"Gary, I understand what you're asking, but don't you think it is a bit ridiculous?" Mindy paced back and forth in front of the empty classroom, torn on the request that was being given to her. While the Glad Hander didn't have the ability to control the manufacturing and training of cogs, the VP had given him power to do as needed. Why he had done so baffled the Mingler, but she knew better than to try and question the decision making of a superior. "How do you think that other factions are going to respond when they they hear about this?"

"I don't care about that, Mindy. I am giving you an order and I expect it to be completed. No cogs besides Glad Handers. I need this process to be expedited. I don't know how long my targets are going to be so woefully unprepared, and I need to strike as soon as I can. I'm even willing to go with less numbers than originally anticipated. You can fit eight-hundred cogs in here, yes? Well that, as well as the rest of my unit, should be sufficient considering the situation." The cog in command was shorter than Mindy, but his presence towered over her. Any cog that could survive as long as he had was one to be reckoned with.

Mindy sighed in frustration, knowing she wasn't going to win. "Fine. But if anybody comes to me about it, I'm not taking the fall. I'm not risking getting in trouble for this."

Shrugging, Gary plastered a fake smile on and stuck out his hand. "Very well. Do what you need to protect your ranking. I am not afraid of anybody else. Henry? He's nothing. Besides, once my plan has been completed then there will be nobody left to stand above me and challenge my authority."

"You know, I'd be careful about how you talk about that kind of thing. There's still cogs above you who would love nothing more to see you knocked down a peg. I'm sure many of your inferiors would sell you out in a second. You never know who is listening. You might end up back in the factories." Mindy waved her hand and started leaving the classroom. "I guess I'm off to go put in your order. Don't forget, I'm sending anybody with an issue your way. I'm not programmed to deal with any of that." Once Mindy was gone, Glen took a seat at the head desk where the cog professor usually sat when instructing. Placing his legs up, he pulled out a cigar that he had stolen from the VP's office and lit it up. Puffing away, he imagined the classroom filled to the brim with obedient and powerful Glad Handers.

"Alright everybody. Just remember this one thing. You are here because you have been specially selected for one of the most important missions in Cog Nation history. Each and every one of you will have a hand in completing this. Those vial Toons think that us Glad Handers are a pushover. That they can enact their silly agenda and destroy the law and order of this world. No longer! We will send them a message that they can no longer get away with their shenanigans. They will be punished for their malfeasance. Then once the Toons have been destroyed, Glad Handers will rule and take their rightful place at the head of Cog Nation!" Gary closed his eyes and envisioned his speech to a packed room full of the highest level Glad Handers. Smiling, he nodded. In one week his plan would be enacted. Everything had been meticulously accounted for. There was nothing left to do but wait for Mindy to finish training.

The cog had not seen the Mingler who had walked back into the room and was quietly snickering to herself as Gary acted out his fantasy in his mind. Finally having enough fun she walked over and patted the robot on the shoulder. "Alright. I spoke to the factory foreman and they will be starting production. They said that if they work all night they could have the order ready by the time class starts tomorrow morning." Opening his eyes, Gary quickly withdrew his legs from their resting spot and stood up, acting nonchalant to avoid any further embarrassment. "They will all be level eight per your instruction. Just know that they be a bit harder to control. The higher ranking cogs from production always have a stick up their exhaust pipes. They never had to work like we did to get where we are."

"That's fine. I've dealt with much worse, I'm sure. Even the worst Sellbot is nothing compared to an Anti-Toon. Trying to keep them in line will forever be the biggest nuisance. I guess you would know about that though, wouldn't you?" Gary winked at the Mingler who stepped back in horror, knowing full well what the Glad Hander was saying. "Get them ready. It would be a real shame if your relationship was to be... Exposed?"

"That's none of your business, Gary. You know, you were always a slimy snake. I'll have it done but you better believe I am not going to be happy about it. If anything about Stella gets out, I will make sure the Toons get full warning about your plans. Don't mess with me, you won't win." The Minglers glared at the shorter cog, who could do nothing but storm out of the room angrily, his balding head reflecting the florescent lights the final sight Mindy hoped she'd ever have to see of him.

Muffin had hardly slept the prior night. Tossing and turning for hours at a time, the blue cat could only think about the threats that had been issued towards Glen, and possibly her and her father. When she had managed to sleep, her dreams had been filled of Toons coming and destroying Glen. At one point she had started crying as the overwhelming anxiety and fear finally broke her. Getting out of bed she checked her whisper device and was surprised that it was still only five in the morning. Her father wouldn't be awake for at least another two hours. She couldn't stay in her room any longer. Quietly opening her door, Muffin tip-toed down the hallway until she reached the spare bedroom that housed the Glad Hander she had begun to fall for. Once again slowly pushing open the door, the Toon was surprised when Glen was not only awake, but was writing, almost as if he was unphased by the previous nights actions. "Morning, Glen." She whispered as she made her way over to the bed.

