A/N:

Don't know what happened with the last chapter, FanFic didn't want to share I don't think, lol!

So, enjoy and let's hope this chapter does more smoothly.

"Don't take them… Please… Leave us alone… Please…"

They were taking them away from me. Hands came out of the darkness and snatched at my siblings. Flynn was red-faced and taking swings at the attackers, trying to resist; Poppy screaming, reaching out to me but I couldn't get to her. I was being dragged into the black, forced to watch them shrink into the distance. My throat was burning from the effort it took to call them but nothing was working. Every muscle in my body ached from fighting. No, they couldn't take them away from me! Please don't do this! They need me! I need them! Help me, please let someone help me. This isn't right! Please…

I screamed and shot upright into the light as a loud and shimmering clag erupted making the entire room shake. Wakko stood next to me, shuffling across the floor as if his body was on vibrate from the drum symbols forced together in his hands. Poppy and Dot were still in bed, but clinging to one another in panic from the rude awakening.

"Rise and shine!" I turned and found Yakko arching his brow at me, "Alarm clocks just aren't what they used to be, eh kiddo?"

"Same goes for your face if you try that again." Rita snarled, prising herself from the rafters and dropping down gracefully.

"Egad, Brain! That sounded like a marching band!" Pinky grinned, "Is there a parade in town? Zort!"

"If my ears weren't ringing so much; I'm sure I would have to hurt you for whatever comment that was…"

I gasped for breath and rubbed a cold sweat from my face, "What happened?"

Flynn was at my side, glaring at me angrily, "I couldn't wake you up! You were having a panic attack or something!"

Oh no… Was I that useless that I couldn't even sleep without scaring everyone half to death? I muttered an apology and pushed myself up to make an escape. My face burned and only when I was safely locked inside the downstairs bathroom did I let my tears fall. I would have gone for the closest upstairs but that's where Mackenzie was staying. I sat on the edge of the tub and raked my hands through my damp hair. What the hell was I doing? This wasn't me. I was the strong one who always had control. I worked hard and got the job done. Now look at me. I was weak, crying, clueless and scared. I didn't know what was going on anymore and as for –I gasped and snapped my head up at Slappy standing in the doorway despite the fact that I'd locked the door. She arched an eyebrow at me expectantly. I shamefully wiped my eyes and ducked my head.

"Sorry, I uh… I thought the door was locked and, uh -"

"It was." She held up a key, "My house, you know." She folded her arms expectantly, "I ain't got all day, what's up?"

"Nothing, I -"

"I told you I don't take kindly to liars, now cough up." She said with more forcefulness while taking a seat next to me.

Oh great. I was predictable too. Well then again I was in a bathroom crying after being awoken after a panic attack so I couldn't really praise her for stating the obvious. I shifted uncomfortably. But even then her stare was burning at me from the questioning. So, as was becoming a horrible habit of mine lately; I gave in.

"I've done nothing but try my best to keep Flynn and Poppy safe." I explained, trying my best not to sound pathetic, "When our dad left and our grandparents started struggling, I started filing for custody. I got a job, I went through all the background checks and police searches and social workers. I did it all and made sure that we stuck together." I shrugged in dismay, "And now just like that… I can't protect them anymore. Just like that, some stranger is threatening to take them away and all these people are just-" I cut myself off, embarrassed at my hysterical tone and sobs, "I don't know what to do anymore!"

"Whoa-whoa, it's a bathroom, we've got enough waterworks in here!" she said, awkwardly patting me on the shoulder, "Listen, you're doing fine or else the kids would still be locked up, right?"

"They shouldn't have been there in the first place."

"True, yet unhelpful." he huffed, "Listen, so things have been bumpy, name one thing that isn't in life; just take a look at my medical history for example."

"No offence, but medical history and taking care of my family are a bit different."

