True Friendship by Pent Ghelsburg
Disclaimer: The characters depicted in this work are purely fictional. Any resemblance to people alive or dead is purely a coincidence. They are the original and rightful intellectual property of their creators. Some of them are depicted as underage. I use them with permission and respect. You have been warned.
“Be to yourself as you
would to a friend.”
-William Shakespeare
True friendship is one of the things in life that can often seem elusive. It can often seem like you go through more friends than you keep. But when you find one that is worth keeping, it is in these moments that true friendship can shine. However, it is not as easy as just sorting through people as we all have different requirements for our companionship. It is in this search that we can often find our true selves as well as buddies that could last one's entire life.
Jakk was a young boy who lived around the outskirts of Montreal. At 11 years of age, the cub lived with his parents and brother right along the shores of the Lake of Two mountains. He had lived there about a year, after having relocated from closer to the Great Lakes. The area was much more well known for it's close-knit community. The family of four lived among the Burrows, a gated in community for furs in the region.
Jakk was a chip off the old block of his father. The cub had your typical brown hue of fur, bushy tail, and buck teeth to boot. His brother, Lucas, was a Jackelope and took after his mother. Their parents worked in the city itself, assigned to very different lots in life. The woman was a journalist for CBC while her husband worked as an executive for Tim Hortons. The two had been married for 15 years now and lived quite happily together.
In the first year since they had lived there, he had yet to make that many friends. You see the boy was quite shy and had grown used to his old home. His parents were hesitant to move him but they heard about the better schools in the Laurentide region of Canada. They had even gone as far to enroll him in a public school, which was the first time he'd attended one in his young life.
The boy's parents figured he needed more of an opportunity to socialize. The private school he came from was both small and didn't have that many boys around his own age. In fact, most other male cubs he had ever had in one year was a mere quarter of the wholes class population. The reason being is the institution used to be girls-only and not many people had moved away from that distinction.
In reality, Jakk had found it hard to transition into the school. While he still did decently academically, he had yet to really fit in. But one day that all changed. His parents were growing discontent with his situation. Each and every day the cub came home with a frown. Often he complained about being lonely and sometimes he mourned for his old school back. After several months of this, they finally decided to do something about it.
One day they planned to go in, while Jakk was on the bus home. The idea was to formulate a plan of action without him knowing so that it seemed natural as possible to the cub. They met with the school counselor to informed her of their issue.
“So how can I help you?” A red-furred baboon swiveled around in her leather chair.
The father showed his wife to a chair and joined right next to her. “Well, our son is having difficulties making friends and we were hoping you could help us out.”
“Well, that is problematic. Perhaps we can arrange a buddy of sorts to make him feel more at home?” The primate woman tilted back on her chair crossing her hands in her laps.
The boy's mother warmed up to the suggestion showing a slight smile. “That would be fantastic. Hopefully a boy? He's still sort of in the whole cootie stage...”
“I'll see what I can do. Are there any other concerns right now?” The tapped her fingers together giving off a domino effect.
The father shook his head. “No, thank you very much. We will keep you updated. Thank you for seeing us on such short notice.”
The rabbit's parents left the room with a smile. They were glad they didn't have to do this for Lucas who had always been a more social kid than his brother even despite his age. Now all that was left was to wait and see what happened.
The next day Jakk awoke to the alarm as he always did. Rising out of bed was always a trying task for him. He yawned and stretched before sluggishly getting out of bed. Sunlight crept into the room through the cracks in the blinds blocking the window. The cub made his way to take a quick shower in order to wake up. The bunny stuck his hand in the stall to turn on the water and wait for it to warm up before stepping inside.
Eventually steam rose and he stripped so that he could enjoy a quick rise off. His morning shower wasn't nearly as long as his nighttime one. It was more about waking up than anything else and took only a few minutes to rouse himself. After he felt refreshed he dried off and got into his school clothes for the day. Deciding on a simple graphic t-shirt and some jean shorts but keeping on the same underwear he slept in.
