As said in the summary, this is somewhat of a sequel to my other fic, A Study on Juveniles in Tenement Society, but you don't have to have read that to understand this. I only recommend reading that one before this since I do introduce a number of things there that are already assumed in this. It also just gives a bit more backstory to the whole situation.
Aside from that, I just really felt like writing this after talking to TheGreatMatsutzu a bit and suddenly coming to the realization that there's so much that can be done and expanded on with these characters' backstories.
Oh, and I couldn't resist writing another story with Andrew.
This is another one of those fics that turned out far longer than I'd thought it would, so I've split it into two parts. I only have a few scenes left to write on part two, so hopefully I can get that up shortly.
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A Study on Juveniles in Affluent Society
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-Part 1-
Andrew was walking down the hallway to the kitchen when he first heard the voices. He probably would have been more surprised by them had he not realized it was already almost 10:30. He'd slept in a bit later than he'd meant to.
His bare feet made soft, padding noises as he walked on the hardwood floor.
"Why do you have to be so impossible? Every time I try to talk to you, you-"
"Oh, so it's my fault now, is it? I thought that perhaps this time you'd at least take part of the blame."
Upon reaching the kitchen, he glanced around slightly before making his way to the pantry door. It opened with a tiny creak. The cereal was always kept on the bottom shelf, which he was continually thankful for, so he was able to grab a box of it easily, setting it just a short distance away on the dining room table. Once this was done, he idled his way around the rest of the kitchen, collecting milk from the fridge, a spoon from the silverware drawer, and finally, hoisting himself up on the countertop to get a bowl from one of the higher cupboards.
"You never listen! That's your problem! You don't like what I'm saying, so you just tune it out."
"Maybe you should try saying things a bit more intelligently then, hm?"
"Intelligently? What, are you trying to say I'm not smart enough to talk to you? Is that it?"
The crunching of the cereal in his mouth almost covered up the voices, but not quite. It sure did taste good, though. He swung his legs back and forth beneath his chair, still having a good three or four inches between his feet and the floor.
"Well, considering some of the choices you'd made in the last couple of years, you shouldn't be surprised that I would question your intelligence."
"Oh, now don't start with that again! I know you're not exactly jumping for joy at my current situation, but you know what? I couldn't be happier! And now, here I am, trying to let you be a part of it and you're-"
"Let me be a part of it? What, does a father not have any say in his own child's life anymore?"
Andrew looked down to see most of the cereal in his bowl was gone. He watched the milk swirl behind his spoon silently, reflecting light from the ceiling lamp above. After a few minutes, he brought the bowl to his mouth to drink it.
"I'm almost twenty-one, dad! I think I can make decisions on my own now."
"Obviously not smart ones."
"You... you...!" There was an exasperated cry, followed by the sound of a baby wailing. The shouting ceased, and after a few minutes it grew eerily silent as the baby was quieted.
Andrew hopped down from the table, still holding the bowl in his hands. He made his way over to the nearby sink, standing on his tip-toes in order to get the bowl over the edge and into it. Returning to the table, he gathered up the rest of his breakfast items and began placing them back in their respective homes.
"I don't even know why I come back here anymore. All you ever do is tell me how disappointed you are in me, and how you would have made better decisions..."
"Yes, well, why don't you just stop coming then, if it's oh-so-painful for you?"
"I thought maybe you'd like to see you grandson every now and then! He's almost a year old now and you've seen him what... twice? Three times? You never come over!"
"That would require me to converse with that flea-bag of yours. I don't even remember what you call him: Gall? Gunt?"
"It's Gil, dad."
"Oh, that's right. Good old, Gilroy come to fetch a pail of water from his family well. Now there's a catch if I've ever seen one!"
Andrew meandered his way back into the hallway, this time heading for the direction of the voices. He quickly found himself on top of the balcony overlooking the front hall. The entire room was furnished in polished wood, from the walls, to the floors and the railing. Peering through the bars of said railing, he glanced down to the bottom floor as he walked to the stairs.
They were both down there, still standing in the middle of the hall. Probably hadn't even moved from the spot from where she'd first come in.
Snaking his way down the stairwell, he let his tail bump on the steps behind him. He was careful not to slip on the polished surfaces.
"Dee!"
Both of those on the ground floor looked up as he finished his descent. "Drew-bear!" The woman beamed towards him, repositioning the baby in her arms to sit more comfortably on her hip. "I was wondering where you were!"
Andrew ran up to her, hugging around her waist. She brought up her free hand to ruffle the top of his head.
"How's my favorite cousin?"
Grinning, he lifted his head as he narrowed his eyes slightly. "I'm your only cousin."
"That doesn't mean you're not the best!" She tapped a finger to his forehead. As she shifted the baby up one more time, she glanced down at him again, this time her eyebrows furrowing a bit in concern. "Hey, what happened, bud?" She kneeled down so she was at his level.
He bit his lip a bit nervously as she gently traced a finger along the dark circle he'd developed around his eye. "I... I got in a fight at school."
"Aww, Drew-bear..." She was eyeing the cut on his forehead too. "Those older guys still picking on you?"
He shifted his eyes to the floor, but gave his head a tiny shake.
"Why didn't you clean this up?" She'd now turned to face her former conversation partner, a rather annoyed expression drifting onto her face. Andrew also glanced up, looking at his uncle for the first time since he'd come down the stairs.
"He's plenty capable of taking care of himself." Andross had his arms crossed over his chest, looking none too happy that Andrew had decided to make an appearance.
Dee turned back to her cousin, chewing her bottom lip in concern. "Oh, come on – he's only eight!" Her voice became softer. "You want me to clean that up? Get you a band-aid or something?"
Andrew nodded again.
With a slight grunt, she got to her feet, shifting the baby to her other arm. "Alright, come on, bud." She held out her hand for Andrew to take.
Andross didn't say anything, just watched them as they made their way back over to the stairs. Andrew glanced back behind him, but quickly turned forward again upon meeting his uncle's eyes.
When they made it to the top landing, they took the left hallway a short ways until they reached the bathroom, Dee flicking the light switch with her hip on the way in. After setting the baby on the sink counter, she kneeled down to the cupboard underneath to grab a clean washcloth.
"Alright, on the toilet." She gestured towards it, waiting for him to sit down on it before scooting forward on her knees.
Andrew watched her curiously as she got the cloth wet and then began patting it gently against his forehead.
"So... were you at least able to get in a few punches?"
He shifted his eyes off to the right, not saying anything. Dee glanced down at him as she paused.
"No?"
He chewed on his lip, the bathtub next to him suddenly very interesting.
"Well, that's ok. You'll get back at them soon enough." She returned to patting his forehead, letting the cloth come down to the side of his cheek where she'd noticed some shallow scratches. The baby on the counter was making small whimpering noises now, and she could see him squirming out of the corner of her eye.
