Welcome Home!

Part 45: Bye-bye

"See you later, Howdy! Wally is very tired, so I need to get going. Let's have another tea party sometime, okay? Bye-bye!" I waved and scooped up Wally. I began walking home.

(Wally was still asleep as you carried him. He had been awake for a short while after you reassured him that you'd help him make a gift.

Unfortunately, he had heard Howdy just as he was feeling asleep. What on earth was that caterpillar up to? The moon wasn't anything spectacular, and Howdy did not have any business commenting on it with you.

However, Wally understood that you were free to do whatever you wanted. You probably didn't know what Howdy meant, anyway.

Wally woke up in his bed. He frantically checked the time. To his relief, it was the early evening. He had only missed a small fraction of the day sleeping.)

I was busy sweeping the floors in the house when Wally stepped into the living room.

"Wally! Did you sleep well? That was quite the tea party, wasn't it?" I smiled. I looked back down and continued sweeping.

"Yes, I did. There was certainly a lot of tea... It really was a tea party."

"Haha, it was, wasn't it? Well, we still have plenty of time before curfew. Would you like to spend that time making a gift for Eddie and Frank?" I stopped sweeping and looked over at Wally.

"Okay. That sounds nice."

"Wonderful! We should stop by the bodega for supplies.
Now, I noticed that Howdy was displaying unpleasant behavior towards you. Do not worry! Just call me over if he decides to try that again, okay? I don't want my dear friends to fight," I sighed. Wally looked down at his buny slippers and nodded.
"Alright, then. Put your shoes on, and we'll be on our way."

We made it to the bodega. Howdy waved at me and smiled. He continued trying to wave and smile once he spotted Wally.

"Good evening, Howdy! Don't mind us. We're just here to grab some supplies."

Howdy nodded in response to what I had said. I walked down the aisle and stopped to look at some goods.
Wally was not by me. I hoped he wasn't provoking Howdy.

(Wally was busy looking at various gift baskets. He wanted to pick one that would really impress Frank enough to the point that he wouldn't try to kill Wally.

As he perused the options, he got the odd feeling of being under surveillance. Wally turned around to see Howdy glaring at him from the checkout.

"Please stop looking at me," Wally smiled.

"I wasn't looking at you. I was just.. glaring in your direction," Howdy looked away. Wally laughed awkwardly.

"Why are you glaring? Care to inform me?" Wally asked. Wally already knew the answer, he just felt like being mischievous.

"You know why."

"Oh, but I don't,"

Howdy grumbled. "Oh, just thinking about our conversation from earlier."

"Aw, so you're just moping? You just can't seem to get me out of your head, can you?" Wally paused and smiled smugly at him again.
"Jealousy is not a good look for you, my dear friend."

"You sure enjoy teasing me, don't you?" Howdy squinted at Wally. Wally chuckled.

"It's funny to see you like this. I never thought I'd be here living out what you can only dream of."

"What I can only dream of?! Why, you little apple-stealing--" Howdy stopped himself once he spotted you leaving an aisle. He went back to staring at Wally as soon as you entered a new aisle.

"You can't keep wallowing in self-pity, Howdy. I hope you realize that," Wally hummed. Howdy crossed his fuzzy arms.

"I actually needed to hear that. I'm still going to beat the stuffing out of you if you hurt another neighbor, though."

"Bye-bye, Howdy," Wally blew him a dramatic kiss. Howdy waved a fist at him. Wally skittered into an aisle and helped you pick out some supplies.)

I had overheard the two. I was rather annoyed. What was I supposed to do to relieve the situation? I wasn't sure, but I still had another task at hand.

Wally and I had to spend a day or two with Frank and Eddid to make up for Wally's bite.

Wally picked up the supplies plus his basket and marched out of the store. I waved to Howdy.

"Goodbye, dear!"

"Goodbye," Howdy waved slightly. He went back to doing whatever it was he had been doing before we had shown up.

Wally and I spent an hour making the gift. It was a wonderful arrangement! There was an array of snacks, books, and cards mixed within the basket. I placed a bow on the handle.

"Ready to spend some time with them? I'm sure it will be fun!" I sang. I twirled about on the living room floor of our home.

"Yes. I am ready," Wally sighed.

We made it to Frank's house. Eddie answered the door. I looked down at his injured hand. Eddie was down to three fingers, now. He had tight, neat stitching holding his hand together.

"Hello, Eddie Dear! Wally has a gift for you and Frank," I patted Wally's shoulder. He begrudgingly handed Frank the gift, for he had appeared next to Eddie. I knew that Wally was just nervous to be spending time with them. He had bitten of poor Eddie's finger, after all. Eddie didn't seem to mind, thankfully.

"Oh! Thank you so very much! Frank and I are absolutely pleased to have you both here with us!" Eddie exclaimed. He pulled both of us into a bear hug. He swung around and placed us inside of the house.

"Eddie, you will hurt your hand again if you do that too much," Frank sighed. He held Eddie's injured hand and looked at it thoughtfully. Although he seemed to possess an austere character, Frank was gentle and thoughtful.

"Oh, Frank! Your care for me is very beautiful and thoughtful, but do not worry! These are our friends! I do not mind injuring myself a little for them," Eddie smiled at Frank. Frank's frown deepened just a tad.

"If you injure your hand again, I'll zip you in in the mesh butterfly cage for safety," he muttered as he left to go into some room. Eddie chuckled as Frank left and turned back to us.

"He doesn't mean that, really," Eddie sighed gently. He flopped back into one of two armchairs facing a large bay window. "What would you two like to do? We have all day plus tomorrow."

"Hmm.. good question. Any ideas, Wally?" I looked over at my dear roommate.

"How about some board games? We can come up with other things from there," Wally gave Eddie and me a thumbs up. Eddie and I looked at each other before looking back at Wally.

"Sounds positively delightful!" I smiled. Eddie nodded.

"A wonderful idea for a gorgeous day!" Eddie commented on Wally's idea. Wally beamed with pride.