"Beverly Hills Station!"

Dot jumped up from the seat she shared with her brothers, who nearly toppled her as they simultaneously tried to stand up, and trailed behind the line of passengers making their way off the bus. It had cleared out somewhat at the last few stops, and she could finally move without the threat of being crushed literally looming over her, like when an elephant had come very close to falling on her when the bus jolted and he lost his footing a few miles ago.

Porky yawned loudly and stretched his arms as he and the others walked toward the door. Bugs nudged Daffy ahead and waved at Foghorn to move faster. He looked back at the three Warners to make sure they were close behind before getting off of the bus.

Dot was just about to hop off of the last step when she froze and looked down at her hands. Seeing nothing, she realized she had left her stuffed cat Muffin on their seat, which she had pulled out of her hammerspace about a half an hour ago.

"Could you please hold on for a second?" she turned and asked the bus driver. Not waiting for a response, Dot ran back down the aisle and seized the small kitten from under the seat. Relieved, Dot bounded back down to the front of the bus and thanked the driver.

"Second time this kid's makin' me late." she heard him mutter before she got off.

"Got everything now?" Bugs asked. She nodded and held up Muffin.

"This time it was for a toy- OW! I'm starting to form a bruise there, ya know." Daffy sputtered as Bugs punched his arm again.

"Your fate's in your own hands, doc." Bugs said over a woman who was talking loudly into her cell phone. Her voice continued to rise as she click-clacked by them in red pumps.

"Some p-p-people have n-no manners." Porky huffed.

"Wait, was she talking on a cell phone?" Foghorn asked.

"No, it was a banana, genius," Daffy rolled his eyes. "Of course it's a cell phone! What kind of stupid question is that?"

"What I'm trying to say is that one of us probably has one, boy." Foghorn replied.

"Then you should have just asked us if we had one!" Daffy said.

"Boy doesn't listen," Foghorn shook his head. "Anyone got a phone? Mine broke a few weeks back and I haven't replaced it yet."

"Mine and D-Daffy's are back at the h-h-hotel we were s-staying at." Porky said.

"I don't think mine would work... the piece of junk is spotty even when all the cell towers around here are intact. Besides, what do we even need it for? We'll be at my place in a little bit."

"We could see if anyone called you, you know, like Wile or Roadrunner. Maybe- I say- maybe we can see if they're all right. If that lady had service then you might, too. I doubt the landline at your house is gonna work."

"Alright, I guess it's worth a shot." Bugs reached into his hammerspace and pulled out his Nokia cell phone. Turning it on, he saw that there were two missed calls.

"Who are they from?" Daffy asked as he peered over the rabbit's shoulder.

"Plotz..." Bugs sighed.

"Of all the people to call..." Yakko muttered beside her.

"You should c-c-call him back. It c-could b-be important." Porky said.

"I guess. I'm still amazed I even have service... darned thing never works otherwise." Bugs dialed Plotz's number and held it to his ear. Dot heard it ring a few times before a voice answered.

"Hi, Plotz. It's Bugs," the muffled voice on the other line grew louder as it yelled into the phone. "Yes, I know I didn't answer the other day, but I didn't have- no, I know. Yes, I'm alright. Foghorn, Daffy, Porky, and the Warners are here, too- yes, all three of them. The kids are fine. We're heading over to my place now," Bugs rolled his eyes when the voice got even louder. "I mean, if you really want to, but I don't think it's necessary- OK, OK. We'll see you tomorrow evening. Take care." Bugs took the phone away from his ear and ended the call. "Guess who's coming to dinner?"

"Spencer Tracy?" Wakko asked.

"Katharine Hepburn?" Yakko chimed in.

"Sadly, no. Good ole' Plotz wants to stop by and check in on us tomorrow." Bugs answered.

"Wonderful." Daffy groaned.

"Can't you just get- I say- get him to come some other time? I was looking forward to some quiet time. Been goin' nonstop for too long now." Foghorn said.

"I wish, but I don't think that's an option. Once Plotz gets his gears spinning they don't stop." Bugs sighed and looked up at the setting sun overhead. "We should get going. My street's a few blocks over." Bugs pointed out to Dot, Wakko, and Yakko.

They nodded and began walking down the street. Yakko took Dot's hand and nudged Wakko forward. Dot noticed that the area seemed okay compared to others. The woman on the bus had been right when saying the roads here were nearly fixed. Black tar covered the previously cracked pavement, and damaged storefronts were being repaired or boarded up by workers. Several other toons were talking in a group near by, but other than them, only humans seemed to be around.

