aoiremart:

“It was very kind of you to invite me here, Colonel.” Jack slightly bowed his head, then looked around with discretion. “I have to say you have a nice mansion.”

“Don’t be so formal, my boy.” Gregory Kohle gave him a firm, yet kind smile as he closed the door. “Today you’re here as a guest, so relax and enjoy your stay.”

“Yes sir” Jack said, then he corrected himself: “I mean… yes, thank you for the opportunity.”

“Jack…” the dog sighed, “is this the first you got invited to someone’s house?”

The hare nodded.

“Ok, so here’s a tip: don’t look like you’re inspecting the scene of a crime. It’s kind of… awkward.”

“Oh. Oh.” Jack slightly scratched his neck, now unsure of where he was supposed to look… and how. “I apologize for my rude behavior.”

“It’s okay, it’s okay.” Colonel shook his head, sighing again. “Now, let me show the house” he said, and began to walk.

“With pleasure.” Jack followed him, and the two mammals left the entrance.

“Come to think of it” started the dog, “I never introduced my wife to you.”

“I don’t know her, sir” he confirmed.

“She’s the most beautiful creature in the world” Gregory continued. “My most precious and inestimable treasure.”

“I see” Jack replied. But, to be honest, it was extremely difficult for him to conceive such a deep and strong feeling. However, he knew – by hearsay – that mammals fall in love with each other, and that’s how babies come from. So, his understanding of the matter was, if anything, academically correct.

“Oh, also: there is another mammal that you should meet. However, she…” At that moment, they were close enough to the salon for the voice coming from the inside being audible in the corridor.

Or, more correctly… the voices.

Jack, who was walking behind the colonel, suddenly stopped moving. Gregory noticed it and stopped too. “That voice…” Jack murmured. His ears involuntarily reacted to the sounds coming from the salon and he moved toward them, almost pushed by an invisible force. Behind him, the colonel merely followed him without saying a word.

“… Here” a voice was speaking; one Jack didn’t know. “Here’s the difficult part. Do you want me to play it again?”

“No, I guess I got it” said the other voice – this time, it sounded so familiar to him. So incredibly familiar. Yet, at the same time, incredibly distant. Whose voice was that? Jack stepped forward, but he didn’t enter the salon.

“You know, you can come in.”

“Ah…” Jack sighed and turned to the Colonel. “I’m sorry, I was… huh?” He found himself listening, for the familiar voice had started talking again.

“Well, let’s see…” Those words were followed by the sound of some notes played on the piano. The tune was pretty, but then it stumbled and the voice protested: “Ugh, I played it wrong again.”

“It’s all right, don’t worry.”

“But…”

“Don’t rush, Cynthia. I’m sure that with a little practice you’ll be able to play it in no time.”

‘Cynthia…?’ That name rang a bell in Jack’s head, and he quietly whispered: “She wouldn’t happen to be…?”

“Yup.” Colonel’s big, brown paw gently rested on his shoulder, but the hare still jumped a bit when he felt his touch. “So, you still remember her.”

“… How couldn’t I remember?” Jack asked, after a moment of hesitation. It was really her, then. The vixen he had met in that camp. The vixen he had saved in that camp. A sincere smile slowly appeared on his lips. “She seems to be fine, I’m glad.”

“Why don’t you go and say hello?” The dog asked, nodding to him towards the salon. “C’mon, don’t be afraid.”

“I’m not afraid” Jack replied, promptly. “It’s just… I don’t think she remembers who I am. It’s not like we talked a lot or anything, so…”

“Oh, such pain and sorrow” Gregory claimed, but the laughter that was coming out of his mouth was neither painful nor sorrowful. “Well then, why don’t you stay hidden behind the wall while I go inside and congratulate with Cynthia?”

“Wait—!” Jack tried to reach Gregory’s sleeve, but the dog had already stalked into the salon with two powerful footsteps. He followed Colonel’s movements until his eyes caught a glimpse of a white silhouette and he completely hid behind the wall. ‘But why am I hiding?’ He asked to himself, feeling stupid for some reasons. He then tried to join Gregory, naturally… but his feet were suddenly glued to the floor and he couldn’t take one single step into the room.

