The Closing Day

A Re-Telling of the Closure of Disney's Toontown Online

(And Backstory to my upcoming FanFic, 'Rewritten')

FYI: Text in Italics is used for thoughts (Generally Ladybug's thoughts) and text in Bold is used exclusively for when the voice in Ladybug's head is talking.

Ladybug had a bad feeling, today. The voice in her head had been speaking to her a lot more often, and was speaking very formal, with just a hint of sadness lurking behind it all. This had been happening for the past month; since August 20th, she'd awaken to a melancholy voice speaking to her, asking her how she was feeling, and what she would like to do that day. Ladybug went along with it, wondering just what had gotten into the once-cheery voice she'd known so long.

In fact, she'd actually been enjoying the past few days. She would head back and forth between Sellbot HQ and Cashbot HQ, doing continuous VP and CFO runs, and every time she succeeded, the Voice would let out a small, sad chuckle. Ladybug would be dancing in the victory, but as soon as she heard the voice laugh sadly, she'd stop dancing and ask why the voice was acting so strange. Then it would reply that it was nothing, Ladybug would feel a small twinge of sadness, as well.

Good morning, the voice spoke, seeming even more depressed than usual. Ladybug put on a smile and tried to make the best of it.

Good morning, to you, too, she answered mentally, still wondering what was wrong. Everything seemed normal, although all the celebratory events going on were a bit strange. Thinking back, everything had been weird in Toontown, itself, as a whole. Had she been too ignorant to notice it, or something? What could it mean…?

So, today's the 19th of September, the voice's tone, impossibly, got even sadder. Ladybug flipped to the calendar page of her Shticker Book, seeing the highlighted panel read '19'. Yeah… I wish we'd had more time…

What are you talking about? Ladybug couldn't stop herself from asking. Every day, the happy-go-lucky world of Toontown seemed to be getting even gloomier by the minute. Something was definitely wrong, and even the voice in her head seemed to know about it. What was going on?

Oh, nothing… I'll tell you later, the answer came. So, what do you wanna do today? Factory? Mint? VP? CFO?

I was thinking CFO, Ladybug replied with a shrug. Who knows, I might even be promoted to Robber Baron by the end of the week!

Another sad chuckle as Ladybug slipped a tiny, black circle out of the small pocket in her 'Map' page. Tossing it to the floor and letting it grow larger and larger. She stepped towards the hole that formed on the floor, taking one moment to make sure she was full on Gags.

Next stop, Donald's Dreamland, she thought, jumping downwards into the black, not realizing how truly terrifying the darkness could be…

After a CFO run that took all of twenty minutes, Ladybug was startled as the voice in her head broke down sobbing.

I'm so sorry! I wish I could've said something before! I simply couldn't! It was against the rules! It shouted. Ladybug couldn't help but feel absolutely terrified by what was happening.

Seriously, what are you talking about? She demanded. You've been acting really strange lately, and you haven't told me why, just told me to do all these Cog Boss runs! What aren't you telling me?

I wanted to tell you, believe me, I did! I made a promise when I was allowed to talk to you, and it was that I couldn't tell you anything about who I was, and what Toontown was, as a whole! Ladybug 's eyes widened. Had the voice, a source of important, strategic information, gone completely and utterly mad? The voice stopped to gasp for breath, before continuing to cry. There's nothing to lose, anymore, so now I have to tell you! Toontown is closing, today! All of Toontown and the Toons who live there will be completely wiped out, and there's nothing anyone can do about it! It all ends today!

What? Toontown closing? You say that as if it's some kind of club, or online game! Toontown can't just be closing! Ladybug denied what was being told to her. She had lived in this town for nearly ten years. Ten years ago, Toontown was alive, bright, and beautiful, and ten years from now, it would still be alive, bright, and beautiful. Right?

That's the thing! It really IS an online game! You were the Toon I created, when I was four years old! I used to sit on my dad's lap while he played the game for me! When he passed it down to me, I was allowed to talk in your head, as long as I didn't break the fourth wall! The voice sobbed. I have always looked up to you, for how courageous you are! You never give up, no matter what! You were my childhood hero, and now they're gonna take you away from me!

Wait, but who are 'they'? Ladybug asked in a rush. This was getting surreal. The voice in her head was telling her everything about everything at the last second, and then Toontown would 'Close', whatever that meant. Maybe, its closure would simply cut off communications between her and the voice in her head?

