"Welcome to Hong Kong, beloved family and daughter's husband." Lao Shi greeted the Longs as they unloaded their van (That is to say, Jonathan unloaded the van). They were in Hong Kong for their summer vacation and were currently outside of their hotel. "Come. I'll show you to your room." Lao Shi turned around and led them into the hotel. As he did, a young girl who had been loitering in a nearby store peered over at them and grinned happily to herself.
Inside the hotel, Jonathan sat at a table, surrounded by tour books and writing a list of the biggest must-see places for the family to visit during their stay.
"Hey Dad." Jake came up to him. "Do you think maybe we can dial down on the crazed site seeing on this trip?"
"Oh, don't worry Jake." The man assured his son, tapping his pencil on the sheet of paper in his hand. "I've narrowed our must-see list down to a mere 748 sites and/or attractions!" The sheet of paper folded out into a long list.
"But Dad," Jake protested nervously. "Isn't this a time for you to, you know, chill out and get to know your family?"
"Oh, of course, Jake!" Jonathon replied, gesturing with his pencil. "This is my chance to see where your mom's side of the family comes from. I don't wanna miss a single solitary thing." He sat back down, once again immersing himself in the tour guides. Jake sighed and turned away.
Out on the balcony, Trixie and Spud were chilling in the hot tub. "I still can't believe Gramps is springing for us to tag along, on the big family vacation." Trixie sighed. Jake walked by, frowning. "Hey, Jakey, what's wrong? Water too hot for ya?"
Jake looked out the window covering the balcony. "It's Rose. I never thought I'd have the chance to see her again, but she's here, in Hong Kong!"
"Jakey," Trixie told her friend. "You wished for her to have a happy life, and she does."
"It just doesn't include you, dude." Spud added as Jake pulled out a picture of him and Rose together. "You have to let her go."
"I know." Jake put the photo away and spun around to face his friends, grinning. "Come on! Let's kick back and enjoy the view. We got the harbor over there, the city down there – Hey, yo, look at those hills!" He exclaimed, gesturing to each location in turn.
"The tallest one is called, 'Victoria Peak.'" Lao Shi explained as he and Fu Dog came up to the trio.
"Yep!" Fu Dog said. "But it's known by the locals as 'The Back of the Dragon.'"
"The first dragon temple was built on that very summit thousands of years ago." Lao Shi added.
Trixie and Spud got out of the hot tub. "Uh, come on Spud, let's just rotate back inside and dial for some room service." She walked inside.
"Yup." Spud agreed. He stopped to sniff the air. "I think I smell some dragon business in the air." He then followed Trixie.
"Come on, G!" Jake complained when they were gone. "I'm on vacation here, remember?"
"I am sorry young dragon." Lao Shi told him. "But the timing of this vacation is no coincidence."
Fu Dog reached back to grab a scroll. "You see, that temple only appears on the hill once every thousand years, during a very rare lunar eclipse." He opened the scroll, revealing a picture of the mountain. As Jake watched, the moon turned dark and the temple appeared on the faux summit. "Which just so happens to be, budoomsky, tomorrow night!"
"And on that night," Lao Shi continued. "All of the world's dragons gather there for a mandatory meeting."
"Yeah, but here's the good news," Fu Dog told him. "The eclipse only lasts a couple of hours." The moon cleared and the temple, as well as the image, vanished. "Kinda like most of my romantic attractions. Hey-ya-ya goo goo goo!"
"So for the rest of the time, we are completely free to enjoy the city with friends and family." His Grandpa smiled.
Jake grinned back and the three of them went inside.
A few buildings away, a figure watched them. And not the same one from before, either. This one was evil, ugly, and downright weird! It was Chang and Bananas B! "Yes." Chang croaked, smiling her own evil smile. "Everything is going according to plan."
*Cut to theme song*
"My oh my, wasn't that snail farm something?" Jonathon exclaimed the next morning. "And only 48 blocks from our hotel too!"
"Jonathon," Susan panted behind him. "Wait. Let's take a break!"
"But honey bunch, it's only 10 a.m. and we've only hit 72 sites!" He protested happily. Everyone but Jake groaned and collapsed to the ground.
"Dad!" Jake complained. "This is supposed to be a chance for us to hang together as a family. You're spending more time with those tour books than with us!" As this happened, a girl crept to the back of the group and bent down to see Trixie and Spud.
"Listen to me, something bad is about to happen. You two and Jake are walking into a trap. But don't try to stop it! If you do, disastrous results will occur! Just be on the lookout!" She then walked away.
No one else had noticed the interaction. "Oh, that reminds me, I really wanna check out some of the stuff in this book!" Jonathon exclaimed, grabbing a red, glowing book from his pocket and rifling through it. Everyone gasped.
"Where did you get that?" Susan asked shakily.
"This?" Jonathon held up the book to his wife. "Oh, I found it in your dad's office when we locked up the store." He looked through it again. "It is full of cool local stuff that is not in the other books!" He walked away and Jake turned to his mom in a panic.
"Mom! That's a magical tour book! He's gonna find out everything!"
"Haley," Susan turned to her daughter. "Come on! We have to get that book away from him!" They rushed off, leaving the others behind.
"Greetings, Lao Shi!" A net made of sphinx hair came down on top of Jake's grandfather, pulling him away with a golf cart – being driven by Bananas!
"Ayah!" He yelled as he was dragged off.
"Jakey!" Trixie shouted. "Chang just snatched your gramps!"
"We gotta do something!" Spud added as they raced after them.
Jake looked around. "I can't dragon up here. Too many people! We need some wheels!" He led them over to a cart of fish. Changing his finger into a claw, he quickly cut them three makeshift skateboards. "Come on!" They skated frantically after the rouge dragon.
