Animal Kingdom Come (Chapter 5)

by

ShadowBunnyDragon

"Alright, everyone, let's have a warm welcome to our newest student, Elliott!" Mr. Graham smiled as he gestured for the nervous mouse boy to walk over to him. He looked at the chipmunk in the light green vest and purple bowtie before letting his gaze settle on the rest of his new classmates. While most were eager to get a good look at the new kid, Elliott spied Michael scowling at him in the front row. He gulped but felt a little better when he saw Holly sitting next to her brother, giving him a wide grin and a wave, pointing to the empty seat right next to her. There were another four mice, six rats, five squirrels, nine rabbits, three chipmunks, and a gopher boy, who seemed to be wearing a pair of rather thick glasses. Noses and ears were twitching, whispers were being murmured, and Elliott felt his cheeks redden at being the focus of it all.

"Now, now, there won't be any of that," Mr. Graham said with a stern tone to his voice, putting his paws on his hips. "Yes, it's exciting to have a new friend joining us, but that's no excuse for rudeness. Now, Elliott, how about you take the empty seat over next to Holly."

"Uh... y-yes, sir." Elliott trudged over to the empty desk, feeling a little relieved that at least he would get to sit next to Holly. The mouse girl had been nothing but nice to him so far. Though, Michael still tried to give him the stink eye over her shoulder. "Can't believe that I still have to go to school," Elliott grumbled.

"Now then, to start things off today with everyone's favorite subject... arithmetic!" Mr. Graham smiled chipperly despite a small chorus of groans. "We'll start with a review of positive and negative numbers and then move on to some decimal work and fractions, and maybe see about working some algebraic equations!"

Elliott pulled out the small notebook Melody had given him along with one of his new, tiny, pens from the brick red satchel they had gotten the day before. He quickly started taking notes, doing his best to keep up. He made a mental note to ask Holly if he could copy her previous notes. Then he heard some whispers coming from behind him.

"You really think that he was one of those things? Aren't they, like, gigantic?"

Sneaking a glance behind him allowed Elliott to see that it was one of the rabbit girls who had spoken to a squirrel boy who nodded.

"Yeah. But the Royal Wizard changed his species for some reason, I think because he died," the squirrel boy said. Elliott's breath caught in his throat a bit and his ears twitched, so he redoubled his efforts into paying attention to what the teacher was saying. Despite trying not to, Elliott picked up on a few more whispered conversations about him from his classmates, with someone, another mouse boy, adamantly refusing to believe that Elliott had ever been human, and simply had his memories altered. As class proceeded, the whisperings died down. They then moved on to English, and then to Social Studies, which was more of a focus on the different groups of sentient animals, rather than on history.

Elliott was amazed to learn that in addition to the Kingdom of Paragon, there were two more hidden 'nations' in the forest. To the east, primarily underground, was Gemstone, populated mostly by species that tended to burrow, whose major exports were minerals they mined and wines and other alcohols, and who were currently led by King Alfonse, a mole rat that had a reputation for being a bit eccentric.

To the south, near the marshlands was an old junkyard that had long since been abandoned and forgotten by humans. How Mr. Graham knew that with certainty, Elliott didn't know, but then remembered what Argus said about altering memories. It and some of the nearby marshlands had been taken over by cats and named the nation of Whainaut. They were ruled by the Council of Thirteen, though the identities of said council members was a closely guarded secret. The majority of the population were mages, more often than not experts in Illusion magic, and apparently had a very active nightlife. They also kept regular tabs on the human town of Oakridge, a name that caused Elliott's ears to perk up in recognition, through the use of spies in order to keep up with current world and human affairs. Their primary export were silks, the production of which was also a closely guarded secret.

North, in the Deep woods, was the hidden Realm of the Whispering Leaves. They largely kept to themselves, rarely having any contact with anyone outside of their Realm, the borders of which were guarded religiously. It was believed that their population, in addition to deer, were other larger sentient wildlife, such as bears and horses and moose. What was known was that their current Queen, Leema, met with Julius regularly each month during the full moon. They also collected honey and exported it to the other nations.

