How Sandy Met Robbie - Part 13

Story by Magna Vulpes on SoFurry

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#13 of How Sandy Met Robbie


Everything was going just fine for Sandy Evans. In less than a year, he'd gone from being a complete outcast at school, which more or less forced his parents to relocate across the country, to having having a group of friends, and even a boyfriend. Things were looking up for the squirrel, who was greatly looking forward to having his band, Galactic Big Rig, perform at the spring talent show next week. Not only that, but his mother would was due to give birth to twin boys any day now. The young squirrel was over the moon, having a boyfriend, band mates and two little brothers on the way.

It was now Saturday morning, and like usual, Sandy had decided to sleep in, though he was annoyed when his raccoon boyfriend was still snoring away in his bed after he'd already gotten up and put on his clothes. Never missing a chance to irritate Robbie, Sandy gently turned him over, but the gentleness ended there. Picking up one of Robbie's drumsticks that he'd brought over in his backpack, the squirrel gave a the raccoon's ass a hard swat with it, waking Robbie up and causing him to yelp.

"What the hell was that for?" asked Robbie, irritated and rubbing his injured butt.

"It was for you being a lazy ass," said Sandy. "Come on, get your butt out of that bed and get dressed. Mom's making breakfast."

Robbie was ready to get out of bed, but it wouldn't be to get dressed. He fully intended to knock his squirrel boyfriend to the floor, but the smell of bacon, biscuits and gravy and coffee caught his nose, instantly letting all the anger come out of him.

"Hey," said Robbie, his face brightening up. "That does smell pretty good." The raccoon quickly slid out of the diaper he was wearing, something he'd done since meeting Sandy to show solidarity with his medical condition, and put on his clothes. Once they were both fully dressed, they started shoving each other, trying to be the first one downstairs to have breakfast.

"Let go of my tail, dickhead!" yelled Sandy.

"Ouch!" screamed Robbie. "Quit pulling on my ears, acorn breath!"

The two almost stumbled downstairs, but let go of each other once they realized that Simon and Sonya wouldn't appreciate either their foul language or their fighting. The scent of freshly cooked food was even more pungent as they entered the kitchen. Sandy saw his father sitting at the table, reading the weekend paper, while Sonya stood over a hot stove.

"Morning, Mom. Morning, Dad," said Sandy as he sat down at the table.

"Morning Mom and Dad," said Robbie with a grin. He'd spent so much time at the Evans' home that he viewed Simon and Sonya as his second set of parents.

"Morning, boys," said Simon, putting the newspaper down on the table. "Sleep well?"

"Yeah," said Sandy. "That is, I slept well after I got used to Robbie's snoring again."

"And I slept just fine after I got used to how bad Sandy stinks," said the smart ass raccoon.

"Whatever," said Sandy. "It was probably just your breath blowing back in your face, ring-tail."

Sonya, hearing the two boys trading insults, couldn't help but laugh. Though she and Simon were none too fond of the two teenagers foul language, they still got a kick out of how the two acted.

"It's like they're an old married couple, right Sonya?" asked Simon.

"That they are," said Sonya, sitting down at the kitchen table. "That's how I know that you two boys are really in love."

"We are," said Sandy. The squirrel got up and put his arms around Robbie, giving him a kiss on the cheek. "I love this raccoon so much."

"I love you too, acorn breath," said Robbie, returning the kiss.

Sandy's parents, as well as Robbie's, had been fine with them both admitting they were gay, though it had taken some time before they had gotten used to the two boys open displaying their affection for one another Simon picked up his newspaper and resumed reading.

"You two better hurry up and get some breakfast before you start sucking each others' dicks at the dinner table," said Simon.

"Simon!" yelled Sonya, smacking her husband on the back of the head. "You watch your mouth or you'll be sleeping on the couch tonight."

Robbie and Sandy covered their mouths, hoping that the older male squirrel wouldn't see them snickering. Getting up from their seats, the two picked up the plates that had been laid out for them and helped themselves to some very generous portions of biscuits and gravy and bacon. It had surprised both Simon and Sonya that the boys had taken up drinking coffee, but Sandy and Robbie both explained that they would need all the caffeine they could get, seeing as how they had an all day band rehearsal scheduled later on.

"That's right," said Simon. "Robbie, would you mind having your parents take you and Sandy over to the Ellsworths? I don't want to leave Mrs. Evans here alone."

"Sure thing," said Robbie. The raccoon pulled his cell phone out of his pocket and sent a text message to his father, asking him if he might be able to take him and Sandy to practice. Richard, Robbie's father quickly sent a text back saying that would be fine.

"He said that's fine," said Robbie, putting his phone back in his pocket before he went back to eating his breakfast and drinking coffee.

"You feeling okay?" asked Sandy, looking at his mother. "You look pretty tired."

"I am, sweetie," said Sonya. "I'm just ready for these two little brothers of yours to come out."

"I'm sure you are," said Sandy. "I can't believe I'm going to be a big brother soon."

