Chapter 9.
.
Brittany looked over the railing and into the sea below.
The rolling waves of the ocean flowed up and down, cut through by the white bow wave of the ship as it slowly carried them back home.
The air was warm.
But she felt cold…
.
Her mind flashed back to the incident, less than an hour before.
Replaying what had gone through her mind. What she'd seen and done and heard.
…
She'd been excited.
.
He'd seemed excited.
.
Things seemed to have lined up, the stars aligning, and their sudden and intense love would have burnt all the brighter.
…
Yet he snuffed it out and pushed her back, and she was left wondering why.
.
She felt she knew though, and it sickened her. She'd rushed in too fast and pushed her fantasies onto him. She didn't think he said no at any point, but as far as she remembered he hadn't said yes either.
Maybe he was claustrophobic, or just spooked, or didn't want this kind of thing.
Whatever it was, Brittany thought glumly, she had forced it onto him and he hadn't liked it. Whatever he'd said, whatever happened after, it didn't matter.
She'd been the bad guy there.
She'd screwed up.
She probably ruined something for him, and for her, and she felt rotten. She felt like a filthy little mutt again, dead guilty of her crimes.
Even worse though was that it had felt so natural and easy, so right, in the heat of the moment.
…
She looked at her paws again and remembered the burning heat that had come out of them just months before. How that had felt so right and easy in the moment too…
The lonely vixen just leant against the railing, closing her eyes tighter and gritting her teeth, her body frosting over in guilt and shame and self-doubt. She garnered a number of stares, but she didn't pay them any mind. It was only the chirping of her phone that woke her from her stupor.
She glanced at the text message and sullenly made her way over to him.
.
.
"Hi Brittany."
"Hi Sam," she replied sadly, setting herself down. He'd chosen a bare looking bench on a little used bit of outside deck, and they sat apart, no sure what to say.
"…I'm sorry."
He blinked a few times before raising his head and looking over. "For what?"
She glanced at him before turning away, her ears drooping down. "For scaring you…" she whispered hoarsely. "For forcing myself onto you… -and if you don't want to see me again because of that, I…"
"Thanks for the apology," he interrupted, matter-of-factly. "But that's not really the issue."
She gasped, her ears rising to attention as she turned to look at him. "You mean, I didn't… you were…"
"I didn't like the collars," he noted sternly, "but I tried it at first for you. I… I could of said no at the beginning… or asked you to stop rather than pushing you away later. I thought I could make it work though… for you."
Brittany paused, looking at him before slipping closer. "I… You won't have to do any of that stuff again for me," she reassured him, reaching an arm out. "Heck, you can be in charge of that stuff."
"…Thanks," he replied, chuckling. "Though I'm not more experienced than you."
Brittany rolled her eyes. "You're not a total screw up at it, unlike me."
He turned to look at her and reached up with a paw, gently taking hold of her outstretched one. "I said stop and you did… you could have screwed up a ton more you know. Live and let live…"
Her entire face relaxed, and Sam noticed a slight wave of warmth as she did so. She felt her tensions and worries go away, and wiped a tear from her eyes as the stress began to leave her. "Sam…" she said, sniffing. "You're… amazing."
He nodded and pulled her in closer, petting her head slightly. "I like to think that." He smiled, but the smile faded as he stood up on the seat, his face becoming serious. "However…"
"However?" Brittany interrupted, her ears darting up in worry.
"However," Sam repeated, before breathing in and out to steady himself. "There is still the real issue… -The real reason… why I asked you to go, is because I need to know…" He turned away and scratched the back of his head, before turning to face her, his eyes sad yet hopeful. "I need to know why you love me."
"…Why I love you?"
"YES," he said, turning forwards and chopping down with his palms. "Why…. Why exactly, do you love me?"
…
"You're hot," she began, noticing that his face didn't change. She paused, thinking what to say next, before remembering what he'd just done. "And you've got a soft and sweet gooey centre…"
His face lit up slightly, the sight sending a wave of relief through Brittany.
