Chapter 1: The beginning
(RR HQ)
“So, how’s the shoulder coming?”
“It’s still a little sluggish. I don’t suppose you’ve found anything else?” The large neo sighed.
Trackball sighed herself. “I can’t find any way to get your nanites to see that it isn’t working properly. I’ve been looking through everything, but I still don’t get it. It should be fixed by now.” The mouse paused. “I’m sorry.”
“It’s certainly not your fault, and you have nothing to apologize for. I bet you’ve lost sleep over this.”
“Not really. I’ve…” The mouse yawned, then began laughing. “Gary! Stop that! Sorry, Richard and Gary are faking yawns to get me started.”
Alex rested his forehead in his palm for a moment before replying. “Well, I should leave you get back to what you were doing.” He grinned and said loudly “Play nice, children.” He hung up the phone, smirking. Alicia was right behind him, obviously trying not to laugh.
“That was so cute. I can’t believe those two.”
“Lishi, I’m glad for them as well. What’s up?”
“Well, Monty figures we should take a… walk-around? You know, just check out the town.”
Alex rolled his eyes. “In other words, we’re low on cheese. We’ll probably pass a supermarket sometime.” He chuckled. “Where do you think we’ll go?”
“Well, Gadget’s been looking at some maps where she’s been marking criminal activity. Apparently she uses it to get an idea where the bad guys stay. Anyway, there’s one place where there is barely a fraction of the crime of the area around it. She finds it a little odd that no animal crimes have been reported, so she wants to give it a quick check.”
“Oh. So we’ll probably check out the area, bust a few thugs, and then get cheese.” He stated dryly. “I’ll get Twitch and Foxglove.” His massive frame had barely cleared the doorway when he turned. “By the way, it’s a ‘walk-about’.” He smirked at her startled look. “Dale’s watching Crocodile Dundee.”
Chapter 2
(The ranger skate)
“What do you think, cutie?”
“I think this is weird. Like something out of the twilight zone.” Dale shivered. Foxglove rolled her eyes and snuggled closer.
“How can you two snuggle in this contraption!” Alex wheezed. The Ranger skate flew between several cars. Alex closed his eyes in silent prayer. Alicia gave his hand a squeeze before miming the gesture.
His sister frowned. “You know, you could’ve flown. Twitch is having fun, though.” She leaned towards him. “Besides, Gadget’s much safer now.”
Alex was barely able to restrain a scream as the skate jerked in front of a tire.
After finding an appropriate place for their transportation, the rangers began
to question the locals.
“Have you noticed anything odd about the criminals in the area?”
“No sir. You guys been doing a great job round here!” A grey rat beamed.
“Actually, we’ve never been here before.” Chip admitted.
The rat looked startled. “There used ta be a gang not more than a few blocks down. We figured you guys were the ones keeping them in check. I ain’t heard from them in … well, a long time. I forgot about’em until you showed up, actually. What you guys here for, then?”
“There’s not much crime here. That’s strange because of the level of petty crime in the surrounding area.”
The rat scowled. “Yer saying that there ain’t enough crime here?”
“No, we just want to see why there isn’t much.” Chip quickly stated, holding up his hands.
(Later…)
“Well guys. Anything?”
“Golly, Chip, it’s like gangs stay out of here. I saw one on the edges of the area, and they looked nervous. Someone’s keeping them out.”
“Who?” Alex frowned. “Most gangs aren’t willing to back down, unless they’re scared stiff. I haven’t seen anyone here who’d scare anyone. Heck, most people here are either elderly or kids. I haven’t seen anyone even remotely dangerous-looking since we got here.”
“Maybe it’s just that no one wants to cause these people problems.” Alicia said.
“Do you think Dale had better luck?”
“With my sister with him? Never. Ten to one they’re off cuddling somewhere.”
(Meanwhile…)
“Aw, c’mon Foxy. It’s just a store. I doubt there’s anything wrong with it.”
“No. I refuse to go in there.”
“But Foxy, we need to question him. You know, just the facts.”
“What’s going on?” The other rangers asked.
“Nothing. Hey, could you guys interview the guy who just went in there?”
“Is he scaring my sister?” Alex growled.
Dale’s eyes widened in fear. “Nononononono. She just doesn’t want to go in.”
“Why?”
“Bad memories.” Foxglove stated.
