Hi there! I finally wrote another chapter, good grief. Anyways, thank you once again to anyone reading, and thank you especially to those who have commented. I love hearing that someone enjoyed reading my story.
As for this specific chapter, there's part of me that feels like I MAY have rushed it slightly. I hope that it is still cohesive. Also, Jade Qlitterquack and Professor Rainbow belong to Doctor Matzoh. Enjoy!
Sheriff Jade Glitterquack patiently shuffled her feet in line. She had come to see Mayor Flippy, who seemed to have every Toon visiting him today. She watched as he calmly signed, filed, and flipped through the numerous documents and Toontasks that were shoved in his face, seemingly oblivious to the high demand that was slowly but surely being heaped upon his shoulders. In fact, his expressions indicated that a weight had been lifted from him, probably due to the fact the whole 'good Cog' issue had been resolved. Jade, on the other hand, was less than content. She just couldn't accept the fact that one of her closest friends had been so suddenly deprived of their title, profession, and quite frankly, their dignity. Jade herself didn't really have a family of her own, and ever since Matzoh and her relatives had taken her in, she had vowed to protect them at all costs. She may have not been in 'danger', per say, but Jade knew that losing the one of your greatest passions would've been devastating.
"Why hello there, Sheriff," Flippy greeted her casually, slipping a small stack of papers off to one side. "What brings you here today? No trouble in the Town, I hope." He smiled wearily.
"No, not at all, Mr. Doggenbotton," she assured him, returning the smile. "Personal problems, more so."
"Oh?"
"It's about Doctor Matzoh." Jade's grin faded and her expression went blank.
"Ah, I see." He suddenly peered around her, a look of alarm passing over his face. "Monkey Do, put that down! That is NOT a toy!"
Jade whipped her head around just in time to see the insensible Toon mindlessly shaking around one of Flippy's trophies that had been so carefully set inside a large, glass case. She sent a stern, piercing stare at the young simian, who immediately responded by yelping and placing the sacred object back in its rightful place. She turned back to the baffled canine who was soon smiling sheepishly.
"You certainly have a way with the citizens," he remarked.
"You need to be more assertive, Mr. Mayor" Jade stated bluntly, crossing her aqua arms.
He chuckled. "Well, you're probably right. I guess I'm so passive because I've never had much trouble with my daughter," he said, fondly pointing to one of several framed photos of them together.
Jade glared at the picture. That child has certainly caused Matzoh trouble, she thought.
Flippy glanced back up at the duck. "Anyway, I understand your frustration. It wasn't my idea to remove Matzoh's license. I know how much it meant to her. And between you and me, I've been attempting to persuade the more prominent members of the Toon Council to change their mind. She helped my daughter, Jade. I don't believe she did anything wrong. Yes, it irritated me to know that Matzoh and Cupcake went behind my back, but in all reality, what did they do wrong? Think differently than others? I refuse for that to be considered a crime. Not in my town." He leaned back and sighed. "I'm very sorry, Sheriff."
She growled softly, suddenly realizing that she had been subconsciously itching at her arms the whole time. "Ugh, do you have any cream pies in here?" she snapped, startling Flippy considerably.
"Oh dear," he said, slapping a hand over his snout. "I forgot about your allergy to cream. I do have several pies in my cabinet. I always store a few."
Jade swallowed hard. "Alright then, I should be going. Thank you for your time, Mr. Doggenbottom." She turned to leave.
"Jade," Flippy called out, his face marked with consternation.
"What?" she asked, looking back.
"Please, don't do anything rash," he implored.
She nodded, continuing out of his office. She would obey him, of course. After all, he was the mayor. Unfortunately, her definition of rash was much different than his.
The short, bubblegum-pink feline ran through the backstreets of Donald's Dreamland. She glanced around several times, trying to catch sight of the purple Toon she was so desperately trying to find. The cold, night air chilled her to the bone, making this whole ordeal almost unbearable. She huffed in irritation, looking down at her watch. This is taking forever, she thought. Suddenly, her ears perked up as she heard the hum of several low, muffled voices. She looked around, only moments later catching sight of a shadow dancing upon a building nearby. She sprinted off at full speed, racing down the corridors and rounding a few corners. Soon enough, she found herself right in the middle of a makeshift camp, which was hidden behind some of the tallest shops in Donald's Dreamland.
