Disclaimer: I don't own Flushed Away or any of its characters. They belong to DreamWorks entertainment.
Hey guys, if any of you are curious on why I made Rita and her dad have such a close relationship, I made it that way because it seems like they would have been close before his injuries occurred. This chapter develops this a bit more. I sort of used examples from my life with my step dad on here. Heh, it's kind of fun looking back at it and seeing the similarities xx' Oh, and if later on you expect a SidxRita thing, sorry about that, but my fic isn't going in that direction. I believe RoddyxRita is the only way to go sorry for you Sid/Rita shippers out there…Anyway, without further ado:
Chapter 4: The Great Boat Race (Teenage Years)
"Hmm…what's this now?"
It had been a few weeks after the gang fight, and Rita was once again foraging for discarded or forgotten items that had been tossed half-heartedly about. The entire front half of her body was stretched inside of a dumpster and her hands reached towards a brand new newspaper that someone must have read and thrown out. She narrowed her eyes as if doing so would help her reach further, but her fingertips just barely grazed the edges.
"Just…a bit…farther…" Her eyes widened in shock, "Whoa!"
The shifted weight to the front of her body caused her to lose her balance and she crashed into the trash bin. As the tip of her tail slid over the metal edge, the cover of the bin slammed down, casting her into darkness.
"Ugh..." she muttered as she placed a hand over her snout, while reaching towards the paper with the other, "The things I do for having the need to learn about the world around me…"
With the paper clutched tightly in one hand, she took in a deep breath and pushed up on the lid with the other, causing a shaft of light to peek through the dumpster. She tried not to look at the disgusting things that she landed in, and instead leapt out lithely back to the ground and fresh air.
Shaking the dirt and grime from the paper, she slapped the back of her hand at it to straighten it out and allowed her emerald eyes to scan the miniscule letters that covered the thin paper.
"Hmm…" a certain ad caught her eye and she read it aloud to herself, "…boat race is to be held, starting in the city limits…" she mouthed the less interesting details and when she got to the end, her voice rose, "Winner receives a gold trophy with their name engraved in it." She grinned and cast the paper behind her, "I could get a hefty sum for that."
As she walked towards her ship, the paper fluttered slowly to the ground. Beneath the article were words in tiny font that read, "The Boat Race is sponsored and will be run by The Toad."
"Absolutely not!"
"But Mum, this race could change our life! If I win that trophy I could…"
"If you win the trophy! You know how I feel about boat races, Rita, you're just too young."
"Augh!" Rita threw her hands up in defeat and collapsed on the couch, her brow furrowed in a glare that was meant for her mother. Why did Mum have to be so difficult? With that trophy they would be on easy street. No more crowded house, no more fighting over food, why wouldn't her mother let her take this chance?
"Listen, Rita. I know you mean well, but I don't want you to get hurt." Mrs. Malone sat next to her and slipped her arm behind her daughter's neck to hold her close in a comforting gesture. However, Rita stood up and folded her arms across her chest, "I'll be fine, Mum. It's not like the race is going to be rigged or anything, I mean, it's for the city." Her eyes darted to the conquered look on her Mum's face, "Besides, I would still go anyway, even if you did tell me no."
Mrs. Malone sighed and looked up at her daughter, her eyes shining with tears that threatened to come, "I know you would…Just, make sure you be careful, okay?" she asked, her eyes pleading, as she absentmindedly smoothed out the wrinkles from her apron, "I don't want you to get hurt."
"Mum…" She felt a little guilty now, she never saw her mother this apprehensive before, "I'm sorry, but this really means a lot to me." She wrapped her arms around Mrs. Malone and whispered, "I'll be fine, I promise."
Her mother looked up at her doubtfully, but gave a small nod to show she understood.
Rita backed away with a reassuring smile, placing one hand on her waist while letting the other fall limp at her side, "I'll be fine, Mum, I have the blood of the great Malone's running through my veins."
That did little to ease Mrs. Malone's concern, but she was preoccupied with trying to prevent one of the younger kids from coming after Rita with a car battery and two prongs, "Shocky, put that thing away." Mrs. Malone scolded as she held up the young rat. His little legs beat in the air, as if still trying to run towards the older sis.
