A/N: This story is mostly just nonsense. In a fit of Wreck-It Ralph-induced creativity, I asked my best friend to come up with a random storyline involving everyone's favourite game-jumping jerkface. Sure enough, she managed to give me something. "Turbo's stuff is stolen. GO!" Thus, this story was born. I don't take it very seriously, but it was ridiculously fun to write.
I don't own Wreck-It Ralph or anything else I make a reference to.
Something's Missing
July 1984. Saturday. Litwak's Arcade. Nine o' clock pee-emm.
It had been a good week for Turbo and his brothers. It had been race after hectic, crazy race, players showing up in shockingly large drovesto pit them against one another in friendly competition. Naturally, the game's namesake had taken home every trophy. He walked back with the twins to their shared house with a skip in his step, helmet tucked securely under his arm.
"I really thought I might lose that last one," he said, yellow eyes wide, "Gotta hand it to you, Ted. You gave me a run for my money!"
Ted laughed, socking him lightly in the arm.
"You deserve to lose every once in a while, you pushy little jerk! Someday, I'll show you up and I'll be the one hopping back to the house like I was spring-loaded!"
"Fat chance," Turbo replied cynically, ruffling out the mass of dark hair on top of his head that had been squashed by the helmet, "Maybe in your dreams."
Ted shook his head, looking to his twin with a roll of his eyes. Teddy only shrugged, mouth curled into a half-hearted, crooked smile. By now, hearing their game-mate gloat about his exceptional days had become standard procedure. It was easy for them to ignore it, but every now and then he took it a smidgen too far. It was those times where they would wait for him to fall asleep, sitting quietly in their living area until they heard the tell-tale snoring from his bedroom. They would plot for hours, coming up with every variety of pranks under the sun until they found the proper punishment to fit the crime. Some of their proudest moments had been rather recent, given the degree of condescension that Turbo had doled out. There was the Great Oil Bucket Fiasco, the Ghost in the Engine Incident, the Pink (err, salmon, it was salmon) Racing Suit Disaster…All had begun with a glimmer in the corner of one of their eyes and a shared, knowing look.
A look just like the one they shared behind Turbo's back. Right now.
"Hey Turbs, why don't we go down to Tapper's to celebrate?" Ted asked, throwing an arm around his shorter companion's white-clad shoulders.
"Celebrate?" Turbo asked with a snort, "Celebrate what? How many times you lost?"
"No, silly!" Teddy added, placing his arm on top of his brother's, "We had an amazing week! I swear, we haven't been this popular in ages! Don't you think we deserve a bit of downtime?"
They kept their awkward hold on Turbo even as he stuck a grey-skinned hand in one of his pockets, fishing for the keys to their front door. He extracted them quickly, trying to avoid the expectant stares that watched him from both sides of his face. The sound of the lock clicking out of place echoed the sound of his defeat. They were smiling so happily, and they were right about their better-than-typical week…
Pushing open the door with a heavy sigh, Turbo nodded.
"Fine," he said, sticking the keys back in his pocket. The twins let go of him, high-fiving each other enthusiastically with a loud "YEAH!"
Turbo shook his head, pinching the bridge of his nose. He had a bad feeling about their sudden cheerfulness, but brushed it off. His only prayer was that it didn't have anything to do with him. Or pranks. Or pranking him. Creator knew he couldn't afford to have another salmon racing suit…
"Go and drop off your helmets. Be out here quickly, though. You know how much I hate waiting on you," he said, eyeing them suspiciously as they ran past him, barreling into the spacious, retro-modern house with wide grins plastered on their faces.
Oh yeah. Something was up, and he didn't like it. Not. One. Bit.
The atmosphere in Tapper's was as laid-back as it always was. The latest music played at a reasonable volume, drowned out by the constant low chatter of ever-present customers. The pleasant smell of root beer permeated the air, calming Turbo down as he strolled into the bar, flanked by Ted and Teddy. The terrible two hadn't quit smiling, and it was beginning to really creep him out. On the way, he'd caught them staring at him a great many times. Each time he called them out on it, they'd just snicker to themselves, yellow teeth visible from those stupid smiles. Just thinking about it sent shivers rippling uncomfortably through his code. He got the distinct notion that it would only stop when he was drenched head to toe in oil, or perhaps when he ran away from his car screaming that there were ghosts under the hood. Were they never satisfied? As he pulled a stool away from the bar and shot them another glare that only left them giggling, he knew the answer.