Meanwhile, Cynthia was saying: “Oh, were you listening, Gregory? Sorry, the song didn’t come out very… well.”

“Really? It sounded perfect to me. What’s your opinion, Professor Northwood?”

“She was playing just fine, until this point. But it’s okay, it’s a complicated melody, and that passage is pretty tricky.”

“You see? If Cecilia says so…”

“What nonsense” replied Cynthia, dryly. “You shouldn’t never give up just because someone says it’s difficult.”

‘Very well said!’ Jack agreed, delighted, inside his head… and that sudden brain activity reminded him that he was basically eavesdropping a conversation behind a wall for no better-identified reasons, and a sense of deep and distressing discomfort hit him like a speeding train.

“With your current experience, darling, it would be virtually impossible to play this piece with no mistakes” said the gentle voice of Colonel’s wife.

“Hey, I got an idea. If you have difficulties in playing that specific part, why don’t you try to sing it?”

“Sing… it?” Cynthia asked. “But, hum…”

“Gregory could be right. If you try to sing the tricky part, you could get acquainted with the melody itself and play it on the piano more smoothly.”

“I’m not sure this is a good idea, to be honest.” Her voice had become uncertain – now it was very different from the one that just a minute ago had spoken of courage and bravery. “I don’t even know the lyrics…”

“I’ll teach you. Honey, would you please get me the book on my bedside table? The one with the green binding.”

“Of course.” Jack heard Colonel’s steps approaching him and flattened – in vain – against the wall.

When Gregory saw him, he just laughed. “Are you still looking for a good reason to come in, Jack?”

“Well, I…”

“Don’t worry” the dog interrupted him, “you’ll find a valid one very soon.” Then he moved away, humming the motive that Cynthia was playing before.

He came back a little later, holding what looked like a quite old book. The binding was a bit ruined, but it must have been of a beautiful emerald green in the past. Gregory glanced at him and winked, then disappeared into the salon.

“Here it is.”

“Thank you, darling. So, let’s see…” Jack heard the sound of thick paper pages being flipped. “Found it! As for the tricky part…”

“It should be this.”

“Right, good girl. So, I play the part of the right paw, which is the most complicated, and you play the left one as you sing. Is it okay with you?”

“I’m still not convinced…” the fox mumbled, sulking.

“Now, now” Gregory said, “the audience wants to hear you sing!”

“And the audience would be… you two?”

“Who knows.” Gregory laughed, shortly followed by his wife.

“… Whatever.” Cynthia sighed, then said: “Shall we play?”

“Whenever you’re ready.” Cecilia replied.

Cynthia cleared her throat, took a deep breath, and then… she began to sing.

You are not the fool, no

You’re a beautiful one

You’re like the sun

‘Cause this one river flows in you

You are not the no one

You just look for more here

Who does care because you are the one

With it inside…

It was the most beautiful song Jack had ever heard in his life. Not that he had heard so many people singing, but he was positively sure that very few voices could match that beauty.

The melody she was chanting danced inside his ears, leaving a warm sensation, like a kind caress. Jack relaxed and slowly sat on the floor, eyes closed, concentrating all his senses on the vixen’s voice. There were no words that could explain the emotion he was feeling – something between pure bliss and melancholy, something that reminded him of memories of a long time ago. Joyful memories, sad memories, even angry memories. But everything was blended just so perfectly that he couldn’t figure out what kind of feeling was the one ultimately blazing inside his chest. But he didn’t care, because his only desire was to listen to Cynthia’s beautiful voice as long as he could.

Then, the song came to an end. Jack opened his eyes as if he had awakened from a dream and stared at the wall in front of him with an empty expression… that slowly filled up with the only emotion he could feel after listening to Cynthia’s singing: wonderment.

He suddenly got up and, without even indulging in a single change of heart, rushed into the room.