“Ohhhh. The Fred thing.” He stared at the shop. “Ye olde Magique.” It wasn’t much to look at. The store was set in a brick building, the sign looked like it could use some serious work along with the building, and the windows allowed view to a rather dusty inside. A sign dropped on the inside marked ‘Open’.
“The Fred thing?” Twitch asked. “An old boyfriend?” The other rangers looked at each other and began to laugh.
“Foxglove used to work for a witch named Winifred. Everyone called her Freddie. Anyway, that’s how we met Foxglove. She doesn’t like magic much anymore.” Dale said regretfully. He took on a thoughtful expression. “You know, if it weren’t for Freddie, we’d have never met.”
“So I guess she kinda did something good, even if she didn’t mean to.”
Foxglove smiled. “I guess so. I could go in there, I suppose.” It didn’t appear she liked the idea.
Chapter 3: Ye Olde Magique
“Wow.” Dale began excitedly, picking up a deck of cards. “This place has everything! Trick cards, the rope trick, the works! See Foxy, I told you it was the fake stuff!”
“I suppose, but my fur’s crawling.”
“Mine too, sis. Something’s screwy.”
“I can’t hear anyone’s heartbeat. That stupid tinkling sound.” Alicia complained.
Chip pushed the bell on the desk. No one came. He hit it again. Again, nothing. “I don’t think anyone’s here.” He began to leave the desk.
“Good day, milord. Welcome to my shop.” A black-furred mouse happily stated, adjusting a pair of dark glasses.
Chip did a quick double-take. “Where did you come from?”
“Pittsburgh. Can I help you?” He smiled. “We have some great deals on trick wands and…whoa. Who’s the big fella?” He gestured to Alex.
“That’s Alex.”
“I’m a neo bat. As are two of my companions..”
“There’s three of you? Well... “ He gave himself a shake. “Sorry. As I was saying, we’ve got excellent deals on…”
“We’re not buying.” The mouse wilted slightly. “I think, at least.” He sighed as Dale began to play with a rubber wand. The mouse straightened.
“Well, then, how can I help you? I…ai yai yai….” He whispered as he stared.
Chip grimaced. < I need to get used to people doing that when they see Gadget.> He turned to see Twitch, who was glancing through a magazine. <Twitch? No way.> He turned back to the mouse, who seemed to be in his own little world. <Then again…> “Uh, look. I just need to ask a few questions.” The mouse’s sunglasses had slipped, revealing yellow eyes. “Whoa. Your sunglasses slipped.”
The mouse shook off his surprise. “Hmm? Oh, thanks.”
“May I ask about your eyes?”
“Weird color, that’s all.”
Alex glanced at him and took a startled step back. “Weird color, huh? I’m no doctor, but I know for a fact there’s more to that story.”
The mouse looked uncomfortable. “True. However, it’s not a story I wish to relate. Forgive me if I seem rude. Simply put, it’s none of you business. Anything else?” He finished, returning to his more jovial attitude.
Chip realized that he’d apparently brought up something very personal. “I’m very sorry. It’s just a detective thing. I didn’t mean any harm.”
The mouse lowered his eyes. “No, I should apologize. It’s a touchy subject. I don’t have half the right to be insulted that Mr. Alex does. After all, his being a… neo bat? Doesn’t seem to be something that pleases him.”
The bat shrugged. “I’ve gotten used to the looks. And it’s Mr. Fairmont or just Alex. How about you? I bet that’s quite the conversation piece.”
“Most ignore it. Some people think it’s cool, some think it’s weird, and to some, frightening. Children think it’s neat, so it has it’s advantages.”
“I see.” Alex stated. “Do you know anything about the criminal activity here?”
“What criminal activity?” He smirked. “Honestly, I haven’t heard anything. Why, something going down?” He seemed vaguely concerned.
“No. We just find it strange that nothing is happening here. We think someone is keeping the gangs out. We want to find out who and why.”
“Maybe they got family here.”
“That usually doesn’t matter.” Chip stated. “It’d be nice if it did, but that usually increases crime from other gangs.”
“Sorry. I don’t know.” He sighed. “Sir! I’m afraid if you continue reading that, you’ll have to buy it.”
Chip turned, looking for Dale. He noticed the other chipmunk uneasily holding a comic. He winced. “How much?”
“Two fittey.”