"Evening, Tapper," he said, climbing up onto the stool and leaning on the bar, "Busy as always, I see."
The mustached man smiled warmly, filling up a clean mug with root beer and placing it before Turbo.
"Always. You boys have been pretty preoccupied, too. I saw how busy you were!"
"Crazy, right?" Ted said loudly, plopping down on the stool at Turbo's left side.
"Here we were thinking we'd be getting unplugged!" Teddy added, sliding in on his right. The shortest racer cringed as they boxed him in, gripping his mug tightly.
"Naw, you guys are way too popular to go that route. I think you'll be here for a good, long while!"
Ted and Teddy beamed, leaning in closer to Turbo.
"Yes, we like to think so to."
They both stared at him with those shit-eating grins for a moment too long. Turbo was about to make a slightly-less-than-appropriate comment when Ted's eyes widened exponentially. He poked Turbo rapidly in the chest, pointing with his other hand to a spot across the room.
"Look, look!" he exclaimed excitedly, "It's your new friend!"
Turbo scoffed. "What friend?" he asked, roughly pushing Ted's hand away from his chest.
"Uh, Felix! Duhh! Who else would it be?"
The white-and-red clad racer froze, eyes drifting slowly over to the spot that his friend was pointing to. Sure enough, the short handyman was sitting awkwardly by himself on the opposite side of the bar, blue eyes shifting nervously from patron to patron.
"He doesn't really look like he wants to be here, though, does he?" Teddy noted, resting his chin on his palm, "Maybe you should go over and talk to him!" he added thoughtfully, nudging Turbo in the ribs with his elbow.
"First of all, that hurt, second of all…No. I don't really think that's the best idea."
"Aww, come on, Turbs! The guy looks scared code-less! You're a pretty ni—uhh, social guy, and you've talked before, so why not? It's not like he's gonna kill you or anything!"
Turbo scowled, pushing both twins off of him. He got off the stool and smoothed out his suit, giving them both a filthy look before starting off in Felix's direction. As he walked away, they were pretty sure they heard him mumble something like 'but you might,' with only a twinge of sarcasm. They watched him amble off for a few seconds before Tapper interrupted them with a light cough. He was staring at them curiously, one eyebrow raised.
"What?" Ted asked, face flushing red from embarrassment.
"What are you going to do to him this time? Turn his suit purple? More oil? Another ghost in his engine? I had to babysit him for weeks after that one!"
Both twins smiled deviously, looking at each other before returning their gaze to Tapper.
"We haven't really decided yet," Ted began, making sure Turbo was far enough out of earshot, "He was being kind of a dirtbag today and we just want to get him back."
"Yeah, it's kind of a tradition!" Teddy finished, following up with a long sip from Turbo's untouched root beer.
Tapper gave them both a questioning look before shaking his head and turning away to receive orders from his other customers. Sometimes, he found it was best to just let things go…
Felix pulled at his collar anxiously, trying to calm himself down. He wasn't used to places like this, not in the least. The only people he ever dealt with were the Nicelanders and Ralph. He'd spoken to some of the arcade's other inhabitants a handful of times, but he couldn't yet say he had "friends." He supposed that's what brought him to Tapper's in the first place. If he couldn't find friends at the local watering hole, he wouldn't be able to find them anywhere.
"Feeling a bit uncomfortable, Fix-it?" asked an unexpected voice from next to him. The voice had come from a diminutive, grey-skinned man in a white and red racing outfit, yellow eyes staring at him curiously.
"Turbo," Felix said, exhaling a breath he didn't even know he was holding, "Yes, I feel a bit…out of place, I guess. I'm not used to this many people in one area."
Turbo laughed lightly, leaning on the counter with one arm.
"Not your scene, I suppose. Don't worry, it's not mine, either. I only came because my game-mates strongly suggested that we celebrate a solid week of racing…They're planning something, I just know it. They get this look in their eyes when they're getting ready to torture me."
Felix didn't know how to respond, so he just smiled awkwardly and stared down into the bubbling mug of root beer that he held in his hands.
Turbo watched his nervous mannerisms with interest, temporarily pushing his anxiety over the twins' plotting into the back of his mind.
"If you ever wanna get out of your game for a little vacation, you can always visit us over at TurboTime."
