Traveling Companions

Disclaimer: I do not own Wander Over Yonder. It's just inspired me.

First off, I know I've been silent for too long. It's been a tough time and I haven't been able to make myself write but I've really missed it. I am hoping to start updating my unfinished stories, but I knew I had to start by writing something for Wander Over Yonder. I discovered it only recently and it has helped me through some really tough times. This show is wonderful and needs some more love. I have a lot of stories I want to write for it, so here is the first.

I'm so intrigued by the tiny slices of Wander's backstory we received in the show. This one is set shortly after Wander steals his hat, when they are still getting to know each other. And naturally he wasn't called Wander back then…

Enjoy!

Chapter 1: The Alarm Clock

Rambler added another log to his little campfire and snuggled back into his sleeping bag. It had been a few days since he and his companion had encountered any signs of Hive Queen Slarina or Gragnar the Greedy, and although they were most likely still in danger of pursuit, Rambler finally felt safe enough to take it a little easy. That meant a warm supper and an actual camp for the first time since this whole thing started. He shot a glance towards the floppy green hat resting next to him.

"It's been quite a day." His voice was quiet, matching the gentle crackling of the fire. He was talking half to himself, but he still smiled encouragingly. "I've never had a travlin' companion before. It's not always the mos' comfortable life, but it sure is fun. Ya get to see the mos' amazing things and meet all kinds of different folks." He reached a hand out of his sleeping bag to pat the top of the hat gently. "I bet travlin's even better with a buddy by your side."

He wasn't sure how much it heard or understood, but that had never stopped him before. Besides, something about the warn, patched and faded quality of the fabric and the slight droop of the large brim made it look sad. And lonely.

Rambler pulled the hat closer, slipping it protectively onto his head before snuggling further into the sleeping bag.

"Goodnight," he whispered. The hat brim seemed to dip slightly where it overhung his eyes, but that could have just been a trick of the flickering firelight. Rambler closed his eyes and let the crackling of the fire put him to sleep.

When he woke, he became aware of an urgent buzzing and rattling noise, not very loud, but definitely insistent. Rambler opened his eyes to the first light of dawn. His eyes focused and he found himself facing a tiny alarm clock, jiggling and rattling all over the pebbles as it buzzed. Puzzled and slightly disorientated, he reached out a hand and turned off the alarm. The clock went still, and the silence of an early morning settled for just a minute before Rambler heard something else; a voice, high pitched with a grating quality to it.

"…somewhere around here anyway. I'm sure this is the direction the smoke was coming from."

Suddenly fully awake, Rambler slipped out of his sleeping bag as quietly as he could. He debated silently for a second over whether he had time to roll the bag up again and stuff it in his small backpack, before rejecting the idea. He would just have to pick up another one somewhere. It only took a moment to sling his backpack over his shoulders. The hat was still on his head and there wasn't really anything else he'd left lying around the campsite. Just the cold ashes from his small fire and the tiny alarm clock. On impulse, he snatched the clock up as well, then moved as quietly as he could to the far side of the clearing from where he had heard the voice. He ducked behind a tree just in time. Bushes rustled and he heard an exclamation from the apparent pursuers.

"There! I told you, here's his campsite!"

"A campsite anyway." The other voice sounded annoyed.

Footsteps crossed and recrossed the clearing, the voices commenting on the unzipped sleeping bag and campfire. Rambler stayed pressed against the rough bark of the tree, afraid to try moving further away lest he attract their attention by making a noise. He would also like to have a look at his pursuers, but didn't want to risk being spotted. From their voices, he thought they might be Slarina's troops, which wasn't the best luck he'd ever had. They would be very difficult to escape without a substantial head start. They obviously hadn't caught sight of him before he hid, but unfortunately he was going to have to move soon, ideally before they finished examining his camp and decided to search the clearing's edges to find his tracks.

The brim of the hat hung down over his eyes and Rambler reached up and gave it a reassuring pat. Then he ducked down in an effort to keep his bright orange fur at least somewhat hidden in the thick ground cover, and began to work his way deeper into the forest.

He brushed past ferns and crept over roots. As the clearing disappeared behind him, his pace picked up slightly as his confidence grew. Finally, he straightened up and chanced a glance behind him. Through the trees he caught a flash of black and yellow. That was bad. If he could see them, they could see him. He tried to pick up the pace, but as he was still looking behind him, he neglected to watch his footing. One sneaker snagged on a protruding root and Rambler tumbled over in a tangle of gangly limbs. His stomach hit the ground hard and his breath was forced out of him with a huff. He heard an angry buzz behind him and pushed himself painfully to his feet, gulping air.