"Granted." She nodded, "But you taking care of your family, and me taking care of Skippy aren't." I looked at her questioningly, she carried on, "When us toons were first brought to life; lets just say my methods didn't seem child friendly. It took a while to convince the studio that Skippy was safe with me. We were even separated for a while and great Gibson forbids I use my dynamite to get him back or risk proving their point. It was a long four months to say the least."

That took me by surprise. Four months away from family? It had been hard enough for me for just one night without them! "Seriously? But… he looks up to you, you're great together."

"Exactly, but people don't often see it that way." She looked at me with an expectant smirk, "You get me, kid?"

I nodded and tried to take in what she was saying, "Yeah… But -"

"Buts are for kicking when someone gets on your nerves." She interrupted, "Things are rough and you're struggling," she swallowed as if she wasn't used to being so comforting, "But you're not alone and, you know, it's going to be okay in the end."

I found it hard to believe, but I didn't want to push her too hard, "You really think so?"

"May Dolly Parton's face be real if I'm lying." She held up a palm like making an oath.

What I said next, I never ever thought I'd say. It took me by surprise and as shameful as it made me, I was still glad I asked it; "Slappy? Can I…" I swallowed a sob and forced eye contact, "Can I hug you? Please?"

She too looked taken back and studied me with her icy blue eyes. After what seemed like forever, she slumped and held out her arms, "Fine, but make it quick, these gushy moments give me indigestion."

I had to give a half-laugh at that as I gingerly leaned into her shoulder and wrapped my arms around her waist. She returned it awkwardly, but that was good enough for me. I didn't know what had possessed me to act so pathetic, but I was still scared. What she said had only made me feel partially okay, but at that moment it meant the world to me. I hadn't had a hug in years. I'd given them to my siblings and the Warner's had jumped me in ones for a laugh, but a receiving a hug; no. Amazingly, it actually helped a little. She was right, I wasn't alone in this, and I still felt like I was out of my depth… but I couldn't let it consume me. For them. I had to be strong for them.

There was a light tapping on the door and Slappy released me to answer it. Yakko was slouched in the doorway looking expectant. Slappy thumbed over her shoulder at me and left, giving me a faint nod of encouragement before leaving. I rubbed my face and met the eldest Warner's eyes.

"I think she's taken a shine to you." He commented.

"Maybe…" I nodded, feeling a little embarrassed, "I'm sorry about; you know…"

He shrugged casually, "I didn't mind, Red's a good kid and I've woken up with stranger things in my bed." He winked to let me know he was deliberately changing the focus of the apology from the awakening to Poppy, "Mwah!"

"Goodnight everybody." I finished for him, giving a grateful smile.

"You just keep sticking with us, kiddo, we'll steer you right!" he elbowed me gently, "Seriously, left turns has always been a problem for us."

I chuckled and put on my most determined face, "It's all good in the end and if it's not good; it's not the end."

He gave a sly smirk, "Uuuuuuhhhhh-You keep that in mind, kiddo." At my questioning look, he simply wiggled his eyebrows suggestively, "Minerva's here; and those hand-me-downs aren't going to model themselves! Grrraow!"

I'd showered and cleaned up until I felt somewhat better; and then came the cursed clothes. I appreciated the offer and the amount the mink had given me, but not a single thing covered what I wanted. It helped that I was short for my age, but it still didn't help with the sheer fittedness of everything. In the end, I'd settled on a pair of skinny jean-shorts that stopped below my knee and vest-top that had a little too much of a V-neck, but it was the least revealing of the lot. Admittedly, I felt a little better after a good soak, but I was by no means stable. It seemed that there wasn't much else for me to do was put on a brave face. I had o stay strong. And strength was something I needed; because the minute I stepped out of the bathroom, I was met with two pairs of shining black eyes.

"Helloooo Nurse!" the Warner brothers chanted, scanning me eagerly.

I rolled my eyes, not that they noticed. You see, as I said earlier, this top was a little too low-cut for my liking. So naturally, this top and their height were working out very well to their advantage… I snapped my fingers in front of their faces, making them jump.

"Perverts." I muttered as I passed them, only making them chuckle, "Have you seen Flynn? I need to talk to him."

