Chapter Five- Pecan
"So, Ralph. How have things been going between you and the Nicelanders?" Clyde asked, the ghost smiling at his fellow Bad-Anon. Ralph seemed so refreshed and energetic, brighter than he had ever been before.
"Great!" the big man smiled "Tha past few day have been better than I could have expected!"
"I heard what happened." Said Bowser, the giant reptile sipping a cup of tea "A lil upsettin' that that kid of yours got tied into all that mess, but I'm glad she an' the Nicelanders were able to patch things up before it was too late "
"Yeah, she understands the consequences of it now." Ralph nodded "We all do."
"Here, here!" said a fellow anon "Stuff like that is part of the problem."
"It only takes ONE lie to hurt someone." Ralph added "But I still hafta ask, Bowz."
Bowser looked over at the wrecker, "Yes?"
"Just how BAD was it in your last arcade?" the wrecker asked "I mean, from tha way ya put it..."
"There are some things I would rather keep PRIVATE, Ralph." The large Koopa said "But to stem your curiosity, things got REALLY bad before we were sold here."
"Sold?"
The massive creature leaned forward, sighing "There were some good people at the last place, there were. But for the most part, the entire arcade was dog-eat-dog. An' yes, there were certain 'RULES' we had to follow."
Sorceress shook her head "I can tell just by the look in your eyes you got a lot of it, big fella."
"NPCs had to do this, Bad-Guys had to go that way and don't think the heroes got it any better."
Bowser cracked his knuckles, thinking back to the rougher days of his career "I remember an ol' game. Can't recall the name of it, but Ralph it should be familiar to you!"
"Me?" the big man pointed to himself "How so?"
"It was in the TobiKomi family!" the reptile returned, a bit of a smirk on his face "They were really old though but by the time I came in, things had gotten really tough. These guys, they were trying to be as welcoming as possible, trying to show us that not all games went along with those rules. Their bad guys? Ha, most confident bunch I had ever seen! The fox lady? Man, you talk back to her about being a bad guy, she'd SHOW you a thing or two. Plus, the figure on her wasn't bad ei-!"
"Er, Sir?" said the Frog Girl "You were saying?"
"Well, how bad is an arcade when even the HEROES of a game are scared to be themselves?"
Pretty bad, indeed.
"I remember one of them. She was almost EXACTLY as big as you Ralph, height wise anyway."
The big man arched a brow "Really, now?"
"Yeah, but she was a horribly scared thing. I remember when I shook her hand, she was shaking in her shoes and I don't think it was because I was a bad guy…more so, the entire place had gotten it in her head that no matter WHAT she did, no matter WHO she was, she was always going to mess something up. And she was a MAIN! Couldn't take a step without some shouting at her."
The other anons shook their head, murmuring in disgust.
"Count our blessings, I guess…." Said the Cyborg "One game at a time, and it can always be worse."
"MUCH worse." Said Bowser "The reason I'm here is because the owner of the place had to sell most of the intact games to recoup his loses."
"Whoa, for WHAT?" asked Ralph.
"The games started bustin' up." The reptile replied "We were only there for about three or so years before games started going under, one by one!"
"That's awful!" said an alien "You know what happened?"
Bowser's face darkened, the man looking down. It was obvious that he didn't want to talk about what happened.
"I can only say that I'm thankful. Thankful we got out of there in time." He sighed "Before we left though, I do know that game. The TobiKomi one. It went bust too…."
"Did ya ever see those guys again?"
Bowser shook his head "No. I'm sorry to say no one was there to help them in time and…."
The reptile had to stop, rubbing the bridge of his snout. He then looked up, trying his best to smile.
"Okay, enough with this!" the huge beast laughed "I didn't mean to bring the mood down by bringing up things from the past! I want to hear some good things from you guys!"
That was abrupt. Ralph looked on but he knew it would be best not to pressure the large creature into spilling any more information but from what he could tell, it didn't matter what arcade one went to, there was always going to be something one had to fight through.
Ralph thought back, thinking to the days when he and the rest of the Fix-it-Felix Jr. family had been plugged in. The first few weeks went by without much incident but as the memories began to come closer and closer together, the wrecker was starting to come to terms that he and the rest of the game's inhabitants HAD come under the influence of the negative thoughts of the arcade.
None of the trouble had even come up until people started talking, until people started spreading rumors.