He tried not to look shocked that he had said something so welcoming. Inside, the selfish part of him was screaming in agony. Felix, however, looked at him hopefully, a bright grin gracing his features.
"Gee, that's awfully nice of you. I might just do that!"
With a tip of his hat, Felix got off his barstool and pushed it in courteously. He left his half-empty mug of root beer on the counter along with a few gold coins, waving to Turbo as he walked out of the bar, undoubtedly returning to his home. For a split second, Turbo considered following the polite protagonist, but a quick shake of his head returned his thoughts to their normal pace. He turned around to face the direction of the twins, twitching when their eyes lit up as he caught their attention. Turbo ran a hand through his hair nervously as he walked back to them, stomach sinking with dread.
"That was quick," Ted noted, ruffling Turbo's messy locks before being hastily swatted away.
"Yeah, it was. Fix-it is smart enough to leave before bad shit happens, which is why we're leaving."
Ted's face fell a little, but he nodded in agreement.
"Alright, alright. We'll go. Thanks, Tapper," he said, chugging the last of what used to be Turbo's root beer and slapping down a few coins of his own. The twins followed Turbo out of the bar sluggishly, formulating the finer points of their plan as they travelled back towards their home. They knew that he knew that they were planning something. All they had to do was keep it secret long enough to execute it. They managed to keep quiet the entire way back, only falling into whispers when they were back in the safety of their shared room, Turbo sleeping soundly in the room next to them.
"So, he'll find out in the morning?" Teddy whispered excitedly, leaning over the side of his top bunk to look down at his brother in the dim light of the simulated moon.
"Oh yeah. I already set our alarm," Ted replied deviously, flashing Teddy the 'okay' symbol. Teddy giggled before flopping back down on his bed.
"This is going to be awesome."
"Our best yet?"
"Absolutely, my dear brother. Absolutely."
Turbo woke slowly in the morning, eyes opening one at a time. He was expecting the absolute worst from his identical game-mates, especially after their more-than-suspicious behavior from the previous night. He was able to sit up, get out of his bed and pull on his jumpsuit without incident. He heaved a sigh of relief and wandered over to his dresser, reaching over to the chair next to it for his helmet. He expected to hear the sound of his hand hitting the plastic surface, but his fingers caught only air. He looked down at the empty chair and gasped. It was empty. He always, always put his helmet on the seat of that very chair, and it was GONE. Frantically, Turbo looked around the room, pulling everything apart in search of it. His heart was pounding in his ears. He could not afford to lose it! He practiced every Sunday morning, and he couldn't race without it!
"TED! TEDDY!" he screamed, hoping his yelp was loud enough to wake the identical terrors of his life. Sure enough, the two wandered into his room, rubbing sleep from their eyes.
"What is it, Turbs?" Ted asked, stifling a yawn.
"Something wrong with this picture, guys?" Turbo asked, gesturing to the rest of his room.
"Uhh, a tornado came in through your window and tore your room to shreds?" Teddy guessed innocently, taking in the ruined state of his shorter companion's living quarters.
"No!" Turbo yelled, causing the twins to flinch, "My helmet! It's gone! How am I supposed to practice without it?" His sun-coloured eyes narrowed dangerously as he stared at them. "You two wouldn't happen to know where it is, would you?"
Ted burst into a fit of laughter. Teddy followed suit, hand over his mouth in an attempt to smother his guffaws.
"Of course not, Turbs! Do you honestly think we'd take your fugly helmet? What use would we have for something that only fits you?" Ted said through his chuckles.
"Oh, I don't know, maybe it's another one of your ridiculous 'get-back-at-Turbo-for-being-an-asshole-sore-winne r' plans. You were acting all sketchy last night!" Turbo explained, crossing his arms over his chest.
"Turbo," Teddy began, laying a hand on Turbo's shoulder gently, "We didn't take it, but we can help you look for it, okay?"
Turbo stared at him incredulously, unsure of whether to believe him or not. If the suggestion had come from Ted, he'd probably have told him to screw off. Since it was Teddy, the one he always considered more reasonable, he conceded hesitantly, letting his arms fall back to his sides.
"Alright, fine," he said, giving them each a look of slight distrust, "But if I find out that either of you have anything to do with it, I'll see to it that you never win another race! Capiche?"
Both nodded eagerly, smiling sincerely.
"Don't worry," Teddy mentioned comfortingly, rubbing Turbo's back, "We'll find it."
They didn't find it.
