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III

7 Years Later

Alix adjusted her panties and looked at herself in the mirror. She was starting to get use to the profile, though her new body still felt a little alien to her at times. Especially during her periods. Alix swore that those hurt more than the beatings she got from the bullies. Still she looked good. A nice, athletic body covered in silky black fur, and her profile was- Wait, were her breasts a little larger? Damn, no wonder her bra had felt tight for the last couple of weeks. Alix sighed. She would have to go shopping with her Mom for some new ones. She needed a new swimsuit anyway. The last one had been destroyed in the latest nasty fight, one that Alix had, once again, not started. And with that reminder, she looked down at her left arm.

Alix's lower left arm was covered in a metal sleeve with two bronze colored bracelets on either side of the sleeve; one just below the elbow, the other just above her wrist. This sleeve was a bio-metal cast, designed to keep the part of the arm that was broken stiff and protected, without the bulk, though no less heavy, of a traditional cast. More over, it was waterproof, which allowed Alix to continue to swim, so long as she did not push herself to hard. It also made it easier to get her showers as well. The cast still restricted her motions however, and Alix looked down at her bra, and groaned. She would need her Mom to help her dress, again. How many bones had she broken now? Sixteen? Twenty? It was always the same, she thought. No matter which school she went to, someone always seemed to find her offensive enough to attack, which usually ended with her having at least one broken bone.

This was no exception. Alix had been trying out for the swim team. For the first time in her life, she had actually worked up the nerves to try. It was also the last. Her time had been better than the team's captain, a 'slightly' vain human senior, and left her nominated successor in the dust. When the captain came to see her, Alix had tried to tell the captain that she was not trying to replace her, but the older girl had not listened. This, of course, caused a fight to break out, during which, Alix ended up having her swimsuit torn. At one point, Alix had lashed out in desperation and given the captain a black eye. The captain's team mates had to pull her off Alix after that, and only the Swim Team Coach had prevented further violence. Alix had thought she had gotten lucky, as all she had received was a couple of bruises. She was proven wrong on her way home, when the captain and her boyfriend had caught up with her. After a brief struggle, the captain had given Alix a bloody nose, a split lip, and a few more bruises while her boyfriend had held Alix. Afterward, the boyfriend had broken her arm against the edge of the sidewalk, bringing his shoe down where the arm hung over the side. Both of them had been suspended by the end of the week, and the captain had been banned from any further swimming events, as well as being kicked off the swim team. And Alix would make sure she would never, ever, try out for another swim team again. It would be a while before she was able to swim properly anyway. The cast would be on for a few more weeks. And now she was once again in a new school. At least she was back in Yggdrasil, and that meant Jon was close by, when he was actually home and off duty.

Alix, sighed, covered her breasts and walked to her door. Cracking it open, she called out, "Mom?"

There was a brief pause, and then foot falls sounded on the stairs. Heather came into view, dressed in a green tee shirt and a pair of tight fitting blue jeans. Her hair was unbound and fell to the base of her tail. She gave her daughter a warm smile as she stepped into the room.

"What is it, hun? Need help dressing again?"

"Yes," Alix said with a sigh. She then looked away and hugged herself. "I'm sorry. I keep causing you all this trouble."

Heather instantly gathered Alix in a tight hug. She stroked the girl's hair and kissed her forehead. "Oh, hunie, it's not your fault," she said softly. Heather was worried, though she did not show it. Alix had not made a single friend since Hector's death, and she was consistently drawing the wrong type of attention. At the rate things were going, Heather was afraid that Alix was going to do something drastic.

"Come on," Heather said. "We need to get you dressed and downstairs for some breakfast. We'll be late for the meeting with the school's Vice-Principle at this rate."

"I'm going to need some new bras," Alix said as they moved over to her dressing table and mirror.

"Well," her mother said, "at least you're growing in one direction."

"Mom!" Alix was a little sensitive when it came to her height. Both her father and brother, who she idolized, stood taller than most Foxlings, and Alix had not grown a fraction of an inch past four feet in almost five years. Heather hooked Alix's bra and made sure it was as comfortable as possible before she grabbed the school's uniform blouse.

"Look on the bright side," Heather said with a small smile. "You'll make some young man happy."

