Book 1 --- Small Beginnings
Chapter1 --- Town of Harvey
(Felix makes a new friend.)

Felix had never needed an alarm to wake up in the morning.

His wake-up call came in the form of sunlight peeking through the blinds. At roughly six, the light reached a particular angle and brightness strong enough to stir him from his slumber. The young tomcat blinked clingy sleep from emerald eyes and greeted the early morning for the first time since May. The moment Mom turned on the radio at 6:30, Felix was up.

He slipped out of bed and maneuvered past the scattered books and clothing items on the floor--- lingering remnants of the summer '56 now gone. August was upon him now; it was time to return to school. Less time reading fantasy and science fiction magazines, more time studying. Less time playing casual baseball with the neighborhood kids, more time playing serious football with the team.

Well. As serious as playing football with those goons could be. He sighed, already bracing himself for their high-energy, loud-mouthed, trash-talking, back-slapping ways.

After he'd thrown on an undershirt, some khakis, and his nicest dark blue cardigan, Felix spent a good fifteen minutes in the bathroom, priming his fur and fixing his frizzy black bedhead with some grease and a comb.

Once he'd tossed on his green-and-white letter jacket, Felix hurried downstairs. Mom was in the kitchen, cooking breakfast. The fox turned and smiled at him cheerily, the tip of her cottony white tail curling. "Good morning, Felix! Go ahead and sit down; I'll have this ready in about five minutes." She knew Felix would rather be in bed at this hour, but she always made it as easy as possible for him to get up and get moving; food was a big part of that. A good breakfast went a long way, and if he lingered in bed for too long, he'd have precious little time to enjoy it.

Felix took his usual seat at the table, quickly glancing at the lonesome two slices of toast and glass of orange juice already there. He cast a long look toward the empty seat across from him. He sighed, ears tilting back slightly. "So... I'm gonna guess Dad's already at the school."

"Of course," Mom answered. "He left out at 5:30. He wanted to get there extra early to get everything ready for class--- you know how your father is."

"Yeah... I know." Felix rested his cheek in his paw pad, stung by a twinge of disappointment. "I was hopin' he'd give me a ride this morning."

"Not unless you got up at four."

Felix shook his head. "That wasn't gonna happen," he said with a bitter purr.

Mom sighed sympathetically and left the stove to set a comforting paw on her son's shoulder. "Look on the bright side, Felix. You're in his English class this year! You'll get to see him plenty today." She patted his shoulder and returned to the skillet.

Felix half-smiled, somewhat encouraged. While Dad had been teaching at Harvey High ages before Felix's freshman year, Felix had barely interacted with his father during his attendance there. But Dad taught the 11th Grade English class--- and Felix had just become a junior. While a classroom was not a setting where they could interact as father and son, Felix looked forward to the fifty minutes he'd spend with Dad during the school day.

"Oh, look at the time! It's 7:10 already; you may have to eat fast." Mom turned off the stove and grabbed an empty plate from the cupboard. She quickly scooped up what she'd been frying and tossed it onto the plate, then set the breakfast down in front of Felix--- two eggs sunny-side up and a pile of bacon.

Felix gazed down at the food, eyebrows raised. "This is a lot of food for a school morning," he remarked. He grabbed a piece of toast and layered a few slices of bacon onto it.

"You'll need that protein when it comes time for practice," said Mom. She set a paw on her hip, one snowy ear tilted back. "And since when do you complain that your breakfast's too big?"

Felix topped his breakfast toast with one of the eggs and picked it up with a flick of his tail. "Who said I was complainin'?" He took a bite.

Felix finished his breakfast at 7:23. He jogged up to his room, scooped up his backpack, and hurried back downstairs; maybe he'd get out a little earlier today! He'd just rushed past the kitchen when Mom called his name.

"Felix? Get back in here a minute!"

Felix backed up, wondering what she could want.

Mom pointed one claw at the dishes on the table. "I'm not putting them in the sink for you."

Felix chuckled out a sigh and hurried back to the table. "Sorry, Mom." He scooped up the plates and glass, placed them in the sink, then backed out of the kitchen with a lopsided smile on his face. "Slipped my mind."

Mom trailed him, tail swooshing the floor. "That's not the only clean-up job that's 'slipped your mind', kiddo. I've been telling you to pick up your floor since summer started and you haven't done it yet!"

Felix breathed a chuckle. "I'll get to it, Mom. Don't worry! I've gotta swap it out for my school stuff anyway."

