Hamtaro Fan Fiction ❯ Accidents Happen ❯ The Incident ( Chapter 1 )

Accidents Happen
Written by Jason “Pathwarden” E.
Hamtaro is owned by the Cartoon Network, however this story is entirely of the author’s concoction.
Hide...I must hide...I can’t go there anymore!
Down on the illuminated sidewalks of the city, a lone creature sprinted like there was no tomorrow. It was being fueled by unquestionable fear, for the eyes flowed profusely with tears as his breath barely kept up to his pace. Being easily frightened, it would never have risked life and limb in the nighttime before. But had he stayed where he was, a terrible punishment would have been bestowed upon him.
Where’s my home? I want to go home!
Darkness began to play tricks. Every movement of shadow looked like a stalking predator. Every sound revealed the eager scratching of their weaponry. They pushed the creature onward, instilling panic into its nerve-wrecked body, until he finally came upon the entrance to his abode. Knowing the door was locked at this hour, the creature squeezed through the bottom crack. The rough cement and the splintered door sandwiched it in torture, assaulting its body with pain. It seemed like an eternity before he was finally on the other side.
The creature scurried to its home: a luxurious, deluxe-size cage filled with tunnels, toys, and ample supplies of food and water. But all the creature cared about now was escaping into his sanctuary: a miniature, metallic pan. The creature flipped it over, creating a basic shell. It slipped into this shell, enveloping the creature in total darkness. It lay down upon its back, looking upwards into nothingness as it continued to choke and whimper.
I don’t deserve friendship. I don’t deserve love. Not after what happened. Not after what I did. Why wasn’t I more careful? Why didn’t I watch what I was doing?!
I should just stay here. Stay here and hide forever. No one’s gonna like Cappy anymore!
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Before the incident, the life of Cappy was good. He had everything a hamster could ever want: A generous pair of humans provided his needs. His “little” abode dwarfed typical cages, housing a tubular playground that never ceased to entertain him. And to top it all off, he was associated with a colorful, benevolent group of hamsters who would gather every day to embark on wonderful adventures and activities.
Yet, something was missing.
Perhaps it was because of his less-than-average size. Or it could’ve been his notable shyness. Whatever the cause, it still bothered him at times that he wasn’t very noticeable. He sometimes wondered if in fact he was invisible.
Everyone else he knew deserved attention in some form or another: Bijou, Pashmina, and Sandy stole the hearts of the males with their various charms. Penelope, the youngest, always needed a babysitter to stay out of harm’s way. Panda wielded unsurpassable skills in construction. Maxwell’s affinity for books provided the group with an unfathomable resource of knowledge. Boss and Hamtaro were natural leaders. The rivalry of Dexter and Howdy never ceased to entertain. Stan’s numerous attempts at wooing the females (excluding his sister, of course) always sparked an amusing spectacle. Snoozer, though usually asleep, occasionally uttered pearls of wisdom. Even Oxnard, who is notably timid, would always get a helping hand whenever he lost track of his invaluable sunflower seed.
So where did that leave Cappy?
He didn’t possess valuable skills. He wasn’t a social butterfly. And he couldn’t even claim to have (or potentially have) a significant other. Cappy was nothing more than a spectator of this idyllic community, with his trademark hat his only close companion. He had pretended to be content with this; but it was only a matter of time before his deep desire for attention formed a growing knot of desperation.
One day, Cappy skipped going to the underground clubhouse. He traveled instead to a human facility, where the hamster pried on the activities of the people inside. There he saw scenes that instilled great awe: a beautiful ballet of clashing metal, booming cries, and powerful displays of skill.
From that very first day, Cappy found what he was looking for.
For the next two months, the little hamster practiced those movements. No one could’ve matched his dedication to learn that deadly art. Every morning he would watch those humans, and every evening he would train in the privacy of his cage. Sometimes he’d inflict a terrible injury upon himself; but he would continue, despite that his body screamed for him to stop.
Poor Cappy became obsessed with learning those techniques. Sometimes he would stay in his cage for the entire day, repeating the same motions over and over again until they were perfect. All limits of his tiny body were breached whenever possible. He nearly forgot that the clubhouse even existed.
And then, his objective was finally achieved: he became a master fencer.
Utilizing a tiny sewing needle like man uses a rapier, Cappy’s skills in self-defense made him the very first of his kind. His slashes were as deadly as a blender, his stabs as quick as bullets, and his whole motion as graceful as a ballerina’s.
None of the other hamsters knew about this skill. None. He could already picture the surprised look on their faces. He would bask in the long-elusive limelight, modestly accept their praise, and maybe even win the affection of one of the beautiful females. All that was needed now was the right moment to shine.
