AUTHOR'S NOTE

Sometimes I can't really think of what to put here

...Trumpet lessons are hard.

Joyful Tree Friends

Pop woke up first again, but Buckets was already up. Lumpy followed. Toothy had to be woken up again. The four were off at the crack of dawn. There was still a lot of ground to cover, even if they could now slip through a shortcut in a nearby valley that the truck couldn't have made it through.

"Hey Lumpy," Toothy said

Lumpy kept walking, "Yeah?"

"Well I was just thinking. Are you really sure we can do this? I mean, we are awesome and all, but uh, do you-"

"I dunno, honestly," Lumpy said, "I'm gonna fucking try. I don't have a choice."

Toothy nodded, forced a smile, "O-okay. Well you're my friend. So if you're gonna try, I'm gonna help, buddy!"

Lumpy flinched, "What?"

"I said I was gonna help you, buddy! P-pal?"

He shook his head, "Just… call me Lumpy."

Toothy withered back a bit, "Oh yeah. Right, cool. No problem."

Toothy bowed his head. Now that he was looking at the ground, spotted something. A little white mask, speckled with red paint.

"Hey, look at this." He scooped it up, "It doesn't look like any of the masks I've seen the gangs around here wear. Not even that one gang with the Joy…"

Lumpy looked over his shoulder. He saw that glint of white in Toothy's hands and whirled around. Lumpy snatched it out of his hands.

"Where did you find this?" Lumpy asked.

"It was just on the ground. I guess maybe," Toothy's eyes scanned around, he saw a small shelf in the rocks. It looked like something could hide in there, "Maybe it was in there?"

Lumpy dropped the mask and pushed his way inside the rocks. It was a tight fit, but once he pushed through the entrance he found more room than he was expecting. He stopped, turned and called back out to his friends,

"You guys stay out there. Just, uh, keep an eye out!"

He crouched through the small tunnel, no light but what shone in behind him. The light from outside slowly faded away as he crept deeper, but just when it seemed like that light had abandoned him, he saw another light. It was small, but close. He moved towards it, he thought he saw someone move in it, he reached his hand out.

A blade pressed against his throat. It felt like it drew just a drop of blood before it pulled back,

"L-lumpy?"

It was her. Buddy was standing in that dim candlelight, looking at him. She leaned down to pick up the candle. She lit a few more that had been extinguished around her. He could see her in full now. Her little poncho was bloody. Her face was dirty. He wanted to cry.

"Lumpy." She said again, "What's happening? Why did this happen?"

He fell to his knees, he hugged her. She realized he only had one arm now.

She was choking on tears now

"What happened to you?"

Lumpy shook his head, "It doesn't matter. I've got you now. Why did you run away?"

She pushed back, "I… I didn't. The men showed up with Uncle Cuddles. He, he said he'd keep me safe but… they killed Uncle Sniffles because he wouldn't let me go. I wanted to be safe. I was safe there. But. I didn't want to do it. Cuddles told me..."

Buddy stopped talking.

"Do what?" Lumpy felt his neck tense, "What did he do?"

"He didn't do anything. He just talked to me. About… about."

He gripped her shoulder and shook it, "What did he say? What did he do!?"

"He didn't do anything!" She shouted, "He didn't touch me!"

Lumpy stood up. He wasn't looking at her anymore. He grabbed her hand and turned around.

"We're leaving."

"But Lumpy-"

"We're leaving. Come on."

He tugged her hard enough to pull her off the ground. She followed now. He lead her out of the cave, into the light. Lumpy stepped out and found his friends on the ground, and his best friend waiting for him.

Flippy and his friends, the freaks with the masks. They all aimed down at Lumpy. One stood on Buckets's back, aiming at his head. Two others pressed their guns against the necks of the kneeling Toothy and Pop. Flippy was there, pointing with his machete. Lumpy's arm was now nailed to his helmet.

Flippy nodded his head towards Buddy, "Girl. Now."

Lumpy shoved Buddy, "Run!" he screamed. Buddy tried to run, but one of Flippy's friends smashed her in the side with their rifle. She collapsed in a gasping heap. Lumpy made towards her, but Flippy stopped him,

"Ah ah ah, no no no, you stay there." Flippy said, "We need to talk. This has been a long time coming, Lumpy. I thought maybe I could let bygones be bygones… oh who am I kidding, I never could? But really, this? This pushes it over the edge."

Flippy walked towards Buddy. He grabbed her by the hair and pulled her up,

"Sweetie," He tapped her on the chin with his machete, "Look at me. Look at me. There we go."

Her eyes darted over to Lumpy for a split second. Flippy smiled.

Flippy said, "Oh, him? I wanted to ask you: Who is he?"

