Author's Note:
Greetings again all you wonderful readers out there! I know I don't usually put the Author's Note section at the beginning of my chapters but I just wanted to mention a few things before we get started with the Teardrop Family…
Well I hope you all enjoyed meeting the Anger Family in the previous chapter :) After all the fiery, temperamental action we saw from Anger (a.k.a. Amadeus) and his parents, I think we are due for a change of pace!
This time we get to meet the adorable Teardrop Family as Sadness is reunited with her mom and dad. I know there are many Sadness fans out there so I don't really need to explain what to expect from this reunion…there will be lots of tears (mostly of the happy kind – or as happy as Sadness can be anyway!) and loads of sweetness and cuteness coming up in this chapter (I just hope I didn't overdo it with said sweetness/cuteness?)
Once again just like with the Anger Family, Sadness and her parents have secret names too and hopefully you'll enjoy what I've managed to come up with for them!
Now when I initially started writing this chapter, I didn't think it would turn out very long but as often turns out to be the case with all my chapters, I end up writing something much longer than I first anticipated! I hope the length doesn't put some of you off and that you stick around and decide to read on :) (We still have 3 more families to go after this reunion!)
Finally, I just want to give a HUGE thank you to Orangebird124, HollyAnne1084 and Tripledent for your awesome reviews on this story! Thank you also to any other readers who have been enjoying this story so far but didn't leave reviews…as long as I am able to bring a smile to your faces with my work, that's reward enough for me :)
Svinorita.
Chapter 10.
It was the end of another long and tiring working week, and Bill Andersen was looking forward to spending some quality, bonding time with his family. Once dinner was over and everyone was feeling full and content, Bill decided that they ought to have a fun family movie night in, just like they used to back in Minnesota when Riley was younger.
Ah yes! Those were the good old days…
So, with his mind filled with nostalgia for those carefree days gone by, Bill approached his wife; Jill after dinner and shared his suggestion with her.
"What exactly did you have in mind, my hardworking husband?" Jill asked teasingly as she wiped a plate and casually put it away in one of the kitchen cabinets.
Bill chuckled happily and offered, "How about a nice movie night as a family, like in old times sake? Remember how we used to love spending Friday nights watching movies together when Riley was little? Why don't we have a little family bonding session in front of the TV tonight?"
Jill raised an eyebrow skeptically at her husband's enthusiasm. She knew from past experiences that whenever it was Bill's turn to suggest a movie for them to watch as a family, his idea of the perfect movie was not always shared by the other members of the Andersen family.
Seeing the doubt on her face, Bill gave a hearty laugh and exclaimed, "Oh don't worry Jill! Wait till you see what I've picked! It's a real family classic!"
With that, he dashed excitedly into the lounge room to retrieve his prize. When he returned his face was beaming with joy as he declared, "Look! It's an all-time Andersen family favorite!"
He held up a DVD case depicting a wild-looking man wearing a loincloth, swinging from a jungle vine whilst holding an attractive auburn haired lady around the waist. A tiny caption at the bottom of the case read "The must-see film of the year!"
However that year happened to be 1939…
"Really Bill? Tarzan?!" Jill retorted in quiet amazement as she studied her husband's beaming face.
Bill's smile wavered slightly at Jill's lack of enthusiasm but he managed to maintain his optimism as he declared encouragingly, "Not just any Tarzan my Dear! It's none other than the king of Tarzans! The one and only original Tarzan; Johnny Weismuller!"
Jill rolled her eyes in an unimpressed fashion and pointed out flatly, "But Bill…it's too old! That movie is in black and white!"
Bill snorted in mock astonishment and proclaimed, "So what?! It's a classic Jill! We both enjoyed watching it as kids and again as adults!"
Bill glanced over at Riley, who was quietly watching TV and added in a confident voice, "Besides, I know our daughter would love to see some antics from Cheetah the Chimpanzee!"
Upon hearing this, Riley looked over at her parents with growing excitement as a huge smile crept across her face.
"Yeah that sounds like fun! I love Cheetah! Can we watch it Mom?! Can we?!" she begged whilst giving her mother the puppy-dog eyes.
