Bittersweet Ch.1: A Hero Down

Badgerclops gently shut the wooden door behind him with a soft click, his cybernetic hand tightly clenching the brass doorknob. Just like his roiling emotions, he could feel the doorknob bending underneath the extreme pressure of his hand. He inhaled deeply through his nose, and he forced himself to release the doorknob. Silently, he took a trembling hand and wiped at the glistening sweat that coated the fur on his forehead. He exhaled through his mouth - the sound shaky and choked - and pressed his back against the wall, taking a quick moment to recollect his lost nerves.

Alright, he coached himself, internally. Calm down.

Badgerclops struggled to swallow past the thick lump of repressed emotions that had somehow developed in the back of his throat, and he pushed himself off of the wall. A small rattle resonated in the hallway from the movement, causing him to pause for a moment. He craned his neck down to look at his left hand, eyeing the bright white box that his limb currently clenched.

It was a first aid kit.

The kit was lightly dented and scratched in several places, proudly displaying the numerous times that it'd been dragged down from the top shelf of the cabinet in the bathroom. The first aid kit was a dull shade of white - a byproduct of time - and a dim red cross was present in the middle of it. Several hours - or was it just minutes? - ago, the kit felt somewhat heavy, leaden with medical supplies. Now, it felt several pounds lighter; a painful reminder of what had just transpired when everything -

Stop, he warned himself, squeezing the handle of the first aid kit in his hand. Now isn't the time.

Right now, he had to be the strong one.

He couldn't allow himself to falter at such a time.

Badgerclops sucked in another quick breath, and he limped down the wooden hallway. He slipped through the kitchen, the scent of breakfast leftover from earlier that morning unsettling his stomach. For some reason, Badgerclops found himself hesitating at the entrance to the kitchen, and he peeked his head out around the corner. His eye immediately fell upon their television in the living room, the screen dim and the sound muted so as to not disturb anyone. With a sigh, Badgerclops slipped through the doorway, and he headed towards their collective worn pink couch, his footfalls loud enough to announce his presence in the room.

With purpose, the cybernetic badger leaned over the back of the couch, crossing his arms against the top of the worn cushions. "Sup, dude," he said, nonchalantly, staring down at the occupant slumped below him.

Adorabat sunk into the couch cushions, her wide eyes staring blankly out at the flickering television before her. With their multi-colored TV remote clutched in a limp wing, she shifted through random channels at a weirdly fast pace; Badgerclops wasn't sure if she was paying attention to what was on each channel. At his voice, Adorabat's small wing immediately stilled, leaving the television on a commercial for virtually indestructible frying pans that were also non-stick.

Badgerclops wondered if Mao Mao would've appreciated one of those; the guy did always whine about how their current pans were practically falling apart and burning all their food

Adorabat picked her head up, and she peered up at him, her eyes questionably puffy. Had… Had she been crying? "Oh, hey, Badgerclops," she sniffled, trying and failing to gather enough enthusiasm to smile at him. Then, she tossed the remote onto the couch next to her, and she flew up to his level. "H-How'd it go?"

It took everything Badgerclops had to not call her out on her weak attempt to appear okay; she was really acting more like Mao Mao nowadays. "Great," he stated, instead. He lifted his metallic hand, balancing the first aid kit on the top of the couch. "We might be low on bandages now, though."

Adorabat hovered in the air, her fragile expression crumbling; it seemed like she might burst out crying at any second. "And, Mao Mao," she whimpered, quietly. "W-Will he be okay?"

Badgerclops tried to smile, praying that it looked as comforting as he thought it did. "Yeah, no worries, Adorabat. I've seen him take worse hits than that and still bounce back."

The reassurance didn't work, and Adorabat sputtered, her ever-growing wet eyes frantically looking around. "B-But, he was so still earlier, and h-he wouldn't respond- "

The very world around them felt like it was crying.

Badgerclops craned his neck upward, blankly studying the thick gray clouds swallowing up the entirety of the blue sky. Large droplets of rain poured down like falling tears, and it soaked Badgerclops' body within mere seconds. He breathed in through his nose, taking in that gentle woody scent that came with rain, and he permitted the cool water to dull the anger within his chest. He lowered his head, and his gaze fell upon the blackened corpse slumped in the midst of the valley. Badgerclops could still see trails of smoke sputtering out of his transformed robotic hand, and he shook the metallic limb until it shifted into his usual hand.

"Mao Mao!"

An overly familiar shriek instantly grabbed his attention; not because he knew who it originated from, but because he could hear the undeniable terror within it that made the fur on his body rise. Badgerclops twisted around on his heel, and he spotted Adorabat's tiny form through the downpour of rain. She stood beside a painfully still black-and-red figure lying on the ground, her small blue wings running frantically over the figure's body. Badgerclops' heart leaped into his throat at the sight, and he found himself sprinting - running like he never has - to her side. He slid to his knees on the wet cobblestone, his eye falling to the only one within their group who had yet to move - Mao Mao.