"You're funny too…"
His smile widened a bit, and he turned to face her.
"All wrapped up in a crunchy hard shell!"
The warmth in his face vanished, and he turned away again. "What do you mean, hard shell?"
"I…"
"I mean, it should be obvious," he grunted. "You've said it enough times, especially…. Then… What did you call me?"
Brittany paused, before speaking. "My big meany?"
He sighed, before pulling his paw to the side and waving her on.
"My mean boy… My…"
"Stop!"
She did so, and sat there silently as he took a deep breath in and released it. His paws came up and covered his eyes before sliding down again. "…Why… -why do you call me that?" he asked. "-I mean, I can guess, but I want to hear the truth from you."
Brittany paused, looking at him, before answering honestly. "I… You look rough…" she began, "and I like that."
…
There was a pause, and he gave a short and sharp huff, almost like a laugh, but sounding like he was scoffing at the idea. "Great…" he muttered, "I finally find someone who can love me even if I look like a thug, and it turns out she loves me because of that!"
"I…"
She was cut off as Sam stood up and began ranting into the air. "Not only that, she wants me to be a thug. She wants me to be mean and nasty, because she likes it, and doesn't care how I…"
"-Hey!" Brittany snapped, as she stood up and walked over to him. She reached out with her paw and gently stroked the side of his muzzle, noticing that his eyes were red and sad, and there was what looked like a tear coming down from an eye. "I… I was playing. Joking…"
"It hit too close to home," he grumbled, pulling up a paw and pulling hers down.
She looked at it, drawing it back, before looking over to him as he leant against the railing. He stared out into the ocean, and she stood by him and did the same.
"As I… as I said," she began, her voice quivering with worry and confusion. "You can lead that side of things, and now that I know you don't like…"
"I don't doubt that," he said, hollowly. "But… but be honest here, you like me… You have this crush on me… because I look like a piece of scat, isn't that right?"
"…I… I wouldn't say piece of scat," Brittany began, finding her voice. "And I love the sweet you inside… And I love your body, so I love all of you… Isn't that what you want?"
…
"No."
Her brow furrowed, and she turned to face him. "Well what do you want?" she almost sassed.
"I… -I don't know!" he exclaimed, before pushing off the railing and walking off along the deck. Brittany watched him as he paused, shaking his head in thought and turning back. "I don't know… -I wanted someone who didn't care about my body… -my looks. But someone loving me for them… -that's… -that's even worse!"
"How?" Brittany asked. "How is it? It's not like you can run away from them! They're part of you…"
"DON'T SAY THAT," he screamed.
She flinched back a bit, before marching forwards towards him. "You can't run away from them," she said sternly, a rise of anger beginning to warm up inside of her. A tick of instinct and she made sure her powers were under control, before continuing. "You'll carry them wherever you go…"
She reached him, nose almost against nose, and she saw him grit his teeth and growl. "Stop…" he seethed, before breathing in, his voice coming out again defeated. "Stop rubbing it in…"
She stood there, looking at him. Angry at him and pitying him and unable to work out what was wrong with him, before she turned down to her paws.
"You think it's a burden, huh?" she asked. "So are my powers… They've caused me so much pain, and I've cursed them… They're my burden." She turned back and placed both her paws on his shoulders, and she spoke to him, trying to get through. "And without them, I wouldn't have met my best friends, and many of them would be dead now, and a true monster would still be alive, out there crippling mammals wherever he goes… They're a burden. They're my burden. And they are mine, and a part of me, and there's no getting away from it so you have to embrace them! Never wish them gone, use them! They are me and I am them, just like your looks. DON'T do this to yourself!"
He looked at her, his eyes watering, before he slipped out of her gripped and dragged himself back to the bench. She followed, and together they sat.
…
"Have you ever looked in the mirror, and hated what you see in there?"
…
"No," Brittany replied.