Looking up from his notepad, Glen smiled and patted the bed, indicating for Muffin to take a seat next to him. "Good morning cutie pie. You're up early today."

"Up early?" The chunky feline snorted and laughed. "More like couldn't sleep! Gosh, I think I got like an hour of sleep. I just gave up on trying." Wrapping her arms around Glen's bicep, she rested her head on his shoulder. "I'm really worried, Glen. I mean, what if Rook was being serious? What if they come here looking for you? I don't feel like you're safe here."

"I felt the same at first, Muffin. However, I have realized that whether or not they come I have both you and your father here. I can speak to them and they will realize I intend no harm. If that doesn't convince them... Well I guess we will go from there. That isn't too say I'm not afraid, of course I am. I've always been afraid of dying, but I never really knew why. After all, cogs know there is a high likelihood of our destruction. But now I know why I am afraid, and that's because I have met someone who has made me realize that life is fantastic." Reaching over, Glen used a thumb to wipe a tear away from Muffin's cheek. "For now though, I just want to enjoy my time with you. Once we get my legs working again, things will be different." Grabbing his notepad, he showed it to the cat. "Look, I'm almost done with my story. I've been writing almost non-stop every night. I can't wait to show you when it is done."

Nesting her head into the crevice between Glen's arm and torso, Muffin purred in excitement at the prospect of reading Glen's story. She loved reading to begin with, but she had never heard of a book written by cogs. What would it be about? Who would the characters be? Would it be similar to books in Toontown? "Well, I guess since we're both awake and my dad is asleep. Maybe we can... you know."

"Play video games? Yeah, that sounds like fun!" Glen grinned, fully ready to go game. "Maybe we can try something else. There's a whole world I haven't experienced and I want to take it all in. Just imagine what it could do for my writing. The inspirations it could befell on me." The Glad Hander was interrupted as Muffin pushed him over and started kissing him. "Oh, I get what you mean." The pair started giggling as they started another make-out session, quietly ensuring that nobody was aware of them.

Billy stared up at the ceiling above his bed. Red-eyed and exhausted, he could not find the motivation to do anything. Even the sweet anticipation of sleep had escaped him as his worried mind could not break free from the million different fears that had infiltrated his thoughts. From down the hall he could hear Muffin and Glen giggling, bringing some comfort as he knew at least they were both safe. Turning over, he grabbed his whisper device and checked the phone. Somehow it was already six-thirty. He would be up in a half hour anyways, he figured he might as well get up now. The previous night had broken him. He had known Rook for twenty years, and never in that time had he seen the horse act so aggressively towards a Toon. His friendship had been potentially fractured over a cog that, while he was fond of, was still a cog. But was he just a cog? Muffin seemed infatuated with Glen, and her happiness meant more to Billy than anything. He had called Doctor Matzoh the previous night and she had promised to be over first thing in the morning. "I will warn you. When doing any sort of electrical work on a cog, there is a chance of extreme malfunction. It sounds like there's just an issue with his connector wires being broken which should be a simple fix. I don't want to guarantee anything though, and even a simple fix could go wrong in a hurry." She had told him. The orange monkey had decided to withhold that information from the young pair, as he didn't want to worry them any more than they likely were.

Getting out of bed, Billy made his way out into the kitchen. Placing a pair of frozen waffles in the toaster, he sat down at the dining room table, hardly ready for the day. What was he supposed to do about Muffin and Glen? He couldn't leave them here alone. After all, Rook did not seem like he would just forget about everything overnight. But as sheriff, he had a duty to Toonstone. Immediately, a light bulb popped over his head. Pulling out his whisper device, he began typing in a number and held it to his ear. Anxiously tapping his fingers against the wooden table, he waited impatiently for an answer. Eventually, much to his frustration, it had gone to voice mail. "Hey, this is Deputy Skids. I'm probably busy. Leave a message!"

"Good morning, Skids. This is Billy. Listen, I've run across a bit of a snag with everything going on. Things are getting a bit heated here and I could really use someone to come back me up today since I can't stay home and go to work, you know? Anyways, if you get this please give me a call back. Thanks." hanging up, he rested his head on the table. "I don't know what to do." Closing his eyes, he felt himself finally drifting off to sleep. He was quickly remedied by the popping sound of a toaster shooting out breakfast, which had given him enough motivation to get up. As he was pouring syrup on the crispy waffles, he heard the footsteps coming from the hallway. Sure enough it was Muffin who had been lured out by the delicious scent. "Morning sweetheart. How did you sleep?"

Not wanting to over-worry her already frantic father, Muffin decided to lie. "Oh, I slept alright! Just a normal night, you know?"

