The Realization
Pirate Island
Rebecca was awakened by movement. Kit was stirring beneath her. He was coming out of his sleep, a deep sleep. He had been unconscious since the afternoon before.
'Thank God' was the only thing that Rebecca could think as she looked down upon him. His head moved from side to side as he slowly came to.
"Wh-where am I?" Kit asked in a few ragged breaths, as he looked up at Rebecca in a daze.
"You're alright sweetheart." She said as she gently stroked his forehead. "You just got a bump on your head. You'll be better soon though."
As she said this, his eyes rolled back in his head, causing a cringe from Rebecca. He was again unconscious.
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The Sea Duck
Baloo shakily steered his plane through the Cape Suzette cliffs and into the harbor and the home that would never again be the same.
The flight back from the island had been a blur. He wasn't even sure how he had made it back to his plane. His body had been on automatic since the realization of all of this sunk in.
As he neared the Higher for Hire building another horrible thought struck him. A thought in which his mind had not even had room for before now. Molly. What would he tell her? Possibly more important, how would he tell her?
Before he could even think about an answer to any of these questions, he had landed the plane and was stepping out onto the dock, still very much on autopilot.
"Baloo, where have you been?! Where's mom and Kit? Are they with you? I've been worried sick!" She managed to finish breathlessly as she ran out of the building towards him.
She immediately stopped though, the look on his face telling her that something was terribly wrong. He stood still, silent. Not seeming to be able to find the right, or for that matter any, words to say. Her mind raced, tears welling up in her eyes.
Baloo slowly moved towards the girl still not knowing what to say.
"Molly, I-I'm sorry."
With that she immediately ran into his arms crying.
"They were kidnapped by Karnage."
Molly immediately jumped back from him, hope filling her young eyes.
"We can go rescue them."
"No honey, no. It's too late, they're gone."
"What do you mean they're gone?"
"They're not comin' back." As Baloo said this he reached into his shirt pocket and pulled out Kit's class ring.
Molly took the ring into her hands and looked it over. It was almost as if she didn't believe that it could really be his. As she fingered the blue stone, she could not longer deny the truth. She dropped the ring and took off running, leaving Baloo.
Baloo could do nothing but stand in that very spot on the dock where Molly had left him for what seemed like hours, which in reality was probably only a couple of minutes. He had his own grief to deal with, but he knew he had to comfort Molly. She had become almost like a daughter to him in these past few years.
Standing there he couldn't help but think about how wonderful things had been just a couple of days ago. He had never really had a family since he was a young boy, that is until these three showed up. It all happened so fast.
First there was Kit, who had quickly grown into the most important thing in his life. And would eventually legally become his son. And then Rebecca and Molly had been a packaged deal when they showed up. Molly had quickly taken to Kit, who enjoyed having a 'little sister'. And to the older bear she was a daughter that he never had. Had never thought about having.
Baloo had not quite taken quite so quickly to Rebecca. After all she did take his 'baby' from him. She had also gotten them into quite a few crazy schemes since she had been there. But, Baloo looked back on those times fondly now. In time, however, the two had become quite close. Best friends of sorts. Something that Kit and Molly were quite happy to see. Baloo figured that the two wanted them to get married. To become a real family, but things just never seemed to work out that way. He vaguely wished they would have now.
He was snapped back into reality by a crack of thunder. A storm was coming. He hadn't even noticed it before.
Baloo was starting to get very worried about Molly. Why had he let her run off like that? She was out there all alone. He knew that he had to get to her. He was also pretty sure where she went to, so he took off after her as a heavy downpour started.
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Back at Pirate IslandRebecca was suddenly awakened by the sound of screaming from down the hall. 'What is happening to that poor person? No, no I don't want to know. I have more important things to think about.'
She had no idea how long she had been asleep. There was no way to tell what time of day it was in there because of the fact that there were no windows. The only light that showed any in the cell was that which came from the torches in the corridor.
Kit was starting to awaken again, Rebecca assumed because of the shrieking down the hall. He slowly opened his eyes and groggily looked around. It was only a moment before a look of recognition came across his face. He immediately jumped up out of bed, to do what nobody knew because he never made it that far. As soon as he was vertical, and the momentum of his thrusting out of bed was gone he went straight to the floor.
Rebecca tried to catch him as he collapsed, but that was a lost cause. He outweighed her by about 80 pounds. He didn't seem affected at all by his drop to the ground though. He just sat there thinking, remembering how he got there. What little he was conscious for anyway.
"You need to get back up here and rest some more. You'll do no good by getting hurt and not being able to move at all." Rebecca said to him in a very motherly tone.
He did as she told him to, just as he always did when she talked to him like that. He was a very independent person and did not like to be told what to do, but there was just something about the sense of security that it gave him.
"How are we going to get out of here?"
"Baloo will know where to find us, he always does Kit."
"I'm not so sure this time. We haven't been to Pirate Island for years. And whose to say that Karnage wouldn't trick him into thinking that we are someplace else. It certainly would be past him." Kit said this as he leaned back against the concrete wall, wincing in pain as he did.
"He'll find us."
"I hope so, Ms. Cunningham."
Rebecca looked up at him noticing the use of her formal name, which had been given up years ago at her insistence. She then leaned her head on his shoulder. She did not know what was to come, but was comforted in the fact that she would not have to go through it alone.
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Rebecca's ApartmentAs Baloo neared the apartment he saw that the door had been left partially open. Under normal conditions this would have been cause for a pretty substantial lecture, but given the circumstances it was a blessing. He knew that Molly wouldn't have opened the door for him and he had never even thought to bring his key.
He slowly opened the door and stepped inside. He could hear Molly crying from the back. 'Probably in her mother's bedroom.'
"Go away!" Molly yelled as Baloo entered the room.
"I can't. We need to talk about this."
"No we don't! I don't ever want to talk to you again. You let them die. You let them die!"
Baloo was already in tears at this point, but hearing those words almost dropped him to his knees. He didn't know what she needed to hear or what he needed to do.
On his way over he had come up with an idea though. He didn't know how she would react to it, especially right now. But it was their only option
He made his way over to the bed that she was curled up on, crying into her mother's pillow. His hand reached out to her shoulder, but she jerked away and buried herself deeper into the pillow.
"There was nothing I could do. Don't you think I tried to save them? They were two of the most important people in the world to me."
Molly's sobs continued. This time when Baloo's hand reached out, she didn't flinch. He tentatively continued.
"But there's someone else who's just as important to me. And that is why there is only one thing left for us to do, that is if you want to stay with me. D-do you want to stay with me?" Baloo asked with the same heart wrenching fear that he had just a couple of years ago when he was about to ask this same question. The same fear that kept him from asking Kit this for three years.
Molly turned around, still crying. At this point, she was more than a little confused.
"Of course I want to stay with you. Where else would I go?"
"Wo-would you like me to adopt you?" Baloo barely choked out.
She just sat stunned for a little while. This question had taken her completely off guard. What was happening? Her entire would was suddenly turning upside down. It was only a few moments before she knew the answer that was in her heart.
Unable to say the words, she was only able to nod yes to the loving father sitting just a few inches away from her.
A wave of relief washed over the big bear as he pulled the girl into an embrace. They were all that each other had now. At that moment, he made a silent vow to protect her from all of the evils in the world. He would of course have to work harder to make more money and they certainly couldn't stay in the run down Higher for Hire building. Maybe he could afford to stay here? Maybe not. But he would try his best to give his new daughter the best life that she could possibly have.
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Next chapter coming soon!
Please R&R J
