Pinky and the Brain aren't mine. Which is super sad. Co-written with cutcrescentheart. MUCH LOVE TO YOU, BB!

That's enough notes. Time to read :D

"Gee, Brain, what d'you want to do tonight?"

-8-8-

Day 1

It was colder. A fairly large-headed mouse turned onto his stomach, attempting to burrow into the straw mat he slept on between experiments, plotting, and implementing world domination schemes. And he was usually exceedingly comfortable... even if his imbecilic companion had a tendency to curl against him in his sleep.

Aha! That was obviously the issue here. Pinky had awakened early. Any moment now he'd hear the squeaking and rattling that was Pinky's wheel. The Brain knew, of course, that the wheel was for both of them, but Pinky was the only one to use it. Brain, of course, had better things to do.

Such as getting comfortable when his source of warmth vanished. With a quiet huff, Brain curled up a little bit more and burrowed down. His latest plan had been a bit of a... Well, it hadn't worked. But he hadn't anticipated the hypnotic properties of his wheat formula to be extracted in the "enrichment" process of factories worldwide.

When he ruled the world, people would eat more organic products. And he would put those other ridiculous "fast food" chains out of business if they didn't comply to his demands. Wait. That was it!

They would start a fast food chain. Have "secret ingredients" in the food that would draw in clientele and... He let the train of thought die, to be picked up at a later time, preferably when he was in some silly maze for the amusement of the Acme scientists and needed something to drown out the sheer inanity.

For now, before the scientists came in, he would continue to sleep. "Subject A seems to have registered a difference, but not enough of one to jar him from sleep," came a woman's voice. Brain's entire body tensed. The scientists! Pinky! How many times had he told that infernal idiot to awaken him upon their entrance?

Making a mental note to injure him when they turned their backs, Brain sat up slowly and stretched. He looked up cautiously, glaring at the camera that was held above his cage. That would have to experience a malfunction in the night before he could implement his fast-food plot.

"Subject A has awakened after all," the woman corrected, scribbling furiously on a page on her clipboard.

Subject A? It had been quite a while since he'd been addressed as such, not since the experiment with the new shampoo. It had taken weeks for his fur to grow back. Didn't they know how difficult it was to take over the world when you resembled a naked mole rat? Brain shuddered just thinking about it, so turned to locate and quietly scold Pinky.

But Pinky wasn't there. He wasn't on his wheel, wasn't at the water bottle, wasn't eating. He wasn't anywhere.

Brain's ears dropped and his eyes went wide. What had they done to Pinky? Not... not that he cared. The mouse was probably just fine. Brain went back to his straw mat and sat, pondering.

"After turning his head rapidly for a few moments, Subject A seems to have lost interest and has returned to his sleeping area."

Yes, of course. If they deemed him disinterested, they would judge whatever this experiment was to be a failure and return Pinky. He had plots and a singular mouse could never hope to open a fast-food chain on his own. Or, he calculated, raise the funds required for start-up costs. Hm...

Would it even be possible to create a chain in a single night...?

Hm... Yes, it was feasible. It would merely require plenty of advertising - taking over the television and radios had always been simple for him - and many buildings. Perhaps he could take over an existing chain and make it better.

Yes! His eyes gleamed, the thrill of the challenge singing through him. Take over an existing chain, promote longer hours and secret ingredients in a mass advertising campaign, and then host a grand re-opening around the world. People would pack in, ingesting his food, leaving all other businesses in shambles. And then he, The Brain, would take over chain after chain until he controlled the world's food supply! And after that, it was only a short leap to ruling the world!

He looked up, intent on revealing his brilliance to Pinky, but frowned at the realization that he simply wasn't there. But neither was the scientist, so Brain went to a corner of the cage and retrieved a pencil and paper to work calculations and keep himself busy. Clearly, she had gone to get Pinky and return him.

-8-8-

Narf! Ahahahaha! Poit! Pinky was on his back, legs and arms waving and kicking the air as if he were a dreaming dog. He was actually dreaming of a dog and he was running alongside it over hills and through trees. Everything was bright and beautiful and fun-fun silly-willy!

He woke up suddenly and without warning, laughing as the dream still lived in his mind. "Egad, Brain! I just had the most wonderful dream! Narf!" He laughed, turning his head to look at the mouse by his side.

But he wasn't there. "Brain?" Pinky jumped up and began to search the cage, very quickly discovering that this wasn't his cage at all. This one had blue bars, not green. And it lacked The Brain. "Braaaaain!" Pinky called, bouncing from corner to corner. He dove into the pile of food pellets, wondering if Brain had perhaps hidden himself away in the food. But there was no sign of him.

He tugged apart the straw mat and didn't find him there either, so danced over to the door. If Brain wasn't in the cage, he must have left. It didn't occur to him at all that his friend was simply just not with him.

"Subject B is exhibiting a much more frantic search than Subject A," came a woman's voice and Pinky paused, ears twitching. "Unsurprising as Subject B exhibited more intelligence after Project B.R.A.I.N."

A frantic search? Pinky wondered and promptly forgot about her and continued hunting for The Brain. Where was he? Where could he have gone? Pinky gasped. Maybe they were playing a game! But what sort of game? And Brain never played games.

