Hey y'all.

Thanks for the reviews.

Yeah, Vinnie does got some issues.
But I think, living in a war.. well, it's gotta do something to ya, right?
And he's the one who has the most difficulties with expressing how he really feels.

Most of the time, when people are having anger issues, there's a lot of sadness hidden behind it.
But anger is safer than the pain. The pain is devastating.

And Kiwi needs to fall to learn. She need to make mistakes to learn from them.
That's just how she is. Well, guess she learned her lesson in this case.. ;)

Anyway, onto the next chapter. I promise ya, it makes up for the previous chapter ;)
Enjoy. ^^

Chapter fifty three

"Kiwi, I'm sorry, but you can't go home… It's not safe, not anymore...", Throttle said softly, feeling a pang of guilt by hearing her small voice saying these words.
He suddenly wished he could go back to the day they found her. If he had known then how much misery there would be in her future because of them, then he would never have asked for her help. But of course, he couldn't go back. He couldn't turn back time. He couldn't protect her from everything that had happened till now, not anymore.
What he could do, was be there for her now. To make sure things were gonna get better. He would talk to the mice on the base, tell them that it was because of Kiwi they'd found out what Limburger's plan was. That she had saved them, that day on Earth. That she was important. That they should respect her, instead of staring at her as if she was nothing more than just a human body.
She was so much more.
He looked at her. Her bruised and wounded skin in her neck. Bloodstains on her shirt. The deep cut in her lip.
But it was the look in her eyes that broke his heart.
Dammit.
He should've paid more attention to her. To make sure she was okay. But she was everything but okay.
Pain. Loneliness. Regret. Fear.
It was all there. He could sense her distress alone by sitting near her.
"Can you please try to tell us what happened, Kiwi ma'am?", Modo broke the tan furred mouse outta his thoughts.
Throttle could hear the worry in his voice. Along with a hint of suppressed anger.
No surprise there. If there was one thing that could fire Modo's rage, it was treating women disrespectful.
Kiwi took a few deep breaths.
"He was upset. Because of what Stoker had said to him. I pushed him too far. He tried to create distance, he told me he couldn't do it, that he was too upset… It wasn't the first time he said that. I suddenly wanted him to lose control… God, I don't even know why I wanted that. But I did... "
Her voice was almost toneless. She fiddled with her fingers, her eyes lowered. A faint blush was visible on her face. This was definitely something she didn't want to talk about. Not with them.
Throttle couldn't blame her. But he was glad she did. This wasn't something she needed to carry alone.
No need to suffer in silence.
"He snapped. He literally snapped. It was like he was there, but at the same time, he wasn't. Soon, things got a little… eh… rough, a thing I usually don't have a problem with…", she trailed off, her cheeks burning now.
But Modo lay his metal hand on her knee.
"It's nothing to be ashamed of, Kiwi ma'am. We would never judge you…"
"No, but you'll judge Vinnie… That's almost the same, ya know. That feels like you're judging me too…", Kiwi answered while laying her hand on his for a moment.
"We don't judge. That's just something we ain't do. But you've gotta admit, this… this ain't right…"
Kiwi sighed.
"It wasn't just him, okay? We were both wrong. He never did all this…", and she gestured to her body. "...because he wanted to hurt me. He wasn't even aware of what he was doing. After, it was like he woke up. As if he'd been asleep the whole time…"
"And you didn't ask him to stop?", Throttle asked.
He had to know exactly what had happened. If Vinnie had crossed a certain line, that meant there would be consequences.
"No, I didn't. I somehow was scared that if I did ask him, he wouldn't listen…"
Throttle rubbed his chin. Kiwi noticed the look on his face. His 'leader' look.
No…
"Throttle, please, don't be too hard on him, he already told me he was sorry, that it wasn't supposed to happen, he left the room very upset about this whole thing… It was a mistake. From both sides…"
"He could've killed ya…", Modo said softly, but Kiwi shook her head firmly.
"No. He would never do that. Not even when… No. Our love is too strong. He's just… a very complicated guy…"
"Oh momma, that's a understatement", the gray furred giant puffed, leaning back in his chair.
"Throttle, please…", Kiwi pleaded and the tan furred mouse sighed.
"Okay, okay. I won't hit him the next time I see him. But I will talk to him."
"Guess that's fair enough…"