"It's no use, American Dragon!" Bananas B drove into some boxes, attempting to block their way. The three of them jumped the obstacle easily. "Your grandfather is mine! Ah ha ha ha ha ha ha ha!" Chang cackled. Pointing her staff, she shot at the friends, causing them to cry out. Luckily, they didn't get hit, but a pyramid of barrels did! They rolled right at Jake, Trixie and Spud! Thankfully, there was a makeshift ramp nearby, and the three of them jumped off of it to continue the chase on the colorful covers above the stalls. Jake got up close and leaped onto the vehicle with a shout, but Chang blasted the roof off, causing him to go flying backwards! He managed to keep on his board, barely missing Trixie and Spud, and continued after the evil woman.
As they rode onto a dock, Chang charged her blaster and aimed it at a wall of boxes, causing them to fall and rain down on the trio.
"Guys, watch out!" Jake yelled, dodging quickly. They somehow managed to escape the attack, and followed Chang into a huge building.
Inside, they found the golf cart abandoned and smoking. "They gotta be in here somewhere!" Jake commented.
"This is the Hong Kong convention and exhibition center, Jakey." Trixie told him. "This place is huge!"
"I don't mean to be a downer, but," Spud started, looking at the doors and recalling what the weird girl had said to him and Trixie earlier. "I got a feeling that we just walked into a, uh –" The doors slammed shut, cutting him off.
"A trap!" Jake finished.
Weird blue mist flowed around them and, with a deep, rumbling laugh, the Dark Dragon formed! He looked down at the three kids glaring at him, and laughed harder, a blue fire burning in his mouth.
*Blackout*
"The Dark Dragon!" Jake said, stepping back as shadow demons formed around them.
"Question." Spud commented, poking one of the minions. "Is the bad guy laugh really necessary? I mean, come on! It's such a cliché! Or, is it a stereotype…?"
"Spud!" Trixie yelled at him. "Now is not the time!"
"No!" Jake turned back to their foe. "Now's the time for this! Dragon up!" He transformed and flew at the villain, breathing fire. But the Dark Dragon simply beat his attacks away with his wings.
"Come now," He remarked. "Is that any way to treat an old friend?" Jake didn't reply, and continued his assault. All of the sudden, scoundrel flew up and smashed Jake to the ground! He grabbed him, but Jake slapped him in the face with his tail, only to get smacked down into a table.
"Bangers!" Everyone looked up to see Chang, and Bananas B standing on the platform above, with Lao Shi still trapped in Chang's net. "How do you like the new and improved Dark Dragon?"
"Uh, he does seem a lot bigger." Trixie thought out loud.
"Yeah. Like, maybe he's been working out." Spud added.
"I have imbued the Dark One with powers you cannot even imagine." Chang told them.
Jake got up and flew at her angrily. "Let my grandfather go!" He shouted. The Dark Dragon simply shot a little dragon fire at the lights hanging above him, however, and it fell on Jake, causing him to turn human once more.
"Of course…." He rumbled at the young boy, walking over to the other side of the room. "But first I expect a favor from you." He stopped before Chang, who jumped from her perch, and looked down at the children. "Tonight during the eclipse, the world's dragons will hold the traditional Thousand Year Toast."
Chang walked forward, holding a bottle with some swirly, turquoise liquid in it. "You will slip a few drops of this potion into each of their drinks."
B grabbed it and put it down in front of the trapped AmDrag. "You're gonna slip them a little surprise at the party, yo!"
Jake glared at him. "And if I don't?"
The Dark Dragon was the one to reply with the obvious ransom. "You will never see your grandfather again." He chortled evilly.
"There's the evil laugh," Spud glared, held back by the shadow demons. "Cliché!"
"Jake…." Lao Shi croaked from his net. "Don't do it. Don't….."
Jake pulled himself out from underneath the lights. "Grandpa, no!" He yelled, jumping at the group. But as he did, the disappeared in a flash of blue and Jake fell to the ground. The shadow demons disappeared and Jake got up to pick up the potion.
"I told you to be on the lookout." The girl from earlier stepped out from the shadows. "You coulda listened to me, you know."
"You!" Spud yelled.
"You know her?" Jake asked him.
"Yeah!" Trixie walked up beside him. "She came up to us earlier and went on about traps and being on the lookout, and stuff! I almost forgot."
Jake looked over at her. "Who are you? In fact, what are you? Some sort of oracle?"
The girl smiled. "No. I'm just an ordinary human, like Trixie and Spud. Well, perhaps ordinary isn't the best definition, but you catch my drift. I'm just someone who knows about today's past, current, and future events. And you can call me Mary Penelope."
"Okay." Jake and his friends exchanged glances. "That makes no sense….."
"What?" She raised an eyebrow. "That I'm mortal, but I know that Fu Dog's about to come running into the building?"
The doors flew open to reveal a panting Fu Dog. "Too, much, exercise… agoo, aw. What? Did I miss anything? What happened?"
The friends gapped at Mary, or, as I should say, myself.
"How did you do that?" Jake demanded. "If you're mortal like you say, there's no way you would've been able to know that would happen."
I snorted. "As if. Even if I didn't know the things I do, I would still have been able to hear his panting. And I am mortal. I wish I were magical, 'cause it's incredibly cool, but unfortunately, I've got no magic in my world."
"Your world?" Spud looked at me suspiciously. "What's that mean?"
I shook my head quickly, realizing my slip-up. "Nothing. Anyway, hi Fu Dog. I'd tell you what you missed, but not only do I think that these three want to do that, but we also need to get back to the market before your family starts looking for you, Jake. By the way, if they ask who I am, just say I'm a friend who'll be joining you guys for lunch. I have a few things you might want to hear about." I walked out the door, and after a moment's hesitation, they followed me.
On the way back, Jake, Trix and Spud filled Fu in on the situation. By the time we reached the rendezvous point, they were showing him the potion.
"Kid, this is definitely some kind of dark mind control potion." Fu Dog told him, examining the vial. "If you slip this into the toast tonight, you're gonna give the Dark Dragon a free pass to rule the magical world!"
"I know." Jake sighed. Fu gave him the evil concoction back. "But if I don't, what's gonna happen to Grandpa? We have to –"
"Oh, there you kids are!" Jake's parents came up to us.
