Val Meets Pluto

I don't own Girl Meets World!

Val sat in class, next to Annie and Lucas and in front of Zay.

"Somebody read that." Cory told his class.

"'History will be kind to me for I intend to write it.' Winston Churchill." Lucas read aloud off the board.

"And he did." Cory nodded "Who's gonna write their own history here? What is history? I keep forgetting."

"History is time passing." Riley said.

"Oh yeah? How much time? Someone once said, '100 years from now, all new people.'"

Maya threw her hand in the air "100 years!"

"Wrong." Cory pointed at her.

"You set me up." Maya grumbled.

"When should you guys begin to make your own history?" Cory asked.

"History has its eyes on you." Val hummed.

"Right now." Riley bounced in her seat, cheerfully.

"Good. So, today we're talking about Winston Churchill. When the new people come, how do you want them talking about you?" Cory asked.

"Nicely?" Riley suggested.

"How long do we have before history makes its decision about us?" Maya asked.

"What if they're writing it down now?" Farkle questioned.

"Doesn't matter." Cory pointed to Riley "Chapter one: Introduction. Please read."

"'There is a comfort in knowing that history is fixed. You can no sooner change history than you can change the nine planets in our solar system from Mercury to Pluto.'" She read.

"Oh." The class, except for Riley, chorused.

"What?" Riley asked.

"Oh, no." Val groaned.

"Nice job, Mr. Matthews." Lucas congratulated the teacher.

"What'd he do?"

"He just showed us history books can be wrong. You can change history." Lucas explained.

Riley shook her head "I don't get it."

"How can she not know?"

"Look at the bird!" Maya shouted and Riley started scanning the room for the bird "She doesn't know because she has us."

"The Riley Committee." Farkle explained.

"The committee exists to keep certain information away from Riley." Maya told the Texan.

"Like what?"

"Everything, really."

Lucas looked at Val confused.

"Don't look at me. I'm not a part of the committee." Val sighed "I think it's time she knew."

"Listen, this committee can't protect her for the rest of her life. She's getting too smart." Cory said, leaning in to join the conversation.

"She's looking for a bird." Farkle protested.

"He's right, Dad. She is looking inside for a bird." Val nodded.

"Well, someone's gotta tell her." Cory commanded.

"You do it." Maya begged.

Cory shook his head "Nah, you do it!"

Maya sighed and turned to Riley "Hi, sweetie."

"Peaches."

"See, we've all been protecting you from something. You know Pluto?"

"Pluto? I love Pluto. Everybody knows that. Pluto's a little cutie-pie. The smallest planet with the biggest heart. I love Pluto so much, I would kiss it on the face." Riley smiled sweetly.

"Not doing it!" Maya shouted.

"You're doing it!" Cory replied

"Not doing it!" Maya repeated stubbornly.

"I'll do it." Val stood up and walked over to kneel next to Riley "Riles?"

"Val?"

"There's something we need to tell you." Val closed her eyes, she didn't want to see the heartbreak on her sister's face "I know you love Pluto, but they made a discovery a couple years ago, that Pluto isn't a planet anymore."

Riley's face crumpled "What's that you say?"

"Pluto is not a planet anymore. I'm sorry. Will you be okay?"

"I'm fine. I am too old now to flip out over something like that." But Riley was holding back tears "Dad, please continue."

"You sure, sweetie?"

"Please continue."

Val patted her sister's shoulder and went back to her seat.

"All right, guys. So, we're talking about who we are now, and who we hope to be someday. How will we write our own history and decide what's important to us?" Cory kept going.

"They found a 100-year-old time capsule in Boston last week. Could we do one of those?" Farkle suggested.

"I love that idea, Farkle. In fact, we did one of those when i was in high school. We were gonna see what became of us in 15 years. Wait a minute." Cory realized "We were gonna see what became of us right now! We were gonna go back and see how much we've changed."

"Yeah, well, I hope some of us never do." Maya said, looking at her heartbroken best friend.

That afternoon, the gang was sitting in Topanga's bakery, formerly Svorski's.

"How can they just do that? She works her whole life to become a planet and then it's just taken away from her. Do our hopes and dreams even matter?" Riley ranted about Pluto.

"Well, in 15 years, we're gonna find out." Lucas said, holding up a buffalo nickel.