… Well, actually, just the first three steps were fast. Because, when he noticed the look on the three mammals’ faces – each one showing a different emotion – his pace slowed down to the point he eventually stopped… and barely held back the urge to turn around and go on the run.

And so, since he lacked the courage to move on as much as he lacked the courage to run away, he just stayed there, his mind trying to come up with an effective way to start the conversation and his throat shrinking in the meantime; in the end, when he tried to start his unrehearsed speech, the only thing which came out of his lips was a pitiful rattle.

“Oh, Jack, you finally decided to show up!” Gregory laughed and came towards him, perhaps perceiving his temporary disability. The dog put an arm around his thin shoulders and asked: “Cynthia, do you remember him?”

A part of Jack really wanted to scream. Another part questioned that uncool urge and requested a diagnosis on Jack’s brain, but the recesses of his mind didn’t return any positive feedback.

“…” Cynthia, still sitting on the piano stool, stared at him with astonished eyes. “You… you are…” She slowly raised a finger and pointed at herself; then, she pointed at him. “You were… there.”

Jack instantly figured out what she was talking about and nodded. “Yeah, that’s right. I was… there” he repeated, finding no better way to articulate the sentence.

The two looked at each other for a while, until Cynthia blinked, slightly shook his head and… “Wait, were you hiding behind the wall all this time?”

“Huh? N-no, I wasn’t hiding!” Jack replied, realizing on which subject the conversation had just been steered. “I was just, you know… waiting.”

Cynthia looked at him with suspicion. “For what?”

“Well…” Jack scratched his cheek. “For the right moment… I suppose?”

“To…?”

“To…” he coughed, feeling his throat clogged. “… Come and greet you.”

For a moment – a long, looong moment – Jack feared further objections from the vixen. But Cynthia, after giving him a final, penetrating glance from head to toe, just replied “Okay” and turned to the piano again.

Jack looked at her back, confused, then turned his gaze to Cecilia Northwood, who shrugged with a smile. “Jack, would you like something to drink?” she asked.

“A tea… would be perfect” he said, still a little stunned.

“Oh, just like a true-born Englishmammal!” She giggled, then proceeded to leave the salon.

Next to him, Greg gave him a small pat on his shoulder and winked. “It went well, didn’t it?” He whispered.

“I… have my doubts, Colonel.”

“Nah, I think she likes you.”

“What?” Jack raised his head and looked at the dog with horror. “I-In what sense?” He realized he had raised the tone of his voice because Cynthia was glancing at him with questioning eyes. He gave her a half smile, then went back to Gregory: “What… what do you mean?”

The colonel laughed. “Just kidding, my boy. Don’t worry!” He gave him another pat and walked away from him, towards Cynthia. “Why don’t you start going in the living room for the tea? We’ll reach you soon.”

Jack saw him approaching the vixen and murmur something in her ear. At first, she shook her head, but then she dropped her shoulders and started to rise from the stool. At that moment, Jack jumped away, to the living room, with a speed that actually surprised himself.

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I must thank Rem for the concept of this story; it was her who told me: “I want to read the first time Jack heard Cynthia playing the piano!”. “Say no more, girl”. So, that’s how Wordement was born. 💕

Actually, I believe Cycy is not very good at playing the piano, even now during the current events of the BJ timeline. Mostly because she stopped practicing when she entered the GSD. But singing… is definitely a talent of her. Cynthia’s lung capacity is amazing, which surely helps her achieving good results in this field.

For the other stories and comics, please visit this page: AoiRemArt comics & stories!

aoiremart:

Gregory gave a deep sigh as he watched the world outside the window, feeling a fatigue that even thirty hours straight of sleep wouldn’t have been able to relieve. For a moment, he saw the reflection of his eyes on the glass; there was a mortifying sadness in them, one he hadn’t felt in a long time.

A difficult task was waiting for him. Difficult, but most of all… ungrateful.

Then, he heard steps behind him. Light, oddly slow steps. The boy those steps belonged to would’ve never walked that way, under normal circumstances. ‘But these are not normal circumstances for him neither, after all.’

Gregory didn’t wait for him to talk. Instead, he turned to the hare and said: “Jack, my boy. How are you?”