Rita wanted to make a comment about going to the race versus staying with the kids, but thought better of it. Instead, she turned on her heels and walked towards the front door to make a few adjustments to the Dodger. This was one race that she had to win.
"Bumba-deeda bumba-deeda bumba-deeda-deeda"
"Happy traaaails, to you…until we meet again."
Rita waved the slugs off with her hand and they kept the music down to a minimum, humming instead a little tune that would help her to relax. She was currently adjusting the ties on the buoys, to make sure they were secured. She gave one final pull and stood up to survey her work, smacking her hands together as she confirmed the job. The Jammy Dodger was in great shape. She even polished some of the sides to give it a newer look, usually she didn't fret with things like that, but this was a special occasion.
"It looks great, Rita!"
"Whoa!" Rita jumped as her father's voice echoed through the dark sewer tunnel, and she nearly lost her balance. However, he reached out and grabbed her arm just before she could fall into the grimy water. Mr. Malone pulled her back onto the boat. Rita sighed in relief and held her hand over her heart.
"That was close…" her dad chuckled and she elbowed him gently, "Hey, I could've gotten eaten by the piranha, and it would've been your fault."
"What piranha?" he asked, lifting an eyebrow.
"I don't know." Rita shrugged, "just thought I would be a little dramatic."
Mr. Malone chuckled and turned to get out of the boat. His daughter's emerald eyes sparkled with an impish light. She snuck up behind him, crouched down, and leapt at his back in order to wrap her arms around his shoulders. He shouted in surprise and she leaned backwards, causing them both to fall to the deck of the boat. Mr. Malone laughed as she broke his fall and he turned before pinning her arms down, his countenance that of victory.
"How's that working for ya?" he inquired as she tried pushing up against his arms. She grunted as she fought against the force.
Finally, after a few minutes of ineffective struggling, she finally gave up and released a sigh as she relaxed against the ground, "That's not fair, you're much larger than me…" she muttered.
Mr. Malone chortled and released his grip, "Well, you were asking for it, you snuck up on me first. If you would've been smart and leapt away when we fell, you probably wouldn't have gotten beaten so badly."
"So…next time I should use my agility?" she inquired, trying to cover up her curious tone with a more innocent one. She had used her speed against the thugs, but Dad didn't need to know that.
"It's your strong point. Until you grow strong enough to overcome someone twice your size, you should stick with that."
She was about to say "thanks" but thought better of it. Mr. Malone only knew that she wrestled against him and only him. If she gave that away, she could kiss the chance of going out on her own goodbye.
"Umm, Dad…"
He turned around and scratched the back of his head, "Yeah, my girl?"
Rita gave a sheepish smile and looked down at her foot, which was twirling back and forth upon the ground, "I just wanted to say…thanks a lot for letting me work with you. You're the best." She ran up to him and wrapped her arms around his neck, resting the side of her face against his chest, "I love you Dad."
"I love you too, Rita."
He kissed her gently on the forehead and broke away from the hug in order to disembark from the Jammy Dodger. Rita rubbed her brow where he kissed her and flushed in embarrassment when she noticed that some of the slugs were looking at her with gazes that clearly said "awwwww".
Even when she walked inside, the small beady eyes of her younger siblings gazed up at her, as if proclaiming her as a brown nose. Well, a figurative one anyway. It didn't daunt her though; she always had a close relationship with her Dad, ever since she first learned to drive the Dodger eight years ago.
When supper was over and she helped Mrs. Malone with the dishes, she thought about the big race that would occur the next morning. As she looked up at a digital watch that they used as a clock, she noticed that it was around 7:00 pm, which meant that she was going to go straight to bed after she was done with the chores. She wanted to wake up early enough so that she could leave the house before anyone else was awake. Her mother thought that it would be in a few weeks, just a little trick Rita had to use in order to convince her to allow her to go. Events appearing on short-notice didn't go very well with Mrs. Malone.
When she dried and put away the last large bowl, she wiped her hands on the towel and began stalking towards the stairs.
"Rita!"
She paused in mid-step and sighed as she placed her foot back down on the ground. Mr. Malone came up from behind her and handed her a list, attached to which was a paper note, money…
"If you don't mind getting up in the morning, your mum has a few things she needs from the city." He winked at her and continued, "I'm sure you could use some time to yourself."