Dot shoved her brothers out of the way, "He's outside with the others." She eyed me from head to toe, "Isn't that a little…"

"I know!" I huffed, folding my arms over my chest.

Jeez this was the last thing I was wearing of Minerva's! We traced outside into the sun where everything was at that peaceful serenity that if you just came into this; you would have thought that everything was perfect. Skippy was trying to tech Poppy how to climb a tree; Minerva was sunbathing while Slappy was polishing a black bomb in the sunlight and Flynn was playing fetch with Runt. But my blood started to boil as I saw Mackenzie standing beside him and talking. I marched over and tapped him; he turned and had the nerve to grin at me.

"Get away from my brother." I said calmly.

"We were just talking." He insisted, "I was -"

"I don't care. Bye now." I pressed, arching an eyebrow.

Finally, the idiot seemed to get the message and backed away inside the house. My attention turned to Flynn who seemed a little amused by my intrusion. Runt came bounding over, muttering excitably as the stick was darted before his eyes. Apparently it was definitely going to be tossed; definitely. I chose to wait until the canine was running at top speed after it before I made my move.

"I'm sorry about this morning." I muttered, placing a hand on his shoulder, when he didn't respond I continued, "You've been so brave lately and I'm so proud of you. I know I've been pretty useless, but I promise it stops now."

"You're not useless." He scoffed, "Just, you know; on edge."

That was an understatement! "I'm sorry."

"Stop saying sorry! You're starting to sound like the jerk over there." He nodded towards the house with a smile, "That's all he did when he was over here. I don't really get why; apart from when he was holding you back we didn't see him in the studio."

"Really? He wasn't there when you were…" the word still felt awful in my mouth, "…taken; or anything?"

He shook his head, "No; I was as freaked as you were when he showed up."

There was an awkward silence as Runt returned with a hairbrush instead of a stick, but Flynn threw it anyway. I cleared my throat, "I'm really proud of you, though, and I'm so-"

"Tell you what," he grinned knowingly, "get me a cell-phone when we get home and we'll call it quits."

"Not long ago I'd say forget it; but now that seems like a pretty good deal." I chuckled.

I tousled his hair and tried to pull him into a hug to which he tried to avoid, muttering jokingly about sister germs again. Finally releasing him, I left him to his game. Me, I was still thinking about the danger. I looked out into the woodland around us and felt the need to explore it; or even to just get away from everyone for a while and think. But I couldn't leave them. There was a nagging at the back of my mind telling me to stay. Maybe I was scared that if I left, I wouldn't have the courage to come back. I hated myself right then for even thinking it. But I was still scared…

"Somewhere I can hang my hat, somewhere for a dog and cat, somewhere just imagine that, we'll find a place called home! A place we've been searching for, a place we've been waiting for, so long we've been searching for so long a place called home!"

The singing made me freeze, it was beautiful. Soft and soulful like a professional. There was a familiar twang to it but I could place it. As the words danced in the air, I desired to find out where they were coming from, so I followed them up into the house and up the stairs and to the attic room. My ear pressed to the door, confirming that the singer was inside before entering. I edged the door open gently and eased inside, smiling a little in surprise at the owner. Rita was perched in the window ledge, leaning her head out so that her whiskers quivered in the breeze. Her eyes looked out longingly into the distance, totally oblivious to my approach. I was amazed by how her sharp tone was so easily melted away into this sweet tune. She raised her chin and continued her melody.

"They don't see us! They'll never know; but they could be us, like that! Just like that! Out here in the shadows end, out here is a promised land, out here we'll all understand; and make this place our home. This place our home…" She lingered on the last note, making it fade slowly into a delicate whisper before sighing contently.

"Where'd you learn to sing like that?" I asked, making her jump and turn to glare at me.

"Lessons are going to cost you." She arched an eyebrow, "What's it to you, human?"

There was that tone again, like she felt an awful hatred to me, "Have I done something to upset you?"