But the best thing about rumors?
The can be broken.
And thanks to Calhoun's idea, Ralph and Vanellope were learning more about the people that the wrecker had once believe to be unwilling to accept him. The people many in the arcade had said would never be good.
"Good night!" the wrecker called out to the rest of his buddies once the meeting was over "I'll tell ya about tha pie durin' our next meetin'!"
"Why don't ya be a good boy and BRING US SOME?" snarked Sorceress "We can smell them pies baking all the way from OUR game! Share!"
The big man chuckled as he left the game, Vanellope awaiting for him as usual.
"Ya ready?" the girl smiled.
"As always!"
The trolley ride was met by greetings from the other Nicelanders, Vanellope and Ralph waving their hellos.
"So who did Calhoun say ya had to go to nice?" asked Ralph.
"Don." Said Vanellope "What's the scoop about him?"
"From what I do know….he likes boats….an'…sharks. An' boats…." The man laughed to himself. He didn't know very much about Don from what little he could gather when he DID see him but no one could miss the sharply dressed sailor.
"Hey Ralph!" sang Lucy, slugging the man in his arm "Lookin' for someone?"
"Yeah." The big man said "Seen Don anywhere?"
Lucy let out a groan "THAT ol' duddie? Hope ya brought some blankets cus you're in for a SNOOZE-FEST with him!"
"Aw, come on." Said Vanellope "He can't be THAT bad can he?"
"HE SHOVES ME IN CLOSETS." Lucy pouted "An' for no reason too! Not even GENE does that!"
"That's because he knows Mary would kick his butt if he did…." Laughed Tony, raking some leaves behind his sister.
"Anyway, if ya wanna see him, he should be up in his apartment by now…" the younger Nicelander snorted, rolling her eyes "It was nice knowin' ya, cuz ya ain't comin' out in THIS lifetime."
By now, Ralph was getting accustomed to Lucy's sarcasm but he had to admit he was getting a little worried. Don did seem to get a lot of eye-rolls from people, so maybe both he and Vanellope were in for a trip with him.
The two arrived at the door, Vanellope knocking "Mr. Don?"
"Ah, are you here already?" a voice said from the other side.
"I think we're here on time!"
The tumbler clanked, Don greeting them with open arms and a cheerful smile.
"Ah, welcome! Welcome!" the man said in a rich voice "Make yourselves at home!"
The two walked in, looking around at the apartment.
Ralph was right; Don LOVED boats and sharks!
There were so many things adorned in the Nicelander's apartment. Pictures, ships in bottles, all sorts of specimens of sea creatures and trinkets. It was like a museum of the sea all around!
"Wow…." Vanellope said "Are ya sure that this is the only thing in the game? From the looks of things, Don's been all over the world!"
"Pardon the mess." Don called from the kitchen "Every time I try to clean up, something comes up and then I forgot and then more clutter comes up and then-!"
The man chuckled, his mind starting to go off.
"Eh, enough about MY mess. I heard someone here was instructed to have some pie lessons?"
"That's ME!" Vanellope waved but she gave a quick look at Ralph, smirking "Stinky here is just my PROTÉGÉ. Not as smart, not as good lookin', but hopefully he'll catch on."
"Says the kid who got in trouble…"
"Great! I love an audience!" Don smiled "Just step right into the kitchen!"
Vanellope and Ralph did as instructed, gearing themselves up but as they did so, Don did something rather unexpected.
"Now, where is that recipe?"
Unlike the other Nicelanders, Don found himself searching around for a COOKBOOK for this venture. Before, the other Nicelanders had done their handy work by MEMORY, their skills hammered into their brains.
Why did DON need a cook book?
"Um, lookin' for somethin'?" asked Vanellope.
Don banged his head against the top of the shelf as he tried to stand up "Ow. Oh, nothin'. Just looking for that recipe…"
Wrecker and racer looked at each other but they shrugged.
"AH HA!" Don cried out in happiness as he found the book "Here we go! I always put this thing up when I'm trying to clean! I should just leave it here since I need it every day!"
"Er, what for?" Vanellope asked, Don flipping through the pages "I thought that with your pie-skills ya wouldn't NEED a cook book!"
"Wait, excuse me?" Don said, looking rather surprised at the girl "MY pie-skills?"
"Well, yeah! I mean, all of you guys are programmed to make pies so-!"
