Notes: Wherein Dot has some very conflicting feelings on what's just happened and decides to process her feelings by going to the store with Yakko.


Dot didn't want to believe it. Couldn't believe it. Wakko was throwing up on Yakko. Yuck . Luckily she had shielded her eyes right before it happened. Thankfully, she couldn't see it but could definitely hear it. And smell it. It smelled like soured milk.

Oh, Yaks-a-lot, she thought miserably, What have you done? Y'know that pushing Wakko like that was a bad move…and what about me? I tried to help. Should've done more…

Dot slowly uncovered her eyes when the sound eventually stopped. There was a deafening silence in the room as Yakko and Wakko had an intense stare off. Yakko was looking down at Wakko with wide, shocked eyes while Wakko was looking up at Yakko with pure shame written all over his face.

Dot's gaze flicked between her brothers, taking in both of their distressed appearances. Comforting words formed in her mind but they fizzled almost instantly when they reached her tongue. Uncertainty swirled in her mind as she stared at them.

What should I do?

After a moment or two, Yakko let go of Wakko's arm. The look on Wakko's face shifted from shame to anger and he growled at Yakko before running back to the bathroom, slamming the door shut, and (most likely) locking it once again.

While the tension drained from Dot, she walked over to Yakko and gently placed her hand on his arm.

"Are you okay?" she asked, noticing how absolutely dejected he looked. It wasn't a look that she liked on Yakko, not one bit. He was supposed to be smug, smarmy, happy….not this . Not looking like he had just lost the lottery or, more aptly, had potentially lost Wakko's love and respect for him.

Yakko looked away from her and sighed. "No, no, Dot." Then he looked back at her, a pained look in his eyes. "I can't believe that I pushed Wakko like that….I knew not to do it but…" he trailed off.

"Why did you think that he was lying?" Dot asked gently, still shocked at what had just occurred. As she waited patiently for Yakko's response, she tried her hardest not to retch at the smell that was coming off of him. Vomit clung to his fur and had stained his slacks.

"When we came home I asked if he knew what happened during the interview. He said he was asleep while we were gone. I told him that the TV was on, which it definitely wasn't when we left." Yakko paused, taking a deep breath, before continuing. "He's been acting so weird since we got home. I just wanted to know what was wrong so that I could fix it!" Yakko's voice cracked at 'fix it' , causing Dot to flinch. First Wakko had fallen apart and now Yakko.

Can't really blame Wakko though, he's sick and all. But you, Yakko? I wish you had more tact.

Dot chose to keep this thought private. Berating her older brother wasn't going to help at the moment.

"Well, you can start fixing it by apologizing to him." she suggested.

"You're right." Yakko sighed, giving her a wry smile that made Dot's heart twist. "I'll go do that right now."

Wow. 'You're right.' That's definitely a first. she thought, feeling mildly amused.

Yakko left to go to the bathroom door, closely followed by Dot. She silently hoped that he would say the right thing this time. If not then she would berate him, no qualms about it.

Yakko knocked on the door. Wakko didn't respond. Then Yakko tried the door knob. It was definitely locked.

"I'm sorry, Wakko," Yakko murmured. "I didn't mean to humiliate you like that. I should've believed ya."

Wakko still didn't respond. Dot was beginning to feel fear creep up her spine. Was he okay? Did he pass out? She tried to push those nasty thoughts away but they stayed.

Yakko shakily sighed. "I love you, Wakkoreno."

Then Yakko left to go to the kitchen leaving Dot standing alone next to the bathroom door. She wanted to say something to Wakko, anything really. Maybe she could tell him that he could vent to her if it would help him calm down. After mulling the idea around in her head for a few moments, she decided to do it.

"Hey, Wakko. It's me, Dot." she paused, angling her ear so that she could hear better. Still no response. She decided to press on regardless. "I just want you to know that…that I love you. And even though Yaks-a-lot is acting like a real dingus right now…you can always talk to me."

"I love you," Dot continued, hoping that it would help. "And I hope you come out soon… Maybe we could watch Dirty Dancing ? I know that you looooove Patrick Swayze." She expected that to get a response out of him, but alas, radio silence on the other side of the door.

Dot wasn't sure what else she say. All she could do now was wait patiently for Wakko to come out. She wondered where she should go now. The kitchen seemed like a decent place and so she left to go there.

However, she stopped in her tracks when she saw what Yakko was doing. He was using one of the kitchen towels to wipe off the vomit on his chest. Bleh .

