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_All right! First of all, I'm incredibly sorry for the lack of updates to Corwin Hall. I'm in a slump for chapter 18, frankly. I'm sure it will come to an end, and when it does, the main story can continue.

In the meantime, I thought I'd post this. It's chapter 1 of a story set in the same world as Corwin Hall. It is a completely different story, with a few character tie-ins, so you don't need to have read the original to understand it. Having read the main story will give you some insight into some of the characters, though.

This story is co-written by Locke/Rulare and me, and based on an ongoing roleplay session we've had. Stylistically, it's very different from the main story. It's much less "arch" - less ridiculous epicness, more character-based interaction. It will also have more diaper-messing, and descriptions thereof, so if that puts you off your lunch, you might wanna skip this. The events in this story occur after the events in Corwin Hall, which necessitates this warning:

***THIS STORY HAS SPOILERS FOR THE STORY "CORWIN HALL," INCLUDING THINGS THAT HAVE YET TO BE WRITTEN OR POSTED***

Really, the only major thing that it spoils is the outcome of Todd and Lisa's relationship - does she stay or does she go? If you don't want to know the answer yet, don't read this.

Once I get going with Corwin Hall again, updates to Helping Paws will be sparse until the main story is completed. I wasn't originally going to post it until after I finished Corwin Hall, but with my recent creative slump, I decided to put it up. In the meantime... enjoy!_

Helping Paws

Chapter 1

Roo carried the plastic shopping basket down the convenience store aisle, unconsciously wagging his tail at the colorful packages in the candy section. The basket bounced against his short, digitigrade Canine legs. it had been a long month, he reflected, but it had ended happily, and he was going to celebrate. He looked down at his selection of goods, lapping at his muzzle: popcorn, Gummi Worms, a couple cartoon DVDs, a coloring book, and of course some miscellaneous supplies for the agency. The supplies were the real reason for his visit, but his handlers never minded him picking up a few things for himself, especially after a difficult charge.

A tall Cat, talking on a cell phone, turned into the aisle, pushing her shopping cart. She began to drift towards Roo, too involved in her conversation to watch where she was going. Roo pressed himself against the shelves, but the cart was coming closer, and picking up speed. At the last second, the Cat looked up, swerved away from him, knocking the duffel bag on his back with the cart's corner, and gave him a dirty look. "Watch where you're going, boy!" she scolded him.

Roo folded his ears back. "Sorry, m'am!" he called as she passed. At four feet nine inches, the diminutive, 19-year-old Border Collie was used to being mistaken for a child. Easier to play along, he figured, than to constantly correct people. He brushed off his duffel bag and turned back to the shelves.

At the end of the candy section, to capitalize on the presence of children, was a small rack of comic books. Roo wrinkled his nose - not his taste. Too much violence. He passed to the other side of the aisle and started to walk down the shelves there. As he turned, though, he heard someone approach the comics. He looked over his shoulder and saw a teenage grey Canine, possibly a Wolf, standing close to the rack. His back was to Roo, and he was wearing a thick, black, quilted jacket. In Florida. In June.

Roo groaned. He'd hate to bring in another one so soon - he'd just got out of one of those darn rooms. He knew his duty, though. He picked up a package of Tootsie Pops and pretended to examine it as he watched the situation. The teenager selected one of the comics and stared at it intently, flipping through a few pages. He quickly looked to both sides along the aisle, and Roo got a good look at his face. Definitely a Wolf. His anxiety was relieved a little when he saw that the Wolf had Contrition marks; a junior membership in the Order was usually a sign of good character in a young predator.

His relief was short-lived, though. After glancing at Roo, and apparently determining him not to be a threat, the Wolf slipped the comic book under his jacket. Roo gave a heavy sigh, rubbing his ears, and slipped out of the aisle, into the neighboring pharmacy section. He browsed the shelves until he came to the digestive aids, and placed a jar of suppositories into his basket. He'd been running low anyway. The Wolf walked by the end of the aisle into the cosmetics section, and Roo stepped out into the front of the store to wait. He looked forlornly at the treats in his basket, and wondered if he'd have time to munch a few before things got started.