Don just looked at the child with a shocked look on his face, Vanellope stopping her chatter.
"Er, was there something I said?"
Before Vanellope knew what was happening, Don erupted into laughter, the sailor positively TICKLED by the girl's comments.
"Oh! Thank you for thinking so highly of an old sailor like me!" the Nicelander said, wiping away an eight-bit tear "But sadly, if one were to have a thumb for pie bakin', MINE is broken."
"What?!" gasped Vanellope.
"Yeah, I agree. WHAT?" said Ralph "Are ya tellin' me that you, a NICELANDER, cannot bake pie?"
"NOPE." Don said, looking somewhat proud of that confession "Truth be told, cooking has never been my strong suit at all…."
"Then…how?" Vanellope asked.
"Call it luck on my part that so many of my neighbors know how to cook better than I do." the man smiled, starting the pie "I was so used to the pies that came with the game that I was kind of, well, HESITANT when the others decided to throw that junk away and make our own."
"Norwood said you threw up when you ate one."
Don looked away, stirring the filling mixture EXTRA hard with a smile.
"BOY. I SURE DO LOVE NORWOOD." The man said "He ALWAYS has the right thing to say."
"Er, maybe we should move on…." Said Ralph "I can handle the dough if ya need me to."
"Ah, thanks Ralph." Don said, true sincerity in his voice "I'm sure those hands can get to mixin'!"
"Oh, they will!" the wrecker smiled, kneading the dough.
Ralph was starting to enjoy pie baking. Wrecking was his claim to fame but for the past few days, making so many sweets was starting to grow on him, especially since the Nicelanders were starting to spoil him with the treats afterwards.
What went great with pie?
EVERYTHING!
He was given EXTRA tea, EXTRA ice cream, EXTRA cookies, EXTRA sandwiches.
"If I don't contain myself, I'll be as chubby as Gene." Ralph laughed to himself.
"But Mr. Don." Vanellope said "What's a Nicelander to do that can't bake pies?"
"Learn to of course." The man smiled as he looked at the recipe "Hand me the pecans and brown sugar."
"Oh, right."
"Aaah, it was one of the most embarrassing things I had gone through. And trust me, I HAVE done some stupid things over the years!" Don chuckled at the memory "There we were, all coming down from that fight we had! We-!"
The man looked over at the two, stopping himself from continuing.
"Well?" asked Vanellope "What happened?"
"Meh, you wouldn't want to know…." The sailor smiled "Just more stories for me to ramble on about. Everyone else gets so tired of them that-!"
"I wanna hear!" Vanellope said suddenly.
If she could get ANY information, she would be happy. She wanted to know WHAT exactly had happened when the Nicelanders decided to go against their own code just to please Felix.
"Meh, it's nothing."
"But sir!"
"I'm sure you wouldn't care. It's just Nicelander fluff."
"I wanna know!" Vanellope said, taking Don's hand "I'm all ears, given how BIG they are!"
Don smirked.
He had an audience.
This was HIS moment to shine.
"Okay…." The man smirked, snapping his fingers "Ya wanna know what happened?"
Vanellope nodded, eyes bright.
"Keep helping me with this pie, and you'll get EVERY bit you need to know!"
Vanellope saluted the captain, knocking her feet together "Yes, sir!"
Don twirled an egg-beater in-between his fingers, plunging it into the batter "There we all were! Back in…in well, it was the same year we were plugged in! Some things had happened, the lot of us conflicted to what we should do!"
Don then reached over for the pecans, shaking the bag but his face scrunched up to a frown, the man putting a finger under his nose.
Vanellope and Ralph knew INSTANTLY who the sailor was trying to impersonate.
"Everyone!" Don said, trying his best to sound like Gene "I understand your concerns for this situation but please, calm down!"
Vanellope tried to hold back her laughter; so she wasn't the only one who joked with Gene? Even the other Nicelanders took their turns.
Perfect.
Don returned to his normal stance "Genie was still getting used to the whole 'MAYOR' thing, the poor guys was sweating BULLETS each time a crisis came up."
"Wait, so even HE didn't take to his job at first?" Vanellope asked.
"Are you kidding me?" laughed Don "He acted all hoity-toity about it at first but when things started turning. 'Oh Sweet Ghost of Miyamoto! I CAN'T HANDLE THIS!'"