Vinnie parked his bike in the garage.
He was lucky the guards let him back inside, since he'd almost blown up the frontgate when he left. They weren't amused.
Hehe. Even he couldn't really blame them.
He looked at himself in the mouse shaped mirror on his bike and let out his breath. Time to face the music… Ugh.
Honestly, he could drive into the biggest battles without thinking, without feeling any sort of fear. But walking into that base, knowing he had to face Kiwi after what he had done, well… that was a whole different story.
So, time to get this over with.
The white furred mouse jumped off his bike and marched inside, determined to set things straight.
But suddenly…
"Hey, Vinnie! Wait up!"
Ah man… not her again…
He didn't stop, he didn't even turn around, but Lola caught up with him and grabbed his arm.
"Hey you, didn't you hear me?", she asked, a little outta breath after her sprint to catch up with him.
Vinnie yanked himself free and wanted to continue his path, but Lola blocked his way. Vinnie bit his lower lip in annoyance and fighted the urge to just push her away. That would be harsh, even for him. She was, after all, a female. So, he tried to keep his calm.
"Can ya please get outta my way, doll? I'm kinda in a hurry…"
Lola waved her eyelashes at him, apparently a whole lot more self assured than the last time he saw her.
"Have you thought about that drink yet?", she asked.
"Ehhh… nope. Now, please, get outta my way…", and Vinnie tried to walk past her, but again, she blocked his way.
"How about now?"
"How about never?", Vinnie blurted out.
The almost black furred female lay her finger on his chest, clearly not impressed by his, not that subtle, rejection.
"I can't stop thinking about that night… It was so… intense… I'm sure you remember...", and her finger slowly slid down.
Vinnie felt a shiver going through his body and he grabbed her hand.
"As a matter of fact, I don't. Now, lemme tell ya this, sweetheart; this mouse is off the market. So, get outta my way or I…"
"Yeah, so I've heard", she cut him off, her eyes fuming all of a sudden.
"You're with that human… Honestly, as if that pathetic fragile little girl can give ya what you need… Aren't you scared you break her in half? Because I know you… And you don't play soft… ", and she winked at him.
Vinnie blinked a few times. Could you believe this girl? Dammit, she was wasting his time. Time to end this.
"Well, at least I remember every night I had with her, so ehm… yeah, guess that puts her into the lead…"
Now it was Lola's time to blink and Vinnie's lips curled into a arrogant smirk, he just couldn't help it.
"Don't worry, doll, I'm used at leaving girls speechless behind, especially when they had a taste of this great body. It's nothing personal, babe, and you're sure as hell ain't the first. Or the last, but hey, details. Later!"
The look on her face was priceless. Good. Message received. She will never bother him again, that's for sure.
He continued his path, his smile already fading again. Right. Trouble in paradise. Ugh.
Time to fix this. This whole thing just made him feel insecure. And if there was one thing he hated, next to cheese and being ignored, was to feel insecure.
So, time to get this show on the road.