She scoffed, "Don't take it personal, humans just don't mean that much to me. No offence, you're just all the same."

"Then why are you so desperate to have a home with one then?" I challenged.

I don't think she liked that, "Desperation is an ugly word; and take a look around at what's been going on in these parts. Do you want to stay here, or find a better home elsewhere?"

She had a point there, in fact it was what I had just been thinking about, but I couldn't give in this time. I could turn and run, forget all this and start over; but I stay for my family, because in the end I need them more then they need me. I looked at the feline dead in the eyes, "It depends on what you're willing to give up. And I'm not giving up on anyone anytime soon."

Her expression changed, almost softened as if she was approving my answer, "Well, you've got your reasons; I've got mine." She glanced out of the window and tilted her head, "And he's got his reasons too."

I joined her at the window and followed her gaze towards the back of the house. A tall figure was edging towards the cluster of trees before vanishing from sight. I knew that figure, but what was Mackenzie doing? Anger burned through me. That double-double crosser! He was making a run for it! He was ratting us out again! I looked at Rita earnestly.

"I'll be back in fifteen minutes." I announced.

"And if you're not?" she asked with a smirk, almost mocking my anger.

"Then you have permission to hunt down a rat."

The grass and dirt was soft underfoot as I searched for him. I didn't know where I was going or even if I could find my way back, but right now I didn't care. Where was Mackenzie going? Had he even come this way? Everything looked the same. For all I knew, I was heading deeper into the toon section, or walking right into the studio. But I had to find him before he got any further away. I had to know once and for all what he was up to.

A snap of a branch not far from me made me jump. I turned and saw a shadow dart between the trunks. My breath caught in my throat, unable to make a noise. I pressed myself against a tree to hide from view. Slowly, I peeked around in time to see the figure move again. My heart hammered in my chest, too loud for my liking. I was scared that it would give me away. I could hear it breathing. Heavy and getting closer. Before I could think, I started running. Panic taking over me. Whatever it was gave chase. It was getting closer. I could feel it. At the last second, I grabbed a branch and used it to propel myself in a different direction, throwing it off course. My back slammed against a trunk as I made another attempt to hide.

My scream was silenced as a hand clamped over my mouth and dragged me along the bark. My nails ached with splinters as they dug into the wood, desperate not to let me get taken away. Another hand gripped my wrists and pulled me into a hollow of the trunk. I was pressed against a strong figure in the gloom, unable to move from lack of space. My eyes looked up to see a familiar pair of shaded brown eyes, looking at me sternly. Mackenzie let my wrists go to press a finger to his lips in an attempt to shush me. He peeked out of our hiding place before looking at me again.

"He's gone." He whispered, "But he could be back any minute. I'm going to let you go now; don't scream, okay?"

Like I was that stupid to do that now; I waited for him to prise his fingers away before glaring at him, "What the hell are you playing at?" I snapped in whisper, "Who was that? You brought him here didn't you? I knew you were a liar and -"

I was disgusted as he replaced his hand, "Will you shut up for once and listen to me! Let me explain."

He recoiled as I clamped my teeth into his palm, "Then get on with it!"

He looked at me in the eyes, his serious expression never faltering, "That was one of my uncles workers; it's his job to collect new toons for tests. I was… I was, uh, contacted to help him."

"Contacted?" I spat, "How? You mean all this time you were still working for them?"

"No! Well, no I'm not working for them! They just, you know, don't know it."

I scoffed, "Oh that's right, you ran, didn't you?"

"Will you let me explain? Yes, I ran, okay! I pretended to run after you but ended up hiding. Yeah, I'm a coward but that's not the point. I had my cell with me and I got a message last night. I had to meet up with one of the hunters and give him a hand. I had to come out or else they'd start tracking me! But I was leading him away, I swear it!"

"Then how come I ended up being chased?"

"In case you've forgotten, you're not exactly in their good books." He retorted, "You and your family are on the list too. Plus it didn't help with you walking right in front of him!"

"Don't talk to me like that!" I warned, "How do I know you're not making this up and are just stalling until he comes back?"

