A/N: Before I start, I just want to thank my Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ, for giving me this talent, as well as giving me a new year and a new start! In Jesus' name, Amen!
Happy New Year, everyone, and here's my first story of 2018: a monster of a one-shot retooled as a four-shot! Those of you know that I published this a while back, but I took it down for two reasons: 1. Nobody was reading it :( and 2. I decided to fix some things and break it into several chapters so that you guys aren't stuck reading everything for hours. And considering that the original clocked in at nearly 40 pages and over 18,000 words, I think this is for the best. Now that I'm going back and adding things, it's gone up to 43 pages and over 19,000 words. It wasn't even supposed to be so long, but things happened *shrugs*
I don't think I mentioned this on my profile, but I've been hit with nostalgia for some of the classic '60's Hanna-Barbera characters, namely Touché Turtle and Lippy the Lion and Hardy Har Har. Touché Turtle was one of my cartoon heroes when I was a kid, which is why Touché won out over Lippy and Hardy. This story was inspired by a comment on YouTube from a guy named thecoyotyl, who mentioned that they'd like to see a reboot explaining why Touché fights and how he became good friends with Dum-Dum; although that comment was met with a lot of negative reactions, I thought their idea was cool. So, here's my take on it.
I had to do some research on some medieval period eras as well as fencing so I could find out what Touché's weapon was called. And I spent countless hours (over the course of several days mind you) watching the cartoon to get a general idea of the setting. My research and understanding of the general setting led to a lot of interesting thoughts on the world that he lives in, and although the world isn't fully formed yet, I'm sure that will be a lot of detail in it. For those who are interested in what I have so far, there's a post I made on my blog regarding my headcanons for Touché Turtle. And like/reblog if you have an account 😊
Oh, and I hope you don't mind that I totally stole a lyric from the DBZ Kai theme song for the title :D
I hope you like it!
Title: For Love and Glory
Genre/Tags (major ones in bold): Adventure/Hurt/Comfort/Tragedy/Angst/Friendship/Drama/Family (sorta)
Rating: T (for graphic violence, tragedy and dark themes; basically, the usual in my works)
Series: Touché Turtle and Dum-Dum
Full Summary: A case involving a village fire spirals out of control when the culprit is revealed to be someone Touché holds an intense grudge against. His appearance brings tragic secrets to the forefront, as well as a decade of shame and sorrow. With plans to permanently settle their grudge, Touché must face his dark past if he wants to move on to a brighter future. A four-part Touché Turtle and Dum-Dum fic. A four-part Touché Turtle and Dum-Dum fic because I felt like it.
Disclaimer: This is pretty much standard by now. Except for several more OCs, I own none of the characters involved. Warner Bros. made that very clear -_-
Terminology:
Épée- The largest and heaviest of three weapons used in sport fencing.
For Love and Glory
Part 1: Morning Shadow
Touché Turtle's castle, somewhere in the French countryside...
When Dum-Dum opened the windows, he was treated to a glorious morning sky, with the blue melding in with the gold of the sun. Purplish fog banks rolled along in the hills below, covering the village below, and in the distance he could see a small tower of smoke. Someone was up early burning something, he mused.
Either way, it was a marvelous sight. He sat there for a moment, hands in his chin as he admired the sunrise. "Boy, one advantage of livin' in a castle is bein' able to see sunrises like this," he murmured. "Too bad Touché's not up right now." A couple of times, whenever the turtle would wake up early, he'd take breakfast outside on the balcony, enjoying the fresh air and the sunrise.
The lavishly decorated stone keep, with its imposing height, great oak doors and impressive moat, was just one of many symbols to show off Touché's status as a renowned, respected hero. Inside, large camouflage banners displaying the turtle's coat of arms hung in the hallway, the many rooms were set with expensive, antique furniture, and in one room, there was a wall decorated with nearly one hundred medals from Touché's previous exploits, a few of which were military honors.
Dum-Dum remembered the time Touché had allowed a public tour of his castle. Everyone in the village below had come, and it had made national news. The tour only lasted a week, however, as someone had stolen two battle trophies from Touché's early days as a hero.
And then, there was the time when Dum-Dum had knocked down the medal collection in the hallway…
Time…
The word running through his head, Dum-Dum quickly turned to face the grandfather clock in the hallway, which showed that it was seven in the morning. His eyes widened in shock. "Seven?! Aw, no, Touché's gonna oversleep at this rate!" he remarked. "I'd better wake 'im up!" He quickly made his way up the stairs, picking up his bugle that sat by the wall. Touché was more energetic than most turtles, but he was a heavy sleeper; Dum-Dum had learned the hard way that if left alone he'd sleep all day. "Luckily, I've got a way to wake him up."
He opened the large oak door to Touché's room. Compared to the rest of the castle, it was sparsely decorated, with a small drawer, a nightstand, a large portrait of himself above the nightstand, and a few small pictures. It didn't take him long to find Touché curled up in his shell, smack in the middle of the bed and on top of his pillow as always.
Dum-Dum looked at his horn and shrugged. "Eh, one long blast should do it." He put the horn to Touché's shell, took a deep breath and blew, long and loud.
The ensuing blast sent birds from the hills below squawking into the air-as well as Touché flying out of bed and hitting the wall. He quickly emerged from his shell, brown eyes the size of tacks. "Huh-wh-w-w-w-w-what?!" he stammered.
"Gooood mornin' Touché!" Dum-Dum greeted happily, smiling brightly. "Ya almost overslept again, so I had to wake you up in time ta do your hero bit."
Touché shook his head to regain his bearings and looked up at Dum-Dum with a frown. "Dum-Dum, how many times have I told you to never wake me up like that?" he started. "I have an alarm clock!"
