Animaniacs 1. Prologue

Yakko had never cried so much in his life. He had never felt this much pain before. Even the gentle turn as he opened up the tower door was enough to make him ache. With a stifled sob, he entered the water tower. It was night time and his siblings were already sound asleep.

His mind began to wander. Just what had gone wrong today? It was just like any other day, at first. Running among the studios, being put back in the tower, making brief cameos in the other toons' shorts, making fools out of jerks, stuff like that. It was normal, nothing unusual.

It should have been a normal day. It always was. Same old routine, with some small variations. Even the nastiest person they met were essentially harmless. They had to be. They were just actors and they wouldn't get their pay if they went too far with the Warners.

But today, it was anything but routine. Yakko's body still screamed in pain. Yet there were little visible injuries on him. Just a few scrapes. Nothing hurt him more than what happened. He just wanted to forget about it. With a sharp sniff, sucking up the wetness from his drippy nose, Yakko headed to the bathroom to get cleaned up.

He saw himself in the mirror. A few droplets of blood were on his face, mostly on his cheeks. He touched them gingerly and winced. His eyes, red and puffy from crying, were still dripping with tears. He had tried to stop them earlier, but soon gave in to their might. The tears fell like a river going over a waterfall.

Yakko didn't know what he had done wrong. What did he do to deserve what he got? And what was worse, he had no one to talk to about it. He didn't want to tell his siblings. They would get upset. He doubted Scratchensniff would be able to help, and the CEO didn't give one crap about him or his siblings. To him, they were just a nuisance. The only reason they were being tolerated is that they were rolling in the dough.

He took a wet rag and wiped it along his face. He cleaned up the bit of dirt that clung to his white fur. After he was done, he went to the bedroom and crawled into bed. He took care not to wake up Wakko or Dot.

He managed to get himself to stop crying, though his breathing was still shaky. Closing his eyes was hard. He had to force himself to do it. His body starting to tremble a little, Yakko did something he rarely did. He curled up in bed like a dog, huddling himself tightly. Fighting back more cries as tears began to resurface, he closed his eyes and attempted to fall asleep.

Sleep soon grabbed him. And for the first time in two hours, Yakko felt at peace.


	2. Exam

"Wakey wakey!"

Yakko groaned at the familiar hyperactive voice. He shifted his body around, trying his best to ignore it. He didn't get much of a break as something with weight to it started jumping on top of him. Finally he cracked one eye open.

"Wakko, stop it. What do you want?"

Giving his usual tongue-dangling smile at his brother, Wakko said, "Don't you know what day it is?"

Yakko managed a small smile. "It's the day you finally get over your ridiculous clown phobia?"

Wakko grimaced at the mention of 'clown', but his cheerful expression never completely faltered. "No!" He gripped Yakko's shoulders and said, "Don't tell me you've forgotten!"

Yakko, knowing there was no way his little brother was going to leave him alone, sat up in his bed and rubbed his eyes. "Okay I didn't forget."

Wakko frowned. "Don't lie either."

Yakko held out his hands and said, "Make up your mind! Do you want the truth or what?"

"I want you to tell me the truth but not that you forgot the special day today." Wakko said, folding his arms.

"I can't do that!" Yakko raised his arms above his head. "That would be impossible!

"Boys. Go fig."

The two brothers looked over and saw Dot walking towards them. She had a frown on her face, which she shook a few times in disapproval. The two were well aware she hated some of the tactics they pulled, but they dare not bring up her own hypocrisy. If they ever try to call her out on the times she had flaunted with boys with just as much flamboyance as they did with girls, she'd let them have it.

Dot stopped about two feet in front of them. The two stared at her for several seconds before giving off a nervous laugh. Dot just glared at them, but she didn't say a word. She turned her eyes towards Wakko, a look that told him she wanted him to tell.

Wakko turned to Yakko and said, "Today is the Rerun Exam!"

Yakko's smile dropped faster than either of them have seen. "How is that special? A-a-a-ah mean I know it's good for our education. But the way you were saying it, I'd almost have to believe that this test is, like, the most amazing thing ever or somethign."

"It is!" Wakko jumped up and down with joy.

"Oh?" Yakko raised an eyebrow. "I don't remember this exam. What's so important about it?"

"Honestly..." Dot growled, shaking her head. "Weren't you at the meeting the other day? We're certain you were there."

"Meeting?" Yakko questioned.

"Yes, remember?" Dot explained, holding out her hands. Her frown had softened up slightly, as if she were more surprised and curious than angry at this point. "We had to go the Administrator's Office for a brief meeting. Plotz was telling us that we all had to take this exam and how important it was. You were there with us...I think." Dot tapped her finger against her short muzzle. "Hmm come to think of it, I recall suddenly not seeing you there..."

Yakko's eyes widened suddenly. He managed to suppress it enough so that his sibs didn't see him do it. Now he remembered. He had gotten bored with the meeting and had snuck out on his own. He had decided to wait for his siblings and passed the time with a walk. And then...

"Yakko? Is something wrong?" Dot asked.

Realizing he had spaced out, Yakko shook his head and showed a grin. "Yeah I'm fine. I just...had to step out, that's all!"

Dot and Wakko looked at each other. They looked back at Yakko. If they were convinced, they certainly didn't look that way.

"Well anyway," Dot continued, "This exam is to help determine which show will get a chance to get passed on to another network, you know, just in case we are cancelled or something."

Wakko, now standing in front of the bed, grabbed the bedpoles and leaned back as far as he could. "But sis, who would want to cancel us? We're amazing, terrific! Even Plotz knows how profitable we and the other Animaniacs are!"

Suddenly, Wakko lost his grip and he tumbled backwards. He crashed into a wall, causing it to shake, thus causing a picture frame to fall out of place. It landed on his head, breaking it.

Dot giggled as she walked up to him. Wakko looked really funny wearing a broken picture frame around his neck. She knelt down and pulled it off of him and helped him to his feet.

"Every show gets canceled eventually, Wakko." Dot said.

"Not The Simpsons!" Wakko whined.

Dot rolled her eyes. "That's because they're sellouts who don't realize that they're being milked dry."

"Still!"

Dot ignored Wakko and looked back over at her taller brother. "The exam is in an hour. Don't worry, it's easy! It's just a few questions we need to answer. That's all!"

Yakko folded his arms. "That doesn't sound too bad, actually. Where are we supposed to go?"

"Down to the Administrator's office. There will be a designated room that we toons can go in and take the Rerun Exam. Right now it's the Tiny Toons' turn. After them, it will be us."

Yakko's eyes widened. "The exam is four hours?! What is this, torture?!"

"Calm down, Yakko." Dot scolded him, wagging her finger. "The extra hours are just for set up and to make sure everyone finishes. The exam itself, if done right, should be over within an hour or two. If you don't want to hang around too long, just finish the exam as soon as you can! That shouldn't be a problem, should it?"

"Problem?" Yakko shook his head. "No problem at all!"

Dot smiled widely. "Good! Just make sure you're ready in four hours. We won't get another chance at this!"

Yakko saluted his sister. "Yes, Princess Dottie!"

Dot pressed her ears back and gritted her teeth at her brother. "Don't call me Dottie..."

"Uh oh." Wakko said softly in childish mock surprise. "You called her the D word..."

"A-a-a-ah'm sorry." Yakko laughed nervously before Dot closed in on him.

sss

After about three hours and a half passed, the Warner Brothers and Sister headed out of their water tower. Afterh they slid down to the ground, they were greeted by the officer, Ralph. Normally, he'd be chasing them around, trying to get them back in the tower. But today, he was instructed to lead the Warners to the testing room.

"Hello, Ralphie!" Yakko greeted. He wrapped an arm around Ralphie and said, "You're looking good. Finally cut back on those donuts I see!"

Ralph glared at him and pushed him back. "Knock it off. Come with me. Plotz will see to it I get fired if any of you toons are late for the test. That includes...you three. So behave yourselves!"

As the officer walked away, waving his head to gesture for the trio to come, Dot and Wakko started to follow him earnestly. It took them a few seconds to realize Yakko didn't immediately follow them. Dot and Wakko stopped. Dot gestured for Wakko to continue on ahead. She ran back to Yakko.

Yakko stood there, staring blankly towards the officer. He was spacing out again, only this was a little worse. Yakko's eyes had widened a little. The whites of his eyes had expanded.

Dot waved a hand in front of her brother's face. When he didn't react to that, she tried to shake him. As soon as her hand touched his shoulder, the taller Warner recoiled and brought his hands and arms up to his face as if he was expecting to be hit.

"I'm sorry! I'm sorry!" Yakko whined.

Dot felt her own eyes get big. "Y-Yakko...?"

At the sound of his sister's voice, Yakko snapped out of his stupor quickly and smiled down at her. "What is it? I'm coming!"

"What happened?" Dot whispered.

"What happened here?" Yakko asked, the smile never leaving his face.

"You! You just...stood there, blanking out!" Dot cried. "And when I touched you, you freaked out! Yakko, what is wrong?"

Yakko grimaced. "A-a-ah don't know what you're talking about. Come in, sis, we'll lose them!" With that, he quicked his pace.

Dot didn't say another word. She couldn't think of anything to say. As she and her taller brother caught up with Ralph and Wakko, she couldn't help but feel concern for Yakko. His sudden change in attitude frightened her. One second, he looked like he wanted to wet his pants. And the next, he was back to his cheerful self.

His denial concerned her as well. How could he pretend he didn't just freak out like a little child back there? The look in his eyes told her that he knew what she was talking about. There was something he wasn't telling her.

One thought flooded her head all the way to the administrator's office.

What had happened to him?


	3. Fainted

Ralph escorted the Warners into the administrator's office. After the three entered the building, the officer left. The trio stood around and waited to be led into the testing room. It didn't take long for Plotz come up to them.

"Glad to see you three are on time." Plotz said through a forced smile. It was clear he was expecting the three to goof off. "Please come with me. The room has been prepared for you three."

"Prepared, like did you make us some baloney sandwiches?" Yakko smirked.

"Where?!" Wakko looked around excitingly. Upon hearing Yakko's laugh, Wakko's ears lowered. "Oh...no sandwiches? But I'm hungry!"

Plotz glared at him and said through gritted teeth. "You'll get your sandwich after the test!"

"But I didn't eat breakfast..." Wakko whined.

"Too bad!" Plotz whipped his head away. He walked for a few steps only to look back at Wakko. Seeing his puppy-eye dog look, he let out a groan. "Oh I'm going to regret this..." He whispered to himself. "Okay fine, how about you three take the test in the cafeteria? You can eat whatever you want..." Upon seeing Wakko's expression, he quickly added, "That doesn't mean eat everything in the cafeteria! You hear me?!"

Wakko nodded his head eagerly. "Yes sir!"

"Good!" Plotz adjusted his tie. "You three can head to the cafeteria. It's down the hall to the right. I will go get your exams and pencils."

"Pencils?" Yakko asked.

Plotz raised an eye brow. "Yes. Pencils. To take the exams with. Don't you know that?"

Yakko let out a light chuckle. "Yeah of course. How silly of me!" He held out his hands innocently.

Plotz said, "Whatever. Just head to the cafeteria and don't do anything zany! Just...just for this test, please keep yourselves under control!"

Yakko saluted him. "Will do, doc!" His siblings followed suit.

"I'm not a doctor!" Plotz shouted.

"Really?" Yakko grinned. "Maybe you should see one."

Plotz clearly had enough. He turned around and stormed down the hallway, muttering words that should never be heard by young ears. The trio did a mock gasp and oooh'ed as Plotz disappeared down the hallway. They looked at each other, smiled widely, and made a mad dash to the cafeteria. Wakko, being Wakko, was well out in front of them, with Dot and Yakko about two feet behind him.

Within minutes, they were in the cafeteria. Due to the time they came, very few people were there, which meant there was no line to wait in to get food. Yakko and Dot already knew what they wanted, but Wakko had a hard time picking. He held up the line of siblings, taking so long to decide. He finally settled on getting one of everything.

The three, now with plates filled with food and drinks, went down to a table and sat. Dot and Yakko couldn't help but stare at Wakko's plate. It was so tall it nearly touched the ceiling. And of course, seeing how this is Wakko, the little boy was undaunted by how much he had brought. He quickly began eating it all, sucking it up like a vacuum.

"I really wish I knew how he can eat that much..." Dot pondered.

"The boy has a blackhole for a stomach." Yakko said, pointing a fork in Wakko's direction. "That's my theory."

As the Warners ate, they heard the cafeteria doors swing open. Plotz came in, carrying three somewhat large piles of paper. He struggled a little with the papers and nearly fell over. But he managed to keep his balance and reached the Warner's table. He sat a pile of papers in front of each Warner sibling, along with a pencil for each of them.

Plotz wiped his hands together and said, "You three have four hours to finish. That should be plenty of time." He turned and started to walk out of the cafeteria. "When you three are done, bring the papers to my desk, and then get out!" He left the cafeteria.

Wakko, whose mouth was so full it stretched to double his size, swallowed and said, "That guy is a bit of a grouch."

"Well you heard him." Yakko said as he picked up the first sheet of paper and placed it in front of him. "We need to get this done."

"Aww...do we have to?" Wakko whined. He puckered his lower lip in a pathetic manner. "I didn't get a chance to finish my third hotdog."

Dot smiled mischieviously at him. "So would you rather have our show canceled and never returning to television, thus ruining the childhoods of many and depriving everyone of our brilliance?"

Wakko stared at her for a few seconds. Then he reached up to grab a paper. "Gimme that!" In seconds, he was scribbling on the paper frantically with the pencil.

Dot smiled, proud of herself. "I knew that would work." She then began work on her own exam.

An hour passed as the Warners worked on the exam. Little by little, the food had disappeared, been eaten, mostly by Wakko of course. They were almost finished by this point. The exam didn't take as long as they thought it would. The questions weren't even that hard. Pretty simple, with no wrong answers.

Well, two of them were almost done. Yakko hadn't filled in a single answer. He hadn't even picked up the pencil. He stared down at it, his eyes a little wide. He reached down and tried to grab it. His hands were trembling too much and as soon as he would touch the pencil with his finger tip, he'd pull his hand away fast.

Yakko looked up at the clock. He bit his lip. He would run out of time at this rate. He took in a deep breath. He wasn't going to let his fear take him over like this. He narrowed his eyes, stared down at the pencil, and grabbed it in a tight fist.

Writing faster than he ever had in his life, he literally left behind a trail of pencil smoke as he caught up with his siblings. They coughed and wheezed as the smoke cleared. They stared at him, wanting to know what the heck that was about. Yakko merely shrugged it off with an innocent grin and continued to work.

Moving the pencil fast, answering as quickly as he could, that seemed to help ease Yakko's tension...for a time. Soon, the sound of the pencil scraping against the paper was starting to get to him. The scraping of his siblings' writing, it was growing louder and louder in his mind.

Yakko gulped, trying to keep his eyes from widening, trying so hard to subdue his shaking. As he was writing the answer for the final question, he felt himself lose grip on the pencil. His hand was so covered in sweat, it actually leaked through his gloves.

He finished the last question, just in time for his siblings to finish as well, but he continued staring wide eyed at the pencil in his hand. He could barely hear his siblings' calling his name, voices filled with concern. His eyes slowly dilated, his face becoming covered in sweat.

Without so much as a warning, Yakko threw the pencil onto the ground. A loud crack was heard as it broke into two. Wakko and Dot stared at their older brother in shocked silence. Yakko was breathing heavily and looking like he had seen a ghost.

"What's the matter, Yakko?" Wakko asked, his ears flat against the back of his head.

Yakko shook his head, stared at his brother and sister, and looked away. "N-Nothing is wrong with me!"

"Yakko, don't lie to us." Dot said in a soft voice. "We know something is wrong with you." She reached a hand out towards him.

Yakko slapped it away. "Nothing is wrong with me! I'm just...in a hurry that's all!"

Dot frowned at him. "Yakko..."

Yakko folded his arms and said, "I told you, I'm fine!" He almost yelped in surprise when Wakko hugged him from behind.

Now dangling along his brother's shoulder, Wakko put his face close to Yakko's and said, "Pretty please tell us? Is it a secret?" Using the hand that still held his pencil, Wakko touched the side of his own face. "You know it isn't nice keeping secrets from your siblings."

"Wakko, get down from there!" Dot scolded him.

"Aw come on! I just wanted a piggy back ride, you know, like the old days!" Wakko said to her.

Dot rubbed her face and moved her head from side to side. An exasperated groan escaped her lips as she opened them to retort,"For the last time, Wakko, that was a dream sequence that was cut out! It never really happened!"

"Daww..but..." Wakko stopped himself as he saw the look in his brother's eyes. "Yakko? What's wrong?"

Yakko's white pupils were focused on the pencil Wakko held in his hand. Every second that ticked by, Yakko's pupils seemed to shrink by a centimeter. Soon they were just tiny dots in his black sclera. He barely uttered a whimper as he suddenly pushed his brother off of him, using an unusual amount of force, and took off.

Puzzled by his behavior and very concerned, his siblings ran after him, calling out his name. Yakko didn't hear any of it. He just kept running. His surroundings had become a blur. His heart was beating so fast, he swore it was going to burst from his chest.

Before he knew it, he was running into the CEO's office. Plotz saw him coming and said, "Done already? Where is your paperwork?" Upon seeing Yakko wouldn't stop running, Plotz leaned back in his chair, eyes wide as he expected a full on collision. "Yakko Warner! Stop right there!"

And stop he did. Yakko was barely able to avoid hitting against Plotz's desk. The short fat man took a few minutes to catch his breath. He felt his heart beating fast in his chest. He took a few seconds to calm down before he jumped out of his seat, raising his arms as he started to rant at the tall Warner.

"Yakko! What is the meaning of this?! I told you to keep yourself under control! Instead, you tore through the hallways and almost crashed into my desk! How do you explain yourself?!" Plotz yelled at him. Upon seeing Wakko and Dot come in, he pointed at them. "And you two! What is the meaning of this?!"

"Sorry, Plotz, but there's something wrong with Yakko!" Dot cried.

"I'll say! He has some nerve coming in here and..." At that moment, Plotz looked over at Yakko. It was then the short man realized something really was wrong. Yakko's entire body was trembling, like it was losing its strength. "...Yakko?" He said, concerned.

Clutching his chest, Yakko fell to the ground.

sss

"Yakko?"

"Come on, Yakko, wake up!"

"Wake up zis instant!"

Yakko's eyelids trembled as he managed to open them. A bright light shined in his eyes. He grimaced and looked away.

He looked at his surroundings. He realized he was in Dr. Scratchensniff's office. He was laying on a low red couch thing. He wasn't sure what it was called. He sat up and rubbed his head. He felt like he had smalled it into the cold, unforgiving floor.

He then noticed the looks on everyone's faces. He was surprised that even Plotz was here and looking worried. "Why are all of you looking at me? Do I have a boogie?" He said, smiling. When no one smiled back, his own smile faded. "Seriously, what is wrong?"

Plotz was the first one to respond. He walked up to the boy. "Yakko, you...fainted in my office."

Yakko's eyes widened. "I did what?!"

Plotz nodded grimly. "Dr. Scratchensniff has determined your heart beat so fast that you...well long story short, you lost conscousness. Your siblings and I tried to wake you up and when you didn't, we took you here." The short man gave a slow nod do Dr. Scratchensniff to continue.

Dr. Scratchensniff went over to his desk and grabbed a piece of paper. He went over to Yakko and sat down by his side. He showed him the paper. Yakko could see that it was his heart beat. He was shocked to see how sharp the lines were and how wide they were.

"Thiz waz your heart rate when you came in, Yakko. It took uz a half hour to bring it back down. We were lucky it went back to normal before it got any worse."

Yakko gulped involuntarily. Was it really that bad? He felt his chest, and was glad to hear that his heart really was beating normally now.

"There iz more." Scratchensniff said. He turned to Wakko, Dot, and Plotz and said, "I waz waiting for Yakko to wake up before I told zis." He looked back, practically feeling curious, demanding eyes on him. "Zee, Yakko, I took a blood sample from you and it is high in..." He rubbed his head. "It's too scientific...I'll make it zimple. You had an usual amount of adrenaline in your blood."

"Adrenaline?" Yakko asked.

Scratchensniff nodded. "Given the amount that I found, there is just one question I need to ask of you." Yakko stared at him, waiting. "What iz it you were terrified of?"

Yakko stared at him in surprise. "I wasn't afraid of anything..."

"Oh yes you were. Don't lie!" Dot said. "You freaked out over pencils! Don't try to pretend we didn't see it!"

Scratchensniff blinked. Pencils? That sounded odd. But given the tone of Dot's voice, it sounded like she wasn't lying. He looked down at Yakko. He seemed to have frozen at the word. The idea seemed ridiculous. Yakko, terrified of pencils? That was absurd. He almost laughed thinking about it.

But being a doctor, he had to be open minded to different possibilities. To test Dot's accusation, he picked up his own pencil. He brought it close to Yakko's face. Seeing the boy's pupils shrink and leaning back towards the wall, like he wanted to get away, Scratchensniff knew Dot was telling the truth.

"See?" Dot said. Her voice was slighlty accusatory, but there was a hint of sisterly love in it. "Please, Yakko. Just tell us what happened. We want to help you."

Yakko realized what he was doing. Almost in an instant, his usual happy demeanor was back. "Come on guys, it's nothing more than acting! Come on...you believe me right?"

But he knew, in his heart, they did not believe him. Even with acting, with the way his heart was going and the adrenaline levels...there was no way that could be faked. He became silent and stared at them.

Should he tell them what happened? Did he really want to cave in and confess to them what he did...what that...monster did...?

What could they do to help? No one could help him now. No one...

Scratchensniff leaned towards Yakko. He gently placed a hand on his head. He normally didn't pet the Warners. He treated them like young people. But he could see Yakko needed something to help calm him. "Tell uz what happened to you, so we can help."

