April 2024 Author's Note:
Hi all, after even many more moons, I am back! I wrote a new chapter of this fic, and I wanted to go back and edit the previous ones to update them for the reboot and general improvements. This chapter has the biggest changes, with some scenes replaced, and the dialogue is written to be more in character (and also it's just funnier). The others are mostly the same but I gave them a face lift as well. Hope you like it!
Original May 2020 Author's Note:
It's been many moons since I've been on this site, but this quarantine thing is killing me and I needed to do something creative lol. I just binge watched all 99 Animaniacs episodes (well, all of the Warner shorts, anyway). Haven't watched Wakko's Wish yet, but I will soon. I'm super excited about the reboot coming this year! Here's a little fluff. Might turn it into a series of one-shots if people are interested. Enjoy!
Ghost
"Kim, there are people that are dying—"
"But I was gonna win all my battles with Palpitoa—"
"Maybe Courtney's the evil Alejandro was talk—"
"Leave me alone! My fairies, get your own—"
Yakko was sitting on the couch in the water tower, eyes glazed over, his feet propped up on the coffee table covered with magazines, the TV remote in his hand. There wasn't much going on in the studio lot today, leaving the Warners to try to find entertainment for themselves. He clicked through the channels absentmindedly, looking for something to watch that wasn't more torturous than Baloney the Dinosaur.
He barely reacted when Wakko fell from the rafters of the water tower onto the couch next to him, his eyes glued to a Game Boy that had seen better days the entire time. "Whatcha watching, Yakko?" he asked.
"My faith in cable television go down the toilet, apparently," the older toon muttered as he continued to flip through the channels.
After being missing for over two decades, the siblings had finally gotten their old home back a little over a week ago (much to the dismay of Ryan Gosling, who had been using it as a party crib while they were gone). Where have they been for twenty years? That's a story for a different chapter, dear reader.
Yakko's first order of business—besides stocking the fridge, given his brother's eating habits—had been to get the TV up and running again. Pinky had shown him a few of the new streaming services, but considering they didn't have the cash for a smart TV at the moment, the oldest had resorted to dragging their old television from the 90s out of a storage unit and calling the cable guy…which he was regretting a little.
Wakko put a hand to his chin, thinking for a moment. "Aha!" He pulled a box of VHS tapes out of his hammerspace, a picture of Barney Fife taped to the side. "Can we watch my Don Knotts video collection? Pleeaseee?" he begged, complete with the puppy eyes and tongue.
"Uhhh…I don't know, baby bro," Yakko replied, finally taking his eyes off the screen and looking at his brother. "We've already watched it twice this week."
"But that was with Dot, and she always complains the entire time," the younger sibling whined. "She talks through entire episodes and I can't even hear myself think—"
"Hard to hear when it's dead silent in there, isn't it?"
The two boys looked back at the TV to see their younger sister standing in front of it (thank goodness, Yakko noted, since one of the horrible Terminator sequels was playing), glaring at them, her arms crossed.
Wakko gulped while the oldest gave her a cheeky grin. "Does it make a difference if we're not listening anyway?" he teased.
Dot rolled her eyes and took two pink dresses out of her hammerspace. "Which one should I wear tonight?"
Wakko knit his eyebrows in confusion, studying the two dresses intently. "They're the exact same dress," he said thoughtfully, looking at the identical patterns.
"They are not!" Dot exclaimed, bonking him on the head with one of the hangers. The middle child rubbed his cap as she continued, "This one is a slightly lighter than the other one."
Wakko was about to argue, but Yakko signaled him to stop with a wave of his hand. "You should go with the lighter one," he said quickly. "What's the big occasion?"
Dot tossed the unchosen dress at her brothers, the fabric hitting Wakko in the face as he tried to sneak the remote away from Yakko. "I have a date," she replied as she pulled out a pocket-sized mirror and began to apply lip gloss.
Wakko took an enormous bite out of the dress that was now bunched up in his lap. "Poor guy," he mumbled.
