"Wakko, you've looked through that shelf three times already. Don't you think we can leave now?" Yakko said as he leaned against the door of a run down convenient store.

After almost 20 minutes of staring at the same pile of rubble, Yakko was ready to move on. They had been in Toontown's Cameron district for the past hour and hadn't found any trace of their sister. While it was not the most desirable district to live in, many of its buildings were new and engineered to withstand moderate earthquakes, allowing a few of the stores to stay open. They hadn't planned on spending this much time here, but Wakko had gotten a "munchies attack." To Yakko's relief, they stumbled upon this dingy convenient store before he had to hear too many complaints from his brother.

"Hold on. Hey, do you have five bucks?" Wakko called out. Yakko sighed and went inside.

"No, but I think Bambi's down the block if you want him." Yakko said, earning an annoyed look from his brother. He wasn't surprised when Wakko dropped a large pile of snacks on the counter in front of the cashier.

"Ehh... I think you'll need more than five dollars, Wak."

"Damn right he will." muttered the cashier, a lanky toon who appeared to be some sort of raccoon-wolf hybrid. His name tag read "Ricki," and was pinned to a grimy plaid shirt that hung limply against his thin frame.

He leaned against the cash register in an uninterested manner. Taking a long drag from his cigarette, the toon turned away from Yakko and Wakko and opened a sports magazine.

"Are you gonna get anything?" Wakko asked.

Yakko looked over his brother's selection. Kit Kats rested on top of Airheads, which sat next to Reese's Cups, Skittles, and Milky Way Bars. Three bags of Cheetos and two bottles of Dr. Pepper leaned against a dusty rack of sunglasses on the counter.

"Yeah, but you should probably get something else. I think you'll explode after eating that stuff."

"But it took me forever to pick it all out!" Wakko pouted.

"I figured," Yakko looked around the store. A display of beef jerky stood next to several barrels of bananas, oranges, and apples. Even though they looked a bit bruised and brown, they were still a better option than Wakko's sugar feast. "How bout' we get half of your stuff and some of that," he said said, pointing to the jerky and fruit.

"Fine." Wakko huffed and put the Skittles and Kit Kats back into their cardboard containers.

Although he had never had an appetite for bananas, Yakko still grabbed the least battered bunch he could find. Wakko tolerated them, and besides, now was probably the best time to try different foods. Who knew when their next meal would be. After collecting a few dozen apples and oranges, he picked up several bags of beef jerky and went back to the register.

"Wait, could you go get a gallon or two of water?" he asked Wakko. Their game of "reach into your hammerspace and fish out as many forgotten-half-drunk-water bottles as you can" was becoming more challenging.

Wakko huffed and moved towards the rickety refrigerators on the back wall. He lugged back two gallons of water and slumped them down on the counter. The cashier sluggishly rang each item up and put them into thin plastic bags.

"That'll be $28.50." he said. Yakko pulled out his wallet and opened the largest pocket. He frowned when he only saw ten dollars and thirteen cents.

"Ehh... do you take credit?" he asked nervously.

The cashier pointed to a sign above him. Cash or Credit.

"Right- well, here you go." Yakko handed him the red card the studio had given him to use in case of an emergency. The cashier swiped it and handed it back to him. But just as it reached Yakko's fingertips, the toon's jaw dropped.

"Wait, you're Yakko Warner?"

"Yes..." Yakko said hesitantly as he put the card back into his wallet and placed the bags of food in his hammerspace.

"And you're Wakko?" he pointed to the younger Warner brother.

"Yeah, he is... Listen, it's been nice meeting you and all, but we've really gotta go." Yakko nodded and hurriedly pushed Wakko through the door.

"Wait, get back here!"

Yakko grabbed Wakko's arm and took off down the street. He sped up, trying to shake off the surprisingly fast cashier. As they turned the corner, they ran through a group of toons and managed to knock into a woman with blonde fur. She fell down with a thud as he and Wakko stumbled forward. Brushing off her jeans, the woman stood up and swore.

"Sorry!" Wakko called out. Her eyes widened when she looked up at them. She picked up her bag and ran down a side street.

"C'mon, Wak. Go faster!" Yakko yelled as the cashier moved closer. They ran down Plympton Boulevard. Yakko heard the toon yell something, but was running too fast to understand him.

