Chapter Text
Disclaimers
1. I don't own the Biker Mice From Mars.
2. English isn't my first language, so I'm sure there will be some grammatical mistakes, my apologies in advance.
This little story takes place right after "Once Upon A Time On Mars".
Chapter 1
The clear sky above the city of Chicago, Illinois slowly darkened as clouds began to form.
Shadows fell over the outskirts of the Windy City, but one hardly noticed for it was the middle of the night.
Most of the people were fast asleep, for a moment escaped from the big bad world outside, all living their dream.
And so too did Charley, although she was one of the few exceptions who wasn't living her dream, simply because nightmares needed to stay nightmares.
No one wanted a nightmare to become reality, for it was already hard enough to just lie in bed and wait helplessly till the horror was over.
To wait for the moment to wake up and realize it was just a nightmare.
Just a nightmare...
As the storm slowly came closer, ready to release hell right above the city, Charley twisted and turned in her bed, her mind replaying the things she'd learned today.
It was a lot to take in, so it didn't come as a surprise that she was having a nightmare instead of peacefully living her dream.
It was a way for the mind to process the dark sides of life.
And there were a lot of dark sides in the mice their lives.
It was then that a loud scream made the human female almost jump out of her skin and she flew upright, her green eyes wide open.
She looked around her bewildered, her heart racing, desperately searching for the source of this sudden wake-up call.
Noises were heard downstairs and she blinked a few times before it dawned upon her.
The mice.
Something was up.
Still yawning, but somehow grateful to be awakened from her restless sleep, she slid out of bed and quickly grabbed some clothes.
After reliving some pretty tense moments of their lives today, Charley had offered them to spend the night here, at the garage.
She wasn't entirely sure why, since the mice acted like this had been just an ordinary day, but something had told her to keep them close.
Maybe it was the sadness she'd seen in Modo's eye.
Maybe it was the sound of despair she'd heard in Throttle's voice when he was telling their story.
Or maybe it was Vinnie's slip of the tongue when he intended to say her name.
She didn't know.
But whatever the reason may be, she'd asked them to stay.
And they did.
Just when she put on her blouse, she heard a sound she would recognize anywhere.
It was a bike that started its powerful engine, more specifically - Vinnie's bike.
The sound of squealing tires followed and Charley quickly rushed downstairs, but only to find Throttle and Modo sitting in the small kitchen that was attached to the workspace of the garage.
One of the motorized shutters was already closing again, but not before she could feel how the wind picked up as it blew cold air into the garage, the sound of thunder roaring in the distance.
She wrapped her blouse tighter around her body as she stopped next to the table where both Modo and Throttle sat.
"What's going on? Shouldn't you go after him?", she asked worriedly, pointing with her thumb at the door that was now closed again.
But Throttle calmly shook his head.
"Nah, it's better to leave him alone for now."
Charley gave him a confused look, not understanding why the tan-furred mouse didn't take action.
Out of the three of them, Vinnie was the most unpredictable one and it didn't seem to be a good idea to let him ride out on his own, without someone to keep an eye on him.
More to the point - without someone to stop him from doing something stupid.
This was Vinnie they were talking about.
And Vinnie had the tendency to do stupid things.
That was nothing more but a fact.
"Why?"
"He's not really approachable after having one of his nightmares, Charley ma'am", Modo answered that question.
"Nightmares?", she asked even more confused. "Vinnie has nightmares?"
She had no idea.
"Yeah… It's been a while, though, since the last time it happened", Throttle responded a bit vague.
"Maybe it has something to do with today, ya know… telling our story. Maybe it triggered something again", Modo shrugged.
So far for acting like it was an ordinary day.
Her hunch was right.
This day was far from ordinary.
"You guys don't seem to be surprised, or worried for that matter", Charley said slowly, still confused about their laid-back reaction.
Throttle heaved a sigh.
"You make it sound like we don't care, but we do. Look, I know we don't talk much about this stuff, but the war… The war affected us all. We all have nightmares, one worse than the other. It's not the first time this happens and it won't be the last time either. He just needs some time to grab himself together, that's all."
