Well... We're now 1/5 of the way through the story already! Well, planned, anyway... It could very well end up being longer. In terms of the main plot, (I'm aware things have been slowish lately but I didn't want to rush into it) things are actually about to shake up a bit in the very next chapter. I'm looking for there to be a part 1 and part 2 to the story I guess. I did the same in BWIADW, the "mid season finale" let's call it was with all the cave drama and the collapse. So in about 15 chapters time expect the story to spiral into chaos and drama once more :P
But enough of that... Previously... Rosie kissed Louis at new year, and they both remain unaware that Mitzi may be a bit unhappy about that. Nibbles won Purrl's fashion contest and is now her student, pretty much. Mystery and Laura went on their first date.
Let me just reply to the reviews and we can jump straight in!
DaBraxMan - Haha, whether because of 'fool' or not, she's as much a villain as we can get with the current cast. good observations about the love triangle! Mitzi is a shy little cat who is in the background and unnoticed a lot, and Louis isn't the most confident himself so I suppose he's drawn to Rosie's confidence and outgoingness. And heh, I'm not really sure yet, but I have a feeling Purrl may be involved somehow ;P See... You're noticing so many things with Purrl - how good is your memory? I do like writing Purrl, yes. Her, Kabuki and maybe Mystery are my favourite characters to write about. This reply's getting a bit long... Unfortunately I have no plans to ever make a new fanfic competition on ACC, but keep an eye on Liv909 as I'm not sure if she plans to make another.
SpartaLazor - Well, that certainly sucks. People can be mean 3: Ah, yes... Arguments over games. Tends to happen with me as I have a bad habit of wanting other people to play games how I'd play them... Don't worry, I hate myself doing it too :p thanks for the review!
unicorn246 - Well darn :( I've obviously had all the animals in this story in my town before, but not all at once.. Dora, Tank, Cube and Nibbles were all in a town together + there's plenty of other combinations but I've never really had a town where I've loved more than 3 characters. But I think my 2nd ever town was the best. At different points in time or together idk but that town had Dora, Mitzi, Rosie, Static, Wolfgang, Kabuki, Roald, Bones, Bob and Purrl in it's history.
KoolKid - Thanks for the review. I've had Mitzi liking Louis in my mind since they first ever met (something some of the reviewers agreed with too at the time).
bonesreturns - Hey there! Thanks for the review :) As said in my PM to you, yes, you really should read BWIADW first. BWIADW was written between December 2009 and June 2011. I then experienced writer's block for a long time - I attempted this story once before, but it wasn't great. Then I restarted it in October 2012, gave up for a year and a bit from writer's block, and now I'm starting again. I lost confidence in my writing, but I'm slowly getting it back now. Every animal in this story takes some part of the personalty they're under. Tank is the mean/bully side of a jock, Static is the quiet and fairly shy side of cranky, Cube is the food-loving/rather dumb side of lazy, Mitzi is the shy and innocent side of normal, Rosie is the party-loving cute hyperactive peppy, and Purrl is the snobby/cruel side of snooty. It's my fanfic in the end, so I apologise if I'm ruining Purrl for you, but snooty's can be mean in Animal Crossing (particularly gamecube) at times.
Quickly onwards cause that took up too much space
Valentine's Day Part 1
Honevray was probably entering the coldest point of it's winter. Although Spring was due to start in only a month, the temperature had dropped drastically over the last week, so much that the ponds and rivers had completely frozen over at points. It was too cold to snow, so the ground was dangerously icy in places too.
Love was meant to be a warm emotion, but the citizens of Honevray were struggling to feel it this cold mid-February morning.
One citizen, however, was busier than ever. Valentine's Day was probably the second busiest day of the year for Pete the Pelican, after Christmas. Luckily, however, he had wings. He'd still managed to slip over three times, accidentally ruining the pink-enveloped letter that was addressed to him. He had no idea who it was from, but he recognised the writing as the same as on many town hall documents, meaning it was Pelly or Phyllis... He was confused as to why the envelope had to be pink, it was quite embarrassing. Especially as it happened to be sent to him on Valentine's Day... He could've got the wrong idea!