Alix looked at her mother in the mirror, and Heather winced inwardly at the look on her daughter's face. It was not anger, nor indignation, nor even the look of horror of at the reminder of what Alix had lost. It was the look of a sadness so crippling that it could have shattered the mirror itself. The girl had only started to get interested in boys last year, and the one boy she had worked up the nerve to ask out on a date had turned it into a school wide joke. Then there was a serious of boys who had tried to use her to get back at their own girlfriends, which drew another form of unwanted attention. Alix had been labeled a boyfriend stealer by the time she had tried out for the swim team.

Alix looked away from her mother's gaze as she shrugged on the blouse, and began to button it up.

"I'll never have a boyfriend," Alix said in a whisper so low that Heather almost missed it.

"Hunie, I-" But Alix was not listening. Alix reached for the pleated skirt and slipped it around her waist, tucking the tails of the blouse under the waist band. Heather helped her to zip it up and reached for the brush on the dressing table. As she brushed out Alix's shoulder length hair, she glanced at her daughter's left eye. The pale blue eye was looking down at the top of the table, allowing Heather to brush the hair straight. Starting just above the black eyebrow and moving straight down till it was about an inch down the left cheek was a jagged white line of fur. It was the only visible indication of the scar Alix had received a little over seven years ago. Alix usually brushed a lock of hair over the scar to hide it. A few of her teachers had expressed their surprise, and concern, to Heather, once they had seen it, on more than one occasion. She had to reassure them, that although the scar did not look pretty, the eye worked just fine, with no complications on Alix's vision. Heather had told herself, though, that the scar had left the eye a pretty shade of blue. Especially against Alix's black fur. For today, Heather decided to put a barrette in Alix's hair, holding the usual lock of hair back from the eye. Better to get some things out of the way sooner rather than later.

Alix reached up and put on the only piece of jewelry that she ever really wore, a long gold ear cuff with a celtic knot design engraved into it. It had been a gift from Jon on her thirteenth birthday. She had nearly lost it twice. The first time, some of her class mates had broken into her locker and stolen it. A teacher had overheard them talking about the ear cuff, confiscated it, and finally returned it to Alix, who was by then frantic. The second time had been more recent, when Alix had her arm broken. It had slipped off her ear in the struggle that had ensued when her assailants had initially grabbed her. Thankfully, they had missed the ear cuff, and Alix had been able to pick it up before she stumbled home. Alix now slipped it around her ear as her mother handed her the crimson blazer that went with the uniform.

Heather looked at her daughter with approval. Alix stood four feet tall with that silky black fur, and beautiful black hair. Despite the difference in eye colors between the eyes, they gave Alix a beauty that would have been destroyed with the use of makeup. It was a natural beauty, and Heather was a little perturbed that some boy had not taken an interest in her by now. Alix's long, bushy black tail moved slowly side to side as she finished getting dressed. She looked striking in the school uniform. A white blouse under a crimson blazer, and a knee length pleated black skirt. Alix had no need of foot wear, so Heather had bought her several pairs of thigh high white stockings that had been specially designed for Foxlings. They started at the lower ankle, leaving the paw free, and traveled up to the mid thigh. Not that Alix needed the stockings, her long, elegant and athletic legs looked good without them. The black, short necktie was option, which was just as well sense Alix hated them. On the breast pocket, located on the left side of the blazer, was the gold seal of the school; a double headed eagle clutching a key in one claw and a caduceus in the other. The Benjamin Franklin-Edison Private School was the most prestigious school of the Manchester sector of Yggdrasil, and was listed in the top five for the entire city. Heather had been surprised when Henry had enrolled Alix in it. The school was not cheep, but it had such a good reputation for discipline, both with the teachers and the students, that Henry had felt it was a good investment. Especially if it kept Alix safe.

Alix opened one of the drawers in the dressing table and looked at the white stockings, before closing it again. Better see what the first day is like before I wear anything that might get torn up in a fight, she thought. She sighed, and looked up to see her mother watching her. Heather smiled and held out a hand to her.

"Come on, hun. Let's go get you that breakfast."

* * * * * *

"So school started on September first, and it's now the fifteenth," Alix said between the bites on her egg, bacon, and cheese sandwich. It was her favorite breakfast meal. "So how far behind do you think I am?"