"So, how is school going?"
"It's ok." The cloth felt really good against his skin.
"You're in second-grade now... right?"
"Mm." He combined this with a slight head nod. The baby was starting to get even more anxious.
She didn't say anything as she continued rubbing the cloth against his skin, his own imploring eyes staring back up at her. She was just about to move back when her eyes traveled down to his neck.
She stopped.
"Oh, did you get hit down here too?" There was a rather dark bruise on the side of his neck, trailing down under the collar of his pajamas.
He instinctively brought a hand up to cover it. "Oh, uh... yeah... it's nothing, though..."
"Andrew... let me see..."
He shook his head.
"I just wanna look at it..."
The baby started crying, his arms flailing about a bit on top of the counter.
Dee let out an exasperated sigh. "Christ... Dash!" She was up on her feet and over to the counter, picking the baby up and setting him against her chest. She gently rubbed her hand on his back while letting her torso bounce slightly.
"Shhh... shhh..."
Andrew brought his knees up to his chest, wrapping his arms around his legs while he watched.
When Dash had finally settled down, she stepped back over to the toilet, still holding him against her shoulder. "Hey Drew-bear, whaddya say about some ice cream, hm?"
Andrew's eyes lit up.
"Wanna get some?"
He nodded his head vigorously.
"Alright, go change then. I'll go tell my dad."
He was off in an instant, out of the bathroom and to his own room. He pulled his top over his head as he walked to his dresser, popping the top drawer open and rifling through the piles of clothes. He settled on his gold, dinosaur t-shirt, yanking it on without a second thought.
When he opened the bottom drawer, his eyes narrowed a bit upon seeing that he had no pants. He made his way over to the rather full laundry hamper in his closet and pulled out a pair that had been tossed over the top. They still looked fine.
He was just about to rush back out of the room when a quick thought flashed through his head. He turned back around, eyes glancing about as if searching. They finally found what they were looking for and he darted forward, grabbing his arm-warmer from the mussed-up blankets of his bed and sliding it over his arm.
He didn't want to leave without that.
Now that he was fully ready, he went back outside into the hallway, making his way to the landing to see where Dee had gone. She wasn't down in the entryway anymore, so he kept going past the stairs, trying to listen for voices.
Which he heard coming from the kitchen.
He popped his head inside a bit tentatively, hoping that they weren't arguing again. Thankfully, they appeared to be having a much calmer conversation. Andross was pouring himself a cup of coffee from the half-full pot, and Dee had her cell phone out now, inputting numbers into the keypad. Dash had been set up on the table where he was now patting his feet and mumbling some incoherent baby-talk.
Andrew meandered inside, hands clasped behind his back as he ducked his head almost nervously.
Andross blew on the coffee before taking a small sip, setting the mug back down on the counter. When he saw Andrew, a rather annoyed expression crossed his face and he stepped forward to grab him by the arm, yanking him closer.
"Andrew, what have I told you about putting your dishes into the dishwasher?"
Andrew gave a small, pained squeak.
"Dad." Dee glared at her father before slapping him across the shoulder. "Oh, hey honey. Yeah, you can come get us now." She repositioned the phone on her shoulder before reaching over with her free hand to pull Andrew towards her, idly ruffling the top of his head. "We wanna go get some ice cream." Andrew could hear the muffled sound of his cousin-in-law through the receiver. "Yeah, yeah... he's with us too."
The conversation went on for a few minutes as Andrew simply listened. He glanced up once towards his uncle, but the expression on his face was a bit menacing, so he kept his head pointed towards the ground the rest of the time.
"Alright, we'll be down in a few minutes... yeah, we'll just meet you at the car." She smiled. "Love you too, honey." She pulled the phone away from her ear and clicked it shut. "Gil's coming to get us."
Andross opened his mouth to say something, but Dee cut him off before he could even start. "Don't... say anything." She reached down to take Andrew's hand, then stepping back to the table to pull Dash up into her other arm. "Come on; let's go downstairs to wait for him."
Andrew gratefully followed after her, though he could hear the footsteps behind him, signaling that his uncle was coming too. They walked back to the entryway without much of a hitch, Dash making a few excited gurgles every so often.
When they'd made it to the front door, Dee peeked out the side windows, looking around for Gil's car. "Not here yet." She stepped back, turning around to face Andross.
"Late, again?"
Dee shot him an exasperated look. "Dad, why is everything you ever say about him something negative?"
"I'd say something positive if there were something positive to say."
Dee didn't respond, her shoulders slumping slightly in defeat. Andrew brought a hand up to scratch the bridge of his nose as he glanced between the two of them.
There was the sound of a car pulling up into the driveway, and both Dee and Andrew turned back to the window to peer out. "There we go!" She let go of his hand to pull open the door, pushing it out with her hip. "We'll be back in a little while."
"I'll be listening for sirens."
Dee's eyes narrowed, but she didn't say anything. Finally, she ushered Andrew out by his shoulder and pulled the door shut behind them.
There was a short honk from the car waiting for them, which caused her to laugh as she walked towards the driveway. She waved, approaching the car and opening one of the back doors for Andrew to climb in.
"Hey, honey."
"Hey, Deedle-bug."
She grinned before walking to the other side of the car and fastening Dash into his carseat. Once sure that he was secure, she opened up the passenger door and slid in.
"How'd it go with the old man?"
"How does it always go with my dad?"
"That bad, huh?"
Gil pulled the car into reverse and began backing out of the driveway.
"That man... he's just... "She let out an exasperated sigh. "He's so impossible. I thought he was bad around the time mom left, but... it's like he just keeps getting worse. I can barely hold a civil conversation with him anymore."
Gil checked his rearview mirror, pulling out into the street and starting off down the road. "Maybe he's going senile." This was followed by a small chuckle.
"Senile? More like... manic. Seriously, he doesn't listen to anybody, he argues constantly... I don't even know what to do with him anymore!"
It was silent for a few minutes, the music on the radio drifting through the car. Andrew was sitting with his hands on his legs, watching Dash as he chewed on one of the straps of his carseat.
"How are you doin' today, Andrew?"
He glanced up to see Gil looking back at him through the rearview mirror. "I'm fine." He scratched the top of his nose.
"Andrew got in a bit of a fight at school."
"Are you beatin' up all the older kids again? I thought we talked about this – you've gotta give them at least some chance!"
Andrew laughed, leaning forward to grab the top the front seat.
"Pretty soon, you're gonna have 'em all cowering back behind their desks!"
"Gil..." Dee gave him a playful punch on the shoulder. Andrew continued to grin from the backseat.
