Ah yeah, it's been a while. Like.. Three years?! Ok in all fairness the reason it took so long to finally start writing here again is because I wanted to catch up the story on DeviantArt/Wattpad/ao3. I didn't exactly wanna write the rest of the story at the same time 'cause well, I don't want spoilers while others don't have the chapter yet and all, y'know? But now that the story is all caught up everywhere, it's time to finally well, be writing again.
Oh hey and guess what? It's the 20th chapter! That's.. That's very surprising. Yes, the FF chapters might read it as "21", but it's technically the 20th chapter. So very epic!
With that said, enjoy the chapter!
Oh and PS: I don't do the "previously on Fdau" stuff anymore since it's pretty unneeded. Just a heads up!
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It felt like eons to them before they woke up. Gumball/Darwin blinked, and sat up, slightly wincing from the recent injuries. How long had they been out? What exactly happened?
They soon discovered their wounds, mostly the bullet one, had been patched up and taken care of, new bandages in place. The two were now sitting upright in what appeared to be a small green couch, inside a rather quaint living room it seemed.
Gumball: So.. Why aren't we in danger right now?..
Darwin: I dunno.. This is kinda weird..
"Hi Mr. Fishy-Cat!"
Their thoughts were interrupted by the voice of a little girl, who had been present beside where they had woken up. Strangely for them, she didn't look scared or disgusted by their appearance whatsoever, instead she was rather cheerful.
"Uh... Hi?" Gumball/Darwin didn't really know how to respond this. They had been used to getting shunned a lot, so.. This was a first in a long while.
The girl then held out her hand, which confused the two greatly. "I'm Bonnie!"
Gumball/Darwin soon realized that she was waiting for them to shake her hand. Reluctantly, they shook it. "Gumball and Darwin."
"Oh my gosh that's so cool! You have two names and two voices!" The girl, now known as Bonnie, exclaimed, jumping up and down with excitement.
"Well... Not really... It's kinda-" Gumball was cut off by the sound of a door opening to the room.
A woman came in, a concerned expression seen on her face. She and Bonnie were both koala bears. The woman appeared to be the mom-type, wearing a short-sleeved shirt with tan pants, while the little girl had a short, pink, puffy sleeved dress on.
"Oh good, you're awake." She came to the couch, looking to be taking in the two's appearance. "Is anything bothering you?"
"Um.. Not really no.." Darwin replied, his echo-y voice making the woman slightly flinch. "Unless you're talking mentally.. We're fine." Gumball added, slightly joking about the mentally part.
"You have.. Two voices?" The woman looked confused, slightly raising an eyebrow.
"Technically.. But we're actually two people, in kind of one body.."
"So you're two kids instead of.. One?"
"Yeah.."
Gumball/Darwin soon remembered the whole 'different place, getting unconscious in the forest' business. "Wait.. What exactly happened?.. And who are you?.." Gumball questioned, the two slightly getting away, in fear this was some kind of trap. After all they went through so far, it was a pretty reasonable response.
Noticing their panic, the woman put her hands up in a calming gesture. "It's okay, we're not going to hurt you. You're safe."
The two relaxed, still wary of these strangers, but trusting them a little bit.
Sighing, the woman sat down in a chair nearby, Bonnie kneeling on the floor next to her. "We were walking through the woods and saw you nearby. From what I saw, you looked miserable.. Then you kind of just collapsed, so I went over to see what was wrong. It scared me by how many injuries you two had, and well.. I didn't want to just leave you there.. So my daughter and I carried you to our home, and I took care of most of the wounds I saw. Well, mostly the bullet one there."
"So wait, you're not like, scared of us or anything?.."
"Of course not! You're just kids. Why would I be scared of you? But.." The koala woman then looked concerned, sitting up a bit in the furniture she was in. "What were you doing in the woods? Why did you get shot?"
Gumball/Darwin were hesitant to answer, fidgeting in the couch. "We.. Were kinda getting chased.. There was this mob after us.."
"Mob? That mob shot you?"
"Yeah.. They don't particularly like us too much.." Gumball replied, nearly muttering the sentence. "It's not like we actually changed or anything.. They just hate us for no reason.."
Fear overcame the two, as they remembered that as they were speaking, their friends and family were still in danger. "Uh.. It was nice talking to you and all, but we really need to go now-"
Gumball/Darwin quickly stood up, slightly wincing in pain. It felt like something wasn't fixed.
"Careful, your injuries aren't fully healed yet.." The koala mom got up as well, bewildered by the sudden behavior.
"Is something wrong Mr. Fishy-Cat?" Bonnie cocked her head to the side with a confused expression.