"What are you doing?" she exclaimed, her eyes going cartoonishly wide. "That's completely disgusting!"

Yakko half-heartedly shrugged. "What else should I do?"

"I-I don't know but at least do that somewhere I can't see!"

" Fine , I'll go somewhere else." Yakko left the kitchen and went to one of the spare rooms leaving Dot behind to stare after him. She could tell that he was still feeling down about the whole situation.

It wasn't like there was a pit of guilt in her stomach or anything. It wasn't like she was feeling bad about the situation either. No siree, she was just fine!

With nothing else to do, Dot decided to go back to the couch and just mindlessly channel surf. That'd at least be something. So that's what she did, all the while trying to block out anything negative.


Dot's stomach growled so she glanced up at the clock. It was 6:00 p.m. which meant that it was dinner time. She walked over to the refrigerator and opened it up. Inside was leftover pizza. Gross . They had already eaten pizza for dinner three times in a row this week. She was beginning to get sick of pizza.

Dot sighed and closed the door.

"Hey Yakko!" she yelled, hoping that he could hear her.

"Yeah, sister sib?" Yakko yelled back.

"It's six o'clock, what are we gonna eat for dinner and before you say ' pizza ' just know that I'm officially sick of pizza!"

"Uhhhh…..what kind of food do ya want then?" he asked.

"How about soup?"

"I guess that'll work!"

Dot relaxed, she was glad she wouldn't have to eat pizza for tonight. She really had meant it. No more pizza for her for a while.

Yakko came back into the kitchen wearing a fresh pair of slacks and no vomit on his chest. He still smelled awful though.

"Yak, you smell terrible."

"I'd take a shower but the bathroom is preoccupied."

"Well, I'll try to ignore the smell then."

Dot gagged but decided against talking about the smell. No more talking about it. Or thinking about it. It was best not to think about it. Just pretend that her brother smelled like flowers. Specifically lilacs.

Yakko went over to the pantry and looked through it.

"Looks like we're fresh outta soup. I'll have to go to the store."

He closed the pantry and went to the large oak chest in the living room. Dot followed him wondering what he was doing. Yakko looked through it before pulling out a bag. It was Wakko's gaggy bag.

"What are you doing with Wakko's bag?" she asked, tilting her head.

Yakko opened up the bag and took out a wallet.

"I was looking for my wallet." he responded and pocketed the wallet. "Well, Dot, I'm going to the store. Goodbye!"

Dot waited until Yakko had gotten just about an arms-length from the door before chasing after him.

"Wait," she whispered. "Can I go with you?"

Yakko turned around to face her, a curious look in his eyes. "Why?"

She didn't want to say but..she was kinda scared. Scared of Wakko coming out of the bathroom and blowing up on her the way that he had on Yakko. Plus, it would get her a chance to get some fresh air and clear her mind.

"Because, I want to get some fresh air." she replied, using half of the truth. Dot didn't want Wakko to end up hearing the other half if he was eavesdropping on them. Which she suspected that he was doing.

All the while that pit of guilt in her stomach deepened further. She really should just stay home. Stay and talk to Wakko, get through to him. But she had already made her bed, and she might as well lie in it.

Yakko shrugged. "Sure. You can go with me."

Dot jumped up and hugged him. "Thanks!"

They both left the water tower and went to the grocery store. It was a rather small store kind of like a Dollar General. It housed mostly food with some clothes thrown in as a last resort.

When Yakko and Dot arrived there were maybe ten people inside total, including the workers. They both ran off to the canned goods aisle. There they found a multitude of different flavors of soup.

Dot looked up at the shelves of soup, dazed at how many types there were.

"What soup are you going to get?" she asked.

"Uhhhhh….I guess the usual. Tomato soup." Then Yakko turned to her. "What about you?"

"Oh, you know. Cream of Broccoli."

"Nice. Whadda ya think I should get Wakko?" Yakko asked, still looking up at the various soups.

"Homemade chicken noodle soup. Campbell's." Dot responded.

Yakko reached up and grabbed two cans. He handed her the one that said Cream of Broccoli. And then handed her another one that was labeled Tomato.

"I found ours. But I can't seem to find Wakko's."

Dot looked up and spotted it. It was on the top-most shelf.

"It's up there, on the top shelf."

Yakko gave her a bewildered look so Dot pointed it out for him. His expression changed to recognition.