Jill let out a defeated sigh and mumbled grudgingly, "Oh fine! You win Bill…"
Bill and Riley looked at each other and laughed happily. Bill gave his daughter a high-five as Jill shook her head in resignation. However she couldn't prevent a tiny smile of satisfaction from appearing on her face as she watched her husband and daughter enjoying a sweet father/daughter bonding moment.
Bill gave a nod of approval and cheered, "That's settled then! Tarzan it is!"
Then he puffed out his chest and did his best Tarzan impersonation as he announced, "Tarzan go wash now!"
He pointed to Jill and instructed, "Jane go to kitchen and make popcorn!"
Then he turned to Riley and tried to imitate a gorilla as he said, "You Cheetah! Go bring any snacks you like!"
Riley gave a squeal of delight as he started chasing her around the room while making silly monkey noises.
Oh yes! This was going to be a fun night…
XXX
As the Andersen's were settling down for some good-natured family fun, inside Riley's Headquarters Sadness was pacing in front of the console nervously, stopping every now and then to wipe a rogue tear from her eye and giving a despondent sigh.
The little blue Emotion glanced up at the monitor with anticipation as she stuffed an extra handkerchief up the sleeve of her sweater…she decided that she may be needing several back-up hankies for the next couple of hours...
The moment she had been dreaming about for weeks was finally here! Today she was going to meet her long-lost parents at last!
But now that the fateful day had finally arrived, Sadness found herself having second-thoughts about her little family reunion. It's not that she didn't want to see her parents…she had been dying to meet them ever since she discovered that Fear's mother had been secretly contacting him on Family Island.
There was something else troubling her as she prepared to go to Family Island like a niggling doubt in the back of her mind that made her hesitate now…
Do they really want to meet me? She thought to herself dismally as she wiped away another tear that had rolled down her cheek stealthily without her being consciously aware that she was sobbing.
What if I'm not what they expected? What if they are disappointed by what they see?
Sadness let out a heartbreaking moan and wept, "Ohhh…I don't know if I can do this! I don't want them to be ashamed of me…"
Her overbearing display of melancholy attracted Joy's attention, who was loitering at the console and staring at the monitor eagerly as she waited for the Tarzan movie to start. Joy loved watching Tarzan just as much as Riley-it was such an innocent and fun family movie and she was ready to help Riley laugh and have a great time by taking charge of the console.
Now she turned to face Sadness and some of her previous excitement turned to despair as she saw her little blue friend crying her heart out on what was supposed to be the happiest night of her life!
Joy walked up to Sadness and gently rubbed her back as she crooned, "Oh Sadness…why are you crying? You've been looking forward to this night for weeks remember? I thought you were excited to finally meet your parents!"
Sadness looked up at the yellow Emotion with her big, teary eyes and sniffled in a small voice, "I…I was. But now I'm not so sure about this…what if they don't like me Joy?"
Joy leaned down and gave the blue Emotion a friendly hug. Then she encouraged in a kind, soothing tone, "Don't think like that Sadness…how can anyone not love you?! I bet your parents are just as sweet and caring as you are and they will be so proud of you when they see you!"
Sadness leaned into her friend's warm embrace gratefully and whispered in a shaky uncertain voice, "You really think so…Joy?"
Joy nodded confidently and gently drew away from their embrace as she studied her blue companion's face with empathy before adding, "Yes! I'm positive! Everything will go fine and you'll have the best night of your entire life! I just know it!"
Sadness gave a tiny smile of appreciation and nodded slowly. "Yeah…you're probably right. Thanks Joy!"
Joy gave her a warm smile in return and with burgeoning excitement, she stated, "That's the spirit! Now go out there and enjoy yourself!"
The yellow Emotion shot a quick glance at Anger who had just entered the main room after getting himself a snack from the kitchen and she added helpfully, "Besides…remember how pumped Anger was after he returned from his family reunion?"
At this statement, Anger's eyes grew wide as the events of that night flashed through his mind like a disturbing dream and he gave a disgruntled snort as he approached the other two Emotions.
