The Newcomer
An Amazing World of Gumball Story
By NeoNimbus
Chapter 48-The Cousin
It was just another typical day for Brian, Mike and the Watterson siblings, as the five were heading to the Paxton residence to meet up with Rhonda, as the mouse had called them minutes ago to drop by at her place as soon as possible.
"So Brian..." Gumball began, as he and his friends made their way to the front door. "Could you tell us why Rhonda wanted all of us to come here so badly?"
"To be honest Gumball, she didn't give me that much detail." Brian replied, as he rang the doorbell. "All I know is that it was very important."
"Whatever it is, she obviously wants this to be a surprise." Mike commented.
"I love surprises!" Darwin happily exclaimed.
"It's best if we hear everything from Rhonda herself." Anais suggested to the boys.
Agreeing with the child prodigy, the five waited patiently for the mouse to show up and open the front door. A few seconds later, they heard a click, as Rhonda opened the door and saw her friends right in front of her, much to her joy.
"Guys, it's so good to see you. Come right in, you arrived just in time."
"What exactly did we come here for?" asked Brian, as he, Mike and the Watterson siblings went inside the Paxton residence.
"I'm glad you asked. You five wait right here for just a moment. I'll be right back." Rhonda explained, before she went upstairs into her room. After about a few seconds, the mouse finally came downstairs and the five were surprised to see someone right besides her.
The individual in question was that of a gerbil, slightly shorter than Rhonda, with shoulder length blonde hair, green fur, wearing a pair of eyeglasses, as well as a pink shirt, blue pants and black sneakers. Judging from her demeanor, she appeared to be quite shy around them, continuing to hide behind Rhonda.
"Guys, meet Alison Martin, my cousin. Alison, this is my boyfriend Brian…"
"Hello." Brian greeted the green gerbil.
"...And these are his friends: Gumball, Darwin, Anais and Mike." Rhonda resumed, while the four gave Alison their greetings.
"I-it is nice t-to meet y-you." Alison greeted the five shyly.
"Is there a reason why you brought us here other than introducing your cousin?" Brian asked Rhonda.
"Actually, there is…" Rhonda began, as the mouse took a deep breath. "I was originally planning to give Alison a tour around Elmore, but I received a call from my dad at work and told me to help him out there after my uncle made a mess in the store. So, I was wondering if you and your friends could help Alison out for a moment until I get back."
"Don't worry Rhonda; we'll do our best to help your cousin out." Brian assured the mouse, before he turned to his friends. "Isn't that right, you guys?"
Gumball, Darwin, Anais and Mike agreed with the purple fox, as Rhonda looked on with joy.
"That's great to hear." Rhonda ecstatically said, before she turned to her cousin. "I promise I'll be back when I'm done."
With that, the mouse waved goodbye to everyone before she dashed off, leaving the six on their own at the Paxton residence.
"So, where should we take Alison?" Brian asked his friends.
"Oh, I know! Let's take her to the mall." Gumball suggested.
"No way, Gumball!" Darwin disagreed with his older brother. "We should take Alison to Joyful Burger."
"Darwin, it's not even the afternoon yet." Anais pointed out. "I say we go to Daisy Land!"
"We don't have enough money for four of us, let alone six." Mike retorted.
As the five began to argue with each other on which place they should take Alison to, the gerbil, after staying silent for what appeared to be a long time, finally spoke up, despite her own shyness.
"Sorry to bother you guys..." Alison spoke meekly, prompting the five to stop their arguments and focus on the green gerbil. "Is it alright if we could go to the park? I could use some fresh air for a change."
The five pondered for a moment, thinking what the gerbil had said to them, before they looked back at Alison, still as shy and reserved as usual. Eventually, after whispering to each other, they turned their attention back to the gerbil once more, with Brian finally speaking to break the silence.
"So when do you want to go?"
The park at Elmore was pleasant and quiet and surprisingly there weren't that many people around here, making it the ideal place for Alison, as the six wandered the place, all the while trying to think of a good activity for the gerbil to try out.
'What looks like something Alison would like to play?' Brian thought.