The trio searched through the entire expanse of their game for the duration of the morning, finally calling it quits around lunchtime. They meandered over to BurgerTime upon Ted's suggestion to get take-out, too worn out to make their own food. Turbo sat down in a booth heavily as they waited on their order, head hitting the table with gusto.
"It's hopeless," he muttered, not looking up from the surface of the table, "We'll never find it!"
"Never find what?"
"Felix!" exclaimed Ted, nudging Turbo. Turbo picked his head up groggily at first, eyes snapping open when he saw that the handyman was standing in front of their table.
"I lost my helmet," the star racer said, gesturing to his mop of unruly black hair, "We've spent all morning looking for it in TurboTime. Needless to say, we didn't find it…"
"Gosh," Felix began, eyes wide with shock, "Do you think someone stole it?"
Turbo let out a laugh, quickly glancing at the twins. "Could have, I guess. Though, they'd have to make it past the Surge Protector with it."
"Do you want any help looking?" Felix asked, looking at the trio with a concerned expression on his face.
"If you could just keep an eye out for it, we'd be really grateful," Ted commented, giving Felix a short nod, "Not having it has really cut into his practice schedule."
"Will do, neighbor," the short man replied, once again tipping his hat in their direction. Watching the gesture caused Turbo to react on impulse, quickly reaching out to snatch the blue hat off Felix's head and put it on his own. It clashed terribly with his trademark jumpsuit, but he liked the feeling of wearing something similar to his beloved racing helmet. Felix just looked at him, dumbfounded by Turbo's boldness.
"Can I keep this?" Turbo asked, pointing to the hat. Before Felix could even answer, the racer hopped out from his seat and stood next to the handyman, looking at him oddly.
"See? You've got nice, shiny hair. You should wear your hat less often," Turbo said. He turned on his heel and began walking towards the exit, Felix's blue cap still on his head. The twins gave Felix classic 'I'm-sorry-for-my-family' looks before grabbing their to-go orders from the counter and following their game-mate out of the restaurant.
Felix didn't move for a little while, still shocked that Turbo had managed to steal his hat.
"Jiminy," he said, scratching at his now-hatless scalp, "These characters are certainly interesting…"
As soon as Turbo and the twins got back to the game, the star racer had diverged from the path back to the house and walked to the garage. He had said something about wanting to "get his mind off his missing property," and had sworn to only drive slowly. Both brothers figured he was lying through his yellow teeth about the "going slow" part, but neither argued. They still had a plan to execute, and Turbo was giving them the perfect opportunity to complete Stage 2. Once they heard the telltale roar of an engine flaring to life, they crept up to their shorter companion's room, snickering.
"You don't think he's gonna find out, Ted?"
"No, I don't. Just keep playing the part, and it'll all work out. Think of how worth it this will be! Now, quick! Grab them before he gets back!"
Turbo stumbled into the house about an hour later looking thoroughly wind-blown. His lips were pursed in anger, no doubt at the fact that his entire face and neck were splattered with the 8-bit remnants of bugs that had been dumb enough to fly in front of his car.
"Practice didn't go well, I take it?" Ted asked, looking his friend up and down, doing his best not to laugh at the hideous green stains left by the bugs on the neck of his racing suit. Turbo replied by spitting out a bug, the thing landing on the floor with an audible 'splat.'
"I'm going to go change," he said angrily, licking at his teeth. No sooner had Turbo gone into his room and opened his dresser did the twins hear him shout loud enough to rattle the windows. He didn't yell anything intelligible, just a sound of pure, unadulterated rage. They went running to him, donning looks of intense concern.
"What in Sega is going on in here, Turbs? Everything alright?!" Ted asked quickly, looking around the room for signs of something sinister.
"No, everything is not alright! All my extra jumpsuits are missing! If that wasn't bad enough, my bed is missing its sheets! Someone is really trying to piss me off, Ted, and they're doing a great job!"
"We didn't see anyone come in," Teddy noted, rifling through the mess that had become Turbo's room, "Maybe there's a glitch or something!"
"Hah, glitch! Don't think I don't know what's going on here, Teddy!" he said venomously, getting into the younger twin's face, "It's you guys, isn't it? Trying to get me back for picking on you, huh? Well, stealing my stuff is certainly going to make me stop!"
Ted let his mouth hang open, convincingly feigning offended surprise.
