My Animal Crossing: New Leaf obsession has lead me to want to write a short fanfiction, though I doubt many people will read/review it. But it's a nice break from my other stories. And I think horror mixed with AC is a hilarious combination.
Hope you enjoy it. :)
Chapter 1
It was another rainy day in Startown. For the past week, a wall of clouds seemed to separate their lively little town from the sun above. Rivulets of water flowed southward and emptied out into the ocean below. Each step in the grass produced a resounding squash and left a person's shoes coated with mud. Luckily, there were plenty of paths weaving through the village, allowing everyone to keep their feet nice and dry as they hurried along under their stylish umbrellas.
But Dizzy liked to walk in the grass and feel the earth beneath his large feet. He wandered off the roads, blissfully wallowing in the mud, as an elephant is apt to do. As he walked back home, he could see his neighbor, Bessie, looking out her window. Her expression turned to one of horror upon spying his messy appearance. He just grinned and continued on his way.
A withering garden of flowers surrounded his house and greeted him when he got home. The ones that had not yet washed away were drooping with rainwater. They had been there for so long; it was a sorry sight to see. Dizzy stopped and looked at them for a while. For once, food wasn't on his brain. A new idea had popped into his head.
It would be nice to get away for a little while. Even though splashing in rain puddles was fun, he missed the sun. So, without a second thought, he hopped on the first train he saw and rode it out of Startown.
The gray elephant stared out the window for a long time, spacing out as the morning passed by. Eventually, the sky began to clear up. The rain stopped, though gray clouds still hung overhead.
Dizzy's stomach growled and he turned to the blue-and-white cat sitting across the aisle from him. "Uhh…d'you know when they serve lunch on this thing, woo-oo?"
Rover let out a purr of laughter. "Where do you think you are, a five-star cruise ship?"
"…I'll take that as a no." Dizzy said glumly.
Suddenly, the train began to slow.
"Eek, eek! Next stop, Taytown!" Porter, the conductor, called over a loudspeaker.
Dizzy hopped to his feet and made his way towards the exit. Yeah, he had no idea where he was, but…but food. So he got off the train in this mysterious town, stepped outside the station, and looked all around him. The first thing he noticed was the luscious fruit hanging from a nearby tree. Mangos. The sole smell of them caused his trunk to quiver with anticipation.
He had never eaten a mango before. Startown's signature fruit was peaches, though it bore a few others…but never mangos. So he shook the tree, caught one of the delectable fruits, and shoved it into his mouth. Sweet juices flooded his taste buds and he relished the feeling.
"Mmm…" He was about to go for another one, when someone called out to him.
"Hiya, stranger!" A pink squirrel with big eyes and a friendly smile came walking up to him. The air around her seemed to spark with energy. "I'm Peanut. What's your name?"
Dizzy straightened up and returned her smile. "Dizzy! Woo-oo. It's nice to meet you."
"Nice to meet you too, slacker!" Peanut said with a giggle.
"Slacker?" Dizzy's frowned, feeling defensive. "Hey, that's not very nice…"
"Oh, c'mon! It's my catchphrase!" Peanut chirped, "Like how you say woo or whatever! Anyways, are you moving in? New neighbors are so much fun!"
"No. I just came for a visit." Dizzy said simply, keeping a trained eye on his mangos. Just listening to Peanut was wearing him out. He wanted to eat and take a nap.
Peanut gave a small hop and began wriggling with excitement. "So you came to occupy the campsite? Awesome! I've always wanted to go camping!"
"Campsite?" Dizzy asked curiously.
"Yeah, Taytown has a campsite on the southwest end of town, free of charge!"
Dizzy grinned. He had always been fond of camping. He could practically smell the chowder that came paired with it. So he agreed to let Peanut lead him to the campsite. Once there, she helped him set up a tent, filling the void with an endless stream of chattering. By the time they were finished, Dizzy had the joy of knowing everything from the fact that she had five sisters to her dream of becoming a movie star.