As the purple fox was lost in his own thoughts, he failed to realize that he was walking faster than usual and bumping right into a group of hard objects, as Brian fell on his back.
'What was that just now?' Brian thought, as Gumball and Darwin helped him up.
"Whoops, my bad." a voice spoke in a mocking tone, one that Brian was all too familiar with, before the purple fox turned to the direction of the voice and saw Ivan and his gang right in front of him and his friends. Before Brian could say anything, Mike suddenly spoke first, cutting off the purple fox in the process.
"Fancy meeting you here." the maroon badger sarcastically spoke with a smirk.
"Can it, stripes!" Ivan shouted, clearly irritated by Mike's remark. "Just be lucky that I'm not in the mood."
While Brian, Mike and the Watterson brothers found themselves facing Ivan and his gang, Alison, watching the scene with curiosity, turned to Anais, hoping the child prodigy could offer her some explanation of what was occurring right in front of them.
"I don't want to be rude, but what's going on between them?"
"Long story short, Ivan isn't exactly friends with Brian and Mike. You can say they have been at each other's throats for a while." the child prodigy explained to the green gerbil.
"Is that so?" asked Alison.
As the two girls continued to talk with one another, Ivan turned his attentions from his rival to the green gerbil, much to his interest. Without further hesitation, the red bear walked past Brian and his friends and right towards Alison, much to her surprise.
"Hey there beautiful, you want to go out with me sometime?" Ivan flirted at the nervous gerbil.
"Hold it right there, Ivan!" Brian shouted, as he and Mike got themselves between the two. "Alison is with us and I don't think she's interested in going out with you."
"You can't tell me what I can and can't do." Ivan angrily retorted.
"What makes you think we'll change our minds?" asked Mike, as he arched an eyebrow.
Before long, the three boys were arguing with one another, with neither of them backing down anytime soon. Concerned that things were about to get ugly, Alison decided to speak out, hoping to bring some common sense between the three boys.
"Guys, can't you stop arguing for just a moment? We're just here to have-"
Suddenly, the green gerbil felt a strange sensation from her nose and it wasn't long before she knew what was coming. Despite her best effort, Alison was unable to held it back any longer and proceeded to sneeze, prompting everyone to stop what they were doing and focus their attention at the gerbil. Before they knew it, Alison was looking right back at them, her glasses on the ground, her shoulder length hair suddenly spiky and a look of anger on her face.
"What the flip am I doing here?!" Alison demanded, before she turned to Ivan. "What are you looking at, Boo Boo? No matter, I just don't want to see that ugly face of yours again!"
Before anyone knew what happened next, Alison grabbed Ivan by the collar and proceeded to throw him right towards his friends, who were too stunned to do anything, knocking them out like bowling pins. As the four goons were down on the ground, completely unconscious, Alison dusted off her hands.
"Wow that was amazing!" Gumball shouted, as he and his friends approached Alison.
"You put Ivan in his place!" Darwin praised the gerbil.
"That was very cool back there." Brian commented.
"It was ruthless, but quite effective." Anais remarked.
"Not bad at all, Alison." Mike stated.
Before long, the gerbil turned her attention to the five, somewhat confused and annoyed to see them.
"Who the fudge are you guys?" Alison asked, stunning Brian, Mike and the Watterson siblings. It was the last thing they were expecting to hear from the green gerbil.
"Alison, it's us, your friends." Gumball replied.
"First of all, my name is Ally." the gerbil corrected the confused blue feline. "Second, I wouldn't be friends to bunch of tykes. No matter, you guys are going down!"
With that, Alison, or rather Ally, proceeded to lunge right at the five, as Gumball, Darwin and Brian screamed in terror, while Anais managed to jump out of the way and Mike prepared to make a stand.
"Oh my goodness, what happened to all of you?!" Nicole shouted, shocked to see the kids' conditions, especially her sons and Brian. The trio was barely conscious after getting beaten badly. Anais and Mike, on the other hand, avoided serious injury, but they were pretty exhausted and worn out.
"A storm just happened to pass by." the maroon badger remarked.
"Whatever it was, I'm just glad everyone is fine." said Nicole, much to her relief. "Anyway, come inside and get some ice bags."