"You slept right through it yesterday," Dum-Dum pointed out.
"Oh, never mind," Touché replied, shaking his head again. He got up from the floor and picked up his pillow. "But, thanks for the wake-up call anyway, Dum-Dum."
Dum-Dum nodded. "No prob, Touche!" he replied. A thought then came to his head and he slammed a fist into his paw. "Aw, shucks, I almost forgot! I was up this long an' didn't make any breakfast! I-I'll go ahead an' start it right away!"
Touché, who was putting on his hat, turned to look at him. "You don't have to do that, Dum-"
"I want to, Touché!" Dum-Dum interrupted, giving him a bright, eager smile. "After all, heroes gotta eat, an' since you're the greatest hero of all time, you've gotta eat a lot."
Touché didn't have an answer for that, namely because he felt elevated by Dum-Dum's words. "Why, thank you, Dum-Dum," he answered. "I don't say that myself…but I'm glad you did."
The sheepdog's smile widened, if it were possible. "I'll get right on breakfast, Boss!" he said, and before Touché could stop him, he was off and down the stairs—and quickly tumbled down to the bottom due to taking the stairs three at a time. There was a loud crash of metal on stone as he hit the floor.
"Are you alright, Dum-Dum?"
"Ugh…y-yeah…sorry 'bout that, Touche," came the sheepdog's reply.
Touché sighed to himself. Having a roommate like Dum-Dum around was hazardous sometimes, but in all honesty, he didn't regret having him around in the slightest.
"…I think I knocked down one of your suits of armor, Touché…"
"Which one, Dum-Dum?" Touché answered, making his way down.
"Uh…this gold an' brown one. I-It's already dented anyway but-"
That got Touché's attention. He was down the stairs in three seconds, and saw Dum-Dum standing there, holding the helmet from one of the suits he'd had. The rest of the armor-a dented, rusting, gold bronze suit with a blue plume in the helmet-was on the floor.
"Watch what you're doing, Dum-Dum!" He snatched the helmet from Dum-Dum and turned to examine the rest of the armor. Thankfully, Dum-Dum hadn't damaged it even more, but he couldn't help but groan as he put it back together. "You have to be careful around these things!"
Dum-Dum scratched his head sheepishly. "Sorry, Touché. I didn't mean to," he said. "I-I was tryin' to make sure I didn't hit my face against the floor again so I turned over an'-" He sighed. "Sorry, Boss."
Touché sighed as he put the last piece of armor on. It wasn't Dum-Dum's fault entirely, but even after living in the castle this long, he should at least be careful. "All's forgiven, Dum-Dum," he said. He turned to face the sheepdog. "Sorry I yelled at you like that. But this suit of armor is an important treasure of mine. I don't want it damaged any more than it already is."
Dum-Dum cocked his head to the side. "Say, uh…why is this an important treasure, Touche? It's kinda weird, keepin' a damaged suit of armor," he said. "I mean, it's all spiffy an' everything, but…didn't you want it fixed before displayin' it?"
Touché tensed. I've said too much already.
He was spared from answering when his shell started ringing. "Hmm, early for a job. Excuse me, Dum-Dum," he said, his tone easier, and ducked into his shell to answer his phone. "Touché Turtle speaking. Have shell, will travel."
"Touché! Thank God you answered! We need you to come down here right away!" a man shouted on the other end.
"Why, what seems to be the trouble?"
"Oh, it's just awful, Touché. Just awful! The village below…several people's homes were burglarized, and some of their homes have been burned to the ground!" the man continued. "Even worse, nobody was able to get a good look at the person responsible!"
"That's terrible! I'll get on it right away!" Reappearing out of his shell, Touché turned to his sidekick. "Dum-Dum!"
"Er, yeah, Touché?" Dum-Dum said, jumping to attention.
"You'll have to put breakfast on the backburner. We've got a job!" Touché replied, walking down the hall to pick up his famous weapon: an épée with a bent tip at the end.
"Eh, what seems to be the trouble, Touché?" Dum-Dum asked, following him.
"It's a lot of trouble, Dum-Dum. Some fiend not only robbed the villagers, but he's also burned their homes!" Touché reported.
"Who's responsible?"
"I don't know, but they're not going to get away with this," Touché said, his narrowed eyes filled with steely resolve. "The sooner we stop this fiend, the better. Now, let's get a move on!" Raising his épée into the air, he let out his famous war cry.
"TOUCHÉ AWAY!" With that, he charged through the door, only to get stuck in it with his sword.
"Yeah, uh, Touché and away!" Dum-Dum shouted, doing the same-only to crash right into Touché with enough force to shake the castle and rattle both of their bones.
"…Uh, I think we shoulda opened the door..."
"Brilliant idea, Dum-Dum."
A little while later...
The smell of burning wood filled Touché's nostrils as he walked ahead of Dum-Dum. He knew they were getting close, which was a godsend after how long they'd been walking. "You alright back there, my rusty assistant?"
"Uh, yeah, Touche."
"Good. After that crash into the door, I figured you must be a little sore," he replied.
"And I think you meant 'trusty' assistant, Touché."
"Right, right. Sorry," Touché answered. Although, he thought, there is a little truth in that statement…
His thoughts ground to a halt as the village came within view. His eyes widened in shock, and horror froze him on the spot.
He was barely aware of Dum-Dum stumbling into him. "Hey, uh, Touche, what's goin'-whoa." He too trailed off, his eyes wide with horror as he got a good look at the village.
