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He doesn't realise until after his coyote had left just how badly the injuries were. Sure, Wile E suffered more from his inventions and gadgets than the intented target but Roadie would watch him climb back up, straighten himself out and continue the chase.
It wasn't until he didn't return to the desert for a couple days, not even with those strange new humans, that the roadrunner ventured into the cave, hoping to find a lead about his favourite predator's whereabouts and instead finding…
Finding countless first-aid boxes emptied out, a whole cup of missing teeth, bloodied bandages and casts and crutches, the blueprints of failed traps scribbled over with Wile E's injured state, most injuries he never fully recovered from and Roadie had no idea.
Their chases were just meant to be fun, it was why he would loom over the coyote and stick his tongue out to say 'see you tomorrow' and so the next day would bring a new gadget for the same usual chase, it was their thing, their well-established joint routine but no one was supposed to get hurt like this, not past the bounds of Toon law.
And yet he kept going, kept running and chasing, dealing with serious wounds and permanent damage while the roadrunner had just left him, abandoned him even, so no wonder he had left, had presumably given up the chase for good.
When the giant stack of birdseed appeared a couple days later, Roadie had hope again, especially when he felt the glue under his feet, one of Wile E's classic tactics so his coyote had to be back, right?
No. Just more humans but not the nice-looking ones who had been with Wile taking photos and putting down strange little markers with numbers on around the many places he had been injured, these humans were bad, they had big cars and big weapons but the roadrunner was no match for them, especially with this new ire.
How dare they come into his desert, the one he shared with his coyote, and deceive him like this, having the audacity to involve themselves in this chase, this sacred chase, thinking he'll let them get off easy like he does Wile E?
Absolutely not. He made sure to send them packing, a clear message to stay the heck away from their desert and they better have got the additional memo of not touching a single hair on his favourite predator, he won't go so easy on them next time for more than one reason.
They were plastered all over with ACME. Roadie recognised the name from the mountains of gadgets in the coyote's cave, the company behind his dear friend's pain and suffering since it was THEIR gadgets he was using! If anything, THEY should be the ones getting exploded and splattered and everything else!
But…but their presence did comfort him, slightly because if ACME had captured Wile E, a scenario he hadn't even thought about until their arrival, they wouldn't be trying to also capture him, there would be no need, so the roadrunner was supposed to be bait to catch their real target, his coyote.
Who was still out there, safe from this evil corporation, doing whatever he had to do and Roadie could wait, would wait, however long he needed to.
Until that piece of paper caught his eye, because Wile E was on it, going up against this company all the way over in Washington and now the roadrunner was running not because it was his instinct or routine but because his coyote needed his support, he realised it now, and he would be there.
He would run to him.
…
"Is there anyone in the whole wide world who cares what happens to the coyote at all?"
Okay, maybe he wasn't harsh enough back in the desert, but there was time to make them pay some more when this was done, when he had said what he needed to say.
Roadie burst into the room, sped right on over to the witness stand and meep meep'd his confirmation that somebody did care about Wile E. Almost immediately, he found the wire, no doubt another of his coyote's inventions, of course he hadn't given up on this great chase of theirs, of course not.
"Mr Runner," one of the humans stepped in front of the podium, "we will be asking you a series of yes or no questions; two meeps for yes, one meep for no. Do you understand?"
'Yes, I do.'
Practice questions were first. "Are you a bird?"
'Of course.'
"Are you easy to catch?"
'Of course not.'
"Okay, good. Are you familiar with a Mr Wile E Coyote?"
'Yes! My partner in chasing, my best friend, so many words I cannot articulate but yes.'
"Have you witnessed Mr Coyote using any ACME products while in your presence in the desert?"
'All the time, every time.'
"Have those products failed?"
'Every single one. Never my coyote's fault, of course.'
"Mr Runner, have you been a witness to Mr Coyote's pain and suffering?"
'…yes. I never realised until he was gone how much he had been hurt, but yes.'
His smile fell at the very thought of his poor friend in those states, and he could tell this human had also been affected.
"Yeah, me too. Would you call him a friend?"
'That and so much more. This coyote means more to me than you will ever know.'
"Well, thank you, Mr Runner. Thank you for coming here today. Did you have something additional you'd like to say?"
'Just one thing. To my dear coyote.'
"Alright, the floor is yours to add to the record."
He knew all those people and Toons were staring but he was only looking at Wile E, at the tears that had built in his eyes, just four words only for him: 'Are you coming back?'
(Meeped out slowly to really drive the point home that someone did care, cared enough to hope he would return to them)
And it was small, easily missable, but there was the ever so slightest nod. Roadie would take it, he would keep waiting however long he needed to, just for his coyote.
With a smile and one last meep meep of 'catch me later', he ran back out, heading for their home…plus a small stop to hear the trap go off, a good bit of karma for ACME's leaders.
Wile E really was the best inventor he knew.
It took a couple of weeks but finally, Roadie saw him again, waited until he said his goodbyes to the much nicer pair of humans who had helped not only him but every other Toon affected by that corrupt company.
Thanks to them, his coyote got justice and came back, still up for chasing as that dastardly grin took over his face. Oh, how the roadrunner had missed that look.
Running just wasn't the same without someone coming after you, and even if the gadgets were no longer ACME, Wile E would just get more creative with what they had out here. And when he would get hurt, because that had became part of their routine too, then Roadie would help to patch him up or better yet, stop the impending disaster.
Like a good partner. For his coyote.