The five complied with Nicole's demand and made their way inside, before she went upstairs, wanting to give the kids some room to breathe and regain their composure from whatever catastrophe they have encountered, while Brian headed to the kitchen, grabbed a few ice bags and gave some to his injured friends.
"Oh man, what do we do now?" the purple fox asked his friends. "How are we going to explain to Rhonda that her cousin has suddenly gone haywire on us?"
"Not to mention the fact that we lost her in the process." Gumball added.
"I'm just glad that we're still alive." Darwin spoke. "My head still hurts."
As the trio continued to discuss with one another about the situation, Mike looked at the eyeglasses that Ally left behind at the park and he couldn't help but be bothered by what he and his friends had just witnessed moments ago.
'How could someone like Alison suddenly snap just like that?'
In the midst of his thoughts, the cell phone from Brian's hoodie rang, causing the five to yelp in response. Once they caught their breath, Gumball, Darwin, Anais and Mike turned to the purple fox, too nervous to respond to his phone. Despite his reluctance, Brian eventually picked it up and answered it.
"Hello?"
"Hey Brian." Rhonda called out, causing the purple fox to panic. "Sorry to bother you, but I was just wondering-"
"How your cousin is doing?" Brian asked, cutting his girlfriend off. "She's doing pretty well, Rhonda. In fact, we just stopped by at Gumball's place for a quick break, as Alison wanted to lay down for a bit and his house was the closest."
"Alright then." said Rhonda, weirded out to hear her boyfriend behave in such a manner. "Is it alright if I could-"
"Rhonda, I could use some help reorganizing some of the baseball equipment." Max called out, causing the mouse to sigh.
"I'll call you back when I'm done."
With that, Rhonda hung up the phone, while Brian, Mike and the Watterson siblings let out a sigh of relief, glad that they managed to dodge a bullet for just a moment.
"Alright guys..." Brian began. "We need to find Alison before Rhonda gets back home."
"Oh no, there's no way I'm looking for her." Gumball objected.
"Besides, you saw what she did back at the park." Darwin pointed out.
"Guys, Rhonda is my girlfriend and she trusted us to look after her." Brian pleaded. "At the very least, just help me look after Alison, for her sake."
"...Alright, but we're only doing this because we don't want to upset Rhonda." Gumball agreed, with Darwin nodding his head.
"Sorry to interrupt you guys, but we don't have the slightest clue to where Alison is to begin with. For all we know, she could be anywhere." Anais pointed out. "Where are we going to start looking?"
"We don't have to... Mike began, as the maroon badger looked outside. "She found us."
Both Brian and the Watterson siblings dashed towards the window and much to their surprise, Ally was indeed heading right towards them. Soon, the trio began to panic and hid right behind the couch, while Anais and Mike prepared for the worst, just as the green gerbil knocked the entire door down.
"Alright you punks, we're going to finish where we left off and there's no way none of you are-"
Before Ally could say another word, she suddenly felt a strong sensation coming from her nose. In spite of her best effort, the green gerbil was unable to hold it off much longer and let out a sneeze, before she turned to her friends, confused by their reactions.
"Guys, what are we doing here?" she asked, much to the five's surprise, before she spotted Mike holding her eyeglasses. "And why do you have my glasses?"
Brian and his friends looked at one another, dumbfounded by the gerbil's sudden change in demeanor. One minute, she wanted to thrash them around like ragdolls and the next thing they knew, she was suddenly back to her old self. Something wasn't adding up.
"Here's your glasses back, Alison." said Mike, as he curiously approached the gerbil and handed it to her, before making his way back to his friends. As Alison adjusted her eyeglasses, the maroon badger and the child prodigy looked at one another, both puzzled by the gerbil's behavior.
"What was that just now?" Mike whispered to Anais.
"I don't know, but judging by the way she's acting, its clear Alison doesn't recall anything at all." the child prodigy noted.
"Yeah, it was as if she had some...sort…of…switch…" Mike trailed off, with a look of realization on his face. Likewise, Anais was struck with a same look on her face, before both turned to face the other, having come up with the same answer.