"Told ya they were looking for you." I muttered.
"Hey, I thought we'd try this little hole-in-the-wall place for lunch. You literally have to walk through a wall to get there!" Jonathon told them with a chuckle. "Imagine that!" Then he noticed me. "Oh, hello. Who's this?"
"Um, she's….." Jake started. I jumped in quickly.
"Hi Mr. and Mrs. Long. I'm a friend of Jake's. I was part of an exchange program a few years ago for a school in New York, and we met up while I was looking around NYC. He showed me around, and I made him promise to look me up if he ever came to Hong Kong. Luckily, I was in the market today, and found him here. Cool, huh? He asked me to join you guys for lunch."
"Oh really? Well, there's always more room for friends of Jake's! Come on, you'll love the place. And maybe later, you can give us a tour, hmm?"
"Actually…" I rubbed the back of my neck, looking embarrassed. "My parents don't like me roaming around too much by myself, and, with 5 kids, we've never really had the money to visit attractions, so I won't be much help. But don't worry! I won't be bothering you for long."
"Oh, it's not a bother at all." He assured me. "In fact, you can even join us….."
*Blackout*
In the restaurant, Jonathon marveled at the 'special effects.' "Wow, would you take a little lookie look at this place! It's like dinner theater for dungeon masters!"
"Uh, yeah." Susan gulped. "Great… costumes!" A gnome brought their tea over.
"Ooo, here we go!" Mr. Long rubbed his hands together. "It's a local specialty, Transformation Tea!" He took a sip. "Mmm, oh, my. Yep, that needs a little sugar." His ears were replaced with a donkey's as he reached down and tossed a few cubes in. He took another sip, and ended up growing a tail.
Susan tried to keep him distracted. "Uh, let's see what's on the menu!" She shoved it into his face.
At the next table over, I sat with Jake, Trixie, Spud, Haley, and Fu.
"We have to rescue Grandpa before the eclipse tonight." Jake announced. "It's our only chance!"
"Yeah," Spud agreed. "We gotta fight the Dark Dragon. And by 'we,' I mostly mean Jake and the other dragons."
"Shouldn't be too hard." Haley stated. "All the dragons in the world are right here in Hong Kong."
I shook my head. "Uh uh. DD's way too tough for you guys, even with everyone helping you out. That dude has all sorts of Dark powers, and if I know anything about magic, it's that this kind of power needs an expert to handle it."
"We are experts!" Jake argued. "We can take him!"
"I dunno, kid." Fu Dog responded. "If the Dark Dragon's as pumped up as you say, he may be too powerful. You see, the Dark Dragon's the only dragon who's ever gone bad. Dragons just don't have that much experience fighting other dragons."
"No…" Jake pulled out a picture from his pocket. "But I know someone who does!" I giggled a little as everyone looked at the photo. It was the one of him and Rose.
"Rose?" Spud asked. "But you don't even know where you find her."
"Oh yes he does." I grinned. "Little mister can't-give-it-up over here looked up where she goes to school."
Everyone grumbled in annoyance while I choked back a laugh.
"How did you know that?" Jake flushed.
I sighed. "Random mortal who knows today's events? Remember?"
"Oh, right…." He looked back up at everyone else, whom were still looking at him disbelief. "Hey, I guess I'm not that good at letting go!" He banged his hand on the table.
"Jake, she never trained to slay dragons! She was never a member of the Huntsclan." Trixie disputed.
"I know! But she still has the birthmark," Jake argued. "She's still a natural dragon slayer!"
"But she doesn't know that." Spud reached over and snatched the picture from Jake. "This photo of you guys shouldn't even exist! It's only because you had it with you when you created the parallel, reality of, um…. Ugh, my head hurts just thinking about it."
"Look, I know it's a long shot, but we don't have any other choice." He grabbed the photo back. "The Dark Dragon is too powerful!"
"Yeah, but even if you convince her, she doesn't have her ninja Huntsgirl staff thingy, or any of that gear!" Trixie rebutted.
"Hey, I know!" Spud said suddenly. "The Huntsclan had lairs all over the world! Maybe they had a Hong Kong franchise!" He pulled out his laptop and began typing.
"Check it out," Jake jumped out of his seat and started off. "I'll get Rose and meet you guys back at the hotel." He started to run off, but I yelled after him.
"Jake! Wait!" He skidded to a stop and looked back at me.
"What?"
I got up and walked over to him. "I'm going with you. I know what's about to happen, and it's incredibly awkward. I'm coming to make sure nothing annoying happens."
Jake looked back at everyone else and they all shrugged.
"Better take her kid." Fu advised. "If she's telling the truth, she could be useful."
Jake nodded and we turned to leave. Jake stopped at his parents table, though, and stared at Jonathon's transformation.
"Uh, I gotta go. Meet Grandpa! He wanted to show me his old neighborhood and stuff!"
I nodded. "And… I need to go and tell my 'rents that I'll be hanging with you guys today."
"Well, catch you guys later!" Jake ran off.
"Yeah, and, um, enjoy the tea, Mr. Long!" I called as I raced after him.
He took another drink once we left, and ended up growing horns, causing Susan to drop her menu in surprise.
*Blackout*
In the streets of Hong Kong, Jake and I waited for Rose to leave school.
"Now listen, Jake." I whispered. "I'm going to let you do most of the talking, but if I butt in, don't question me, okay?"
"Yeah, yeah, whatever." He told me, peering out behind the wall, looking for Rose.
I sighed. "Boys. They're all idiots."
Just then, Rose exited her building and said goodbye to her friend. She walked our way.
Jake jumped out from the wall we were hiding behind. "Hey!" He greeted her.
"Hey yourself." Rose replied, walking away from him. She started off the other way, but Jake stopped her by saying, "Uh, it's Rose, right?" I shook my head. As if there was any doubt. But she did stop to look at us.
"Do I know you?" She asked.
