Silence filled the room as Michelle and Kevin stared at one another. Suzy looked at Michelle and then at Kevin, confused. "What's going on...?" she asked, lowly.
Kevin took a deep breath and exhaled before approaching the duo. When Kevin was close to the duo, he knelt before holding his hand out to Michelle. Before Kevin's hand was near Michelle's cheek, he stopped for a bit before looking at his claws.
Soon after, Kevin retracted his claws, revealing blue fingers, before he gently placed his hand against Michelle's cheek and wiped her tears away with them. "You've... changed," he said.
Michelle stared at Kevin before she started giggling. "Yeah... I guess I have when you last saw me," she said.
Michelle smiled at Kevin. "I would say the same thing, but both of us know that would be the biggest understatement in the world," she continued.
Kevin looked down with a slight chuckle. "Yeah... it would be..." he said, lowly.
Kevin turned his head to Suzy, which made her flinch. "Suzy," he said before holding his other hand out.
Suzy closed her eyes, scared, until Kevin placed his hand against her head, which surprised her and made her open her eyes. When Suzy looked at Kevin, he smiled a bit and petted her head. "You did good, kid," he said.
Suzy stared at Kevin with awe before smiling; he sternly looked at her. "However..." he continued.
Soon after, Kevin pinched Suzy's cheek and pulled on it, which caused it to stretch and made her yelp in pain. "You ran away from the group!" Kevin shouted.
Suzy looked at Kevin with black slime tears pricking her eyes. "I'm sorry, Big Brother..." she said, lowly.
Kevin stared at Suzy before letting go of her cheek, which made it retract to her face. As Suzy rubbed her cheek with her hand, Kevin sighed. "And even though I told you to stay with the group, you did find Misha on your own," he said.
Kevin looked at Suzy. "So, with that, you're not coming with me on these scavenging missions for two weeks," he continued.
Suzy looked at Kevin, shocked. "Huh! But I found the human all by myself; that's gotta count for something?!" she shouted.
Kevin sternly looked at Suzy. "That's why I said two weeks, moron! You're lucky I didn't say never?!" he shouted.
Michelle stared at the siblings as they argued. It's been a while since I've seen these two argue. They used to do that when we were younger, and Kev doesn't mean his insults when it comes to Katie... she thought.
Soon after, Michelle giggled behind her hand before smiling behind it. I missed you two a lot, she thought.
Unbeknownst to the trio, a large figure stood at the opening. "FOUND YOU..." a raspy male voice said, which made Kevin freeze up.
Kevin turned his head to the opening and saw CatNap, which made his eyes widen. Kevin quickly grabbed Suzy's hand and carried Michelle on his shoulder, which shocked the duo.
Kevin quickly moved away before CatNap leaped toward the lower floor. As CatNap looked at the trio, Kevin glared at him. "What the hell! You're supposed to be at Playcare, not here?!" he shouted.
"Come back here, you stupid cat!" a female voice shouted.
The group on the lower ground looked up and saw a larger version of Hoppy Hopscotch, a larger version of CraftyCorn, and a larger version of a Smiling Critter shaped like a pig wearing a collar with an apple pendant on it and a large black zipper running down its center, leaped toward the lower floor.
Hoppy Hopscotch looked at Kevin. "Kev! I'm glad we—" she stopped midsentence when she saw Michelle on his shoulder, which surprised her. "Hang on, is that...?"
Kevin held his free hand out before red claws extended on his fingertips. "We'll talk later; right now, we've got a cat to skin," he said.
Michelle's eyes widened before she started moving, which made Kevin struggle. "Wait! Don't hurt him?!" she shouted before getting out of his hold.
Michelle limped her way toward CatNap before facing the group. "He's not working for the Prototype anymore!" she shouted.
The group stared at Michelle, dumbfounded. "He what?" Kevin asked.
CatNap lowered his head to Michelle. "That's right," she said before petting him under his chin, which made him close his eyes and purr. "He's with me now..."
CraftyCorn was confused before looking at the Smiling Critter shaped like a pig. "Have you seen anything like that before, Picky?" she asked.
PickyPiggy shook her head. "Definitely not..." she said. "There's no way he suddenly changed sides for some human."
Hoppy Hopscotch turned her head to Kevin. "Hey, Kev... not trying to be rude, but..." she said before she swirled her finger around her head. "Has your friend lost a few screws while being down here?"
Unbeknownst to the group, a large figure stood at the opening. "If you aren't taking Misha's word for it, why don't you take mine?" a male voice asked, which surprised them.
