A/N: I was hoping you guys would like that twist I put in the last chapter! That memory problem is something I want to touch on again in Finding Dory if I decide to do that adaptation.
I love how the polls are coming along! I will check the final tallies at the end of this story and announce the winner and follow-up on the final chapter. So keep voting! I love doing these adaptations. As much as I want to write what everyone wants to see, I have to be really motivated and really love the movie. That's why I want your help. I can't decide from the movies I love.
Miraculous Dragon Master – I have plenty more adaptations if you want to see them!
Jpbake – That scene is coming up! I hope you enjoy it.
Chapter Twelve – Cat Chase
Morning sunlight streamed through the window of Sr. and Jr. Pet Shop, making for a lovely alarm clock to wake up the Tank Trolls. If they hadn't been so comfortable, they would've been awake long before the sun rose. Since the tank had gotten cooler, the trolls had to sleep all huddled together on top of the heating pad Gristle Jr. left in the tank.
Suki moaned a little. "Guy, scoot over. It's too hot for you to be sleeping so close to me."
"Yeah, yeah." Guy Diamond yawned, scooting away from Suki.
Everyone's eyes flew open. They shouted in surprise as they scrambled away from each other. They were all a little sweaty from sleeping so close to each other. They were so sweaty because the tank was suddenly warm again.
"Wait, what?" Guy Diamond gawked.
"What happened?" Satin asked.
"Why is it so warm in here?" Chenille asked. "Gris couldn't have installed the heater already."
Branch did a quick look-around to investigate, and he groaned. "That's why." He pointed up, and everyone saw a heat lamp installed above the tank. "Gris must've put it in last night, while we were sleeping, just to hold us over until we get the new heater."
"Aw, how considerate of him." Biggie said.
"Yeah, real considerate." Smidge grumbled. "Except now the escape plan is ruined!"
"What are we going to do when Chef gets here?" Creek asked, looking to Branch. In fact, everyone stared at Branch questioningly.
"We'll figure something out." Branch said. "For now, Poppy, go hide somewhere." Poppy nodded in understanding and hobbled away. "Okay, we can still work through this. We just need to find a way to get out before Chef gets here with Bridget."
"Well, we can't hide Poppy forever." Creek said. "Chef is going to throw a fit."
Fuzzbert garbled. "Fuzzbert's right, maybe she won't." Smidge translated. "If one of us went with Bridget instead—"
"Absolutely not!" Branch snapped. "As long as you live under the same roof as Chef, you're bound to get hurt." He rubbed his scarred arm. "No. No, we'll figure out something else. Let's just stay calm."
"Branch!" Poppy suddenly screamed.
Branch spun around just in time to see Gristle Sr. pluck Poppy and her crutches from the tank. "Poppy! No!" But he couldn't run over in time, and Gristle Sr. shut the lid of the tank before any of the trolls inside could follow. Gristle Sr. placed Poppy in a small cage, setting it on the counter to await Chef and Bridget.
"Do we have to give up Pinkie?" Gristle Jr. asked his father. "We just got her. I promised I'd take care of her."
"Do you trust Bridget to take care of her, too?" Gristle Sr. asked.
"Definitely." Gristle Jr. nodded.
"Then you shouldn't have to worry about anything." Gristle Sr. said. "Besides, I think Pinkie will like being a pet to a girl. I hear Bridget knows how to sew dresses. They'll have tea parties and play dress-up and do all those girly things." Gristle Sr. sighed as he unlocked the shop door and flipped the sign over to "Open." "Son, I will never again trust Chef with another creature's life. Too many have died because of her. But I've known Bridget for a long time because her parents are good friends. She's a sweet young lady who deserves a true friend and should not be refused a gift."
Gristle Jr. nodded again in agreement. "Okay. I think so, too. Pinkie will be safe with her."
While they talked, they didn't realize Poppy was still freaking out a little. "Branch!" she called, futilely kicking at the bars of the cage. "Branch, help me!"
"Just calm down, Poppy!" Branch said. "Everything's going to be fine."
"Get me out of here!" Poppy begged.