…
"I hate… I hate being seen as this mean guy," he began, his paws waving about as he talked. "I…"
He broke down and sniffed, and Brittany nudged up close to him and wrapped a paw around him as he whimpered slightly. She pulled back as a paw came up, balled into a fist, and whacked into his leg.
She waited…
"You… You remember that I said I used to come from this little town called New-Reynard?"
She paused, thinking, before replying. "Yeah…"
"Little fox town, -mostly," he began, waving his paw about. "We get plenty of other species too, but they tend to be passing through. And many of those passing through, they… -they stopped at my mother's diner."
She watched as his face lit up slightly, and he pulled in a sniff. "For as long as I could remember, I would sit in the booths as my mother worked, and I'd talk to all the mammals who would come in. I'd be there with a strawberry milkshake, and talk about what was in the town, and listen to stories about where they'd come from. And… and they'd always say thank you, and pat me on the head, and tell my how sweet I was. How I was this 'adorable little ragamuffin' or something!"
Brittany listened to him intently, her ears flinching back as she heard his voice crack.
"I was the unofficial town greeter…"
He turned away and sniffed some more, a paw coming up to wipe the tears from his eyes.
"When I was eleven, I left to live with relatives. I'd gotten into this special school, and I met so many new friends there, but I felt myself get more distant from my parents…"
She felt a wave of empathy and kinship, and pulled her arm around him to comfort him, knowing what that was like.
"And after five years I returned," he replied, sounding despondent. "Five years… -and though I felt a bit distant to Mama, I was going to get her back. And the thing… -and the thing I most looked forward to…"
He broke off, his head going down into his paws as he whimpered. Standing there, by him, Brittany comforted him all the way.
.
.
…
"I looked forwards to sitting back in my booth, with my strawberry milkshake, and greeting diners again." He finished it with a laugh, before shaking his head. "I waited for two hours in a jam packed diner, always patting the table in front of me but always watching mammals walk by me. I then tried sitting down next to someone, saying hi. They shied away, before scooting out without saying a word. The… the next lot, a family, asked me sternly to leave and not cause any trouble. I… -I didn't know what he meant by that!? And the next, they ran as well. And again with another pair. Another group asking me to leave and… -and I asked why, and they said they didn't want any trouble. And it wasn't like it was all small prey, there were a few families of wolves or other foxes saying this as well and I didn't know why!? Why… What had changed?"
…
"It finally ended when I introduced myself to a bunny family…" He sniffled a bit and gulped, but carried on. "I could tell they were like the others, but I was desperate! And… -well I…" He huffed, before looking up, his face wincing with anger. "I quickly had this air horn thing blasted on me. Damn, if it made my ears hurt… Plenty of other mammals too, especially other foxes, this was a fox town remember, and my Mama comes smashing out the kitchen and yelling, 'what in darnation was that for!?'"
He shrugged, his voice losing all emotions. It was just empty, and without hope.
"He said that he was protecting his family from 'that delinquent who's been terrifying everyone', and that if she could kindly throw me out, that would be good." He smiled a bit. "Credit to her, she yelled at them and demanded I apologised to her Sam… the sweetest boy in town and the unofficial greeter…"
…
"He laughed… he laughed… -and I just ran."
...
"Sam," Brittany began, feeling a tear begin to trail down her muzzle. "I'm so…"
He cut her off with an outstretched paw, before continuing. "My Mama found me, and she tried to put it in the sweetest words… it still stung. And seeing myself in the mirror, and realising that I'd grown from a cute little whippersnapper into a great big brute… I…"
He choked back a sob, and Brittany held his paw, not sure what to say. She carried on like that until he calmed down, wiping the tears off his face. It just didn't feel right to interrupt him. Instead, it was just better to be there.
…
"You know," he began, his voice much lighter. Almost having joy in it, but she could tell that that joy was tainted, poisoned with something darker that lay underneath. "I'd come to the conclusion that no-one would fall in love with a brute like me. I'd… -I'd grown used to that." He turned to her, and the faintest smile appeared. "And when you came up, I was so amazed. I loved you, because you loved me, and you might have been the only person in the world to be able to…"
"Don't say that," she interrupted, unable to bare his self-hatred any more.
