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_ Colors of the Rainbow _

Part 3

Sorry for taking so long in getting this one out. I really hope I can put more writing out here now since... *shakes his head* This is a story, not a journal. Here's part 3 to the story now. Oh, and,... thanks to those again that have been trying to help me.

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"Dad! Wait up!" Terin spoke loudly as he jogged up the hall.

His dad looked behind him. "Terin?" he asked with only the slightest surprise. "What's wrong?"

Terin took a deep breath when he got to his dad's side. "I was just wondering what you were planning." He looked away for a moment quietly before adding, "That, and... I don't want Zane back with his family."

"Neither do I," the older wolf replied as he ruffled his son's hair fur. "Don't let Zane know about it though. If this doesn't work, I'd rather his spirit not get crushed any more than it already has been."

Terin nodded quietly as they continued down the hall to the front desk. When they got there, the grey wolf was just finishing up a conversation on the phone. His dad waited patiently for the desk wolf to finish and hang up. He didn't wait long. "Can I help you with something, sir?"

Terin's dad replied half-casually. "I was hoping I could borrow your phone book for a moment. I have my own cell phone for calling, but I just need a number or two."

"Hold on one moment then. Someone borrowed it already, but I guess she didn't bring it back out." The worker slowly stood and walked to a room behind the desk.

Terin's father looked back at his son for a moment as he spoke. "After this, I'll have to take a drive somewhere. You can stay here if you want, or you can come with me."

The young wolf shook his head before replying. "Zane's asleep right now, so I'll go with you."

"You don't want to stay with him then?" he asked with a slightly raised brow.

"It's not that," Terin sighed out. "I just... have to think about some stuff is all."

"Anything you'd discuss over breakfast?"

Terin's stomach growled at the thought of food again, but all he could do was look away quietly until the desk wolf walked out of the back room. "Here you are, sir," he said as he handed a book to Terin's father who replied with a simple nod. The worker sat down and began typing at the computer again as they took a seat away from the desk, his dad already shuffling through the book before pulling out his phone. The young wolf watched him curiously as his father pulled out his phone and started dialing a number before standing back up and pacing.

The father wolf's voice was slowly drowned out by Terin's wandering thoughts again as his eyes drifted through the white tiled floor. The brown wolf was glad that his father also didn't want Zane to get hurt anymore, but he was left wondering what his dad could do. He also wondered what his dad thought about him when he saw him hugging the light blue fox. He remembered the speech about open mindedness, but he knew some people that, as open minded as they were, would still skin their kids alive if they turned out differently. He had doubts that his father would do that though. Then he found himself wondering why he was worried about it. After all, he was straight,... wasn't he?

Terin came back out of his daze when he heard his father's cell phone snap shut. The young wolf watched him as his father spoke. "Well, she won't be in her office for long, but I managed to get her to wait for us. We're gonna have lunch with one of your mom's friends."

His ears fell against his head. "I thought you were trying to find someone to help Zane."

"That's what the lunch is for. Even lawyers have lunch breaks though," he chuckled slightly as he took the book back to the desk and nodded to the worker. Terin stood and followed his dad as they walked for the exit. "I hope you don't mind us eating at that new restaurant. That's what she requested."

"You mean that Roma Garden place?" he asked, a slight tone hinting of joy piercing through his otherwise pensive mood.

Terin's dad nodded, a smile on his muzzle that his son had at least a small break from his earlier mood as they walked out of the door and to where Terin had parked the car. Terin's dad furrowed his brow and growled slightly when he found a ticket on his windshield for double-parking in front of the hospital, but he just sighed and shook his head as he got in and slipped it into the visor. Terin flinched when he heard the growl and knew that more punishment was coming later. His father pulled out and drove to the highway. The main area of the city wasn't large in the way of tall buildings everywhere, but it still had its share of size outward as well as crowded spaces of buildings. The new restaurant was finished only recently and was about 10 minutes from the hospital.

The young wolf spent some of that time quietly thinking to himself. Eventually, his father noticed the distant focus Terin had. "Everything alright, Terin?"

Terin just sat there quietly. He wanted to ask him, but he didn't know how to bring it about. A sigh came out of his muzzle before he finally spoke up. "... What did you see in Mom's eyes when you first met her?"

"A fiery hell," he chuckled out.

His dad's sense of humor brought a weak laugh from him. "No, I mean... when you first found out that you really liked her."

His father bit his lip. "Hmm,... that's a good question actually." He sat there quietly for a moment as Terin looked away, not expecting him to answer at that point. "Well,... behind that fire, I still saw flowers I guess."

