"Alvin? Alvin... Oh for goodness sake, AAL-VIIIINN!"

"GAAH!" Eyes bolting open, Alvin leapt out of bed. He glanced wildly around the room, fists up and ready to hit something when he looked to his side, finding the source of the voice. "Simon! Geez, what the heck is your problem?!  You almost gave me a heart attack!"

"Sorry, Alvin. But I have to ask you something. Er… two things." Alvin quickly relaxed as he looked at his brother. Almost immediately, Alvin's surprise faded into annoyance. "Ugghhh… Couldn't you pick a better time to wake me up?" He groaned, slumping back into his pillow.

"First of all, why is Theodore naked in your bed?" Simon asked, gesturing to Theo's still sleeping form. There was a trickle of drool running from the little chipmunk's mouth. His plush rear was sticking up in the air, almost as though he'd fallen asleep crouched on all fours.

"Ehehe… Long story, Si. What's that second question of yours?" Alvin's cheeks burned with a blush as he dismissed the question.

"It's mom. She's not here." Simon's answer was soft with a hint of worry. "I'd say we should go look for her, but… honestly, she's tougher than the three of us combined. So, I thought the three of us could talk until she got back."

"...all the things you coulda answered with, and you choose talking?"

"Alvin, come on.  It won't hurt anyone."

Alvin wrinkled his nose a little, but nodded. "Okay… so what're we gonna talk about?" He asks, climbing off of the bed.

"I'll explain. But first… please put on some underwear." Simon answers with a sigh. "I can only stare at you naked for so long."

"No way, Si! Let me have some fun! My room, my rules."

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

"Alright. So, by now I think we all know of our… nighttime activities with Mom." Simon started. All three boys were in the living room, sitting in a circle. Simon wore his usual day clothes, while Theodore was only in his underwear. Alvin, stubbornly, remained nude.

"Yeah… uh, why do we have to talk about it?" Theodore asks, his belly growling as he gives it a light rub. "I mean, I don't mind but-"

"What's there TO talk about?" Alvin butted in. "We all had our fun, didn't we? As far as I'm concerned, we shouldn't have to feel bad or anything." He says, scratching at his crotch fur a little as he stretches. "I mean… what's the point?"

Simon cleared his throat. "You're right, Alvin. But that isn't why I thought we should have this little meeting." He spoke, looking to his older brother. "Then why, Si? I could be having some awesome dreams about Brittany right now."

"You guys don't think the girls would be mad about this, do you?" Theodore suddenly spoke up, twiddling with his fingers. "I-I really had a good time with mom. But… if Eleanor would be upset, I don't know if this is a good thing…" his comment caused a silence to fill the room.

What if they'd known? What would they think of them? Even Simon sat silent, unable to think of an answer. Theodore suddenly sniffled softly, his paws going to wipe at his eyes. "G-Guys? I don't want Eleanor to not like me!"

"Theodore…" Alvin almost instantly went to his baby brother's side, noticeably trembling as his voice broke a little. "Hey, hey… don't cry, little guy." He says, gently messing up Theodore's hair. "Eleanor's a nice girl. I'm sure if she has a problem with this, she'd forgive you in a heartbeat." He paused, one paw wiping away a tear while the other beckoned Simon. "If anyone would be mad, it'd be Brittany. She'd probably plant a kick in my nuts just from me saying it," he quipped in a joking manner.

Simon hesitated at first, but soon joined in the hug, ignoring his brothers' nakedness. "I… think we should bring this up with mom. Originally, I had planned that we all could have one last round of... fun, with her, but if you two are this worried, then it'd be much better if we just go ahead and try to get our stories straight."

"Hold on, Si." Alvin interrupted. "Mom's really, really loved it when we were with her. I'd say one more go tonight would be a good way to bring it to an end." He spoke, lightly pulling Theodore into his lap. "And we just keep quiet about it. Unless the girls ever, EVER ask us, then we tell them. That way, we aren't exactly lying or anything."

"Alvin, I'm not sure that's our best idea," Simon says, only to silence himself as he noticed the relief on Theodore's face. "Well…I suppose as long as we swear to stay completely honest when or if that time comes." Theodore rested his head against Alvin's shoulder, wiping his face once more. "Do you really think that'd work…? And it wouldn't be lying?"

Simon looked off to the side, but nodded his head. "Yes. Well… as far as I can see, maybe. We just have to swear here and now to tell the truth."

"Pinky swear?" asked Theo. He held up his paw, curling his fingers until his pinky showed.

Alvin smiled. "Yeah, we can do that. Come on, Si. No backing out now, you hear?"