Fun-fun, silly-willy! This could be something about taking over the world! Oh, fun! "Narf!" So he began to run around the cage in circles, waiting for Brain to come out and find him and tell him what the plan was.

Day 2

Brain paced the cage, grumbling to himself. He'd waited an entire day for them to bring Pinky back. There was nothing. He glared up at the camera as though it were its fault, but Brain clearly couldn't blame himself for this travesty. The scientists had run about like irritating headless chickens, which had retained the ability to squawk.

And with that unfortunate image in his mind, Brain sank down and wondered what in god's name normal mice did on a daily basis. He clearly couldn't disable the camera again; his destruction of it the night before had been the reason for the scientists' state of chicken-ish behavior. So what were his options? He eyed the wheel with distaste before deciding to simply roll onto his side and nap. Recharge, as it were. If Pinky wasn't there, he would take the opportunity to relax.

No irritable narfs and poits and other meaningless drivel to bother and distract. Yes. It was time to stop looking at the lack of Pinky as a negative obstacle, but as a positive break. He spent entirely too much time with the other mouse, and it would certainly be propitious for him to revel in this unexpected separation. So Brain closed his eyes and willed himself to sleep.

-8-8-

It had been a whole day. Tired of running about in circles, Pinky had collapsed an hour or so ago and was staring at the ceiling. Why hadn't Brain come to get him? Weren't they going to take over the world?

Had Brain decided (again) that he wasn't good enough to help? Pinky blinked back tears, sniffling quietly, and didn't pay any attention to the woman muttering about decreased activity in Subject B. "Poit," he mumbled.

Day 3

This made absolutely no sense. There was surely no logical reason behind dropping a button through the slots of his cage, let alone the scientist standing poised nearby with her clipboard at the ready. They didn't actually expect him to interact with an inanimate object, did they?

The Brain studied it from a distance, not bothering to move from his perch on the running wheel. He certainly hadn't been using it for its intended purpose, but it was better than his behind going numb on the straw bed. The button was brown, two holes, easily deducible as one for a peacoat or a... a labcoat.

Eyes narrowed, Brain looked back up at the scientist and scowled at her. As suspected, she was missing two buttons. Baffling and mildly irritating.

"Subject A appears to be uninterested in the outside object, which is in complete contrast to earlier observations of Subject B. Though, surprisingly, he seems to have a reaction when Subject B is mentioned." She lowered the clipboard, smiled gently. "Aw, you miss your little friend, don't you, little guy?"

Fur bristling - because he certainly did not miss Pinky and his inanity - Brain lifted his nose and walked to a corner of the cage, dropping down to grumble to himself. It had only been two entire days and they were on the third. If anything, he was enjoying the reprieve. He'd drawn out enough plans to last them several weeks without Pinky there to distract him... or his assistance in implementing them. Huffing out a breath, Brain retrieved a worn down pencil and began scribbling yet another plot directly onto the cage floor. If this one required more of Pinky's help than normal, it was beyond his notice.

-8-8-

"Naaaarf!" It had fallen in by accident, a loose button from the scientist's labcoat dropping down between the slots of his cage, but Pinky would hardly have been effected by that knowledge. He rushed over to the object and scooped it up. "Hello!" he greeted, thrilled to have someone to talk to. The button was awfully quiet, but he paid it no mind. Holding it up to eye level, he observed it more carefully. "How are you today, Button?"

Pinky was not deterred by the lack of responses from his newfound friend, he liked a good listener. "Poit. Oh, Button, I miss Brain. He's not anywhere around here! I looked all over, even where the food pellets are." His ears wilted momentarily, the loneliness creeping back in before he shook it away and embraced the round piece of plastic. "Don't be sad, Button! He'll be back soon!"

"Subject B appears... enamored by the foreign object." Pinky looked up as the scientist spoke. He blinked several times before turning his attention back to Button.

"She uses big silly words just like Brain! Troz!" He ignored the rest of her observations as he went over to his bedding. "Now it's time for you to take a nap, Button, then we can eat our yummy food pellets and go for a run in the wheel. Doesn't that sound fun fun silly-willy!" He twirled about with his friend as he went across the cage, only stopping to set it down and make the bed comfortable for him. "Yes, we'll have a good time. I'm glad you're here now, Button, it's not nice being alone." Pinky curled up around the button, missing the warmth he'd usually find when sleeping in his old cage with Brain. "Poit..."

Day 4

"You think if he didn't love you, he would stay with you?"

"Of course I do. He's an idiot." Brain didn't even look back at the infernal hamster, ignoring his ridiculous notions. Pinky loved him. It was laughable. Well... At least it was laughable in the way that Snowball was implying.

"You're turning your wrench the wrong way."

"Silence," Brain snapped. It didn't occur to him that, in order to know that, Snowball would have to be able to see the blueprints. If it had occurred to him, he would've remembered all of the other times Snowball had stolen his ploys. "I'm well aware of the direction I'm turning this wrench."

And it was backwards. As the screw fell, the contraption he'd been building began to shake and collapsed, taking Brain down with it. He bounced hard on the table and toppled to the floor. He sat up slowly, rubbing his head, and glared upwards as he heard Snowball's laughter.

"Oh, Brain, your intricate failings entertain me so." The hamster leapt to the floor, landing gracefully. "Oh, well. That little plan wouldn't have worked anyway."

