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Over the next couple days, Gideon was never seen leaving the house. Even when his father had to go to work, the kit just stayed alone in his room. His phone rang several times, but he never picked up. He seemed to have lost the will to do much of anything except eat, but, even then, he never ate much.

It was around Friday of that week when Gideon heard knocking downstairs. Not knowing who it was but not wanting to seem rude and ignore it, he went downstairs, opening the door to see Alizar standing there. "Oh... Hi," Gideon muttered.

"I came to check on you, Gid," was all the older kit said.

"Ah'm sorry, but Ah haven't felt like talkin'," Gideon replied.

"I understand... I'm really sorry," Alizar told him.

"It ain't fair. Mama never hurt anybody. Why did this have ta happen?" As Gideon spoke, he was starting to tear up.

"I don't know," Alizar told him. "But I want you to know, I'm here for you if you ever need to talk."

"Thanks," the young kit replied, his voice little more than a whisper.

"And Travis is too," Alizar continued. "We want to help you get through this."

Gideon just sighed. "Ah appreciate it..." He then stepped away from the door. "Ya may as well come in. Can't promise ya Ah'll be that great of a host right now though."

Alizar did step inside. "Would you like a hug?"

Again, Gideon sighed, but he then nodded. "Yeah... Ah could use one."

The taller vox wrapped his paws around Gideon, hugging him. As he did, he heard his friend sniffling. "Let it out, Gid. It's okay."

Gideon went from sniffling to whimpering to sobbing and finally bawling within seconds. He buried his face in Alizar's neck. "Ah miss her! She was mah Mama! It ain't fair," his muffled voice was heard saying.

Alizar said nothing more, just holding his friend and letting him cry. He gently rubbed the other fox's back, trying to offer what comfort he could. He stood there holding Gideon in silence for several minutes, until another knock was heard at the door.

Gideon sniffed back his tears, let go of Alizar and turned his attention to the door again, opening it.

Standing there was Travis, who looked to his fox friend. "Hey."

Gideon sniffed back another tear. "Hi."

"Gid, I'm sorry," the ferret commented. "I know you're hurting, but I wanted to let you know, I'm here for you if or when you need it."

Gideon sighed and stepped aside to allow Travis to enter. "Come on in..."

When he had, Travis noticed Alizar standing there, who gave him a quiet wave.

Gideon then shut the door before turning back to his friends. "Thanks... fer carin' about me, guys. Ah'm sorry Ah've been so quiet."

"No need to be sorry, Gid," Travis told him. "I did the same thing when my mom passed away."

"So did I," Alizar added in. "Everyone needs time to grieve."

Gideon nodded. "Ah was..." He sniffled a bit. "Ah was thinkin' about makin' a pie ta try and take mah mind off of things, but Ah just don't feel up ta it."

"Maybe you should try anyway. Maybe it'll help," Alizar told him.

Gideon gave Alizar a confused look. "Huh?"

"Think about it, Gid. You spent a lot of time with your mom baking pies. Even now, if you bake something, she'll be watching, and I know she'd be proud of you."

"Ah guess," the fox replied. "But how am Ah supposed ta focus on it?"

"Honestly, Gid, I think it's safe to say that when you bake something now, you'll be even more determined," Travis added in. "Determined to show her you're gonna make it as a baker someday."

Gideon sniffled again but nodded. "Yer right," he said. "Ah wanna make Mama proud of me."

"You will, Gid," Alizar told him, reassuringly.

For the first time in days, Gideon smiled. It wasn't a big one, but it seemed his friends' words did not fall on deaf ears. "Thank ya. Both of ya. Ah miss her. Ah really do, but Ah wanna keep bakin' ta show Mama Ah can do it." He went quiet for a moment before speaking again. "But Ah'm gonna need help."

"We'll help any way we can, right, Alizar," Travis looked to the older fox.

"Absolutely. Both with the baking and with getting you through what happened. We're your friends, and we'll stick by you," Alizar told him.

"That means a lot ta me. Ah really miss her, but yer right. Ah'm more determined now ta make her proud by becomin' a baker."

"Glad to hear it," Travis said.

"So... uhh... did you guys wanna play games or somethin'," the kit asked.

Both Travis and Alizar were quick to agree, so the three of them plopped down in front of the television before Gideon turned it and the console on.

Unlike with every other time they played though, it seemed Gideon was having trouble focusing. Before the others had a chance to comfort him though, the front door opened and Tyler was seen coming in.

