Chester's deliveries became more of the same after that. If he managed to avoid a Brawler he barely spoke at all. He'd even let the character slip from time to time. Only to hear a confused child ask why Chester was so sad and then they would laugh when he shot the kid a goofy grin. From the chilling winds of the Brawl Mountain to the creepy bowels of Mortis's Mortuary. Chester's trip was a dull blur of flavorless monotony.

It wasn't until his cart lurched from its parked patch of grass that he registered where he was. He looked up and saw a warm smile behind an old set of glasses. "'Ello hun. What seems to be the problem?"

Her British tongue butchered every syllable. He pushed one of his tassels aside to respond, "Well it's just..." Chester was apprehensive to speak about it. What if Rosa gets angry knowing he found out?

The dark-skinned Brawler dipped down low. Her massive bush of black hair bordered on purple and nearly swallowed the cart's roof, "You heard about Mike?"

Chester looked over and got an up-close inspection of Rosa's shirt. It was a bright purple crop top with thick straps across her shoulders. Though if you asked Chester it might as well have been a bra with how little it covered. He turned away and blurted out, "Yeah!" with a heavy flush across his cheeks. But he just as quickly realized his mistake and added, "No! I meant no."

"Relax, I ain't gonna tat on ya."

Chester breathed a sigh of relief. It's always nice to know that the Starrs aren't just dogs that follow orders. Though maybe it's also problematic that they are so rebellious. Chester would question the morality of their situation later, for now, he asked a quiet question. "Is it true that Dynamike was kidnapped?"

"Dunno. Your guess is as good as mine." Rosa looked around before leaning in even closer. "But word is they found a stick of dynamite outside the mines. And lil golden feathers."

If that wasn't the sign of a struggle, Chester didn't know what was. As the two continued to talk another woman stepped out from the greenhouse. Her bright orange hair was on full display in an afro similar to Rosa's. Though on a much smaller scale. "Umm Rosa. The children are getting restle-" Bea locked eyes with Chester and squeaked. She immediately ducked behind the metal wall.

Rosa and Chester shared a confused shrug. The elder lady shouted, "Ey. Don't go running away." Bea slinked further back behind her cover. Rosa sighed as she turned to Chester, "Don't mind her. She's just nervous. We had a lot o' guests today."

He managed a soft snicker as he turned back to the apiarist. He figured a bit of his character work wouldn't hurt. "Oooo-ho-ho-ho-ho-ho. Don't worry madam I'm..." She had completely disappeared. "...harmless?"

Chester sat back once more and noticed something in his peripheral. And orange tuff of hair. He jumped back just as Bea spoke up, "I know... I was just worried Mandy was here."

Chester was a bit confused till he remembered the events of the day just before. He didn't think that a Brawler would be so easily spooked by a bit of high-velocity honey. Chester quickly assured her that Mandy was still back at the shop. Far away from them. Hearing that made Bea perk up a bit though she continued to cower just behind the blue painting of the cart's exterior.

Rosa unloaded a few crates off of Chester's cart. She easily lifted them over her head with one arm and walked past. She called back to Bea and the two left without a sound. All that Chester was left with was the ambiance of the tiny forest they lived in. He sat back with his eyes to the sky. The rays of the sun were piercing through the foliage above. And for a moment he felt a hit of cosmic power rushing over him.

After his encounter with the botanists Chester finally got the chance to just cruise back to the candy shop. While he rode he interacted with many park visitors. Plus the occasional resident that still couldn't handle the superstars around them. At one point he remembered seeing a young girl with snow-white hair chase down a living cactus. To most an outlandish claim but for him just another Thursday.

While traveling down a residential street Chester heard some strange sounds from a nearby alley. He'd always heard the term curiosity killed the cat, but he wasn't a cat. So, surely, he'll be fine.

He parked his cart and walked around the sidewalk. Now he started to notice the mischievous chuckles of teenagers. He figured he'd see some older boys burning a bag of dog crap or girls gossiping over high school drama. Instead, he saw a duo of Brawlers huddled in a corner. They were cackling back and forth as they messed with something between them.