"It felt like it…"
"I… -I know."
He flashed a tiny smile, before it faded. "I won't lie, I was nervous. And you seemed a bit crazy, though I quickly decided it was a very nice good kind of crazy. But I buckled on for that ride with the crazy vixen who was acting like she was in heat…"
"-I'm not in Heat!" she barked out, causing him to pause.
"I… I wasn't saying you were…"
She rolled her eyes. "Sorry, but right then you sounded like yet another mammal telling me that I couldn't control myself… That I needed to be kept in the dark or denied things because of it, even though they know jack squat! You… -you just hit a real nerve there. Sorry."
"…Right," he began, taking a quick breath before continuing. "But… I then decided that I did love you, and we could enjoy this rollercoaster together. But when I began to feel that you loved me because of what I looked like… What I hated… It hurt, but I thought I could manage it, but I can't… -I can't."
…
"I…" Brittany began, still not sure what to say. Not knowing where this was going, or whether this was a pep talk or a break-up or an epiphany or something else. She felt oddly calm. "I may have loved you for that first… -I won't lie to you… But you're sweet and kind as well, and that's nice."
"But do you love me for those?"
Brittany paused, thinking, looking back at their brief relationship. She looked down at him now, broken and upset, and sifted through what she felt.
"I care for you… Deeply. And I think that if that's not love… what is?"
…
"There's different kinds of love."
She sighed, pulling back and looking away. Away from him, out to sea again. She thought, and her eyes narrowed. "What I said… about burdens and stuff, it's the truth Sam. You've got to stop hating yourself… and you don't have to like your looks, but you shouldn't hate them. You really shouldn't break up with me just because I love all of you, your looks especially… You're not going to get what you want, Sam. I'm sorry. Do yourself a favour and accept your burden. Stop hating your looks, as that's you…"
"It's not me," he cursed.
She turned back to him. "It is you, Sam. It's part of who you are!"
"It's a fake!" he shouted. "The… the real me is trapped in this damn skin. This scary skin, this nasty skin… This body that makes me look like a thug, a monster. A… a big meany. It's not me, but I have to live with it."
…
"So learn to accept it," Brittany began. "Co-exist…"
"-You just don't get it!" he snapped, turning to her and backing off.
Her teeth gritted and her anger flared, and she pulled back her powers without thinking and stepped up. "I do! My powers…"
"-They at least do something useful," he countered. "You can be proud of them… What have these looks ever done to me?"
…
"They led me to you…"
.
He stood there, still, looking at her. His red stained eyes trembled up and down and Brittany felt so sorry for him. The sleek and dangerous body she'd fallen in love with was still there, but he looked so worn and tired, it only made him look more broken. No, more pathetic. But it was still enough… Even now, she could think of no sexier todd. She still wanted him. But she wanted his sweet manners and his kindness too, and she was happy to give up any idea of him being a real mean boy for it. She just wanted him, and she wanted him to be happy…
.
.
"Would you love me without these looks?"
"I love you exactly as you are…"
"That's not answering my question," he scolded.
"I…" she began, before turning away in shame. "I don't know… But isn't it a real moot point? It's not like you're going to get plastic surgery, or a makeover?"
…
"I… " his eyes widened, and Brittany felt her heart flutter as she saw hope return to him. "I never thought of that!"
'SLAP'…
Her paw slowly dragged down her face, and she shook her head. "Plastic surgery? Sam, are you…"
"No," he began. "A makeover… Clean up my fur or dye it, some hair stuff… Maybe some dorky glasses. Make me look less threatening. Make me…"
"Look stupid," Brittany interrupted, her paw coming up to her face as she shook her face. "But… -I'm not going to hold you back, okay? Just… just be sensible, and if doesn't work, please… try and find peace with yourself…"
She felt his paws slip into hers, and then one of them slip behind her back. His muzzle went over his shoulder, and she heard him sniff. "Thanks… Can you be there with me?"
