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Chapter Eleven: Worry Wolf

"I hope she's alright." Vernon mumbled. The large grey wolf was sitting up against the dusky green pillows on his bed with his arms folded. The wolf let out a huff as he grimaced. Vernon had worried about a lot of things when it came to making the trip out to introduce Dawn to the family. Her reception with his parents and brothers going awry, touchy subjects coming up in conversation, or someone showing outright disdain for the ewe. And as luck would have it the pair managed to knock out all three checkboxes in the first day. But the one thing he hadn't given much thought to was the possibility of being separated from Dawn for the night. He couldn't have conceived his Mother would see it fit to treat Dawn just like the other females of the pack. But then again that was what he wanted, hadn't he?

Vernon was afraid. Afraid of leaving the ewe at the mercy of any of his family members without being there to stand up for her. Afraid that some of them were merely waiting for the sheep to be alone so they could tell her what they really thought of her. Afraid to spend the first night in months without his Honey Lamb curled up snuggly against his chest.

Vernon shook his head dismissively as he mulled over the last fear that had crossed his mind. It seemed like such a trifle compared to all the others, yet it managed to bother him the worst of all. In the three or so months since he and Dawn officially became an item they had spent every night in each others arms. The wolf had grown accustomed to the soft sound of her breathing as she slept, interrupted occasionally with one of her adorable little bleats. He had become attuned to the beat of her heart, it's slightly more rapid pulse acting as a white noise in the dark quiet of their bedroom. He missed the warm, downy feeling of her wool against his pelt. He wasn't entirely sure his own nightly ministrations had the same effect on Dawn, but he knew that just having her next to him had become a necessity for a peaceful nights sleep.

Vernon felt a whine slip out as he looked up at the ceiling. He felt like such a puppy being so hopelessly heartsick over something as simple as sleeping in the same bed. But his relationship with Dawn was different, different than all the ones that had come before. He had never felt the kind of love for the other females that he had been with that he now felt for the ewe. It was a deep, visceral, burning feeling, and it almost left him aching to be separated from her for even a moment. The wolf chuckled to himself as he remembered his Mother talking about his Father in the same terms when the young wolf had finally started to take interest in the opposite sex. Of burning, aching, yearning, and knowing. Knowing that you had met the one mammal who was right for you.

The concept soul mates were already something deeply ingrained in wolf culture. But his Mother had also been firm believer in such a concept, and naturally it had spilled over into Vernon. But he never truly believed in the concept of a _'one'_until he had nearly lost Dawn on that cold night in Tundratown. That week in the hospital was one of pure anguish and suffering, and it was something the wolf never wanted to relive. But when Dawn finally opened her beautiful lime green eyes, Vernon felt his insides burst with a wash of emotions. Relief through the staggering pain, tears through overwhelming joy, and the deep aching well inside his heart that was the true love his Mother had often spoke of so fondly. And with that overwhelming surge of love, came an almost vigilant and all encompassing desire to protect it like a precious jewel. After all, the wolf had almost lost her completely, and he wasn't willing to let anything close to that happen again.

So maybe he had become a little over protective. Wade was right, Dawn was a grown ewe, and could stand up for herself. She certainly had that night in the old bottling plant. But Vernon was not about to stand aside and let his family accidently sabotage the one thing in his life he was sure of. That he and Dawn were meant to be together, regardless of how they felt. The wolf let out another nervous whine as he eyed the ceiling once more.

Vernon was pulled out of his reverie by the sudden hard whap of fabric against his face. The wolf briskly shook his head before staring blankly at the dull orange pillow that had now suddenly appeared in his lap.

"Would you stop already Pup!" Zach chuckled. "I'm never going to get any sleep if you don't quit with the whining!" The wolf was sitting up in his own bed on the other side of the room. His blanket was still covering his legs as the wolf had been laying down prior to lobbing his pillow at Vernon.

Vernon tersely grabbed the pillow, pitching it back at the reddish wolf with agitated vigor. "Leave me alone!" Vernon hissed.

Zach had clearly been expecting the pitch, as he seemed to catch the pillow with ease. Now clutching it in both of his paws, the wolf squeezed it playfully.

"What do you think Vanna's going to do?" Zach grinned. "You know my kitten is a big softie, Dawn's going to be fine."

Vernon gave another huff as he shimmied deeper against his pillows.

"I don't know what to expect from anyone after what happened at dinner." Vernon sneered. "I wasn't sure how Pa would react, but I didn't expect that treatment at all!"

"Y'know, I have to admit." Wade murmured. "I've never seen Pa act that harsh to anyone." Wade was snuggly under his dull blue covers, clutching his blanket as he eyed the other wolves sheepishly.

