THE WOLF'S MOTIVES.
"Seriously, Plucky, you have to be kidding." Buster sighed. He has had this kind of conversation with the duck many times in the past, always concerning a misunderstanding. Both toons were on Buster's burrow, having breakfast; Plucky called him that morning to talk about something, and, since Buster had no compromises until the afternoon, agreed to hear what the duck had to say. He was now regretting his decision.
"Buster, I'm serious here. Skippy overheard the weasel we trapped this Wednesday, and he said there was a spy on the team. And both Skippy and I had been following Wally this week, and trust me, he is hiding something. We had seen him doing secret calls, and yesterday, after he left the Club, we saw him being picked up by a girl in a car." Plucky told Buster. The rabbit rubbed his chin, and took a sip from his carrot juice.
"Well, Plucky, it's actually a good thing Skippy could hear that, but your investigation only tells us that Wally has a girlfriend. No harm done there. And you shouldn't spy on any of our classmates." Buster pointed. Plucky sighed.
"I know, but, Buster, I did exactly the same things when the Perfectos convinced me to spy for them the first time we won the Acme Bowl, remember? I contacted them in secret, kept them informed, and, when I was hanging around with you and the guys, I always said an excuse to leave early and met with Roderick and Drake. They even picked me up on fancy cars to take me to their spa and have fun with them; boy, Drake even shoved Margot, his own girlfriend, into my arms to keep me happy!" Plucky paused for a moment, smiling at the memory, and continued.
"And, besides, if Wally is just meeting with his girl, why he hadn't introduced her to us? She might be one of Perfecto's girls trying to seduce him to make Wally reveal our game plan. Look, I'm not proud of what I did that time, but at least you should admit I have experience dealing with the Perfectos on a personal level, and consider what I'm telling you." Plucky ended, and, from the look he had, it was obvious the duck was dead serious.
Buster looked carefully at Plucky, pondering about his speech. He knew when the duck was talking seriously, and this had to be very important to him since it was rare he ever admitted a mistake, even an old one. Plucky needed a lot of guts to admit he was spying on his team for the Prep that time, and hardly mentioned it again, so Buster decided to, at least, consider the evidence he had gathered.
"Well, I tell you what, Pluckster. Bugs told me Wally had to do some job today at the Looniversity, and it seems he likes to do it early. I'll go there and have a talk with him, and see if I discover something without telling him you and Skippy had been spying him." Buster told the duck. Plucky nodded, and smiled; he was happy that his friend trusted him enough to make a little investigation of his own.
"Thanks a lot, buddy. I'll keep my cell phone open if you need me. Please, contact me after the meeting and tell me all the details, okay?" Plucky asked. Buster nodded, and then both friends ended their meal in peace.
Buster arrived at the Loo around noon. As Bugs told him, Wally and Pete Puma were doing some cleaning to have everything ready and not needing to work during the rest of the weekend.
"Oh, Buster, hello! Are you going to do some job today-e-yaay?" Pete asked on his usual goofy but friendly voice. Buster shook his head.
"No, Pete, I just have to talk a moment with Wally." Buster said, and then directed to the wolf. "Can I interrupt you for a minute, pal? I won't take too much of your time, promise."
"Sure, Buster. We are almost done. Just wait for me at the entrance; I'll be there in a couple of minutes." Wally said. Pete placed his paw on the wolf's shoulder.
"You can go now if you want, boy. As you say, we are almost done, and I can finish the job myself. Go have fun." Pete motioned the wolf to go with Buster. Wally thanked him, and then he and the rabbit walked through the corridor, with Wally leading the way.
"Come. We can talk in my room." Wally told Buster. They went down a stairway, the same one the students used to go to the movies' vault, but this time they stopped about 2 levels over the vault's one. Wally guided Buster through a long corridor; as he explained, this was also the way to the boiler's room. They stopped near a white door, and Wally took out a key to open it.
