Chapter 2

"A-are we trapped?" Porky asked, nervous.

"Hold on" Daffy said, picking up the watch. The display was turned off. He pressed several of the buttons on the side, as Bugs and Porky looked on nervously. Eventually a number appeared on the display: 01:59:59. Daffy breathed a sigh of relief at the sight of it.

"Well?" Bugs asked, "Are we stuck here or what?"

"The good news is we're not stuck here, no. This is the automatic countdown timer; in case of emergency the watch resets itself and is designed to automatically bring us back to the present. As you can see, the timer is set for two hours, which means in two hours we'll be back." As Daffy finished explaining, there was a great amount of relief felt throughout the three of them. If nothing else, they were definitely going to get back to their own time.

"So, den what's da bad news?" Bugs followed up.

"The bad news is that this thing is set on auto pilot. I have no control over where it takes us." The three of them looked forwards, only now realizing that the scenery around them was moving and changing. They themselves were standing still, and yet the street moved by them at about the same pace as one would walk. Looking ahead, it was clear to see that they were following after the Daffy of the 1940s as he walked down the sidewalk. The Daffy within the bubble face palmed.

"Of course!" he exclaimed in a deeply irritated manner, "Of course it would have to automatically latch onto me! Why not?"

"I hope dis acts as a lesson ta not go nosin' inta udda people's secrets" Bugs waved his finger at Porky, disapprovingly. The pig looked deeply regretful.

"I-I u-un-und-under-understa-u-understan- I'm sorry" Porky apologized, ashamed of what he had gotten them into. It was really just a spur of the moment decision, but now all three of them were facing the consequences. He normally prided himself on being polite and helpful when he could, and now that he had acted on his own desires it proved detrimental to all three of them.

"Well, I hope your happy!" Daffy said angrily, "Because now you're going to find out exactly what it was we were hiding!"

/

As this conversation was going on inside the bubble of solitude, the Daffy of the past continued on his walk, happily, totally oblivious that he was being observed. It was finally Friday, and Friday was a very special day of the week for him. Mainly because the weekend came next, and that meant he could go about care free, without having to worry about getting up for work tomorrow. Of course, this mindset was not limited to Daffy, virtually everyone in the working world shared this sentiment. Never the less the duck was fairly certain that the same could not be said for what it was he did on his Fridays. Everyone at the studio knew he was a bit…daffy, but in spite of this he had done his best to make sure that none of his coworkers could piece together what exactly it was that he was up to. After all, he had heard the stories. He might have been a bit looney, but he certainly was not stupid. One word of it getting out, and the next thing he knew he would probably be thrown out of showbusiness. He didn't like the reality of the situation, but even he had to be a realist at times.

Not wanting to be obvious, the Duck quickly slipped down an alley and onto a side street. He then ducked down another alleyway, until he had finally reached the back entrance of the place he was going to. The door was to the basement, and he had to walk down a few steps in order to reach it. Before so much as knocking, he gave one final look around the perimeter, just to make sure no one was looking in on him.

/

As this was happening, Porky Bugs and the Daffy of the present watched on, not able to do much else. Daffy squirmed, just knowing what was coming up.

"I don't want any snide remarks from you" the duck looked to Porky, who seemed a bit confused at the comment.

"I-I wasn't g-going to say a-an-anything" he replied.

"Oh, would you relax. It's not that bad. We're all in the 21st century now, tings is different" Bugs said, casual as usual.

"I know, I know, but you can't begrudge me getting… embarrassed. Besides, I don't know why you're acting so unconcerned; let's not forget that you are a part of this little escapade as well." The duck folded his arms.

/

A small hatch opened up in the door, revealing two eyes looking down at Daffy, who was waiting outside.

"Hiya Steve" he waved up, a bit apprehensive about still being out in the open.

"Anyone with you?" a voice asked.

"No, just me as usual"

The hatch closed, and the sound of several locks being undone could be heard on the other side. After a moment, the door slid open, and Daffy walked inside. The interior of the establishment was quite small, and rather poorly lit. In spite of this, there were a few touches here and there which gave the local a welcoming vibe. Several photos of patrons hung on the walls, and despite being in the basement the place was very tidy and well kept. Upon entering, there was a bar to the right, then to the left a small handful of tables. Far in the back, there was a staircase leading upstairs, but no one really ever went up there. The few patrons who were there were entirely male. It was still fairly early in the evening, the establishment never had a huge attendance, but as more people got off of work the place usually became reasonably crowded. Daffy waltzed up to the bar casually, taking a seat. His entire demeanor relaxed noticeably now that he was inside.

