Author's Note: This is an AU of my Trial of Commitment storyline. I still had Melted Fever when I was writing this up last month. It's not finished yet, but I feel like showing off the bit that I've written up so far. My brain can only produce short bursts of imagination at best when I'm not feeling stressed.
Finding Shirakage Mouse's Hidden Princess Side
Two months had passed since Danger Mouse and Penfold defeated the Queen of Weevils on Halloween night. This victory surprised me, Shirakage Mouse, because I still carry her magical orb inside my body.
Despite the loss of an accomplice for Sinister Mouse and his Twistyverse gang of villains, Professor Squawkencluck detected readings of the Weevil Queen's powers getting diverted and sucked through an invisible Twistyverse wormhole. If SM and Baron von Penfold stole her magic because it still provided a use in their plans, then my life remained at their mercy.
Fast forward to Present Day December, the new hit movie, "Melted" took DM's world by storm, much like my past life's human world's experience through the Disney movie, "Frozen". Because Penfold was a huge fan of the musical film, I displayed a quiet smile and an agreeable nod towards everything he loved about it.
On the inside, my Tsundere, critical personality flailed around comically; her eyes bore angry white, isosceles triangular eyes and melodramatic shark teeth. The inner me also scoffed at how stupid the name "Bumpsydaisy" was for the story's servant character, and how irritating the Wonky Walrus's song sounded for an emo adult like me.
Honto nii! Sometimes I had this sudden urge to make fun of the Frozen song, "Do you wanna build a Snowman" and sing the lyrics in a messed up Fullmetal Alchemist way like this:
"Do you wanna build a human?
C'mon, it cannot be that hard
I don't really think we should,
Cause after all, it's a forbidden art
"But what if it bring Mom back?
And what if not, at least
We have to try~~~~~
"Do you wanna build a human?
C'mon, let's build a human..."
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As the Melted phenomenon forced Nezu-chan to save the world from Pink Dawn's polar icecap melting scheme, I realized that my boyfriend had never sang his heart out to me in public before...for as long as I knew him so far.
He always sang his best to me whenever we were alone.
My thoughts on the realization were interrupted by the time DM and Penfold returned to HQ. After they'd dropped off Dawn at her soft cuddly prison cell, I witnessed Penfold enter the sitting room, cuddling the Princess Zora outfit and tiara accessory which Dawn had discarded.
Meanwhile, the after affects of DM having to sit upon the Chilly Throne in the Musical Mission earlier started to reveal their true colors...
"Heh huh uhh...Huhihh...uhhKTSHHew! Huh uhhHAHHGNTSHH! GNSHHHEEW!"
I shook my head as I smiled and stared at the breath hitching, miserable mouse agent. Seeing him clutching a handful of tissues nearly under his parted mouth and twitching nose, I headed for the kitchenette to heat up the kettle for my cold ridden boyfriend. He was going to need a lot of warm tea before the year ends soon.
"Ahh huhSNGtschheew! HUHihhGNSHHeew!"
Ouch. Those sounded wet and painful. He must be suffering from a really bad strain. The cough that followed the pair of sneezes sounded equally as nasty.
Staring at him from behind his back, I watched DM rub his chest and try to catch his breath while he rested his butt on the settee; yet doing so also distracted me from the boiling kettle.
"Bless you," I called out to him as I carried the tea towards the sitting room's lift area. "Here. It sounded like you needed a cuppa."
DM smiled through his head pounding congestion. "Ah, lovely timing, Shirakage. Snf." He took a sip from his cup and hummed pleasantly.
"Your tea making is improving remarkably well. Faster than Penfold's, thank goodness."
That earned him a resentful pout from me. "Not my fault I don't drink tea to make it often," I remarked back through childish puffed out cheeks.
My reaction only made DM smile dreamily at me. When he didn't stop, I raised my brow and broke the suspicious silence. "What?"