"Are you thinking what I am thinking?" asked Mike.
"Yes, yes I do." Anais replied. "It appears that Alison suffers from a personality disorder that only happens when she sneezes."
"Say what?!" Brian exclaimed. "That's the most ridiculous thing I have ever heard."
"I'm afraid I'm going to have to agree with Anais and Mike on that one." Gumball stated.
"Beside, we've seen her transformation with our own eyes." Darwin informed the purple fox.
"I don't know, you guys. I still want further proof of their theory." Brian spoke with a hint of skepticism.
Mike thought it over before nodding and then heading straight into the kitchen. He started scavenging around the cabinet for a minute before grabbing a pepper shaker and making his way back to the living room, facing Alison.
"I know this is going to sound weird, but please close your eyes for just a moment."
Though curious with the maroon badger's instruction, Alison did as she was told and as the gerbil closed her eyes. Mike proceeded to shake a few peppers into his paw before blowing some into her face. As expected, Alison's nose tingled and a few seconds later, the gerbil sneezed, reverting back to the one known as Ally, much to Brian's astonishment.
"I don't believe it; she actually changed in the blink of an eye." Brian exclaimed, before the gerbil sets her eyes on him, much to his dismay. "Oh crud."
Before the purple fox could have a chance to react, Ally let out a war cry and lunged right at the unfortunate boy, pummeling him mercilessly, as Brian screamed in agony.
"Alright, that's enough for now." Mike stated, as the maroon badger grabbed Ally by the arm and threw her to the ground, before blowing some more pepper into her face, causing the gerbil to sneeze and revert back to Alison.
"What am I doing on the floor?" Alison asked, as she got up and spotted a beaten up Brian on the ground, much to her shock. "Oh my goodness, what happened to him?"
Before Mike could offer the gerbil an answer after setting the pepper shaker down, Gumball and Darwin suddenly spoke first, cutting off the maroon badger in the process.
"Brian just fell down the stairs, isn't that right Darwin?"
"It's true, Alison. In fact, Gumball and I were just about to help Brian up to his feet."
Alison continued to look at the Watterson brothers, uncertain of what to make of their claims. At the same time, the gerbil still had no memory of what happened and seeing Brian right next to the stairs was enough to convince her that maybe they were being honest to her.
"I guess that makes sense." said Alison, despite her suspicion, much to everyone's relief.
As Gumball and Darwin helped the injured purple fox up to his feet, Mike and Anais continued to look at Alison, concerned with her split personality.
"What do we do now?" Mike whispered to the child prodigy.
"I say we pay Rhonda a visit." Anais whispered back. "Perhaps she might clue us in on her cousin's condition."
Mike nodded his head in agreement, as the maroon badger grabbed the pepper shaker from the coffee table, much to Anais' curiosity.
"Just in case things go south before we get there." Mike explained, before him, his friends and Alison left the Watterson residence.
It had been a long day for Rhonda, helping her father out at the sports shop, from organizing the sports equipment to cleaning up her uncle's mess. Right now, all the mouse wanted to do was just get some rest and relaxation before she meets up with Alison to make up for lost time. But as Rhonda finally arrived at her house, she was surprised to find Brian, along with her friends and cousin, waiting right outside, much to her surprise.
"We've got a problem." Mike informed the mouse.
Stunned but curious with the maroon badger's claims, Rhonda decided to let them inside her house, as Gumball and Darwin stayed downstairs watching Alison, the latter holding the pepper shaker, while the mouse, along with Brian, Anais and Mike, went upstairs to her bedroom, wanting to discuss the issue in private.
"Alright, what is it that you three wanted to talk about?"
"It's about your cousin." Brian replied, prompting Rhonda to arch an eyebrow at her boyfriend.
"You see, Rhonda..." Mike started to explain. "Alison switches personalities whenever she sneezes and her other personality has some extreme anger issues."
"How come you didn't mention this to us when we first met your cousin?" Anais questioned the mouse, prompting Rhonda to take a deep breath, before she offered the three an answer.