Yakko's response was not anything anyone expected.

The Warner jumped from the seat, his tail straight out, his fur bristling in shock. The scream he let out was too inhuman, even for a toon to make. He screamed, "I don't want this!" As soon as his feet touched the ground, he bolted out of the building.

Plotz let out a soft sigh. He turned to Scratchensniff. "That boy is to come back here tomorrow to be re-examined. Do whatever it takes to get to the bottom of what is going on with him. I am counting on you." Scratchensniff was silent, only nodding.

Wakko and Dot walked towards the exit. Wakko's head was lowered. Dot's ears were folded back. For a few seconds, neither of them spoke.

Wakko broke the silence. "Sis...what is wrong with Yakko?"

Tears starting to come up, Dot said in a soft, almost inaudible voice, "I don't know..."


	4. Nightmare

When Dot and Wakko made it back to their water tower, they could hear low whimpers being emitted. They were faint, but they could still hear them. They followed the sounds into their bedroom, where they happened upon what was possibly the saddest sight they ever encountered.

Curled up on the bed with the blankets wrapped around him like a protective cucoon was Yakko. His eyes were clenched shut tightly. His cheeks stained in tears. His body's shaking shook the bed a little.

Just one look at this sad sight, the two knew something was very wrong with Yakko. They walked up to him, careful not to startle him. In response to their weight pushing down on the bed, Yakko opened up his eyes. Wakko and Dot were shocked at just how reddened they were from all the crying he did.

His eyes growing big, Yakko realized he was caught. He sat up in his bed and wiped the snot dripping from his nose. Yet he still managed to put on a small smile and tried to pretend that none of this was happening. He was still in denial. "Whaddya want?"

"I wish you would tell us what is wrong." Dot was the first to speak. "It will help you feel better."

"You're scaring us, bro." Wakko nodded his head once, agreeing with Dot.

Yakko was still defiant. He closed his eyes and looked away from his siblings, not making eye contact with them. After being silent for a minute, he turned around and crawled back into bed. He pushed himself under the covers and put his back to them. His siblings watched him sadly, uncertain of why he won't speak to them about this.

Wakko took off his hat and held it lightly in his hands. "Why won't you speak to us? Why won't you tell us? Why?" Dot put a hand on his shoulder as a tear started to emerge from his eyes.

Dot inched closer to Yakko. She wasn't about to let him get off the hook that easily. She grabbed the covers and pulled them up. "Yakko, if you tell us, maybe there could be something we could..."

Yakko swerved towards her so fast she almost fell down. "I don't want anyone else involved in this! I...I don't want you to..." His voice trailed off. He gave a long sigh. "A-a-ah can handle this on my own..."

Dot wanted to keep going. She wanted to believe that if she pestered him enough, that he would finally tell what was going on. All she knew is that something happened the other night and he was suddenly afraid of pencils. No, not afraid, terrified. She wanted to know what happened the other night. Yakko was just fine before then.

It dawned on her that the incident must have happened between the time Yakko left the meeting and when he got back to the water tower. She felt tears rise up in her eyes as she began to wonder just what had happened to him. Someone, or something, must have..hurt Yakko somehow. Who could do such a thing to Yakko? Sure he liked to pull pranks, but he never did anything to deserve this...

Knowing her brother was in pain caused her heart to clench in agony. It hurt even more knowing that she and her brother can't help him. If Yakko keeps pushing them away from the subject, how could they ever get any closer to discovering the truth? As much as she hated to admit it, she and Wakko would need to back off until Yakko was ready to speak. She knew her brother well enough to know that, eventually, he'd come around.

"Well..." Dot said, breaking the silence, "Don't forget that you have to go to Dr. Scratchensniff's office tomorrow."

This got Yakko's attention. He lifted his head up, not caring to hide his tears. "Why do I need to go there?"

In an uncharacteristically low voice, Wakko said, "Dr. Scratchensniff wants to examine you. If you don't come to the office, we are instructed to bring you down."

Yakko didn't give much of a protest groan. He just laid his head back down, his eyes closing. Dot and Wakko decided to leave him alone for now. They shut the lights off and walked out of the bedroom. Giving him one last sympathetic look, they shut the door, allowing Yakko to get some rest.

At first, his sleep was peaceful. But come the thirtieth minute, his composure changed suddenly. His eyes clenched tightly, his teeth gritted, his brows furrowed. He began muttering under his breath. Unintelligable words, mixed in with whimpers.

A nightmare had gripped him.

_Yakko walked down the street, like any other day. His arms behind his back, he whistled happily. The water tower was just up ahead. Instead of going straight there, he decided to take a detour around the buildings. What harm could it do? The worst that would happen is that he'd be netted and thrown into the tower, which was where he was going anyway._

_As he walked between two of the buildings, he noticed a shadow moving along the walls. He frowned. The shadow's shape looked very familiar. Wanting to know who it was, he moved towards the shadow. It moved quickly, taking Yakko away from the Warner Studios and out onto the nearby streets._

_Despite this, he still followed. He was Yakko Warner, of course. He could easily slip away at the first sign of danger. As he got further away from the studios, the shadow itself seemed to grow smaller, and he knew he was catching up._

_When he did, he saw a figure walking towards what looked like an apartment building. This one was quite a distance away from the Warner Studios. Yakko was surprised at the ground he had covered._

_Getting closer, he could see the face of this person. A wide smile spread across his face._

"_Oh it's you!" He called out, waving at the person. The figure obviously noticed him. "Hello mister! How was your trip in Antarctica?"_

_He laughed to himself, pressing a hand against his face in an attempt to stop himself. He remembered the look on the guy's face when he and his siblings deliberately gave him the wrong address and sent him to Antarctica. The guy was a jerk, more so than any other jerks they had to deal with. The bloke was looking for trouble and he got it._

_When Yakko saw the man approach him, he thought nothing of it. He remained where he stood, giggling as the man, covered in bits of snow from just having returned from Antarctica, got ever closer. Only when the man was five feet away did Yakko's laugh slowly, nervously, stop. He saw the look on his face, the look in his eyes._

"_I...should probably get going." Yakko pointed behind him and nervously smiled. "You know how siblings can be..heh heh. I need to make sure they're behaving. Someone's gotta be in charge, yanno?"_

_Yakko started to back away from the man. When the man continued to get closer, Yakko put his arms out in front of him, trying to urge him to back off. Still, the man continued advancing on him, the glare in his eyes making them seem like they were glowing. In his hands he clenched a recently sharpened pencil._

"_Mister, you're getting too close. What are you, a magnet?"_

_The man ignored him._

"_What's the matter? Can't take a joke?" Yakko continued to grin at the man, hoping to put him at ease. "Look, if my sibs and I upset you with the whole Antarctica thing, I apologize."_

_Suddenly Yakko found himself backed into a corner. In an alleyway with no windows. Just his luck. He looked around to find a means of escape. There was none. For the first time he could think of, he felt his heart start to race from fear. Surely this man couldn't be that bad, could he?_

_The man got so close that his breath hit against Yakko's face each time he exhaled. He inched so close that Yakko couldn't escape._

"_Okay that's close enough. Heh heh.."_

_The man suddenly gripped Yakko's throat with strong fingers. Yakko cried out in a mixture of shock and pain. The fingertips dug into his skin as the grip tightened further. Yakko started to gasp for air and he struggled in the man's grasp._

"_Please please please don't do this! A-a-a-a-a-ah'm so sorry! I'm sorry! I'm sorry! Please let me go!"_

_The man threw Yakko into the ground hard. The Warner groaned in pain as his head slammed against the concrete. He tried to get up, but he was immediately pushed into the ground. He struggled frantically as the man held him onto the ground. His eyes widened as he saw the man pull the pencil back, poised to strike._

"_No..please..."_

_The man struck._

sss

A loud scream echoed through the water tower. Wakko and Dot jolted up from what they were doing. Hearts pounding, they raced to the bedroom.

Upon opening the door, they could see Yakko flopping back and forth on the bed. A river of tears covered his cheeks. He was crying out things like "Stop it" and "I'm sorry". They hollered his name. He didn't reply. They ran to his side and held him down. Doing so caused the cries to become more frantic, more pleading. They held him down until he slowly stopped, and the nightmare that was plaguing him left his mind.

As Yakko returned to a peaceful sleep, Dot and Wakko looked at each other worriedly. They knew now just how important the visit with Scratchensniff was. The nightmare must have been about what happened to him. If Scratchensniff could get him to talk about it, then maybe they could get to the bottom of what happened to Yakko.

They were about to leave, but they stopped. No, they couldn't leave him. Not like this. Not when he needed them the most. Although there wasn't a lot of room, they both got in the bed with Yakko. Wakko laid down at his side, resting his chin against the top of his older brother's head. Dot laid across her brother's legs. It wasn't comfortable, but right now, she didn't care.

All she and Wakko cared about right now was their brother. They would do whatever it takes to make him feel safe again. Anything.

"Guys, guys, I'm fine!"

Yakko was sitting at the restaurant-style dinner table. In front of him was a bowl of cereal. He slowly ate it, his eyes wandering to look at his siblings. They hadn't stopped look at him since he sat down. It was starting to irritate him.

"Can you tell us about your nightmare?" Wakko asked after swallowing a small amount of food. Small at least in terms of Wakko.

Yakko stared at them, his eye brow cocked. "Nightmare? I slept like a log last night. What are you two talking about?"

"You screamed!" Dot exclaimed, using her hands to emphasize her point. "We heard it all the way on the other side of the tower!"

Yakko blinked. "Really?"

"You really frightened us." Wakko said, lowering his head.

Yakko bit his lip. He didn't realize he scared his siblings that much. He felt bad. He rubbed the side of his face as he glanced back at the two. They were waiting for an answer.

"Gee guys I..." Yakko said, struggling with the words to say. "I'm really sorry if I scared you. I didn't mean to." He hesitated for a second. "I don't really remember any nightmare."

Dot shook her head. "Enough with the lying. I know you don't want to talk about it. And as your siblings, we will be willing to give you time. But after last night, how terrified you looked as you struggled in whatever heck nightmare you were having, something needs to be done."

Before Yakko had any time to retort, Wakko spoke up, his voice a little firmer than usual.

"Dot is right, Yakko. You really need some help. If you don't want to talk about it now, then you can talk about it at Scratchensniff's office. You've helped us in the past. Now let us help you."

Yakko swallowed hard at this. He stared at his brother and sister. He saw the pain practically shining from their dark eyes. This was starting to get out of hand, and he knew it. How much longer could he deny them? How much longer could he really put this off?

He didn't have a choice. He knew they'd keep dragging him into Scratchensniff's office, that they'd keep pestering him until he finally told. If only that nightmare hadn't occurred. He remembered it, but he hoped lying to Wakko and Dot would make them back off. He should have known better.

He didn't want to think about the nightmare. He didn't want to remember what happened. He wished he could forget. He wanted things to go back to normal. He wanted to feel like his old self again, genuinely, not an act. He didn't want to lie to his siblings anymore.

Finally, he spoke.

"...I'll try..."

At that, Wakko and Dot smiled softly. They gave their brother a reassuring hug, promising him that everything would be all right. Yakko hoped that they were right.


	5. Emergency

With Wakko and Dot's support, Yakko told Scratchensniff about his nightmare. He didn't leave any details out. As he told the story, he would see Wakko and Dot cringing as he described every detail, including where he was stabbed and how many times he was stabbed before he lost consciousness. Both Scratchensniff and Plotz were horrified, but did their best to keep their composure.

When Yakko was finished, he became eerily quiet. His ears lowered down and he looked at the ground. Wakko and Dot, both on either side of him, scooted closer to him and placed touched his shoulders for comfort. Yakko did his best to look strong and hid his tears.

Scratchensniff had a hard time writing everything down. It wasn't because of the amount of info Yakko gave him, but the disturbing quality of the info. Who in their right mind would stab a child with a pencil four times in the face? Such an injury wouldn't yield a lot of blood, which would explain why no one noticed it before. But from Yakko's voice, he knew this was a truly traumatic experience.

When he was done writing, he looked over at Plotz. The man no longer held a look of horror on his face, but instead it was slightly red, and Scratchensniff knew that anger had taken ahold of him. Without warning, Plotz jumped out of his seat.

"Dr. Scratchensniff, treat Yakko's injury! Make sure to get any splinters out so there won't be an infection!" He turned to Wakko and Dot. "You two! Stay with Yakko at all times. I don't want a repeat of this happening!"

The two gave him a grim, understanding nod.

"As for me, I am going to get in contact with the authorities! I want whoever did this to be found and brought to justice!" Plotz stormed out the door and slammed it.

For once, the Warners shared his sentiment. Although the guy claims to hate the Warners, he wasn't so bad, and this moment proved it. It was almost touching that he was willing to do whatever it took to keep Yakko safe. Wakko and Dot prayed silently that the culprit will be found. The sooner, the better.

Yakko got up. Now that he had finished telling the nightmare, he thought it was time for him to go. Before he got too far, he was stopped by Scratchensniff.

"Wait! I am not done yet!" Scratchensniff said.

"Look, I told you everything." Yakko said, a slight irritation to his voice. "Can I please just go now?"

"Zere is zomething I need to tell you." Scratchensniff said, gesturing for the tallest Warner to sit back down. Once Yakko did that, the bald man continued. "Zince it was a nightmare you were telling me about, I zuzpect that it your subconscious did not yield every bit of information, only some of the most traumatic. I know zis will be hard for you, Yakko, but you muzt tell uz the complete story."

This would have caused Yakko's face to pale if it weren't already white. "Th-the full s-s-s-story?"

Wakko looked up at the doctor. "Does he really have to? Today?"

Scratchensniff nodded. "Yez, if we want to find the culprit and stop him in caze he strikez again."

"But the nightmare was pretty much how it went down, wasn't it?" Dot asked. She looked over at Yakko, expecting him to confirm her suspicions. When he looked at her silently, then turned hsi head away, she grew concerned. There was more? No please, don't let there be more...

"Yakko, I promize that if you open up to us about this, you will be zafe. No one will ever hurt you again." Scratchensniff gently patted the tall boy on the head. This time, he offered no resistance. "It'z alright, you'll be fine. Tell uncle Scratchy what happened."

Yakko stared at the old man in the eyes. A part of him wanted to trust him. He had known Scratchensniff long enough to know when he was being genuine. The look in the man's eyes, he knew he genuinely wanted to help.

So why was he hesitating? How did he find it easy to tell them about the nightmare, but not about what happened? But he couldn't deny it. The nightmare did not show everything. It cut off before the...really terrifying stuff happened... He didn't want to relive that. The aches and pains were returning just thinking about it.

Seeing her brother hesitate, Dot said, "Maybe tomorrow will be a better time? I don't think Yakko is up to talk more about this. Please, it was hard enough for him to talk about his nightmare."

Scratchensniff let out a sigh. "Oh, all right. You can go. Just make zure to be here tomorrow. Same time." Scratchensniff got out a bottle of disinfectant and a pair of tweezers. He gave them to Dot. "Clean Yakko's wound as soon as you can and apply the disinfectant a couple times a day. It'll sting, but he must recieve the medication just in case he develops a serious infection.

Dot nodded in understand. "You can count on me."

With that, the Warners headed back to their tower.

sss

Yakko wanted everything to be back to normal. He tried to fool himself into thinking it was. As soon as they were back in the tower, he tried to shift into his cheerful self once more. He didn't want his siblings to worry and he didn't want to live in fear. So he tried to live out the rest of the day as if nothing had happened to him.

His siblings, they knew that he was just trying to cope. They were still willing to help him and went along with it. They played games like tag and hide and go seek. They rode on their train and played board games. Yakko's laughter warmed his siblings' heart. It was nice to see him back to his usual self, even if it was just a desperate attempt to hide his pain. They loved seeing him happy. They believed that laughter really was the best medicine.

Before they knew it, the sun was setting. The light in the water tower started to dim. They turned the indoor lights on and went to the dinner table. Dot had been cooking a nice roast chicken, caushing Yakko and Wakko's mouths to water, literally causing a waterfall of drool come forth.

Dot placed the chicken on the table. They all whipped out forks and knives. Licking their lips, they dug in, tearing off pieces of food and swallowing them whole. It only took minutes before the chicken was stripped dry. Dot would have thrown it away if it weren't for Wakko, who inhaled the bones in a single gulp.

Dot put her hands on her hips and glared at him. "Wakko, the bones aren't for eating!"

"Neither are thought bubbles but that's never stopped me before!" Wakko grinned.

Dot nodded, "You do have a point there."

Yakko slyly grinned and stared over at Wakko. "Hey Wakko. Remember the time you swallowed the wishbone of a turkey?"

Wakko's eyes widened. "Don't remind me! I never want to go through the car wash again!"

Dot blinked in confusion. "Car wash?" She held out her hands, looking at her two brothers. "Where was I when this happened?"

Yakko covered his mouth and laughed. "It's a long story!" He waved it off. "I'll tell you in the morning." He headed to the bedroom. "Well it's time for me to hit the sack!"

"You better not t...wait..." Wakko looked at the clock. "It's only seven o'clock. Why are you going to bed now?"

"Yeah, you never go to sleep this early." Dot said.

Yakko just shrugged his shoulders. "I'm just tired, that's all. If you two want to stay up, be my guest." He disappeared into the bedroom. "Well goodnight!"

Dot and Wakko watched him go. Something didn't feel right. Why would Yakko be going to sleep this early? He never did before, not unless he was expecting something bright and early the next day. But the only thing happening tomorrow was another visit to Scratchy's. And they both knew he wasn't looking forward to that.

So why was he suddenly so tired? Dot would have thought it was the poultry, but chicken doesn't make anyone tired. It was turkey that did that, or so people have said. She wondered if it was an infection starting to set in. That worried her. She may have to get some more medication for him in case he got sick.

Wakko wished he could be more of a help. He felt he didn't have anything to offer to really help Yakko except make him feel safe. He wanted to go out there and find the culprit. If he could just get a whiff of his scent, he'd find him faster than Jimmy Neutron can create a problem.

But he couldn't just go off on his own. What if...what if the same thing happened to him? Then Yakko would really be scared, then not just for himself but for his siblings' safety. Wakko did his best to put away his 'smash the bad guy with a mallet' impulse for the same of his brother.

He stared at the door once more and said, "Be safe...big bro."

sss

In the middle of the night, Dot felt the call of the bathroom in her stomach. She groaned in pain. Man, she should not have eaten all that chicken. She got up out of bed and rubbed her eyes. She looked over at Yakko and Wakko's bed and saw that Yakko was missing.

She frowned. She hoped Yakko wasn't hogging the bathroom again. The last time they had a big poultry like that, Yakko didn't leave the bathroom for three days. That was...quite an interesting time for everyone else on the studio. She could still feel the sting of Slappy's purse when she tried to use her toilet.

As she made a turn towards the bathroom, her foot caught onto something soft. She let out an oof as she slammed into the ground. She groaned as she got up and brushed herself off. She hated getting her night gown dirty. She turned around to face what she had tripped over, to kick it away so it wouldn't bother her again.

It was a black mass. She groaned, rolling her eyes. Wakko must have been playing with his wigs again and forgot to put them away. She walked over and grabbed onto the mass. She pulled, but it was much heavier than she thought. She tried again, and she had to let go and rest her arms. She stared at the black mass, panting. What kind of wigs did Wakko have?

The 'wig' stirred a little. Dot realized it wasn't a wig. It was Yakko. She groaned in annoyance. Was he really that tired that he had to fall asleep in the hallway instead of waiting until he got back to bed? The youngest Warner knelt down next to her brother and shook him.

"Come on, get back in bed. You are taking up space in the halls." When Yakko didn't reply, she shook him harder. "Come on now! Get up!"

She pushed him over onto his back. She grabbed his shoulders and shook him again, yelling at him louder. She started to get worried. Yakko wasn't that heavy of a sleeper. That would normally wake him up. She then realized that his breathing was lighter than usual. She pressed a finger against his neck. She put a hand to her mouth and gasped in horror at how faint it was.

Realization and horror set in. Her heart began to pound. No, not Yakko. No...

"Wakko!"

Wakko jumped out of bed, fur standing on end like a frightened cat. "Who what when where why?" He said quickly, looking left and right.

"Wakko get out here!"

Recognizing Dot's voice, he dart out of the bedroom and found her and Yakko on the ground. Seeing Yakko's motionless body, Wakko's ears flattened back. "Dot..what happened?"

"I don't know! He's not moving!" Tears streamed down Dot's face. "Call Dr. Scratchensniff!"

As Wakko ran over to the phone, Dot elevated her brother's head and sat it in her lap. She stroked his cheek gently. She wished she had paid closer attention to him. She wished she had seen the warning sign when he went to bed early. She should have known something was wrong. If they had done something sooner, then maybe...

Her thoughts were interrupted when Wakko slammed the phone down. She looked over and saw him approach her. She waited for him to speak.

"Scratchy will be here as soon as he can." Wakko explained. He looked down at Yakko's prone body. "He said we should move him onto a table so he can be examined."

"Did he say what it could be?" Dot asked. Her ears dropped down when Wakko could only shake his head at her. She stared down at her brother and gave him a kiss on the forehead. "I'm so sorry this happened to you.."

She and Wakko helped each other carrying Yakko to the table. They both hoped as hard as they could that it was nothing they couldn't fix.


	6. Bleed

Author's Note: Sorry I didn't put this up earlier. I was a little busy. Also, an announcement: the next 2 chapters will be uploaded on the same day. I won't be doing this often, though. The titles for the upcoming two chapters are Abhorrent and Shock.

sss

The fifteen minutes it took for Scratchensniff to get to the water felt like hours. The wait was grueling for Dot and Wakko. When the doctor came in, they had to control themselves not to bombard him with questions. The man brought along as much equipment as he could and he raced to the fallen Warner, laying on his back on the table.