Zach seemed to wince at Wade's words.

"Well, Pa's probably having a rough day. I mean he-"

"There you go, always rising to Pa's defense!" Vernon snorted. "Crawl out of his butt!"

Zach frowned, his usual jovial demeanor seeming to wither in response to Vernon. The wolf crossed his arms defensively.

"I-"

"Always trying to be the favorite! Perfectly living up to everything Pa tells you to do! Why don't you live your own life for once!" Vern hissed.

Zach raised another pillow, readying it to pelt the wolf from across the room.

"Well we all couldn't just run away to Zootopia with our tails between are legs could we?" Zach growled. "Some of us decided to be realistic with our life goals."

Vernon quickly grasped his own pillow from behind his back. the wolf clutched it tightly as he sneered back at Zach.

"You're lucky, If the Mayor hadn't stepped in to get you an internship no one would have taken you. After six months of being turned away from every firm you would have come crawling back home for a job at the station!" Zach hissed.

"I'm lucky!?" Vernon snarled. "I NEARLY DIED!" Vernon raised his pillow high in the air, but just before he was going to throw it Wade had appeared between the two. The wolf had leapt from his covers and now stood with his paws outstretched.

"HEY! HEY!" Wade yelped. "THAT'S ENOUGH!"

Vernon was seething, but without a clear shot at Zach the wolf reluctantly lowered his arm allowing the pillow to rest in his lap.

"The only mammal in the wrong here is Pa!" Wade pleaded. "So why fight with each other!?"

"But he's-!

"No buts!" Wade cut him off. "Look I don't know what's up with Pa, but Zach is around him the most." Wade said. "You shouldn't just write off what he has to say because you think he always defends Pa."

"But he d-"

Wade shook his head dismissively at Vernon before turning his attention to Zach.

"Look, I'll settle this." Wade stepped back slightly to allow the two to see one another again. "Zach, do you agree with what Pa did at dinner?"

Zach shook his head briskly. "O'course not! I've never seen him go off on a mammal like that outside of the interrogation room!" Zach looked back to Vernon, a deep frown forming on his muzzle. "I won't defend what he did, I just wanted to try to pose some reasons why is all." Zach shrugged.

Wade looked back to Vernon pleadingly, the wolf knew what was coming next.

"Er..." Vernon grumbled. "I-I'm sorry Zach." Vernon let out a sigh. He knew he was somewhat in the wrong. The wolf had been angry since dinner, and was looking for a fight. The anger he had for his Father's little performance had him ready to lash out at anyone who wouldn't see his side of things.

"And as for you." Wade turned back to Zach. "You shouldn't be heaping dung on Vernon's choices just cause you're jealous."

Zach looked shocked. "W-what!?" He spat. "I AIN'T JEALOUS!" Zach crossed his arms in defiance.

Vernon could see Wade narrow his eyes at the russet wolf, and slowly his stalwart stance seemed to crumble away into insecurity. Zach's ears began the droop, and his posture slipped as he let out a sigh.

"I ain't jealous." He reiterated quietly. "B-but it was wrong of me to say that." The wolf scratched the back of his head.

"I-I just-" He stammered. "Ya'll know I don't like you sayin' I'm just trying to please Pop. I wanted to be a cop, I wanted to stay here." Zach shook his head. "I-it was my choice, and I don't like it bein..." Zach looked toward the ceiling as he scratched his chin. "Belittled." The wolf let out a sigh as he stared at Vernon with glossy eyes.

"I'm sorry too." He muttered.

Vernon felt his anger dissipate as he smiled back at his brother. In response, a slow grin came to Zach's muzzle.

"Hell I know you." Zach crossed his arms. "Even is no one hired you, you'd stay in Zootopia just to spite the ol' mam. Yer just as stubborn as Pa sometimes." Zach added with a chuckle.

Vernon let out a laugh. "I would have worked at Bug Burga forever if I had to." Vernon flashed a cheesy grin.

By now Wade had grown a smug grin of his own, once again the wolf had managed to diffuse a family fight and Vernon could tell he was proud of himself.

"But what is going on with Pa? Why'd he do that?" Vernon asked.

A flash of nervousness came back over Wade's features as the wolf seemed wary of Zach's response.

Zach meanwhile, had a definite look of concern over his face.

"Well, I'm not too sure." Zach shrugged. "He's been more irritable for a while now. He's been snapping at everyone, 'specially strangers."

Vernon slumped, letting out a sigh. "Gah...this whole things just a mess." the wolf whined.

"Oh come on Vernon." Wade tried to encourage Vernon, but the wolf didn't even acknowledge him.

"I've been trying to keep up a brave face for Dawn, but-" Vernon clasped at his head, dragging his paws across his eyes. "It's all fallin' apart around us." He flopped his arms to his sides.