And that moment came on the afternoon of the talent show.
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“Thank you; thank you, ladies and gentle-hams! Thank you!”
Boss, the resident tough-guy (and field hamster) bowed eagerly as the audience reluctantly applauded. His performance, surprisingly, was a solo vocalization of a cheesy, romantic ballad. Boss’ voice found that hitting the right notes was near-impossible, mutilating the piece like a sadist. Despite the torture, however, the other hamsters were either too nice to be critical, or too afraid of angering him, considering he easily dwarfed the rest of the group in size. Cappy, who had always admired Boss’ brave, enduring lifestyle, classified in the former group.
At least the guy tried, he thought.
Boss made his way off the makeshift stage. Yes, it appeared very crude, but a lack of resources had forced the hamsters to slap it together within the confines of the underground clubhouse. The fellowship of rodents was not the picky type.
Cappy heard the various whispers of commentary: “Since when did Boss ever sing?”
“Ever since he fell head-over-heels for Bijou.”
“Aw jeez, is he ever just going to tell her directly how he feels?”
“He’s too afraid Bijou’ll reject him, since she’s an elegant pet hamster from France.”
“Poor Boss.”
Yeah…poor Boss, he thought.
Up to the stage climbed Hamtaro, the assigned announcer for the talent show. His words dripped with his enthusiastic, childish demeanor:
“Wow, ham-hams! Everybody’s been great today. We’ve had lots and lots of different things up on stage, so many I can’t even remember them all. But I think everyone will agree with me when I say this has been the best show ever!”
The group responded with roaring applause…except for Cappy. He was quietly slipping to the back of the stage.
Hamtaro continued. “But time’s running out, and we’ll all have to head back home soon before our owners realize we’re all out of our cages!”
The audience responded with laughter…except for Cappy. He began to unravel the cloth that smuggled in his rapier. His heart pumped madly, forcing adrenaline into his system.
“But before we call it a day, we got one last act to do. And this one’s being done by none other than Cappy!”
The audience responded with speculative murmur…except for Cappy. He stood behind the curtain silent, posed, and ready.
This is the moment. No more shyness. No more hiding. I’m going to make this the best show they’ll ever see!
If only his body agreed with that: sweaty palms, shaking, and nausea tried to make Cappy back out of going through with the performance. But the hamster worked too hard. Way too hard. God’s command couldn’t have swayed him.
“Now let’s give it up for the ham-ham!”
Hamtaro scurried of the stage. The lights above began to dim, leaving behind a lonely spot of luminescence. Everybody stared into the empty spot, waiting eagerly for the swimmer-capped rodent to reveal himself.
Now!
Cappy charged dramatically through the curtain, his cry booming throughout the Clubhouse. He quickly shifted into position before the audience, the legs crouched and the sword pointed forward and level. He purposely froze for a moment: he was all smiles when he saw that more than one of the rodents had literally jumped in fright because of his sudden entrance.
They haven’t seen anything yet!
Cappy began the routine, starting off with a series of stances, transitioning from one to the next slowly, as if he was an apparition. It looked very much like dancing, managing to capture the audience in a feeling of awe. But suddenly, Cappy engaged battle with numerous, invisible adversaries. He slashed, parried, dodged and stabbed, covering the entire stage floor with his fancy footwork, showing no mercy towards his imaginary foes. Cappy’s whole body became saturated in sweat. It stung his little eyes, but all it served to do was increase the intimidation of his attack cries.
Cappy knew he earned it. The limelight was finally within his grasp. Now the time came to seal this deal permanently.
He took position in center stage, holding the rapier close. All of his muscles tensed as he felt a deep power build within. With one last shout, he performed his final technique: a powerful thrust capable of shattering bone. It was then that the dark, brutal side of sword fighting finally reared its head.
The rapier chose that moment to betray its master. It escaped Cappy’s sweaty grasp, flying through the air like a spear, and indiscriminately struck a target.
“Eeeeeeeek!”
“No! Bijou!”
The resulting image of that one mistake burned into Cappy’s mind: Bijou, the sweet, charming hamster from France, pinned to the wall, going into shock as the blade impaled her flesh, her voice paralyzed by the unimaginable pain, the look of shock in her eyes that stared accusingly into his own.
No…No! That wasn’t supposed to happen!
Everyone else gathered around Bijou, doing all they could to keep her alive. Cappy was left on stage alone, shocked, and doomed.
No! No! Boss is going to kill me for this! They’re ALL going to kill me for this! No! NO!
Devastated, Cappy ran frantically out the exit, nearly vomiting as he passed by his bleeding victim.