Although he rarely did health inspections, he had some knowledge of the field thanks to Hello Nurse, and worked with what he knew. He examined Yakko from head to toe, trying to find any clues as to what happened to him.

Dot and Wakko watched, trying not to let their impatience get the better of them. As Scratchensniff made one sad shake of the head after another, the two started chewing their fingernails. They didn't know if the shaking meant he didn't find anything, or found something bad. They didn't know which one was worse.

Finally, Scratchensniff set his stuff down, took off his glasses, and rubbed his eyes. "I'm zorry but I don't know what'z wrong with him. I don't have all the proper equipment with me. He needs to go to zee hospital. It might be internal."

"What does that mean?" Wakko asked carefully.

"Zat meanz that something might be going on inside of Yakko's body."

"Infection?" Dot asked, her voice filled with fear.

Scratchensniff looked at Yakko's still body. He sighed softly and shook his head. "I don't know, Dot. He needz to be examined in the hospital." He put his glasses back on and scooped the unconscious Warner into his arms. "There's no time to waste. Come along, you two."

sss

News of what happened to Yakko Warner spread like wildfire throughout the studios. Even those that hated Yakko were appalled by the actions against him that were described. Many workers demanded the culprit be found and killed, while others wanted him to suffer for what he did.

The most effected were the other Animaniacs. Although they generally kept to themselves, there was a sense of family among them, since they all worked together on the same show and even entered each other's toons quite frequently, which wasn't something common in other multi-show cartoons. Even grumpy Slappy and arrogant Brain were concerned about Yakko.

A couple of the other Animaniacs joined Wakko and Dot in the waiting room while Yakko was being thoroughly examined. Without any other alternative, the doctors had to examine him via exploratory surgery. In a rare act of kindness, Brain was leading the charge. He had his moments of stupidity, but if there was one thing he understood well, it was anatomy. Under his guidance, the doctors examined every body part, hoping to find the cause of his misery.

Dr. Scratchensniff had left the office about two hours earlier. He had told Plotz about Yakko's collapse. Plotz didn't take it well and demanded Scratchensniff come into his office immediately to talk about the next course of action.

The thought of Yakko going through surgery made his siblings cringe. There was the possibility of something going wrong, even with Brain's help. Yes something always went wrong in his toons, but that was only because it was scripted; his success percentage rate was much greater than what his toons would lead others to believe. Still, the fear gripped the Animaniac's hearts. One wrong move and it would be all over for the boy.

Finally, after three long hours, the doors swung open. Dot and Wakko, along with Pinky, Slappy, Rita, and Runt, sat up and awaited the news. Hello Nurse, with Brain perched on her shoulder, walked up to them. Brain's arms were clutched behind his back and Hello Nurse held some paper work in the crook of her arm.

Brain hopped off of the nurse's shoulders. Pinky ran up to him. "Gee Brain, how did it go?"

Brain took a moment to look at the others, staring at him as if doing so could suck the answer right out of him. "It took us a while to find out what was wrong with him. It turns out that he suffered massive internal bleeding."

"What?!" The other Animaniacs cried.

Pinky's ears lowered and he brought his hands to his face. "I-Internal bleeding?"

Nodding grimly, Brain replied, "Yes. We found open sores inside of him that broke open...how they did we don't know. This caused the internal bleeding." He turned his head to Dot. "This would explain his tiredness you described. The bleeding must have started hours earlier in order to effect him at that time. The bleeding wasn't heavy; it was slow and steady."

"Did ya fix him up?" Runt asked, licking his chops nervously.

Brain nodded his head. "Yes we managed to stop the bleeding. He's on a blood transfusion right now to replenish the blood he's lost." Brain walked up to Dot and Wakko. "After he comes to, I recommend you two talk to him about his assailant. From what has happened, I suspect this...monster...did more than just stab him in the face."

Dot looked over towards the room where Yakko was wheeled into hours earlier. Hands against her face, she let the tears come down. "Yakko..."

sss

It took an hour before the doctors would let anyone see Yakko. They were worried about how critically weak he was from the blood loss. They wanted to make sure he was stable before he got any visitors. They kept him on the blood transfusion and hooked him up to an IV to help keep him hydrated during his visit.

Before they were allowed in, the doctors warned them to keep their voices low and not to raise up any excitement. Yakko still needed his rest and it may take several hours before he can be discharged safely. They would only permit three in at a time. It was agreed Dot and Wakko should be the first ones in. Without asking permission, Slappy volunteered herself, brushing passed the others and joining the two Warners to see Yakko.

Wakko and Dot had to do their best not to cry when they saw their big brother laying down on the hospital bed. He had one needle in his left arm, transferring blood into his body. His other arm had an IV hooked to it, giving him vital nutrients to sustain him for however long it was going to take. An oxygen mask was placed on his face, pumping oxygen-rich air into his body to keep his lungs filled with air.

Dot and Wakko stood close by Yakko's bedside. Seeing their brother like this, so pale and sickly, it caused their stomachs to wrench. They tried hard not to let their nausaea get the best of them. They wanted to fling themselves on their brother and cry. They wanted to make the hurt go away. Right now, all they could do is wait and hope the doctors can help him feel better.

Slappy watched them, her eyes filled with sympathy. She gave the siblings some space. Her eyes traveled to the unconscious Yakko. Slappy felt herself clench a fist. She wanted to find the sicko that did this and beat them senseless with her purse. No, she wanted to do more than that. Even the payback stunts she did on her shorts were tame compared to what she wanted to do to the culprit.

She may have been harsh, she may seem cold, but she had a good heart, and it was moments like these that she let that show. She planned on making some kind of remedy for Yakko after he was dismissed. She knew a home recipe, utilizing mostly walnuts, that she used to treat anxiety. She usually made it for herself. It should help Yakko out.

Wakko looked over at Slappy, his tears clouding his sight. He wiped them with his hand. "Slappy...where is Skippy?"

"I can't believe you didn't notice." Slappy said, before backtracking. "Sorry I didn't mean for it to come out like that. I left my nephew at home. Took some convincin' to get him to say." She turned her saddened eyes to Yakko. "Poor lad is too young to be seein' this. I don't want him to be scarred for life."

Wakko nodded slowly. He sniffled loudly. He wiped his nose. His snot was starting to clog up his nasal cavity. He pulled out a napkin out of nowhere and blew his nose. "I wish none of this happened."

Slappy walked up to him and placed a hand on his back. "Yeah, bucko. We all wish that. Sadly life isn't all happy and gumballs. Sometimes it can kick you where the sun dun't shine. Right now, you can be there for your brother."

"What about...that man...?" Wakko looked up at her with wide eyes. "What if he..."

"Don't sweat it. I'll make sure he doesn't get two feet to Yakko." Slappy pressed her thumb against her chest in a proud-like manner. "I'll personally organize the other Animaniacs and try to find this guy. Donchuu worry! We'll find him!"

Wakko managed a shaky smile. "Th-thank you..."

Slappy smiled back at him. She grabbed her purse and walked out of the room, leaving Wakko and Dot alone with their brother, at least until the next person came in. They heard someone coming up to the door, and then a crash and Slappy's scolding. She must be keeping the others out to give them space. Wakko and Dot couldn't help but smile at this, then they turned their attention back to their brother.

They couldn't imagine what he had done to deserve this. What scared them more is that more had happened to him. And they don't know what that 'more' is. Yakko had internal bleeding. What had that guy done to him? Poison him? Something worse they could not begin to fathom?

They remained silent. They didn't know what to say to Yakko. They prayed he would get better. They touched his hands, held them tight. It felt like hours passed before someone came into the room.

Brain didn't make a sound as he moved along the ground and jumped onto the desk next to Yakko. He looked up at Dot and Wakko. He had a forelorn expression.

"Did you get a chance to talk to him?" Brain asked carefully.

Dot shook her head. When she spoke, her voice was cracked. "N-No..he hasn't woken up yet."

Brain frowned at this. "I want to say I'm surprised...but I'm not. I was being too hopeful that he'd regain consciousness by now." He shook his head once. "It is crucial we find out exactly what happened. The internal bleeding...it suggests..." He stopped himself.

Dot and Wakko leaned in towards him.

"It suggests what?" They asked in unison.

Brain's ears lowered and he bit his lip. He gave a flustered sigh. "Just...talk to him. I don't want to dwell on the possibility until we get a full testimony from him."

Brain left the room.

Wakko stared after him. He didn't understand what he was talking about. But Dot, she was a different story. An idea came to her mind, and she began to tremble. Could it be true?

sss

_Yakko was trapped in a black void. All around him, a blackness with dark gray clouds swirled around him. He didn't know where he was. He couldn't even tell if there was a ground at all._

_His heart was racing. Where were his friends and family? Why was nobody here? Why was he alone? Being alone for too long, that was a fear of his. That was why he rarely went anywhere without his siblings. He wanted company, no he craved company._

"_Hello?" He called out._

_Nobody answered._

"_Somebody! Please! Answer me!" He tried again._

_Still, there was only silence. Yakko's body started to tremble. There had to be somebody left in this dark, twisted world. Anyone. He'd even settle for grumpy Plotz. Just somebody to keep him company, someone he could talk to._

_He started to 'fly' through the bottomless pit of a void. He looked around, squinting his eyes. He tried to make out any shape of a living creature, any signs of life._

_In desperation, he kept calling out names._

"_Wakko? Dot? Scratchy? Plotz? Slappy? Brain? Anybody?!"_

_And still no one answered him. Falling into despair, Yakko started to cry._

_Suddenly, he felt something hard slam against his back. His arms and legs became stiff, frozen. He couldn't move them. Eyes widened, he struggled to get free. He tried to speak. Something kept his mouth shut. He had no muzzle on, but his muscles wouldn't move. He looked around frantically, trying to find a means of escape._

_Slowly, the blackness dissipated. He found himself in some kind of room. He couldn't make out what kind of room. It looked like a warehouse of some kind, but since did warehouses come with gym equipment and sold beds?_

_He heard footsteps. Someone was approaching. Yakko did his best to hide his fear as the figure came into view. Upon seeing his face and recognizing him, Yakko's heart began to beat faster. As he gave a few sharp yanks of struggle, he found his arms and legs were bound with rope. A couple loops of tight rope painfully kept his mouth shut._

_The man stopped inches in front of him, a twisted smile on his face. Then he spoke, his voice so filled with vice that Yakko felt his heart pulling back in pain. "I told you that you were going to regret messing with me. Do you have anything to say for yourself?"_

_Yakko let out a few panic hmmphs. The man rolled his eyes and pulled the ropes off his muzzle. Yakko gave a few heavy pants and licked his dry lips. He looked at the man and pleaded with him._

"_Please let me go..I-I don't want this..please!"_

_The man narrowed his eyes. He pulled out a pencil. "It is too late for apologies, kid." He steadied it, ready to strike._

_Yakko's eyes widened in fear. He pulled his head back and let out a loud cry. "I don't want this!"_

_The man only laughed cruelly._


	7. Abhorrent

Yakko woke up with a start. His face drenched in sweat, he looked at his surroundings. His mind felt foggy, like he had a hard time thinking. He had a hard time moving and he started to panic. Was he back in that madman's clutches? He whimpered softly, darting his eyes around the room that he could barely see.

His vision sharpened only moments later. Colors came through. Now he could see that he was in a white room. He felt his heart slow down. He sighed with great relief. Despite his foggy mind, he had a hunch that he was in the hospital. He wondered why. He gritted his teeth. Had that guy struck again?

He found he could move his arms and legs. They were just stiff from laying on this bed...oh man how long had he been out? He tried to sit up. He found he was too weak to do so. He crossed his eyes at the object on his face. What he had thought was rope tying his mouth shut was just an oxygen mask.

Wearily, he moved his eyes to look at his arms. He saw the needles stuck into them, nourishing him with liquid, one red and one clear. Now he was really worried. What had happened to him? The last thing he remembered was eating the chicken, then blank. He knew better than to suspect Dot of anything.

He could see two figures standing next to him. He blinked a few times, letting the images come into focus. Upon seeing the two familiar black and white figures, he managed a smile.

"Hello guys." His voice was a little rasp. "What am I...doing here?"

Wakko looked down at him sadly. "You don't remember?"

Yakko shook his head. Dot placed a hand on his.

"You...blacked out." She fought back tears. "When you were brought here, the doctors found that you...bled out. You lost a lot of blood."

Yakko winced. That would explain the blood IV. He eyed it warily. "It was..that bad? Is that why I'm getting a blood transfusion?"

Dot nodded. "You'll probably have to stay here overnight just so that your blood is replenished. The doctors don't want to take any chances. You were lucky I found you sprawled on the floor. They said that if we waited until morning, you..would have...you would have..." She couldn't bring herself to say it and just started crying.

Yakko wanted to cry, but he felt too weak to. He reached up with a hand and touched his sister's face. He whispered, "I'm fine now..."

Dot tried her best to smile. She gripped Yakko's hand in hers and brushed her cheek against it. Yakko felt someone else grab his other hand. He looked over and saw Wakko hanging on to it, gripping on it for dear life.

At long last, Dot and Wakko released their grip. They stared at Yakko for what seemed like hours. They wanted to know he was all right. They were worried if they looked away, he'd be gone. They almost lost him today. They didn't want their nightmare to become a reality. They wanted Yakko to stay...to stay...alive...

Dot was happy that Yakko was smiling. Her own smile faltered when she remembered Brain's words. He wanted her to ask him about his assailant. Could she really do that to him now? Could she force herself to ask him an uncomfortable question in his current condition?

That question was easy for her to answer.

No, she could not. Not now. As much as she hated to defy orders from one of the smartest Animaniacs, she knew in her heart Yakko would not be able to handle such a question right now. He needed his rest. He needed to regain his strength. So long as she and Wakko were with him, he'd be safe.

She decided to wait.

sss

It took three days before Yakko was allowed to be released. He was able to get up without feeling dizzy on day two, but the doctors wanted him to stay just in case. He wasn't allowed to walk anywhere without a wheelchair or someone by his side. It annoyed him, but he understood it was for the best.

He was to be on a strict diet for the next week or so. Certain foods he was restricted from as they could cause irritation to the newly formed clots. He wasn't allowed to do any strenuous exercise or activities. And he had to remain in the water tower, not for his health, but his safety. The water tower sealed tightly and no one could get in, except for the Warners of course.

Plotz agreed with this order and told Yakko, just before he was released, until the culprit was found that he was not to leave the water tower for any reason, not unless he was being escorted by someone.

Yakko didn't like these orders, but he couldn't do much in protest. He was at least happy to be back in the tower again. He hadn't been gone that long and already he missed his own bed in his own room. He did feel safe behind the metal walls. Maybe this wouldn't be so bad after all.

Sometime after being released, Dot felt it was time to ask Yakko the question. She didn't want to upset him. She tried to pick the best time to talk to him, when Yakko was calm and neutral. She deliberately avoided playtime or dinnertime to ask.

She found Yakko sitting in his favorite chair. He was so calm and relaxed. It was like nothing had happened to him. She couldn't help but smile at this. It was nice that he was able to grasp some normality back into his life. She felt her heart wrenching at the thought of asking the question as she approached him slowly.

"Y-Yakko?"

Yakko looked at his sister. "What is it?"

"I need to...we need to talk." Dot managed to say.

"About what?"

"About what happened."

That had the reaction she thought it would. And it made her feel horrible.

Yakko's smile washed away like wet pain from rain. His eyes gotten large. His ears were flattened against the back of his head. She could have sworn she saw him tremble once or twice. The newspaper he had held in his hand was now on the ground, wrinkling up as it hit the ground.

"I know you aren't comfortable talking about it." Dot said carefully. She clasped her hands together and took a step towards him. "But please, you've gotta tell us! I can't stand it...I can't stand not knowing!"

Yakko blinked back tears. He turned his head away. "You'll not be able to stand knowing..."

For a moment, Dot was silent. Then she spoke. "Brain told us...something about the internal bleeding." Yakko looked over at her, confused. She took another step towards him. "Yakko, there is something you aren't telling us."

"I told you my dream!" Yakko cried out, the fear starting to get the better of him. "Isn't that enough?"

Dot got close enough to grab his arm. Yakko cried out and pulled away, like she was trying to hurt him. Dot looked at him with a hurt look. "I hate seeing you like this. Yakko, you have to tell someone. Why won't you tell me, your own sister?"

Yakko closed his eyes. Dot could see the barest hint of tears. "Because it's..." He put his face in his hand. "Too horrible..."

"Tell me." Dot placed an arm across his back.

"...not now..." Yakko whispered softly. "Please...I don't want to talk about it now..."

Dot bit her lip. "Yakko..." She couldn't think of anything else to say. She could beg all she wanted to, but Yakko was not going to budge. She let out a long sigh. "Okay...but remember, me and Wakko will be here and we've got your back, okay?"

Yakko sniffled. "Yeah..I know." He closed his eyes. "I know..."

sss

It had been a week since the incident. Yakko's recovery hadn't made much progress. His fear of pencils was still strong. He had always hated being alone, but now he outright despised it. No one blamed him for it. How could they? He had been alone when he was attacked.

The other Animaniacs were still organizing the search party. There has been debates on who should be the leader. Many disagreed on what their job was going to be. The local authorities were already busy looking for the guy, but they had no solid clues or leads. No one was surprised the man wasn't caught yet. Rarely were criminals taken to court a week after the crime.

Yakko held the vital clues. He knew where he was taken. He could describe it to the officers and the other Animaniacs. He knew what the man looked like. He could tell the others. If he would just tell them what happened, everything, then justice would be served.

He was still too terrified, however. Anytime someone brought up the subject, he would freeze for a second before doing whatever it took to avoid the subject. His fearful behavior made the others suspicious that something more had happened. They didn't know what. What had the man done to Yakko that left him so frightful? Surely it wasn't just a few pencil stabs. The internal bleeding proved this.

Dot tried in vain to get him to speak with no luck. Wakko tried as well. He had no better luck either. Even though they couldn't make him talk, they still tried to make him feel safe and comfortable. They knew Yakko would never feel truly safe until that madman was behind bars, where he belonged.

On the eight day of Yakko's release, Wakko and Dot left the tower to go get some groceries. They didn't feel bad about leaving Yakko alone. They wouldn't be gone that long and the tower was locked up.

While they were away, Yakko decided to release to some reading. He laid down on the ground, holding up one of his favorite books. He read it a dozen times, but he didn't care. It was a classic and he loved every minute reading it. It was a great way to pass the time, too. By the time he would be half way done, his siblings would be home.

He jumped up, startled, at the sound of a loud ring. He calmed down. It was just the doorbell. He walked up to the door, then stopped. Who could be coming over? It surely wasn't Wakko or Dot, and he didn't recall inviting anybody over. Maybe it was just Plotz checking up on him, or Dr. Scratchensniff back to re-examine him.

He walked up to the door as the doorbell was rung again.

"Hold your horses! I'm coming!" Yakko called out. Again the door bell rang. He groaned. "Yeesh, you have the impatience level of Chris Griffin on a road trip." He swung the door open. "How may I...help...you..." In an instant, Yakko was frozen stiff. He shook like a leaf and took a step away from the door. "N-No..."

There, standing in the door way, was the same man who had attacked him. The man stood 5 and a half feet tall. He wore a pale green suit with matching pants. He had no beard and only the tiniest hint of a mustache. He was toned, but still not too bulgy. His eyes were so cold it nearly froze Yakko's heart just looking at him.

The man smiled, showing off his slightly pointed teeth, a hue of yellow on them, at the frightened boy. He took a step into the water tower and slammed the door behind him. He took a step towards Yakko.

"I told you not to tell anyone." The man said.

"A-a-a-ah d-d-didn't..." Yakko whimpered. He took another step back.

"Naughty boy. You know you shouldn't lie to grown ups." The man chuckled. He frowned as he pulled out a newspaper. He opened it up and showed it to Yakko. "This here proves you are lying. 'Authorities looking for suspect wanted of assault of Yakko Warner'. That is you."

"I s-s-swear I didn't say anything a-a-about the..."

The man's pupils shrank into dots. "I will not tolerate your lying!"

Yakko screamed in fear and ran towards the phone. He had to call someone, anyone. He pulled the phone off its hook and attempted to dial. He didn't get very far. He felt the man rip the phone away from him and cover his mouth with his hand.

He struggled with all his might as the man dragged him away from the phone. He reached out towards the phone in desperation, his eyes wide and pleading.

He was brought into the kitchen. The man released him. Yakko thought he was free, but he was soon proven wrong. A golden glow surrounded him. The man's eyes glowed yellow themselves. Yakko felt himself being pushed into the table by the strange force. His head was twisted onto its side, exposing his neck.

The man walked over, sharpened pencil in hand. Yakko stared at him, horrified. He wriggled on the table. He tried to get free. But the man's telekinetic grip on him was too great. He looked up at the man as he raised the pencil, ready to strike.

"Leave my brother alone!"

The man turned his head. He had no time to react. A blur of black and white knocked him to the ground. The grip on Yakko was released. Yakko rubbed his head and looked over to see his rescuer.

It was Dot. She had bodyslammed into the man's side. Despite her small size, she knocked him onto the ground. She was now holding onto his neck and pulling tightly. She didn't stay like that for long. The man slammed her into the ground and pressed against her chest and stomach with his massive foot. Yakko called out her name, holding out his hand.

Suddenly, a large mallet came out of nowhere and slammed into the man, knocking him away from Dot. Wakko, baring his teeth more menacingly than he ever had, lunged at the man like a mad dog. He slammed him repeatedly with the mallet and was able to force him out of the water tower.

Dot and Wakko realized their mistake. They should have gotten the man in custody. Before they could correct it, the man ran away. They didn't see which direction he went in. Dot and Wakko wanted to pursue him, but they had more important matters to attend to.

Yakko was curled up on the ground in a fetal position. He cried softly to himself. His body was shaking terribly. He looked like an absolute mess.

