Toy Against Toy
Chapter Four
Author's Note: The characters in this chapter are from a 1998 film called "I'll Be Home For Christmas," where Jonathan Taylor Thomas played Jake Wilkinson, Jessica Biel starred as Allie, Adam LaVorgna as Eddie, and an actress named Lauren Maltby as Tracey. I felt that these four characters were needed to round off the Tributes in the 76th Hunger Games, but didn't want to confuse anyone by just throwing them out there without warning. Also, you might recognize the car Eddie drives…
Eddie was traipsing along when he saw a Delorean parked alongside a park. The ghing was, Eddie had a high notion of leaving people's cars alone, because of course, if you stole someone else's car, wouldn't that give them the right to take off with yours question mark But a Delorean…he couldn't resist that model, had always wanted one. And a skill he had learned and meant to use one day if the opportunity ever arose, was how to steal a car.
He used his universal car opening, a device he had that sent a signal to the car's motor which caused it to flip all its switches the other way from where they were currently positoned at the time of activating it, which in this case meant
Slipping the keys in the ignition, his makeshift keys which could make any car o[perate (supposedly; he hadn't tested it on every car yet but it worked on the few he had had an opportunity to try).
There was a time box on the panel across the portion of the car where the speedometer ought to have been. There ere numbers too and a date OCT 14 2823.
"Eh, must be some kind of computer car calendar deal," Eddie muttered to himself. "Now let's go [pick up Allie," he said, backing out of the space he had taken. "Though really, it displays 0's as 8's, and is half a century off besides. Ugh. No matter. Allie won't mind it at all."
He began driving along the roads, wondering why this car was marked with a date twenty-five years in the future. And at each turn when his gaze fell upon the car calendar, he was certain that 0 was an 8, but it couldn't have been…no flippin' way.
There was Allie's street. He had grown up going to school with her, then they attended the same university in California. From coast to coast. They were flyovers. And everything would have been perfect, if not for the fact that Allie's boyfriend, Jake, also attended their high school and their university as well.
Jake. He had driven across a couple of state borders with him to bring him home, only to decide to ditch him at the last moment, just before narrowly escaping arrest. Well, no way was Jake going to outdo Eddie this time around. Even if they were thrust into some type of reality show like Survivor, which had just culminated its first season, Eddie would still come out on top. And Jake would be somewhere down under. As in, Australia.
Eddie had nearly won Allie's affections when Jake interrupted their journey together, coming between them. But not this time. Eddie would be the victor, and Jake'd be left behind. All according to plan.
Allie was outside her house, in the front yard. Having a picnic with Jake. Eddie decided to play it smooth, pulling right up alongside Allie's mailbox.
"Hey, hot stuff," Eddie called. "Want to come for a ride?"
"Are you kidding, Eddie? I'm with Jake."
"So what? Bring him along."
And we'll see whom Allie really holds affection for.
"I'm not climbing in that car," Allie said.
Eddie started to make a retort when a fourteen-year-old girl ran up squealing. "Oh my God, Jake! It's a Delorean!"
"Yes, it is," Jake said. "Doesn't mean squat if you ask me."
"I always wanted to ride in a Delorean," the girl said. "Come on, Jake. This guy is your friend, isn't he? Let him take me for a ride."
"No one is taking my little sister for a ride without supervision," Jake said.
"Well, stick it in my plans, why don't cha?"
Allie drew Jake aside, motioning for Eddie to wait.
"Do you think we ought to go for a drive with him, just to amuse Tracey?" she asked.
"I wouldn't do it," said Jake. "Could be dangerous."
Allie looked at him. "It's just a Delorean."
They argued over it for a few minutes, gesticulating rapidly. When they turned to Tracey, she had a puppy dog look on her face.
"Fine. We'll go," said Jake.
"Yay! Thank you, bro!" Tracey said, hugging him around the middle. She leapt into the seat beside Eddie, snuggling against him then reeling back with laughter at his expression. Jake came in next, followed by Allie, who shut the door behind her.
"Now let's get this party started!" Eddie said, revving up the engine. "Out of the suburbs we go."
"That could be a song," said Tracey. "Out of the suburbs and away we GO! All the might with a floppy afro!"
"Tracey, Eddie doesn't want to hear you sing," Jake said.
"Oh no Jake-man. I don't mind it all," said Eddie, smiling at Tracey. He reached for the stereo dial when Tracey exclaimed, having really taking it the car calendar.
"What is this?" Tracey asked. "Looks like its set for a date eight-hundred years in the future."
"Eight hundred?" Eddie asked. "Nah, it's only twenty-five years ahead. This is probably one of those cars programmed to be ready for Y2K."
"Nothing's going to happen in the year 2000," Jake said. "Nothing to be concerned about, anyway."
"Tell that to the car manufacturers," said Eddie. "Anyhow, let's hit the road."
"Where'd you get this car, anyway?" Tracey asked. "Haven't they been out of style since the eighties?"
"Out of style automobiles go for cheap, and they don't always remain out of style," Eddie said. "Soon as people see one of these babies cruising along the highways again, they'll crave one of their own."
They reached the edge of the suburban neighborhood and entered the road. For a while Eddie drove the car at a steady sixty miles per hour. But he decided to push it a little bit more, and then a bit more. Soon they were going at seventy-one mph, and the red and blue flashing lights of a police cruiser pursued them angrily.
"Uh, you better pull over Eddie. This could get ugly."
