This is how Musaki defends Ichi and how he wil defend his friend, even in the face of something that is completely out of nowhere. Wonder Panda Tan-Tan...I hope you like this.

Chapter 6: Defending Ichi

So many times that whenever Ichi was bullied by those three boars, in which he calls them 'The Three Stooges'...which is a better way to describe them in better form, the first thing they want him to do is get him in trouble, like they'd do something totally stupid and blame it on Ichi, when I know he didn't do anything wrong. Obviously, I wanted to get to the root of the real issue and see why they'd do something like that to him. My first instinct is to investigate and see what has transpired whatever situation could occur and prove Ichi's innocent.

One day, Dash, one of the boars came over to Ichi while he was walking back to his room and he shoved him down on the ground, laughing at him saying, "Why don't ya watch where you going, freak?"

"You tripped me!" Ichi exclaimed, as he got up.

Dash got to his face and exclaimed, "No, I didn't!"

"Yeah, you did!"

"I didn't!"

"You did!"

"Didn't!"

"Did!"

"Oh, yeah?"

"Yeah!"

"Wanna do something about it, freak?"

Ichi didn't want to waste time with him because he knows that he doesn't want this to end the same way it began with his parents, so he walks away from him and then out of nowhere,Dash tackled Ichi towards the ground, rolling him around and pinned him to the wall. I wanted to help him out and just stop this fight, but suddenly Ms. Faye went in and stopped the fight herself.

"Now what is going on around here?" Ms. Faye asked, very sternly.

Dash immediately thought up of a lie really quick and said, "This kid tackled me!"

Ichi was shocked and disturbed to hear this come out of the boar's mouth, claiming that Ichi attacked him when I know that he attacked Ichi on purpose and I was disgusted myself for hearing this and the caretaker turned to Ichi and said, "You should know better than to tackle him."

"But I didn't do it! He's lying!" Ichi shot back.

That obviously set her off and she said, "That's enough! Go to your room, young man!"

"But I..."

"And no supper for you!"

Ichi completely felt angry about this and also hurt that he was sent to our room over something he didn't even do and as she walked off with that Dash guy, his eyes were on Ichi, letting out a mischievous smirk on his face saying that he got away with it. I saw him walk his way back to his room and as he sat down on the corner, I wanted to check on him and as I got close to him, I saw a few drops falling to the ground and I could tell that he was in tears of being accused of something he didn't even do.

"Can you believe this? He tackles me and I get blamed for it...just like all the times him, Cash and Flash have done to get me in trouble." Ichi said.

I blinked several times and I knew completely that Ichi was framed for everything he did and he said, "No one believes me."

I got closer to him and whispered, "I believe you."

Ichi slowly looked at me and I could tell in his eyes that I'm the only one that believes he didn't do anything and he whispered, "You're a good friend, Musaki."

I definitely wanted to get to the bottom of this and I slowly crept into the hallways of the orphanage to prove Ichi's innocence once and for all and just then, I saw one of the boars walk into the room and followed him without him knowing it and as soon as the door to their room closed, I wanted to know what was going through their brains...depending on how much brains they actually have.

"So...did Ms. Faye actually fall for it?" asked Cash.

Dash began laughing hysterically and said, "Hook, line and sinker! I pulled it off with that innocent boy routine just to get that freak in trouble."

All of them started laughing and high-fiving each other while I grew completely disgusted to even hear this and I thought to myself, 'That is just plain stupid.'

"All right, guys. I've got several more ideas on my hooves." Flash added.

Cash and Dash rubbed their hooves in anticipation and they both said, "Lay it on us."

"Okay, we know that freak's got massive fire powers he can't control, right?" asked Flash.

"Right."

"All right...how about we make him really mad and end up burning the entire cafeteria and say that he bullied us?" Flash said.

"Oh, freakin' yeah! That is the best idea you've thought up of, Flash!" Dash exclaimed, while shrieking with laughter.

"Shh! Do you want Ms. Faye to actually hear our plan?" asked Flash, in a half-hushed/half-shout tone.

"Sorry."

I've already heard the plan and I know for a fact that it ain't gonna work because I'm not gonna let that happen, but what I heard next would be more awful.

"Boys, that Ichi freak...we need to get rid of him. Like frame him for other things we've done to him in the past." Flash said, with a devious smirk.

"Like tripping on some of the rabbits?" asked Cash.

"Teasing on other orphans?" Dash added.

"Pee on the swing?"

Flash chuckled at this and he said, "That was actually my idea and I'm glad I ran with it."

Just then, Cash pulls out something from his pocket that would resemble one of their past plans to frame my friend and I recognized that golden ring Ms. Faye had and I was shocked to learn that it was Cash that did it. I knew I had a gut feeling from the start and my instincts proved right this time.

"Even stealing Ms. Faye's sentimental ring?" Cash said, cackling deviously.

"Much better than that. We'll put Ichi in trouble so hard with one trick that Ms. Faye will actually kick him out of the orphanage." Flash snorts.

I grew very, very angry at their awful deeds they'd do and I wished I would burst the door open and give them a piece of my mind, but that would be too obvious. So I needed to be very smart and figure out ways to prove Ichi's innocence for all the things the three boars did.

"So, Ms. Faye sent him to his room without dinner, right?" asked Cash.

"Yeah, why?" Dash added.

Cash clomped his hoof and said, "What if we start a fight at dinner and say that Ichi snuck out of his room and started the fight?"

Flash smirked at this idea and he lets out a sinister chuckle and said, "Cash, you're a freakin' genius!"

"Thank you, I know." Cash said, laughing.

"So...when do we start?" asked Dash.

Flash looked at Cash and Dash and replied, "Let's wait until dinnertime starts, then we start up the fight and drag the freak into the cafeteria and blame it on him...so much so that Ms. Faye will have to kick him out."