Terin tilted his head slightly. "What do you mean?"

He scratched the back of his head. He didn't foresee himself having to try and explain something like this, not even to his son who he knew had had a girlfriend or two. "Well,... in the past, both me and your mom were hellions, to an extent. We also had a strong rivalry with each other in just about anything we did. That's where the fire came in. Later on, the fires of rivalry slowly died down, and I guess we just saw something else in each other. I guess you could say that we looked past each other's differences and saw something else in each other. For me, she still had something delicate in her, and flowers are what came to mind. I still don't know what kind of flowers they were,... but I do know that they were real beautiful."

Terin found it weird to be listening to his dad talk about his mom like that, but at the same time, it was a start. He knew he would be jumping the gun by ask-

"You saw something in Zane's eyes, didn't you?"

He froze instantly. Did his dad pick up on it? He knew it was obvious that something had happened, since hugs from him were quite rare. It put him at a loss of words once again, but there was still the main question that he wanted to ask so much that it felt more like a need than anything else. He looked away in silence for a moment, his dad letting it hang and giving the young wolf some time. After a moment, Terin finally gave a question in reply. "... Dad,... what does the rainbow symbolize to you?"

Terin's father sighed. At first, Terin thought it was out of disappointment, but then he noticed that his dad was really thinking about that question, that he was trying to come up with an answer. It took a while, and Terin didn't think he would get an answer when he saw the restaurant's sign, but his father eventually managed to bring one to him. "To me, it just symbolizes peace because you'll see them often around the storm, most of the time being after it. The storm shows how much goes on in life, how broken and almost unpredictable everything is. ... I suppose the rainbow shows that, even through the storm, something or someone is still there next to you, kind of like how the bands are all right next to each other."

"So,... it just means that someone's there?"

His father nodded as they pulled into the parking lot out front of the Roma Gardens. With all the people that were anxious about it opening, it was little surprise to find the place crowded, especially at lunch time. Terin remained quiet as he thought about his dad's words until they finally found a place to park.

When they got inside, a tigress with white fur and in some sort of business dress waved to them as she spoke up. "Eric, over here! I've got a table for us!"

They weaved through the place to the booth where she was seated at. Terin slid into the seat first and leaned against the wall under the window. "I'll sit with you in a moment. I need to take care of something first," Terin's dad said as he walked off.

"I hope he doesn't take too long back there," the tigress said with a smile. "Unfortunately, I'm booked for the rest of the day. If it wasn't for the fact that I know your family personally, we wouldn't be able to talk about something like this for at least a few days, regardless of how important it is."

Terin gazed out the window. "So Dad told you about everything that's going on?"

"Well, not everything, but he knows that I can put two and two together, and I can tell that this is something that isn't really just a small case." She paused as she took a drink of water before asking, "Do you want to tell me everything else, or do you want to wait for Eric to get back?"

"... I think I'll wait for dad."

"You won't have to wait long," he heard his dad say as he walked back to the table and took a seat. "Sorry about that, Kerin."

"It's quite alright, Eric. Do you want to talk about this now or do you want to order first? I'll pay this time since I was the one who requested we meet here."

"I suppose we can order first. This day so far hasn't exactly been the best for appetites," Eric said with a chuckle.

"Alright then." Kerin raised a paw and motioned to one of the waiters. He put his conversation with one table on hold before coming over with a pad and passing out some menus. "My apologies, I don't get to speak with them much anymore. Is there anything I can get you to drink?"

"I just need a refill of water, please," Kerin said as she handed her glass to the panther.

"I'll take some coffee, I suppose," said Eric.

"Alright then," the waiter said as he jotted it down. "And you, young sir?"

"Um,... I guess I'll take some sweet tea."

"Sweet tea it is then. I'll be right back with your drinks." He gave a slight bow before walking off.

"Might as well see what all they have. I heard that their pasta is pretty good," Terin's dad said as they started looking through their menus.

Kerin laughed softly. "I know the alfredo put me in heaven long enough to make me late getting back to the office the other day."

"I just might have to try some of it then," he replied with a chuckle. "What do you think, Terin?"

"I guess. ... I might get some lasagna though instead. It doesn't look that bad or anything," he replied rather distantly.

"Just remember that we're on a time limit, so don't take too long, boys."

"Okay then, mommy dearest." Eric's comment elicited a chuckle from each of them as the waiter returned to the table.

The panther passed the drinks out to each of them. "Here you are. Do you need more time to order, or do you have or need ideas?"

"I'll end up ordering the same thing as last time, so it's up to them," the tigress said casually.