Dot walked up to him and dropped onto her knees next to him. Wakko came over and helped his brother into a seated position. The Warners took a few minutes to take a breather. When their nerves had calmed down some, that's when Dot spoke.

"Now will you tell us what he did to you?" Dot asked.

"This is getting dangerous..." Wakko said, biting his lip. "Please tell us..."

Yakko looked at his siblings. He wanted to tell them. Oh how he wanted to and hope this nightmare would end. The man's threat still had him scared stiff. The man had been clear not to tell a soul about the incident. A dream was different, Yakko thought. It was just a dream...no it was reality. And he should have known better.

His siblings weren't going to let up this time. He knew that. The man had tracked him down into the water tower for Pete's Sake. And what's to say he wouldn't come back again? And would it really make a difference if he told anyone the truth by this point? The man had already tried to kill him...

Yakko closed his eyes and finally spoke. "Okay...I'll tell you..."

Wakko and Dot huddled closer. They stared at him, eager for the truth, but at the same time scared. When Yakko opened his mouth to speak, nothing could prepare them for what he said next.

"He...he..raped me..."


	8. Shock

Wakko and Dot's eyes never grew so big in their lives. Had they heard right? Did Yakko really say he was... They felt their legs grow weak. They didn't think they'd be able to get up for a while after this. Their bodies were shaking along with Yakko's. No wonder he was such a wreck. They wouldn't be able to sleep tonight, not after this revelation.

The idea that something so..sinister happened to their elder brother rocked them to the core. How could anyone be that cruel? How could someone do that to Yakko? What had he done to deserve such a horrific act of inhumanity?

As they stared at the crying mess that was their brother, thoughts raged through their minds. Before, they already hated this man that attacked Yakko. But after hearing this, just simply going to jail was too light of a punishment. The Warners aren't particularly violent usually and generally act good-natured towards anyone. This man, no this thing, this monster, would be an exception. No mister nice guy around him. He needed to be punished.

It kind of scared them that they thought like this. They never had such ill wishes directed towards anyone. They thought that no one could make them hate them that much. This man proved them wrong.

They redirected their thoughts to their sobbing brother. He needed them now more than ever. They felt horrible for leaving him alone. That was a mistake. They would never make that again. They moved in closer to Yakko, pressing their bodies against him to make him feel safer.

"Oh Yakko..." Dot said, wrapping her arms around Yakko's head and pressing her face against his forehead. "I'm so sorry..."

"A-a-ah begged him to step, but he just kept going and..." Yakko's voice broke into sobs and pressed his head against Dot, unable to speak anymore.

Wakko's lower lip wobbled. He wanted to say something, anything. Nothing would come out. He reached out with an arm and rubbed his brother's back soothingly. It was the only thing he could think of to make his brother feel better.

Eventually, Yakko cried himself to sleep. Wakko and Dot carried him into the bedroom and laid him on his bed. As they watched him sleep, they turned to each other. Determined looks plastered on their faces, they knew what the other was thinking.

They needed to tell Plotz about this.

sss

The reaction Plotz had was just as expected. The man had gone into a rage and he immediately got on the phone, demanding why the madman hadn't been caught yet. Dot and Wakko immediately left his office. With what happened last night, the two weren't in the mood to listen to Plotz's rage, even though it was quite justified this time around.

The two went to find Scratchensniff and Brain. Plotz mentioned that the two, being some of the most intelligent people on set, had a meeting at the hospital to discuss possible theories of what happened to Yakko. This new revelation had shed new light on the situation and made it all the more dire.

Locating the pair was difficult. The hospital felt larger on the inside than it did the outside. Every nurse they spoke to sent them in different directions. It was hard for the two to tell if it was because Scratchensniff and Brain were moving all over the place or if the nurses just didn't want them to see them.

When they found the pair, they were in a back room filled with testing equipment. They were sitting in chairs, talking to each other, when Wakko and Dot knocked on the door. Scratchensniff and Brain weren't surprised to see them. They gestured for them to come inside, but advised them to shut the door. When asked why, Brain said they didn't want rumors about Yakko to spread and how it would hurt the investigation more than help it.

It was difficult telling what happened to the two. The memory was still very painful to think about, let alone talk about. They told of how Yakko was attacked by the man in the water tower, how he had almost killed him. They brought up how Yakko revealed the man had raped him and that was why he was so terrified.

When Wakko and Dot were finished telling the uncomfortable tale, they sat still. They looked at the two, waiting for their responses.

Scratchensniff was, unsurprisingly, horrified. He had expected bad, of course. But he never would have imagined it would have been something like that. "I...I can't believe it..."

But Brain, on the other hand, had a different reaction.

"It wasn't rape." He said in an almost blunt voice.

The other three stared at him in shock. Dot bared her teeth in anger. "How dare you, I..."

Brain waved his hands in front of him frantically. "No no! That isn't what I meant!" He waited until Scratchensniff and Wakko held Dot back and tried to pacify her. Only when Dot's expression relaxed a little did he continue. "What I mean to say is that it only looked like rape; judging from the injuries Yakko recieved, this...monster...didn't...do that to get some kind of sick gratification. It was to cause internal injuries so he'd bleed out slowly."

Dot's eyes widened in realization. "So he was...trying to kill my brother the whole time?"

Brain nodded. "Yes, by causing internal bleeding, and to spread infection. He may have lied to Yakko and said he wouldn't hurt him if he never spoke of the incident. But he was a liar; this was his plan the whole time, and when it had failed, he came to finish the job." Brain closed his eyes. "But he kept up with the act; he obviously doesn't want Yakko to know he wants to kill him. Put him at ease and he can sneak up on him."

As his mind struggled to digest this information, Scratchensniff turned to Wakko and Dot. "Where iz Yakko?"

"We left him at the water tower." Wakko said.

Dot interjected quickly. "With Slappy. We called her up and she said she was willing to stay with Yakko until we came back."

Scratchensniff nodded his head. "She iz a feisty gal, she iz."

"Enough of this chitchat. We need to seriously talk about what we are going to do." Brain said. "The good news is that this may not be too tough now. You two have seen what this man looks like. Would you care to share us the details?" He looked at the two one by one. "From there, we can run a list of suspects and narrow down the possibilities, and find the culprit."

Brain hopped onto the ground and began to walk towards the door. He stopped when he heard someone tap the floor to get his attention. He looked over his shoulder to see Wakko walking up to him, holding his hat in his hands.

"D-Do you think there's a chance that..." It was hard for him to speak. "That Yakko could return to his old self? Is there a chance that he'll recover from this?"

Brain was at a loss of words. Showing sympathy wasn't something he was used to. He was used to spraying insults at Pinkie, who never really fought back. He just wasn't that kind of guy, er, mouse. That was the worst thing he could do to Wakko. Brain swallowed and tried as hard as he could to come up with a reply that at least sounded comforting.

The only thing he could say was, "...Time will tell, Wakko." He walked away. "Only time."

sss

Yakko slowly opened up his eyes. It took some effort because some gunk from his crying had hardened in his sleep. He sat up slowly and rubbed his eyes. He looked around and let out a shudder. It was strangely quiet. He whimpered at the thought of being left alone.

No, his siblings wouldn't do that to him, would they? He poured his heart out for them. They wouldn't abandon him like this. They must be out in the living room making breakfast or something. Yeah, that was it.

Yakko got out of bed and walked out of the room. He tried to hide his pain and forced a grin on his face. He didn't want his siblings to see him still hurting. He wanted to be strong for them. He had to be. He was the responsible one. He looked after them. They relied on him. He needed to be there for them.

His heart started pounding when he didn't see his siblings anywhere. He moved faster through the water tower, lifing up furniture, boxes, and whatever else, hoping to find them. After a few mintues of looking for them, he dropped to his knees. His siblings wouldn't abandon him, so why weren't they here?

Oh no... Could that man have...?

Yakko completely panicked. Sweat covering his face, he rushed to the phone. He pulled it off its hook. It fumbled in his hands, sleak with sweat. He started to dial a number when he heard footsteps coming from the hallway. Yakko's eyes widened when he saw a tall thin shadow on the wall. Yakko felt the fur on his body stand on end.

Feeling cornered, Yakko did the only thing he could think of to do. He went down on all fours, arched his back, and bristled his fur to look bigger and more intimidating. If this guy was coming after him again, let him come. He made a big mistake when he messed with his sibs.

When the shadow came into view, Yakko reacted on instinct. He made a dash towards the intruder, teeth bared like some kind of feral dog. His fear temporarily forgotten, he lunged at the intruder...

...only to be greeted by a large skillet pulled out without warning. His face smashed against the object. His body crunched up against the skillet and he fell to the ground. His face pressed against the hard floor.

Standing over him was Slappy. With her usual wry smile, she looked down at the fallen Warner, tsked, and shook her head.

"Now that's sad."

A small brown form rushed to her side. "Auntie Slappy! How could you do that?"

Slappy looked down at her nephew. She tossed the skillet aside. A loud clanging crash was heard as it hit against some various objects out of sight. "I didn't hit him that hard. And he needed a good slap in the noggin'. He was gettin' all worked up and what not." She put her hands on her hips and stared at Yakko. "Maybe dat'll teach 'im to calm down before attempting a sneak attack."

Skippy walked over to Yakko. He grabbed his arm and helped him up. As Yakko wobbled back and forth, Skippy said, "Are you okay, mister?"

Yakko had a goofy expression on his face, tongue hanging out, and continued to wobble. "Yesh...never felt better." He fell flat onto his back.

Skippy jumped onto his chest and bounced up and down. "Get up, mister!"

Slappy grabbed Skippy by the wrist and pulled him away. "Knock it off, kiddo. Don't break his ribs."

Yakko managed to get up. He supported himself with a shaky hand. He looked over at Slappy and said, "Wh-Whaddar you guys doing here?"

Slappy folded her arms against her chest. "I'm your babysitter. Your sibs are out telling the doc and rat about what happened to ya. They'll be back soon, donchuu worry!" She walked over to Yakko and grabbed his arm, supporting his body against hers. "Now let's getcha onto the chair. I made some breakfast for you. Walnut soup! It'll perk you right up. You'll see!"

Slappy led Yakko into the kitchen. She helped him sit down. In a swift zip, it took her only seconds to produce a bowl with steamed walnuts and walnut broth to him.

Yakko stared at the soup curiously. He never had this kind of soup before. He didn't want to be rude to Slappy, so he started to drink it. The first bite caused him to shudder. The taste wasn't foul, it was just really salty. It was like the squirrel dumped a whole carton of salt into the soup. By the second taste, he got used to it, and by the third, he was practically sucking it down his throat.

After he was finished, Yakko wiped his face and pushed the bowl away. "Thanks, Slappy.."

"Don't mention it, bucko." Slappy said, smiling at him.

"So when are my siblings going to be back?" Yakko asked.

Before Slappy could answer, the water tower door swung open. Dot and Wakko ran inside, along with Scratchensniff, Brain, and Pinky. Yakko didn't have a chance to great his siblings when they came rushing into the kitchen, holding a newspaper.

"Guys, you gotta see this!" Dot said.

Yakko scratched his head. "Uh, sis, this paper is a few years old..."

"Just look!" Wakko cried.

Dot pointed a picture on page 5 of the newspaper. The others gathered around. There was a picture plastered in an article. What the article was about, they didn't know nor did they care. They instead stared at the picture. Yakko's white pupils shot wide open.

"Th-That's the guy who..."

"But this is...an..." Dot breathed under her breath.

Skippy whimpered, "A-A-Auntie...?"

"That's...not good." That was all Slappy could think of.

Brain said what was on everyone's mind. "I have now idea how this is possible, but Yakko...your assailant..he's been dead for seven years..."

Everyone went silent.


	9. Nonhuman

Wakko broke the silence. "Well that would explain how he got back from Antarctica..."

No words needed to be spoken among the siblings. Yakko didn't need to tell them that his attacker was the same random guy they pranked a while back. They never gotten his name before. Yakko wished they had; he could have named his attacker and all this would have been over with.

The man, wearing the same outfit as he did when he invaded the tower the other day in the picture, had been by the studio a while back. He didn't speak a word. He was just walking around. None of the workers really paid much mind to him. At least at first. When he was asked to leave, he responded rudely and continued on his way.

Things only got worse from there. The guy acted as if he owned the place. He stormed into offices, disrupting meetings, knocking over recently finished footage. He kicked some of the Animaniacs around when they were simply in his way. Ralph tried to exert his authority and get the man to leave, but he was knocked into a trash can.

Normally, Plotz hated the Warners' antics. But in this case, he made an exception. He spoke to the Warner Brothers and Warner Sister Dot and told them to get the guy to leave. The Warners were experts at making someone want to be as far away from the immediate area as possible.

The task was simple enough. The Warners accepted. How could they pass it off? It was one of the very few times where they could act as they want and would be rewarded for it. So they went up to the guy and pulled off their usual stunts.

The man responded in a manner that didn't suprise them. He grabbed them by their scruffs and threw them aside. He outright threatened their lives if they ever stepped near him again. Of course, the trio didn't take that laying down. Thinking the man was just another grumpy person who was all bark and no bite, they made him their 'Special Friend' and tormented him more.

The last thing they did that finally sent him away is they tricked him into going to Antarctica. When the man said that he wanted his studios back, the Warners laughed it off. They knew the studios weren't really his. As a joke, they told him there was a new studio headquarters being opened up and gave him the address. The man, falling for it, immediately left.

They thought they would never see him again. Yakko should have known something was up when he saw him again on the street. There was no way he could have gotten back to the Warner studios that fast without help. And the only people on Antarctica didn't have any mode of flight transportation nearby. The Warners thought that the man would be stuck with the expedition group for at least a few months.

Oh how wrong they were. The man's mysterious appearance back here only adds to the confirmation of him being a...something that wasn't human. The glow, the telekinetic powers, how would they deal with someone like this? This wasn't a skit. This wasn't acting; it was real.

Yakko hated to admit it. But he had no idea what he was going to do. He didn't know how he was going to get out of this mess.

"Hey, what is everyone looking at?" A voice asked.

The group startled and looked at the source of the voice. Waving back at thim was Pinky.

"Pinky!" Brain exclaimed. "Why are you here? Shouldn't you be back home?"

"Yeah." Pinky laughed. "But I got lonely. Narf!" The tall mouse went over to the group and looked at the paper. "So what is everyone doing? Playing crossword? Oh I wanna play! I wanna play!"

Brain growled and pulled Pinky from the newspaper. "This is no game! We found the culprit!"

"Oh really? Where?" Pinky looked around.

Brain pointed at the paper. Pinky looked down. "Pinky, are you pondering what I'm pondering?"

"I think so Brain." Pinky scratched his head thoughtfully. "But how can a newspaper beat the crap out of Yakko?"

Brain's ears lowered. "Pinky, how you are still alive amazes me..."

"So what are we waiting for?" Slappy slammed her fist into her palm. "Let's go crack some nuts!"

"Zit's not that zimple." Scratchensniff said. "We cannot get a location of zis guy. And if he iz really a..ghost...it's going to be much harder to track him down." He looked at each of the Animaniacs standing with him. "Doez anyone here know how to deal with ghosts?" When no one answered, he sighed. "I didn't zink zo..."

Pinky walked onto the newspaper. He stared down at the man's picture. Unlike the others, his had no name. He put his hand under his chin and stared at the picture thoughtfully. With one eye, he focused. Something about this man seemed familiar.

Then it hit him. With a loud 'ah hah' and a snap of his fingers, Pinky figured it out.

"I know who this guy is!" Pinky exclaimed.

"You do?!" Yakko asked. He scooped Pink up in a hand and held him close. "Who is it?! Tell me!"

Pinky was a little nervous thanks to Yakko's yelling. He stumbled over his words. "Well...I...um..." Yakko squeezed him in his hand. "Zoink! What did you do that for?"

Yakko sighed and loosened his grip. "I'm sorry, Pinky. I just...can you please tell us who this guy is? Please? He's been hunting me down ever since..."

Pinky nodded his head. "Oh all right then!" He looked at the picture again and pondered for a few more seconds. "Ah yes, I remember now. That is the same guy who tried to take over the Warner studios but was shut down."

Brain blinked and he looked down at the picture. Realization washed across his face. "By jove, you're right Pinky!"

"What are you talking about?" Dot asked.

Scratchensniff answered this question. "Zis man, we never learned of hiz name, but he wanted to buy zee studios. He had planned on getting rid of all the toons and make this a strict live action movie company."

"Yes, but when he was booted out, he swore he would be back." Brain continued. "And come back he did, where he pestered everyone until you three," He eyed the Warner siblings, "drove him off."

"And now he's back and he's taking his frustration out on me." Yakko couldn't help but shake his head. "How mature."

Dot and Wakko looked at their brother as he said this. If they didn't know better, they'd think he'd gotten over his fear already. But they knew that would be too good to be true. There was a slight shiver to his voice. He was putting on a brave face for everyone. They understood he was being strong for them. They just wished he'd understand that he doesn't always have to take the mantle as the 'responsible one'.

"We need to decide what we must do." Brain said.

"Agreed." Scratchensniff said. "Clearly zis man...whatever he iz, he won't stop at Yakko." He looked at the other toons present. "You're all in danger too."

Yakko's eyes widened. He didn't want to think of what this guy would do to his brother and sister after he was gone. He'd be completely helpless to stop him if he were gone. "Then what are we waiting for? Let's get to planning everyone!"

Deciding what to do next would be hard. They all knew that. Organizing a search party might not be possible. Plotz, under pressure from the authorities, had to forbid any 'vigilante group' from 'tampering with evidence.' He ordered the toons to return back home. The only ones resistant to do their own thing were Slappy, Skippy, Pinky, and Brain. Scratchensniff joined because he also wanted to help. And of course, Wakko and Dot wanted to help too. Yakko was their brother after all.

They knew they had to go about this carefully. They couldn't do anything to tip off the authorities. They had to make it as casual as possible. The sooner they confronted this guy, the better. They agreed they needed a way to trick him into revealing himself to the authorities, that way it looked like the Animaniacs played no part in it.

As they huddled around, discussing what to do, they weren't aware that they were being watched.

sss

"I'm telling you for the last time, I don't know where this guy lives." Yakko said for what he thought was the eleventh time. Turning away from his curious siblings, he went into the kitchen to grab a glass of milk.

Dot and Wakko, however, weren't convinced.

"Yakko, I know thinking of the place scares you so much..." Dot said.

"But you have to tell us where this place is." Wakko continued.

Yakko slammed the milk carton on the table. White droplets spilled over. "I told you I don't know!" He cringed back at the sound of his own voice. He looked at his siblings. Their expressions made him feel awful. "A-a-ah...I'm sorry you guys."

"We're sorry too." Wakko said, lowering his head.

"We were being a little too hard on you. We should have believed you when you said you didnt know." Dot rubbed her arm. "I guess we were just..so determined to fix this that we...I...we are sorry."

Yakko smiled at them. "It's okay, you too. I understand why you did what you did." He walked up to them and lowered himself to their level. "You're just trying to protect me. I appreciate that. Really." He pulled the two into a tight hug. "I love you guys."

"We love you too." Dot whispered as she and Wakko returned the hug.

As they pulled away, Yakko continued to stare at them. His smile soon faded into a serious frown. He took in a deep breath. "And...well...you two are right. I...I do remember some stuff." Dot and Wakko looked at him expectantly. "I must have been knocked out. I don't know where the building was...but I remember what it looked like. I wish I didn't."

Seeing her brother flinch at the memory, Dot wrapped her arms around his arm and pulled him close. "We are here for you, Yakko. You can do this. You're the bravest guy I know!"

Yakko smiled at her. "Thanks sis."

Wakko grabbed onto his other arm. "You can talk to us. It won't be so painful because we will be here to support you all the way, bro."

"Aww thanks." Yakko nuzzled Wakko on the cheek. "That...really means a lot." A tear formed in his eye, and the siblings knew it wasn't from sadness.

Encouraged by his siblings' words, Yakko explained to them where he was taken to. He did his best not to leave out any details. It was hard to talk about. Just thinking about it made him feel like he was experiencing it all over again. A few times he stopped, but he was encouraged to continue by a gentle nudge from his siblings.

He told them his best guess was it was a warehouse of some kind, but that it didn't look very familiar. He deduced it was a good ways from the studios. It was unlikely this man, er, ghost, would be stupid enough to take Yakko somewhere close by to torture him.

He recalled the warehouse was made of strong material. The walls were thick and sound proof. His screams echoed off the walls. He remembered the ghost's taunts that no one would ever hear him, no matter how loud he screamed. Yakko shivered at the memory. He had never felt so helpless in his life.

The most vivid thing he could remember was a platform of some kind, attached to what he thought was a small mechanical crane. He was tied flat against its surface and elevated above the ground. The warehouse had a lot of rope; some of it was used to tie his mouth shut.

"He...he muzzled you?" Wakko whined. "That's awful..."

Yakko nodded his head slowly. "He made it so tight..."

"Yakko..." Dot tapped a finger against her cheek. "Do you remember anything particular about this rope? What was it made of?"

Yakko folded his arms. "Well it was strong, and hard. Like metal, but not."

"Nylon?" Dot asked.

Yakko said, "Yeah, I think it was nylon."

Wakko looked at Yakko and Dot. "Isn't there only a few places around here that make nylon rope?"

Rubbing his chin thoughtfully, Yakko said, "You know, you are right." He pointed a finger upwards as a thought came to his mind. "We can write down a list of locations and narrow them down." He pulled out a map and laid it flat. "If we split up, it'll be less conspicuous. We can check each place that makes nylon and see if it matches my description."

"And once we find the place," Dot clenched her fists at her sides. "We can finally make that guy pay for what he did to you." Her brothers nodded in silent agreement.