She counted off on her fingers. "So there's going to be a bunch of football gear lying around instead of baseball, schoolbooks instead of pulp magazines..."

Felix grinned teasingly. "You got it!"

Mom nudged Felix forward by the shoulder, walking him in the direction of the front door. "Oh, get to school already," she scolded with a yip.

Felix hurried for the door, his mom still close behind. He raised both hands in surrender, still grinning. "OK! I'm on my way out."

He turned the knob and looked back over his shoulder just in time to see Mom shake her head, smiling. "I can't wait for you to finally meet a girl you like and marry her... but I worry for her," she laughed.

Felix chuckled, despite the uncomfortable prickling on the back of his neck. "Yeah," he halfheartedly agreed, still wearing a lingering, now-tainted smile. "Bye, Mom." He blew her a quick kiss and headed out.

---

A block's ride down the sidewalk on his bike, and there it was--- good old Harvey. It was Felix's hometown, so familiar. There was nothing terribly distinct about it; nothing more exciting than high school sports and backyard cookouts ever happened here. Skirted around the town were the houses, some suburban, others uptown. Outside the residential areas, there were shops and other businesses--- many kinds of business, including entertainment venues.

On its own, near the end of the business strip, stood the church house, easily one of the oldest structures in town. Most of the residents from Felix's neighborhood attended every Sunday, or every other Sunday. Felix's own family attended there, despite the occasional skeptical looks from some of the congregation's oldest, thanks to his mom's species. But the pastor and the rest of Harvey's First Baptist accepted his mixed parentage with grace.

Across from the church house was the park, where many a church picnic had been held. Felix had spent much of his time there as a young kitten, running and playing games and sports with the other kids on warm summer weekends, and sledding down the big hill behind the playground over Christmas break.

On the other side of the park, then around half a block from it, stood Harvey High School. Small town that is was, Harvey's high school had a sizable campus, complete with a cafeteria, library, gymnasium, and a large field which served both the track and football teams. It was a good school with good teachers and a decent sports effort, with an even split between good kids and kids who were just plain horrible.

Felix parked his bike at the rack, pulled his backpack forward by the straps, and trudged onward through the front doors. On his way through the halls, a couple of his teammates greeted him with a high five. Felix smiled and returned the favor, promising to see them at football practice later. Further down the hall, a fellow junior, a caribou by the name of Leo Horne, greeted Felix with a big smile. His boyish face, youthful enough to make him look like a freshman, meshed awkwardly with his tall, knobbly stature.

"Felix! Great to see you, my friend!" He pushed his glasses up his nose. "Hey, are you planning on joining the Chess Club again this year?"

Felix shook his head. "Nah. I like to try something different every year." That was mostly true. Chess Club had been fun, and Felix's clubmates knew he was a competent and intelligent player, but he'd never fit in there--- not really. And until he found a place where he belonged, he'd keep switching his elective. He continued the journey toward his locker, keeping his classmate in sight.

"Well, we're always open for you to come back," said Leo, following. "You could show some of the new kids how it's done! And if not... what club did you have in mind this year?"

Felix shrugged. "I haven't really thought about it. I'll see what they have available this year. I don't know if anyone's gotten around to starting a science fiction club..."

Leo chuckled. "And to think it took me three weeks to convince you to start reading the magazines. If I wasn't captain of the Chess Club I'd go to a science fiction club myself."

Felix smirked. "Don't you mean king of the Chess Club, Leo?" He thumped his gangly classmate's shoulder.

Leo burst into a laugh. "Ah... classic Felix. I'm gonna miss you crackin' me up." He broke away and clopped down the adjacent hall, waving. "See you at the rally!"

Felix gave him a two-fingered salute and continued on his way. The second he arrived at his new assigned locker, he caught two girls, a fox and a turtle, looking at him. The younger of the two, the turtle, he didn't recognize. The fox he did recognize waved. "Hi, Felix! Welcome back!"

Felix politely half-smiled and waved back, then opened up his locker. He crouched down and opened up his backpack to begin unloading his supplies; quickly--- he could organize everything later.

"He seems nice," whispered the shy turtle.

"Oh, he is," the fox answered. "Felix is like, the school dreamboat. Everyone's had a crush on him, but no-one's been lucky enough to be his girlfriend."

The uncomfortable pricking at the base of his neck returned. Felix rubbed it. Of course... his least favorite part about school--- all the talking the girls did about him. Most guys would have jumped at the chance to be considered the "dreamboat" that all the girls wanted, but Felix was not that sort of person. Truth be told, he was tired of each and every girl in the school staring at him like a choice steak.