It was a very interesting, almost disturbing scene for Professor Rainbow, who was finally able to catch her breath. Not only were there at least ten Toons lined up next to the gate, but the individual at the end of the procession was none other than Matzoh herself, seated upon a large, wooden crate, with several Toon-Up gags piled in her lap. Just as she was motioning for the next person to come forward, her gaze fell upon the bewildered cat standing with her hands on her hips.
"Aunt Rainbow!" Matzoh squealed. She instantly hopped up, throwing the gags to the floor. "What are you doing here?"
"Well, for starters, I'm wondering what you are doing here." She rubbed her head and took a deep breath. "Val told me that you have been taking certain measures to… evade your license revocation. And now I can plainly see that your action has been to see your patients in secret." She gave her a reproachful look.
Matzoh smiled warily, slowly going back to sit on the crate. "Why'd Aunt Val have to go and rat me out," she muttered.
"Because she cares about you," Rainbow said, walking over and kneeling down next to her. "We all care about you, Matzoh." She smiled fondly at her niece. "Don't you realize what kind of trouble you could get into for going against the Council's orders?"
"Yes," she answered, avoiding eye contact with her aunt.
"Then why are your risking this? I don't want you to lose more than your license. What if they take away your fighting privileges… permanently?"
Matzoh flinched slightly when she heard this. She watched as her 'patients' talked amongst themselves, some discussing their various experiences going sad, while others celebrating the fact that their beloved Doctor cared enough to seek them out and treat them. A confident smile soon spread across her face at this sight.
"I'm risking this because of them. If they need help, I'm going to provide it. I'm a doctor. That's what I always will be. And no one will stop me from caring for those in need."
Rainbow patted her on the head. How could she argue with that? All her sweet niece desired was to contribute to other Toon's wellbeing. And quite honestly, she would've done the same. If only someone could see just how much she cared about those in need. Little did she realize that she wasn't the only one with this idea.
"OH! I THINK I'VE GOT A BIG ONE! I BET IT'S A DEVIL RAY!"
"No, you probably caught a boot."
"YOU'RE JUST JEALOUS, BROWNIE! WATCH ME REEL IT IN!"
"No."
Cupcake chuckled as she listened to Brownie and Flip Pea argue. For as good of friends as they were, bickering was no stranger in their relationship. It wasn't unusual for them to constantly be at each other's throats like, well, cats and dogs. But at the end of the day, they spoke so highly of each other that one would assume they didn't know what the word 'disagreement' meant.
"OH!" Flip Pea howled, nearly falling backwards as he lugged the object from Cupcake's estate pond. He sighed. It was indeed only a boot.
"HAHA!" Brownie gloated, setting her rod down. "Told you so."
"Told you so and I can't catch one myself…" Flip Pea muttered under his breath.
Brownie turned to Cupcake. "What about you, Cup? Caught anything yet?"
The pink feline peered into her bucket. "Well, let's see." She bent down and surveyed its contents. "Just some Balloon Fish," she replied. "Oh! I also caught a Nurse Shark."
"Lucky," Flip Pea sulked, stringing another jellybean onto his pole.
Cupcake giggled and turned to Mark, who had been standing beside her and observing these happenings with silent enthusiasm. "So, are you ready to give fishing a try?" she asked him, smiling warmly.
"W-well…" he responded, his trepidation ever increasing as he watched the fish flop and writhe in her bucket. He wasn't sure that he would even be able to hold one. "If you think that I can do it, I'll give it a try." He gave her a weak smile, and his tone was less than sure.
"Okay!" she said, excitedly. "Come here and I'll show you how." She motioned for him to join her, and only moments later he was standing on the front end of the pier, anxiously staring into the glistening water below. "Alright, so let's see…" she handed him the rod and stood right behind him. She carefully wrapped her arms around him, curling her fingers around his hand as she demonstrated how to cast the line.
