.~*Chapter Eleven*~.
It had been little more than two weeks since the hotel fire and the abduction of Beary and Jewel. So much had happened, but what was the most popular thing was the fact that Beary had been severely whipped by some mysterious person. At least, that was one thing that Jade knew about.
In the meantime, Jade Falco had been taking care of five-year-old Jordan until his father could get out of the hospital, and even then, she would stay in Salt Lake City to take care of James and eventually Tasha until they could return to Nashville.
The thirty-three-year-old she-bear had had one heck of a time taking care of the hyperactive five-year-old. She would never admit it out loud, but the cub was a handful, especially when he had some sugar. She definitely had her paws full with this one.
However, for the time being, she was relieved of the duty of watching over her "nephew", and was visiting her friend, Tasha. She had left Jordan with his aunt and uncle in the waiting room.
Meanwhile, Tasha looked much better than she had a few days ago, her burns slowly beginning to heal. She still had yet to meet her daughter—the doctors had been taking extra precautions, none of which she liked.
Currently, she was sitting up in the bed, in a little bit of pain, but feeling better than she had in a while. The doctor had finally left, after sticking her against with one of those dreaded needles. "Damn things… Now I know why my patients don't like them," she muttered softly.
Jade chuckled darkly from the doorway. "But you doctors enjoy sticking your patients with said needles."
Tasha blinked and looked at the doorway in surprise, not expecting to see her longtime friend standing there. "Jade?" She blinked several times and gently rubbed her eyes. "Are you really there?"
The black furred, green eyed she-bear knew that since Tasha had been drugged for the past two weeks, it was possible that she didn't remember seeing Jade there before. "Of course I'm here. Somebody has to look after my best buddy Jordan." She grinned and pulled up a nearby chair.
The black furred, blue eyed she-bear in the bed was confused. "What happened to James?" It was obvious that she was about to start panicking. "No one tells me anything!"
"James has a few burns. Nothing major, well, except for his busted ankle. But apparently Trixie called me to come and take care of Jordan." Jade looked at her friend accusingly. "I didn't know you had a sister."
"I thought I told you about Trix. Huh… I could have sworn I told you." She shrugged and hissed at the pain in her shoulders. "Ooo… Ouch. Never doing that again." She glanced at her burned arms sadly, then at her friend. "Jade… Do… Do you have a mirror?"
"I don't."
"Could you find me one? I… I want to see…"
"Uh…" Jade glanced around, yet not really looking for a mirror. She didn't want her friend to see the hideous burns.
Tasha waited patiently, but when her friend hadn't found a mirror after five minutes, she realized that Jade wasn't searching for one after all. "Jade, tell me honestly." She took a deep breath. "How bad is it?"
Jade looked her over, examining the burns, which were beginning to peel. It was disgusting to look at and she almost barfed at the sight. "Give it time and you'll be back to good as new."
"Jade…"
"What?"
"Come on, Jadey-lady. Be brutal."
"I… I can't."
Tasha studied her friend for a moment before looking away. "That bad, huh?"
"Yeah… Ya look like the bear version of Freddy Kruger."
She received a weak chuckle in reply. "I'm going to scare Jordan," Tasha pouted, then sighed. After a few minutes, she began to speak again. "So… What happened?"
"I'm… not really sure, honestly."
"Who else is hurt? Are the guys okay? Is Trixie? She didn't get hurt, did she? Is that why she couldn't take care of Jordan?"
"Nah, they're okay, but… uh…"
The blue eyed she-bear detected the hesitation in Jade's voice, and immediately understood that something was wrong. "W-What happened? Who's dead?"
"Well…" Jade began, looking away. "Nobody is dead… Just… Beary and Jewel are missing."
"Jade, don't joke around like that."
"I'm not."
Tasha immediately began to get up, causing the machines around her to go haywire. Several started wailing, but she paid no attention to the sirens. "We have to find them!" She took out the IV, not caring that this was stupid idea. "Jewel was my responsibility!"
"Ah! Ursute, no! SIT YOUR ASS DOWN!" Jade shrieked, placing her paws on Tasha's shoulders, trying to hold her down.
The injured she-bear refused to listen and continued to get out of the bed. She also finished pulling out the rest of the wires attached to her body. "Get out of my way, Jade." She then gripped Jade's shoulders, using her friend as support. Even in her weakened state, she was stronger than her friend.
"Damn it, Tasha! Sit down!" In her struggle with her friend, she accidently jabbed one of her friend's burns.
Tasha let out a pained scream, almost deafening her friend in the process, and falls to her knees. Pain radiated throughout her entire body and she's wheezing heavily. She gripped her friend's clothes tightly, using Jade as support. She just about pulled Jade's pants down—the side of her pants, that is; she did rip Jade's shirt a bit when she first began to fall.
Jade used one paw to hold up her pants, and the other to hold onto her friend. "I NEED A DOCTOR IN HERE!"
A man in a white coat immediately rushed in, followed by a couple of nurses, and helped Jade get Tasha back into the bed. "What the hell happened?!" the doctor demanded as he started checking over his patient.
"Obviously, she tried to get up!"
"Well, duh! I mean what did you tell her to make her act like this?" he asked rudely.
"Who the hell cares?" she asked, agitated.
"If you want to be like that, you can just get out and stop upsetting my patient!"
"No!" Tasha screeched, reaching for her. "Jade!"
Dr. Parker glared at Jade. "See what you've done? You've upset her! Now we have to sedate her again, and we've been trying to get her off the drugs!" He glances at the nurses who are struggling with keeping the black she-bear down and still on the bed. They continue to hold her the best they can as he sedated her again.
