Chapter Text
After the concert, Yakko, Wakko, Dot, Winona, Cleff, and Louis Lillipad walked out of the Crimson Lounge together. Yakko held Dot and Wakko’s hands, while Louis and Cleff held each other’s. All of them had a lot to talk about after the successful show. The Warners were filled with energy, and the band was overjoyed. When Cleff turned to look at his uncle, he could see the face of pure pride. Right now, it seemed like everything was looking up.
“Way to go, kiddos!” Louis exclaimed.
“Thank you, Uncle Louis,” Cleff replied.
“Means a lot coming from you,” Winona added.
“Yakko, that was amazing!” Wakko exclaimed.
“Yeah?” Yakko asked.
“It was!” Wakko replied, “I had so much fun! I can’t wait for your next concert!”
“Whoa, easy there, Wakko. We haven’t even booked the next one yet!”
“Well,” Louis chimed in, “considering how well that last one went, I’m sure a ton of people will be clamoring to have you three around, not to mention how happy Brian was.”
“So there will be another concert soon!” Wakko said.
“Most likely,” Louis replied.
Wakko started to bounce up and down as everyone else chuckled. Dot looked at her older brothers with a soft smile on her face and suddenly tapped on Yakko’s shoulder.
“Hey, Yakko?” she asked.
Yakko turned around and looked down at Dot. The laughter quickly ceased.
“What’s up, little sis?” Yakko asked back.
“First of all, you did a great job,” Dot explained.
“Thanks Dot,” Yakko said, “it means a lot coming from you.”
“Second of all, can I confess something?”
“Sure thing! Whatcha wanna tell us?”
“I’m going to be completely honest: I... didn’t have all that much faith in you overcoming your stage fright.”
Yakko smirked and began to ruffle his sister’s head fluff. Dot laughed and laughed as Yakko did this, as did the others.
“Well gee, sis!” Yakko began, “thanks a lot for your unwavering support!”
Yakko then stopped ruffling Dot’s fur. He crossed his arms and looked away, but he still had a smile on his face.
“I know, I know,” Dot replied, “I don’t know why, it’s just that Wakko and I did so much, but it didn’t seem like anything was working too well!”
“Hey!” Winona interrupted, “didn’t we help too?”
“You did,” Yakko said.
“Yeah,” Dot added, “but I wasn’t sure if what you two were doing was going to work either.”
Cleff looked at Winona.
“She does have a point,” he said, “when we were performing, Yakko was completely quiet at first, then he sang backup on the second song, and then he was able to take over completely for the rest of the set! Something had to have happened while we were onstage.”
“How did you do it, Yakko?” Dot asked.
Yakko stroked his chin for a bit as everybody stopped walking.
“Well,” Yakko began, “this might seem a little silly to you guys, but it worked.”
“That’s alright!” Wakko said.
“Yeah,” Louis replied, “if it works, it works, no questions asked.”
“Tell us!” Dot exclaimed.
“Well,” Yakko answered, “while I was up there, Wakko, Dot, Uncle Louis, you saw me looking at your table every once in a while, right?”
“Sure did!” Dot said.
Wakko nodded his head, his tongue hanging out of his mouth.
“Well,” Yakko explained, “Dot, Wakko, I’d see you two cheering me on, and that was enough to keep me going. Then when we got to the second song, sometimes, the coffee shop would look almost empty! It’s like I got rid of all the other people in my mind. I could only see the one table where you guys were sitting, and it stayed that way for the rest of the show. I don’t know how exactly all of that happened, but I guess it’s all just easier for me when I have my little siblings around.”
“Awwww!” Wakko and Dot exclaimed.
Then, Wakko and Dot looked at each other, grinned, and tackle hugged Yakko. Yakko fell to the concrete, and the Warner siblings all began to laugh, as did Cleff, Louis, and Winona.
“We love you, Yakko,” Dot softly said.
“I love you guys too,” Yakko whispered.
The hug lasted for a few minutes. When Wakko and Dot got off him, Yakko stood up and dusted off his slacks. He sighed.
“You know,” Yakko began, “now that I’ve played a concert like this once, I don’t think I’m going to have any trouble doing it again.”
“Thank goodness!” Dot said.
“Yeah,” Yakko replied, “I just... I feel a whole lot better about performing now. I’ve done it once with no problems whatsoever, so I’m pretty confident I can do it a second time. And a third. And a fourth.”
The others began to laugh, and Yakko sighed with a smile. At last, he had done it. He couldn’t have done it without their help and support. With his siblings and friends in his corner, Yakko felt like he could do anything.
“Ya know,” Yakko thought, “I’m lucky to have them.”