"So, anyway, what's this about ice cream? You don't like ice cream, do you, Andrew?"
"Yes, I do!" He bounced up and down.
"Really? Well, then it's a good thing I've got a hankerin' for some ice cream myself. A chocolate shake sure does sound good."
"I want a sundae!"
"A sundae? But Andrew... I just got a call from the ice cream place before I left - seems like they're all out of sundaes." Gil bit his lip to hold back his grin.
Andrew's eyes grew large as his face fell. "They're all out...?"
"Gilroy, you turd!" Dee gave him another punch on the shoulder. "Andrew, they're not out of sundaes."
Gil laughed, flicking on his turning signal before taking a right into the downtown area.
"Oh, whew..." Andrew sat back down, breathing a sigh of relief. He glanced back over at Dash, who was now staring up at him with his huge eyes. "Is Dash gonna have any ice cream?"
Dee turned her head slightly to look back. "Dash is still too little to eat ice cream, but I have a bottle for him."
Andrew leaned towards Dash, his face right up in the baby's, before giving his nose a small poke. Dash tried to eat his finger.
Up in the front seat, Gil had just turned onto Creston Blvd. and was coming up to their turn. "Heeere we are!" There was a small bump as the car pulled into the drive.
"Yay!" Andrew clapped his hands together. He watched through the window as Gil parked the car into the nearest spot, the sound of the engine dying around them as the car was turned off.
He was the first one out, practically wrenching off the door handle and jumping out onto the asphalt. Gil adjusted his sunglasses before stepping out as well, shutting the door behind him followed by Andrew's that he'd left open. Dee followed suit, stopping to pull Dash from his carseat before walking up to join the other two.
The bright, red roof of Dilbert's Ice Cream Shoppe glinted in the sun as Andrew rushed over to the door, pulling it open with a slight grunt. He kept pushing it backwards until it was wide-open, holding it until both Gil and Dee were through.
"Well, thanks, little man." Gil gave him a small pat on the head.
The line inside wasn't too long, as it looked like most of the people there were already enjoying their orders. The four of them took their place in line, glancing up at the hand-written signs above the counter.
"I already know what I want!" Andrew tugged on the bottom of Gil's shirt.
"And what's that?"
"A hot-fudge sundae."
Gil laughed. "Well, I guess we can handle that. Why don't you go find us a table?"
Andrew gave a quick nod before wandering off, his eyes scanning the inside of the small shop. There were a lot of tables already taken, but a booth towards the back looked empty. He made his way back towards it. It looked a bit dirty – obviously, the last user had just left, but it wasn't too bad. Besides, booths were better than tables by far.
He pulled himself up onto the seat, scooting over to the middle and swiping across the table with his hands. It looked a bit better now.
The mood around him was quite exuberant, the sound of delighted conversations coming from all corners of the shop. There were a number of smaller kids running about between the tables, many of their faces already covered with ice cream. One young koala looked positively covered in chocolate syrup.
Sitting patiently, he swung his legs back and forth underneath the table, hitting them against the side of his seat with tiny thuds. Above him, a speaker was letting out a tinny-sounding song, adding to the almost carnival-like atmosphere that seemed to envelope the entire shop.
After a few minutes, he finally saw Dee and Gil making their way back to him, carrying a number of cups in their hands. Gil gave a little grunt as he slid himself into the seat across from Andrew, his sunglasses now propped up on his head.
"Here ya go, kiddo." He handed across the sundae that Andrew'd been eyeing since he first saw it with him. The ape immediately took a large spoonful and stuffed it into his mouth.
Dee set her own ice cream down on the table before leaning forward to place Dash in the seat beside Andrew. After making sure he was properly situated, she slid in beside her husband.
"Taste good?"
Andrew nodded vigorously, mouth too full to talk. Beside him, Dash was banging his bottle against the side of the table, splashes of milk flying out.
They sat in comfortable silence for the next couple of minutes, simply enjoying their ice cream while making sure that Dash didn't hurt himself with the bottle. In the booth next to them, an elderly elephant couple was just finishing up their own treats, packing everything up to throw in the trash.
Andrew, himself, was quite absorbed in his ice cream. He was already almost half-way done with it when he realized that both Dee and Gil were watching him, occasionally whispering something to each other.
He stopped with the next spoonful almost to his mouth, looking up at them.
Both realized this at the same time, smiling down at Andrew as if nothing was wrong.
"What is it?"
"You're saying something about me."
"Oh, don't be silly." Dee laughed it off with a wave of her hand.
Andrew's eyes narrowed slightly as he looked from Dee to Gil and then back. He brought the spoonful of ice cream to his mouth.
Out of the corner of his eye, he watched as Dee turned to her husband once more, raising her eyebrows as she whispered something else. Gil scratched at the back of his neck, his eyes coming up to glance at Andrew every now and then.
Andrew definitely didn't like this.
He settled back into his seat, chewing on his bottom lip. Turning his head to the side, he caught Dash looking at him with his bottle half-way in his mouth. The baby's eyes were staring at him a bit inquisitively.
He reached forward to grab Dash under the armpits, pulling him into his chest for a hug.
"Hey, Drew-bear? I'm gonna go use the bathroom... you have to go?" Dee was idly stirring the last of her shake with her spoon.
Andrew was holding Dash's hands in his, clapping them together while Dash made happy, squealing noises. "Not really..."
She glanced back at Gil, who simply narrowed his eyes slightly.
"Come on, you don't wanna have to go in the car, do you?"
Taking Dash's wrist, Andrew raised the baby's hand, making him wave towards his parents. "...I guess not."
"Alright then, let's go." She slid up out of her seat, gesturing with her hand. Andrew hauled Dash out of his lap and back onto the seat beside him before scooting out under the table. He immediately grabbed Dee's hand, glancing up at her before both of them began walking towards the front of the shop.
She didn't say anything as they walked, and it didn't take them long to get to the small hallway behind the counter where the restroom was. She knocked quickly to make sure no one was using it, then stepped inside, pulling Andrew after her.
He watched her lock the door.
"Drew-bear...?" She seemed almost nervous, turning back around and kneeling down to be at his level. "Will you let me look at that bruise on your neck?"
Andrew shook his head in refusal, backing away slightly.
"Andrew, please."
He brought his hand up to his neck, covering whatever could still be seen of it beneath his collar.
"I'm trying to help, just let me..." She reached forward to grab his arm, pulling it away. He instantly gave a pained squeak and tried to yank it back.
Her eyes narrowed. She let go of his arm, though she grabbed his shoulder to pull him towards her. Snatching his hand, she raised his arm into the air so she could see it better, pulling off the arm-warmer he'd been so careful to put on earlier.
His arm beneath it was an ugly shade of purplish-brown.