"Nah," Eddie said. "I've already come this close to being arrested before. It's not happening again."
And with that he sped up. Seventy-six…eighty-two…eighty-four…eighty-six…they narrowly avoided slamming into a diesel and ending up as roadkill. Allie was screaming, and Jake held her close for comfort.
"Are you sure attempting to outspeed them is the best way?" Tracey asked.
"It's either that or die trying," said Eddie. "Let's go up to ninety-five."
The speedometer shot forth like a dial on steroids. Then the sound of the police car chasing them grew fainter and fainter…
That wouldn't have alarmed Tracey. What she saw in front of her through the car windows did, however. Rather than driving on a highway as they had been before, they know were heading toward a venue with a banner saying, HOT DOG PALACE – THE AMUSEMENT PARK TO SEE, ONLY OPEN THE WEEK BEFORE THE HUNGER GAMES TAKES PLACE! COME ONE AND ALL!
Eddie stopped the car before a clown standing on ten foot tall stilts shaped like candy corn and everyone got out, seeing as the road had ended and there didn't seem to be any police chasing them, somehow.
"Where the hell are we?" Jake asked.
"I can answer that," said a voice from below them. "Jabber."
They looked and saw a freaky toy with a bottle neck, round head with pink over its ears and tufts of green hair sticking out of its head.
"Who are you?" Tracey asked.
"I'm the Jibber Jabber. And Panem has been waiting for you. Perhaps I will be your partner…in the Hunger Games."
"Hot dogs, get your hot dogs!" said a vendor dressed in a catsuit, except that it was purple.
"I don't know about you, but I'm a little hungry," Tracey said, putting her hand on Eddie's arm.
"Fine. We'll get food then look around at the festivities."
"Go ahead. Have your fill," the Jibber Jabber said. "But know that when night falls, you'll be taken chain and ball to the training camp. I think they're hosting dinner tonight for your lot. I'll be there, along with the other toys. I hope one of you will take me. If you wish to avoid seeing the blood of any of your pals, you'd select me for your partner. But I'll show no mercy once the games begin, for those who are enemies to myself and to my partner. So beware of not choosing me. Do so at your own risk."
With that the Jibber Jabber took off. Jake and Allie looked bewildered. Eddie just shrugged, and they followed Tracey to the hot dog vendor. Eddie tried to pay for the food but the vendor waved his cash away. "Tributes eat for free on this day and week."
"Not sure what a Tribute is," Eddie said, as they walked away, "but free food is not something I'd say no to."
"Hey, there's a rollercoaster!" Tracey exclaimed. "Let's go ride it!"
She dragged Eddie off, leaving Jake alone with Allie.
"How did we even get here?" Allie asked.
"Perhaps we followed a white rabbit down a hole and here we are," Jake said.
"We'd remember it if there was a rabbit," said Allie. "One minute we were on the highway, the next we were here."
"Don't worry about," Jake said. "Let's just play and enjoy ourselves."
He nodded at a Whack-the-Mole stand. Allie rolled her eyes but joined him in the game. Soon she was laughing and intently enthralled. And when they caught up with Eddie and Tracey later, they found her with a three foot tall stuffed sea lion, and Eddie guzzling a smoothie.
"Eddie got it for me," Tracey said, indicating the sea lion. "He can toss bean bags really well. You should introduce me to more of your friends, Jake."
"Eddie's not my friend," said Jake. "And it's probably a good time to go home."
"I hear ya," said Eddie. "But a little more fun never hurt anyone. Let's remain till nightfall at least."
Jake tried to argue against this but Allie was all for it and he agreed.
They enjoyed the next few hours together, even participating in a limbo contest, which Allie won.
Somehow they ended up in a bounce house with older teenagers, not certain how it had happened. The sky was steaked with pink and orange. And they were enjoying themselves so much that they didn't notice that for twenty minutes it had just been the four of them bouncing. Tracey was the first to stop and point this out, when the roof of the bounce house was ripped apart by talons. A robotic phoenix glowered at them, then burst into flames. They tried to run but sticky hands held them firmly in place. And then a man in his mid-forties stepped in.
"Welcome, my ducklings. The Hunger Games awaits for Tributes such as you. I hope you're ready for it, because the people of Panem are certainly ready for you."
"What's the Hunger Games?" Tracey asked.
"You'll know soon enough. But tonight you are invited to a feast, and at this feast you'll pick a toy to be your partner for the competition. Each of you will select one, to defend you when the need arises."
"Well, uh, we've got an appointment somewhere else," Eddie said. "So if you can just command these sticky palms to let go of us, we'll be on our merry way."
"I'm not sure I made myself clear," the man said, his glasses gleaming. "You're not leaving Panem, not until and if you survive the Hunger Games. Though only one of you can possibly do that. President Snow isn't letting a joint victory occur this time around."
"You can't keep us here against our will!" Allie exclaimed.
"I can do whatever the bleedin' hell I want with Tributes, so long as they are fit to compete when the competition begins. And actually, legally you are bound to participate, seeing as the offense for allowing you to leave is the death penalty, which I'm not too keen on, know what I mean?"
And with that the horrendous man crept forward, tying their wrists together, then had some nurses in green uniforms carry the four visitors out strapped down to gurneys. Eddie saw they were headed toward a circular building which resembled the Collosseum.
Though his speech was restrained by the gag in his mouth. And he wasn't surely what would happen now, though he was overcome with guilt for what he had dragged Allie into.