I wanted to prevent this from happening and at that point, I know I've heard quite enough and I quickly whispered, "I gotta stop this before it happens. I cannot let them do this to my friend."

As soon as dinnertime starts, I kept my close eye on those three troublemakers because I knew what their capabilities are to convince the caretaker to get Ichi in big trouble over something the boars actually did and as soon as Flash throws the first pile of food on one rabbit, trouble would start any minute. While Flash and Cash started up the food fight, I saw Dash heading out of there to get Ichi and I quickly left before the food fight grows bigger.

Then, when he finally made it, I got in front of Ichi's door to block his way and he said, "You'd might as well call the whole plan off."

Dash looked at me at a twinge of shock and outrage that he might know something I already knew about and he asked, "What are you talking about?"

"I know you're planning to start this food fight to get Ichi in trouble. Well, it ain't gonna happen!" I shouted.

Just then, Flash and Cash got into Dash's side and he asked, "Who's gonna stop us?"

"Me. And I'm telling Ms. Faye that you're the one that stole her gold ring to make it look like Ichi stole it."

Dash didn't look like he was gonna back down and he said, "You can't prove that."

Flash pushed me out of the way and when he kicked Ichi's door open, I could tell that Ichi was scared and I went in and said, "LOOK OUT, ICH!"

"Shut up!" Cash shouted.

All three of them grabbed Ichi and I saw him struggling to get himself free, but these boys dragged him down towards the kitchen while the food fight began to start and I began running after him and just when it looked like the boys were gonna join in and start throwing food at him, in comes Mrs. Faye and she looked absolutely appalled by what has transpired in the kitchen.

"What is the meaning of all this?" Ms. Faye shouted.

"Ichi started it!" all three shouted.

Ichi looked at the three in confusion and anger and asked, "Started what?"

"You started the food fight when Ms. Faye told you that you couldn't have dinner because you shoved me to the ground earlier today!" Dash said, faking a scared voice.

Ms. Faye angrily glared at Ichi and she said, "I am severely disappointed in you. I told you no dinner and you have the audacity to disobey me and start this...this...monstrosity?"

"I didn't do it! They dragged me out of my room and got me in there!" Ichi exclaimed.

"That's a lie!" Flash exclaimed.

Just before Ms. Faye could say anything, I burst into the kitchen doors and shouted, "Ichi didn't do it! It was these three that started the food fight!"

All three of them were shocked that I defended Ichi and Ms. Faye did not see this coming and she asked, "What is the meaning of all this? How could these three started the food fight?"

"They planned this! I heard them talking about in their rooms earlier." I replied.

"Did you actually see them do it?" she asked, with her arms folded.

"I saw Flash doing it, throwing one piece of apple at that young rabbit."

Ms. Faye found it really hard to believe that it was actually true and she went up to the rabbit and she asked, "Did one of the boars throw an apple at you?"

Amazingly, the kid nodded his head and pointed at Flash, which infuriated him to the extent and she also asked, "Was Ichi there while this happened?"

The little rabbit looked at Ichi and then back to Ms. Faye and replied, "No."

"He's lying! Whatever he said, it's not true!" Cash shouted.

"I am not!"

"You are too!"

Suddenly, Ms. Faye eyed a piece of jewelry on Cash's hoof and she asked, "Cash...where'd you get that ring?"

Cash froze and realized that he wagged his finger while the ring was still on it and he quickly hid it and replied, "I don't know."

She went up to him and asked, "Are you wearing my ring?"

"What ring? I don't see a ring." Cash said, nervously.

She quickly grabbed ahold of his hoof and to her shock, he was wearing that ring. She slowly looked at him and said, "So it was you that stole it!"

And then, she looked at Ichi and realized that it really wasn't him and she lets out a sorrowful 'baa' for her own mistake and said, "5 months I've searched for that ring and I punished Ichi for stealing it when I would've punished you for not giving it back."

"And all of those little situations that occured months prior...it was all them; from the writing on the walls, to calling someone names, to pushing someone down to the ground and to peeing on the swing. Each of these three did it and they put the blame on Ichi, thinking they'd get away with it." Musaki said.

Ichi could not believe that I defended them, but I had to do what I had to do in order to prove he's innocent and as Ms. Faye retrieved her ring, she eyed on both of them and said, "Go to your rooms right now! And I've got huge punishments for the three of you and I'll think about those in my sleep!"

I knew Cash, Dash and Flash's plan to kick Ichi out wouldn't go through and it ended up falling flat on their faces and as they walked out, they gave me an angry glare as if they'll get me back someday and before they even left the room, Ms. Faye stopped them and said, "You'll start by cleaning up this kitchen immediately."

Cash groans at this and said, "I hate cleaning."

"That's what you deserve for stealing my ring and lying to me the whole time."

Just then, she turned to Ichi and she got to his level and said, "I am very, very, very sorry about all of this. You told me the truth and...I guess the boars were easy to believe. I shouldn't have punished you for all the things you didn't do."

Ichi looked at her and replied, "It's okay."

She looked up at me and lets out a huge smile, seeing that I've really done something for Ichi and it shows that I would always be there for him and she turned back to him and heard Ichi's stomach growl and she said, "Better get some dinner before it gets cold."

Ichi lets out a smile and that he can finally eat now and as she walked out, he went up to me and said, "You're really a good friend, Musaki. No one has ever stood up for me before."

"I've always known you were innocent through these whole scenarios you've been put in. I had no other choice but to do what I did...for you." I replied.

It made his smile grow wider and he said, "Thanks. I really appreciate that."

"No problem."

What Musaki wouldn't do for Ichi? Stick around for more!