Finally, she left him to it. Dizzy entered the tent and sat there, enjoying the cool atmosphere. There were some tools for cooking. Maybe he could gather up ingredients later or go shopping. Besides, no campout was complete without s'mores!
But first: a nap.
"DIZZYYY!"
A high-pitched shriek. A heavy weight slamming into his body.
The next thing Dizzy knew, he was on his back and some crazy little girl was glomping him, repeating his name over and over without taking a breath. The poor elephant gasped and began panicking, flailing his stumpy arms and legs. "Woo-oooooo!" He wailed helplessly.
Panting excitedly, the crazed newcomer hopped off of Dizzy and just stood there, staring at him. Dizzy scrambled into a sitting position and looked back at her, trying to calm his beating heart.
The girl had a wide grin and bubblegum-pink hair. Mmm…bubblegum. Dizzy shook off his hunger pangs and observed what she was wearing. It was perhaps the strangest outfit he had ever seen. A sloppily designed shirt and hat bore the initials "ST," along with a cape that fell all the way to the girl's ankles. And she was in her underwear. Clearly, she was supposed to be some kind of superhero and failing miserably.
Dizzy covered his face, blushing. "W-W-Wha…! Um, umm, hi?"
The girl's grin stretched a little wider until it looked as if it would burst from her face. Her dark eyes shone with elation. They had to be the shiniest eyes Dizzy had ever seen.
"I missed you!" She said playfully, looking as if she wanted to tackle-hug him again.
"…I'm sorry, do I know you?" Dizzy said, tipping his head in puzzlement.
The smile instantly vanished from the girl's features. She blinked slowly. Dizzy felt extremely confused and waited for some sort of response. He was quite positive he had never seen this girl in his life.
Suddenly, the smile was back on her face. She struck a dramatic pose and trumpeted, "My name's Super TayTay! To the rescue! I'm the mayor of Taytown."
"Mayor?" Dizzy repeated in disbelief. What sort of leader-depraved town would assign this hyper little thing as mayor?
"Are you hungry?" TayTay asked, lowering her arms.
I take it all back. She's an amazing mayor that obviously keeps all of the animals' best interests at heart. "Yes!" Dizzy burst out, wincing as his stomach growled.
"Fear not! Super TayTay will save you from starvation! C'mon Asprin, let's go!" 'Super' TayTay shot out of the tent like a rocket and went running barefoot into the woods.
Dizzy settled down, grateful that someone was bringing him food. He barely had to wait a minute before TayTay stumbled into the tent with all sorts of goodies.
"Thanks, Mayor!" Dizzy said happily, digging in immediately.
"TayTay." She said firmly.
Dizzy smiled. "Okay, TayTay." As he bit into apple after apple, the friendly elephant decided to make conversation with the shiny-eyed youth. "So who's Aspirin?"
"Asprin." TayTay corrected, her eyes glossing over. Her brow crinkled slightly. She was staring very hard at Dizzy, as if trying to convey some sort of silent message. What the message was supposed to be, he had no idea.
He offered an apple. "Um…want one?"
TayTay just shook her head, still goggling at Dizzy. He felt uncomfortable. So he quickly changed the subject, asking her all about Taytown. He made sure to praise it heartily, knowing that the mayor would love to hear such a thing.
"If you like it so much, then you should move here!" TayTay grinned.
Dizzy paused. "I don't know. Taytown seems so active…my town is so much sleepier. It suits me."
TayTay suddenly blinked furiously, as if fighting off a wave of emotion. "Please move here! Please, please, please!" She begged, coming forward to pop both of their personal space bubbles. "We just had a resident move out and there are plenty of spots to build your house on—and we have all sorts of fruits and new public works projects being started all the time…!"
"Okay, okay!" Dizzy interrupted, before she could get too worked up, "I promise I'll think about it."
TayTay settled back, looking content. The feverish desperation had vanished from her face and the wide grin was back in place.
