I wrote this story a couple months ago for a contest on DA, but I didn't finish it in time for the deadline so I pushed it aside and sort of forgot all about it. However, given the subject matter of the next new episode I thought it might be appropriate to tweak where I left off a bit and post this as a two shot. Wander Over Yonder and all of its characters, locations, and terms are the property of the Disney Corporation. I own nothing. Enjoy.

The Game: Part 1.

You want to be a Sailor, Sailing through the Star-Sea~

Doctor, Teacher, or a Tailor's not the life for thee~

Through the infinite blackness a voice rang out; slowly rousing him back to the realm of consciousness.

Infinite Worlds and Stars, by the Baker's Dozens~

Calling through the Void, like long forgotten Cousins~

The voice was soft and sweet sounding, almost like that of a lark, or perhaps a popinjay.

Space is cruel, but Space is clean~

And friends are seldom few or far between~

Word by sugar-coated honey-dipped word the voice's song revitalized his spirit and cured him of a fatigue he hadn't even realized he'd had.

But Friendship pales, or so I'm told~

When matched against the lure of Love and Gold~

Suddenly, and quite unexpectedly, the tone of the song took on a considerably darker edge, and yet the voice itself still filled his heart with warmth and an unfamiliar longing.

Poor little Sailor Boy, in your Ivory Tower~

Blissfully unaware that your Heart I'll soon devour~

A gentle kiss suddenly graced his left cheek and a jolt of electricity raced down his spine.

I want to be a Pirate, Sailing through the Star-Sea~

Plundering Worlds and Stealing Hearts, that is the life for me~

As if propelled by some sort of grand invisible mechanism, Wander shot up into an upright position; his eyelids suddenly snapping open as he did. As his pupils slowly readjusted to the light, a throbbing pain in his frontal lobe quickly brought back memories of the previous night.

"Whoa boy…what a night. Root Beer Floats do not make for an appropriate bed time snack." He said to himself groggily as his natural upbeat attitude helped him clear away some of the mental fog. "Oh well, live and learn. I'll just have some fruit for breakfast and that'll even everything out. Sound good Sylvia?"

"Sounds perfect to me."

"Great!" he replied with his trademark chipper timbre. "So what do you feel like? Apples? Oranges? Strawberries? Oh, what about something more tropical, like Mangos? Or Bananas? Or Cocoanuts? Or if we're really feeling festive maybe some Guavas? Or…"

"Actually, I was thinking Watermelon might be nice."

"Ooo~ that sounds scrumptious! Do you know where we can get some Syl…" the words suddenly died in his throat as the last lingering traces of his mental fog dissipated; allowing him to finally think with his usually degree of clarity. Ever since he'd woken up, the orange nomad had been plagued by the peculiar feeling that something wasn't right. But it wasn't until that exact moment that he was able to tell what precisely was off. "Uh, Sylvia, are you feeling alright? I hate to sound rude, but your voice sounds a little…"

For the second time since waking up, Wander found himself stopping midsentence. For when he turned to face his trusty Zbornak companion, he was instead greeted by a pair of large, hot pink eyes, accompanied by the second friendliest smile the young nomad had ever seen.

"Boo!" cried the owner of the Cheshire-like grin impishly; causing him to jump back in shock.

Apparently his reaction must have been quite humorous, because almost immediately afterward the mysterious stranger broke into a lighthearted chuckle. Although, chuckle might be too much of an oversimplification. For the true nature of this laugh was far more complex. It was warm and sincere, yet hypnotic and almost ethereal. To put it simply, it was the kind of laugh the young wanderer had always imagined the universe would have if it could speak.

"Sorry man, I couldn't help myself." Said the stranger, sounding both playful and apologetic. "You alright?"

"Wha… I mean, yeah, I'm alright." Replied Wander, as he shook of his self-induced trance. No longer bewitched by the stranger's siren giggle, he finally had the chance to get a good look at her. From where he was sitting, the orange nomad could tell that she was rather tall, at least compared to himself; standing at about six or seven feet if he had to guess. Her skin, although lightly blemished in several spots, was a lovely shade of lime green, which gave her a faint glow in the artificial light. Her hair, while short and ragged, was pure and glistening white, like freshly fallen snow. She was dressed in a plain black t-shirt with a splattered image of a heart, a matching skirt, spiked shoulder pads, yellow gloves, and a pair of white sneakers not unlike his own. Throw in her sleek physique, her pointed ears, and her dripping eye makeup, and you got a figure that even Wander had to admit looked rather bizarre; if not strangely cute.

"You gonna say anything else?" asked the stranger abruptly, bringing him back to reality. "Or are you just gonna sit there and stare at me like some kind of Perv?"

"What?" Wander replied, sounding understandably flustered. "I'm so sorry Ma'am, I… I mean, I… I didn't mean to…"

A sudden burst of the stranger's beautiful universe-laugh told him that she hadn't actually been offended; which almost instantly put an end to his stammering.

"Relax, you Goof. I'm just messing with you." She said with another Cheshire-like grin. "Oh, and for the record, don't call me Ma'am. Trust me, I'm no more a Ma'am than you are a Koala. Call me Deedee."

"Um… alright, Deedee. My name's Wander. Nice to meet you." He said, trying to sound friendly, while also trying to err on the side of caution. "Now, if you don't mind my asking, what precisely are you doing in my motel room?"

"Motel Room?" the tall and admittedly beautiful stranger mimicked amusedly, treating him to another bout of her oh-so enchanting laugh. "Boy, you must be more out of it than I thought. You're not in some cheap motel, you Goober. You're in my bedroom. On my starship."