"You're just going to have to trust me."

"I don't trust cowardly, bullying pricks like you!" if I could move, I'd slap him, "Do you still have your cell-phone?"

With difficulty, he prised it from his pocket. I snatched it from him and dropped it on the floor, crushing it under my foot. He exclaimed in horror, but didn't dare argue with me. Instead he just looked at me with bemused questioning.

"How do you know they haven't been tracking you all along?" I nodded at the wrecked phone, "Are you stupid? Now tell me why they need toons, what tests could they possibly be doing?"

He swallowed thickly, "I don't know. They don't tell me the details. All I know is that they take a toon, do what they do, and then send them to the Waiting Room to wipe their memories before sending them back, I think I've seen nearly all of them go in there at some point…"

"Why send them back if they're just going to play hunter again?" It didn't make sense to me. Surely it was easier to keep them contained?

"Because by sending them back, the toon can go back into their routine, avoiding causing a panic. And plus, you've seen who they are; do you really think the studio can handle more than a couple at a time?" he took a breath, "I was going to lead him away and sneak back later… I swear!"

I needed more answers, so I chose to ignore this pitiful beg. There were still questions eating at me and unfortunately, he was the safest ways of answering them. I swallowed my pride and looked at him, studying every alteration in his face, searching for dishonesty.

"If you want me to trust you, then you've got to answer every question I give you truthfully, okay?" he nodded at me in response, so I continued, "Last night you told me that they tried to use the same mind-twist methods on you as they did to me. Why? How did you get pulled into all of this?"

It looked like the question was causing him pain. But after a moment of thought, he answered with a strained and mournful voice, "It was about a year ago; me and my family came here for summer to visit Uncle R.J and I got bored, so I wondered off and found this part of the studio. I ended up being witness to a toon kidnap, needless to say R.J wasn't best pleased. He didn't even wait to see if anyone would believe me, he just went straight to Scratchansniff and told him to do 'what he did to the first one'." He nodded at me to clarify what I already knew, "But, maybe because I was older, I don't know, but I wasn't buying it. So then they tried to put me in the Waiting Room…"

He stopped, his eyes growing cold at the memory, "And then?" I pressed.

"And then… I begged." He said with self-disgust, "I begged him and said that I'd do anything to make it up to him. So he used me as a spy. I tracked down toons for the hunters in the studio and then I was passed on to get info on you. But as soon as I found out how far he'd gotten, I had to get out of there…" he looked at me earnestly, and this time, when he spoke again, it wasn't the usual urgent and whining tone. It was calm and deep, like he really meant it, "I'm sorry, Talia, and I never, ever meant to hurt you or your family. Never."

As I was letting his words, his horrible and undeniably truthful words sink in, I was disgusted to find myself feeling empathy for him. We'd started on the same path really. Both had come across this conspiracy by accident; both had been forced into thinking it impossible and doubting our sanity; and both finding out the truth. However, there were so many diversions. Whereas I had accepted the lie over time; he'd fought it and ended up on better grounds. Now as I stood as a prey for the studio to hunt; he stood as an inside man, with to a certain extent, authority. I wondered, would I be in his position if I'd resisted? Would I have been pulled into these tests and experiments? There was no way of knowing. But I knew one thing; although there was no real trust on my part towards him, if he was willing to give such information; then possibly there was a way of using it and him to our advantage.

"How did you get mixed into it?" he asked suddenly, "I was never told details."

"They didn't tell you much, did they?" I shrugged, "I was eight and ran off because my parents were arguing and got lost. I climbed the water tower thinking that someone would see me from there and come find me; but I ended up opening the door and bumping into the Warner's. They saved me, so in return when the guards came looking, I hid them but ended up being taken away myself. That's where Dr. S came in. And it all went downhill from there." I swallowed, not wanting to get into too much detail of therapy, "Now this is where you come in and the rest is history."