From what he'd gathered from the caller, Touché had expected a few patches of burned land. He certainly hadn't expected the entire village, smoldering heaps of blackened wood marking where houses, shops and booths had been. Mile-high smoke clouds rose into the air, painting the sky white and grey. Some of the remaining villagers were putting out some of the fires, but many other villagers were mourning what they had lost. The sight of women and children crying in front of the foundations of their homes sent a pang of sorrow through the terrapin.
The town square wasn't nearly as bad, but one thing caught Touché's attention. "Look over there, Dum-Dum," he said.
In the center of square was the remains of their fountain, built to honor Touché after he'd saved it from a dragon. It currently looked like it'd been blown apart with a bomb, with black residue covering the marble and much of Touché's body blown apart. Chunks of marble rested in the darkened water.
This wasn't the work of some random person. This was the work of someone with a grudge.
Dum-Dum put his hands over his mouth in horror. He was used to seeing destroyed property, but never of this magnitude. The sights of the people mourning were too much for him to handle and he turned back to the turtle. "H-How terrible…w-who would do somethin' like this?"
Touché's grip on his épée tightened. "That's what I want to know. And I'm going to find out."
Dum-Dum would've left it at that, but he noticed how tightly Touché was holding his épée; any tighter, and he'd crush the grip beyond recognition. "Hey, uh, are you alright, Boss? Y-Ya look-"
"I'm fine, Dum-Dum," Touché said immediately. He turned to face him with a small smile. "I'm fine. Just angry. I didn't expect him to do this much damage."
Dum-Dum still felt uneasy, but Touché wouldn't lie to him. "Well, if you're sure, Touche," he said. "But, uh, you'd better be careful."
"I'm always careful, Dum-Dum," Touché said, walking into the village. "I've got my trusty sword. Come on. We won't find clues looking at nothing, you know."
"Eh, right."
He'd taken only one step forward when a low, gravelly voice chuckled, "No need to find clues. I'm right here."
Dum-Dum leaped and caught Touché in a downward tackle, almost flattening the smaller turtle as they tumbled to the ground.
"Dum-Dum, you dummy, what are you doing?!" Touché shouted indignantly.
"B-b-b-b-bu-bu-Boss," Dum-Dum stammered out, shaking like a leaf, "d-d-did you hear that?!"
"I can't hear anything with you on me! Now get off before you crush me!" Touché ordered.
With a nervous gulp, he did. Touché got off the ground, undoing the damage Dum-Dum had inflicted on his hat, and glaring at him as he put it back on. "Now what did you do that for?"
"I-I'm tellin' ya, Touché, t-there was this voice and-"
"Look behind you, dummy," the voice said, and the heavy clanking of armor filled the air.
Touché and Dum-Dum turned around to face the source. A knight about as tall as Dum-Dum, dressed in a heavily dented black suit of armor, marched towards them. He had a blue plume on his helmet, although it was missing most of its feathers and some appeared to be burned at the top. In his hand was a double-edged sword with a black and silver grip and a silver pommel.
Through their career as heroes, Dum-Dum had seen his share of Black Knights...but he could tell that this one was different, just from watching how he carried himself.
"It's been a while, hasn't it, Touché?" the Black Knight said, looking down at Touché.
Dum-Dum cocked his head in confusion. Neither of them had ever seen this guy in their lives, so how could he possibly know Touché? He turned to his best friend. "Hey, uh, you know this guy, Tou-"
Dum-Dum stopped when he got a good look at Touché. The turtle had a strange look in his eye-a look of shock and dare he say, horror. He even looked like he'd gone a shade paler. He jumped back and put his hands on the turtle's shoulders, shaking him. "T-Touché, what's wrong?!"
"Surprised?" the knight replied with a chuckle. "But like I said, it's been a while. Try about-"
Touché flew out of Dum-Dum's grasp, and the sheepdog fell over, losing his balance because of it. He heard a crash of metal on dirt, and spun around, startled, to see Touché on top of the knight, the jagged tip of his épée dangerously close to his throat. He looked up at the turtle and froze when he saw the utter fury in his eyes.
Despite the danger he was in, the Black Knight laughed. "Someone's angry."
"IT WAS YOU!" Touché roared, his voice echoing across the street. The volume of his voice made everyone jump, including Dum-Dum. He'd never heard Touché roar at anybody. "I should've known! This had your name written all over it!"
Dum-Dum picked himself up and ran over to Touché's side. He didn't know what was going on, but he knew that something wasn't right. Touché never got this angry at anyone, ever. "T-Touche, you've gotta calm down!"
"Stay out of this, sheepdog," the Black Knight spat. "This is between me and Touché."
Dum-Dum turned to him, a frown forming on his features. "Hey-"
"Stand back, Dum-Dum," Touché answered, his voice harsh. "This is my case."
"B-But-"
"That's an order." The command was given with no room for argument.
Dum-Dum swallowed and stepped back, but only a few steps. He had the feeling that he needed to stay close to Touché. He looked ready to drive his weapon straight through the guy's throat. "U-Uh..y-you're the boss..."
"You've got a guard dog now?" the Black Knight replied. "I'm surprised."
"What's that supposed to mean?" Touché growled, which only amplified the terror.
"Since your last sidekick bit the dust a decade ago, I figured you'd go solo," the Black Knight said casually.
Shock cut through the terror at those words. Dum-Dum stared at the Black Knight, eyes wide. "L-Last sidekick?"
The Black Knight ignored him, focusing instead on Touché. "And then before that, when the old hare died. You were real torn up then. Almost qui-"
He grunted when Touché pressed the tip of the épée to his throat. Beads of red appeared at the edges and soaked into the under armor.