“Sorry. He’ll probably buy it. He reads them over and over. I’ll tell him.”
“Excellent. I suppose he’ll want it wrapped.” The mouse began rummaging under the desk. There was a snap, after which the mouse’s tail straightened and he cursed simultaneously. “Excuse me for a minute. Sorry I couldn’t help you.”
“I’ll see if anyone else is buying.” The big neo and the ranger leader walked off.
As they neared Dale, and an annoyed Foxglove, Alex snorted softly. “He’s lying about something. He was nervous about the questions, and that last thing was an obvious lie, but… why would he lie about not being able to help us?”
“Vigilante?”
Dale frowned. “Nah. He doesn’t look the type. I can’t imagine that he’d make much of a fighter.”
“Normally, I’d agree, Dale. You didn’t see the eyes, though.”
“They’re yellow. So?” Chip asked in confusion.
“More than that. He has a… dead look. He’s seen some kind of battle, and not a pleasant one. If nothing else, he didn’t seem to be the least nervous about me. It wasn’t a cocky thing. He looks like someone more than capable of taking care of themselves. I’d not put too much money on the other guy, given he’s not too big.”
“You do me too much credit, sir.” Alex spun. The mouse stood a little behind him. “I’m not much of a scrapper. I’m not known to throw punches.” He stated with a smirk. “Ask anyone. I’m just the local store owner.”
“You own this place? You can’t be more than…”
“Eighteen. As of a week ago.”
“Happy birthday.” Twitch smiled.
“Thank you.” He replied, smiling himself.
Alex frowned. < I hope that’s not a crush. It’s the first real smile I’ve seen on him.> “This is Rebecca.” The smaller bat shot him a look.
“She turned sixteen last month.” Foxglove put in with a small smirk.
“Well, happy birthday to you, too, Rebecca.” He shook her hand. “I’m Drake, by the way.”
“Pleased to meet you. Call me Twitch.”
“The pleasure is mine.” He flourished, and suddenly a bouquet appeared in his hands. He calmly handed this to Twitch, who blushed as she took the fake flowers. Drake smiled, oblivious to the irritation behind Alex’s eyes. Alicia gave her lover’s arm a tug. He winced at the glare that he knew he was getting.
Drake coughed. “Oh, I brought out that comic, if you want it.” He held an unopened Capt. Spiff of the issue Dale currently held. Dale stared. “What?”
“I read this one, and…”
“Oh. I put those out so people can see that I have them. I figure, some people prefer to collect, so I keep them in plastic as well. I also keep a few back issues.” He shrugged. “More sales.”
“I’ll take two.”
“I figured you would.” He grinned, pulling another from behind his back.
Chapter 4
“Somebody’s got a crush.” Dale smirked.
Twitch spun. “I… do… not!” She hissed.
The chipmunk looked startled. “I…meant Drake.”
The bat blushed instantly. “Oh…ok.” She continued to blush, trying to ignore the giggles from Foxglove. “I doubt it.”
“You mean you didn’t hear his jaw hit the floor?” Alicia snickered. “Hardly.” The younger bat covered her face in embarrassment.
“Look at it this way. I was teased a little by Gadget, and Chip teased Dale about me in front of everybody. Including me.” Foxglove smiled, giving her a pat on the back.
Chip looked stunned. “I did not!”
“Did too!” Dale challenged.
“Not!”
“Too!”
“Not!”
“Too!”
“Not!”
“Too!”
“Not!”
“Too!” And with that, the squabbling began. Alex sighed.
“Monty, do you have any idea what they’re saying?”
“Not a word, mate. I can tell you that Chippah nevah did, though.”
“He didn’t mean to, Monty, but I’m sure she could hear him. After all, he would tease while she was in the next room.” Gadget sighed. “How long do you think this one will go?”
“I suppose you’re right, lass. And who knows, with those two. It’s been a while since the last one.” A small girl chipmunk, no more than nine, who was watching the argument suddenly gasped. “Hmm? Something wrong, miss?”
“He said a bad word.” She said in shock, pointing.
“Chippah!”
“Sorry Monty. Slipped. Anyway, did not.”
“She was in the other room, Chip! I guarantee she’d have heard you! She is a bat, after all.”
“What?! Why didn’t you just say that?!”
“I did.”
“Did not.”
“Did too.”
“Did not.” The girl tugged at his jacket. He held up his hands in a time-out. “Yes?”