	10. Stolen

Searching for the right warehouse was much harder than they thought. The downtown area where Yakko claims to have been taken had quite a few. More so than on the map, which turned out to be outdated. There were at least twenty. It didn't seem possible. How could there be so many warehouses?

They were undaunted, however. The Warners enlisted the help of the other Animaniacs brave enough to defy the authorities. They split into four groups and spread across town. The instructions were simple. They were simply to look for a warehouse that matched Yakko's description, or any that looked suspicious. They were not to make a move.

Looking at all the warehouses took a much longer time than they had anticipated. About an hour passed before the twentieth warehouse was checked.

Yakko, using a walkie talkie, listened to the descriptions provided by the other Animaniacs. To his dismay and his siblings' disappointment, not one of them matched what he said. To make matters worse, in all the warehouses Yakko, Wakko, and Dot checked, not one of them looked familiar to Yakko. There was one that looked a little familiar, but the details were all wrong.

Frustrated and back to square one, the Animaniacs regrouped in an alleyway. They used the trash cans as seats. The alleyway rarely had any visitors, so they could talk in private here, they believed.

"I don't believe it. We checked all the warehouses and not one of them was it." Yakko muttered in disbelief. All that time and effort, wasted.

"Maybe it wasn't a warehouse." Slappy suggested as she filed her nails. "We'll have to start thinking outside the box if we're gunna find dis guy."

The other Animaniacs nodded in agreement. She had a good point. Yakko may have been wrong about it being a warehouse. It had to be some place else.

"But what other building would be large enough?" Wakko inquired, holding his hands out in confusion.

"Based on Yakko's description, I know of nothing else that would fit." Dot said.

Yakko tapped a finger against his lips. Something was missing. There had to be another building type he wasn't thinking of. Something large, something that would hold a lot of stuff...

"What about a bank?" He said out of the blue. The others stared at him, blinking. "No, seriously, think about it. The man took me to some place that was sound proof. A place where no one could get into and was secure. A bank is large enough to hold all that equipment he had."

Brain was the first one to reply.

"That doesn't seem entirely plausible. There aren't any abandoned banks in the downtown area and of the banks there, they are being used. Someone would have noticed."

Yakko began to protest. "You don't believe me? Come on, it should be so obvious! The space! The security! The..." He stopped when Dot and Wakko put their hands on his shoulders.

"Let it go, Yakko." Dot said quietly. "Brain is...right. I don't think it was a bank."

"But..." Yakko couldn't argue with them. "Fine. I...I am going for a walk." He looked at his siblings. "You two stay here. I'm just going to get myself a drink. I will be back soon."

Wakko's eyes grew big. "You're going off by yourself? But..."

"Wakko, I'm just walking across the street to grab a soda." Yakko pointed at a store and had a slightly amused smile on his face. "It's not like I'm walking halfway across town."

With that, Yakko left his siblings with the other Animaniacs. He crossed the street and pushed open the door. The store's bell could be heard all the way across the street.

As they waited for him to come back, two people dressed in blue came up to them. They fought back a groan. It was the city police, the same ones trying to find Yakko's attacker. In an attempt to cover up what they were doing, they began to play some random game with each other. No rules, just a random playtime.

The officers stopped three feet away from the group. Their eyebrows were furrowed as they watched the toons toss a ball back and forth. With night sticks out and slamming them against the palm of their hands, they called out to the toons.

"What are you doing here?" One officer said.

"Are you the vigilantes we were warned about?" The other said.

Dot narrowed her eyes, pointed a finger up, and opened her mouth to speak. But the words that came out weren't hers; Slappy spoke for her.

"Scuse me, gents. I think you've made a mistake." Slappy said as she walked up to the officers. "We are forming a baseball team."

One officer raised an eyebrow. "That doesn't look like baseball to me."

"It's a new technique. It's called becomin' one with da ball." Slappy slid her purse down her arms and gripped onto its handles. "Now I suggest ya get movin' before you accidentally become part of our target. My wrists ain't what dey used to be."

The officers weren't sure if they wanted to believe them. They stared at the gray squirrel. She looked so sincere. There was no indication she was lying. Then again, this was Slappy the Squirrel. She was notorious for her lies to lure her enemies into a false sense of security.

The officers decided to ask one of the other toons. They looked down Dr. Scratchensniff. He looked like a man of honesty.

"You, is what the squirrel's saying true?" An officer said, pointing a night stick at him.

Scratchensniff held out his hands to show he was harmless. "Why y-yez... She iz telling zee truth."

"Why didn't you go to a baseball field?" The second officer inquired, raising an eyebrow."

"V-Vell I..."

"Do we need a reason?" Brain said calmly as he strode over to the officers. "We're using an empty alleyway to practice. You can't say we are disturbing the public. We are following the law. And before you lecture me, yes I read this city's laws, and I seem to recall a rule that police officers aren't allowed to point their nighty night sticks at unarmed citizens."

The officers cleared their throats nervously as they put away their night sticks.

"Okay, well, I guess that's okay then. Sorry to have bothered you." The officers left.

Dot glared at them as they walked away, before turning her attention to the store. Yakko still hadn't returned. What was taking so long?

Deciding not to sit around and wait, Dot walked towards the store.

"Dot?" Wakko caught up with his sister. "Where are you going?"

"To join Yakko in the store. I don't care if he wanted us to stay behind. I am going to leave him alone."

Wakko nodded. "Then count me in."

Dot smiled.

Yakko knew he would regret coming into the store alone. He should have brought one of his sibs with him. He shoud not have gone alone.

There was nothing wrong with the store itself. But the security cams put him at unease. They almost seemed to be following him. Watching his every move...well they were security cams. That's what they did. Yakko never let it bother him before. Heck, he'd even make faces at the cameras once in a while in other stores.

So what was so different about this one?

Yakko couldn't shake the feeling that someone was following him close behind. He'd look over his shoulder and nobody would be there. He didn't know if that was a good thing or a bad thing. He felt scared everytime he felt a cold chill run up and down his spine. He felt his fur bristle slightly a few times involuntarily.

All he was doing was coming in to grab a soda. Yet it felt like it was taking a long time just getting there. The store seemed to be getting larger. His mind was playing tricks on him, he knew. He must be scared of that man. Yeah that was it. He was just thinking he was seeing things. He took in a few breaths, telling him everything was going to be all right.

He found his way into the cold area where they kept the drinks. He used his pointer finger to move through the drinks until he found his favorite soda. He rolled the bottle in his hands to check the price tag.

Then he saw something out of the corner of his eyes. He felt a sudden chill freeze him. He turned around and almost screamed at what he saw.

"Y-You..."

The man from before stood behind him. No, rather floated. A gold aura surrounded him and he stared at Yakko with blazing yellow eyes. He pointed a finger at Yakko. Almost instantly, the eldest Warner clutched his chest in pain and felt himself being lifted off the ground.

The man suddenly recoiled when he cried out in pain. Yakko fell to the ground in a loud thud. Shaking his head, he looked over at what made the man stop.

He couldn't believe it. Not only did Pinky hitch a ride on him without him noticing, but he had jumped at the man and sank his teeth into his ankle. No matter how hard the man shook his leg, Pinky refused to let go.

"You leave my friend alone!" Pinky cried as he ran up the man's leg and bit down onto his ear. He drew blood.

"You foul little vermin...Let go!"

Pinky screamed as his body was surrounded in gold and he was thrust across the store. The small white mouse hit an aisle full of cans. The cans covered him up as a little dust was kicked up into the air. Yakko cried in horror as he swore he heard a sickening crack.

The man turned his eyes onto Yakko. "Now where was I...? Oh yes!" He curled his fingers and Yakko let out another scream. With the boy being pulled closer to him, the man said, "You and I have unfinished business to take care of."

Yakko squirmed against his grip. "Wh-Why m-me?"

The man's eyes almost sparkled. "Because, my dear boy, you..."

He was interrupted when the store's doors slammed open. Footsteps could be heard. Wakko and Dot's voices sounded out, causing the man to flinch. He looked down at the tall dog-like boy, who in turn looked at him with an expression of triumpth. The man gritted his teeth. He wasn't going to let him get away this time.

As Dot whirled around the corner, her eyes shot open big. "Yakko!"

Wakko stopped close behind her. "What are you doing to our brother?!" He whipped out his mallet, preparing to strike.

The man laughed at the bristling siblings. He pressed the telekinetically subdued Yakko against his body. He used one hand to grab his mouth to silence him. The other, he pointed at the siblings. It was amusing to him how they stood there in defiance even though he clearly had the upper hand.

"Take one step towards me, little furball," The man began to twist Yakko's neck painfully, "And your brother will enter the big sleep."

Wakko and Dot stood there horrified.

Happy that they were keeping put for their brother's sake, the man stroked the top of Yakko's head. Yakko had stopped struggling. He looked very tired. But his eyes still held courage. He glared up at the man, his black eyes almost shining in the already brightly lit building. He opened his mouth and attempted to bite the man.

The man pulled his hand back, laughing coldly. "I see we are going to play that game...then so be it!"

With that, he grabbed Yakko by his neck. He cruelly pressed his fingers into his neck and sent a shockwave of energy through him. Yakko screamed in agony, his eyes bulging from their sockets. He soon fell limp in the man's arms, supported by an arm slung over his stomach.

"Yakko, no!" Dot cried, holding out her arm to him. "Let him go! Please!"

The man looked towards the ceiling thoughtfully. "Hmm let me think about that..no!"

Even though it was not lady-like, Dot dropped down on all fours and jumped at the man. She tried to bite him, but felt herself being caught in the man's telekineses powers. She was dragged towards him and was held a foot in front of him.

"You want to come with your brother?" The man pressed his finger under her chin. "Okay then, join the party!"

Wakko was thrown back by a strong force. His back slammed against the aisle. Boxes of food fell on top of him. He watched in utter horror as a dark cloud swirled around the man and he began to sink into the floor. He ran over, tripping over the boxes in the process.

"No! Yakko! Dot!"

By the time he got there, it was too late. He slammed against the cold floor just as the man disappeared with his siblings. He stood there, trembling in fear at what just happened. Tears streamed down his face.

"No..it's not possible...no..."

Wakko didn't notice the store clerk running over to him to see what had happened. All Wakko's mind was focused on was the loss of his siblings. Ears lowered as far as they could go, he pulled his head back and let out a wail.

"No!"


	11. Hostage

Blackness...

That's all there was, for a time.

Blackness, and silence.

Then a blinding light filled the area, illuminating it. Yakko's eyes shut tightly, trying to handle the intense light.

He screamed, and woke up.

He panted heavily. It took him a few minutes to calm down. He felt his heart beating against his chest. His head felt whoozy. Just what had happened? The last thing he could remember was grabbing some soda, then everything after that was a blur.

He took the time to look around the room. Whatever feeling of relief he had before washed away like a waterfall. He shook his head in disbelief. He couldn't be back here, could he? It must all be some kind of horrible dream. He had a nightmare about this. Yes, it was just a nightmare.

He was in the same building as before. Everything about it looked the same. Except this tme, he could make out a small sign. The top word was crossed out with black marker, but underneath it, he could see the word 'BANK' on it.

So he had been right. No time to boast about that now, he thought. He tried to get up, only to find his arms and legs were bound. No, they were shackled against the flat platform this time, as if his kidnapper was worried he would escape.

He saw movement in the corner of his eye. The swirling mass of blackness moved about in front of him. It twirled around him menacingly, opening up a 'mouth' with sharp points and giving a fake roar before moving away from him. Yakko watched as the 'pool' rose from the ground to form a figure.

Yakko narrowed his eyes. "Well ain't this a surprise. Mr. Wizard."

The man smirked back at him. "My name is Duu."

Despite his predicament, Yakko couldn't help but giggle. "Duu? As in Doo-Doo? I think you outta invest in some diapers, Doo-Doo!"

Yakko's amusement was cut short when he felt the hand grip his throat. The fingers tightened around his neck and squeezed hard. Yakko gacked and struggled to breathe. Duu held his hand there until Yakko nearly passed out from lack of oxygen.

Moving away and turning his back to him, Duu said, "I think you and I both know I intend to finish you off this time." His hands were folded behind his back. He gave Yakko a sideways glance. "Do you understand this, Yakko?"

Yakko almost made a witty retort, but stopped himself after reminding himself of his situation. "It doesn't surprise me at all."

Duu smiled. He drew closer to the boy. Yakko tried to be brave. He tried not to show the satisfation of fear to this man, or thing, or whatever he was. He felt his back pressing againt the board even harder than before. Despite trying to control himself, his breathing and heart rate quickened.

Duu absolutely enjoyed this. He could smell the fear radiating off the boy. He wasn't fooling anyone. He reached down and played with one of Yakko's ears. Yakko growled softly, clearly not enjoying this.

"You and I are more alike than you know." Duu said casually.

Yakko's response to this was pulling his lips back and snarling at Duu. "We are nothing alike..." He said in a soft hiss under his breath.

"Of course you would say that. You are blissfully unaware of the truth." Duu said. He gave a sharp yank on Yakko's ear, causing a cry of pain to emit from his mouth. "Tell me, do you have any idea why I chose you?"

Yakko hissed in pain as his ear was finally let go. "What are you talking about?"

"I mean, how come, out of you three, I chose to hunt you down specifically?" Duu asked with a knowing smile.

Come to think of it, Yakko had no idea why he was the only one targeted. He initially thought it was just bad luck. He had just been in the wrong place at the wrong time. But from the way Duu was talking, there was another reason. One he couldn't place his finger on.

Not knowing why was scaring him. Did Duu have more sinister plans than he had known? Was he not going to stop at killing him? What was he going to do to his siblings? These thoughts raced through his mind like a hurricane.

Yakko couldn't make himself talk. He slowly shook his head.

"I thought not." Duu grinned, showing off his slightly pointed teeth.

He moved away from Yakko towards the back of the large room. Yakko could hear the rustling and clanks of stuff being moved around, shuffled, and dropped on the ground. Yakko could feel his heart starting to race when the man approached him with what looked like a large suitcase. Yakko's imagination started to get the best of him as he imagined what was inside.

Duu opened up the briefcase. Yakko flinched and looked away, expecting something poisonous to shoot out of it. When nothing happened, he opened up one wary eye. He was surprised. Inside the briefcase was just a stack of paperwork.

"Just looks like a bunch of papers to me." Yakko raised an eyebrow. "What does this have to do with me?"

"Everything." Duu grinned as he picked up the papers. He thumbed through it until he got to a certain page. "According to this, the Warner Movie Studios belong to the Warner Brothers..er...siblings I should say."

Yakko raised an eyebrow. "Are you sure about that? Because I am certain someone else owned the studios before me and my sibs were even created."

Duu looked at him with gleaming eyes. "Ah, so you don't know your own little secret. Well here's a little shocker for ya. The Warner Studios are yours. Not anyone else's; yours." Yakko gasped at this revelation. "And you are my ticket in gaining control of the studios."

Yakko hissed at him, his fur standing on end. "Why do you want control of this particular studios? Why can't you go find another one? Don't you have something better to do, ya two-bit ghost?!"

Duu struck him across the face for that comment. Yakko stared at him with wide eyes. "I am no ghost. I am merely...borrowing this corpse of a body."

Ignoring the stinging on his cheek, Yakko said, "Whaddya talking about?"

"I was not joking when I said you and I are alike." Duu said. He put the book on the ground. He went over to a couple of levers off to the side. "I have my own reasons for wanting control of your precious studio, Yakko. As the oldest, ownership goes to you. And you...are going to transfer it to me."

Yakko bared his teeth. "What makes you think I'd give the Warner Studios to a whack job like yourself?!"

"Because, dear little boy..." Duu pulled a lever. The sound of chains clanging could be heard. "I anticipated you being resistant, so I brought a little...motivation..."

Yakko's eyes filled with horror. He couldn't believe what he was seeing. There, hanging from the tall ceiling, was a small cage. Laying inside was the unconscious form of Dot, looking a little battered and bruised. Seeing his sister like this caused rage to fill Yakko's mind.

He stared daggers at Duu. He spoke with a restrained voice, teeth clenched tightly. "What did you do to her?!"

"She was most resistant, so I had to teach her a lesson. I...oh my look at me drawling like some generic villain." Duu paused for a moment at that statement. He shrugged it off. He moved his hand to the next lever. "This lever, if I pull it, will drop her down there."

Yakko could see there was some kind of vat positioned just underneat Dot. The substance was green in color and almost seemed to glow. He had never seen anything like it before. The stuff had a slimy consistancy and bubbled a few times like it was boiling, but no steam was rising out of it. The stuff gave off a weird small that he could not describe.

Although he never seen this stuff before, the sight of it caused him to bristle up instinctively. Something about it was giving him the heeby jeebies. Something just was not right about it. The sense of foreboding clung to him tightly and he could not let go.

"What is that stuff?" That was all he could manage to say before he lost his voice to fear. Fear of the unknown.

Duu was almost too happy to reply. "Like it? It's my own special brand...by special meaning I stole it." He moved his hand over to gesture towards the vat. "That, there, will be your grave." Yakko's ears folded back in response. "This substance has no true name. But I like to call it Thinner."

"Does it need to lose weight?" Yakko quipped. He cried out in pain when he was struck again.

"That sting you felt when I struck you is nothing compared to Thinner." Duu said in a low voice. "It is designed with the best paint thinners. It will eat away at your body until there is nothing left." The eldest Warner widened his eyes at that. "And your dear little sister will be one of its first victims I get to test it on."

"No!"

"No?"

"You can't do this!"

Duu was unfazed by the death glares he was getting from the conscious Warner. He simply waved a dismissing hand at him. "I had a feeling you'd be this way. Perhaps if I shake the cage a little...Hmm do you think she will fall?"

Yakko screamed in horror as the cage began to wobble. The bars were wide enough for Dot to squeeze through. The only thing that would keep her in was the Thinner below her. And as the cage tilted more and more, she began to slide closer to the edge. In her unconscious state, Yakko knew she couldn't hope to save herself. Tears streamed down his face as he realized the lengths Duu was willing to go to get what he wanted.

"Please let her go." Yakko whimpered. "What did..what did she ever do to you?"

"I'll let her go..." Duu said slowly. Then he moved quickly towards Yakko and grabbed him by the shoulders. "If you give your life up in the process!"

"C-Can't I just transfer ownership to..."

"No!" Duu growled. "The contract is perfectly clear! You are the owner of the Warner Studios until the day you die!"

"What's the point of striking a deal with me if you are just going to kill me?" Yakko said, his voice trembling in fear. He looked away.

Duu moved his hand towards Yakko's chin. He twisted it to force the boy's eyes upon him. "You have two choices, my boy. Either you relinquish ownership and accept death with dignity...or..." He pointed to Dot behind him. "You AND your sister will die, and I will be sure your little brother gets the same fate."

Yakko spoke in a trembling voice. "You..you wouldn't dare...you..."

"It's up to you. Would you rather you die and your siblings live, or do you want to die with them together?" Duu asked, staring coldy into the Warner's eyes.

Yakko couldn't believe this was happening. How could anyone be this cruel? What was this man? Why was he doing all this? Why was the control of the Warner Studios in particular that important? He tried to come up with a reason, but nothing made sense to him.

Tears traveled down his face. He couldn't see any way out of this. His usual methods wouldn't work here. The clamps squeezed his wrists and ankles tight, nearly cutting off bloodflow.

He felt so stupid for going in alone. He should have went with someone. No, he should have gone home. If he had just gone back to the water tower, none of this would have happened. It was his fault Dot was in danger. It would be on his head if something happened to her.

"Wh-Why...?" He said in a croaked voice. "Why are you doing this? Why?"

"Perhaps it's time to show you what I really am."

Yakko looked over in curiosity as the man approached him. Duu stopped a foot in front of him and held up a hand. He moved another hand towards it and pinched the tip of his pointer finger. Yakko sniffled and looked at the hand, confused. Then, Duu began to pull back. Much to the Warner's shock, the skin started to move upwards.

In seconds, the hand was off and was dropped to the floor, making a sound consistant of that with a heavy rubber glove. The man's real hand was on display before him. What Yakko saw made him do a double take.

"Wh-What...you're...you're a..."

Duu smiled evilly in response. "That's right..."

He moved in closer. He pressed a hand against Yakko's cheek almost too gently. Yakko just whimpered in response. His eyes held a look of disbelief.

"I am one of you."


	12. Encouragement

Wakko sat down on the aisle floor. He stared blankly at where his siblings had sunken into. He kept looking, half expecting them to come back out. He barely registered the store clerk next to him, trying to shake him back to reality.

"Hey, kid? Are you okay?" The store clerk said worriedly. "What the heck happened here?"

No matter how hard he shook him, Wakko wasn't moving, wasn't talking. His breathing came in sharp and rigid. It sounded like his whole body was frozen and his brain had to force him to take breaths. He looked traumatized to the point where his body just couldn't shake anymore. It didn't have the energy to.

The doors swung open. Wakko's ears made a slight twitch at familiar voices. Still, he did not move. Not even when Slappy picked him up into her arms, held her out in front of him, and shook him hard.

"Kiddo! Snap out of it!" Slappy yelled at him.

Scratchensniff looked around. He noticed the mess that laid strewn on the floor. "Did Yakko do this?" It didn't seem like too farfetched of an idea. He might have just gotten into one of his crazy routines, though a part of him felt that was unlikely due to him usually causing mayhem with his siblings.

"N-No..." Wakko's voice finally spoke.

"Finally." Slappy set him down. "Tell us what happened."

"Th-The m-man..." Wakko forced himself to speak. He paused for several seconds. "H-He took them..."

"Took who?" Skippy, who had been uncharacteristically silent until this point, asked.

Wakko's eyes slowly closed. "Yakko and Dot..."

As he said this, there was a low groan coming from a couple aisles down. Brain's ears perked at this. The voice, it sounded so familiar. But it couldn't be, could it? No, he wouldn't be stupid enough to...

