Holy crap, I'm so so so sooooo sorry for not updating in sooooo long DX.
I MEANT to update earlier (way earlier) but then the original file got corrupted. Then I started to rewrite, but writers block caught up to me, and for a while it was just a plain hiatus with no progress whatsoever.
Then, after a small chat with sir UnknownWarner, long story short, he partially inspired me to get back on this story. The other part that inspired me was catching an episode of Animaniacs! on TV the other day. I don't remember the episode title, though. Now, after 50 something rewrites, here is the long awaited chapter 4.
Sorry for any OOCness, the long hiatus got me out of the rhythm for writing this story, if that makes any sense.
Now, on with the long overdue show!
Chapter 4: Half
A small drizzle picked up late that night, the thin rain drops pattering on the window panels of Providence Saint Joseph Medical Center, a residential hospital within Burbank, California. Jon sat quietly in a small waiting room, his hands clasped together as he appeared to be in deep thought, a neutral expression on his face.
Wakko, tear streaks on his face, was staring out the window behind him in the chair on Jon's right. The room was quiet, save for his occasional depressed sniffles from time to time.
Dot simple rested her eyes, tear streaks on her face as well, as she lay back on the chair to Wakko's right. Normally she would be balling right now over something as big as this...incident, though she knew she had to be strong. Wakko knew that too, though his mind couldn't stray from the terrible thoughts of what happened and what was to come.
It was very awkward for the doctors when the four arrived. It had started to rain a bit as they had arrived. Jon tried to tell the doctors to take Yakko, but they wouldn't listen.
"Sir, please, a 'fake cartoon character' is not a part of our services." A male doctor, Peterson, had said. "But your leg brace is looking a bit rusted...if you'd like, I could-"
"I don't give a damn about my leg." Jon gritted his teeth. "Let the brace rust, let my leg fall off for all I care. Take this boy and help him."
Dr. Peterson was about to reply when Wakko chimed in.
"P-Please doctor..." The boy sniffled and wiped his eyes. "P-Please help our brother!" He gave a hopeful yet depressed look to Dr. Peterson. He stared at the capped boy for a moment before taking the unconscious Yakko out of Jon's grasp.
"We'll be in operating room 211." He said. "We'll see what we can do."
Now, here they say in silence, waiting. Waiting for who knew how long. The Warners had waited fourteen years for freedom, and now they felt that desired freedom fleeting. Their freedom was taken, and now Yakko was too. At least, not yet.
Wakko was surprised at how depressing his thoughts were. He almost always found light in the dark, the good out of bad. But now...he couldn't find any good in this bad, other than Yakko surviving.
'It's just an eye.' Wakko kept telling himself in his head. 'It's not fatal, it's just an eye. He'll be a p-pirate now, y-yeah.' He sniffled again, unable to deter his mind to something fun, like his endless appetite.
"He'll be okay." Jon spoke out of the silence. "He will." He gave neutral, reassuring looks to both of the Warner siblings before him. They simply returned his gaze with solemn stares, as if they wanted to believe him, but couldn't.
Even more hours passed, they were told to go home, even. But they didn't leave. They didn't want to leave. Jon stood up and stretched a bit. He took hold of his crutch.
"I'm just going to make a quick phone call." He told the two Warner siblings. "You'll be alright while I'm out, right?" Wakko and Dot nodded slightly. Jon gave them one last look before exiting the waiting room and out into the hall.
"...what're we gonna do, Wakko?" Dot asked.
"What do you mean?" Wakko asked.
"Look at everything." Dot began. "We're alone except for Jon, Plotz is back, and now Yakko...everything is just getting worse."
"...I know." Wakko replied, barely audible. They sat in their seats, staring at the ground. Then a new voice joined them.
"Whoa, are you two the Animaniacs?"
Dot and Wakko looked up to see a young girl with pigtails and a dress in front of them, smiling a toothy grin.
"Yeah, that's us." Wakko feinted his signature goofy smile, something he hadn't done in who knows how long.
"We're two of them anyway." Dot forced a smile as well.