"Papa? Why are ya home already," Gideon asked the elder fox.

"Mah mind was too focused on yer Mama. Ah got sick, and Ah was told it was okay fer me ta c..."

Tyler was cut off as Gideon got up and rushed over. "Yer sick?! No no no! We gotta get ya ta the hospital! Ah can't lose ya both!"

Tyler placed a paw on Gideon's shoulder. "Relax, Gid. Ah'm fine. Ah just need ta relax a little. Ah'm not in any danger, alright?"

Though Gideon still looked worried, he nodded. "Alright, Papa." He hugged his dad.

Tyler hugged him back. "How are ya holdin' up, Gid?"

"Honestly, not very well. Travis and Alizar came by ta help cheer me up. It worked fer a little while, but Ah'm still upset over losin' Mama too."

"Well get through this together, son," Tyler told him. "And Ah guarantee yer friends will help."

Gideon nodded. "Right... Uhhh... Papa, would it be alright if Ah bake somethin'? The gamin' we were doin' isn't helpin' any, and Alizar said bakin' might. Ah want Mama ta be proud of me, so Ah'm gonna use those feelings ta make the best pie Ah can."

Tyler nodded with a smile. "Absolutely. Ah think that's a great idea, Gid."

"Now Ah just gotta come up with what kind of pie Ah wanna make."

"Ah think we've got the stuff ta make either a blueberry pie or an apple pie, Gid," Tyler told him.

"Hmm..." Gideon went quiet for several moments. "Ah wanna make blueberry. Ah think mah blueberry pies are mah best work. And Ah think, when the time comes, Ah'll probably make a blueberry pie fer the Carrot Days festival too, so Ah wanna get in plenty of practice with it."

"Makes sense ta me," Tyler told him, making his way into the kitchen with the three young boys following close behind.

Gideon wasted no time. He walked over to the fridge and pantry getting out the things he knew he'd need. He set the different items on the counter. He then turned around to look at his friends and his father. "Ya don't have ta stay in here and watch me if ya wanna do somethin' else."

"I WANT to watch," Travis told him. "I enjoy watching you when you're baking."

"Some goes for me, Gid," Alizar commented.

"And fer me," Tyler added in.

"Okay then," Gideon said with a shrug as he started making the dough for the pie crust, also turning on the oven to get it started preheating. As he worked, the other three watched. Any time he would turn around to look at them, they smiled, offering various words of encouragement. When he had the dough ready, he rolled it out to make the crust, transferred it to a pie pan and set to work making the filling.

"He really does get into his work when he's baking, huh," Alizar remarked, noticing Gid's tail was swaying behind him.

"That he does," Tyler replied. "Good idea gettin' him ta focus his thoughts on bakin'. This is probably the calmest Ah've seen him in days."

Alizar nodded. "He seems much better than when we first got here."

"No kidding," Travis commented as he watched.

Gideon made quick work of the filling, having it ready in no time. Once he had it mixed, he very carefully transferred it from the bowl he was mixing it in to the pie tin. He then rolled out the leftover dough once more, and started cutting it into strips for the top of the pie. Despite his earlier sadness, he seemed to have perfect control over the knife he was using to cut the strips, and, once done, he began making the lattice for the top of the pie. Shortly after that, he slipped on a pair of oven mitts, opened the door to the oven and carefully slid the pie inside before closing the door again, setting the timer and finally turning back to the others. By this point, Gideon was smiling. "You guys were right. That DID help me feel better."

"Ah'm glad ta hear that, son," Tyler told him.

"Now we just wait fer it ta cook," Gideon said as he sat down in a chair at the table.

"Right," Travis commented. "Though I have no doubt it's gonna turn out great, Gid."

"Thank ya, Travis... Now... since we gotta wait fer a while anyway, did ya wanna go back ta playin' games?"

Alizar and Travis looked at each other, smiled, turned back to their friend and nodded.

"Go on and have yer fun, boys. Ah'm gonna make up some lunch fer us. The smell of that pie is makin' me hungry," Tyler told them.

"Alright, Papa."

With that, the three boys left the kitchen, heading for the living room. They had barely been playing ten minutes before Tyler joined them, holding a platter with several sandwiches on it. "Here ya go, boys."

"Thank you," the three said in unison, with each of them grabbing one and starting to eat.

"By the way.. Gid?" Tyler looked to his son.

"Uh.. Yeah, Papa?"