Why was this guy so interested in them? Sure, they had some obsessed fans. A few teenage girls had stalked him last summer, but none of them shared the crazed look that glowed in this guy's eyes. The cashier definitely didn't act like their fans normally did. Maybe his card was denied? Yakko never really was sure how those things worked...

He was pulled out of his thoughts when they turned another corner. A pair of gloved hands had reached out and grabbed them, pulling them into a dark ally and throwing them behind two barrels. Yakko could hear the cashier run by as he struggled against a furry body.

"What's the big idea-" Yakko said before a hand clamped over his mouth.

"Shhh!" They waited in silence until the cashier's pounding footsteps could no longer be heard. The hand unclamped his mouth and he staggered backwards, pushing Wakko safely behind him.

"What's going on?" Wakko demanded.

"Hold on a sec, kid." a female voice said.

Yakko could barely make out the figure through the darkness, but managed to see her pull out a light from her hammerspace. She flicked it on, illuminating the ally. The light shimmered off of her short blonde fur and glimmered in her large black eyes. Short, thin ears were pulled back by a green scrunchie, and a long tail swished around her legs. But her most prominent feature was her large, glossy red nose.

"That's better. Now what are you doing around these parts? It's not safe here."

"We were looking for our sister. Why isn't it safe here?" Wakko said.

"Wakko!" Yakko nudged him. Hadn't he gotten "stranger danger" through his little brother's head already?

"It's alright, I'm not some bad guy. He can answer my questions." she said.

"Not until you at least tell us your name. You could be a notorious murderer for all we know." Yakko huffed with a false tone of seriousness.

He stood up to face the woman, who really didn't seem to be a threat. Between her faded purple sweater and dirty white sneakers, she seemed like any other Cameron resident.

"Fair enough. I'm Heather."

Yakko stared at her. The nose, the eyes... everything matched up. Even though her face was rounder, she had blonde fur, and a short set of whiskers flared out of her cheeks, the woman looked just like a Warner.

"I'm probably taking a shot in the dark with this, but are you related to a Warner by any chance?" Yakko asked.

"Yeah, you could say that," she said with a small smirk. A loud clang came from the street. "C'mon, we can finish this conversation back at my place." she said and took off down the ally.

They turned onto the street adjacent to Plympton Boulevard and continued running. After reaching a four way intersection, Heather led them into a large brick building. They made their way up several flights of creaky stairs before stopping in front of a gray door. She unlocked it and motioned for them to come inside.

The scent of cinnamon met their noses. Several shag carpets covered the white linoleum and two brown couches sat in the middle of the room. A small television with an antenna faced the furniture, while a table and chairs were placed in front of a large window. The tan curtains were a bit worn, and a few stains could be found on the white walls. A small kitchen was in the corner of the room and several doors were next to it.

"Home sweet home," Heather muttered, throwing her keys on a small table. She sat down on one of the couches while Yakko and Wakko stood in the doorway. "You can come in, you know. I wouldn't be a very good cousin if I made you two sit out there all day."

"So you are related to us?" Wakko asked.

"Yeah. My mom's Daphne Martins, so your dad's my uncle," she fluffed the pillow behind her. "Now that introductions have been made, won't you please sit down?" she smiled.

"I guess you're not that much of a stranger then." Yakko stopped and took a hesitant glance around the room. Wakko nudged him.

"If she was going to kill us, she probably would have done it already," Wakko whispered to him. "Staying for a little bit won't hurt us."

"Have you listened to anything I've ever told you about stranger danger? Just because a nice looking lady offers you candy does not mean she's actually a good person!" Yakko hissed back. Wakko raised an eyebrow at this.

"But she didn't offer us candy, Yakko."

"That's not the point! I meant-"

"I'm not some creepy perv or a serial killer, if that's what you're wondering," Heather chuckled. "And yes, I know that sounds like something a real pervert or murderer would say, but I swear on everything I've ever valued or held dear that I'm not some nut job."

"And what if you don't hold anything dear or have values? " Yakko asked.

"Then you have every right to run your little legs outta here. But I do value family- well, the little taste of it I've ever gotten- and believe you shouldn't let them hang out to dry."

Yakko opened his mouth but she put up a hand to shush him.