Not to mention turning every new crush confession down became more and more awkward for him each time. It wasn't like he could tell them the reason why he rejected girl after girl. The standard "You're a nice girl, I'm just not interested" had become stale ages ago. He hoped and prayed every day that nobody would grill him on it--- not that he was close enough to anyone here to get grilled.

Casual friends, he had in spades. As for close friends, confidants... he had none.

Felix shut his locker and backed against it with a sigh, folding his arms. Despite his popularity, Felix often felt like the odd one out at school. He knew he was different, and there was no social class he truly matched. Preps treated him like a nerdy prep, and nerds treated him like a preppy nerd. So he liked books and sports. He was friendly and well-liked, but spent his free time alone. He was a class all his own--- and halfway through high school, the loneliness of that situation had already set in.

His parentage set him apart in an entirely different way. Hearing the way some of his meaner classmates talked about foxes was... irritating, at best. Insulting at worst. They didn't do it that often, but it was enough to make Felix kind of glad he took after his dad's species--- that he was a cat and not an arctic fox. It ensured that he slid under their radar, for the most part.

Not that Felix was afraid of bullies. He was one of the school's top athletes, for Pete's sake. He just hated that they felt the need to point and laugh about people they didn't know. As if everybody of a particular class or species could all fit in the same box. People were more complicated than that, and if those kids were too stupid to see that, Felix wasn't going to waste his breath correcting them.

This was the same group of clowns he now found hounding a new girl, a hyena--- his age, indigo-furred, well-composed, with a silky deep blue scarf tied through her long raven-black hair. They started crowding around, attempting to provoke her. One yellow tabby kept ducking in front of her, hunching his shoulders and mockingly drawing up the corners of his mouth with his fingers to make it look bigger. Felix admired the way she stood her ground and marched right past the fools, sparing them the pleasure of her attention. A purr burst from his chest. Cool.

After the group had given up and run off guffawing, the girl sighed to herself and opened her locker, shaking her head. Felix strolled up beside her and leaned into the lockers, propped by his elbow. She glanced at him, curious but skeptical, brushing a single loose strand of hair from her face. Felix smiled politely. "Hey. I'm Felix. What's your name?"

Her lip twitched. "It's Sarah."

"Sarah, huh?" Felix brought on his most friendly, charming smile. "Well, you do carry yourself like a princess. Great scarf."

"Oh... thanks." She seemed surprised, but not displeased. She raised an eyebrow. "Hold on. Are you... flirting with me?"

Oh... oh yeah that probably did seem like flirting. Woops. Felix jumped back from the locker, paws up. "No... no, I wasn't flirting. It's just... the name "Sarah" means "princess". Trust me, I'm not the type to flirt with someone I've just met."

Sarah relaxed, her shoulders falling. "Good, cause I'm really not interested in having a boyfriend..." She grabbed her history book and smiled teasingly. "At least, not yet."

Felix chuckled. "Well, I'm not looking for a girlfriend. So... friends?" He held out his paw.

Her smile burst into a big grin. "Friends." She shook his paw firmly.

The pair walked together down to the auditorium for the opening rally. Felix slipped his paws down his pockets. "So, Sarah. What brings you to Harvey?"

"My dad brought me here. We left the city, and since he really wanted to live in a small town somewhere, we ended up here."

"Do you like it so far?"

"It's... nice." Sarah smiled. "I was nervous at first. Things have been great so far, actually... but after this morning, I'm getting worried again." Her smile fell.

"Don't be." Felix smiled back. "You dealt with those guys really well."

"I'm used to their type," Sarah sighed. "My city school was full of them. I just thought maybe things would be better here."

"Hey, I grew up here," said Felix. "Most people here aren't like those jerks."

"Well... that's good to hear." Her smile returned. "What about you, Felix? Tell me about yourself."

"Uh..." Unprepared for the question, Felix ducked his gaze aside. "Well... I play football. I read a lot of books and magazines." He rubbed the back of his neck, looking her in the eye again.

She raised an eyebrow, still beaming. "Neato. I read a lot too. I like to draw. And I listen to a lot of music. In fact, I used to play drums with a band before I moved."

Felix chuckled, admiring this girl more and more the longer they talked. "Wow. Now that is cool."

Sarah nudged his shoulder with her fist, brown eyes sparkling. "Felix, I have a feeling we're gonna be great friends."