A/N:

How miffed would you be if I ended it after the last chapter? I was surprised how many people actually care this much about an OC, thank you all so much XD Long chapter here! No spoilers in reviews please!

Is this what death is like? It's dark. Not really much more to say really. It was dark. No, I could hear something, and feel it too. Something rhythmic that pumped loudly right through me. No, inside me. A heartbeat? No I couldn't have a heartbeat, I was dead, wasn't I? There was no way I could go through that amount of agony and shadows and still be alive. But there it was, beating right there in my chest. I could feel my own weight as I lay on something soft. Okay, don't get your hopes up, Talia. Let's test this. I flexed my hands, which did so without complaint. Deep breath… I could breathe… Oh please god, say this is real… Something flickered in my mind. Faces, words, people… Memories. I remembered! I heard something shift next to me, making me flinch.

The moment I opened my eyes, I was met with a bright pair of onyx eyes and a feminine grin, "I know they say that imitation is the best form of flattery; but that was going a little far don't you think?"

"Dot?" I gasped, shooting up to sit upright, grabbing her arm to check if she was real.

She looked at me with mild amusement, "Oh I'm worth remembering now, am I?" she jumped onto my lap and batted her eyes, "Oh the flattery continues!"

I caged her in an embrace, "Are you okay? Where are…"

I trailed off as I took in my surroundings. Everything was white and smelled like bleach. Rows of beds with railings attached for curtains to be pulled around if needed. I was on one of them right now next to a wide window that overlooked a cluster of buildings. Was I in a hospital? No, just to the left I could see the infamous Warner Bothers water tower. We were still in the studio. The medical ward? I glanced down at my arms, all of the burns and dark stains had been cleaned away. I didn't feel pain or sickness or anything. Actually… I felt… great.

Dot shrugged, "I'm fine, kid, it's you everyone's been bugging out about." She shot me a playful glare, "Attention hog!"

"How long have we been in here?" I asked, half-dreading the answer.

"Over a week. Well, you have. I was allowed to leave after my first night, but why would I want to do that?" she grinned, "Forget male-nurses, Hellooooo male-Doctors! And they're paid to wait on us hand and foot! I can't believe you've been out cold for it the whole time."

A week? Holy shit! "What… What happened? "

She slumped her shoulders, "Oh don't start that record again!"

"No, no I mean… " I ran my hands through my hair which felt clean and ash free, "Okay, I remember everything; but what happened after you went into the machine. It's a bit blurry."

She opened her mouth to answer me, but was suddenly interrupted by two new figures rushing into the room. The Warner brothers charged in and slammed the door behind them, gasping for breath as they flatted against the wall for support. Yakko pointed at his brother with determination.

"And what have we learned today?"

"Doctors and Nurses is only a game when the players aren't Doctors and Nurses." Wakko panted.

"Good boy…" he patted his brother on the head and then glanced up as he noticed Dot and I staring at them, "Helloooo kiddo! Nice cat-nap?"

"Meow…" I said dryly before holding out my arms with a smile, "You still have a hug to test out remember?"

He arched an eyebrow, "Ah it's no fun when I'm invited!"

However his comment was proven wrong as Wakko jumped up to me in an embrace. He gave his older brother an apologetic glance and muttered a "she gives good hugs". Yakko gave in and hoped up on the bed next to me and gave a playful brush of his knuckles under my chin instead. Something white caught my eye.

"You've got a new glove." I pointed out, remembering that it had slipped away with me.

"Yeah turns you the whole Michael Jackson look wasn't going for me." He mused, "But it looks like you're wearing it pretty well."

I didn't know what he meant, but I was soon made aware as Dot took my right arm and flipped it so that the underside of my wrist was facing upwards. I blinked in bemusement. There on my wrist where the faint traces of my veins were most prominent, was a black outline. Now in all the stuff I remember, I'm sure I would remember getting a tattoo. Especially of a glove. I licked my thumb and tried to rub the imprint away, but it looked fused to my skin. Then it clicked; it had been a toon glove and it had gone through the Animator. With no paper to go onto, and with me holding onto it, it had chosen to embed into me.

