Fox in the Family

Taking care of animals was one of the most important jobs in Nevertown, only second to growing the crops. The ducks and hens provided the meat and eggs for meals, while the rabbits could have their waste be used as fertilizer. The children weren’t comfortable eating the cute, fluffy creatures, so the rabbits were more of a valuable trading asset than anything else.

Every morning, the youngest Cooper, Georgina, would run out to the animal area, dragging the bag of feed with her tiny, toddler legs. She would clumsily toss the feed at the birds, and any bits that fell on to the ground would lead to the birds nibbling at her feet, making her a giggling mess all the way through. The oldest Cooper, Rydia, would be right behind her supervising to make sure Georgina stayed out of trouble. The second youngest, John, would tend to the rabbits in their hutches, which were elevated by a few feet, so for the time being he relied on a stool until he grew tall enough.

The second eldest sister, Piper, would hop around on her crutches, her limp, right foot not too after behind her, finding and doing anything else required. Not even the rabbits could match her speed, stubbornly lifting and moving everything from crates to ducks without anyone’s help. Despite how strong she tried to be, there were going to be times where even she knew she needed guidance. Such as today when she stepped into the coop to discover, to her horror, the trail of blood where a chicken once used to be from its nest to the nearby fence.

Tracking down the man she knew she could trust most, she hurried over to Santo, the blue headband pushing back her brown bangs nearly slipping off by the time she reached him.

“Mr. Santo!” she called, panting as she adjusted her headband. “We have a problem! We lost another chicken!”

“Oh, no,” Santo said, quickly putting down the papers he was sorting to follow Piper to the scene of the crime. He put a hand over his mouth in deep thought as he assessed the situation. “Hm… this isn’t good. It must be jumping over the fence.”

The fence was electrically charged and planted several feet underground, but foxes could jump up to six feet, so all it needed was some kind of springboard or elevation. Further investigating confirmed his theory, as he spotted a knocked over crate on one side, and a tall rock on the other.

“I didn’t leave any crates out,” Piper said, worried she would be blamed somehow.

“I know you didn’t,” Santo replied. “I should have had that rock removed long ago, so this is my responsibility.”

“No! It’s not…” Piper gripped her crutches tighter in frustration, her southern drawl dripping out as she said, “Lemme hunt ‘em down. Then we won’t have to worry ‘bout it anymore.”

Concerned about such a bold declaration from an eight-year-old, Santo kneeled down to her level and placed a firm hand on her shoulder. “Piper… everyone has a right to live. Killing someone doesn’t change what they did. The fox is only doing what is natural to it.”

“But what about the chicken?!” Piper cried with tears in her eyes. “The chicken had a right to live too! It’s not fair!”

Santo paused to think on how to counter this argument. “I know. But it’s best for everyone if we simply fix the cause to prevent it from happening again. Solving this peacefully means no more blood has to be shed.”

Piper tucked a crutch under her arm to wipe her eyes and sighed. “Fine.”

Unsurprisingly, Rydia came over with Georgina attached to her to see what the fuss was about. Even if it was inevitable, it still annoyed Piper, and she refused to make eye contact while Santo explained what had happened.

“Oh, Pa always trapped or shot the varmints that hit our farm,” Rydia said. “So I don’t blame ‘er for havin’ that idea.”

Suddenly, John popped up from behind her as well, having seen them all gathered around. “Varmints? Yeah, let’s shoot some varmints!”

“Varmints! Varmints!” cheered Georgina, completely oblivious to the meaning.

Santo groaned and wiped a hand over his face. “No, we are not hunting anything. How about we all go to the market to trade instead?”

The Coopers all looked at each other, then nodded. John and Rydia went to grab the rabbit cages, while the remaining two got into the jeep. Georgina playfully honked the horn as the goods where being loaded, while Piper sulked in her seat with her arms crossed. She didn’t say another word during the trip, not even when the rest of the group was playing word games and singing merrily along the road.

The market was a major area of Glamor, where anyone could vend their goods with everything you could want out on display. From the smell of the spices, to the taste of sweet treats, to the sounds of bargains being made, the place was a paradise for anyone wanting to do business quick and easy. Santo had purchased a spot for their booth, so there were never any issues regarding room. One side had the rabbits and other farm goods such as their surplus of crops, while the other side had inedible yet highly valuable products such as custom-made clothing and accessories made by the children.