"Thanks Dot, I'm glad that you came with me." he said while trying to reach for the can. He was just about to grab it when another hand, a human one, snagged it first.

Dot immediately flinched back, she hadn't noticed a human standing behind them. She turned around ready to snap at the person but when she saw who it was the words fizzled on her tongue. The person was none other than Catherine O'Thorn, or as Dot liked to call her; the Lady in Red. She was still wearing the same amount of red as she had during the interview.

As she stared up at Catherine, Dot began to feel the fur on the back of her neck bristle as well as a feeling of aggression suddenly rise within her.

"Hello, Yakko, Dot. I didn't see you there." She pulled her hand down, still clutching the can of homemade chicken noodle soup. Yakko swiftly turned around and had nearly the same reaction that Dot had at seeing Catherine.

After an awkward moment or two, Yakko coughed. "Sorry Cath, but that soup is ours. We found it first."

"Pfft...go take a hike and never come back. This soup is obviously mine." she spat and crossed her arms across her chest.

Dot promptly growled at that. "Back off, that soup is ours! Give it to Yakko before I smash your head in with a mallet!"

Yakko gave her a horrified look and then grabbed her by the arm. Dot briefly resisted before letting her brother drag her to another aisle. Once they were a safe distance away Yakko let go of her.

"All right, what's the matter with you?" He was looking down at Dot with a worried expression.

"I don't know, Yaks-a-lot, " she confessed, letting her gaze wander from Yakko to the floor and back again. "I-It's like when I was staring at her…my fur startled bristling and I got all scared and mad?"

Yakko reached out and put a gentle hand on her shoulder. "It's okay Dot, I-I'm kinda feeling scared of her too."

Dot looked up into Yakko's eyes, surprised to hear this. "I still can't remember anything that happened during the interview."

Yakko nodded. "I can't either."

Dot was about to say something else when Catherine walked up behind Yakko and tapped him on the shoulder. He flinched and let go of Dot's shoulder.

"I don't want this anymore. Here, you have it." Catherine handed a quivering Yakko the can of soup and left. He stared down at the can in his hand, an unidentifiable expression on his face. Dot watched as Yakko slightly nodded, gripping the soup can tighter.

"We're leaving." The unidentifiable expression was still on Yakko's face causing Dot to begin to feel uneasy. Did Catherine do something to Yakko? She wanted to know. But decided to save the question for when they got outside, away from the prying eyes of the public.

Yakko's stance was stiff as a board as he walked away. Dot quickly followed him to the checkout line. They paid for the soup and then walked outside. The sun was beginning to set and a light breeze was blowing.

After a few moments of silence, Dot turned to Yakko. He seemed a little happier now that he was outside. She didn't want to ruin it but she needed to know what had happened back there.

"Are you okay?" she asked, gently.

"I think I'm starting to remember what happened." Yakko mumbled, staring down at the ground.

Dot reached over and placed her hand on his arm. "What happened?"

"When she tapped me on the shoulder I-I think I had a flashback? In it I was feeling nervous and Catherine gave me a cup full of red liquid. She told me to drink it; she said it would help soothe my nerves. So I did… and then I passed out?"

Yakko was starting to tremble so Dot decided the best thing to do was to hug him. So she wrapped her arms around him in a loose embrace. It took a few seconds but Yakko hugged her back. They embraced for a few minutes and let the breeze ruffle their fur.

"If she ever gets near you again. I'll bash her head in with a mallet." Dot stated in a deadpan voice.

Yakko let go of her, a slightly concerned look on his face.

"Uhhhh...Dot? You don't need to do that."

"But I want to!" she giggled evilly.

Yakko laughed at this. Dot was feeling better now that her older brother was. She didn't like how scared he had been. It wasn't fun to see.

Speaking of fun…

"Let's race back home!" Dot exclaimed, she was hoping for a rematch.

"Ya sure you want to race me again? I was going easy on you last time." Yakko smirked.

Dot growled. "What? How dare you! I demand a rematch, mister!"

"You're on!"

And so the two siblings raced off to the water tower. While they were running Dot was thinking about what had happened to her brother. She definitely wanted to bash Catherine's head in for what she did. That Lady in Red was going to get her just desserts soon.

Just you wait and see.


End Notes: Unfortunately for Dot and Yakko what they find at the water tower will...not be good.

That's all I can say.

Next up, Wakko reaches his boiling point and makes a hasty decision that will directly (and indirectly) affect everyone...