“He did, Mister. And you said a bad word.”
“I’m sorry. We argue like this all the time. I get kinda steamed.”
“That’s ok. Mr. Drake sometimes says that, too. Only when he doesn’t see me, though. He’s funny. He gives me posies. But I don’t eat his cooking. It’s always funny tasting. Daddy says it’s burnt.” She confided.
“And where is your daddy?” Alex asked kindly.
“At the hospital.”
“Oh. I’m sorry.”
She gave him a curious look. “Daddy likes it there. He gets to see his friends.”
“Well, that’s good.” Alicia said with a small smile, kneeling to the girl’s level.
“He has a nice white coat, too.”
Gadget suddenly giggled. “Is your father a doctor?”
“Yep. That’s daddy, doctor Maritone (Authors note: If anyone can think of a better name, PLEASE HELP! I have no idea where I came up with this one…). Why, are you sick?” She seemed concerned. The rangers glanced at each other and began laughing. The child seemed offended. “I’m happy my daddy’s a doctor!”
“We’re sorry. We thought your daddy was in the hospital. Not working there.” Gadget admitted. “Where are you going?”
“To see Mr. Drake. He does magic tricks for me. They’re pretty good. One time, he set himself on fire.”
“That sounds dangerous.” Gadget said disapprovingly, unaware of the looks being given to her by the rest of her team.
“He said lots of bad words.” She nodded. “I made him go see daddy. Daddy thinks he’s funny. He also says that if I ever get chased by a cat or something and can’t get away, I should go there if daddy isn’t home.”
“Why there?” Alex asked, interested.
“Cause he scares the bad people away. That’s what daddy says. I’m gonna go now.” She skipped away.
“I take it there’s something not being said by our new friend.”
“Agreed. I wonder what he’s not saying. Maybe we should visit the doctor. Tommorrow.”
*Knock*
“Who could that be?” Foxglove wondered, getting up.
“I got it! Twitch laughed, already halfway there. She opened the door. “Huh? There’s no one here!”
Foxglove frowned. “What’s that?” She pointed. Twitch carefully approached a small package, which was nestled in a “y” of the tree limbs. Confused, the younger bat carried it into the tree, calling the others to investigate.
“What’s this?” Gadget asked, noticing a small envelope.
“I don’t know. Should we open it?”
“Go for it. It was left in our tree.”
Twitch opened the envelope. “There’s nothing in here!” She exclaimed in disappointment. She shook the envelope over her paw, a small stone on a chain falling into it. She looked at it curiously.
“Looks like amber.” Gadget commented. She looked closer. “Golly, it is! Why would someone send a piece of amber?”
“I have an idea. Remember those flowers, Foxy?”
“How could I forget getting flowers with the same name as me, silly? But no one here is named Amber.”
“Yeah, but I think it might be for Twitch. Her eyes and the stone are the same color, right?”
“Oooh, someone has a secret admirer! I wonder who it is?” Alicia laughed.
“Oh please. It couldn’t be him. How would he know where I was?” Twitch blushed. “It is nice, though.”
Chapter 5
“Dr. Maritone? Hello. We just saw your daughter-“
The chipmunk flew to his feet. “Dear god, is she ok? What happened? Why didn’t you bring her-“
“Wait! Calm down, nothing happened to her. We just talked to her the other day, and we wanted to ask you some questions.”
He nearly flopped over in relief. “Thank you God. What did you want to ask? And why were you questioning Sarah?” He seemed annoyed at the last part.
“We weren’t exactly questioning her. We met her while asking questions about the local gangs. She kinda tells everything she knows. I’m surprised she didn’t say anything about meeting us.”
“She did say there were two grown ‘munks carrying on and about to get into a fight. She didn’t say they were two of the Rescue Rangers.” Chip winced.
“Yyyeah. She probably doesn’t think much of us.”
“Actually, she said you were nice, much like most of our neighbors.”
“Drake, in particular, I assume.”
Dr. Maritone gave him a pleased look. “You know him, then? Very nice young man. He watches my daughter on Mondays and Fridays and when I work late.”
“Oh. We wanted to ask you some questions about him.”
“Really? Why?” He asked, his eyebrow raising.
“We think he might be dangerous.” Alex said. The doctor looked startled.
