❝ ＲＩＤＥ 'ＥＭ ＧＵＭＢＯＹ ❞

We now return to 'The World's Most Bewildering Rodeo Accidents'!

An enthusiastic voice from within the deeply hidden speakers of Gummy's flatscreen television bellowed into the vibrant living room within the multi coloured apartment block at great volume.

Gummy nervously clasped his paper container squashed into the magenta material of his beanbag between his legs, striped red and white while filled to the brim with golden popcorn. An auburn cowboy hat was neatly balanced atop his head, quivering a little as his head wobbled in response to the brutal images crossing the screen.

Harry, Kala and (Y/n) cowered beside him, shivering with fear of the unknown against the pastel green cushions forming Gummy's rather long sofa. (Y/n)'s eyes became scrunched closed, not daring to even have a peek at the violence on screen, but the screams of pain and sounds of angered bulls didn't help...

Harry couldn't contain his quivering of terror, eventually leaping from his seat and scurrying to find somewhere to back away from the situation. He buried himself under the almost immaculate white pillows scattered across the seating, Kala rolling her deep green eyes in disappointment.

Gummy stuffed as many pieces of crunchy popcorn into his mouth as he possibly could, almost using the sweet snack to overcome his nerves of what else could possibly go wrong on the current television show.

Aggressive nibbling continued as 'man versus bull' began... the monstrous beast charging towards the innocent contestant as violent screams followed.

Gummy held a hand to his mouth, stifling the endless amount of popcorn stuffed inside as he felt the sensation of sickness tumbling within his stomach. When he couldn't contain the snacks in his mouth much longer, he spat them across the ivory floorboards with relief.

"Wow! I didn't know a leg could bend in all those directions at once!" Gummy cried, the taste of nausea flushing from his mouth.

"Bam boozie! That looks like so much fun!" He continued, observing the events on the screen with thrilling entertainment, the sense of fear and disgust from the violent images washing away.

"I wanna be a cowboy and ride broncos and rope cattle and break my pelvis so I can wear a big cast everybody can sign!" Gummy continued, almost disappearing into his daydreams of becoming a fabulous cowboy himself.

A smile spread across his face as a brilliant idea sparked into his mind like a flame lightening a firework.

"I know! I'll throw my own rodeo!" Gummy continued to project his thoughts aloud as he took a hand from his cardboard popcorn container to grab the beige phone from the table by his side.

A jelly green finger became wedged into the dial with excitement, spinning to allow contact to a specific number. (Y/n) observed her boyfriend in curiosity as he impatiently held the ringing phone close to his ear - although it was buried within the mahogany material of his cowboy hat.

Gummy's frustrated frown became a delighted smile as a voice echoed from the other end.

"Hello?"

"Ricardo's rent a rodeo?"

"Send me over a bunch of your biggest and meanest critters!"

(Y/n) felt the beating of her heart almost come to a standstill at her boyfriend's use of the daunting descriptive language 'biggest' and 'meanest'.

Kala smirked. "I like 'em big and mean!"

"I don't!" Harry interrupted, hands raised to his cheeks while quivering at the thought. "And have I mentioned that I'm terrified of wild animals? I must have mentioned that..."

Kala groaned, rolling her eyes in response as her sister attempted to listen in on her boyfriend's conversation down the phone.

"You're on your way!? Sup-ee!" Gummy ended the call by happily slamming the creamy brown phone back onto the main body of the device before leaping from his seat and dashing to the front door, a million springs in every step.

(Y/n) gulped.

"Uh oh..."

~

It had been a matter of moments until a monstrous canary golden truck came speeding down the road, skidding at every corner as whoever was in control of the vehicle drove like a maniac.

Gummy chuckled, now stood with his friends on the corner of the road outside their flamboyant apartment block.

"What took him so long?"

Gummy, Kala and (Y/n) became intrigued by the sound of rustling movement within the truck, while Harry quivered in fear as he stumbled back.

"Do you know that a horse can bite with 800 pounds of pressure per square inch!?" Harry cried, whipping out a calculator before tapping his shaking fingers across the buttons.

"AND they have between 36 and 44 teeth!" He continued, cringing at the calculation's result.

"That's like 35,200 total pounds of pressure in EVERY BITE!!" Harry squealed, keeping the calculator against his chest to secure a felling of safety.