After a few minutes, the young Wolf came out of the cosmetics section, walking towards the door. Roo waited for the right moment to act, not wanting to cause a scene inside the store. He watched the Wolf make it almost to the doors, then stop, eyeing a display of cell phones right next to the counter. Roo put a paw on his forehead - surely the kid couldn't be that dumb?

The kid was that dumb. Most of the cell phones were bolted down, but the Wolf's wandering paws found one that was loose. Quickly, he palmed it and moved it to a pocket. Behind the counter, the clerk - a tall Sheltie with neatly-groomed fur - snapped his head up. "Hey, you!" he barked. The Wolf froze, and the clerk used his hesitation to slip out from behind the counter and get between him and the door.

Busted, Roo thought to himself.

The Wolf backed up, looking around the store for other exits. In no time, though, the Sheltie had his hand on the jacket. "Open your pockets!" he demanded. The Wolf raised his lip in an imperious look - ugly on the face of a kid.

"No!" he barked back. "Who the fuck are you? I need an adult!"

The clerk only smirked, and dragged the Wolf to the counter by the collar of his jacket. "Hoo, boy, you're in trouble, kid." He picked up a phone. "You ever been to juvie?" Roo shook his head and decided it was time to intervene.

"Jeremy!" he shouted, walking towards the counter. He looked from the kid to the clerk and put on an incredulous look, muzzle agape. "What's going on here? What did you do, Jeremy?" The Wolf stared at Roo for a moment. Jeremy was, most likely, not his name. Roo flickered one eyelid in a barely-perceptible wink.

"I was... uh... I was picking out a cell phone," the Wolf muttered. Roo saw that he was trembling, and felt a pang of sympathy, despite the kid's foolishness. The clerk looked down at Roo, dubious.

"Do you know this boy?" he asked.

Roo lowered his voice to emphasize the fact that he was not a child. "He's my nephew. What's going on?"

"I caught him lifting a cell phone, and who knows what else." The clerk sneered. "I was about to call the police."

Roo moved behind the Wolf and put a paw on his shoulder. "Oh, no, sir," he said to the clerk. "I promise that won't be necessary. When we get home, he is in such trouble!" Roo barked the last bit as gruffly as he could manage. The kid flattened his ears, turned to Roo, and, whimpering, wrapped his arms around him. Roo nearly gave him an Emmy on the spot.

"This will never happen again sir," Roo said, looking up at the taller clerk. "If he empties his pockets for you, can we please skip calling the police and handle this at home?" The Wolf gave Roo a scared look at that, and shook his head a little, but found no flexibility in Roo's face. The clerk's look, however, softened slightly.

"All right," he said, sighing. "Everything." The kid gave another whimper, this one sounding genuine, and didn't move.

"You heard the nice Dog," Roo said sternly. "Give it all back, and maybe you won't go to jail tonight."

The kid hung his head and opened his jacket. Several comic books fell out and fluttered to the ground. He reached into an inside pocket and took out a bottle of beer, setting it on the counter.

"What the-" the clerk blustered. "I coulda lost my liquor license, kid!"

"Sorry, sir," the Wolf said lowly, and let go of his jacket. As it fell closed, though, something tumbled from the inside pocket and clattered to the floor. Roo and the clerk looked, and both smirked a little. A tube of lipstick. The Wolf's ears and Contrition marks flushed bright pink, but he didn't move.

Roo looked back at the kid, and noticed something on his jacket; there was another pocket, low on the side, with something bulging in it. It was on the opposite side from the clerk, and only Roo had noticed it. "Is that everything, Jeremy?" he asked darkly. The Wolf met Roo's eyes, saw the target of his attention, and gave him a desperate look. He gave a barely perceptible shake with his muzzle.

"Yes, Uncle. That's everything." Roo raised an eyebrow, curious at this development, but nodded. He figured he'd find out what was in that pocket eventually.

"Go put all this stuff back where you found it, Jeremy. Now. Then we're going to step outside and have a talk about this." The kid flattened his ears and picked up the beer and the comics, pretending to ignore the lipstick. "The makeup, too," Roo said, a slight growl in his voice. The Wolf's facial marks flushed deeper, and he bent to pick up the tube.

"Yeah, you put back your makeup," the clerk said sardonically, snatching the beer from the Wolf's paws, "and I'll take care of this." He walked back towards the refrigerator, and the kid went to return his contraband. As soon as they were away from the front of the store, a Fox and a Weasel ducked out of the exit, pockets bulging. Roo raised a paw and gave a little whine, but rolled his eyes and waited for the kid to get back. Can't catch 'em all.