"Andrew..." Dee bit her lip, not able to look away. Andrew gave a tiny whimper, looking down at the ground in shame.
Without a second thought, she took his other arm up above his head, reaching down to grab the bottom of his shirt and pull it up over him. Once he became free of the confines, he instinctively brought his arms across his chest, curling his head forward.
"Andrew, up. Look at me."
It took a few moments, but he finally did.
She took his chin in her hand, the other one tracing down his neck to look at the bruise there. It spread from his neck down to his collarbone, almost to the edge of his shoulder. From there, her eyes scanned the rest of his torso, finding a number of others across his chest and stomach. In fact, the entirety of his lower stomach seemed slightly discolored.
Andrew felt tears spring to his eyes.
"Andrew, these did not come from school."
He didn't say anything, once more just staring at the ground.
"Who did this to you, Andrew?"
No answer.
"Did somebody hit you?"
He shook his head almost fearfully.
"Andrew... Andrew." She took his chin again, forcing him to look at her. "Did my dad hit you?"
He wrenched his head away, shaking it again.
Dee brought a hand up to rub between her eyes, her gaze shifting to the ground. She chewed on her lip, grimacing a bit as she tasted blood in her mouth.
"Andrew, you can trust me. You're safe here... you need to tell me who did this."
Andrew crossed his arms over his chest again, leaning forward slightly. His bottom lip was quivering.
"Andrew..." She brought a hand up to run through his hair, rubbing the back of his neck gently.
A few tears worked their way out of his eyes, running down his cheeks and blurring his vision. He clenched his eyes shut before shaking his head once again.
Dee pressed her lips tightly together, eyebrows furrowed. "Oh, Drew-bear..." She brought her arms up around his shoulders, pulling him in to her chest. He buried his face into her shirt, still shaking.
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The ride back home was much quieter than the one to the shop. Andrew sat in the back, his hands in his lap with his head tilted down. Dee and Gil were talking quietly amongst themselves, Dee bringing a hand up to massage her temple every now and then. Even Dash was surprisingly silent, having calmed down quite a bit.
Andrew brought his head up slightly to glance at his younger cousin, finding him practically asleep inside the carseat.
There was a sharp clicking noise from the front as Gil put on the turning signal, pulling the car into the driveway. Andrew felt the car slant upwards.
When the car came to a complete stop, no one moved for a second. Finally, Dee opened her door, stepping out onto the cement. Andrew watched her walk around the car before stopping at his own door, opening it with a click.
"Come on, I'll take you back inside." She held out her hand for him, which he took before stepping out of the vehicle himself. She gave him a sad glance before they began walking up the sidewalk, her sandals making flopping noises against the ground.
When they got onto the porch, she stopped, kneeling down next to him. She brought her other hand up to grip his hand with both of hers.
"Alright... I'm gonna go home now, ok?"
He gave a rather stiff nod.
"Drew-bear, I'm gonna call someone who can help... they're probably gonna come ask you some questions or talk to you. You can trust them. Tell them the truth, tell them everything... you're gonna be safe, ok?"
Another nod.
She pulled him into a hug. "Andrew, I love you. Remember that."
He brought his own arms up to wrap around her neck, resting his head on her shoulder.
"I don't want you to get hurt anymore."
After a few moments, she finally took a hold of his shoulders and pushed him away gently. She gave him a grin, poking his nose with her thumb. "Alright, bud. Now go and enjoy the rest of your day off."
He let a small smile come to his face before walking over to the door and pushing it open. Dee was back on her feet as she gave him a quick wave, turning back to walk to the car.
Andrew shoved the door closed behind him, letting himself rest his back on it for a second. His eyes searched the entirety of the entryway. Nothing. No one. It was perfectly quiet.
The tension in his shoulders he hadn't even known was there slowly relaxed.
After a few more moments, he stepped away, making his way over to the stairway. He grasped the railing tightly as he made his way up, the wood making tiny squeaks under his sneakers.
He wanted to go to his room, suddenly feeling very tired. He brought a hand up to rub at his eyes as he turned down the left hallway. His room was the farthest door, and when he saw it, he felt himself relax even more.
"Back so soon, Andrew?"
His body went rigid. He was in front of the door to his uncle's room, the door, itself, slightly ajar.
;Ever so slightly, he stepped towards it, pushing the door open further with his fingertips. Upon peeking his head in, he saw his uncle sitting in one of his high-back chairs, facing away from him and towards the dark fireplace in the wall. He appeared to be reading a book.
Andrew held onto the doorknob, leaning slightly against the door. "U...Uncle Andross?"
Andross turned a page in his book, still not looking up. He didn't say anything for a few moments.
"Come here, Andrew. There's something I've been meaning to talk to you about."
His tail instinctively curled up between his legs, but he let go of the doorknob. Ever so slowly, he put one foot in front of the other and began making his way across the room.
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When Andrew woke up the next morning, he couldn't help but feel rather uncomfortable. Something was wet.
He groggily got up on his hands and knees, eyes trying to adjust themselves to the morning light that was coming in through the window. He yawned. Finally looking back towards his bed, he felt his face fall, almost letting out an audible sigh.
He'd wet the bed again.
Sliding off the covers, he took a few teetering steps towards his closet. He pulled out the first pair of underwear he found from the drawers, then silently chewed on his lip when he remembered he still didn't have any clean pants. With another trip to the hamper, he nabbed the same pair of pants he'd worn yesterday.
Once he'd changed, he felt quite a bit better, but there were still the bedsheets that had to be taken care of. He climbed back up on the bed and began pulling off the blankets and sheets, piling them on the floor below. Thankfully, most of the blankets themselves seemed dry – it was just the bottom sheet and mattress cover.
He gathered those two up in his arms, walking over to the door and opening it quietly. He peeped his head out to listen.
There was nothing.
His tail curling up around itself, he snuck slowly out into the hallway and back to the stairwell. In his barefeet, he was able to pad across the wooden floors almost noiselessly, which brought him some relief. Stretching his feet out to find each stair before stepping down, he made it to the bottom without much difficulty and then walked into the back hallway. The only rooms down here were a few storage closets and the laundry room.
The door to said laundry room was already slightly ajar, which Andrew found odd, but he paid it no heed, turning backwards to push it open with his rear. The fluorescent light from above blinded him for a second compared to the dark hallway, but he walked all the way inside and towards the washer.
Which Andross was standing right next to.
He stopped almost instantly, breath frozen in his lungs. Andross was watching something in the dryer, looking a bit impatient. He glanced up, however, now that Andrew was near.
"I, uh... I..."
"You wet the bed again? What's wrong with you, boy?"
Andrew instinctively ducked his head in, bringing one hand up to cover his face. But nothing came – Andross continued to stand there, his gaze once more returning to the dryer. He peeped open one eye to look, confused.