He looked at Sadness with pity and through a forced smile he said, "Don't worry, you'll be fine Kid."
Then he leaned in close to the blue Emotion and cupped his hand over her ear so that Joy wouldn't hear him as he warned solemnly, "Just a small word of warning…it turns out we all have secret names! So be prepared for some disappointment when they tell you what your name is!"
Sadness' eyes widened with surprise and she had to stop herself from crying out in amazement as she whispered back, "Really?! Well what's your name then Anger?"
Anger groaned dejectedly and hissed through clenched teeth, "Never mind!"
Then he raised his voice back to its usual booming volume and began pushing Sadness in the direction of the Recall Tube as he encouraged in false cheerfulness, "You just run along now and enjoy meeting your folks Kid!"
XXX
Meanwhile on Family Island…
Momma and Papa Sadness were heading for a low-speed collision course! The two Emotions were so wrapped up in their own thoughts and daydreams that they failed to notice one another until they were literally on top of each other!
As Mother Sadness slowly shambled along from the left, she fiddled absently with the carry bag she brought with her. Inside that bag was the present she had made for her daughter and now that she had actually arrived here on Riley's Family Island, the Mother Emotion's thoughts were filled with anticipation.
What is she like? Does she remember me? Will she like her gift? What is my husband like? Does he remember me or our little girl…?
Needless to say, Momma Sadness was not paying attention to where she was going…and apparently, neither was Papa Sadness!
The Father Emotion shuffled along nervously from the right, his eyes fixed on the ground as he tried to imagine what his wife and child would be like.
Please let it be a girl…I really hope I have a daughter…Hang on…I seem to remember a name for some reason…could it be the name of my wife?! What's my name then?!
Suddenly the two parent Emotions walked headfirst into each other as they neared the center of the Island. Thankfully there was no harm done to either of them as both happened to be rather plump and soft and they ended up bouncing harmlessly off each other.
Both Emotions looked at each other with a mixture of surprise and relief and after the initial shock of bumping into each other wore off, a wave of recognition overcame them as a flood of memories were pushed to the surface of their minds as if by magic.
Papa Sadness studied his wife fondly as her secret name was revealed in his mind. A small smile of admiration appeared on his face as he offered jokingly, "My, my Sophie! You scared the tears right out of me!"
Momma Sadness (Sophie) laughed lightly and replied with equal enthusiasm, "Same here Seb!"
With that, the two Emotions collapsed into each other's arms and started bawling their eyes out. However these were tears of happiness, not misery as they relished being in each other's company again after twelve years apart.
Papa Sadness (Seb) buried his face in his wife's shoulder and through muffled sobs he told her, "I missed you so much Sophie! It's been so long…"
Sophie nodded and squeezed him tightly as she croaked through her tears, "I know…it has Seb! We've been apart for so long…I always wished that we could grow old together!"
This brought on another wave of bawling and it took several minutes before the two Emotions managed to compose themselves and look into each other's' eyes.
Wiping away a last stray tear, Seb held his wife at arm's length and admired her fully for the first time since they met tonight.
Despite his timid nature, the Father Emotion put on a show of charm as he breathed, "You still look so beautiful Sophie! In fact you didn't age a day since I last saw you!"
Momma Sadness chortled and pushed him away playfully as she felt another batch of tears threatening to flow forth from her tear ducts, "Oh yes I have, you old flatterer! I have a mirror you know…"
She fought back a loud sob as Seb gave a gloomy sigh and stated half-jokingly, "I hope our child gets here soon…or else we might drown ourselves in our own tears!"
At this, Sophie's eyes lit up with excitement and her voice was filled with pride as she told her husband, "Oh Seb! You are finally going to meet our little girl!"
Seb got a dreamy expression on his round blue face as Sophie's announcement echoed around inside his head. The Father Emotion felt like his heart would burst from happiness, that's how thrilled he was after hearing this news!
He fist pumped the air and let out a squeal of delight that made Sophie flinch from surprise. He was considered the most quiet and reserved of Bill's Emotions and seeing him react like this would have made anyone stop and do a double-take!