After a moment, the Wolf returned, hanging his head low. Roo wrapped an arm around his shoulder and nodded to the clerk when he returned. "Thank you for understanding," he said to the Sheltie.

"Yeah, no problem. I figured he was a damn orphan or something." Roo splayed his ears at that. "As long as he's got someone to whip his behind, I don't care if he goes to jail or not. You buying those?" The clerk pointed at the basket in Roo's other arm. Roo nodded and quickly paid for his purchases, not taking his paw off the Wolf. He took his bags and guided the Wolf out the door and around the corner, out of view of the store windows. The hot Florida afternoon baked the sidewalk underneath them.

The kid squirmed in Roo's grasp. "All right, mister, you can let me go now." Roo only tightened his grip.

"Hey, what's the rush? I just did you a pretty big favor back there. Jeremy." Roo grinned.

"Yeah..." the kid stared at his feet. "Thanks. I appreciate it, really. I gotta get to school now, though."

Roo looked at the bank clock across the street - 2:15. "Nice try, kid," he chuckled. "It's a little late for that. Why don't you show me what you've got in your other pocket, now?"

At that, the kid made a feeble attempt to pull away. "Nothing. Look, it's none of your business."

"Hey," Roo barked, "I just bailed you out of juvie, but I can march you right back in there and make you turn yourself in. So are you going to co-operate with me here?"

This was a bit of a bluff; Roo was probably only a couple inches taller than the kid, and marching him would be a challenge. The kid seemed cowed, though. He gave a little whimper and opened the pocket. Inside, Roo saw what looked like a small photograph and a hunk of plastic. The kid took out the photograph and passed it to Roo's extended paw.

The Wolf stared a little at Roo's paw as he took the picture, examining the Border Collie's fingers. They were short and stubby - prehensile, but certainly not dexterous. He looked the Dog over, seeming to take in his short stature and shape. "You're a... a sub-anthro?" he asked, unsure if the term was still considered offensive.

Roo cocked his head and nodded. "Born this way. It's not so bad, really." He lifted the photograph and examined it, and a smile instantly crossed his face. There were two infants - one a Wolf, and the other a Rabbit, wearing nothing but diapers and hugging each other, laughing. The Wolf in the picture had Contrition marks. Roo hadn't realized they inducted members so early. "It's really cute, kid. Is that you?" As he looked at the photograph, though, a pungent smell hit his nostrils. It was sickly-sweet and herbal. He closed his eyes and rubbed his forehead - he'd smelled that on previous incoming charges.

"Look, can I just go? I'm really sorry about that back there, it was dumb. I was just... I was mad. My mom yelled at me today." The kid sounded sincere enough, but Roo knew he couldn't neglect his duty, especially with the smell coming off that photograph. He tightened his grip on the Wolf's shoulders and guided him towards a small bench by the sidewalk.

"Let's sit down and have a talk, all right? What's your real name, for starters?" Roo sat down, gently pressing the boy into the seat next to him.

The wolf hesitated. "Ar... Arvy." Roo raised his ears. He'd detected the pause, but he figured he'd find out if that was the kid's real name back at the agency.

"Arvy. Why don't you show me what else you've got in that pocket?" Arvy stared sullenly at his lap for a moment, then opened the pocket again and took out the bit of plastic. Again, Roo smiled wide - it was a large, therapeutic-size pacifier. "And who's this for?" he asked. "Seems a little big to be a memento..." But as soon as he said that, the scent hit him again, even stronger on the pacifier. It was almost overpowering to his sensitive nose, and his eyes watered.

"It's mine," Arvy said, his voice wavering. "I need it to sleep. My parents... they're in... look, it's a long story."

"Kid," Roo said, getting irritated at this point. "I might be sub-anthro, but I'm not sub-Sentient. What's in the pocket?" His paw flashed into the jacket, grabbed a small plastic Ziplock bag, and held it up. Just what he'd suspected: a nickel bag. He sighed and splayed his ears.