Mao Mao laid on his side in a slight puddle of water, his signature cape pressed against his heaving body from the heavy rainfall. But, what drew Badgerclops' gaze was the growing lake of red that flowed from underneath Mao Mao's body, the rain struggling to wash it away as fast as it was developing. Badgerclops cradled the feline's head in his lap, patting him gently on the cheek. "Come on, Mao Mao," he begged. "Wake up."

Mao Mao's head merely bobbed to the side at his touch, unusually limp.

Adorabat pressed herself against Badgerclops' side, her body trembling against his. "Why isn't he waking up?" She sobbed, her yellow eyes wide, and she refused to look away from Mao Mao's body. Water dripped down her face, and Badgerclops couldn't tell whether it was from the rain or her own tears. "Why isn't he waking up-?"

"Well, he's fine now," Badgerclops reassured, ruffling the fur on top of Adorabat's head. For a second, he swore he saw her stiffen underneath the touch before she leaned into it. "I patched him up real good."

"Really?" She asked, her voice quiet.

Badgerclops smiled. "Really. Unless you'd like to go check on him yourself?"

At this, Adorabat seemed to freeze, her eyes shifting away from Badgerclops. "I-I don't know," she stuttered. "M-Maybe I shouldn't."

Badgerclops' smile fell, and he raised a brow in confusion. "What? Why not? You didn't want to leave his side earlier."

Badgerclops shoved his shoulder against their front door, and he nearly fell forward into their living room. The large wooden door smacked against the adjoining wall with a loud thud, likely causing a massive hole, but he paid it no heed; Mao Mao could lecture him about it later. At least, he hoped he would be able to. Instead, he stumbled into the room, tracking mud and grass onto their previously cleaned wooden floorboards. The small, wet bundle shuddering within his arms, and the even smaller hands weakly gripping at the brown-and-white fur on his chest reminded him of their current situation, and Badgerclops picked up the pace through the kitchen. He twisted around the corner, and he was a couple of steps away from crossing the threshold of their collective bedroom when he recalled their other companion.

Practically glued to his side, Adorabat kept throwing him and the bundle wide-eyed glances, her frantic breaths filled with poorly hidden sobs that shook her tiny frame. Badgerclops had tried - and failed - to console her on their way back home, spitting out as many forcedly real encouragements as he could come up with. The only thing it managed to do was keep her from bawling her little eyes out. If things weren't so dire, Badgerclops would've done more to comfort her.

Badgerclops took one step into their bedroom before he froze and twisted around, just barely stopping Adorabat from running into his back. "Adorabat," he huffed, finding himself out of breath. The entire day felt like one, huge exercise, but Badgerclops realized he couldn't gather up enough energy to complain. Not when shivering form in his arms felt too light and too quiet to be the usual, rambunctious cat. "D-Do me a favor and get me the first aid kit, will ya?"

"Bu-But," she babbled, helplessly, her eyes still firmly focused upon Mao Mao's curled body. "I don't want to leave-"

Badgerclops was tired, but he somehow managed to shove a weak smile onto his lips. "I know, and it's okay. But don't worry. I'll look after him."

Adorabat's worried expression didn't change. "B-But what if he-"

"Adorabat, please," he begged - no, pleaded. He could feel Mao Mao's body getting limper with each passing second, the feline's hands falling away from where they originally grabbed onto Badgerclops' chest. "He'll be fine. I promise."

Adorabat nibbled on her bottom lip for a second, studying Badgerclops' face, before she slowly nodded. With a quick look over her shoulder, Adorabat hesitantly soared down the hall, heading towards the bathroom.

"I-I know, but-" Adorabat looked over in the direction of their bedroom, her gaze lingering a second before she looked down. Then, she peered up at Badgerclops, a smile on her face. "I just, uh, believe you. If you say Mao Mao's okay, then he's okay, right?"

A frown tugged the corners of Badgerclops' lips down, taking in Adorabat's expression. Her smile was crooked as it stretched across her face; it didn't look anything like her usual wild grin. In fact, it reminded him of Mao Mao's nervous smile when he was trying to hide something.

"Riiiight," Badgerclops drew out. Yeah, he definitely didn't believe her.

Badgerclops knew enough about Adorabat to know when something was bothering her. She'd been crazy determined to remain by Mao Mao's side to make sure that he would be okay and, now that the feline was okay, she was reluctant to go anywhere near him. Badgerclops told her that Mao Mao was going to be just fine, so what was the problem?

You know, besides the obvious.

"Are you sure, Adorabat?" Badgerclops pressed. "I mean, Mao's not awake, yet, but you could still-"

"No!" She exclaimed, her voice filling the tense air within the room. Her yellow eyes doubled in size - probably thinking about their slumbering companion - and she drew back from Badgerclops. "Sorry, sorry. It's okay. I-I'll go see him later."

Badgerclops narrowed his eye at her, silent.

This was… weird.

Since their arrival in Pure Heart Valley, Adorabat had always been following Mao Mao literally everywhere he went, eager to become exactly like Mao Mao. Now, however, there was no sign of that excited bat, only a strangely quiet girl who wanted to be nowhere near Mao Mao.

