Disclaimer: I do not own Animaniacs, it belongs to Steven Spielberg, Warner Brothers Studio, et al. I claim no rights to any of this, it was made purely for entertainment and for writing practice. No profit is made off of this. There are original characters featured within.

Animaniacs Return

Chapter 38: A Refreshing Dip

Yakko heard the voice on the phone. There was still a good chance someone was biting the dust that day. Overnight several authorities came to their tower to try and take control of the situation. So much focus was on that deadly dip, that no one even cared about their 'activities' much. Warren, the leading reason for so many deaths, was sitting pretty behind bars, not saying a word.

The phone rang. "Dominoes delivery service," Yakko answered.

"Decisions, decisions. Are you pitching the amnesia woman, the hot woman, or are you pitching Aroma?"

"None," Yakko declared. "Don't you only get one call?"

"Yes, but apparently they think I am important enough to call you to give you any hints I can. There's really not much hints to this game though, I set it up to play itself out without me. Hang to win by four."

"Yeah, I know. We're kind of tired of your games though, loser. Nothing's original, no spark anymore." Yakko chuckled. "What happened to our marriage, dear? I suggest we may need counseling to find that special something again."

"Not very long, it's over. You may have won the battle, but I won the war."

"Fine, be that way. I'll be at my mothers." Yakko hung up on him and headed over to the tower.

Aroma swung back and forth in the breeze. She had to think positive. She's survived so far, and it was almost over. Warren was in jail, everyone was safe, and she'd be fine in the end. Yeah, of course she would.

"Whoah lady, flash the whole crowd why don't you?"

Aroma clenched her legs tighter as Yakko approached. "Do you always have to make an entrance?"

"Yep." Yakko smiled. "It's my style. So, anyhow, uhhh…I think you might be fine. I can't guarantee this will work. I really can't."

"Oh." She noticed the hesitance in his voice. "Okay. Well, you did save me once. Maybe even twice, if I think about it. Most friends don't put themselves in this position more than once. So, thanks."

"Yeah. You really need to knock off this near death thing, it's not becoming. You're turning into one of those whiny characters in shows and stories yelling 'help prince, save me'. Not good for your rep, it'll be harder to get work," Yakko teased. "Um, anyhow, Zenny wanted to trade-"

"I told him to back off," Aroma interrupted him. "I refuse to let him take my position."

"Oh, okay." Yakko said. "Newt is hanging on over Minerva's position."

"Yeah, I know." Aroma sighed. "She's been yelling about it for some time." She smiled. "I've always known. Well, it was fun while it lasted."

"Yeah, but being dumped on your 'could be death day' must suck," Yakko said.

"Well, I did marry someone else and then dumped him for a killer who had Minerva risking her life." Aroma half chuckled. "I think I kind of deserve it."

"Yeah, you might be a little too high maintenance." Yakko laughed. "Oh, look at that." He looked at his watch. "Changing your mind might be a good idea."

"Not on your life," Aroma said, "and you better not be getting any ideas, either."

"Who, me? I've got a saving life limit you know," Yakko said. "Besides, I'm fairly confident." He looked up at the vat. "That our plan will work."

"For the thousandth time, back off!" Slappy shoved her foot in Snappy's face. "You were right in the beginning, I was old. You have to stay around to take care of skip. So if some know-it-all ends me, you've got to be around."

"You're not as old as you think," Snappy shouted. "Please, Midge? Slappy? Let me take the risk. You can live with Skippy the way you always have, no matter what you believe."

"No!" Slappy turned away. "Just take care of Skip if anything happens. Crabby jerk."

"You should really get going. If your plan doesn't work, you could get hurt." Aroma warned him. "Even the cops are starting to back off more. I really think this is it, Warren has no more use for me or this town. You need to really get out of here."

"Yeah, good idea." Yakko looked upward at her. "But before I go-" He leapt up onto the rope. "I figured I'd better do something more of my style."

Aroma's eyes grew wide as Yakko laid a big wet kiss on her…cheek?

Yakko looked back at her and grinned. "Sorry, Aroman Noodles, I know you hate kissing people you don't like, but if this doesn't work then at least I went out with a small bang."

"If what doesn't-"

No more time was wasted as Yakko pulled out the thickest coat he could find. "Winter time, Alaska. Should cover most of you. He looked back at her and rolled his eyes. "Okay, I lied, I don't really have a saving limit. Get the coat on and I'll cut you down. Run for the other side of the tower as fast as you can when you hit the ground."

Aroma looked up at him in shock. "Yakko?"

"You better get going," Yakko insisted. "Could get pretty sticky."

"Yakko!" Aroma shouted. "What are you doing?"

"You're a copy, there's no way you'll survive." Yakko said as he gripped on tighter to the rope. "You really need to get going, it's all going to fall this way. He can knock off a squirrel or a pretty Mink any day. Heck, the only reason he picked Minerva was so Newt would show his true colors to you. It's coming this way."

