Chapter I: Déjà Vu
Disclaimer: I own nothing but the plot and story at this point. I'm not even sure I own this disclaimer. If you recognize it (that is, in the story), it probably belongs to Mr. Tim Burton.
"For the last time, bonehead, we're not interested!" Shock snapped, seizing her younger cohorts by their elbows and wrenching them away from the current king of Halloween.
Jack Skellington sighed and scratched the top of his skull in thought as he watched the three tricksters walk away.
It was late in March for the people and creatures of Halloween Land, with April creeping along close ahead. A mere three months had passed since Jack's infamous "regime change" (for he felt that "takeover" sounded a bit too intentional for the harm that he had not meant to cause) of a foreign holiday, and the town was struggling to return to normal after the two-month disruption. The white powder that Sandy Claws had gifted the town with (they nearly ruined his holiday and he gives them a present? They couldn't say they minded, but it seemed very illogical) had melted when February was still young, to the relief of some of the older residents, namely one of the werewolves, who had been complaining about it getting in his fur and making the soft pads on the bottom of his feet slippery.
Sally, the Doctor's creation, had held a debate with her creator about her living arrangements, aided by Jack. Technically, as the king, the skeleton could've ignored Dr. Finkelstein's opinion altogether, but the idea of a monarchy made Jack uncomfortable (that's why he had the Mayor), and he always wished to seek the townspeople's endorsement before making any decisions that would affect them personally, whether a personal matter between him and that individual or otherwise. After several long weeks, they finally reached a compromise: since Sally was unhappy living with Dr. Finkelstein, she was given the permission to move in to the previously unused guest bedroom at Jack's house (neither were comfortable sharing a bed nor a room at this stage of their relationship, and there was no need, anyway), on the condition that she would visit every other day so that he could help her to progress in her development as a living creation.
The terms were quickly agreed to. For the first few days, Sally would spend the day at Jack's house, and then sleep in her old room at the Doctor's manor. They adjusted the routine slowly, as her creator mentioned that she did not react well with change, until finally she could comfortably sleep in her new bedroom. In a way, it was comparable to moving a child from a crib to a toddler bed.
Sally's living arrangements were, therefore, no longer an issue.
However, Jack had recently grown a bit worried about the trick-or-treaters. He felt guilty about putting their idol and guardian to death, and although they seemed perfectly content with living on their own, in charge of themselves, he couldn't help but think that it wasn't right for three children to be on their own like that. After all, the corpse boy lived with his parents, the mummy boy with the Cyclops (although he followed the Mayor around like a lost dog, helping him however he could), and the gargoyle girl with the four vampire brothers. Lock, Shock, and Barrel used to be under the care of Oogie Boogie, but, of course, that was no longer possible.
The Mayor had not been especially concerned with the situation when the master of fright brought it up with him one Tuesday morning.
"I'm just not sure why you're so concerned," He had said, "They're fine on their own. We don't need them getting any more ideas by giving them a guardian. They can take care of themselves. Besides, nobody in their right mind would want to take care of them."
They're only kids, Jack had wanted to say, but he didn't.
A few days later, an idea had come to him; why not adopt them, himself?
It had seemed like a brilliant idea. It took him a while to corner the three and ask them their opinion on the idea.
Their reaction to his first proposition had gone somewhat like this...
"You? Adopt us?" Lock repeated, arching a thick eyebrow at the skeleton in front of him. The three locked eyes, and their smiles grew into identical grins. For one absurd, insane moment, Jack thought that the finest trick-or-treaters were about to not only willingly but also, in fact, gladly agree to his suggestion.
A short time later, however, proved his previous thoughts wrong.
Lock, Shock, and Barrel had started laughing.
Not just their infamous series of mischievous giggles, either, but fully-fledged, very loud bursts of laughter that made them double over, clutching their stomachs.
Jack watched them in bewilderment as their cackles grew louder, and, at least for the young witch, more shrill. This was the last reaction he had expected to get out of him. Laughter? He had been, in every respect, serious when he had said that.
They apparently realized this, too, because after a minute, their laughter died down, and their smiles faded even more quickly.
"We're perfectly capable of taking care of ourselves, Jack," Lock finally spoke up.
"Well, these morons wouldn't last a day without me," Shock digressed, earning two heartfelt glares, "but Lock's right," (The devil grinned triumphantly, although he looked mildly surprised at her acknowledgment, at the same time.) "We don't need a babysitter. See, this way, we can do whatever we want! Nobody to boss us around, no chores, nobody to get annoyed when we're too loud, we can stay up for as long as we want... face it, Jack, living on our own is so much better. Now, boys, let us go."
And with that, the trio walked off, nearly arm in arm, leaving him in a stupor much like the nonplussed one he was in right now. A stray cat walked by, flipping its long tail against his calves before stalking off.
Still, Jack couldn't let them fend for themselves at their age. If they insisted on not being adopted, he'd just have to find an alternate solution.
A/N: This is a relatively short chapter from my usual, I know. Anyway, this story will be challenging me on a few levels: one, I'm writing this as a prelude to an upcoming (and already partially written, although it will not be posted until this is finished) story to avoid confusion on its part, as it does require a prelude. Two, this story deals with several things that I do not normally agree with: Lock, Shock, and Barrel being taken in, and their age gaps are bigger in this story than I believe they are. There will also be several things that I normally do not write in this story. You have been warned.
Before anybody asks, no, this is an Alternate Reality of my Forever By My Doll's Side series' universe. This is its own, completely independent universe, even though one scene is slightly déjà vu of it.
~*Inferno Shock*~