When he walked around a corner, closeby the Main Hall, he suddenly saw Throttle walking straight towards him.
Ah man.
Obstacle number two.
Honestly, if this continued, he would be glad if he could talk to Kiwi before the sun rose.
"Vincent. Just the mouse I was looking for..."
Throttle's voice was low. Almost cold.
Oh boy.
"Hey there, fearless leader", Vinnie cheered, pretending he didn't hear it. "Have you seen Ki…", but Throttle cut him off.
"Talk. Now."
He pushed the white furred mouse into a empty room close by and closed the door.
Then, he slowly turned around and looked at his younger bro, who was looking very uncomfortable.
Good.
"I promised Kiwi not to hit you, but seeing your smugly face makes it very hard to keep that promise…", he growled.
He hated this. Even if he was mad at his bro, he hated this part of being the leader. To be so stern. But it was his job to keep Vinnie in line. And sometimes, that required a little bit more effort than just small warnings. But that didn't mean he liked it.
Yeah well... the perks of being a leader, right?
Vinnie shuffled with his feet, his ears drooped.
"So, guess she told ya, huh?"
"Oh yeah, she told me, alright. Jesus, Vin, what were ya thinking? To let yourself go like that… You could've killed her!"
Vinnie's head jerked up.
"I would never…", but Throttle held up his hand.
"You also told me you would never do anything to hurt her. And yet, here we are. You promised me, Vincent."
Vinnie said nothing, but stared angrily at the floor.
"Remember, that day on Earth? You told me…", but Vinnie cut him off.
"Yeah, I remember, Throttle. There's nothing wrong with my memory, for fuck sake. It wasn't supposed to happen. You really thought I would do such a thing on purpose? I can hardly remember! Jesus, I lost it, okay? And there's no need to yell at me, to tell me it was wrong, because no one else can blame me more than I already blame myself!"
Throttle crossed his arms in front of his chest, letting out his breath. The look on Vinnie's face said it all. The guilt practically dripped off of it.
But still…
"You were upset. You know you have the tendency of doing stupid things when you're upset. So why go to her, instead of, I dunno, do whatever helps ya to make you feel better?!"
"Like you said, bro, I do stupid things when I'm upset…", Vinnie muttered under his breath. But then, he looked up at his bro, his chin in the air and a challenging look on his face. Throttle sighed. Here we go...
"Did you gave Stoker the same scolding? Because his actions caused this whole domino effect of disasters in the first place…"
"Really, Vincent? How old are you, twelve? You need to stop pointing fingers at others when it's obvious you're the one who is… has fucked up."
Shit.
That was a stupid slip.
Very stupid.
Vinnie's eyes flickered with anger and pain and Throttle raised his hands in front of his body.
"I'm sorry, Vin, that came out wrong… That's not what I wanted to say…"
"No, maybe you're right, bro. Maybe I am fucked up…"
Vinnie leaned against the wall and slid down, his ears drooped in defeat.
Throttle sat down next to him, his anger already gone.
"I guess we're all a little fucked up, Vinnie. This war… You've been through a lot. It's not weird you're having problems. It also doesn't make ya less of a man. Look at Stoker. The guy is almost famous on Mars, leading a resistance as big as an army, but he's a broken mouse at the same time. We all have our demons, Vinnie, trust me."
"Even you?", Vinnie asked with a muted voice, his head in his hands.
"Even me. I guess I'm just lucky I inherited the calm personality of my father. You, on the other hand… Lemme guess, your mother?"
Vinnie chuckled softly.
"Yeah…"
"You need to learn to open up more, Vin. If you just keep everything inside, you'll explode. Tonight is the prove of that. And it ain't fair Kiwi paid the price, even if she pushed you. I know that's not what you want for her…"
Vinnie sniffed, still hiding his head in his hands.
Throttle gave him the time he needed to grab himself together.
"I love her. I love her so much. And I'm scared to lose her, to let her down. It's just frustrating, ya know? When will this whole thing stop haunting me?", the white furred mouse eventually said, his voice a little hoarse.
Harley.
Throttle closed his eyes for a moment. The poor guy was still blaming himself, even after all these years… What a burden to carry with you.
Heavy. Destroying. Poisoning.
"It will stop haunting you from the moment you accept the whole thing wasn't your fault…"
"But it was… You've heard Stoker. I was there, and I did nothing. I just… I just let her outta my sight for one second, so stupid…"
"Stoker said these things outta pain, that doesn't make it the truth, ya know? Look, I can tell you a thousand times it wasn't your fault, but I know you won't believe me. You need to make peace with it, bro. And that's something only you can."
"But how?"
"By accepting things the way they are…"
Throttle suddenly realized this was the first time he had a serious conversation with Vinnie. This was the first time the white furred mouse kinda opened up to him. It made him almost burst with pride. Not because he was proud of himself, no, he was proud of his little bro.
"That's sounds awfully simple…", Vinnie said softly.
Throttle chuckled.
"It does. It is that simple, actually. But very hard at the same time."
"Life…", Vinnie sighed.
"... it definitely ain't no straight road", Throttle finished with a small smile.
Vinnie looked up and gave his older bro a small, but sad smile.
"Finishing each other sentences, huh? We're kinda good in that."
"That's because we're family, bro," and Throttle threw his arm over Vinnie's head and put him in a headlock while rubbing his head with his knuckles.
"Hey, easy on the antanne's!", Vinnie squeaked, trying to get loose.
Throttle laughed and let him go.
"Oh, by the way, I've found the answers we were looking for, bro", Vinnie said while rubbing his sore head.
"Oh, is that so?", Throttle asked with an amused look on his face.
"Yeah, I ran into some of Limburger's new goonie goons when I was out clearing my head. That oil stain was there too, so I asked him a couple of questions. Polity of course... "
"Of course."
"Plutark was about to find out about the failed missions on Earth, so the big cheese arranged a trip back to Mars, using Chaz to make it look like it was because we were discovered. To save his own sorry ass. He blew up his chance on Earth, used us as an excuse for his sudden leaving and he made sure he closed the door behind him. Everybody down there now knows they ain't the only ones in this universum. But hey, guess that makes Earth save again."
Throttle rubbed his chin.
"It actually makes sense, ya know?"
"Well, yeah! That's what I thought too."
"So that means; liver lips is still a treat, probably already planning his next move… We've gotta keep our eyes and ears open, bro."
"Don't we always? But really, save the thanks and the compliments, bro... ", Vinnie said casually, studying his fingernails with a arrogant smirk on his face.
Throttle shrugged.
"Fine by me. If you insist", and he rose on his feet.
Vinnie looked somehow disappointed and the tan furred mouse chuckled.
"Good job, Vincent."
Vinnie's face lit up.
"You expected less? Pfuh."
"Okay, enough, alright. It's time you and Stoker talk, to come to an agreement about this whole situation."
Vinnie's face darkened.
"But I wanna see Kiwi…", he pouted.
"Later. Business before pleasure, Vincent."
"Ugh, I hate that mantra of yours."
"Only because I'm right."
" Yeah, yeah…"