"Don't get your tail in a twist, kid. I get what you mean. You're smart to be weary of a stranger who dragged you off the streets, and that's refreshing to see after all the dumb kids around here nowadays. They believe anything anyone tells them," she sighed and pointed to the living room. "Come sit down and I'll explain myself a little better."

With a quick look back at Wakko, Yakko nodded his head and nudged his brother towards one of the couches. After a few moments of awkward silence, Heather spoke up again.

"I see you two were running from Ricki." she said causally.

"Who?" Wakko asked.

"Ricki, the cashier down at that convenient store. Do you guys get chased like that often?" she chuckled.

"We get chased more than the Mystery Gang..." Yakko sighed. "Why?"

"It just looked like you've done it before. I've never seen kids your age toonspeed that fast before. Poor Ricki could barely keep up with you."

"Well, we do get a lot of practice on set." Wakko said.

"Yeah. The whole 'Just for fun we run around the Warner movie lot' gag keeps us in great shape." Yakko added.

"I'd bet," Heather chuckled. "You said something about your sister earlier. Where is she?"

"We don't know. We lost her in the earthquake about a week ago. The newspaper said that Cameron district didn't get hit too badly, so we figured she might have gone here since it's near the lot." Yakko said. He noticed Wakko slump his shoulders.

"I'm sorry, I'll keep my eyes out for her. But you really shouldn't have come out here. Smokey's gang has been crawling all over the place. I don't know what's gotten them so restless lately." Heather said.

"Who's Smokey?" Yakko asked.

"He basically runs the streets. His guys are usually out in worse districts, but they've been out here a lot since the quake. Ricki must have been on watch in that store or something. The guy hasn't been home in years."

"Do you know him?" Wakko asked.

"Sure I know him, but I don't think I should be telling you kids all this stuff. You have bigger things to worry about." she sighed, getting up and moving towards the kitchen. Yakko shared a look with Wakko. If anyone knew how to get information out of someone, it was definitely the Warner brothers.

"Bigger things to worry about? I think a crazy guy chasing us is a pretty big thing to worry about." Yakko called out to her. She came back with three glasses of water and set them down on the coffee table.

"Yeah. First we lose our sister and now this. Things are getting pretty rough, aren't they Yakko?" Wakko pouted. He sighed dramatically and wiped away a tear.

"They sure are, my dear little sibling. Maybe we could fix everything if we knew what was going on." Yakko added, forcing out his own pool of tears and pulling Wakko against him.

"Oh my God... fine. I'll tell you if you'll stop doing whatever that bad improv was," she paused. "But you're not going to like what I have to say." Heather sighed, rubbing her temples. Yakko and Wakko immediately perked up. Any trace of tears or sadness on their faces disappeared.

"That's alright, it might help us." Yakko said. Heather took a sip of her water before going on.

"Well, I threw away three years of my life on Ricki. We were living together and everything was great, but one day he turned bad on me and joined Smokey," she gulped down another sip. "He was always going on about how he hated his 'dead-end job' and 'dead-beat friends,' but I never thought he was that upset about it. Life here ain't great, but it could be worse. I guess he didn't see it that way. Thought Smokey could help him out."

"Is that why he chased us? Because he was with this Smokey guy?" Yakko asked.

"Maybe. I don't know. Smokey's gang doesn't go after anyone without a reason. But I'm tellin' you two to be careful around them. If Smokey figures out you're Warners, things might get messy." she said, pushing a pillow under her back.

"What do you mean? It's already pretty obvious that we're Warners. We're on TV every week." Wakko said.

"Yeah, but Ricki didn't know it was us until I gave him my credit card." Yakko said, leaning his chin on his hand.

"How could he not tell it was us?" Wakko asked.

"Because you're covered in crap, kid. Not to mention your sister isn't here. People usually group you three together. You're like a package deal," Heather said. Yakko looked down. A thick layer of dirt and grime covered his body and clothing, leaving his fur looking more brown than black. Wakko looked the same. "Even I had to do a double take. And no wonder Ricki didn't notice until he saw your name. The toon's an idiot." she grumbled.

"Alright, but why shouldn't Smoky know who we are?" Yakko asked. Heather picked at her watch and stayed quiet for a moment.