Finally, they covered the Union. An unlikely unification of nomadic wolf and otter tribes. They had several regular trade routes, all following the river, but other than that tended to wander. Their camps were set up with camouflage and magic to remain hidden and subconsciously keep humans away, and designed to both be quick to set up for the night, and quick to pack up in a hurry. Their goods for trade was largely eclectic, with salvaged metals being the most prominent.

"Alright class," Mr. Graham said, peeking out the window to a nearby clock tower, each of its four faces made from a different recycled watch. "We are nearing lunch time. As most of you know," he turned and gave Elliott a wink, "we're going to be taking a little field trip today where we will be having lunch together out in the fresh air. Of course, while I have some of your permission slips, I'll be needing the rest."

There were excited murmurs at that. Elliott started to sink down lower in his seat while everyone started to produce little satchels that contained their packed lunches. Since he didn't have a parent to sign permission slips, Elliott was more than familiar with staying behind at school from field trips. While the school building was pretty small, he hoped that he could get a free lunch here like he did back before his transformation.

"Now if you haven't already turned them in, please pass up your field trip permission slips to the front of the room."

Elliott looked around and blushed. This was far from a rare experience for him, but it was still embarrassing no less. Sure, that probably meant he could just read in the library or something, but it still meant he'd be missing out on whatever fun trip Mr. Graham had planned for them, and he'd miss out on getting to see some more of the city. It really wasn't fair.

"Oh, and Elliott," the chipmunk's voice caught the boy's attention.

"Huh?"

"I've already got your slip."

That stunned the boy, so much so that he felt partially in a haze when he and his classmates were instructed to get up from their desks and follow Mr. Graham out of the classroom.

"Now our trip is going to be outside of the city walls, so we will have some supervision along for the ride," Mr. Graham said.

"OH! Like rangers?" A gray bunny girl asked, excitedly hopping in place.

"Exactly. Oh, and here they come now!"

Elliott looked to where Mr. Graham motioned with his paw to see two figures in green cloaks approaching. The one on the left, the taller one, was a fierce-looking squirrel sporing an eyepatch over his left eye. The figure on the right looked a tad too familiar to Elliott, but they shocked him no less.

"Hi, sweetie!" Melody said with a wave, walking up and giving Elliott a hug. Hearing some snickers, he blushed a bit.

"Me-Melody?!"

"That's right! When I heard that your field trip would need some help, I volunteered myself and Vincent here. There will be other rangers along the way, but if they're doing their jobs correctly, then you won't be seeing them."

Elliott's gaze was drawn to the bow and the quiver of arrows on Melody's back.

"OH! And here!" She pulled from within her cloak a leaf-green leather bag with a strap to be worn, and a large buckle holding it shut. "I forgot to give you your lunch today! I hope that you enjoy it, sweetheart!" She gave him another hug, before she raised an eyebrow. She let him go but took a moment to lick her thumb. "Oh, hold still, you've got a bit of dirt right there." She wiped at his cheek with her thumb. Hearing even more snickers, he started to bat away at her paw.

The author's tale has been misappropriated; report any instances of this story on Amazon.

"M-Melody, I'm fine!" He hoped that he didn't sound like he was whining in front of Holly, who thankfully was too busy rummaging around in her own bag. Michael, however, looked on and gave a derisive snort... until a look from Melody had him turning away and whistling innocently.

"If anyone makes you feel uncomfortable, sweetie, be sure to let me or your teacher know, okay?" Melody smiled warmly at Elliott, who could only nod. Mr. Graham began leading the class once more, taking the time to point out buildings or public works projects of any historical or functional significance, and explain such to the students, all the while their group was flanked by the two ranger escorts as they made their way towards the city gates.

"My Mom still does that to me too," a chocolate brown bunny boy said as he fell into step with Elliott. The mouse boy looked him over, seeing that he was wearing a simple red vest over a white undershirt and brown trousers and holding his paw out for him to shake. Elliott shook the boy's paw and mumbled a hello.

"Hi there, by the way. My name's Niro!"

"Uh... Elliott..." He felt awkward saying it, but wasn't sure how else to respond.

"So... were you really a human? Because you look just like a regular mouse to me." Elliott fought the urge to roll his eyes. He should've guessed that this was a question he was going to be asked a lot during his time here.

"Yeah."

"Woah..." Niro looked amazed. "So, do you know if you'll be changing back anytime soon?"

"Uh... I'm not sure..."