Modo was cleaning Kiwi's wounds in her neck. Luckily, after wiping away the blood, it didn't actually looked that bad. But still…
He had a hard time to keep his calm. He knew Vinnie was a complicated mouse. He knew the guy had suffered a lot from the war, probably the most of the three of them. He also was the one who had the hardest time in processing it all. And Modo respected that. Accepted that. He accepted the white furred mouse as he was; impulsive, arrogant, a thrillseeker, one hell of a flirt and a hothead. Because he was also so much more; loyal, caring, sweet and a good soldier.
But this.
This went against everything Modo was. Against everything he'd learned.
'You treat ladies with the respect they deserve, you hear me, Modo Maverick? Even if you think they don't deserve it.'
His momma's voice echoed in his head. He shook his head in annoyance and focussed on his task again.
Kiwi, now a lot calmer, felt his disapproval. It wasn't that hard, considering his body almost radiated it.
"Modo, you can calm down now", she said softly.
Modo stopped with what he was doing and looked her in the eye.
"I'm trying very hard, Kiwi ma'am. But I keep hearing the voice of my old gray furred momma in my head. I just have a hard time understanding why he did this to ya…"
"Because he loves me", Kiwi simply explained.
"With all due respect, but this ain't something you do to someone you love..."
Kiwi smiled and lay her hands against Modo's cheeks.
"I know this doesn't make sense. But I need you to trust me on this one, okay, big fella? You think ya can do that?"
Modo studied her face, he could see the determination in her eyes and he let out his breath.
"Yeah. Okay. I will. Trust ya."
Kiwi planted a soft kiss on his forehead before letting him go.
"Thanks, big guy. That means a lot."
"Hey, is everything okay here?"
Modo and Kiwi both looked up and saw Amira walk inside.
"Yeah, it is", Kiwi answered.
The honey colored mouse stopped next to them and she narrowed her eyes when she saw the bruises and the small wounds.
"Ya sure about that? That doesn't look fine… What the hell happened?"
"It's nothing", Kiwi quickly said and she slid off the bed.
"I'm gonna go to my room now, I need some time alone. Thanks, Modo. Amira", and she nodded to the female mouse before leaving the room.
Amira watched her leave and then gave Modo a confused look.
"She really is okay? I mean, after fainting in front of the whole base… And what about those…", but Modo gently cut her off.
"Amira ma'am, trust me when I say she's okay. The stress just became too much, all she need is some time."
"Okay…"
Amira knew there was more to it, but decided to let it go for now. It was obvious this was something between them.
She suddenly realized she was alone in one room with Modo, the big, gray furred giant that was so nice and polite. The complete opposite of what he looked like. Huge and muscular. Add the metal arm and the eyepatch and you had the perfect picture of a badass looking mouse.
But he had such a small heart. When she saw how he had treated the Martian Squirrelbat, that day she was on Earth, she immediately fell in love with him. I mean, guys like him were rare. Most of the soldiers on this base were arrogant, flirtatious and manners was something they had never heard from before in their life.
"You okay, Amira ma'am?", Modo asked polite after clearing his throat.
"Oh! Yeah, I was just zoomed out for a moment. So ehm… You've got something to do right now?", she blurted out.
Oh. That wasn't supposed to come out.
But Modo gave her a shy smile.
"I've got some time. What do you have in mind?"
"Let's grab a drink in the Main Hall."
"I'd love to", Modo smiled and offered her his arm. She hooked her arm into his and they left the room, Amira with her heart pounding in her chest.
Oh dear… She could only hope this was gonna go well.