"You do!" Jake told her, approaching. "Or, you did. Uh, my name's Jake Long. We went to school together back in New York. It's complicated. Can we go somewhere and talk?" He looked at her beseechingly.
"Talk?" Rose looked at us sceptically. "About what?"
"It's just..." Jake ran a hand through his hair and breathed in hard. "You won't believe me."
"I'm pretty open-minded." She crossed her arms. "Give it a shot."
Jake looked down. "Okay, here it goes…." He took a deep breath in.
"The happy life that you're living now is an alternate reality that I wished for you. You're actually a mythical dragon slayer who was kidnapped by the Huntsclan, and trained since birth to fight and slay dragons. I need you to come with me tonight, to Victoria Peak to slay the Dark Dragon in order to save my grandfather and possibly the entire magical world!"
He breathed out. "Phew."
Rose just looked at him. "Yeah….. I'm not that open-minded." She turned and walked away, leaving us standing there.
"Don't worry." I told him cheerfully. "She comes around."
*Blackout*
"Yesiree Bob, the Hong Kong Botanical Gardens." Jonathon commented as the remaining group trooped through the park. He still had the ears, tail and horns. "Well, we can check off #128 on the 'ole list here."
Behind them, Spud was holding a handheld tracker, which began to beep. "Check it out! There's an abandoned Huntsclan lair just a couple blocks from here!"
Trixie looked up at the Longs. "Uh, hey, Papa Dog! Spud and I are gonna, uh, go check out this, yeah..." She scratched her head. "The museum thing! A'right?"
"Oh, a museum! Great! How did I miss that one?" He looked down at his list as the Transfiguration Tea finally wore off, much to everyone's relief. He straightened up with a grin. "Lead the way!" Everyone followed the two as they set out for the Huntsclan lair.
*Blackout*
"Hold on!" Jake and I followed Rose through the street. "Look, if you just let me explain, I –"
"Look, just leave me alone!" Rose yelled at him.
"You have to believe me!" Jake begged.
"Okay, if I'm some sort of dragon slayer, that would mean dragons are real, right?"
"Absolutely." Jake agreed. "We're the good guys, actually."
"We?" Rose looked at him in disbelief.
"Oh yeah." Jake looked around. "I almost forgot. I'm a dragon."
Rose sighed. "I'm officially creeped out. Bye!"
Jake raced after her. "Look, look, wait!" He grabbed her arm. "Look at this mark on your hand! It's a dragon!"
She pulled it back, fast. "How did you know about that?"
"Come with me someplace private. I'll turn into a dragon and prove it to you." His voice softened and his face turned desperate as he begged, "Rose, look at my eyes. Somehow, you have to remember me!" Rose stared at him. Finally, she reached into her pocket and pulled out her phone.
"Let me call ahead and make sure my family's not home. If you have proof you can show me there."
She flipped it open and started to dial. That was when I made my move.
"A-bap! Put the phone down, missy!" I stepped forward to glare at her.
*Blackout*
In the abandoned Huntsclan lair, Spud and Trixie looked for Huntstaffs and other equipment.
"Well, this is just the strangest museum I have ever seen! I-I-I-I-I-It's like some combination of ancient Chinese warrior artifacts and modern art!" Jonathon commented as the two fore-mentioned teens saw and snagged an armful of staffs. "You know?" He walked up to a control panel. "Oh, look, it's some kind of interactive display. I wonder what this does." He reached forward and pressed a big red button. The screen on the panel started flashing like crazy.
"Self-destruct sequence initiated. T-minus 10 seconds until thermal detonation." Everyone but Jonathon looked up at him in shock and fright. Gulping, Trix and Spud raced over to thee Longs.
"Uh, we gotta go Mr. Long." Spud told him frantically.
Trixie cut in. "I think this, uh, museum might be closing early today." She shoved the staffs into his hands and started running, with everyone following close behind.
"Um, do we need to pay for this stuff at the gift shop or something?" He asked them, still smiling. The building started shaking and so did Spud's voice as he replied.
"Uh, yeah, I'm sure they'll just send us a bill!" The ceiling began to fall in as they raced for the exit. They screamed as a stream of fire shot at them. Luckily they made it through the door unharmed.
*Blackout*
"What? Why would you want me to do that?" Rose faked innocence.
"You know exactly why, Rose. Now stop calling the person you're calling! I mean it!"
"Mary, what are you doing?" Jake hissed at me.
"Saving your sorry butt from an awkward situation, Jake. You see, Rosie over here isn't really calling ahead to make sure her 'rents aren't home. She's calling ahead to tell them to call the police so that they can grab you when you get there! Trust me; you do not want to deal with that right now. It'll put you behind schedule."
Jake looked over at Rose. "Is that true?"
"Well… yes." She admitted. "But can you blame me? Look, Jake, you seem really nice, but you obviously have some powerful delusions, and I think you need help letting go."
"Okay, that's it!" I growled. "First of all, Huntsgirl, he's not crazy. If he was, then I wouldn't be here. The whole reason I'm here is to stop you two from doing this because he's telling the truth! And don't even think of telling me that I'm nuts as well, because while that may be true in some ways, this is not one of them!" I turned to Jake. "Show her the picture." I ordered.
"What?" He looked startled.
I face-palmed. "The picture? Of you and her, at the dance? Show it to her! Trust me, it'll help."
Rose started to walk away. "This is ridiculous. I don't have to stay here and listen to this."
"Jake!" I yelled.
"Okay, okay!" He took the picture out and I reached out to grab Rose. Stopping her, I snatched the photo from Jake and shoved it in her face. "You think that we're crazy? Then explain that!"
There was a moment of silence as she looked at it. Then, all of a sudden, she groaned and knelt down, clutching her head.
"What did you do?" Jake shouted at me.
"Nothing!" I called back. "She's just remembering! It can't be very pleasant. She's getting a whole new life forced into her head; it's gonna be at least slightly painful."
"Well, can't you –"
"Jake?" He stopped to look down at Rose gapingly. She was on the ground still, but she seemed to have remembered everything, as she just blinked blearily up at us instead of running off. "Is that you?"