He looked from one ranger to the others. He started chuckling, then went into full-blown laughter. “You think he’s dangerous!?” He continued laughing. “He put you up to this, didn’t he? He’s always playing jokes like this.”
“No joke. Your daughter said he ‘keeps bad people away’. Would you mind explaining?”
The laughter died. “You are serious.” He swallowed. “He’s not dangerous, really. He’s one of few people I trust to watch my daughter. Even so, I suggest you not try him.”
“Well, if he’s not dangerous…”
“He’s not dangerous, but he can take care of himself. He’s made it clear that he won’t put up with that sort of crap.”
“And how did he do that?”
“Ask him. That’s his personal business.”
“Wait one minute. You trust him to watch your daughter, but your afraid to tell us-“
“I’m afraid of nothing. This is his business. If it were his choice, I wouldn’t know. If it were my choice, I wouldn’t know.”
“You aren’t being very forthcoming.” Alex warned.
“As he would say, ‘yer bein nebby’. Now, I have patients to check on. If you need information, ask him. Apart from me, no one else knows anything. And I don’t know much.” He stood up and left.
“Well, that was uncomfortable.” Gadget muttered.
“We still have another idea.”
The doctor put his head back in. “And my daughter has absolutely no idea. So don’t bother. Good day.”
“What’s nebby mean?” Dale pondered. Everyone glanced at Gadget.
“I…uh…I have no idea, actually. Must be slang.” Gadget admitted. “Honestly, I’m not sure what most slang means.”
“What’s golly mean?” Dale asked. Chip bonked him.
Chapter 6
“So we need to keep watch on a mouse, who couldn’t possibly fight against a gang, whom we think is keeping every gang out of here. Have you ever had a case like this?”
Chip snorted. “Never. This guy looks like he should be a scientist, out studying something. This has me perplexed.”
“Do you think he might get belligerent?”
“I don’t know. I doubt it.” He sighed. “And I know you. You’ll bring weapons anyway.”
“True. I’m going to go prep the troops.”
“Twitch? You ok?” Foxglove asked
“I don’t like this. I mean, he’s nice, you know. I’m sure of it. And we’re harassing him.”
“Not really. We’re just looking for the truth. I wish we could just trust him, but we can’t. We have to make judgment calls once in a while. I mean, he could have a deal with the gangs, but why would that keep everyone out? We need to know.”
“But…I…”
“I know, Twitch. It might be nothing. If that’s it, we’ll give him a handwritten apology, if that’s what he wants. I hear the other Rangers had to once. Dale’s had to on at least three different occasions.”
“Well, ok. I wish Alex didn’t want me to take my lance. I understand, but-“
“I hope nothing happens, either. Don’t worry, it’ll be fine.”
(Ye olde Magique)
“Mr. Drake, sir?”
“I’m here. And it’s just Drake.” The mouse stepped from between the aisles behind the Rangers.
“How do you do that!?”
“Skillz.” He chuckled. “Can I help you? More buying, hopefully. Business has slow.”
“We talked to Dr. Maritone.”
“Ah. Look. I’m sorry I can’t help you. I also know that no one can tell you anything. I know this will sound suspicious, but I’ll ask anyway… Don’t ask. I can’t tell you, and if I did, you’d never believe me. I’m sorry.”
Twitch looked uncomfortable. “Could you please tell us? Please?”
“I… *sigh* No. I can’t. You’d never understand. Please don’t ask this of me.”
“Look, if it’s nothing wrong, we’ll leave you alone. We’re just worried. I’m sure you can understand that.” Foxglove said softly.
“Yes. I can.” His head dropped. “I still can’t tell you.”
“Look, we can keep this quiet. If someone’s been bothering you…” Chip began.
“It’s not that. I want to tell someone, anyone, but… I can’t. Please.”
“This has something to do with your eyes, doesn’t it?” It was more a statement than a question.
“I will say this. No one, and I mean ‘no one’, is going to cause trouble here. Too many people want to live their lives calmly, safely, here. That’s all that matters.”
“It would appear that we’re going to have to find out for ourselves, then.”
“I’ll ask again. Please, don’t neb.”
“Neb? What’s a neb?” Alex asked in confusion.
“It’s Pitt slang. Nose around, bother, whatever. I’m sorry. I wish I could help”
“Well then, we’ll leave you get back to work.” Chip stated, turning for the door. The others filed out afterwards, Twitch lagged behind slightly.
