Dusty made his way to Dottie's shop, thinking about what he would say to her when she asked him what he did and why. This was the third time he'd be going there. If she doesn't hit me with anything metal, I'll be grateful, he thought to himself.

Just before reaching the shop's entrance, Dusty had a feeling that Dottie would be expecting him, and his feeling was correct. There she was, sitting in a chair just to the left of the shop's door, reading a manual. She had her blue-purple hair in a low ponytail.

"Well? What is it this time?" she asked, slightly annoyed.

"Oh, I just...you know..." Dusty struggled to come up with a believable lie for Dottie. "I was taking a walk through the woods when I felt a pain in my leg. It's gone now, but I...I just need to make sure it's okay." He smiled stupidly at her.

Dottie gave him a hard look. Dusty could instantly tell that she did not believe him. Nonetheless, she said, "Come on in, then. Let's get it checked out."

"Okay." Dusty should have felt relieved that she didn't ask questions, but he wasn't. Almost as though sensing his feelings, Dottie added, "I'll have to check your weaponry as well, Dust. Just as a precaution."

As Dottie inspected his guns, Dusty preoccupied himself by studying the pictures that hung on the opposite wall. Many of them depicted him and Dottie as children. Dusty smiled as he gazed at the pictures; he couldn't possibly imagine how his life would have been like without her in it. She was like a lost big sister to him. After his parents had vanished, her parents had taken him in. This had happened because Dusty's mother had arranged for Dottie's parents to be his guardians; he hadn't learned this until much later.

Although Dottie had come to care about him over time, she had initially been displeased by the arrangement, having lost her only brother to cancer at the age of eighteen. She'd been close to him, and she felt as though Dusty had come to replace that brother. It wasn't until many months later that she started to bond with him, but only after she'd woken Dusty up from yet another nightmare regarding his parents and consoled him.

"Okay, your guns seem to check out just fine," Dottie announced, pulling Dusty out of his thoughts. "I just need to take a look at your leg."

"Oh! Uh, really? Thanks," Dusty replied. Then, "You do? What for?"

"Just to make sure you're not in too much pain."

"So...now that that's out of the way, I'd like to know how you got hurt in the first place?" Dottie inquired, raising an eyebrow.

Oh, boy. Dusty had to think hard about what he was going to tell her. "It's just like I said; I was walking through the woods and then I felt a pain in my leg," he fibbed.

"Well, what made you decide to take a walk through the woods?" Dottie inquired.

"For the...uh...scenery?"

"The scenery."

"Yeah. Nothing too serious!"

"Nothing too serious, huh?" Dottie hummed and studied one of the guns. "Okay, then. Are you sure you weren't in the woods because you were, oh, I don't know, practicing for the wild race again?!" She gave him a furious glare.

"What? Me? No!" Dusty exclaimed. "Don't be crazy, Dottie!" He'd been prepared to come up with a decent lie that would convince her that he hadn't been training for the wild race. Unfortunately, Chug decided at that moment to burst into Dottie's shop.

"Dusty!" he cried. Dottie and Dusty snapped their heads toward him. "You were awesome out there!"

"Chug, please!" Dusty hissed, gesturing to Dottie, but Chug continued rambling about Dusty making progress.

"You were going at lightspeed, Dusty! Lightspeed! You'll be mopping the floor at the qualifier this weekend—" It was only then that he noticed Dottie. She was giving him the stink-eye. He'd blabbed everything in front of her.

"The qualifier this weekend?" Dottie repeated, turning to face Dusty again.

"Uh...yes...I mean, no! I mean...I don't know...?" Dusty tried to come off as innocent, but was failing. Dottie sighed.

"Dusty, listen to me. You are not a monster. You don't have any skills that could make you super fast or super strong. You are just a human!" She picked up a screwdriver that was lying around as she continued speaking. "Do you have any idea what'll happen if a human like you competed in the wild race?" She smacked Dusty with the screwdriver's handle on his back, then on his arms. "Broken bones! Amputated limbs!" A third hit went to his stomach. "Killed and eaten by dangerous animals!" The fourth and final hit went on his head. "Worst of all, lack of common sense!" Then she put the screwdriver down and put her hands on her hips.

"So you see, Dusty, there are many reasons why humans don't ever enter the wild race," she said. "Those are just a few of the reasons." She had a good point, but still...

"Dottie, I don't wanna give up so easily," Dusty retorted. "I want to be more than just a farm boy from the middle of nowhere, stuck doing some menial chores as a way of living. I know you worry about me a lot. So that's why I think I want you to come with me to the qualifiers." He knew she wasn't going to be pleased with this, so he tried to assure her by giving her a dorky smile.

All Dottie could do was give him a hard look and said, "You are unbelievable." Nevertheless, she agreed to come with so she could make sure Dusty didn't kill himself.

"Don't be worried, Dot," Dusty said as he made his way out of the shop with Chug, "I'm gonna be careful. And I'm sure nothing will go wrong. Right, Chug?"

"Those dangerous animals can be scary," Chug muttered.

o~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~o

Dusty and Chug went back to Dusty's place to watch TV. They had it on a sports channel that would air the wild race live. A segment called "Top 10 Horrifying Wild Race Moments" was currently running; it showed the competitors getting harmed in rather horrific ways. As Chug grimaced and made comments about each moment, Dusty went over some notes he'd written down while practicing.

"Say Chug," Dusty began, looking towards his friend, "what do you think about the qualifier?"

"Don't worry so much, Duster!" Chug reassured him. "You're gonna be fine out there. Once I finish that guide about the wild race, you'll have a surefire chance of winning." He gave him a big smile. A moment later, the smile disappeared. A thoughtful look replaced it.

"You know," Chug began, "I don't think the book will cover everything you'll run into out there..."

Dusty gave him a curious look. "What are you saying?"

"I'm saying is that...well, I think we'd be better if we had some...help?" Chug proffered.

"Help? Help from who?" Dusty raised an eyebrow.

"Erm...maybe the Skipper?"

Dusty was puzzled. "That old guy who lives in that house at the edge of town?"

"Yeah! He's a war hero." Chug smiled. "My friend Sparky says he was one of the best in the Navy. He must know a lot of stuff!" When he saw Dusty frown, Chug was quick to add, "And he's a monster, too! I don't know what kind, though. But he and Sparky are the only monsters that live in this town. So what I'm saying is that if you want to compete against the other monsters, then you need to be trained by one!"

Dusty was still frowning. Chug had made a good point about getting someone to train him, but Skipper? "He hasn't fought in decades," Dusty pointed out. "He's retired, and he can't walk anymore! He must have arthritis or something. Why would I want to ask help from someone who can't walk or fight?"

"At least he could!" Chug retorted. The two then turned their attention back to the program, where footage of a rather gruesome accident was being shown.

A/N: keep in mind things are going to be complicated from now on.

A lot thanks to my beta reader as well!