"Rose!" Jake beamed as he helped her up. "You remember?"
"Yea- yeah. What happened?"
"Ooo, can I do this part?" I squealed. "Okay, so, I'll recap first, in case some parts are still blurry.
"You and Jake met about a year or two ago outside of school on your first day. He ran into you and knocked your books out of your hands. That same day, or, maybe the day after, you did the Huntsgirl thing and captured his Gramps, and he had to fight you. For a couple of months after that, you guys crushed on each other hard, you in a 'Hi Jake' kinda way and him in a 'I'm trying to be smooth but I'm failing really bad' kind of way. Then, when you guys went on that school ski trip, he was going to tell you he was a dragon, but he found out you were Huntsgirl. And so, the love died for a while. Then came the equinox. You captured him and a few other magical creatures and almost slayed Jake, but then he revealed his human form to you and you set him free instead. Still, you ran away before he could talk to you, and disappeared for a long time.
"Even though you were gone for months, Jake still held on. He kept looking for you (after his depression, of course), and then, finally, while infiltrating the Hunts Academy, he found out that was where you were. You had to pretend to kill him in order to save him, and he wanted you to come with him when he left, but you stayed behind to give them inside info on the Huntsclan. Luckily, you came back to New York after that, having regained the Huntsmaster's trust. And, for a while, you guys were fine.
"Then 88 and 89 decided to be dumb and almost blew your guys' cover, but you managed to throw them off track by giving him Jake's molted dragon skin as proof of your slaying him. Then, your relationship was put in jeopardy because Jake was getting distracted and so G asked you to break up with him. It kinda worked, but… you both still loved each other. But then Homecoming came. The Huntsman found out about your interactions and Jake's identity, and they threatened your family to get you to betray him. It looked like you would, too, but then you hit the HM from behind and wished for the destruction of all Huntsclan. You almost died, but Jake quickly saved you by wishing that you had never been taken by the Huntsclan.
"The next day, you had disappeared completely. No one remembered you except for the people who had been there at the time of the wish. And then, in a total parody of your first meeting, Jake ran into you while heading to his Grandpa's shop for dragon training. He hoped you were staying New York and that you guys could get to know each other again, but you moved here instead.
"So now, he needs your Huntsclan expertise to kill the Dark Dragon, a super bad evil dude who's been merged with Black Magic. We need to get to Victoria Peak for the meeting, but we can't all go together. And we can't meet up with your fam. either Jake. They have stuff that needs to happen. Anyway, we better get to work. We don't have much time." I stopped to breath and looked at the two expectantly. Their mouths were wide open.
"What?" I asked, annoyed. "You've never seen an AmDrag fan before?"
*Blackout*
Back at the hotel, everyone was safely sitting in the room they'd rented. "I'm gonna go grab some ice." Jonathon told them. "Be back in a jiff and a half!"
The minute he was gone, Trixie and Spud leapt off the beds and grabbed the staffs, which were lying on the floor.
"Will someone please tell me tell me what's going on here?" Susan complained.
"Long story short?" Fu Dog shrugged. "Gramps has been captured by the Dark Dragon, who's forcing Jake to slip a mind control potion to all the world's dragons at a secret meeting tonight."
"Oh." Susan took on a deadpanned expression. "You'd think I'd get used to this kind of thing by now."
Trixie thought of something. "Where is Jake? He was supposed to be here with Rose an hour ago!"
"I don't know, but," Haley told them. "I better practice my fight moves. Dragon up!" She turned into a dragon and flew to the ceiling.
That's where it all went sour.
"Silly me, I forgot the ice bucket." Jonathon chuckled as he re-entered the room. Then he saw Haley. "Gah! Oh, good golly!"
"Honey?" Susan panicked. "Wait! I can explain!"
"My daughter, she, she, she, she's some kind of pink, flying reptile, here!" He yelled.
"Uh…. It's a mirage!" Susan lied hopefully. "No, wait. Um, you're, you're dreaming! Yeah, it's, it's… Ohhh." She gave up. "It's my side of the family. We're…. dragons. I just, never knew how to tell you, honey." Jonathon stared at her in shock.
"And since the cat's out of the bag here, I can talk too." Fu told him, walking up. "How do you like them apples? A goo-hoo ee! Okay, listen" Fu suggested. "You should probably sit down. You know –"
He was interrupted when Jonathon thumped to the floor with a groan.
"…..Or lie down." Fu gulped. "That works too."
*Blackout*
"I mean, I know I said I wanted to get to know your side of the family on this trip, but this is a little more than I bargained for!" Jonathon exclaimed. He had finally woken up and was now sitting on the couch with Susan and Haley. "Okay, uh, let me just sum it all up here. You're all dragons. Magical, fire-breathing dragons."
"Wellll, it skipped my generation, but, my father, Haley and –" Susan started.
"Jake!" Jonathon gasped. "Where is he?"
"He's in some serious trouble John." Fu told him, jumping onto the couch. "Can I call you John? We haven't really talked much before now, but I feel like I know you."
"Well, if Jake is in trouble than we've got to help!" Johnathon said, standing. "Come on! You can fill me in on the way!" He ran for the door and everyone followed him.
*Blackout*
Back with us, Jake had dropped Rose and me off at a checkpoint that we had agreed on. It had taken us a while because we needed to grab Rose some comfortable clothes, but we were still there with time to spare. "So, remind me again," Jake asked me. "Why aren't you two coming with me?"
"First of all, if the dragons see you with a slayer, you'll be in trouble. Second of all, the DD has to think he's won in order for this to work. Don't worry, there's more back-up on the way. Your family's coming."
Jake started to open his mouth to ask, and then shut it with a sigh and a shake of his head.
After a few more minutes of reviewing the plan, Jake took off and flew for the temple.
"Come on." I stretched as Rose watched him go. "Let's get moving."
*Blackout*
Jake reached the temple and landed to change back to his human form.