Ralph and Vanellope began laughing, Don joining them.
"But things hadn't ended yet!" the man said, taking a pink salt shaker "'Oh, why lie about Gene?"
"Ms. Mary?"
Don nodded "'You know those pies are AWFUL. Even YOU won't eat them!'"
"An' when THAT happens, ya KNOW you're in trouble!" laughed the wrecker.
"'And after everything that Felix has done for us! Why not give him what he really deserves!'"
Don slid the mixing bowl over to Vanellope, pointing towards the contents.
"Now add in the eggs and stir."
The girl did as she was told, looking over at the man "Did they get mad at each other?"
"I'm afraid to inform you that they did…." Don said in a sad voice "I hate seeing people fight like that and it was quite the storm."
"What brought them back together?"
The Nicelander eyed the two "You can guess at that."
No matter what happened, no matter what came between them….
Nothing could tear Gene and Mary apart.
But it was still a scary thought to both Ralph and Vanellope. It was like imagining Felix and Calhoun suddenly fighting with each other and refusing to speak. Even if Ralph found more humor in Gene at this point, he couldn't help but shiver at the thought of both he and Mary fighting, especially after he had been a witness to the rage the Mayor displayed when someone hurt her. Even saying something out of term about her brought forth a side of Gene that Ralph was a little scared of, as if there was some sort of MONSTER held within his tiny, chubby body.
He was IMMENSELY protective of the woman so to think that there was a time that they were NOT so close?
And all because of pie?
"Pie is a powerful tool…." Said Ralph. Don nodded in agreement.
"Indeed, it is."
Vanellope looked up "Aaaan' THEN-?"
"Thankfully, it didn't last long, the anger I mean. So after all the amends were made, we had a little vote. Half of the block agreed to do a little code tweaking, the rest of us? Myself included? NOPE."
Don took the dough from Ralph, placing it in the pan but he posed again, this time looking rather worried and fidgety.
"Now guuuuuys!" the man said, sounding like another Nicelander "What if someone CATCHES us? What if FELIX catches us?! Oh! It will be a DISASTER! I know it, I know it!"
"Roy?" Ralph pointed. Don crossed his arms smugly.
"You know my worry-wart cousin well…." Don sniffed arrogantly "Good lad."
"Wait, YOU TWO-?" Vanellope laughed "Ah-HA! I thought you too looked alike!"
Don walked over to the counter, a few family photos resting on it "I always thought I was the HANSOM one of the two."
The two guest looked over, spying some of the photos. Like so many others, they did tell stories and from the way Vanellope was trying to hold back her laughter, they were HILARIOUS stories.
"Aaw, more widdle Nicelanders!" Vanellope cooed, making kissy noises "But I can see YA changed a bit!"
"How so?"
"Judging from the way you're SLAMMIN' Roy into the mud, I guess-?"
The sailor looked over, taking notice of the picture Vanellope was calling attention to. In it were both Don and Roy, the two back when they were children, back when Don was much, to say the least, ROUGHER.
Back when Don was still blond and Roy still had a head of brown hair.
"Ah-haaaaa…." Don laughed in embarrassment "Yeaaah. I wasn't really the neatest kid on the block back then."
"Holy…" said Ralph as he looked at another picture "I think ya played around in the mud more than I've been THROWN in it!"
Don then began crimping the sides of the dough, checking the filling "Eh, why be ashamed of it now? They're just backstories, right?"
The sailor stopped, smiling at the empty pie dough "I just wish PIE-MAKING skills were also a part of it but I guess that was the joke. I'd be lost without the others!"
"Then why didn't ya just admit that then?" asked Vanellope "From tha way things sound, wouldn't there have been PLENTY of that guys ya could have gone too for help?"
"Yes, there were…" the Nicelander nodded "But it was pride. I just couldn't let them know I couldn't help them, that I couldn't help Felix. It was a nightmare."
"So had ya actually been able ta make your own stuff, ya would have joined in?" asked Ralph.
"Shameful isn't it?" the sailor said "A grown man like me being scared to admit that I couldn't boil water without assistance! I was trying to keep face, I was trying to keep up about it but eventually I was caught."
Vanellope poured the batter into the dough "How? Someone rat ya out?"
"Yes…." Don said, mixing the top glaze "But it wasn't anyone from here…."
"Really? Then who?"