"Whoa… That's -"

"History." I cut him off, "But where do you stand now? I mean it Mackenzie; you're either with us, or with R.J. And don't give me the answer you think I want to hear. It's time to grow a pair and answer honestly. Are you going to help us, or help them?"

He swallowed thickly, I had to give him props for actually giving it thought first, "I'm… I'm with…" he trailed off and softened his expression, looking down at me with a strange softness.

It was then I noticed that he had shifted to take my hand in his and had shifted so that we were almost completely pressed together. There wasn't room to shift away and I didn't like the grip he had on me. It was too much like when he'd grabbed it last night; like he was deliberately trying to stop me from getting away. Slowly, he started to lean his face closer to mine. Oh please don't say he was going for it? He'd clearly been living on a movie set for too long, things like this didn't happen. I leant away and arched an eyebrow.

"Don't even try it." I warned.

He flushed, "Sorry… I just thought -"

"You don't think. I want to go back now."

He stopped me, "I do think, Talia, sometimes too much, just like you. And right now I'm thinking; we should keep what I told you to ourselves."

I blinked in surprise, "Why? If they know that they're being hunted down like this, and about the Waiting Room too…" Surely he knew that I wasn't going to hide things from the toons again, "This could really help them!"

"Or hurt them; and what they don't know won't hurt them. It's for the best."

"No." I demanded, pulling from his grip, "Mackenzie, the last time I kept secrets from them; my little brother and sister were kidnapped. I'm not making that mistake again. And this time…" I swallowed and waited for eye contact, "This time I'm sorry."

We were jolted in shock as a child-like scream echoed around us. Our eyes widened in panic and I found myself pushing him backwards and escaping our hiding place. The scream didn't sound like Poppy's, and Flynn didn't scream as such. But I wasn't listening out for who it was; I was listening for where it was. I was vaguely aware of Mackenzie following me, trying to keep up. Suddenly, between the tree's, the same hidden figure was storming in the opposite direction to me. In his hand was a large cage. A small and furry chestnut coloured creature quivering inside it.

"Aunt Slappy!" it screamed, shaking the bars helplessly, "Aunt Slappy help me!"

Skippy! Oh shit! No, they couldn't do this again! They were not going to break up that family again; they weren't going to break up any family again. I knew I wasn't thinking straight and there were better ways of going about this. But then and there, my mind was just a mess of rage. I let out a guttural growl that sounded alien to me as I charged forward. Leaping at the stranger and jumping onto his back. He was short so that gave me an advantage. My arms looped over his neck and my feet kicked into him, aiming at his hands to release the cage. He turned and grabbed a fist full of my hair, pulling my over his shoulder and only the floor. I gritted my teeth from the pain but refused to stay down. My fist swung upwards and collided with his chin. He shoved me away so that I fell onto the ground again. With grim satisfaction, he lifted his foot and aimed it over my head, ready to stamp downwards. At the last minute I rolled out of the way, grabbing a stone and throwing it with all my might. It sliced at his fingers making him drop the cage. I didn't hesitate to throw another stone at his head, dazing him slightly. I jumped up and scooped the cage in my arms, running for cover in the trees. Mackenzie followed me and pushed me behind a large oak, shielding us from view. He looked down at me with a look of; what was that? Annoyance? Distain? I wasn't sure.

"Run back to the others; and remember what I said about not telling them anything!" he snarled before rushing out to help the guy.

"Where did you go?" the hunter snapped, "She's here, she just took a toon."

"Forget the toon." Mackenzie mused, "I know where she is; and where she's hiding the rest of them."

"Where?" he grabbed Mackenzie by the collar of his shirt, "Tell me or you'll be permanently lost in these parts…"

"Don't touch me, Plotz! I'm the CEO's nephew, remember? Harm me and it's your job!" he looked around as if checking for listeners, "Not here; I'm sure my uncle will want to hear this in person."