"Well, are you going to stand there like an idiot all day, or are you going to set them up on the counter so I can wash them later?"
Andrew immediately darted forward past Andross, standing up on his toes so he could haul the sheets up onto the top of the washer. Once this was done, he turned back around a bit awkwardly, scratching one leg with the other.
"Go get ready, you ignorant fool!" Andross shot him an exasperated look, causing Andrew to jog quickly out of the laundry room. He was back to the stairs in less than a few seconds, where he paused for a moment to catch his breath. Once he'd calmed down a bit, he started up to the stairs and back to his room.
It didn't take him long to get ready for school. He'd already changed out of his pajama bottoms, so all he had left to do there was slip on a clean shirt. From there, he simply made what was left of his bed and then started on his way to the kitchen to put his lunch together. Setting his striped lunchbox up on the table, he searched through the pantry until he found something he could take.
There wasn't much. What was left of the bread had already started to get a bit crusty, and they didn't have any meat to put in a sandwich anyway. He finally decided to put some peanut butter on some three-day old dinner rolls they'd had a short while ago. That would be good enough. In the fridge, he found a half-full bag of carrots and grabbed those along with the milk carton. Once he'd packed the food items into his lunchbox, he pulled the thermos out to fill it with milk.
It was around this time that Andross came into the kitchen, heading straight for the coffee pot. He pulled a travel mug out of one of the top cupboards.
"Are you almost ready to go?"
"Yeah."
Andrew watched him fill up the mug, zipping his lunchbox shut a bit tentatively.
"Go put your shoes on."
He grabbed his lunch off the table and made his way out of the kitchen, descending the steps for the second time that morning. Once at the bottom, he found his shoes next to the door and slipped them on over his bare feet.
Andross was close behind him. His steps resounded through the entryway as he walked briskly down the stairs. Already wearing his shoes, all he had to do was pick up the briefcase he'd set against the wall the night before.
Now that they were both ready, they walked to the back hallway where the entrance to the garage was and stepped out into it, Andross unlocking the car as they did so. Andrew jogged quickly to the other side of the vehicle and opened the passenger door before slipping in. Once Andross was inside, he clicked the garage-door opener before starting up the car.
Andrew watched from his window as they pulled out of the driveway, barely pausing a moment before they were out on the street. He turned to see his uncle take a sip from his coffee as they started their way downtown.
Relaxing a bit in his seat, Andrew swung his feet idly underneath him. Andross had turned the radio station to a news channel or talk show of some sort, which didn't exactly intrigue him, so he quickly tuned it out, simply staring ahead of himself.
In fact, he would have stayed in that same position for the remainder of the drive had he not noticed they didn't turn down the street to his school. His eyes narrowing, he sat up straight in his seat to glance out the window, watching as the turn they should have taken traveled further and further away from them.
"Uncle Andross, you missed the turn."
"You're not going to school today, Andrew."
He turned to look at his uncle, a confused expression crossing his face.
"You're coming to work with me."
His hand came up to scratch across the bridge of his nose, and he waited a moment before sitting back down in his seat. He was thoroughly confused now – this had certainly never happened before! He was a bit afraid to ask why, though.
He turned his head to watch as they kept traveling through the downtown area, pulling onto a street with a number of large buildings situated along the sides. They continued this for a while until, at the second stop-light, he took a left into a rather large parking area. After a few minutes, he pulled the car into a free parking spot, yanking it into park and pulling the key out of the starter.
Andrew watched him, unsure of what to do.
"Come on, come on... out of the car." Andross reached into the backseat to grab his briefcase. Andrew quickly opened his door and stepped out, glancing around at the unfamiliar territory.
With an abrupt slam, his uncle closed the car door and began walking towards the large building situated at the end of the parking lot. Darting forward to catch up, Andrew reached the older ape's side, quickly falling in step.
They'd just about reached the door when Andross stopped, almost causing Andrew to run smack into him. He knelt down, holding one of his arms out without saying a word.
Andrew glanced up at him, confused.
"Up! Come on." He jerked his arm forward.
After a moment's hesitation, Andrew finally stepped forward a bit tentatively, reaching his arms up to wrap around his uncle's shoulders. Andross took no time in standing back up, hoisting Andrew up by his rear, and then proceeding on into the building.
Andrew watched as the scenery passed him by in reverse. The entire situation seemed a bit awkward at first, but after a few minutes, he couldn't help but lower his head to rest on his uncle's shoulder. He was suddenly four again, taking a trip with his uncle to the amusement park. He buried his head into the fabric of Andross' shirt.
Andross, himself, made his way swiftly through security, not even saying anything to the guards. He walked past a number of others that were milling about before stepping into an already open elevator. A black cat in a red pant-suit looked up at him when they entered.
"How ya doin' this mornin', sir?"
"As well as can be expected, Cindy."
"I can hear that, sure. Another Monday, another long week. You goin' down to the lab?"
Andross nodded a bit hurriedly. "Yes, yes, B2."
She lazily reached over to push the button, the round plastic instantly lighting up.
"Ya know, sometimes I really wonda' about this job. I mean, how much are we really gettin' accomplished here? Alls I know is my husband keeps askin' me to take some time off, wants to go onna vacation, yeah? But those damn supervisors, they keep..."
The elevator hummed to life, and Andrew felt themselves start descending below the ground.
"...so then I simply said... oh hey, wait. Who's the kid? I didn't know you was a father."
Andross' eyes narrowed in an exasperated manner before he turned his head to look at her. "Well, I am a father, but this one's not mine. A nephew, is all. He's sick today."
The cat put a hand to her mouth. "The poor thing... look at 'im, all tuckered out like that. You lookin' after 'im for his parents today?"
Andross sighed, teeth clenched together slightly. "No, I'm afraid his parents passed on some time ago. I'm the one who takes care of him."
"Well, isn't that a cryin' shame? So many kids these days, they all seem ta be losin' their parents... must be hard on 'em. I knew a girl back in my preschool days, she clean lost all 'er relatives, it seemed. All alone in the world. It just brings ya to tears, practically. I once tried ta..."
The elevator opened and Andross promptly stepped out, leaving the black cat to finish her story without him.
Andrew began watching with keen interest as they walked through this new room. It was a large laboratory, tables and workstations situated about, many of them with people already hard at work behind them. The fluorescent lights from above cast harsh glares across the majority of the room, making everything seem super-realistic. He clenched his hands into his uncle's shirt a bit tighter.
Andross continued on towards the back of the lab, where a door led into a smaller office. Upon entering it, he placed Andrew down on the desk inside before shutting the door behind them. He immediately sat down at the desk, flipping the computer monitor on and opening the folder of papers that had been sitting on top.