"I'll give you ONE guess….." Don said, a bit of darkness coming into his eyes.
Vanellope might not have caught it at first but Ralph sure did. He leaned on the counter, looking down at Don.
"Him?"
Don looked over "HIM."
"Aw, c'mon! I wanna know too!" pouted Vanellope.
"Here, you can decorate the filling anyway you want with the pecans…" Don said, handing the girl the bowl "Just lay them out on top and don't push them INTO the filling. They need to float or they won't get nice and toasty."
"Okay, but who let it out? Who told?"
"I'm sure Ralph will fill you in later on that but when HE did find out? UURGH, it was a day of torment!"
"What happened? Was it really that bad?"
"You two, I want you to think of something." Said the Nicelander "How would YOU feel if everyone went around laughing about how you couldn't do the job you were apparently programmed to do?"
The sailor put a hand to his face, looking so calm, so peaceful but the two could see some unrest in his eyes.
"I know it's supposed to be a joke, I get why some people think it's funny why I can't cook since I'm supposed to give pies to Felix to HELP him. But they always took it too far. They took it as a sign that I couldn't do ANYTHING."
Vanellope thought, feeling a twinge run up her spine.
She remembered those days. The days when she would cobble together parts just to make a kart.
A kart that she could not drive and not because the others would not let it, but because she had never accessed that part of her could.
She COULD not access it.
It had been blocked.
"Yeah…." The girl said, putting her hand on top of Don's. She smiled "Yeah, I do know how it feels."
The sailor smiled back, feeling a sense of comfort coming over him. It was something he never wanted to speak of outside his closest friends due to the reacting he had gotten when word got out.
Vanellope had given him some comfort.
There was comfort in knowing that you're not the only one who has to go through something.
"Well, anyway…." Don continued, clearing his throat "I don't know HOW he found out but he did and he spread it around the entire arcade like fire! So here I am, some of the other Nicelander gentlemen with me and we're at Tapper's!"
Don leaned on the counter, posing like Tapper's.
"So guys, what'll be?' Taps said! I'm about to order when all of a sudden, HE shows up with a few of his cronies behind him!"
"Were Jet an' Set there?" Ralph asked. Don nodded no.
"No, those two were NEVER along with him when he brought trouble. I actually have fond memories with those guys."
"Ugh, stop being so SECRETIVE with me!" Vanellope growled "I know you're talkin' about TURBO. What's the point of hiding it from me?"
"I guess it's more backhand embarrassment…." Said the Nicelander "To be roped in because of what he did and said to us. It's shameful."
"Well, this is the guy who took over MY game…." Said Vanellope "I don't blame you for being roped in with him considering the stuff he could do. But what did he say about ya?"
Don looked down at the pie. Vanellope had arranged the pecans in the same of some sort of blobby shark.
"Hehe, we got a lil artist here?"
"Eh, I wouldn't be too impressed by it." Said Vanellope "Just somethin' I made on tha fly! Now Gloyd! HE can draw!"
"Either way, you did a fine job!" Don said, glazing the top of the pecans with the sugar coating "And now all we have to do it put it in the oven and wait!"
"An' then sweet pecan pie goodness!" Vanellope cooed, her mouth drooling at the thought of the pie "I can't wait to taste it!"
"Hope that it comes out good." Don chuckled to himself "Knowing my luck-"
"Hey, you've been passin' out pies for THIS long! You've been doin' just fine it seems!" said Ralph, Don looking back.
The sailor seemed a bit stunned at the friendly smile that Ralph was giving him, as if he hadn't expected HIM of all people to compliment him in such a way. The big man could see the already blushed cheeks of the man glowing even brighter, his happiness clear.
"Thank you!" Don said "Thank you so much, young man."
"So Turbo started sayin' guff about ya an' pies." Vanellope said "Did he ever STOP?"
"I was just so embarrassed then." Don said "I tried to be polite, I always do when I'm out but in that moment, I just felt so….so…"
Don rubbed his knuckles, trying his best to collect himself in the moment.
"I always try my best to be the most mature head out of the lot of us." Don began "I don't like to pick fights when I don't have to, especially in such a public place."
The man walked over to the table, pulling himself a seat as the other two followed suit.
"So to have someone talk down to me like that, to have someone tell me that I, that ALL of us just were not worth it-"
It may have been long ago but it still stung, especially with the way people were gleefully happy to bring it back up.