"Unfortunately, it's better for her to be drugged up," Jade mumbled as she watched her longtime friend struggle against the effects of the drug. It pained her to see Tasha like this, but she knew there was no other way for the anxious she-bear to get some rest and calm down. 'Sorry, Tash. But this is the only way,' she silently told her friend. Her lip curled slightly when she heard the good doctor grumble something rather nasty at her. "And they wonder why I refuse to go to the doctor's. It's assholes like you…" she broke off before she said something stupid that would get her into trouble.
Doctor Parker, meanwhile, closed the curtains that surrounded his patient's bed.
Jade, sighing, turned to leave the room, only to see James, who was being wheeled into the room by a nurse. In his arms was a small pink bundle. Sticking out of the hole in the blanket was a tiny blackish-brown snout.
"Now remember, Mr. Stone, you only have a few minutes. Then the baby must go back in the incubator. The only reason the doctor let you do this is because this room is sterilized. I'll be back in a five minutes," the nurse said before leaving the room.
James thanked her and looked around the room. Immediately, he spotted Jade, who was just staring at him in surprise. "Jade? Finally got up here, did you? Well, got away from the little monster, that is," he chuckled.
"Yeah." She couldn't keep her eyes off the tiny bundle.
"How's Jordy doing? Has he driven you crazy yet? Well… Crazier?"
"Uh…" Jade wasn't exactly in the mood to talk, considering what just happened to Tasha. All she wanted to do at this point was to take off and keep driving.
The bundle cooed as a tiny ebony paw reached through the only opening in the pink blanket. James looked down at his daughter and smiled softly before looking back up at Jade. "Jade… I want you to meet Erin Jadith Stone."
Jade blinked and looked at the bundle again. "She's tiny," she commented.
"She's a month and a half premature, Jade. What did you expect?" He carefully held the bundle out to her. "Do you want to hold her?"
"Uh… N-no. I'm good."
"Jade, I insist."
"Not now, James… I might drop her." Sure, it was a stupid excuse, but she really, really wanted to get out of the room.
"Well, you'd better get used to holding her, Jade. Tasha and I were going to wait to tell you, until Erin was born, that is… but… since she's early… I guess we can tell you now… Well, I can tell you…"
She sighed exasperated. "James, get on with it."
He took a deep breath. "Tasha and I want you to be her godmother, Jade."
That was definitely not what she had expected him to say. "W-What?"
"We want you as her godmother, if that's all right with you. We can't think of anyone else…"
"Yeah, of course it's okay. I just didn't expect it."
"Good," he grinned before looking at the curtain in confusion. "Why is that up? Is something wrong with Tasha?"
"She… uh, tried to get out of bed."
James blinked and sighed. "Doctors make the worst patients…"
"Uh… yeah… Sorry, James, but I think I'm going to go find my demonic charge."
The black male bear laughed. "Good luck with that." He paused to think. "Last time I saw him… that is, when he came for a quick visit, Ted was watching him. Trix and Ten had to go down to the station. Apparently something came up. Anyway, yeah. I think Ted said something about getting him some food in the cafeteria."
"Ted?" Jade questioned before grinning slyly. She had always wanted to meet the famed black bear.
"That's what I said, didn't I?" He smiled at her grin.
"Ursute, I hope he doesn't give him anything with sugar in it."
"Uh, well… I think you're in trouble. You see, Ted isn't that good with kids. Well, he is, but… He said he was going to get him some ice cream and maybe a soda."
"Great. I'll see you later James."
"Oh, Jade?" he called before she could make her escape.
Jade's paw hovered over the door handle and she sighed. "What, James?"
He continued on with his statement quietly, so as to not alert anyone else in the room. "Isn't that the outfit you were wearing when you got here two weeks ago?" He knew she would be embarrassed at the question, but he cared about her. He wanted to know that she would be okay.
She immediately stiffened and gripped the door handle tightly. "I didn't have time to go shopping, okay? So I wore the surgical scrubs I, uh, borrowed…while I washed the clothes and vice versa, okay?" She didn't want to admit that she had forgotten most of her money at home when she had left Tennessee in such a hurry. She hadn't even had a chance to pack any clothes.
"You know you could always ask Trixie for a clothing loan…"
"I'm fine, James," she replied, a small growl in her throat. With that, she took her leave.
.~*The Country Bears*~.
The cafeteria wasn't as busy as it usually was, with only a few doctors and nurses having some time to stop and grab a bite to eat before the next emergency that would cause them to rely on coffee to survive. There were only a few other people in the room, who were sitting and eating. Most were the families of patients.
Ted Bedderhead, wearing a black, suave leather jacket—much like his normal concert one—was sitting at a table in the corner of the room, where it was less busy, eating a bowl of ice cream that he was splitting with the small black cub, Jordan. While eating, he told the cub a story.
Jordan sat across from his "uncle", enjoying the ice cream—which he had topped with all sorts of goodies, well, what he could find in the cafeteria, that is. His nose and snout were covered in the delicious dessert, but he didn't care as he continued to dig into the strawberry and chocolate goodness.
Ted paused in his storytelling, and quickly reached across the table and wiped the cub's mouth with a napkin. "Sheesh, Jordan. Keep it in your mouth. If you're not careful, you're goin' to need a bath."
The five-year-old shook his head. "Nuh-uh! No bath!"
He chuckled at the cub's expression. "That's right, lil guy. No bath." He grinned and sat back. "Now… Like I was sayin', I've never seen anythin' so crazy as that boy on sugar. It was utter chaos at the Hall. He actually tackled your Uncle Fred to the ground and sounded like that one creepy dude from the Lord of the Rings. He was holdin' the energy drink and goin' 'my precious!'"
Jordan giggled uncontrollably.
Meanwhile, Jade entered the cafeteria and looked around. There were just enough people in the room that caused her to make sure she had spotted the correct person before moving anywhere.