"Well… I didn't think tattoo's hurt that much…" I muttered, "Wait, the Animator…"

Everything came flooding back in a sickening blur. The agony, the fear, the constant threat of death. I made my head spin as the grotesque images of Mackenzie formed in my mind along with the sensation of falling over the side of the building and watching as I was dragged inside the Animator again. So much panic… So much fear… So much pain… It was all too much and I felt myself trembling. Bile rose at the back of my throat and the room began to tilt unnaturally.

"I didn't know humans could turn that shade of green." Wakko muttered.

"You don't look too good, kid." Dot added.

I shook my head, "I think I'm gonna be sick…"

Wakko pulled out his gag-bag and produced a bucket which I snatched from him just in time to tip the content of my stomach into it. Every muscle in my body ached as I heaved, with very little in my system to begin with it just made vomiting more painful. I felt embarrassed and weak, but I was too dizzy to take much notice. A cold sweat was formed on my brow as I gasped for air, lifting my face away from the bucket. I flinched a little at the realisation that something was grabbing my hair. My eyes darted to the side to see Yakko grimacing slightly as he'd scooped my hair away from my face.

"You ate the studio meatloaf, didn't you?" he arched an eyebrow as he released me, "That stuff will come back to haunt you."

"That'll be the last of it." Dot nodded matter-of-factly.

I coughed and looked at her groggily, "Last of what? My innards?"

She shuddered, "Diiiiiisgusting! No, the red stuff. They kept putting you on a drip with big bags of red stuff but you kept spewing it back; so they gave up. Do you know how much cutie-sleep I lost because of you?"

Red stuff? I glanced back in the bucket and froze in horror at the pool of scarlet liquid. A vile metallic aroma rose from it and there was a copper taste in my mouth that made me wince. Blood? They had tried to put blood in my system. Had I lost that much? Wait… why was I vomiting blood if I needed it? It didn't make any sense! Yet, I was still alive, I didn't need the blood. What the hell was going on here? I must have looked frantic because the Warners began to try and distract me.

"Oh lighten up!" Wakko punched my arm playfully.

Dot nodded, "Yeah! Oh, and sweetie, green's not your best colour."

I smiled weakly as I leant over to put the bucket out of sight under the bed. On my return Yakko took my right arm to examine the imprint on underside of my wrist, "Don't think you'll be forgetting us again anytime soon though,"

"What can I say? You guys leave your mark everywhere you go."

There went the eyebrows as he took my hand to his chin, "Wait till we're alone."

I scowled and pulled my hand away to lightly smack him upside the head, "Pervert."

"Priss."

I laughed. It felt like I hadn't laughed in ages. But something interrupted it. The imprint reminded me of something. They had tried to save me. And it wasn't the first time either. They'd saved me back when we first met, when I nearly fell from the tower. And I'd done nothing but put them in danger, even if they could take care of themselves the guilt ate at me. Dot was nearly burned and I did nothing. And… I'd never thanked them. After all we'd been through I'd never thanked them for saving my life…

"Guys… thank you; for… everything." I said earnestly, "I wouldn't even be here without you."

"Considering we're in a hospital, we'll try not to take offence." Yakko quipped.

"You know what I mean."

Dot arched an eyebrow, "Don't go getting mushy on us now!"

Maybe I was, but I didn't care, they needed to know how grateful I was, "No, I'm serious. I really can't thank you guys enough, or say how sorry I am…"

"Then say no more." Wakko elbowed me playfully.

I opened my mouth to argue that I meant it when Yakko cut me off, "No seriously say no more, you've got vomit breath." That earned him another light slap on the head, this time he avoided it and smiled wryly at me, "Good to see the feisty side making a comeback."

"I wasn't aware it left." I retorted.

We were interrupted by the door opening and a balding man with glasses and a white coat entering looking a little stressed. As soon as he saw that I was awake and with the Warner's, it was hard to say if he looked more stressed or relieved.

"Hi Dr. S, how's your rib?" I asked, remembering how he'd winced in pain from being shoved to the floor.

He smoothed down his coat out of reflex, "It's good, danke. Just dislocated. But zer real question iz how are you?"

"Weirdly enough, I'm feeling better than I have in a long time."

He nodded and looked uneasy, "I have to have a privet word viv Talia." He said with surprising seriousness, "Vy don't you fetch the kidsez, zey vill be vanting to see zeyr sister up and vell."

Flynn and Poppy were waiting for me? I looked eagerly at the three. Yakko pointed upwards with determination, "Onward Sibs to round up the... uuuuuuhhhhh-sibs; or die trying!"