There are businessmen called Cogs, who made this game for little kids. The same businessmen you're fighting created this beautiful town, and it's those same businessmen that are gonna take it away! They're shutting down the game for good, and everyone who plays is gonna loose their Toons! I'm sorry, I don't know what's going to happen to you once the game is shut down, but I fear that it may mean you'll end up-

You're not saying what I think you're saying! You're saying that they're gonna-

I am. I wish I was kidding, I wish this day had never come, but I'm afraid… Once they shut down the game… you'll all be dead…

Like a punch to the gut, the voice had finally revealed to Ladybug exactly why it had been so sad the last few weeks.

Oh, no… Look towards Cashbot HQ, it commanded quietly, its tone full of dread. Ladybug obeyed, seeing blackness enveloping everything in that direction. It's already started! You need to get to Toontown Central! Fast!

Ladybug opened her Shticker Book, reaching into the pocket of instant holes, only to find that there were none. What the-

They've eliminated the instant holes! Looks like you'll have to go by foot! The voice exclaimed. Run for your life!

Wait, but you still haven't told me something, Ladybug thought as she made a break for Minnie's Melodyland. Who and what are you?

My name is Laura, and I don't know if you've heard of them, but I'm a human girl.

A human? Ladybug asked incredulously. I thought the humans were only mythical creatures! You're telling me that I've been conversing with a human the entire time?

No response.

Laura? Hello? Are you there? Ladybug asked, a feeling of terror tying her stomach into knots. That isn't good… I have to get away from here as soon as possible!

XXX

Ladybug ran as fast as her legs could possibly carry her, adrenaline jetting through her veins. She stared at the sky, which was continuing to darken even as she ran. I have to make it, She screamed in her head, I have to get to Toontown Central! She looked over her shoulder at the scene behind her, gasping as she watched Toon Buildings being taken over and turned into Cog Buildings at the same rate as the darkness was moving. Tears of desperation ran down her pink-furred cheeks as she turned her head to look ahead of her, spotting the tunnel for Toontown Central. She charged through the tunnel as fast as she could, stopping as she stared at the sky ahead of her.

What the- She could only think. This darkness is closing in on all sides! Darnit, no! She took off again, running as fast as she could to get to the playground, knowing that it might just be the only safe spot in all of Toontown. She stared all around her, shuddering at the other Toons, who were either collapsed on the ground with tear-stained faces, or simply sitting on the yellow-cobblestone sidewalks wordlessly, watching the darkness headed their way. Quitters, she growled, attempting to pick up her pace, although her fatigue did make it a bit difficult.

Ladybug darted for the tunnel for the playground, slowing her pace slightly as she finally emerged at the other side. She stopped in her tracks, looking up at the sky, where the last bit of sunlight was shining down, merely a small circle surrounded by cloudless black. The streetlights were flickering as the wind sent some leaves tumbling across the grass. Ladybug looked at the once-bright playground, which was now nearly black.

She stared at the dark teal fishing pond, where a few small ripples reflected what little light was coming from the circle of blue in the sky. The leaves were stiffly falling from the trees like stones, hitting the ground to be carried away by whatever gust of wind blew through. The trees themselves began to droop a little, as well, their branchy arms that once reached to the sky above now reaching for the ground below. The large pots of dozens of beautiful flowers now only held brown, dying stems, all of the colorful blooms shriveled up on the ground nearby.

Then, Ladybug saw the Toons.

They were all in the same state as those she'd seen in the streets, in defeat on the ground, either burying their head in their arms, or closing their eyes altogether, not daring to look at what had become of the playground, and every single one of them had a face stained with tears. A couple of them even had their eyes wide-open, but were laying lifeless on the ground, a white film over their eyes as they stared into space. Ladybug looked down at her usually gleaming red attire, which even now, was refusing to glow. She raised her hand to the matching red bow on her ear, removing it and staring at it, hoping to see its comforting glow, but even that seemed dark and droopy, just like everything else in Toontown. She clenched the bow in her fist, angrily hurling it as far away as she could. It landed in the pond, sending circular ripples across its surface, where the bow floated for a moment, before dipping underneath the water, never to be seen again.

Ladybug felt her own tears staining her face, as her Laff meter dropped in tune. She reached into her pocket, where she found the friend card of her dear friend Lily. She held up her trembling hand, staring at the image of the lavender feline, before a teardrop fell onto the picture, leaving a small dark circle behind. "I'm sorry, Lily," she whispered. "I failed." Ladybug closed her eyes, holding the card against her chest as her head turned to the ground, several more tears falling from her eyes and into the grass. She looked up slightly.

