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Suddenly, Jim heard the front door of the flat opening, and a tinkling call came from outside of the bedroom,

"Jennifer! I caught an early train, dearie! You're not still sleeping, surely-- OOOF!" the owner of the voice threw open the bedroom door and cried out in dismay at the sight of a very naked Jim.

"WHAT is the meaning of this!" screamed the lady wolf who looked rather like an older version of Jenny.

"I...ah," Jim gasped in embarrassment as he quickly tried to cover himself.

"Get out, get OUT, you perverted--!" the wolf shrieked as she grabbed Jim's arm in a steely grip and started dragging him towards the door.

"Julie! Wait! WAIT!" Jenny yelled as she burst from the bathroom in her underwear, and she quickly grabbed Jim's other arm to tug him in the other direction.

"Jennifer! Of all the impertinent--! And you in your--!" the lady wolf huffed loudly as she yanked Jim with astonishing force.

"Stop it Julie! He's--" Jenny shouted, pulling back with her similarly surprising strength.

"I never-- In all my days--! With this louse--!"

"EVERYBODY STOP!" Jim finally roared as he yanked out of the sisters' joint-popping holds, "Now listen!" he shouted and crossed his arms both in defiance and to keep them out of reach,

"My name is Jim and I'm Jenny's boyfriend and my arms are quite sore enough now, thank you, and I would very much like my PANTS!" he yelled with a finalizing stomp.

"Ooh, the very nerve!" the irate lady wolf huffed, but she spun abruptly and left the bedroom, slamming the door behind her.

Jim was left breathing heavily from his shouting and glared at the closed door with his arms still crossed. Then he felt a paw on his shoulder and turned to see a finally dressed Jenny bearing an oddly restrained expression.

"I'm so sorry about that, love, I didn't expect her back so early," she said with her upper lip twitching, "She's not really such a bore, I think you just surprised her and she's rather protective of me. So when she rushed in and saw...and saw..." Her expression broke as she burst into laughter, rocking against Jim's shoulder as she clutched at her stomach,

"Ohh, I've never seen the like, you yelling at us completely starkers!" she managed to gasp out between throes of laughter, "And we were...we were practically pulling you apart...! Oh, heavens, it just couldn't have looked any funnier!"

Jenny's cackles reverberated around the room as Jim's ears glowed purple-red. "Ohh, no...What can I say...? What can I possibly say...?" he moaned, collapsing forward in complete and utter embarrassment. He slowly covered his blushing face and shook it slightly it from side to side, a pained whine coming from his throat.

"Oh, oh, honey!" She breathed, her mirth evaporating. She dropped next to him and threw an arm over his quivering shoulders,

"You don't understand, it's fine! Really, you don't know what she's actually like. I'll go calm her down and it'll all be right as rain," she reached under his paws and pulled his chin up.

He was still hurt from her mockery on top of the situation, but forced a weak smile and tried to massage some of the blood out of his hot, fuzzy ears as he stood, "How can I possibly come out of this without looking like an absolute nonce to your sister?" he began around an angry lump of anxiety in his throat, "you always speak so highly of her, but I've never really talked to her properly before. And now she must think..."

Jenny kissed his cheek and moved towards the door, "Julie's probably already settled, honestly" she said gently, "but, you go take your time and give us a chance to talk you up. Oh and, flyboy," she said with a snicker working back into her voice, "do put on some pants," tossing him the trousers and leaving the room.

Jim groaned under mortifying waves of self consciousness as he remembered that he was still, unbearably, naked, and he pulled on his clothes feeling like he couldn't ever possibly live this down. He pressed his head forcefully against the wall before eventually trudging into the bathroom, groaning in humiliated agony all the way.

When he finally felt like Jenny had had enough time to talk with her sister, Jim stood in front of the door with his paw resting on the handle. He silently tried to determine the best combination of self-confidence and apologetic abashment to use when he entered the main room, and he twisted his features experimentally before finally giving it up as a lost cause and resting his head on the door.

"--oh, I know dearie, but you'll always seem---still such a young thing--" Jim could hear bare fragments of the conversation through the wood.