"Hey!" Arvy yelled. "No, that's not mine!" His eyes quickly filled with tears, which overflowed and collected on his Contrition marks. He scooted away from the Border Collie on the bench, and looked like he was going to bolt. His eyes flicked to the photograph in Roo's paw, though.

Roo slipped one paw into his pocket, and fingered a small, hidden syringe, preparing to remove the cap. He hated this part. "Then why's it in your pocket?" His tone was not harsh as he tucked the marijuana into his duffel bag.

"Muh- muh... my friend Alex got it from this guy, and we were gonna smoke it, but we didn't, and... and..." Arvy began to blubber through his tears. He slumped on the bench, ears splayed, and no longer looked like he was going to run. Roo took his paw off the syringe and, more gently this time, wrapped his arm around Arvy's shoulder. "Please don't tell my momma," Arvy said, then leaned in towards Roo and hid his face against the Dog's chest, sobbing.

Roo rubbed the nape of the crying Wolf's neck comfortingly and sighed. "I won't tell your momma, Arvy. Don't you think maybe you need to learn a lesson, though?" Arvy pinned his ears back and gave Roo a frightened look. "It's not that bad," Roo cooed. "Look, we have a place. You'll have to come with me. We'll talk with your parents, but we won't tell them about the pot. I promise." Roo continued rubbing the frightened puppy's back.

"Promise?" Arvy asked, wiping one of his eyes with his paw and sniffling.

"I swear." The Border Collie ran a knuckle along one of Arvy's facial marks. "As long as you come along with me, and let us talk to your parents. That work for you?

Arvy gave a soft nod, looking at the ground. "My parents live in... you know that big red brick building in the old Rabbit town? I know people say it's a cult 'n stuff, but it's really not. It's just nice people."

Roo raised an eyebrow. "Well, that's not really any of my business, Arvy. They have a phone?" He hopped down off the bench, hefted his duffle bag over his shoulder, and held his paw out to Arvy. Arvy nodded again and took the paw, following Roo closely as they walked down the street. Roo looked at the teenager - he might have been just a little bit smaller than Roo was, but at the moment he was hunched and sulky, like a scolded puppy. His tail was curled lightly under his bottom, his head was hung, and his ears were back. It might be possible to have high hopes for this one, Roo thought.

Arvy saw Roo examining him, and looked up. "Hey... are you taking me to jail, mister?" He didn't sound resistant, just scared. "Are you a cop?"

"No, Arvy. Oh, no, no. I work with an agency that... well, we're sort of like the YMCA, you know?" That was a bit of a stretch, but whatever worked.

"The YMCA? I went to a party there once." Arvy wiped his face again, and stayed close to Roo's side.

Roo gave a relieved sigh, glad he hadn't had to use the sedative. He really hated doing that. Made for a bad start to the whole process. Soon, Roo and Arvy arrived, paw in paw, at a building, rather plain looking and about three stories tall. "This is it," Roo said. Arvy looked up at the darkly-tinted windows along the front and gulped. Roo pushed open the glass door and led Arvy in. The room inside was some kind of reception area, brightly lit, with a few rows of empty chairs.

"Hey, pup!" called a Civet sitting behind the receptionists' desk at the back of the room. Roo blushed under his fur at the name.

"Hi, Sheila. Got another one!" He looked at the cringing Wolf.

"Good work, pup!" She examined a sheet of paper. "Evaluation room... three should be open, if you need it."

"That'll be fine, thanks." Roo took a nametag out of his jacket pocket and swiped it through a reader next to a door behind the desk. It beeped and clicked, and Roo led Arvy through it into the corridor beyond.

"Pup?" Arvy asked, looking at Roo. "Is that your name?"'

Roo spread one ear to the side and coughed. "Ah, no, it's... a pet name." He took off his overshirt and slipped it into his duffel bag. Arvy stared a bit as he saw Roo's harness for the first time. It was bright red, and made out of thick nylon straps, with loops around his shoulders. The straps along his back disappeared into his pants, apparently wrapping around his legs somehow, and two zippered nylon flaps across his back were emblazoned with logos that read "Helping Paws." It didn't look much different from what a dumb service animal would wear.

"What should I call you, then, mister?" Arvy asked, not mentioning the harness as Roo led him to one of the doors along the side of the corridor.

"'Roo' is fine," the Border Collie said, swishing his tail a bit as he took out his namecard again.