This wasn't a surprise, seeing that this was Beverly Hills and not Toontown, but Dot still felt a bit out of place. The ritzy atmosphere here was evident even in the wake of an earthquake, and was much different from the shabby and unconventional vibe of the water tower. After about 20 minuets of walking, the group arrived at the corner of Bloomington Drive and Cheauralt Avenue.

"My house is up on Bloomington," he told the Warners. "It's the last one on the left- wait, what's that?" Bugs squinted at a group of humans. Some were leaning over a blur Dot couldn't quite make out and others were talking quietly among each other. One man in a business suit was yelling into a phone and another was darting his eyes around the area, quickly adverting them when he met Dot's gaze.

"You kids stay here for a second." Foghorn said before crossing the street to the crowd. Daffy and Bugs followed while Porky opted to stay behind and "g-give the k-ids c-company."

Bugs, Daffy, and Foghorn made their way to the toon who sat on the ground with his head slumped on his arms. Foghorn leaned down and placed a hand on his shoulder, but a woman blocked Dot's view of them before she could see how the toon reacted. Bugs and Daffy were talking to one of the humans, and after a few more minutes they came back with Foghorn. The man in a suit had put away his phone and was looking back and forth between the two ends of the road while the toon remained stiffly seated on the ground.

"What happened?" Wakko asked. Foghorn and Daffy looked at Bugs, who answered.

"The toon over there was in an accident. There's nothing to worry about, an ambulance is coming," he told them. "Why don't we keep moving, eh? I do believe I froze some carrot cake a few weeks back that has my name written all over it. I read in Reader's Digest a while ago that freezing it helps it last longer."

"Are y-you sure it w-w-wasn't just carrots they w-were talking about?" Porky said.

"Might've been. I'm not sure. I just thought I'd give it a try. You know I'm game for anything that involves carrots." he grinned.

Dot looked back at the toon and saw that several police cars and an ambulance now surrounded the scene. She noticed Wakko kept looking back and Yakko was stealing a glance at the action every few seconds. She had no idea what was going on, but was too thrilled to be going to a shelter with real beds and a bathroom with a lockable door to pay anymore attention.

Bugs had told her on the bus that he had enough room for everyone to have their own beds. The thought of that alone successfully distracted Dot from thinking anymore about what was behind her.

They walked up Bloomington Drive at a brisk pace with Foghorn leading the pack. The rooster seemed desperate to get to Bugs's house and would probably be flying there if he could. Practically sprinting after him, Yakko, Wakko, and Dot looked around at the impressive mansions on the rabbit's street. Dot liked the large pink one with an in-ground swimming pool in its front yard especially. It gave a nice pop of color to the mostly tan and white row of houses.

"It's up there." Bugs said to them as he fished through his hammerspace for his keys.

They looked up at the mansion Bugs had gestured to. It was one of the larger homes and was situated at the end of the street. A tall fence surrounded the property and a gate stood in front of a long driveway.

Bugs unlocked the gate and opened it, letting them into the long driveway trimmed with hydrangea bushes. The simple yet imposing home sitting at the end of it was nothing short of stunning. However, Dot noted that a few short trees had fallen in the yard and several cracks littered the stone foundation.

"Looks like you've got some repairs to do." Daffy pointed out.

"Seems so. I'll look around tomorrow to see what else is wrong." Bugs yawned. He went up the stairs and unlocked the large front door.

The Warners followed the others inside to a long, marble floored hallway. Several paintings hung from the pale blue walls and a wide doorway opened into an airy living room with tall windows. A staircase was situated against the closest wall and another doorway connected the hallway to a dining room.

"Welcome to my humble abode, ladies and gentlemen." Bugs said.

"Not too shabby..." Yakko muttered. Wakko nodded in agreement.

"I'll be in the kitchen if anyone needs me." Daffy licked his lips and sped off down the hall.

"Hold on for a sec, doc!" Bugs ran after him. Foghorn and Porky raised an eyebrow at each other and followed them. Not knowing what else to do, Yakko led Wakko and Dot towards the kitchen.

"Everything in here's bad!" Daffy whined as they walked in. He was frantically waving around a questionable looking jar of mayonnaise as the fridge door hung open. Dot scrunched her nose when a wave of rotten eggs reached her nose.

"What do you want me to do about it? It's not my fault the power went out while I was gone." Bugs said.

"I don't know! Go to the store maybe?" Daffy said.

"I'm too tired to go right now, Daf. If it's that big of a deal you can always go."