"For some odd reason, I'm starting to think that you and Pink Dawn aren't so different from each other," he mused fondly.
My face heated up and my blue eyes shot him a dangerous glare. "You take that back, Nezu-Jerk!"
"You misunderstand my implication, Love," he continued in a reasonably calm tone. "I didn't mean about attraction or looks. I was talking about your personality matching hers a bit."
I simmered down and relaxed. "Oh. Well, uh... I'm happy that the mission was successful for everyone, including you." I rubbed the back of my head nervously. "You sang very beautifully on Telly, too."
DM's blush darkened while his grin grew larger. Crap. I think I just strengthened his love sickness for me.
"Shirakage Mouse," he began suavely. "Have I ever told you how bea-beautihful you- pardon..."
DM snatched a tissue from the coffee table as his voice failed, and clasped it quickly to his impatient runny nose. "Ii eh-Ehsschoo! Esshooh!"
"Bless you," I smiled with a stifled chuckle. "You sounded so ticklish through your sneezes that I almost forgot how cute you can be."
DM smiled shyly from my compliment, resulting in another flushed coat of red on his cheeks. "Right. Well, thank you for supporting my performance, Darling. That means a lot to me."
I beamed at him. "Do you remember the photo that your Mum shared with me when she met me for the first time, and decided to embarrass her son with photos of you from Babyhood to Graduation?"
I ignored his paling grimace and continued. "The photo of you failing to earn a career in singing during an audition you took... I liked that black cape and Phantom of the Opera garb on you.
"I'm sorry that that experience traumatized you back then, Nezu-Kun. But...to be honest, I think that Opera Phantom outfit made you look more cooler and sexier than you wearing Bumpsydaisy's green hat during your mission earlier."
His face grinned comically, blushing an even redder hue than before. I could even see his imagination visualizing a podium in front of his fired up ego.
"Oh, Shira Darling. Your honesty moves me to new elevated heights where I just can't reach. What can I do to re-repay-ah..."
Danger Mouse's cold-sensitized nose forced him to double over around his imaginary podium with an exhausting volley of dizzying sneezes.
"Ih ehsschoo! A-ah-sschhoo! H-hh... eh'sschoo! G-eh'shhoo! K-eh- ehrschhoo! My goodness, I- EH'SSCHHooh!"
"Nezu-Kun," I cooed gently while helping my dazed sneezy agent boyfriend sit back down. "Steady yourself, Honey. You still have a temperature."
"Sorry," he gasped, leaning heavily in my arms. "As you can easily tell, my heart is soaring for you."
I stroked the furry top of his head, my affectionate pace nearly tickled him. "Well, I did miss you while you were out saving the world."
DM kept the right side of his head and mouse ear pressed contently against my chest. After a few moments, he broke the silence with a heavy murmur. "Your heart's still beating, Shirakage."
His low statement gave off a serious tone. "You're still alive...and here with me."
I heard his voice crack with emotion, driving me to instinctively hold his hand. "Yes, my dear Danger Mouse," I hushed softly into his left ear. "The orb in my body hasn't killed me yet."
I felt his right eye's tears stain my blouse as he took in every moment of my embrace. His love for me was too strong to give up on my life.
"Shirakage, did you ever feel a twinge of jealousy towards my duet with Dawn?" He asked hesitantly.
"Absolutely not," I assured him boldly. "You shouldn't sound nor feel guilty about what you had to do."
"Your forgiveness is much too kind for me, my sweet White Shadow," he sighed happily. Then he raised his head and his expression changed. DM stroked his snout as if he were in a deep, pondering thought.
"What is it, Nezu?" I asked him out of concern.
He then turned to me with a widening eye. "I just realized that I've never seen you wear a dress before. Aside from the jewelry that I've bought for you in the past, your wardrobe only consists of bras, blouses, leggings, skirts, jeans, sneakers, socks, shoes and t-shirts."
