Founders' Island

Chapter 1: A Typical Bad Day

September 2000

Colin Phillips sat on the couch in the living room of the Matthews' home. In his black paws he held a flyer advertising the new Leonardo Da Vinci exhibit at the city's museum. Renee, his best friend's mother, had agreed to take him to see the exhibit. He glanced at the window. It'd gotten dark and it was getting late in the evening. He looked at his watch. It was already 6:55 PM.

The brown raccoon lived with his best friend. After Renee had learned that he was homeless, she'd taken him in as if he were one of her own. She treated him as if he were one of her children, not as if he were her son's best friend. This past year she'd adopted him, making him an official member of their family, and he was eternally grateful for that.

Colin loved living in Vancouver, British Columbia, from its dry summer months to its rainy winters. Although it only snowed eleven days out of the year (and three of those days they would receive only six centimeters of snow). Unfortunately, the average snowfall for Vancouver was only 48.2 centimeters, which was just as well. The snow did not remain on the ground for very long, and because of this Erik, Colin, and Marshmallow rarely found themselves getting a snow day. Still, Colin enjoyed living in Vancouver for its rich history and its beautiful parks and other interesting locations, such as the University of British Columbia and the Endowment Lands, where he planned on going to college upon graduating from high school.

Most humans around the world had accepted the fact that animals had essentially taken over the United States during the Race Wars back in the mid-1980s. They hadn't started the war; their creators and masters had given them rights to an education, then had decided they didn't want smart animals and tried to eliminate them quietly. Unfortunately, the animals, thanks to a short breeding cycle, were a significant part of the population; thanks to their human intelligence, combined with instinctive knowledge, the animals that had been created back in 1943 by American scientists were able to organize themselves and face the armed assaults for two full years.

A last resort weapon was developed quickly by scientists, a virus that would seek out the genomes present in animals and kill them quickly, with no need for ammunition expenditures. The military dispersed canisters of the virus throughout the country. Unfortunately, a mistake had been made. Either the designers had slipped, or the virus had mutated while they weren't looking. As a direct result of such a horrific mistake, several hundred animals with recessive human genetic material died horribly, but so did sixty percent of the population of North America, mostly south of the 49th Parallel.

What was left of the Canadian government immediately condemned the American reaction and (after the virus had died off) built themselves an addition that extended south to the Rio Grande; they then offered the surviving animals, whose population was slightly higher than the human population in North America, recognition that they were a unique, distinct society (which upset Quebec greatly) and therefore granted them equal rights with humans. They accepted, thankfully, and life had gone on. Unfortunately, some humans had disagreed with this particular decision.

Colin heard the telephone ring. He gulped. He watched as his mother walked from her bedroom to the kitchen. She looked as beautiful as ever. Her black fur was just as smooth and shiny as it'd always been. Today she was wearing her work clothes: a black shirt with a name tag and the name "Cost Cutters" written in white cursive text on the back. Below that was the address in white print.. Nonetheless, his heart pounded in his chest as he feared the worst was soon to come.

His ears flattened against his head as he heard Renee's words. "Hello? Oh, hi, Heather. What? You need me to come in? Do I really have to? I mean, it's Saturday and it's the day I spend with my kids . . . I understand. Thank you. Yes, I'm on my way. See you in a few minutes. Bye."

She walked in the living room, looking distressed. She grabbed her coat from the coat rack and began putting it on. It was cold out tonight, and it'd just get colder.

Colin swallowed hard. "Mom?" he squeaked. He didn't recognize his own voice.

She looked at him. "Colin, honey, I'm so sorry, but I've got to go to work."

"But–"

She grabbed her car keys from the coffee table. "I'm sorry, Colin. I promise we'll do this another time."

He tried again. "But–"

"You're in charge while I'm gone. Make dinner and make sure Marshmallow gets in bed on time. Love you. Bye." She walked out of the house, leaving the door open.

Colin sighed. His gaze fell to the flyer that he still held in his paws. For two weeks he'd talked about nothing but the new exhibit at the museum. She'd promised to take him to see it. Now she just decided to get up and go to work as if her promise didn't matter? How could she do that? He didn't understand it. He tossed the flyer aside and got up. He glared heavily at the open door. He wanted to slam it shut, but thought better of it and closed it carefully. He started towards the bedroom that he shared with Erik.

Due to the family's low income, they couldn't afford a very expensive house. The best they could afford was a one-story house. The first room that one walked in upon entering the house was the living room. In front of the front door beyond the living room was the doorway that led to the dining room and kitchen. To the left of the doorway that led to the dining room was a hallway. The first door to the right was a closet. The second door to the right was the bathroom. The third door to the right was Renee's bedroom. The first door to the left was Erik and Colin's bedroom. The second door to the left was Marshmallow's bedroom.

Erik's bed was positioned a few feet away from the bedroom door. Colin's bed was directly across from Erik's, pushed up against the opposite wall. In between the beds was a large window that gave them a view of the driveway and the front yard. Colin's computer was a few feet in front of the foot of his bed, whereas the television and the six-drawer dresser that held their clothes was to the left of the computer, pushed up against the wall that was beside the closet.

Marshmallow was sleeping beside Erik when Colin walked in the room. Erik was busy reading a book.

Erik looked up from his book. He was surprised to see that Colin was still at the house. "Colin, what are you doing here? I thought you were going to the museum with Mom."

Colin chuckled and smiled. "That's what I thought too. Change of plans."

"I'm sorry, Colin."

Colin ignored his brother's comment. He sank heavily in the chair in front of his computer. Erik watched him as he began to play a game of solitaire. Erik knew that Colin only played the game when he wanted to forget about something that was bothering him. The only reason why he didn't play the game very often was simply because it was too simple for him. The raccoon grabbed a box of Twinkies and pulled out one. He ripped off the wrapper and shoved the Twinkie in his mouth. Before he finished it, he began opening another one. He had a tendency of overeating whenever he was upset.