The group looked at the opening and saw DogDay's group, which shocked the Smiling Critters. "DogDay!" they shouted.
DogDay picked Miss Delight and Bunzo Bunny up before jumping to the lower floor while PJ Pug-A-Pillar climbed down on the wall with the Mini Huggies holding him.
After DogDay placed Miss Delight and Bunzo Bunny on the ground, he stood properly and looked at the group. "What Misha said is true," he said. "She saved CatNap from being killed by the Prototype, and now he follows her."
The Smiling Critters were shocked. "You can't be serious," Hoppy Hopscotch said.
Kevin sighed and rubbed his head. "Unfortunately, that is something she would do..." he said.
Bunzo Bunny sprinted toward Michelle. "Big Sis Misha!" he shouted before leaping forward.
As Michelle caught Bunzo Bunny, she felt a sharp pain in her right ankle, which made her yelp in pain, and the others looked at her, shocked. Before the duo fell to the ground, CatNap's tail caught Michelle; Kevin quickly approached the trio. "Are you alright?" he asked.
After CatNap carefully set the duo on the ground, Michelle gritted her teeth and placed her hand on her right ankle as Kevin kneeled next to her. "I think I landed on my right foot in the wrong way..." she said, lowly.
Bunzo Bunny quickly let go of Michelle and looked at her, panicking. "I'm so sorry, Big Sis!" he shouted.
Michelle smiled at Bunzo Bunny and petted his head. "It's alright; it happened way before you tackled me into a hug," she said, which made him sigh in relief with a slight smile.
Unbeknownst to the others, Suzy stared at Michelle. Big Sis? she thought before looking away, uncomfortable, and rubbing her head.
DogDay approached Michelle. "Even so, we should take a look at it," he said.
Michelle nodded as she took her right sneaker and sock off. When DogDay was close to the small group, he kneeled before he gently and carefully placed his fingers between Michelle's right foot and ankle with a slight hum. "Well, the good news is that I don't feel any broken bones," he said.
Michelle nodded. "That is very good news..." she said, lowly.
When DogDay carefully moved Michelle's foot, she flinched in pain and gritted her teeth. "The bad news is that it is sprained," he said before turning his head to Miss Delight. "Miss Delight."
Miss Delight nodded as she approached the small group. When Miss Delight was close to DogDay, he carefully unzipped Michelle's bag before pulling out the first-aid kit and placing it on the ground.
After DogDay opened the first-aid kit and pulled the elastic bandage out of it, Kevin looked at Michelle. "Where the hell did you find a first-aid kit?" he asked.
Michelle looked away with a sweatdrop as DogDay undid the start of the elastic bandage before he started wrapping it around her foot. "I may have... 'borrowed' a few things from my orphanage," she said.
Kevin deadpanned at Michelle. "You mean stolen?" he asked.
Michelle looked at Kevin. "Don't put it like that, you ass! It makes me sound like I'm a thief?!" she shouted before looking away. "And besides, some of the stuff I brought wasn't even being touched by the other orphan kids."
Kevin snorted and chuckled. "Sure, whatever you say, Ms. Kleptomaniac," he said.
Michelle glared at Kevin and pointed at him. "You ain't so slick, either! Remember that one time when you stole one of the counselor's coffee mugs?" she asked.
Kevin flinched and glared at Michelle. "That was a dare Joseph made; it doesn't count!" he shouted.
Michelle got in Kevin's face, which caused DogDay to stop. "Maybe so, but he didn't dare you to drink out of the cup!" she shouted.
Kevin growled and pushed his head against Michelle's forehead. "That didn't happen?!" he shouted.
Michelle started pushing back. "Yes, it did?!" she shouted.
As the duo growled a bit, DogDay deadpanned at them. "Could you please stop arguing like a married couple? I need silence to patch her up," he said.
The duo looked at DogDay. "We aren't a married couple?!" they shouted.
The duo flinched and looked at one another before looking away, blushing. "Uh-huh, sure you aren't," DogDay said as he continued wrapping the elastic bandage around Michelle's foot while Bunzo Bunny giggled.
When DogDay finished wrapping the elastic bandage, he tore the tail of it before laying it over Michelle's bandage. "How does it feel?" he asked.
Michelle looked at her foot before moving it a bit. "It doesn't feel tight, but it's also not too loose," she said.
DogDay nodded as he placed the elastic bandage back in the first-aid kit before closing it and picking it up. "Unfortunately, there's no ice in this place, so for it to heal properly, you'll need to stay off it and keep it elevated above heart level," he said before putting it back in Michelle's bag and zipping it.