"Excuse me, Mr. Self-obsessed, but our world doesn't exactly revolve around tormenting you," he said, putting his hands on his hips defiantly, "All we've tried to do is help you solve this problem, and all you have done is blame us for it! Come on now, Turbo!"
Turbo threw his hands up in the air with a frustrated growl, going to sit on the end of his bed. His face was flushed from the intensity of his anger, brow coated in a light sweat. Teddy moved to cautiously sit beside him, looking at him expectantly.
"We'll help you look for those, too…"
Turbo stared at Teddy for a moment before exhaling heavily as his anger subsided.
"Fine. Can I at least borrow one of your suits? I don't want to be walking around with bug-guts all over me."
"Of course," Ted answered, going to fetch one. He brought it back quickly, handing it to Turbo with a warm smile. He had found it easy not to laugh until the moment Turbo pulled it on, standing in front of his mirror with a frown on his face. The blue jumpsuit was far too long for the small racer, both the sleeves and the legs bunching up in a ridiculous fashion.
The combination of the borrowed, ill-fitting suit and Felix's sky-blue hat made for a very funny picture, after all. It was a pity that Turbo himself didn't think so.
"Will that be good enough?" Ted inquired, biting his lip to prevent himself from collapsing into hysterics.
Turbo glared at him poisonously before waddling out of the room, constantly adjusting his sleeves and pant-legs.
"Shut up. Just shut up."
After that, they had managed to relax quietly together for a little while. They did their best to comfort Turbo, reassuring him that they'd find his belongings eventually. He griped about how 'eventually' wasn't soon enough, given that Sunday was almost over and people would be coming in to play before he found it all again. Before long, Turbo had grown tired of talking and, well, being awake. He fell asleep right next to the twins on their long, wrap-around sofa. Carefully, the duo slid a pillow beneath his head and got up off the couch, doing their best not to laugh.
"Oh, wow," Ted spoke to his brother disbelievingly as they walked toward the garage, "That was perfect!"
Teddy nodded, smiling. "I didn't think he'd really believe us!"
"Nor did I," Ted noted as he pressed the button that opened the door to where the trio kept their most prized possessions. The cars sat in front of him, paint shining brightly in the simulated daylight. Their two identical blue cars sat on either side of Turbo's red and white vehicle, mimicking the way they usually walked and sat when they were out together. He ran a hand over the hood of the 'star racer's' car, devilish smile twisting on his lips.
"Oh, Ted," Teddy said, practically reading his brother's mind, "You don't mean…"
"Oh, I do. Don't worry, though. Stage 4 will happen way before tomorrow morning."
Teddy breathed a sigh of relief, pulling a wrench out of his pocket. "Shall we get started, then?"
Turbo woke up on the couch with half of his face drenched in his own drool. He sat up quickly, wiping his cheek with his sleeve. His yellow eyes scanned the room quickly, immediately searching for the twins. He wondered briefly what had drawn him out of his slumber, and then was surprised by the sound of his doorbell ringing. With a grimace of frustration, he trudged to the door and opened it.
"What the hell do you want?" he asked before he was able to register who had come knocking. Fix-It Felix Jr. stood back from the step, shocked expression on his features. He fidgeted a little under Turbo's angry gaze, face reddening.
"Sorry about the intrusion, Turbo, but I need my cap back. The players will get a little bit curious if I'm not wearing it when they show up tomorrow."
The racer blinked in confusion for a few moments as his sleepy brain struggled to catch up.
"Oh, right," he said, realizing with sudden clarity that the blue hat was still sitting snugly on his head. He took it off hurriedly, handing it back to Felix without hesitation.
"Gosh, you look tired! Is everything alright, neighbor?" Fix-It asked, blue eyes wide with honest concern. Turbo backed up a little, worried that he might still have saliva on his face from his impromptu nap.
"Uh, no, not really. All my stuff is, well…It's all gone missing and I have absolutely no idea where any of its gone. For a while, I thought it was Ted and Teddy just fucking with me, but they swear up and down that they've got nothing to do with it. It's just been a really stressful day, y'know?"
Felix flinched when Turbo cursed, but didn't lose his expression of empathetic worry.
"I can't say I've ever had a day as bad as yours, but I have been stretched pretty thin from time to time."
Turbo slumped heavily against the door frame, staring at Felix with frantic, bloodshot eyes.