"Sure…"
"Thanks again, Hot Stuff."
She chuckled, and slipped out from him. Together, paw in paw, they headed off.
.
.
It had been two hours.
.
He'd scanned around some shops, including the one where she'd gotten that damned set of collars, before settling into a makeover station. He'd looked out of place in there, surrounded by girls getting their fur, hair, tails, claws, hooves and other bits done up. She even noticed that he looked nervous.
Still, he was resolute.
He'd asked if she could wait outside for him to be done. She had been playing some mobile games, until a familiar whiff, albeit one tainted with the smell of fur dye, caught her nose.
She looked up and gasped.
Gone was her sleek red fox, with crimson red and pure white fur. Instead, she saw a todd standing before her that had orange and cream fur. Whose eyes were framed by big square glasses. Who wore a button up T-shirt with a simple grid pattern on it. His head fur, which had been sleek and without extra hair before, instead had a mop of forward facing spikes that overhung his glasses.
He'd gone from a jock to a nerd, and he was smiling.
He was smiling massively.
"Look at me," he chuckled, before turning around on the spot. Brittany's eyes scanned up and down him, before she turned to his head again, her teeth biting the top of her lip on one side. "I… I…" Sam carried on, before chuckling. His arms went up in celebration. "Isn't it amazing! I don't look like a beast anymore!"
…
"Brittany?"
She shook her head, before standing up. She wasn't sure if what she was going to say was the right thing, but she felt she needed to say it. "You certainly look different," she noted, "and I'm happy that you're happy. But…"
"-But?"
"But it still gives me all the wrong vibes," she noted sadly. It did. It felt wrong, the entire concept. It made her uncomfortable, and she thought it was stupid. She was happy that he was happy, but this felt like the worst way to be that, and she couldn't help but think it could all come crashing down. "This… -it's like you're lying to yourself Sam," she explained. "This isn't you!"
"This is me!" he exclaimed, before looking down at her, an annoyed look on his face. Brittany turned away, scratching her head as she thought.
"It… it might take some time to get used to it."
Sam's eyes softened slightly, and he tapped her on the shoulder. "Want to just walk around and do stuff?"
She looked up at him and smiled. "Sure… why not?"
.
That they did, for a few hours.
The initial shock wore off, and it no longer felt odd or uncanny. To her, this was just a different version of Sam, and they went around having fun and being friends. She enjoyed her time with him, even if there was a niggle in the back of her mind that was slowly burning away. On their travels, they met with Sam's friends again, who were generally supportive of the new look once the initial shock wore off.
They even bumped into Brittany's family.
Kinsey had smiled and waved at him, saying hi. He'd moved to wave back, before she cut him off.
"Just to warn you," she whispered at normal speaking volume, "there's this nasty looking fox she's just dumped. He might be really angry!"
"Kinsey!" her mother had yelled, running forwards. The little vixen was confused, saying that she was helping him. Brittany looked on in anger as she tried to justify herself, her mother explaining that in normal circumstances this was unacceptable.
"And it's not normal circumstances, is it?" Nigel asked, looking at Sam.
"No," he dryly noted, "it isn't."
Kinsey looked at him, her head tilting in confusion. "Why do you sound familiar?"
"Because," Brittany seethed, "he is Sam!"
Her eyes went wide and she stepped back, and Brittany suddenly felt her heart break for two mammals as she watched her gulped nervously, already beginning to sniffle as if to cry. "S-S-Sorry…"
"Accepted," Sam replied, looking at her and up at her parents. "It might be best if I'm away for a bit."
"Okay…" Delilah said, nodding.
He and Brittany went off, the vixen looking over her shoulder and seeing her sister recover from her little scare. She turned back to Sam and held his paw.
"We are so goddamn getting her," he noted.
Brittany blinked, before nodding in agreement. "Totally."
.
They ended up back in his cabin and were sitting down on a sofa, paws in their laps.