"That's good sweetie. You are up early this morning." Sitting down, he patted the table and waited for the cat to sit down. Handing over one of his waffles, the pair devoured their tasty treat. "Are you sure you're okay? I'm really sorry about everything that happened last night. You two shouldn't have had to be there for that."

"Well, Rook shouldn't act like such a baby. Why was he so angry for? He's never even met Glen. How can you hate somebody you've never met before? I don't think I've ever seen either of you get angry with each other. I'll be honest, it was a little frightening. But I trust you, dad." Finishing off her waffle, she licked the syrup from her face. "Thank you though. I love you, dad."

Reaching across the table, Billy grabbed Muffin's hand and smiled. "I love you too, honey. You don't have to thank me though. I'm doing my job, both as a sheriff and a father. Just let me go ahead and handle things. You shouldn't have to worry about this. You're young, you should be worried about like... I don't know. Toontasks, or school, or boys, or something. You guys just relax." Standing up, the chimp walked his plate over to the sink and ran it under the faucet. "Anyways, I got in touch with Dr. Matzoh last night after you guys went to bed. She said she will be here later today and she's going to fix Glen up."

In a shrill, high-pitched shriek Muffin leapt up and clapped her hands. "That's great news, dad! I'll let Glen know. Oh my gosh, this will change everything!"

"Now, hold on Muffin." Billy spoke in a more serious tone. "Before you do, I think we need to have a conversation about him. I mean, you saw what happened last night." Like a pierced balloon, the blue cat instantly deflated at the realization that her father wasn't about to offer more good news." Taking a seat back at the table, she placed her arms crossed down on the flattened surface and grimaced as Billy tried to find the right words. "Sweetheart, I don't think it is a very good idea if Glen stays here after he's better."

"Dad, where else would he go? He can't go back to the cogs! I mean, what if they find out what happened? Surely they would have questions why he disappeared for so long? What if somebody knew he saved me and reported it? He could be in a lot of danger!" Muffin spoke defensively of her new boyfriend, frustrated and scared of what would happen.

Billy inhaled and pursed his lips. He knew his daughter was probably more aware of Glen's situation than he was. "Honey. He is in danger here right now. I have no idea how the rest of the town will react if Rook really does start letting our guest's presence known. I'm only one Toon. I can't stop an entire town from getting in if they really wanted to. I don't have the backing of the Toontown Rangers like that cog in Toontown. I just don't think it would be a good idea if he stays here. At least not right now."

"Well, if he isn't here then where else could he go? Cog Nation isn't safe, and he isn't safe here? Is he just supposed to go live out in the woods, or out in the desert? That isn't right! We owe him for what he has done for us!" Muffin stood up, her voice cracking as she raised her voice. From the bedroom, Glen could clearly overhear the argument unfolding in the kitchen. Trying his best to ignore it with his writing, the dejected cog couldn't help but feel the immense guilt for what he had brought upon the sweetest Toon he had ever known. "Why are you helping them?"

"Muffin... Muffin." Billy had to restrain his frustrations to avoid an unnecessary outburst. "I know he is your friend, and you want to protect him and all. But we aren't protecting him by keeping him here. We need the town to calm down, and maybe slowly introduce him and let everybody have a chance to know him. That isn't going to happen right now. Now, I'm not going to send him out to the woods and let him become a hobo or something. I have thought about this since the day we agreed to keep him here. Your old man isn't quite the fool you take him as."

Calming down, the blue cat bowed her head and whispered. "I'm sorry, dad. I didn't mean to take it out on you. I guess I'm just a bit overwhelmed right now."

"I am too, sweetie. I am too. I promise you. I still have some friends in the Rangers. I was thinking about maybe having him take residence in Toontown for a few months. That will give me enough time to make better arrangements. We can have the Rangers escort Glen to town every once in a while and introduce him to the townsfolk. Let them know him. I agree with you, I think once they know him they will understand. But Toons aren't rational when they are emotional. We have to let them calm down. You would still be able to hang out and see each other, and then he would also have protection that he doesn't have here. It is either that, or we risk something bad happening here and I don't want that to happen. Okay?"

"Alright, dad. I trust you." There was a permeated silence in the room as neither Toon knew what to say next. "So, dad. Are you going to work today?"

Reluctantly, Billy nodded. "I have to Muffin. I have a duty to protect all residents. I will make sure that you guys are safe here. I won't leave until I know you two are safe. Maybe once Doctor Matzoh gets here. We'll keep the doors locked tight. You guys stay in the room if I'm not here. You call me if anything happens. Even if you think something might be happening, call me. Once Glen has been fixed up, maybe the three of us can take a trip to Toontown and we'll look into getting him somewhere safe, okay? Does that sound fine?"

Muffin nodded. "Yes, thank you dad. As long as he is safe."