"Do you know how your Grandpa Herman died?"

"No. All we know is that it was something tragic." Yakko answered. Heather bit down on her lower lip.

"It was. Herman started out in show business back in the early '30s. He appeared in some shorts, but nothing too big. In fact, that's how he met Grandma Dorothy. She was a dancer in one of his shorts."

"What does that have to do with how he died?" Wakko said.

"Everything, actually. Herman signed on with Warner Brothers to do a series of cartoons with another toon named Kenny in the early '40s. It was called 'Kenny's Korner,' and would play before some of the newsreels at the movies. They worked together for about a year or so before the studio cancelled the cartoon. But instead of letting Kenny go all together, they signed him on for another show."

"So Herman was out of a job?" Yakko asked.

"Sort of... Shortly after the show ended, the studio made up a new contract for Kenny. But one of the legal assistants at Warner Brothers somehow messed up the paperwork and put Herman's name and address on the contract. So Herman got it and signed it. He figured the studio had changed their mind and wanted him to take on the new show. They got the contract back and ended up accidentally hiring Herman instead of Kenny."

"Couldn't they just rip up the contract or something?" Wakko asked.

"No. Cartoons were still pretty new then. They didn't have the all the legal systems and stuff they do today. Though this was a pretty bizarre thing to happen," Heather shrugged.

Yakko knew that cartoons were initially a confusing venture for studios, but messing up a contract like that just seemed like pure carelessness. He didn't put it past Warner Brothers, though. The toon division of the studio's payroll had messed up their checks at least every few months, and any studio who would hire schmucks like Plotz- and, dare he say, the mime- were bound for bouts of screw ups.

"What happened?" Wakko asked, shifting his position.

"Herman didn't want to give up the role. He was having trouble finding work and had young kids to feed. But before they could negotiate anything, the studio found out Kenny had developed a gambling problem. He spiraled out of control. You know, like something snapped inside of him.

"Turns out he was involved in a big robbery. He was let go on lack of evidence, but his reputation in the business was ruined. The studio didn't want anything else to do with him, and they officially hired Herman in his place," she paused and took a sip from her glass. "It changed Kenny. His gambling became worse and he was out on the streets within a month of losing his job. The only thing that saved him was that he joined a gang."

"This is fascinating and all, but what does this have to do with Smokey?" Yakko asked.

"You see, Kenny is Smokey."

"What?" Yakko and Wakko said in unison. They rolled their eyes and looked back at their grinning cousin.

"Cute." she chuckled.

"Please, just finish the story." Wakko said with a sigh.

"Okay, okay. So anyway, Kenny changed his name to Smokey when he got involved in the street life. He didn't want to be associated with his goofy character from 'Kenny's Korner,' since his on-screen personality was a little too kid-friendly for the streets." she took another sip of water before continuing.

"This is where things got pretty messed up. Right before your dad was born, Herman and Dorothy went out to eat at some dive in Toontown. Dorothy said three toons jumped them when they were walking home and took off down the street with Herman. Dorothy was too close to her due date to chase after them so she called for help.

"The cops sent out a search party and found his body under a bridge the next day. They said that he was hardly recognizable; that whoever killed him really did a job on him," Heather cleared her throat. "Dorothy said one of the toons who took him was a rat, and every other eyewitness agreed."

"Oh." Wakko muttered.

Yakko had been too engrossed in the story to think about his brother's reaction. Hearing someone died like that was heavy for anyone, especially a kid at his age. Maybe he should have sent him in another room or something... it was probably too much for him to hear that his grandfather had such a gruesome death. Hell, it felt a little too much for him, too.

"You alright, Wak?" Yakko asked as he put an arm around his little sib.

"That's messed up. He killed someone just because he didn't get a part in some show?" Wakko said quietly.

"It's not that simple, kid. A lot of twisted stuff happened back then. There was a lot of corruption, and Smokey wasn't the only toon to turn bad in showbiz. I mean, look at Bosko. He went off the deep end when Bugs Bunny got to Warner Brothers. Even Oswald was arrested after that whole 'missing Mickey' fiasco." Heather explained.

"I remember reading about that in class..." Yakko stared at the wall past his cousin.