Now this was getting dangerous. "T-Touché-!" Dum-Dum started.
"Don't you dare mention either of them," Touché spat at the Black Knight. His voice had gone to a deep, throaty growl. "You have no right to, after you murdered them in cold blood!"
Dum-Dum stared at the turtle in shock. W-Who is Touche talkin' about? I didn't know this guy murdered anyone...!
"Of course, I'll mention them," the Black Knight replied coldly. "You know why? Your friends are your weakness. You wouldn't be anything, were it not for you latching onto other people. Underneath that swashbuckling bravado is a dimwitted coward who stepped on others to get to where you are now. You're not indestructible. You're not untouchable. You're nothing but a wash-up, unworthy to hold the title of 'world's greatest hero'. You lack the nobility andcharacter of one."
Dum-Dum stared at this, his mind reeling. He'd heard many a villain dress down Touché, but never like that. And from the enraged look on Touché's face, it was one that really got to him. "T-Touche..."
The Black Knight finished with, "I wonder just what the old hare saw in you."
Dum-Dum reacted purely on instinct. He wrapped his arms around the turtle and hefted him away just as the bloodstained tip of his épée stabbed into the chest armor covering the knight's collarbone, leaving a dent in it. His relief was short lived, for Touché turned that dark glare on him.
"Dum-Dum, you halfwit! What did you do that for?!" he shouted.
"You've gotta snap out of it, Touché! Ya nearly killed him when he was defenseless!" Dum-Dum protested.
"He-"
"That's right." The Black Knight got up from the ground, rubbing his throat. "Don't forget your code, Touché. About never kicking a man when he's down and all that."
"You're an exception to that code," Touché snapped, trying to twist away from Dum-Dum. "Let me go, Dum-Dum! I have to finish him off!"
"N-Not until you calm down, Touche!"
"And once again, the guard dog's right," the Black Knight said. "I'd prefer fighting you when you're not a hot-headed mess. It'll get you killed, like it nearly did the last time we fought."
"H-Hey, you'd better stop rilin' up my buddy Touché!" Dum-Dum said, setting the turtle down. It wasn't the wisest of ideas, but this guy was messing with Touché's head, causing him to act this way. "Or else you're gonna have to deal with me!"
The Black Knight chuckled, and his hand reached for his belt. "Alright. Think fast, sheepdog!"
Touché's eyes widened. "Dum-Dum, look out!"
The Black Knight's knife came flying at him, and at the last second, he leaped to the side, but the knife cut into his muzzle and below his ear. Dum-Dum howled in pain as he fell to the ground, grasping the side of his face.
"No wonder you're named Dum-Dum," the Black Knight snorted. "Even Touché saw that coming."
"Dum-Dum!" Touché ran over to his injured friend. "Dum-Dum, are you alright?!"
"I-I'll be fine, Touche. But don't worry about me-o-ow-ow-owwwww...!" Dum-Dum shouted as Touché pulled away his paw from his face to see the cut, exposing it to the elements. "I-I said don't worry 'bout it, Touché!"
"If you had moved like I told you to, I wouldn't have to worry!" Touché shot back.
"And what you should worry about is me," the Black Knight said. The joking tone was quickly leaving his voice. "I didn't come out of hiding just to watch you worry over your stupid guard dog."
"Then what did you come out of hiding for?" Touché demanded.
"I've decided that we need to settle this once and for all," the Black Knight replied.
Touché's eyes narrowed. "So, you want a duel? You've got it," he growled. "Name the time and the place."
"I'm feeling generous, so here are my terms: in three days, we'll meet back here at six in the morning," the Black Knight explained. "The winner gets to carry out his business. The loser gets buried in his hometown."
"A duel to the death, huh?" Touché remarked slowly. "It's been a while since I was involved in one of those."
Dum-Dum stared at him in horror. How could he say such things with little to no emotion whatsoever? "W-What?! No!" Dum-Dum shouted. "Y-You can't-"
"Well, Touché?" the Black Knight continued. "What do you say?"
"…I've been waiting a long time for this," Touché said. "Very well. I'll accept your terms."
"Touché!" Dum-Dum shouted, running in front of him. Steely conviction met him, and it was then that he saw just how serious the turtle was about this. It made him want to run and at the same time shake him back to his senses. "Touché, no, y-you can't-"
The Black Knight chuckled. "Excellent. I'll see you Friday," he replied, and turned and walked away. He paused, and then added, "You know, I'm surprised you didn't tell your guard dog about me. Then again, I really shouldn't be. You didn't tell your first sidekick either, from what I've heard. But unlike me, you have a reputation to think about." He tsked. "Wouldn't want your last starry-eyed fan to find out his hero was nothing more than a liar and greedy thief."
Dum-Dum's eyes widened with shock. "W-What?"
"If you want to live to duel with me," Touché ground out, "stop talking and keep walking."
"Just making sure you'll be there," the Black Knight said, and walked away, placing his sword in its scabbard.
"Oh, I will," Touché ground out, glaring daggers at the Black Knight's retreating back.
When he was gone, Dum-Dum turned back around to face the turtle. The wind grazed against the cuts on his face, but that wasn't his main concern right then. "T-Touche, what was-"
"What made you do that, Dum-Dum?" Touché interrupted, glaring up at him. The murderous gleam was gone, leaving indignance in its place. "You realize you could've been killed just now? You're unarmed and defenseless! You don't challenge a warrior without weapons!"
"W-Well...maybe it wasn't the best idea-"
"Maybe?!" Touché all but screamed.