Arvy's reaction to this was unexpected. He pressed his ears back and almost jumped a little, taking a step back from Roo. The fur on the nape of his neck rose. Roo arched an eyebrow. "You all right, Arvy?"

"Yeah... yeah, I'm OK." Arvy seemed to calm down a little, shaking his head. Roo swiped his card next to the door and led Arvy through.

Inside the room, a portly Badger sat at a desk with neat stacks of paper in the corners, and an aging PC monitor on a stand. He looked up at the pair, tipping his glasses down on his nose. "Right to business then, aye?" he said gruffly. He had a slight Scottish twang.

Roo guided Arvy into a chair in front of the desk. It was padded and comfortable, and Arvy didn't seem to notice the leather straps subtly tucked under the arms - just in case. Roo took a seat next to him in a larger chair, smiling at the Badger. "Yes, sir."

The Badger took out a clipboard and a pen, rummaged around in one of the stacks of paperwork, and took out a form. He set it on the clipboard and tapped it with his pen. "Your name?" he said, not looking up.

"Uh... me?" Arvy squeaked. The Badger glanced up.

"Yes, boy, you. I already know Rulare here quite well," he said, giving the Border Collie a grin. Roo blushed a little and looked at Arvy.

"Arv -" Arvy hesitated for a moment, considering. "Arvetis Parks," he said, staring down at the table.

The Badger coughed. "Did you say 'Arvetis?' Your name is Arvetis?" He was incredulous.

"Yeah," Arvy said flatly.

The Badger rolled his eyes and wrote something on the form. "We'll see about that. What brings him here?" he asked, looking over at Roo.

"Shoplifting. Nothing major - some comic books, a bottle of beer, a cheap cell phone, and a tube of lipstick." The Badger didn't blink at the last item; he had the air of someone who'd seen everything. "Also... this." Roo took the little bag of pot out of his duffel and set it on the desk. The Badger sighed and nodded.

"All right, 'Arvetis,'" the Badger said, pronouncing the Wolf's name sarcastically, "How old are you?"

"Thirteen, sir." Arvetis looked into his lap. The Badger looked slightly appeased by his deferential tone.

"Do you have parents? Do they have a phone number?"

"Yeah. I forget the number - look up Corwin Hall in the yellow pages. Ask for Todd or Lisa Parks." Arvy gave a heavy sigh. "Or just ask for Todd, OK?"

The Badger scribbled some more notes on the form, then turned to his computer to look up the number. After a minute, Roo spoke up. "Umm... I sort of promised the kid we wouldn't tell his parents about this," he poked the baggie on the desk, "if he co-operates with us. We can honor that... right?"

The Badger picked up the phone, raised an eyebrow, and gave a little snort. "Aye, we can. Assuming he co-operates." He dialed the number, and Arvy whimpered, settling into his seat. The other line rang; it was loud enough that Roo and Arvy could hear it through the handset. After a moment, someone picked up.

"Hello?" a high voice said. A female Mouse. Arvy winced.

"Hello, this is Brian Calum with the Helping Paws agency. I'm calling about a young Wolf who's giving us his name as Arvetis Parks." Calum ticked off a check mark on the form.

"Yes... that's my son. What's happened?" The Mouse sounded worried. Calum looked a little surprised, and crossed something out on the form.

"Err. Well, Mrs. Parks, we're an organization that handles delinquents and troubled youths. We keep them off the streets and out of jail."

"What? Delinquents?! Arvy!" The Mouse's voice carried across the desk, and Arvy moaned. "What's happened?" she demanded.

"Well, Mrs. Parks, one of our... volunteers caught your son shoplifting." He glanced at Roo, and the Border Collie nodded. "We managed to avoid getting the police involved, but we have him here with us now."

"You caught him doing what? Oh my God! Let me speak to him!" Arvy shook his head frantically. Calum tapped a button on the receiver and pushed it forward on his desk.

"You're on speaker phone, Mrs. Parks."

"Arvetis Corwin Parks, you are in so much trouble when you get home!" the receiver blared. "Do you hear me? How dare you! We didn't raise you like this! Wait... wait until your father hears about this!" She sounded flustered. "You can kiss your PlayBox 720 goodbye. What on earth will Gerry think? Why can't you be more like him?" Even Calum winced a little at the berating.