Plotz? Wasn't that the old CEO? But, he could be? Could he? I didn't wait any longer to find out. Mackenzie was too convincing to be lying, and yet he had lied plenty of time for me to wonder if he was giving us an escape. I didn't know. But I'd have to think about that later. Right now I had to get back to the others. I ran until we were far enough away before crouching down and taking a sharp rock in my hand. In the distance, laughing could be heard.

"Cover your eyes." I ordered, smashing the rock against the lock until it sprang open.

The young squirrel leapt into my arms and sobbed into my neck, his tail curling around my waist as if he was trying to hold on in every possible way. I held him close and hushed him softly, rocking him from side to side.

"I-I was p-playing t-tag and-" he was sobbing so much it was hard to hear him, "I-I ran and th-then h-he got me a-and -"

"It's okay, he's gone, I'm here…" I breathed, smoothing his head softly, "I won't let anyone take you away."

I stood up, making him cling more tightly to me for fear of getting taken again. Everything around me looked exactly the same, there was no way of knowing which way was right. And the poor kid was too shaken to look up let alone guide me. But then another burst of laughter came from not too far away. Without hesitation, I sprinted towards it, hope building as we entered a clearing where a familiar house build into a tree stood proudly. Slappy was scolding the Brain.

"I've told you a million times: taking over the world don't interest me, but touch my walnuts again and it's your oversized head I'll be using in tomorrows lunch!" she glanced up at our arrival and her pupils dilated, "Skippy; what happened? You two look worse than Sonny and Cher during that Scooby Doo cameo!"

I handed him over to her where he continued to sob. Everyone was staring expectantly at me, waiting for an explanation. Rita tilted her head expectantly, "So, I take it the spying could have gone better?"

"I followed him but…" I gulped, rasping for breath, "…I ended up being followed too."

Yakko traced me with his eyes and smirked, "There's a shock."

"Not the time…" I glared, making him tug at an imaginary collar uneasily, "Okay, I followed him…"

In the time it took me to explain everything that had happened in the most basic of terms: namely following him, getting chased, Mackenzie saving me and then me saving Skippy; everyone was inside and crowded around me eagerly. Skippy and huddled on his aunts lap, sipping at some hazelnut hot-chocolate and still quivering while Poppy smoothed his head. When I finished, Wakko shook his head.

"I prefer stories with funny parts."

"At least it had an appealing heroine." Yakko added with a wink.

"And a happy ending." Dot shrugged, "Sorta…"

"What do they want with us anyway?" Minerva asked, flicking her hair, "And is that jerk helping us or not?"

"You did good today, kid." Slappy commented, giving me a nod of appreciation, "But with that boy out of the picture, we're a bit out of the loop."

"Oh I love loop-the-loops!" Pinky announced, "Narf! Are we going on a rollercoaster?"

"Shut up, Pinky, or I'll be forced to hurt you…"

What they don't know won't hurt them. Remember what I said about not telling them anything! Mackenzie's words echoed in my head. If I didn't tell them, then we would be stuck in the same position for who knows how long, and we wouldn't be any closer to finding out what was going on. And then something hit me. I had asked him a straight question whose side he was on. And he didn't answer me. He'd deliberately avoided it. I let him distract me, like an idiot! But did that mean the he really was going to tell R.J where we were? Or was he really just creating a diversion? But he called that man Plotz; and he knew about the Waiting Room… And the last time I kept secrets, bad things happened. I couldn't let that happen again. Not to me or anyone. So if Mackenzie was on our side or not; I still didn't trust him. I looked at the company and took a breath; telling them everything that I'd learned.

"There's something in the studio called the Waiting Room; and I think that all of you might have been inside it at some point and… and I think I know where Plotz is…"

A/N:

Wow that was a long chapter! Sorry if it got boring! Rita's song was from the episode ''Cat and the Fiddle'.

Another plot twist in the making! And I still don't know if Mackenzie is helping or not. A lot of you like him as a villain, but one or two think he could be a good guy deep down. Well, we'll have to wait and see! Oh, and something BIG is going on in the next chapter!

Thanks again for the reviews and you're all epic for making this the most popular fic I've ever written! XD