Chester took the time to observe the two bodies dressed in black. They had leather jackets and dark jeans that hugged the inside of their thighs. Metal chains rested against the hips of a thin male while a taller female playfully tapped a metal bat against the ground. Her obsidian locks were cut into a bob that looked more like a helmet than hair. But the biggest oddity was the feathered skull that her male counterpart sported.

Chester knew them well enough. The man's name was Crow to match his animal-like face and feathery body. The girl's name was Bibi and her weapon of choice was a smiley cylinder she named Mr. Bat. The duo were well-known members of the Retropolis District which specialized in neon lights and 80's era delights. Their Starr was a Brawler called Bull who embodied the hardheaded and harder-hitting nature of the same animal. Though unlike Crow his only animalistic asset was the golden nose ring that dangled past his lips.

They were a long way away from Retropolis. Chester leaned further over to see what had their attention. Between them was a small girl with bright red pigtails. She had a dirty face to match the nasty yellow shirt that rested beneath her beige overalls. She clutched onto the straps of her matching backpack and quietly ate the taunts they tossed.

Bibi pushed her stomach with the end of her bat, "Come on Jess, do something." Bibi played with Jessie some more hoping for some reaction.

Jessie just shifted with her face to the ground. She didn't even bother to react. Something that Crow didn't forget to mention, "Think she lost her voice crying herself to sleep?"

"Yeah, maybe she was busy crying with that massive chip on her shoulder."

"Chip? What chip?" Crow grabbed a piece of gum out of Bibi's purple pockets. "She's the princess remember."

Bibi gave a mocking gasp, "That's right. The Princess of Trash. Daughter of the Junk Queen."

Crow pushed her shins with a light kick, "Do some trash magic, trashy."

The duo continued to taunt the little girl. They didn't bother with physical abuse but the mental trauma they were causing was sure to leave a dent. Bibi took a heavy breath after a laughing fit and then covered her nose. She grimaced, "You smell that?"

Crow retched and turned away. His feathers stood on end, "That's horrible!"

Jessie continued to silently stare at the ground while Bibi groaned. "Awe gross. The brat crapped herself." She brought her jacket against her nose. After taking a step back she cackled out, "Yo, Crow. Looks like Lil Miss Garbage Can is living up to her name."

She turned around to see Crow walking away. "I can't do this!" He ran away hissing.

Bibi smacked her head remembering that his animalistic mutations probably made that smell twice as bad. She turned back to Jessie she was still staring at the ground. Bibi clicked her tongue, "Seriously brat. Grow a backbone."

With that Bibi left to chase after Crow. Leaving Jessie alone to sulk in the corner and stew in that rancid stench. She once again heard feet approaching and prepared for another verbal lashing.

*jingle* *jingle*

Jessie's eyes had remained shut the entire time. With that gleeful sound, she looked up. The steel and cobalt costume of the park's jester was like a shining knight's armor. He blew out a massive breath into the air before talking, "Now that reeks."

Jessie made a sharp inhale and nearly gagged. The stench they had run from was permeating from his tongue. He recoiled away at her adverse reaction. Milky smooth knuckles slipped under his cap to retrieve a new snack. Revealing a shade of strawberry hair just a shade pinker than Jessie's. The moment he popped it into his mouth he munched till it was a fine blue dust. Jessie watched while he blew into the air. A fine teal powder disappeared into the atmosphere and a new wonderful scent filled the alley.

Jessie took a deep breath and commented, "Minty." She and Chester laughed to themselves. The two had known each other for years now. Pam was Chester's mentor when he first got hired into Starr Park's staff. She essentially acted as his surrogate mother. A role she commonly seemed to adopt for new Starr Park hires. If it hadn't been for her, he might not have been prepared for his role today.