Throttle was tapping with his fingers on the table, looking from Vinnie to Stoker and back.
The white furred mouse was staring angrily at a spot on the table, his ears flat and his arms crossed before his chest.
Stoker was deep in thoughts, probably searching for the right words. Throttle waited patiently. He was only here to keep Vinnie in line, not that Stoker couldn't handle that, but this was a touchy subject for both of them. So, it was up to him to make sure this was gonna go smooth, preferably without explosions.
After a while, Stoker took a deep breath.
"Listen, punk, I owe ya an apology. I had no idea you two were that serieus, if I had known, I would never have made a move. I thought she was just a fling…"
Vinnie snorted.
"That's your excuse for hitting on my girl?"
"I guess it is…"
"Now that's just pathetic", Vinnie muttered under his breath.
Another silence.
After choosing his next words carefully, Stoker continued.
"I also should never have said these things about… ya know… My emotions took over."
"So, does that mean you meant every word you said?", Vinnie asked, not even that unfriendly. It sounded more like he was scared to hear the answer.
Stoker thought about that. And the old man took his time, making Vinnie wiggle in his seat impatiently, feeling very uncomfortable. But he fighted the urge to run away. He knew Throttle would stop him. And he knew he had no other choice but to listen. So, he remained right where he was.
Finally, Stoker put him outta his misery.
"No. I didn't mean it. I thought I did, but I didn't. It wasn't your fault. If we want someone to blame, it should be Mace. I know that if there was something you could do, you would've done it."
Vinnie visibly relaxed. Even if he didn't appreciate it that the old man went after his girl behind his back, it was still Stoker. His mentor. He respected him. He needed his approval, his respect, just as much as he needed it from Throttle.
"I eh… I shouldn't have pushed ya… I guess…", he stumbled.
"No, you shouldn't. But I kinda deserved it…", Stoker chuckled. "Guess we both need to find peace about what happened. We both lost her. We should support each other instead of fighting over girls. Dammit, I'm way too old to fight over girls…"
"I'm not... ", and Vinnie smirked arrogant. "But I guess you're right…"
"So, punk... ", but Stoker stopped and then smiled. "Vincent…"
"Vinnie", the white furred mouse corrected him softly.
"Vinnie. Are we good?"
"Yeah. We're good."
The white and brown furred mouse fist bumped.
"So, time to focus on our main goal, namely; a certain stinking salmon. Throttle told me something about you finding out the last answers we were looking for?", but Vinnie jumped at his feet.
"As much as I'd love to stay and talk about strategy, I'm gonna leave that to you,guys. It never was my thing anyway. I rather dive in. Besides, I really need to talk to Kiwi, so, later!" and he was gone before Stoker and Throttle could even blink.
They shared a look and smiled. Crazy mouse.