Sonya smiled. "I'm sure you'll make a great big brother, Sandy. You've been very helpful around the house lately. Your father and I appreciate it a great deal."

Sonya looked over at Robbie, who was frowning. "Oh, and you've been a great help too, Robbie. I'm very grateful for all that you boys have done."

Robbie smiled proudly. He and Sandy had spent many hours helping Simon prepare the house for the arrival of the twins, which involved turning the guest bedroom into a nursery, painting the room and building a crib.

"You got any names picked out yet?" asked Sandy before taking a large bite of bacon.

"Nothing definite," said Sonya. "Though we've kicked around a few ideas."

"How about you name one of them Robbie?" asked the raccoon. "That's an awesome name."

"No thanks," said Sandy. "One Robbie is more than enough in this family."

"Whatever, acorn breath," said Robbie. "Robbie's a nice name, isn't it, Mr. and Mrs. Evans?"

"It certainly is," said Sonya, patting the raccoon on the head. "Perhaps we can give one of the boys Robert for a middle name."

"Awesome," said Robbie, beaming with pride.

"That one will definitely be the evil twin," said Sandy. "No doubt about it."

Robbie's pride caved when he saw both Sonya and Simon laughing at their son's comment. He thought about throwing a piece of bacon at Sandy, but that would only upset Simon and Sonya. He took solace in the fact that one of they boys would have his name for their middle name. That was victory enough for now.

Only a couple of hours had passed since Sandy and Robbie had finished breakfast, and they were now being driven by Richard, Robbie's father, to band practice at the Ellsworth Estate. Richard dropped them off at the front of the mansion, wishing them a good practice session. Sandy took hold of his bass guitar and pulled it out of the car. No longer was he playing the Fender Jazz Bass that Randy had lent him when he first picked up the instrument. When the squirrel had turned thirteen, Randy surprised him by with a brand new 5 string Warwick bass, complete with active pickups. Not only that, but he'd been given an Ampeg SVT 300 watt, all tube amp head, complete with a matching 8x10 speaker cabinet, a perfect rig for playing large crowds. Not wanting Robbie to feel left out, Alan had bought the raccoon a very expensive DW double-bass drum kit with Zildjian cymbals. It was more than either of them could have ever hoped for, and they were insanely grateful that their teachers had lavished such expensive gifts upon them.

The two boys walked into the house, and were quickly met by Ethan Ellsworth, the otter that was the lead guitarist in the band. The only problem was that Ethan, usually a happy-go-lucky, carefree beast, had a look of utter horror on his face.

"What's wrong?" asked Sandy.

"We've got a big problem," said Ethan.

"What's the problem?" asked Robbie, pulling the drumsticks out of his bag.

"Felix had to go to the doctor last night after school," said Ethan.

"Oh yeah," said Sandy. "He mentioned he wasn't feeling well."

"He's not," said Ethan. "Turns out he's got laryngitis."

"Laryngitis?" said Robbie.

"Yeah," said Ethan, covering his face. "He's okay to play guitar, but there's no way he can sing right now. He can barely even talk."

"Oh fucking hell," said Robbie, sliding down to the floor on his rump. "What are we gonna do now? The talent show is this Friday."

The three creatures wallowed in their plight, thinking that all their hard work had been for naught. They spent so many hours practicing, making sure that they sounded like a tight, professional outfit and not just some kids who'd started a garage band two months ago. It was almost too much to take.

"Hey, guys," said a weak voice.

The three looked over and saw Felix, the fox who was their lead singer and rhythm guitarist.

"Hey, Felix," said Sandy. "You okay?"

"Voice is shit," said Felix. "But I got an idea."

"What is it?" asked Ethan. "And try not to talk too much. I don't want you to hurt yourself."

Felix had already thought of that. The fox pulled out a piece of paper from his pocket and handed it to Ethan. Slowly, the otter rose to his feet and took the piece of paper, reading it carefully. Sandy and Robbie watched as a glimmer of hope could be seen on the otter's face.

"The note," said Sandy. "What's it say?"

"I think Felix might have a way we can still play in the talent show," said a now excited Ethan.

"How we gonna do that?" asked Robbie, still pessimistic about the situation.

"Felix and I both know a guy that might be able to sing in the band," said Ethan. "You know Leon Lubowitz?"

"Is he that lion who's always wearing the metal t-shirts?" asked Sandy.

"Yeah," said Ethan. "Felix and I have gym with him and we've talked about music quite a bit. He's really been looking forward to seeing us play at the talent show."

"Okay," said Robbie, getting slightly annoyed that Ethan wasn't getting to the point more quickly. "So, what about it?"

"I think Leon could sing for us," said Ethan. "But I think we'll have to scrap the idea of playing 'Hallowed Be Thy Name' if he's gonna be in the band."

"Why do you say that?" asked Sandy.

"Let me get hold of him and you'll see what I mean," said Ethan, pulling out his phone. "I hope he's not doing anything this weekend, or we're royally fucked."