Jack Turner – or Savage, how he had taken to call himself recently, was small; small his stature, small his experience. And his heart? Judging by the concerned look in his eyes… no, that wasn’t small at all. Yet, not large enough to contain the evil inherent in this world. “I… I don’t really know” Jack answered. “I’m not injured, but… I’m not feeling ok neither. I’m sorry I can’t explain my condition properly, I’ve never been good with words, sir.” The hare shook his head, as if he wanted to hunt down some unpleasant thoughts, and asked instead: “The young vixen. The one I’ve saved… no, I’ve found in the camp. How is she?”

“Physically speaking, she suffered no serious injuries.” Gregory opened the folder he was holding under his arm and flipped through the first pages. Even though he had already read the vixen’s name several times, he found himself struck by it again.

Cynthia Walker. Walker… was quite a meaningful surname, in Gregory’s opinion. Walker, the one who walks. Walks despite adversities, uncertainty and pain. That was the message the word conveyed to him. A wonderful message, indeed. But… what was Cynthia’s opinion in this regard? Would she have been motivated to walk the path her life had taken? That was a question nobody could answer. A question which instinctively invoked fear, because of its unfathomable nature.

“Have you already got a hold of her family?” Jack asked.

“You see…” Gregory started, then turned his gaze to the door beyond which Cynthia Walker was, lying in a hospital bed as comfortable as useless. No litter, as warm and soft as it could be, would have been able to prepare the vixen for the raw truth that was waiting to be revealed to her. “Sadly, it looks like Cynthia Walker has no longer a family to come back to.”

Jack’s eyes widened. “What does that mean, sir? Are they…”

“Dead? No, I don’t think her parents are dead. They just… well, disappeared.”

“Do you mean you can’t contact them?”

“According to our investigation, Cynthia’s parents moved four years ago, and nobody knows where they headed” Gregory explained. “So, at present, Cynthia is orphaned as a result of the disappearance of her household. In other words, the poor creature you brought to us, Jack, doesn’t have a home anymore.”

The hare made a discomforted expression. “That’s terrible” he murmured, then turned to Cynthia’s room and asked, “What will happen to her, then?”

“In cases, such as this, you usually try to put them in an orphanage. However – and now I’m going back to what I was previously saying – although Cynthia’s physical condition is stable, the same cannot be said about her psyche.” Gregory closed the folder and frowned, then added: “If she could have got back to her family, perhaps the situation would have been under control. But this way… it’ll be traumatic for her.” He could already imagine the consequences that a placement to an orphanage would have caused, and his heart ached.

“Aren’t there other alternatives?”

“Finding a family who is willing to take care of her, for example” replied the dog, “in other words, adoption. But even this solution involves risks, not to mention the difficulties in carrying it out quickly.”

Jack wrinkled his nose, obviously intent on some profound elucubration – which was probably something he wasn’t used to do, judging by the painful way he was clenching his jaw.

Gregory kindly laughed at that extreme concentration. “You know, I wonder why I’m telling you these details. After all, you have no right nor permission to know them.” The dog leaned a paw on Jack’s little shoulder and, looking straight into his eyes, inquired: “Do you know why, Jack?”

The hare didn’t seem intimidated by that vis-a-vis. ‘He’s got guts’, Gregory had to admit. ‘I like this kid.’ Jack lowered his eyelids for a moment, then shook his head. “No, sir” he honestly admitted, “I don’t know.”

“Of course you don’t” Gregory agreed, before moving away from him. Jack Turner was nothing, technically speaking. But that night, in that camp, something important had happened; a bond was born, that important bond that is formed between the savior and the one who is saved. Gregory respected that bond. Therefore, in his eyes, Jack had the special privilege to know every detail of Cynthia Walker’s situation, the first creature he had ever placed – consciously or not – under his wing.