"I'll have my usual" Daffy said to the bartender, who simply nodded and placed a beer on the counter. Daffy immediately took a swig. He was starting out light, best to save anything heavier for later in the evening.

"So, how's showbusiness treat'n you?" the bartender asked.

"It's more so fame than fortune" Daffy shrugged.

"They not paying you the big bucks, huh?"

"Yeah, if there's money to be made acting in shorts then I'm not the one making it. If I could land a major motion picture then I'd be set, but I just can't imagine that happening" the duck took another swig.

"Well, you keep trying. If you do then I'll put your picture up on the wall" the bartender said jokingly.

"Hey, you don't need to wait for me to land a movie role before you do that!" Daffy said, leaving the bar to go to one of the tables. He parked himself jubilantly across from a sharp young man in a suit with short black hair, presumably in his mid-twenties by how he looked. There was an empty shot glass resting between his fingers.

"Hey Daffy" said the man, downtrodden. He barely even bothered to glance up at the duck, mostly fiddling with the shot glass.

"Heya John! I don't wanna get you too excited, but this was pay week for me, so if ya want I can get us a little something extra for tonight, not too extra though" Daffy said enthusiastically, leaning on the table and batting his eyelashes. The man, who was apparently named John, shifted in his chair.

"No thanks Daffy, that's fine, I… I can't do it tonight" he said, clearly not liking that he had to let down the duck like this. All of the jubilance in Daffy's face drained away, leaving behind a look of disappointment.

"W-why not? What's wrong?" Daffy asked, leaning forward out of concern, "No one found out about you, did they?"

"No, no, nothing like that. It's just…I can't do this sort of thing anymore. I've enjoyed our time together, I really have, but I need to settle down eventually" John explained.

"What's this all about? Don't tell me you've met another guy?" The tone in Daffy's voice was now switching from concern to anger, "What could he possibly offer you that I can't?"

"Daffy, not everything is about sex!"

The bar went quiet, everyone turned to face the two, though they did their best to not make it obvious.

/

As this conversation was occurring, the Daffy of the present was wincing at every line. It had happened so long ago, and yet in spite of this he found himself recalling every line of the exchange. Not to mention seeing all these people he had not seen in so long, most of whom were probably dead at this point, he would be lying if he said it did not get him a bit emotional. Of course, he kept all this on the inside, no way would he let Bugs and Porky see him emotionally vulnerable like this. As all these thoughts were running through his mind, he did his best to mentally prepare for some comment or question from Porky. This was why he was taken aback, when Bugs was instead the first to say something.

"Ya know doc, ya boyfriend was a real cutie" the bunny teased. Daffy did his best to hide a blush at that comment.

"He wasn't my boyfriend! We just got together on the weekends and-" it was then that he remembered Porky was still with him, and quickly shut his beak. He didn't know what the point was in doing so, however, seeing as it was already blatantly spelled out.

Porky was unsure if now was the right time to ask, but seeing as Bugs had already broken the ice, there did not seem to be much harm in it. At least, not as much as there could be. He had already seen enough to piece together what all this was about, but wanted a direct confirmation from Daffy himself.

"So, i-is this w-what it was you did every f-fr-fri-frid-frida- weekend? Go to a g-gu-gay bar?" Porky asked, trying to sound as open and non-judgmental as possible. This was something he was never meant to know, after all.

Daffy folded his arms irritably, "Since you must know, yes. I spent quite a bit of free time here back in the forties and into the late fifties until it eventually closed down. There? You happy? You happy that after 70 years you finally managed to wheedle out my little secret?"

If he was being honest, Porky was unsure how he felt at this revelation. In an odd sort of way, it didn't surprise him at all that Daffy would swing that way. If anything, it actually made quite a bit of sense. On the other hand, it was difficult coming to terms with the fact that after knowing Daffy for so long, he was only now discovering this major part of his friend's life. It made him wonder what else he did not know.

"I-it doesn't bother m-me that you spent y-your time here, I-I'm j-ju-just wondering why you felt the need to k-keep this a secret all these years."

"It was the 40s, no way was I going to go broadcasting it back then, and nowadays I don't get around as much, so I didn't see much point in it."

/

"So that's it? You're just leaving me high and dry? Just like that?" Daffy asked the man he was sitting with.