He remembered being really upset when he learned about Bugs almost being murdered. Although it had happened many years before he was even born, the thought of stars attacking other stars really unnerved him. What if one of their co-stars turned on him and and his sibs? It seemed unlikely, since he could honestly say that he trusted many of them with his life, but the possibility was always there.

Pinky was much more intelligent than the show led him on to be and Yakko quickly had befriended him. Brain's seemingly cynical demeanor originally caused Yakko to be a bit skeptical of the mouse, however, he turned out to be a trustworthy and thoughtful friend. He respected Yakko and became a good confidant for Wakko and Dot. Slappy's dry and sarcastic humor immediately intrigued Yakko. He had never met a toon like her, and they would often have long and interesting conversations, to say the least, and Dot and Skippy were inseparable when the two squirrels were on set.

Even Scratchy proved to be an invaluable friend. Although he found the Goodfeathers to be annoying and the mime to be, well, disgustingly mimey, he could never imagine any of them trying to hurt the Warners over fame. To think that his sibs' lives could be at risk over Animaniacs or another future show made his blood curdle.

"Why do you care about all of this when you're not even his granddaughter?" Wakko asked, bringing Yakko back into the conversation.

"I was actually pretty close to your dad before he died. Uncle James told me a lot of this when I was about your age, Yakko."

"What? You knew Dad?" Wakko leaned forward on the edge of the couch. Yakko, who had no memory of ever meeting his cousin, was equally as shocked.

"Yeah. We were pretty close actually. After my mom was shipped off to Clampett, I was sent to live with Aunt Cece until she died and he used to come over a few times a week. You were only three, so I doubt you'd remember me. I moved to Boston to live with one of Grandma Dorothy's sisters after that. I wanted to stay with you guys and Uncle James, but they all thought I would behave better away from here. Your dad would call me every week or so. He was the closest thing to a father I had. I'm guessing he never talked about me, right?" she said, crossing her arms. Wakko looked up at his older brother.

"No. Sorry." Yakko said. Heather leaned back and snorted.

"That's what I figured."

"Huh?" Wakko raised an eyebrow.

"It's complicated."

"Well, we're all ears." Yakko pointed to his perked up ears.

"It's just... your dad was very complex guy. He loved his family and all, but he had a tendency to hide away anything 'embarrassing' in his life. It doesn't look good when an actor has such a dysfunctional family like his. Between having a murdered father and niece, convict sister and nephew, a junkie brother, and a bastard niece like me, I guess he had a lot to cover up. I never liked it, but it came with being a D-list toon. Sob stories only work with superstars in Hollywood." Heather muttered.

"Wait, a junkie uncle?" Yakko asked.

"Yeah, Uncle Clarke. He was a major flitz addict. Grandma Dorothy, Uncle James, and Aunt Cece tried to help him, but nothing worked and he overdosed and died."

"Flitz?" Wakko asked.

Yakko hadn't had the drug talk with Wakko yet. He figured he was too young, but hearing that addiction ran in the family concerned him. Maybe he should talk to him about it sometime soon...

"It's a really, really bad drug, and you can really only get it if you have money. Clarke almost wiped out Grandma Dorothy's accounts buying it. Apparently the entire situation was really bad." Heather said.

"Sounds like it." Yakko replied. An uncomfortable moment of silence filled the air before Heather spoke up.

"Sorry this was so doom and gloom. I should be a cheerier hostess than this," she got up and moved to the kitchen once more. "I'll make us some dinner. Does leftover meatloaf sound alright? I haven't been able to get to the store." she asked. Wakko frowned and made a small gag noise. Remembering the candy in Yakko's hammerspace, he immediately perked up and turned to his brother.

"Wait, Yakko. What about the Kit Kats-"

"Yes, thank you." Yakko called out to Heather and elbowed his brother.

He looked around the room at the few framed photos on the wall and tables. One was of Heather smiling next to a human toon, who, Yakko noticed, was wearing a pleasingly low cut shirt. A fox toon in similar apparel was on Heather's other side. Her friends aren't too shabby, he thought.

He turned his attention to another picture of Heather with a woman on some sort of western set. It was signed "Great season and good luck! -Kiki." They were wearing a sparkly red leotards and enormous feathery headpieces. He picked it up and walked into the kitchen.