Since it was a weekday, the streets were fairly quiet, with some people pausing to take a gander at their wares. Santo and Rydia did most of the talking to the customers, while John and Georgina were their little helpers bagging food and handing change. Piper continued to sulk in silence up until she noticed a familiar customer coming their way, and her frown deepened into a disgusted scowl.

The customer was a portly, blonde woman who usually hid her amber eyes behind a pair of outrageously gaudy sunglasses that were either too neon or too pointy. Today they were both too pink and sharp enough to cut glass with. She stepped up to the booth, tossing the fur scarf she wore over her shoulder as she inspected everything. Her long, diamond-crusted nails poked at a cucumber as if it was an alien object.

“Any good organics today, sir?” she asked Santo, deliberately turning her head away from Rydia who was standing right in front of the vegetables.

“Yes, Mrs. Midas,” Santo said while putting on his best salesmen smile. “The cucumbers all came in nice and healthy. We also have a good selection of tomatoes.”

“I see…” Mrs. Midas then put her hands all over the produce, turning it all around and ruining the display before finally settling on the vegetables she wanted. “I’ll take these then.”

“Very well.” Santo glanced at Rydia, who knew what she had to do. She bagged the vegetables, and handed them to the lady.

“That will be twenty-seven, please,” Rydia stated politely.

Mrs. Midas grabbed the bag with more force than necessary, then pulled out her expensive, leather purse to pay. Georgina was eager to lean over to the table to take the money herself. Seeing the small child jump towards her, Mrs. Midas recoiled in shock and let out a pig-like grunt.

“Ugh!” she shouted. “Don’t let that filthy little child touch my purse!”

“She’s just trying to get the money,” Rydia explained, trying to defuse the situation.

“It didn’t look like that to me! Her hands were clearly going for my purse!”

Fed up with this, Piper stood up with her crutches and bent over the table to stare Mrs. Midas right in her face and stated firmly, “She’s doing her fucking job. Pay and leave already.”

Mrs. Midas furrowed her waxed eyebrows, but did as she was told without another word. After receiving her change, she turned away with a huff and grumbled under her breath, “Honestly, kids these days…”

Santo was mixed on whether to praise Piper for standing up for her sister, or scold her for her rudeness. Fortunately for him, Rydia stepped in at the bigger sister and spoke for him.

“Piper!” Rydia said. “It’s good to stand up for family, but you gotta be a lil’ careful ‘bout it. Sometimes ya have to turn the other cheek. Bein’ rude can ‘cause a lotta trouble.”

“Yeah, I know,” Piper replied before going back to sulking in her seat.

Santo realized maybe he didn’t have to step in every time. Even if he felt they were family, sometimes blood understood blood better.

---

The nights at Nevertown were always dead silent by midnight, everyone tucked into bed to stay warm from the desert’s bitter coldness. However, tonight the crickets and coyotes would not be out alone. Gripping his late father’s .22 rifle, Rydia snuck out the dorms with her siblings not far behind her, knowing they would scream and complain if they didn’t join her. Normally, all guns were locked away by Santo, but he respected the Cooper’s memento of their father and thus theirs were locked in a box with a key that Rydia was entrusted with.

Rydia knew this was wrong. She had to be the responsible one. She had to be the one who scolded John for messing around, give Georgina a bath, and be a shoulder that Piper could cry on. Santo would definitely be upset with this choice, but he wasn’t her father. If she was going to be an adult, even if she was still twelve, she had to do adult things for the good of the family, and that included the dirty things that her parents did.

As they were about to reach the exit, a voice boomed out behind them, “Hey, it’s the Coopers! What are y’all doin’ out this late?”

They all turned their heads to see a sixteen-year-old boy whose shoulders were wide and built like a brick wall. His hazel eyes shined from the flashlight in his one hand, while his other hand held the towel from taking a nice bath after a long day of plowing the fields. Even if his overalls were stained with dirt, at least his sun-kissed skin and curly, brown hair were squeaky clean.

Like a deer caught in the headlights, Rydia was a lost for words. “We were uh…”

“Going to polish our dad’s rifle!” Piper blurted out, forced to run with it. “It was all we got to ‘member him by when the farm was burnt down, ya know? So we like to have some private time reminiscing ‘bout those times.”

“Yeah, reminiscing!” John said.

“Remissing!” Georgina repeated.

The boy’s dopey grin deflated into a frown upon hearing this, placing a toweled hand on his chest. “Oh, gosh. I understand. Sorry for botherin’ y’all. Just make sure to come back quick. I’mma check in if I don’t see y’all in an hour, okay?”