"The American Dragon." Councillor Andam greeted.
"Late as usual, I see." Councillor Klude added.
"Jake, where are your grandfather and Haley?" Sun asked him frantically. "They're going to miss the Thousand Year Toast!"
"Uh…" Jake thought back to the plan we'd made. "They're right behind me! You know, traffic… Here! Let me give you a hand pouring that." Behind his back, he popped the cork off a vial and walked forward.
*Blackout*
Mr. Long drove his car through the heavy Hong Kong traffic. "Okay, one more question." He asked. "Are unicorns real?"
"Sure." Fu replied.
"Fairies?"
"You bet."
"Gnomes? Uh, elves, mermaids?"
"Yes, yes, and yes."
"…Santa Claus?" He hopefully questioned.
"Just keep your eyes on the road and your foot on the pedal, will ya!" Fu Dog growled.
*Blackout*
"Welcome dragons, one and all, to the Thousand Year Gathering." Andam spoke. Behind a pillar, Jake frowned while hesitantly pouring the substance in his bottle into the cup holding the Toast.
"Yes…" The Dark Dragon said from a nearby peak. "The boy is slipping in the mind control potion just as we commanded….."
"Jake." Lao Shi said weakly. "No. Don't!"
"Quiet, old man!" The Dark Dragon barked. "His love for his family is his weakness." He looked back towards the temple, where Jake poured the Toast into everyone's cups.
"And now!" Andam said, raising his glass. "We toast. To another thousand years, of peace and prosperity throughout the magical world!"
And everyone drank. Except for Jake, that is, who just pretended to.
There was a loud crash and an evil laugh as the Dark Dragon formed. "Greetings, my dragon brothers and sisters! Allow me to propose another toast! To dragons ruling the world!" He laughed again and everyone (but Jake) dragoned up. "Fools! It is useless to fight me!"
"The Dark Dragon speaks the truth." Chang told them. "You all under a mind control spell that you cannot resist."
"You can thank the American Dragon for slipping the surprise into your drinks." Bananas smirked smugly.
"Jake!" Sun gasped at the young boy.
"I had no choice!" Jake explained, glaring at the evil dragon. "He has Grandpa!"
Using some of his weird dark magic, the Dark Dragon made a ball of energy and made Lao Shi appear in his hands. He groaned weakly.
Bananas B giggled excitedly. "Ooo, go ahead Double D! Make them do something!"
"Very well." The Dark Dragon smiled and gave an order. "Korean Dragon, I command you to destroy Councillor Andam!"
*Blackout*
Rose and I trekked up the mountain. Rose was doing fine, but I was having a little difficulty.
"Mary, move it!" Rose called to me. "We have to hurry if we want to help Jake!"
"I'm going!" I huffed. "But I'm not used to this much physical exercise! Sorry!"
"Still, for your plan to work, we need to be there by the time the fight starts!"
"I know!" I looked around for something desperately. "I know, but –" Just then I saw just what we needed. The Long's van! "Yes! Okay Rose, get ready! Our ride's here!"
For a moment, she looked confused, and but then she saw what I was talking about. Grinning, we ran to the side of the road, waving our arms and yelling.
"Mr. and Mrs. Long!"
"Spud! Trixie!"
"Fu Dog, Haley! Over here!"
The van slowed and eventually stopped. Everyone inside looked at us, gaping.
"Rose?" Trixie and Spud exclaimed, shocked.
"Mary!" Fu Dog uttered at the same time. They opened the doors and let us in. "Where have you been? Where's Jake? And you actually managed to convince Rose?"
"In order," I replied. "I was letting Jake doing most of the 'trying to convince Rose' part before finally just stepping in as well as making a plan, Jake is already at the temple, and yes. Yes we did. Well, mainly me, actually, since Jake was getting absolutely nowhere with it….. But you get my point. Anyway, hi Mr. Long! How do you feel? It looked like you hit the floor pretty hard when you fell earlier! Oh, and drive, will ya?"
Mr. Long (and a bunch of other people in the van) stared at me. "Is she magical?" Mr. Long asked Fu.
"Not a clue."
*Blackout*
At the temple, Sun looked at the councillor in horror. Then she groaned and held her head between her hands, only to –
Sprout wings, and exceptionally large ears? There was a short silence, and then everyone who had drank the potion transformed into something or other.
"Hmm….." Bananas commented. "That's not exactly what I had in mind."
"What is the meaning of this?" The Dark Dragon roared.
"The meaning is simple Dark Drag." Jake replied, turning to his dragon form. "I ditched your potion and gave them a little local specialty instead – Transformation Tea!"
Double D growled and shot a spout of fire at Jake, who dodged, only to have the fire hit the temple instead!
"I tried to give you all the chance to join me in ruling the world, but the American Dragon has just sealed your destruction!"
"If we have to choose between destruction and joining you, we'll take destruction every time!" Jake shot back, landing on the temple steps. As he finished, the Tea wore off and everyone regained their normal dragon forms.
"Then you shall have it." The Dark Dragon vowed. "Starting with your own grandfather!" He held up Lao Shi to kill him, but the net was blasted apart by a well-aimed stream of fire. As he landed, Lao Shi transformed with a cry.
"Sorry, tall dark and ugly." A figure at the entrance to the temple appeared, and was shown to be Haley!
"But if you want them," Trixie continued as she and Spud showed up carrying a Hunts staff.
"You'll have to go through us too." Susan finished.
"All of us." Jonathon added, walking up with Fu. I also snuck in there. Rose was waiting for her cue outside.
"Dad?" Jake gasped. He noticed me and glared while I just smiled with my hands clasped and eyes shut.
"Very well." Double D grinned. Then he did this creepy thing with his hands where he had, like, lightning coming out of them, and a black fog of Shadow Demons formed around him. "You had your chance to join me in victory!" He yelled. "Instead, you shall all –"
Spud cut him off. "Um, excuse me? Yeah, sorry to interrupt, but I move that we skip the rest of this dude's villain banter and get right to the cool kung-fu fighting."