"O-OK, OK, it was a stupid idea. B-But the guy was rilin' you up and-I-I had to do somethin'!" Dum-Dum protested. "I-I mean, I know that this guy was makin' up a lot of lies and you hate liars, but…you almost killed him!"
"…You should've let me," Touché replied darkly.
Dum-Dum was aghast. "Y-You can't be seri-"
"Do I look like I'm playing around, Dum-Dum?" Touché snapped. "You should have let me kill him! I had him right there and you just-!"
Dum-Dum slowly backed away from Touché. The turtle was scaring him now; he'd never thought he'd see him act like this. "S-Still…Touche, you've fought evil knights before," he stammered out, "b-but I've never seen ya act like that around any of 'em!"
"This 'knight', if he can even call himself that, is evil, Dum-Dum," Touché replied. "He's robbed from many villagers, burned their homes and even killed several people." His hands balled into shuddering fists. "I should've known it was him…this incident had his name written all over it!"
"B-But why are you so determined ta kill 'im?" Dum-Dum asked.
"If you knew what he'd done, you wouldn't have stopped me," Touché growled out. Vengeance burned in his eyes. "I lost my chance to get him, twice. But I swore that I would get him the next time I saw him."
"But what did he do, Touché?" Dum-Dum begged. "W-What was he talkin' about, you havin' another sidekick and some old hare or somethin'?"
The look in Touché's eyes hardened, although a tinge of sadness had mixed in with the bitterness. "I don't want to talk about it, Dum-Dum," he answered lowly, and pushed past him to leave. "Just forget about it."
"H-How can I forget about it?!" Dum-Dum cried, following Touché outside of the village. "You almost killed him over two dead guys!"
Touché spun around to face Dum-Dum then, and the sheepdog stepped back. Touché looked like he was about to run him through with his épée. "They were not just 'two dead guys', Dum-Dum! Those two were like family to me!" he shouted. "He killed them in front of me and mocked their deaths afterwards and I'm supposed to act like that's fine!?"
Dum-Dum felt as though he'd shoved his foot down his throat. "I-I didn't-"
"I can't believe you'd say something like that, Dum-Dum! You don't even know what I've been through!"
"I-I would if you would just-"
"Save it! I'm not going to waste my breath trying to explain anything to a pea-brained, weak-hearted simpleton!" Touché raged. "I can't believe I thought any different, but it turns out that you really don't understand anything after all!"
The whole field was silent save for the hissing of the dying flames. Dum-Dum stared at Touché, his eyes quickly filling with tears and his bottom lip quivering. He'd never thought he'd hear Touché say such words. His boss, his best friend, his hero, calling him these things…even when he'd lost his temper at him, he'd never insulted him like that. Dum-Dum felt as though his heart were breaking into pieces as he stared at Touché, tears blurring his vision and racing down his face like a waterfall.
The fury on Touché's face melted in seconds, and his eyes went wide with dawning horror. He croaked out, "D-Dum-Dum, I-"
"S-Save it, Touché. Y-You've said enough…and you're right. I-I probably wouldn't understand anyway. I'm the stupidest sheepdog in the world, of course I c-couldn't-" Too overcome with hurt and shame, Dum-Dum turned around and took off for the other exit.
"Dum-Dum, wait! Come back!" Touché shouted.
Dum-Dum thought he heard him follow, but he didn't answer him, or look back. He couldn't face Touché, not after what the turtle had said. He continued to run, stumbling into the forest and down the beaten path, branches brushing against and cutting into his body. In his blind run, he nearly ran headfirst into a tree. This finally got him to stop, and he leaned against said tree, catching his breath.
I'm not going to explain anything to a pea-brained, weak-hearted simpleton!
Sobs eventually forced its way out, and Dum-Dum covered his eyes with his arm as he cried. He hadn't meant to hurt Touché's feelings or make him angrier, but he couldn't explain anything to him now. Touché meant every word that he'd said; he was a person of his word, and Dum-Dum knew Touché.
Or maybe he didn't know him at all.
He sniffled heartily, and then wiped his muzzle. "A-Aw, what's the use? Touché's not gonna tell me what's goin' on…" he said. "I-If I was lucky, s-someone in the next town over knows what happened to 'im." He let out a sad chuckle. "B-But what's the chance of that, huh?"
With that, he stumbled down the beaten forest path, tears racing down his face.
Touché's Castle
Touché returned to an empty castle that afternoon, and his already low spirits sunk even further.
Wrapping up the case without Dum-Dum had been easy, but even as he'd gone about his job, their fight kept replaying in his mind, and each replay brought on the urge to drop everything, find Dum-Dum and apologize to him. He hadn't hurt Dum-Dum's feelings—no, he'd destroyed him. The devastated look on the sheepdog's face was already burned into his memory, and he'd practically run up the last few yards to the castle to find him. Often if Dum-Dum got lost or if they got separated, he found his way back to the castle. The dog considered the castle to be his home—or rather, he considered anywhere Touché lived to be his home.
An empty castle…now that was a sign that he was truly upset.
"What have I done?" he muttered to himself. He closed the door and sunk to the floor, his hat in hands. "What possessed me to say that to him?"
Dum-Dum had many faults, the most glaring one in his name. Many people called him an idiot, a halfwit, a dummy—heck, he'd called him those names whenever he'd been mad at Dum-Dum. But he hadn't deserved that spiel, even if he had known what was going on. He'd had every right to be concerned; after all, the Touché Turtle he knew never lost his cool like that. He was almost always in control of his emotions, never allowing people to rile him.
But he had today. And not only that, he'd opened his big mouth, saying that Dum-Dum would never understand because of how stupid he was. Dum-Dum had tried to, but Touché had put up a wall to prevent those old memories from resurfacing. Very few allies knew what he'd been like before, what he'd lost and what he'd become because of his bad choices.