Brain, on instinct, darted towards the voice. The other Animaniacs followed, with Slappy holding onto Wakko. When they reached a third aisle down, they suddenly stopped in their tracks. Brain stared in shock at the scene that laid before him.

On the ground was Pinky. His body was partially buried under soup cans. There was a small pool of blood encircling one of his legs. His body, other than a few twitches, was completely still. The leg with the blood around it looked twisted far behind its normal position. Just looking at it, everyone knew what it meant.

Eyes enlarging, Brain yelled, "Pinky!"

He rushed to Pinky's side. He tried to move the cans himself, but he was too small. Before Brain could call for help, Skippy came over and began to move the cans himself. After Skippy removed the cans, Pinky's voice let out a few whimpers as the weight of the cans came off his body. His voice let out a shuddered scream as the can from his leg was taken care of.

After the cans were removed, Brain helped Pinky up into a sitting position. He gently pressed his back to the wall. Slowly, Pinky's eyes opened up. He stared almost blankly at Brain. His trademark smile was replaced with a confused and frightened expression.

"Brain, why do I feel like I was just run over by a truck?" Pinky said in a raspy voice.

The sound of Pinky's voice worried Brain. It just didn't sound like him. He looked down at Pinky's leg. Ever so carefully, he felt down the other mouse's leg, trying to determine the extent of the damage. As soon as he touched the bent point of Pinky's leg, the other mouse let out a painful squeal.

Brain immediately removed his hand. "I'm sorry, Pinky." He stood up and backed on foot away from him. He turned over and looked up at Scratchensniff. "We'll have to take him to the hospital to fix that leg."

Scratchensniff nodded in agreement. "Right." He lowered his hand towards the mice. "Hop on."

Brain pulled Pinky's arm over his shoulder and helped him support his weight. He moved slowly over to the human's hand. The process was slow and painful. Pinky winced everytime he took a step. He was unable to avoid his battered leg touching the ground with each step.

Once the mice were in his hands, Dr. Scratchensniff lifted them off the ground. He looked down at Wakko. "Vhat happened to him?"

Wakko slowly looked up at the man. He regained some strength to speak, but it still sounded forced. "He...he tried to save them. He tried to stop the madman. But the madman..." Wakko bit his lip tightly and nearly drew blood. "He was struck down."

Brain's eyes practically glinted at this comment. "If I were to succeed in taking over the world, he will be the first 'problem' I will take care of..."

Scratchensniff didn't say a word. He looked down sympathetically at Wakko. He placed a hand on his shoulder. "It waz not your fault."

Wakko blinked at the doctor. "How did you know?"

Scratchensniff smiled. "Iz my profession. You did your bezt, Wakko. No one can accuse you of not trying."

Wakko sighed and looked tiredly at the hand. He pushed it away and walked away from the psychiatrist. "But I was right here...I was right here! I could have done something, anything!"

"I am sure you did, Wakko." Scratchensniff said. He looked down at the mice and realized he had to get going. He looked back at the small boy. "Pleaze don't be hard on yourself."

Wakko looked over his shoulder and watched as Scratchensniff walked out of the store. He slumped onto the ground, at a loss of what to do. What could he do? He didn't know where to start. He wasn't like Yakko. He wasn't as knowledgable about different subject. He wasn't a mastermind. All he was really good at was whacking things with a mallet and eating a lot of junk.

How was that going to help him here? It wasn't. He wished Yakko were here to give him advice. Yakko would have a better idea of what to do. He wanted to wish so badly for him to come back, but he knew that never worked in real life. He felt so lost and confused and guilt-ridden. He felt he could have done more to save his siblings.

Slappy walked up to him. She stood next to him and kept silent for a moment. She said, "I know it's tough. But you gotta pull yourself together." She saw the tears that started to form in Wakko's eyes. "What's with the waterworks? There's still a ch..."

Wakko grabbed her by the shoulders and shook her. "What if I'm not good enough?! What if I'm too late?! What if they are killed?!"

Skippy stared at this in shock. No one had ever yelled at his aunt like that. Not without getting a smack in the face. His aunt didn't strike Wakko; she just stood there and had let him snap at her.

Slappy would normally get physical if someone acted like this towards her. She couldn't bring herself to do anything Wakko. He didn't deserve it. It wasn't her he was mad at. He was angry he, in his eyes, failed his siblings. When the crying Warner stopped yelling and just stood here, breaking down, Slappy put her arm around him.

"There, there. I ain't the comforting type, bucko, because we can sit here all day, telling each other nice things, but it won't change a thing." Slappy said. She gripped Wakko's chin and looked at him in the eyes. "If I knows anything about ya Warners, is that you are persistant and never give up on a goal. Are you going to break that tradition?"

Wakko rubbed his eyes. "But I..."

"No buts!" Slappy firmly said. "No more thinkin' about what you could have done. Do you think I spend every waking morning of my life wonderin' how things would have been if I didn't do a certain thing?" She paused. Wakko opened his mouth to speak. She cut him off. "No, I don't. I don't because if I spend too much time feeling guilty, I lose sight on what I should be focusing on. The present."

"I..."

Slappy wasn't done yet. "If I lose sight of the present, I lose sight of my nephew. His needs outweigh any trivial guilt I might feel. I can and do regret, but I don't dwell on them because I can't change them. If you stand around here, beating yourself up, then your siblings will never be saved."

Wakko's mouth dropped open at that statement. He hadn't thought of that before. Slappy was right. He couldn't just stand around doing nothing. He couldn't keep beating himself up. His sibs needed him, and he had to find a way to get to them.

Without thinking too much, he wrapped his arms around Slappy. "Thank you..."

Slappy was taken aback a little by the hug. "Hey, hey, hey! Easy!" She pushed Wakko off of her. "Enough with the waterworks. I told ya I am not the comforting type!"

"You did a great job of it though, auntie!" Skippy chimed in.

"Yeah, yeah." Slappy replied. She looked at Wakko. "So, what's the plan there, chief?"

Wakko was silent for a few moments. He began to think of the next course of action. He thought back to what the guy had said, what Yakko had told him. He tried to make sense of all the events that had happened. There had to be a connection or something that could help him.

A thought crossed his mind. Of course! Why didn't he think of it before? But first, he'd need to pay a visit somewhere. If his hunches were confirmed...

"Come with me!"

sss

Yakko stared, eyes widened, at the uncovered hand. Instead of a human hand like he had been expecting, it was instead a black in color, as pitch dark as his own fur. He could see a few strands of fur on the hand, and his mind quickly came to the conclusion.

This guy, Duu, was a toon just like him.

Why would he be doing this? Yakko could hardly think of a toon that was this hostile, this deranged, this maniacal. Any toon that came to mind was just an actor. In fact, many toon villains were often quite nice off set.

This was no acting. Yakko knew no toon would ever do something like this, if it weren't the real deal. His eyes wondered up to Dot, who was still out cold. The cage had been placed back to its original orientation. He winced at the thought of how that orientation could change at any moment.

He was the oldest sibling. He was responsible. He had always taken care of Wakko and Dot. And now here he was, tied up, unable to do anything. He never felt so helpless in his life.

He turned his eyes back to Duu. His yellow eyes gleamed at him. For the first time, he noticed how the human 'skin' seemed to move around unnaturally, like it didn't belong there. He subconsciously wondered if this was part of the reason he had been afraid when the man got too close. Maybe he had sensed, even back then, that something was seriously wrong with this guy.

Yakko, still staring at Duu, said, "How could you turn against your own kind?"

Duu grinned. "I'm not. I have bigger, better plans for my fellow toons." He walked back over to the levers. He gestured up to Dot once more. Yakko swallowed in fearful anticipation. "Thinner is just used as a...motivator. It sends a message."

"Which would be?"

Duu smirked. "Follow me and live. Defy me and die."

Yakko's fur bristled. "You're sick...!"

"Call me what you will." Duu said. He leaned against the control panel, careful not to touch any buttons or levers. He folded his arms across his chest and gave an arrogant smile at the bound Warner. "I'm not the one who is immobilized."

"Release me and I'll show you..." Yakko started to say before his muzzle glowed and was shut tightly.

"I tire of you talking." Duu said, doing a mock yawn. "I won't try to convince you I am doing this for the best of toons. I'm sure you'll disagree with me the whole way, am I right?" Seeing Yakko's eyes brimming with hatred, Duu smirked. "I thought so." He glanced over at Dot. "Since you've been uncooperative..."

He reached for the lever. Yakko's struggles became frantic. Duu thought for a moment, and then pulled away. Yakko stared at him, confused.

"No..not yet." He turned to Yakko. "Perhaps I should tell you something first..."


	13. Truth

Wakko didn't bother knocking the door as he burst through the administration's building and darted to Plotz's room. He came in so fast that the man leaned back in his chair, expecting the little guy to crash into him.

Wakko didn't show much restraint as he lunged at Plotz. If Plotz didn't know him, he would think Wakko was trying to attack him. He grunted as he felt the pressure of the cat...dog...thing gripping onto him. He was almost impressed with how strong he was.

"What has gotten you all worked up, Wakko?" Plotz asked him. The tone in his voice suggested he was annoyed, which wasn't surprising. He always hated unexpected visitors. "I'm really busy right now. I just got off the phone with the police and they still haven't found any solid evidence!"

Wakko said, "Plotz, I..."

Plotz, with Wakko still pretty much attached to him, struck the paperwork on his desk down. Papers flew everywhere. "Lousy, incompetant...!"

A second later, Slappy and Skippy came walking in.

"Plotz, sir, Wakko has something to tell yas." Slappy said as she pointed at the little black furball clinging to the short man's body. "I think youse wanna hear it."

Plotz became fully aware of Wakko hanging onto him. He felt a little sheepish. He had gotten so worked up that he forgot the boy was hanging onto him, calling out his name to get his attention. He gripped the boy under his arms and set him onto the ground.

He cleared his throat before he spoke. "Sorry..what were you saying, Wakko?"

"I think I know where Yakko and Dot are!"

Plotz smiled. "That's great...wait...what happened...?"

Wakko realized he may have just made a mistake. Plotz didn't know Yakko or Dot were taken. He remembered the man's words about avoiding the search. He could try to twist his words, but Plotz might not be so easily fooled about stuff like this.

Wakko fumbled with his hat in his hands. "Yeah..you see, earlier today we...kinda were looking for the place Yakko was taken to...and..."

"And as a result, Yakko and Dot were kidnapped by this madman." Plotz said, his voice unnervingly calm. Wakko gave a nod. A slight red tone covered the man's face. "Didn't I tell you toons not to get involved?! And now, because of your foolishness, not one, but two of you have been taken! Do you have any idea what you've done?! I...!"

He immediately stopped when he saw the boy's ears droop, eyes water, and lips quiver. Plotz turned away from him and gave a deep breath. He expected Slappy to say something, but she didn't. He could just feel her harsh words talking to him through his mind.

"I'm sorry, Wakko. I've just been under a lot of pressure lately." Plotz said in a calmer voice. He walked up to the child again and put a hand on his shoulder. "Now, what were you saying?"

Wakko wiped away his tears with his blue sleeve. "Well, remember when you told us about an old theatre not far from here?"

Plotz nodded. "Yes. It was condemned and was supposed to be torn down. I don't know if any of that happened. I lost interest in that property after I came here."

"Well it was rebuilt, replaced with a bank, but there's still a lower section that contains various props and such from the old theatre days." Wakko explained. "Well from what Yakko explained, it didn't make a lot of sense to me at first. We all thought it was a warehouse he was taken down. But maybe we got it wrong. If there's any place this villain could go without suspicion, what better place than one that, for all purposes, does not exist anymore?"

Plotz scratched his chin. He hadn't thought about that place before. It would make sense. The theatre was huge back in the day. The new building that replaced it is likely much larger, big enough to house the old theatre. Given the technology today, that wouldn't be so hard a feat.

Yes, yes, that had to be it. Plotz had to give the boy credit. He isn't just a bottomless pit with legs. He did have some impressive intelligence inside that head. Now if only he'd use that to behave more instead of goofing off...oh why was he focused on that now? Right now, he had to focus on getting Yakko and Dot back.

"Wakko, you stay here with Slappy. I'm going down to the police station and tell them directly about this new tip. Stay here until I get back. That's an order." Plotz got out of his seat and walked towards the exit.

Wakko jumped in front of him. He pleaded, "Oh please take me with you! They're my siblings!"

"No!" Plotz was firm in his voice. He reached under Wakko's shirt collar and grabbed him by his scruff. "I will not be having anymore hostages! Stay with Slappy!" He dropped Wakko in front of Slappy. "Make sure he doesn't leave."

"Aye aye, captain." Slappy saluted him as he walked out of the building.

Wakko looked forelorn. "But...I wanna help.."

Slappy looked down at the kid. She gave him a wink.

"What, you think I was gunna let him have all the fun?" She said with a mischevious smile.

Wakko perked up at that. "You really mean that?"

Slappy said, "Sure, sure, kiddo. Just don't let him catch yaz." She put a hand on Skippy's back. "Skippy and I will round up some back up just in case youse need it."

Wakko would have thanked her for this, but as soon as she said she was going to let him go, he was out of the door. He would get to the theatre first. He could run very fast when he had to, and Plotz would be at the police station first.

As he ran down the streets, his thoughts went to his siblings. He hoped they were okay. No, they would be okay. He knew them well. They would get through this. They always have.

Why should this be any different?

sss

With the grip on his mouth gone, Yakko let out a soft yawn. He stared as Duu grabbed a chair and set it in front of him. What was this guy's problem? It was like he was preparing some big dramatic speech or something. It was starting to feel more like he was in Plotz's office being scolded than in some unknown lair with his life on the line.

Duu adjusted the chair. A few times, he would sit down, but he wouldn't be satisfied. So he'd get up, readjust the chair, and sit back down. Just watching this was torture for Yakko in his opinion. It was like watching paint dry. No, at least paint drying was more entertaining than this.

Finally, Duu started his speech.

"You may be wondering why I am doing this. What I have planned, how this will benefit toons, etc. Well I will lay it down as simply as I can. You see, I have been watching in the shadows, and I have been appalled by what I've seen. Despite the statement of toons being treated equally, I don't see that. All I see are toons being ordered around, doing this and that, while humans live the luxurious life. Well I've had it!" Duu ranted, his voice getting more growly with each word. "I will speak for toons everywhere! I will bring forth a new era! No longer will it be humans ordering toons around, creating trivial shows, oh no. It'll be the toons calling the shots!"

Yakko couldn't believe it. Was this guy for real? Did he really believe that was the way the system worked? He must have had one messed up...childhood for a lack of a better term, to believe this garbage. Yakko had never met a toon in his life who complained about how a human was treating them.

Sure there were people like Plotz who could be bitter. But, for the most part, they were just trying to do their job. Even most of the jerks he and his sibs took care of were jerks because they just didn't like their personalities; not because they were toons.

"And you, my dear boy..." Duu leaned forward. His eyes practically glowed as he seemed to bore through Yakko's eyes. "You will be the great liberator. With your death, comes freedom for all toons! Isn't that something worth dying for?"

"That is one sick, twisted mind you have." Yakko said, grimacing. "I'll never be fine my life being thrown away for a cause that doesn't need to exist."

Duu's pupils became pinpoints. "How dare you! I thought you would have understood what I was trying to accomplish!"

"And yet you still need to kill me for your plan to work."

"Exactly!"

"Why?" Yakko asked in a slightly playful tone. "Is it because I'm more handsome than you? Is it because you don't want to be Vice President Doodoo?"

Duu fumed, his fists clenched and shaking. "No, that's not it!" He zipped towards Yakko so fast he didn't have time to react as his throat was grabbed. As he choked and thrashed, Duu whispered into his ear. "It's because I know you are too soft. You don't have the guts to dish out justice the proper way. You wouldn't do what was right. So therefore, you must die..."

He was greated by gums and teeth flashing at him. One eye was closed tightly, the other barely opened. "Y-Your way would...stink..m-more than..a sack of dirty..diapers..."

Duu let out a scream in frustration. He grabbed a pencil from his pocket. Yakko's ears instantly dropped, but his teeth remained bared. Duu lifted it up above his chest. His hand shaking with fury, he prepared to strike down.

Suddenly, he felt a weight on his back. Confused, he looked up to see who it was. Then a sharp pain in his back. He screamed and arched his back.

"Wakko!" Yakko cried.

Wakko clung onto the man's back. His teeth sank into his back. He ignored the blood he was drawing and the foil taste. The man struggled to get him off, but for a while Wakko had the upper hand. He only stopped when he felt a force grab him and yank him away. He was held up in the air just inches from the man's face.

"Let my brother and sister go, you monster!" Wakko said as he struck forward, only to find his hand swiping through air. "Hold still!"

"My my, what a little firecracker you are." Duu said, amused. "Whatever shall I do with you?"

When Duu got close enough, Wakko took the chance. He pulled out his mallet and struck the man in the face as hard as he could. This caused Duu's grip on him to cease. Wakko fell to the ground in a thud and rushed over to Yakko. He fumbled with the locks, trying to unlock them.

"Wakko..." Yakko's voice came in, softly and shakingly.

Wakko looked behind him. His eyes widened in shock.

The blow did not just hurt Duu. It cracked the skin. There was black light shining through these newly formed cracks. Wakko stammered as he stared. What was going on here?

Duu removed his hands from his face, revealing the full extend of the damage. It was like looking at a shattered mirror. The cracks were circular, starting with the center and radiating out. He was groaning in pain at first, only for laughter to quickly replace it.

The black light, spreading throughout his body, glowed more and more intensely. As this happened, Duu reached up towards his face. He reached the back of his head and gripped onto something. There was then a sound that Wakko thought would never be heard on a human being.

A click.

"I guess the jig is up for you, Wakko." Duu said maniacally. "Wanna see what I really am?"

Without waiting for an answer, he began to pull his own skin off, starting with his head. There were sickening cracks and breaks. Wakko and Yakko could barely watch as the man took off his disguise. The pieces were dropped on the floor with a sickening grunch. Wakko wanted to throw up. Yakko felt the same way.

As the last piece of 'skin' fell to the ground and that horror show over, the two brothers were left staring at something they least expected.

"B-But..what..." They were at a loss of words.

Standing before them was another toon. This didn't surprise Yakko. What did shock him was just what kind of toon this guy turned out to be.

"You're...the same species as us..." Wakko breathed under his breath.

Indeed, Duu was the same species. Unlike them, he wore no clothes. His black fur was sufficient covering. He stood taller than Yakko, but had more visible muscles. His muzzle was slightly longer and his teeth pointed. He wore no gloves and short sharp claws were visible on his four paws.

Despite those differences, he did look like them, white face and red nose and black body, everything. His black eyes gleamed evilly as he smirked at them. His tail, unusually thin and jagged compared to the Warners', twitched in anticipation.

"Like what you see?" He grinned. "Let me show you what your kind is capable of with a little...practice..." With that, he raised his hand.


	14. Fight

The attack came quickly. Wakko jumped out of the way in time. A large bucket of something was flung his way. As he jumped over it, he prepared to counterattack. He brought out his trusty mallet and lunged for the deranged toon.

Duu sidestepped and kicked Wakko down. The Warner tumbled across the ground. He didn't give up. He got off the ground, mallet in his hand once more. He advanced quickly towards Duu, swinging his mallet like mad. The look in his eyes would make anyone with a wish to live to run the other direction.

But not Duu. He stood there, smirking in amusement. He watched as the little guy came towards him. He barely moved. He was letting him get closer. He was amused that Wakko thought he stood a chance against him. How foolish. Oh how quickly he will learn.

Duu raised his hand and used his telekinesis again. This time, unlike the other times, it wasn't to freeze Wakko. Instead, it was to slow him down just enough for him to get a move in on him. Duu waited for the right time, and just as Wakko was about to bring the mallet down on him, Duu chucked his knee upward, hitting Wakko square in the stomach.

Wakko bellowed in pain as he crumpled to the ground. His mallet fell beside him. Duu walked up and took it from him. Wakko raised a hand to stop him. Duu stopped him by stomping on his hand, pushing it against the hard floor. Wakko flinched and hissed in pain.

"My dear boy." Duu twirled the mallet in his hands using his powers. "You are in over your head here. Had you really thought you stood a chance. That is sad. Tragic." With a flick of the wrist, Duu threw the mallet away. He stared down at the boy. "I will reward you with a special treat. You will be the last to die."

Wakko watched as Duu began to walk towards Yakko. A pencil was pulled out of Duu's pocket. The evil lookalike drew closer as Yakko pulled against the cuffs to get free. Wakko climbed up to his feet, trembling the whole time. He pulled himself to where his mallet had fallen.

"Struggle all you want. It will make no difference." He smiled as Yakko flinched with the pencil close to his face. "I love pencils, don't you? Such lovely tools of creation. We all owe our lives to the pencil. But as the pencil creates, it can destroy." A finger tip touched the eraser. "Many toons are murdered before they are even born. Such irony, and perhaps fate, that your live will end with a pencil as well."

Yakko did his best not to look scared. He couldn't stop his shaking, but on his face, he wore a mask of bravery. His teeth bared, he subconsciously wished it would be enough to drive Duu away. Oh how easy that would have been.

His eyes glanced down at the pencil. It was being pulled back, ever so slowly. Duu must want to draw this out for as long as possible. Go figure. He expected nothing less for him.

"So that is why you chose the pencil as your weapon." Yakko muttered under his breath. All the while, his top lip remained curled up. "Even though it is such a weak weapon. Not very efficient at killing. It is symbolic to you, isn't it?"

Duu paused, staring at Yakko. "Of life and death, yes. A pencil was your beginning, Yakko." He leaned in closer and his next words came out in a harsh whisper. "It will be your ending."

With a sharp pull, Yakko suddenly found his left leg free from the clamps. Yakko was not going down without a fight. He stared at the pencil wide eyed as he pulled his leg back and struck at Duu. His foot caught him in his head.

