Lisa covered her mouth with her paw and looked away.  She felt like she was going to vomit.

“Geraden,” Arvetis said, his voice low. “We have to go to the police.”

“And tell them what?” Geraden snapped.  “What do we tell that pack of Jackals and Weasels about ‘the stone’, hmm?” Geraden’s voice was low and resonant. “What should we tell them about this ransom? Should we let them inside our warren? Should we let them examine our chapel and measure how far the Touchstone has grown, where its roots lie?”

“For Elyssa,” Arvetis said, his voice low.

“No!” Geraden shouted, and for a moment Lisa thought the bars of the cell rang faintly. The Rabbit’s eyes seemed cloudy – at first, Lisa thought he’d suddenly grown older. His tan fur was graying and eyes were shrouded by cataracts. But then his fur went past grey, into white, and his eyes seemed to reflect the bare cell, like chrome orbs.  Lisa gasped, taking a step backwards.

“Yes!” Arvetis stood, staring at Geraden. Lisa didn’t think he was talking about going to the police anymore.  “Do it!”

“I can’t!  I can’t...” Geraden’s shoulders drooped slowly, like a collapsing building, and he leaned against the desk chair, the golden-tan color returning to his fur. “I can’t,” he panted. “They’re too close.  You’re too close.”

Arvetis sighed, stepping forward and wrapping his arms around the Rabbit. The shine in Geraden’s eyes was entirely gone. “All right.  I’m sorry.  Go lie down, Geraden. The Order has this now, we’ll take care of it.  We’ll get her back, I swear.”

Geraden nodded weakly, looking confused.  He turned and let Arvetis guide him gently to the door, then left.

“Take these to the police,” Arvetis said to Ken as soon as the Rabbit was gone. “If they have questions, send them to me. Lisa, you need to leave. And don’t come back down here.”

Lisa lowered her nose. “All right. I’m sorry, Arvy.”

“Fine,” Arvetis said, nodding.  A little of the flint had gone out of his voice, though. “It’s fine, Lisa. Just stay away, please.”

Lisa left.  Before her legs could give out, she stopped and leaned against the corridor wall outside the cell room, rubbing her temples and trying to hold back tears. She didn’t think she’d lost Arvetis as a friend, but it had been a close thing. And Elyssa… the image of the ragged fur flashed behind her eyelids, and she took in a rasping gasp of panicked breath.  She couldn’t think about that. She had to put that out of her mind – the Order had it under control, and soon the police would know, and they’d get Elyssa back. But Geraden…

He really was Gel-Herathin. He’d almost transformed in front of her, that was apparent. She never believed he was lying in his stories, but seeing it in front of her was so much more real. How were such things even possible? And what had he meant – Arvetis was too close? Too close for what?

Lisa smelled the musky scent of a Fox behind her and turned.  Ken stood in the hallway, looking at her solemnly and holding the envelope. “Hell of a thing,” he said. Lisa noticed that there was a sharp undertone of fear in his scent, and his fur was standing on end.

“Yeah… God, I hope they know what they’re doing.”  Lisa wiped her face and straightened up, trying to make herself presentable.

“Er… he sent me out to make sure you’d actually gone.  Guess the meeting didn’t go as you intended?”

Lisa blushed, smoothing her skirt down with her paws.  “Sorry.  I am leaving, I just had to stop and catch my breath for a moment.”

“I’ll come with.  Don’t worry, I think they do know what they’re doing. They’ll get Elyssa back soon.  Do you know her?” Ken followed behind Lisa as they walked down the stone hallway.

“She’s my friend. She introduced me to Arvy, years ago.  That’s how I ended up here.”

Ken sighed. “I’m really sorry, Lisa.  I wish there was something I could do.”

Lisa took in a breath and let it out slowly. The warren felt suddenly small and confining. She absolutely had to stop thinking about all of this – if only for a little while – or she was going to descend into panic. “How about that coffee? I need to talk to Todd, but then maybe after?”

The Fox’s somber expression brightened a little.  “Sure! I’ll get someone to cover my shift at the door and meet you in the gathering hall?”