Rita stared blankly, her father knew? It appeared so as he stuck his hands in his pockets, whistling a tune while he walked towards the kitchen. Rita's features curled into a smile and she shook her head before going up the stairs, her steps a bit lighter as she did so.
Rita woke up to the silent beeping of her alarm clock, which was basically a doll's watch which was tinkered with to make it functional, and quickly pounded the sleep button with her fist. She sat up, yawned, then reached over beside the clock for her hair tie. She pulled her hair back into her favored ponytail, leapt out of bed, got changed into a black blouse and some Union Jack Flares that were slightly big on her (which didn't surprise her since she found a rat trying to get rid of them and decided she kind of liked the style), and started to sneak down the stairs.
Every step was frightening, and the creak on every step set her fur on end. It wasn't until she reached the bottom that she relaxed a bit and began to walk normally towards the door. However, the irritating beeping of the alarm met her keen ears, and she realized that she forgot to turn the alarm off.
As swift as a cat, she leapt out the front door and bounded across the dock. Furthermore, she seemed to fly into the boat, working her fingers fast on the ropes as she untied the Dodger from the dock.
"Come on Jammy!" she whispered as she pulled furiously on the starter cord, "Don't fail me now!"
The ship replied with a satisfied roar as the engine sparked to life. It took all of her self-control to not shout out in success, and she quickly ran to the front of the boat, stepped on the starting pedal, and put the ship to full throttle.
Rita could see the flickering of the house's lights as she left, but it was too late for them to stop her now. She had their only means of transportation, well, except the rubber ducky that the younger kids used for a raft, but that wasn't much of transportation.
When she drew further away from home, she whooped in glee and swerved around a buoy within the water with the greatest of ease. She owned these waters now; they were a part of her. No way could she be defeated in this race!
"Alright, Jammy, let's show these guys who the true rulers of the drains are." She said affectionately as she patted the control panel. Her fingers strayed to the compass and she tapped it with her forefinger, "Lead the way, old mate."
Sid peered behind the alley wall with narrowed eyes as he watched the Toad speaking with some of his cohorts. He had been watching them for some time now, and figured that they were up to no good. He noticed that some of the henchrats had boats of their own, and were told to compete in the race. Only a few others showed up here and there, but it appeared as if the race was sponsored, run, and controlled by the autocratic amphibian.
"Boy, this isn't good." He whispered as he wiped a smudge of chocolate from his face and licked his finger, out of habit, "So, is this some kind of set up? It sure smells like one." His nose twitched unconsciously, "This Toad guy is worse than Wolfgang and his thugs." That reminded him, where was Rita? Surely if there was a boat race, she would be interested.
He was right, just as he thought that, the Jammy Dodger soon pulled into place beside a sleek, black power-boat, obviously belonging to some kid before the rats took it and made it their own. Now it was a speed demon, surely a better ship then the Dodger.
Sid shook his head, if he knew Rita, nothing was more fierce then her and her ship. She was more frightening onboard than any of the rats that the Toad spoke to.
"Is the trap ready?"
The Toad's voice came in clearly, even though he spoke in a barely audible whisper. It confused Sid, but he tried not to think to hard on it. (XD)
A small rat with hair spiked towards the back of his head spoke aloud, "Yes boss, it's all set, with the spikes and everything!" the Toad glared at him and the rat twitched an eye and continued in a softer voice, "Right at the U-turn, just as you said."
The toad grinned and turned one eye towards the ships at the starting line, but kept the other on his lackey, "Good, I see a few scavengers there that I can do away with. I know that a great treasure will come down the sewers one of these days, and I can add it to my diverting collection." He made a motion towards the Flood Gate control center.
"Spike, the helicopter's ready, let's go watch the race!"
Sid turned to see a large, white rat standing beside a helicopter decorated with a large symbol of a hawk on its side.
The Toad hopped towards a podium and began to speak, though Sid was too distracted by the helicopter to hear what he had said. However, a few slugs slid slowly in front of the platform and all opened their mouths in unison, and a loud 'BANG' echoed through the city
At once, the boats were off, and Sid cried out as Rita's ship took the lead. He was jostled around by the crowd as they tried to see what was going on.