The room, as Wally already had mentioned, wasn't too big. It contained a little bed, just big enough for the wolf to sleep on it, and a table with two chairs next to it. There was a small closet and a few boxes to contain Wally's clothing and various stuff. In front of the bed was a box with a TV on top, and several books and a DVD player ordered inside it. On one corner, there was another door that lead to the bathroom, who only had the sink and the toilet (since Wally always bathed on the gym's showers, it was enough for him). Next to the bed was a shelf with a phone, and few more books. On a different corner there was a little fridge with a breadbox and a basket filled with bones (the kind the butchers always apart for dogs) on top of it, and, next to the fridge, several boxes of Scooby Snacks and cans of Acme Dog Food. Hanging from the walls, there were a few pictures of Wally and his parents, as well as from a few friends from Yellowstone Park (mainly bears and other wolves).
"Wanna a bite?" Wally asked Buster. The rabbit shrugged.
"Not from you, thank you. You seem to have sharp fangs." Buster joked. The wolf trifled, and took a few Scooby Snacks out from a box, serving them on a dog's bowl.
"Seriously, take something from the fridge if you want." Wally said while sitting on the chair, starting eating his snacks. Buster nodded; even if he already had breakfast, a little snack wouldn't hurt. The fridge contained mainly assorted pieces of cheese; besides that, there were a couple of milk bottles, a jar of mayo, a bowl with leftovers from the cafeteria (Wally told the gang previously that, as Pete's helper, he was officially a member of the staff, so had right to eat at the cafeteria for free), and some fruits. Buster looked carefully, and smiled when found something he liked.
"Can I take a slice of the carrot and cheese cake?" Buster asked. Wally nodded, so the rabbit took a piece of said dessert. Good thing for Wally Babs wasn't there, or she would eat the whole thing. Buster sat at the table, bringing also a milk bottle, and took a spoon from another bowl Wally had on the table. The rabbit tasted the dessert, and smiled; it was a pretty good one.
"I cooked it myself. Since I have no kitchen, I use the Home Economics or the cafeteria's one. Most of the time I eat raw food, but I like to cook once in a while." Wally informed Buster while serving some milk in a bowl for him, and in a glass for the rabbit. Then, he asked Buster about what he wanted to talk about. The rabbit took a sip of milk, and cleared his throat.
"Well, Wally, yesterday, after you left, Plucky and Skippy left as well because Plucky had to drop Skippy at his place early. They saw you, and followed to walk together, but Plucky said you were picked up by a mysterious car." Buster paused to see Wally's reaction; at least, the story he was telling the wolf was mostly true. Wally looked down for a moment, sighing.
"Oh. Well…I had to meet someone before coming here. I didn't saw Plucky or Skippy, or I could have told them that." Wally said. Buster sighed.
"Wally, your private life is your own business. Neither Plucky and Skippy, nor I, or anyone else, has any right to ask you about what you do on your free time if you don't feel like telling us. However, as you know, we had been having problems with the Perfectos spying on us, and something like this is kind of suspicious. We had a similar problem with another student some time ago, and, even if we forgave him, he is now regretting his decision. I think you should tell me if there's something wrong so I can help you, or, if everything is okay, tell me anyway so I can calm Plucky down; he had been surprisingly discrete about this, but I can't assure what might happen if anyone else finds out." Buster explained the situation to the wolf. Wally gave Buster an uncomfortable look, but decided he could trust the rabbit.
"Fine, Buster. I'll show you something…but you have to keep this secret, okay?" Wally pointed. Buster nodded, and then the wolf took a picture out from one box. He handled it to Buster, who wide opened his eyes.
"The people on this picture… they are wearing Perfecto's uniforms! And you are here, too!" Buster said, surprised. Wally sighed.
"Remember I told you guys my grandpa sent me to a fancy school? It was Perfecto Prep; I studied there for a semester, until I couldn't stand their attitude. I had a very hard time in there, and I only made a friend… the girl that picked me up last night. Buster, I swear I hadn't told them anything about our training, not even to her. We had been seeing each other secretly because of the tension between the two schools, especially with the Acme Bowl so close. Nobody says it to my face, but I had noticed some students glaring at me during the lunch break because of my relation with Walter Wolf. Imagine if they know I studied at Perfecto Prep, and have been meeting with one of their girls!" Wally explained to the rabbit.