Kiwi was lying in bed, covered with three blankets, but dammit, it was cold.
Man, the things she would do for a warm bath right now…
She looked up when the door opened and her heart made a jump.
Finally.
She slid outta the bed, ran towards him and jumped in his arms.
"I'm so glad you're back", she whispered, holding him tightly.
Vinnie, at first surprised about this warm welcome, soon wrapped his arms around her.
"Damn, sweetheart, you're freezing. We need to find ya some more blankets."
He gently lifted her and after laying her down on the bed, he quickly took place next to her and threw the blankets over both of them. He then wrapped his arm around her and pulled her against him.
She crawled against his warm body, letting out a satisfied smile.
Home.
His fingers brushed over the wounds in her neck.
"I don't know what to say, doll. I'm sorry. I really am", he said softly.
"We've been here before. We were both wrong. Can we stop talking about it? I'm just so happy you're here…"
Vinnie said nothing. He wanted to make things right, so badly. But he had no idea how. She wasn't even mad at him. That's crazy. She must love him very much…
She did. He knew she did. He did too…
That's it! He suddenly knew how to make things right.
By taking the final step.
To let her know that she was everything to him.
To let her know that he would do everything for her.
And with everything, he meant… everything.
He rolled on his side and looked down on her, a small smile around his lips.
She looked up at him, a curious look on her face.
"What? Why are you smiling like that? That usual means you're up to something…"
"You know me too well…", he mumbled, while tucking her hair behind her ears.
He gently took his stud outta her left ear and switched it with the one in her right ear.
When she started to understand what he was doing, her eyes grew big and she almost jerked upright, but Vinnie gently stopped her.
"Listen, sweetheart. I know I told ya I ain't that much of a wedding type, but I feel this sudden urge to… to make things official. I love ya. So, so much. And... this is the last time, I swear… I'm so sorry about what happened. But my love for you is so overwhelming sometimes and I'm so, so fucking scared of losing ya. And because of that, I intend to do stupid things. But nothing, absolutely nothing, is gonna change the fact that I love you. I know I have a weird way of expressing that sometimes, but trust me when I say you're the one for me. So, ehm… Kiwi Lavendor… Will you marry me?"
Tears escaped through her lashes while wrapping her arms around his neck and she threw herself on top of him, hugging him tightly.
"Ehm… sweetheart? You do know that you're supposed to say something back now, right?", Vinnie asked, a nervous tone in his voice.
She looked him in the eye, into his mesmerizing ruby, red eyes and a big grin almost split her face in half.
"Oh, right", she chuckled a little sheepishly. She cleared her throat. "Yes. Yes, I wanna marry you, you crazy mouse!", and she kissed him.
He kissed her back, very gently to avoid the cut in her lip would split open again.
Maybe...
Maybe things were gonna be okay eventually. In the end.
Maybe...

