Raindrop and Walter looked at each other. Neither sure what had just happened. Raindrop had known Cookie since they were four years old, and Cookie had never did anything like that. Walter was confused how this Toon was let in. Picking up his gag pack, Walter walked over to raindrop and grimaced, still sore from the beating he had just taken. "I think maybe it's best we just turn around and go get extra help. We're not getting through here with the three of us, especially if we have someone who is actively hurting us. If Mindy is still alive, she's probably going to be alive if we take our time. if not.." Walter stopped, unable to continue with the thought.
"Come on Walter. We're already this far in. Besides, we don't know that it is any safer behind us. Plus, what about Cookie?"
"What about him? Did you not just see him try to green me back there? Honestly, I couldn't care less what happens to him at this point. He's made it clear where his priorities are, and I'm not dying for someone like that."
Raindrop kneeled down, trying to organize the myriad of thoughts blitzing his brain. Walter was right that they likely couldn't handle it with the two of them. But that would leave Cookie and Mindy by themselves. Something was wrong, he couldn't just leave Cookie behind. Something was wrong. "Walter, we have to go get them. I can't just leave them behind" standing up, he started making his way down the path Cookie had taken. Turning around, he watched as Walter was still standing where he was, not a single step taken.
"Sorry Ranger. I just can't justify going after someone who is likely gone, and somebody who is probably going to go down and take us with him. I'm going back. If you want to stay, well I wont stop you, but I'm not going with either." Walter pursed his lips together, as the two stood in silence.
"Well. Good luck then. I'm going after them." Raindrop stated calmly. Even though he knew he was likely walking into danger, it didn't seem to bother him. He had become numb to everything, and just wanted to save his friends. Turning around, he began to jog into the darkness. Reaching into his pocket, he patted around, disappointed that he had used up his last birthday cake. He did have a spare wedding cake, but Officer Clara had told them to save those for absolute emergencies. His brain went into overdrive as he pounded the wet, oily pavement. The further he went, the more he began to question his actions. Was he doing the right thing? Was he going the right way? What was his plan if he ran into cogs? How far had Cookie gone? After several minutes, the darkness began to fade into a brighter florescent light. Having to slow down to allow his eyes to adjust, Raindrop did his best to shield his eyes from the lights burning down from above. Stepping out into a larger room, Raindrop's jaw dropped. He was in the same room that they had walked over earlier. The ear-piercing sound of the conveyor belts pounding away at large chunks of metal, the burning smell? It was definitely the same room. Scattered gears and pie tins littered the floor around him from the earlier battle. Sneaking through the mess, he noticed that while the machines were still going nobody was manning them. The entire room was empty..
Cookie continued walking through the large room towards a gleaning light reflecting back at him. It was eerie how empty it was. It was almost as if nobody had ever been here, but the ruins of destroyed cogs continued to remind him of the danger that existed. Reaching the blinding light, he kneeled down and shook his head. "Guess I'm going the right way." picking up a small, colorful badge, he pocketed it and followed the way he was going. The sounds of the lines of machines was slowly quieting, a relief from the constant headache. Stopping to sit down, he pulled out a seltzer bottle. Aiming the nozzle in his mouth, he held down the trigger, wetting his parched throat. Aiming around his face, he softly giggled as the light, bubbly water tickled his face. He didn't need anybody else. Tossing the empty bottle aside, he watched as the glass shattered. But what about Raindrop? It wasn't his fault that orange crocodile was a stick in the mud. Maybe he should turn back. But he was already here. They would be fine together. He would go save Mindy, go find the others, and he would be treated like a hero. Smiling at his new plan he stood up. Turning around, he walked smack-dab into a figure.
"This is going to be.. Heavenly..." a deep, intimidating voice cooed out.