"--almost twenty-two-- --can't keep treating me--"

"--know, I know--well at least- -handsome-- -- -- --not bad either--"

"--the best part-- -- --wouldn't believe--"

"Ooh, dearie!--all night-- -- --can't hardly-- -- --what did--"

Unable to bear any more as his ears took back their reddened hue, Jim threw open the door and announced himself a little more loudly than he intended, "Listen, miss Julie, I wanted to give you my most heartfelt apologies for the...erm...earlier. I care very much about your sister and your opinion means--"

"Oh my, let's not talk about it," The older wolf interrupted him with a sour look, "My dear little sister has already been recounting your particular...qualities," she finished with an abrupt smirk that was forced into a frown.

Jim shook his head furiously as it began to grow hot again, "But really, I couldn't be more embarrassed, and I want you to know that--"

"That's quite enough, dear," the wolf trilled over him with a raised paw, her expression resolute, "It's not the first time I've tried to throw someone out of Jennifer's room, although I do keep hoping it will be the last," she finished with an exasperated sigh and a hard look at her sister.

Jenny rolled her eyes before trying to stifle a mighty fit of giggles, and smiled brightly at Jim from behind her paws.

"Erm...thanks. Um, how many times..? Oh, nevermind," Jim stammered as he began shifting his weight uncomfortably.

"Well," Julie said with mild irritation at her sister's snorts of repressed laughter, "I expect you'll be wanting some breakfast, hmm?"

"Oh, thanks, but really, I think I'd better go--"

"Stop that nonsense," Julie interrupted again, "Quit standing there like a lark and come sit down. I've already brought up some things from the bakery and I will not have you thinking I'm inhospitable. You must already believe I'm a terrible prude."

Jim continued to stand in a very lark-like manner, "Er, of course not...I mean, I don't think--"

"Oh he does prattle on, doesn't he?" Julie snapped at her sister, who was currently shaking from semi-contained giggles, "You'd almost think he was ashamed of our company, treating us like a couple strangers when we've all seen his--"

"Right!" Jim quickly interjected as his ears started burning, "right, I'm coming."

"That's fine, dear, but you really ought to be more careful of your phrasing," Julie shot back, her serious demeanor breaking into a tittering chortle while Jim dejectedly took a seat across from the now openly laughing girls. He looked down and pressed a paw to his forehead as he prepared for what he expected to be the most awkward breakfast of his life.

Although his ears never quite managed to cool completely throughout the meal, the sisters soon drew Jim into a gratifyingly casual conversation. He even began to enjoy himself as he listened to the sisters' rapid talk, and smiled at their discussion of Julie's holiday. He discovered that she had been visiting her husband, who was stationed with the Provincial Guard in a distant city, and the young husky found himself quickly enthralled by descriptions of the metropolis and its far-away wonders.

The sisters were obviously quite close despite being born over 10 years apart, and Jim thought that they could have been twins if it weren't for the age difference and their eyes. Julie's were a piercing silver that appraised what she looked at with a sharp efficiency, unlike Jenny's which were a bright, buttery yellow. Jim started as he realized her sunny gaze was currently fixed on him inquisitively,

"Sorry, what was the question?" he asked.

"Honestly, dearie, I don't know what you see in this one. Can't sit two minutes without dropping into a stupor," Julie quipped haughtily.

"Oh, come off it," Jenny huffed with a smirk, "Jules asked if you'd ever been out of Cabalton, love."

"Well, I grew up in the outskirts of a nearby town, but I've stayed here ever since I was moved to the city orphanage when my parents died," Jim replied with determined cheerfulness. He didn't like talking about his parents, but it always seemed to come up at some point or another.

Julie's arrogant face suddenly fell in sympathy, "Oh, oh, you poor dear, I had no idea. We're all alone too, you see," she said sadly, putting an arm around Jenny's shoulder, "Oh dear, oh dear. You will forget I asked about it, won't you?"

Jim waved a paw animatedly, "Please, I don't mind. I was so young when it happened, and the Professor's been like a second father to me in the meantime.

"To be honest," he continued with a twinge of regret, "It almost worked out for the best. My parents owned a small farm, so if it hadn't all gone up in the fire, I'd probably be stuck there plowing the fields instead of working for the Professor," he played with his napkin nervously. "This city has much better child services than most, and farmers usually don't get to go to the Acadamy...But, even if I had, I wouldn't've been able to start my apprenticeship with a farm to tend back home."

"But, my dear," Julie pressed gently, "you must miss your parents, surely?"

Jim's mouth slashed down, but he tried to not appear insulted, "All I know is that they managed to save me somehow before they died, and that sacrifice let me have a better life. I appreciate what they did, but I don't really even remember them. The Professor's my family now."