His eye twitched. "What do you know about my plans?"

He unfolded blueprints with a flick of his wrist, studying them carefully. "The propulsion of your rocket would require two sets of hands."

Brain snatched his blueprints away, glaring heatedly at the offending calculations. "I could easily build a set of hands, leaving my own free for... other things."

"For... compensating for the loss of your partner?"

"Compen..." It took Brain a moment to understand the sexual meaning behind the words. His jaw very nearly dropped all the way to the floor. "That's disgusting! And extremely private."

"But I don't hear you denying it," the hamster pointed out, tone more of a song.

The taunt irritated enough that Brain rolled up his blueprints, the urge to strike him welling up in his body. It took every ounce of his concentration to keep from doing so. "I deny it," was all he said, teeth gritted.

"Deny which part, Brain? Your compensation or the fact that Pinky is your partner?"

"I wouldn't label him so intimately," Brain grumbled and strode away.

"Where are you going?"

"To bed."

"But I was having such fun," Snowball complained and only laughed as the cage door was slammed. He hopped up to the table, remaining outside the bars while Brain settled in his straw bedding. On one single side of his straw bedding. "Oh, they didn't let Pinky take his bed?"

Brain rolled onto his side, facing away from the hamster. He took his gaze slowly over the stretch of straw beside him where Pinky should be. "This is my bed," he said, more to himself than to Snowball.

"And that longer half is just for show, then?"

Brain didn't reply, curling up into a tight ball, and squeezing his eyes shut.

But the hamster wasn't ready to drop the subject. This was too rich, seeing his rival so utterly distressed at the loss of his useless companion. It had been four days since the two had been separated, information Snowball had gotten just a few minutes prior. The fact that Brain would reveal that he'd been counting the days was enough fuel to have egged Snowball on even further. He'd almost given up his teasing, but this was just too rich.

"What if I told you I knew where Pinky was?" Brain made no move to show that he'd heard. It was only the friendship before the rivalry that allowed Snowball to see the way his ears twitched. "But I suppose if you don't care..."

Brain gritted his teeth. There was no way Snowball would know where Pinky had gone. Absolutely none.

"Ah, well. Since you're clearly so much better off without him, I suppose I'll go let him know." With that, Snowball walked off, leaping to the ground and letting Brain deal with his thoughts.

-8-8-

"Snowball?" Pinky stared at the hamster with wide eyes, looked from his button and back up. "Oh! Hi! Narf!"

The hamster smirked slightly, watching him hugging the button as if it were a lifeline. "Oh, Pinky, starved for companionship, are we?"

He blinked. "Um... No, but I have some food pellets if you're hungry."

Snowball lifted a hand to his massive brow, rubbing at the headache that was already forming. How Brain tolerated this simpleton was entirely beyond his comprehension. "No, you twit! You're lonely."

Comprehension dawned on Pinky. "Ooooh... Nope. I've got Button here to keep me company. He's a very good listener. A little stuck up at first, but once you get to know him, he's very sociable."

The hamster granted him a bland look before heaving a sigh. "I'm sure that's the case. But, Pinky, isn't there... someone you're missing?"

He ducked his head, focusing his gaze on the button. He tried not to think about it, but there was no denying that a button, even a very friendly button, could be compared to being in Brain's company. "Well, poit, I do miss, Brain. It's been a very long time since I've seen him. We haven't even tried to take over the world in days! Er... nights!" His tail curled around him in agitation.

"Yes." He smiled slowly, mind working. They were already separated; it should be easy to leave them that way even when they were back together. Brain with the threat of love; Pinky with that of hate. "Perhaps for you it's been several nights. Brain, however, seems to be continuing on as normal."

An unspoken fear he'd never admitted to himself, let alone Brain, was that lingering threat of not being needed by his friend. Brain was certainly smart enough to try to take over the world on his own, almost every attempt was entirely formulated by him. And he often told Pinky that he was the root of their failures. But to actually do it on his own? Pinky had yet to see that. Watery blue eyes focused on the hamster. "Really? Poit. Well, somebody has to try to take over the world, right? And it's what he's always wanted." He'd be okay with him trying, as long as nothing came of it. Not to be mean, he just wanted to see Brain's happiness when they finally did succeed. He didn't want to miss that!

Snowball turned on his heel, hiding the roll of his eyes. Optimistic little- "Pinky, why do you think you're in here?"

He blinked. "Um, because they're spraying the cage for termites? Narf."

Snowball ground his teeth together, keeping his back towards the imbecilic rodent. Why he needed to waste his time with this pair... It was absolutely infuriating. "No, Pinky. You're here because of Brain." He turned his head on the name, enjoying the dramatic flair.

While not understanding what Snowball meant by this, Pinky easily picked up on the way he pronounced his best friend's name. He gulped, grabbing his tail and twisting it a little as he looked questioningly at the hamster. "Brain? But... I don't understand. Why would he put me here?"

"Pinky, Pinky, Pinky..." He returned to the cage bars, smile sympathetic, pink eyes glittering. "He had you placed here because you're a distraction. You get in the way. You annoy him with your witless inanity. Why would he want to keep you around?"