Niro's ears drooped behind his back at that answer.

"Sorry... I bet this is a lot to take in..."

"A bit," Elliott said with a small smile. This Niro kid so far seemed nice enough.

"Hi, Niro," Holly said, falling in step with the bunny and mouse boys, with Michael closely flanking her, sneaking looks at Elliott.

"Hey, Holly, hey Mikey!" His ears perked right back up. "I heard that someone got in trouble for trying to use one of their Arts on someone, only to get an earful from Mrs. Melody." Niro and Holly both chuckled at that, causing the insides of Michael's ears to burn bright red.

"I wouldn't have had to, if someone would just keep their distance from certain dangerous creatures!"

Elliott snorted at that.

"You were the only dangerous person in that altercation, Mikey!" Holly shot back just as Elliott was opening his mouth to say something. "Elliott and I were just talking, and then you decided to butt in and try to attack him. So don't go blaming him just because Master Root took away your practice sword privileges."

Michael just grumbled and continued along with the rest of the class as they approached the city gates. It was a simple portcullis, roughly the size of an average doggy door. It was raised as a slow procession of villagers divided up into two 'lanes, with those entering, some by themselves, others pushing carts laden down with supplies or goods, and those queued up to leave, some also with their own carts. Elliott noticed that most of the ones exiting were wearing stuffed satchels or backpacks, and seemed to be armed. The guards, both of whom were black and brown rats in leather tunics with matching helmets, seemed to be inspecting those entering and exiting.

"As you can see, class," Mr. Graham piped up, garnering his class' attention. "Likely keeping an eye out for any wanted individuals and potential contraband." Their class approached, and Melody stepped forward, holding out a rolled up piece of parchment. One of the rats boredly unfurled it, instantly freezing. He looked Melody over before hastily saluting. His partner, while confused, did the same. With a smile, Melody motioned for Mr. Graham and the others to walk through the portcullis, with the second ranger taking up the rear.

"Now that we are beyond the city walls, everyone needs to stay together. Remember, while we have our illustrious escorts, both seen and unseen, the forest can be a very dangerous place."

Elliott was amazed as they began their trek through the woods, granted on a well-worn path. He was looking up at wildflowers that towered over him, and running his paws through thick blades of grass that came up to his hips and even chest. The trees looked absolutely gargantuan! He had been in the woods many times before, often just to get away and be alone, but this time, it was as though he were on an alien world. He even had to duck as a bee flew low overhead, looking like the size of a chihuahua compared to him.

Elliott was only half-heartedly paying attention to Mr. Graham lecturing them about the local ecosystems. In less than an hour of following a windy route through the trees, something Elliott noticed was easily hidden from anyone walking along and looking down thanks to the underbrush, they reached their destination, a brightly lit open area with a pond and a single tree that shaded part of it. The trail exited at the base of the tree to the sound of gently lapping water.

"Okay, class," Mr. Graham said while slipping off his own large satchel onto the ground. He unbuckled it and pulled out a folded red and white checkered cloth that looked like a handkerchief, spreading it out on a patch of bare ground. "After our little hike, we can enjoy a nice and peaceful lunch before we resume the lecture. You are more than welcome to use part of the picnic blanket I brought, or you may choose to eat elsewhere. Just no wandering off too far. Yes, Jennifer?" The chipmunk pointed to the raised paw of a mouse girl wearing a white tunic and black shorts.

"Are we safe... from, like, feral animals? Or... uh..." she snuck a glance at Elliott, who simply frowned.

"Humans?"

"Y-yeah?"

Mr. Graham let out a chuckle.

"Thanks to the efforts of our escorts, and please do remember the unseen ones as well as the two very visible ones right here," he motioned to the two rangers, "we know beyond a shadow of a doubt that this pond is perfectly safe and that we won't have to worry about anyone or anything stumbling along upon us. Anything that could have been a potential threat would've been lured away or chased off. And thanks to some very strong spells, we won't have to worry about any humans."

Jennifer seemed to calm down at that and quickly started to chat with some of the other female students. Little groups began to form, and Elliott was surprised to find himself in one, with Holly, Niro, and a scowling Michael, all sitting at the water's edge. Holly already had her feet in the water and was slowly kicking them.