"Or knowing our luck, try dying…" Dot folded her arms.

Wakko gulped, "Why not something less dangerous, like tie-dyeing?"

"As much as I find the rhyming satisfying, I can't help but start sighing with the time you're buying so you can start prying and seeing my siblings would be great and with that there's no denying." I took a breath and ended with a playful glare, "So please get them before I send you flying."

They all paused and stared at me with approval for my rhyming skills. To be honest I was pretty shocked myself. Yakko waved his hand dismissively as they backed out of the room, "Sure, sure, we'll go before you start your crying."

I'd say I was sad that was over, but I'd be lying. Damn that was hard to get out of! I was so excited, how long had they been waiting for me? I couldn't wait to see them. It had seemed like years since we'd been together. I sang that Rascal Flatts song and they went to sleep. Was that really the last time I saw them? Wow… Too long ago it seemed. But then something hit me. Dr. S didn't seem happy about my awakening, and he'd seemed a little too relieved by the Warner's leaving. I eyed him questioningly. I didn't know where this was going, but I wanted to have a few questions of my own before he had his go.

"What happened after me and Mackenzie went into the machine?" I said suddenly, "What happened to him and R.J?"

"Vell, zer toons had a good attempt at zeir own revenge…"

I bit my lip, "How did that turn out?"

"Vee had a very difficult time explaining to zer police vy he vas found tied to zer studio gates covered in dynamite ash und a 'special friend' label around his neck…" he allowed himself a half smile, "But zer court trail vas yesterday. He vas found guilty of fraud, illegally using company funds, theft, mental und physical abuse, kidnap und… ahem; other things…" he collected himself, "He received life sentence."

To me, it wasn't good enough, my fists clenched, "Should have strapped him down and removed his memory…" I growled.

"And vat vould zat make us? Just like him, ja?"

He had a point. But the fact that he was simply in prison didn't seem good enough. That wasn't suffering and punishment enough. I felt angry, cheated. But what could I do about it? What's done is done. It wasn't going to get much better; but at least it couldn't get worse. Why did I get the feeling I just jinxed it?

"And… Mackenzie?"

Dr. S paled and wrung his hands nervously, "Mackenzie vas… very strained und ill. After almost a year of zose experiments… he'd… You have to understand Talia he'd -"

"Reached his limits?" I finished for him, feeling suddenly cold, "He's…"

He nodded, placing a comforting hand on my shoulder, "His family have been told, zer funeral is in a few days. Zer medics filed technical accident as the cause…"

"Manslaughter." I spat, "Is that one of the other charges R.J was found guilty of?" when he nodded, I shivered in rage, "Should have been murder."

It hit me there and then that I didn't know if I was upset or not about Mackenzie. I never knew the real him. I couldn't judge him on his childhood self, that wasn't fair. But every time I saw him since, he'd been a puppet for R.J. I never knew if he was ever really helping me, or really following orders. I'd never known him. The real Mackenzie had died a long time ago, and I'd never seen him. And now my last images of him was as he was shrinking into the machine, bleeding scarlet ink from his once shaded brown eyes. Reached his limits… I wasn't sad; I wasn't happy; I wasn't anything. No, I felt… regret. Maybe I could have done more. I didn't and never would know. Just like I didn't and never knew the real him. He was just nineteen…

"How are you feeling, Talia?" he asked, typical physiatrist question. Dr. S clearly wanted to move things along.

"Confused overall. But if you mean health; like I said, pretty good, oddly enough." I nodded, but then arched an eyebrow, "Why do I get the feeling that you're about to tell me otherwise?"

He swallowed, "Vell… you've been through a lot, mentally und physically. And… zis is very hard to explain."

"Dr. S, with all due respect, like you've said; I've been through a lot. I think I can take whatever you've got to throw at me." I said lightly, trying to ignore the racing of my heart.

He gave a half-hearted laugh that he clearly wasn't comfortable with and continued, "You vent through zer Animator twice in zer space of a few hours… One of zose times vas ven it vas at full power directly after Animating a toon." He waited for any questions I had. I didn't, so he clasped his hands together, "Have you noticed any changes about yourself?"

I glanced over the side of the bed where the bucket of blood that I'd vomited lay. The imprint on my wrist tingled a little, I traced my thumb over it absentmindedly. That wasn't normal. And I'd been out cold for over a week; I wasn't supposed to feel this great. Right now I felt like I could run a marathon or go bungee-jumping and not feel any different. Whatever meds these people were giving me, I was sure they didn't work this well.