Buster nodded while observing the picture; most of the people there were looking at the camera, but some were also rolling their eyes at Wally with un-amused expressions, and there were even one or two guys who were glaring at him. Obviously, this was one of those group pictures that you have to pose to even if you don't want, and, by the looks of things, Wally's old group wasn't happy having him around.
"One more question. If you don't like this picture, why keeping it?" Buster asked.
"My friend took it." Wally blushed slightly. Buster trifled.
"Well, that explains everything. Don't worry, Wally, you can count with me." Buster paused.
"One, two, three, four, five…" Wally and Buster started counting. When they reached the "ten", they stopped and trifled. Buster returned to his more serious tone.
"Funny, but, really, I'll handle Plucky and Skippy, and, if anyone else discovers about this, I'll defend you. But you have to introduce this girl to us after the game, so you don't need to see her in secret. Okay?" Buster said to Wally while handling him back the picture. The wolf smiled.
"That's perfect for me, Buster. We have a deal… and thank you." Wally shook Buster's paw. Buster finished his cheesecake and glass of milk, and directed to the door.
"I'll better go now. I have to meet Bugs in half an hour. Don't worry, I know the way out. See you later, man." Buster told Wally.
"I'm no man. I'm an animal." Wally said in a solemn tone. Both toons laughed, and Buster exited the place. Wally picked up the dishes, and then directed to his phone. He dialed a number, smiling. He was actually happy for being able to tell his secret to one of his friends.
"Hello? Yes, it's me, babe. Guess what? Someone saw us yesterday. Don't worry, I handled the problem. Yes, there no misunderstanding, and… yes, the guy who saw us didn't recognize you. Good. See you in a while, okay? Once Pete is gone I'll call you back, and see you at the front door. Yes, Bosko will be out for the day, so we can have the projecting rooms for ourselves. So long… yes, love you too, Marquesita."
Much later, that night, Buster was outside a diner, dressed in a Men In Black kind of outfit, waiting for someone. After a few minutes, Babs arrived, wearing similar clothing.
"Good night, Babs. Ready?" Buster asked.
"As much as I can be, Blue Ears. Let's do it." Babs replied. Both rabbits nodded to each other, and entered the dinner. They were greeted by Wakko Warner, on a waiter's outfit, who guided them to a table. Roderick Rat and Drake Danforth were there, dressed in grey gangster-like outfits. The rabbits sat the other side of the table, and Wakko left. The toons nodded to each other, and started reading their menus. A moment later, Yakko Warner. also in waiter's outfit, approached them, ready to take their order.
"Good night, nurse and gentletoons. Would you like pasta, or spaghetti?" Yakko asked.
"The spaghetti is pasta… and yes, we'll all have it." Drake answered.
"Good. With red sauce, or marinara?" Yakko said.
"The marinara is red sauce. Yes, that would be fine." Buster replied.
"Okay. Would you like a drink, or a beverage?"
"The drink is the beverage. Sodas for everyone, please." Babs said.
"Tomato, or pomodoro? Cheese, or mozarella? Ground meat, or meatballs?"
"OH, PLEASE, THEY ARE ALL THE SAME THING!" Roderick snapped.
"Aaaah…I might as well reduce the menu to the half. The waiter will be here in a moment with your food." Yakko said while retiring.
"Next time, we'll choose our meeting point." Roderick growled to the bunnies.
"So, Babs, dear, how is the family?" Drake asked, trying to start a polite conversation.
"Growing, as usual." Babs replied. "My siblings want to place Mom in an altar."
"They worship her?" Drake asked.
"Not really, but that's the only place Dad can't reach her." Babs answered. The conversation continued until Wakko arrived with their meal. After eating, they decided to attend the business that brought them there on first place.
"Okay, rabbit, you called us to be here. What do you want?" Roderick asked.
"Well, Roddy, I want to discuss the whole spying matter with you. Your principal will already have a meeting about it next Monday with BB." Buster was cut by a green guy with pointy ears who was sitting on a nearby table.