"Since you mentioned the Carrot Day Festival, Ah looked into it fer ya. They said anyone that has one can bring one."

Gideon nodded. "When is it?"

"It's at ten on the first day of the Festival," Tyler told him.

"Good ta know. Thank ya," Gideon said before taking another bite of his sandwich.

"Yer welcome, son."

As the group sat and ate, Gideon's mind started wandering again. As a result of it, he had to wipe the tears out of his eyes.

"Gid," Tyler got a look of concern.

"Ah'm fine, Papa... Ah just... still can't believe she's gone, and we'll never see her again," the kit told his dad.

It was Alizar who responded. "She's not gone, Gideon. She may not be here physically..." Alizar stood and walked over to Gideon, placing a paw on his heart. "But she's always going to be in here."

Gideon looked to the older kit. "Ah... Ah never really thought about that."

Travis looked to Gideon. "We both know you're hurting, Gid, and that's okay, but she will always be there."

Gideon nodded. He then quietly went back to eating.

By the time they had all finished eating, the group only had to wait a couple more minutes before the timer went off.

Gideon quickly got to his feet to retrieve the pie. As he did though, because he was still a bit shaky and didn't have hold of it properly, he dropped it, sending it all over the kitchen floor and causing the fox to start crying.

Within seconds, the other three rushed over. His two friends took hold of him by the paw and led him back to his seat, while his father quickly set to work cleaning it up.

"Ah... Ah'm sorry," the fox cried out. "Ah didn't mean ta!"

"Ah know, Gid," his father replied. "Ah'm not mad at ya. Are ya hurt?"

Gideon shook his head, but his reply came out numb as his two friends hugged him. "No..." He then hung his head.

Travis lifted his head giving his friend a reassuring smile. "It's okay. We all know you didn't intend to drop it, Gid."

"Right," Alizar replied. "And you can easily make another one. We can even help if you want this time."

Gideon sniffled. "Ah dunno if Ah wanna... Ah worked really hard ta get that one right. Ah was bein' real careful."

"Accidents happen, son," his father replied after he finished cleaning up the mess.

"Ah guess..." The fox gave a saddened sigh. He then looked to his friends. "Ah... Ah wanna try again... Were ya serious about wantin' ta help?"

"Of course," Alizar told him, with Travis and his father giving a nod as well.

"Ah'll get everythin' back out fer ya, son," Tyler told him.

Gideon nodded. "Alright... Thank ya." Gideon's voice didn't sound near as happy as before, but he was no longer crying.

Over the course of the next half hour, the four of them worked together to make the pie, and Gideon took extra care to make sure he had proper hold of the pie, as he knew, from that point, he would not have what he needed to try a third time.

Once the pie was safely in the oven, Gideon turned to the others. Much like the first time, after having finished making it, Gideon no longer looked upset, though it was still clear to the rest of them that Gideon was paranoid about things going right this time. With the pie in the oven, Gideon grabbed a chair and plopped himself down in it, watching the pie bake.

"Mister Grey," Alizar looked to Tyler.

"Yes, Alizar?"

"I never thought to ask," the older kit said. "How are you holding up?"

"Ah'm not gonna lie... Ah've had a rough time dealin' with it. Ah'm tryin' ta stay strong fer mah boy's sake though," Tyler told him.

"I'm sure he appreciates that," Alizar replied.

"Ah want him ta know that Ah'm here fer him, just like Ah know he's here fer me."

"Yer right about that, Papa," Gideon said, as he looked in his father's direction. "And Ah appreciate everythin' yer doin' ta help me." He then looked to his friends. "And Ah appreciate the fact the two of ya have been here fer me as well."

"We always will be, Gid," Travis told him.

"Always," Alizar added.

"Without question," Tyler chimed in.

These words finally put the smile back on the young fox's face. "Thank ya."

"You're welcome," all three replied in unison.

When the timer for the oven went off, Gideon grabbed one of the chairs from the table, putting it right by the oven door. He then put the cooling rack down on it. He then carefully pulled the pie out of the oven and immediately set it down on the cooling rack on the chair, without ever moving from his spot. He then moved the chair with the pie on it next to the counter top and slowly transferred the pie from the chair to the counter. "There... Got it on the counter without makin' a mess."

Travis snickered. "That's the important part."

"Right... and guys? Thank ya again," the kit said as he looked to the others. "Ah probably would have just spent the entire day mopin' if ya hadn't helped me."