"I think that was the moment I kind of….I kind of figured it all out."
"Figure WHAT out?"
"That this place wasn't as cheery as I hoped it would be." Don said, looking at the two "When we were first plugged in, I was so excited and ready to take EVERYONE out to see all the games. I LOVE exploring! I love going to new places and meeting people! I guess that is ONE thing I have carried over from my coding! But like Felix, I ALWAYS tried-"
TRIED.
TRIED WAS THE IMPORTANT WORD.
"I always tried to look at the best of people, even when they did something mean. But that day. That day when Turbo came in and told EVERYONE in that bar that I couldn't bake a pie, that I wasn't able to do my job…."
There was a moment of silence between the three, the clock hands ticking loudly on the wall.
"I felt useless."
There was that word again; USELESS.
Ralph and Vanellope heard that word being used a LOT to describe the Nicelanders and to see their reactions towards being defined as just that, they saw how much it hurt them.
Bad Guys don't want to be BAD GUYS.
NPCs don't want to be USELESS.
"It bore me to the code but I stood my ground. I had to. I didn't want to fold into him since he had already said enough towards us already and had already started getting to some of us. I could see it happening. Roy didn't want to hang out with me as much anymore, some of the ladies ducked out of going to the lil bijous in some games. It was like everyone just wanted to be somewhere where they didn't have to deal with it all."
Retreating back to Niceland. Hiding from all the bad guys?
Sounded just about right.
"So when it came to our decision, I was freaked. I didn't want anyone to think I was trying to hold the others back but at the same time, if I did say yes and Felix found out I couldn't bake pies as well as the others? What would have thought of me? Would he think I didn't care, that I was terrible, that I couldn't handle the job?"
It was always about making Felix happy, the man who spent all his time making sure THEY were happy.
Ralph was starting to see a never ending circle of people worrying whether or not they were doing ENOUGH to make EVERYONE happy.
Was this really what was going on behind his back?
"An' when did ya finally make it?" Vanellope asked "I mean, tha pie that is….."
"One day I just buckled down." The man said "I knew I had to ask for help but I was still too ashamed to do so. I mean, I'm NICELANDER DON! I'm supposed to be one of the more mature Nicelanders! I help EVERYONE ELSE out, not the other way around!"
The man smiled softly, thinking of the others.
"So…"
"So?"
"So I asked her?"
"Who? Mary?"
"No…" Don shook his head "MEGAN."
"Ms. Meg?" Ralph said quickly, trying to cover up his excitement. He had seen the younger Nicelander blushing from afar whenever Don talked to her.
It was obvious someone had a little bit of a crush on Don.
"I don't know WHY I came to her first but I think it was because I felt she….she needed some reassurance herself." Don said, looking a might embarrassed, trying to hide his own rosy cheeks "There had been some INCIDENTS before all of this that caused Meg to retreat into the apartments. She never came out like she used to. So when all this pie stuff began, I….I…."
Don began blushing even more, something that rarely happened to the man unless something REALLY touched him.
"Megan?"
"D-Don?"
"Er, if you don't mind….can I ask a favor of you?"
"W-What is it? I haven't done anything wrong have I?"
"No, no! I just…I just need a bit of help with something."
"Oh? Like what?"
"Meg?"
"…..Y-Yes, sir?"
"Can you teach me how to make a pie?"
Vanellope looked over towards the kitchen, the book still on the counter "Is that how you got that cookbook?"
"Yeah. It belonged to Meg….It was one of her favorites." The Nicelander smiled "She's such a sweetie-pie, the poor thing. But she came through for me. It took us a few tries but I managed to get a pie out that wouldn't kill Felix."
The two could hear a hint of pride in Don's voice. He was glad he had finally done something that made him feel like he helped out in the game.
Even more so, he was glad that he proved that he was more than just his backstory. Had he stuck to it, he would have believed he couldn't bake, that he could never make a pie to make Felix smile.
But he did one thing; he asked. He asked for help and in doing so, he found he COULD be more than just a silly little joke. He found that his fellow Nicelanders would help him, a he had helped them.
"A lot of work over pie…." Said Vanellope "But I guess it is more than just pie."
"It taste good but it taste better knowing that someone made it with heart." The Nicelander sighed "I just wish it hadn't all gotten us into such a heap of trouble."