Duu's head whipped to the side from the shere force. Spit sprayed from his jaws due to the sudden kick. He took a step to the side to regain his balance. A hand gingerly touched his cheek. It was a tad sore and he thought he could taste the iron flavor of blood.

Yakko felt his heart pound like drums as Duu gave him a look of pure hatred and icy evil. The eyes blazed yellow again and he swore he could see sparkling from them. Duu's calm composure was giving way to one of emotion and impulse.

"No one...does that to me..." His voice came as hisses through his teeth. He brought his hand down on Yakko's chest and dug his claws into it. As the boy screamed, he said, "Do you want to go for round two?"

The memory suddenly first and foremost in his mind, Yakko screamed, "No!"

The side of Dew's face was suddenly smashed by a large wooden mallet. A couple of pointed teeth flew from his mouth and hit with tiny clangs on the ground. The Warner lookalike collapsed onto his side, the voice enough to send him into a daze.

Duu managed to raise his head up in time to see Wakko's furious look and the sight of the mallet again. For the first time, Duu showed some expression of fear as the mallet hit against his face again, breaking his nose and blood staining his mouth. He hit against a lever before falling unconscious.

Wakko dropped his mallet and raced to Yakko. He fumbled with the clamps, or cuffs, it was hard to tell what they were. He eventually managed to free one of Yakko's arms. He went down to free Yakko's other leg.

As Yakko freed his other arm, he looked up and gasped in horror at what he saw. "Dot!"

Wakko looked up and his ears instantly drooped as terrifying realization set in. The lever that Duu was knocked up against was the one controlling the cage Dot was in. Now it was being lowered at a steady rate.

He began to run towards the large vat, but he was yanked back by Yakko. "No, I will go after Dot. You stay here. I won't be long!" Wakko could only watch as his older brother ran over to the vat of Thinner to save their sister.

Wakko watched on as Yakko began to climb up shelves, unsteady and wobbly, to get closer to Dot. He was moving as fast as he could without tripping or falling. Wakko's heart froze when Yakko almost fell into the vat himself. He sighed in relief when Yakko managed to grab a chain-like cord that went up to the cage. He squeezed his fists tightly and prayed.

He barely had time to register a shadow casting over him. He barely had time to turn his head as something was tossed at him at high speed. His own mallet used against him, he almost didn't get out of the way in time. He stared at his mallet, now stuck in the platform that Yakko was hooked to just a few moments ago.

Duu had already recovered from the blow. He slowly licked the fur off of his muzzle, tasting its saltiness. He had dropped down onto all fours already. Despite being two legged, being on all fours felt and looked almost natural for him.

Wakko, snarling, followed suit. It was unusual for any Warner to be on all fours like this. The only thing that could drive them to this point is extreme fear and anger, something they rarely experienced. Until now.

Puffed up tails swishing like cats, the two began to circle each other slowly. Their eyes locked onto each other. Their teeth flashed at one another. Duu, once in a while, would scrape the ground with his claws, almost mockingly and to scare Wakko. But despite having a lack of claws himself, Wakko didn't back down.

Duu was overly confident. While he knew Wakko would be faster than him, he believed that the kid was so small he could just kick him away and render him incapacitated until he took care of Yakko and Dot.

Then, finally, the two ran towards each other. In seconds, they clanged against each other and became a blur of black and white fur. Snarls and growls filled the room. They wrestled with each other, trying to pin the other down. Wakko winced as Duu scratched him. He compensated his lack of claws by kicking and punching whenever he had an opening.

Duu was amazed at how much of a fight Wakko was putting up. The little child wasn't giving up. With determination fueling him, he kept slamming himself against Duu. His teeth bit into his arms and legs. His feet and hands smashed against his ribs, chest, and stomach. All the while, he was enduring cuts and bites from Duu's much sharper weapons.

When the two broke apart, it was only Wakko who had blood on him. Duu looked like he was in better shape. But he was also not unscatched. Some dirt clung to his fur and he had a few scrapes here and there.

Panting, Duu said, "I never met someone with as much energy as you." His voice was filled with genuine surprise. Then it contorted into a dark smile. "Perhaps, before I kill you, I will extract information from you so that I may have boundless energy."

Wakko arched his back, some standing fur visible through holes on his ripped shirt. "Over my dead body..."

Duu laughed mockingly. "Whoa kinda dark for you. But if that's the way you wanna be..." He lifted up one of his front paws and it began to glow. The aura surrounded Wakko. "Don't worry, I'll be quick."

Wakko cried out in agony as the aura began to crush him. Duu was pulling his body hard, contorting it into an unnatural position. He felt his bones and muscles being pulled away from each other. He tried to break free from the grip, but it was useless. His eyes looked up towards Yakko as he was reaching Dot.

No, he couldn't be defeated. Not yet. He had to buy Yakko more time. He tried to fight against the aura gripping him. It was useless. Duu laughed mockingly as Wakko struggled as his body was twisted more and more. In a manner of seconds, it would snap.

Wakko never gave up. Just before his body would break, he gave another sharp yank. And to his surprise, he temporarily broke free of the hold on his arm. Duu was just as surprised by this and responded by gripping him tighter with his powers.

Encouraged, Wakko struggled more, yanking his arms hard. He felt a strange tingling sensation and the glow around him dissipated slowly. He thought, at first, that Duu had let him go. But judging from his expression, that clearly wasn't the case. So what was going on?

Wakko stared as the energy disappeared inside his body. The telekinetic energy seemed almost drawn to him. He was baffled, and scared. Was this some kind of trick by Duu? Were his insides now in danger of being twisted and broken?

Then it hit him. He understood what was going on. It was stupid. It was convuluted. He didn't understand how it made sense. Yet it was happening.

He was eating the energy.

"I guess I really do have a blackhole for a stomach." Wakko grinned before giving one more yank and breaking free. He ran towards Duu and lunged at him with his mallet, which he managed to pull out with a sharp yank. With a loud crunch, he struck him in the shoulder.

As this was going on, Yakko was hanging onto the metal beam that supported the cage. Dot was still out of danger, but the crane holding the cage up was getting dangerously close to the Thinner. He inched his way over, careful not to slip and fall into the stuff himself.

He grabbed onto the bars. He tried to get a footing, but he slipped. He screamed as he frantically grabbed onto the bars with his other hand. His feet were dangling so close to the Thinner he could feel its burning effects on his feet. He pulled his feet as far away from the approaching Thinner as he could.

He managed to pull himself up and dragged himself into the cage with Dot. He moved towards Dot in an instant. He put a hand on her face. She looked injured but not severely. He shook her gently and her eyes slowly opened.

"Y-Yakko? Where am I?" Dot sat up slowly. She looked around and realized she was in a cage. She felt them moving down. Why were they moving down? "What is going on?"

"No time to explain." Yakko answered tensely.

A glance over the edge told him they had to be quick. The cage had made touchdown on the Thinner. The bottom of the cage soon felt uncomfortable to stand on. Yakko gestured for his sister to climb onto his back. She slung her arms around his neck and held on tight. He made his way towards the cage bars. He had just one shot at this.

He squeezed through the bars. Praying his acrobatics will come through for him like they always did, he pressed his feet against the bars before making a lung to the edge of the vat. The force of slamming against the vat's walls caused Dot to lose her grip.

"Dot, no!" Yakko cried.

He felt a sharp yank on his tail. He looked down and was relieved that Dot managed to grab his tail before it was too late. He started to push himself upwards, trying to climb over the edge of the vat.

There was a loud crash above them. The two looked up.

"What was that?" Dot asked.

"I think someone just broke in..." Yakko said before his hands started to slip. He tightened his grip and managed to put a foot on the edge of the vat. "We're almost there. Just a little more..."


	15. Cavalry

Discovering he was immune to Duu's telekinetic powers gave Wakko an edge in the fight. Duu might have a more muscular tone, but he wasn't as strong as he appeared. Stripped of his advantage, Duu had a harder time keeping Wakko down. Wakko was confident he could wear out Duu, then go help Dot and Yakko.

Duu was losing his patience. It was bad enough that he could no longer grab the wild child with his powers. Now he was zipping around him, making him dizzy and trying to tire him out. If only he could get his hand on him. His eyes caught something in the corner and he smiled.

Formulating a plan, he began to lead Wakko to a certain place. He let the boy pounce on him. He knocked him off with a paw. He tackled him and bit him on his tail. Wakko retaliated by biting his front paw. A blur of bristling fur rolled across the floor, a cloud of dust kicking up all around them.

Duu pressed his back against a large shelf. He lowered his ears and let out a soft whimper. Wakko smirked at this, believing he had bested the deranged toon. He arched his back, moving his tail back and forth. Then he leaped into the air.

He realized his mistake too late.

Duu jumped out of the way. Wakko, unable to stop himself, slammed against the shelf. It wobbled back and forth before coming crashing down on him. He barely heard his siblings scream his name as the heavy metallic shelf crushed down onto him. Pain wracked through his body.

Duu moved around a barrel. He sneered at the fallen boy. Wakko managed to crawl out of the underneath of the shelf. He rubbed his forehead and let out a soft groan.

"What just hit me?" He muttered.

"This did."

Wakko looked up just in time to see Duu kick over a barrel with a small hole in it. Green liquid spilled all over the floor. The fluid rushed towards Wakko and hit him on his feet. In an instant, his eyes were open, tears crawling out of the corner of his eyes.

The scream that came out of his lips echoed throughout the building, sounding like something out of a horror movie. Dot and Yakko could see what was going on. The glass made it look wobbly, but it didn't take a genius to know what happened.

The Thinner now covering the floor around Wakko burned into his paws. He screamed again as he took a step back before falling down. Now his arms and hands touched the stuff. More painful screams as he crawled away from the liquid. Blood dripping down from the open sores from his body, Wakko tried to get up. The pain was too much and he collapsed.

Duu walked up to the whimpering and shaking child, careful to avoid the Thinner himself. He took the boy's mallet again. Oh how he loved to use his enemies' weapons against them. Wakko attempted to stand, but the pain prevented him from getting out of the way. The mallet hit him on the head and knocked him out.

"Wakko!" Dot cried in horror, seeing her brother passed out on the ground, bloodied.

Duu stood over the boy, pondering if he should finish him off. He turned his head to the remaining siblings. No, they needed to be dealt with first. He went over the control panel. Giving an evil smile to the pair, he pressed a button below the levers.

A pipe the Warners didn't notice until now began to quiver. They heard a bubbly sound. Something was moving through the pipe. Dot was the first one to notice what was happening.

"He's raising this stuff!" Even though she didn't know what it was, she knew it wasn't safe. She clung to her brother's tail tighter. "Pull us up!"

"I'm trying!" Yakko struggled with all his might to pull them up. He couldn't get a grip and his feet kept slipping down the side. "I can't get a foothold!"

The Thinner below them was rising up rapidly. Each second, it inched closer to them. Yakko tried to hang on, but he didn't know how long he'd be able to do this. With a burst of strength, he pulled himself up and almost made it over the edge.

Then something happened that made his blood run cold and the fur on the back of his neck to stand on end. Duu, using his transformation power which he hadn't used until now, moved in front of him. There, he floated, just inches away.

"Hello there." His calm voice said.

"No..." Yakko whispered. His heart raced inside his chest. White pupils were now so large they nearly hid his black sclera completely.

Duu's face contorted into a twisted smile. "Shapeshifting takes a lot of effort...but it's so worth it to do this!" He raised a foot and stomped onto Yakko's hands. He loved hearing the boy cry in pain. Duu stomped on his hands again and this time twisted his foot on them to cause more pain. "I told you this will be your grave!"

"Yakko!" Dot cried. "Don't let go!"

Yakko tried to hang on. The pain was making it hard to do so. It got worse when Duu lowered himself down and showed his claws to him. Yakko's eyes widened, realizing what he was fully intending on doing. With a quick motion, the hands came down onto him. The claws dug into his arms. Yakko stifled a cry and tried to hold back tears as Duu slowly moved his arms back, producing long bloody cuts on his arms.

Then, Duu made the final move. He lifted up his foot and kicked Yakko in the face. The force was enough to dislodge Yakko's fingers from the edge of the vat. He and Dot screamed and Duu laughed as they fell towards the Thinner below.

Suddenly, Yakko and Dot hit against something soft and fluffy. Though dazed and confused, they held on tightly.

Duu couldn't hide his feelings of shock at what happened. "When did a giant chicken get in here?!"

Chicken Boo let out a cluck in response. His wings were spread out, giving him some sense of balance. He moved his legs as fast as he could, his feet pounding against the side of the vat. He ran around the vat, getting closer and closer to the top. His wings struck Duu and pushed him back as Chicken Boo got over the edge. He swooped down to the floor, the two Warners still holding onto his back.

"I never thought I'd be so glad to see you, Boo." Yakko said, immensely relieved.

Chicken Boo clucked at him, giving the best smile he could.

"Where did you come from?" Dot asked.

The large chicken pointed towards the door. It had been opened and they could see movement just outside of it. They realized this was the loud crash he had heard.

Duu, back in his original form and on the ground, stormed towards Yakko and Dot. He was hoping to get them from behind. He didn't get far. Swooping all around him were birds. Three pidgeons to be exact.

"Come on boys! Let's show this guy what we Goodfeathers can do!"

Duu grunted in pain as the pidgeons flew all around him, pecking at his arms and face. He swatted at them. They moved out of the way, avoiding getting it. Pesto, Bobby, and Squit began to circle his head, keeping him at bay.

"Hold still, you bloated pidgeons!" Duu shouted. He was greeted with Pesto's face against his.

"What's that? You want a piece of me? Do I amuse you?" Pesto gave Duu the stink eye. When Duu nodded his head, Pesto's feathers fluffled up. "That's it!"

He flew at Duu's face. He held his wings against his cheeks while his talons and beak cut into Duu's face. Bobby and Squit joined him, pecking at his ears and ripping off fur.

As the Goodfeathers kept Duu busy, Dot and Yakko reached Wakko's side. He was still out cold. Yakko ran his fingers through his brother's head fur. He checked his feet and arms. The sores looked bad, but they weren't very deep. Gently, he picked him up and set him on Chicken Boo's back.

"Get him to Hello Nurse." Yakko ordered.

Giving a loud cluck, Chicken Boo ran out of the building.

Dot looked up at Yakko. "Do you think he will be okay?"

Yakko looked down at her. "I'm sure he will. He's tough." He put a hand on her shoulder. "So don't you worry."

Dot smiled, but then noticed something off to the side. Buttons and Mindy were walking down the aisle. She didn't bother asking why they were there. As Mindy got closer, Buttons growled and ran off, presumably to attack Duu.

Mindy was holding something in her hand. "Pretty picture." The girl babbled as she moved closer to Dot.

Dot knelt down and held out her hand. "May I please have the picture, Mindy?"

"Okay, lady." Mindy giggled as she handed Dot the picture.

Dot and Yakko examined it. It wasn't just a picture. It was an animation cel of some kind. It looked old and dusty. Dirt covered it almost completely. Enough of the dirt was removed for them to see it was Duu on the cel.

Where had Mindy gotten this? They guessed it was from around here somewhere. The little kid probably found it laying around and picked it up because she liked it. It seemed like something she would do.

At first, it seemed like it was going to be useless and they would have thrown it away. But something drew them to this particular animation cel. There was something about it that stuck in their mind. They couldn't explain it. It was almost like their minds felt this cel could help them somehow. In what way, they weren't sure. Could it help stop Duu? Or would it just help them understand his origins?

Attached to the picture was a note. It was largely scribble, but some of it was readable. Yakko picked it up and peered at it.

"Property of...I can't read the name." Yakko turned it every which way. But nothing helped. "I think this might be from a rival company. Warner Studios has a few of those."

"Do you think Duu is just a rip off of us?" Dot asked.

"It would explain his sour personality." Yakko muttered, remembering the pain Duu put him through. "A toon created with the intent to steal. Not a good combination. No wonder he hates humans."

Dot got an idea. She looked over at the vat of Thinner. She recalled the words she heard spoken before. Original animation cels were important to toons. She only remembered bits of why, but something about how they were required for a toon to have a physical form. If they were to get the cel tossed into the Thinner, then maybe they could...

"Come on, Yakko!" She grabbed his hand and ran before he could say a word.

After a scream of frustration, Duu swatted at the Goodfeathers. He managed to backhand them and they smashed against the ground. They lay there dazed as Duu walked over to them. He was about to smash them with his foot when a frying pan out of nowhere crushed into his head. His body flinging away, he could barely here his attacker's snarky comment.

"Now that's payback!" Slappy twirled her frying pan in her hand and walked over to the downed Duu. "Hey, you remind me...of a very young Amon."

She was flung back by Duu's powers. He got back to his feet. He took a step towards the squirrel, but stopped. He couldn't worry about the little details right now. He looked up and saw a few more Animaniacs characters coming in. He narrowed his eyes. This would make his job even harder. He had to get away, somehow.

He looked over and saw Yakko and Dot holding something. His eyes grew big. No, they couldn't have found it, could they? No, they had to be stopped. He tried to get at them, but Buttons had charged him before he could get a step close to the Warner siblings.

"You mangy mutt!" Duu struck the dog down with his claws. "Get out of my way!"

Duu was pushed into the ground. Something heavy stood on his back. He craned his head in time to see another dog standing there. This dog, who turned out to be Runt, stared at him with a goofy smile for a second before he let his inner dog kick in. Fangs sank into Duu's back.

As Duu struggled, he felt needle sharp claws scratch at his arms. Rita, her fur bristling, clung to his arm. The two weighed him down and continued to maul him. Buttons, having recovered, joined in. He chewed on Duu's tail, chomping on it like it was one of his bones back home.

Finally, unable to take it anymore, Duu glowed brightly and threw the three animals off of him. He stared at them, fuming. How dare they interrupt him... After he takes over, he'd make sure they pay dearly for their interference. Ungrateful... They should be thanking him. What he was doing would have benefited them, but they chose to defy him. What a way to repay him for what he saw as noble deeds.

He turned his eyes to Yakko. The boy had to be the reason behind this. Yes, it was all his fault. If he hadn't told anyone about the attacks, if he hadn't given anything, not so much as a clue, then everything would have come into fruition. Power over the studios would have fallen into his hands. He would have been a hero.

But instead, the Animaniacs, so ungrateful and misunderstanding of his goals, have come to spit on his face pretty much. Yakko had told enough that they were able to put the pieces together, and came to help Yakko and stop Duu himself. Yakko stole his victory away from him. He would make sure he would never be able to do it again. He would make sure he would never have a chance to destroy him.

As Chicken Boo lunged for him, Duu turned into his black-colored shapeshifting form. He moved out of the way. The chicken crashed into the ground and went into a confused daze from the force of the impact. Duu zigzagged around until he reached Yakko.

Just as the boy was about to throw the animation cel into the vat, he snagged the boy by the scruff of his neck and yanked back. He knocked Dot away, slamming her back against the side of the vat. Yakko called out for Dot and tried to strike at Duu. It was all in vain; he couldn't do much being held like this.

Duu raised himself a few feet in the air. He held Yakko out in front of him. He watched as the boy tried to hit him. He smirked at his pathetic attempts to hurt him. Yakko tried to pry the hands off. Duu's grip was like a vice.

"You are going to pay for this..." Duu whispered harshly into his ear. He pressed a finger against Yakko's nose, crunching it againts his face. "I was going to give you a quick death. But now I think I rather kill you as slowly as possible, so you will suffer."

Yakko snapped his jaws at Duu. His teeth crashed against each other against air. Duu had moved his hand away. "I am not afraid of you anymore..."

Duu snarled as a smile spread across his face. "Then I will make you fear me again..."


	16. Courage

Duu floated towards the large vat of Thinner. It was still rising up steadily. It was getting close to overflowing. Duu smiled at this. That would take care of the others. Perhaps things were still going in his favor after all.

He hovered above the vat directly. He held out Yakko away from him, letting him dangle like a doll above the green liquid. Yakko gulped as he stared down. He could feel Duu's fingers loosen ever so slightly. He felt his scruff begin to slip through his fingers. Yakko desperately clung onto Duu's hand.

Duu bit down, sinking his teeth into his hand. Yakko flinched sharply and removed his hand. He stared at the blood seeping from the puncture wounds that formed. He glared up at Duu momentarily before looking down at the vat below him.

Why hadn't he dropped him yet? Why was he taking his time? Why did he even need to ask that? Duu must want to prolong the suffering. Why else would he do this? To draw out the torment, the anticipation of knowing he was going to die at any moment.

As Duu's grip loosened even more, Yakko closed his eyes and waited...only for nothing to happen. Perplexed, he looked at Duu. He had a different expression this time. Contemplating, but with what his eyes reflected, it wasn't about regret.

"On second thought..." Duu said. He looked down at the other Animaniacs. Most of them were busy trying to stop the Thinner from overflowing, which made sense; they'd all die if they didn't. Only Dot was trying to get at him.

"You're going to set me free?" Yakko asked sarcastically, a hint of hope in his voice.

Duu laughed and shook Yakko back and forth. "Oh my, you are something!" He brought Yakko close to him. "No!" He looked down and watched Dot try in vain to get at them. "No, I have something...else in mind..." He chuckled lowly.

Yakko's ears dropped down. "No...no...you couldn't be thinking of..."

Duu ignored him. He reached out with his free hand. He grabbed Dot and raised her up to his level. The girl wasn't struggling, which surprised him. He loved the look she was giving him. One of hatred. Yes, he loved that look. Because he knew behind it was fear, and fear was what he wanted those unworthy of his paradise to show him.

He moved her closer. He was careful not to let her get too close, lest he get hit by one of her feet. Yakko tried to reach out towards his sister. He couldn't reach and could only watch helplessly as his little sister was dangled in front of Duu, vulnerable to whatever he wanted.