"No way! I'm the guest, and guests don't do their host's chores." the duck crossed his arms.

"The host can always kick out the guest too, you know." Bugs said.

"Let's n-not get too t-testy. B-Bugs probably has some e-emergency supplies s-s-somewhere with something we can eat that's still g-good." Porky turned to Bugs.

"I did until Foghorn got drunk and broke into it on New Year's Eve. I found it the day after with every can of soup opened and empty on the floor next to it. He's lucky I'm a vegetarian, or else he might have eaten a long lost relative." Bugs teased.

"The rabbit thinks he's funny... Look, I said I was sorry," Foghorn replied calmly. "I also said you had to lock that stuff up, didn't I? None of you ever listen, I tell you." Foghorn said. Bugs rubbed his forehead.

"Look, there's some peanut butter and bread in that cabinet over there we can have. It might be a little stale, but I'm definitely not going to the store tonight," he shot a look at Daffy and turned to the Warners. "Does that sound appetizing enough to you three?"

Yakko, Wakko, and Dot nodded their heads, Wakko a little more violently than necessary. Dot suppressed a giggle. She figured he was on the verge of another munchie attack and it would be wise to give him whatever food they could find at this point.

"Fine, fine. That'll do for tonight." Daffy gave in. Satisfied, Bugs pulled a loaf of bread and container of peanut butter out of the cabinet.


Dot swallowed the last bite of her peanut butter sandwich as she leaned back against Bugs's couch. Other than the partially stale bread, It hadn't been that bad. Wakko had even downed a second sandwich in the time she had been halfway done with her first.

"There's nothing good on." Wakko sighed while flipping through the stations for the umpteenth time. Lucky for them, the cable was working and they were able to watch the last five minutes of "Full House" before a football game came on.

"Then read a book. There's a ton on the shelves over there." Yakko pointed to the mahogany bookcase next to the TV. He found a book about advanced toon theory about ten minutes after the adults had gone upstairs to discuss "boring grown-up things," as Daffy had put it, and hadn't put it down since.

"Eh, no thanks," Wakko said. Dot watched as a small grin started to spread across Wakko's face. Slowly, he crept up behind his brother's chair. "Though I do have an idea."

"Would you mind expanding on it then, Wak?" Yakko said without looking up from his book. "I value ambiguity as much as I value Pamela Anderson wearing a snowsuit in a centerfold."

"Sure." Wakko launched himself from behind the chair and grabbed his brother, tackling him to the ground. Laughing, Yakko wrapped his arm loosely around Wakko's neck and rubbed his hat into his head.

"I wasn't expecting a round of 'tough guys' today, but I'll humor you for a bit. I always win, anyway." Yakko said smoothly as Wakko continued to struggle under him. Just as it seemed Yakko had won, Wakko pulled out of his grip and yanked him down to the ground.

"Do you now?" Wakko said triumphantly. Yakko grabbed his ear and yanked him down next to him, and the two playfully swung at each other. Dot got up and walked over to the tangled lump of her brothers on the floor. They hadn't played "tough guys"- a wrestling game dubbed by Dad when Wakko and Yakko were little- in a while, and she had missed seeing them be so loose and carefree with each other.

"Boys. Go fig." she chuckled.

"What was that, Dot?" Yakko grinned while ducking Wakko's foot. "I smell like a pig? I don't think Porky would appreciate you saying that." he pulled her into their tangled mess of limbs and began tickling her mercilessly. She was giggling to the point of tears when Yakko finally let go of her to put Wakko into yet another headlock.

"Watch the hat!" Wakko laughed strenuously.

"What hat? This hat?" Yakko asked, pulling the red cap out of his brother's reach. Wakko coiled his tail and scrunched down. Just as he launched into the air, Yakko tossed it over to Dot. But before she could catch it, Wakko swiftly turned and sprung at it. He caught it and sent a stack of books sailing to the ground when his tail whacked them off of the coffee table.

"Is everything okay down there?" Bugs yell from upstairs. Dot quickly jumped onto the couch.

"Yeah, just knocked into some books. They're fine!" Yakko yelled back.

"Alright, just be careful. I don't want Donald Duck quaking up my rear-end because the crystal decanter he lent me broke." Bugs called down before walking away from the stairs.

"Maybe we should call a timeout for a little bit." Yakko said as he stretched out his back. Wakko plopped his hat back onto his head and nodded.

"Sounds good. I need to use the little girl's room, anyway," Dot pushed herself off of the couch to go to the bathroom but stopped short. "Do you have any idea where that would be?" Dot asked.