Andrew observed all this silently, fidgeting a bit as he sat awkwardly on the desk. He glanced around the small office, taking note of the framed certificates lining the walls and the nearby shelf that seemed to be overflowing with books. His tail flipped up curiously as his eyes then traveled across the mess of paperwork that was covering the desk.
He watched his uncle scan through a large packet, licking his finger every so often before leafing to the next page. The computer in front of him made a series of beeping noises as it loaded, the screen springing to life.
He was really beginning to wonder what was going on when the door burst open, a disheveled-looking panda practically barging inside.
"You're finally here! You had me fuckin' pacing! I thought we said we were gonna meet a half hour earlier today?"
Andross didn't even look up. "Yes, well, I had a few things come up which took longer than expected."
The panda shut the door behind him, eying the window that led back into the lab. "Everything's still on, though, right? I mean, I set it all up like you told me to."
"Of course it's still on - I brought Andrew, didn't I?"
The panda finally let his eyes fall on Andrew, searching him. He took a few steps towards the desk. "So this's your nephew, huh?" He poked him in the chest, causing Andrew to jerk back slightly. "Scrawny little fellah, ain't he?"
Andross let his eyes glance up to watch the panda for just a moment before returning to the paper. "Indeed."
The panda continued staring at him as he simply sat there, causing Andrew to feel more than a bit awkward. He kept his head forward, looking down at his lap. Andross was now typing something into the computer.
"I just need to burn this onto the CD." There was the sound of a compartment opening before getting shoved back into the machine. As a rather loud whirring noise began echoing out from it, Andross stood back up from the desk, placing the papers he'd been perusing onto a black, plastic shelf that was situated on his desk.
It was silent for a few minutes as they listened to the whir rise and fall, finally slowing down a complete stop. The CD popped back out. Andross snatched it from the drive, handing it over to the panda before returning to Andrew and lifting him from the desk. The three of them were then on their way out of the office and towards the back of the lab.
There was a lone door there, painted a dull, gray color. The panda made it there first, pushing it open and holding it for Andross. Inside was the emergency stairwell. The dim concrete shone an almost greenish color due to the lights on the walls. It was the kind of environment Andrew had always wanted to shout in, hearing his voice echo through the tall tunnel. Unfortunately, now wasn't exactly a good time to fulfill this dream.
Both Andross and the panda made their way briskly down the staircase, passing the first door they came to and continuing down to the next. When this door was pushed open, they were met with an almost stark white hallway. Towards one end was an elevator, probably the same one they'd used to get to the lab, and towards the other end, much farther down, was a sealed glass door leading into what looked like another office of some sort. A number of other doors lined the hallway.
Andrew looked at the panda, who now seemed a bit nervous. He kept bringing a hand up to run through the fur on the top of his head. His uncle didn't seem to be feeling a thing, however, looking back and forth as calmly as if he were in the hallway of his own house. After only a moment or two, they were walking down the hallway, quickly shoving one of the doors open and stepping inside.
It was a restroom.
Andrew was promptly set on the ground near the back, the panda glancing down beneath each of the stalls to make sure no one was there. When he was finished checking, he shot Andross a thumbs-up.
Andross turned his gaze towards Andrew. "Andrew. Andrew." He snapped his fingers, causing Andrew to jerk a bit in surprise. "Andrew, listen to me. What I need you to do now is very important."
The panda was now standing up on his toes against one of the other walls, using a screwdriver to unscrew an airvent that was in the corner.
"We're going to need you to crawl through the airvent to get behind that glass door you saw earlier. Once you get in there, there will be a switch near the door that will unlock it. You need to push it so that we can get in."
Andrew chewed on his finger nervously. "But... but..."
Andross slapped his face with the back of his hand, causing him to taste blood in his mouth. "Speak up, boy! Do you understand or not?"
Andrew nodded his head quickly, trying to appear less apprehensive than he felt.
"Good." Andross turned back towards the panda, who'd just finished unscrewing the last screw on the airvent, bringing it down in his hands. The dark rectangle loomed ominously on the side of the wall, causing Andrew's throat to stick as he tried to swallow.
"All set." The panda looked towards them, finally focusing down on Andrew.
Andross promptly picked Andrew up under the armpits, carrying him over towards the wall. Upon reaching it, he launched him into the hole face-first. Andrew whimpered, his feet kicking out behind him, before he was shoved all the way in with another push to his rear.
The space was tight. Almost too tight. And it was so dark he could barely see. The walls hugged against his shoulders, pressing into them, pressing against his whole body. He wanted to start crying, but he knew he couldn't.
"Alright, Andrew. Now, if you just keep going straight forward, you should eventually hit another wall. From there, take a left and you'll reach the vent that leads to the room. You'll need to unscrew the ventcover and pop it off to get in."
Andrew tried to nod his head, but just ended up hitting it against the top of the tunnel.
"Andrew, do you understand?"
He bit his lip, trying to hold back another whimper. "Y...yeah..." His voice echoed off the tin walls.
Holding his breath, he finally started to move forward. It was exceedingly difficult. Each time he tried to reach an arm out, the walls would dig into his knees. He felt like he was trapped in a tiny box with no way out, barely even able to breath. A tear threatened to fall down his cheek, but there was no way for him to wipe it away. When an itch began forming on the side of his thigh, there was no way for him to scratch it.
He continued moving forward, inch by inch. The walls threatened to close in on him. He felt like the air was thinning, but that was before realizing that he was simply breathing far too quickly. His heart echoed in his head.
The tunnel seemed to go on forever. He wondered how long it had been. He knew that it couldn't have been more than a few minutes, but even a few seconds trapped in this tunnel felt like an hour. He was beginning to question whether there was even an end or not. Maybe his uncle just wanted to kill him. Maybe he wanted to trap him in here, have the air eventually run out, have him suffocate to death. Or perhaps there was some evil creature looming in the darkness, reading to attack him when there was nothing he could do to defend himself.
He was just about convinced that the itch on his leg was really a crawling centipede when his head abruptly ran into the wall in front of him. He cringed slightly, pulling away. Off to his left he could finally see light, which automatically made him feel quite relieved. He turned down this new path and began making his way towards the end.
His uncle had been right – there was another ventcover securely attached to the side. He was so close... so close to freedom. He could look out into the office down below. It was completely empty, a few running computers, but nothing else. He could also see the glass door that he was supposed to go unlock.
But still, everything was behind those imprisoning bars of the ventcover.
He looked towards the four corners, locating the screws. Reaching a hand out, he grabbed the end of one between his thumb and index finger and began trying to unscrew it. It didn't even budge.
He began to panic. What if he couldn't get the vent unscrewed? Would he be stuck here forever? The tunnel was too small for him to turn around. He was trapped, oh, he was trapped.