"I see you guys on my mommy's old video tapes all the time!" The girl said. "Aren't there three of you? Where's Yakko?"
"...he's in one of the rooms." Wakko pointed down the hall.
"Did he have a little accident?" The girl asked in concern.
'I wouldn't call it little...' Dot thought. "Yes, he did. He'll be fine though, don't you worry." The girl smiled again.
"Tell him I said hi!" She said. She turned to leave but then looked at the two again. "My daddy knew you guys, I think."
"Hm? Who's your dad?" Wakko asked curiously.
"I don't know his first name...something with an O." The girl said. "You guys always used to call him 'Scratchy' I think."
Immediately the two siblings lit up. They simply had to know more.
"Where is your dad? Is he here? Can we see him?" Dot's smile was no longer fake.
"He's not here, I'm here with my mommy." The girl said. "My daddy went away somewhere, my mommy told me. He won't be back for a while."
"Oh..." Wakko slouched. "Well if you see him, please tell him we said hi, tell him it's from the Warner brothers!"
"And the Warner sister!" Dot added in. The girl giggled
"I will!" She said. "Bye!" She waved and walked off, and the two Warners returned the gesture.
"I almost completely forgot about ol Scratchy." Dot said. "I wonder how he's been."
"He's probably living a normal boring life. We should surprise him someday with a visit he won't forget!" Wakko said. "The three of us-" he stopped short, remembering why they were here. He and Dot slouched again. Then Jon reentered the room.
"I assume you two are alright?" He asked. "Well, alright as in not crazy."
"We haven't gone crazy in a while..." Dot said. She and Wakko exchanged smirks.
"Well if you're gonna do it, don't do it here." Jon sat back down. "For one, tons of people here need rest, and two, Yakko's still out for the count."
"...but he'll be better, like you said, right?" Wakko asked.
"Yeah, he'll be fine." Jon said. It sounded half hearted, but they knew it was just because he was stressed.
They were silent for another moment before Jon spoke up again.
"Considering its 2012, things have obviously changed." He said. He reached into his pocket and pulled out a small, thin, black rectangle with curvy corners. One side had a screen and button while the other side had a white icon of an apple with a bite taken out of it.
"What's that?" Dot asked.
"It's called an iPhone." Jon answered, smiling a bit. "It's a touchscreen phone that can make calls, play games, go online, send mail, get mail, you can buy things, sell things, take pictures, you name it, it can do it."
"Can it fly?" Wakko eagerly took the phone and tried to figure out how it worked.
"Uh, no, it can't." Jon answered. "And don't test that theory by throwing it out the window. That phone cost me 500 bucks."
"Wakko, lemme see!" Dot shoved her brother aside and took the phone for herself. Wakko grabbed for it again. The two struggled with it before it flew out of their grasps, landing on Jon's lap. He put the phone back in his pocket.
"Don't mess around with it. I payed a pretty penny for it." He said. "I'll find something else for you to mess with when we head home later."
"I never knew they had phones like that back in the 90s." Dot said.
"That's cause they didn't. They started making them in the early 2000s." Jon said.
"Who's 'they'?" Wakko asked.
"The Apple Corporation." Jon answered. "And no, Wakko, they don't make apples or apple based foods."
"Aww." The Warner boy pouted in his seat while Dot chuckled to herself. Jon grinned and straightened the crooked red cap on his head. Then Dr. Peterson stepped out from down the hall. Jon immediately stood up and took hold of his crutch, walking over to him.
"Any news doc?" He asked.
"He's awake and stable. There's no infection, we were able to clean the wound, and there's no major blood loss." Peterson said. "He'll be just fine." The two Warner siblings smiled at each other with hope.
"Can we see him? Can we see him?" The two begged to the doctor.
"Maybe soon, though he has requested to speak with Mr. Spielberg alone first." The doctor said, making the two children frown. He looked at Jon. "If you would politely come with me, please." Jon turned and knelt down in front of Wakko and Dot.
"Just wait here, alright?" Jon said. He gave them a smile. "I'll deliver him a message from you two if you want me to." Wakko and Dot smiled again.