"Family and friends in danger. Gotta go rescue them." The two quickly opened the door the koala mom came out of earlier, panic rising.
"Wait, in danger? From what?" The woman was soon hesitant to say any more. "Is it from.. That X man?.."
"Yeah pretty much but we don't have much time to explain at the moment!" The two focused on what they were doing, nearly running down the hallway, as they found the front door up ahead. They had to save them from death. The thought of their loved ones suffering, hurt.
"Wait!" The koala was soon behind them, one hand on their shoulder. "You need to calm down. If you just go head over to that man without a proper plan or strategy to stop him, you might get yourselves hurt. Believe me, I know."
Gumball/Darwin stopped in their tracks, their hand stuck in place on the doorknob. Slowly, they took it off. The koala had a point. It was practically throwing themselves into a second death, which they definitely wouldn't come back from. However, the way the woman worded the last sentence, it sounded rather melancholy. They didn't exactly question it, since there were important things in hand. The two let out a small sigh, eyes now fixed to the ground.
"I won't force you, but maybe you should stay here a moment, to heal and figure out what to do." She gave a rather concerned expression, lifting her hand back up.
"..Yeah, you're right." The two replied, turning to look at her. "We won't stay too long though. There's only so much time we have.."
"Alright, take your time, okay? Just let me know if you two need anything."
"Thanks Miss... Um.." Darwin cut himself off, struggling to find his words. "What's your name?"
The koala mother smiled slightly, as she began to leave to another room. "Just call me Fran, it's no problem."
"Okay cool." The two parked themselves by the door's mat, tail curled up beside them as they tried to think of a solution.
After several minutes, it seemed like thinking got them nowhere.
Gumball/Darwin had tried coming up with plan after plan, but all ended up discarded, unable to be used. If anything, all the plans would backfire thanks to X's big following. Would they even be able to save their loved ones at this point?
They could feel a few tears coming down their cheeks, to which they wiped away quickly, as they rested their head in the crook of their arms and knees.
"Mr. Fishy-Cat?"
G/D looked up, slightly raising an eyebrow. The little koala girl was standing in front of them, showing a look of confusion herself. "Yeah?"
"You look really sad.." Bonnie replied, her voice showing some worry. "Are you okay?"
"Um.. It's okay, we're fine." Gumball said, as the two sat up. "Just.. Trying to think. Not really going so well, y'know?"
"Oh okay." The girl's face lit up a bit, as she grabbed them by the hand, trying to pull them up. "Wanna come to my room? Maybe you'll feel better!"
"Alright, why not?" Gumball/Darwin stood up, and followed her through the small hallway, finding themselves now standing in her bedroom.
It was covered head to toe with mostly pink colors, as toys were seen littered around corners. There on the floor was Bonnie, who had her back turned, busy focusing on something in her hands.
"So.. What'cha doing?" The two sat onto the fuzzy carpet, watching her work. They could hardly make out what she was doing.
"Hang on it's not done yet Mr. Fishy-Cat." She replied, giggling as she seemed busy with the mysterious project.
"Okay okay, we can wait." G/D smiled back, actually feeling rather happy for the first time in a while. Had it really been that miserable for so many days? They soon paused, noticing another bed in the room, slightly bigger, but not by much, a blue color. Raising one eyebrow, they couldn't help but ask about it. "Who's that for?"
"Huh?" Bonnie looked up and toward their direction, before understanding their question. "Ohh. That's my sister's!"
She suddenly decided to change topic, as she turned to face them. "Close your eyes!"
A little bewildered, Gumball/Darwin did so, patiently sitting as they felt something fall into their hands. It was soft, but also stringy. Opening their eyes, they let out a small gasp, surprised by what awaited them.
In their hands was a small yarn doll, about the size of their mother's Christmas dolls. The creation seemed to be a faded orange angelfish and a pink cat toy mashed together with crude sewing, button eyes staring back up at them.
"This is Sophie and Candy! They like Sofdy though 'cause it's easier to say!" Bonnie beamed, awaiting their response.
"I.. We.." The two were at a loss of words, their focus on the toy. Utter joy filled their mind. "Thank you.. This is amazing.."
"You're welcome!"
Gumball/Darwin soon turned to the doorway, as they noticed Fran solemnly watching from the hallway. Confused, and rather concerned, they looked back at Bonnie. "We'll be right back, okay? Thanks again for, Sofdy."
"Okay!" The girl hummed to herself as she played with other dolls.
The two then stood up and exited the bedroom, cautious in their steps. They soon approached the koala mother, finding her leaning over a hallway table. "Hey um.. Are you okay?" Gumball questioned.