He tried again. Still no luck. His fingers slid uselessly against the grooves of the screw, simply leaving painful crease marks in his skin.
Tears threatened to come to his eyes again, and he could feel his breathing start to quicken. He wanted to just ram his head against the cover. Suddenly, it felt like the air around him was becoming hot and stuffy, making his head swim.
Attempting as much as he could to calm himself down, he tried one more time. He pressed his fingers together as tight as he could around the edge of the screw, twisting it with all his might.
The screw began moving.
The tension in his body immediately decreased, the sound of the screw turning seeming like a beautiful symphony to his ears. He continued turning it slowly, not wanting to jinx his chance. Finally, with one last, loose turn, the screw fell out of the hole and to the ground below.
His need to get out of the tunnel as quickly as possible had him twisting the next screw almost immediately. This one turned much easier, and it only took a number of seconds before it was falling to the ground to join its brother. The following two screws suffered from various stages of stickiness, but after switching hands due to the sharp edges cutting completely through the skin on his fingers, he was able to get both of them off, the cover itself clattering to the ground along with them.
He wanted to sing a joyful song of praise as he stuck his head out of the hole. The only problem now was how he was going to get out without hurting himself. The ground below him was about eight or nine feet down: not too bad were you jumping down on your feet, but quite a bit more painful if you were falling face-first.
He attempted to bring one of his legs forward in the tunnel, but there wasn't nearly enough space for him to do this – it simply got stuck halfway under his body. He then tried to turn himself onto his back, hoping to pull himself all the way out that way, but there was nothing above the airvent hole that he could grip to hold himself.
His hands, however, were a bit sticky from sweat. Thinking that this might be the only way, he tried sticking his hands to the wall and pulling himself out bit by bit. He'd gotten his body about halfway out of the hole when his hands abruptly lost their grip and he fell backwards, knocking his head against the side of the wall before falling completely out and to the ground below.
His head was screaming. He immediately curled up, hands to his head and eyes clenched shut. A tiny whimper escaped his throat. He couldn't even comprehend anything for a few minutes, rocking back and forth silently on the rough carpet.
Once he'd finally recovered enough that he could open his eyes again, he let his hands fall away, scootching himself to a sitting position. His whole body was aching, and he had a nice slice through his pant legs right above the knees, blood already beginning to seep through.
He chewed on his finger silently.
With a deep, albeit shaky, breath, he pushed himself up to a standing position, wobbling a few times as his head tried to reorient himself. The office around him was exactly as it had looked from through the airvent: nobody there, the soft hum of computers all around him. The bright glare from the lights above seemed harsh after the absolute darkness of the tunnel.
He glanced over at the door, his eyes searching for the switch his uncle had told him about. It didn't take long to find it – about halfway up the door and to the left. He limped over and reached his hand up to pull down the lever.
The dull buzz that resonated from the door made his heart jump, and for a second he feared that he'd pulled the wrong switch. But no, nothing else happened. He peered through the glass and saw both his uncle and the panda walk quickly from their position by the restroom, opening the door and stepping inside to join him.
Andrew was immediately met with a swift smack to the side of his head, sending another jolt of pain through his nerves.
"What took you so long? I was beginning to think you'd finally done the world a favor and suffocated yourself."
He kept his eyes closed, hands to his head, until he was sure that Andross had walked away. He opened them tentatively to see both his uncle and the panda now hovering over one of the computer terminals. There was a familiar whirring noise as the recently-burned CD was stuck into the drive.
Curiosity began to get the best of him, and he slowly began making his way towards the two of them. Andross was now typing something furiously onto the keyboard.
"Alright... I'm closing the security doors."
A series of beeps came out of the computer. Andross mashed one of the keys in with his finger, a note of stubbornness seeming to resound with it. There was an almost instant reaction: the locking mechanism on the glass door gave a low hum, the sound of locks clicking into place, followed by a rather large slam from outside in the hallway as a sturdy-looking security door clanged shut.
Andrew stared outside the door, wide-eyed. A rather unsettling feeling was beginning to form in his stomach.
The panda had now taken his place at another desk, a series of blue windows popping up on the screen of his own computer monitor. The text was indecipherable from where Andrew stood, but he doubted he'd have been able to make sense of it even if he were closer. A huge wall of text was running across the screen on Andross' computer.
"I'm into the building schematics."
Another command was entered, a sub-window popping up with two new lines of text.
"I'm linking you over so you can bypass the security wall."
Andrew was shaking slightly as he watched, the two men working like well-oiled machines. He had no idea what was going on, what they were doing... but for some reason, he just knew that something was highly wrong here. He was suddenly in over his head, and he hadn't even jumped in the lake yet.
"Dexter, are you in the filter code yet?"
The panda didn't say anything for a moment. "...yeah. Yeah, I got it."
The whirring from the CD drive accelerated for a few seconds before settling back down. "Transferring..." A deluge of numbers and symbols began running up the computer screen.
Andrew inched a few steps closer, his eyes transfixed on the lines of data.
His uncle abruptly pulled back from the computer, practically running straight into him. He instantly curled up slightly, hands to his face, but similar to earlier that morning, he was completely ignored. Andross walked swiftly over to the side of the room where a control board with a number of lights and switches was splayed across a desk.
He paused, just staring at it. He appeared to be watching for something.
The panda was still typing, not even looking away from the computer screen. Window after window kept popping up, asking him for something else. Andrew had no idea what it was he was typing. The last window that popped up was slightly larger than the others had been, this one with two choices at the bottom.
"Alright, permission... granted."
With one more click on the keyboard, the windows began disappearing rapidly, fluttering into oblivion. At the control panel, two small lights near the top popped on with a faded, green color. Andross sprung to action almost immediately.
"Opening vent gates."
He pulled three switches that were in a vertical line near the lights. A new light popped on beneath them, this one red.
The panda turned away from his computer screen finally, looking up at Andross. His expression was different now, almost scared. Andross, himself, continued staring at the light for a few moments before turning on his heels and walking back towards his own computer.
"This is it, then, huh?"
Andross' eyes narrowed as he settled back down in his chair. On the panda's computer screen, one lone line of text had been typed, the cursor flashing on and off right after it.
"Push it."
The panda bit down on his bottom lip, squeezing his eyes shut as he tapped a key on the keyboard.
The text was imputed.
And then everything was silent. Or, well, as silent as it had been before. Nothing was changed. Nothing seemed different. Andrew took in a breath of air that he hadn't known he'd been holding, eyes scanning the room.
The panda was looking at Andross again, now chewing on the inside of his cheek. The ape in question sat silently for a few minutes, seemingly mulling over something in his head. Andrew's tail twitched nervously as he watched him.