Tyler nodded. "Yer welcome, son. Ya gonna be alright now?"

"Yeah... Yeah, Ah think so..." Gideon looked back at the pie on the counter. "Somethin' tells me this pie's gonna be the best tastin' one Ah've ever made."

"Why do ya say that, son?"

"Because mah friends and mah Papa helped me. It wasn't just mah love that went into makin' this one. Everyone helped me out."

"I enjoyed helping you, Gid," Alizar told him. "Wouldn't mind helping you in the future either."

"Ah'll try ta remember that," Gideon replied.

With the pie now sitting out to cool, the group eventually migrated to the living room. Most of the next hour was spent with the three boys watching the TV, with Tyler having headed to his study to read. When Tyler emerged again, he looked to Gideon. Are ya ready ta try some of yer pie, Gid?"

The kit nodded. "Yeah, Ah am. Travis? Alizar? Ya want some?"

"Yeah, sure," Alizar replied, with Travis nodding as well.

The four of them headed to the kitchen again and Gideon walked over to a cabinet, pulling down several small plates. He then grabbed a knife and cut several slices, being extremely careful to transfer the slices to the plates. He then handed a plate and fork to both his friends as well as to his father before taking the last one for himself and sitting down.

The other three looked at Gideon with smiles on their faces as the baker took a bite of his slice. After chewing it and swallowing, he looked to them.

"Well? How is it, son," Tyler asked him.

"Ah was right. This is mah best pie so far," Gideon said, a huge grin on his face. "Thanks again fer helpin' me with it."

"We were glad to, Gid," Travis told him as he took a bite of his own. "Mmm."

Alizar was next to try a bite. "Tastes great!"

Tyler then took a bite himself. "Ah agree with ya, son. This is the best one yet."

The encouraging words of his friends and father only made Gideon's smile grow. "Ah think from now on, whenever Ah start feelin' down about stuff, Ah'm gonna make somethin'. Yeah, things were kinda a mess at first today, but havin' ya all helpin' me ta pick mah spirits up made me feel a lot better."

"And Ah can guarantee ya, we'll all be here fer ya ta help ya whenever ya need that pick-me-up," Tyler told him.

Gideon took another bite of his pie, chewed and swallowed before standing up. He walked over to where his father had been sitting and looked at him curiously.

"What? Do Ah have somethin' on mah face, son," Tyler asked.

"Can ya stand up fer a second, Papa," Gideon asked.

Curious, Tyler did exactly as asked, putting his fork down and standing. "What is it, Gid?"

Gideon stepped up to his father and wrapped his paws around the elder fox, hugging him tightly.

Tyler hugged right back. When he let go, he smiled. "Not that Ah minded the hug, but what was that about?"

"Ah just wanted ya ta know Ah'm here fer ya too, Papa," Gideon told him. "Ah know Ah'm takin' things hard without Mama around, but yer takin' it just as hard as Ah am, and Ah just wanted ya ta know that whenever ya wanna talk about anythin', Ah'm here fer ya."

The elder fox gave a nod. "That means a lot ta me, son. And yer right. Ah have been takin' it pretty hard. Yer Mama was just as special ta me as she was ta you. And we're gonna need each other ta be able ta get through this."

The kit nodded. "Right."

Tyler turned to look to Travis and Alizar. "Ah appreciate the help the two of ya have given us today. Personally, Ah think we both needed this. Ah hadn't helped Gid bake a pie in a long time, and Ah'd completely forgotten how much fun in was ta do it."

"Ah had fun too, Papa. Ah liked havin' ya helpin' me," Gideon said after walking back to his seat and taking another bite of pie.

"Then Ah'll make an effort ta do it more, Gid. Ah tried ta stay out of the kitchen when ya were cookin' with yer Mama, but Ah'll try ta be around more ta help ya out when ya need it."

"Sounds great, Papa."

When the group had finally finished eating their pie, they all worked together to clean up the dishes they had used. When they had, the three young boys made their way back into the living room once more, being followed shortly after by Tyler.

"Would ya mind if Ah joined ya watchin' yer cartoons, boys," Tyler asked.

Gideon turned to look to him. "Of course ya can, Papa. Ah'd like that."

"Me too," Both Alizar and Travis replied.

With that, the elder fox sat down in his recliner as the three boys sat on the couch.

Gideon reached over and clicking on the TV with the remote, which was still on the same channel they had been watching before. They sat there together watching cartoons for most of the next four hours, only finally being interrupted when Alizar's cell phone rang.