His heart sank at those words, the grip on his tail tightened. No, no that couldn't be true. Brain was his friend. "You're lying!" Pinky frowned, attempting to glare but failing miserably. "Brain wouldn't do that!" He ignored the feeling of doubt creeping in on him. "He said you're a meanie head anyway!" Well, not exactly, he couldn't remember the exact words that had been used, but Pinky figured they weren't very nice ones. "You're a lying, meanie-head, and you're wrong!" He exchanged his tail for Button, holding him close like a child would their security blanket.

"Oh, Pinky, however charming-" annoying- "it is that you believe that, you're very much in the wrong. Why hasn't Brain come for you yet if he misses you?" Leaving it at that, Snowball gave a last smile before turning and leaping from the table to walk out of the room.

Lower lip quivering at those dagger-like words, Pinky watched him leave as he fought back tears. "He has his reasons! I trust Brain!" He shouted, but the waver in his voice said otherwise. He cradled Button, attempted to nuzzle the smooth plastic affectionately, but was disheartened by it's hardness. "He wouldn't leave me alone in here... right Button?" Silence answered his desperate inquiry. In his frustration Pinky tossed Button across the cage, turning his back on it as he curled into himself and cried. "I just want to go home."

Day 5

A maze. How droll. With a quiet sigh, Brain clasped his hands behind his back and began to stroll through. He studied the walls carefully, and made judgements based on the light source. Well, mostly on the light source. He also very lightly scented the air in the way Pinky tended to do. Absolutely adored cheese. It was a wonder that he couldn't finish mazes on his own with such an impressive olfactory sense.

He rounded one corner and all that lay before him was a stretch of wall with no available turns but at the very end. Odd. Very odd.

Frowning, Brain took a careful whiff and his fur stood on end. Pinky? He scrambled down the length of the maze, more excitable than he had been in days. The scientist took a quiet note of this on her clipboard, observing from nearby. But when Brain went around a corner, the scent vanished. He stilled, back-tracked, and realized with an embarrassed shake of his head that Pinky wasn't actually in the maze with him. His scent was just along this singular wall.

He hesitated for a moment before deciding that it wasn't abandoning pride so much as satiating curiosity. Why was Pinky's scent along this wall? Was he behind it? And if he was, how on earth was Brain supposed to get to the opposing side? Muttering to himself, he paced along the wall until Pinky's scent vanished completely. Desensitized to it, Brain stubbornly remained where he was until he simply had to admit that there was simply no way for him to get through.

He rested a hand on the wall for a quiet moment before sighing and striding away. He made his way to the old cheese at the end, kicked it to alert the scientist that he was through rather than risk electrocution.

While she carried him back to his cage, he quietly hoped that Pinky wasn't in the maze at all. He'd never managed to complete one on his own and Brain highly doubted that he'd manage this time. Once he was set down, Brain went to the straw bed and sighed heavily before dropping onto the taller half with the mortifying hope that some of Pinky's scent still clung to his side of their bed.

-8-8-

At first the idea of going through the maze had been fun. He loved getting to snack on the moldy cheese at the end, sometimes Brain would even give him his! Pinky's ears wilted as the memory fluttered in his mind. This time he was in the maze alone. He couldn't remember the last time he was in a maze without his best friend. Button hadn't even been allowed to come with him, though he didn't blame the plastic disk for not wanting to join him. After being thrown across the cage, Pinky would be rather put off as well. He'd felt bad after he did it and tried to apologize, but Button didn't seem too receptive. Perhaps he'd be more receptive when he got back.

In the meantime, he followed the scent of the moldy cheese until it steadily disappeared. Humming thoughtfully to himself, he glanced between two possible corridors. "Hmmm... narf!" With a scratch to his head, he chose the one on the left.

The longer he wandered the maze, however, the further his spirits dropped. Shadows grew along the corners, following him or chasing him away. He went around in circles, echos of cruel laughter resounding in his ears. "Stop it!" Clamping his paws over his ears, his eyes darted about frantically in search of an escape.

Unsure of where to go, he clung close to one of the walls, inching along carefully in the hope that it would take him somewhere safe. Then it hit him. "Brain?" Pinky stood straight up, turning all around as the familiar scent permeated his senses. "Brain!" He darted down the length of the wall, certain his friend would be at the end of it. "Oh, Brain! I'm so glad it's you! I've missed you terribly! What are we going to do tonight? NARF! Brain?" He came to a halt as the scent vanished, completely baffled by this turn of events. "Brain?" Retracing his steps, he called out for the other mouse, but he was nowhere along the wall. "This isn't funny, Brain." Pinky scolded, his tone reflecting the hurt he experienced. "Where are you?"

A memory of being small, clutching the tail of The Brain as he led him through the maze swept over him, the first time he ever got out. Sliding down the the section of the wall where Brain's scent was strongest, Pinky realized he wasn't very hungry.

Time ticked by, though he was unsure how many minutes or hours elapsed before he was scooped up and relieved of the maze.

Day 6

"Pinky! I've got-" He cut himself off, smacking a hand to his brow. "No, no, no! Stop it! Why can't I stop doing that?" It had been happening all day. All of his ponderings, all of his plans, all of the machinery at various stages of completion... Every single one had left him wondering about Pinky, calling out to him, wanting to show him everything he'd thought of or managed to accomplish.