"There he goes! Through the trees!" the grating voice exclaimed.

Definitely Slarina's swat-soldiers, he thought distractedly as he stumbled forward. He could hear them coming now, but not as quickly as he'd feared, and he could hear angry exclamations from behind him in addition to the crackly foliage. It seemed like the density of the undergrowth was preventing them from flying, which was probably the only chance he had of outpacing them. He was moving faster now, ducking and weaving around the trees, as the noises of pursuit got louder behind him. At least it sounded like only two of them so far, although they had probably signaled for back-up once they sighted him. The swat-soldiers liked to coordinate.

Rambler kept his eyes on his footing this time as he scrambled through the forest. Even so, the ground was treacherous and he kept stumbling and then catching himself again, one hand on the hat to keep it safe from snatching branches.

The bzzt of a laser flickered past his shoulder, severing a nearby branch and he glanced behind him again. They were closer now, bristly, yellow and black stripes sticking out through the foliage. He was losing this race, even with the trees keeping them earthbound. He needed to think of something, and quickly. Rambler's eyes flicked back and forth, searching his surroundings for something promising. Just in front and to the side of him he noticed a steep slope. The forest was getting rockier and the valley below was studded with boulders and strange hummocks. It would have to do. He put on a sudden burst of speed and veered sharply to the right and down, feeling leaves slipping under his sneakers. He lost his footing again, but that was okay. If anything, his tumble this time made him go faster than before. He floundered down the slope and fetched up against a leaf-covered mound. The swat-soldiers were out of sight again, but it wouldn't be long before they got to the top of the hill. He had to be out of sight by then. At least with the old leaves piled high in this valley he wouldn't leave footprints.

One more quick look around and Rambler was crawling between the roots of a partially collapsed tree, then pulling himself up into the hollow trunk above. He froze there, fingers digging into the soft, rotting wood, and tried to steady his breathing. He couldn't risk making a sound, but he grinned up at the black hat brim above him and gave it a wink.

Footsteps descending the slope, more careful than his had been it sounded like. The voices resumed, along with the complaining.

"I can't believe you lost him again! He's orange! How could you lose him?"

"Me?" There was a scuffling noise, then a thud as a heavy body hit Rambler's tree. He dug his fingers and toes in a little more. "I wasn't the slag-drassit craggle-thunk who decided to send us both crashing into a tree. My antennas are still twisted!"

"Shhhh!" The noises stopped abruptly. Rambler's arms were starting to shake slightly. He willed them still. In the sudden silence, he could hear the crackling of branches from farther off in the forest. The two soldiers could obviously hear it as well.

"That way, Mabel." The harsh voice dropped to a whisper. "And this time, keep it down."

Rambler heard some angry muttering, likely from Mabel, but subdued. The soldiers seemed to be moving away. The rustling underbrush became gradually more distant until he couldn't hear it any more. He listened for a few minutes more, then allowed his shaking arms and legs to relax, sliding down the inside of the tree until he was peering out through the roots once more.

Silence and stillness. The valley was empty.

"Well, that was certainly fun!" Rambler grinned up at his companion, even while he kept his voice to a whisper. "But I suppose I was too quick to relax, huh?" He started picking his way through the rocks and tree stumps towards the edge of the valley. "No more campfires until we get off planet at least. I promised I'd get us out of this an' I will. Sure was a good thing I woke up in time this morning, though!" He paused at that, remembering the tiny clock bouncing around in front of his face, making sure he was awake before the soldiers arrived. He glanced up again at the hat. The edges of the brim were curled up slightly, and he felt his grin widen in response. "Thanks for that, by the way. Travlin' certainly is better with a buddy."

Rambler had started climbing the side of the valley now and his eyes dropped to focus on his hand and foot holds. He didn't want to slip again after all. As he climbed he found himself humming a soft tune. It was nice not to be traveling alone, and he had a feeling his new friend was enjoying the company as much as he was.

Thanks for reading the first chapter!

Wander is such a chatty guy. We didn't get to see much of it this chapter, but will be seeing more as the story progresses, even if he will mostly be conversing with his hat.

I hope you are enjoying the story so far. Not sure how many chapters this will be.

I can't guarantee how fast I will update, but I will do my best. See you all soon!