"Oh come on, it ain't all bad." Zach added. "Ma likes her, I like her,-" The wolf rolled his eyes, looking toward the ceiling. "-and I'm sure Vanna likes her too."

Vernon gave a hard stare at his brother Zach, squinting slightly.

"Y-you really like her?" Vernon asked. "No foolin'?"

Zach laughed. "Hey I ain't one to hold a grudge. She seems like she's a good gal, and she did save the city and all." The wolf gave Vernon a serious stare. "And you know I don't lie about anything."

Vernon gave his brother a warm and genuine grin.

"I ain't like some of us." Zach grinned, flashing a glance toward Wade.

"Hey!" Wade immediately became flustered. "I haven't lied in-"

Wade flashed Vernon a nervous glance as he seemed to remember the situation he was currently in and grimaced sharply.

"W-well It ain't like I'm trying to hurt anyone!" Wade pleaded. "I only lie with the best of intentions!"

Zach let out a barking laugh. "They say the road to hell is paved with good intentions." Zach grinned.

Wade made his way back to his bunk, flopping lamely back on to the mattress.

"Tch!" Go back to fighting with each other." Wade mumbled into the bed. "Just leave me alone."

Zach eyed the now limp wolf suspiciously before turning his attention back to Vernon.

"What did he do?" Zach grinned widely. Clearly Wades behavior had made the russet wolf suspicious, Vernon simply shook his head negatively in response.

"I can't say." Vernon said coolly, crossing his arms. "Blood promises and the like."

That only seemed to excite the wolf, as Zach leaned forward on his mattress expectedly.

"Oh now I gotta know-"

"I'm still stewing on the mess I'm in right now." Vernon quickly tried to change the subject. "What the hell am I gonna do about Pa?"

Zach leaned back, his excitement fading back into a deep frown. "Well, I'm sure Ma will talk to him." Zach shrugged. "And if not, I'll talk to him tomorrow and see if I can figure out what's eating him."

Vernon leaned back on his pillow letting out another sigh. He could feel the knot tightening in his stomach as he continued to ruminate on what was to come.

"And what happens when the rest of the family shows up tomorrow? How are they gonna act? Sweet sawgrass what about Yuri?" Vernon hissed as the name came out of his throat. Crooking his head back up, he could see Zach's now worried face.

"Er...yeah....Yuri." Zach muttered. "W-well I mean...you can't win them all right?"

"Oh that's helpful." Vernon muttered.

Zach scoffed. "Well you know how he is!" The wolf raised his paws in the air. "He teased you mercilessly when you weren't dating outside your species! He's not going to pass this up just to be respectful for once."

Vernon let out a groan as he placed his paws over his face.

"I mean, lets be realistic here Vernon. Not everyone in the family is going to like Dawn." Zach said. "It's just the law of averages. Teeth to Tails a bunch of us don't even like each other. I mean that's why most of us moved out the first chance we could."

Vernon gave a weak chuckle. "Yeah, family is about loving one another. But there's nothing in the rule book about liking each other."

Vernon turned to his side, allowing him to better see Zach. The russet wolf was still sitting up in his bed.

"But I just wanted Dawn to have a good time. I wanted her to see the nice parts of this family, I wanted her to feel welcome." The wolf groaned. "And I just feel like I'm going to fail at that with every second that goes by."

Zach sighed, shaking his head softly. "Well, aside from Yuri I'm sure you'll get that." Zach said. "I'm sure Pa will come around, and things will work out."

Vernon gave another weak chuckle.

"Always the optimist." Vernon laughed.

"Someone's got to be." Zach said placing a paw to his chest. "So why not the most handsome wolf in the pack."

Vernon gave another laugh.

"But honestly, you'd do yourself much better if you just rode it out Vern." Zach added. "Let the chips fall where they may. Why worry so much over this, if things go bad you can just leave. Heck I'll drive ya out if it comes to that." Zach shrugged. "But you ain't going to have a good time if you keep pressuring yourself to try to make this all perfect."

Zach let out another laugh. "Heck, a family is the definition of imperfect. So why let it get to you?"

Vernon was quiet for a moment as he mulled over his brothers words. There was at least one reason why it had to go perfect, especially in regards to his Father.

"I'm fixing to marry Dawn." Vernon said.

The wolf suddenly felt the familiar hard impact of fabric against his muzzle. Quickly rising into a sitting position, the wolf clawed the orange pillow out of his face to reveal and awe struck Zach.

"GET OUT OF TOWN!" Zach said in shock. "LITTLE PUPPY'S GETTIN' HITCHED!" The wolf sputtered.

