Well, it certainly has been a while since I've worked on this story. Sorry I haven't been active as much as I used to be. Once again, college is busy and I've also being working on other fanfics and a few side projects. My closest friends are my family and it warms my heart that I can apply everything I've learned from Zootopia, My Little Pony and Fairy Tail to real life.

It's not the end of the story just yet, but I have to give a big thank you to all of my readers, be they boisterous or unspoken, dedicated or passers-by.

Chapter 16: Brought to Life

It was the start of a new school week, and as soon as Lucas got to school on Monday morning, Ashira bombarded him with questions about how his meetup with Ewelina went. "How was she? Did you miss her? What'd you guys talk about? What's her sign? Is she secretly in love with you like in those really weird clichés? What's her shoe size?"

"Uhh…" Lucas wasn't sure where to begin with his answers.

"She probably doesn't even wear shoes," Hunter pointed out, while Joey just scratched his head.

"I'm sorry for being so giddy! I'm just super curious about how it went! It must have been super important for you. How can I just sit back like nothing happened?" Ashira asked earnestly. She was rather lively today.

"You make it sound like he went on a date or something," Joey finally spoke up.

"What?!" Ashira exclaimed, flustered. "No, no, no, no, no, no, no! Gosh, I'm letting the stuff I read in books get the better of me."

"Ewelina's in good spirits, thank God…" Lucas sighed gratefully. "I never thought I'd get to see her smile again…"

"She really is like a sister to you," Hunter noticed in admiration. "Sometimes, I wish I had someone like that."

"Says the deer who seems to know everyone," Joey scoffed. "How do you know Spencer and those other adults anyway? Ashira's family is well-connected and Lucas's parents are cops, but I don't get how you know so many mammals."

Putting his hooves behind his head, the cervine just said, "Trade secret." This was followed by him playfully sticking his tongue out.

"You can be the exact stereotype of a sassy gay friend…" Joey muttered, causing Lucas to have to stifle a laugh. Then, after a pause, all four of them erupted into incessant giggles.

In the midst of their giggling, Lucas and Ashira hadn't taken notice of the ram from their geometry class glaring at them once again. In Lucas's mind, only this moment mattered. Not the past, nor the present. He felt happy and alive with his friends around. He didn't feel like he had molten lead in his head and his chest when he was laughing and enjoying himself with them.

The school day, for the most part, was business as usual, though having several classes with Ashira meant that Lucas could spend a lot of quality time with her. With all the time they had spent together, he felt a truly deep bond with her. She was a friend, a confidant, a living dream and a love he would hold close to his heart. He'd never take her for granted, not like he did with his parents. At eight years old, he never would have dreamed that his whole life would turn on its head in a single night. The thought of losing his friends and his new family in a similar manner sent shivers down to his very soul.

In geometry class, they had taken a quiz comprised of two proofs. Lucas didn't mind the logic involved in proofs, but the key to doing well on them is to label that logic with a series of theorem names. It was intuitive, and somehow not. Once the quiz was over, the students passed their quizzes forward in their rows and Lucas caught a glance at the quizzes that were now placed atop his own. One name caught his eye. "Jordan Ramsey".

Ramsey… That was Ewelina's last name. Lucas passed the quizzes forward and looked toward the back of his row. There was that ram again, the one who had glared at him and Ashira last week. That ram was Ewelina's adoptive brother? The teen fox suppressed the chill in his spine down to a subtle flick of his tail as he faces forward. His stare was so full of malice, and Ewelina was always full of unwavering joy.

Once passing the quizzes forward, they began the lesson and Ashira subtly nudged him. Before he knew it, he had received a note from her. Unfolding the small paper, he silently read the message: 'Do you want to go to the comic store after school?' At the bottom of the note, there were two check boxes with the options 'yes' and 'no'. Discretely, he checked 'yes', though he was sure he had nothing to worry about because their geometry teacher wasn't exactly the best at keeping an eye on her students.

Lucas passed the note back to Ashira, excited to go look at comics with his crush. His tail swished excitedly at the thought. He watched Ashira check his answer, her face lighting up. She smiled at him before returning her attention to the lesson.

After school let out, Ashira and Lucas got on a bus together that was headed towards downtown Savannah Central. The comic book store, called Curious Cryptids, was on Mane Street and full of comics, trading cards and novelty items that captivated the teen foxes. Lucas found new issues of some of his favorite comic series, including the classic Super Bat, the adventure story Jolly Roger, the manga adaptation of the popular game Fursona 5, the demonic mystery series CHA0S, and the magical girl comic franchise The Foxy Magician.

"The main character of that one looks just like my sister Rina!" Ashira exclaimed as she peeked over Lucas's shoulder and spotted the latest volume of The Foxy Magician.

"When I first met you, you actually reminded me of her," Lucas softly admitted. "Especially your smile."

With an amused chuckle, Ashira cautioned, "Keep talking like that and I just might have to kiss you."

Lucas felt his face heat up. What should he say? What could he say? Stammering, his reply was: "I-I wouldn't m-mind that."

Ashira abruptly burst into a fit of laughter. Lucas, of course, was taken aback by this. Through her laughter, Ashira apologized, "Ahaha, I'm sorry. I just…I really like how corny you can be. It's a refreshing mix of honesty and kindness. Seriously, I think that that's kind of hard to come by. And to have that come from you is amazing… Knowing what I know about you, I think you have every reason to hate the world, but you don't. You, of all mammals, don't hate fate and aren't defeated by a really crappy series of misfortune."

"Well," Lucas responded solemnly, "it's not exactly like I love the world either. I've come to know that everything happens for a reason. Part of me is resentful and grateful in the same sentence. I miss my parents all the time and I wonder what my life would be like if the fire never happened, but I'm finally in a place of peace. I can look in the mirror and tell myself I wouldn't have it any other way…"

He looked into Ashira's awestruck ruby eyes. Was what he said really that profound? Before having a moment to truly contemplate his words from another angle, Ashira leaned in and kissed him on the lips. He almost dropped the comics he was holding, and he held them closer to his chest as a result and pushed into the kiss, returning Ashira's passion with his own.