Throttle lay down next to Carbine, letting out a heavily sigh. The light gray furred female rolled on her side to look at him.
"You okay?
"Yeah, it was just one of those days…"
"Everything back under control now, Commander Throttle?", Carbine asked with a teasing smile.
After Kiwi fainted, she had asked what was wrong. But soon after, she had decided to stay out of it. Throttle was glad she did. If she had heard what happened between Kiwi and Vinnie, she would've exploded. She probably would've yelled she was right all along and that she wanted Vinnie gone. He actually couldn't blame her. I mean, it wasn't really like she knew him. Like, really knew him. She'd never really succeeded to look past the ego. But Throttle knew the white furred mouse was so much more. Complicated, yes… but more.
"Yeah, the kids made up, peace has restored… Well, as far that's possible with those stinkfaces out there..."
"Any news on Limburger?"
Throttle told her what Vinnie had discovered.
"So, catching him again ain't gonna be easy, right? I mean, took you guys long enough to finally bring him here. And the only reason that worked out, was because he, apparently, planned it himself…"
Throttle glanced at her.
"You know, you really make it sound like we were just hanging around on Earth, babe. The guy is slippery, alright. He's a fish."
Carbine smiled.
"I know. We'll catch him. One day…"
"Yeah, you bet we will. And if we do, no more prison cells. No more wasting time. No more risks."
"Well, yeah, but… what exactly are we gonna do with him when we catch him?", Carbine suddenly asked, a thoughtful frown on her face.
"Guess that's up to Stoker…", Throttle answered.
"Guess it is… "
"How was your day?"
"Oh you know… a lot of paperwork, making sure everything on this base runs smoothly… Oh, and Jax came to talk to me. Kiwi had told him I knew the whole story about Rose now, and advised him to talk to me. To get some peace…"
"And, did that work?"
"It kinda did. But it's still his sister who died way too young in a horrible way, so it's still a bitter pill to swallow."
"It sure is…"
Throttle yawned and took off his glasses.
"I'm done for today… Come here, you", and he pulled her close to him.
Their tails entwined and Throttle let out a satisfied sigh.
"Either way, I'm so glad we're back. To have you in my arms again…"
"Me too, stranger, me too."
"Sweet dreams", he whispered in her ear and she smiled, her eyes closed.
"When you're in one of them, always…"

A few days past. Kiwi had taken some time off, to take the time to adjust and to rest. Stoker insisted she would, so she did. Without complaining. Because she knew she needed some time to get things back on track. Her body needed time to adjust to another climate, her mind needed time to adjust to this whole other culture, although there were many similarities with how they did things on Earth. But still.
She and Vinnie had decided to keep their 'engagement" a secret for now. They both wanted to get used by the idea themselves, and to be in such a 'conspiracy' together was great for the bonding. They both loved to make small comments that somehow had something to do with marriage, but no one really picked up the hint, and they both found it hilarious.
Vinnie had told her it was up to her. Whenever she was ready to share, he was too.
But at this very moment, the white furred mouse wasn't thinking about all this. They were sitting in the Main Hall for lunch. Amira had joined them and Vinnie noticed something was going on between Modo and the honey coloured biologist. So, after he was done eating, what took him like, five seconds, he folded his hands under his chin and was now looking from Modo to Amira and back with a amused look on his face, his ruby red eyes twinkling.
Oh yeah, the signs were definitely there. They were obviously trying to make it look like they were 'just' talking, but Vinnie knew better.
He knew Modo, to start with. His older bro. The biggest and strongest of the three of them. The one with the most insidious appearance, since the guy looked like he was gonna eat ya by only saying 'boo' to him, but he was the most sensitive and gentle guy Vinnie knew. He admired that, sometimes. I mean, the guy obviously had no trouble with expressing his emotions. And it certainly didn't make him less of a man. I mean, if there was one thing you wanted to avoid in your life was that running into Modo on a battlefield.
But the big hulk was now talking with Amira with a faint blush on his cheeks, looking all uncomfortable. It was different than with Ruby, he was obviously being a lot more cautious now. But Vinnie could already see that the honey coloured biologist was starting to grow on him.
Good. He deserved to be happy. He'd mourned long enough about the devastating loss of the love of his life. Time to move on. And not that Vinnie knew Amira that well, he had the feeling the female mouse was a way better match with Modo than Ruby ever was or ever would be.