Michelle nodded as she got her sock back on; she undid the shoelaces on her shoe before putting it on.
After Michelle finished tying her shoelace, Kevin picked her up bridal style, which made her yelp a bit with a blush. "What are you—" before she could finish her sentence, he looked at her. "Don't be an idiot; DogDay literally just said to stay off it."
Michelle looked at Kevin while blushing. "I know that, but you don't have to carry me!" she shouted before looking away. "I-I mean... with my GrabPack, I'm... probably a little... heavy for you..."
Kevin looked at Michelle. "Nah, you're not as heavy as you look," he said.
Suzy smacked the back of Kevin's head, which made him yelp. After Kevin regained his composure, he turned to Suzy with a tick mark. "What the hell, Suzy?!" he shouted.
Suzy placed her hands against her hips. "That is not how you speak to a lady; you always tell her she's as light as a feather no matter the appearance!" she shouted.
Kevin was dumbfounded. "You can't be serious," he said.
The female toys stared at Kevin with dark auras, which made him flinch a bit. "Oh, you've got a lot to learn, my guy..." Hoppy Hopscotch said.
Kevin clicked his tongue and turned his head away. "Whatever..." he said before glancing at Michelle.
When Michelle noticed Kevin glancing at her, she turned her head away, blushing, and covered her mouth with her jacket. "Could you not stare at me like that? Please...?" she asked.
Kevin blushed a bit before looking away. "Sorry..." he said, lowly.
CraftyCorn cooed at the duo with sparkles in her eyes. "This is definitely art material..." she said, lowly, before shaping her arms into a square. "I need to remember this scene for my canvas."
PickyPiggy looked at CraftyCorn with a sweatdrop. "I can't believe you're older than Hoppy and me..." she said, lowly.
DogDay cleared his throat, which made the group turn to him. "Now that everything has been settled, I think it's plainly obvious what our next step should be," he said.
Kevin nodded. "We need to head back to Safe Haven, pronto," he said.
Miss Delight looked at Kevin and crossed her arms. "But won't we be a huge target for the Doctor if we travel together?" she asked.
Kevin nodded. "That's why we'll be traveling in different groups," he said.
Kevin looked at DogDay. "DogDay, you and the Smiling Critters take the smaller toys..." he continued before glaring at CatNap. "...And him... through the hole beside you. That pathway should lead to Safe Haven with no cameras on you."
Kevin turned to Suzy. "Suzy and I will travel with Misha on a different path," he said before sternly looking at her. "And this time... you're staying by my side; got it?"
Suzy frowned and looked down before nodding. "Yes, Big Brother..." she said, lowly.
Michelle looked at Suzy with a slight frown. "You sure it's a good idea just for the three of you to travel together?" Hoppy Hopscotch asked.
Kevin glared at Hoppy Hopscotch, which made her flinch. "What? You think I'm not strong enough to protect them?" he asked.
DogDay stood before Hoppy Hopscotch. "You know that's not what she means. We all know how capable you are; she's just worried about you and your group's safety," he said, which made her quickly nod.
Kevin stared at DogDay before turning his head away. "We'll be fine," he said. "If something bigger than us comes by, we'll run away."
DogDay stared at Kevin before nodding. "Then we have our groups," he said before turning his head to the large hole. "We should get going."
As most of the larger group followed DogDay, CatNap turned his head to the trio. When Kevin noticed CatNap's gaze, he held Michelle close to him, which surprised her and made her look at him. "KEEP THE ANGEL SAFE..." he said.
Kevin glared at CatNap with a slight growl. "You don't gotta tell me twice, feline; get outta here before I tear you a new one!" he shouted.
CatNap stared at Kevin before looking forward and approaching DogDay's group. When the large group was out of sight, Kevin let out an annoyed sigh before looking at Michelle. "You're a real piece of work, you know that," he said.
Michelle giggled and pointed at Kevin. "And yet you chose to hang out with me all those years ago," she said. "The only one you gotta blame is yourself."
Kevin chuckled a bit. "Yeah, yeah..." he said, lowly.
Kevin turned to Suzy. "C'mon, we're heading back home," he continued.
Suzy smiled and nodded. "Okie dokie, Big Brother," she said.
Kevin turned his head to the right and saw a handle near a platform. A dough arm came out of Kevin's back before launching it and grabbing the handle. Suzy stretched her arms to the platform before both siblings pulled themselves to the top and left the area.