"I second the mortal's motion." Andam agreed. "Attack!"
Everyone flew into battle! As some of the dragons soared through the sky, they were knocked down by Shadow Demons, and the Dark Dragon personally shot Sun with his dark fire.
Dragons and demons were everywhere, fighting! A minion dove at me, Mr. and Mrs. Long, and Fu! We dodged out of the way with a yell.
"I have another question." Jonathon said randomly. "It's just bothering me. Whe- When they turn into dragons, what happens to their clothes?"
Somewhere else in the temple, Trixie and Spud dealt with their own problems. Ducking to keep from being hit by the shadow demons, the clutched the Hunststaff.
"Spudinsky!" Trixie called from the back. "Would you get this thing to shoot already?"
Spud looked at the many buttons on the staff, confused. Finally, he saw something that made his eyes light up. "Taste this, shade dudes!" He commented, pushing a button.
A second later, Spud and Trixie stood in the same spot, only soaking wet.
"Sorry!" Spud gurgled through the water. "My bad!"
Somewhere else, Sun stood up and examined the battle in the sky. Watching as Chang blasted dragons left and right, she suddenly looked down, only to notice the sphinx hair net that had held Lao Shi earlier. "Haley!" She grabbed the net and passed it off to the pink dragon as she flew above her.
Haley, then tossed it ay Chang, who was instantly caught, and went flying out of the temple, bouncing hard on the mountain's rocky ground.
Meanwhile, Jake and Lao Shi were up against the Dark Dragon. Dodging as he spit his weird, black\blue fire at them, Lao Shi let out a battle cry as he struck the Dark Drag on the chin! The grandfather and grandson duo avoided the larger dragon's rage filled swipes for a few minutes, but all of the sudden, Lao Shi was hit as he attacked the evil baddie! The Dark Dragon grabbed him, only to have Jake pounce on his head! The three went crashing into the side of the temple, and Bananas B, who'd been watching the fight, blanched.
"I... think I'm gonna just wait outside. You know, I-I'm against violence." He turned around, only to come nose-to-nose with none other than Fu Dog!
"Really?" The dog asked. A few seconds later, Bananas B was screeching in panic as he ran away from Fu, who barked and snapped at the monkey's butt. When Bananas reached the side of the temple, he scrambled up a post and disappeared. Fu turned around, satisfied. "'Cause I'm all for it. Ah goo, ah goo –" He paused, finding himself facing dozens of Shade demons. "Goo."
Susan and Johnathon were faced with the same dilemma. "Uh, Jonathon," Susan commented nervously from their hiding place. "We're surrounded!"
Her husband reached for his blue fanny pack and pulled out the glowing red tour guide from before.
"Let's see, Shade Demons..." He flipped through the book, coming to a stop on a page that read SHADE DEMONS, and displayed a picture of their enemy. He scanned the page. "Weakness... Light! Honey!" He turned to Susan, who looked at him, confused. Grinning, Johnathon held up his camera and then tossed it to Susan, who suddenly understood, and grinned back.
Jumping onto the top of the toppled post the parents had been hiding behind, she pointed her camera at the shadowy minions, and pressed the button, releasing a powerful flash that left the evil parasites disintegrated.
Mr. Long watched in awe, but a sudden glow made him look up, and realize the eclipse was ending, and the gleaming of the full moon was returning. Noticing the intricate vase-like jug used for pouring the toast, his eyes brightened with a devious idea.
Leaping up to join his wife, he removed his fanny pack, and tossed one end out to grab the jug. Holding the jewel-encrusted container above his head, the jewels reflected the light, bending it to hit the rest of the demons in the temple. "Hey Shade Demons!" John called out as they began to fade. "Care to be enlightened?"
"Looks like you shade dudes just got their butts kicked by my dad." Jake grinned tauntingly at the Dark Dragon, to whom he still gripped.
"You have no idea of my dark powers!" The villainous dragon roared, tossing Jake and Lao Shi (who'd also been clinging to him) off of his body. Snarling, he gathered energy into his front claws, and shot lightning-like energy at both of the Americans. As the councilors and Sun flew to their rescue, he struck them as well.
"So much power. It's too easy." Double D smugly gloated, looking at his still-glowing claws. He broke into a villainous laugh, which was interrupted by Spud.
"Ye-Yeah. You might be winning, but that evil laugh is still a cliché, so there!" The teenage boy cried, yelping as he ducked to avoid a blast of energy the Dark Dragon directed towards him.
"He's not kidding about that dark power stuff." Fu Dog commented.
"It's no use!" Lao Shi announced.
"Even all of us together, are no match for him." Councilor Andam added.
The evil guy before them continue to laugh. "Are there none who can challenge me?" He asked gloatingly, and Jake and I looked to the side of the temple breathlessly, waiting for Rose to react.
She didn't let us down. Jumping up and pushing herself off the roof of the building with a cry, she launched herself at the Dark Dragon, who turned around in surprise.
"Look, it's a slayer!" Andam pointed in awe and horror.
"But how? Who is she?" Councilor Klude wondered.
"Let's just say, she's an old friend." Jake grinned. Grabbing the Huntstaff Spud tossed him, he flew to Rose, who was clinging to the Dark Dragon's ear. "Rose, heads up!" Jake called as he tossed the staff to her.
Rose let out a cry as she grabbed the staff and jumped onto DD's wing. Blasting him with the green energy commonly associated with the Huntsclan, she leaped onto his tail as he cried out in pain.
He turned towards her, snarling, but she simply leaped to the ground. He attempted to crush her under his feet, but she dodged every footstep with a flip.
She jumped onto the steps right outside of the actual temple. Watching as her opponent's tail came crashing down, she carefully calculated her next move, jumping out of the way at the last second so the attack would do nothing but destroy the steps.
Fu Dog glanced around nervously as the temple rumbled, and a blue glow began to sweep across the floor.
"What's happening?" Susan cried out.