All the boys were relieved, though still uncertain about their future even after Ethan had contacted Leon and asked him to come over. Ethan was thrilled when the lion said that he didn't have any plans for the weekend and could stay at the Ellsworth Estate until Sunday evening. It took two hours from the time Sandy and Robbie arrived before the lion showed up, but as far as Ethan and Felix were concerned, it was well worth the wait.

Winston, the English wolf butler who served the household brought down Leon to the practice area in the basement. All four boys caught sight of the lion, who, as Sandy had noticed was always wearing death metal t-shirts.

"Leon," said Ethan, running up to the lion and shaking his paw. "Thanks for coming, man. We're all glad you came."

"Thanks," said Leon in a booming voice. "Quite a sweet place you've got here, Ethan."

"Ha," said Ethan. "Glad you like it. We seem to be having a little problem here that I think you might be able to help out with."

"If I can help you guys out, I'll certainly try," said the lion, brushing his mane back with his paws. "What's up?"

"You see," said Ethan, pointing at his fox boyfriend. "Felix was going to do the vocals for the talent show, but he's got laryngitis and can barely even talk."

"Damn," said Leon, turning his attention to Felix. "Sorry to hear that, man. I was really looking forward to seeing you guys play that Maiden song."

"We won't be playing Maiden," said Ethan. "But I think with you in the band, we could still perform this Friday."

"Whadda ya got in mind?' asked Leon, now scratching his mane.

"I was thinking we could play something heavier, much heavier," said Ethan. "You told me before that you can do a pretty good death growl."

"I guess," said the lion, shrugging his shoulders. "I guess that's up to you guys if you think I can do it well."

"Well," said Ethan, pointing to the microphone Felix usually sang into. "How about you go over there and gave us your best death growl, okay?"

"Why not?" said Leon, shrugging his shoulders.

The four other beasts watched as Leon Walked over to the microphone. The lion cleared his throat and took a deep breath.

"ARGGGGGGH!" Leon growled into the imicrophone.

Sandy, Robbie, Ethan and Felix were forced to cover their ears as the lion's deafening roar shook the entire basement. By the time Leon was out of breath, the four other beasts had uncovered their ears, a look of complete disbelief was showing on all their faces.

"Jesus cock-sucking Christ," said Robbie, in awe of the lion's death growl. "That was fucking amazing."

"Thanks," said Leon. "Glad you like."

"Like it?" said Ethan. "We love it! Don't we guys?"

Everyone shook their heads in agreement. Leon was thrilled that he had so impressed them with his ability to provide great death metal growls for them.

"So, Leon," said Ethan. "You said you have all this weekend free, and we're in need of a new vocalist, and you want us to perform, so . . ."

"Yeah," said Leon, grinning. "I'll join your guys band."

"Awesome!" shouted Ethan. "Guess we should get practicing then, shouldn't we guys?"

For the rest of Saturday, and almost all of Sunday, the five boys worked their tails off, practicing more than they'd ever done before. By the time Sunday evening had came, the band was thoroughly convinced that they had their new song down, but Sandy could see something was troubling Robbie.

"What's wrong?" the squirrel asked his boyfriend.

"Oh, nothing," said Robbie.

"Come on, bandit," said Ethan, trying to rile up the raccoon. "Something's bothering you?"

Robbie ignored Ethan's attempt at pissing him off. "I gotta say, if we're gonna play this kind of music, I don't think Galactic Big Rig is a very suitable name anymore."

"He's right," said Felix, having spoken for the first time in hours. "Need something more brutal."

"He's right," said Sandy. "Any death metal band I've ever heard of has a pretty dark name. I think we should do the same."

"I got one," said Leon, raising his paw. "That is, if I'm allowed to give suggestions."

"Course you are," said Ethan. "You're a member of the band now. What's your idea?"

"How about . . . Death Roar?" suggested the lion. "I mean, we are death metal, and I'm a lion, so . . ."

"I love it," said Ethan. "What do you guys think?"

"Bad ass," said Robbie.

"It's perfect," said Sandy. "What do you think, Felix?"

"Fucking brutal," said the fox weakly, but with a grin.

"Then I gotta get started on coming up with a new logo," said Robbie, getting into his backpack and taking out some paper. "How about I draw a picture of us in kind of a flying V position, with Leon in the middle?"

"Go for it," said Ethan.

Everyone was amazed at how fast Robbie was able to draw not only the five of them standing together, all of them looking scary and menacing, but Robbie drew the words "DEATH ROAR" above them in a script that looked like it was oozing blood.

"Bitching," said Ethan. "I'm gonna take this up to my Dad and see if he can take it somewhere so he can make t-shirts for all of us to wear during the talent show."

Sandy looked at Robbie. Both the squirrel and raccoon nodded at each other confidently. They didn't know if they'd win the talent show, but they were definitely going to give Westwood Middel School a performance that they'd never forget. Ever.