Arvy laid his head on the desk and covered his face with his paws, whimpering.

"I hear you! Do you think you can cute-face your way out of this one? I will give you extra Contrition marks, do you hear me?"

"Yes, momma," Arvy said in a small voice, still covering his face. "I'm sorry, momma."

"Not as sorry as you're going to be. Where's the nice man I was just speaking to?"

"I'm here, Mrs. Parks," Calum said.

"What's going to happen? Will you have to send him to the police? He's not a bad Wolf. He's a junior member of the Order." Lisa's voice was lowering.

"Oh no, Mrs. Parks," the Badger responded quickly. "Our organization is here to prevent that. However, I do have a suggestion, if I may? We run a program here at our facility. It's entirely up to you of course, but we can enter your son into this program. It's designed to teach troubled youths respect, that their actions have consequences, and so on. Now, I don't mean to imply that little... Arvetis... is a delinquent, but if you'd like, we can enter him into this program for as long as you see fit. He'll be very well taken care of, of course." The badger was scribbling on the form as he talked.

"What does the program consist of?" Lisa asked. "Is it some kind of boot camp?"

"Of sorts, Mrs. Parks, though we really prefer not to use that term. We assure you this is a very caring environment, and all of our volunteers are concerned only for the well-being of our guests. They're kept to a rather strict schedule, and good behavior is rewarded. Arvetis will be kept out of trouble, and he'll receive a companion dog for the duration of his visit." Calum glanced at Roo, who nodded and squeezed Arvy's shoulder.

"Well..." Lisa considered. "I really thought that he'd learned his lesson about consequences a long time ago. But apparently I was wrong." Arvetis winced at that. "Go ahead and enter him in. Keep the length of his stay indefinite for now - I need to discuss this with Todd."

"Thank you, Mrs. Parks! Your son will be well taken care of while he's here, I assure you. Take as much time as you need. You can reach us at 555-2455 when you've decided what you're going to do, and we'll send you the papers as soon as possible." Calum checked a few more boxes on the form, then put it down.

"Thank you," Lisa said. "Arvetis... I'll see you later." The receiver clicked as she hung up.

Arvy whimpered. "Boot camp?"

"No, no," Roo said, rubbing Arvy's shoulder comfortingly. "Don't worry about that. This is a little unorthodox, but I think you'll understand. Maybe you'll even come to appreciate it!" He wagged his tail.

"OK," Calum said, turning to the computer and punching in Arvy's information. "We've got you in room 203, and Rulare will be your companion dog while you're here. I hear he's very good, by the way." He grinned at Roo and typed some more. "Your ID card's cleared for the room, Rulare... but you know the rules."

Roo gulped and nodded. "Yeah, I do." He took Arvy's photograph and pacifier from his pocket and slipped them back into the Wolf's jacket, then set his purchases from the convenience store on Mr. Calum's desk. "Can you look after these for me? I'm gonna want those Gummi Worms." Calum nodded and put the bags under his desk.

"Can't I just say I'm sorry and go home?" Arvy whined. "My momma's gonna kill me anyway."

"She'll have time to cool off, don't worry," Roo said, taking Arvy's paw into his and standing up. Arvy followed suit, tail tucked firmly under his bottom.

"I'm afraid she wants you here," Calum said. "Try to enjoy your time here, at least, and... be good." He waved at the pair as Roo led Arvy by the paw back out into the hallway. Arvy followed the Border Collie obediently.

"I am sorry," he said, voice trembling. He didn't sound like he was faking it.

"I know, pup," Roo murmured, causing the Wolf's ears to splay. "But... sometimes sorry isn't enough." He stepped towards the elevator and hit the button for the second floor, then entered when it arrived.

"What's going to happen to me?" Arvy asked as the elevator moved upwards.

"Well... first we're gonna get you to your - our - room." The elevator doors opened, revealing another featureless hallway lined with security-locked doors, and Roo ran his stubby fingers nervously over his ID card. He led Arvy three doors down, to room 203, and slid his card through the reader. It beeped and clicked, and Roo pulled the door open, ushered the Wolf into the room, and followed him. The door closed behind them with another click.

"What do you think?" Roo asked. Arvy looked around the room for a moment, groaned, and leaned against the wall.

"No... way."