"Don't talk with your mouth full, dear," Heather said as she finished cleaning the skillet she had used to cook the eggs. "We'll have to find out when we get there. We have that meeting with the Vice-Principle at ten, and then you'll be at the school for the rest of the day. I packed a lunch for you, just in case. The school is supposed to have a cafeteria, but I don't know the times it serves food, nor how long is stays open."

"OK. Thanks, Mom."

Heather smiled. Alix seemed to be bouncing back now that she got some food in her stomach. She put the skillet back on the wall as the door bell rang.

"Finish your breakfast, hun. I'll get it," she said as Alix made a move to get up. Alix nodded and took another bite of her sandwich. She heard the door open and her mother exclaim, "Nova! What a pleasant surprise!"

Alix wolfed down the rest of her sandwich, brushed off her face with a napkin, and jumped off the stool she had been sitting on. She then ran into the living room to see her mother and future sister-in-law, Nova Snowmane. Nova was a fennec Foxling, unusually tall for her kind, at four foot six, with bright white fur. Her long, wavy white hair had golden blonde highlights in it. The tips of her large, furry ears were the same gold blonde, as was the tip of her long, extra fluffy tail. Nova's large, bright blue eyes looked out over her slender muzzle, capped with a black nose. She had a few ring style earrings on her large oval ears; three on the right ear, two on the left ear. She was dressed in a flowing white dress, the skirt falling down to the upper ankle, and some small frills decorating her chest and shoulders. Over this she wore a light gray short coat. A small, black leather purse, with rhinestone studs along the edge of the flap and around the clasp, hung from her left shoulder.

"Nova," Alix cried.

"Alix," Nova said and held open her arms as Alix ran into them, returning the warm hug. "Oh, it's been so long since your last visit. I've missed you, kiddo. Welcome back to Yggdrasil. Jon's been looking forward to seeing you again."

Alix smiled and took a step back.

"Nova, you're welcome here at any time," Heather said, "but I'm sorry to say that we can't stay for long. We have an appointment with Alix's new school's Vice-Principle. You can stay if you want. I shouldn't be too long."

"Thanks," Nova said with a nod.

"So, Nova, what is the purpose of this visit," Heather asked as they moved further into the living room.

"This," Nova practically squealed as she held out her left hand. On the ring finger was a gold engagement ring with a large, inset diamond. "It's official now. Jon got it for me yesterday. He was so nervous when he handed it to me that he couldn't finish a coherent sentence." Nova giggled.

"Wow," Alix said as she gazed at the ring.

"It's lovely," Heather said as she grasped Nova's hands in her own, a large smile on her face. "Congratulation. To the both of you."

"Thank you," Nova said with a big grin on her face. She looked over at Alix. Alix was still looking at the ring. As Nova watched, the smile on Alix's face slowly faded, and was replaced with a far off, lonely look. Her eyes seemed to glaze over, her mind no longer appearing to be in the same room. Concern instantly entered Nova's mind as she remembered Jon's warning.

"Alix," Nova said as she stepped forward and placed a hand on the younger girl's shoulder. "Is there anything wrong?"

Alix came back from where ever she had gone in an instant, and gave both Nova and her mother a smile. A rather weak one in Nova's opinion.

"No, I'm fine. Just thinking," she said. "I should...should get ready for school. Please, excuse...ah...excuse me." Alix backed up until she was at the bottom of the stairs, as if she expected either of the older Foxlings to stop her. When neither made a move, Alix quickly climbed the stairs to head to her room. Nova watched her go and then looked at Heather.

"Mrs. Astarte, how long has Alix been that way," Nova asked.

"Please, Nova, call me Heather. You might not have married Jon yet, but I consider you part of the family." Heather looked up after her daughter. "A while. Ever since she broke her arm, she has been sinking into one depression after another. Alix's last visit to Dr. Wellington didn't go well either. The Doctor said that all she did was breakdown and cry. Henry had to go in a get her about twelve minutes after the session started. I don't know what to do, Nova. She's practically terrified of walking out the front door now." Heather looked back at Nova. "Have you gotten your Psychiatrist License yet? Could you do something?"