“Ma’am?” Twitch turned quickly. “Um…would you… be interested in seeing a movie sometime?” The mouse asked apprehensively.
“I… uh….maybe. I think so. Yeah, sure.” She stammered, blushing. The mouse sighed in relief.
“Great. Uh…can I get back to you on the time? I kinda figured you’d say no. Can I have your number?” He asked weakly, scratching the back of his neck uncomfortably.
Chapter 7
“What was that all about?” Foxglove asked. The small neo continued blushing and stuffed something away. Foxglove smiled. “And what is that?” She whispered softly.
“I’ll tell you later.” Twitch managed, barely able to control her nervousness, or excitement. Alicia frowned at the two.
“What’s up?”
“Nothing, I was just teasing Twitch.” To the smaller neo, she whispered. “You owe me.” She nodded quickly in response.
(RR HQ)
“Well? What do you think?”
“I think you and big bat are going to need to talk about this.” Foxglove said honestly. The smaller neo continued to pace.
“I can’t believe he gave me his number. I can’t believe I couldn’t remember our number. Do you know how stupid that must have sounded!?” She grumbled. “Maybe I should call it off. We are investigating him, after all. But…”
“You like the idea of a date.”
“Well, I don’t get many offers.”
“And you think he’s kind of cute. That always helps.”
“Of course. Anyhow, exactly how did you get Dale’s attention?”
“I caught him when he fell out of the Ranger plane.” Foxglove said dryly. “He wasn’t about to rebuff a girl who saved his life, especially considering all I had to do was let go to cancel it out.”
Twitch giggled. “You’d have never done it.”
“He didn’t know that.” Foxglove replied slyly.
“Well, can I?”
“Gee, lemme-think-about-it-no.”
“Why not?”
“Because we’re investigating him! You really need a better reason?!”
“Well… Gadget’s gone out with-“
“That’s different. I only went with Ra-“ Foxglove elbowed her.
“I already know that story, sis. It’s not the same.” Alex snapped.
“C’mon, lover. She can take care of herself. Besides, what’s he going to do? She’s faster and assuredly stronger than he is.” Alicia smiled, draping an arm over his shoulders.
“But Lishi-“
“It’s up to you.” She walked off.
<She had to do that. I say no, I’m the bad guy. I say yes, I worry all night. Greeeaaat.> “I’ll think about it.” Twitch gave him a tight hug, and flew off. “I said ‘think’!” Not yes!!”
Monterey had a knowing smile. “Yes, you did, mate. Game, set, match. Too-ra-loo, they had you beat the minute she asked.”
“Why didn’t you help?” Alex grumbled.
“Strong sense of self-preservation.” He opened the refrigerator. “Crikey! We forgot the cheese!”
Chapter 8
“Ok, ok. You win. Have fun.” Alex sighed. Twitch gave him a quick hug and a kiss on the cheek before flying to the phone. There was a quick conversation, and the phone was hung up. Twitch grabbed Foxglove and proceeded to drag her off.
“You made a good choice, dear.”
“If you say so. I still don’t like the idea.” He muttered. Alicia gave him a hard kiss. <Well, I can live with it.> “Where you two going?”
“Preparing. Only have til tomorrow.”
“Tomorrow? What do you need to do?” He sputtered.
“Girl stuff.” Gadget stated, following them, oblivious to the looks of the male rangers.
“I wonder if he’s going to be that frantic?” Chip mused. Dale nodded.
“Ok, put two parts mmhmm, one part ummm, a piece of….eww, that’s
not fresh. Ah, here’s some.” Drake mumbled to himself. The chipmunk
girl quivered in horror at her seat.
“Voila! My masterpiece!” He proudly displayed the dish. It promptly burst into flame. “Or not.” He frowned, setting the plate down.
They stared for a moment at the flaming tray.
“I don’t think pudding should do that. But it was a nice try.”
She finally said condescendingly.
“I guess I could try again…”
The girl winced. “Didn’t you have somewhere you had to go?” He stared blankly. Horror set in.
“What time is it!? Darn it, if I’m late…” He raced into his room, coming out trying to comb his hair. “What movie did we agree on? Geez…”
“I better go home.” The relieved chipmunk began edging towards the exit.
“Feel free to take some pudding!” He called. She shuddered and rushed out the door.
“Where is he?”
