Planet: Earth

Location: Soccer Field, Chicago, Illinois

Time: 15th July 1992

"Pow! All yours, Modo!" Charley called out as she slammed the soccer ball in his direction with the wheel of her bike. The grey mouse raced towards it on Lil'Hoss, overestimating the speed of the ball and making it to bounce squarely off the center of his helmet.

"Oof, this game's kinda rough on the old antennas." The mouse paused and took his helmet off, groaning as he rubbed at his antennae.

Using a motorcycle to play soccer would never have occurred to her before. She had been wanting to show off more Earth Sports to the guys. When the topic of soccer came up, she had been eager to take them out to the field to play. But, it quickly became apparent that she was at a slight disadvantage when it came to playing against two tall and burly mice. Vinnie had been the one to suggest evening the playing field by using the bikes. Even if hers was not equipped with Martian AI (that still freaked her out sometimes), she could at least match their speed.

The ball had bounced towards Vinnie, who let out exhilarated cackle as he charged the ball. "He shoots…" He pulled a drift that shot the ball straight into the net. "HE SCORES! And the crowd goes wild!" He mimicked the sound of an adoring crowd for a few moments before tapering off, glaring at the side of the field. Charley followed his gaze, brow furrowing.

Throttle had refused to take part in the game, choosing to sit on the side and work on Lady, which is to say, he sat next to his bike and sulked since Charley had already fixed her to a T. A week had passed since she had invited them over to wait out the thunderstorm. A week since finding out that the bros' lives may be more tragic than she had first realized.

Throttle's behavior had confused her. He seemed so cold and distant, yet there were moments where he looked ready to tackle hell-beasts for her. She just didn't get it. She had wondered if she had inadvertently done something to offend him, some cultural thing she was unaware of. She had asked Vinnie while he was helping her with the hot chocolate.

"I don't think it's you, Charley-girl. My guess is he's acting out so you don't get close to him. He's afraid of losing people. Like the ones we lost during the war on Mars. Like he lost his mom."

"So, he lost his mom in the war?"

"Yeah. Amelia was killed during an attack on his home, Quiet Grove. It tore him up pretty bad. That's the only reason I can think of as to why he's acting like this."

There had been a hidden subtext to Vinnie's story, something he wasn't telling her, but before she could ask him about it, Throttle had appeared, looking like the very storm that raged outside. He and Vincent had stepped out, leaving a wide-eyed Modo with her. About 10 minutes later, Throttle returned looking not much calmer and announced he was going to sleep. Vinnie followed after he had laid down, and Charley had been horrified by the already black eye that was forming. Vinnie had brushed it off, coolly asking for some ice for the bruise and sidestepping any questions from both herself and Modo as to what had happened.

Charley couldn't imagine Throttle to be a violent person, or one to hold a grudge. Even in the short month that she knew them, none of the mice seemed to be, despite how excited Vinnie got whenever they took on Limburger's goons. Something had happened the caused him to snap at Vinnie, and now, a week later, that something was still affecting them.

Modo walked up to her, helmet in hand. "You alright, Charley-ma'am?"

"I'm alright, Modo." She smiled up reassuringly at the mouse, before sighing and glancing back at the two still glaring mice. "I'm just…I'm worried about them. Sure, Vinnie was out of line for telling me about Amelia, but, that can't be all there is. Why is Throttle so…so…ya know?"

The poor mouse winced and rubbed the back of his neck. "It's… it's complicated, Charley-ma'am. I—"

"WOAH! We interrupt this rockin' set to bring you a bummer news flash, buddies!" The voice of Sweet Georgie Brown echoed over Sweetheart's radio, making them all turn. "The Big Cheese, Lawrence Limburger, has just announced his plans to clear-cut the Limburger Wildlife Rese-erve! Looks like wipeout time for our furry friends in the forest! Later bros!"

"That really stinks!" Vinnie growled, slamming his fist into his open palm. "Just like Limburger!"

"Nobody hurts furry friends while we're around." Modo growled as he put his helmet back on and mounted Lil'Hoss. "Let's go cream his cheese!" Charley glanced over at Throttle, who stood silently as he put his helmet on, mounting Lady without a word. She revved her own engine, only to wince at the awful sound that emitted from it.

"Darn it." Another twist of the handlebar confirmed it. "I've gotta head back to the garage."

"You can ride with me if you'd like Charley." Vinnie offered, holding a hand out to her.

"Absolutely not." The firm snarl from Throttle made them both wince. Vinnie's hand curled into a fist as he glared at his leader. "Let's roll."

"Save that forest guys! I'll catch up with you later."

"You are going back to the garage and staying there until we get back." Throttle added. She flinched at the order directed at her, but before she could say anything, Throttle took off, leaving a confused but apologetic Modo and Vinnie scrambling to catch up. She was left standing in the field.

"What the heck was that?" she asked no one in particular. "Who does he think he is? Ordering me around like that? I'm not one of his soldiers." She grumbled as she got on her bike and headed for the garage. She made quick work of the problem, the cam-chain needed replacing. And she was soon on the road again, catching up to the bros, Throttle's pride be damned. She wasn't going to coddle him.

