Wolf: Make way, cuz The Paper Wolf is back!
D: What's she goin' on 'bout dis time?
W: She's psyching herself out for this chapter.
D: She's finally back to writing 'bout us again?
W: shakes his head at Duke No, she's pushing herself to get this story done, because her reviewers are pressuring her again... sighs she should've have even bothered posting this story up if she can't take criticism...
M: Yeah, but she did it anyway. Can't say that I blame her. I was like that at her age.
Wolf: you all DO realize that I'm standing right here, right? And I'm 24?
D: smiles at me Yeah, but you know how we get when we're stuck in one spot. It's not we can help it!
N: crawls into the room dramatically Dang, Wolf! Those dogs really like to play hard!
Wolf: Ready for round 7?
W: raises brow Round 7? Don't you mean "Round 2"?
Wolf: shakes head Nope, I've been keeping score on how many times I've sicked my dogs on the duck that YOU'RE supposed to be keeping away from my computer!
M: So, what's the score so far?
Wolf: Smiles in triumph Nosedive- 0 My dogs – 7.
D: Slaps forehead He's not afraid o' da dark, Dragonus doesn't faze 'im. So, what gets him?
Everyone (but Nosedive): sighs in disappointment Dogs.
Wolf: Anyway, I'm done with all the disclaimers. If no one knows by now that I'm not the owner of MDTAS, then you all are just as stupid as I am. Let's get this story started!
Chapter Eleven: In Your Dreams...
One step forward,
making two steps back.
I'm face down,
and two steps back!
Since I was small,
I was told I could fly.
I jumped off the Pond,
to see if they were right...
Nobody cried for me...
Duke and Wildwing were wandering around the lower regions of the pond; looking for Shadow. They had checked in on the poor girl earlier, and found that she wasn't in there. So, with the mystery of who is out wandering around solved, another question remains: "Why would she be out wandering around in the first place. It wasn't until much later that the duo had become a trio in search for their humanoid friend.
Nosedive had joined the party when he couldn't get back to sleep. Who could when they heard Shadow scream like she did? (Wolf: Well, apparently Grin, Tanya, and Mallory! Snicker-snicker) He couldn't get the girl out of his mind. He knew something was bothering her, but he wasn't the duck to push her for answers. He also knew that he couldn't help her much anyway. He couldn't even imagine going through much less help her!
After a while, Nosedive decided to give up; saying that Shadow probably just wants to be alone and went up to the rink for some early practice before the game. He secretly hoped to find the girl on his way.
Duke had a bad feeling about what was going on with Shadow. Now, that he thinks she hurt herself, he knew he had to get an answer from her. And nothing would stop him this time. Not with Shadow's safety on the line.
He and Wildwing had been walking around the upper levels of the Pond when an idea came to Wildwing.
"Hey, Duke," Wildwing spoke up in a curious tone, "you know Shadow better than anyone here, right? Where's the one place in the Pond besides the rink would she go?"
Duke closed his eye, and scratched the bottom of his beak and thought about the question for a minute. Then his good eye opened with surprise. "We could try the roof!" He said in dumbfounded tone, as he slapped his forehead. "I took up dare a few nights ago! She seemed very happy up dare! Maybe she went up dare ta clear her head!"
Wildwing thought about the new information for a split second, and nodded in agreement. "It's worth a try."
And with that in mind, the duo took off up the hall and towards the roof; hoping Duke was right.
" 'ey, wing?" Duke panted out, as the two ran for the roof, "you think the kid may be right 'bout da whole "Ghost-ding"? Ya know, how she dreamed 'er motha scratched 'er face 'n' all, huh?"
Wildwing glared through his mask, and focused on the task at hand. "It's hard to say, Duke." He answered, as they ran up the ladder, "I'm not sure what I believe when it comes to her."
Meanwhile... somewhere in Anaheim...
A shadow-like figure stood at the top of a building at a safe distance from the Pond; playing a strange flute of some kind. The figure played a strange, haunting tune as if he were playing for someone in front of him. He stopped playing for a moment, and lowered his flute from his lips.
"Yes... come to me, child..." The figure said in an snear. "Soon, you will be mine! Ha,ha,ha!"
And with that, he kept playing his haunting tune...
Back at the Pond...
Duke and Wildwing had just opened the door leading to the roof. The two were walking around on the roof as though they were wandering around in the dark.
Wildwing looked over at Duke with accusing eyes. "You said she'd be up here, Duke!" He declared in a slightly panicked tone.