"Yakko!"

"Don't get melodramatic on me, I'm sure I'll survive by at least about eighty percent," Yakko said as he smiled. "Now I'm not kidding, get going."

Aroma nodded but lingered her attention on him a few moments more. "…if you don't survive this, I'll kill you."

Yakko laughed. "You hang out with Dot too much."

"Yakko, I'm serious." Aroma warned him. "This isn't a game."

"Just wait," Yakko said. "This isn't goodbye, okay? Go already. Seriously, it's fine. Hurry up and get out of here!"

"Eighty percent?" Aroma looked upward at the vat. "You've messed with the chemistry of it?"

"It's wide open up there." Yakko reminded her. "We did what we could, but there's no guarantee, so get out of here."

Aroma didn't leave. "You wouldn't leave people down there unless you were sure they'd be safe. You would have annoyed them to death." Her feet were unsteady. "If the dip is anything like the needles…if it's not strong enough…" She covered her mouth. "You'll change the dip enough with yourself?"

"Oh, well, I prefer the term secret ingredients?" Yakko chuckled nervously. "I'm strong enough, don't worr-no way!"

Aroma jumped up and hung onto the rope again. "Ingredients beget ingredients. Chances jump with more."

"Now isn't the time to be stupid," Yakko warned her. "Let go. Get out of here!"

"And leave you to die? If any ink sheds from me, it could save you."

"If any ink sheds from you, your toast!"

"Buttered as well?" Aroma tried to laugh. "No?"

"You're being an idiot," Yakko shouted at her. "We don't need…hang to win by four."

"What?" Aroma asked.

"Hang to win by four, only hint he gave." Yakko looked over at Aroma one more time. "Get up in front of me." Yakko navigated himself behind her as she moved up front. "Comfy?"

"Umm…okay." Aroma tried not to blush, they were extremely close with not an inch of space between. "Yakko?"

"Uuhh…yep?"

"You do way too much for your friends," Aroma laughed. "Is it time?"

"…almost."

"Okay." Aroma tightened her body up and closed her eyes. She took another deep breath, feeling Yakko's heart beating right along with hers. One way or another, after the vat fell, Warren could never do anything else again. Her ears quivered a moment as she heard a tilting grinding sound. The vat was tipping.

The rain hammered down on her in massive loads as the grinding became louder. She kept her eyes closed, still feeling Yakko closely behind her. Her snow suit felt beyond wet, almost slimy as she felt it become lighter.

/Pleasure still didn't smile. "So Gabby? Where are we going again?"

"It's Yakko." He reminded her. "Yakko Warner?"

"Gabby, Yakko. Whatever." Pleasure just sighed. "So Hello? Where are we going?" She looked at her fingers and blew on the fingernail polish.

"Just a little restaurant." Yakko smiled. "Ready?"

"God, it better not be that little." Pleasure said in disgust. "If I have to go through ten dates to a 'little' restaurant I will totally hang myself."

Yakko just raised an eyebrow. "…okay."/

Oh, she had treated him so bad at first. He had a lot of Renraw's spirit in him, at least to her. Who knew they'd actually become good friends instead? Playing paddleball, hanging out…real good friends. She didn't want to ever destroy that. Then again, with Yakko pressed against her, she could feel him trying to cover her hands as best he could. She knew why as she felt a sudden burning on them.

/Aroma tried to stay strong as she walked down the road. She trudged by Rita and Runt, she walked by ACME labs and she had even passed the squirrels place. She was reaching the limits as she looked at a sign that said 'Leaving Burbank'. She looked out forward, realizing she should have tried discovering the world much sooner. Now her body barely strolled.

What would it be like on the other side? Would her conscience stop existing? Would she become a ghost? The afterlife secret would be revealed to her soon. She wished she didn't have to learn the secr-"OW!"

She looked down and saw Yakko jamming a needle in her leg. A familiar needle. The cure? Aroma felt her head start to swoon.

Yakko stood up beside her, and although his face showed traces of joy, something was definitely wrong. "You're gonna live." He quickly looked around himself. "Aroma, I can't stay and we're in some serious danger. "

"Danger?" Aroma asked. "I don't understand."

"I went to the Hollywood sign to find out what was going on," Yakko began. "The culprit was a squirrel named Scraggy who was obsessed with Midge. Turns out Slappy Squirrel really was her, and he became obsessed with the show. Now that it's returned, he's really mad. He set me up, but Warren threw him off into the dip." He grabbed her shoulder seriously, "he's after all of us. He wants to…well, he's going to knock off every one of us except you. He wants to use you to change our 'species'. Make the next generation like him." /

Yakko had risked everything to get her that cure. He was always around, every time she needed him. Even now, he was trying to protect her fingers, the gloves long gone. But if Warren really wanted only her to make the next generation, then did he really believe his own games were over? Or did he predict everything Yakko and his family did, including holding on with her to survive? Her body was getting colder as she could feel the liquid closer to her, the snow suit was disappearing. Her hat was even disappearing as she felt the sharp acid on her ears. Then when it all seemed as if it was over, something came down on her head.