With a start, he'd suddenly turned in his chair, arms crossed over his chest.
"Where's a TV?"
The panda scurried to his feet, almost tripping. There was a small TV hanging in one of the corners that he hurried to, and he quickly pressed his finger into the power button. It came on with a buzz.
As the picture slowly came into focus, Andrew watched a view of trees appear on the screen. It was some news channel, doing a story about how a few surrounding cities still had damage to be cleaned up from the storms just two nights ago. It was old news, nothing all that interesting... but both his uncle and the panda were now watching it intently.
In fact, they continued doing just that for the next five minutes. The news went on, now reporting on a small press conference being held regarding the city-wide Emergency Operations Center that had opened to handle the storms, then completely shifting gears and going on about the annual Tri-Cornerian Bike Ride that took place every summer.
Andrew was getting restless. He kept expecting something to happen... anything... but there was nothing.
He brought a finger to his mouth and began chewing on it softly. A sudden feeling downstairs announced to him that he had to use the restroom.
Another few minutes went by. He nonchalantly crossed his legs, clasping his hands behind his back.
The sound of energetic music coming from the television tore his thoughts away from his urinary needs, and his head quickly shot up. A flash of blue was racing across the screen, followed by the words "Breaking Update". A groomed ferret in a pressed suit appeared with a microphone.
"This just in, I'm down by the Consler Building where a recent mass evacuation seems to be taking place." Just past him, said building could be seen with a horde of people pushing their way through the doors.
Andross didn't move, his chin resting in his hand as he sat, glowering.
"Initial reports are coming in that some sort of white fume or cloud began coming in through the airvents of the building. These have yet to be confirmed or identified, but there seem to be quite of number of people who've witnessed it." The crowd around him was increasing almost exponentially. "Let me see if I can't get an eyewitness report."
As the ferret began calling out to a few nearby evacuees, Andrew looked back to both his uncle and the panda, the latter of which now running a hand across his head nervously. Andross had a strange smile on his face.
"There was... there was... I was just sitting at my desk, working... right? And then, see, my office is by a wall... this... horrible smell started, and... it was like a cloud or something! Coming out of the vent!"
Each interviewee seemed more hysterical than the last.
"It started filling the whole room, it did! I don't know what it was! Was it a gas or something?"
"Are they trying to kill us all? I could barely breathe in there!"
"I think I feel my lungs burning..."
The ferret was now back in the center of the camera, looking only slightly flustered. "Reports are also coming in that Mayor Ainsdale herself is actually in the building at this time. As of yet, she hasn't been seen exiting the building. A Hazmat team has been called in by the Metro Police Department, but they're still on their way."
The sound of ambulance sirens going off could be heard in the distance, at first, barely audible over the sound of the bustling congregation. Some of the newer people to emerge from the building could be seen with their hands to their mouths, coughing. A few were even bent over.
Andrew's bathroom needs were all but forgotten now as he just stared at the TV. It wasn't possible, was it? It couldn't be. He didn't even notice that his hands were now clutching his shoulders.
"Hold up, what's this? It's the mayor!" There was a raucous display of shouting as people turned, trying to see the mayor. The camera itself refocused, zooming in towards the door of the building. The mayor, clad in her business skirt, could be seen stumbling out the doors, a mass of attendants attempting to help her. She was coughing up something horrible, arms clutching her stomach as she leaned forward.
"Yes... that's it."
Andrew didn't even realize that the voice was coming from the room he was in at first. He turned his head to see his uncle now leaning forward in his chair, both elbows now resting on his knees.
"Breathe it in, Marie. Breathe it all in."
Back on the screen, the ocelot in question was now on her knees, her shoulders shaking with each cough. Two attendants, coughing themselves, were trying to lift her up by her arms, though not having much success. By now, cops had begun arriving on the scene, the sirens much closer.
"Breathe in that which you thought was a harmless threat. An issue that didn't need to be discussed."
A number of stragglers were still making their way out of the building, some of them falling onto the grass once they'd cleared the stairs, some stumbling out into the throng of people surrounding them. Ambulance workers were rushing out amongst them, carrying stretchers. Cops were attempting to work their way past the evacuees and into the building, now wearing oxygen masks.
"You said there was no need for research on bioweapon defense. You said there was no reason for my ideas... my glorious ideas... to be brought to fruition." Andross was on his feet now. "But what's running through your head now? What thoughts are encapsulated in that tiny skull of yours as you cough up half of your lungs?"
Andrew was staring at him in fear, having already taken a step back from his menacing stance. Even the panda seemed a bit fearful.
As the last shots came on with the mayor being put on a stretcher and hauled across the compound, a low laugh began to resound in the room. It started out as a deep grumble, fleshing out into a full-fledged cackle as Andross threw his shoulders back, breathing in his own victory.
It caused a chill to run down Andrew's spine, a terrifying memory that would refuse to dissipate even for years to come.
There was a horrible crash from outside the office. All three heads turned towards the door, the solid security wall still secured in place. Another crash: obviously, someone was trying to get in. The sound of voices could be heard, though stifled heavily by the thick steel.
"Dammit, how did they track us already?" Andross was back in his seat, swiveling towards the computer.
"I... I don't know. I cancelled all communications and hot signals that could have been coming out of here... we should be dead to the world." The panda was already typing away at something on his keyboard. The mass confusion on the TV screen seemed to be getting worse by the minute.
Andrew flinched as another crash resounded through their office. They seemed to be getting louder. He hugged his arms to his chest instinctively, curling in on himself. After a quick glance around the room, he hurried over to a nearby vacant desk and crawled underneath it, huddled against the side.
Andross' eyebrows were furrowed as he scanned across the information displayed on his screen. The panda turned to him, eyes filled with fear. "It won't be long before they get plasma cutters..."
"Yes. I know." Andross' expression didn't change. His body was sitting perfectly rigid, not even flinching with each new crash.
The panda was positively fretting now, his hands clenching the back of his chair so hard his knuckles were turning white. "W... what are we gonna do?"
"There's nothing we can do." Andross stood back up from his chair, his hands finally leaving the keyboard. For a few moments, he simply stood there, head facing the ground. Suddenly, as if something had snapped in his head, an almost maniacal smile began to spread across his face, his fists clenching.
"Let them come."
He smashed a button on the keyboard, a thunderous roar echoing around them as the security door screeched open. The voices intensified almost a hundred fold, now closing in on them.
Andrew heard the sharp crack of breaking glass as he clenched his eyes shut, wrapping his arms around his legs. Footsteps resounded around him, crushing him. He began to shake almost uncontrollably.
The last feeling he had as he opened his eyes to see his uncle being slammed to the desk was that of a warmth spreading through his pants. Just before slipping unconscious, he hoped to himself that no one would notice.