"I'm sorry, but I can't just go fooling around forever."

"Who is this guy anyway? Some rich dude that can give you whatever you want?"

"Daffy, you know this has never been about money" John twiddled his thumbs, breaking eye contact with the duck, "I'm seeing, and intend to get married to… a woman."

"What?" Daffy shook his head in disbelief at what he was hearing, "You can't be serious?"

John rested his elbow on the table, brushing his hand over his short hair, "I met her about a month ago. My parents set us up and I went along with it because I was hoping that if I dated someone publicly then it would throw suspicion off me, but… I'm too far into it now. My parents really like her, and her parents really like me, and now we're set to get married."

"Married?!" Daffy exclaimed. The bar remained quiet. This was not the first time something like this happened, and it would not be the last.

"I'm sorry Daff, but it's just the way of things. My parents always wanted me to get married and now I am. I'm gonna have a wife and…some kids I guess."

"But this isn't what you want! I know you; you're just doing this to please the rest of society!"

"Yes, I am!" John stood up, commandingly, "Not all of us are like you Daffy! A lot of us can't just shut out the rest of the world and not worry about what other people think! I am doing it to please the rest of society because that's where I live! I'm sorry." Without another word he walked off, trudging out of the bar. The slow hum of chatter soon returned as people resumed their conversations. Daffy chugged the rest of his beer, not sure what else there was to do. He placed the empty bottle down on the table, burped, then walked back to the bar.

"Just give me something to make me feel better will ya?" the duck asked as the bartender poured something heavy. He originally had no intention of starting in on the heavy drinks this early, but after that news he needed it. It was true that he and John were not romantically involved, but at the same time it was not as if he didn't care for John. He took a swig of whatever it was that the bartender poured him.

"Gee doc, dats rough" a familiar voice commented. Daffy turned to see none other than Bugs Bunny parking himself at the bar to his left.

/

"B-Bugs? Y-you went here t-to-t-to- as well?" Porky asked, looking over to the bunny.

"Eh, I frequented the joint on occasion" Bugs shrugged, taking another bite of his carrot.

/

"I never figured you for the type to come to a place like this" Daffy remarked, taking another swig.

"Really? Da constant cross dressing and kissin' gags didn't tip ya off at all?" Bugs replied, leaning on the counter, "So, that shmuck leave ya all alone huh?"

"That's none of your business." Daffy was absolutely not in the mood to be sharing his personal feelings on what he was going through, especially with an egotistical rabbit he barely knew. Honestly, what was wrong with people these days? Could he not just be left alone to drink himself into a stupor in peace? It had worked out perfectly well for him the last time something like this had happened.

"Hey, don't get too down, I mean what was he gonna do, introduce you to his parents? I don't know what they would find more shocking, the fact that you're a duck, a toon or a man" Bugs teased, though was doing his best to not rub too much salt in the wound.

"Please, I wouldn't have let him introduce me even if he wanted to. No way am I ever settling down." It was then that Daffy took yet another swig, facing away from the bunny.

"Ya know doc, you're going through those pretty quickly."

"So, what's your point? Are you suddenly worried about me walking around plastered in the afternoon? That's something I'll worry about tomorrow."

"Say bartender? Put his drinks on my tab" Bugs pointed a thumb in the duck's direction. The bartender seemed quite shocked at this, looking back and forth between the bunny and duck.

"You sure?" he asked.

"Yeah, I tink I'm getting invested in dis idiot." Bugs joked. Daffy made no comment at the response, simply taking another drink. The bartender shrugged, agreeing.

"What did you go and do that for?" the duck asked, his speech starting to become more slurred than usual.

"Can't an old pal just do something nice for his coworker?"

"We ain't old pals, we know each other but you got a long way to go before I'd consider you even close to a friend. Is this some lame attempt to pick me up or sumthin?" Daffy was now beginning to wobble back and forth a bit, the alcohol hitting his system far sooner than expected. Bugs rolled his eyes.

"If I was trying to pick you up, believe me I would be doing a much better job of it."

/

"How much longer are we gonna have ta sit through dis?" Bugs asked, beginning to become weary watching the past interaction unfold. Daffy checked the watch.

"We still have about an hour to go."

A/N: This whole idea came about when I decided to rewatch a bunch of the old Looney Tunes shorts. In "The Great Piggy Bank Robbery" Daffy says very flamboyantly to the audience, "I just Loooove that man!" and I thought to myself, "There is no way that duck is straight."