Lisa smiled and nodded.  “Oh! Er… you don’t mind if I wear a diaper, do you? Not openly, but under a skirt or something. I know we’re going outside the warren, but I get nervous in public places, and it helps.”

“Don’t mind a bit, love.  I’ll keep mine on so you’ve got company. Meet you in the hall!” He winked at her, then turned and headed back through the hallway door.

Lisa walked up the stairs and through the Chapel.  Her spirits were momentarily lifted by the charming Fox, but then she remembered where Elyssa was, what she must be going through.  She felt guilty for having a casual coffee with a new friend while Elyssa was bound and maybe tortured somewhere, but what could she do? Arvetis and Geraden were doing everything anyone could do about it.  She sighed and shook her head, making her way to the dining hall.

As she expected, Todd was there, just walking out.  He was wearing the cute blue onesie he’d been in the day they’d gotten re-engaged.  Well, right before they’d gotten re-engaged; they’d both been naked when he’d actually asked the question.  She smiled, comforted by the sight of him in the cute outfit.  “Morning, hon.  Late breakfast?”

Todd’s face lit up. “Yeah… I didn’t sleep so great.”  The bandages on his face had been recently changed, and were at least not showing blood through the gauze anymore, but Lisa could tell from the way he winced after smiling that the pain was pretty bad.

“Ken mentioned you had dreams.” Lisa supposed this was the first test of the Fox’s trustworthiness. Would his story check out?

“Oh! You met him? He’s really great; he helped talk me through the dreams after I woke up.”

Lisa nodded, heading down the passage toward her quarters.  “I did. He seems nice. He’s the only Order person I’ve seen in a diaper so far. Um… did you hear about Elyssa?”

Todd’s smile faded. “Yeah, Gerry was in the dining hall when the letter arrived.  He ran off somewhere, I guess to show the police. How did you hear about it?”

“I’ll tell you later.” Lisa wasn’t really sure how much trouble she was in with the Order for her little stunt, or how that would affect Todd. “Walk with me?”

“Er...” Todd rubbed his arm awkwardly, staying put.  “My room’s in the other direction.”

Lisa rolled her eyes. “Come on, you big doofus. I didn’t ban you from my room, I just need some alone time at night. And I want to talk to you.”

Todd hurried up after her, looking a bit relieved. “Okay.  Sorry, I didn’t know.”

Lisa reached down and squeezed his paw with hers.  “How are you doing? Is the Order helping? I mean, I know it’s only been one day.”

“They are! A couple of them stayed with me last night to keep me company. Also, I think, to make sure I wouldn’t… you know.  Slip off to the liquor store. I wouldn’t have, but it was nice to have them there. And...” he blushed, biting his lip.

“What?”

“Well… I’m gonna start seeing a counselor. Today, actually.” He looked down at his feet, no longer meeting her eyes as they stopped in front of her room.

Lisa cocked her head, looking up into Todd’s mask-patterned face. “Therapy?”

“Yeah.  Uh… cognitive something or other.”

“Cognitive-behavioral therapy.”

Todd blinked.  “Yeah! How did you know?”

Lisa paused, holding Todd’s eyes with hers. It would have to come out eventually, and the longer it took, the worse it would be.  She was pretty sure he’d be a bit disturbed that she hadn’t told him for so long. “I go to therapy too. Usually on Fridays, but we spent last Friday underground...”

“Wait, what?” Todd put his paws on her shoulders. “Why are you in therapy?”

“Don’t say it with that tone, it’s nothing to be ashamed of. And it’s for anxiety. I have medicine now, too.”  She lifted his paw off one shoulder and opened the door to her room.

“I’m sorry,” Todd said.  “I didn’t mean… I just didn’t know!  Like, clinical anxiety? Why didn’t you tell me?”

Lisa nodded, padding into the room. “I didn’t know either, until you kicked me out.” Better to get it out there quickly so she could dispel it.

“Jesus, Lisa--”

“It’s not your fault,” Lisa said pointedly, turning to face him again. “You didn’t cause it, you just… exposed it.  That’s why I didn’t tell you, because I knew you’d blame yourself, and I didn’t want that. It’s getting better now because I came here and because I got treatment. Generalized Anxiety Disorder is the second most common chronic condition in Mice after arthritis, and I’d been living with it – badly – before we were even married. You didn’t cause that. Now I’m coping.”