Mark tensed as he felt her up against him. There was something about Cupcake when she was near him. He couldn't figure it out. He almost felt… connected to her when they were close enough. Maybe that was normal, considering she was the one who had rescued him. He had much to learn about emotions, that was for sure.
"Do you think you have it?" she asked, after several minutes of her lesson. "It's pretty easy once you get the hang of it."
Mark snapped out if his thoughts and nodded. Cupcake slowly backed away and off the pier as she watched him try for himself. She sighed. Ever since they had moved in together, things had been absolutely wonderful. She loved teaching him things regarding a Toon's way of life. She loved how innocently curious he was, and she found it breathtakingly endearing when he would become confused at all the things that were different from what he had once known. She would then patiently explain the new topic once more and watch as his eyes lit up when he perfected a new skill. And much to Cupcake's ecstasy, Mark had already shown an unusual interest in Toon gardening. She hated caring for plants. So, adding to Mark's delight, she allowed him to take over the exasperating job of coddling something that she believed was only good for sitting upon her table and collecting dust.
Unfortunately, she could never stop thinking about Matzoh, which would always put a slight damper over her joy. Even after repeatedly apologizing and being repeatedly forgiven, she felt awful for causing one of her very best friends to lose their job. Matzoh loved helping others, and Cupcake knew it. She desperately wished that there was something that she could do. Her dad assured her that he was continually working on reinstating her license, but that wasn't enough. She wanted things to go back to normal, immediately. It wasn't fair.
"Cupcake!" Brownie suddenly screeched, pointing to Mark. "He's caught something!'
Cupcake whipped her head up just in time to watch Mark struggling violently. There definitely was something on his line, and it looked big. She quickly ran over and slung her arms around his chest, pulling him back and yelling, "MARK! REEL IT IN! HURRY!"
Just as Brownie and Flip Pea were about to run over and help, the fish flung out of the water and landed right in Mark's arms, flopping around and swishing its tail in the air. The dumbfounded Telemarketer immediately flung his arms around, trying to catch the creature. Before he was even able to get it into his hands, however, it flipped straight out and landed back into the water, causing Mark to lose his balance as well. He stumbled back and forth for a few moments, before finally slipping and plummeting into the pond.
"Oh, my Cog!" Cupcake exclaimed, reaching out and taking hold of his hand. Unfortunately, she soon lost her balance and fell in as well.
After exchanging worried glances, Brownie and Flip Pea burst into laughter, shaking their heads at the two soaking individuals.
"I believe we've discovered a new species of Catfish," Flip Pea remarked, earning an amused chuckle from the brown cat beside him.
Cupcake stuck her tongue out playfully, turning to Mark and noticing the amused expression on his face. "So," she began, "what do you think of fishing?"
"Very… different," he admitted. Their eyes suddenly locked, and Mark couldn't help but be taken aback by her piercing stare once more. He smiled softly. "But different is beautiful."
Cupcake grinned. Her hand brushed up against his suit, causing chills to run down her spine, ones that were clearly not caused by the temperature of the water. She lightly grabbed onto his jacket, and pulled him in closer, to which Mark responded by grabbing her hand under the water…
"HEY, YOU TWO!" Brownie called out in a bemused tone.
"Yeah, are you guys ready to get out?" Flip Pea barked, rolling his eyes. "The weather's not right to swim, you goofs."
Cupcake cringed slightly as she smiled sheepishly and started dragging herself out of the water. "That's true," she said, helping Mark out as well. She laughed awkwardly, wondering what in the world had just happened. Before she even had a moment's time to think it over, a Portable Hole opened on the ground next to them, and out came HQ Harry, a frantic looked plastered across his countenance.
"Cupcake!" he yelled. "You have to come to Headquarters right now! You won't believe what's happening in the Toon Council meeting!"
"What's going on?" she demanded, her only thought being that it had something to do with her father.
"Sheriff Jade was late to the meeting, which started about half an hour ago. However, she JUST showed up saying that she'd like to challenge Matzoh's license revocation."
"How?"
"I don't know, but I'll bet you can sneak in and see what the deal is."
Cupcake sighed. "Alright then, let's go. I hope that this goes well."
And after saying goodbye to her friends, Cupcake and Harry were off.
All will be explained in due time...