Kala and (Y/n) turned to Harry with glares of concern.

"I might not even be a horse!" (Y/n) groaned, turning back to face her boyfriend, whose cerulean gaze wouldn't shift from the back of the truck for one second.

"AND DON'T EVEN GET ME STARTED ON BULLS!!" Harry shouted, although the girls simply ignored him.

"Those horns have only one purpose... and it's not to give massages!"

At that moment, a stubby, rather plump man hopped out of the driver's seat of the vehicle. A deep crimson checkered shirt was wrapped tightly around his stout body, and as he wandered closer he appeared to be even shorter than Gummy (so, very short!)

He adjusted his beige cowboy hat balanced on his mahogany head of hair before flinging the bright yellow doors of the truck open, grinning through his moustache.

Harry kept his eyes firmly closed as he continued to stumble back, thinking his companions were deranged to be stepping closer.

Sounds of squawking echoed in the darkness that kept the creatures rustling in the back of the truck anonymous.

Confusion crossed four faces as the animals soon emerged, hopping into the daylight.

Three large birds - a variety of shades of grey and brown painting the feathers that shielded their backs, large beaks within their large heads snapping at the now anxious group that stood before them, and clawed feet that pattered against the road as they edged closer.

Kala's emerald eyes widened in surprise as Harry continued to cower into the distance. (Y/n) gasped, scrunching her (e/c) eyes closed as she leapt towards Gummy. Her arms looped under his, her head disappearing into his shoulder. He stumbled back with a sense of surprise, before giggling and wrapping his other arm around his girlfriend for comfort.

Gummy turned back to the maniac driver of the truck with fury. "Whatdatden!? These aren't bulls! They're birds! You brought a bunch of goofy birds!?"

His fellow cowboy chuckled. "Yup - you asked for our biggest and meanest critters, well you got 'em! Emus is bad news!"

The enormous emus turned their gazes to the trembling group by their monstrously large feet, squawking from the enjoyment of seeing them in distress.

"There's something still in the back of the truck!" Harry blurted out, examining the darkness of the back of said truck to distract him from the beats eyeing him up.

Kala groaned, not at all frightened. "Well go in and get it!"

"Are you kidding!? It's dark and scary and smells like emu poop in there!" Harry continued, Kala rolling her eyes.

The driver of the truck leapt into the vehicle, reappearing into the morning sunlight moments later with a spherical object in his grip.

He handed what appeared to be an egg to Harry. "Here you go, free of charge!"

Harry examined the egg in confusion, surprise hitting him like a brick as its deep blue shell began to crack. Seconds later, the top of the egg shattered away, revealing a smaller version of the menacing birds towering over him.

An emu chick.

It squeaked with joy, attachment to Harry becoming immediate, its darkened eyes focusing on him as soon as they opened.

"Aww! He thinks you're his papa!" Gummy happily observed.

Kala stifled a laugh. "I can see the family resemblance!"

Harry groaned, both at Kala's teasing and the baby emu's irritating shrieks. He placed the remainder of the egg on the ground, the miniature emu leaping from within and waddling towards Harry.

The tiny bird squeaked with joy, causing more distress for his self proclaimed father.

"Go away!" Harry stuttered, stumbling backwards while providing the chick with a shooing action.

Gummy and (Y/n) chuckled, before anxiously turning back to the monstrous birds. (Y/n) trembled as her fingers remained clutching Gummy's wrist for a sense of safety.

Gummy smirked with confidence towards the towering birds. "OK, you may not be bulls or horses or any sort of four legged creatures...

...but it's time to get this show on the rodeo!"

~

(Y/n) sighed, leaning her elbows against the fence that surrounded the auburn dusted ground of the rodeo. She lowered her head slightly, gently enough that her balanced beige cowgirl hat didn't slide from the silkiness of her (h/c) hair tucked underneath. She wore a checkered (f/c) crop top tied roughly around her stomach, tight jeans kept in place my a belt from close to her chest for her to feel one with the cowboy atmosphere.

Her (e/c) eyes repeatedly scrunched closed in unwillingness to see her boyfriend being abused by these monstrous birds owning the rodeo her deep hazel boots dug into the grounds of.