But Dum-Dum didn't know, because Touché had never told him. And Dum-Dum had wanted to know. He'd begged him for answers to the Black Knight's accusations, and wanted to know whether they were true or not.
And although he knew he owed his best friend that much after hurting him, he couldn't give one to him. Not after how he'd acted today.
Not after what he'd said today.
Gripping his épée, Touché got up from the floor and walked outside into the courtyard. Although he didn't want to, he'd have to push his friend to the back of his mind again. Right now, he had a duel to prepare for.
In another town…
Dum-Dum sighed as he walked into the marketplace. The smells of fresh meat, cheese and bread greeted him as he walked in, and he had to admit, it was rather tempting…but right now he didn't feel like eating anything. He felt weighed down with sadness, exhaustion and worry.
Although he'd tried not to think about it, the ordeal with Touché and the Black Knight was first and foremost on his mind. The things that the Black Knight had said, about Touché being greedy, a liar and a thief…that couldn't be true. He was the world's greatest hero—or one of them, anyway. Touché always did good deeds, helping others in need, defeating evildoers and always doing it with honor.
The Black Knight had to be wrong.
But maybe…maybe he wasn't. He knew more things about Touché that Dum-Dum hadn't even heard of. He hadn't known that Touché had another sidekick. He hadn't known that Touché had lost loved ones.
And he hadn't known that Touché had thought of him as a simple idiot, either.
He knew he wasn't that smart; in fact, now that he thought about it, saying that Touché had been getting mad over two dead guys was an idiotic thing to say. But even then, he'd wanted to know why he'd snapped like that. There was something deeper to this case, and from what he could tell, this something was a burden to him. And Dum-Dum wanted to, at the very least, take the burden off his shoulders.
In their line of work, they were allowed to kill, but Touché made it a point to never do so. He faced his opponents with his famous fearless resolve, but even if he beat them in combat, he'd spare their life and give them the chance to turn around. Very rarely, he would kill if the person requested it to put them out of their misery, and often it was seen as an act of mercy. It was a sign of his nobility, how he tried to give people the chance to change.
There was nothing noble about this. What he was trying to do to the Black Knight…it wasn't right. It wasn't at all like the turtle he knew.
He bumped into someone's shoulder. "Hey! Watch it, sheepdog!" the man shouted, his accent thick.
"S-Sorry," Dum-Dum mumbled, but the man had already left. He sighed and kept walking, only to pause when he saw the fountain in the middle of town.
It looked just like the one that had been in the town that'd been torched to the ground, except it was made with stone instead of marble. Next to Touché was a tall man—incredibly young, with nice hair and a strong build, dressed in a suit of dented armor. Someone had been taking good care of this fountain, as it looked almost new.
"Gee, I didn't know there was a statue of Touché here too," he muttered.
"Yeah. He's the one who defended this town from the Black Knight."
Dum-Dum looked over to his left to see the speaker. A man slightly taller than him, sturdy and having tanned skin, red hair laced with grey and blue eyes, smiled wistfully up at the statue, his eyes focused on the man next to Touché. "They built this fountain years ago, to honor Touché's defeat of the Black Knight," he continued.
"Uh, who's the young fella next ta Touché?" Dum-Dum asked.
"That's Nicolas Fontaine," the man explained, "Touché Turtle's very first sidekick. They traveled everywhere together but made this town their home." He chuckled. "Nico never liked the idea of leaving home for long."
"How do you know?"
"He was my son," the man said, and his voice took on a melancholic note. "My only son, and all I had after his mother died." He looked up at Dum-Dum. "Are you friends with Touché Turtle?"
"Yeah, he's my best friend an' hero. I'm his sidekick," Dum-Dum replied. "I-I never knew that Touché had another sidekick."
"I don't imagine he'd tell you. What happened to Nicolas broke me, but Touché took it harder than I did," the man answered.
"W-Would you like to sit down an' talk about it instead?" Dum-Dum asked.
The man smiled. "I would like that, yes. I'll take you back to my workshop. No use of talking about something so heavy in the middle of the street," he answered. "I'm Julien, Nico's father. And you are?"
"Oh, it's Dum-Dum. Dum-Dum Dugan."
"Alright. Follow me. My workshop's right up the street."
Dum-Dum did so, feeling much lighter. Well, whaddya know? Maybe I'll get lucky an' find out what's goin' on with Touché after all.
Touché Turtle's Castle
Training Grounds
"HYAH!" Touché stabbed at the dummy, puncturing the side of the rice bag that made up its "chest". Rice spilled out of it, and added on to the growing pile of rice from the other stab wounds "it" had incurred.
Touché studied the dummy with a frown, resting from his attacks. Attacking the dummy had been one way of perfecting his thrusts—not that he needed a lot of work in that area, but he wasn't taking any chances—but as for controlling his footwork and such, he needed a live opponent for that.
And about the only person he could get with any fencing experience was Dum-Dum.
Touché sighed. He hadn't been able to focus as well as he would've normally, namely because his friend's face flashed into his mind at inopportune times. Every time he attacked the dummy, he thought of his words to Dum-Dum. Each word had been like one of his strikes—sharp, piercing and painful.
And just from remembering Dum-Dum's expression, his words had done far worse than that.
Touché walked past the beaten dummy and made his way back inside the castle. It'd been two hours since he'd started training, and he knew he needed something to eat after training for that long, but he couldn't bring himself to eat anything, not with his best friend on his mind.
He knew that Dum-Dum wasn't useless, or disloyal...but an all-too familiar fear was trying to make its way back up, one that he'd tried to bury years back with the Black Knight.