… Obviously enough, it was clear as day that not only such a talk wouldn’t have penetrated Jack’s skull – skull which, for the sake of truth, seemed extremely thick – but also, there was a risk that it would have blew his head apart. “Listen, Jack.” Gregory finally spoke; his voice became deeper, and this time the little herbivore showed an even so slight hint of submission. “What I told you about Cynthia’s situation… has to be a secret between me and you. If I found out you intentionally or accidentally divulged them… you can already imagine what would happen in that case, can’t you?”

“… You would prevent me from officially enlisting in the GSD, right”?

“Precisely, my boy. So, you’ll hold your tongue tight.” It wasn’t even a question, but an order. The first order Gregory gave Jack Turner who, in the future, would’ve became one of his best agents. “Understood?”

Jack nodded. There was no hesitation in him, as if he was ready to do so from the very beginning. After all, the mere fact Jack was here meant that he was willing to do this and more; such a light order was nothing but the first step to climb in order to achieve his objective. A trifle not worth wasting even a split second to think about it.

Jack Turner was there because he wanted to become a GSD agent. His belief was as solid as a rock, and Gregory was certain it would have taken him far. Farther than anyone else. ‘Only death could make this guy desist. Death… or love’ the dog thought. Then, a sincere laughter left his mouth. “Very good!” he said, and the heavy atmosphere was swept away in a moment. “I really like you, Jack. I can’t wait to have you among my agents. You’ll have to work extra hard, you know that, don’t you?”

And, for the first time since the day he had met Jack, Gregory saw him smile. “I know that, sir. I can’t wait either” he replied. And in those words, was the very essence of the creature known by the name of Jack Turner… or rather, Jack Savage.

Gregory smiled too. Perhaps, that nickname suited Jack than he had thought, after all.

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The little story you just read happens right after Promise and describes Cynthia’s situation on the family front. Also, it shows a young Jack Savage (Turner!) after his first, unofficial mission. Not exactly the keen&cool Agent Savage we’re used to see.

For the other stories and comics, please visit this page: AoiRemArt comics & stories!

aoiremart:

She was afraid.

I could tell, because the air was filled with a strange vibrancy. Because, as the world around us was screaming, her amber eyes were just fixed on me as if I was the only living thing left on this planet.
Her fur was as spiky as the pine needles, her body tense as if she was about to jump on me, or jump away from me. She probably didn’t know herself what she was supposed to do.
Neither I did, to be honest.

Before I even realized, I was on my knees, one paw still on my gun and the other outstretched toward her trembling body. When she saw me doing that, she growled a bit. I should have been scared, because I was a hare and she was a vixen… yet, I wasn’t.

My mind was full of questions: “Who are you?”, “Are you okay?” were the more important, the more compelling, but even them couldn’t come out from my mouth. I was speechless.

That’s why I smiled; reached again her slender figure with my paw and smiled, as if it was the only thing which could connect the two of us. I’ve never been used to smile, but that’s exactly what I did. At least, what I tried to do.

And then, just then, she spoke with a low, uncertain voice. “Are you my enemy?”

“I’m not” I replied. “What about you?”

“…” The vixen, who had been on all fours up until that moment, got up on her hind legs and stared at me. She was about my height, but since she was furrier than me, she looked bigger. Nonetheless… she was so small, in a way I couldn’t put into words. “Why should I?” she asked, eventually.

And that was it. That was everything I needed to know.

“You’re right” I said, with a smile – but this time, it was bitter and self-conscious. “Come with me; I’ll take you away from this place.”

My words were pretentious; back then, I was only vaguely aware of this fact. Yet, the strength I felt growing inside of me, the resolve which was running through my veins, the simple desire to do the right thing at the right moment… all of these feelings converged into one, single emotion, and in a blink of an eye my gun had flew away, and both my arms were stretched in front of her. “Come with me”, I repeated.

It wasn’t an order, but it wasn’t an invitation either.

It was a promise.

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This is a very important moment in the BJ timeline, as it describes Jack and Cynthia’s first meeting, in not-so-easy circumstances for both of them. I wish I was confident enough to write more… maybe I will, when the sequel will be released. I hope so. 🤷

For the other stories and comics, please visit this page: AoiRemArt comics & stories!