Colin sighed as he placed a paw over his face. He was trying his best to be strong about not being able to go to the museum with his mother. The thought of showing weakness in front of his siblings was unheard of. The last thing he wanted to do was cry.

"What time is it?" Erik inquired.

"Seven o' clock." Colin's mouth was full, causing his voice to become muffled, so it was hard to understand him. As he chomped down on the Twinkies in his mouth, whipped cream gushed out of his mouth, making him look rabid. Now all he needed to do was pretend like he was having a seizure and roll his eyes into the back of his head and the illusion would be complete.

"We should probably feed Marshmallow," Erik suggested. "It's getting close to her bedtime."

Sighing heavily, Colin pushed his chair away from the desk. "Excuse me, I need some time alone." He quickly turned off his computer and stood up. He started towards the door. Erik's voice stopped him as he was about to turn the doorknob so he could exit the room.

"Would you like some help?"

He turned. "Thanks, but no."

Erik nodded. "All right." He turned back to his book.

Colin entered the kitchen. He wasn't the absolute best cook. In fact, Erik was much better at it than he was, but he could at least attempt to cook dinner without burning the house down. He surveyed what he had to work with, then set to work. Luckily, Renee had a cookbook he could use.

An hour and a half later, he spotted Erik heading towards the front door. He called out to the portly skunk. Once Erik had turned around, he asked, "Where are you going?"

"I'm going out on a date with Melissa," Erik stated.

Colin blinked. "Melissa Daniels?" She was one of the bullies who daily harassed Erik.

"That's the one."

"But she hates you."

Erik turned to open the door. "I'll be back when I feel like it."

"Well, at least eat something before you go."

"I'll eat when I get back. Don't worry about Marshmallow. I let her have the rest of your Twinkies."

"You what?!" His breathing suddenly became heavy as he had to restrain himself from choking Erik.

"Colin, calm down. Why does it matter that much to you?"

"I think there's only one way I can really explain."

"How's that?" Erik asked flatly. He groaned, anticipating something unpleasant.

"Well," Colin began, his paw proudly touching his chest while his nose smugly rose into the air, "with a song!"

"Oh, God . . ." Erik groaned.

He cleared his throat, found his pitch (although just barely), and then with a delicate hop to the side, began.

"Oh

I would do anything for a Twinkie

I would roll in something stinky

I'd shave my tail

Then eat a snail

Yes, I'd do anything for a Twinkie

I would like to stay up late

Maybe even mastur–"

"Okay, that's enough," Erik cried as he tightly squeezed his paw over Colin's muzzle. "You're going to make my tail curl!"

Colin snorted. "Well, excuse me. I'm sorry you can't appreciate fine singing."

"Would you care to explain why it's such a big deal to you in a more appropriate manner, please?"

Taking a step back, Colin crossed his arms. "Oh, fine, I shall explain for my ferociously fat friend," he said sourly. "To me, the Twinkie is proof that God exists, and furthermore that He must surely be a raccoon, as only a being so naturally divine could create such a flawlessly perfect treat." His chest swelled with pride as he continued, a bit of moisture leaking from the corners of his mouth. "Begin with a fluffy, golden layer, made with a touch of the sun itself. Then, fill it with only the freshest, creamiest, most delectable sugary filling, and individually wrap them to be placed in an easy-to-open box. Each is nearly four inches of mouth-watering, toe-tingling, eye-popping excitement for your tongue! And you can never have enough. Oh, no. Never!" By the time he was finished, he had to take a step to the side to get out of the puddle that had formed at his feet. He shook off each foot, his tongue flicking out in disgust.

"Whatever. I'll see you later. Bye." Erik walked out of the house before Colin could protest.

Colin stared at the open door. He went ahead and slammed it shut. "Why is it that everyone expects me to do things on my own? Just because I might be capable of doing things on my own doesn't mean I want to do it by myself!"

Fearful that he had woken up Marshmallow due to his ranting, he walked down the hall and entered his bedroom to see the white skunk sleeping soundly on Erik's bed, curled up in a tiny ball with her tail curled around her body. He walked over to her and petted her head gently, smiling down at her. He gave her a good night kiss and retreated from the room, shutting off the light along the way.

He walked back to the kitchen to make dinner. He scowled at the light brown colored carpet and roughly kicked at the floor, then shot an ugly look at the pot that contained the tomato soup. Shaking his head and grumbling to himself, he walked over to the stove and turned the burner off. He fixed himself a bowl and sat down at the table to begin his meal.

He sat at the table afterward, waiting for Renee and Erik to return home safely. He hoped that they would return soon. He didn't want to be up all night waiting for them.

Erik walked in the house at ten o' clock. He started down the hall, but Colin's voice stopped him.

"Erik, are you hungry? If you're hungry, Romeo, dinner is ready. There's plenty of tomato soup left if you want some."

Erik ignored Colin's comment as he made his way towards the refrigerator.

"The date didn't go well, did it?" Colin asked as Erik poured himself a glass of milk.

Erik didn't answer. He quickly drank his milk. "I'm going to bed." He walked out of the kitchen after setting the empty glass in the sink.

"Okay, then. Good night. I'll see you tomorrow."

"Whatever." The fat skunk disappeared as he continued to go down the hall.

Colin sighed.

Renee arrived at the house forty-five minutes later. She also rejected the offer of tomato soup, claiming that she'd already gotten something to eat with Heather.

Erik was already asleep when Colin entered the bedroom. His bed creaked as he got in it. He lied on his side and pulled the covers up to his neck as he drifted off to sleep. He felt fresh tears seep through his eyes. He allowed them to fall onto his pillow.