Duke looked around for a moment, and noticed a shadow fly past them. His first thought was Shadow rushing past them, but the sinking feeling told him otherwise. He looked over at his leader, and noticed by the blank look on his face told him that he hadn't noticed the shadow at all.
Duke shook his head for a moment, and before he could have sworn he heard some strange music playing. He walked around the corner, and had found the girl in question standing on the edge of the roof.
She was standing in the back towards them as if she were in some kind of trance; singing an old song with a creepy voice. She had no idea of her audience behind her, and kept singing.
"Promise that we'll stay for the sunset,
And when the moon shines through the darkness.
We can find the path that leads us home,
and on the way you'll... maybe,
Sing me a song."
Wildwing took a careful step forward, but was stopped by a quick hand of Duke's. He looked back to see him shake a feathered head at his action, and tugged him over to the side; out of the girl's sight.
"Don' wanna scare 'er, bein' so close ta da edge an' all." He whispered in a quiet tone; keeping his eyes firmly on his leader.
Wildwing nodded and understood the danger. He looked back at the girl and listened to her sing the sad tune.
"Promise that you always will be there!
Hold me hand,
if ever I'm real scared.
Help me stand up tall,
if I fall down.
Make me laugh away on my bluest days!"
"So how are we gonna get her away from the edge?" Wildwing hissed quietly as he sent a glare through his masked eyes.
Duke looked to his leader for a moment, and looked back to the girl. "She's prob'ly been up 'ere for awhile now. I'm sure once she's done singing, she'll step down an' we'll make our move." He advised in a serious tone; praying he would be right.
Wildwing cut his loses and settled back down behind the wall; not knowing what else to do. A part of Wildwing wanted to rush over to her and hold her against him, but a bigger part knew that Duke was right, and he hated that part of him now more than ever. He was protective over the little girl as though she were his own little sister, just the same as he was Nosedive's older brother. It was merely instinct to him. He couldn't help it anymore than Duke's fatherly side.
(Wolf: Okay, I know this is a corny song that has nothing to do with this story, but it sounded pretty when I heard it on youtube. It's short, sweet and simple, and if you don't like, skip it. Bare with me, guys!)
"How could you promise you always would be there?
Why'd you have to go away somewhere?
Every morning into every night.
Do you watch over me, like the sun in the sky?
Am I all alone standing in your light?
I wish that I could... Maybe...
Sing you a song... Tonight...
You promised me we'd stay for the sunset..."
Once the song had ended, Shadow gasped and grabbed her throat in pain. It felt just like the collar bolted to her neck (Wolf: Ref. ch. 6) was burning through; cutting off her air supply. She fell to her knees in pain, and began gagging for air. Her eyes were glowing bright red, and she now began screaming uncontrollably just like when they first brought her to their infirmary the time they found out about her past.
"We're on the front line!" Shadow screamed through her pain, as she now began to hold her ears tightly.
"What's goin' on?" Wildwing called out, as he took off for the girl; ignoring Duke's protest.
He rushed over to her side, but she struggled to her feet, and jumped off the roof before he could reach her; scaring him nearly to death in the process.
He looked down to the ground and saw her in her wolf form; running off like a real wolf would do on a hunt. He looked back to see Duke at his side with the same shocked expression as his own.
"We have to follow her!" Wildwing shouted in a panicked tone, as he turned on his heel; ready to chase after the girl. "There's no tellin' what kind of trouble she could get into out there!"
"But how are we gonna catch up ta 'er?" Duke questioned in a worried tone; not knowing what to do. "We could track 'er down with the duck cycles, but what good would it do now? She's got a pretty good headstart on us as it is!"
Wildwing raised his arm to show the older duck a small red blimp beeping on the screen. "I figured she'd pull something like that, so I stuck a tracking device in her jacket. Even she has a good headstart, we'd be able to track her wherever she goes. Now, come on! We gotta find her!"
"But what about da othas?" Duke questioned again; joining Wildwing, but not wanting to bail out on the others, either.
"There's no time! We'll call them on the road! Now, let's move out!" Wildwing ordered in rough tone; not taking No for an answer, as he darted for the door leading back into the Pond.
Meanwhile... elsewhere
Shadow's four legs had been running for a few minutes; desperately trying to find the source of the noise hurting her ears and throat. Her glowing red eyes scanning the surrounding area, and kept running. She didn't know what was going on, all she knew was someone had to be causing her pain, and she knew she had to stop it. She had a feeling that it might not turn out for her, but she had to at least give it a try.
