Vinny awoke to an empty bed that morning. Still blinking the sleep from her eyes, she let out a yawn, arms stretched as she sat up slowly. Once her vision had adjusted, she noticed a little note on the pillow at her side.

"Almost done!" it read in neat handwriting. She tilted her head in confusion, climbing out of the bed to retrieve her robe, a little blush coming to her cheeks. She still had to clean it up from last night's excitement.

Hoping the stain wouldn't be noticeable, Vinny slipped it on then made her way out of the room, greeted to a rather warm scent in the air.

She followed her nose towards the living room, sniffing the air lightly.  Her tail curled upwards at the scent, almost in an idle wag.  "Boys…? What's going on?" She asked.

"Oh, good morning mama!" Theodore greeted cheerfully, walking up to her. Vinny nearly stumbled as he wrapped his arms around her in a tight hug, then stepped back. "We really liked breakfast yesterday, so today we're cooking for you!" He looked oh-so proud wearing Vinny's own cooking apron, even if it was a little too big for him. But he still looked ever her precious baby boy.

"Oh? I didn't know Alvin and Simon could cook..." Vinny commented, ruffling his hair playfully. 

"Weeeell… I wouldn't say that." Theodore winced noticeably at the sound of a pan clattering on the floor.

"SIMON! HEEELP!" Rang Alvin's voice.

"Alvin! You're going to burn it!"

Theodore sighed, shaking his head slowly. "They're better with the easier stuff. You, uh… You just go get comfy. I'll take care of this." He says as he makes his way back to the kitchen. Vinny's nose wrinkled a little as the warm scent began to take on a somewhat bitter tinge, sighing softly as she decided to just go to the table. Theodore was capable of handling a kitchen, after all.

*........................*

Despite an almost broken pan, and quite a sticky mess on the floor, breakfast came out smoothly.

Even with Alvin a mess of batter, and Simon having some noticeable stains in his fur and on his clothes.

The breakfast they put together was all too alluring, even if it wasn't the most complex; fresh, warm pancakes stacked on each of their plates, paired with a small mound of blueberries and a few strips of bacon.

Humming to himself, Theodore went around the table, pouring out syrup for everyone. "Well, everyone eat up!" He says as he takes his seat. At his say, breakfast began as usual, quiet, with the occasional off comment.

Alvin, looking over at Vinny, gave a little bit of a wink, trailing his tongue over a slice of pancake to gather up the syrup. He grinned as he got the reaction he wanted, a bright blush showing across Vinny's muzzle. "Sooo, I dunno about you guys." Alvin starts, swallowing his mouthful. "Buuuuut I saw an awesome show last night."

"Must've been something about yourself then." Simon commented with a soft laugh, listening intently. 

"Hmph!  Actually, little brother, what I saw was a lot different." Alvin huffed softly. "As cool as a show about myself would be, and as much as it should definitely exist, I'm afraid that what I actually saw was a cute little documentary. It was about squirrels or something. Did you know that in the spring they-"

"That sounds very, very interesting, Alvin." Vinny interrupted, standing to her feet. "And I'd love to hear the rest of your story later, but we've got another day out before us." A faint blush was almost noticeable on her cheeks, knowing exactly what Alvin was alluding to.

Theodore, unsurprisingly already done with his food, turned to look at her. "Where we going today, mama?" he asked, wiping his face off with a napkin. "Back to the river?"  

Then, Vinny paused. "Uh… Well, let's see…"

"If it helps with the thinking process, Alvin managed to burn up a good amount of the berries." Simon spoke up. "Maybe we can go and collect more?"

"Yes! That'll do!" Vinny says. "Thank you, Simon. I'll get the basket and we can be on our way." With a firm nod of her head, she was gone, disappearing back into her room.

Alvin crossed his arms. "Hmph. Hey Si, do you wanna know what squirrels do?" He asked. 

"Alvin, I already know, and then some." Simon answers, adjusting his glasses as he eats up the last few scraps of food on his plate, making his way back into his room. Once the door closed, Theodore scooted closer to Alvin.