"Well, I'd better get going…" Dizzy rose up, towering a good foot over TayTay. He started on his way out. Before he was out of the tent, there was a small tug on his shirt. He looked back to see TayTay clinging to it.
Her eyes were downcast. "I'll miss you." She said quietly.
"Aw, thanks!" Dizzy chuckled, smiling, "I'll miss you too. It was nice meeting you!"
"Yeah…" TayTay said in a faint voice, slowly letting go of his shirt. She lifted her eyes and fixed him in an intense stare. It was much like earlier, when she had been willing him to share his apples or something. Those shiny windows seemed to stare straight through to his soul. Dizzy fought off a shudder and left without another word.
On the way home, his mind kept drifting back to Taytown. It was a nice place, wasn't it? Considering Startown was flooded at the moment, it looked all the more cheery.
It was late when Dizzy walked through the door. He swept his gaze over his room. It had been organized in the exact same way for as long as he could remember: train set, elephant slide, toilet in the corner, the same three gyroids pumping their beats in an endless rhythm…
Maybe…it really is time for a change. Dizzy thought slowly. He remembered seeing a movie a long time ago about a guy who traveled the world and had all sorts of adventures. He wanted to have adventures too or at least one adventure.
His heart lit up with excitement. He didn't have a great deal of furniture. Packing would be easy. And despite living in this town for so many years, he wasn't especially close with too many of the residents. He could be moved in to Taytown within the short span of two days. He could start his newest adventure.
"All right!" Dizzy decided, pumping his two giant fists, "I'm gonna do it! Woo-oo! Watch out Taytown, Dizzy the elephant is coming to stay! Ahuh huh huh!"
Just as planned, Dizzy was in Taytown in two days' time. The goodbyes shared in Startown were fun, yet bittersweet. Dizzy was certain he was ready to end this chapter in his life. So he boarded the train with his bags and didn't look back. Upon his arrival, he was led straight to his new home. Tom Nook had built him a house right near TayTay's—she owned a majestic castle made of candy. Yum! It would be easy to sneak over and grab a bite whenever he was hungry. Hopefully she wouldn't mind!
Speaking of TayTay, she popped in to visit him while he was still unpacking. But she seemed to be busy with her own chores and left him to it. Humming cheerfully, Dizzy laid down his grass carpet and put up his wood paneling. Maybe I'll go shopping for a stereo later! He thought. Main Street was full of new places to explore and he had plenty of money to spend.
But first, he had to finish unpacking. Residents came and went, welcoming him to the neighborhood. When he was just about done, a white squirrel came wandering in. He walked with a certain amount of swag and emanated a cool vibe. Dizzy was in awe.
"Hey, nice to meetcha, sulky. The name's Marshal." The squirrel said with a relaxed shrug, "You must be Dizzy."
"Yup! How'd you know?" Dizzy wondered innocently.
"Your name's all over town!" Marshal said with a mischievous grin, "Everyone's gossiping about you. I'm jealous. I wish I could be such a hot topic. Especially among the ladies!"
Dizzy laughed. It was exciting to hear people were talking about him. Gossip spread faster than syrup on pancakes...that was why it was so delicious. All the more reason to...wait, what? He had lost track of his analogy. He stopped laughing.
For some reason, Marshal's expression grew serious.
"Really, though. We're happy to have you. We've been waiting for you…for a long, long time."
Dizzy tipped his head curiously. "Huh? What do you mean?"
But Marshal was already headed out the door, calling back, "Well, see ya later! Let's hang out sometime, kay, sulky?"
Dizzy could only stand there, wondering what he had meant. "We've been waiting for you," he had said. What did that mean? A chill ran up the elephant's spine.
A bad feeling was beginning to grow in his gut. At the time, he tried to shake it off and finish organizing his room. If only he hadn't done that…if he only he had left while he still had the chance…
He would regret it the rest of his life.