“He’ll be here.” Foxglove said for the fifth time, patting her shoulder.
“He’s probably just beating up a gang somewhere.” Dale shrugged.
“Dale!”
“Sorry Foxy. She’s right, he’ll be here. Besides, that clock is ten minutes fast. Chip did that so I’d feel hurried. So he’s not really late, yet.” He glanced at the three irate she-bats and inventor. “What?” The women looked at each other for a moment.
“Can I please hurt him?” Twitch growled through gritted teeth.
“You’ll get dirty. Besides, he’s mine.” Foxglove whispered back.
There was a knock at the door. Alicia opened it, still fuming slightly, and was nearly bowled over by the mouse in his hurry to enter.
“Sorry-if-I’m-late-I-lost-track-of-time-and-couldn’t-find-the-place-and-I’m-very-very-sorry-please-forgive-me-for-making-you-wait?” The girls glanced at one another.
“Huh?” Twitch managed.
“He said he’s sorry if he’s late. He wants you to forgive him for it.” Dale explained.
“Oh. Ok.” Twitch agreed. The dark mouse loosed a heavy sigh of relief.
“You look great.” The bat blushed at the compliment.
“Oh, go on you two.” Alicia smirked, pushing the two out the door. “You’ll be late for the movie.”
“Bye!” *Slam*
“Well, that was interesting.” Dale commented. “We better go, too. We’ll miss our movie. C’mon Foxy.”
Alicia stared at the two in surprise. “You’re going too?”
“Different movie. Chip and I are going out, too. And Monty’s got some old friends in town. You’re on your own with Alex.” Gadget smiled. “Have fun!”
(The Theater)
The movie was about halfway over, with at least two more hours left. Drake stirred. Ate some popcorn. Consulted the time. Ate more popcorn. Glanced at Twitch, who seemed to be watching the film. Finally he sighed. “I can’t take it anymore! Yes, he dies. No, I don’t care. Throughout the course of the movie, I’ve realized that he did the world a favor by not contributing to the gene pool. For this alone, I am happy. Other than that, big whoop.” He looked at Twitch. “I’m sorry, I can’t stand this movie.”
Twitch looked at him for several minutes. “Thank god. Can we go? If I watch anymore of this I’ll be sick. I mean, it’s a boat. It sinks. It was sad. Wahoo.”
“I thought you wanted to see this.” He stated in shock.
“Well, first date, I figured a romance was what most see.” She blushed. “And you picked the movie.”
“I did?”
“Yeah. You did.”
“Want to see what else is on?”
“They have the Crow over at the drive-in. That’s a romantic vengeance kinda thing, right?”
“Good movie. It’s old, though.” He frowned.
“They’re doing some tribute to cult classics thing. Dale says Army of Darkness is next week. He’s really excited about it. So’s Alex.”
“Groovy.” He practically melted when she giggled at the comment.
Chapter 9
(The ranger tree)
The two were laughing together. “Stop, stop, stop!” Twitch managed.
“Admit it. I’ve got the voice down.” He smirked.
“Who wants to imitate Top Dollar, anyway?” She giggled. “If you’re going to be the bad guy, I’ll have to take you in.”
“Really?” He grinned, wiggling his eyebrows expressively, causing her to blush and giggle again.
“Don’t get dirty.”
“Just a joke, calm down. Do you want me to walk you up?”
“It’s easier for us both if I just fly up. Good night.”
“You, too.” He seemed to be trying to think of something else to say. Twitch gave him a quick nuzzle on the cheek before flying up.
When she was sure he couldn’t see her anymore, she turned and gave a quick echolocation pulse. She nearly fell laughing when she realized the silly look on his face. <Thank you, Foxy! His heart certainly pumped out a few quick beats just then.>
“Well, you’re early.” Gadget stated in surprise.
“We skipped out of the movie. It was so boring that we went to a different one.”
“A different one?! What’d you see?” Alex rumbled.
“The Crow. It’s not bad. I figured it’d be kinda silly, but I liked it.”
Foxglove gave her a weak look. “You’re supposed to see a romance, not some action thriller. Why would anyone see that on the first date?”
“Everlasting love?” Dale guessed.
“That’s what I’d think.” Alex admitted.
“What? That’s a fight movie.” Scolded Alicia.