"Yeah… a little…"

"You vere very badly infected viv ink-poisoning as vell as multiple burn wounds. Medics gave you blood transfusions but nothing vorked. Zere vas nothing zat could have saved you and yet, zer day after zey stop trying to treat you… here you are vivout a scratch or symptom."

"It's great what a nap can do, isn't it?" I muttered, trying to make light of it, "Please Doc, just tell me what's happening to me."

"Talia… you know vat happened to-" he swallowed uneasily, "To Mackenzie after going through the Animator zer first time, don't you?"

"Well, yeah he became half-toon and…"

I froze. I'd been through it twice. My body was rejecting blood. I felt more energetic and alive than I had in ages. The mark on my wrist. The dark stains that had been on my arms; ink-stains. Ink poisoning. My eyes narrowed in thought. No way… I'd seen a lot of impossible things over the past month or so, but this took the cake. No, it took who entire chain of bakery! I looked at Dr. S who nodded in confirmation. I shook my head with a hopeful smirk.

"Please tell me this is one of those psycho-tests, Doc… You're not saying that I'm…" I couldn't say it, I didn't have to. He nodded all the same. "Oh hell…"

"TALIA!"

My thoughts were knocked out of me along with the air in my lungs. I looked down in shock at wavy auburn hair and large blue eyes. Oh my god… I locked my little sister in a tight embrace and pulled her up to sit on my lap, rocking her as she clutched at me, not wanting to let go. A boy with a messy mop of dark brown hair and freckled face stood next to me with a tight-lipped smile, like he was trying to stop himself from looking too pleased. I didn't care. Before he could say anything or even protest, my arm shot out and pulled him close to me. Flynn and Poppy. My Flynn and Poppy. I never wanted to let them go. Finally Flynn gave in and wrapped his arms around me. Tears poured down my face and I found myself laughing from the overwhelming joy. They were here, just as I remembered them. They were with me, they were safe…

Flynn shoved away from me with an angry glare that he just couldn't manage to keep steady, a smile peeking in every now and again, "Don't you ever do anything like that again, got it? Or else I'll… I'll… I'll run away! Yeah I'll run away and see how you like it!"

Apart from that childish threat, I felt like he was the older sibling telling me off. I nodded, "I'm so proud of you two." I hoisted them both back in and kissed the top of their heads, I looked at Flynn with a grin, "And you are so not running away from me anytime soon!"

Over their heads, I looked at Dr. S who sat patiently in his seat. I deflated a little, do they know? I mouthed at him. He shook his head and I gave him a grateful smile. The less they knew right now the better. But that didn't even matter to me right now. I had them with me, and that was that. Poppy looked up at me with little tears in her eyes.

"The bad people aren't going to get us again, right?"

"That's right." I sighed happily, "Bad people aren't coming anywhere near us."

She grinned, "That's what Aunt Slappy said too."

Aunt Slappy? Oh dear god their surrogate aunt was a frigging squirrel with an attitude problem. You know what? I couldn't think of anyone better, "I bet she did… I've missed you both so much!"

"Give it up with the sister germs already!" Flynn breathed, rubbing his eyes irritably, not wanting to show his damp eyes. Just then, he looked on the floor and froze, "What's in the bucket? … Holy cra-!"

"Language!" I cut him off, making his lips clamp together. Bloody hell I'd missed this!

That afternoon after more tests, I was allowed to leave the medical ward. However before I could go anywhere, I had an appointment with the CEO. That's right, I had an appointment with the new, or should I say returning CEO of the studio. I was led back into that large office that overlooked the entire studio. A short, balding man with a grumpy face sat behind the desk. I felt a little sheepish in his presence. The last time I'd seen him, I'd wrestled him to the ground trying to save Skippy.

"Miss. Nolan, please take a seat." He gestured.

"It's Talia, Mr. Plotz." I corrected, the formalness and the room combined just reminded me of R.J.

He nodded, "Talia. Please, sit."