"I'm terribly sorry, you guys. I forgot that Alison still has her personality issues. I never meant to leave that part out on purpose. To make it up for my carelessness, I'll explain everything about my cousin's condition."
Six years ago...
Six year old Rhonda and Alison were playing a game of catch in the neighborhood, as her father, along with her aunt and uncle, were having a typical conversation between them. Apparently, Rhonda's aunt and uncle wanted Alison to come out of her shell and decided that the only way to help her was to introduce their daughter to her cousin. The decision had a positive effect on Alison, as she got along with Rhonda very well and was smiling more often.
"Good catch Alison." Rhonda said to her cousin.
"Oh, it was nothing." the gerbil bashfully insisted, before she threw the ball right back at the mouse.
"Don't be shy, you're really good and I really mean it."
"You really think so?" Alison happily asked.
Before Rhonda could answer her cousin's question, the two girls found a group of shadows covering them, prompting them to turn around and saw a bunch of slightly older boys, with the lead bully talking to them.
"Wha'cha doing, you little babies? Playing a game of catch?" the lead bully mockingly asked, as his friends laughed in amusement.
"Just leave us alone!" Rhonda shouted.
"Oh, I'm so scared." The older boy sarcastically responded, before turning his attention to the little mouse. "Wha'cha going to do about it?"
As Rhonda and the older boy continued to stare at one another, Alison, on the other hand, remained silent, not knowing what to do to help her cousin out. But the gerbil suddenly felt a tingling sensation on her nose, prompting Alison to hold it off as best as she can. Eventually, the gerbil was unable to hold it much longer and sneezed.
"Hey flea bags, pick on someone your own size!" Alison shouted, prompting the lead bully and his friends to turn around to face the gerbil. Before they knew it, Alison threw the ball at the three boys, ricocheting it off of one and hitting the rest in their faces, knocking them down to the ground, as Rhonda looked on, stunned and speechless.
"Alison, are you alright?" the mouse asked her cousin, prompting the gerbil to turn her attention to Rhonda, seemingly happy that she was safe.
"I'm alright, whoever you are, but my name's Ally."
Present...
"...Since that incident, me, my dad, or my aunt and uncle never told Alison about her personality issue."
Once Rhonda was done telling her story to the trio, everyone was silent; astonished that Alison remained in the dark for six years, unaware of her condition and the fact that neither she nor Ally were aware of each other.
"That story sounds similar to what happened at the park not too long ago." Mike muttered, before he realized something. "How do you think she will react if she knew about the existence of Ally?"
"I honestly don't know." Rhonda admitted. "I'm just concerned about Ally learning of Alison's existence."
"Where are you going with this, Mike?" Brian asked the maroon badger.
"Since telling Alison about Ally probably won't be enough to convince her, why not just film either personality and show it to the other? At least then we'll be able to clear a few things up with them. It'll help them figure out why they can't remember anything while the other is in control for starters."
"Sounds like a good idea." said Brian, agreeing with his friend. "But Alison is shy and reserved, while Ally is wild and unpredictable. How are we supposed to get the other to cooperate?"
"I think I got a solution, Brian." Anais spoke out, much to the purple fox's curiosity. "Just take Ally out to dinner and get her relax enough for Mike to film her."
"WHAT?!" both Brian and Rhonda were shocked to hear the child prodigy's suggestion. Not only was it outrageous, but it was risky, especially since the purple fox would be involved.
"Wait just a minute! There's no way I'm risking my neck just to get Ally caught on camera!"
"It's the only time we can film Ally without raising suspicion." Anais insisted. "Besides, it'll only be for one night."
"I don't agree with it." Rhonda objected, not liking the idea one bit. "Why did you insist on getting Brian involved in the first place?"
"Maybe Anais is on to something." said Mike, prompting everyone to turn their attention to the maroon badger. "Brian won't technically be talking to Alison, but to Ally, who seemed determined to take him out. Maybe she wants Ally to be less hostile to Brian so we don't have to worry about a hospital being in your near future."
The purple fox could only shudder in response, still recalling the terrible beating he had to endure. But right now, he needed to calm down for a moment and try to focus on the task at hand.