It had been his scent. So clear through the walls of that darn maze. Brain tugged at his ears, frustrated to the core. Darn it! He jumped to his feet and began to pace, shoving aside his plans for the evening and ignoring the scientist when she entered. Detestable woman. She'd taken Pinky away from him, had attempted to replace him with a button, and had now introduced him to his dear friend's scent. It was unjust!

He turned, intent on glaring at her, but faltered. He was being driven mad by his separation from a sporadic, inane moron. Dear lord, what was the world coming to? Without his guidance, it was going all sorts of... oh... what was that phrase Pinky had mentioned? Helter skelter. The world was helter skelter and needed his rule to provide some order for it all!

And, darn it, he needed Pinky by his side or he'd never make it.

So The Brain returned to his pages and his plans, flipped to a fresh sheet in his notebook, and decided that he had suffered more than enough. Waiting for the moronic humans to realize their folly was proving to be too much.

Not that... not that he necessarily needed Pinky. He was just in need of someone to assist him. Pinky was the best choice simply because he'd been around that particular mouse the longest. Because Pinky never gave up on him. Because Pinky was...

"You think if he didn't love you, he would stay with you?"

Snowballs words infected his mind as they had his dreams the previous night. The various hugs he'd recieved, the way he'd catch Pinky simply watching him at odd moments, how jealous he could get at times... For God's sake, Pinky had sold his soul for him at one point! And he himself had chosen Pinky over the world.

The realization had him blinking several times, staring blankly at the barely-started ploy that would reunite him with his dearest... friend. Friend? Cagemate? Irritated with the erratic flow of his ponderings, Brain let his pencil fall.

Later, he told himself. Later when he had this all figured out he would finish the plan and get his assistant back. Surely that's all he wanted. Just an assistant. Just... just an assistant.

-8-8-

It certainly would not be considered a traumatic experience by most, and he'd certainly had his fair share of bad maze experiences, but the mere reminder of what he'd endured back then chased after his tail long after the scientist had rescued him from the endlessly twisting box. The faces were fuzzy and the voices garbled, but Pinky could remember the hostility and more importantly the fear of never being found.

That fear startled him from his fitful sleep. He couldn't remember much of the nightmare, only bad feelings, but it was enough to keep him awake and uneasy. Looking around for Button, he was in need of company and reassurance, he found that he'd rolled on top of him in his sleep. "Narf! Oh, sorry, Button! I didn't mean to squish you!"

After a quick once-over and concluding that his plastic friend was no worse for the wear, Pinky rested beside Button on their shared bed. "I had a bad dream, Button. It was so scary! It was like yesterday all over again! Only worse!" He sniffled, rubbing his eyes with his free paw, keeping the other latched onto the button. "It was another maze, but it didn't end. There wasn't even any moldy cheese! I was so disappointed." He sighed, settling down a little as he talked. "I was alone in my dream maze too, just like I was yesterday."

Cuddling with Button, he was at a loss of how to convey his feelings. He was upset, of course, but something else burned inside him. He rarely felt this way, it made him sick to his stomach sometimes and always led to more tears or topsy-turvey sensations. Everything seemed upside down and not quite right, which he gathered was because he was still in this same place, with the blue cage instead of the green one, and this wheel didn't squeak the same. And this maze...

"Brain always did the mazes with me. But he wasn't there this time." He squeezed his eyes shut as anger filled his chest with a stifling heat. "He wasn't there! He left me behind! And he's not here now! He must really hate me, if he hasn't come for me yet, Button! He knows I'm not clever enough to open the cage on my own! It's not fair! If I could, I would! Not that he'd care!" Pinky attempted to bury his face in Button, but it lacked the appropriate amount of space to be truly comforting. "I-I muh-m-miss him! P-poit! It's not fair!"

Button offered it's silence and presence in response, the mouse tried to soak it all in as his body shook with despondency. Awareness of the goings-on outside his cage was beyond him, the scientist looming above him went unnoticed. Concern filled her eyes as she observed the untouched food pellets and the depressed mouse before her.

Pinky just hiccuped against Button. "Snowball was right, Button... it's just you and me now... He was right."

Day 7

His ponderings were still erratic, but The Brain had decided to not let them interfere with his plans. How on earth was he supposed to solve his queries concerning Pinky without the actual mouse present? Therefore, these plans were an important part of his ponderings.

When the calculations were complete and his rather simple plan - disable the camera, hack into the security systems in order to locate Pinky, go and fetch Pinky - were laid out, a small smile curved Brain's lips. "Yes!" he exclaimed. "I'll have him within the hour!" Then the smile died and he was honestly a bit embarrassed. "Back. I'll have him back," he muttered and quickly rolled the plans up when the scientist wandered in. She'd developed the poor habit of trying to peek at his notebook while he'd been curled up on Pinky's side of the bed. He'd had to drag it over and lie atop it, losing what little scent of his friend that he'd been able to pick up.

He looked up when the scientist entered, sans clipboard, something else clutched in her hand. Pinky...? Pinky! Brain got to his feet, quivering with something like excitement. It had to be him. Who else would they be bringing to him? If it was another button, he'd throw it directly back at her. But if it was Pinky...

Well, he didn't quite know what he'd do, but at least he wouldn't have to go through the trouble of locating him. Though the idea of hacking into the security system did have some appeal. Perhaps he could put an alert system on the cage that would let him know if the scientists ever did such a thing again...