"Hey, dude, I never agreed to meet with any principal of any school!" The guy said in an upset tone.
"I meant Bugs Bunny, not Beast Boy." Buster told the guy. Beast Boy calmed down.
"Ups. Sorry. It's hard to not overhear with this type of ears." The Teen Titan pointed at his ears. Then, his companion, a girl with purple hair, wearing a dark blue cape and cowl, motioned him to sit.
"You must learn to control yourself, Garfield." Raven told him in a monotone voice. At that moment, a fat cat sitting behind them raised his head, previously immerse in a dish of lasagna.
"Well, is hard to control my noises when I'm busy eating this delicious food." The cat said to the girl. Raven rolled her eyes, and Beast Boy talked to the cat.
"No, dude. My name is Garfield as well, and my last name is Logan." He informed the feline. At the same time, Wakko directed to a guy with a weird hairdo and a wild look sitting a few tables away.
"Hey, I thought you were Logan." Wakko said. The guy grunted.
"Yes, that's my name, bub, and now, I would like some pizza, please." The X-Men replied. At that moment, one big turtle disguised with shades, a fedora and a trench coat, sitting on another table, raised his hand.
"Hey, we would like the same thing, right, brothers?" The turtle said, directing to Wakko and to other three similar turtles whose were sitting with him and wearing the same outfit.
"Yes, and please, hurry up, dog boy." Another turtle said to Wakko.
"Rog? Rhere?" A brown Great Dane, sitting next to the turtles, said while raising his head from the menu, looking all around.
"OK, THAT'S IT! NO MORE CAMEOS FOR THE REST OF THE CHAPTER, FINE?" Buster yelled. The whole diner got silent, and, after a few moments, everyone returned to their meals. Buster cooled down, and returned to his chat with the Perfectos.
"Anyway, Bugs is going to discuss this with your principal, but I consider we, the students, should talk about it as well. We all agree this kind of stuff isn't good for the training. It just stresses both bands, and makes us waste a lot of energy. So, politely, I want to ask you guys to stop spying on us. Otherwise, we'll be forced to allow one of our teachers to give you a special lecture." Buster ended, with a solemn tone.
"Oh, yes? And who will be that teacher, Bunny?" Roderick asked with an angry tone.
"Slappy Squirrel, and the subject is The Use of Nuclear Weaponry." Babs replied. The Perfectos gulped.
"Well, I guess we can agree with your conditions. No more spying from our side." Roderick said, very politely. The rabbits nodded to the Perfectos, and left their seats after leaving the money to pay for their part of the dinner.
"You were exaggerating about your family, right Babs?" Buster asked while leaving.
"No, that was true. My dad is considering an operation to finally have some birth control." Babs replied.
"And what did your brothers think about that?" Buster asked, while opening the diner's door for her to go out.
"Fifteen are in favor, and ten disagree." Babs informed while exiting.
"Oh. And, as usual, the majority isn't voting." Buster said while closing the door behind him. The Perfectos glared at them.
"I guess we should stick to the original plan, Roddy." Drake directed to his partner.
"You are right, Danforth. And, with the special backup we got for our team, those Loosers will be doomed." Roderick said while touching his fingertips. At that moment, the waitress, Dot Warner, approached them.
"Want something else, gentletoons? Coffee? Tea? Monster?" Dot said in a kind tone.
"Monster?" Drake asked, confused.
"Coming out." Dot said while taking out a little box. A second later, a huge dragon emerged from the box, roaring at the Perfectos and breathing fire over them.
"YEEAAARGHHH!" Roderick and Drake screamed in fear, and dashed outside the place, making a hole on the wall. Dot sighed, and looked at the dragon, whose now had a confused look.
"If they never accept you, why people always ask for the monster?" Dot and the dragon shrugged.
(Author note: Marquesita, Wally's girlfriend's pet name, spelled mark-s-e-ta, is a Mexican food; basically, is like a very thin waffle, rolled over like a taco, with cheese on it, proper of some Southeastern states; remember Wally is half Mexican by his mother's side. However, it also can stand for "little marchioness", a nobility title, like Countess or Duchess.)