Raindrop was amazed at the size of this factory. He wasn't sure if he had already passed this vat? Was this even a vat or was this a giant pot? He wasn't sure anymore. Everything was blending together. This must have been the third time he passed that splatted birthday cake? Rubbing his eyes, he could feel the weight of the atmosphere pushing down on him. They had woken up before dawn this morning to make the six hour drive, and he hadn't eaten. His body felt heavy, but he had to push on. Stopping here was just asking for something bad to happen. Besides, Cookie and Mindy were depending on him. Or so he had thought. Pulling out a cupcake, he took a bite as he scanned the room. In the middle of chewing he let out a muffled scream as a sharp pain penetrated his foot. Hopping up and down, he looked down to see a small shard of glass pertruding from the arch of his foot. Gritting his teeth, he quickly ripped the broken piece and tossed it aside. Feeling the stream of blood gush from his throbbing foot. Looking down, he noticed a red nozzle. Ignoring his pain, he bent over and picked it up, confirming his suspicion. "Did anybody use a seltzer bottle earlier?" as he pondered, a scream ripped out through the nearly empty factory floor. Perking his ears up, he listened as the scream continued. "Cookie!" he could not help himself from screaming out. Hopping over the rest of the shattered bottle, he started to sprint towards the sound throwing caution to the wind.
Romeo's face was a strange mix of anger, sadness, and confusion, yet it showed nothing. Neither duck had said anything as Romeo had watched the video, rewinded it, and watched it again. While he had seen with his on two eyes what happened, his brain couldn't believe it. Sliding the device back to Allen, he turned around in his chair and faced the wall. "Can you give me a minute?" Romeo solemnly whispered. Unable to face even his own brother. Allen nodded slowly and walked out into the kitchen slowly closing the door behind him. Walking over to the station that Romeo had arranged from him, he tried to do some mindless activities to keep his mind off of what he sad seen. His blood was still boiling. How could Rudy do something so cruel? To Romeo no less? It was no stranger to anybody in the kitchen that Berry and Romeo had a... tense relationship. Most days, the two would not even look at each other if they were in at the same time. When they did have to speak, it was usually short and icy. Grabbing a pack of eggs, he began to crack them slowly, splitting them and watching the yolks slide out into a metal mixing bowl. Faster and faster be began to crunch, crack, and crush each egg. Ignoring the bits of shell that were now intertwining with the whites and yolks, he could feel the sliminess oozing from his hands as he was now destroying the eggs in his palms. He could no longer withhold his rage. He needed to something. As much as he loved his brother, Romeo was not the type to confront someone. Wiping his hands on his apron, he tossed aside his hat and made his way out of the kitchen. Silently, the other chefs breathed a sigh of relief as the duck made his way out of the building.
Picking up his whisper device, Romeo began to type. Biting his lip, he erased everything he wrote and placed it down. Spinning in his chair, he patted his legs. How badly he just wanted to scream. To yell. To do something. he wanted an outlet for his anger. But he didn't know where it was or how to handle it. Romeo hated being angry, he felt that it was a waste of time. Yet here he was, bubbling inside with feelings he couldn't express. Grabbing the whisper device again, he began to type. Doubting himself, he soon wiped away the words he had written and pocketed the device again. Was this his fault? Romeo began to doubt himself. He had put too much stress on Rudy's shoulders. Made her run the kitchen basically alone while he was always in the office. Getting angry at her about Allen was probably just the cherry on top. Reaching in, he nabbed his device one last time. "Rudy. I'm really sorry about every.." shaking his head he deleted the message. "Rudy. I know I haven't been as involved.." erasing his thoughts he began to rub his eyes. He was never the confrontational type. He had gotten into a fight once when he was twelve and still felt anxious thinking about it. Standing up he walked over to a coat rack and grabbed his purple sweatshirt and matching beanie. He needed time to gather his thoughts. Quickly and quietly slipping out of the building, he made sure nobody had seen him.
"I hate that stupid cat. Thinking that she can just do whatever she wants. "Look at me, I'm the head chef! I'm so perfect!" Witch." Allen whispered to himself as he made his way down the streets of Joke-Telling Junction, the main street that led to Slapstick Villa, the replacement for Cashbot HQ. The atmosphere was much different than most other playgrounds of Toontown. This one was much more.. uptight. This is where the elite of the elite, or the ones who thought they were elite, tended to live. Here, fads were the norm. Everybody wanted to look the same, act the same, and be the same. It wasn't uncommon for half of the Toons here to be wearing the same exact outfit, usually a yellow shirt with red stripes, jean shorts/skirts, and a bumblebee headset. He certainly stood out here. Allen hated conformity. He felt it was very cog-like. It was a sentiment shared by many outside of the Villa, however they were peasants and didn't understand the truly elite. Reaching an intersection he pulled out his schticker book. He had just been down this way several hours ago and already forgotten the way. About half a block down the street, several Toons were enjoying a conversation on an outdoor patio at "Holly Dunnits Holy Doughnuts." Sighing, he placed his book away. He was lost. He'd need to ask for directions. Jogging across the street he made his way to the patio where a light red dog was talking to a yellow rabbit.