"A buffalo nickel." Farkle asked skeptically "That's what you're putting in the time capsule?"

"Yeah, my grandfather gave it to me for..." Lucas paused when he saw Maya's evil grin "Anyway, my grandfather gave it to me."

Maya shook her head "No, no, no, no, no, no, no, for what? Pappy Joe gave it to you for what?"

"Don't call his grandfather Pappy Joe." Riley scolded her friend.

"It actually was Pappy Joe."

"You knew that?" Riley asked, surprised.

"Eh, it would've been anything I said." Maya waved her off "Why'd he give you the nickel? Why?"

"Nothing. He gave it to me for being a good little boy." Lucas tried to lie, but it was clear on his face that being a good boy wasn't the reason.

Maya shook her head again "No, no, no, no, no, no, tell us."

"I was a little kid, I went to a kiddie rodeo, and I was the only one who made it the whole eight seconds." Lucas spilled.

"You rode a bull?" Riley gasped.

"It was sort of like a bull."

"Here comes funny." Maya giggled.

"I rode a sheep."

Everybody laughed, even Val stifled a small giggle behind her hand before she said "That's actually pretty cool, Lucas."

"It's a real thing! It's called mutton busting." Lucas explained "I wanted to be a rodeo star. But, i got older and gave up on it."

Katy Hart walked over to the group "Aww, don't ever give up on your sheep riding dreams. You go out there, and you become the best sheep rider the world has ever seen."

"Mom, what are you doing?" Maya sighed.

"As long as I'm here, I've decided to give out valuable life-living advice, like Corey and Topanga. So, you all come to me when you're feeling lost in this world and I'm gonna fix you right up." Kay told them.

"Nah, we're good." Farkle tried to tell her.

"Do not let your sheep-riding disappointment prevent you from dreaming dreams. As I look back at my life, the only regrets I have are the dreams I gave up on too soon." Katy said sagely.

"Wow, thank you. That's good advice." Lucas smiled politely.

"Yes, it is!" Katy chuckled, seeming surprised at what she'd said herself "Hey, nice trophy, the Farkle."

"Thanks, the Maya's mom. It's my science fair lifetime achievement award."

"Forget science, you dream dreams!"

"But..." Farkle began.

"Okay." Katy walked off.

"What are you putting in, Maya?" Riley asked, turning to her friend.

"Nothing, no hopes, no disappointments." Maya shook her head "What about you?"

"I don't know why it's so important for me to care about something that's so far away. But, I do." Riley held up a small, orange ball "I'm putting in Pluto."

"Well, it's small enough. Ha!" Farkle honked and everyone looked at him "Too soon?"

"What are you putting in, Val?" Lucas asked, looking at the girl.

"I'm no sure yet." Val shrugged "But I've got a few ideas."

Cory, Topanga, and Shawn came into the bakery and walked up to where the kids were sitting.

"Road trip!" Cory shouted.

"Who wants to go instead of me?" Topanga asked.

"I'll go." Farkle offered "I'll do anything with anybody."

"No deal. There's not enough room in the car for you and all your words." Cory groaned "What's this here?"

"This is what we're putting in our time capsule." Lucas told him.

"Oh..." Cory peeked inside "Nope. Not good enough."

"These things are important to us." Riley protested.

"Why are there only three of them?" Topanga asked.

"I'm still trying to decide what to put in." Val shrugged.

"And I'm not playing." Maya added.

"Oh, you're playing!" Cory ordered.

"Nice shovel shirt."

"They got plenty left."

"I don't see how."

Katy looked up from the counter "Mr. Shawn." She smiled.

"Miss Katy." Shawn greeted.

"How are you? How's the writing?" Katy asked.

"Well, I was doing a story in Philadelphia till my friend here brought me to New York so we could go back to Philadelphia." Shawn said and Val snorted "How's the acting?"

"I was playing a waitress at the nighthawk diner and now I'm playing a waitress here."

"It's your real life." Maya called.

"It can't be."

"Well, I'm kinda liking this movie." Shawn said with a grin.

Katy shot him a small smile.

"Come on! It's a chance to go back and see what time has taught us." Cory interrupted, putting his arm around Shawn "Come on, it's our history. You and me, Feeny, Shawn and Angela."