She padded over to the bed and took the package of diapers out from underneath.  Todd quickly noticed the little prescription bottle on the dresser and picked it up, reading it. “Escitalopram?”

“It’s Lexapro. It works.”

“It doesn’t, like, zombify you or anything?”

Lisa arched an eyebrow and fixed him with a look that said really?  “Have I seemed like a zombie to you since you got here?”

“No, I guess not… sorry, this is all just new to me.”

“Anyway,” Lisa continued, “This is all to say that I’m glad you’re getting therapy, and you don’t have to keep talking about it like it’s a prison sentence. Hand me that Muskaway on the dresser?” She slipped her skirt and tee-shirt off.

Todd picked up the little spritz bottle and handed it over. “Are you going out?”

“Ken invited me for coffee,” she said, keeping her voice carefully neutral. “I thought it might be nice to go do something out in civilization.”  She perked her ears, listening for hesitation in Todd’s reply.  If there was any, she wouldn’t go.

“Oh, cool! You should ask him about his time in Thailand. He hasn’t been a member for very long, but they’ve already had him travel all over the place on projects!”

Lisa smiled, spraying herself with the Muskaway under her armpits, then raising her tail and spritzing underneath.  “I will! I’m glad you’re making new friends.” She leaned over and kissed the side of his muzzle, handing the bottle back to him.

Todd frowned as he put it back on the dresser.  “I don’t know why you wear this stuff. Mice aren’t very musky, and I like how you smell.”

“You might. But plenty of Weasels, Wolves, and Cats don’t. I’ve told you before, it provokes aggression. It’s not even conscious a lot of the time – people are just ruder to me the more I smell like Mouse.”

Todd frowned, leaning forward and kissing her nose.  “I’m sorry, hon.  That isn’t right.”

She hopped up onto the bed and grabbed a diaper from the pack. “It’s all right, I understand nobody’s doing it on purpose, and I’m used to it. Help me in?” she held up the folded diaper. “It fits better when you do it.”

Todd took the diaper and smiled despite the pain.

***

“You smell nice,” Ken said when Lisa met him in the gathering hall.  “Perfume?”

“Just Muskaway.”  She smoothed down her skirt, making sure it covered her diaper all the way around.  “And powder. Todd likes to use too much.  Come on, let’s go!” She pushed the large door open and stepped out into the bright Florida sun, shielding her eyes.  “Gosh, they’re really cleaning up out here.”

Most of the rubble had been cleared, leaving bare earth. Several large construction vehicles were parked just off the road, and a few Order members were shoveling debris into a large Dumpster. “Every member is helping out with cleanup duty,” Ken said. “Todd’s going to have his turn this afternoon, after his appointments.”

Lisa frowned, picking her way carefully across a fallen beam.  “I hope he’s careful.”

“He’ll be fine. I’m pretty sure we’re on the same work detail; I’ll make sure he doesn’t blister those soft, skinny paws. Starbucks is this way.”  Ken turned down the sidewalk. Lisa noticed there were still a few news cameras set up pointed at them; she supposed the fire and the exposed warren were still an item, though she hadn’t been paying attention to television or the Internet. 

“It’s been a while since I’ve been outside the warren, not counting the rescue tent.  And that really was just an extension of the warren, wasn’t it?”  She fidgeted nervously with her skirt as they progressed to newer buildings and populated sidewalks. “You think anyone can see my diaper?”

“Not a bit, love. And if they do, I’ll drop trou and distract them with mine!” Ken grinned and winked. “Really, you’re fine.  I promise.”  He held open the door to the coffee shop.

Lisa passed through, blushing and looking around. The shop was crowded, and she could feel the fur on the nape of her neck rising. She took in a deep breath through her nose, catching Ken’s scent. He was already familiar enough to her that the low, musky scent was a little comforting in the ocean of strangers.  She caught movement out of the corner of her eye and realized that some other people were following her in – they passed through as Ken continued to hold the door open. They were a Weasel couple, male and female, chatting squeakily to each other and paying no attention to Lisa as she stepped quickly to the side in order to avoid them.  They proceeded straight to the end of the line, only a few feet in front of Lisa, without even looking at her.

