A/N: Based on an RP... Yadda yadda yadda... Only own OC's... Read & Review!
There was nothing really going on today for Cherry and Atticus, but the telephone called.
"Sure, hang on a moment," Emily said on the phone before calling out. "Atticus, telephone! It's Jessica, she's calling from her college!"
"Coming!" Atticus called out and ran to get the phone.
Emily handed the phone to her son as soon as he came to claim it. She then went to get herself a glass of lemonade.
"Jessica, hey, how's college?" Atticus asked.
"It's great, I really miss you all, but I'm meeting a lot of interesting people," Jessica smiled. "Also, if you want, you can come visit us sometime. The Professor of my computer program is letting people come see us with our computer games. I have one that might interest you guys."
"Ooh, really? Tell me." Atticus said.
"You know those video games you like so much at Litwak's?" Jessica asked. "I decided to combine from Fix-it-Felix Jr., Hero's Duty, and Sugar Rush Speedway. It's dedicated to you and Cherry, you can play a sample of it before the Professor sends it to a marketing company."
"Cool, wait, what about any of the students there, have any of them created a game as well?" Atticus asked.
"Like I said, it's my computer programming course," Jessica replied. "I asked Professor Kaufman if you could visit and he said it would be just fine. That Billy McLemore kid's made a baseball game and Eric Staufer's made a game for the Scooby Doo gang."
"Cool, anyways, when's a good time for me to visit?" Atticus asked.
"Probably next week," Jessica tried to think of a good time. "We also have to present our games to the Professor. I hope I get an A..."
"I know that you'll get an A." Atticus said.
"At least a B or a C, I just don't wanna fail..." Jessica sighed, but then smiled. "Hope to see you soon."
"Hope to see you soon too." Atticus said.
"Miss Fudo!" a voice called.
"Aw, I gotta go..." Jessica sighed. "I'll see ya soon, little brother!" she said before hanging up.
"I can't wait to visit Jessica." Atticus said.
"You kids are growing up so fast..." Patrick sighed with a smile. "Jessica's in college, Atticus, you'll be ending high school soon, and who knows what I'll do once Darla gets there?"
Darla was pretty much a young teenager these days, she was often on the phone and already talking about boys, especially with an upcoming dance at school. Atticus was a smart and very strong teenage boy. Patch was the same as a teenage dog, only one thing though he didn't have yet, a girlfriend.
Darla was talking on the phone, then saw the boys coming. "I'll talk to you later, bye!" she said quickly before hanging up.
"Who was it this time?" Maisy asked.
Darla sighed, flopping backward on her couch. "That weird frog kid who plays in the creek all day..."
"Again? Sheesh! How many is that now, ten?" Maisy asked.
"More like 10,000... Ugh..." Darla rubbed her eyes, looking exhausted. "I wanna go to the dance... But no one;s right enough for me in school..."
"They don't have to be from your school, Darla." Emily told her adoptive younger daughter.
"They don't?" Darla opened one eye.
"Well, at my school dances, lots of people invite guests from other schools, visiting, or home-schooled," Emily shrugged with a smile. "Why don't you ask someone outside of school?"
"But who?" Darla looked lost.
"Maybe Urchin." Atticus suggested.
"Urchin?" Darla noticeably blushed at the merboy's name.
"Who's Urchin?" Maisy asked.
"Someone she met in Atlantica and also danced with her." Atticus said.
"Ohh, so that's who he was. And which means he kind of like her boyfriend." Patch said before making kissing noises.
"Don't make me throw you in the tub." Darla playfully smirked to the puppy.
"You wouldn't dare." Patch smirked playfully.
"Oh, I would," Darla chuckled. She then thought of Urchin and sighed. "Would he even remember me...?"
"Of course he would, Darla. How could he forget you? There's only one of you in the world." Atticus assured his adoptive little sister.
"I guess... But we're not in Atlantica anymore..." Darla shrugged as she curled her finger in her hair, springing the curl BACK once she let go.
"What about that shell in your room?" Maisy asked. "Maybe it's a way to contact with the merfolk..."
"Oh, I don't know..." Darla shrugged as she took out the shell. "It makes music, I dunno if it'll let me get anyone..."
"Doesn't hurt to try." Patch said to her.
"Yeah." Atticus said.
"I dunno, guys..." Darla shrugged.
Maisy purred, nuzzling up with the girl.
Darla hugged Maisy. "I'll give it a try, but it might not work..." She then looked at the shell and decided that Maisy and Patch were right.
"Who wants cookies?" Emily asked as she went to the kitchen, feeling in the mood for baking.
Everyone then agreed with this.
"Cookies sound great." Atticus said.
"I thought so." Emily smiled with a chuckle.
"Um, Mama Emily," Darla stood up with her shell. "I'm going to the ocean for a minute..."
Emily looked perplexed, but the closest body of water wasn't too far away from their home. "Okay, but be back quickly."
"Yes, Mama..." Darla nodded, she took her jacket, buttoned it up and then went on her bike, putting her helmet on, and started to peddle away with her shell in the basket.
"She's going to see if she can call Urchin, anyways, I'll be going to visit Jessica next week." Atticus said.
"We've been planning to visit her sometime soon too, but... Work schedule jumped us..." Emily chuckled sheepishly.
"I understand, anyways me and Patch will be at the gym if you need us." Atticus said as both him and Patch left, driving in a red car with four doors.
Patch stretched a bit.
Darla kept biking, then went to the ocean. The waves were gently crashing, the birds were cawing and the sun wasn't really there due to the foggy clouds. She then took her shell from her basket and walked across the sand, kneeling by the water. She took a very deep breath and blew hard into it and it made a different noise than the music it would play as it was blasting into the ocean, as if to make some sort of signal. And as if on cue, Urchin came out of the water as an answer to her signal.