Maybe Adorabat was upset.

Mao Mao's never been this hurt; at least, not in front of Adorabat's young eyes. There was a large possibility that the sudden shock of seeing her hero injured caused her current mood. That, or she just came to the realization of how just vulnerable Mao Mao really was.

He prayed Mao Mao didn't consider the same thing when he woke up; Badgerclops did not feel like tying Mao Mao to his bed to make sure he didn't train while injured

"Ok," Badgerclops finally said. He walked around to the front of the couch, and he set the first aid kit onto the coffee table before him. Then, he sunk into the couch's pink cushions and leaned back, his attention still on Adorabat. "That's fine, dude."

Adorabat nodded, somberly, with gratitude, and she lowered herself onto the couch beside Badgerclops. Despite learning that Mao Mao would be fine, she still seemed sad, picking a stray string on one of the couch cushions. Badgerclops' gaze locked onto Adorabat's cheek, surveying the small band-aid with a small pink bunny that covered it.

The large hairy monster snarled, and it swung its massive clawed paw in the air. Adorabat, who had been in charge of distracting the creature, just barely managed to duck underneath the attack. However, a stray claw still struck her across her face, and she let out a cry. She fell to the street, disoriented by the burst of pain blooming on her cheek.

"Adorabat!" Mao Mao screamed. Before Badgerclops could even move, Mao Mao was racing towards her, the monster focusing its attention on him.

Badgerclops hummed. "How's your cheek?" He extended a hand towards her, intending to check the injury for himself. "I totally forgot about-"

Adorabat leaned away from him. "It's fine," she brushed her wing against her cheek. "It's just a little cut."

Badgerclops pulled his hand back. Sometimes, Adorabat really reminded him of Mao Mao. "I just wanted to make sure you were okay."

"I'm fine, Badgerclops," Adorabat stated, brushing off his concern.

Adorabat was usually the kind to accept affection, not turn away from it.

Instead of pointing it out, Badgerclops merely said, "ok."

Silence hung heavy over the tension in the air and, without speaking, they both decided to watch the television. The over-the-top commercials had finally ceased, and the introduction to a cheesy cooking competition between two head chefs played on the TV. Badgerclops recognized it as a popular television show he and Mao Mao would occasionally watch when it was slow around the valley. After the intro finished, a brown ferret wearing a light blue sweater appeared, holding a microphone in his hand.

"And, tonight," he announced, twirling one end of his mustache. "Our top chefs will once again be against competing with each other to, this time, make this signature dish." He took a couple of steps to the right, the camera smoothly following his movements. He stopped before a silver platter sitting on a conveniently placed table, and he pulled the cover off. "Sugar Berry Cobbler!"

Somewhere in the background, a possibly fake audience went wild with applause.

Badgerclops tuned out the rest of the ferret's words as he began to describe this week's panel of judges, his eye focusing upon the familiar dessert on the television. The crumbly food sat upon a white plate, purplish juices oozing out the sides. An idea slowly grew in the back of his mind; one he hoped would cause a positive change within Adorabat's attitude.

"Hey, Adorabat," Badgerclops started. "You wanna make something for Mao Mao when he wakes up?"

Adorabat perked up. "Like what?"

Badgerclops smirked. "What about some cobbler?"

"Cobbler?" She echoed; it was a known fact that the dessert was Mao Mao's favorite. She finally gave a timid smile - the closest thing to a real one Badgerclops could remember seeing all day. "Yeah! We could make a cobbler!" Then, something crossed her face, and she visibly deflated. "But we don't have anything to put in it. You never went grocery shopping today, remember?"

Badgerclops winced. It was true. He'd been about to actually get groceries - for once - when they'd been alerted to a monster attack in the valley. And, he doubted any of the shops in town had what he wanted, especially since the monster had caused damage to a lot of them. "Well," he snapped his fingers. "Why don't we just go out and pick some berries? I mean, you guys have berry bushes around here, right?"

"Uh, yeah, we do. But," Adorabat paused, unsure. "S-Shouldn't we stay here? I-I mean, what if Mao Mao woke up and no one was here?"

Badgerclops shrugged. "Then, we'll be quick."

"B-But what if we're not fast enough?" Adorabat's breaths came quicker. "A-And he wakes up, and he needs us-"

Badgerclops cut off her nervous rambling with a gentle hand on her tiny shoulder. "Adorabat, don't worry about it. I doubt Mao Mao's going to be waking up for a while."

Adorabat was suddenly in Badgerclops' face, her eyes wide and terrified. " Why? Is-Is it because he's-" she sniffled. " He's- "

"It's because he's very tired, and he needs his rest." Badgerclops gingerly pulled her from his face, and he set her down on the couch next to him. "Look, we'll go, get the berries, and be back before you know it, okay?"

Adorabat sniffled. "You promise?"

Badgerclops stopped, his mind processing the second promise he was forced to make today before he smiled. "You bet I promise."