"So… what do squirrels do in the spring?" Theodore asked, making a smile come across Alvin's face.

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"Mmm… It really is a good day for a walk." Vinny sighs softly, pausing in place to hold her arms out, simply basking in the patch of sunlight.

They had taken a different path into the woods, this one leading further towards the southern exit.

The boys had gone a little further ahead, peeking into the various bushes to pick the berries. Each time they had a handful, they returned to her with them to dump them in the basket.

"Hmm… Now that I think about it," said Vinny, "Maybe I'll stop by at Ally's. You know, just to see how she's doing?"

"Ally... that chipmunk girl that keeps an eye on your place when you're out?  Heheh. I don't think I'd mind stopping for a visit." Alvin comments, making his way to her with a pawful of blueberries. 

"And why is that, Alvin?" Vinny asked. "Juuuust saying. What's wrong with visiting an old cutie- I mean! An older friend?" He answered with a little laugh.

Vinny wrinkled her nose a little, but nodded anyway. "Yes… After we get all the berries we need." She says, removing Alvin's cap to ruffle his hair. "You just be on your best behavior, you little Casanova." She tells him. 

"Awwwh, no fun!" Alvin grumbled, crossing his arms.  "What's the matter with a little flirting?"

"Oh please, Alvin, I'm sure you can go one day without flirting with every girl you find cute." Simon chided, giving his older brother a light shove as he puts his own berries into the basket. "Besides, I'm sure Brittany wouldn't be all too happy to find out about it either." 

With a roll of his eyes, Alvin just shoved Simon back. "Oh yeah? And just how would you know, huh? You talk to her when I'm not around?  You gettin' the hots for her, nerd?"

Simon glared at Alvin.  "Behave yourself.  That's the last thing on my mind about her.  You know how I feel about Jeanette anyway."

"Oh!  So now she's not good enough?  Listen here you, I oughta-"

Vinny stepped in between her two bickering sons, resting a paw on both their shoulders. "Boys!  Be nice to each other, will you? We still have a lot of berries to pick and a lot of ground to cover."

Both Alvin and Simon shot each other dirty looks, but nobody said anything. They certainly weren't going to let a petty little argument like that spoil their day. Only Theo seemed to be oblivious about the current situation as he was out of earshot from his brothers, happily picking away at a clump of berries hanging from a branch, swaying his hips to the tune in his head.

"Now then, I don't want to hear you two getting into it again when we get to Ally's. If you can't do that for yourselves, then at least do it for me." Vinny said, arms crossed. "Now hug it out."

"W-WHAT?!" the two of them exclaimed, taking a step back. 

Vinny kept her firm glare. "You two heard me. You're too old to be arguing like that, so now you're going to hug and make it better. Or do I have to have you kiss as well?"

Alvin groaned, but turned to Simon, holding his arms open. "Ugh… Let's get it over with…" he huffs. Simon, just as reluctant, moved forward as he hugged Alvin. Smiling, Vinny patted them both on the head. "Much better. Now keep it that way, okay?"

"Yes, Mom." their answer was low and grumbled. "Now, can we go before- GAH!" Alvin yelped as he fell to the ground. Theodore had saw the two of them hugging, and barreled himself right into them. "Hehe, group hug!" He says, hugging both of his brothers tightly. "Theodore, you're crushing us!" Alvin complained, only to laugh a second later to return the hug. "Ah, whatever, you make it tough to be mad at you."

Shaking her head, Vinny couldn't help smiling. "Come on, you boys. This should be enough to last the rest of the week. Let's go and see Ally, hmm?"

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"I know it's been a long time, Vinny, but this is really something else! Your boys really have grown up like weeds!"

"I know what you mean, Ally." Vinny comments, sitting down on the little stool her friend had offered. "The time's definitely flown by… But I'm glad they're here now." Vinny adjusted the basket in her lap, leaving it in order to gently pat Simon's back, who had sat next to her.

"You don't look too bad yourself." Alvin said to Ally, giving her a playful bump. "Though I do gotta wonder how you're more… different." He says, putting his hands on his hips. "Alvin!  You don't just ask those sorts of things, it's rude!" Simon snapped at him, quickly going quiet as he caught a glare from Vinny.