"No, but I'm sure Bugs has at least a few around here somewhere. The place is so big it could be a hotel," Yakko strained his neck into the hallway. "There might be one upstairs, but I haven't seen any yet." Yakko said.

"You'll find one." Wakko shrugged. Dot yawned and started towards the staircase.

"Just don't get into any trouble." Yakko called as he sat back down onto his chair.

"Like I always get into trouble when I go to the bathroom." Dot muttered as padded up the first few steps.

Dot scanned the hallway for opened doors when she reached the top. Seeing several once she stepped onto the dark hardwood floor, she walked past and peeked into them. One held two beds and two dressers, and another had a queen bed and three bookshelves in it that screamed Yakko's name.

Daffy's voice reached her ears when she approached the slightly ajar door. Curious, she peeked through the gap to find Foghorn and Porky sitting in chairs while Daffy paced back and forth in front of a large oak desk that Bugs sat behind. Her ears perked up when Daffy began to talk again.

"I'm telling you, toons aren't supposed to act like that!" Daffy said.

"We've determined that already," said Bugs. "What we need to figure out is why he was like that."

"His color wasn't normal," said Foghorn. "Looked like one of those toons they forgot to color back in the '30s, but I don't think that's the case. He looked too modern for that. Maybe he was sick with something?"

"No t-that couldn't be. Did y-you s-see his arm? There was s-some bl-black paint or something on it. I-It looked wet." Porky responded.

"There's a drug in Toontown like that- flitz, I think the kids call it. Quite a few- I say- quite a few people have overdosed from it. Its given the police a whole bunch of trouble. Are you sure it wasn't that?" Foghorn asked.

"I've seen that stuff and I can tell you that wasn't it. The drug isn't black like that." Bugs sighed.

"Maybe it's a new kind of it. You know how they're always changing drugs to make them stronger. Yeah, I bet they just made it stronger." Daffy said and slumped down in the chair next to Porky's.

"Even if they d-did make it stronger, i-it couldn't have t-taken away someone's c-color!" Porky sputtered. Dot watched as the four toons grew quiet for a moment.

"I don't see why this is such a big deal. This doesn't even involve us." Daffy said quietly.

"It doesn't, but a lot of weird things have been happening lately," said Bugs. "First Bosko broke out, now this. I don't want something like that catching up with us, especially now that there's kids here."

"Do you think it has anything to do with Bosko?" Daffy asked softly.

"I sure as hell hope not, doc..." Bugs muttered and wiped his face with a gloved hand.

"We should keep our guard up regardless- I say- regardless, but I say we put this to bed for the night and hit the hay. No use in losing sleep over this when we're all too tired to think straight." Foghorn said.

Dot shuffled away from the door when they stood up to leave the room. She quickly moved past the remaining rooms and spotted bright blue tiles peaking out behind the last door in the hallway.

She went inside, shut the door, and sat on the edge of the long white tub after switching on the light. It flooded the room with a soft, white glow that contrasted the darkness outside the tall window on the wall across from her and illuminated the analogue clock above the toilet, which read 10:30 PM.

It was strange that the adults were so wrapped up in the toon they had seen earlier. He did look weird, but she hadn't been overly concerned by his presence. She felt bad that he looked sick, and it would be even more unfortunate if drugs were at fault, but why should it concern them? He hadn't done anything to them and it didn't sound like any of them knew him. And why did this Bosko guy keep coming up? The fact that the adults seemed so unsure and weary of these things was starting to worry her.

Usually, Yakko would soak up most of the stress in their lives, and Dot and Wakko had become responsible for distracting him from this burden. At the orphanage, Yakko made sure they all stayed together and had enough to eat, even if that meant he didn't for a day or two. He negotiated their contracts and made sure everything went smoothly at the studio, and took on their problems whenever they were at a loss on how to fix them.

Now, for once, she had taken on some of that stress. It wasn't like anything Yakko had experienced, yet it was still something that she knew and they didn't. As far as she knew, they didn't know anything about that Bosko guy (and she didn't really, either, but figured he wasn't good news), and hadn't heard how shaken the adults had seemed by it. It probably wasn't too big of a deal, but should she tell them?

After debating for several moments, Dot decided that she wasn't going to let Yakko and Wakko know what she had heard. There was no need to get them upset over something that she wasn't even sure was their problem. They had enough to worry about as it is.


"What took you so long?" Wakko asked as Dot entered the living room.

