Dog Days of Summer

Disclaimer: Don't own Victorious

A/N:

Chapter 20 (Cannot Give Up)

The following day, Trina was immensely quiet. Jason had gone to the airport to head back overseas one last time and spent the majority of the prior night trying to comfort Trina. Clarence had to stay at the hospital, and it had been confirmed he was in a serious stage of lung cancer. The doctors weren't sure how long he had left at this point, if it was just a matter of weeks or a matter of months, so they were still testing that.

Shadow had been buried the night before in a manmade cavern drilled in the side of a rock formation by Clarence's grandfather. It was several paces towards the end of the farm and there were an intricate amount of tunnels built during World War I. Raul Vega had been a survivor during of the Spanish-American War and was deathly terrified of war, so he created the underground network beneath the farm.

Over time it became where the most loved family pets and farm animals were to be buried. When Tori went down with Trina and Jason to bury Shadow, he already had his own plaque made by Clarence. The sheer amount of pet graves was unnerving to Tori, but at the same time, it pleased her to see the family pets were always so well loved that they had their own special place to be remembered.

Still, she couldn't shake the feeling there was something more to those caves and tunnels than just a pet cemetery. As much as she wanted to explore, she was terrified of getting lost in the century old caverns.

"I think we should explore them," Tori suggested to her friends. Beck and Jade lifted their heads from the dog bowls and looked at her as though she'd grown yet another extension of her body.

"Those caves?" Jade chuckled nervously and quickly shook her head. "Do you even realize what could be down there? Spiders, cobwebs…not to mention it's a burial site. Have you never seen the movie 'Pet Cemetery'?"

"It's just a movie, but still, I don't want to go down there alone."

"Why would you want to go down there at all?"

"Come on, I love exploring. It could be fun." She recalled the eerie sensation that crept along her spine when she was there the night before. There had been two tunnels, and one of them seemed to be calling to her, beckoning her in that direction. "My great-great grandpa Raul built the tunnels during the first world war."

Beck walked over slowly, holding his head high and keeping his brow arched. "So aside from the spiders and cobwebs, we'd also find century old food and jars with moldy bread and strange liquid that we probably wouldn't want to drink." He laughed once, then followed up with a sigh. "I see no point in that."

"Treasure trove." She rolled her eyes and bowed her head. "Damn. Trina and I used to love exploring when we were kids. We actually went into those tunnels once, though we didn't get too far in."

"Why? Get scared by a giant spider or something?"

"No, our dad came in calling after us and ordering us not to go so far because we didn't know what was down there."

"Listen to the dad," Jade remarked, "He knows what he's talking about."

"Spoilsport." Tori sniffed the air and looked around the room, frowning when she didn't see her sister anywhere. "I'm going to go find Trina. Feel free to continue doing…whatever it is you're doing." At least it'd keep her mind off the strange pull towards the caverns, and what hidden family treasures lay down there beyond the treasured pets.

"You mean eating?"

"Yes. That." Jade rolled her eyes and Tori trotted out of the room. In the living room, Ares was lounging on the couch. His front paws hung off the cushion and his head rested on his legs. His eyes flickered open as she passed by him. "Hey Ares, have you seen Trina? Is she out on the farm?"

"She's done with her farm work for the morning," he replied, "I think I saw her go into her room last."

"Alright, thanks." Making her way into Trina's room, she saw the girl sitting up against her headboard with a book in her hands. Tori walked to the edge and stood on her hind legs, setting her paws against the side of the bed and barking once. Trina glanced over and smiled slightly.

"Hello Cleo, come to visit?"

"Yep, now pick me up. I can't jump there." Trina reached down and curled her arm around Tori, pulling her up onto the bed. "It's like you read my mind." Tori hopped onto Trina's lap and curled up, setting her paws on her sister's stomach and waiting as the woman set her book on the bed beside her. Trina curled her fingers in the fur on Tori's back and gazed down at her with tender eyes.

She stretched her back, sighing contently as Trina's nails scratched her back. Waves of pleasure were pulsing through her body, calming her. "So much is going on right now, Cleo. I worry a little how my sister would take all of this." She raised an eyebrow and looked up as Trina leaned her head back and closed her eyes. "Then again, if I'm to believe Cat…"

"Cat? What did Cat say?" She was curious if it had anything to do with what Jade was up to the other day. Only Beck said what he wound up doing while away. Trina rolled her head to the side and stared at the window for what seemed to be an eternity. "Trina? Why do you seem so out of it? No, that's inappropriate." She knew why Trina was acting the way she was, but the upsetting part was in that she could do nothing about it.