I did so. It turned out that when they had found Mr. Plotz, he was in the numb state where he was awaiting R.J to tell him what to think is real. Taking advantage of this, Dr. S and Nurse had used the blank slate to recover his memories. He didn't know too much, but he did remember the false deals with R.J, and he knew enough to regain his position as CEO. It turned out I'd been out for almost a month, which explained the amount of things I'd missed. This man looked so serious and business-like; it was hard to picture him in a blank and numb mental state.

"Firstly; I'm happy to see you make a full recovery. I must offer my most humble apologies for the stress you and your family have undergone under this company."

He was so business-like. I shrugged, "Don't be, I can hardly blame you when you were a victim yourself."

He looked a little relieved, "Secondly; you will be glad to hear that I have contacted your employment and the children's school; there shall be no questioning for your absence and social services will not be inquiring into it."

I was about to question why, when I remembered what happened the last time I looked a gift-horse in the mouth. Plus, it was a relief. No doubt R.J's accounts of kidnap and abuse counted towards the lack of questioning. I thanked him, and meant every word. He gave me documents, telling me to hand them to the school and my work, it would explain everything without interrogation. I glanced over them, naturally there was no mention of the toon conspiracy or the Animator… but it answered the right questions. I held onto them like they were my only way of staying in the room. There was an awkward pause. He cleared his throat and pressed his fingertips together.

"You are aware of your situation; yes?" I nodded, shrinking a little at his attempt at softening the subject, "Are you aware of your options?"

"I wasn't aware I had any. What is there that can be done?" I asked with a hint of scepticism.

"Well, Miss – Talia. As far as we know, there isn't any way to reverse the process. But, we're positive that you are not in any danger to yourself or your family. If anything, this has sharpened your mental state. However… the full affects of this are unpredictable."

"You think I'm going to end up like Ma…" I flinched, still unsure about how I felt about the news, "Like his nephew, don't you?"

"Of course not, Talia, that was induced after over a year of constant strain and testing. But as for yourself, I don't want you encouraging that part of you, or telling anyone about it. It's best keeping it to ourselves until we can reverse it or at least control it."

What if I didn't want to reverse it? I thought, what if I like this feeling? Maybe I want to explore it and find out what I can do? I didn't dare say any of this aloud, so instead I just nodded for the one thing I did agree with him for.

"Yeah, I don't plan on letting this one out anytime soon, Sir."

He breathed with relief a little. I wasn't sure if he was glad that his company name wouldn't get tainted, or that I was cooperating. Both maybe? He was giving me a silent clue that he was sending us home. The documents, the social care, he wanted us home and away from this. I wasn't sure I wanted to leave. But it seemed I didn't have a choice.

"You're throwing a lot of hints, Mr. Plotz." I sighed, "Exactly how long do we have to say goodbye before we have to leave?"

Why was he looking so nervous? "This shall be your last night. You can spend it with your friends if you wish, but there will be a car waiting for you tomorrow morning outside the studio gates. I'm sorry for the short notice, but you understand our situation."

"Oh…" I couldn't forgive him for the short notice, but I could ignore it for now because of the circumstance, "Sir, can I ask you a favour?"

He nodded, "Within reason, Talia."

In my opinion, after what had been happening around here I was perfectly within reason no matter what my request was, but I bit my tongue. "Okay…" I swallowed my fear and I asked him my question, "Can we come back and visit the toons when things smooth over?"

He shifted and took a long breath, and then, he gave a ghost of a smile, "Within reason, Talia."

I made my way to Slappy's house, surprising myself by how easily I found it. Instincts? That was a laugh considering. It was evening, but the sky was still light and a pink haze from sunset. Poppy and Flynn reached me long before I reached the front door and I found myself almost knocked clean off my feet by a shaggy brown dog jumping up to lick my face.

"Calm down, Runt!" I chuckled, "You want to put me back in the hospital?"

"Definitely not, nope, definitely, definitely not!" he bounded in circles around us, "Flynn's been playing fetch every day, what a nice guy! Isn't he a nice guy?"

"Yeah, the best." I muttered, "A nice guy who's definitely getting a cell-phone when we get home."

Flynn blinked, "Seriously?"

I winked, making him smile just as a cat with sarcastic jade eyes came into view, "So, chose to make a return, did you?"

"I told you I wasn't going anywhere." I shrugged, "I don't abandon anyone."

"Excuse me if I don't get my hopes up." She hesitated, "But it's uh… you know… It's good to see you back. With them! It's good to see you back with them."

"I've missed you too, Rita." I smiled, scratching behind her ears and making her purr involuntarily.