During his time interning under Pam, he had gotten the chance to frequently visit her house within the junkyard. And that meant meeting Jessie. He remembered when she was still just a toddler running around with her little sparkplug and screwdriver. Now she was usually seen with a sparking rifle and a toolbelt that would make Batman blush.

Unfortunately, she was about twice as timid as Bea. A fact that the tougher Brawlers like Bibi loved to exploit. She could constantly be found on the receiving end of some attack and with younger patrons it could turn physical. Though most Brawlers knew better than to attack the cub or the lioness would bite their head off.

Chester dropped to a knee. Jessie smiled back at him. Chester then proceeded to smack Jessie upside her head. An attack that made her drop her gun and yell, "YOU BULLY!"

She repeatedly punched him in the chest though he barely budged, "Jessie..." She didn't stop punching, "Jessie." He finally grabbed her arms and looked her in the eyes, "Jessie." She pouted and tried to fight his grip. He grumbled, "Why didn't you stop them?"

Jessie relaxed and he let go of her arms. She picked up her gun and mumbled back, "I dunno."

Chester pinched his nose, "You don't know?" Jessie refused to look him in the eyes, so he pulled on her ear lobe, "Jessie?"

"OW OW OW okay! Okay! Stop!" Chester relinquished his grip and let Jessie speak. She fiddled with some levers and dials on her gun. She struggled to look him in the eyes. Then she managed to mumble, "I dunno."

Chester latched onto her cheeks and pulled with deadly force. She hissed and screamed as he pulled as hard as he could. He shook his head at her childish answers. It had been the same thing since the day they met. She's always been too scared to take action. Chester wanted to blame Pam's helicopter parenting for this placid personality.

As he continued to tug the girl's face something bashed him in the back of the head. He leaned forward and clutched his cap. When he looked back up he got blasted by a dirty, brown foot. Chester rolled away and clutched his nose. He had the feeling it might have been broken. Standing between Jessie and him was a boy in a bright green hoodie. A yellow stripe rolled down the center and slid along his back. Two massive blue buttons sat on either side of his head making his jacket look like a chameleon.

Jessie jumped in the way when the boy began to lean forward for an attack, "Leon wait. Not him." The sneaky kid stopped on a dime. Chester couldn't see his eyes beneath the hood's shadow, but his body showed a well of pent-up anger. Jessie repeated, "Not him." Leon looked past her and stared through Chester. The jester pulled another candy out of his hat. The bells clanged together only adding to the mostly silent alley's screaming ambience.

Jessie grabbed ahold of Leon's hand. He snapped down to her. She was only a few centimeters shorter than him but it was enough to give her sight below his hood. She looked into his eyes and said one final time, "Not him."

Chester saw a shiver run through Leon's spine. And his demeanor instantly swapped. What was a wild animal ready to pounce shifted into a giddy schoolboy swaying on his heels. His tongue lay outside his lips as he cooed, "~Okay Jessie~"

Jessie let go of a heavy sigh and turned back to Chester. She wanted to profusely apologize for Leon's actions. "He's just protecting me."

Chester didn't need an explanation. Leon was one of the few kids her age that didn't exile her. A heavy thank you to Bo's humble teachings would never be enough for raising such a wonderful boy. Even if he's not his biological father.

Chester dusted himself off. The soft jingle of his bells and a candy treat was all he needed to end this. Jessie was glad to take the treat, but Leon only hissed and stepped in front of her. Chester knew she'd be fine now. Wherever he came from he wouldn't let her get hurt anymore.

Chester stepped into his cart and happily drove away. He looked in the rear mirror and saw Jessie waving enthusiastically. He returned the sentiment and disappeared behind the corner. In the distance, he could finally see the signs pointing to Mandy's Rainbow Candy. Finally, another day of deliveries was finished. Travelling through Starr Park was always a wild ride but today was especially rambunctious. As he pulled closer to the store's entrance he had an eerie feeling. He remembered Dynamike. The warnings from Poco. Rosa's uncertainty. He had this sinking feeling that Dynamike was only the beginning.