Given that they were mostly-immortal toon children, "date" was a loose term. Most of the time they would meet up with a fan, a celebrity, or someone in-between, see dinner and a movie, then never hear from them again (assuming the date even made it past the chaotic dinner). Though, Yakko, being a fourteen-year-old boy, would usually try get more out of it. He was still holding out hope that that blonde girl from Girl Meets World would call him back.
He crossed his arms, a mischievous smile spread across his face. "So, who do I have to drop an anvil on if they date goes bad?"
"No one, I can do it myself," Dot said, shooting him a look. "But if you have to know, it's Justin Bieber."
Wakko choked on the piece of the dress he was eating and promptly hacked it out. "The Selena Gomez heartbreaker?!"
Yakko had to remind himself to keep his poker face. They hadn't been back in Burbank for very long, but he was almost completely up to speed with pop culture, and Wakko's exclamation had summed up his thoughts on Justin pretty succinctly. His sister was right though; she was more than capable of defending herself. "How'd you end up talking to him?" he finally asked.
"And why?" Wakko asked disgustedly.
"I like his last album, Wakko. And we've been gone for twenty years. We need to start networking again." Their sister was still looking into her pocket mirror, straightening out the flower in her hair. "Anyway, remember when we were in the waiting room at Scratchy's office the other day and you guys were in denial that Hello Nurse joined Doctors Without Borders?"
"Don't remind me!" Yakko exclaimed, holding the back of his hand to his head.
"It hurts too much to be true!" Wakko moaned.
"He came in and he said he watched our show as a kid," Dot continued, ignoring their grief. "We're gonna go see that terrible-looking new Grinch movie."
Wakko picked his Game Boy back up. "Good thing it'll be dark in the theater," he muttered. "You won't be able to go blind because of his Bieber mop hair."
"He hasn't looked like that in years!" Dot exclaimed.
"She's right, sib," the oldest replied with a smirk. "He has that stupid mustache now."
"Yakko!"
"Alright, alright," he relented, walking his sister over to the water tower door. "Have fun, and make sure you're home by midnight. And don't do anything that I wouldn't do."
"That's not giving me many limitations," she quipped. She performed a spin-change, her pink skirt now replaced with the dress Yakko had chosen earlier. "How do I look?" she asked, knowing full well the answer.
"Almost as cute as Wakko," Yakko said with a snicker. He ruffled her hair despite her looking like she wanted to set him on fire with her eyes. "I'm kidding! You're adorable. Just remember what I said about being home by midnight," he said as he opened the door for her.
"And bring home your leftovers from dinner if you have any!" Wakko called over his shoulder, still looking at his handheld.
"I know, I know," she said, rolling her eyes. "I'll see you guys later." She jumped down from the tower's balcony and landed gracefully on the studio lot, making her way towards the main entrance and the street below.
Yakko leaned against the tower's railings as he watched his little sister disappear into a taxi cab, trying to ignore the feeling of unease that had settled in his chest. "Be careful, sis."
XXX
"See, wasn't that better without Dot complaining over everything?" Wakko asked, tossing his freshly-watched Don Knotts tapes into his gag bag.
Yakko yawned, flipping through the channels on the TV again. "I don't know, Wakko. I think it was harder to hear what was going on over the sound of you chewing."
"Justin Bieber has just arrived in New York City for a promotional event—"
Yakko ceased his button pressing and stared at the news cast and the young, poorly-mustached man the camera was focused on.
Shoot.
The middle sibling watched next to him, now chewing on a sandwich. "That's a convenient news story."
"Well, it's a fanfic, not Shakespeare."
XXX
Scooter Braun was in the backyard of his mansion in Los Angeles, floating in a pool of money that probably should've belonged to Taylor Swift, when Dot descended from the roof of his home, landed on his chest, and started shaking him down.
"What the hell—"
"Where is Justin?!" she demanded. "He stood me up and I'm gonna give him something to be real 'Sorry' about!" She didn't give him much time to answer before she reached behind her to pull out a mallet, but a pair of arms pried her off him.