Realizing his stunning display of exuberance had startled his wife, Seb quickly toned down his excitement and gave Sophie a look of apology as he explained, "I'm sorry my dear! It's just that I knew I was right all along! As soon as I found out that we have children, I have believed without a doubt that I have a daughter!"
He looked down at the ground shyly and mumbled, "After our Boss; Anger came back from his family reunion, I begged him to tell me if I was right…if what I have believed in my heart was really true. But he seemed to be in an even fouler mood than usual when he returned…"
The Father Emotion touched his chin thoughtfully as he recalled, "He wouldn't listen to me or any of the other men. It's like he was lost in his own world or something…"
Seb shrugged dismissively as Sophie smiled and held up the bag she had with her excitedly.
"Look Seb. What do you think of this sweater that I knitted for our little girl?" Sophie opened the bag and pulled out a cozy white sweater (that just happened to be identical to the one Sadness wore all the time!), and showed it to him proudly.
"I hope she likes it and that it fits her! Fear's Mother described her so well to me after she met all the children during her last visit here, that I could almost see our daughter in front of my eyes as I knitted it!"
Seb took the little sweater in his hands and nodded approvingly. "I'm sure she'll love it! It's gorgeous Sophie…"
Suddenly both Emotions heard the unmistakable sound of soft sniffling, followed by a loud "Wahhhh!" coming from somewhere nearby.
Sophie quickly stuffed the knitted sweater back into her bag and looked around eagerly. "Did you hear that Seb?"
The Father Emotion nodded with equal excitement as a warm feeling of love filled his chest.
"Is that her?" He asked with undisguised delight in his voice.
Sophie smiled proudly and turning in the direction of the sniffling noises, she called out softly, "Stella! Stella darling! Where are you little one? Come out and let us see you!"
Papa Sadness' breath caught in his throat and he ended up grinning so broadly, that it would have given Joy's Dad a run for his money at the mention of that name!
With his heart pounding so hard that he felt as if it might burst and his cheeks aching from the monster of a smile on his face, he looked at Sophie with adoration and exclaimed, "Thank you so much Sophie my love! You just made me the happiest Emotion in the collective minds of Riley and her parents! You remembered how much I love that name: Stella, and you decided to name our daughter that! You really are the greatest!"
Sophie smiled kindly and offered, "Oh Seb! You know I love that name too and I made a promise that if we ever had a little girl I would name her Stella!"
They were interrupted by another loud wail coming from a row of flowery shrubs nearby, and simultaneously, the two parent Emotions made a dash for that spot as fast as their stubby little legs could carry them!
As soon as they reached those bushes, Seb slowly parted the greenery with trembling hands and revealed Sadness sitting there on the ground, sniffling and wiping away her tears. Both parents stared at their daughter with expressions of rejoice on their faces as Sadness looked up at them with her big blue eyes, which sparkled like stars reflected in a lake due to her tears.
"Mommy? Daddy?" she asked timidly as her parents burst into tears of happiness.
Sophie reached down and embraced her daughter lovingly as she whispered, "Oh my gorgeous little Stella! I've missed you so much!"
Sadness (Stella) returned her mother's embrace happily and answered, "I missed you too! Even though I've never met you!"
As soon as mother and daughter finished having their little cuddle, Papa Sadness stepped forward and declared proudly, "My beautiful little angel! You have no idea how much we've both missed you!"
With that Seb scooped up Sadness fondly into his arms and squeezed her tightly in his loving embrace.
Sadness gave a muffled "umph" and wheezed in her typical melancholy tone, "Please put me down Daddy! I can't breathe…"
Sophie shook her head light-heartedly and concurred, "Yeah…put her down Seb! She's not a baby anymore!"
Seb complied and gently eased his daughter onto her feet with a sheepish smile on his face as he replied, "Sorry angel! I'm just so happy to finally meet you!"
Sadness smiled back shyly and responded softly, "That's okay Daddy. I'm really happy to see you too!"
Sophie noticed the drying tears that had left long wet streaks down her daughter's face and, pulling out a handkerchief from her sleeve, she tenderly started to wipe her face dry.