He shifted a little closer to the door of the cage as the woman neared. Pinky. Pinky. It had to be Pinky...

-8-8-

He didn't even get a chance to say goodbye.

Pinky looked down from the hands he'd been scooped up into, Button lying on the cage floor all alone. It was too familiar, he didn't get a chance to say goodbye to Brain either before he was swept away to parts unknown. "Button!" He cried out as he felt the woman begin to move away from the cage. "Noooo!"

No amount of wiggling got her to put him down. He didn't understand, he'd go with her wherever she wanted, he was just going to grab Button so he could come too. The thought of losing yet another friend was too much for him to bear. Eventually, seeing that nothing he did would change her mind, Pinky settled down and sighed. He glanced at her clipboard, but it was of no importance to him.

As they entered a new room, it became apparent to the mouse that this room wasn't all that new at all. It was the lab! Where the cage he lived with Brain was! Hope filled his little chest as he glanced around, taking in his surroundings. But it warred with his uncertainty about Brain and his loyalty. Plus, he still missed Button.

Peering over the woman's hands, he could see the green cage, his wheel, the water bottle... and Brain. Waiting by the door. "Naaaarf..."

The sound reached his ears, the preposterous non-word gave him the urge to smile rather than bop the mouse over the head. He bit back the smile, though, fingers curling tightly around the bars. Pinky.

The scientist moved to open the door, but paused when she noticed Brain's proximity. With a scowl, the brilliant mouse took several steps back and folded his arms, waiting impatiently while she opened the door and quickly deposited Pinky inside. His first instinct to run over and fling his arms around the taller mouse was fought down and dismissed as childish.

Besides that, he had no intention of doing something so mortifying with the human present.

Excitement won out over his warring emotions, though the inner turmoil must have shown on his face before he was placed inside his home. His tail wagged as he looked upon the shorter mouse he'd longed for all those nights while he was away, blue eyes lighting up in euphoria. Acting on his first instinct to embrace his friend, he took a step forward before registering the sullen expression on his face.

Pinky paused, his face falling, and pondered his next course of action, an act the simple mouse did not often partake in. He settled for a simple greeting. "Hi, Brain. Poit."

Brain hadn't been expecting that, wiped damp paws on his thighs. "Pinky," he greeted shortly, then his shoulders slumped and his ears dropped from the sheer relief. It was really Pinky. "I see she, ah, finally returned you."

He tried to hold it together, he really did. Pinky fought back the urge to start wailing in despair, he hadn't been missed. Brain didn't look happy to see him at all. In fact, he appeared upset at his return, the drooping ears and slumped shoulders didn't escape his notice. Those were both clearly signs of discomfort. With a whimper and a nod, Pinky shrunk back some. "Yeah, I guess she did. It, um, narf, sure did take a while though... you..." He stopped himself, then frowned, crossing his arms over his chest and angling himself away from Brain. "You must have had lots of time to take over the world." He couldn't help it, not with Snowball's words ringing in his ears. "Must have been nice."

He considered the plots he'd had time to make, waved a hand in dismissal. If he felt less relieved, The Brain would've been surprised by how easy it was to forget about the world now that he had Pinky by his side again. He edged a little closer to Pinky, detesting the presence of the scientist and her clipboard. He was sure she was expecting some grand reunion worthy of a cheesy sitcom.

Ignoring the urge to scoff, he turned his gaze back on his friend. "I- well- that is... There comes a time when..." He rubbed a hand to his brow, sighing quietly. "I could never take over the world without you, Pinky."

"I knew it! You didn't miss me at all, did you? You wanted me gone, just like Snowball said-!" Pinky cut himself off as he actually registered what it was his cagemate said to him. "Wait. You couldn't?" That was ridiculous. The Brain was always going about how useless he was, usually after patting his own ego on the back, he'd never openly admit that he actually needed him by his side... right?

"Oh, Brain... do you really mean that?" Pinky turned towards him again, clasping his front paws together under his chin as his blue eyes shone in hopeful expectation.

Brain shoved his hands into the odd pockets at his side, kicked up the dust at an overwhelming shyness struck him. "I... Of course I do, Pinky. I-" He stopped, looking up, and narrowing his eyes. "Snowball? He-" He had known where Pinky was, that infernal creature! "Whatever he told you was a lie, Pinky."

"Poit! That's what I said too!" Pinky beamed, pleased to know that his initial outlook on Snowball's claims matched Brain's. That never happened. His ears drooped a little and his smile faded as he remembered why he began to doubt that first inclination. "But, then you never came. And I had to go through that horrid maze all alone! Oh, Brain, I didn't like that at all! Even Button couldn't help me feel better!" He shivered as he recalled how unsettled he'd been after that. "I missed you terribly, Brain, I didn't know if I'd get to see you again."

Now looking back on it, he felt rather silly for succumbing to the thought that Brain didn't care about him. If he truly didn't, he'd have gotten rid of him long before now. "I'll never believe what Snowball says again, Brain! Promise!" He held a paw over his heart, smiling broadly at his friend.

Brain's lips quirked slightly, but the smile was quick to fade. "You were in that maze? I'm... I apologize, Pinky. I did try and find a way to get through, but my resources were limited." He searched for a way to say the things he wanted to say, to admit his ponderings.

Do you love me, Pinky? Or did Snowball lie about that, too?