"I got lost upstairs. Did you know that there's a third floor?" Dot said. She had seen another staircase on the second floor that was adjacent to the one she'd gone up. She didn't know where it went exactly, but figured it was a safe enough excuse.

"We'll have to check that out later," Wakko started as he stretched out against the couch. "But not tonight... too tired." he blinked his eyes.

"Me too, boy. I'm as tired as a sailor after a night in a bordello." Foghorn said in a booming voice from behind the couch. Wakko let out a small yelp and rolled off the couch with wide eyes. Porky nudged Foghorn and warned him to "watch your lan-lang-mouth!" Dot had seen them come in from the kitchen a few seconds ago, and was surprised Wakko hadn't heard them enter the room. Foghorn wasn't exactly a quiet toon.

"Sorry son, didn't mean to spook you. Gotta be more aware- I say- more aware of your surroundings," the rooster said as he picked Wakko up off of the floor by the back of his shirt and brushed him off. Plopping him down on the couch, Foghorn turned and started up the stairs with a mug in his hand. "G'night." he yawned.

"Goodnight," Bugs said, craning his neck to see what was in the cup and shaking his head. "I take it you three are ready for bed?"

Yakko, who was sprawled across an armchair with a hardcover copy of "The Adventures of Huckleberry Hound" settled on his face, gave a thumbs up. Wakko simply nodded and made his way towards the stairs.

"Could I borrow a toothbrush? I left mine at Heather's." Wakko yawned as he trudged up the stairs.

"Sure, there should be some new ones in the cabinet over the sink," Bugs called out. "The bathroom's at the end of the hall." Dot heard her brother send a muffled "thanks" from the top of the stairs before turning the corner.

"C'mon Yakko." she tugged on his arm and he reluctantly got up with a grunt.

Yakko usually preferred to stay up much later than his siblings. Dot often found him working at the kitchen table during her mid-night bathroom trips. She figured the peacefulness at night allowed him to concentrate on his homework, but as he put it, "the sibling-less hours at night gives him enough time to soak in the fountain of youth and temporarily wash a way his premature wrinkles and gray hairs." But he seemed to lack his usual nocturnal energy tonight.

"Here, I'll show you your rooms." Bugs motioned for them to follow him. They moved up to the second floor and halfway down the hallway before he stopped at the door next to his office. "You can have this one, Dot."

A full sized bed sat in the middle of the room. The pale peach paint soaked in the soft light from the table lamp next to the bed, which Bugs had flipped on, and made the room give off a welcoming air.

"There should be some old T-shirts and stuff in that draw over there that you kids can wear," Bugs pointed to the set of draws near the closet door. "The room across the hall is your's and Wakko's." he said to Yakko.

"Thanks for letting us stay here by the way," Yakko smiled. "I hope we're not imposing or anything."

"Trust me, I'd much rather have you three around here than the barnyard trio. Their bickering gets old real quick." Bugs said as Daffy's voice erupted from outside the room and an equally perturbed Porky matched his volume shortly after.

"You got the one with the bathroom last time, pig. I think it's only fair that I get it now." Daffy said.

"N-N-Now see here. You t-t-ook it f-from me then! I-I should finish my t-turn, shouldn't I?" Porky responded. The banter continued and Bugs sighed as he turned to leave.

"See what I mean?" he shook his head. "Sleep tight." Dot ran over and hugged his legs as he was about to step over the door's threshold.

"Goodnight, Bugs!" she said and he leaned down to return the hug.

"Goodnight, kid." he said and let go as Daffy and Porky became louder. "For crying out loud, Foghorn already took that room!" he yelled as he passed Wakko on the way out of the room.

"Here's some clothes you two," Yakko handed them each an over-sized T-shirt to wear to bed. Turning away from each other so that they were facing different corners of the room, Dot took off her well-worn clothes and put on a blue T-shirt that was a more fitting tent on her than a nightgown. Yakko turned and picked her up. Placing her under the covers, he tucked the blankets under her as tight as he could and rubbed his nose against hers.

"See you tomorrow, Yakko." she smiled.

"Goodnight, little sib. Don't let the bedbugs bite!" he groggily grinned and went towards his room. Wakko filled his place a moment later and gave her a quick hug, which she happily returned.

"Goodnight." they said to each other before Wakko turned off the light and closed the door behind him. Dot snuggled into the pillows and watched as the moon's light danced across the walls in a comforting rhythm. The house had settled into a pleasant silence and Dot's eyes grew heavy. With her brothers close by and everyone safe in their rooms, the long day finally slipped into her memory as she fell into a peaceful sleep for the first time in weeks.