It was quiet.
Awkward.
Brittany looked at this new todd and then away. She closed her eyes and thought about him, and how she'd liked him, and what she felt about him now…
...
How she hated herself for that answer.
"Sam…"
"Yes," he replied innocently, which seemed to make it so much worse. She turned, and looked into those eyes in a stranger's face, and took a deep breath in.
"I… I think you're a great guy, and a sweet guy…."
"Oh," he replied, a definite hint of snark in there as he turned away.
"Sam! I…" she urged, reaching forwards before pausing. She retreated, and sat on her seat and looked away, sniffing as she did it. She made sure that her powers were behaving themselves before continuing on. "I felt these amazing things when I first saw you… things I've never felt before, and… -and I wish! I wish so hard! I really do, please believe me Sam, I do! I wish I still felt at least some of them for you now, but… -but I…"
"You loved me for how I looked," he dryly noted.
"I loved you, -and yeah, that may have been the main ingredient!" she said out loud, trying to justify herself. "But it was more than that, please believe me!"
…
She felt a faint touch of a paw on her shoulder, and she turned to look at him. He still looked away though.
"I'm sorry Sam."
"Do you feel anything for me?" he asked. "Anything at all."
Her lips quivered, and she checked her powers again as she felt them rising up, before gulping and speaking. "As a friend, everything… As… as a lover…."
...
"No…"
…
.
.
.
She felt a paw slip out of hers, and she turned to look away, despising herself for being such an idiotic shallow mammal. For being someone who couldn't love him for who he was. Who…
.
Her train of thought was cut off as she felt an arm around her. She turned, and silently slipped forwards, and she found herself hugging Sam as he hugged her back.
"It's okay…"
"It is?"
"Yeah, it is…"
She sniffed in, and realised she'd been crying. She didn't know when it had started or for how long, but she realised it was a lot.
A whole lot.
"Can we… can we still be friends?" she asked.
"Sure," he replied. "Maybe one of us will change our minds."
"I… I hope I do," she replied, and she hugged him tighter as he did the same.
"I hope so too," he said, patting her back. "I… -thanks so much for those three days. And thanks for this too. I'll always remember the good."
…
.
There were more sniffles, and more tear wiping, until they disengaged, looking at each other.
"More friends are nice," she noted.
"Yeah," he replied with a shrug.
She chuckled, before shaking her head. "You could text me if you're planning to go out, or on holidays…"
"If we go skiing, we need you and your hot water power!"
Brittany snorted out a laugh, before giggling. "Instant hot tub!" she announced. "Also, if there's no snow, I can make some!"
"Yeah," he replied, nodding his head happily.
Brittany's eyes opened wide. "If I can actually make a snow storm, I could rent myself out to resorts and make a fortune!"
Sam laughed too. "Oh, it's onto money making now!"
She looked at him deviously. "And what would you want to talk about then?"
He paused, before a devious look came across his face. "How about getting your sister?"
Brittany mirrored the look, and sniggered. "Yeah. Let's talk about that."
.
.
Later that night, back in the cabin, Brittany explained everything to her parents. It was sad, but they were supportive. They offered cuddles and assurances that she wasn't a bad person, and that nothing bad had come about from this. She'd had something special, even if it was brief.
Kinsey had waited out in the lounge, and, as they emerged from the privacy of the bedroom, she looked up at them. Brittany snuggled up next to her, looked into her eyes, and spoke.
"You doing okay?"
"Uh-hu."
"What did you think of Sam's new look?"
Kinsey looked at her and smiled. "He looks much nicer. Not like a big meany anymore!"
Her eyes narrowed. "So, you okay with him?"
"I don't know…"
"Very well," Brittany noted, before shrugging. "Want me to do the hot water sister?"
There was a pause as the little vixen turned to face her, thinking. Pondering… She shook her head. "I don't need your powers, and I'm not gonna ask for them too!"