"I understand what you're saying, Don." Said Ralph "Boy, do I understand it now…"
"Thirty years might be too late for an apology, Ralph." The Nicelander said "But that's really all I can offer to you. I….I don't have much and I can't do much."
"You've already done this." The wrecker said "Sir, if you really didn't care I don't think you would have agreed to this. You could have said no to the pie baking, you could have turned me away again. But you didn't."
"I ignored the wrong things. I should have igonred that Turbo told us and paid more attention to you, I guess."
"Don't feel as if you are the only one who's gotten roped in by his words." Ralph said, his heart feeling heavy "He got me too, an' that was BEFORE he donned the disguise."
Vanellope looked at both men, sensing regret from BOTH of them.
Ralph felt regret knowing that so many things were happening right under his nose.
Don felt regret for allowing himself to believe the words about Bad Guys said around the arcade, despite his attempts to think otherwise.
Everyone was tied up in knots, and the girl knew it would be best to untie them all before everyone became twisted.
"Mr. Don?" Vanellope said "From what Felix has been goin' on an' on about tha lot of ya, he doesn't think any of ya are useless!"
The Nicelander chuckled "That boy always has something nice to say about EVERYONE. It doesn't matter who you are."
"Then shouldn't that be all that matters?" Vanellope replied "Felix is more important than any of those hateful things said about ya guys!"
"It would have been a fine thing to have someone like you say that back then." The Nicelander said "But I guess we were just surrounded. It's not easy being a Nicelander when everyone else around you has more than enough means to smack you bout."
Considering what had happened in the station with Meg, Vanellope believed it.
"Ya seem like a tough guy though! I can tell!" the girl beamed "Show 'em a thing or two, NICELANDER STYLE!"
"It would be nice…." Don thought, scratching his chin but then the man stood up, posing powerfully "I'm not the BIGGEST of the Nicelanders for nothing after all!"
"There's a height difference between you guys?" Ralph asked curiously.
"You never noticed it before? Why do you think the guys are always whining to get on my shoulders? They know how to use ladders. They just like to torture me!"
"Don, shut up!" Lucy called up from the vents, the man quickly kicking an ottoman in front of it.
"See? Always whining!"
"WE CAN STILL HEAR YA KNOW!"
"Lucy, just let him be." Moaned Tony, his footsteps heard approaching the vent.
"Tony, I swear-!"
"See, dontcha feel better now? Knowing all that worry was for nothin'?" Vanellope grinned.
"Maybe a tad." The sailor said "But I still feel like I owe it to you guys to do something more. I don't want to just END it at pie."
"Tell me some more about all this stuff you have!"
"OH GOD NO!"
"Lucile…"
"I mean, did this all come from the program or did you collect it over the years?"
"KID! DON'T GET HIM STARTED!"
"Well….." Don said, a twinkle coming into his eyes.
Another story was coming its way!
I was well into the night as Ralph and Vanellope sat upon Don's floor, another helping of delicious pecan pie on their plates. The Nicelander stood before them, holing what looked to be a trinket from another game, the light behind him making him look like a mighty giant retelling the tale.
"And then the other captain said 'But we can't hold on! We were left in hard-mode when the players left! It won't stop till we all DIE!' And then I came in! 'Don't panic you fool! Just keep the front up, brace for the waves!'"
Vanellope winced when Don brought the item crashing into another.
"Then what happened?!"
"Well, I was thrown out of the boat and they all DIED!" the man smiled, Ralph looking up from his plate.
"Wait, WHAT?"
"But it was okay. I landed in one of their pelican's mouths and they all respawned!" the man nodded "And THAT is how I got this sea-shell!"
"I thought it was because you went to the beach and found it…." Said Vanellope "Never thought it was because of all that!"
"Say, do you want me to tell you the story I was accidentally turned into a shark?"
"COOL!"
"Don, no please!" Meg wailed for down the hall "I can never live that down!"
"But Meggy!"
"Don, shut up and leave Meg alone!"
"HAW HAW HAW, Shall I tell them a story about YOU, LUCILE?" the man smirked, yelling down at the vents.
"I SWEAR OLD MAN! I'M GONNA SHOVE THAT HAT OF YOURS DOWN YOUR THROAT!"
"She's such a delightful child!"
"Wow." Ralph said, a hand on his cheek "An' here I thought that nights in Niceland were QUIET!"