"I will!" Branch only thought about how to calm Poppy so he could figure out her escape. "I'll figure something out, Poppy, I promise. We just have to—"
The door suddenly swung open, slamming against the wall.
The Tank Trolls gasped.
"CHEF!"
Even with two trolls paddling, it took an hour for Peppy and Rosiepuff to get to the other side of the lake and crawl onto dry land. After taking a few minutes to wring out their clothes as best they could, they headed into Bergen Town and began their search. They hitched a ride on a carriage to reach some stables, where they talked to every horse, moose, and cow there. Nobody knew of any bergens going to the meadow. In fact, all the steeds in these stables were strictly used for carriage taxis and rickshaws in Bergen Town. But one of them did know Glitter Avenue. Unfortunately, the directions he gave the trolls were so confusing that they got lost again. Still, they didn't give up, and they started asking any moose they passed as they searched Bergen Town.
So excited to finally reach their destination, Peppy and Rosiepuff forgot to sleep. When morning arrived over Bergen Town, they were still determined but also very tired.
"Sorry, haven't heard of any other trolls brought in from the forest." The moose shook his head as his rider flicked his reins. "Good luck, though!"
"Thanks anyway." Peppy said. He and Rosiepuff sat in a small tree on the sidewalk, where they could talk to moose as they pulled their taxis up to the curb. But they had talked with ten moose already, and none of them could help.
"Maybe we should try somewhere else." Rosiepuff suggested.
"Yes, maybe." Peppy looked down as another taxi pulled up. He lowered himself down to the moose. "Excuse me? Sorry to bother you, but do you know where Gristle Sr., 114 Glitter Avenue is?"
"Don't know any Gristle Sr." The moose said. "But I do know Glitter Avenue. Go down this road and take your third left."
"Thank you!" Peppy returned to Rosiepuff and led her down the street. The two trolls stayed hidden as best they could. At one point, they ducked into an alleyway to catch their breath.
"Are we there yet?" Rosiepuff yawned and rubbed her sleepy eyes.
"Almost. One more corner to go." Peppy felt something lean on him, and he realized Rosiepuff used his shoulder for a pillow. He lightly patted her face to wake her up. "Come on, Rosiepuff. I know you're tired and we haven't slept all night, but we have to keep going."
"No, no!" Rosiepuff yawned again. "No problem. I once went three days without sleeping while searching for Branch." She smiled, but her eyes betrayed her exhaustion.
Peppy sighed. "Well, maybe it wouldn't hurt to take a quick nap." He walked further into the alleyway. "Or maybe we could even cut across these buildings and get there faster. What do you think?" Peppy turned to Rosiepuff again, only she had fallen asleep once more. "Rose!"
"I'm up!" Rosiepuff shook her head. "I'm good. I'm—" She gasped, staring above Peppy's head with wide eyes.
"There's something big behind me, isn't there?" Peppy groaned. Rosiepuff nodded vigorously. Peppy almost didn't want to look. Slowly, he turned around…
…and came nose-to-nose with an alley cat.
"RAOW!" The cat yowled.
"AAAAAHHHHH!" the trolls shouted. They turned and ran as fast as they could. The cat chased them, right between the legs of bergens passing by and into the street. Bergens shouted in surprise, and a couple tripped from the cat. A bicyclist swerved to avoid the trolls and crashed into a tree. Taxis, carriages, and bergens riding other animals skidded to a stop to avoid the trolls and the alley cat. The alley cat had to stop to avoid being trampled while Peppy and Rosiepuff managed to scurry up another tree. They panted heavily.
"You…okay?" Peppy asked.
"Fine." Rosiepuff said. "I'm awake, now."
"Good." Peppy said. "We're good. It's all okay. Let's just go find Poppy and—"
"Did you say 'Poppy?'"
The trolls spun around to see a wingdingle behind them. The bird smiled. "You're Poppy's dad! I knew it! Boy, was that a great show you put on out in the street. My name's Randy, and—" Randy paused when he realized the trolls had disappeared while he wasn't looking, and he saw them running down the street. "Hey, wait a minute!"
"Keep running, Rosiepuff!" Peppy urged.
"Don't worry, I'm running!" Rosiepuff assured. They darted into another alleyway, but Randy stayed right behind them.