Jenny looked at him with a concerned expression bordering on tears, and Jim dropped his gaze when he felt his throat tighten uncomfortably. He didn't want to see Jenny crying about anything, least of all about things he'd long since moved on from.

"Oh dear, well it's still a tragedy all the same. We're in the same boat, as I said," Julie continued as she pulled Jenny closer, "Father died in an accident and mother fell ill not long after. Poor Jennifer was such a little thing at the time," she sniffed as Jenny rested against her shoulder, "But we've done well for ourselves haven't we?" she said with a small smile as she gently shook her tearful sister, "Little Jenny took to the trade like a fish to water, and we've become such good friends..."

Jim felt his heart breaking for Jenny, they both knew about each others' families, but they had sort of non-verbally agreed not to discuss it once they learned they were both orphaned. The similitude drew them closer, yes, but seemed like such a depressing topic at a time when there was kissing and hand-holding to do. He realized with a pang that it may have been a mark of their immaturity to think of it that way, but to see his beautiful wolf as her eyes welled up like that...It drove sickening knives into him.

Jenny finally sighed through the fallen silence and wiped her eyes as she sat upright again, "Anyway, like you said, it's not all bad, love," Jenny whispered with a small smile that neatly mirrored Julie's, "At least we found each other."

Jim smiled back, hoping that that would be the end of the discussion as he slowly reached for her paw.

Julie turned abruptly and looked at the clock, "Dear me, look at the time! No use whinging on when there's work to be done, I always say. We should have had the bakery open half an hour ago! Jenny, you go set up the shop while Jim and I clear away these things."

Jenny shot her sister a warning look that was quickly countered by Julie's iron gaze, but she walked out of the flat without a word.

Jim began to gather the various plates and cups from breakfast when Julie's paw shot out and grabbed his wrist. He looked up in surprise to see Julie's face contorting between some kind of authoritative fierceness and hard determination.

"Hold a minute, dear," she said as her face finally settled into a look of appraising resolve, "Now I feel absolutely terrible about your past, really I do, and this has nothing to do with our little...encounter this morning," her eyes lowered into a glower, "Well, I suppose it might have a bit to do with that. But, what I'm trying to say is that if you ever do anything to hurt my precious little Jennifer," she pulled his wrist closer, forcing him to lean over the table, "You will have me to answer to, do you understand?"

At first, Jim began a dumbfounded nod, but he slowly set his jaw and looked back into her metallic eyes with his own look of determination, "Now you listen," he said in a even tone, "When I said that I cared about Jenny, I meant it. I know we're young, and you probably don't think we're mature enough to handle ourselves; you might even be right for all I know. The only thing I'm sure of is that right now, all I want to do is make her happy and deep down you know that she wants to make me happy too."

Julie slowly leaned forward as she narrowed her eyes, their muzzles drawing up within centimeters of each other. Then, like a shot out of a gun she kissed Jim on the nose, sending him reeling back in surprise.

"Ooh dearie, I can see why she fancies you so," the lady wolf chuckled as a smile broke over her face, "Wise beyond your years and just headstrong enough to be interesting, with a measure of harmless stupidity to top it all off," she tittered as she started washing up, "But, you will keep what I said in mind? Little Jennifer, she always seems so assured, just like our father in her own way...but it's my job to keep her away from any philandering layabouts, and she's such a romantic, dear; not unlike yourself." She glanced over her shoulder at a speechless Jim,

"I certainly can see something between you two. Kindred spirits or some other such thing. But that doesn't always lead to true love, dear; I suppose it can't hurt, though," She smiled again with an affectionate glow breathing some warmth into her cold eyes, "Run along downstairs and I'll be there in a mo'. Go on then, off you pop," Julie finished as she turned back to the washing.

Still not quite sure if he was being patronized or complemented, Jim cleared his throat and made his way down to the bakery. He was happy that at least Jenny's beloved sister seemed to have forgiven him for their very awkward introduction.

Jenny was eying the stairs anxiously as Jim came down, and quickly rushed over with one of the window lattices half lifted, "Jim! She didn't give you too much of a talking to, did, she? I keep telling her that I'm to old for her to be threatening my boyfriends, but she keeps thinking she has to be like a mother to me as well as sister and she doesn't mean a word of it, honestly, and--"

Jim quickly placed a paw on her mouth to stop her blabbering, laughing slightly at the similarity between the sisters' speech, "Hush, it's all sorted," he said, moving his paw to hold her cheek, "I'm glad that she tries to look out for you." He put on a sheepish grin, "And actually, I think she approves of me, unless I'm very much mistaken."