Defensively, Alvin put a paw to his chest. "Well I didn't mean it in a bad way! I just think she looks kinda hot!" He argued, both arms crossing over his chest now.

The compliment made Ally's cheeks darken with a blush, looking away. Compared to the rest of them, the dark fur that covered her body, and the more animalistic build to her body definitely made her stand out. 

"O-Oh,  aren't you the little charmer!" She paused to laugh a little, brushing down the front of her yellow flowered dress. "Aren't I a little old for you to be thinking that of me?" 

Alvin, smiling for just getting a reaction, just shrugged his shoulders, his usual confident smile coming to his face. "Hey, what can I say?  Mom's pretty hot too, so I don't really mind~" he said, winking at her.

"Alvin!" It was Vinny's turn to blush now, huffing softly under her breath. "A-Ally, I'm sorry, he's been like that for a while." She apologized.  

"Hehe, don't worry, Vin, he's not doing any harm." Ally replies, her tail sweeping over the floor below. "I must admit, though, that it's been a long time since anyone's spoken to me that way." Pausing, she turns to Alvin, crouching down to give him a little kiss on the cheek. "It's cute~. And flattering."

With a casual shrug, Alvin's grin grew a bit as a soft blush covered his cheeks. "Ah, what can I say? I get practice." He says.

"But you still stutter a little when it comes to Brittany." Theodore piped up, having occupied himself by eating up the extra berries beforehand. 

"T-Theo!  Hush, that's a secret!" Alvin squeaked, going over to cover his mouth. "I've n-never stuttered around Brittany! I just get chills sometimes and it does that to my voice!" He insisted, cheeks burning brighter now. His nervous smile faded away as Ally laughed again. 

"You're too much, Alvin. Far too much." She said, then sighed happily. "Oh, it's so nice to see the four of you together again.  I wasn't sure if it'd happen after they left last time."

"I agree... but, now that the boys are older, they're able to visit more often." Vinny said, lightly playing with Simon's hair. 

"Well, we definitely try." Simon spoke, absently leaning closer to her touch, his tail swishing about beneath his sweater.

Alvin, watching the two of them, smirked. Then he went over to Theodore, crouching down and whispering in his ear. Simon frowned as Theodore laughed softly, flashing Alvin a thumbs up. "And just what are you two so giddy about?"

"Relaaax, Si. You'll find out. Maybe." Alvin replied, giving his brother a playful wink. Simon, wrinkling his nose a little, just leaned closer to Vinny, letting out a tired sigh. "At least the quality time is great."

"I know who I'd like to spend some 'quality time' with." Alvin commented quickly, earning a little laugh from Theodore, while both Ally and Vinny went bright red.

"A-Alvin! That is enough, young man!" Vinny snapped, nearly leaping from her seat. "I'd say it's just about time for you boys to bed down anyways." She huffed, making her way to the makeshift door, all three boys in tow. "I'll meet up with you again soon, Aly! Maybe tomorrow?"

Ally only nodded her head in response, waving to them as the door closed.  "Good luck with your handfuls!"

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"Alvin, I can't believe you said that!"

"Oh will you get the stick out of your butt, Si? I was just having a little fun."

Simon rolled his eyes, letting out a hefty groan as he turned away from Alvin, plopping down on the couch next to Theodore and flicking the tv on. "As the eldest of us three, by some unexplainable happening, you could at least try to pretend to be a little more mature." He says.

Tail flicking, Alvin crossed his arms. "Mature, eh? If you only knew what I've done, you'd be calling me the most mature guy ever! Isn't that right, Theo?"

Theodore, instead of answering, simply looked between his brothers, then he stretched and pretended to yawn. "Ohh boy, uh, would ya look at the time! I'll just… Go." He says, hopping off the couch and making a beeline for his room.

"Nice try, Alvin. I'll give you points for effort." Simon said. "Oh shush. Just you wait." Alvin poked his tongue out at him, making Simon just roll his eyes, focusing on the tv screen.