I don't own Loonatics Unleashed
Enjoy!
The speed was a so quick that he hadn't seen it coming. He felt his feet being slightly lifted off the ground and then glaring over at whomever almost ran him over. "Hey!" he yelled at the blades of fire that was left behind, "watch where you're going! Sheesh, not even an apology. Do people watch where they're going anymore?!"
It didn't take a lot to make Duck very grumpy in the late hours of the afternoon. He had woken up early to start his job down by the local pool. When it began to rain, he was ecstatic that he had the opportunity to go home and get paid for it. However, the moment that the rain began to decrease and the sun began to come out he had gotten a call from his boss that he had to show up to the pool anyway. If there weren't going to be any people, there was still some cleaning up that he had to take care of. He despised his job as a pool boy but it was the only one that he was able to find on such a short notice. The last thing he wanted was to live out on the streets and beg for the money that he didn't have. Why did life have to be so complicated? He thought that once he had reached a certain age, all that misery would be over but it seemed to be continuous. One thing that he knew would make his job more desirable was if he had been given a promotion. Instead of the pool boy, he imagined himself as the lifeguard. There was something saving the lives of others that made him feel…important. After all, that was what everyone wanted to feel. He remembered one certain scenario, which in the end turned to be hilarious, where he had "heroically" saved one life a couple of months ago.
It was the usual day at the pool. Lots of people were coming in and out basking in the sun or enjoying the cool water. There was lifeguard sitting on an elevated chair and overseeing the safety that people took in. And there was Duck, overseeing any "treasures from the deep" that he was going to have the privilege of fishing out with his landing net. The pool at this hour was so loud with little kids screaming and running around that it gave Duck a major headache.
"Ugh," he mumbled to himself and leaned against the landing net, "is it time to go home yet?" He would anywhere else but home. It wasn't that he didn't love his parents, but he just didn't want to be bombarded with the usual questions that consisted of 'how was work today?' or 'if you don't like it, why do you continue to stay?'
"Duck!" the lifeguard yelled over to him, causing the mallard to flinch at his name being screamed in such a fashion. "There're some leaves over by that side of the pool. Come on use the net!"
Duck rolled his eyes. "'Use the net, use the net,'" he mimicked the lifeguard as he walked over to the section of the pool that was dirty. As he walked over, he nearly tripped over a pair of slippers that were on the ground. "Hey! Watch it!" he snapped as he looked over to whom those slippers belong to.
He visibly rolled his eyes at to whom he had just seen. "Oh…you're back again," he said.
In front of him was a female duck with dark feathers and brunette hair. She wasn't as shocked at seeing Duck. After all, he worked here and it wasn't something that she could easily avoid. "I see that you're not fired yet," she fired back at him with a smirk upon her lips.
It wasn't that they hated each other…nor dislike. How was someone supposed to react when a total stranger walked up to them and said that their dancing skills could use a little work when that stranger didn't have any idea on what they were doing?
"Very funny," Duck said to her, unamused by her words. "So, where's your dancing crew?"
"It's our day off," she said to him, "even a dancer needs her rest every once in a while." She avoided the term 'backup dancer' and internally cringed at the word. She considered herself to be better than Olivia Mink who only knew how to dance, how she said it "passionately," when it was mostly provocative. She couldn't wait to get out of that group and find her own way and be solo for once. She looked at Duck up and down and noticed the landing net in his grip, "and…you're going fishing I see."
He wished that he could but no, he had to go treasure hunting with those leaves that would slowly slide away. "The perks of the job," Duck said to her. "But don't you worry, you'll be seeing me on that lifeguard chair one day."
Her eye followed over to the direction where he was pointing and took notice of the elevated chair. She slowly turned her head and looked over at the mallard. "That's your dream?" she asked him. "Seems a bit…directionless."
"And being a dancer isn't?" he shot back at her. "You'd need a lot of talent for that." He didn't allow her to respond for he already turned his back on her.
It would have been a great opportunity for her to put her foot on his back and push him into the pool but she didn't want to have other people looking over at her and wondering why she had done it. But no one would say anything if she splashed him. She unwrapped the towel around her waist and walked over to the edge of the deep end of the pool. She surveyed the water for a mere couple of seconds, seeing how it shimmered alongside the sun's rays. She peeked over at Duck, who was grumbling at the leaves that were escaping the next. She threw her arms over her head, stood on her tiptoes, and jumped into the water.
Duck didn't see it coming when he felt a wave of pool water hitting him on the face. He coughed out the water that made it inside his mouth and glared at the perpetrator that had done it. "Watch it!" he yelled. He glared at the section where bubbles formed from underneath and after a while, he didn't see anything.
