A Game of Cat and Mouse

Vanellope was already at the point while waiting that she needed to be worried. There were even greater threats outside of this hostile kingdom, and she didn't need to leave her game to know about that. She heard the rumors and horror stories about the things that could go wrong in the Game Central Station, and inside each different outlet.

When Ralph suggested she ditch this shantytown and live with him and Felix, she was almost at a loss for words. No one's ever invited her over to a different kind of game before.

No one's ever taken the time to know her and ask her questions about her life. And she didn't realize she actually had something to tell them when they did. Today had been such a strange day for everyone.

Even for her.

Vanellope could see that Ralph wasn't perfect; he had a short temper, he was clumsy, and a blathering idiot from what she could see. But it didn't make sense to her why anyone would mistreat him just because he was technically a villain.

Ralph had to be one of the nicest people she'd known. Well, he was one of the very few people she'd known. But he was still nicer than the racers, and King Candy, and the rest of the candy citizens combine.

Maybe he was mistreated because of an old tradition that came much before her time.

"Where are those two loony birds?" She asked herself. "They should've been back by now."

She may have been young, but she could see the painstakingly obvious tension between Ralph and Felix. Even without them saying a single word about it. They'd kissed once, and from what Vanellope could observe, it was their first real kiss.

And she listened to their conversations from the side. About Felix feeling like he wasn't worthy of being a hero and Ralph reassuring him that he still provided assistance even if he was limited in resources.

Ralph had to be the lousiest Bad Guy in existence. Comforting the hero when he was doubting himself, protecting Felix from himself and those around him, defending a rotten little kid when she was being bullied.

And it made her wonder what it would have been like if she did come live with them at Felix's game.

Ralph. Felix. Vanellope. The trio that couldn't have been if Ralph hadn't accidentally plunged into Sugar Rush, and if Vanellope hadn't jacked the medal from Felix's trembling hands. Felix was the kind and gentle parent who could have been a pushover at times. Ralph was the cynical prankster with a knack for breaking things. And Vanellope was the dumb little kid trying to make it in the world.

Vanellope grinned at the thought of the three of them together like a strange, goofy family. It would have been the only one she had.

Her thoughts were shaken when a rustling noise graced her ears from the far corner of the volcano. Past the hot springs.

"W-Who's there?" She asked, getting to her feet. She didn't have any weapons aside from the big engine block. But it was out of her reach. She could see the shadow of a hump moving along the wall. A squeaking sound like there was a crowd of rodents behind the rocks. For a second, she thought her mountain was infested with mice and she never realized it until now.

"Hello...?" she called out, her voice barely a whisper.

And two creatures emerged from behind the rocks. They looked like overgrown insects with purple- and yellow-colored coatings. Vanellope had seen many candy animals around here, but these were new. Were they just added to the game?

They were coming right at her, and without any means of defense, she turned around and headed out of the mountain.

"Ralph! Felix!" She called out. But there wasn't an answer. "Somebody!"

There were four insects with speckled coatings like four jawbreakers coming towards her. They walked on six legs and their eyes were glowing. They looked like they came from outer space. Then it occurred to her that they did not come from Sugar Rush.

Someone brought them here, or perhaps they'd wandered in all by themselves.

"Uh..." She gulped. "N-nice ugly buggies..."

She couldn't run away because the two larger bugs were covering that path. She could see that they all had wings, and escaping would have just been harder. Try as she might, she couldn't glitch her way out of the circle they made around her. Even after she closed her eyes and commanded it.

And the leader of the monster pack came up to her, knocking her back on her behind, and its eyes performed a mesmerizing display of hypnotic colors. Before she realized what was happening, she'd grown extremely drowsy, and fell against the ground.

"You've got a lot of nerve showing your face back here after that stunt you pulled, bucko." The blonde sergeant said as she kept her gun pointed towards Ralph and Felix.

Ralph took a step forward, his hand raised in defense.

"Look, lady, I get that I'm banned here for life but please, just hear me out."

The sergeant tightened her hold on her weapon.

"I ain't interested." She gestured back towards the prison with her head. "If you come with me nice and easy, Jumbo, then you and your pint-sized friend will get off without any further charges. So shut your yap and comply."

Neither of them moved.

Felix stepped up. "Ma'am, I'm really, truly sorry about all the trouble we've caused you, but we've got to hightail it back to Sugar Rush. Our little friend might be in danger because of these cy-bug things."

"And who was it that put your friend in that position?"

Ralph wasn't going to cooperate with her. If he had to choose between keeping those he cared about safe and playing by the rules, he would not have chosen the latter.

"Listen, we can help you get rid of that infestation that's probably brewing in that sugar-coated game over there. I'm good with my fists and Felix can fix just about anything. And then once it's over, I'll let you hole me up in this jail for as long as you want."

"Please, ma'am, she's just a little girl." Felix added. "She's got the whole entire town against her and if that game goes haywire before we can get to her, it'll be too late. We're her only hope."

The sergeant was silent for a minute and her eyes rested on a small detail that didn't catch her attention until now. Ralph and Felix's hands were still conjoined even after all the running and the hopping, and avoiding the rest of the soldiers.

And it was that sight alone that caused her to lower her weapon. Her face did not hold the same sharp gaze it did a millisecond ago. And she almost lost her footing as she stumbled back unexpectedly. Her hand reached up to massage her forehead and her face twisted in discomfort.

It was like she'd gotten a migraine from out of nowhere. She was breathing rapidly and she looked disturbed. Or anxious, it looked like.

"Ma'am?" Felix asked.

"I'm fine." The sergeant answered, then looked back at where they'd just come from. The rest of the army were coming closer, all shouting nonsensical words to each other. Then she looked at the ground beside them, her weapon now hanging loosely in her hand. "This is treason."

Ralph and Felix shared a perplexed look with each other.

The sergeant shook her head. "Screw it."

And grabbed another smoke bomb from her weapons belt and launched it towards her own men. The bomb detonated and the smoke cloud was thick enough to keep them from seeing the two fugitives.

"Move out." She ordered Ralph and Felix.

"Oh, thank you, ma'am!" Felix squeaked.

The sergeant spun around and pointed to him. "It's Calhoun, shortstack. And if I'm going to join forces with you and your big friend, then I'll make this abundantly clear: you two are going to do exactly as I say when we go up against those things. Never underestimate those critters. Got it?"

They both nodded.

She reloaded her small pistols. "I'll be keeping a close eye on you at all times." Her eyes were specifically fixed on Ralph. "Especially you, Homewrecker."

Ralph complied with that. "I got it, general."

"It's serge, to you."

Ralph absolutely hated having to be supervised all hours that he was stuck working with the intense marine, but he knew he brought this on himself. He was the one who decided to go Turbo, after all.

But he did wonder why she seemed to have a mini-stroke when she looked down at their hands. And he doubted very much that she would tell either of them about it.

AN: So, not sure if I'm going to keep this chapter as is because as much as I like Calhoun in WIR and her and Felix together, I don't feel like she's super super necessary in this. Maybe in the final battle, yeah, but I want to keep the main focus on Ralph and Felix.