What Big Teeth You Have (Part 1) (11/24/24)- Dandy's World
"Here ya go Shelly!" Cosmo gave her a smile as he handed the plate of food. "I don't know exactly what Shrimpo likes, but hopefully he likes this." Shelly returned his smile with one of her own, though hers was noticeably more subdued.
"...I hope so." She replied, turning to leave the kitchen. Cosmo waved as she left. Shelly turned the corner and headed upstairs. She was quiet as she walked, deep in thought.
As she got closer to Shrimpo's room, Shelly grew more and more worried. None of the other toons had seen him in a week, due to Shrimpo locking himself in his room, hiding away and refusing to talk to anyone.
She had asked the other toons about it, but no one knew what was wrong with him. When she went to Dandy, he had told her about Shrimpo's odd behavior during the week.
He had been angrier than usual, his short-temper even more so. When Shelly had inquired further, he had begun walking off, stating a meeting with Astro as his reason for ending the conversation right then and there.
After the (rather odd) conversation with Dandy, Shelly had gone to a few select toons; Finn, Teagan, and Rodger, to get more answers regarding Shrimpo's strange behavior as of late.
They'd all had the same answer.
None of them knew what was wrong with Shrimpo exactly, only that something was wrong with him. As she approached his room, she paused, hand raised to knock. Behind the door, Shelly could hear Shrimpo, moving around his room.
At the sound of the familiar, heavy footsteps, she moved forward and knocked on the door.
"Shrimpo?" Shelly called out. "Can you open the door?" Immediately the shuffling stopped, the footstep noises moving closer. Clicking noises emanated from behind the door, and it opened a crack, revealing a sliver of Shrimpo's face, his bright amber eye narrowing and then growing wide.
The familiar scowl he usually wore softened a bit.
"SHELLY?" His voice, usually loud and abrasive was slightly quieter. "WHAT ARE YOU DOIN' HERE?"
"I came to see you. No one's seen you in a week, Shrimpo, and you haven't left your room. I've been worried..." Shelly moved forward, but Shrimpo shook his head sharply.
"...YOU SHOULDN'T HAVE COME." His face had hardened, and he gritted his teeth, something akin to unease in his sharp eyes. Shelly's brow furrowed slightly.
"Shrimpo." She moved closer to the door, keeping her voice level despite her growing frustrations. "Do you hear yourself? No one's seen you in a week, you haven't left your room. The other toons told me you've been acting strange..." Shelly sighed. "And I'm worried about you-"
A guttural, unnatural growl came from Shrimpo. His teeth were bared and a wild, wrathful look contorted his face as his claws dug into the wood of the door.
"I'M FINE!" He snapped at her, eyes alight with fury. "I DON'T KNOW WHAT THOSE BASTARDS HAVE BEEN TELLIN' YOU, BUT THEY ARE LYING." Shrimpo snarled at her, his claws leaving deep gouges in the wood. "THERE'S NOTHING WRONG WITH ME, AND-" He paused, abruptly falling silent as he stared at her.
Shelly wore a determined expression as she moved forward, pushing past Shrimpo. He stumbled backwards, scowling as she entered his room. She froze in her tracks, taken aback by the sheer destruction of his room.
Claw marks were gouged in the wall, and the punching bags Shrimpo used had been torn apart, the rags that filled them scattered all over the destroyed room.
Shelly stole a glance at Shrimpo's bed. It was utterly unsalvageable, the wooden bedframe demolished, and the mattress, pillow and blankets completely shredded. His desk and nightstand fared no better, both of which had been violently clawed, and shattered to unfixable pieces.
She turned to look at Shrimpo, who had been standing by the door, uncharacteristically quiet. He rubbed his arm, not meeting her gaze. Did he do this? She had known that Shrimpo was capable of destruction, but this...
"Shrimpo..." Shelly moved towards him. "What...happened here? Did you..." She trailed off, as her gaze darted around the room, and Shrimpo's frown deepened.
"...YES, I DID." He admitted, looking down at the floor.
Shelly's gaze landed on the bed again. It was completely wrecked. Where had Shrimpo been sleeping all this time?
"Shrimpo," At the sound of her voice, he looked up. "...Where have you been sleeping?" Shelly gestured at the pile of rubble and shredded linens. He was quiet for a moment, before speaking.
"I'VE BEEN SLEEPING OVER THERE." Shrimpo pointed at a small mound of rags with a claw.
Shelly glanced at the rags, and then at Shrimpo, before reaching for him.
"C'mon," She moved towards the door. "Let's go see if Dandy can do something about your bedroom. Maybe he can get a handler to deal with it or something."
"OKAY..." Shrimpo nodded, falling in step beside her as the pair left his room.
As they walked, Shelly reached for his hand. Her hand brushed against his claws, alien in their sharpness and she took his hand.
He stiffened briefly at her touch, before relaxing, his fingers slowly interlacing with Shelly's. She smiled warmly at him. Reluctantly Shrimpo smiled back, revealing massive, sharp teeth.
Shelly stared at them, and his smile faltered. Shrimpo stopped walking, suddenly self-conscious.
"WHAT'RE YOU STARIN' AT?" His eyes were wide as Shelly cupped his face with her hands, antenna waving about wildly. "IS SOMETHIN' WRONG WITH MY FACE?" She shook her head, smiling at the dark blush that colored his face as he frowned at her.
"No, nothing's the matter." Shelly replied, using her thumbs to push Shrimpo's lip away from his teeth. "I'm just curious..." It was just as she'd thought. His teeth were very large and very sharp, his canines even more so. "Alright, curiosity satisfied! Let's go!" She released his face and peppered his cheeks in kisses.
Shrimpo grumbled, pulling away from Shelly, and she smiled, noticing the fierce blush the kisses had left in their wake.
The pair turned the corner and headed downstairs, Shrimpo's hand gripping Shelly's firmly as he scowled, meeting the curious looks from the other toons with a vicious glare.
"WHERE'S DANDY?" He growled. "ISN'T HE SUPPOSED TO BE HERE?" Shelly shrugged.
"Maybe he's busy?" She offered. "We could wait in the meantime..." Shrimpo frowned slightly.
"I HATE WAITING." He replied, but plopped down on the bench. "BUT WAITING WITH YOU MAKES IT SLIGHTLY MORE BEARABLE." Shelly beamed, sat down beside him, and waited for Dandy to appear.