At that exact moment, Jordan let out a shriek of laughter when Ted's spoon missed his mouth and the ice cream went up his nose.
Ted let out a startled shout and jumped around, shrieking like a little girl. "Ah! Cold! Cold, cold, cold!"
Jade rolled her eyes at the sight. "Found them."
The black bear continued to hold his nose, trying to get the invading coldness out. Jordan, meanwhile, took the time to eat even more ice cream.
Still watching them, Jade made her way over.
Ted was still holding his nose and didn't notice her as he continued his "ice cream dance". Naturally, he ended up crashing into her. The pair of them fell to the floor, and as fate would have it, their lips locked.
Jade's eyes widened considerably, and a growl rose in her throat.
Ted's eyes expanded as well, and he quickly scrambled off of her. "Uh… Watch where you're goin'," he growled, being his usual ego-centric self.
The cub snorted into his ice cream, finding the situation hilarious.
"W-Watch where I'm going?!" the she-bear questioned, her lips curling slightly.
"Yeah. You heard me."
She growled and looked over at her charge. She was about ready to deck the older bear. "Kiddo, you're a mess!" She grinned slightly when he smiled.
Jordan pointed at Ted and giggled. "His fault, Aunty Jade," the cub snickered.
"A-Aunty Jade?" Ted blinked, surprised.
Jade ignored him and continued looking at her charge. "I'm very well aware of that, Jordy."
"How Mama? She miss Jo'dy?" the cub asked.
"Of course she misses you."
Ted, meanwhile, was annoyed and took the she-bear ignoring him as an insult. "Hey, don't you know who I am?"
"You give her drawring?" Jordan asked at the same time.
Answering both their questions, Jade nodded. "Yes." She then looked solely at Ted. "And would you believe I don't care?"
His eyes widened.
"She like it?" the cub asked.
"Yes, Jordan. She liked it. Now, hurry up and finish your ice cream."
"We have to go?" he asked, disappointed. "B-But Uncle Ted was gonna finish story!"
"He can finish while you eat your ice cream then," she said as she sat down. Jordan cheered, and Jade checked her phone.
Ted, still upset, sat back down and tried to get back into his previous mood. "Now… Where was I…?"
"'My precious'," Jordan grinned.
"Ah, yes. Well, like I was sayin', Beary was completely crazy. It was both hilarious and scary…"
FLASHBACK
"Beary! Calm down!" Henry laughed, chasing the super-energized ten-year-old around the front yard.
It was a beautiful September afternoon. Beary had come to the Hall for band practice… and things had taken an interesting turn…
The light brown, white faced cub in question let out an evil giggle—which really sounded like a bunch of evil chipmunks laughing—and raced away at almost lightning-like speed, avoiding Henry's arms when he tried to catch him. "Never!"
Ted glanced at his brother, unsure of what to think. Ever since the young cub had stepped out of the green Charger, not ten minutes before, he had been a raging ball of wild fur. He had started talking extremely fast and had immediately sprinted across the yard towards the nearest tree. He began to climb before jumping down from the lowest limb—which had been almost ten feet off the ground—and had sprinted past Henry.
Fred blinked several times, watching the cub with confusion. "What's gotten into him?" he asked.
The older Bedderhead shrugged and went back to watching the cub with interest.
Zeb was wandering around, near the pond, when he spotted the hyperactive cub bounding towards him, full speed. He blinked several times before he turned and began running.
"Uh-oh," Fred groaned, wincing as the fiddler was tackled into the pond, a large splash wave surrounding him. It was like a scene out of a cartoon as Beary stood in the pond, most likely standing on top of Zeb, and beat his chest shouting 'Me, Tarzan!' before jumping back to the shore and rushing off, disappearing behind some trees.
Zeb, meanwhile, sat up—thankfully the pond wasn't that deep—coughing and gasping for air. He looked like, for lack of a better word, a drowned rat. "What the hell?!" he shouted when he had enough breath.
Ted couldn't help but laugh loudly at the predicament his friend found himself in. Next to him, his brother had doubled over laughing as well. Amusement could be heard all over the yard, except from Zeb, who was spitting out pond water.
Beary, meanwhile, had climbed another tall tree and sat on one of the higher branches, staring down at them all like a vulture. He was grinning like a Cheshire cat as he took another sip of his energy drink.
Ted and Fred met with Trixie, Tennessee, and Henry under the tree, and, like the others, looked up at the cub that glared down at them. "Beary, get down here!" Henry called, his voice holding a trace of panic.
"Never!" the super-excited cub replied.
"What are you doin' up there, anyway?" Fred questioned loudly.
"Watching for pirates!"
Tennessee looked at his girlfriend, confused. "'Pirates'?"
"Cubs will be cubs, Tenny," she replied, grinning.
"This cub is-" The thang player's eyes widened when he saw Beary about to jump. "Don't you dare!" he shouted.
Beary, of course, didn't listen as he inched closer and closer towards the outer part of the branch before jumping, yelling like a madman.
Fred's eyes widened and he, along with everyone else, moved to catch the cub. However, the great brown bear became a trampoline against his will when the cub chose to land on top of him, causing them both to collapse to the ground. "Oof!" he cried when Beary landed on his stomach. Thankfully, all his fat kept him from harm.
Beary didn't waste any time getting up and taking off again, running away at full speed, laughing his head off.
"Are you all right?!" Ted questioned, attempting to help his baby brother stand up; he needed both Tennessee's and Henry's help getting the rather chubby bear upright.
"Ow… yeah, I'm fine… I think…" he groaned, rubbing the back of his head. "What hit me?"
"Beary."
The dark brown bear blinked several times. "Beary…?"
"He, er… sorta landed on top of you," Henry explained, watching the cub cartwheel around the yard.