He studied his paw a moment before sighing and offering it to Pinky. "I was... I had planned to try and locate you tonight," he admitted, embarrassed by the words but stubbornly staying in place, keeping his gaze on Pinky.

Perplexed by the proffered paw, Pinky took it momentarily, his gaze going from their joined paws to meet Brain's. What he had first mistook his grumpiness for was annoyance that he had returned, but as he searched the pink eyes trained on him he couldn't help but feel pleased. Brain had missed him, he'd thought of him and hadn't just left him in the maze. His heart all a-flutter, he released Brain's paw in favor of bending down to envelope him in tight embrace.

"Oh, thank you Brain! I feel all gushy!" He giggled, nuzzling the side of his friend's face. "Naaarf, you're much more comfortable than Button, too. But he tried his best." He didn't want to think things that might make poor, lonely Button sad, but it was true. His short time with the piece of plastic couldn't hold a candle to this moment reunited with the mouse he loved best.

Gushy, Brain silently repeated, closing his eyes and letting himself be nuzzled, be held. He breathed in his friend's scent, letting himself feel relief and, well, gushy. There was an uncomfortable fluttering in his belly and, of their own accord, his fingers curled tightly into Pinky's fur. "Pinky," he said quietly, "I'm... I'm very g- That is, I... I won't let them take you again."

His hugs weren't returned very often, so Pinky relished the attention bestowed upon him. A happy sigh escaped him as his tail wagged behind him. "Poit. I won't let them take you either! They might want to switch us sometime, put you in the blue cage and leave me here. That would be just as bad, it's no fun being separated!"

Suddenly aware that the scientist was still there, he jumped away. "Oh no, Brain! What if she is going to take you next?" He appeared horrified at the prospect, then turned to frown at her. "Go away! Leave my Brain alone! We don't want your food pellets!" He shook his paw at her, before latching onto Brain again. "She's not going away, Brain! We're going to have to run away! Quick! To the wheel!" In his haste to get away, he just tumbled into his cagemate.

"Pinky!" Brain snapped, wary of getting smushed. He certainly hadn't missed that. "Enough! She isn't going to-" He latched onto Pinky to try and still him and to hopefully avoid getting dragged onto the infernal wheel. "If you don't cease your panicking, I shall have to hurt you."

The familiar saying achieved Brain's intentions of stopping Pinky. He looked over at him, still slightly worried, but if Brain wasn't put off by the scientist's presence, then perhaps it wasn't something he needed to concern himself with either. "Sorry, Brain." As he got to his feet, he dusted himself off. "So, Brain, what have you been doing all these nights if you haven't been trying to take over the world?" He was honestly curious, he'd never seen the smaller mouse do anything else in his spare time. He gasped as an idea occurred to him. "Did you finally make pencils that taste like bacon?"

"Oh, I don't care how much I missed you." He snatched up his pencil and bopped Pinky on the top of his head, vaguely amused when the mouse gave his usual laugh. "Much better. We'll have to wait for her to leave before I can show you my plans, but she should get bored soon enough once she realizes that we've..." He waved a hand, seeking words that weren't overly emotional. "Successfully reunited."

He started to walk away, ended up moving closer. Clearly he was still too overly emotional himself, so grabbed Pinky's hand and drug him towards their bed. "Sit."

Still ecstatic about the bop on the head he'd received, Pinky followed obediently. While he figured Brain had missed him, it was nice to actually hear him say it. It made him feel all warm and tingly inside. He rarely spoke affectionately to him, but the feelings were there. Sometimes.

Pinky sat down on their bed, immediately gravitating towards his side when he noticed something strange. The scent of his friend permeated his bed, it was as if he'd slept there instead of on his own spot. "Were you lonely too, Brain?" He inquired softly, tilting his head to one side as he regarded the shorter mouse. To think that Brain slept on his side of the bed because he missed him, well, that filled him with even more bubbly feelings. But it wasn't the same way that bubble wrap made him feel or yarn or playing in the sink which were all very nice too; no, this was special.

Pacing in front of him, Brain began to mutter under his breath. Lonely. Had that been what it was? Just simple loneliness? Not... not anything else? He rubbed his chin, glanced Pinky's way. Lonely too. Pinky had, therefore, been lonely. He faced Pinky all the way, hands on his hips. "You had Button." Which certainly explained why the scientist had felt the need to drop a button in the slots for him to fraternize with; Pinky had obviously gotten a hold of one first. "Yet you were lonely?"

A fond smile stretched across his face as he was reminded of his days with Button. Although, looking back on it, most of his time with Button involved him talking about Brain. Aside from the day where he first found Button, they hadn't done many fun things at all, Snowball came after that. Though, he supposed he couldn't begrudge the plastic circle that, it wasn't his fault after all. So Pinky simply giggled and shook his head. "Well, you're right, and Button was such lovely company." He sighed, then smiled shyly at his friend. "But he wasn't you, Brain."

No button, or mouse for that matter, could compare to Brain, Pinky thought that much was obvious. "Oh, you're not jealous of Button, are you Brain? Narf! Don't worry! I'll always love you best!"

"Pinky, there's absolutely no way in the world that I would be-" He stilled as the last part caught up with him. "You'll-" He pulled at his ears, let them go with a snap before resuming his pacing. Love. The word swirled in his mind, bouncing around like a pinball. It did funny things to his heart as well, so he rubbed an absent fist over it.