Either that or it was a prank by Pepper, one of the young pelican twins in charge of the post office. It was the kind of prank she'd pull, with Papper quietly and nervously trying to stop her in the background. Pete chuckled to himself at the thought.
His next stop was at the newest house in town, to deliver a rather foreign looking letter. It didn't look like a Valentine, and it stood out amongst all the other brightly coloured letters and packages in his bag. Pete rolled his eyes - he'd hoped that everyday post wouldn't add to his work load this morning.
The door flew open as Pete stumbled towards the mailbox, and an unfamiliar pink wolf left the house, the giant eagle himself stopping in the doorway. "I'm telling you, Freya, pah... I can handle it."
The pink wolf finished wrapping an expensive looking scarf around her shoulders, trembling from the cold, "Oh I'm sure you can, uff da..." She replied with a smirk, raising her eyebrows. "I'm just saying that if it gets too much for my poor eagle, just give us a shout... We'll be there to help in no time, uff da! Now, be good... There's no one to clean things up for you in this big scaaaary place, so be on your best behaviour." She giggled rather girlishly, and Apollo grumbled with a scowl.
Freya turned to leave, before pausing as she noticed Pete. Her eyes widened in surprise, and Apollo's beak clicked together as he noticed too. "My... Isn't it against your code to eavesdrop, you dumb bird, uff da?!"
Pete stumbled back slightly at the anger in her voice, frowning in confusion. "Er... Sorry, I just didn't know who you are. I have a package for Apollo, ma'am." He held up the letter awkwardly.
"A package, pah?" Apollo scowled, looking to the envelope, "Looks like a letter to me... The mailbox is right there, pah... So off you go."
"Erm..." Pete shifted nervously, before sliding the letter into the letter box and pulling up the blue flag, "O-Of course, sir... Have a good day, and... Happy Valentines Day!"
"Ooh, Valentines Day..." Freya responded flirtatiously, looking back to Apollo, "I almost forgot... Sure you don't want to go somewhere, Apollo, uff da?" Apollo stared at her for a moment, before slamming the door shut. Freya sighed, rolling her eyes, before turning back to Pete angrily. "Well go on then, doofus! Fly away, uff da!"
A few feathers drifted to the ground as a result of how swiftly Pete escaped.
Today would be a good day.
Mitzi tried to stay optimistic at all times, but it was usually hard. It's not that she had a hard life, or was sad... Well, actually, she usually was sad. She was sad that she was never noticed, how she was always just there in the background quietly. How she always had to watch things happen rather than be part of it every once in a while.
She didn't ask to be shy... She hated being shy. But there were so many people in this town that were confident, loud, funny, pretty, popular... She paused as she glanced to Rosie's mailbox as she passed the fellow cat's house. There were so many cards and gifts shoved in her mailbox, the flap wouldn't shut. Although it was nearly midday now, there was no sign the party animal had even woken up, yet. She probably lay sprawled out on her bed, drooling into her pillow as she normally would.
Mitzi didn't hate Rosie... In fact, there was no trace of even disliking her. They were friends! Well, half the time Rosie forgot Mitzi existed, but she was always nice to her at least. Mitzi admired her confidence and how fun she could be, and she wished she could be similar. Rosie was always the pretty girl, the one that everyone wanted to spend time with and party with. Even though Rosie was an absolutely awful singer, everyone cheered for her as if she was world famous and super talented. Not even just because she was pretty, but because her personality as a whole was just awesome.
She glanced down to the small, light pink envelope in her own hands, turning it over to look at the name on the front. She'd thought about posting it like everyone else, but Mitzi wanted to be able to change her mind at the last minute. Once she got to his mailbox, she would decide if she was brave enough. Maybe she'd even give it to him directly. It was unlikely, but there was still hope.
She eventually arrived at Louis' house, which had expanded since she was last there. She could see Louis watching TV through the window, oblivious to her presence. Her eyes then lowered to his mailbox, and a sense of relief flooded her body when she noticed he had no mail. But then the relief faded when she realised he'd probably already emptied it. She squinted through the window, looking for a sign of any cards, but to no success.
