-+ ᴇᴛᴇʀɴᴀʟ ʙʟᴀᴄᴋᴏᴜᴛ . ᴄʜᴀᴘᴛᴇʀ ɪ +-

Instructions

ᴄʜᴀᴘᴛᴇʀ ɪ : ` ᴘᴀʀᴀɴᴏɪᴀ ` ----------------------------------------------------------------- Shelly's alarm woke her up late. It wasn't necessarily the alarm's fault, since she was the one who'd stayed up late last night digging for fossils in her rather small but promising sandbox. She glanced down at where she'd fallen asleep in the sand, drool still dripping gently from the edge of her mouth and landing in the gravelly soil. Picking herself up and dusting off her sandy dress, she looked in the mirror. She was a mess. Mud on her face, sand everywhere, still in yesterday's clothes. Sighing loudly, Shelly trudged to her bathroom to take a shower. She already knew she'd be late for the daily runs. By the time she made it past the slow-moving elevator and into the main lobby, everyone had already gathered by the large Gardenview sign. Vee was the first to notice her, gesturing for Shelly to come over with a simple flick of her microphone tail. "Hey," she greeted. Before Shelly could respond, Vee moved aside to where a few of the other "Mains" were gathered, along with Cosmo and Ginger, who looked rather nervous. "We're going to host a Main only run... well, minus Pebble. You're joining, right Shelly?" She looked expectantly at Shelly with that look she always had. The one that said she wouldn't take no for an answer. Shelly found herself nodding along despite a small feeling in her gut telling her not to. She didn't know why, but she had a bad feeling about today... or maybe it was just because she hadn't eaten yet. Sprout looked unhappy for some odd reason. He tapped on Vee's shoulder and cleared his throat loudly. "I'm not going unless Cosmo's going." From behind him, Cosmo tugged on his scarf, shaking his head. Vee turned around. Exasperation flickered across her digital screen. "You can't be serious, Seedly-" "Don't call me that. And yes, I'm serious. You never let us go on any runs with other Toons! Can't we let him come for once? Ginger too." Vee hesitated momentarily before letting out a sigh. "I don't let them come with us because it's dangerous. We're main characters. We have more abilities. And statistically, our runs make it farther than theirs. I don't want to put them in unwanted danger." Sprout glared. "*Really?* That's your excuse? They're tough too, they can handle things like this! I'm Cosmo's best friend. Actually, many of the 'Mains' here have best friends that are regular Toons. Can't you let us hang out with them every once in a while?" "You can hang out outside of runs. Just because you two are best friends doesn't mean I'm going to let that interfere with this…" Vee's sharp tone faltered a little as she finished. Maybe it was the pathetically pleading look in Sprout's eyes that formed a shred of empathy in her otherwise stoic expression. "...Fine. Just this once." Vee started moving towards the elevator. "Wait!" A voice came from nearby. Teagan rushed over, her dress lifted above her feet so she wouldn't trip over it. "Apologies for the late arrival, but may I join your run? All the others have already left, and I'd like to be useful today. Plus, with me, you'll have a full team of 8!" Vee didn't give her a second glance before nodding. "Sure, whatever." Everyone else followed her into the elevator. The door shut with a loud slam. One that always startled Shelly a little, despite how many times she'd heard it before. And then, they slowly started to descend... *Ding!* The loud screech of the metal door opening snapped Shelly from her wandering thoughts. She stepped out of the elevator, moving on autopilot as she walked towards the nearest machine and spun the rusty old valve. As ichor slowly poured into the glass tube, Shelly looked around at her surroundings. Nearby, Cosmo was struggling to turn the valve on a machine. She absentmindedly boosted him with a cheery wave and a smile, mumbling some encouraging words she'd repeated thousands of times before, then turned back to her now complete machine. Her heartbeat pounded in her ears. She didn't know what, but something about this run felt off. Warning Vee and Sprout would be fruitless. They'd just write her off as being paranoid. Maybe she *was* paranoid. Before she could spiral further, Cosmo finished his machine and everyone ran back to the elevator. Shelly shook her head to clear her thoughts. She glanced at every face, and after finding none as worried as hers, she sighed with relief and plastered a small smile on it. She knew she was wrong. Nothing bad was going to happen, right...? ----------------------------------------------------------------- thanks for reading the first chapter! sorry, it was a little short and uneventful :/ but I'll provide a link to the next when it's all finished! this series might start off a little slow, but it gets better trust