Once he was done with that, he padded into the kitchen and stuffed his face with some fruit and then followed with some sausage links that were left on a plate for him. Like most other rabbits, he wasn't a vegetarian and he had grown up with a taste for meat. Jakk found the food to be quite tasty and looked around his house to see if he could thank his parents. They were nowhere to be found so he decided the issue could wait until later.
He grabbed his back and headed for the bus. It usually wasn't long before the transport arrived and today was no different. In fact, he only had to wait a few minutes before the old cheese wagon arrived. Jakk got on the bus and made his way into the vehicle fully expecting to sit alone like he always did. Surprisingly he saw another cub waving him down, what looked to be a white fox boy. One that he hadn't recalled seeing before.
Jakk hesitated but saw that no other seats were completely vacant, so he decided to go ahead and take the offer. Slowly he saw down next to the other cub who was bigger than himself.
“Hiya, My name is Pent. What's yours?” The boy smiled warmly at the rabbit.
The smaller cub twiddled his fingers nervously. “Uh...Jakk?”
“Ya don't need to be nervous ya know? I'm not gonna bite ya...or maybe I will?” The fox leaned in and stuck his tongue out playfully.
Jakk rolled his eyes. “Whatever...just leave me alone.”
“Oh psah...don't be such a Negative Nellie.” The bigger boy nudged himself against the other.
The bunny eyed the other cub awkwardly. “What's into you?”
“I'm just trying to be friendly. Don't you wanna be friends?” Pent eased off in an attempt to not be so direct.
Jakk blushed. “Oh...you want to be my friend? Okay! Yeah sure.”
“Cool. What'cha got planned after school today?” The kit threw his arm over the other boy to put him more at ease.
The rabbit scratched his head. “I don't know. Why?”
“Cause I'm going to do an experiment in the lab after school. Wanna come?” The vulpine's smirk seemed to grow wider on his face.
Jakk shrugged. “Sure, why not? As long as I don't miss the bus it's fine.”
“Well, I have to take the bus too so it should be fine.” Pent pulled his arm off the other boy and sat back in a more relaxed fashion.
The two continued sharing some small talk during the bus ride. Neither sharing much in common with the other but neither seeming to mind. When the bus ride was over, the two continued their friendly chatter until they were in the schoolyard.
“See ya after class then?” Pent waved too the cub before making his way to the entrance.
Jakk smiled and went about his day like normal, mostly keeping to himself but thinking about what kind of experiment Pent had in mind. Even paying extra attention to science, though the content sometimes went over his head. When it was lunchtime, he couldn't help but look around. After all he saw the fox enter the same building so he could only assume his new friend had to be around somewhere.
Sure enough, eventually, he saw the fox walking around. Jakk waved him over into the line where the rabbit was waiting to get some food. Pent saw his new friend and walked right over to where he was. The two filing to the back of the line in order to avoid any potential drama of skipping. Once again they started small talk about their day. But soon it shifted to the topic that had been on Jakk's mind since they parted earlier that morning.
“So what is it you have planned this afternoon anyways. It's been bugging me all day.” The rabbit shuffled his shoes on the tile floor beneath them.
Pent tapped the other boy's head with his finger. “Inquiring minds want to know, eh?”
“Yes, please...” Jakk had a starry look in his eyes.
The fox hummed. “Well, I suppose a teaser is in order then. It's a project I've been working on for a while.
“And...that is?” The rabbit frowned as he knew he was being led like a horse to water.
The bigger cub circled his finger around the other boy's head fur. “It's a slime gun.”
“That's...it? What's so great about that?” Jakk stopped in his tracks having expected something grander.
The kit rolled his eyes waving his finger back and forth. “Just wait and see. I promise you'll get a show you won't soon forget.”
Jakk decided to drop the issue since it was apparent that the other boy was teasing him. He huffed and continued his way through the line. Eventually, they were both served food. They didn't get much choice in food, either Salisbury bacon or garden greens. Once they got their food, the two friends made their way to the cafeteria where the majority of the kids congregated for lunch. But Pent continued onward and pressed through, out the back door to the dining area outside.
Pent eventually found a solitary table near the glass doors. Outside it was warm out and the sun blazed from above. Jakk was surprised the other cub didn't congregate with other cubs. What he didn't know is that the fox was just as solitary as he was. The bunny found himself more comfortable suddenly, glad that there weren't as many people around. The fox put his lunch tray down and went to a nearby shrub seeming to be examining it.