Jenny's face radiated happiness and she dove forward to wrap her arms around his neck, "Oh, Jim, I knew she would like you if she just gave you a chance," she hummed happily as she pulled him in for a kiss.

"I just can't leave you two alone, can I?" Julie trilled at the embraced lovers as she hustled into the shop.

Jim abruptly pulled away and blurted, "She kissed me..." but he saw Julie was wearing an only slightly miffed smile..

"Oh you poor gormless thing," Julie sighed back, "Well, seeing as you two can't keep your paws off of each other, you might as well bugger off so I can get some work done," Julie intoned with smirking impatience.

"It's okay Jules, if you're tired from your trip..." Jenny began beseechingly.

"Nonsense, dearie," the older wolf replied more cheerfully, "I brought back a slew of recipes that I've been just itching to try out. And, honestly, my Marcus can be a bit of a...faineant when I come to visit. Always says I wear him out," she intoned with an odd smile, "So I've been quite eager to get back to the bustle of things," she started humming and milling about the counterspace.

"Oh, Julie!" Jenny ran to her sister and kissing her cheeks excitedly, "Thank you!"

"Yes, yes, it's fine, dearie," she shooed, "Now don't forget your coat, Jennifer, and just try to be back before supper so I can show you this new thing, it's just to die for...well, you'll see when you get back. Oh and Jim, dear, one more thing. In your private ear if you don't mind," Julie beckoned to the beaming husky.

"Yes?" Jim asked perplexed as Jenny left to gather her things.

"To apologize...for roughing you up this morning," Julie uttered softly.

"No, please, you don't need to--" Jim started before he was interrupted.

"The base of her tail, right where it meets her back," she whispered in an undertone, "Jennifer rather likes that spot, if you take my meaning, dear."

Jim's eyes bulged incredulously, "Um, you haven't...I mean, you aren't suggesting that you two...?"

"Hmph!" Julie frowned and gave him a light slap on his cheek, "Of course not you cad! the very nerve!" she pointed her nose in the air, "We just talk about such things, as sisters and good friends will." Her expression softened slightly, "I learned about it perfectly innocently, although I don't believe she has won an argument since, if it comes to blows," she finished with an impish grin.

"Uh..." Jim rubbed his cheek absently as his head started warming again. He also wondered if this was something he should have been able to find out for himself, but he was soon rescued from his pondering by Jenny's return.

"Bye, dearheart, and thank you again for being such a gem," Jenny lilted as she embraced her sister.

"Ta ta, dearie, it's only fair that you get a small holiday as well," Julie hummed back, kissing the top of her sister's muzzle, "And Jim, do try to hold off on my advice until you get out of the shop, hmm?"

Jenny looked inquisitively at Jim who was staring fixedly at the ceiling. But she eventually shrugged and moved over to him, taking his elbow in her own. The couple made their way to the exit, Jim trying to regain some small spark of dignity by rushing forward to open the door.

"Ooo such a gentleman..." He heard Julie jeering behind them as they left.

The air was clear in the sparkling freshness of mid-morning, and Jim thought happily about how he didn't have to be back at the workshop for hours. More than enough time to do a little wandering with his girl before a quick pop back to his apartment to get some fresh clothes.

"Have you ever been to the Palisade Gardens?" he asked putting an arm behind Jenny.

"Oh, not for ages," she purred back, leaning against him.

"Brilliant," Jim chirped happily as they started toward the Imperial District. Curious in regard to what Julie had said, he let his paw slowly glide down Jenny's back and experimentally scratched right above where her tail poked through the dress.

The air caught in the wolf girl's throat and he felt a shiver run through her as she began to stumble, her tail fluffing out like she was being electrocuted. She spun to face Jim with a look of blushing astonishment and regarded him quizzically as she caught her breath. Then she frowned slightly in realization, "Ugh, I am just going to murder her...it's so embarrassing..."

Jim's intrigued smirk broke into a laugh as he gently wrapped her paw back around his elbow, "About time the tables were turned," he chuckled as he saw her ears deepening in color, "But really sweetheart, I don't think it could possibly be more adorable."

She grunted huffily at first, but soon couldn't hold back a smile as they continued their walk towards the gardens. Before long, Jim noticed her hips gently nudging into him, and taking the hint he started to move his paw lower along her back.