(Y/n) held a hand to her raised brows as she bit her lip in discomfort to see Gummy once again being tormented by these ghastly critters. If he wasn't being flung from their backs and kicked across the dirt of the ground, he was being stomped into it by a crowd of clawed feet or nibbled at by an army of beaks.

Harry and Kala were by her side - Kala by her own choice becoming the comic relief as her attire had altered to that of a clown as Harry took a sip from the bubbles overflowing a boot in his grip.

He gulped some of the drinkable liquid floating within the cowboy shoe, his cowboy hat tipping from the top of his head as the rim tickled his back.

He released a sigh as he lowered the bottle boot, pressing what appeared to be the top of a baby's bottle to the top of the boot; therefore transforming it into a baby bottle!

Harry smiled as he slid the bottle into the beak of the emu chick, with who he had grown quite a connection. He happily fed the infant bird, the chick releasing an enormous burp after gulping down the remainder of the bubbly liquid.

Kaka chuckled. "So, how's fatherhood treating ya, Harry?"

Harry's smile grew as his fingers ruffled the small amount of thick hazel feathers that sprung from the emu's head like a tuft of hair.

"It's a lot of work being a single parent, but it's totally worth it!" Harry added.

"Y'know that fuzzy little thing's just gone grow up to be a big scary bird with razor sharp talons and a bad attitude, right?" Kala chuckled.

Harry scoffed. "Oh come on! This little guy is proof that emus are sweet and friendly animals that wouldn't harm a butterfly!"

Kala continued to giggle as, at that very moment, an innocent indigo butterfly fluttered in the summer sky past the emu chick, receiving angered screams and a chase across the rodeo grounds from the apparently harmless bird.

"Right, totally sweet and friendly!" Kala added, her clown face paint accurately resembling the entertained smile across her face.

(Y/n) let a small smile control her expression, also entertained by the contents of the neighbouring conversation as she slowly wandered over to her sister and friend.

She turned to notice Gummy slowly heading towards the group, a downhearted frown manipulating his miserable expression and a sense of defeat thriving in his saddened cerulean eyes.

(Y/n) held her hands to her heart; she couldn't stand to see Gummy upset on the rare occasions it was clear he was...

Gummy dragged his feet across the auburn dirt ground, arms tickling the dust as they were slouched down beside his reluctant feet. He sighed once reaching his companions, coming to the conclusion that he had surely been defeated by these menacing critters.

He wheezed, a collection of grey, beige, and hazel feathers escaping his throat and drifting to meet his tired feet on the dusted ground.

"Oh man-o! I don't think that big bird likes me..." Gummy groaned, shoulders slouching further forward.

Kala chuckled once more. "Well, according to Harry, these birds are angelic ambassadors of goodwill!"

Gummy smirked, as though the sense of defeat had escaped and a feeling of confidence suddenly began to rise within him.

"I'm gonna ride that honorary critter or die trying..." he stated with confidence, (Y/n) catching his eye from behind her sister.

He chuckled, sending a wink filled with cool headedness towards (Y/n) before preparing himself to head back out into the treacherous environment of the rodeo grounds.

(Y/n) couldn't prevent the deepened shade of crimson from decorating her cheeks as she turned away with a little embarrassment.

However, a menacing emu had its beady eyes fixed on Gummy, releasing an alarming squawk that caused him to stumble back a little in surprise.

Kala smiled. "The smart money's on dying trying..." she adjusted her clown nose with a squeak, "but I'm with you, Gummy! Let's get back in the ring and do some bird bustin'!"

With that, Gummy and Kala dashed into the open desert like landscape of the rodeo, savage emus already eyeing them up and preparing to strike.

(Y/n) continued to keep her gaze averted as Harry observed from the side lines with disgust at what violence followed.

Gummy came sailing through the air moments later, crashing before (Y/n)'s feet, causing her to stumble back in surprise.

She gasped, taking a knee as gently holding her boyfriend's head in her hands. She smiled when he began to laugh at his failed achievements, knowing for sure he was OK.

Harry chuckled. "That's got to be some sort of record for the shortest time on an emu ever!"

~

Thumping rattled the dusty ground as the feet of many emus sped across the rodeo, chasing a panicking Harry in circles surrounding the fence creating the rodeo's oval shape.

"It's a stampede! Every reptile for himself!" Harry screamed, his toes tripping himself up every few steps as he continued to run out of breath every few seconds.