Ken frowned, glancing at the Weasels as he and Lisa got into line behind them. “You get that a lot?” he asked lowly.

Lisa shrugged. “Yeah, I guess. I mostly just ignore it. I don’t even think most people realize they’re being rude.”

When the Weasels got to the front of the line, the man looked up at the menu, as if it had been invisible to him until this point. “Gosh, how many kinds of coffee can you have? What’s a large called here? Amy, why don’t you order first?”

“Oh, I was just going to have some of whatever you got,” the woman said.  She glanced back and gave Lisa an apologetic look as the man squinted up at the menu. He made what he probably thought was a low, thoughtful noise, but to Lisa’s ears it was like the squeak of a tortured balloon.

“You know what you want?” Ken leaned forward and asked Lisa in a whisper.

“Yes, but don’t--”

“Excuse me,” Ken said to the barista, “I think we’re ready to order now.”  He put his paw on Lisa’s shoulder and moved them both forward.  Lisa winced, her ears folded back and her fur standing on end.  She turned her head so she wouldn’t have to see the dirty looks from both of the Weasels.

“Iced… venti.  Caramel,” she squeaked quietly, trying to catch her breath. She felt her bladder release involuntarily, and was glad she had decided to wear the diaper.

“Same,” Ken said, then gently guided her over to the pickup area. “You all right? Don’t worry about those Weasels, they were just being jerks.”

Lisa swallowed despite the dryness in her mouth. “Yeah. Sorry, I don’t deal well with public confrontation.  I guess I’ve been in the warren long enough that I’d forgotten how stressful it can be. I really only leave for therapy and some shopping once in a while.  No more public shows of chivalry at my expense, Fox!”

Ken made an exaggerated frown, taking their coffees and picking out a table near the window. “Fox? Madame, you are mistaken. I am no Fox, I’m a monosune! Still working on earning my second tail.” He wiggled his butt as he took his seat, and Lisa couldn’t help but laugh. “You really should try to get out more, though,” he said, “Especially now that you’re patching things up with Todd – you’ll both want to go out occasionally, I’m sure!”

Lisa nodded as she sat down, shivering as her now-wet diaper squished under her. “That’s what my therapist says, too. It’s just hard. Things that are perfectly normal for everyone else scare me, and I know the people around me aren’t going to understand.”

Ken took her paw in his and squeezed it. “We’re all here to support you.  You and Todd both. I don’t know if you’re aware, but you two are sort of the talk of the town, in the Order. Quite a dramatic couple of weeks you’ve had.  Romantic, too!”

Lisa blushed and hid behind her coffee as she took a sip.  “I suppose it has been. It’s not really all as sudden as it might sound, though. Todd and I never stopped loving each other, even at the worst of it, and I think we both hoped things could be patched up.  The divorce was necessary, though.”

Ken nodded. “Listen, Lisa… there was something I wanted to talk to you about.  Todd and I have similar histories, you could say. My ex-wife wasn’t as understanding as you, though, and I’ve stayed single.”

Lisa frowned. “I’m sorry. It seems like you’ve cleaned up well, if you used to have those kinds of problems.”

“Thank you. And I’m fine – I don’t think I’m really cut out for the married life anyway. But I wanted to warn you about something. Just something that alcoholics who go sober sometimes do.  Something that I did.”

Lisa cocked her head to the side. “What do you mean, Ken?” She sipped her coffee nervously.

“Sometimes, when a relationship is on the line, an alcoholic will go sober with the best of intentions. And they’ll stay sober just long enough for it to become very difficult for the other person to get back out of the relationship.  Then… they just aren’t sober anymore.  Look, I’m not saying Todd will do that, and certainly not on purpose. He seems like a real stand-up guy. But just make absolutely sure before you commit to anything.  Make sure it’s sticking.”

Lisa put down her coffee and wrapped her fingers around her engagement ring, holding her breath so she wouldn’t cry.