He should have warned her about the trap, and now she was heading right for it! He slapped his forehead in his stupidity and watched, helplessly, as the boats and the helicopter, fled from view.
Rita and the Dodger arrived at the starting line, just as a large crowd of rats gathered around the streets. She was making last minute adjustments to the controls, and was trying to ignore the dark looks that a rat with a thimble on his nose continued to give her. She was here to win, and wasn't going to be dissuaded by some threatening looking rat.
The irritating screech of a microphone malfunctioning turned her attention towards a podium on the city square. She had glanced at it half-heartedly, but now as she saw who was walking up to it, the color faded from her cheeks and her heart did summersaults within her chest.
The tall, well-dressed figure before her was none other then the Toad himself, the one who caused her so much grief and frustration in all of her findings. She felt like throwing the Dodger in reverse and leaving the race, but his calm composure stirred up the rage inside of her. This was her chance to prove herself. Win this race, and she could be on easy street with an award that would give Mum and Dad everything that they needed. She couldn't back out now, not when she worked herself up so much that she actually polished the entire hull of the Dodger in order for its great appearance.
No, even as the slugs slowly inched to the front of the stand, she didn't again think of backing off.
As they moved, the Toad gave a large speech about why they were here, what kind of race was about to unfold, and what the prize was. She only half listened, keeping her green eyes focused upon the signal slugs. She waited for the ear-splitting signal, and immediately shoved down the pedal and threw up the throttle in order for the Jammy Dodger to burst forth through the dank water.
She thought she had heard a familiar voice calling out, but she couldn't concentrate on that right now. Instead, she kept her eye on the boat behind her, the black motorboat, and continued to swerve back and forth in tight motions to keep it from passing her.
She couldn't keep it up for long and soon the boat was up right next to her. The semi-masked racer steered his boat closer to the port side of her own and the two were side by side, moving at exactly the same speed as one another.
However, the other boat had a hidden surprise, and a pocketknife whipped out from a compartment in the speedboat's side and struck the side of the Dodger, slicing a large gash in the tin cooler. Luckily, the cut was just above the water, and only a bit leaked through.
"You Thimblenosed Toe Rag!" Rita bellowed as she reached over towards the mechanical arm controls and forced it over towards him. The metallic appendage lowered down towards the knife, grabbed it firmly, and Rita pulled the arm upwards, causing the weapon to unleash itself from its compartment. The hand pulled back and threw the knife as hard as it could to the side of the tunnel, causing it to skid upon the sidewalk, sending a cascade of sparks flying everywhere as it slid.
She tried forcing the lever even further to try and speed up the Dodger, but it was no use. It was still going the same speed as Thimblenose's, and she was unable to pull ahead.
A turn came, not very sharp of one, but as Rita rounded it, the black ship pulled forward and the dark laughter of the rat controlling it met her ears. She growled softly and looked behind her, to see a white and black striped shoebox on rudders coming towards her.
A crossbow bolt, composed of a needle with a fake feather attached to it, landed in the dashboard, inches from where her arm was. She turned her head to see a rat in white clothes reloading another missile, and she desperately pulled at the steering wheel of the Dodger, causing the projectile to embed itself in a wall nearby.
"Come on Jammy, let's see what you've got…" she flipped a switch above the compass and a hidden slot on the side of the Dodger slowly opened, releasing a long jump-rope that slithered in the water like a thick snake. Rita lowered the mechanical hand to grasp the rope in the silver fingers and whipped the rope back and forth, first sending a spray of water at the following ship. As the hand moved quicker and quicker, the edge of the rope soon struck the nose of the boat, sending it flying back against the wall.
Rita allowed the hand to release the rope so it could slide back into the Dodger, and started to watch the area before her. A few new obstacles barred her way and she easily slid around them, noticing that Thimblenose's vehicle was not too far ahead. She continued to glance back and forth from the ship before her, to the small compartment above that showed the words "Danger! Red Button!"
Her father had warned her to never EVER use that button unless it was a complete emergency. Unfortunately, he never told her what it did, so if she felt like using it, she might be doing more harm than good.