"Do I even want to know what is going on?" Roadie asked as he came over to the group.
As one, the others answered him. "No."
The human blinked several times and shrugged. "You're all so weird."
"Yup," they all replied, extremely distracted; Beary had now started rocking out on the porch with an air guitar.
"Okay, we need a plan. Roadie, go ask Big Al for some rope and a blanket. We may have to jump him and tie him up," Henry said, extremely serious. Roadie blinked at first, not believing the words coming out of the elder bear's mouth, but nodded and went to find the gray bear.
"Mind if I'm the one who jumps him?" Zeb asked, walking over to the group, still soaking wet. He cracked his knuckles. "I wanna get my paws on that fuzzball."
Ted couldn't help but laugh loudly at the fiddler. "Z-Zeb," he snickered, "you look like a drowned rat!"
"Smells like one, too," Tennessee teased.
The auburn bear frowned and glared at his so-called friends before sticking his tongue out at them. "Jerks. I don't smell that bad…" he complained.
The others just snickered, and then looked back at the porch, only to find Beary gone.
"Where did he go now?" Trixie wondered aloud, glancing around.
Tennessee shrugged and began walking towards his cabin, where he was sure was the only safe place at the moment. However, he didn't make it very far before he let out a girl-like squeal and leapt into Trixie's arms, causing her to collapse under the weight. They landed in a very awkward position.
Beary was standing where Tennessee stood moments before, laughing crazily.
Ted and Henry looked at each other over the cub's head, before nodding. They both made a grab for him, and ended up bumping heads, due to the fact that Beary had yet again avoided them.
"Youch!" the two older bears cried out, holding their heads.
Zeb snickered. "Brilliant job. Can't even catch a cub."
Ted growled at him before looking around for the wayward cub. Spotting him over by the tall sycamore tree, messing around with something, he frowned. "Hey! Kid!" he called, walking over towards him.
"That's right, Ted," Zeb muttered. "Keep him focused on you while the rest of us figure out a way to jump him."
Ted continued walking, unaware of the trap he was walking into. One moment he was walking under the tree, and the next, he was dangling by one foot under it.
The others turned at the singer's loud shout, and stared wide eyed at Ted, how had one leg stringed up with a rope. He was hanging about two feet off the ground, yelling his head off.
Beary was rolling around on the ground near the black bear, practically screaming with laughter. "That was awesome!"
"BEARY!" Ted shouted, furious. "GET ME DOWN!" His arms were dangling, his fingers just barely brushing the ground. His jean jacket hung past his head, giving his head a blue backdrop. He slowly turned around in circles with the rope.
It was at this moment that the others started laughing. The lead singer looked ridiculous.
"Why are ya hangin' around, Ted?" Zeb snickered.
"You forgot the tire for the tire swin'," Fred chuckled.
"You look ridiculous," Tennessee pointed out.
The others glanced at him, their expressions mellow. "Thank you, Captain Obvious," Trixie groaned, smacking his arm playfully.
"What'd I say?" the thang player questioned, confused. His girlfriend rolled her eyes.
"Let's go get him," Henry sighed. "Then we can chase down the monster. He should be getting tired soon…"
"If only…"
The group of adults made their way over towards their bandmate and was just about to untie him when-
"Hi!" Beary shouted excitedly, standing behind them.
"Gah!" Henry shouted, jumping slightly.
"RUN!" Roadie and Al shouted from a little ways away. The others quickly looked over and saw that the human and bear had been tied together.
Before they could move, Beary was running around them in circles, a rope in his paw. No sooner had they realized this had the psychotic cub tied the thick rope, pulling them all close together. He cackled and took off again.
All it took was for one of them to take a wrong step, and they all collapsed on top of that person, who unfortunately had been Henry.
"Oof!" the elder bear cried, currently being crushed under all the bears. "Geroff!"
"Kinda hard to do, Hen," Fred commented, swinging his legs helplessly in the air.
"Zeb, I suggest you remove your paw before I kill you," Trixie growled.
"Uh… Not my fault! I can-"
"MOVE!"
"Okay, okay! I'll try!"
"Fred, you weigh a lot," Tennessee complained.
Ted watched all this in amusement from his viewpoint, grinning. "Brilliant job," he snickered.
"Shut up," the others complained…
END FLASHBACK
Jade was trying very hard not to smirk due to the fact that she knew the story. It was her that dropped Beary off that day at the Hall, due to Allison having gotten ill and Norbert had to take care of her; Dex was no help, because he had disappeared. Anyway, it had been her energy drinks that Beary had gotten into. She had watched the chaos unfold from the safety of her car. She had recorded the entire thing on her camera.
"Utter chaos," Ted shook his head. "Well, anyway, finally the kid fell asleep, leaving us all tied up out in the front yard. You know, there was this pretty she-bear that came to our rescue a little bit later. She had the prettiest smile… So, yeah. She untied us and then she said she had to leave. To this day, I still don't know who she was. If you ask me, she was an angel." He couldn't help but glance at Jade out of the corner of his eye for a moment before looking at Jordan again. "We got Beary, who was still asleep, thankfully, into the Hall. He slept for a good four hours. Totally wasted our practice time, but…" He scratched his chin. "I think it was worth it."
Jordan looked upset that the story was over, and he had almost finished his ice cream.
Jade couldn't help but smile a bit.
"Anyway, you better your ice cream, Jordan. You're, uh, "aunt" wants to go home," Ted finished.
"Home. Yeah, right," Jade snorted.
"Don't you live around here?" he questioned, slightly confused.
"Ugh, hell no. I had to drive here all the way from freakin Tennessee."
The singer blinked, surprised. "You live in Tennessee, too? Where?"
"Shelbyville."
"Then… How do you know Tasha and James? Where'd ya meet?"
