Broken Strings By HamClover

OOOOOOOOO

It's raining outside and the weather sure does reflect my mood right now. And I'm home alone all. Night. Long. I hate not talking to people. And, I just found out one of my best online friends can no longer talk on the Internet any more. I feel so sad! I really miss you, Michiko! (Owner of the Ham-Ham Hangout, called Kioko-San or something here) And to top that, while everyone is all chipper about the Hamtaro marathon on tomorrow, (On the evil Cartoon Network, August 21st, from 3 PM to 6) My house has to host a stupid family reunion where I know there is going to be a ton of old people grabbing my cheeks and stuff there, ON THE SAME DAY AND TIME! Ugh, this year so far has not been a good one for me indeed. Hamtaro went off air, I got in a huge fight with one of my best friends, my friends all got horses (and now of all my horse-loving friends, I am the only one horse-less), I've been fighting with my brother and parents a lot, and now this. And, despite all the stuff mentioned there, I manage to keep my effin' sanity. Being a teenager is tough, so, kudos to me. And I will never forget what Michiko told me; "Thanks for being such a good friend!" Sorry about this long rant.

OOOOOOOOO

Chapter Six:

Gladys awoke with Jingle shaking her awake.

Slowly opening her eyes, she realized it was a little past noon. Carefully rising to her knees, she rubbed her eyes.

"Jingle, why'd you wake me up?" She moaned.

Jingle gestured his paw to the road ahead of them. He didn't say a word.

Gladys caught her breath. Crouching right in front of them was a big, smelly, gray old cat. And it was looking in the other direction.

Gladys let her heart slow down as she turned to Jingle and whispered, "What are we gonna do?"

"We will not...do anything." He answered quietly.

Gladys blinked. "Wh-why not?" Gladys squeaked.

"We need to use that path."

"We could walk off the path you know."

"We need to use that path."

"NO WE DON'T NEED TO USE THE DAM-. ...Uh-oh."

The cat saw them. It began shuffling its' large bulk in their direction, hissing.

"This is when we run." Jingle said.

So, Gladys taking the lead, they did exactly what Jingle said- ran.

"Where's Herbert!?" Gladys panted, just realizing his absence.

"Getting breakfast!" Jingle coughed, scrambling behind her.

Gladys wearily glanced back to see if the overweight feline was pursuing them. Sure enough, it was. She let out a sarcastic sigh as she quickened her pace. Jingle soon caught up, matching hers.

"I'm getting tired Jingle! How we gonna stop that dumb cat!?" Gladys shouted, exasperated.

"We need Herbert!" Jingle answered.

"But he's not here!"

"I know."

"We're doomed them!"

Looking back, the two hams realized the inevitable. If something didn't come and stop that cat, they'd be meow mix.

"BOOOO-YAAAAAA!!!!"

Suddenly, Herbert burst out of the bushes and jumped right on top of the cat. In a contest of bulk, the pig won hands down.

Jingle and Gladys wheeled to a stop and skittered back to the now sleeping kitty and Herbert.

"I wonder who shouted that 'boo-yah'!?" Gladys asked, quite excited to see who her savior was. Jingle nodded.

As the two approached Herbert, beaming for saving his master, they looked up on his back, trying to look for the hero.

"Um, excuse me?" Gladys called.

"Just a minute! My foot got tangled in this damn bandanna here!" The voice shouted from the pig.

"Hey! Don't swear!" Gladys scolded, then, she realized it, "Wait, could you say something?" She asked, shaking with anticipation.

A head peeped out from on top of Herbert's back.

"What?" The ham asked.

"ERROL!" Gladys screamed as she scrambled up Herbert's back. As soon as she made it on his back, she leapt into his arms, crying.

"Errol, I missed you so much!" She blubbered, her face buried in his fur.

Errol smiled and hugged her back. For a youngster, Errol really didn't look like one. He was quite tall and stocky, with long whiskers and big eyes, and his oat-colored fur was slightly ruffled, like a rex hamster. For any young girl ham, he sure was good looking.

"Hey there, Glad-Ware," He said, calling her by a silly nickname.

Gladys ignored his flirty name-calling and only squeezed him hard. When she was finally done, she leaned back and held his paws.

"Why'd you leave, Errol?" She asked.

Errol shyly rubbed the back of his neck with his paw and said, "Well, it's a long story."

Gladys blinked.

Changing the topic, Errol pointed down to Jingle, who was petting Herbert's nose.

"Who's that guy?" He asked.

Gladys smiled. "Oh, that's Jingle. I've been traveling with him. He was looking for something, and I was looking for you!" She answered as she poked Errol's nose playfully.

Jingle waved at Errol.

"Hello there Maryl." He said.

"Umm... it's Errol."

"Yes, Carol."

"It's Errol!"

"Sheryl?"

"Errol!"

"Martha?"

"ERROL!"

And at that point, Gladys had rolled off Herbert's back in laughter.