"Give me a shovel. No reason. Give me a shovel and your head." Topanga dragged her husband back to where the kids were sitting.

"Who's Angela?" Katy asked, tentatively.

"Oh, you know. Someone who used to be in my life." Shawn evaded the question.

"Ah, yes. Well, we all have one of those, don't we?" Katy sighed.

"Do you miss her? I know I'd miss Riley and Maya if I didn't see them for a long time. Do you think your old feelings will get stirred up for her? And you'll miss her? And you'll go back and live wherever she is?" Farkle rambled on until Maya threw Riley's Pluto at him.

"Do you ever miss?" Farkle shouted.

"Thank you, Maya." Val sighed in relief.

"Yeah, Mr. Hunter, you gonna get some feelings all stirred up?" Katy tried to mask the nervousness in her voice with a playful tone.

"Maya, Val, all of a sudden, I think we should be going with them. Do you think we should go?" Riley asked, turning to her sister and her friend.

"We're going with you." Maya said, standing up and pulling Val and Riley with her.

"All right. Katy, do you mind if we take this one off your hands for the weekend?" Topanga asked.

"Have fun, baby girl." Katy kissed the top of her daughter's head.

"All right, girls, grab a shovel." Topanga ordered.

"We're digging up the past! Yay." Shawn said, clearly anxious.

Cory led the group out of the bakery.

Topanga and Val were digging a hole. Cory and Shawn were leaning on their shovels "motivating" them. Riley and Maya were digging elsewhere.

"Come on, Topanga! Put some back into it, will you?" Cory commanded.

"I have blisters!"Topanga hissed angrily "And it's not exactly like I'm wearing my shoveling shoes. What about you guys?"

"We're on a mandatory break." Cory defended.

"Hey, I thought we were only doing every other hole." Shawn shrugged.

"You said you knew exactly where this thing was buried." Topanga groaned.

"Well, it's in this general vicinity, yes." Cory smiled nervously.

"Ugh!" Val groaned "Anybody bring band-aids? My feet feel like they're bleeding."

Maya came over, she wore a flower crown that Riley had probably made for her "How is this fun? You said this was gonna be fun. How can anybody make this fun?"

Riley skipped over and placed a flower crown on Val's head "I made one for Val's head too!"

"You're supposed to be digging." Val scolded.

"Oh, but I was digging for an hour, and all I found was this old metal box." Riley held up the time capsule.

"Are you kidding?" Val rubbed her temples "That's the time capsule, sweetie."

"Oh."

Everyone dropped their shovels.

"Cory..." Shawn said nervously.

"What?"

"I'm concerned."

"What's there to be concerned about, Shawnie?" Cory asked, turning around.

"That." Shawn said.

Cory and Shawn pointed and gasped at the figure pointing a flashlight at them.

It was Mr. Feeny.

"Mr. Matthews, Mr. Hunter. We meet again." The old man said with a hint of a smile in his voice.

"Detention?" Cory asked, nervously.

"Big boy detention." Feeny smiled.

Cory shook his head "I won't do well in big boy detention."

Riley walked up to the adults old teacher "Feeny!"

"Fee-hee-hee-hee-heenay!" Maya joined in.

"What, what, what, what..."

"Hey, hey, hey, hey..."

The two started hissing like cats.

Val slapped her hand to her forehead.

When Mr. Feeny didn't react Riley sighed "Okay, let's go."

She dragged Maya and Val off to the bench.

Soon Feeny followed them, he sat down in between Riley and Maya, Val was perched on the armrest of the bench " Excuse me. Is he a good father, you poor, poor, little girls?" He asked.

"We're very lucky." Val smiled and Riley nodded.

"Hmm..." Feeny turned to Maya "Is he a good teacher?"

"I think he's the best there is." Maya told him.

"Oh."

"But he says you are."

"Oh, and that's what you were digging for?" Feeny gestured to the old box Riley had found.

"It's our time capsule, remember?" Cory asked, walking up to join the group.

"I remember everything." Feeny smiled.

"We wanna see how time treated us, if we turned out like we hoped we would." Cory explained "Got any advice for us while we're all out here together, Mr. Feeny?"

"Well, yes. It's been a long time, and you're still together. What else do you need to know?"

