will explain," my mind was whirring; I could almost feel it hum. At the same time, I could feel my face burn as I considered what I would have to be explaining. We got into my room and I closed the door.

"Please Jules," I put on my most serious expression, "never repeat that to anyone okay?"

"But why Maxie?" she looked confused.

"Just promise me you will not repeat that without my permission." I could see that this only made her more confused, but she slowly nodded her head: "I promise Maxie."

I gave a sigh of relief, and a tiny smile reappeared. I ran my fingers though her long fur, "Thank you Jules," I hugged her tightly, "I love you so much."

"But maybe you are correct, I might love Jason too. It's just that some people would hate me for that, and maybe even hurt me."

"Why? So they can tease you like they did Jimmy? He confessed to Stephanie on the playground today," she giggled, "and the others wouldn't stop teasing him, shouting ‘Jimmy loves Stephanie'. I only wanted to tease you, not to hurt you."

"It's okay, I understand, and you did not hurt me don't worry. The reason why this is not the same as with Jimmy and Stephanie, is that they are a boy and a girl, whereas both Jason and I are boys."

"Why is that different? Isn't love always the same? Your eyes gleamed in the same way; you are in love with Jason just as Jimmy was in love with Stephanie."

"You are so wonderful," I added as I hugged her again, "but not everyone is as understanding as you. There are many who believe that love between two boys or two men is evil or impossible or immoral. Boys who love other boys and not girls, like me, are called Homosexuals or ‘gay', and because we are different than most boys, we are often hated or discriminated against by others."

"Let me at them" she said, punching the air with her tiny fists. I couldn't help myself, I was overcome by tears and giggles at the same time. All I could manage of my thank you was a choking chortle, another hug and a tearful "I love you."

Her eyes became serious, "I will keep your secret Maxie. But you should tell Jason, that you love him I mean."

I pictured in my head the scene. ‘Hello Jason', ‘Hello Max', ‘By the way I am in love with you', then he would probably say something like ‘Irrelevant or unacceptable' and simply walk away, or not even, continue talking about some math problem. Nope, that would just not do, "I think I will wait on that a bit."

That's when we heard our mom come through the door downstairs: "I brought home Pizza! Who wants some?"

We both grinned and started down the stairs. As we went, I whispered to her: "You can't even tell mom okay?" she nodded quickly before we stormed into the kitchen, to be greeted by the savory smell of fresh Pizza.

Mom smiled as we came through the door: "I know its extravagant, but tonight we can celebrate; dad found a new job over in Jamestown. He will be staying with his brother, but at least we don't have to keep saving on everything now."

I thought about my new school, about Jason and Justin, Helen and the other people I had met and befriended. I thought about the choir, my math class, about Jason. I thought about how close I was to school, and how no one could bully me here, thanks to Jason. I thought about Jason: "Mom I think I would prefer to stay in my new school if that's alright with you. You could save my tuition money for college and for Jules."

"That's very thoughtful of you darling, but you don't need to make sacrifices for us." She started cutting up the pizza. Jules got the plates, and I started to get cups and drinks.

"It's really okay Mom, I actually like the school here a lot. I get to take Math HL and join the best high school choir in Concord City! Besides the students here are really nice, I have already made plenty of new friends."

"And he's in love" taunted Jules from the other side of the table. My heart sped up, I gave her a look, screaming silently to ‘Shut it!'.

"Who's the lucky guy?" I froze in shock, nearly dropping the glass.

"Wha-what do you mean mom?" I desperately tried to feign a naïve confusion.

She just chuckled: "Well your father and I have known for some time now. No, I guess you couldn't say we knew, it was more of an educated guess." My cheeks started to burn, my hand was shaking so badly I couldn't even pour the drinks. "Oh don't worry Maxie," she started, picking up Jules' nickname for me, "it doesn't make the slightest bit of difference to us. We decided long ago that we would love and support both of you, no matter what you chose to do with your lives."

I couldn't help it, tears flowed freely from my eyes, I gave her a tight hug: "I love you too Mother."

.......................................................................................................................................

"Helen, are you in there, I could use a moment of your time." I said as I knocked on her door.

"Yes Justin, what it is?" she asked with an exasperated sigh.

I grinned my toothy grin, "I know you read everyone's mind whether they like it or not, and you can see and understand things in here," I pointed to my skull, "that we may not have even realized yet."

She nodded and yawned, " I will not tell you if there are any girls in love with you, besides we already decided that there weren't any last week, what makes you think today is different?"

"No no, that's not what I am asking about" I stammered, losing my cool.

"Nervous? You? I am intrigued!" she put her hand to my chest, I swallowed hard. "What have we here?" her eyes widened in shock and then twinkled with humor. "What was it you wanted me to tell you about your head?"

"Am I in love?" I asked. I couldn't believe this was me asking. I felt like a fool, like a dork, had I completely lost my cool?

"Yes" she answered and closed the door, but not before I caught the hint of a smile spreading across her face.

.......................................................................................................................................

Log entry, star date 54293.6: 00:01am.

Today is over, and tomorrow has begun. It has been a most enlightening and interesting day. I have experienced the emotions of joy and humor; I have felt protective instincts towards another being. I have made two new friends, and have punished several bullies for various infractions. I played my first game today. Needless to say it was an inefficient use of my time, and yet it is only the logical functions in my brain that tell me this. The rest of me found more satisfaction in those few hours playing, then in several weeks of existence as an efficient individual. I am completing the math problems assigned to me, and will revise several social behavior lessons before school tomorrow. I need to make sure that I do not lose Max as a friend. I have resolved to accompany him and his sister to school tomorrow for their protection, departure is scheduled at 08:00.