"Hey, Mitzi!"
The cat flinched, looking around for the speaker. A sense of unease filled her when she saw it was the blue-furred, pink-clothed Rosie, a cheerful and enthusiastic smile plastered over her face. The two cats stood facing each other, before Mitzi's nervous eyes lowered to Rosie's paws, and the envelope in them. Mitzi quickly hid hers behind her back, and managed to stammer, "O-Oh, Rosie, mew... What're you doing here?"
Rosie closed the gap between them, looking into Louis' window herself and frowning. "He's such a nerd, silly... He needs to get out more! Geez... I need to take him to a party." Mitzi found herself imagining cold evenings like this with Louis, watching TV together. She found herself getting annoyed. Her and Louis liked the same things... They were both fairly shy, they both liked the quiet and hated large groups, and a dream evening for both of them would be in a comfortable lounge watching tv and maybe eating snacks. Not partying into the early hours of morning.
"I..." Mitzi paused, staring at the floor, "I-I'm not sure Louis would be into that, mew."
"Of course he would, silly!" Rosie beamed, bouncing slightly, before turning away from the window. "Anywho, what're you doing looking through his window? People may get the wrong idea!"
"I-I... Oh, um..." Mitzi's shoulders and head slumped, and she sighed. "Nothing... I'm done, mew. You go talk to him. I'll see you later." She forced a smile, before dejectedly heading away.
As the door knocked and was pulled open, she couldn't bring herself to look back.
"...and you must reduce the calories you eat, too, kitten." Purrl finished her rant slash lecture, looking to the unhappy squirrel sat in the armchair. "Not all dresses compliment you as well as the one at the fashion show."
This 'meeting' had gone on for a long time, and Nibbles had been paying more attention to the slice of chocolate cake she'd been about to eat before Purrl walked into her house. It was now in the bin, gone from the poor squirrel's life forever. Although Purrl was an actual genius when it came to fashion, looking fashionable and wearing matching colours had never really been Nibbles' thing. She was more of a 'whatever's next in the wardrobe' girl.
"Look, I appreciate the help, niblet..." Nibbles began.
"Of course you do, kitten." Purrl gave the fakest grin that Nibbles had ever seen, "This is my expertise, and my precious time. So I plead for you to only speak words that are absolutely necessary, kitten. I need not here how thankful you are - you are very welcome."
"...No." Nibbles said flatly, shaking her large head, "I just... Is all this necessary, niblet? Like, I know my normal self isn't great... And believe me, I've wanted to be pretty my whole life! And I really want to impress him. But it just seems... Like... So much work..." Her last sentence faded into a mumble, but unfortunately Purrl's keen eyes picked up every word.
"Look, kitten..." Purrl sighed, bowing her head, "I have a lot of work to do with you, and I am sacrificing a lot to help you... Are you really not able to sacrifice a few slices of cake, kitten?" Luckily for Nibbles, there was a knock on the door. She hopped to her feet eagerly, before Purrl cleared her throat. "You are my understudy now... You must look presentable at all times, kitten." The calico handed a long, yellow dress towards the squirrel. "Let us see how yellow suits you. It should go with those... Weird yellow things on your head. Now... Change."
Nibbles rolled her eyes, before back flipping into the dress. She glared to Purrl, "Well?"
Purrl smirked, gracefully stepping around the squirrel, trained eyes looking for any flaw or problem. Eventually, she returned to standing in front of Nibbles, and clasped her paws together. "Perfect... Now, stand up straight." Nibbles did so, and Purrl frowned unhappily. "...Suck in. Walk gracefully and slowly, like I do, and open the door. Speak carefully, do not shorten your words..." There was another, more impatient, knock at the door, and Purrl quickly said, "Just be me! Go, kitten."
Nibbles paused uncertainly, before straightening her back and taking a gasp of breath as she sucked in, frowning. She looked rather uncomfortable as she somewhat gracefully strolled towards the door, pulling it open. She frowned in surprise, "Oh, he... Hello, Roald, niblet." She gave a polite smile.