All three of them sat in the circle, their pinkies wrapped around firmly as they smiled slightly at each other. "And should anyone in this circle break our trust, then…" A grin crossed Alvin's face as he spoke. "Anyone who breaks the promise here will have his music career crash and burn faster than Simon's volcano project in science class!" He chuckled, earning glowering looks from his bespectacled brother.

"I believe that was during elementary school, dear brother," said Simon. "Plus, I would've gotten full marks if you hadn't shoved me from the back and caused me to spill in the mixture too soon."

"Yeah yeah, keep telling yourself that.  Food coloring, baking soda, and vinegar must be tooough to put together." Alvin teased, waving his paw. 

"It wasn't those two!  What I was using for the reaction was-"

"Buuuuut now I think we got to discuss the other important thing. Where's Mom?" Alvin interrupted

"I think we might have to go look for her. She couldn't have gone far, right?" Theodore asks, his tail swaying slowly against the floor.

"Maybe… Who knows?" Alvin shrugged his shoulders. "But we just happen to be in a forest, right in the middle of nowhere. So, who should we call? Smokey the Bear?"

Simon sighed, rolling his eyes as he shook his head. "Now that I think about it… maybe mom's gone back to the stream?" He says, thinking out loud. "I know we were just there, but who's to say she didn't want some time to herself?" He slowly stood up to his feet, nodding firmly. "Yes, I'm quite sure that's where she'd be. Who's coming?"

"I am!" His brothers answered.

A grumbling noise interrupted them. Theodore blushed, smiling sheepishly as he held his belly. "Uh… after breakfast?"

_________________________________________________

Vinny hummed softly to herself as she made her way down the path to her home. A nice walk and some fresh morning air to start off the day did wonders, after all. She hadn't walked to the far end of the forest in a while, but it was nice to visit the animals there.  'Hopefully the boys weren't too worried…' she mumbles to herself as her house came into view. "They'll be fine, Vinny.  It's just one morning, what's there to..." She paused, though, her tail bushing up as she listened.  Who was coming?

"I should have known she wasn't there! We took too long eating!"

"I-I'm sorry! I was hungry!"

"Theodore you're ALWAYS hungry!"

She sighed with relief, putting a paw to her chest. Their voices came from somewhere on the right. Perhaps they had the same idea as her?  Vinny made it to the porch first, sitting down on the top stair as she waited. When her boys emerged, though, she couldn't help blushing a little.

Simon's clothes were tucked under his arm, bundled up and dripping with water. Theodore was wearing his undies on his head, and Alvin was parading about, still in his birthday suit. "I guess I'm not the only one who left out this morning." Vinny commented as soon as they were close enough to hear. 

"Mama! We were looking for you!" Theodore squeaked as he spotted her, quickly running up to her side and throwing his arms around her, hugging her tightly. His fur was still damp, even dripping in some spots.

"Oh, sweetie, I only went for a walk." Vinny smiled as she returned the hug. "These old bones aren't exactly what they used to be, so I may as well keep 'em working." She spoke, ruffling his hair.

"Hey, Mom? We… we need to talk." Simon piped up as he sat her side.

"Is that so, dear? What about?" She snuggled up closer to Simon, although she also couldn't resist bringing Alvin and Theo into the fold.

The chipmunks sat around their mother, who waited patiently to hear what her boys had to say.

__________________________________________________

"And… that's pretty much it."

Vinny looked down at her feet, taking a moment to process all he had said. "Well… gosh, I never meant to make you boys feel that way…" she says softly. "I-I just wanted you to be ready when the time comes…"

Theodore moved closer to her, resting his head on her shoulder. "We just… wanted to know if all of this is okay. We love you, lots and lots! But… we really like the girls too."

"And our biggest question was if we should stay quiet or not." Alvin added. "We agreed earlier to tell the truth whenever the question comes up."

Vinny nods her head, clearing her throat as she sits up straight. "Well... given our current situation, I would say that that's our best plan of action for now." She speaks. "But if that is all you're worried for, then you can rest easy. It's our last day together after all…" Vinny lowered her voice, her tail hanging low as she crossed her paws in front of her. "So, uh… I-I'm not completely sure how we can spend it. But I hope we can have a good time either way." She forced herself to say, quickly getting up, turning around, and heading for the door.

"Wait!" Alvin reached out, grabbing hold of her tail and tugging on it. When she stopped, he got to his feet, hugging her tightly from behind. "We… Also had an idea. If we're not gonna see each other for some time, we figured that we can make one last good memory."

Sighing, Vinny reaches back to pat his head. "Okay, okay… So what's your big plan?" She asks, wiggling out of his hold. Alvin grinned at her, then looked back at his brothers. "Oh, trust us, mom. This is gonna be a reaaaal good time for us all." He says, his tail swishing side to side. "How's about we all go inside and… have a little chat?"

Alvin glanced back again, this time gesturing to his brothers as he led the way inside.