Buddy was going cry again, if she had the breath, "H-he's my… he's Lumpy. Please don't hurt him."

Flippy shook his head, "He should be hurt." He dropped Buddy, "He deserves it. He's a bad, bad man, sweetie. Look at this."

He took out a pill. A little round marble. It smelled like flowers. Buddy had seen them, before.

Flippy nodded, "Do you know what this is? Lumpy? He loves it. He'd do anything for it. He'd trade you for it."

"I haven't… I haven't in years!" Lumpy moaned, "Just let her go and then you can do whatever you want."

Flippy dropped her. A friend of his was quick to aim at her again. Flippy walked back to Lumpy, rolling the pill in his hand.

"Eat this." He held it up.

Lumpy shook his head. The friend near buddy smashed her in the back with his gun. She fell on her hands and knees. She was crying loudly now.

"Eat." Flippy said again.

Lumpy took the pill. He hesitated. He slipped it in his mouth and swallowed it. It came rushing back all too soon. The numbness. The feeling. The happiness. It was sickening. He hated it.

Flippy frowned, "Oh no. No no. This is all wrong. You're not happy. You should," he reached into his pocket, "Have another."

Lumpy trembled. One pill made him forget. Two pills made him drift too far away. But he wanted it. Flippy held the pill out and Lumpy snatched it, stuffed it in his mouth and swallowed.

"There's my old friend!" Flippy smiled again, "Have another. Have one more on the house."

Three pills. He'd never. He did. Lumpy swallowed the third pill. His body wasn't his anymore. He fell down. He knew Flippy was talking, but he couldn't hear it. He was gone.

Lumpy hated it. He hated his life now. He hated the nothingness. He hated how it was all gone. At least, before it happened, he could feel miserable. Now, there was nothing. Now he was alone. Now he was nobody. He just slept, drank, ate. There was nothing else. There was nothing to live for.

But he loved her.

Lumpy loved Buddy. He loved her more than life itself. He watched her grow up. He helped her. He kept her safe. She loved him too. She wanted to be held by him. She wanted him to be… her dad.

Lumpy looked down into his arms. He wasn't holding her. He held Buddy a second ago, but now she was gone. He looked up and Cuddles stood there. Cuddles was holding her now.

"You can't." He said. "She's gone now. She belongs to us."

Lumpy fell. He fell to his knees at first. Then he was falling. Something caught around his neck and tightened. He looked back up, but Cuddles was gone. She was holding Buddy now. She was rocking Buddy in her arms. She was dressed like she had been that night. She was wearing that little dress. It was torn, just like Lumpy had torn it. Rope coiled around her neck.

"She's gone now." She said.

Lumpy choked, "Lammy?"

"She's gone now." Lammy said, "You can't."

Lumpy closed his eyes hard, but when he opened them, Buddy was grown. She was standing in front of him. She had blade pressed to his throat.

"I know." Buddy said, "And I hate you."

Lumpy gasped. He was there. On the cold rocky ground. Pop had started a fire. Toothy was staring up at the stars. Buckets hadn't done much. Pop didn't look at him.

"So she's… what you're looking for." Pop finally said. "When did you plan on telling us?"

Lumpy said, "It didn't matter. You said you'd help me. Why should you care if-"

Pop looked up, "Because it's a very different game, Lumpy. You know why she's important. Our future. I mean, as fucked up as Giggles is, don't you think she's a little safer there, than with you in some hut?"

Lumpy stood up now, "It doesn't matter! She's not a baby machine, she's a little girl! She doesn't deserve this!"

"Who the fuck deserves any of this, Lumpy!" Pop shouted back, "If she's our only hope to bring back the goddamn species then what-"

Toothy screamed, "Stop! Stop it! Just… stop. Please."

They were both quiet.

Toothy stared at the ground, "We just, need to get to her. Maybe she can stay with Giggles. F-flippy, he said he was going to bring here there. Maybe Lumpy can, work something out. She's not a monster, Giggles. She knows what this must be like. We can talk to her. We just… we'll talk to her."

Lumpy sat back down. Pops sat down. He started tending the fire again.

"Fine." Lumpy finally said, "In the morning. We'll go."

Pop nodded, "In the morning."

Lumpy was awake first. He'd never gone to sleep. The fire was out. It was still late at night. Buckets was still awake. He always was.

Lumpy started away from the camp. Buckets was right behind him.

Buckets spoke. It was still hard for him. "Where are you…"

"I need to find her. You don't have to come. I don't want those other two coming at all. I'm not even sure if I trust you."

Buckets didn't react, "You can."

"I don't why I believe it. But I do." Lumpy said, solemnly.

They had a long distance to cover before dawn.