Nova blanched. "Yes, I did get the license, though it would be highly unprofessional to interfere with another psychiatrist's patient. I'll say that what Alix needs more than anything else is a friend, and one that is from outside of the family. She sees me as a big sister, and she practically idolizes Jon. But part of her sees me as taking her big brother away, and Jon hasn't been around as much as he used to be. Alix is lonely. And I'm willing to bet, she feels a little abandoned since Sandy died."

Heather sighed. "I thought so. She loved that cat. We offered to get a new one, but she didn't want one. Or at least that's what she said. I get the feeling that she thinks she is the cause of any of the family's problems. The constant reassignments Henry is getting from his job is not helping. Every time Alix is hurt is some stupid fight, Henry is reassigned to somewhere else. I'm starting to get the impression that she thinks it's her fault. And I've been getting the feeling, especially of late, that Alix isn't telling us half of what's going on inside that mind of her's. Like it would be a burden to tell it to us. I don't know, Nova. I really don't know."

"To her way of thinking, it probably is a burden. Though I think you should get a pet for her. Something intelligent and cuddly that she can snuggle up with on the couch, floor, or her bed. Something like a Brimstone Martin."

"Those are expensive, dear. And they have to be raised by special breeders, who are usually Sharlins."

"I'll speak with Jon. He might know where to look or know someone who does. Alix's birthday is coming up right?"

"The twenty-third, next week. Which reminds me. Speaking about Jon, what might cheer Alix up would be a visit from him. She misses him greatly. They would talk about anything, all the time. Jon has gotten more out of her than Dr. Wellington has. Could you remind him that his sister's sixteenth birthday is coming up, and the best present he could give her is a visit from him?" Heather looked hopefully at Nova.

Nova looked doubtful. "I'll try, but-" Nova's ears suddenly went straight up, and her head snapped toward the stairs.

"What is it," Heather asked.

"It's Alix," Nova answered.

"I forgot how sensitive that hearing of yours is," Heather said. "Is she...crying?"

"Yes. Hysterically. Mrs. Asta- Heather, could you let me go up and be with her a little bit. Maybe I can calm her down a little before you leave."

"Go ahead. I don't think she wants me right now, anyway. She want's her brother or father. I'll clean up down here and get ready to go."

Heather moved off towards the kitchen as Nova climbed the stairs to the second story. She walked down the cream colored hall to the first door on the left, passing the bathroom on the right side of the hall. The door was ajar, and Alix's crying could be heard from inside. Nova knocked on the door frame, and then pushed the door open. The room was little dark, despite the bright sunlight coming in through the double pane window across from the door. The walls were painted a sky blue, while the carpet was of a darker blue. To the right of the door was a small bookcase, filled with books on aquatic animals, guides on reefs located on all sorts of different planets, and instructions on swimming and scuba diving. Just to the left of the bookcase was a small nightstand. On the top of the nightstand was a large white lamp with a black shade. Next to the lamp was a free standing digital clock. The bottom shelf of the nightstand was covered with a pile of books on a variety subjects. Nova could see some histories, mysteries, one or two math books, and at least one romance book. At the top of the pile was book on dating, that looked like it had been a little roughed up.

There were two highly detailed statuettes placed on top of the bookcase, one of a harp seal and the other of a short-beaked common dolphin. Between the statuettes was a framed picture of Alix and Jon at the beach. Alix looked about ten or eleven, her wet hair falling down between her shoulder blades. She wore a green one piece swimsuit that contrasted against the black of her fur. A large smile was across her face, her arms flung out to the sides in the imitation of a soaring bird, and it looked as if she was laughing. One of her legs was raised as if she was running, her head turned to look directly at the camera. Just behind her, and to her left, was Jon, still wet himself, and with a very content smile on his face. He had his hands in the pockets of his camouflage patterned swim trunks. Jon was walking, his long strides easily keeping pace with his sister, watching her as she ran, obviously enjoying her company.