"Tasha is my best friend."
"That, uh, tells me nothin'…"
"Nuh-uh!" Jordan interrupted. "She tell you zey bez f'iends!"
The forty-six-year-old glanced at the cub and raised an eyebrow.
Jordan giggled and Jade smirked.
"Smart alec," Ted snickered, sticking his tongue out at him.
The cub responded by flinging one of the last spoonfuls of ice cream at the older bear, grinning when it smacked him square in the forehead. His laughter was joined by Jade, and he only stopped when he saw Ted's angry expression. He knew he had done something bad.
"Hm…" the singer said thoughtfully as he scooped up the last of the ice cream and flung it. However, it didn't reach the intended target. Immediately, he began wondering if he should run.
Jade growled angrily and wiped the cold substance off of her face. "These are the only clean clothes I have right now. Do not even start with your stupid games."
Ted fell silent and avoided her gaze.
Jordan, however, found it rather funny. "Aunty Jade smelly. Too wazy to get new c'othes."
"Uh…" the singer mumbled, unsure of what he should say.
The five-year-old giggled against and poked Jade in the side at a rather ticklish spot. "Pway?"
Jade rolled her eyes. "I haven't had time to get new clothes because I've had to babysit a monster!" she said playfully, tickling the cub.
Jordan immediately ducked away and growled. "I a monstah! Rawr!" He raised his arms above his head and did his best Godzilla impression.
Ted actually laughed, his throat rumbling in the process. His laughter was warm and comforting.
"Yes, yes you are a monster," Jade grinned, grabbing the cub and tickled him.
The cub squealed loudly, trying to get away. "Uncle Teddy! Help Jo'dy!"
Ted continued to laugh. "Nah." After his laughter dies out, he studied Jade's smile and blinked. "I know you from somewhere… A concert…? No, I don't think that's it… Hm…"
Meanwhile, a nurse wandered over with a frown on her face. "Excuse me, but this is not a playground. If you want to horse around, go to the outside tables."
Ted glanced up at her. "Sorry."
After Jordan was released from Jade's torturous grasp, he did what his mother always taught him to do. "I sowi."
Another nurse wandered over, joining the first, and looked at the three black bears. "Such a nice family. A loving mother and father, raising a respectable young gentleman."
Jade blinked and watched as the nurses left, having been called for an emergency.
Ted's eyes were wide and he nervously pulled at his jacket collar. He was totally embarrassed. "Anybody else hot? I mean, besides you?" he questioned, looking at Jade. His eyes widened when he realizes what he said.
Jade blushed horribly, but was extremely glad that her dark fur hid the blush. However, she was able to handle the embarrassment well. "Mmm… Nope. I believe it's just you."
He was still super embarrassed, but remained egotistical. "Yeah, I know I'm hot," he said, posing.
Jordan giggled at the silly posture, and Jade rolled her eyes, smiling slightly.
Ted grinned and sighed. "Well… I can see that you have everything under control here… I guess I'll talk to you later… I-I mean, I'll see you later, Jade. I mean, Jordan." Blushing horribly, he stood, knocking over his cup of soda in the process. "Ah, darn it." He hastily cleaned it up, but not before some of the orange liquid spilled onto Jade's shirt. Without thinking, he grabbed another napkin and started wiping her shirt.
At first, Jade blinked and then a growl escapes her throat. "Excuse me, but I can clean myself off." She pushed him away, obviously agitated now that she has to start wearing her back up outfit, the surgical scrubs. She was one unhappy she-bear.
"I am so sorry!" Ted cried, horrified as he hastily backed away. "I'll pay for your clothes! I swear I will!"
Jordan, meanwhile, was watching this with interest.
The black she-bear blinked several times, surprised at this. "Really?" She watched as he nodded and crossed his heart. She raised an eyebrow. "Hm…"
"Please, let me make it up to you." He was really looking for any excuse to get away from the others for a while, but yet… He wanted to spend time with her. It wasn't every day that he met a she-bear that didn't worship at his feet or deny him. It was… Interesting. He was tired of other females just hanging on his every word and worshipping him. Sure, it was fun to begin with, but it quickly got old. It prevented him from finding someone he was truly interested in, and who was actually interested in him, and not just because he was rich and famous.
That's what his last girlfriend did… She wanted him for his money and had led him on for multiple years. She ended up breaking his heart when she left him standing at the altar.
"Well… I guess I could use your help to get outta this damn suit," Jade replied.
Ted blinked several times, stunned at her choice of words. "Uh…"
She blushed again. "That's not what I meant!" Her voice was a bit shrill, but she didn't care. She couldn't believe what she had said.
He shook his head. "Anyway…" He glanced at Jordan. "Better hurry up and get done, little dude. We got some shoppin' to do."
"He's right, buddy. Hurry up." Jade couldn't wait to get out of this darn hospital and her outfit.
Ted grinned and looked at Jade. "Yeah. Anyway, I need to get some more clothes, anyway. Most were burned in the fire…"
Jordan went back to finishing his soda, taking his sweet time.
Jade frowned. "I got a phone call from, uh… Trixie… saying I needed to get here as soon as I could. So, I had to leave work without getting any clothes…"
"That… uh… stinks." He sighed softly. "I'm glad you got here when you did, though. Trixie and Tennessee were in no condition to watch Jordan… Not with…" he broke off when his cell phone began to ring. He pulled it out of his pocket and looked at the caller ID, seeing that it was Fred. "Uh… I gotta take this. Be right back, and then we can go." With that, he walked outside where he got better reception.
Jade remained inside with the cub, drumming her fingers on the table for a good fifteen minutes. She was getting rather annoyed at the fact that Ted hadn't come back yet. "I don't think he's coming back, Jordan…"
The cub looked around, and then let out a cry. "Zer he is!" he cried, pointing towards the door where a somber and horrified looking Ted Bedderhead was standing in the doorway.