However, the other ship was clearly going faster than the Dodger could ever go, and she didn't want to deal with anymore surprises that might have come from behind.
Taking in a deep breath, she opened the hatch of the infamous red button, held back a chuckle from seeing that it was literally a red button, and struck her hand upon it.
At first, nothing seemed to happen, but a whirring sound came from below and a fire extinguisher beneath the Dodger went off, sending the boat careening down the tunnel at incredible speeds. It took no time at all to pass the black boat, and Rita stuck her tongue out and wagged a few fingers at the henchrat as she passed him by. She whooped for joy as lost him at a small curve, and a plastic bag shot out from behind the Dodger's name plate to slow down the ship. She continued to keep it in full throttle, however, in case the rats had some other plans up their sleeves.
As Rita looked around, she began to feel that everything was familiar to her. Yeah, she had been this way before not too long ago, when she was trying to keep her coin safe from Spike and Whitey.
And this was where the U-turn was…
She saw it now, a sharp bend in the sewer that led to who-knows-where, and it was coming up fast. She tried slowing down the Dodger, but its momentum continued to carry the ship forward, right towards the upcoming wall.
"Come on Jammy!"
She cranked on the wheel, just as she had before to try and make the turn, but met with the same result. The boat skidded sideways in the water, sent up spray as it whip lashed towards the brick wall, and crashed into the sidewalk with a sickening 'thud'.
Rita was able to catch sight of multiple, silver stakes that fell in the water right in the middle of the U-turn, where the boat would have been if she had made it through. She fell against the sides of the boat, but managed to keep herself up, and was completely shocked from the sight. The large spikes were jutting from below the river, sticking up above the water and gleaming dangerously in whatever light that came into the tunnel.
A sick feeling came to her stomach as she realized that that could've been the Dodger and her, and as her eyes darted to the other side, she saw a strange contraption, composed of a rope and a pulley. Two sets of wheels, one on the top, one on the bottom, held the rope which was connected to a box up above marked "Kitchen Knives". The long rope had been stretched across not to far from there, acting as a sort of tripwire for the trap.
"Oh my gosh…" she whispered, "This was all a set up…" she fell to the floor and wrapped her arms around her knees, feeling her heart beating wildly within her, "I fell for it, I should've left when I saw the Toad, but I fell for it…"
She shook her head and smacked herself in the face. She realized what she was saying, and she needed it to stop, "No, Rita, you're not going to go into a self-pity mode. Right now I have to get out of here with the Dodger, maybe I can warn the other boats that don't contain henchrats and prevent this from happening.
As she stood up, she gave a sharp nod, as if confirming her own actions, and started up the Jammy Dodger once more, it having stalled in the crash. Right now she could feel some water lapping at her shoes, and she remembered the damage to the boat. She couldn't deal with it now; she had to warn the other racers in case additional traps were set like that.
She navigated the Dodger around the knives, and a shudder ran through her every time she saw the sharp edges. When she was in the safety zone, she boosted the Dodger to full power, and traveled back towards the racers…
To her surprise, no one was there on her way back. She didn't see any of the other racers, nor the henchmen. This gave her a sense of foreboding, and she kept a wary eye out in case of another trap. Were they only after her? Or did they already take out the other racers with the weapons concealed in their ships? She couldn't figure it out, and even as she made it to the city, she saw no one there.
"Strange…" she whispered as she steered the ship through the empty streets, "It's as if everyone completely vanished from here…"
She had not known that the end of the race was just a few tunnels away from where the U-turn was, and that everyone was waiting with bated breath to see who the victor was. Unfortunately, it was the henchrats that succeeded.
Rita pulled the boat into the dock and was met by the arms of her frightened parents. They had seen her pale composure, and noticed her silence, and took it as a bad sign and brought her inside immediately.
How could I tell them what I did? She asked herself as she looked down, feeling the comforting blanket upon her shoulders and adjusting it slightly to cover her shaking arms, It was stupid of me, but I swear, it won't happen again…
She knew that it wasn't going to be an easy promise to keep, and knew that she would probably break it in the next day or so, but right now, she just wanted to rest, in the comfort and safety of her own home.
"I'm sorry Mum…" She whispered as she closed her eyes and fell asleep against her mother's shoulder.