The older kit took his phone out and answered it. "Hey."

"Hey yourself, Alizar," came the voice of his adopted father. "How's Gid?"

"Much better than he was. Travis, Gideon, his dad and I were just sitting here watching cartoons together after having made a pie together," the kit told him.

"Oh yeah? Sounds like you're having a good time then."

"I am."

The elder fox chuckled. "That's good. Anyway... we didn't feel like cooking tonight, so we ordered pizza."

"Should I come home then," Alizar asked.

"Only if you want some of the pizza before we eat it all," Alton joked.

"Alright. Be right there. Love you."

"Love you too, Alizar. See you in a couple minutes," the older fox replied.

"Bye," Alizar responded before hanging up. "I need to take off, Gid. Got pizza waiting at home."

Gideon nodded and immediately stood, walking over to Alizar and hugging him. "Alright... Thanks fer comin' over... and fer helpin ta cheer me up."

"Anytime. I'm here for you when you need me. Don't ever forget that."

"Ah won't, Alizar."

Alizar said his goodbyes to Travis and Tyler as well before he left.

"Ah suppose we should probably think about makin' some dinner fer ourselves, son," Tyler said, turning to his boy.

"Right," Gideon nodded.

Travis looked to him. "Should I take off then too?"

Gideon shook his head. "Actually... if it's okay with Papa... Ah'd like ya ta stay fer dinner."

"It's fine with me," Tyler told him.

"I'll call Dad and ask if it's okay," Travis said, immediately pulling out his cell and calling Charles.

"Hey, kiddo," Charles' voice was heard replying.

"Hey, Dad. Would it be okay if I stay at Gid's for dinner?"

"That's fine. How's he doing," Charles asked.

"Things were rough when I first came over, but things ended really well. Alizar was here too and we helped him to make one of his pies," Travis told him.

"Had fun then," his dad asked.

"Yeah, we did."

"Glad to hear it. See you later tonight."

"Alright. Love you, Dad."

"Love you too, kiddo," Charles replied. "Bye."

"Bye, dad." Travis hung up his phone and looked to Tyler. "Dad says it's okay."

"Than Ah guess Ah'd best get in the kitchen and get dinner started, huh," Tyler chuckled. He then stood, stretched and made his way there.

"Travis," Gideon turned to look to his friend.

"Yeah?"

"Means a lot ta me ta have ya as part of mah life, ya know that?"

The ferret nodded. "I know. And I'm glad you're a part of mine."

"Don't know what Ah'd have done today if the two of ya hadn't come by."

Travis shrugged. "I don't know either, but I'm glad we did."

"Ah am too," Gideon said with a smile.

Around an hour later, Tyler called the two boys to the kitchen, where he had a nice spaghetti dinner waiting for them. The three sat together eating and chatting throughout the meal.

When dinner was done, the two boys helped Tyler to clean up again, before Travis turned his attention back to Gideon. "Gid?"

"Yeah, Travis?"

"Are ya gonna be okay now," Travis asked.

"Ta be honest, Ah'm still hurtin' a lot... But Ah'll try not ta go so long without talkin' ta ya. Ta be honest, Ah haven't been sleepin' too well, because of how much Ah miss Mama."

Travis walked over and put a supportive paw on his friend's shoulder. "Just remember, she's always..."

Gideon finished the sentence himself. "In mah heart. Ah know. It's still really hard. Somethin' Ah know both of ya understand."

Travis nodded. "Yeah..." He hugged Gideon. "If you ever need to talk, we're here, okay?"

"Ah know. Ya keep sayin' that," Gideon said, with a small smirk on his face.

"Well, we mean it," Travis told him. "Anyway, I should probably get home myself."

Gideon nodded, walking his ferret friend to the door. "See ya later, Travis."

"Count on it," Travis said before looking to Tyler. "Good night, Mister Grey."

"G'night, Travis," Tyler replied.

The ferret then left, with Gideon shutting the door behind him.

"Papa?"

"Yeah, son?"

"Ah love ya," Gideon said as he hugged his dad.

"And Ah love ya too. Very much."

The two foxes returned to the couch and turned their attention back to the TV, which they watched for another hour before the two of them got too tired to stay awake.

After giving his son a good night hug and kiss, Tyler headed upstairs, making his way to his room as the kit made his way to his. Not long after, the kit fell asleep.