"Cat and Sam pointed me to this woman, Cleo. Said she had something to do with my sister's disappearance." Tori's ears perked up and her heart began to race. "She had her phone. Jade's and Beck's too." Trina looked back at Tori with a frown and furrowed her brow. "Cleo, they said you were my sister, or something like that. If you're Tori-well, no I don't know if I can believe that or if I even want to."

"Why? Why would they say that? I mean it's true, but…"

"Tori, Cleo, if you were to be one in the same. I don't know…how could I protect you? Change you back? How can I even tell anybody that I think my sister's a dog?" Trina swept her thumb across the bridge of her nose and drew out a heavy sigh. "It's not something I want to stress over either, not with Grandpa in the hospital and with the chance I have of losing the farm."

She was shocked to hear her sister even remotely suggest wanting to protect her, but it was a nice sentiment to hear. "You don't have to worry about me, Trina."

"I need to know where my sister is. If you are Tori, then…" Trina chuckled nervously and curled her fingers around her bangs and pulled them from her forehead. "They said something about the possibility of you still feeling guilt about our um…situation." Tori's eyes widened as Trina moved her hand to her neck. "God this seems so awkward, especially if they're wrong about this and you're just a stray poodle that somehow hopped in the back of the truck."

Tori stifled a laugh and continued to hold her gaze with Trina's. She didn't know how Trina would know about her feeling any guilt over her family's marital situation unless Jade told her somehow. She couldn't imagine such a scenario.

"I guess Cleo, if you are Tori, what I'd say to that is…Mom and Dad fight a lot, they've had problems since before you were born, to be honest. Things only got worse. It isn't your fault that parents fight, but you're stuck in the middle of a situation that's not getting any better-nor will it, and that's why I wanted to try and get you to come live on the farm. Be here with me, with Jason, and out of that toxic environment."

"How can it not be my fault?"

"I've watched you through the years, always trying to please mom and dad-a lot like I did. I know how much it hurts, I just never would think you still thought they fought because of you. It isn't your fault mom cheats on dad, it's not your fault-or mine-that Dad throws everything into work to the point he loses touch with reality. I know what you're going through because I've been there-I've seen them at their worst and I wish you didn't have to."

A lump formed in Tori's throat as Trina slowly ran her hand down her back. She "You shouldn't have to try and be anything in order to make them happy, you should know that you can always come to me for anything. I'm your sister, I'll love you through anything no matter what-I'm here for your."

"I wish I could respond in a way you'd know." Tori took a deep breath and climbed up Trina's chest, then slowly licked her chin. Trina chuckled once and smiled at her, then wrapped her arms around her to pull her close to her. "I love you big sis."

"I guess if you really are Tori, and I didn't just make a fool of myself talking to dog, then I'd say 'don't give up'. If that woman at the magic shop says there's a way for you to return to human form-we'll find a way." Trina exhaled and laughed once more. "In fact, if you don't give up, I won't give up."

"Don't give up? Funny." She wasn't going to give up, but now more than ever since she saw how much Trina wanted her to keep trying, she wouldn't give up. "I…I have no idea what it'd be like to live here with you-and Jason." She chuckled nervously and curled her lips into a smirk. "Kind of getting used to the idea of my sister having a lover and…intimacy, but I don't think I want to know when it happens."

The idea of living on the farm sounded great, though. She didn't want to be away from her parents, but if Trina was right, then maybe it would be better to get away from the toxic environment. There probably was nothing she could do to change the situation, no matter how much she wanted.

As she curled back into Trina's lap, she got the feeling that her sister was the only one that really cared. Just the fact that neither one of their parents seemed concerned with her being missing was a pressing issue. Certainly by now Sikowitz would have mentioned the fact that she, Beck and Jade never arrived. So why was Trina the only one worried?

Hell, her own father seemed more concerned with dealing with the issue of the farm than he did for her safety.

"But then, mom and dad ignore both of us a lot. Maybe I've just been too wrapped up to see that…could we make them unhappy? No." She shook her head and whined once with uncertainty. "I won't feel sorry for myself, but I just wish I could have made things better somehow."

Trina was right, maybe it was time she focus on making herself happy rather than making her parents happy. Having been on this farm for the past few weeks was one of the best experiences she had in a long time, so she could see herself staying here.

"We'll talk more about this when I'm human again, Sis. I-thanks for the talk, though I know you don't know it really is me." She'd have to talk to Jade and figure out what that girl did and how she meddled with something Tori didn't want her messing with. At the same time, she was grateful, because what Trina was saying was helping to show her another side to something she'd been struggling with for so long.

So Jade's plan sorta worked, Trina's still pretty skeptical of what Cat and Fontane might have told her, but at least she'll be more than apt to believe it if she's around whenever Tori and the others are human again, haha. Your thoughts on the chapter?