Dawn:
Ooh...I'm...I mean I'm sorry for what you and your la-er...pups are
going through...but...I mean...are we really qualified to give
parental advice Puppy?
Vernon:
I dunno...we've only been parents fer a little over a year and a half
now...Wait..."Mr. and Misses Hunter.."
Dawn:
Oh, I just assumed that was a typo. But yes, that makes much more
sense. I was about to suggest going to Audrey and Dorian for advice
on such a weighty email.
Vernon:
Well if anyone's qualified to take a crack at it, it'd be my Ma and
Pa. They survived a household o' seven pups fer more than two
decades, so I'd think they'd have a purty good idea on how to handle
stuff like this better than us.
Audrey:
Well, first I wanna thank y'all dearly fer the compliments about our
pups.
Dorian:
Considerin' y'all didn't make an exception fer Yuri when y'all
mentioned up raising 'fantastic pups', it means we musta done
somethin' right. *Chuckles*
Audrey:
Well, I'd be lyin' iffin' I said we never worried about him...
Dorian:
I was mostly worried about him endin' up on the wrong side of the
bars...thankfully I was able to channel that rough and tumble aspect
of his personality into police work while he was growin' up...
Audrey:
Enough Darlin', he may be listenin'! Don't make our pup feel bad
about himself now.
Dorian:
Just tellin' it how it was at the time...the boy's come along way
since then, and I'm really proud of him...I'm real proud of all you
boys.
Vernon:
Thanks Pa.
Audrey:
When it comes to your oldest son...I....well I wouldn't want to run
to the therapist just yet. Even mentionin' that might make him feel
worse in his current state, as I hate to admit it, but there's still
a big stigma when it comes ta' needin' therapy fer anythin',
especially when yer young and insecure enough already...
Dorian:
Yeah, a lotta' young fella's and ladies feel going to therapy is
like...admittin' bein' damaged, or a weirdo...it's a hit to their
confidence...which is real er...permeable when yer young. Like a soap
bubble...one wrong move and it bursts.
Audrey:
Ta' me, it sounds like the boy is just...takin' on a bit too much fer
his own good, even if he isn't aware he's doin' it. It might be good
to have a sit down with him, and talk to him about it bein' okay
iffin' he wants to cut somethin' out of his life fer a while, or at
least dial some of the time spent on such thangs fer the sake of his
physical and mental well-bein'.
Dorian:
I'd make sure to stress it's ultimately up to him what he does, but
that you'll support him regardless. And iffin' he's still resistant,
just tell him yer merely askin' him to think it over. It seems like
yer boy has placed himself under a lotta pressure, so y'all don't
want to end up dumpin' more on him. That's why reinforcin' that yer
merely askin' him to think about things instead of tryin' to force
his paw is yer best bet...I think.
Audrey:
When it comes to yer youngest, well...to be honest, I mean...in
the grand scheme o' things poor grades don't exactly mark y'all so
badly fer life that y'all can't turn it around in college er' a
technical school. It does strike me as odd that yer boy says the
class he's failin' is one of his favorite subjects. Somethin' tells
me he's not tellin' y'all the whole truth there.
Dorian:
He may be tellin' ya'll that cause he believes it's important to
y'all that he likes that subject...afraid that...er' showin' interest
in somethin' else might...make y'all think less of him. The gods know
I sorta...fell into that trap myself.
Audrey: It might be worth an earnest talk askin' yer boy iffin' he's 'really
keen on the subject', and reassurin' him y'all won't think less of
him iffin' he isn't. Sometimes y'all don't realize goin' into
somethin' that it ain't as fun as y'all thought it would be.
Dorian:
As fer his friends...that's tricky. Iffin' y'all start advisin' him
to turn away from 'em, or come down hard on him seein' them at all,
it stands a good chance of drivin' him toward them.
Audrey:
Again, a lighter touch might be good for this sorta situation. Just
tellin' him to be mindful of iffin' a situation feels...uneasy to
him, and encouraging to go with his gut iffin' something feels wrong.
Reassure him that y'all know he's a good pup, and he's got a good
head on his shoulders. Iffin' his friends are bad enough, he'll
eventually drift away from 'em. If not, then that troublin' behavior
should start to even out.
Dorian:
As fer how yer boys get along...that's the trickiest of all really.
Audrey:
Some pups grow up real tight, and some...well that competitive wolf
streak might get in the way and drive 'em apart.
Dorian:
I'd say y'all made the right call puttin' their rooms farther apart.
It's...somethin' we honestly shoulda' done with Yuri and Vern growin'
up.
Audrey:
Yeah...I...I mean, I'll admit I feel we took the wrong approach in
tryin' to push them closer and closer together and figurin' it would
work itself out. Sometimes distance can make fer a better
relationship in the long run.
Dorian:
O'course, y'all also have to accept that maybe y'all can't mend that
bond...just cause someones blood-related don't mean they'll like
each other.
Vernon:
Like me and Yuri.
Audrey:
Oh hush, y'all get along fine now.
Vernon:
Well, we tolerate each other, if that's what you mean.
Dorian:
However, case and point that yer pups are young. They're hot-headed
and flush with hormones. When they get older, and that starts to even
off, they'll probably end up gettin' along again...just like Vern and
Yuri do now. Although considerin' you said yer boys had a good
relationship before that, I imagine their prospects are better fer
bein' good friends again in the future.
Vernon:
Yeah, Yuri and I hated each other since we were barely out of
diapers...our feud was purty long by comparison to yer boys.
Audrey:
And just look at how far these two have come. Trust me, iffin' Vern
and Yuri can at least learn to play nice after everythin' that's gone
on between 'em, I think yer boys odds are purty good.