“Yes, we’ll be back soon, Wesley,” Rydia said.

That was enough to convince the boy to leave, and the four were able to resume their business. Tracking down a fox was not a simple task, but they had a good idea of where to go. There was section of forest in the desert that would make for an ideal hiding spot within the dense trees. They split into two groups, Rydia with Georgina and Piper with John, then began to scour the area. Seeing this as nothing more than a game, John initially roared and stomped his five-year-old legs across the dirt before Piper hushed him. 

"You're gonna scare'em off!" Piper told him as loudly as she could whisper, which was enough to convince him to take this more seriously.

After some times of rustling around bushes and tree branches, Piper spotted a den up ahead.

“Guys, I think I found it!” Piper yelled, which brought everyone back over.

John bounced on the heels of his feet as he giggled, “Gonna get the varmint, gonna get the varmint!”

“Varmint! Varmint!” Georgina said with him.

Rydia hushed them, then held her rifle close as she slowly stepped closer to the den, mindful of any leaves or branches that could snap from the slightest touch. She ignored the pounding in her chest as she positioned the gun to fire, readying herself as she approached. Yet when she saw the shadow emerge from the den, she noticed there was more than one.

The largest shadow was their culprit, a red fox with a scar down its right eye. Behind that fox was three kits, huddled together in fear.

Rydia’s sapphire blue eyes widened as she lowered the gun in pure astonishment. Piper saw her reaction and ran up to her, confused, but once she saw the foxes, she shared the same reaction. They were both familiar with this scene. They had lived it themselves not that long ago. Back then, in front of the flames of what remained of their home, Rydia holding on to baby Georgina with her life and shielding John behind her, while Piper shakily pointed the gun she had grabbed right before the house collapsed. If Santo hadn’t shown up to scare off the attackers, who knows what might have happened.

Rydia and Piper exchanged a look only the two of them as sisters could understand, then Rydia said, “Piper… this ain’t right. Santo was right.”

Piper went over to her sister and pulled her into an awkward hug, her body leaning against her sister as she dropped her crutches. “I know. You did this for me. I’m sorry.”

Rydia held her up while they hugged. “It’s okay. We’ll be okay. Let’s go home.”

The two sisters went back to the children waiting in the bushes. Georgina was playing with the bush’s leaves while John had a very disappointed expression.

“No varmints?” John asked.

Piper shook her head. “No, they have a family. We should leave them alone.”

“Aw…”

Having ended their mission, the Coopers made their way out of the forest. However, as soon as they were out of the clearing, Santo was walking towards them with Wesley beside him. Rydia and Piper gulped, dread kicking in as they realized they had been out too long.

“There you are!” Santo shouted as he went up to them, clearly upset but restraining himself from exploding on them. “I told you that killing doesn’t-”

“You were right,” Piper said, knowing how this would go. “We’re really sorry. We didn’t know it had a family…”

Santo glanced behind the group, seeing the fox and its kits not too far away, having followed them for unknown reasons. Perhaps out of caution or curiosity? They turned tail when they were spotted, returning to the safety of their den.

Santo let out a deep sigh, the anger he had felt dissipating from his body. “Well as long as you learned your lesson, I can let it go this once. Let’s go home. You’re going to catch a cold.”

No one was going to protest to that, and they all returned to Nevertown together with clean hands.

---

The following week, Santo and the Coopers were once again at the market to do their usual business. As they were walking past the stalls, Santo caught eye of a new vendor with a wide section of fur pelts. There were an interesting variety, even including exotic weasels and endangered wolves, so he was surprised the man had permission to sell these. Then his eyes stopped at a particular pelt that spurred him to move in front so the younger children didn’t see. It was a beautiful, red fox with a scar over its right eye.

Right after seeing it, Mrs. Midas appeared and walked over to the vender, her eyes practically sparking with joy as she said, “Oh, my! What a divine fox pelt!”

Mr. Midas happened to be with her today, strolling up beside her as he said, “Really, honey? Are you sure you want that one for your new scarf?”

“Yes, absolutely! The scar on its face adds character! It’s so… avant-garde!”

Mr. Midas rolled his eyes, but bought her the pelt anyway. Despite Santo’s efforts, Piper managed to catch a glimpse of the pelt in Mrs. Mida’s hands and grit her teeth.

“God, why am I so weak?” Piper mumbled under her breath, but Santo heard it anyway.

There truly wasn’t anything he could do or say to comfort her. They all knew this was the reality of the world. So instead, they opened their booth as usual and carried on.