I sweatdropped persistently as he pointed the truth out. "Um...Nezu-Chan," I squeaked timidly. "I don't like wearing dresses..."
DM's jaw dropped in astonishment. "Not Possible. You were staring at a bridal shop's window one time right before I started nearly sneezing myself to death from your stolen perfume sample which Quark had sold to the public illegally."
I pouted to the side. "I don't refuse to wear dresses because of their pretty styles," I confessed reluctantly. "It's because wearing one feels like being covered in too many layers. Underslips are also burdened garments that just adds to the hassle of out of comfort fashion.
"Even wearing stilettos makes me feel more restricted from moving freely."
Suddenly, we heard 3 voices exclaim loudly from somewhere upstairs the Danger Flat. "WHAAAAAAAT~~~~~!?"
I facepalmed. Damn K Taisa, Pen-chan, and Professor Squawkencluck. They didn't have to eavesdrop on us like that.
When I turned back to DM, he was smirking at me...in a smug like, creepy way.
"Hmm..." he hummed. "So you find wearing dresses restrictive, you say..."
I gulped. "Nezu-Chan, I don't like the way you're looking at me..."
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"Nooooooooo~~~~~~~~!"
I wailed pathetically as Professor Squawkencluck dragged me down the hallway floor, as if it were a Fullmetal Alchemist scene where Lt. Col. Maes Hughes dragged Winry Rockbell to his 3 year old daughter, Elicia's birthday party.
"Help MEEEEEEEEE~~~~~~!" I moaned weakly to no one in particular as my attempts remained futile. "I don't want to look like an adult version of Barbie no Hime Crumhorn or Gosalyn Waddlemeyer of the Negaverse~~~~~~!"
"Chillax, Professor Shirakage," my scientific colleague chirped happily. "You're just gonna wear the Princess Zora dress which Penfold will hem for you to match your size."
"Why!?" I whimpered through melodramatic waterfall tears. "So I could resemble a Disney Princess!? I bet you're all doing this out of payback for the drinking game I played by myself on Halloween!
"Every time a Trick or Treater dressed as Princess Zora rang the bell of HQ, I took a shot of Sake. I thought it was hilarious, but you all thought otherwise~~~~!"
The chicken boffin just laughed as we arrived in her private powder room in the lab. "Your mishap of a drinking game didn't piss us off that badly, Shirakage. You were only starting to get in our way until Danger Mouse stepped in to handle you."
I frowned slightly to her brief recap...until something else hit me. "Hey, wait a minute! I'm the only one who still doesn't remember what happened that night when Trick or Treating hours were over!"
Squawkencluck suddenly flinched in place, her back still turned to me as she dropped her hairdryer.
Her awkward behavior made me furrow my brow with darkening suspicion. "Professor Professor Squawkencluck...!"
She mechanically turned around and smiled sheepishly at me. "Ah ha ha... Yes, Professor Shirakage...?"
"What exactly happened when Danger Mouse had to take care of a Drunken Me!?" I demanded icily. "I want answers, and I want them now!"
Squawkencluck gulped nervously, but eventually sighed. "I'll explain everything while I give you your makeover, Shirakage. But... you might not like what you hear from what transpired on Halloween 2 months ago..."
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Danger Mouse took stock of his current condition as soon as he regained consciousness. Nausea, a steam powered engined headache ramming away in his skull, and dehydration near his throat.
Of course. The aftermath of drinking heavily on Halloween morning. He and Penfold had defeated the Queen of Weevils during the night when the midnight hour marked the end of October 30th.
Normally, he'd rather catch up on some sleep before joining in on the Trick or Treating festivities later in the day. But after learning the fact that Squawkencluck's magic detector traced the particle trails of Said Weevil Queen's magic getting absorbed through a Twistyverse wormhole, the safety of his girlfriend's life plagued his emotions towards madness again.
Waking up alone in his bedroom, when the evening hours of Trick or Treating were about over...was not how he intended to spend his Halloween.