The music manager nervously looked up to see Yakko glaring down at him, holding a raging Dot, Wakko behind him stuffing his sweater with money from the pool. He was about to accept his oncoming death with the little dignity that he had, but surprisingly the oldest turned around and plopped his swearing baby sister into the middle child's arms before turning again to look at him.
"You know, it doesn't take my eighty-eight years of parenting experience to realize that yours didn't love you very much," he snarked, arms crossed. Dot was beating up their brother behind him.
Scooter snorted. "I have a great relationship with my parents."
"Your name is Scooter," Wakko stated, pinned to the ground by the youngest.
"Anyway," Yakko continued. "That little pea-brain you manage ghosted my sister, and none of us feel like flying to NYC right now. So give me a reason why you shouldn't become our special friend for the night."
The man narrowed his eyes at him. "If any of you touch me, Yakko's World is mine."
"Aaaand we're done here," the oldest declared, swiftly turning on his heel. "C'mon, sibs." He put a hand on each of their shoulders. "Let's go get something to eat."
XXX
After finally finding a cab that would take them through a drive-thru, Yakko was standing on the bank of the Hollywood Reservoir, watching Dot angrily chuck boulders twice her size into the water (for the sake of Wakko's health, he had put a stop their sister using him as a punching bag). Wakko was further back on the bank, chowing down on his fast food, though he was still keeping a concerned eye on their little sibling.
When she had run out of rocks and energy, she huffed and sat down on the grass, looking out at the water.
"Is this seat taken?"
She looked up to see her oldest brother with a friendly smile on his face, his arm gesturing to the grass next to her. "It's empty," she said, averting his gaze.
Yakko sat down next to his sister before pulling out a small cardboard carton from behind him. It was white and filled with onion rings and fries, the word 'Jack' written on a cube drawn on the side. "Have a Fring?" he offered, extending the box out to her.
Dot sighed and took the carton of fast food, but didn't eat any of it, directing her eyes back to the grass patch in front of her. "We were gone for so long, I almost forgot how much it sucks to be stood up."
Yakko put an arm around her, allowing her to nestle her head against his shoulder. "Me too."
She didn't say anything, wrapping her arms around him. She knew he wasn't gonna pick on her about getting ghosted, at least not tonight. Maybe down the road when her pride had healed and she was ready to take it. But right now, he was showing his more tender side that only she and Wakko ever got to see, where his smartass remarks paused for a quick moment so he could be there emotionally for his younger siblings. She looked up at him. "How did you know I went to Scooter's?"
"Call it a sixth sense," Yakko replied, ruffling her hair. She didn't protest for once. "I've read that that guy's a real jerk, anyway. I would've let you keep throttling him if I didn't think he could steal our entire music catalog."
"No offense, but I really don't wanna hear a re-recording 'Yakko's World' anyway," she muttered. "You sing it enough in your sleep."
He smiled, amused, and rose to his feet. "Well anyway, sis, Justin Bieber might've ruined your night, but Wakko and I are here to un-ruin it. Find some music, Wak, and none of that Bieber trash!"
Wakko jumped up from his pile of Jack-in-the-Box and pulled out his gag bag. As he rummaged through it, he tossed a lawn mower, Danny DeVito, and a cinder block over his shoulder. "Here he is!" he exclaimed. He pulled out a grumpy old man with orange hair in a blue suit, holding a trumpet. "It's Trump on the trumpet!"
"You don't have Bill Clinton on the sax?" Yakko asked, raising an eyebrow.
Wakko peered back into the gag bag. "He's in here, but he's talking to that Monica lady." His eyes suddenly widened. "Never mind."
Yakko blew a kiss at the fourth wall. "Goodnight, everybody!"
"Ringo, that's where you went!"
Yakko and Dot looked back at Wakko, who had just produced a full drum set as well as a man with glasses and a beard. "I've missed you," the middle sibling said to the Beatle. He then pointed to Danny DeVito, who was trying to sneak away into the woods next to the lake. "Hit it, Danny!"