Finally, he just went up to Pinky and grasped his shoulders. "Do you know what you're saying? Do you comprehend what that word implies?"

Pinky observed Brain's reactions with some concern. He hadn't meant to say anything to upset him. He wrung his paws together nervously as the shorter mouse gripped his shoulders, struggling to maintain eye contact. "I-I don't understand, Brain. Why are you so upset?"

Surely it wasn't a surprise to a mouse as smart as The Brain to find that he was the most important person in Pinky's simply, yet fulfilling life, right? The blue eyed mouse wiggled uncomfortably in his cagemate's grasp. "You don't... you don't want me to love you?" Now that didn't make any sense at all. "I'm sorry, Brain, but I can't help it."

"Pinky, I never said I didn't... want that. I only..." His heart was pounding wildly in his chest. Without realizing it, his grip on Pinky's shoulders gentled. "What do you mean you can't help it?"

"Poit." He mumbled quietly, "Well, it's like this... umm, oh dear, hmm... oh, you know I'm no good with words, Brain!" Pinky was becoming distressed; first he didn't like what he said, but now he did like it as long as it had an explanation, his thoughts were twirling around in his head like little ballerinas. "I can't help it because... I want to know if I'm pondering what you're pondering, even if it's never the same, I want to know what you think anyway. And it's the warm fuzzies I get when you're happy, it makes me happy too. And I don't mind if we never take over the world, as long as I still get to spend every tomorrow night with you." It sounded about right to him, but what mattered was if Brain understood what he meant by all that. Pinky gulped and his blue eyes searched his friend's pink ones. "Is that okay, Brain?"

Brain studied Pinky carefully, synapses firing as quickly as they did when one of Pinky's inane suggestions gave him an idea. But it wasn't an idea now and the phrases weren't inane. He quivered, ears dropping, eyes rounding. Everytime he loved someone, they changed or vanished and then his memories of them seemed to get a bit... warped.

He didn't want Pinky to change or vanish, and he certainly didn't want his memories of the mouse to warp. He wanted the irritating narfs and poits, have Pinky praising his brilliance and questioning it often in the same breath. He didn't want to lose Pinky.

It hit him hard, then, that he loved his b-best friend. His lips trembled open, closed and opened again. He averted his gaze, but couldn't bring himself to release the mouse. Couldn't help it. Yes, that made sense. Terrifying sense. But he hadn't the faintest clue how to communicate that to him. The rational part of him still insisted that it was just the result of such a long absence, but the rest of him insisted that it was just the opposite.

He shuffled forward almost shyly, entirely unsure of what he was going to do about all of this. And, after a brief hesitation, he rested his chin atop Pinky's head and very gently nuzzled his ear. "Yes, Pinky, it's... it's okay."

At first, Pinky wanted to cry as he watched Brain make all those strange faces. He broke his best friend! However, he couldn't find it in himself to breach the silence, entranced by Brain's reaction to his little speech. Perhaps he should apologize, maybe that would fix him, just like it did when he'd drank that scary potion that made him all big and slobbery when he was mad. Simply saying sorry always turned him back to normal.

His apology died in his throat as Brain came closer. He closed his eyes, bracing himself for whatever would come next, when his ear twitched madly. Pinky blinked, his face pressed gently against Brain's chest as he felt the genius mouse cuddle him. It didn't take long for him to accept this turn of events. A contented smile stretched across his cheeks as he relaxed against his cagemate. He squirmed in delight as The Brain reassured him, wrapping his own arms around the smaller mouse. "Naaaaarf..."

Brain very slowly stroked his fingers down his friend's back, as if he were afraid that applying too much pressure, clinging too tightly, would just make him disappear entirely. "Pinky, I... I was lonely without you. I'm v-very glad you're back," he admitted, voice as soft as his touch.

As if sensing this hesitation, Pinky squeezed him a little tighter, to reassure him that the taller mouse wasn't going anywhere again any time soon. "I'm glad I'm back too, Brain." His tail swished back and forth under the attention, he felt positively giddy. He snuggled closer, then asked, "Will we get to do this every night, Brain?"

Brain watched his tail, smiling slightly. Such a child. "There's a very high probability of that, yes. I don't find the proximity distasteful."

He heard the 'yes', so Pinky didn't mind so much when he couldn't quite grasp the rest of what Brain said. The 'yes' was really all that mattered. "Narf!"

The Brain rolled his eyes, but there was a fondness mixed with the irritation. His grip tightened. "Sure, Pinky. Narf."

Wrapped together, neither mouse noticed the grinning scientist walk out. On her clipboard was the beginning of her conclusion:

Separation of cagemates was a success. Both Subjects A and B were able to recognize one another almost immediately. Repeat of experiment not required.

-8-8-

"The same thing we do every night, Pinky. Try to take over the world!"

SO. I wrote this with the absolutely delightful cutcrescentheart (well, that's her on DA)

I'm rather miserable with Pinky, so she took him over for me. I handled the Brain and Snowball. The scientist was just sort of there XD

So, yeah, wrote this together. THank GOD cuz this has been sitting in my unfinished folder for quite a while. Ugh. I hate unfinished things XD

Hope you enjoyed~