"We gotta get out of this temple before the eclipse ends," Fu told her, anxiously glancing up at the moon, which had almost returned to it's previous state. "Or we'll be stuck in this temple for the next thousand years! A goo!"
The dragons made for the exit, Sun grabbing Fu in her claws, Jake picking up Trixie and Spud, and Lao Shi snatching up his daughter and her husband.
Behind the temple, a blue vortex appeared, and the temple began to flicker.
Once outside, Jake put down his friends, and looked into the temple, where he saw his once-girlfriend still battling the dangerous beast. "Rose!"He cried out as he watched the Dark Dragon destroy the foundation of the temple with a sweep of his tail, causing it to collapse! As he was bombarded with chunks of rock, Rose raced for the exit. For a few moments, she disappeared in a cloud of smoke, and the temple flickered again. When the dust cleared, she was seen lying on the ground, her leg trapped underneath a large piece of wood.
Jake gaped at the scene, and then started to fly to her rescue.
"Jake!" His grandfather shouted, holding him back.
"I'm not losing her again." Jake yelled, squirming out of his grasp. Giving his grandfather one last look, he rushed off into the flickering temple.
He landed next to Rose, who was trying to pry her foot free with her staff.
The Dark Dragon, previously buried in the rubble, burst free as Jake helped Rose free her leg. When nothing happened, Rose looked up at the young dragon beseechingly. "Jake, it's too late! Let me go!"
Jake stared, remembering another night, another battle, with Rose saying words very similar to these.
"Jake, let go. I'll be okay. I promise. I'll be okay."
Snapping out of his stupor, he pulled at the wood as hard as he could, and managed to lift it, allowing Rose to pull her foot out from underneath. Setting it down, he grabbed Rose. "Come on!" He started to fly off, but was seized by the Dark dragon's tail. "Huh?" He looked back and grunted as he, and Rose with him, were pulled towards the evil entity. The Dark Dragon laughed an evil laugh as his prey got closer. The three of them were about to be sucked into the glowing blue vortex, but Rose wasn't about to go down that easily. Raising her staff, she brought the sharp edge down upon his tail, slicing the bit that clung to Jake off. Roaring in pain, the Dark Dragon was sucked into who-knows-where, and Jake started flying for the exit.
Outside, I waited with everyone else. They peered worriedly at what was left of the portal, and even though I knew they would make it, I tensed.
The temple crumbled and disappeared, the vortex growing smaller and smaller. Just when everyone thought Jake and Rose were goners, they came tumbling out of the tiny hole!
The vortex disappeared as my favorite couple dropped to the ground, Jake changing back to his human form.
They landed in front of me and the rest of the gang, who started to cheer. I merely grinned down at him and winked cheerfully. "See? Just like I thought!"
Jake and Rose got up, him shooting me a playful grin. Then, I held my breath and waited.
Sure enough, seconds later, Rose leaned in and kissed Jake, who responded in kind.
"Rose..." Jake smiled at her. "I missed you."
Rose nodded and handed him a photo. It was the one I'd given her earlier to kick-start her memories. "I missed you too."
*Blackout*
Susan sighed as we entered the Longs' hotel room. "What a day."
Trixie stretched, arching her back. "I could go for a little soak in the hot tub." She commented. "Spud?"
"Count me in!" The boy agreed.
"Ooo, me too!" Fu Dog added, running up. "I hope you don't mind, I'm shedding. Get the hair in the thing, in the filter, eh what are you gonna do?" He asked as the two friends shrugged. The three made there way outside, and Lao Shi addressed his gradson.
"Goodnight, young dragon." He smiled up at the AmDrag. "Once again, you have made me proud to call myself your master." He bowed to Jake.
Jake bowed back. "Thanks G."
Lao Shi walked off, leaving Jake alone with his dad.
"Well." Johnathon commented, holding his list of must-see sites. "The good news is, we still have six days to see the sites in Hong Kong!"
Jake smiled. "Yup. So what's left on the list?"
Johnathon just laughed and tore up the piece of paper in his hands. "Forget the list! I just wanna 'chill out' and spend some time with my family, you know?"
"Dad, you just found out today that you married into a whole family of magical reptiles. It's just," Jake shrugged. "You seem to be taking the news pretty well."
"I-I dunno, I guess... deep down, I always knew there was something magical about my family."
"Trust me," Jake hugged him. "There's something magical about you too." After a moment's hesitation, mainly spurred by surprise, Johnathon hugged his son back.
*Blackout*
With just one more thing left to do, Jake flew to the outside of Rose's apartment, where the two of us waited.
"Hey Jake!" I greeted him enthusiastically. "You certainly took your time! I guess your heart-to-heart with your dad held ya up, huh?"
Jake looked at me in a confused and amused manner. "Seriously, how do you know that?"
I just giggled. "That's for me to know, and you to find out!"
Jake shook his head, and turned to kiss Rose.
"Well?" She asked him. "Ready to come meet my parents?"
He nodded and they started through the doors. I smiled a little sadly as I watched them go, knowing my adventure was over.
"Hey, Mary! Where are you going?" Jake asked, noticing I wasn't following them.
Laughing a little, I stretched my arms above my head. "I'm going home. It's been a long day. You guys have fun, okay? And, don't worry. You can't get rid of me this easily."
As I said the last line, I began to fade, leaving this world for my rightful one.
"Wha-!" Jake gasped. "Mary!"
"See ya Jake. It was nice to finally meet you." My voice echoed as I disappeared.
Well. I started this months ago. But I saved it on another computer, like 'I Will Remember You', and was too lazy to put it on my usual computer, and finish it. But I did today, see? Anywho, most of this content is from American Dragon: Jake Long, Hong Kong Longs. I didn't like all the awkwardness between Rose and Jake, so I rewrote it with me! And in answer to the question of what I meant by, 'You'll see me again,' I mean that I will be coming back to this universe as part of my 'Traveling Fans' series. If 'Mouse ever gives me the HTFOAVOT chap, that is.
Penelope, over and out!