Startled, Danny ran back to the other two men as they began to play their instruments and jumped right into singing "It's New Years Eve."
"Uhhhh…it's November, but close enough," Yakko said with a shrug. He extended his hand to the youngest, who was still sitting in the grass next to his feet. "Care for a dance, cute little sister?"
Dot smiled and took his hand, gasping as he quickly pulled her to her feet, catching her before she could fall. "I've got you," he reassured her. "Let's dance!" She laughed as he spun her around gracefully, falling back into the rhythm of twenty years ago.
She looked up at her older brother, who was slouching just a bit to make dancing with their height difference a little easier for her. "Thanks for coming out to check on me, Yakko," she said softly.
Yakko gave her a quick kiss on the forehead. "Anytime, sis. I'm always here for ya." He grinned. "But don't just thank me." He continued to dance with her, but turned his attention to their brother, who was singing at the top of his lungs with Danny DeVito. "Hey Wakko, jump in!" He spun Dot in his direction and Wakko caught her moments before she bumped into the other singer. The middle sibling was a good dancer, but yet not quite as graceful as his siblings. His tongue stuck out of his mouth as he looked down in concentration, making an effort not to step on his sister's feet or dress.
"And thank you too, Wakko," Dot said with a smile. "I'm sorry I didn't have any leftovers."
"Don't worry about it," he replied, waving his hand. "I still got dinner tonight."
"I know," Dot said, pinching her nose, but she continued to dance with her brother. "You smell like Frings."
He gave a sheepish grin. "Sorry."
The three siblings danced well into the night, laughing and joking with each other the whole way through. By the time they had finished, their feet were sore and their eyelids heavy. Danny, Ringo, and Trump disappeared into the night, going off to who-knows-where. The Warners had elected to walk home rather than taking a cab and were soon atop the water tower, standing in front of the heavy door.
Dot was receiving a piggyback ride from Wakko. "Careful, Wakko," she said with a laugh. "If you trip over my dress it's a long way down to the pavement."
He grunted under his sister, their similar sizes making the piggyback ride quite difficult to maintain. "I think I'm a little short for this, Dot," he panted. "I think ya should've asked Yakko."
Yakko pushed the water tower's door open. "Alright sibs, time to turn in."
"Into what?" the other two asked eagerly.
The oldest sibling chuckled. "I walked right into that one. C'mon." He motioned them inside and followed shortly after, shutting the door behind him. Wakko climbed into his hammock above Dot's loft, immediately falling asleep and snoring.
Yakko and Dot smiled and shrugged at each other, heading for the bathroom to get ready for bed. Soon they were back at the bunk again, Yakko in his pajamas and Dot with curlers in her hair. Dot made her way up the ladder to her bed, her brother right behind her to tuck her in.
"You gonna be alright tonight?" he asked softly.
"I'll be okay," she replied through a yawn. She looked up at him, and with little warning, pulled him into a hug. "Love you."
Yakko paused for a moment in surprise, then smiled and returned the gesture, holding her in a warm embrace. "Love you, too." He released her after a few moments, allowing her to crawl under the covers as he tucked the top corners of the comforter under her pillow. "Goodnight, sis."
She smiled and closed her eyes. "Night, Yakko."
Yakko quietly made his way up the ladder to his little brother, who had been so tired he didn't even bother pulling the comforter up over himself. He shook his head and smiled, gently pulling the blanket up and tucking him in the same way he had for Dot. A little bit of drool had escaped Wakko's mouth, prompting him to softly brush it away from his lip with his thumb. "Night, baby bro," he whispered. But Wakko was already fast asleep.
Yakko slowly and carefully climbed down the ladder and shut off the lights before slipping into his ballpit. His heart was warm from the night he spent with his siblings, and it relieved him to know that Dot was going to be okay. He looked up at the bunk bed above him, wondering what they would do tomorrow.
Maybe they'd fly out to NYC to pay Justin a visit.