She came across a cross-roads somewhere downtown, and didn't know which way to go until the sound caught her ears, and she bolted to the right; hoping it was coming in that direction; because she would be so mad if she had to back track and go the other way. The pain in her body was growing with each step she took, but she used that pain to keep her going. She didn't have much choice. Right now, she wished she was back at the Pond.
She had no idea of the trap that was lying in wait for her...
Back at the Pond... Duke and Wildwing had come down to the lower regions of their base, and crossed paths with Nosedive and Tanya. They had no idea what was going on. All Tanya knows is what the younger duck had told her, and she had some rather shocking news for the two worried ducks on their way to track down their humanoid friend.
"Guys, I gotta tell ya somethin' 'bout Shadow! It's important!" Tanya called out to them when they didn't stop.
Duke didn't stop running, but looked over his shoulder in worry. "Come wit us an' tell us if it's that important! We gotta go find Shadow before someone else does!" He called over his shoulder, as he kept up with Wildwing.
The quartette filed in Migrator with Nosedive at the wheel. For the first time, Wildwing was glad for his little brother's need for speed.
"Now, tell us what you were going to say back at the Pond, Tanya." Wildwing ordered from the passenger seat.
Tanya gulped and looked down at her Omi-tool. "Uh- I know dis is -you know- da last ding you wanna hear, Wildwing, but Shadow's collar... it's- it's..." She trailed off with a worried look on her face.
"What is it, Tanya?" Duke growled in a slightly annoyed tone; making her jump in surprise.
"Uh- well, it was botherin' me from da start, so I ran some tests on it, and-" Tanya was cut off by a sharp turn that sent her flying out of her seat. "Uh-hey, watch it, Nosedive!" She demanded in an angry tone; running her rear-end in sympathy.
"We don't have time to watch where we're goin', Tanya!" Duke growled again; giving the female a firm glare. "Shadow went crazy an' jumped off the roof and took off! She was in a lot o' pain before she left. She could be hurt somewhere!"
"Dat's what I'm TRYIN' ta tell you guys!" Tanya snapped angrily, as she got back into her seat and strapped herself in. "Her collar somehow activated and I dink someone is tryin' ta do somethin' to her!" She cried in rage; shaking her fists with each syllable that flew out of her mouth.
The male half of the group (excluding Nosedive) looked over at her in shock. What's going on around there? They needed answers, and they needed them fast.
"Who?" Wildwing asked in a firm tone; ordering an answer from the technology expert.
Tanya looked down at the floor in defeat. "I don' know! I was looking over my readings just before I ran into you guys, and it showed her collar's activated! I had a constant visual reading system installed into her collar so I'd know if something was uh, ya know- goin' on with her, and it says that her body's reacting to something!"
Duke thought about the new information that he received and processed everything. "It could be dat weird sound we heard when we were on da roof top." He said in a thoughtful tone; looking at Wildwing with a straightforward gaze.
"Who would be after her now?" Nosedive asked, as he turned a corner; keeping his eyes on the road and the tracking system in front of him. "I mean, Dragonus gave up goin' after her, right? And she told us a while ago that she took out the Organization before she even came here. So who'd be after her now?"
Wildwing was at a loss. He didn't know the answer to Nosedive's question, no matter how badly he wanted to. He looked up at the road ahead, and found Shadow's wolf form running into the cemetery.
"I don't know, baby bro, but I got a feeling we're about to find out!" He declared in a shocked tone, as he pointed towards the park where he had seen the gray wolf run in.
Shadow had finally ran into the park, and dashed through the cemetery. She had a strong feeling from her mind's eye that she'd find whatever she was looking for, she was going to find it there. The pain in her neck was getting strong with each step she took; making it harder and harder for her to keep going. She was using the pain to keep running, but now that she knew her journey was reaching its end, she knew that her body was starting to give up on her.
'Just keep going, Shadow... Keep going...' A voice whispered in her head; instigating her to push herself harder.
The wolf finally reached the back end of the cemetery. She stopped and looked around quickly; panting for breath, as her body slowly began to regain her strength. She had a feeling she was going to need it for whatever it was causing her to be in so much pain.
'This ends now!' Shadow thought as she raised her head up, and howled as loud and long as she could; letting the spirits and whoever was after her know where she was. Her human side knew it was a gutsy move to let them know where she was, but her INHUMAN side told her she was at a disadvantage, so she was going to force her enemy's hand and make them bring the fight to her. 'No matter what it takes!'