"You called?" Urchin asked.
"URCHIN!" Darla cried out, feeling very pleased to see him after many years and hugged him. "Oh, my gosh... I didn't think I'd ever see you again..."
"Well, I'm here now, so, what do you wanna talk about?" Urchin asked.
Darla settled herself. "Umm... Well... There's this dance that's coming up around springtime... Even Amber has a date... I was wondering if you could, could you ask Uncle Triton to make you into a human boy so you could go to the dance with me?" she asked, very sweetly, and this time, very sincere with her sweetness. "I mean, I love you just the way you are, but it's the only way you could go to the dance with me if you wanted to go, I mean..."
"I'll ask Dad if he can do it." Urchin said.
"Let me know... I know I need to visit more often, but you know, I go to school..." Darla said, hugging her knees as she talked with the merboy she secretly had feelings for. "I'm gonna visit you a lot more during the summer though since I'll have free time, and Mama Emily said we could go since she feels comfortable to visit Atlantica again."
"That's great." Urchin said.
"I'm sorry about not visiting..." Darla sighed. "There are times where I just wanna jump in and see you all... But, hopefully it can wait..." she smiled softly.
"Come see me tomorrow or in a week, I should have an answer about going to your dance with you." Urchin said with a smile.
Darla smiled. "Thanks... I better get going, Mama Emily doesn't want me out too late," Darla said as she hopped back on her bike and put the shell in her basket. "I'll see you later!" she promised as she peddled off.
Urchin waved to her, then dove back into the ocean. While Darla was peddling back home, Atticus and Patch were both now lifting weights and where they each were lifting up at about 200 pounds big weights lifting them up like they were nothing.
Darla hummed as she passed the various homes, being the happy and healthy child she was destined to be and was glad to never have any troubles in her life again. She wondered if she would be allowed to visit Jessica too while she would have Atticus over to visit her college. She then looked through a window at a gym and saw that Atticus and OPatch were working-out like there was no tomorrow. And where she could see in Patch's eyes the eyes of someone wanting to find his true love.
Darla walked into the house and went to get a drink of ice cold water, that bike ride took a lot out of her and smirked down at the Dalmatian puppy. "You okay there, Patch?"
"I'm just keeping myself in shape like Atticus, so then I can find my true love." Patch said while doing push-ups while the couch was on his back.
"Aw... Puppy Love..." Darla smiled. "That's so cute."
"So, how'd it go with Urchin?" Atticus asked his adoptive sister.
Darla blushed and smiled sheepishly once his name was brought up again. "He said he'd think it over and talk with Uncle Triton about letting him go..."
"That's great, well let's hope that Uncle Triton will let him go with you." Atticus said.
"I hope so too..." Darla sighed, looking down, but she was still smiling.
"I hope this boy Urchin is properly raised enough to dance with you, Darla." Patrick said, a little firm, since he was a dad after all and Darla was his daughter, even if not biologically related.
"I'm sure Uncle Triton raised him well enough, Daddy," Darla said to her adoptive father. "Even if Urchin was a practical joker when Ariel first found him."
"It's true, Uncle Triton must have raised him really well and I'm sure taught him of how to dance." Atticus said.
"How can they dance if they don't have feet?" Darla was a little confused.
"Anyone can dance, Darla," Patch said. "Even me!"
"Really?" Darla smirked to him, folding her arms. "Show me then."
Patch placed the couch back where it was and then began to dance and where he was an excellent dancer.
Darla laughed and cheered him on. "Go Patch, go Patch~" she chanted and laughed, having fun with the puppy.
"I can't wait to go and visit Jessica at her college with Atticus and Mo." Patch said while dancing.
"Just be sure to tell the people there you're with Atticus, okay?" Patrick warned the puppy as he went to go get dinner together since Emily was going to be home late tonight. "Jessica told me about an animal experimentation lab in the college... We wouldn't want you to get tested on, now would we?"
"No, we wouldn't." Patch said.
"What's for dinner?" Darla asked.
"What would you like?" Patrick said as he looked at the food Emily bought from the store for them. "We got chicken and rice... Spaghetti... Steak and pasta..."
"Spaghetti!" Atticus and Patch cheered.
"Yeah, that sounds good," Darla agreed with a smile. "Can we have cheesy breadsticks with it?"
Patrick chuckled. "Sure... It should all be ready by an hour and a half."
Darla decided to play outside and she allowed the boys to come with her if they wanted to. When she went outside, she saw Winnie was visiting her uncle again. She wasn't there when Cherry and Atticus went to Ms. Grimwood's finishing school, but she was slowly, but surely, also becoming friends with Winnie.
"Hey, Winnie." Patch said as he came outside.
Winnie's ears twitched, she turned around and smiled to see her mortal friends. "HEY!"
"You really like visiting your uncle Mr. Talbot, don't you?" Darla asked as she looked over the fence.
"Yeah, he's so cool!" Winnie smiled, then frowned. "I'm going back to school next week though to my brother and sister."
"We didn't know you had brothers and sisters." Patch was surprised.
"Yeah," Winnie chuckled. "Scott and Lupe Howard. Scott's in high school and he doesn't know he's a werewolf yet, but I think Papa told me Lupe's just growing fangs now."
"Cool." Atticus said.
"Anyways, it's great to see you again." Patch added.
"Great seein' you again too," Winnie smiled. "Hey, are Shaggy and Scooby ever coming back to Ghoul School?"
"Uhh... I think they have to take a rain check." Atticus chuckled sheepishly.
"Oh well..." Winnie shrugged. "Well, I'm gonna help Uncle Lawrence make dinner, see ya guys later!" she hopped down from the fence, then everyone said they would see her later back.