"Well, if it's up to us, I guess I'll have what she's having. She seems to know what heaven tastes like."

The waiter laughed as Kerin gave them a sour face and stuck out her tongue at them. "Two special alfredos, and what would you like?" he asked Terin.

"I'm not really sure, so I guess I'll take the same thing," he said as he handed the menu over.

"Three alfredos then? I'll bring it out as soon as it's ready then," he said jovially as he walked away with the menus.

Kerin took another drink before speaking up. "Okay then. Can you two tell me what's going on now? I know you gave me the overview already, Eric, but I really need more details about this."

Terin's dad filled her in with everything that he knew, the younger wolf pitching in with any voids that were left by his father. They paused when they're food was brought out, resuming shortly after commenting on their food.

"So Terin's friend Zane is being charged with auto theft for running away from his parents that were trying to harm him?" Kerin asked summarily.

Eric nodded. "That seems to be the case right now. According to one of the workers, an order was already issued for Zane's arrest as soon as he recovers and gets out of the hospital."

"Cases that involve juveniles usually don't go to me, but I think since we're talking about an abusive family of adults, I can take the case and counter it. To do that though, I would need Zane to speak up as well."

"Isn't there a way to go around and not have him talk about it again?" Terin asked.

She shook her head. "We could try, but without him being willing to defend himself, it would be a dry attempt."

"What if I moved to challenge his parents' rights and adopt him as my own child?"

Terin looked over at his father in surprise. He knew that his dad said he also wanted to help Zane, but would he really move to adopting him? Zane, his brother?

"It would still require testimony from Zane stating that he no longer wishes to live with his family and provide evidence of his family mistreating him or neglecting him, evidence that his life is indeed threatened in any way, shape, or form as long as he lives under the same roof as his parents."

"He just stole his dad's car because the drunk bastard was trying to kill him!" Terin snapped as he yelled out.

Eric put a firm paw on Terin's shoulder. "Terin, calm down."

"But-"

"Terin, listen to me," Kerin spoke softly. "I believe you about this. Before I left the office, I found past records of problems with Zane's father that involved drinking, and I know you and Eric wouldn't lie about something like this. At the same time though, without evidence, other people, be it a judge or a jury, won't believe words without even a shred of proof. If Zane isn't willing to defend himself as a victim though, then there's nothing I can really do." Terin looked at her coldly. He knew that she was telling the truth, but he didn't want even a chance of Zane staying with his family or being imprisoned in sight. "If it were only my decision, I would have Zane handed over in a heartbeat. It isn't though, so unless I provide something, I can't make that happen."

Terin's fists clenched up as he looked down. Of all the things possible to help Zane, it all boiled down to a waiting game that, in the end, would end up forcing Zane to reopen these wounds. Zane didn't deserve this. This shouldn't happen to him. Terin's thoughts raced as he once again began blaming himself for starting the chain by throwing Zane out that day.

Kerin looked at her watch and sighed. "I have to go soon. I can look into this more later, but I can only do so much alone. If Zane doesn't speak up himself, then I can't get this to go far. I'll leave that part up to you. Even if it's just a private testimony, it's still something."

Terin's father nodded in understanding. "We'll do what we can."

"And I will too." She motioned for the waiter. "I'll speak to you two about it later. If you come up with anything else, you have my number."

Terin and Eric slid out from their seat. "Alright then. Thanks for helping us." Eric extended a paw.

Karin shook it as she replied. "Thanks for the company for lunch. Be careful you two."

"You too," replied Eric. Terin nodded to the tigress as he and his father walked off and out of the restaurant. When they got in the car, Eric looked at his son and sighed. "I know you're worried about him a lot, but you still need to keep yourself under control." Terin didn't look at his father or even acknowledge him. He gave the young wolf a worried look. "Terin, what's really on your mind?"

Terin continued looking out the window quietly. Eric sighed again as he pulled out the car keys and moved to start the car. Terin's voice stopped him though. "Of all the girls I met, I still tried to make sure I actually felt something with them,... but not once did I see something in any of their eyes other than too many lies and too many whims." Eric looked at his son as the young wolf lowered his head for a moment. "... I saw it though... in Zane's eyes. ... I saw that peace in his eyes,..." he said before pausing as he lifted his head back up again, the fur around his eyes slightly damp. "... and I don't want to see it disappear this time."

"Terin,..." the older wolf said softly as he put a paw on his son's shoulder again.

"Dad,... can we go back to the hospital?"

"... Yeah," Eric replied with a nod as he started up the car.