Jade turned and looked at him. "What happened?"
Ted slowly made his way over to them and shook his head. "Nothin'…" he said unconvincingly. He didn't want to speak of what happened in front of Jordan, and he wasn't sure if Jade knew about Beary and Jewel.
The she-bear frowned. "Uh-huh. Anyways… We'll do this shopping thing later, then."
"No! I mean, no… I'd rather do it now. I don't want to go back to the hotel…" He was looking for any excuse to keep himself busy. He looked at her with pleading eyes. "Please."
"Uh… Okay…"
"I done!" Jordan cried, not noticing the tense atmosphere.
"Good. We can go now."
The cub grinned and looked at Ted. "You come, too?"
Ted looked at Jade. "I am, right? Or do you want me to give you some money and then we go our separate ways?" Secretly, he was hoping that she would agree to take him with her.
"Nah. I guess you can come," she smiled, her tone playful.
He gave her a grateful look, the looked at Jordan, who had snuck out from underneath the table and was now sitting opposite of Jade. "Come on, Jordan." He picked him up. "You need to go to the bathroom before we go?"
"Nope!"
"You sure?"
"Duh."
Ted rolled his eyes and held his paw out to Jade, wondering if she would allow him to help her up.
"Take him anyways," the she-bear said, getting up on her own and brushing past him. "To the bathroom, that is."
Ted winced slightly, knowing he had just been shot down. "Oh. Okay." With that, he carried Jordan down the hallway towards the bathrooms.
Jade followed, not letting on that she, herself, had to go to the bathroom.
Five minutes later, Ted and Jordan were waiting outside in the hallway for Jade, and Jordan was getting rather impatient.
"Can we go now?! Dis p'ace borin'!" he complained.
"We have to wait for your aunt. Say… Is she really your aunt? She doesn't exactly act like Tasha… Maybe she's James' cousin…"
The cub looked at him confused.
"Who is she, anyway…"
At that moment, Jade reappeared. "Who's who?" she questioned.
"Uh, no one," Ted replied with wide eyes. He hadn't expected to hear her voice.
"He wikes you," Jordan grinned, looking at Jade.
The older bear's eyes widened even further. "Uh, no I don't!" he lied.
Jade, however, grinned. "Who doesn't, Jordan?"
Ted breathed a sigh of relief. That was a close call.
Jordan, meanwhile, giggled.
The she-bear sighed. "Well… Other than Beary when he first met me, cause I made Jewel cry." She shrugged. "Cause I'm a mean aunty Jade."
"You ain't mean!" The cub argued.
Ted, however, blinked. "You know Beary? I kinda figured you knew Jewel, because you know James and Tasha…"
"I used to babysit him all the time. Him and Jewel both."
"Huh… Well, that practically makes you family." He grinned playfully.
"Yeah, so I've heard. I don't know how to tell you how many times I've had to sit there and listen to stupid Country Bear albums."
"Hey!"
"Uh-oh," Jordan gasped, covering his mouth.
"Just because I know who you are doesn't mean I listen to your music," Jade continued.
"You just said you had to listen to us, so don't go saying you don't listen when you did. Ha. I win." The older bear grinned happily as they continued walking down the hallway.
"Not really my kind of music," she grinned. Sure, it was only half true, but no one needed to know that.
"Then what is your kind of music?"
"A little bit of everything, I guess. There's really no set style. You guys were good in the beginning but the years leading up to the fall apart, ya really went downhill."
"Yeah, I know…" Ted said, scratching the back of his head. He was feeling rather vulnerable at the moment due to the phone call he had received from his younger brother minutes before. "Part of it is my fault. Actually, all of it is my fault, I guess…"
Jade shrugged. "Haven't heard anything new from you guys," she said, getting the keys to her car out of her pocket. They were now in the parking lot. It was amazing how fast they reached the car while they had been talking.
"We've written a couple of new songs with Beary…" Ted broke off, unhappy again. "He made us a family again…"
Jordan was walking in front of them, not really paying attention. He was rambling on about something completely random.
"Jordan, stay close. You're in a parking lot," Jade warned. She chose not to comment about what Ted had said.
"I know!"
They finally reached Jade's super sexy lime green Dodge Charger—at least, that's how she described it. It was now painfully obvious that she had a lot of money.
Ted gave a low whistle. "Nice car."
"Thanks…"
"Real nice…"
Jade rolled her eyes and unlocked the car. "All right, Jordan. Back seat."
"Aww…" the cub grumbled, getting in.
Ted closed the door after Jordan got in, and hesitated before getting into the front seat. "You sure you want me comin' with you?"
Jade nodded. "Looks like ya need the time away. Besides two sets of eyes on Jordan are better then one." She glanced back at her young charge, watching as he got out his mp3 player and began listening to music with his headphones on.
Ted nodded and got in. He took the sunglasses off and rubbed his snout. "So many problems…" He sighed and looked at Jade. "So, you know about Beary and Jewel… You know what happened, right?" He glances back to make sure Jordan can't hear them. "Geez… He has those up loud…"
"Yes, I do know about what happened… and I'm just as worried as you guys are." With that, she started the engine and they slowly made their way out of the parking lot.
"I don't suppose you know what the FBI has found out… who kidnapped them…"
"I do, but I chose not to really listen all that much. I keep picking up bits and pieces, though, and it's very… unsettling."
"Not as unsettlin' as what I just found out…"
"I don't want to know…" Secretly, she was desperate for any news on two of her favorite cubs, but some part of her knew that this was something she truly didn't want to know.