"That doesn't even begin to cover it! What if I don't get all my shit back in time? What if the players show up and I'm driving my car naked? What if I get my suits back and they're all a hideous shade of puke green? I can't do this alone, Felix! You've gotta help me!" he spewed without a breath, noticing with curiosity how the handyman took another step back. Felix rubbed the back of his head, clearly at a loss. He had no clue what he could do to help the terrified, grey-faced racer beyond just keeping an eye out for the lost items, but he nodded cautiously anyways.
"I can stick around and help you look, if you'd like…" he offered, shrugging. All of a sudden, the brunette protagonist found himself being pulled into a lung-crushing hug.
"Thank you, thank you, thank you!" Turbo exclaimed, arms tightening and forcing more air out of Felix's lungs.
"Turbo," Felix managed to croak out, "I can't breathe!"
"Oh," Turbo answered, immediately letting Felix go. He stepped away, running a hand through his dark mass of hair in a rare gesture of embarrassment. He hadn't meant to almost kill Fix-It with kindness, but he saw this as a chance to get back what was rightfully his. No one would fault him for getting a bit excited.
"Why don't we go and find the twins and see if we can get them to help us do a last-minute search?" Felix suggested helpfully.
Turbo agreed quickly, gesturing for Felix to turn around and head to the garage. He had a gut feeling that that was where he'd find his taller companions.
They hadn't even made it half-way down the dirt pathway to the garage when both Ted and Teddy came running up to them, faces red and breathing haggard.
"Turbo!" Ted exclaimed, grabbing the shorter racer by the shoulders, "It's gone!"
Turbo raised an eyebrow and plucked the blue-clad male's hands of his shoulders with disgust.
"What's gone?" he asked, giving the exhausted twins a curious glare. The identical NPCs exchanged a worried look, as if they weren't quite sure of how to tell Turbo what was going on. Teddy directed his gaze to the ground, wringing his hands. Ted just bit his lip, shooting Turbo nervous glances.
"WHAT'S GONE?!" he yelled, causing both of them to twitch in surprise.
"Your car…" Teddy mumbled under his breath, shrinking into himself in anticipation of Turbo's unrestrained rage.
"What?" Turbo replied desperately, praying that they were lying, "What did you say?"
Ted came up to his brother and wrapped an arm around his shoulder, trying to comfort him.
"Your car is gone," he said seriously to Turbo, keeping a hold on Teddy, "We came in to give ours a good waxing before tomorrow and it's not here."
Felix watched with slight embarrassment and horror as Turbo fell to his knees, head in his hands. He wanted to reach out to the clearly distraught racer, but thought better of it when Turbo raised his face to the sky and screamed.
"How could this happen?" Turbo whimpered, anger giving way to depression, "First my helmet, then my suits, now my CAR?"
"We'll find them, Turbo," Felix commented carefully, daring to come up to the kneeling racer and place a comforting hand on his shoulder. Turbo shook him off quickly, moving to stand. The look that the star racer shot his companions was so venomous that Felix found himself taking a cautionary step back.
"I know what's going on here," the angry protagonist said, pointing an accusatory finger at the twins, "It's you guys, isn't it? Has been this whole time, I bet! What makes you think you can take things that belong to ME? If you think you can get away with stealing my stuff, you've got another thing coming! THAT WAS MY CAR!"
Felix took another step back as Ted let go of his brother and stood in front of Turbo, looking down at him with a scowl.
"We didn't take ANYTHING, Turbo!" he exclaimed, "What makes you think we'd want any of the stuff you're missing?! The car makes us just as angry as you! Without you, we can't race! Why don't you stop accusing US of being the bad ones and start searching around for it? All we're accomplishing now is wasting time when we could be looking for it!"
Turbo opened his mouth again to argue, but shut it. He furrowed his brows and turned around, walking a little way down the path before stopping and looking back, expecting everyone to follow his lead. The remaining three obliged, trotting to catch up with the furious, diminutive character. They spent a good three hours turning TurboTime upside-down in hopes of finding traces of the lost cart, but there was nothing to find, no tires, no pieces of the metal body, not even a bolt. Felix and Ted decided to split off and search other games, coming back after another hour empty handed. Even Teddy had ventured out and searched a few, also returning to Turbo with an expression of disappointment and a shrug that let him know of his failure.
It was now ten o'clock PM on Sunday night. Turbo sat at the kitchen counter in his home with his head on the countertop. The twins sat on either side of him and Felix stood across from him, all wearing expressions of sympathetic hopelessness.