"Hello, my dear." Duu said in a polite voice. Dot snarled at him. "So nice of you to...join us. I was about to take care of Yakko. But perhaps...you'd rather be first?" He moved his glowing hand closer to her.

"If you lay one hand on me, you will be counting your fingers as you pick them off the ground." Dot threatened through clenched teeth.

Duu pulled his hand back in an instant. "You nasty little girl..." He stared at her face. If Dot were a ray gun, she'd be spraying him with the deadliest of radiation at him right now. He had to admit, though, he liked the way she looked for more than just her anger. "They were right about you, Dot." A sly grin spread across his face. "You are cute. Especially when you are angry."

Yakko didn't like where this was going. He grabbing onto Duu's arm and tried to pull himself up. "You leave my sister alone, you..!"

Duu slammed him against the side of a shelf. The blow was enough to daze Yakko. "Shut it, you. I was talking." He turned his attention to Dot. "So..." The tone of his voice changed completely. It was enough to send chills down her spine. "What do you say, my dear? Do you want to go first?"

Dot scowled at this. She hated being helpless. There was nothing she could do from here. She folded her arms and gave him a sideways glance. "Put a cork in it."

Duu hissed softly. "Hold your tongue if you are going to use such harsh language." The eerie smile returned to his face. "A lady should not use harsh language."

"A lady can use whatever she wants." If there was ever a time Dot wanted looks to kill, this would be one of those times. "And right now, I'm thinking of ripping off your tail and using it to choke you."

Surprised by this description of violence coming from a little girl, Duu pulled his head back and laughed loudly. Perhaps Dot should be kept around for something else. Yes, he needed that kind of violence. Someone like Dot could keep things in line. She had the right look. Welcoming and kind. Yet she had the aggression needed to uphold the law.

He would make her see things his way. It wouldn't be hard. Anyone can be pushed in the right direction with a little...encouragement.

The panicked cries from the Animaniacs were getting to be such a distraction. Duu, growing tired of it all, swooped around and kicked a few cans of Thinner down. Remembering what happened to Wakko, the other Animaniacs were forced to move back. Thinner started to fill the room.

The Animaniacs managed to get away in time and the Thinner didn't rise up anymore. But now they were trapped at the edge of the room, unable to get in. Thinner flooded part of the room, concentrated around the entrance. Though the Goodfeathers could get in, they had left for some reason. But what, he chose not to dwell on. Duu then flew down and, using his tail, he kicked the door closed, locking them out. It wasn't going to last, but it would be enough time for him to get onto business.

He went on top of the shelf closest to the Thinner. He pushed Yakko against his stomach. Using his telekinesis, he pulled the boy's arms behind his back and tied them with rope. He forced the boy into a seated position and sat down in front of him.

Then he pulled Dot around and set her in front of him. She tried to reach Yakko, but she was pulled back towards Duu. He closed his hand around her wrist and twisted it tightly.

"This is going to be really easy." He put a finger under her chin, pulling away as she tried to bite him. Tormenting the two at the same time was going to be fun. "Once I am done with you..." He traced a finger gently along her cheek. "You will be begging on your hands and knees..."

"Here zey are!"

Yakko and Dot's eyes widened. It couldn't be, could it?

A net came out of nowhere and engulged Duu's body. The shock of it caused him to release Dot. "What the?!"

"Duh, I got 'im!"

Yakko was never more relieved to see Ralph. Although he stood on the other shelf, he did not question how he got there. When filled with enough determination, he could get up anywhere. In his hand, the man held a long net, which he had used to successfully catch Duu.

Out of the corner of his eye, he could see the Goodfeathers flying away. They must have been the ones to get help. And he was certain they were going to find more help. He couldn't help but smile.

Then another voice caught his attention.

"Good work! Make sure he doesn't escape!"

Yakko couldn't believe it. It was Plotz. What was he doing here? How did he find him? Plotz stood at the bottom of the shelf Ralph was on. Being human, he wasn't effected by the Thinner splashing all around him. The worse that was happening is some of his pants were losing their color ever so slightly.

Nonetheless, this provided them with the distraction they needed. Dot ran over to her brother and untied his bonds. She helped him up as Duu began to rip away at the net.

"Boss, he's gunna get out!" Ralph cried. He applied more pressure on the net in vain hope that it would be enough.

"I'm not having him loose around here!" Plotz shouted. "Keep him down!"

But it wasn't enough. Ralph was tossed back as Duu broke free. He roared at the officer, now on his back down below, Plotz crushed underneath him. His hatred for humans began to take hold. He forgot about the Warners standing behind him and prepared to strike.

Yakko jumped onto his back and grabbed him in a headlock. The two began to wrestle. Dot jumped onto the next shelf so she wouldn't get caught in the mess. She watched as her brother bravely fought against the same person who caused him so much pain and misery.

At this point, Duu was too lost in a rage to use his powers. He fought with Yakko tooth and nail. Fur was flying literally as they tore at each other's skin and fur. The snarls and growls that began to fill the room sent a shudder down Dot's spine. Never before had she seen her brother act so...feral. Even his eyes looked like they lost the spark of intelligence.

The two rolled across the shelf. Yakko pushed Duu onto his back and pulled a fist back to punch him. He was kicked away and almost fell over the edge. Duu lunged onto him and grabbed his fist. He dug his claws deep into them, causing Yakko to whimper in pain.

Yakko wasn't going down that easily. He lifted up a foot and kicked Duu in the chest. This knocked the wind out of the madman, or toon in this case, and got him onto his back. Yakko grabbed his tail and threw him across the shelves.

As Duu fell down, Yakko couldn't dismiss the feeling of disappointment as he landed away from the Thinner. He had to mentally slap himself for thinking that. He couldn't sink that low. No, he woudn't get some sick gratification from Duu's demise. All he wanted know was for Duu to go away.

With Dot following close behind, Yakko jumped from shelf to shelf. Duu was getting up already. Yakko moved as quickly as he could. He was like a mountain lion running across a range of mountains. His focused eyes stared intently on his 'prey', Duu.

Now in the right position, Yakko jumped down and knocked Duu onto the ground. As Duu started to get up, Yakko grabbed him by his neck and punched him in the face. The evil toon tumbled backwards and hit his back against the room's smallest, but heaviest, shelf. Duu's hands started to glow and he was about to make a move when something heavy landed on top of him.

As he tumbled backwards, Yakko and Dot looked up and saw Katie staring down at them. Perched on her shoulders were the Goodfeathers. Katie had pushed one of the objects, a couple heavy books, off the shelf and onto Duu's head.

Duu managed to sit up. His head wobbled back and forth. A couple teeth were missing and one was cracked. His tongue hung out. His eyes rolled all over the place, unable to focus. He spaced out for a moment before shaking his head and snapping back to his senses.

He looked up and hissed under his breath. "What is with all these cameos?!"

Katie climbed down and looked at Yakko and Dot, ignoring Duu. "Are you two okay?"

The Warners rarely spoke to Katie. Anyone who knew her couldn't blame them. But nonetheless, they were still on good speaking terms and had no ill will towards each other. Katie didn't get along entirely well with most of the Animaniacs for her vile temper. But she had a soft spot for the Warners because they were one of the few brave enough to get close to her off set.

"We're fine." Dot said as Katie approached them.

"Thanks." Yakko said.

Katie looked behind her. She blinked in confusion at the black furred toon climbing to his feet. "Is that a new Warner?"

"No, he isn't!" Pesto said, poofing up his feathers. "That's the scoundrel I told you about!"

"He hurt Wakko!" Dot said, her voice lower than it usually is.

At this, Katie's eyes went wide. "Wh-What?"

Sensing this wasn't going to end well, the Goodfeathers flew off.

"We should...keep our distance..." They perched far away from Katie and waited for the fireworks.

"Wakko was trying to save us." Yakko pointed at Duu. "He burned his feet...then hit him with his own mallet..." His body was trembling in anger. The memories of Wakko's screams were fresh on his mind. "He..he..."

Katie stared at the two Warners in shock. She turned around and saw Duu climb to his feet. Now recovered, he grinned evilly at the two remaining Warners.

"And I will do the same to you...now hold still.." Duu said as he raised his hand.

"You...hurt Wakko?" Katie's trembling voice came.

Duu rolled his eyes. "Yes, that's exactly what those imbeciles said, wasn't it? Now get out of the way before I decide to fry you, too, you freakish hybrid of a human and toon..or whatever you are..." With that, Duu's hand started to glow.

"You..hurt..Wakko!" Katie repeated this as her voice grew deeper, her body growing every second.

Duu watched in horror as Katie transformed into a large monster. His body trembled. His tail tucked between his legs. His ears flattened against his head. He didn't have the courage to speak as the monster woman toon stormed up to him, her voice growning more and more menacing in each second.

"You. Will. Pay!" Katie let out a roar.

The force of the roar knocked Duu back across the floor. He looked up at her, let out a scream, and jumped away as she struck her hand down, missing him by an inch. Katie chased after him, smashing any property in her sight.

If there was ever a time Duu came close to becoming a living...fountain, this would be it.


	17. Over

Again and again Katie's fist came down. She cared not how many times her fists indented into the hard floors or metallic shelves. She paid no attention to the various objects laying on the ground, which could easily trip her. And she didn't even hear the shouts and cheers coming from the Animaniacs witnessing this.

All her eyes and mind were focused on was the little monster who hurt Wakko. She had lost her temper before. But this time, it was justified. She never felt so enraged in her life. She watched as the now pitiful Duu kept running from her, whining like a lost puppy, as she continued to attack him.

"Hold still so I can smash you!" Katie roared.

The deep rumble in her voice was enough to scare Duu out of his mind. If the shere size wasn't enough, her voice sounded like it was going to snake out of her mouth and strangle him. Duu needed to get away from her. He needed to get her out of the way.

As he dodged another attack, he looked to the side and saw something that made him gasp in horror. Yakko and Dot were running towards the pool of Thinner laying on the ground. But it wasn't to commit suicide, which he would have preferred. It was to drop his original animation cel in it. He wasn't going to let that happen. He couldn't let it happen. No, not after all he had accomplished.

When Duu moved to the side, Katie made a mistep and she tripped. It wouldn't keep her down for long, but it would be enough. Duu didn't need much time. Just a few seconds. Only a few seconds.

"I'm not letting you do that!" Duu grabbed Yakko, who was holding the animation cel, and dragged him over. The sharp yank caused Yakko to drop the cel on the ground. Duu looped an arm around Yakko's arms and pinned them behind his back. Duu grinned as he pulled out his trademark pencil. "Are you ready to die, Yakko?"

Dot ran over to where the animation cel was dropped. She picked it up in her hand. She looked up at Duu, her eyes wide as she saw Duu raise the pencil to her brother's neck. She looked over to Katie. She wouldn't be able to reach him in time. Thinking fast, Dot grabbed a rock and tossed it at Duu.

Duu winced as the rock hit him on the side of his face. The pain was nothing more than a mere annoyance, but it did make him almost drop his pencil. He looked down and scowled at Dot. So the little brat decided to fight back. Finally. He was growing a little bored of her being a mere damsel.

Dot picked up another rock. "Let my brother go!" She tossed the rock at Duu. She felt a sense of satisfaction as she managed to hit Duu again.

"Do you really think you can stop me?" With a wave of his hand, Duu pushed over a shelf onto Katie, incapacitating her longer to buy more time. He put the pencil's tip against Yakko's neck. "Pencils...such masters of creation...and destruction, don't you think, Dottie?"

At that, Dot's eyes widened and her teeth slowly began to grind. Her body started to shake in anger. Duu looked at her, confused. He was wondering if he had made a big mistake. He looked down at Yakko. The drooping ears confirmed his hunch.

"You shouldn't have done that." Yakko shook his head.

"Don't...ever...call...me...Dottie!" Dot shrieked. With a burst of anger, she threw the animation cell behind her. She stormed over, preparing to tear Duu a new one. She stopped when she heard a glump sound behind her.

It didn't take long for her, Yakko, and Duu to realize what happened. The animation cel fell into the Thinner laying on the ground. Already it was eating away at the cel.

Duu screamed horrifically as he dropped Yakko to the ground. He fell to the ground as a black smoke began to radiate off his body. He tried to stop screaming, but he was unable to close his mouth. The sounds kept coming out, and they intensified as the cel continued to be destroyed by the Thinner.

Yakko and Dot watched in disgust and terror as Duu's body started to practically melt away. His screams become more and more pitiful. It was almost hard not to feel sorry for the guy. He collapsed on his knees, holding onto his head, whimpering and shaking.

No begging. No pleading. Just trembling and crying. The pain wracked through his body. It was the worst pain he would ever feel. The sight deeply disturbed Yakko and Dot and they had to force themselves to look away.

Duu forced himself onto his knees. He stared at the two. He wanted to make them pay. In his pained mind, rage and anger still boiled. He began to pull himself over towards them. He only got a couple inches closer before his body fell apart. In a sickening splash, Duu's melted body spread across the ground. Then it dried and turned into ash.

Even after this horror show had ended, Dot and Yakko couldn't bring themselves to look that the smelly burnt mess. Their arms wrapped around each other, they shook in fear at what happened. Dot had forgotten all about her hatred towards Duu and now her mind was flooed by Duu's screams of agony. Yakko felt the same away.

Yakko barely registered the police coming in to clear the mess. He didn't pay attention to the hazmat team who came in to clean up the Thinner spilled on the ground. He didn't notice the ER folks coming in to make sure those injured were fine. And he didn't give much thought to Plotz who had come over and put a hand on him and Dot and was trying to ask them if they were okay.

All Yakko could see was Duu's body.

He was confused by the feelings he felt. Why should he feel sorry for him? This guy had tortured him, done things to him. He tried to kill his siblings for crying out loud. Yakko had every reason to hate him. He had every reason to feel he got what he deserved.

So why couldn't he let go of this feeling of regret? The only thing Yakko could think of to rationalize his feeling sorry for the monster...was that maybe there was more to him.

He kept thinking this even on the way back to the tower. When he finally found his voice, he had spoken to Plotz about Duu. The name instantly rung a bell. Plotz explained that, just like they had thought, Duu was the product of a would-be rival company who were trying to cash in on the Warners' success. Duu was created for the sole purpose of 'stealing the show', but when the scheme was figured out, he was...taken care of. Plotz didn't go into detail.

So that was it. Maybe that was why Yakko couldn't feel hatred towards the guy. He was, in a sense, a victim in his own right. Used for something he couldn't help. And because of that, he had grown jealous of the real Warners. Thus his actions.

That didn't mean Yakko would forgive him. What he did was unspeakable, unfathomable. There was no way he would let this go. A small part of him was glad that the ordeal was finally over. He was glad Duu was gone so he could finally get some rest.

Yet he couldn't help but wonder...

...what would have happened if he had been able to change Duu?

sss

Later that night, the two Warners sat at the table to eat some dinner. Usually, this was a happier, if not relaxing, time for them. Without Wakko, it felt empty. It was hard to eat without him. They had done it before, but the other times, he wasn't in mortal danger. With each bite, their stomachs clenched in pain as they thought of their injured brother.

They never thought they would miss the sound of Wakko's sunction stomach so much. Once in a while, they would glance at the empty space where Wakko would usually be. They couldn't bare to look at it for too long, and they'd force themselves to look away.

Dot said, "I miss him..."

"Me too, sis." Yakko looked at her sympathetically. He stared down at his half finished plate and pushed it away. "I'm not hungry."

Dot tried to take another bite, but set her fork down. "I can't eat knowing Wakko's in the hospital." She looked up at Yakko. "Do you think he will be okay?"

Yakko gave the best smile he could, yet the sadness remained in his eyes. "He will be fine. You heard the doctors. He just needs...some time."

"But his feet..."

Yakko pulled his sister into a hug. "Wakko will come home, I promise you." Dot didn't respond, just cried into his chest.

Earlier that day, they had paid a visit to their brother at the hospital. It took a little while to find him because of the bustling hospital. A lot of patients were going in and out that day.

When they found their brother, he was awake and seemed perky, but his responses were slow and sluggish. This was because of the loads of morphine they pumped into his body to nullify the pain as best as possible. Even in this seemingly drunken state, Wakko was happy to see his siblings, evident by his wagging tail and wide, goofy grin.

The doctor had come in a few minutes later to give them the rundown on Wakko's condition. No surprise, his feet were burned badly. They were wrapped up in bandages to protect them from the outside elements. His arms had burns on them as well as his hands, but they were more mild and manageable.

The doctor believed that Wakko would regain the use of his arms, more or less, by the next day, but his feet would be a different story. Due to the extent of the damage, Wakko would need to stay off his feet for a while. A time frame was not given. It all depended on how fast he would heal. The doctor told Yakko and Dot that they would have to change his bandages once a day and apply medication. It would sting, but Wakko's feet won't heal properly if this isn't done.

Yakko shuddered at the memory of those instructions. He hated the idea of doing something that might Wakko. But he knew he had to do it to help him. And he knew Dot would be willing to do it too, if it meant having Wakko back to his old self again.

One thing that didn't change about Wakko was his energetic personality. Yakko and Dot couldn't help but smile at this. Even with his feet severely burned and him losing the ability to walk for an unknown amount of time, he still found ways to keep himself happy.

Yakko looked up at the clock. It was getting late. "...come on, sis." Yakko said as he got out of the seat. "We need to get some rest before we pick up Wakko in the morning."

Dot climbed out of the seat and followed him slowly. As they settled down into bed, it was hard for them to sleep. They had never went to bed without Wakko before. It was uncomfortable, a little too quiet. Yakko felt the bed he shared with his little brother was too empty without him. Dot missed the sound of Wakko's snoring at night.

It took them hours before they finally were able to sleep. And the only thing that let them sleep was the knowledge their brother would be coming home with them.

sss

"Oh come on guys!" Wakko whined. "I wanna walk!"

Dot waved a scolding finger at him. "You know you can't do that!"

"But I'm fine! See?" Wakko tried to put one of his feet on the ground. He immediately recoiled the pain, but faked a smile. "See?" He forced himself to say. "I hardly felt a thing."

"Wakko..." Yakko said in a knowing tone of voice.

Wakko's ears drooped. "Okay, so it still hurts...I just don't like being stuck in this bed."

Yakko gave a weak smile. "Hey, you think we like it? You try switching places with me and try to see how easy it is giving help to use the bathroom."

"That's disgusting." Dot grimaced.

Wakko was laying flat on the bed. A special contraption had to be hooked up to his bed. It kept his feet leveled up off the bed. His feet were in so much pain that even laying them on something soft as a blanket would hurt him. The contraption was so bulky that it didn't give Yakko a lot of room to sleep, but he made do with it.

Wakko hadn't been happy one bit when he found out he'd be bed ridden until his feet got well again. The only time he would be taken off was to use the bathroom. Both Dot and Yakko had to lend a hand. It was, to say the least, embarrassing for Wakko to use the toilet in front of his siblings. Yakko jokingly suggested outfitting him with a diaper. He only made that suggestion once, because Wakko threw a shoe at him.

After a few minutes of silence, Dot crawled into the bed next to him. Yakko leaned against the wall on Wakko's other side, smiling down as Dot rested her head on Wakko's chest.

"You were really brave, Wakko." Dot said.

Wakko looked at her. "I was?" He sounded surprised.

"Really." Yakko playfully patted him on his hatless head. "Good job there, kiddo."

Wakko gave a smile. An overwhelming feeling of satisfaction filled up inside of him. Taking one more look at his siblings, he laid down to go to sleep. For the first time since he came home, he didn't like a freak, legs supported by a metallic thing.

He felt normal.


	18. Epilogue

Yakko wasn't sure what happened to the bank, or theatre, since the incident. Oh there were some details here or there, but it was still unclear. He heard it was turned into something else. He missed the name, but he could have sworn it was done as a mockery to Duu's name.

He turned his thoughts to what Duu told him, about him and his siblings being the true owner of Warner Studios. He had some doubts in his mind. How was Duu certain they were the owners? Wouldn't have Plotz told them? Sure, the studios could have been named after them, but it was just as likely that they, the Warners, were named after the studio.

Yakko decided not to pursue this further. He had no real desire to control the studio. What could he do with it? And why would he want it? He'd seen what all that work and responsibility did to Plotz. The guy was a short fuse waiting to blow. Yakko didn't want that to happen to him and his siblings.

Wakko made a full recovery. It took a couple of weeks, which felt like years to them. It was a sigh of relief when they work up one day and found Wakko able to walk on his own without too much trouble. His feet did scar, but the doctor said they should fade away and that they weren't permanent.

Things had gone back to normal, for the most part, for the Warners. They were back to their usual pranking, joking, romping around, having a blast. They rarely spoke of the incident with Duu. In fact, they hardly mentioned him at all.

That was the way the Warners lived. Hardly living in the past, looking forward to the future. It wasn't that they didn't understand the impact of what happened. They just knew when to let go and move on.

But unbeknownst to Dot or Wakko, there were times where Yakko would sit off by himself and ponder about Duu. On these days, Yakko would shift back to his more depressed state he had been in for a while. The sight of pencils doesn't frighten him anymore; they merely reminded him of Duu. He silently wished that things would have been different.

Seeing Duu die, him being the same species as the Warners, it was like watching himself, Dot, or Wakko die. That was what had scared him the most about his demise. And everytime he remembered Duu's death, he sometimes, subconsciously, included Dot or Wakko in the scene, causing him anguish.

He shook his head. He couldn't think about that now. Tomorrow was a new day. He shouldn't dwell on the past. He should do what the Warners have always done.

Move forward.

And that is what he did.

sss

Author's Note: And that's the end of Running Around In Circles, my first Animaniacs fanfic.

I do want to offer an apology on one thing. I did have an explanation for why they didn't use their toon powers to protect themselves from Duu, but unfortunately, I don't remember what that was. Again, I apologize.


End file.

Animaniacs, Drama, Hurt-Comfort