Wait a second…
She was breathing in there just a minute ago. Duck looked up and noticed that the lifeguard was a little too busy upholding a conversation with a young woman and he seemed far too distracted to notice that someone was potentially drowning.
"Hey lifeguard!" he yelled over but his voice was drowned out by the screams of the people at the pool. There was only one thing he could do. He threw the landing net on the ground and jumped inside the pool. He couldn't make out her status but he didn't hesitate and immediately grabbed her by the waist and swam her up for some air.
The moment that they came up for her, the two ducks heaved in as much oxygen as they could. "What did you do that for?" she asked as she gave him a push.
"You were drowning!" Duck said to her.
"No, I wasn't," she said, "I was practicing for a routine! Man, a girl can't even come out here to practice." She lifted herself out of the water and dried herself from the water that trickled down her feathers.
"Yo Duck! Get outta the pool!" Duck heard the lifeguard yell over at him. A grumble escaped his beak as he lifted himself out the pool and grabbed onto the landing net. So much for being the local "pool hero." Some people…or ducks could be so ungrateful.
Once he had finally finished up cleaning the pool from those pesky leaves, he noticed that the female duck was packing her things and ready to head out. She threw the strap of her bag over her shoulders and didn't hear her wallet falling on the ground when she walked away. Duck wasn't too lucky in grabbing her attention for that wallet. He picked it up and it showed her identification, which he hadn't meant to see. Miranda Duck.
The next day when she had returned to the pool, he had returned her wallet and as one would say, the rest was history.
"Hey stranger," a familiar voice said to Duck.
Duck almost flew out of his feathers when he was caught off guard by that voice. He turned around and saw Miranda standing right behind him with a bemused smile upon her lips. He didn't know why she always took pleasure in scaring him, but upon her defense 'mostly to see his reaction.' "Didn't you have rehearsal?" he asked her.
Miranda rolled her eyes at that. "No. Princess Olivia Mink had to cancel on us last minute. She had an 'excruciating migraine' and wouldn't be able to open the dance studio for the day…poor baby," she said the last bit with sarcasm. "Which is bad because we have to push our competition by the end of the week and won't be able to pay our rent for this month."
Duck hated how tight they were with money. It was a wonder how the two of them weren't thrown out on the streets considering the overdue amount that they had. Money was always lacking and the only thing he wished for was for both to be rich and not bother with any of this. "How much do they pay at these competitions?" Duck asked her.
"First place ranges from $1,000 – $2,000 for each dancer depending on where you compete, if not higher. Second place $500, and third place," she chuckled at that last bit, "you're lucky if you get a bronze medal."
Duck's shoulders slumped at that. All that money was going to be gone with the rent anyway and there goes his dream in buying that new hologram television set. "And you're not able to get this?"
Miranda was just as disappointed. She had her eyes set on a pair of shoes that she could use for her costume in their next competition. Of course, the technique was everything but so was the presentation. "Blame Olivia," she shrugged her shoulders, "she's the one that organizes these things and takes the spotlight half the time. I think I have more of a technique than she does."
Duck remained quiet for a second and looked at her up and down. "I've seen better," he said.
Miranda's lower beak dropped as she sent him a glare. "You're so mean," she said as she gave him a punch on the arm.
"Ow!" Duck exaggeratedly yelled as he rubbed the spot that she had hit him, "watch it! That's my good arm! Who's gonna hold you up when you practice your short lifts?"
"I'll ask the neighbor down the hall," Miranda said to him, "I'll tell him 'excuse me, sir. My boyfriend is incapacitated and I need to practice my short lifts. Would you please be a dear and help me?'"
Duck glared at her. "You're despicable."
These lighthearted insults were something that they had grown accustomed to, but by the end of the day, the two couldn't help but cuddle close with the other and enjoy the moment. After letting out a lighthearted laugh, Miranda looked at him. "So, I'll see you at home?"
"Sure," Duck said to her, "once I'm done cleaning this pool."
"With your trusty landing net," she added and leaned in to give him a kiss on the cheek. "See you later, Stranger Duck."
Even though she couldn't see, Duck beheld a slight smile upon his beak at that strange nickname that she had just given him. The only thing that he hoped was to get his paycheck for the week and head home as quickly as possible.
A/N: Just a quick note: When I reviewed Miranda's personality she was very, for a lack of a better word, 'aggressive' towards Duck prior to The Challenge series, making her a bit unlikable in my eyes. Therefore, I'm trying to give her personality a bit of a tweak. Of course still maintaining a bit of a 'sassy' attitude but respecting Duck.