"So Static, the other day I went on the trolley with two toons from TOONTOWN CENTRAL!" the yellow rabbit chortled at the absurdity of his own comment.
Adjusting his monocle, the red dog let out a pretentious laugh. "Ha. I imagine those fools probably kept rolling fours in the racing game?"
Bursting out into laughter, the two were interrupted when an unusual looking duck approached them. "Um, excuse me. Can't you see that we were having a conversation, duck? Could you please, you know, go somewhere else?"
Gritting his teeth, Allen clenched his fists. "Excuse me fellow Toons. I was looking for an estate. I'm pretty sure it is near Pierre's One Import Shop. Could you kindly point me in the right direction?"
"Oh, look Dumb Dumb Dumb Rabbit, it's an outsider." giggling at his own superiority, the dog stood up and began to make mocking sounds. "Hello fellow Toons, I am a dumb dumb and don't know how to use a map. I'm probably from Donald's Dock."
The yellow rabbit lost it at the joke. "My name is Dumb Dumb Dumb, and even I'm not stupid enough to not know how to use a map!" tipping backwards in his chair, this just caused the pair to laugh even harder.
Feeling his beak ready to ignite from friction, Allen took a deep breath. The last thing he needed to do was to get into trouble. He had more important things on his plate right now. "Can you please just show me where to go? I'm in a hurry."
"Aw, okay little ducky, I guess we can help." Static walked over and placed his hand around Allen's shoulder. "Go ahead. Open the map." watching as Allen slowly unfolded his map from his Shticker book, he licked his pointer finger. "So we are here." he exaggeratedly slapped his finger down on the paper. "You are looking for this, right here." hardly inching his finger, he watched as Allen's face turned bright red. "It's right next to us, you idiot!" This was the final straw for Dumb Dumb Dumb Rabbit who could hardly breathe, himself turning red from a lack of oxygen.
Allen could hardly believe what would occur in the next thirty seconds. Bunching his fist, he shook off the dog and swung his fist, easily connecting with the dog's jaw and knocking him flat backwards. Running and hopping over the corridor he grabbed a metal platter from the table and started to slam it against the rabbit who was still on the ground. Coming to his senses he watched as a small crowd of Toons in matching shirts gawked on him. Looking down at the moaning, bleeding bunny he quickly recovered his book and took off running.
"Rudy. It has really been stressful for everybody. But I think we need to talk." Romeo had left the message up on his whisper device. How badly he just wanted to hit send, but his nerves wouldn't let him. He had already ran the scenario through his mind a thousand times as he made his way down the cold, windy docks. Growing up in Donald's Dock, Romeo was quite familiar with the back alleys and side streets. Doing his best to avoid other Toons, he wanted to keep his mind clear. The brisk, clean air had helped to temper his heated brow, but the chills he felt in his stomach and down his spine could not be resolved. As the image of Rudy and Berry had penetrated his mind, it was all he could see. Watching as the robe hit the floor. That kiss. How could she kiss him? She hated Berry. She talked all the time about how he was a jerk, how he was manipulative, how he was always grumpy. Yet there she was, kissing him, and cog knows what else." Shaking his head angrily, he did his best to clear the thought. He didn't want to imagine that. Visualizing it made him physically sick. He had noticed his laff had already decreased significantly. He loved Rudy, but maybe she didn't love him? Finally reaching the beach, he looked around. Not another Toon in sight. Usually the winter cleared out the beaches, as the freezing winds rolled in off the water. Allen loved it though, The gray, overcast skies over the misty blue water was beautiful to him. It had actually been where he had taken Rudy on their first date. Poor Rudy, he thought. She had grown up in Daisy Gardens where it was almost always sunny. So when she had showed up for the date wearing a sun dress and a floppy sun hat, he could not resist teasing her after they showed up. That seemed so long ago now.