Yakko's hands fumbled to hold onto hers as they tumbled off the tower.

"What'd we miss?" Wakko shouted as he and Dot ran beside the overturned vat they'd seen barreling down the tower. "Oh no."

"Everything's fine, it was weak enough." Dot tried to overturn the vat. "Hey, boys in blue, hello? Some help here?"

Zenny got on the other side, as several policemen came to their aide. "Okay, one, two!" His side lifted first and as he saw underneath, he quickly threw a blanket at the duo.

Yakko was beneath a barely clothed Aroma anymore. He grabbed the blanket and whipped it over the both of them fast. He tried to wake her up. "Hey? Aroma?" He checked over her hands, very hot and a little smaller, but overall she survived. "Wake up, sleepyhead."

Aroma groaned and looked up at him. The cheering around her must have made her ears hurt. "Ohh…"

"Yeah, those took a little beating," Yakko touched her ear gently. "A little smaller. Pretty healthy though. Congrats, we lived. It's over."

Aroma took a deep breath, and closed her eyes, probably trying to clear her vision. "It's never over…I was supposed to survive. That's why he left the hint. He always knows…"

"He's jailed."

"He'll get out."

"Not this time."

Aroma groaned. She was about to say something, but she realized something. "Thanks, Yakko."

"Hey, it was kind of fun." Yakko smiled. "Aroman Noodles."

"Yakky Wakky," Aroma teased him. "Umm, did your clothes-"

Yakko wrapped her up tighter in the blanket. "Hey, Zenny, how's it going?"

"Fine." Zenny shooed at the cops. "Some privacy here?" He tossed Aroma and Yakko some clothes. "Close the vat back up a second."

When they opened it up a second time, Yakko and Aroma were back to their normal clothed selves. Aroma caught Minerva, Newt, Slappy, Skippy and Snappy all clapping.

"The Studio's saved," Minerva remarked. "Thanks, although I'm probably out of here anyway. You okay, Pleasure?"

"Just fine," Aroma replied. "Newt."

Newt nodded. "Aroma."

Yakko bowed his head between. "Such honorific display, Sensei." He watched the faces of his brother and sister. "Okay, I'm your older brother. I know what's best." He started to walk backwards. "Oh come on!"

"You almost died, so we're going to finish the job!" Dot declared as she and Wakko ran after him.

"Warren. Visitor."

Warren looked up and saw Yakko, alone. "Still here. No worries yet."

"Yeah, not so sure." Yakko leaned on his cell. "You might not have many copies, but you sure have a grudge. You also made sure to give me an easy clue to figure out, meaning you wanted Aroma to survive. You knew we'd change the composition, it was a scare tactic. This wasn't your ultimate revenge, just another game."

"Well, you are getting to know me." Warren glared at him. "One day, we'll play again. For now, the games are over."

"Actually, I don't want to play anymore." Yakko smiled. "In fact, that was the last game you'll play. I never really put a lot of my power into things, heck there's just too much! Running around the studio lot all day, you know I've got a ton of packed up energy." He pointed at Warren. "Anyhow, I came by to say I'll be ready the next time. If there's a next time. By the time you get out, you might have already expired."

"What?" Warren groaned.

"A game. A new game." Yakko waved at him. "Your cartoon magnetic field was a great idea. Although, I think it could have been better."

"Much better," Dot said as she waved from the corner.

"Much, much better." Wakko waved from the other side.

"So yeah, enjoy prison. Oh and enjoy your cell too." Yakko laughed. "You're not leaving it."

Warren got up and approached them, only to feel something smack his nose.

"It's mime time." Dot winked. "For at least five years. Don't worry, we've fixed it so it only affects you. Welcome to our cartoon magnetic field."

"You bet." Wakko added. "Not just one, but a combination of three cartoons."

"Yep," Yakko patted Wakko's back. "It pays to have relation."

"What?" Warren felt all around him. "What the ****?"

"And I've got another one," Renraw appeared in the distance. "In five years when theirs fade off, you've got one mile for one year before they get you again."

"You can't put a cartoon magnetic field around another cartoon, it's illegal!" Warren declared.

"So is murder," Yakko answered. "I think we've been allowed to do whatever we like."

"In fact, we're allowed to visit. Every day if we want. Isn't that great?" Dot asked. "Happy times ahead."

"You bet," Yakko pulled out a paper. "By the way, on coincidence I noticed you don't actually have a car…"