(Y/n)'s heart was racing - herself, Gummy and Kaka were pinned to the fence separating the rodeo from the landscape of hills and fields surrounding the fiasco within the circle of dusted ground.

She kept the claws of one hand digging into the wooden structure, the other wrapped within Gummy's as her (e/c) eyes scrunched closed whenever the emus sped past.

Gummy chuckled, gently releasing his grip from his trembling girlfriend's fingers as he slowly headed out into the open land of the auburn sand coating the ground of the rodeo.

"What are you doing?" (Y/n) shrieked in panic, roughly six or seven monstrous birds speeding towards him as he settled in the center of the ring.

"Doin' some bird bustin'..." Gummy smirked, cracking his knuckles with confidence as the shrieking emus dashed forward a mile every millisecond.

However, he began to quiver as the birds stomped closer, his confident smirk becoming an anxious smile.

"Hey!" He called to the birds, their vicious attention remaining attached to himself.

Gummy gulped. "You... still wanna... f-fight?" He asked rhetorically, the beady eyes of the emus remaining focused on him as they became centimetres away from him in less than a second.

"I can't watch!" (Y/n) blurted out, paws covered her already scrunched shut eyes as she turned away from the whole frightening scenario.

Harry's self proclaimed emu chick son continued to chase the innocent butterfly. He had zoned out of reality, focusing on nothing other than the fluttering insect he so desperately wanted to capture.

Just in the nick of time, he stumbled with quite a pace towards the stampede of elders, vulnerable to becoming a victim of the scattering as their beady eyes were focused purely on crushing Gummy to pieces.

Harry gasped, observing the severe situation from the other side of the rodeo.

"This flies in the face of my every instinct for self preservation but..." Harry began, arms brushing against his tightened chest and legs speeding across the ground as fast as his exhausted body could handle.

"YOU SHALL NOT PASS!!" he screamed, arms stretching to create a barrier between his miniature companion and an army of a larger variety.

Gummy observed with confusion, panic rushing through him as became aware of the emu stampede not stopping due to Harry breaking their trail.

The chick retreated, Gummy following in his footsteps as he came to the conclusion of it being the safest option. An army of emus ignored Harry, a bundle of feathered bodies and clawed feet stamping across his face as it became pressed into the dusted ground.

(Y/n) turned her gaze to the fiasco before her, gasping as the swarm of emus began to quickly catch up to her panicking boyfriend.

"GUMMY! BEHIND YOU!" she screamed in hopes of catching his befuddled attention.

Menacing birds quickly caught up, the razor sharp claws breaking through the toes of one of them colliding with Gummy's bottom and sending him shooting above them in the air surrounded by the cloudless blue sky.

Gummy released a shocked shriek, clutching his bottom in pain from the collision with the monstrous claws digging into the tightly fitting orange materiel of his Y front underwear.

As he sailed through the tranquillity of the sky, he began to laugh - giggles after giggles until he dived into a fit of uncontrollable laughter.

(Y/n) and Kala observed with confusion, fleeing from their relaxed stances against the hazelwood fence into the dangers of the open rodeo in an attempt to assist their companion - who remained in stitches.

The emus continued to raise their clawed feet in aggression whenever Gummy came close to the ground, his weight pulling him down with his eyes scrunched closed in a continuous fit of laughter.

(Y/n) and Kala chased the army of beastly birds, unable to reach them as they slouched their arms to their knees while bending their aching backs to catch their quickly escaping breath.

"Keep away from Kala! Keep away from (Y/n)!" Gummy cried in an overjoyed tune as the monstrous creatures continued to punt him into the endless blue sky at a quicker pace while he continued to be entertained by what he clearly thought was a game.

Kala dashed back and forth between the towering emus, intimated by their abominable size but determined to save her befuddled, chuckling mess of a friend.

Gummy sailed above her head, inconveniently in whatever direction was opposite to where she was reluctantly running.

A final kick sent Gummy screaming into the distance, realisation of the severe situation hitting him in the face as violently as the summer breeze.

Thankfully, he landed safely on the back of a fellow emu, beady eyes angrily focusing on him as he confidently rode the beastly bird in circles.

Kala and (Y/n) watched with open jaws, (Y/n) mind in complete confusion as she could barely