I just hope that Dum-Dum comes back, Touché thought to himself, shaking his head to rid himself of his fears.
Julien's Workshop
"Forgive the mess-and the smell," Julien said, bringing a tray of cakes over to Dum-Dum, who was polishing off a cup of coffee. "I have several projects that I have to get done by next week."
"Aw, it's no problem," Dum-Dum answered, sniffling. He looked around the woodshop, seeing the various art pieces that were on sale. Some of them were beautiful clocks, others were wood statues in various stages of completion. The room was heavy with the smells of metal and sawdust, the latter of which had gotten in his nose. "Ya've got a real nice collection of art, Mr. Fontaine."
"Just Julien, please. And thank you," the man replied, setting the cakes down. "I've fallen on hard times, and I'm not selling as much as I used to. I may consider selling this place eventually."
"Aw, that's too bad. Ya don't need ta sell it," Dum-Dum replied. "I've got a cousin up in New York who loves woodwork. I-I could talk ta him if you'd like."
"Oh, you're too kind, but you don't have to."
"I'd still like to," Dum-Dum answered. "Nothin' makes me happier than helpin' someone, 'specially if they're in trouble." His smile fell slightly. "'Course, uh…not everyone wants my help, though. Touché kinda made that clear."
"You two had a fight, huh?"
"Yeah…y'see, the Black Knight burned down a village not far from here, an-"
Julien's eyes went wide. "The Black Knight came back!?" he shouted. "Y-You can't be serious!"
"H-He destroyed a village this morning, a-and we saw him earlier," Dum-Dum explained. "Touché's…H-He was so angry, I thought he was going to kill 'im right there on the spot. I-I had to stop 'im and h-he's takin' it hard…"
"Well…can I be brutally honest for a moment?" the man started quietly. "I think you should've let him finish him off."
"H-Hey, that's the same thing Touché said," Dum-Dum replied. "I-Is he really that evil?"
"He killed my son in cold blood, Dum-Dum," Julien explained darkly.
Dum-Dum's eyes widened. "H-He died?!"
"I'll never forget the day the Black Knight came to this town. His goal was to take over the castle, but he set everything on his way there. Touché and Nico were called to keep the town from falling into his hands and were prepared to fight to their last breath to do it," Julien explained. "It was literal, in Nico's case. He was impaled by the Black Knight, and died in Touché's arms."
Dum-Dum's eyes were wide with horror. "T-That's horrible…"
"I had to carry his body back here," the man continued. Tears splashed onto the worktable, mixing in with the sawdust. "F-Forgive me..."
"There's no need," Dum-Dum choked out, and pulled out a handkerchief from inside his scarf. "H-He's your son. Y-You deserve ta cry."
"Y-You are too kind, Dum-Dum," Julien answered, taking the neckerchief and wiping his eyes with it. He swallowed back a sob, although he was still shaking. "I was shattered for years, since I'd lost my family…but Touché took it harder than me. He loved Nico like a little brother a-and considered him to be family."
"S-So that's what he meant…"
Julien looked up at him, his blue eyes slightly red. "Pardon?"
"E-Earlier today…I said that he'd gotten mad over two dead guys…" Dum-Dum shook his head. "He yelled back that those two were like family to him. N-No wonder he was so mad…"
"I know that he lost someone to the Black Knight before…but he didn't tell me any details," Julien said. "But yes…Nico was like a little brother to Touché. In fact, I'm very happy that he met him."
"You are?"
"Yes. They ended up bringing the best out of each other, although in Touché's case, he changed for the better," Julien answered. "Touché…when he came to this town, he was a different turtle. Hardened, struggling and honestly a little greedy."
"H-He was greedy?" Dum-Dum all but shouted. "I-I thought the Black Knight was makin' that up!"
Julien shook his head. "I'm afraid not. Back then, the one who did the bravest deeds got the most money. And Touché worked his butt off to get it. Nothing made him happier than having the largest bag of gold."
Dum-Dum's face fell. "So that was true? Touché was doin' good deeds just for the money?" he asked.
"Yes…originally," Julien replied. "But it eventually landed him in trouble with a few knights. They didn't like him hogging the gold and they beat him severely and threw him out. That's how he met my son, Nicolas; he found him beat up in the middle of the street, so Nico took him into our home."
"Was he a big fan of Touché?"
"Very. Nico got Touché to tell him about his life as a hero, and he decided to train as a knight right after. He wanted to learn how to fence and fight with a sword, but nobody could teach him, so Touché took him under his wing, albeit reluctantly. Although he loved Nico like a little brother, he absolutely refused to train him."
"Uh, why?"
"I'll never forget what he said. After he refused to train him the third time, he told me, 'I've lost someone to my line of work. I don't want to lose your son either'," Julien replied. "In response, I told him that exploring the world and doing things for people would be good for Nico—it'd change him, help him leave his fears behind. Before he met Touché, Nico didn't even want to leave the house. That changed his mind."
"Huh…so, that's how they started workin' together…"
"Once he learned that he was helping people in the long term, Nico took to doing the good deeds like a fish to water. He and Touché traveled together after Nico graduated from school," Julien answered. "Their friendship opened up Touché. He stopped looking for jobs just for the money. He even told me that working with him helped out a lot." He sighed. "If his friendship brought him out of his hard shell, then Nico's death is what caused him to retreat into it again."
"A-After they fought the Black Knight, what happened?"