Roald's eyes examined her from head to toe, seeming confused, before smiling, "Oh, er... Sup, Nibbles. You... Look lovely, b-b-buddy!" The squirrel's attention lowered to the large envelope in the penguin's right flipper, and the red rose in his left. Her eyes widened.
"I... Erm..." A cough from behind Nibbles startled her, and the squirrel stammered, "Th-Thank you, niblet... What're... What are you doing here?"
Roald scratched his head awkwardly, before anxiously remembering the card and handing it quickly to Nibbles, followed by the rose. "I've chosen you to be my valentine! Erm... I mean... Will you be my valentine, b-b-buddy?"
In the corner or his eye, Roald noticed Tank standing near the house, looking as if he was about to burst out laughing at the scene. Roald blushed slightly, now appearing uncomfortable and unable to meet Nibbles' eyes. He knew Tank was laughing at Roald asking out an animal like Nibbles, a resident considered hideous and ugly by Tank. Feeling pressured and without thinking straight, the penguin hurried on to say, "I mean... I felt sorry for you, I guess. Being alone on Valentines Day must suck, b-b-buddy."
Nibbles appeared hurt, sending guilt piercing right through Roald. Her face fell, and the penguin cursed Tank inside his head. He always thought Nibbles looked adorable when she was sad. "W-What do you mean, niblet...? How do you know I'm even alone for it?"
Roald shrugged, noticing that Tank was no longer laughing but looking slightly impressed. "I dunno, b-b-buddy... Y'know, I just didn't think anyone would ask you, so I took it upon myself too!"
The words hit Nibbles hard, and she slumped, entire graceful demeanour dropping. "...Why would no-one ask me, niblet?"
Roald hated himself. He knew she already knew the answer, and Roald sighed deeply. Tank was staring right at him... They hadn't spoken since the argument, and Roald knew he would just become a victim of Tank's bullying if he didn't do this. He had to make Tank respect him again. "Really, b-b-buddy?" He forced a mean laugh. "C'mon, Nibbles... Your teeth, your... Hair. I mean, what is that?! That, and you currently look like a banana that's too big for it's skin..." He gestured to the dress, now that Nibbles had given up sucking in. "So take my offer before I change my mind, b-b-buddy!"
His answer, as Roald himself expected, was the door slamming in his face... Not before his crush burst into tears, however. He looked to Tank wearily, and the rhino chuckled to himself, giving a thumbs up to Roald, before walking away.
Roald looked back to the door, saying, "Don't worry, Nibbles, I hate myself too b-b-buddy."
A/N: Well this is already a two-part special and I couldn't even fit all I wanted in part 1 :P it may end up being a 3 part, sorry!
The first part with Pete was actually thought up on the spot. It needed to happen at some point, but it seemed a good moment to happen. Basically, Freya is visiting Apollo so she's not a new resident. We'll see more of her later. But it was just to add a bit of mystery to Apollo.
So... Rosie beat Mitzi to Louis for Valentines Day, and Mitzi have up instantly. And Roald gave in to peer pressure and ended up humiliating his crush to impress Tank! Not a happy valentines for Mitzi, Roald and Nibbles...
1. Do you feel sorry for Mitzi or do you think she should 'get a backbone'? Who do you "ship" more? Rosie and Louis, or Mitzi and Louis?
2. Have you ever experienced peer pressure to do something mean/bad? Did you do it? How did it end?
3. Opinions on Roald?
Sorry if I accidentally repeat an 'opinions on' question btw, pretty sure I've not asked for Roald yet.
Next time... We find out who 'him' is as Nibbles pursues her own valentine. Can Roald convince her to forgive him? What will happen with Louis and Rosie? Mitzi isn't the only one who's unhappy and finds herself talking to someone else who had a bad Valentines Day. Mystery and Laura may actually appear this time. And finally, Josh and Mystery make a shocking discovery that could bring Honevray back into chaos!
...Yeah, looking at all that, I'm thinking it may need to be 3 parts, sorry!
Please review as always~