“He came back from the dead to avenge his lover. I think it’s romantic.” Twitch smiled. “Besides, we had fun.” Alex raised an eyebrow. “But not too much.”
“Did you do like I told you?” Foxglove asked slyly.
“Yeah. I think he liked it.” She responded shyly. “Thanks.”
Alex opened his mouth to ask, but was elbowed by Alicia. He glared at her in turn. “I think I have a right to know how it went!” He hissed just softly enough for her to hear.
“Give her some time to memorize it herself. Trust me, this is important to her. Ask tomorrow.” She returned.
“Hi everyone!” Twitch bubbled happily.
“I don’t suppose you found out anything about him, did you?” Alex asked.
“Well…no. Not really. He doesn’t want to talk about his family, or much of anything. He doesn’t say much about himself, but he asked a lot about me. I did find out that he likes reading, sci-fi, action movies, and trying to cook.”
“Trying?”
“He says his food has a tendency to burn. Oh, and he likes peanut butter!” She stated happily.
Monty laughed. “Everybody has quirks. Really?”
“He said it’s one of the only things he can prepare.” She smiled as if that were the greatest thing in the world.
“He likes cheese, right lass?”
“I don’t know. Why?”
“You can tell a lot about a man by the cheese he eats.” Monterey explained, giving his stomach a pat. Twitch rolled her eyes. The other rangers followed suit.
“Well, I hate to interrupt, but we have to get back to work.” Chip struck a pose, pulling the front of his hat down. “We’ll have to get back to the mystery of the lack of crime.”
“Chip, that needs a better name. That just sounds silly.”
“And we have other, more pressing cases, as well. We got word from Sparky about Nimnul being up to something.”
“Sparky?” Alex frowned.
“He’s a rat. He was experimented on, and now he emits electricity in moderate quantities. You’d probably get along. He’s a big advocate against the kind of thing that happened to you. Though he might not care for your methods.”
“Shocking behavior, really.” Chip smirked. There were groans all around. “Aw, come on! It wasn’t that bad! Dale’s done worse.”
“It’s my cutie’s job!” Foxglove defended.
“Gee, thanks, Foxy.” Dale sullenly declared.
Chapter 10
“That was quick.”
“Is he usually that easy to render helpless?” Alex asked skeptically.
“Not really. That’s the first time his lab was struck by lightning before he started into his plan. And it doesn’t usually blow up an invention next to his notes. Pretty atypical.” Gadget frowned. “I almost feel sorry for him. Most of his inventions are sound in theory; they just don’t work in practice.”
Twitch shrugged. “Maybe he should lay off the mad scientist gig for a while.”
“I’ll agree with that.” Alex chuckled. “I don’t think he has much of a choice, though. It’ll be some time before he’s out of the mental ward.”
“Too right.”
“I suppose we’re gonna start investigating Drake again, huh?” Twitch asked sadly.
“Well… I don’t know. This isn’t usual. Besides, we can pretty much rule out most usual motives. No drugs, and he doesn’t seem to have any money trouble. There’s something up, but… I’m starting to feel like we’re meddling in something beyond us. Something… I don’t know. Unique. Like if we mess with it, it’ll stop. As if understanding would ruin it. It’s strange.” Chip frowned. “Like a rainbow, almost.”
“That’s beautiful.” Gadget whispered.
“That’s bizarre.” Dale corrected.
“I know. I’ve never wanted to leave a case go. I just… know that I won’t like what’s going to happen. Call it a premonition.” He grimaced. “We might as well ask Cassandra what she thinks. Premonitions.” He mumbled.
“Well, we have a date soon. I’ll talk to him.”
“Actually, I want to have a little chat with him.” Alex stated. Twitch opened her mouth, only to have Alex roughly tousle her head fur. “Don’t worry. Just a parent thing. I’m not going to threaten him or anything.”
(Drake's Home)
“You touch her, and you’re a dead man.”
“You’re the dead man.”
Drake grinned. “I love this movie. Did it just come on?”
Sarah frowned. “I hate these movies. They’re sad. Or boring. Or stupid.”
“You’re too young to enjoy them. Wait a few years.”
“I like cartoons. Can we watch Spongebob?”
He gave her a look. “…Sure. Why not?” There was a knock at the door. Drake frowned. “Quick, what’s today?!”
“Friday.”
“Good. I was a little worried. I’ll be back. Stay here.”
More is comming soon!