"Touché overpowered the Black Knight in his fury, but he couldn't deliver the final blow even when he pinned him, and the Black Knight took the opportunity to escape," Julien recalled. "He blamed himself for Nico's death and not avenging him when he had the chance. Not long after they unveiled this statue…he left and never returned. I haven't heard much from him except for a year ago."
Dum-Dum sobbed. "Poor Touché…h-he was carryin' all of that an' I didn't know…" He wiped his eyes.
"Like I said, I'm not surprised that he didn't tell you. He had quite a history with the Black Knight, which even I learned of recently. He told me such a few years ago," Julien answered.
"He never told me any of this! No wonder he was so upset at the Black Knight today…"
"He doesn't like to burden people with his problems or his troubles," Julien answered. "If the Black Knight's back as you say, I can only imagine how he's doing right now. Sometimes…"
Dum-Dum looked at him in horror. "Sometimes what?"
"Sometimes, he works himself to exhaustion when he's reminded of things," Julien replied, shaking his head. "He was doing it before Nico worked with him, and started doing it again after Nico died. Nothing can stop him when-"
Dum-Dum jumped out of his chair so fast, he almost knocked the table down. Julien stared at him, shocked. "Hey, what are you doing?!"
"I-I'm gonna have to find Touché…I've gotta talk to 'im!" Dum-Dum said, looking up at him. Urgency was present in his blue eyes. "I-I know he's mad at me right now, but I can't sit back an' let him hurt himself!"
"I'm telling you, he's not going to stop when he's like this!" Julien warned.
"Yeah, he'll stop! And if he doesn't, I'll make him, even if it kills me!" Dum-Dum replied. "He's not just my hero—he's my best friend, Julien! If I sit back, he's gonna destroy 'imself, and I'm not gonna let that happen!"
Julien stared at him in surprise, and then he smiled. "You really care about him, don't you?"
"What friend would I be if I didn't?" Dum-Dum answered. He paused, taking a breath to calm down, and then said, "Thanks for explainin' what happened to Nico, Julien…an' I'm really sorry for your loss. But I've gotta find my best friend an' talk to him."
"Then by all means, don't let me stop you, Dum-Dum," Julien replied. "Honestly, Touché's lucky to have a friend like you."
"Aw, shucks...w-well, it's nothin' really," Dum-Dum replied bashfully.
"To you it might not be. But to him it would mean a lot. Now, I'd suggest you get going," he said.
"Eh, right." Dum-Dum turned to go, but then he turned back to Julien. "An' I really mean it. Thanks."
"No. Thank you," Julien replied. "You have no idea how much having someone to talk to means to me. I haven't really made any friends since then."
"Aw, Julien...well, ya know somethin'? I'll be yer pal," Dum-Dum replied. "When this thing's over an' done with, I'll come back an' we can chat about all sorts of things!"
"You mean that?"
Dum-Dum nodded. "Yup!"
Julien chuckled. "I'll hold you to that, Dum-Dum."
"H-Heh, yeah, I'll be back," Dum-Dum said. "I promise." With that, he exited the workshop and ran down the street, heading for the exit at full speed.
He knocked down several people, and more than a few swore at him in French, but he didn't care. He burst through the trees and up the beaten path. Although his bones ached from running up another hill, that was the least of his concerns.
For goodness' sake, don't kill yourself over this guy, Touché!
End of Part 1
Finally, here's the first part of the rewrite! *throws a party*
I have far too many Hanna-Barbera OCs already, so I'm thinking of probably getting another one of those "character creation" site accounts so I can create more OC profiles. Or just make a wiki for all my OCs, lol. But yeah, characters like Julien and the Black Knight are going to get a lot more focus in upcoming chapters and possibly later stories that feature Touché and Dum-Dum. They're not just "the one-shot characters; they actually do have a role in this universe.
I tried to lighten the story up with banter from Touché and Dum-Dum, but I wasn't kidding when I said that this story was dark. I don't think it's as dark as say "Blazin' Trails" or "The Return of the Phantom Empire" (which I personally consider one of my darker Hanna-Barbera stories), but it's fairly dark. But if you thought this was startling, it's going to get even darker in the coming chapters, as we get the other half of the story from Touché's side, the duel and the aftermath. I'm also doing some research on medieval times, musketeers, the sport of fencing, swordfighting techniques and how epee works to enrich this universe...and also so the fight scenes don't suck, haha. :^)
I know I do this a lot, but characters like Dum-Dum and Droop-a-Long are fun to write. They're like the unsung heroic foils to their more capable leaders. Unlike what happened with Droop-a-Long, Dum-Dum's airheaded moments are still part of his character, but for the most part he's a little smarter than he is in the cartoon. And for all his dopey moments, he's a really caring, kind of sensitive guy who adores his buddy. I felt super bad for him when Touché insulted him like that. With Dum-Dum running back to the castle at the end here, let's hope their friendship's back on the mend.
Touché turned out to be fun as well. Although this story is about his dark past, I wanted to expand on his character farther than just that. In ways, he's the opposite of my portrayal of Ricochet, and has several similarities. I made a lot of comparisons to him and Ricochet while I was working on this story. And yes, Nico's death is part of the reason he was angry to the point of murdering the Black Knight, but the second reason is next chapter and it ties to the person that the Black Knight kept calling "the old hare".
And speaking of Nico, it's pronounced the same way you'd pronounce Nicolas, not Nico as in Nico Yazawa from Love Live. Just wanted to point that out. ^^
So, what all did you like about this rewrite? And what do you think could've been done better, or changed? I'd really like to know, so please leave your thoughts in your reviews! Constructive criticism helps me grow as a writer, and I'd really, really appreciate it if you left some helpful feedback!
God bless you all, and let's make this a great 2018!
~iheartgod175