"I'm alright, no worries, just.." She paused, finding herself looking down at the photo frame that sat upon the furniture. With a sigh, she picked it up, observing its content. "..Seeing you two in there with my daughter kind of.. Brought back memories."
G/D peeked behind the mother at the picture, curiosity striking them. The photo was of the mother and her younger daughter, though another girl appeared alongside them, smiling at the camera. It would have been a happy moment, had it not been obvious. The unknown girl had been an experiment. She remained mostly a koala, but tiger parts were seen stitched onto her, as well as bear features even. Was her smile even genuine?
"..I had an older daughter.." Fran spoke her words quietly, as if to herself. "Stormy was her name.. Only 8 years old.. I loved her like any mother would with her kids, but.. I never did forgive myself for that horrid day.. That horrible man kidnapping her.."
The two didn't say a word, only listening to her story. They knew what she meant, and it felt awful seeing another devasted by the experiments as well.
"When I found her.. Like that.. I didn't know what to do.. No doctor even wanted to LOOK at her.. She.. Appeared fine.. But.. I knew she wasn't fine, fine.. Though.. She carried on anyway, playing with her sister like she did.. I'm not sure how she pulled through it.."
Fran paused, her expression darkening. Tears appeared in her eyes. "Another horrible man had taken her not too long ago.. I couldn't even save her.. I was scared for weeks wondering where she was.. But.. Then the news came on later about... That fire..." She caught herself from sobbing. "..I lost her.."
Gumball/Darwin placed one hand on her shoulder, a look of sympathy and sorrow. "..We're really sorry.. We.. Know what it's like to have to go through horrible stuff like that..."
"She was only 8.." Fran muttered, a tear scrolling down her cheek. "What kind of monster wanted to mutilate an 8 year old?..."
"..He was messed up.. Believe us, we know.." Gumball said, not even delivering a funny quip like he usually would. He knew better. "..He didn't care for most of the kids he messed up.. Not even us.."
"..I'm grateful that you two came here.." She said, as she leaned over and hugged them. "It's.. A little comforting knowing not.. Every child from that nightmare is.. Gone.."
The two hugged back as well. "We should be thanking you too to be honest, you did kind of save us from a bullet wound there.."
For a moment, all was peace, as the three hugged. Each had their own set of pain from this. It was a bit strange, them talking with someone who had suffered their own way of their loved one experimented on. It felt before as if not one person like that existed besides their own family. This was.. Comforting.
Suddenly, something felt wrong.
G/D let go of the koala, slightly clutching their torso. Their head felt dizzy and light, as if they got off a roller coaster, and they stumbled slightly in their place. "..U-Um where's your bathroom?.."
"..Over there?.." Fran pointed to a door on the right, to which the two stumbled over to. "Are you kids alright?"
They did not answer, as they entered the next room. Before they knew it, they made their way to the sink, something in their throat. The two leaned over, coughing harshly into it, nearly shaking by how sudden it was. Opening their eyes, they discovered what it was.
Blood.
It dripped from their mouth, leaving tiny droplets into the sink by the puddle where they had coughed. All they could feel was utter alarm.
"Boys?" The mother cautiously came in, slightly gasping once she took notice of it too. "Oh my gosh.. Was there something I missed?"
"Mom what's going on?" Bonnie appeared from behind her, raising an eyebrow.
Before Fran could respond, loud pounding erupted from the front door. Voices could be heard outside, indistinguishable to the koalas.
G/D knew however. Their eyes sightly widened as they heard the noise, swiftly wiping away blood from their mouth. "They're here.." The two whispered, fear hanging over their words.
Hesitating, the koala mother gently led Bonnie over to the two, the little girl confused by her actions. "Please keep her safe. I'll go handle them, okay?"
The two nodded in understanding, holding the young girl by the hand, as they hid as best as they could in the bathroom. All they could do was watch with dread, watching the mother close the door and leave to tend to the front entrance.
Loud yelling from X was heard. They could tell he was very angry by now, and Fran had began to get angry as well, shouting back. It continued for a bit longer, loud and terrifying. However, it would soon be silenced. A loud bang rang throughout the house.
"W-Where's mom? What's going on? I-Is she okay? Is mom okay?" Bonnie desperately tried to reach for the door, but was quickly held back, being carried gently in the two's arms. She looked up at them, tears pouring down her face. "What happened to mom?!"
Gumball/Darwin had been crying too, though were trying to keep it together for the time being. "We have to go, now."
Holding the young girl, they leapt out the window of the room, landing on the lawn of the home rather roughly. It was just in time, as a loud boosh sound was heard. Next thing the three knew, the house began to be engulfed in flames.