"Hey, I didn't know they made a crown out of Toucan Sam."

"Funny. No, I was a dancer on a show last year, but the series ended up getting cut after six episodes. I met that girl when I moved back out here a few years ago."

"She's cute." he grinned.

"She's twice your age."

"Age is just a number." Yakko hopped up onto the counter.

"Not when your still under the age of consent." Heather said.

"Fine, no funny business then. But can I still meet her?" he batted his eyes.

"In your dreams, kid. Hey, can you grab the plates? The timer's gonna go off in a second." she pointed to the cabinet next to the fridge. He got down and opened it and took out three green plates.

"The silverware is in the draw above that. I'll grab the glasses." Heather said.

Three short beeps rang out and Heather opened the stove door. She took out the meatloaf as Yakko placed the plates and silverware onto the table. Heather came in with the food in one hand and the glasses in the other. She went into the kitchen again and came back with a jug of water.

"Wakko, come on." Yakko called to his brother.

Wakko trudged to the table and sat down across from Heather, who put a large slice of meat on his plate. Wakko poked it with his fork and glared at it. Yakko rolled his eyes and took a bite of the meatloaf. While it was a bit runny (from what, he didn't know), he could at least force it down and be polite. They hadn't had a real meal since the shelter and Yakko wasn't about to go back to scraping crumbs out of his hammerspace because of his brother's picky palette.

"You know, Wakko, there's some ice cream in the fridge. We can have some after you finish you meatloaf." Heather said. Wakko looked at her and started shoveling food into his mouth. Yakko shot his cousin a grateful smile and took a sip of water.

She just might fit into their little family after all.


Four. Hours.

Dot had never minded long car rides before. In fact, she rather liked staring out at a blurred world through the car window. But this was absolutely unbearable. Every road was blocked and there were too many detours to count.

On top of that, looters had tried to steel their hubcaps. Twice. If Foghorn and Bugs hadn't gotten out of the car with mallets ("You step away from this vehicle or I'm gonna pound your slimy- I say- slimy little brains out, boy!"), then Scratchy would have needed to go back to the car dealer only a month after buying his new station wagon.

They had also run out of gas and had to stop to refuel with Scratchy's emergency gas can. This had only started an argument between Bugs and the psychiatrist ("Why would you keep gas in the trunk, doc? It could've blown up with all the fire's around here!" "Well, it's useful in an emergency like this!").

On top of all of that, Foghorn took up the majority of the back seat. She liked the rooster, she really did, but she could do without the enormous tail feathers hitting her in the face every other second. She was basically plastered to the door at this point. If Dot were to move any closer to him, she would be met with a face full of unhappy poultry. He was still riled up about the looters and potential car explosion, so she was being careful not to annoy him any further.

While it had been nice to leave the shelter, she was beyond done with this. They had just made it over the Burbank/Toontown line and were nearing the Toontown hospital Hello Nurse worked at.

While there had been some debate as to where Scratchy would drop them off, they had decided that the group would split up at the hospital. Not only did it have supplies they could take, but it was located in a district that hadn't been too badly damaged. Dot was just relieved to be almost there. The roads here were smoother and fewer undesirable characters were roaming around, making the drive much easier than it had been initially.

"Is that the turn up there?" Scratchansniff squinted and pointed at a green sign.

"Well, it does say 'hospital' on it." Bugs grumbled. He had been done with their "road trip" since Scracthanscniff pulled out of the high school parking lot.

They turned down the street and drove up to a large white building. Toons milled around the front entrance as several ambulances shot out of the parking garage. Scratchansniff pulled into the garage and cruised slowly through the rows of cars. It looked as though every space was taken.

"Pull in there, doc!" Bugs said quickly, pointing to an empty space in the corner. Another car was close enough to them that Dot could see the driver greedily eyeing the space. She held onto the seat as Scratchy slammed his foot down on the gas pedal. He sped towards the space and very narrowly pulled in between a red truck and blue Toyota. She let out a breath when he turned off the car.

"There. That wasn't too bad, ja?" Scratchansniff said, earning a glare from the three toons around him and a medley of horns and swears from the driver he had just beat.

Dot sighed and got out of the car. She followed the others to the elevator took a deep breath when Foghorn pushed the down button.

Hopefully this would all be over soon.