Modo suddenly looked Vinnie straight in the eye and his blush became even bigger when he realized the white furred mouse was watching him. His eye narrowed a little, clearly annoyed because his younger bro sometimes did have his moments that the world wasn't only about himself. And he saw in the mischievous twinkling red eyes, this was one of those moments.
Vinnie winked at him and turned his gaze away, a small smile curling his lips.
Modo sighed, but focussed his attention back on Amira, knowing there was nothing he could do or say right now.
Suddenly, Jax popped up next to their table, a worried look on his normally happy face.
"Carbine, Throttle, can we talk for a moment?", he asked.
He then saw Kiwi and gave her a smile.
"Hey Kiwi."
"Hey Jax", Kiwi greeted him back, giving him a warm smile back.
Vinnie studied the silver furred mouse, he somehow looked familiar…
Oh.
Rose.
This was her brother.
Awkward…
Jax clearly avoided to look at Vinnie and the white furred mouse was fine with that. No need to make this more awkward than it already was.
"Sure", and Carbine rose on her feet, so did Throttle.
"Stoker, I think you wanna hear this too."
The brown furred mouse nodded and followed Carbine, Throttle and Jax outside the Main Hall.
"Wonder where that's all about…", Kiwi mused, following them with her eyes.
"Probably nothing, I mean, I'm just waiting for something to happen before I'll fade away, but it seems the God's aren't with me in this one…", Vinnie sighed, trying very hard not to have hope that maybe, just maybe, there was something going on that needed their, or better said, his skills.
He was bored, alright. After his fight with the rats and Greasepit, he was stuck on this base, not allowed to go out alone anymore.
Because, quote; it was too dangerous.
Pfuh, come on!
Things only became dangerous if they would unleash him. He had enough frustrations inside of him, a result of all the drama, that he could deal with a whole army of rats all by himself.
But orders are orders.
He knew that. If it had been Carbine who'd gave the order, he wouldn't have cared that much. He probably would even disobey the order.
But it was Throttle who told him to keep a low profile for now. To lay low. To wait until Limburger was gonna make a move.
Ugh. He couldn't disobey Throttle. Not him. He respected him too much.
Man… Boooooooooooooooooring…
Oh, if only he knew...

"Are you sure about this?", Carbine asked urgent, grabbing Jax by his arm.
"Well, yeah… the video ain't lying, Carbine…"
Stoker rubbed his chin.
"Why don't ya show us the video, kid?"
Once in Braavos, Jax sat down and after typing a few things, a video appeared on one of the screens. It was recorded by one of the security cameras from the new Limburger Tower. Kiwi had hacked into the system, right before that awful night. A good thing too, because when they saw what was happening on that screen, Stoker and Carbine breathed in sharply.
"Is that…", Carbine started.
"She's white, it's gotta be someone he knows…", Stoker mumbled.
They both looked at Throttle, who was staring at the screen with his mouth open.
"Can you zoom in?", he eventually asked at Jax and the silver furred mouse did what he asked.
"Stop! Right there…", and Throttle leaned forward.
Gone was the doubt.
It was obvious.
Weird, unexpected, but obvious.
"You know her?", Carbine asked.
Throttle kept staring at the screen.
"No. Well, not really. I only found out about her recently... "
"Who is she?", Stoker asked.
"That, coach, is Vinnie's sister..."

Oh my, another cliffhanger.

Definitely a tense one, too.
Thought we could use that after so much cuteness in this chapter.

Feel free to leave a review, I would very much appreciate it.
Thanks for reading my story and till next time, you guys!

Later!