Bonnie began to wail, hot tears down her face as she hugged G/D by the torso, practically crying into their sweater.
The two hugged her back, trying to calm her down. Their sadness however was long gone. Rage was in its place. Heavy rage. X was a monster, there was no doubt about it now.
X Group members began to approach, briefly having their weapons lowered for once. Some seemed rather surprised to see the little girl there, others looking.. Scared, but trying their best to not show it.
"MOM! MOM! WHERE ARE YOU?!" Bonnie broke from G/D's grasp, running as fast as she could towards the members.
"Bonnie no wait come back!" The two could feel heavy tears, desperate and scared, as they tried to follow after her. "Bonnie!"
"Oh, look who we have here." X had finally appeared from the smoke. He showed no smirk or witty villain dialogue. He only showed that of an angry, terrifying scum of a being. He glanced over at the girl. "Who's this?"
"N-No please! Don't hurt her!" Gumball/Darwin were about to come closer, but froze as one member pointed a pitchfork at them. Panic was in their eyes. Full blown terror. "She has nothing to do with us she's just a kid!"
X picked up the girl against her wishes, for a moment observing her. He watched her struggle in his grip, trying to get out. "This is what happens when you side with the freaks, little girl."
He turned her head to let her see the front steps of the home, her mother blankly looking back as blood pooled around her. Bonnie screamed, crying loudly as she tried to escape. Satisfied, the man pulled out his dagger, and stabbed her in the head.
Gumball/Darwin could only watch the horrific sight. Memories of earlier flashed through their mind, utterly painful to bear. No. They can't stand by.
The two let out a scream of utter rage, as full-blown anger filled them. They then dashed towards X, claws unsheathed as they prepared to swing, however found themselves kicked back to the ground suddenly, not enough time to even register it. G/D hunched over, trembling as they coughed up blood once more, staining the lawn with red. The stitched doll soon fell out of their pants pocket.
Noticing, X tossed the dead girl's body aside, as he came closer. Picking up the small yarn creation, he made sure the two were watching, as he tore it in half, the pieces separated and falling over limply. "You don't deserve sympathy."
Other group members now made their way over, ready to attack and destroy. Yells could be heard from inside the crowd too.
Tearfully, G/D stood back up, staggering as they took clumsy steps back. The fire's blaze reflected off their feared filled eyes. Many thoughts were going around their head, but one was prevalent. Run. The two started to run back into the woods, knowing the mob wasn't far behind.
Devastation filled them, as they barreled through bushes and tree branches, breath heavy as they were nearly wheezing by all the action. Their body was hurting immensely, as the two fought themselves internally to keep from coughing any more blood up. Unfortunately, their running was short lived, as they crashed into a figure that appeared suddenly in their path.
Both luckily didn't fall to the ground. Gumball/Darwin glanced up at the person, only to cover their ears painfully as screaming erupted.
"WHAT ARE YOU?! ARE YOU GOING TO KILL ME?! I-" The figure now in view, was revealed to be Rob. He had nothing but terror, looking at the two as if they were a grizzly bear. However, his screaming cut short, as he noticed the angry crowd in the distance. "Get down."
Rob grabbed G/D by the hand and ducked down into a bush quickly, knowing well not to shout now. He soon shushed them before they could speak. "Stay quiet, they'll hear you."
The three watched silently, dread filling the air, as the mob passed by, crunching leaves and sticks in the path.
X could be heard walking around the area as well, seeming impatient. He pauses, glancing around the surroundings once more. "I know you're out there freak. You can't run and hide forever."
The man followed his group, sounds of them soon ceasing. All was quiet once more.
Coast now clear, Rob stood up, followed by G/D. He warily glanced down at them, about to ask more questions, though stopping, once he saw their state.
The two began to sob, trying to explain what was going on, as they made quick and frequent hand movements, trying to show what they meant. However, their voices were too broken up and sorrowed to be audible.
Rob watched them for a minute, figuring out their movements. Mobs. Murder. Fire. He soon connected the dots, as he noticed bits and pieces of their appearance. "..It's alright, it's all over for now.."
He flinched, as the two suddenly hugged him tightly by the torso, as best as they could do, crying quite harshly and horribly. They soon began to cough into their sweater sleeve, bits of red seen. The cyclops knew better than to do his villain shtick at the moment. If anything, he felt rather sympathetic. What had happened to his nemesis and other not-so nemesis? He didn't know. It was best to ask later.
"You two need help." Rob said, catching the two's attention. They looked at him, eyes teary, and soon nodded, gazing back to the ground. "Come on, let's go."
He gently held their arm, helping them walk through the forest. The three were soon on their way back into Elmore.