This, rather shocking, piece of information caused Wander to do a double take. At first he wondered if this was just another one of her jokes, but a quick scan of his surroundings told him that this was not the case.

Blood-Red walls covered in Power Metal, Volcano, and Rainbow Unicorn posters. Wall-to-wall vintage shag carpeting done up in a lovely shade of ebony. Wicked looking bass guitar modeled to vaguely resemble some sort of gargoyle like creature resting in a stand next to a matching amplifier. Small heart-shaped lamp sitting atop a nightstand next to a hairbrush and a book entitled "Popular Love Songs of the Pinwheel Galaxy". Skull-shaped Queen Sized Bed with pink bedspread and what appeared to be a Doom-Dragon Plushie.

Needless to say, this was most definitely notthe motel room Sylvia had picked out the night before.

Wait a minute… Sylvia!

"Sylvia…"

"Say what now?"

"Sylvia!" Wander repeated, now entering full panic mode. "Oh my gosh! She's probably looking for me back at the motel! And I don't know where I am! And… OOOF!"

Before his hysterics could grow any more comedic or over the top, Deedee gave him a quick 'regain-your-composure' slap across the left cheek; effectively putting an end to his panic fueled shenanigans.

"Thanks…" said the hairy nomad as he placed a gentle hand on his tender cheek. "I needed that… I guess."

"No prob." Replied his host with a playful giggle, before allowing herself to adopt a slightly more serious tone. "Now, if it's not too personal a question, what the heck is the matter with you? I mean, one minute we're having a lovely conversation about breakfast and then the next you're spazing out like a Centurion Spider-Monkey on sugar packets. I mean seriously, what's your problem?"

For reasons he could quite understand, Wander suddenly felt very ashamed of himself. And why shouldn't he have been? After all, Deedee had been so kind, and he'd repaid her hospitality by acting like a fool. Part of him wanted to crawl into the deepest hole he could find and stay there forever. Fortunately, the less macabre and more well-mannered part of him was the one calling the shots.

"Gee, I'm awful sorry Deedee." The orange nomad said apologetically. "It's just… I… well… the last thing I remember is saying goodnight to my best pal Sylvia, and then the next thing I know I'm who knows where. Not that you haven't been a most hospitable host, but still, I can't help but worry that something terrible might have happened. Surely you can understand that, right?"

Almost immediately, the tall woman's serious glare melted away, and was replaced by a softer, almost motherly, expression.

"I understand," she said sweetly, before taking a seat on her bed; patting the spot beside her. "C'mere a minute."

As if under the sway of some strange mystic force, Wander felt compelled to obey; so gingerly he scooted toward her. Once he was close enough, Deedee wrapped one of her arms around him and pulled him into a vice-like hug. She squeezed him so tight he nearly lost consciousness but the orange nomad didn't notice; he was far too entranced by the natural scent of his host to notice much of anything else. He hadn't noticed it until that point, but Deedee smelled absolutely heavenly; like an odd blend of unwashed gym clothes and strawberry hand lotion. It was kind of gross, but in a good way.

So bewitched was he by his new friend's unnatural sweet and sour scent that he barely noticed when she released him from her hug.

"Feeling better?" she asked, clearly amused by the dopey grin spread across his face.

"Yeah… much…" he replied dreamily; earning another giggle from his vivacious host.

"Glad to hear it. Because~" Deedee singsonged as her right hand began to glow an eerie orange. Without warning, her fingers stretched into long fluid-like tentacles that writhed and wriggled all about; seemingly of their own freewill. Then, also without warning, the strange glowing tendrils all shot toward the corner of the room, grabbing something off a small table Wander hadn't noticed before, and pulled it back into her waiting palm. Once the desired object was in her grasp, the green woman morphed her hand back to normal and presented it to her guest; revealing it to be a clear plastic bowl filled with tiny cubes of watermelon. "It's time for breakfast~"

Almost instantly, all of the shame and uncertainty that had plagued the young nomad's mind was replaced by an overwhelming sense of calm laced with a mild euphoria. Not wanting to seem rude, he plucked a single piece of watermelon from the bowl and placed it in his mouth. It tasted so sweet and juicy that his lips formed a large, cartoonish grin the instant it touched his tongue; earning yet another giggle from his lovely and gracious host.

"Guess you must be hungry huh?" asked Deedee; though her adorably playfully tone suggested it wasn't really a question. "Go on~ Eat the entire bowl if you like."

"Um… are you sure?" asked Wander apprehensively. "I mean, aren't you hungry?"

As the words left his mouth, the young nomad suddenly felt a strange and powerful aura wash over him. The only way he could think to describe it was like being abruptly teleported into the shadow of some great and ravenous beast. He raised his head to look at his host, only to find that her wide and welcoming pink eyes had been narrowed into piercing hawk-like gaze. Her friendly, Cheshire-like smile was still present, but it seemed almost tainted by the animalistic way she was licking her lips.

He was quite fearful of his new friend's sudden shift in demeanor, and yet for some strange reason he was unafraid.

"Oh, I'm absolutely starving." Replied the wearer of said esurient expression; her voice somewhat heavier than before and yet still intoxicatingly sweet. "But I'm nothing if not patient~"

To be continued…

End Notes: I honestly don't know when or if I will write the second half. It all depends on how this chapter is received. Please leave a like, favorite, or comment before you leave and have a nice day.