Brittany slipped her paw down to her phone, a devious grin growing across her muzzle as she sent a text. She briefly wondered about Kinsey's response if she knew that she and Sam weren't together anymore.
She shook her head.
That wasn't the point.
.
.
"What you doing?"
Brittany looked at her sister and shrugged. She was holding a glass full of water, which had just turned to ice.
"Practicing," she explained, as it turned back to water and then to ice again.
"Not interested," Kinsey defiantly said, looking way sharply.
"You know… the port authority have been interested in using me with their icebreakers. Melting any sea ice and…"
"Not interested! I don't need your powers!"
.
.
.
…
KNOCK-KNOCK-KNOCK
"Someone's at the door!" Kinsey chirped, though she paused as her father went up and opened it slightly. He knew about this bit, but nothing further on.
"Can I come in?" asked a voice, and the door opened to reveal a badger in a sailor's suit. He jogged past in a panic, Brittany easily noticing that it was a kind that none of the real staff wore. Still, to someone like Kinsey, who was looking on intently, that didn't matter.
He opened the balcony door and looked out. To the sides. Up. Down…
"Sweet Jesus capybara," he muttered.
"Anything… the problem?" Nigel asked nervously.
"Someone's been sabotaging the lifeboats," he noted, shuffling in his spot and rubbing his arms as he did it. "All of them have holes, which isn't good in this weather."
"What do you mean?"
"Downstream from tundratown," he noted. "Freezing cold air, and freezing water too. Unless you're an otter or something like that, or empowered, you won't last long."
Brittany looked on as he stayed outside, glancing down at Kinsey as she did so. The little vixen looked surprisingly worried, and grabbed her sister's arm for comfort.
"Bugger me!"
She looked up again at the badger, whose eyes were fixed forwards and suddenly very wide. He was trembling and turned, running back in and making for the little phone the cabin came with.
"Everything okay?" Nigel asked.
He ignored him, grabbing the receiver and pulling it up, all while jamming the keypad.
"Come on…" he urged, terror in his voice, before he snapped "-pick up you bastards!"
Her father moved to scold him but was cut off.
"Hello, is there anybody there!"
There was a moment's pause, a muffled sound coming from the other end.
"Yes. What is it?"
He breathed in, his body pulling up, before he shouted out his desperate warning into the phone.
"ICEBERG! DEAD AHEAD!"
He slammed the phone down and turned to them all, shaking with horror as he did the mark of the cross before gulping. "I'm sorry," he whispered, before racing out.
Brittany watched him go, flicking back round to check on Kinsey, only to see the little one's face leap up into hers.
"MELT-IT! MELT-IT! MELT-IT! MELT-IT! MELT-IT! MELT-IT! MELT-IT! MELT-IT! MELT-IT! MELT-IT! MELT-IT! MELT-IT! MELT-IT! MELT-IT! MELT-IT! MELT-IT! MELT-IT! MELT-IT! MELT-IT! …. WHY ARE YOU ALL LAUGHING! MELT-IT! MELT-IT! MELT-IT! MELT-IT! MELT-IT! MELT-IT! MELT-IT! MELT-IT! MELT-IT! MELT-IT! MELT-IT! WHY'S THE SAILOR BADGER BACK! WHY ARE YOU LAUGHING! WHY'S SAM HERE! THERE'S AN ICEBERG! MELT-IT! MELT-IT! MELT-IT! MELT-IT! MEEEEEELLLLLLLTTTTTTTT-IIIIIIIIIITTTTTTTTT!"
She broke off, panting and breathing, her voice broken.
"What was that about not asking me to use my powers?" Brittany sassed, her grin growing as she saw Kinsey's expression of terror break slightly. She, Sam, and Tai the badger all came up to her, leant in, and whispered two words.
"GOT YOU!"
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AN: I am a man of my words. I did promise a titanic conclusion to this little arc, did I not?
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I'd also like the thank the awesome Alpsarsis, for letting me include Sam. You can see him in his cute kid form here and there throughout the (truly pawsome) Guardian Blue series.