Sitting in the sand, Romeo pulled off his shoes and tossed them aside. Burying his feet in the sand, he watched as the grains slowly morphed around his foot, burying them under the soft white of the beach. Stretching his legs out, he watched as his legs were slowly engulfed as well. Leaning backwards, he followed suit with his arms, until half of his body was submerged. Laying silently, he felt the chills as the wind began to pick up. Although his body was starting to become numb, he didn't care. It felt nice to feel something that wasn't anger or sadness. Something outside of his control. Closing his eyes, he let the feeling wash over him like the cold waves of Donald's Dock's chilly waters. From next to him, he could make out the rumbling of his whisper device. Quickly leaping from his sand prison, he reached around desperately until he located his device. "Bro, I'm in trouble. Need you to get to Villa right away. Don't ask questions. I'm at the jailhouse. I get one whisper. Hurry!" Romeo felt the blood flush from his face as he read the message. Dropping his arms to his side, he slowly lost his hand grip, and the device slipped from his hands, softly landing in the sand below.
Bloople could hardly keep his eyes open as his head rested on the couch pillow. Averting his eyes from the TV, he looked over as Miko and Hula were glued to the action on screen. A week had passed since the funeral and he felt that they needed a day in. He had called the girls out sick, much to their excitement, to have a movie day. A plate with several half eaten cinnamon rolls, and mugs of cold hot-chocolate littered the table in front of him. He could feel his legs falling asleep as the young Toons had comfortably made their seats there. Reaching up behind him he grabbed his whisper device and checked his messages again. He had not heard from Pickle in over a week. She did mention that she would not be able to stay in touch, but it was also only supposed to be for a couple of days. Every day had become a slow for him. Unable to focus on work, he had already called out twice. The days he did go in, Clover was usually gone which only reminded him of how empty he felt which only made him feel worse. She had lost her sister. That orange cat had lost his daughter, Yet here he was feeling bad about himself because he hadn't heard back from his sister in a few days? Besides, he had Hula and Miko to keep him company. Opening a new message, he typed in a quick message. "Hey. We're having a movie day if you want to join us. We have stale cinnamon rolls, cold hot chocolate, and two cute Toons who would love to see you. Also one ugly one. Just let me know!" hitting send he watched as the message went through. Opening previous messages, he scrolled back through the last message from Pickle. He had read it numerous times, yet something in his mind kept bugging him to go re-read it. To make sure he had read it correctly or did not misunderstand. Yet reading it again, he was not surprised to see it had not changed.
A soft vibration rung through his hands as a new message came in. Quickly exiting, he went into new messages and chucked softly as he read the response. "Well, dang! With an offer like that, how could I refuse? I have a few small errands I need to take care of, but I should be there in about an hour! FYI, two cute toons, and one tolerable one." This brought him a small amount of relief. Turning back to the TV, he watched as the Bear on screen tried to balance itself on a comically sized ball, before falling off and landing face first in a cream pie. He joined in Miko and Hula's laughter. Time passed as the three were engrossed in the antics on screen. Bloople's attention was broken with a light knock on the door. He quickly caught himself from leaping and catapulting the pair of daughters currently holding him down. Doing his best to wiggle free, he slowly pulled himself over the couch and jogged over to the door. Smiling gently, he placed his hand over his mouth and nose, breathing a few times to check his breath. Adjusting his shirt, he quickly opened the door. In front of him was not a green cat though, it was a black cat and a red duck.
"Good afternoon. We apologize for interrupting your day, but we are looking for a Mr. Bloople?" the duck quietly inquired, clenching his hands together.
Bloople's stomach twisted into a knot as he watched a third Toon enter his view, holding a small Toontown flag. Dropping to his knees, he started to shake. His body had gone numb. He could feel pins pushing into his arms and legs. "No. No. No. No." he repeated, shaking his head.
"I'm sorry, Mr. Bloople." the cat whispered, lowering his head. A pained scream echoed out through the neighborhood as three Toons bent down to console the sobbing dog in front of them. "I'm so sorry."