"I'm sorry, Turbo," Felix said, taking his hat off of his head and wringing it in his hands, "If there's anything else I can do—"
"No," Turbo interrupted, waving Felix off, "Just head back to your game. I'm sure your NPCs are starting to get a little nervous."
"Oh, alright," Felix said quietly, moving to leave. He gave the twins an apologetic look before waving to them politely and exiting the red-and-white accented house, closing the front door with a soft click.
"Turbo, we—"
"Just leave me alone, okay?" Turbo said, jumping off his chair and walking away from them with his head hung, "I just want to be left alone right now."
He trudged down the hallway, not once looking back. When the twins heard his door slam shut, Ted turned to his brother with a half-hearted smile. Teddy stared back at him with his arms crossed, stern expression on his features.
"What?" Ted asked, flinching away from Teddy's glare.
"We took this way too far, Ted," he replied, "Did you see how upset he was? We did that! I should've known this wouldn't work!"
"Hey, don't start that with me! You didn't know anything! Besides, the best part is yet to come. Tomorrow, everything will be alright, just like I promised."
Teddy looked at his twin incredulously, his stiff posture eventually relaxing. He uncrossed his arms, letting his hands rest in his lap.
"I sure hope you're right," the younger twin said quietly, shaking his head.
"You worry too much, Teddy," his older brother said, grabbing his hands, "I swear, he'll be back to his normal, conceited, hot-headed self in the morning. Trust me?"
Teddy nodded reluctantly. The twins left the kitchen, meandering to the doors that lead to their laundry room. When they reached it, Ted stepped forward and reached behind the washing machine, pressing a button that was lodged into the wall. The washer and dryer separated automatically, revealing the opening to a passage that was just big enough for them to fit through. They filed into the darkness, smiles returning to their faces. They would most definitely be paying for this stunt, but just knowing how big of an effect it had on Turbo was compensation enough for the devious pair.
"I can't wait to see his face!" Ted muttered excitedly to his brother, switching on a light that illuminated the secret room.
Teddy grinned in return, moving to the large pile of assorted items that had coalesced in the corner of the small space.
"Me, neither," he said, grabbing Turbo's helmet from the pile, "I think you're right, Ted. It will be worth it!"
July 1984. Monday. Litwak's Arcade. Nine o'clock aye-emm.
Turbo dreaded waking up. He figured that today would only bring dangerous embarrassment and disappointment from the players, as he was still missing everything that made him who he was in their view. He sat up reluctantly, groggily rubbing sleep and dried tears from his yellow eyes. As he opened them fully, he nearly fell out of his bed from utter shock.
There, on the floor at the end of his bed, was a ceiling-high stack of assorted objects. He could clearly make out his helmet, his racing suits and his sheets among the conglomeration, but the item that drew his gaze most interestedly was his car, which was perched at the very top with its spoiler hitting the white surface of the ceiling itself. He got out of bed slowly, carefully walking over to the pile of items. His eyes widened even more when he realized that he didn't know that half the stuff that was in this pile had even been missing!
He continued to scan the contents of the amalgamation with an amazed expression on his face. However, when his gaze settled on his helmet, he froze. A little yellow sticky note had been attached to it with care, obscuring half of the red "T" that adorned it. He had to stand on his tip-toes to reach up and get it, breathing out a sigh of relief when he managed to snag it without anything falling on his head.
There, on the note in all-too-familiar handwriting, was a message that made his blood curdle in anger,
"To: Turbo, From: Ted & Teddy. Thanks for being such a good sport! P.S: Good luck with your car."
Those bastards. They even had the audacity to put a little smiley face at the end.
He crumpled the note in his hand, throwing it on the ground with as much conviction as he could muster.
"Ted, Teddy, can you come here for a minute?" he asked loudly, angry frown turning into a twisted smile when he heard their footsteps in the hallway. He started dismantling the stack piece-by-piece, grin never fading from his face. He was going to get them back, oh yes. All he needed was a kid with a quarter and a ladder to get to the rest of his stuff. He reached for his helmet again, plucking it out of the pile and wiping it off with his arm.
He placed it on his head, giving it a shake to make sure it was snug.
"Alright, you little assholes," he said, turning around to face the doorway, "It's TurboTime…"
A/N: WhatisthisIdon'teven...Oh well. It's out there for good.