After the long car ride home, Val, Riley, Maya, Cory, Shawn, and Topanga sat in the living room. The old time capsule sat in front of them.

"All right, I'll go first." Cory clapped his hands excitedly.

"Now, no one knows what anyone else buried, right?" Shawn checked.

"Yeah, that was the deal." Topanga nodded.

"Don't open it." Maya said quickly.

"Yeah, wouldn't you rather believe your lives are perfect?" Riley asked.

"You make a good point, girls, you do. But, here's another point, have you even met me?" Cory opened the box "There it is."

"It's the jean jacket." Topanga smiled "It's the first time we said 'I love you.'" She put it on "And it still fits."

"Time has been good to you, Topanga." Cory wrapped his arm around his wife.

"Time has been good to us all." Topanga corrected.

"And that's how you do the time capsule!" Cory shouted, then turned to Topanga "Okay, your turn!"

"Okay, don't overreact."

"Why would I overreact." Cory scoffed.

"Because I know you're going to misinterpret this." Topanga handed him a letter.

"Let's see," Cory read aloud "'Dear Cory, if you would let it happen, I think you and I could have a future.'. Topanga, what's wrong with this? This is great."

"Oh, boy." Val groaned, knowing the story.

"It's not from her." Shawn told his best friend, awkwardly.

Cory looked at Topanga then back at the letter "Aah!" He flung it away with a high-pitched shriek.

Topanga picked it up "It's from Lauren."

"Who's Lauren?" Riley asked.

"Have you never heard this story?" Val raised her eyebrow "It was nearly the end of Cory and Topanga."

"Well, before we got married, your father met a girl at a ski lodge and she really liked him." Topanga told them.

"Matthews, you dog!" Maya exclaimed.

"Is this why we never go skiing?" Riley asked.

"Why would you do this, Topanga? I...I buried a symbol of our love." Cory questioned, hurt clear in his eyes.

"Cory, I was threatened by this because I was young. The jean jacket was the first time we said "I love you". But I almost let this little piece of paper hurt us because I was young. You always knew, but I didn't understand that our love will last forever and that nothing could hurt it. I buried this because I hoped that when we opened it, I would be next to you and that I could go like this." Topanga ripped the letter into tiny pieces and threw it in the box.

"Here goes." Maya whispered.

"All right, here goes." Shawn stepped over to the box and pulled out some stuff "Shakespeare's sonnets. Vivaldi's four seasons, a Van Damme movie ticket and lip gloss."

Riley grabbed the lip gloss "Kiwi mango." She mused.

"Ah, me and Angela, we were gonna be Cory and Topanga. I guess there can only be one Cory and Topanga. But, still..." Shawn paused "Me and Angela. I wonder what she's up to nowadays?"

"Bye, Shawn." Maya sighed.

Val and Riley wrapped their arms around the blonde.

Riley, Val, and Maya were sitting in Riley's bay window.

"See, life works out better if you don't get your hopes up. Shawn will get back together with his ex-girlfriend, Pluto is not a planet anymore and my mom and me are just my mom and me." Maya said.

Riley shook her head "Pluto is a planet."

"Sorry, Riley, but you're the only one who says it is." Maya told her.

"You heard them tell the story, Maya. There was a time when my father was the only one who knew he and my mother would always be together. Even when everyone else said that they wouldn't. He knew, and so do I, and so does your mother because she's right. Dream dreams, Maya. You're going to get everything you want in life."

"How is it possible that you can still have hope for me?" Maya chuckled.

"Hey...I have hope for something four billion miles away, you have always been right here." Riley hugged the blonde girl and Val joined in.

"What about you, Val?" Maya asked "Why do you still have hope for me?"

"Because, you're you, Maya. You can act as tough as you like, but deep down, I know you're a good person. You've hit some bumps, but you've always overcome them. I'm proud of you. I'm proud to have been able to be an influence in your life. I know you're gonna grow up to be amazing." Val smiled.

Maya hugged her tightly "Thank you." She whispered.

Shawn knocked on the door.

"Come in, Uncle Shawn." Riley called.

"How'd you know it was me?" Shawn asked, opening the door.

"Our family doesn't knock, they're pigs." Val shrugged.

"Okay." Shawn shrugged and sat down and noticed Riley staring at him "What?"

"You know how they say Pluto isn't a planet anymore?" Riley asked.