She shook me off with a glimmer of a smirk, "Knock it off sister, I've got a rep to protect."

We followed her into the house where the rest of the toons were awaiting us. Skippy jumped up to take place on my free hip while Slappy gave me another scolding for putting her nerves on edge again. Apparently at her age it was lethal.

"Honestly, you're starting to remind me of a young Charlie's Angel; things don't always turn out so lucky so quit it with the hero complex or else I'll stick my dynamite down ya pants!"

Yakko blew a kiss, "Goodnight everybody!"

"Narf! Oh I thought it was too early for bed, I couldn't sleep a wink just yet! OW!"

"Don't make me hurt you again, Pinky…"

He nodded and rubbed his head, "I'll try, Brain…"

The reunion was making my news all the harder to say. Listening to the Warner's banter, Pinky's verbal quirks and everyone else just made me feel so much at home. But not everything lasted forever. And when this did end, it wasn't because of me. Just half an hour into the celebrations, which was another round of Slappy's walnut fig-dough surprise (I still wasn't sure if I liked it or not, but I wasn't complaining); the door bust open. We all stared in shock as a slim and curvaceous figure sashayed into the room wearing short army shorts and a black vest and a determined expression.

"Helloooo Mink-Nurse!" the boys chanted, tongues rolling across the floor again.

"Alright, let's get moving." Minerva demanded, "Let's get this sucker!"

Slappy face palmed, "Minerva… I'd like to take a guess at what you're doing, but I'd rather be entertained by your answer."

"Well, are we going to take down that schmuck at the studio or what?" she asked.

"Too late." Dot shook her head, "Dumber than advertised…"

The mink laid eyes on me and deflated. Rita looked at her judgmentally, "What kept you?"

"Well… it takes time too look this good for a rescue mission." She huffed, "So, what did I miss?"

"Shoot me…" Slappy sighed.

I still didn't like Minerva that much, and frankly it irritated me that while we were all out nearly getting killed and the kids were left alone she was pampering herself; I still forced myself to admire that she was still willing to help. Even a month too late… Time ticked on and I still wasn't anywhere near telling them what had been planned. So instead I chose to wait until we were starting to get to bed. Sure it was a little cowardly, but I was more than nervous for the reactions I was going to get. So I waited. Then, I blurted it out, placing a hand on each of my siblings shoulders.

"We're going home in the morning."

All eyes were suddenly on me. Flynn and Poppy pulled away with a look of outrage and instantly started protesting. It broke my heart, especially when Skippy and the two younger Warner's started to argue too. But I felt that we had to leave at some point, and it was better to rip the Band-Aid off quickly instead of dragging it out so to speak.

"I'm really sorry; but Plotz says it's best for everyone and I kind of agree." I insisted, "But it's not like we're not going to see each other again!"

"But why?" Wakko asked as Poppy clung onto him.

Please Dot stop doing the cute look! "Because they need to get back into school… I've got work and…" I couldn't tell them, so I improvised, "A lot has happened in such a short pace of time and… I think it's best for us to take a break and clear our heads. Just for a little while."

"Don't you like us anymore?" Skippy asked.

Slappy took over that one, she seemed to understand, "Don't start with the emotional blackmail, remember what I told you?"

Skippy sighed, "Emotional blackmail is only good for Disney."

"And don't you forget it." She turned to me. Her finger tapped her temple to indicate mind, "Things really that messed up in there?"

"Plotz had already made arrangements even before I woke up; but he's right." I shrugged, "I just need to figure some things out. And they have lives to get back to." I felt so guilty.

The mice seemed to be staying out of this once, simply observing. Minerva didn't seem too interested while Rita and Runt looked on with growing intrigue. The look of distain in my siblings' eyes was tormenting, but surly they knew that we never planned on staying here? And after everything we'd been through, I wasn't about to let the toons slip out of our lives forever! But time away was definitely needed. Sure it was selfish, but I needed it a little more…

"Well, if this is your last night, I won't tolerate whining." She glanced at the company warningly and then back to me, "You sure this is what you want, kid?"

Like I had much of a choice; even if I did mildly agree. I nodded, "I guess…"

"It's not what I want…" Poppy muttered.

Flynn nodded in agreement, eyes narrowing, "Forget it Pops, no one ever asks what we want."

