Protector's Bond (Two-Shot)

Chapter 33: Lights In Darkness And Despair (Burpy and Joo-Joo)

Just like what I did with the chapter "He Did What?!" I will put two points of view here. To avoid confusion, Joo-Joo's point of view is in italic while Burpy's point of view is normal.

If you thought slugs can't write a single thing, you're 100% wrong. We slugs are more intelligent creatures than you think. We can paint. Yes, we can write. We can ride our slingers' Mechas. We can pull a lot of hi-tech pranks.

And we grieve the way our slingers do. We express our feeling without fear.

I myself feel hurt. I was really hoping he will help us in bringing his dad back, but, as it turns out, we're going to have to find him on our own. I really can't wait for Will Shane's return but also anxious of his reaction towards his one and only son's death. I honestly expect him to be heartbroken as he and his son will have to reunite in paradise. He was away from him for 7 years and expect a physical reunion but end up having a badly emotional reunion. But at least he has me.

But he'll have to feel the way his son did because when he disappeared, I was the only connection Eli had with him. Now that Eli's gone, it will be in reverse. I will be the only connection Will has with his lost son. I see that as the future: bleak, heartbreaking, nightmarish and the emptiness of promises.

I know someone else feels the same way.

I've slowly been recovering from a sudden devastation. But my brother? Well, honestly not so much. He's been crying and crying and crying for days. I was afraid he'd end up dehydrated because he lost so much fluids in the form of tears. I also noticed him sneaking out into the wildlife for weeks, to the point where we have to frantically search every nook and corner of the house! When he finally shows up, he usually does amidst the panic. And we sigh, relieved that he's still in one piece. But I noticed his scrapes and bruises go unnoticed by everyone-except me. "Where in SlugTerra did he get all those?! I keep wondering."

So one day, I watched him sneak out again and trailed him. I was left to watch in horror as he purposely walks himself in thorny bushes, dives all the way from the highest mushrooms, and worst of all, surrender to slug hounds! I couldn't take it. He was trying to kill himself! When a slug hound cornered him, I observed him. Normally a slug would look behind himself, freak out and bolt. But not him. He looks behind himself, hangs his head and begs the hound to make him its dinner! What?! This is just too much for me. I jumped forward, shooed the hound away and turned to confront my little brother. He was gone.

He must have known I was coming to save him.

How could Joo-Joo do this to me? I was supposed to just die already! I didn't want to see the future. I wanted to be with my slinger so that I won't have to suffer anymore! To avoid confrontation from my older brother, I fled while he was attacking my supposed killer. If I wasn't going to die, I was going to leave home. And there's nothing the Shane Gang can do to stop me.

"BURPY!!! I've been calling you for too freaking long now! You have to come home!" My fiery little voice was going nowhere. Where is my little brother? "Burpy, please! You have to come home this very minute! It's getting dark around here!" I continued my search. I wanted to search for him the whole night. But my precious slinger and slug-fu master Jun-Hyung (what's wrong with the nickname? Honestly, it's so cute on him) started calling me from inside his room. "Well," I sighed, "I hope you can survive here, all alone, cold and in the dark..." then I went inside.

I so badly wanted to sleep but I was kept awake. I couldn't bear to see my brother, all alone in the wild, prone to many threats and dangers. So in the middle of the night, I snuck out of my bed and went out to find him. I saw the front door open just a teeny tiny crack, easy for me to fit through. I went towards it, only to feel a heavy weight pinning my tail down. I tugged and tugged and tugged. I twisted my flexible little body around and sunk my sharp teeth into whatever this thing is pinning down my tail. I felt myself being lifted in the air. I struggled and bit down further, digging my teeth into leather. "Going somewhere, Joo?" Uh-oh. I know my nickname and that voice. Not Jun-Hyung! I-bit my own slinger? How in-? I hung my head in shame and hopped back to the room, as he would expect me to.

But after my second jump, he knelt down and picked me up. "C'mon, Joo," he begged. "You look eager for a midnight walk outside. Why?" I hated telling the truth, but I had to. I painstakingly explained the whole situation. I'm sure glad he understood me. It helped get my mind of the fact that I used my powerful jaws and my sharp teeth into his flesh. So we went out in the middle of the night and went to look for Burpy. As luck would have it, he's near Eli's grave site. We cautiously approached him in case he tried anything against us.

I found the perfect sleeping spot: Eli's grave. It's where I can be comforted. I feel like he's stroking me to sleep, like he's still alive. I was completely relaxed on that spot. And then I saw that familiar tint of light orange with two fur-covered legs behind him. Before Jun-Hyung could pick me up, I jumped out of his reach. He followed. I ran as far as I could. He ran after me, with Joo-Joo perched on his shoulder to watch the whole show.

The chase was on!

Burpy, you are coming home this very minute, whether you like it or not!