The drive through the Wildlife Reserve was quiet. Oddly quiet. If Limburger was truly going to demolish this place, there should have been scores of exagvators going at it already. Something was up. She needed to find the guys. She soon spotted them, sitting at the base of the hill. And they looked like they were…arguing? Throttle had left Lady off to the side, stepping between Modo and Vinnie who were both still sat astride their bikes. She rode up to them, catching the tail end of the fight.

"Excuse me, Mr Bigshot!" Vinnie shouted, gripping the collar of Throttle's vest and roughly shoving him.

"Yeah, who put a knucklehead like you in charge anyway?" Modo added. Throttle's face became even more enraged at that.

Charley came to a stop and jumped off her bike. "Hey! Guys! What's going on?"

"ARGH, SHUT UP, CHARLEY!" All three of them shouted in response. Charley flinched back in shock.

"What?" She was ignored, as Throttle swatted away Vinnie's hands.

"Listen up, hot-head. Why don't you just take your temper-tantrum somewhere else? I'm sick of you always spouting off!"

"Well I'm sick of you always ordering us around! She would have made a far better leader than you! I'm outta here!" Vinnie pulled way.

"Good riddance!" Throttle cried out after him, before turning to Modo. "And you! If you had half a brain behind that muscle, you'd be dangerous. Hit the road, Jack!"

"Well there's one thing he and I agree on. She should have been the one to lead us, not you! The next time you need muscle in a fight, you're on your own, pal!" Modo snarled and sped off. Charley gaped at the scene before her. She shook her head as she approached Throttle, reaching out to place a hand on his shoulder.

"Throttle, what's gotten into yo—"

"SHUT UP!" he smacked her arm away with such force that it nearly threw her off balance, making her stumble back. But Throttle didn't seem to notice, as he stalked towards her. "This is all your fault! My mother! My clan! All of it! None of this would have happened if it weren't for YOU!" She cried out as Throttle shoved her. She hit the ground hard, her helmet being the only thing that stopped her from smashing her head. From her position sprawled out on the ground, she watched him. The force of his shove had knocked his specs off slightly, and she could see the rage that had been in his eyes mere moments before flickered. He shook his head and blinked a few times, staring down at his hands in confusion. He lifted his eyes, spotting her on the ground. His eyes widen and he stepped back, shaking as his breathing turned shallow. "I-I didn't… I-I'm-" Charley could see he was panicking, and she scrambled to sit up.

"Throttle, it's ok. You didn't— Throttle!"

He sprinted away from her, whistling for Lady and jumping onto her, racing away. Charley stumbled back to her feet, watching him flee. Because she had just realized that's what he'd been doing all this time. Fleeing. From her. For whatever reason, something about her had him scared. However, the hostility between the bros hadn't been natural, it couldn't have been. Even during their stint the last week, Vinnie and Throttle hadn't insulted each other like that.

Two small objects racing past her leaving dust in their wake broke her train of thought.

"Oh just wait till I catch you little pukes!" A voice called out, sounding oddly like one of those Elvis impersonators you found in Vegas.

"Yaahh! Evil Eye's right on us! Head for the Limburger Tower!" one of the two creatures (they certainly weren't human) shouted as they drove off, soon followed by creature on a motorcycle who's helmet in no way was designed to protect his head in a crash. If anything, the brief glance she got of it reminded her of the depictions of Rococo wigs. It hit her then what the creature had said.

"I should have guessed. When something stinks, you can bet Limburger's at the bottom of it." She headed back for her bike revving the engine. "I've gotta find the guys." She mumbled, before pausing. Who to go after first?

The obvious answer was Throttle. But if he was so distressed about seeing her, maybe she should give him time. The niggling feeling at the back of her head told her otherwise. Mind made up, she raced in the direction he had vanished in.

Something Vinnie had said during the argument floated back to her mind.

Who was the 'she' they were talking about?

Throttle couldn't breathe. It felt like his heart was beating a thousand times a minute. He could barely see the road with the tears in his eyes.

A truck honked its horn to his left and he barely dodged it, nearly losing his balance as he swerved, running a red light in the process and nearly turning into oncoming traffic. Lady beeped in alarm at his reckless driving, but he couldn't care less at this point. If he crashed, he deserved far worse.

The argument he had with his bros was making his head pound.

"Woah, something ugly just flew by." His voice commented, glaring up at the sky.

"What like your face?" Modo's voice, uncharacteristically hostile, not that he noticed in the moment.

"No. Like your mom's." Vinnie's response made him chuckle spitefully

"Well, at least I still have one." Modo's growl made his blood boil.

"What did you say punk?"

"You heard me. One dead before you hit double digits, the other crushed beneath a wall—"

"Shut up, you ugly idiot!"

It all got worse from there. Their insults had escalated further and further until he was alone. Vinnie's voice floated in his head over and over.

"She would have made a far better leader than you!"

She would have. She should have. She should be here. With them. She should still be alive, not him.

…Except she was alive. Here, now. And he had attacked her. He had laid his hands on her and hurt her. His chest ached as the sobs threatened to consume him.

Lady came to a halt, and he did not even bother to register where he was. He just stumbled off of her and slumped down into a dark corner, first against the wall then collapsing into a fetal position, weeping.

Vinnie was right. All he was good for was pushing everyone away.

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