Randy flew ahead and landed in their path. When the trolls turned to run the other way, Randy hopped over them and stopped them again. "Would you just wait a minute? I have something to tell you!"
"You better back off, bird brain, or else!" Peppy threatened, holding up his cane for protection.
A low meow sounded from above, causing the three of them to freeze. Slowly, the trolls and the wingdingle looked up, and they saw alley cats all around them. They were perched on garbage cans and fire escapes, and even on clotheslines stretched between the buildings. They all eyed the two trolls hungrily.
"Okay, don't make any sudden movements or loud noises." Randy whispered. "Just hop on my back if you want to live."
"How exactly is trusting a wingdingle—who eats trolls—going to help us?" Peppy demanded.
"First off, because this wingdingle only eats fish." Randy said, eyeing the cats as they crept closer. "And second, because I can take you to your daughter."
"You think we're stupid or something?" Rosiepuff snapped.
"No, really." Randy insisted. "I know your kid. She's pink and she's always got a bright smile and she's missing half a leg—"
"That's Poppy!" Peppy suddenly shouted.
The cats lunged at once, and Peppy and Rosiepuff were nearly lost in a sea of fur and claws and teeth. Luckily, Randy could pluck each troll out of the scuffle and toss them onto his back before he flew up towards the rooftops. The cats followed.
"Hang on!" Randy called to his passengers. "This is going to be rough!"
Peppy and Rosiepuff gripped Randy's feathers tightly. The cats, being so agile, could easily climb up the fire escapes and dart across rooftops to chase after Randy and the trolls. Irrational, maybe, but hungry cats had to eat. Randy knew the light breeze today would make flying harder if he went higher. He also couldn't risk knocking off his passengers. So he stuck to skimming the rooftops. The cats would leap up and swipe their claws, but Randy punched each one away. He weaved through chimneys and ducked in and out of alleyways, hoping to throw the felines off.
However, as he tried to slalom through clotheslines in another alleyway, a cat appeared from a pair of trousers and swiped a paw. The cat's paw caught Peppy and knocked him right off Randy's back. While Randy tried to stop himself mid-flight, Peppy grabbed another clothesline to halt his fall to the unforgiving asphalt. A couple cats prowled towards him. Peppy swung himself down and landed in the pocket of an apron hanging on the line below. A couple cats were soon upon him, climbing up the apron and clawing at the fabric to search for him. Randy swooped up from underneath and grabbed the pocket holding Peppy in his talons. The fabric ripped, and Randy carried Peppy high enough so he could safely crawl out of the cloth. Rosiepuff helped Peppy climb up. A cat came down from above, and Peppy knocked it away with his cane. But another cat suddenly tackled Randy and sent him hurtling towards the ground.
"Pull up, Randy!" Peppy urged, ducking to avoid the cat's claws.
"Little busy here!" Randy snapped his beak at the cat. Rosiepuff jumped back to avoid the cat's claws, and she nearly fell off Randy. Peppy just managed to grab her wrist and haul her back onto the bird's back. Randy managed to flap his wings and smash the cat into a wall before he pulled up again. Randy flapped his wings and weaved his way through the clotheslines. The cats continued to follow.
"I don't suppose you have any better ideas?" Rosiepuff asked.
Randy looked around. "I think so. Just hang on tight!" The wingdingle suddenly made a hairpin turn and went for the opening of the alleyway that led to the street. Randy didn't stop when he left the alley. He went right into the street, to the terror of his riders. The cats followed. If the bergens of Bergen Town weren't freaked out before, they certainly were now. Their startled screams echoed around the street as the cats got mixed up with the traffic and resulted in utter pandemonium. Randy flew up and hovered above the street, smirking at his handiwork.
"Not bad." Rosiepuff laughed.
"Great job, Randy!" Peppy said. "Now take me to my daughter."
"Yes sir!" Randy turned and flew off towards the pet shop.
A/N: The seagull scene was hard for me rewrite, because I wasn't sure what animal to use. Then I thought that alley cats would be just as menacing and annoying. Which reminded me of the alley cat scene in Secret Life of Pets. Thus, this scene was born! Hope you enjoyed!