"Probably for the best…" He wants to share this burden with someone else, but he's hesitant with her. One part of him doesn't want her to feel the same horror he felt, but the other part of him wanted to get the weight off his chest.
A long awkward silence followed his statement that was only broken by Jordan, who was mumbling along to whatever song he was listening too.
Ted, not thinking, decided to speak out of the blue, and as fate would have it, Jade was driving rather fast—there had been no stoplights or other cars in sight, probably because they were kinda way out of the way. "Beary and Jewel took each other as mates."
He should have waited to say anything as Jade reacted, her arms jerking and she nearly lost control of the car. "WHAT?!" she screeched.
Ted held onto the OMG bar—the little handlebar above the door—for dear life. "HOLY CRAP, WOMAN!"
"WEE!" Jordan shrieked, raising his arms in the air, enjoying this.
Jade quickly slowed down and steadied the car. "Great Ursute!" She glared at her fellow adult, who had his paw on his chest, trying to control his breathing.
"Never do that again," they both said at the same time.
"Again! Again!" Jordan cried.
No one answered the cub. Jade had fallen eerily silent, and Ted was trying to calm down. Once he succeeded, he glanced over at Jade. "Sorry…"
No reply.
He turned his head and looked out the windshield. "I, uh… figured that, uh, since you knew them… you ought ta know…"
"It's… Just… wow…" the she-bear replied softly. Her mind was still trying to come to terms with the whole thing. Two cubs were now bound forever to each other. Surely it could be fixed once they were found, that they could be separated and it declared void… right?
Ted nodded. "The most upsettin' thing is that we could have bought their freedom… but apparently they chose each other over freedom. It's… confusin'…"
Jade shrugged. "Love makes you stupid."
"Ain't that the truth," he sighed. "The sick bastards sent a video… They made Trixie, Tennessee, Allison, Norbert, and Henry watch a porn video with the two cubs." His voice shook with anger. He knew he probably didn't have to tell her that, but everything was just spilling out. For some reason, he felt as if he could be himself around her.
"Ew."
"Tell me about it. I… I'm really worried about the kid… Without his epilepsy meds…"
Jade groaned. "Forgot about that."
Ted nodded. "No one has any idea what is gonna to happen if those bastards find out about his… condition…" He went on without emotion. "Probably kill him and sell Jewel…"
She looked at him, her expression slightly angered. "Why would you even say something like that, let alone think it?!" she growled.
He glanced at her. "Just how much do you know about their kidnappers? Do you know why Beary and Jewel were taken? They're being forced to be breeders! And since Beary's a male, he's gonna be forced on who knows how many other females! He practically sold his body! And if they found out about his condition, they'll kill him! No one wants his "disease" to damage future goods!" He was majorly upset. He didn't mean to take all this out on Jade, but right now he couldn't control his emotions. He didn't know what he was saying, and at this point, he didn't care. He was showing a side of him that no one would've expected. He was showing a vulnerable, caring side filled with the worry of a parent.
Jade gripped the steering wheel tightly, trying to keep her emotions in check. "Yes, actually, I did know that."
Ted's angry expression turned to one of confusion and surprise. He clenched his fists tightly, his claws digging into his palm, which were beginning to bleed, but not enough to cause alarm. He looked into her green eyes, hoping to see some kind of reassurance that everything would be okay, even though all he could see was the corner of one of her eyes. "I… I'm sorry…" Ever so softly, he went on. "I… I just want them to come home… safe and alive…"
Out of everything Jade ever heard about the lead singer, meaning his pompous attitude and egotistical nature, she never expected to hear him act like this… Like a concerned parent. Everything she knew of regular lead singers and band leaders was that they tend to act like spoiled brats and not care about anyone but themselves. She certainly expected Ted Bedderhead to act like this, too.
She took a deep breath. "They will…" she said softly. "They will if you believe they will…"
"I hope so…" He looked out the windshield once again, no longer sure of what to say.
At that point, Jordan pulled off his headphones. "Are we there yet?"
Jade was grateful for the distraction. "Almost."
"I'm bored!"
"Listen to your music."
"I've listened to all of it! Beawy said he was gonna add new songs! He p'omised!" the cub complained, majorly upset.
"Listen to it again, Jordan. We're almost there."
"Ugh! Fiiiiiinnnnnnneeeeeee! Tell Beawy I mad at 'im," he complained, putting back on his headphones.
Jade sighed, feeling the tension in the air rising again.
Ted, too, sighed, and after a few minutes, he spoke again. He needed something to diffuse the situation. "What is your full name? I know your first name is Jade, but…"
"Falco."
"Jade… Falco… Huh… Well, I'm Ted—er, Theodore Simon Bedderhead… I'm also know as "Pain in the ass", "Mr. Grouchy", "Uncle Ted/Teddy"… Oh, and "Subborn Jackass"."
The she-bear grinned slightly. "Well, to get technical, it's Jade Star Falco."
"Star? Jade Star Falco. Interesting."
"I know, it's stupid."
"I like it. Much better than being named after a couple of chipmunks." He chuckled. "Now that's stupid."
Jade smiled but didn't say anything.
Ted liked her smile, and couldn't stop looking at it. It made him feel… good… It made him feel something he hadn't felt in a long time.
She looked at him for a moment, then back at the road as she pulled into the parking lot of a very, very big mall.
He blinked and looked at the mall with wide eyes. "Oh, geez…" In the back seat, Jordan let out an excited shout.
"We're going to make this quick," Jade warned.
"I hope so," Ted muttered. "I hope we don't run into any paparazzi. I can't stand them." He was grateful that he was wearing normal enough clothes, so he shouldn't be very recognizable. But, just to make sure, he pulled off his glasses and put them in the glove compartment. "Better not wear them."
"Good idea. Rather not be seen in public with somebody that looks like Elton John."