"There we go sweetie." The Mother Emotion crooned gently as she wiped away the tears.
"Let me dry those up for you…"
Within no time, the handkerchief was soaked through from the sheer volume of Sadness' tears, and Sophie looked at the piece of cloth in despair.
"I knew I should have brought some more handkerchiefs with me! How could I have forgotten?" she chided herself as she gave Sadness an apologetic look.
Sadness gave her mother a faint smile and held up her arm as she reassured, "Its okay Mommy. I brought plenty of spares with me…"
To demonstrate her point, Sadness reached under the sleeve of her sweater and started pulling out a never-ending string of handkerchiefs knotted together by the ends!
Seb gently touched her other arm and breathed in an astonished voice, "Whoa there kid! You're like a little magician there!"
Sadness blushed and whispered, "Sorry!" before stuffing her impressive chain of hankies back up her sleeve.
She looked shyly from her mom to her dad and back again before asking in a curious tone, "Did you say that my name is Stella?"
Sophie nodded proudly and placed her hand on her daughter's shoulder as she explained, "Yes it is sweetie. You see both your father and I always liked that name. It means 'Star' and I think it's very fitting for you because as soon as you were born and I looked into your big, beautiful blue eyes, I was reminded of stars being reflected off water."
The Mother Emotion smiled broadly and crooned, "You have always been our Little Star!"
Sadness nodded in acceptance. "That's cool…I like it!"
Then she looked at her mother warmly and commented, "You have a nice name too Mommy; Sophie…"
Seb got a glint of pride in his eyes as he explained, "I'm glad you think so angel! You see, that name originally comes from 'Sophia', which means Wisdom."
The Father Emotion looked his wife in the eyes and stated with admiration, "Your mother was always the brains in the family!"
Sophie gave him a sly smirk and remarked teasingly, "Well it's not in my nature to brag, but maybe that's the reason why I'm the Lead Emotion in Jill's mind!"
Seb chuckled in agreement and affirmed with simple directness, "Those lady Emotions inside Jill's head made a very sensible decision! They couldn't have picked a better leader!"
Sadness glanced up at her father and asked hesitantly, "You've got a pretty funny-sounding name Daddy. 'Seb'…was that supposed to be Sob or something…?"
Sophie snorted in amusement and gave Sadness a gentle squeeze on the shoulder as she informed, "Not at all sweetie! The story behind how I gave your father his name is pretty unusual and funny…"
Sadness looked at her mother questioningly as Sophie gave her a knowing wink and went on excitedly, "Believe it or not, your father has always adored "The Little Mermaid!"
Seb stood up straighter and announced matter-of-factly, "And what's not to like?! The girl is gorgeous, has a good heart and lives underwater in the salty sea!"
He fixed his wife a look filled with mock-offense as he added casually, "And what do we Sadness Emotions do best? We cry salty tears of course!"
Sophie nodded and shrugged dismissively as she continued, "Anyway. From what I recall of the movie, The Little Mermaid had this funny crab friend that followed her around and sang this song called 'Under the Sea' with a heavy Caribbean accent? I believe the crab's name was Sebastien…"
She shot Seb a teasing smile and stated, "Well your father liked that song so much, that he used to try and imitate Sebastien the Crab and sing that song every time we got together! So simply put, that's why I decided to call him Sebastien…although I usually just shorten it to Seb!"
Sebastien clapped his hands in appreciation and exclaimed, "Very nicely explained my dear Sophie!"
Then he smiled fondly at Sadness and took her hands in his as he began to spin her around playfully whilst singing "Under the Sea" in his best Sebastien the Crab voice.
Sadness let out a gasp of surprise which turned into a giggle of pleasure as her father twirled her round and round while he continued singing his heart out. After a few minutes, he stopped and wrapped his arms around her lovingly as she began crying softly into his chest.
"Oh…I wish we could stay together like this all the time!" Sadness sobbed in despair as her mother joined in their embrace and the three Emotions enjoyed a family cuddle.