"Let's try to clear our heads on this one..." Brian began. "We need to get onto Ally's good side. The last thing we want to do is push our luck."
Agreeing with the purple fox, everyone pondered for a moment, trying to find a way to get the green gerbil under control without raising too much suspicion. Just then, the four suddenly heard Gumball and Darwin screaming downstairs, prompting them to exit Rhonda's room and spot Ally chasing the Watterson brothers around the living room.
"You just had to put the pepper shaker right next to Alison's nose." Gumball scolded his brother.
"I swear it was an accident." Darwin said defensively. "I just tripped."
"Quit talking and face your punishments like men, you shrimps!" Ally shouted, prompting the two to run even further.
"Don't worry, you guys, I got this." Mike informed his friends, as the maroon badger dashed downstairs and tackled the enraged gerbil to the floor. Undaunted by this, Ally attempted to get up, prompting Mike to twist her arms behind her back and hold them down, restraining the gerbil as best as he could.
"Are you alright?" asked Gumball, as everyone headed towards to the maroon badger.
"You talking to me or her? I'm fine but I may have hurt something with the tackle." Mike replied. "Though if her growling at me is anything to go by, I'd say she's just fine."
"That's good to know." Brian stated, before he cautiously confronted Ally, as the gerbil looked at the purple fox with suspicion.
"What do you want, pipsqueak?! Do you want to fight me too?!"
"Calm down, Ally. I just wanted to talk with you." Brian nervously explained. "We got off on the wrong foot and despite what happened today, I was wondering if you would be interested in going out to dinner with me."
Ally stopped struggling and looked at Brian with surprise and confusion on her face. She couldn't believe what she had heard just now.
"Are you asking me out on a date?"
"No, it's not like that!" Brian bashfully replied, his face blushing bright red. "I just wanted to get to know you better, that's all."
Ally continued to look at the purple fox, before she pondered for just a moment, thinking of his words. She had to admit, Brian was quite cute for someone who's quite short. Plus, she hadn't eaten anything all day, so she might as well have something to eat while she's around town, especially if he's paying.
Her mind made up, Ally turned her attention to the purple fox once more, ready to give him her answer.
"Alright, you got yourself a deal. I could use a free meal. Plus, you look cute for a pipsqueak."
Ally's remark caused Brian's face to blush even more, while Rhonda looked on annoyed, and Gumball, Darwin, Anais and Mike couldn't help but be amused.
"I'll take that as a yes." Brian stated, as Mike let her go, but not before the green gerbil attempted to elbow him in the nose. Thankfully for the maroon badger, Mike was able to block it just in time, though both tumbled to the floor in the process, before the two got up and dusted themselves off.
"Looks like I need to get myself ready for this evening." Ally said to herself, making her way upstairs, before she stopped and turned to face Brian. "One more thing, find a good place to eat or else!"
Wanting to make her intentions very clear, Ally cracked her knuckles, causing the purple fox to sweat profusely, before quickly nodding his head, much to the gerbil's satisfaction.
"Glad we could have this conversation." Ally told Brian, before heading to the bathroom.
"Mike, why don't you go out with Ally instead?" Brian suggested to the maroon badger. "After all, you're the one who can tame her like a lion."
"If you wanted me to go, you should have just asked." Mike replied. "I thought it was a bad idea to send you too."
"Then why did you agree to it?!" Brian angrily shouted.
"I never agreed to it. I just explained Anais' logic: nothing more, nothing less."
All Brian could do was grumble in annoyance, dismayed by how his day was turning out.
'This is going to be one long night.'
Next time on The Newcomer
Chapter 49-The Cousin: Part 2
Brian and his friends' attempt to show Alison the existence of her other personality doesn't go exactly as planned.
Tidbits
-The first time I made a two part chapter since The Visit. It wasn't what I was aiming for, but it's still good.
-For the voice of Alison/ Ally, they would both be voiced by Ashley Tisdale (best known as the voice of Candace Flynn from Phineas and Ferb).
-I wanted to thank Sal for his help on this chapter.
Thanks to those who have continued to read this story and I'll be seeing ya next chapter!