Tales of Elderbrooke

Fun For All

"Let's go girls. Time to wake up. I know you were out late, but we've got a big day ahead for all the Academy students so let's get a move on," Pearl called out to the rest of the Vixens who were still slumbering in their beds after the late night. Penelope was the first to stretch out her arms and rise from her cozy place. Odesza too gave a big stretch before rubbing her face all over her owner as a gesture of good morning. Alice dreamily opened her eyes and instantly remembered she had a guest in her bed that was beginning to stir.

"Oh my god, how could I have forgotten?" She muttered in disbelief. It seemed almost unbelievable that she had in fact brought back a small fox cub last night. Part of her brain thought it had all been just a dream, but the squirming mammal curled up next to her was living proof it wasn't.

"What? What did you forget?" Pearl questioned. She turned quickly on her heel and eyed Alice suspiciously. Alice hesitated to reveal what lay underneath her blankets but knew she couldn't hide it forever. Ever so slowly, she pulled back her bedding to reveal the small cub she rescued during their journey home. Pearl gasped, and the look on her face showed she was not pleased. "What is that?!"

"It's a baby fox. I found it terrified in a tree trunk last night and it followed me home," Alice replied petting the soft creature that was now awake and sniffing around. Odesza eyed it carefully and remained in a protective stance in Penelope's lap.

"You can't just bring a mangy animal into the Academy without permission," snapped Pearl. "That thing could have fleas, or be cursed, or bite someone."

"Well, it wasn't like I was going to knock on the Headmistress's door at 2 am and ask her if I could bring the poor thing in. Of course, I was going to run it by her first thing today," Alice responded defensively.

"We don't have time for that, we're already running late! Dahlia get up!" Pearl shouted while throwing a spare pillow at the still-sleeping Dahlia, "I expect you all down in the main common room in 20 minutes, or you'll have to deal with Lady Josephine." In a huff, Pearl strode out of the room and slammed the door behind her.

"I would rather deal with Lady Josephine actually," Dahlia mumbled from underneath her pillow. Finally, all the girls had risen and began getting ready while the two familiars spent some time getting to know each other. Luckily at this point, Odesza was the same size as the cub so she seemed to take on a more maternal approach to the small orphaned creature.

Meanwhile, in the boys' dorms, Oliver was the last to wake up as he was the last one to fall asleep. He managed to drift off into a dreamless sleep by the wee hours of the morning and all too soon he could hear the shufflings of his roommates. Felix and Tobias were naturally earlier risers but even they didn't rouse until mid-morning due to the previous night's events. After a choking snore, Oliver shook himself awake and glanced around the deserted room. Voices could be heard chattering out in the hall from the small common area, it was the sound of excited young boys ready for the day's adventure. Rolling out of bed, Oliver shook out his hair and went straight to the bathroom where he ran into a few of the male Sprites. As soon as he entered, the boys' voices stopped and they stared at the teen.

"Uh hey," Oliver muttered awkwardly. The boys continued to silently watch him as he turned on the shower and began to disrobe. "You guys uh excited for the party today?" No response. The blonder boy with soft blue eyes turned to his friend and nudged him towards the door.

"Where did you come from?" The boy with messy dark hair asked firmly, ignoring his friend. The other boy nudged him again and gave Oliver an apologetic look.

"Uh, Baltimore, Maryland. You heard of that?" Oliver replied pausing in his state of undress. The boys shook their heads no. "It's east of here. The Academy is on the west coast of America and Baltimore is really far away on the east coast. It's a couple of thousand miles or whatever." This seemed to have satisfied the boy who continued to stare pointedly at Oliver. After one more nudge from his friend, they hastily exited the bathroom. It was a strange interaction but Oliver chalked it up to youthful curiosity and went back to his morning routine.