Sophie gave her a tender kiss on the cheek as she replied through her own tears, "I know sweetie. But we all have to return to our hosts' minds eventually. Riley's parents need to have their Sadness Emotions around just as much as Riley does..."
The Mother Emotion looked at her husband and daughter with pure love in her eyes and she knew that they all understood the importance of their roles to their hosts just as much as she did.
"But this doesn't have to be the last time we see each other!" Sophie reassured them with sincerity.
"Now that we are aware of each other's existences, we can arrange to meet up here again at least on occasion!"
She smiled serenely and added, "And of course we'll always have the memory of tonight's reunion to cherish in our hearts forever!"
Seb nodded in consent and gazed into his daughter's tear-filled eyes; which at the moment did resemble little pools reflecting starlight, and he traced a finger down her cheek fondly as he offered, "Remember angel that whenever we cry, our tears must go somewhere…maybe they all converge and create a little puddle in the collective minds of Riley and her parents? If they do, then you can try and image your dad; Sebastien singing for you!"
"Oh Daddy…!" Sadness wailed and hugged both her parents tightly as she launched into a fresh crying fit.
The three Emotions stayed like this for a long time, spontaneously crying and comforting each other as their reunion drew to a close.
Eventually, Sophie pulled away from her family gently and announced in a slightly amused tone, "My little Stella! I'd almost forgotten to give you the gift I made for you!"
"Really? What is it?" Sadness asked with a hint of excitement in her voice.
Sophie glanced at her daughter's clothes and looked away bashfully as she offered, "Oh sweetie! I'm almost too embarrassed to give it to you now! But since I brought it here I might as well show you…I'll understand if you decide not to take it…"
Hesitantly, the Mother Emotion reached into her carry bag and pulled out the knitted white sweater that matched the one Sadness was currently wearing to the last stitch!
Sophie gave her an apologetic smile and said, "I'm so sorry darling! I wanted to knit something nice for you to remember me by…it's just that Fear's Mother described you so accurately and I had such a vivid image of you in my mind, that I ended up knitting a sweater that's identical to the one you have on now!"
Sadness' eyes twinkled with appreciation and she took the new sweater from her mother's hands without hesitation.
"Oh Mommy! It's beautiful! I love it!" she exclaimed with honest gratitude. "Thank you so much for making it for me!"
Sophie couldn't help giving an audible sigh of relief as she breathed, "Oh sweetie. You really do?"
Sadness gave her a tiny smile and fought back a loud sob as she replied, "Of course! I don't mind that it looks the same as this one…"
She plucked at her old sweater and commented, "This one is too old and dirty anywaayy…"
She trailed off into a wail as, unable to contain her sorrow any longer, she broke down and wept for what was probably the hundredth time tonight.
Seb and Sophie embraced her once more and joined in on her bawling with equal enthusiasm.
"Sweetie, I don't think you'll be needing a shower when you get back to Headquarters!" Seb remarked in between sniffles and sobs.
"Your mother and I have already washed you with our tears! You're soaking wet!"
Sadness drew a deep breath and replied in a weepy voice, "That's okay Daddy. I won't wash for a long time…I want to taste the tears of my parents as long as possible!"
After a few moments, Seb managed to pull himself together and he stated with attempted humor, "Oh my beautiful girls! I love you both so much, but we really should be heading back to our respective hosts' minds before we drown ourselves in our sorrow!"
His wife and daughter nodded in understanding and prepared to go their separate ways. But before leaving, Seb announced casually, "Oh one more thing! Could you both please inform the members of the Disgust Family that it's their turn to reunite next Friday? Private Green has been driving everyone crazy back in Bill's Headquarters with his impatience to meet his son!"
Sadness looked at her father with a startled expression and stifled a little laugh of amusement upon hearing his announcement.
Disgust's father thought he had a son?! Oh dear…he is in for one nasty shock then!
But she kept her thoughts to herself and replied with a hint of sarcasm, "Sure Daddy. I promise to let Disgust Jr know…"
With that, all three Emotions began walking in separate directions, each one of them leaving behind small puddles of tears that sparkled as if reflecting little stars…