"This pond is really pretty," Niro said, pulling out a red sealed container. Peeling the lid open revealed some kind of strange all green wrap, like a burrito, but made of greens. Elliott's nose and whiskers twitched a little, picking up smells like mint and cucumber.

"Yup! Me and Mikey like to come here when we're doing patrol." Holly pulled out what had to be the world's tiniest sandwich, with an equally tiny thermos, and a small satchel. Opening it and reaching in, she pulled out what looked like a sunflower seed kernel.

"Oh yeah! I forgot that you have to shadow actual rangers and knights for your internships!" The bunny boy excitedly took another bite of his... wrap as Michael, who was chewing his own bite of sandwich, let out a scoff.

"It's a mentor program, not an internship."

Elliott opened his own bag and saw he had a sandwich wrapped similarly to Holly and Michael's. Curious, he took a bite. It was a rye bread with fresh lettuce, some kind of meat, possibly chicken; with a spicy sauce drizzled on it that gave it a kick. He had a simple metal thermos as well that, when he took a swig from, he was pleasantly surprised to find contained lemonade. Seeing his own little satchel, he opened it to find that there were a bunch of dark blue dehydrated lumps? Taking one out and eating it as well revealed it to be some kind of blueberry raisin.

"Elliott?"

"Huh?" He asked, his ears twitching as he turned to look at Holly, who let out a giggle.

"I was asking if you'd ever been to a pond like this one before?"

"O-oh," he didn't know why that made him blush, but for some reason he did. "Yeah. Actually... I'm pretty sure I've been to this one a few times." He paused as a monarch butterfly fluttered erratically nearby over the water, before coming to land next to the mouse boy on a nearby rock. With its wingspan, it was now nearly half his height. Something about a butterfly that big was equal parts disturbing and fantastical. Looking out at the pond, which now seemed as big as a lake, Elliott took another bite of his chicken sandwich.

"So, what's it like?" Holly asked, looking at the mouse boy.

"Huh? Oh, uh, pretty good. It's got a spicy kick to it."

Holly giggled at that, looking like she almost was about to fall in to the water.

"No, ya goof! What's it like to be human?"

"O-oh!" Elliott swallowed and blushed yet again. "Uh... w-well, my ears definitely pick up sounds a lot better than before. And now smelling things feels stronger too."

"Why do humans have patches of fur on their heads, but not all over?" Niro chimed in with his own question.

"U-uh, I dunno. We just do." They continued to eat their lunches, asking each other questions about what it was like to be their respective species, with Michael even asking a few terse questions. Though his were more about weak spots on a fully grown human. With lunch over, Mr. Graham called everyone back and organized them into small groups, tasking them to go about the area with their notebooks, and explore a little bit, sketching different components of the pond's ecosystem. He assured everyone that they didn't need to be master artists.

Niro and Holly were staring at some tiny fish in the pond while Michael was busy sketching a dandelion close to them. Elliott, wanting to see if he could find anything to help their group stand out, walked over to some taller grass growing by the water. He pulled them apart like a curtain, revealing the black and white-furred face of a cat that was crouched down low, staring right at him with its thinly slit eyes. Its mouth spread into a wide grin, showing off its razor sharp teeth.

"Why hel--"

Elliott quickly shut the 'curtain' of grass and quickly started stumbling backwards. The cat stalked forward out of the grass on all fours, despite wearing a pair of brown and green trousers.

"lo there." The cat snickered, looking down at the mouse boy in amusement. From what Eli could tell, the cat was male. "Sorry about that, I didn't mean to frighten you."

"Y-you didn't," Elliott stammered, feeling a sense of relief as he heard footsteps rapidly drawing near.

"Erik? What are you doing here?" Melody asked, making Elliott jump as she just appeared from seemingly nowhere, putting an arrow back into her quiver, her bow out.

"I was just curious about the human who got me into so much trouble."

"Huh?" Elliott asked as Melody rolled her eyes.

"You got yourself into trouble by being too lax in your nightly patrol. Had you spotted Elliott sooner, the poor boy never would have gotten hurt." Melody helped Elliott to his feet and kept her paws on his shoulders.

"Elliott, meet Erik Whisperwhiskers, a fellow ranger, and my unofficial nephew."

Erik swished his tail and gave a bow, all while Elliott mulled over this new piece of information.

"Nephew?!"