Hucking the pillow back at the wolf, Vernon gave the russet wolf a terse 'shh!'.

"QUIET DOWN!" The wolf snarled. "I know we have good insulation, but I still don't want the whole house to hear!"

Zach quickly clasped his paws to his muzzle.

"Sorry, sorry..." Zach mumbled. "But seriously?"

Vernon gave a nod. "We were going to try to do one of them caprid weddings next week. Dawn's Mother is sure to be okay with it and Gus is a registered caprid marriage official, so we figured it would be easy to get done."

"Wait." Now Wade was sitting back up. "I thought you said you wanted to do a tithing ceremony?"

"A TITHING CER-"

Vernon's own pillow hit Zach square in the face, muting him instantaneously. The wolf gave Vernon a dull glare before tossing the pillow back his way.

"Sorry, sorry." He mumbled again. "But a tithing ceremony!?"

"Ideally I wanted to do both." Vernon said. "I wanted it to be official to everyone, y'know?"

"But you want Pa's blessing." Zach said knowingly. "That's why yer so flummoxed about this whole weekend going well."

Vernon gave a simple nod.

"You see, I had this whole silly plan dreamed up." Vernon sighed, flopping back down on the mattress.

"I bring Dawn up here and get Ma and Pa's approval for a tithing ceremony on the sly." He murmured. " If I got the okay, I'd essentially propose to Dawn at the end of the weekend during the harvest moon. Then we'd pick a date to come back and do the ceremony."

"Wow..." Zach mumbled. "I-I...I didn't know it was so serious."

Vernon simply nodded, eyeing his brother worryingly from across the room.

"Lil' Puppy..." Zach sniffled, wiping a false tear from his eye. "You've grown up so fast." Zach cooed.

"Ha." Vernon said sarcastically.

"B-but..." Zach mumbled. "What if Pa doesn't go for it?"

Vernon could feel the knot in his stomach twist at his brothers words.

"That's what I'm worried about." Vernon muttered. "But if he won't I'm going to have to do something drastic."

Zach eyed him warily. "L-like what Puppy?"

Vernon gave a simple grunt. He didn't want to even think about what he would have to do if his Father rejected his request. But he wasn't going to let him stand in the way of the two.

"Vern?" Zach pressed again.

"Don't worry about it." Vernon muttered. "Just help me bring Pa around."

"B-But Vern..."

The dull hum of music suddenly drew the attention of the two wolves to the ceiling above. Vernon could barely hear the music, but the beat was instantly recognizable as one of Dawn's favorite Suri Nicks songs.

"Sounds like one of Dawn's songs."

"Sound's like one of Vanna's songs."

The wolves had muttered simultaneously before turning to each other in surprise. Zach was first to break, a wry grin crawling across his muzzle.

"Well, I don't think you gotta worry about those two getting along Pup." Zach chuckled.

Upstairs inside the pinker tinted bedroom, the tiny ewe and massive tigress stood back to back, or rather back to legs.

"AND I WILL NEVER FORGET, THE LAST TIME I SAW YOU!" Vanna held a hair brush high above her mouth as she belted lyrics into it.

"LIKE A PHOTOGRAPH SO RARE! LIKE A PAINTING!" Dawn held her own wool brush tightly in her hoof, singing as loudly as she could into it. The two quickly spun around to face each other, each sharing a wide and gleeful smile as Vanna bent down to Dawn's height.

"NO I WILL NEVER FORGET, THE LAST TIME I SAW YOU!" Vanna sung another verse at the ewe.

"NEVER TO BE! NOT YOU! NOT ME! NO! NO!" Dawn sang back before once again turning away from the tigress. The two once again stood back to back, but began slowly sliding down to the floor.

"SO I"M GOING AWAY, FOR A LITTLE WHILE, TO REMEMBER HOW TO FEEL!" Now the tow were singing in unison as they came to a seat on the floor. "AND IF I FIND THE ANSWER I PROMISE YOU I'LL COME BACK TO GET YOU!"

"WELL IF I FIND THE ANSWER I PROMIS YOU I'LL COME BACK TO GET YOU!" Dawn sang as the music began to fade.

"I'LL COME BACK TO GET YOU!" Vanna followed before joining the ewe in the final line.

"I'll COME BACK TO GET YOU!" With that the music faded away and the girls dropped their ad-hoc microphones before bursting into a fit of giggling.

Vanna flashed Dawn a gleeful grin. "Congratulations, you are now my favorite sister in-law." Vanna chuckled.

Dawn excitedly clasped her hooves together. "R-Really?" She stammered excitedly.

"Oh yeah." Vanna sighed. "I can't let such good taste go un-rewarded. Don't worry about the other girls. If I like you, they certainly will."

Dawn simply beamed in response.