“What are you doing? Shouldn't you be eating?” The smaller cub's stomach was rumbling quite audibly.
Pent held a finger up to his mouth. “Hush...”
He leaned over and looked closely at a leaf before picking something from it. Soon he returned to the table and opened his paw flat on the table. Sure enough, a black and orange beetle crawled from within.
“Is it dangerous?” Jakk gasped as he was surprised by the other cub's actions.
The fox shook his head. “Nope and even if it was, you could do certain things to avoid being bitten.”
“Like?” The rabbit scratched his head as if he was confused.
Pent cupped his hands and allowed the bug to move into it. “Like letting the bug make the choice to move on its own, rather than just picking it up.
“I see.” The smaller boy cocked his head to the side as he watched the other cub return the big to the leaf.
Once Pent was done watching the beetle move back onto the leaf, he made his way back to the table. Jakk thought it the other cub's interest in entomology to be weird.
The fox soon joined him back at the table and finally began eating his food. Jakk hadn't eaten much of his food yet as he was much to busy watching pent. But they were able to finish their food without much delay. After all the time allotted for lunch wasn't a lot and the two of them knew that. Not much was said between them as they shared a few moments of awkward silence. Only when the bell rang did they finally pipe up again.
Pent waved to the smaller boy. “See ya after school alright? Meet me by the lab?”
“Which one?” Jakk scratched his chin, thinking about it a moment.
The fox shook his head. “The main one where the upperclassmen study.”
“Alright...” The rabbit made his way back indoors and exited the cafeteria once he threw away his garbage.
Jakk went about the rest of his day like normal. His day ended with math and his elective, which was art. Art had always been his favorite class. Coincidentally enough today was watercoloring today, so he tried his best to recreate the beetle he had seen earlier. He wondered if Pent would like it and worked extra hard to finish it off. But watercolors took too long to dry and he wasn't able to take it with him when the bell rang. Instead, he would allow it to dry and then show it to the fox once they finished up in the lab.
The rabbit pinned up his painting on the ropes to dry. Now he was ready to leave and head to where Pent was. Though he still wasn't sure where the lab was so he decided to ask the teacher before he left.
“Hey, where is the upperclassmen's lab?” The cub stood in front of the woman's desk.
The old weasel craned her neck up at him. “Down the west hall. You know you're not allowed down there. Right?”
“No...I didn't” Jakk frowned at the thought of not seeing Pent again.
The woman shook her finger. “Don't even think about it. Clear?”
“Yes...ma'am. Thanks...” The bunny made his way out of the classroom.
Sure enough, when he exited the fox kit was waiting for him. Pent had heard the entire conversation and could see the woman's warning was bothered him.
Pent leaned in and put his arm over the smaller cubs' shoulder. “Relax, I have permission. You're not going to get in trouble.”
“You do? But you're not that much older than me. How do you have permission?”
The fox's tail wagged slowly behind him. “I know some of the upperclassmen's Science teachers. They said it was fine as long as they were there and today Mr. Laika will be there for an hour doing some grading.”
“Oh, okay.” Jakk eased up a little and began walking side by side with the bigger cub.
The two headed down the hall together. Most of the other kids were filing down in the opposite direction of them. Jakk and Pent avoided the crush of people by keeping to the sides. As they went further down the halls, the people got older and bigger. They knew they had to be in the upperclassmen portion of the building. Eventually, they reached the end of the hall, which had a black and white sign that indicated these were the science classrooms.
They went inside and sure enough, a young Squirrel man was sitting at his desk typing away. He peered over his screen once he heard the door open.
“Hiya, Pento. Make sure to not make a mess. I trust you don't need help?” The man's voice bellowed and carried through the poor acoustics of the room.
The fox headed over to the desk. “Nope. We're good. I'll clean up after we're done.”
“Very well. You have an hour. After that, I need to leave.” The rodent returned to typing away quite audibly.
The bigger cub led over to where there was some equipment stationed. A fume hood, some bunsen burners, and glassware among other things. Pent donned a nearby lab coat and handed one to Jakk who put it on without delay.