He blinked and looked at her. "What is that supposed to mean?"
"Simple. Those are ugly ass sunglasses."
"Hey!"
Jordan unbuckled and leaned forward, smacking Jade's ear. "Bad! No bad words!"
"Jordan, sit down!"
"Bad Aunty Jade," the cub muttered, sitting down again.
Ted chuckled.
"You ain't seen bad yet," she replied, looking at him via the rearview mirror.
"Meanie-head."
"You gonna take that, Jade?" Ted questioned, chuckling.
"Let's just get this over with." She was in no mood to argue.
"You have nothin' to worry about."
"Yes, I do. Somebody gave that child ice cream and soda. I have much to worry about," she complained, pulling into a parking space.
"He's not as bad as Beary… I hope…"
"Nobody is as bad as do you think I never gave him anymore energy drinks again after that incident I saved you guys from?"
"WHAT?! You gave him the energy drinks?!"
"Well, not really give. He more… took them."
Ted suddenly blinked, realizing something. "W-W-Whoa! WAIT! You were the one who untied us?!"
"Indeed I was, spider-bear."
"T-Then, you… uh… you heard… everything I said… a-about… uh…" He couldn't go on, too horrified.
"I was sitting across the table, ya know," she chuckled. Inside, she was smiling as she remembered the comment he had made about the savior who had rescued them.
Ted's blush could be seen clearly under his thinning facial fur. His eyes were huge and he was majorly embarrassed.
Jade smirked.
"Oh, Ursute… I can't believe you were her…" He pulled at his collar nervously. "I, uh…" He began to get out of the car—more like attempting to get out of the car—only to find that he was still buckled up. He was currently tangled up in the seat belt.
In the back, Jordan snickered.
Jade rolled her eyes, reached over and unhooked the seat belt for him. "It's okay."
Suddenly losing the only thing that was keeping him upright, Ted faceplanted into the pavement.
Jordan started laughing.
Jade's eyes widened. "Oh, crap. You okay?"
Almost comically, Ted reached an arm upwards and gave her a thumb's up before his arm fell back down by his side.
She frowned. "Ya sure?"
A groan was her only answer.
Jordan pressed his face against the window, looking at the great bear. "Hahaha! You wook dumb!"
"Ugh… shut up…"
"Well, whenever you're ready…" Jade muttered, getting out of the car. She let Jordan out as well.
Ted slowly got up and looked over at Jade with a bleeding nose. "Ow…"
"Uh… You're bleeding…"
"What else is new?" He put a paw over his nose. "Do you have anythin' I can use to stop the bleedin'?"
"Uh… not with me… Jordan, were there any tissues in the back seat?"
The five-year-old climbed back in and began looking. It wasn't long before he found a wad of tissues. "Hew!" he called.
Ted took them and held the entire wad against his nose. "Remind me to never do that again."
"Good idea," the she-bear commented.
It wasn't long before the bleeding stopped and he could remove the tissues from his face. "How do I look?"
"Uh… Look in a mirror."
"Mirrors do nothin' for my delicate figure," he joked, trying to make light of the somewhat bad atmosphere.
"Uh-huh. Sure. You're face looks a little bloody still here…" Without thinking about it, she approached him, took one of the clean tissues from his paw, wetted it with her saliva, and began wiping the blood off his brown snout.
Ted, blushing, looked into her beautiful green eyes as she did this. They were the perfect height for each other, able to equally see into each other's eyes without looking up or looking down.
Jade looked at the blood for a moment before her line of sight changed to his warm amber eyes that danced and sparkled. The moment she did, she knew there was a connection between them. Briefly she wondered if he felt it, too. Her paw holding the tissue hovered for a moment over his snout and she lost herself in his gaze. A part of her wondered what he was truly like deep down. How did he truly act?
Another part of her wanted to touch his lips with her own once again; to feel the gentle, loving touch of his paw on her cheek and the ticklish sensation of his breath on her ear. She knew. She just knew deep down, that something about him was special. She felt… complete. Jade didn't know how to explain it, nor did she really feel like doing so. How could she be falling for someone she barely knew so hard and so fast? It didn't make any sense.
Looking into his eyes, she knew he felt the same. She let her arm drop and she slowly leaned forward.
Ted, meanwhile, felt a calming effect from looking into her eyes. He couldn't explain it, but… he felt warm inside, as if the ice that had shielded his heart for so long was beginning to finally melt. Way deep down, he knew. He knew he had finally found her. He had finally found the girl of his dreams.
Their lips were just centimeters apart when—
"I'M HUNGRY!"
Both adults physically jumped and looked away from each other, both embarrassed, but they tried not to show it.
Ted spoke. "Uh… Yeah. Anyway…"
Jade looked down at the young cub. "You just ate a whole bunch of ice cream, Jordan. How can you be hungry?"
"So?" the cub patted his belly. "I g'owing boy! I needs foods!"
Ted snickered.
"You're belly is starting to look like you're daddies, kiddo," Jade replied playfully. "Anyways, let's get going."
Jordan looked at her, highly offended.
"Yeah, James' gotta lay off the donuts and coffee," Ted put in, grinning.
"You tell him that," Jade smiled.
Jordan glared at them both.
"Okay, okay. Come on. I'm sick of being in this damn suit," Jade complained.
"I'd like to see you in something different," Ted commented softly without thinking.
"Uh…"
His eyes widened, and he started walking rather quickly towards the mall.
Jordan looked back up at his "aunt". "Jewl 'ight. You two make wei'd couple." He shuddered and shouted, "Cootie shot!" before taking off after Ted.
Jade's smile turned into a sad frown at the name of her "neice". A single tear rolled down her cheek, but she did nothing to hide it. "Jewel… Beary… Wherever you are… Be safe," she whispered.