To the left of the door was a wooden desk made of dark cherry. A simple computer chair, with a gray zip-up sweat shirt draped over it, sat right in front of it. A series of four drawers were in the right part of the desk. On top of the desk, in front of the chair, was an open, but powered down, lap top computer. To the right of the lap top was cup, covered in dolphins, filled with pens and pencils. To the right of that were three stack-able trays filled with paper, which in turn, sat on top of the printer the lap top was connected to. Above the desk was a series of framed pictures, five in total. One was of snow capped mountains; another was a cactus filled desert; there was one with a beautiful stretch of beach close to sun set; another was of a kingfisher with bright green feathers; and the last was of a river otter looking over it's shoulders. To the right of the desk was a bureau made out of the same dark cherry wood, with six drawers in it. On top of the bureau was Alix's sound system, a data card folder leaning against it. The remote controller for it sat on the burrow top, just in front of the sound system. In the left corner of the room, next to the bureau, was a closet with its sliding doors closed.

Next to the closet was Alix's cedar dressing table. The large mirror, with a cedar wooden frame carved to resemble leafy vines that met at the top of the mirror in a sun burst, sat at the back of the table, snug against the wall. The table top was all most bare, save for a small jewelry box made of boxwood, Alix's brush, and a few pictures of the family. Two pictures caught Nova's attention. One was of Sandy, Alix's male, sand colored cat, curled up on Alix's bed and looking at whoever was taking the picture, eyes wide with interest. The other was a family portrait. Alix was dressed in a simple, long sleeved red dress with a thin black belt around the waist. A thin red head band was in her hair, but the usual lock of hair was covering her left eye. She was sitting on Henry's lap, who was dressed in a black suit, a white dress shirt under the sports coat, a red necktie around his throat. To Henry's left was Heather, standing at his side in thin strapped, green gown. Her right hand rested on top of her husband's left shoulder. To Heather's left, and slightly in front of her, sat Jon in his dress blues. Judging from the three metals on the left side of his chest, Nova would have guessed that Alix had been thirteen and Jon twenty at the time of the picture. Partially hidden from view by the picture frame and her right paw, Nova could just make out a bandage wrapped around the lower part of Alix's left leg. That would explain the slightly sower look on the family's faces. To the right of the dressing table, and tucked into the far left corner of the room, was a large bookcase that nearly reached the ceiling. It was filled head to toe with all manner of books, some looking old and some looking quite new. Leaning against the wall, right next to the bookcase, was a small fold-up step stool.

In the far right corner of the room, under the double pane window, was Alix's plush bed. The window was covered by white drapes with patterns of sail ships, anchors, and dolphins on them. Alix's bed was covered in a fluffy white comforter, a light blue bed skirt sticking out from under it. Two pillows lay just under the neatly made bed. Laid out under the window at the back end of the bed, were some animal plushies. A blue phoenix, a red fox, and a bottle nosed dolphin. Laid across the pillows, and almost the size of Alix herself, was a river otter plushie. It had been a gift from Jon and his school mates almost six years ago, when Alix had broken her ribs. They had all pitched in to get it for her. And Alix had not gone to bed without it ever since.

Alix, herself, was sitting in the middle of her bed, trying, unsuccessfully, to dry her eyes before Nova walked in. She was using both the palms and back of her hands to wipe away the tears, only to have them replaced with more tears. The fur on her hands were now sodden. In front of her, on the floor, was a black messenger bag. The flap lay open and everything inside of it had seemed to have spilled out of it. Across the room, just in front of the burrow, was Alix's purple zip-up wallet. Between the small bookcase and the door was her portable. Nova thought she could guess what had happened. Alix had first dropped one thing, and then the other, and then finally the bag. Being already distress, Alix had simply broken down in frustration.

Nova did not say anything, simply gave Alix a reassuring smile, walked over, and began to pick everything up. When she was done, she placed the bag in Alix's chair, and both her portable and wallet on the top of the desk. Nova then went over to the bed and sat down next to Alix.

Wrapping an arm around the black furred girl, Nova drew Alix to her until Alix's head was resting against Nova's shoulder. Taking the girl's broken arm with her right, Nova put it in her lap, and held it there. Alix had been gripping if fiercely when Nova had initially stepped in. Nova gently gripped Alix and allowed the girl to cry.

"Sh. It's going to be alright," Nova said calmly. "The light will come eventually." It was a quote from one of Alix's, and Nova's, favorite romantic comedies.

Alix gave a weak, choked chuckle.