The rabbit held his arms up as the coat was much too big for him. Pent's was no different but he seemed rather used to the feeling of baggy clothes. Pent opened a drawer and from within it he pulled out what seemed to be a squirt gun. Jakk looked at it, it seemed simple enough but there was a metallic look to it.
Jakk reached out to touch it. “It just looks like a squirt gun.”
“Looks aren't everything. Paws up!” The fox pointed the weapon right at his friend.
The rabbit held his arms up in the air as if he were being held, hostage. “Don't shoot.”
“Don't even think about it. Take that outside, Pento.” The man spied their shenanigans out of the corner of his eye.
“Sorry, Mr. Laika. Come on, let's go outside!” Pent dragged the rabbit out of the classroom and back into the halls.
The weasel giggled, glad to see Pent had finally made a friend. The kit led to the doors that led to the front of the school.
Outside, many kids were still around. It hadn't been long and most likely only the first run of bus riders had left. This meant they didn't have much longer. Pent pointed the gun at his friend once again who ran away as quickly as possible. He couldn't go as fast as he normally was since he had his backpack on. The fox was athletic and able to keep up his usual speed, even facing the same issue as the smaller boy.
It didn't take long before Pent was able to catch up, squeezing the trigger and scoring a blow on the cub. The slime shot out from the tip and jetted towards him. Within moments it exploded all over his shirt. The neon green liquid poured over him and made quite the mess.
“No fair...I didn't get a gun too.” Jakk stomped his foot and pouted.
Pent handed over the gun. “Here, go for it. Give it a shot.”
“Really? Okay, cool.” The rabbit took the gun and ran one of his fingers over it.
The material was slick and smooth despite looking like a plastic toy. It's seemed more made out of metal than anything else.
Jakk pointed the gun and tried to pull the trigger but his hand wouldn't let him. It just didn't feel the same.
The cub put the gun to his side. “Can you at least run? It's no fun with you just standing there.”
Pent nodded and started running around, wailing his arms around. Some nearby kids looked at him awkwardly but Jakk couldn't help but smile. He could tell Pent was toying with him and not running as quickly as he could but it didn't seem to matter to him since all he wanted was payback. Soon Pent was cornered against the wall and the rabbit squirted him all over.
“Hehe, feel better now?” Pent shook his body and some of the slime flew off him.
Jakk nodded. “Uhuh. That was fun. Thanks.” He handed the gun back to the other boy.
It wasn't long before the bus arrived, that they both had to take. Pent figured he should take the project home since time wasn't a luxury he had at the moment. They made their way to the bus with the fox putting the gun away as to not arouse any suspicion. Making their way to the same seat as they had shared earlier in the morning. Jakk filed next to the window with his friend right next to him on the aisle. They waited until the bus got back on his way.
The two continued small talk on their way home. Jakk even going as far as to invite Pent over for the weekend. The fox promising to ask his brother if he could come over and that he would let him know the following day. When they arrived at the foxes stop, Pent stopped and dug his paw into his bag and pulled out the gun.
“Here ya go. You seemed to like it so much, it's yours now.” The fox waited until it was taken from him.
The rabbit looked up with a smile. “Thanks. I appreciate it.”
“No problem. See you tomorrow.” Pent waved and made his way out of the bus.
Jakk smiled and put the gun away. It had been the first good day he'd ever had at the school and he couldn't wait to tell his parents about it.
When he arrived home, he could see his mother's car in the front parking spot. Jakk rushed off the bus and found the door open. Surprisingly the woman was waiting for him. He proceeded to share his day with her. She was glad that he had finally made a friend. The two shared a hug, the boy had no idea of her part in the change. But what neither of them knew was that Pent had never been approached about the issue.
In fact, the fox had befriended Jakk on his own volition. But the mother didn't need to know that as she was glad to have more influence on his life than she otherwise thought. Regardless it was the thought that mattered. The two sharing his experience with her husband, who was equally glad for him. The boy showed off his new toy, his parents seeming impressed with the other cub's ingenuity. Jakk already looking forward to the next day at school, wondering what other things he could share with his friend in the future.