*The ducks went into the cemetery with their guards on edge; not knowing what was waiting for them. One thing was on their minds once they all stepped through the gates: Save Shadow. Someone was summoning Shadow, but they didn't know who or why they were doing this to their friend. And something told them they were about to find out.
They all jumped at the howl they heard. They knew it was Shadow, but they still couldn't figure out where she was. It was like finding a needle in a haystack with all the twisted twists and turns in the cemetery. Although it had been rebuilt since their battle with the saurians, it looked differently than it did at night than it did during the day.
"Hey, come on and let's find Shadow!" Nosedive whined as he clutched his gun close to his chest; becoming more paranoid with each passing second. "The sooner we find Slim, the sooner we can blow this spooky place!"
An urgent beeping alerted the blonde female. Tanya looked down at her omnibus-tool, and made a startling sound; getting everyone's attention. "We gotta find Shadow and get 'er back to da Pond!" Tanya cried out in a worried tone; looking down at her omi-tool on her wrist. "According to my readings, Shadow's not gonna make it through the night!"
Something inside Duke snapped and he took off with the others hot on his tail feathers. "You heard da lady, guys! We gotta find the kid an' we gotta find 'er fast!" He declared in an urgent tone; keeping his attention on the task ahead.
"Duke's right. Shadow's in this direction so let's shake a tail feather and get to her before someone gets to her first!" Wildwing commanded, as he lead them to
*While The ducks were sprinting off to towards their left, Shadow's wolf form was having a stand off with the one who summoned her- The source of her pain. The cloaked figure stood before her; still playing the strange instrument.
He finally lowers the instrument from his lips and chuckled wickedly at the over-grown wolf before him.
"I see you've mastered your abilities fully now, Allyce." The voice said in a taunting tone; snickering at the large animal. "I always knew you were special."
Shadow gasped and watched as the figure slowly pulled his hood down to reveal none other than Mr. Kemo standing before her with an evil smirk playing across his lips. She hadn't seen her mentor in so long that she thought something might have happened to the good man.
'Mr. Kemo?' Shadow thought in shock; taking a step back; having a bad feeling.
"I thought something happened to you, Mr. Kemo!" She cried out in relief as she took a careful step towards him; only to be caught in a large, metallic cage coming up from the ground; trapping her behind its bars. "What's the meaning of this?" She demanded in a harsh tone; not liking what was going on. (Wolf: I'd be pretty mad, too if I was locked in a cage. -.-)
Mr. Kemo only laughed and held out a remote to her to see. "You may have excellent reflexes, child, but you never were smart." He said in a taunting tone. "I'm taking my finest project back to New Orleans and have another go with your-adjustments." He said in a pleased tone.
"Ova our dead bodies!" A voice cried out through the darkness; causing the two sides to look up.
It was the ducks to save the day! Nosedive gave a battle cry and took first shot at their foe; causing him to jump back in shock.
"An' dat's what cha get for messin' with a girl!" Duke shouted angrily as he pointed his saber at the man.
Mr. Kemo pointed the remote over at Shadow, and pressed a button; causing her eyes to glow red and made her begin to go berserk within the cage. "You think you can stop me. Well, if I can't have my creation back; then no one will have her!" And with that, he laughed and turned the nob on the controller; causing Shadow to jump and yelp around in the cage.
"We have to get that remote away from him!" Wildwing called out, as he led a charge for the man hurting the wolf. He would've grabbed him and tried to get the remote away from Mr. Kemo himself, but Duke jumped the gun, and began fighting with the man instead.
Wildwing looked back, and seen a swarm of robots coming up from all sides of the scene. He backed away and shifted over towards Nosedive and Tanya; fighting with the lasers flying past them.
"Tanya, I want you to try and get Shadow out of that cage, and see if you can't help her." He ordered in a distressed tone. He looked over at Nosedive, and gave him a final warning look. "Nosedive, cover Tanya! I'll hold them off until you're done!"
And with that, the trio broke away. Tanya rushed over towards the cage with Nosedive covering her as she ran. Wildwing opened fire on the on coming robots; firing pucks in all directions.
"What's dis all 'bout, Kemo?" Duke growled in an angry tone; keeping his weapon pointed at the man hurting the girl.
Mr. Kemo chuckled at the duck before him. "I let her think I was protecting her so I could break her spirit. I need her broken before I can fix her." He told him in an evil tone; sending shivers down Duke's spine. "But first, I had to kill that over-protective brother of hers."