The dizzy hangover clouded his vision for a moment when he sat up on the side of his bed. He placed a hand to his small forehead to stabilize his senses. Unfortunately, a hoarse sigh escaped his dehydrated throat. His next breath caught irritatingly right at his Adam's Apple, making DM cough harshly into his upper arm.
"Here. Drink some water, Danger Mouse," Squawkencluck's voice came in on his right. The groggy agent held out his hand and felt a cool glass pressing itself against Said hand. After drinking the cool clear liquid his fit finally passed, but it left DM flushed and breathless. With his spasms gone and his breathing back under control, he turned his strained, watering eye on his worried boffin friend.
"S-Squawk...?" He murmured weakly. "Thank you."
"How are you feeling, Danger Mouse?" Her question sounded a bit more urgent than sympathetic.
"Regretful, and poorly in my stomach, Professor," he groaned grumpily. "What time is it?"
"20:00 hours," she replied with the same urgency in her tone. "We need you to come downstairs immediately," she persisted with a slight tug on his right arm. "It's Professor Shirakage. We've done all we could to help her, but she's beyond our reach. You're the only one we can rely upon to end her chaotic rampage. Please!"
Danger Mouse's eye shot open, and he stood up in a flash. "What's happened!? Is she alright!?" He demanded worryingly. "Where is she!? She's still breathing, right!?"
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DM groaned from the headache tingling inside skull's nerves. The music from the mini karaoke platformed stage in Squawkencluck's lab, plus the roaring crowd of invading Trick or Treaters was making his hangover worse.
Opening the door with a kick from his foot was a mistake.
"D'auh! Good Grief, my head! What's going on!?" His unheard demand was answered as the British mouse agent opened his eye and saw her on the karaoke stage.
"Spooky Scary Skeletons
Send shivers down your spine
Shrieking skulls will shock your soul
Seal your doom tonight
"Spooky scary skeletons
Speak with such a screech
You'll shake and shudder with surprise
When you hear these zombies shriek
"We're so sorry, skeletons
You're so misunderstood
You only want to socialize
But I don't think we should
"Cause spooky scary skeletons
Shout startling shrilly screams
They'll sneak from their sarcophagus
And just won't leave you be"
Danger Mouse gaped at what Shirakage Mouse was wearing: a black and purple dress, stylized nearly identical to that of the Queen of Weevils; she was also wearing a long haired blue wig which included two long pigtails on each side. Just below the stage were hundreds of children waving their glow sticks up towards the singing idol, as Shirakage continued to sing her weird Halloween pop music song:
"Spirits supernatural
Are shy, what's all the fuss
But bags of bones seem so unsafe
It's semi serious!
Spooky scary skeletons
Are silly all the same
They'll smile and scrabble slowly by
And drive you so insane
Sticks and stones will break your bones
They seldom let you snooze
Spooky scary skeletons
Will wake you with a boo!"
As much as Danger Mouse wished to watch the rest of his girlfriend's unauthorized concert party, Shirakage Mouse was still breaking Danger HQ flat regulations. And it was a secret agent's sworn duty to put a stop to this wild disturbance.
He marched his groggy, sore way through the crowd of children to reach the electrical outlets that were powering Shirakage's loud speakers and Pear devices on a table by the side of the stage. However, the volume of uninvited civilians was much larger than he anticipated there to be. And the increasingly noisy music and artificial fog spilling out from the platform began to weaken DM's senses a bit further.
"Spooky scary skeletons
We sing your happy song
But these lyrics aren't the same
I think there's something wrong
Spooky scary skeletons
Grow stronger as you sing
But no one can deny the beat
On the night of Halloween
We're so sorry, skeletons
We know you wanna groove
But without our skin and eyes
We'd end up just like you
When spooky scary skeletons
Are knocking at your door
Better just to run and hide
Than to feed them anymore"