"Tell him everything will work out and soon we'll be back in the game!" Dot said.
"And make sure he's really alright...alright?" Wakko asked.
"Of course I will." Jon smiled and placed a reassuring hand on the boy's shoulder. "Now just wait out here, I'll go check on him." He stood back up and followed Dr. Peterson down the hall. They were outside room 211 when Peterson stopped him.
"Look, I'm going to be honest here." The doctor kept his voice quiet and serious. "I told a white lie to the kids so they wouldn't be upset."
"What's wrong with him, just tell me." Jon kept his voice calm and neutral.
"...Yakko is stable and alive, nothing fatal...but we couldn't exactly fix what was broken." Peterson said.
"What do you mean?" Jon raised an eyebrow. He would've crossed his arms in skepticism, though that would've meant dropping his much needed crutch.
"...well, you see," The doctor began. "His orbital...was crushed beyond help. We couldn't save the eye."
"...show him to me." Jon pressed.
"But sir, his eye-"
"Show him to me now, please." Jon said a bit more forcefully. "He's my responsibility, I need to see him."
"...very well." Dr. Peterson huffed a sigh of frustration, then led Jon into the room.
Yakko was on a bed, hooked up to machinery to check his pulse and condition. He had a neutral expression and was twiddling his thumbs, though what stood out now was the bandages that were wrapped around his head like an eye-patch, covering his damaged eye. He didn't look up to greet the doctor or Jon, he simply stayed quiet, immersed in deep thoughts.
"Yakko, Mr. Spielberg is here, as per your request to speak with him." Dr. Peterson said. Then he left the room. Jon took a seat next to the bed.
"Hey." He said.
"Hiya." Yakko half-heartedly returned the greeting. His voice was quiet and sad.
"How are you?" Jon asked in concern.
"Peachy keen." Yakko said.
"...you know your-"
"Yeah, I know. Doc told me earlier." The eldest Warner spat. "...don't tell my sibs this eye thing is permanent."
"Don't shield them from this stuff." Jon said. "They have to grow up some time."
"No, they don't." Yakko argued, his volume rising. "I don't grow up, they don't grow up, we toons don't grow up! I've been 14 years old for 20 something years!"
"Calm down, Yakko, it was just a suggestion." Jon said, placing a hand on his shoulder. "I'm sorry." Yakko looked at him with slight regret, then sighed.
"Yeah, I am too." They were silent for a moment. "How are they?"
"They're fine." Jon answered. "They told me to tell you everything will work out soon."
"But it won't." Yakko said. "Things don't just work out."
"...ya know, when I grew up watching your show, this isn't the Yakko I remember." Jon said. "The Yakko I remember could play two paddle balls at once. The Yakko I remember could sing about every country in the world, every word in the dictionary. The Yakko I remember could make wisecracks and would leap out of the water tower with his sibs to ruin someone's day after they ruined somebody else's." Yakko glared at Jon angrily.
"Well the Yakko you remember is dead now."
Jon simply stared at him, not shocked or mad or scared, simply calm.
"Alright then." He stood up and prepared to leave. "Doc told me you'll be able to go home in a few hours. I'll see you then." Before he could get a reply from Yakko, he left the room.
Yakko stared at the ceiling in silence, unmoving. He blinked his remaining eye painfully, his half clear, half dark vision incredibly unnerving. He sighed as he started to rest, letting the fatigue he had bottled up overtake him as he drifted to sleep.
-(End Of Chapter)-
Phew, got this chapter done.
Tensions rise between Jon and Yakko, as their relationship is strained now. How will they fair later on?
Sorry for the OOCness coming from Yakko, but ya gotta understand; the poor kid just got his eye smashed. He's depressed over the harsh reality of life, alright? Not everyone is happy all the time (I'm pretty sure some A! episodes can point that fact out too).
Anyways, I hope you've enjoyed this long overdue chapter, reviews are highly appreciated, as I love all feedback and criticism, and as always…
Stay Tuned!
~087-B