Duke gasped and growled at the man. "Ya monsta!" He roared angrily, as he charged for Mr. Kemo.
'R-Ray? That's not true! It can't be!' The wolf cried in panic, as she began to snarl at Mr. Kemo. "You promised you'd protect me! You lied to me!" Shadow called out through the cage; snapping and biting at the bars.
Mr. Kemo laughed and turned the nob on the controller once again; causing Shadow to howl in pain, and thrash wildly in the cage; slamming herself against the bars in a vain attempt to stop the pain coursing through her furry body.
Then, with a final act of courage, Duke tackled Mr. Kemo, and forced them both to the ground with a harsh thud-like sound. He had a hard time wrenching the controller free, but it was done. He quickly stood up, and placed the remote in his uniform, and kept his saber pointed dangerously at the evil man on the ground; giving him the most unforgiving look as he possibly could.
"Shadow trusted you! Why would you hurt 'er like dat, eh?" Duke demanded in a deadly tone, as he kept his sword trained on Mr. Kemo; ready to strike if given the opportunity. "I thought ya were her guardian!"
Mr. Kemo laughed wickedly at Duke; and braced himself on his elbows; smirking up at him with arrogant eyes. "Why? Because I wanted her brother! He was the perfect fighter! Not some prissy little brat like Allyce! She should've died that day I arranged those stupid kids to shoot the twins!" He screamed angrily, as he stared straight into Duke's eyes.
Wildwing had finished destroying Mr. Kemo's precious robot's and went over towards Duke; pointing his puck launcher at the bad guy in case he tried anything to get away.
"I think I know a certain Captain Klegghorn will be pleased to have this lunatic behind his bars." He said in a heartless tone; pulling the man up to his feet, and tying him up; throwing him roughly into the pile of scrap metal that were once Mr. Kemo's robots.
By the time Tanya had gotten Shadow free, the gray wolf had bolted out of the cage and charged for the bad man lying in the trash heap; pinning him down into the metal and snarling viciously at him. She barred his teeth at him; ready to attack should Mr. Kemo make any form of movements.
"You traitor! I can't believe you would go against your comrade and friend! My father trusted you with his family!" Shadow screamed in pure rage, as she changed between her human and wolf forms at an alarming rate; shaking and punching the man who was just chuckling at her. "You promised you'd take care of me and Ray and you let him down!" She was now screaming; slamming his body against the hard metal under him.
Wildwing took a slight step towards Shadow in an attempt to stop her, but Duke gripped his leader's shoulder and held him back. He looked over at Duke, and saw him shake his head. He looked behind Duke, and saw his younger brother and Tanya joining them, and saw their shocked looks. He couldn't blame them for being surprised at Shadow's rage. He knew she could really hurt someone should she choose to, but it wasn't like Mr. Kemo didn't deserve whatever Shadow was about to hand him, either. There was a part of him that wanted to make the man pay for what he's done to the girl he dared call "his little sister", but another part of him also wanted to comfort the poor girl, whom was now punching the man in the face.
After Duke saw Shadow slowing down her punches and panting for breath, he decided that now was the time to end her onslaught. He carefully walked over towards the girl; making sure she was aware of his being nearby, and pulled the girl back.
"I'm not done with him yet!" Shadow screamed hysterically; trying to break free from Duke's grasp, "He took away my life!"
"I know, sweetheart, but it's ova now... Let it go." Duke said in a gentle tone, "He's got what he deserved."
Shadow kept crying, and turned around in his arms. "He took away everything I ever had! Everything I ever was!" She cried out in rage; screaming and crying, as she held onto Duke's uniform as tight as she could in fear of him leaving.
Wildwing felt a sharp pain in his chest, and turned to Shadow. For once is all his time fighting against evil, he didn't know what to do. A small part of him went out to Shadow, but and even bigger part wanted to see justice done to the one Shadow respected above all else. Despite seeing the grief-stricken Shadow, he saw how kind Duke was being towards the little girl, and smiled weakly at the girl.
After a while, Captain Klegghorn arrived once Wildwing had summoned him, and he and a few other officers placed Mr. Kemo in the back of the a police car, and began talking with the white mallard; getting as much information as he could.
Duke was there with him to make sure justice is served, and to make sure that Mr. Kemo would never get anywhere near Shadow ever again. A small part of him was happy that Mr. Kemo was going to pay for what he's done to Shadow, but a small part of him wanted to see Mr. Kemo suffer like he had made Shadow suffer, but he had to settle for the jail-bird life instead.