"Yeah, yeah I heard about that." Shawn nodded.

"Doesn't that kill you?"

"No."

"Pluto is still out there for me."

"I don't care."

Cory and Topanga came quietly through the open door.

"You weren't afraid to love somebody once." Riley told Shawn.

"Yeah, well, I...I'm done with that. I don't have that, I'm not going to have that." Shawn sighed.

"You are," Riley smield "there's someone out there for you."

"So, you're saying Pluto is Angela?"

Maya got up and sat down on the bed. Val moved to sit next to her, wrapping an arm around Maya's shoulders.

"No, I'm saying that Pluto is believing in something out there no matter what anybody says, especially you because there is." Riley said.

"How are you not getting this yet, buddy?" Cory looked pointedly at Maya.

Shawn stood up and stood in front of Maya. Val moved back to the bay window to sit with her sister.

"You believe in me?" Shawn asked.

"I do." Maya confirmed.

"I don't know what I'm supposed to be for you." Shawn shrugged helplessly.

"Can you just be out there for me?"

"Yes, I can do that, I want to do that, what do you call that?"

"It doesn't matter what you call it, I just wanna know that you're there."

"Okay." Shawn sat down next to Maya "I'm there."

Lucas, Farkle, Riley, Maya, and Val met up at Topanga's Bakery the next day to put their time capsule items together.

"Okay, I'll go first." Lucas started.

"You putting in your sheep nickel, Billy Bob?" Maya asked.

"No, I changed my mind about that, I'm not putting a reminder of when I gave up on a dream." Lucas held up his transfer slip.

"Your transfer slip." Riley smiled.

"I'd rather be reminded of when something good started." Lucas explained.

"Me next." Farkle bounced up.

"Your science fair trophy?" Riley asked.

"Wasn't important enough for this." Farkle held up a turtleneck.

"Your favorite orange turtleneck" Gasped Riley.

"It was the one I took off when I felt like I was nothing, but you guys wouldn't let me be nothing and since it's us that's gonna be together when we open this, I can't wait to see the something that I am." Farkle put the shirt in the box "Riley, Pluto?"

"Yeah, still Pluto." Riley nodded "Whenever we open this, I hope I haven't stopped believing in things"

Everyone looked at Maya and Val.

"Okay, I'll play, but you guys have to leave. Your parents and Shawn didn't tell each other what they were putting in and that's the way I want to do it. I'm hoping we'll all be surprised."

"I'm gonna do mine that way too." Val grinned "You go first, Maya."

Lucas, Farkle, and Val walked out of the bakery.

Before Riley left, she turned to Maya "Hey, whatever it is, I hope it works out the way you want it."

"Me too."

After a few minutes, Maya came out. Val went in. She reached into her bag and pulled out the picture Farkle had taken of the group last year during their 1961 lesson. She also put in a picture of her younger self in the hospital with pneumonia. She hoped that her health would stay good, that she'd have a long life with her friends, and be there to open the time capsule in the future.

A few hours later, Val, Riley, and Maya sat in Topanga's.

Shawn came through the door.

"Hi, Shawn. Um, we're closing up, but I could get you something for the road?" Katy asked, walking up to him.

"Uh, yeah, that'd be great." Shawn said and Katy started to walk away "Actually, no. Feel like sitting down for a second?"

"Yeah. No I do, yeah." Katy and Shawn sat down in a booth "Did you want to talk about something?"

"We don't have to talk, we can just...sit here. Will that be okay?" Shawn asked nervously.

They laughed, Katy shot him a quick glance before saying "That was great, now talk?"

"Yeah, would that be better?"

"Mm-hmm, It's certainly harder, but I found it can be, yeah." Katy started to apply some lip gloss.

"Lip gloss."

"Yeah, I put this on when I don't know what's happening."

"What flavor is that?" Shawn asked.

"Cinnamon spice." Katy told him.

"Is that better than kiwi mango?"

"It's different." Katy shrugged.

"Is different better?"

"Well, I guess that depends on the life you're having." Katy smiled "For me, yeah, I'd take different. I'm ready for different, how about you?"

"You hear they're talking about making Pluto a planet again?" Maya asked Riley.

"Yeah. How about that?"

Word count: 3895 words
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Love,
The Author