Oh boy, you have no idea… He stored up the stairs and out of sight. Poppy angrily poked her tongue out at me and followed after him. I couldn't tell them why I was doing this, but I did try my best to work around it. That night while everyone slowly went up to bed, I stayed alone. I understood why my siblings were angry at me, a big choice had been made without them, but there were reasons. And it wasn't as if I had a choice either! They still had to go to school; we still had the house and social services to think about as well as my job. There was no way I was letting the toons slip away, because it had hurt too much before. If everybody had time away from all of this just to clear our heads, just to have some stability then maybe things could be different. And now that this thing was happening to me, I just needed to think. Maybe I was being a little selfish, but I had to do the right thing. And that counted for my siblings too.

Plotz had arranged a car for us in the morning. He'd insisted that it was best to get away from the studio for a while. Not just for me but for the kids too. Not to mention he had a company to try and rebuild, having us around would complicate matters. He promised me that I would have full rights to come and visit whenever we wished, and I planned on using that offer. Maybe a week or so away would please him enough before we could come back and see them…

As soon as I felt my eyes starting to droop, I made my way up the steps to the attic room. What I saw was more heart breaking than I could take. Flynn was curled up in bed with Rita and Runt curled up against him comfortingly, his arm draped over the canine in sleep. In the other bed, the Warner's were in their usual position, but Poppy snuggled up in the middle of them. No, I didn't want to leave the Warner's, but I knew that it wasn't going to be a goodbye. Time. That's all we needed. That's all Plotz needed too.

"You're going to have once heck of a battle with Slugger tomorrow."

Yakko made me jump as he opened one eye lazily. I swallowed, "I know… You do understand why I'm doing this, right?"

"Give us credit, kiddo, we get it. And we can also tell when you're hiding something."

I froze, "Like?"

He pushed himself up, "What do I look like, Dynamo?" he shrugged, "Meh you have reasons."

I silently thanked him for not pressuring me. I didn't want anyone knowing about my, uh, condition, until I could figure it out myself, "Are you mad at me?"

He arched an eyebrow cunningly, "I don't get mad, I get even."

"You're not going to make me your new special friend are you?"

"Now there's an idea!" he winked, "Relax kiddo, you do what you have to…"

"Thanks." I still felt guilty, "And we'll be back in no time, I promise."

He paused in thought and rubbed his hands together knowingly, "You know, we don't do this often. But we do have another unwritten rule; kind of like how we don't retaliate unless personally provoked."

I felt nervous at this, "Go on…"

"We have a time-out policy. If we ever get too much for someone, we grant them a time-out. That way they can recover before we come running back and, ahem, give it the full Warner charm."

I knew what he was doing. He was trying to twist the situation so that it sounded like his idea. Was he throwing me a lifeline or trying to recover his ego? I wasn't sure but I was listening all the same. So basically what he was saying was, instead of me leaving to help myself and my siblings under Plotz orders; he would 'give permission' to have a break before coming back. Okay, I could work with that.

"This is a one time offer though, and won't be permitted again if asked." he warned, quirking his eyebrows, "Are you sure you want to cash it in now?"

I scowled, " And the catch?"

A knowing smirk, "Same as always."

"You're not giving me a kiss while you're sharing a bed with my sister." Before he could speak, I clamped my hand over his mouth, "Goodnight everybody."

I recoiled in disgust as I felt him lick my palm, he smiled triumphantly, "Maybe you do need the break, I can't have you stealing my material."

Ignoring that, I made my way back to the sofa and settled down to sleep, "Thanks, Yakko, I mean it."

"Forget it, kiddo." He jarred at his choice of words and pointed warningly, "Figure of speech, you've had enough amnesia to put Dory to rest."

I chuckled, "Got that right…"

As I drifted to sleep my mind was buzzing. Plotz really should have given me more time. And really I was angry that he had arranged this without my consent. Why had I tried to make his involvement less noticeable? But what made me ore irritated was that Plotz was right. Deep down I knew that thing were never going to say the same, heck when the toons first showed up I didn't even know how the day was going to end let alone this. But I'd be back. We may be going home and forced away from them for who knows how long… But we'd come back somehow.

A/N:

No spoilers in reviews please!

I tried to make it clear why Talia wanted to leave and clear her head. I also tried to keep people in-character.

Only about two chapters left to write now, awe, this had been my favourite story to write so far! XD