But Charley wasn't convinced.
"There's a storm coming. He's out there, all alone. He shouldn't be alone right now…"
Modo rose on his feet and when he stood in front of her, he gently took her hand.
"You care, Charley ma'am, we know you do. And we're grateful for that, we really are. But right now, that's exactly what he needs. Some alone time."
"The big fella is right, babe. He'll be fine. Why don't you go back to sleep? It's been a rough day", Throttle added.
They meant well, she knew they did.
They probably were right too.
They were his bro's, after all.
His family.
They knew him better than she did, perhaps even better than he knew himself.
If both Throttle and Modo told her that he just needed some time, he just needed some time.
It was as simple as that.
Was it?
The wind now howled around the building, making the windows rattle in their frame.
Charley felt a shiver running down her spine and walked over to the window.
She tried to look outside, to catch a glimpse of the situation, but it was too dark.
All she saw was her reflection staring back at her.
Ever since she was a kid, storms always made her feel a bit uneasy.
It wasn't that she was scared, but the sound of the howling wind gave her the feeling something bad was about to happen, she just didn't know what and when.
Till this day, nothing ever happened, though.
But just the thought that Vinnie was out there, all alone, hurting…
It made her somehow sick to the stomach.
And so she made a decision.
"I'm going after him."
Turning around, she avoided looking at Throttle and Modo because she didn't want to give them a chance to stop her.
Because she knew they would try.
They always wanted to protect her, one way or another.
A thing she was grateful for.
But sometimes, life was about taking risks.
The mice didn't want her to take risks, which was almost hypocritical.
They took life-threatening risks on daily basis.
So why couldn't she?
Besides, this was hardly even exciting.
A storm she would survive and an upset white-furred Martian Mouse...
Well, she could handle him.
He would never do anything to hurt her, that she knew for sure.
They were friends.
And friends took care of each other.
That was as simple as that.
She quickly grabbed her jacket and helmet and put both on.
When she mounted her bike, Throttle suddenly popped up next to her and laid his hand on her arm.
Charley braced herself, expecting him to stop her, but he didn't.
He only asked one question.
"You know where to find him?"
Unable to hide her surprise, she looked up at him.
He looked back at her, more serious than she had ever seen him before and that was saying something.
Throttle could be very serious.
Most of the time, he was.
Although he did have the same wild side as his two bro's had, he just didn't show it that often.
But it was in there, alright.
It was hard to find at this very moment, though.
Despite his glasses, she felt how his intense gaze almost burned a hole in her skull.
Fighting the urge to flinch under his strict look, Charley nodded as an answer to his question.
His facial expression softened and he patted her lovingly on the helmet.
"Be careful out there, babe. Let us know when you need help, okay?"
"Will do", she answered, still not knowing what had just happened but she gave herself no time to think about it any longer.
Her friend needed her.
The door opened, letting in the wind and Charley zipped her jacket up to her chin when she felt how cold it actually was.
But that wasn't gonna stop her either.
Nothing was.
"Don't wait up, guys. It's been a rough day for both of you too."
And without waiting for an answer, she revved her bike and drove into the dark and ominous night.
"Shouldn't we go with her?", Modo asked worriedly.
"Nah. I've got this feeling telling me that only Charley is capable of getting through to him and she seems to know it too. Let's give her the chance to prove it, without an audience", Throttle answered.
Modo still had that worried look on his face when he pushed the button to close the door.
Charley was like a sister to him and letting her drive into the storm ran counter with his protective and responsible side.
"I hope you're right, bro, I hope you're right."
Throttle patted his large bro on the back.
"That makes two of us, big fella."
The tan-furred mouse knew he was taking a risk.
They usually did everything within their power to keep Charley out of trouble, simply because they cared about her.
But sometimes, one needed to take a risk.
To let fate decide what would happen next.
Besides, stopping Charley was like mission impossible, stubborn as she was.
Maybe she was right, though.
No one should be alone.
Not even when that particular mouse claimed otherwise...