He looked back towards the Migrator, and seen Shadow sitting with Nosedive and Tanya at either side of her; her hands were concealing her face from the world. Nosedive wrapped an arm around her back. Duke could tell that the younger duck was trying his best to help the girl to feel better, but from the way Shadow wasn't responding, he knew Nosedive didn't have much luck. Tanya looked up towards Duke and saw him looking over their way, and shook her head at him; letting him know that Shadow was still very upset about what all happened.
Duke turned his attention back to the Klegghorn and Wildwing with a worried look on his face. "What's gonna happen to da girl now?" He asked in a forlorn tone; looking back at the girl with worried eyes.
Klegghorn looked over at the trio at the large vehicle, and sighed. "I guess she'll probably go into foster care until she's old enough to take care of herself." He answered in a guilty tone; shaking his head at the girl.
Duke's head snapped around to face Klegghorn with surprise. "But no one will want 'er! She'll neva make it in da world on her own!" He protested angrily; raising his voice in slight anger.
Wildwing shook his head and folded his arms over his chest. "She'd be better off if she stayed with us, captain." He advised in a reasoning tone; hoping Klegghorn would understand Duke's logic. He didn't want to lose Shadow anymore than Duke did, and he was ready to fight for if he needed to.
Klegghorn rubbed his chin as he thought about Wildwing's words, and looked back at Shadow. He looked back at the two ducks talking with him, and gave them a firm look that told them that he meant business.
"Alright, guys," he said in a defeated tone; not having any more options, "here's what I'm gonna do: I have a few people in C.P.S. That owe me a few favors. I'll pull some strings and see if I can get them to let Allyce – or Shadow stay with you guys." He said in a final tone; giving them a warning glare. "But there's a catch."
Duke's left eye brightened in anticipation. "What's da catch?" He asked in a curious tone.
Klegghorn smirked playfully, and folded his arms over his chest. "I want to see her compete in figure skating again. It's a shame to let a talent like hers go to waste. If you can make sure she skates on the ice again, I'll make sure she stays with you guys as long as she wants... and if she goes to school, of course." He said with a friendly chuckle; extending his hand to strike the deal with the leader. "Deal?"
Wildwing smiled weakly at the captain and shook his hand. "Deal." He said in a decisive tone; feeling Duke nod in approval.
"I'll drop by to check on her every so often and see how she's doin'." Klegghorn said in a soft tone; as he smiled sadly at the girl. He looked back at the duo talking to him, and gave them a dark snarl. "I'll make sure that guy gets what's comin' to 'im. Nobody gets away with hurting kids in my town. Trust me."
Duke folded his arms over his chest, and scowled darkly at the space next to him. "I still dink dat he's gettin' off too easy..." He growled angrily to Trust me, L'Orange," he began in a tired tone; beginning to walk back to his car, "People who go to jail for hurting kids in anyway won't last long in there. Most of them don't come out."
And after everything was said and done, Klegghorn took Mr. Kemo to the police station, and the two ducks talking to Klegghorn walked back to the trio waiting for them...
Wolf: Okay, this is the 2nd to last part of this story. I'm proud to say that I've lived long enough to see the final curtain call for at least one of my stories.
W: And it turned out to be such a good one, too, Wolf.
D: I'm shocked at how good it is, kid. Smiles proudly Ya did good... ya did good.
Wolf: Thank you, Duke! It's nice to know that someone likes my work besides Wildwing. Grin hasn't even read it. I can understand Tanya for not reading my story because she's always working on her technology, heck, even Mallory took time out of her weapon's check, but I mean- come on, Grin! Seriously? What are you doing that's so important that you don't have time to read it? You're in it for pity's sake!
Grin: Shrugs his shoulders I'll read the story once it's finished, little friend.
Wolf: Sighs you ain't gonna read it, are you, Grin?
D: Eh, don' worry 'bout it, sweet'eart. All good dings come to an end, huh?
Wolf: Growls angrily Oh, dogs? Who wants an new chew toy?
Dogs: barks and chases Duke around the room
D: Ow! Hey, bad puppies! No, don't chase me into da bathroom! Oh, the horror!
M: Why is Duke afraid of the bathroom, Wolf?
Wolf: Nosedive had my grandma's chili dogs, and... well... you know...
M: Say no more. -.-
Wolf: Anyways, I'd like to thank White Hunter for pushing me to finish story and for all the help and ideas! You really saved this story from being just another old, forgotten piece of work! Thanks for all your help! I really needed a good dose of reality!
And Always, smile until you stop...