"No, it wasn't my fault," Ladybug's voice raised a little, a dangerous glint in her teary eyes. She bared her teeth as the feeling of rage boiled up inside of her, something she hadn't felt in years. "It was theirs!" she shouted. "Those Cogs are the ones to blame! It's all their fault, I knew it all along! They're the ones who did this to our town! It was all because of beings like them that our town even existed in the first place, and we were naïve to think that they would never pull something like this, one day! Businessmen made this town, and it would be those same businessmen that would take it away as well! We were blessed with everything we could've wanted, but then they came back around to take it back; our lives, our dreams, our friends… EVERYTHING…"

"ALL BECAUSE OF THEM!" Ladybug's words echoed through the silence. She fell to her knees; her following cries the only thing to be heard as the last circle of sunshine continued to shrink, until it had disappeared entirely, like someone had put out the wick on a candle. The flickering streetlights went out as well, plunging all of Toontown into pitch-blackness. Ladybug's Laff lingered on a single point for a second, before that, too vanished, and Ladybug fell face-first to the ground, her entire form going limp as sleep began to overtake her. With a small twitch, she realized that this wasn't the same night's sleep that she was going under. This wasn't soft and comforting like the sleep she'd come to know; this was cold and suffocating, like if she were drowning, or even worse-

I'll kill them all, she thought as the rest of her became unresponsive. Every last one…

XXX

Ladybug awoke to find herself coughing up a mouthful of pixie dust. What happened? She wondered as she stared all around her, though her vision was so fuzzy she couldn't quite make out where she was. A sharp pain rang throughout her head as she remembered what had just happened; the darkness, the death, the destruction… Ladybug's eyes widened. Technically, she should be dead, as well. Toontown was forever plunged into darkness, the game forever closed. Why was she still alive?

"Well, at least we managed to revive her before she was completely dead," a voice from behind her spoke. Ladybug turned her head to stare after who was talking, but she couldn't make out much, and her head still hurt like crazy. Maybe someone from the Toon Resistance had found her and Tooned her up before she'd died?

"Yeah, imagine what the CFO would've done if we hadn't found her, or worse, she'd already died," Ladybug was beginning to recognize the voices speaking, and realized with horror that they were Cogs. Toontown was closed, what could they possibly want from her? Why revive her if they only planned to destroy her? Ladybug looked down at her gloved hands, which were handcuffed, although she saw with some surprise and relief that she was still tightly grasping Lily's Friend Card.

A swift kick to the side from one of the Cogs sent Ladybug falling flat on her face a couple inches away.

"Don't try anything funny, Toon," one of the Cogs bleeped resentfully. "We'd like to point out that there's nowhere for you to run. Even if you even managed to escape, the darkness will stop you in your tracks."

Ladybug attempted to upright herself, only to be stomped against the floor by the same Cog that had kicked her.

"And another thing," it added, its words dripping with hatred. "If we find you roaming the halls, unauthorized, we have the right to kill you. The CFO won't blame us for you putting up a fight."

The Cog removed his foot as a large SLAM of the cell door echoed through the metal walls. Ladybug sat upright, staring at her hands. I wish I was never even created, she thought, Then, at least, I wouldn't have to deal with THIS! Ladybug stared around at the cell she'd been left in. Average gray panels made up the ceiling and walls, and a bumpy metal made up the floor. On the back wall, there was a barred window to the outside, but just from peering out, it was plain to see that it was pitch-black out there. There was a security camera on the corner closest to the door, which would look around every now and them, signifying that the Cogs were still watching. The cell door was stainless steel, with a barred window, where the light was coming in. Otherwise, it was completely dark in the small room.

"You'd better get comfortable, we're gonna be here a while," spoke a voice coming from one of the dark corners of the cell, that Ladybug thought she'd never hear again. Tears filled her eyes as her vision adjusted to the darkness, and a lavender cat came into view.

"Lily?" Ladybug could barely speak.

"Hello, Ladybug," The mixture of grief and amazement in Lily's voice broke Ladybug's heart as the words reached her ears. "It's been quite a while, hasn't it?"

Ladybug buried her face in her hands as she burst out crying. Long, shuddering sobs escaped the peach-furred cat's tan muzzle, which was soaking with tears. Ladybug scooted over to where Lily was sitting, and the two began to cry on one another's shoulders.

"I missed you," Ladybug choked out. Lily was focused on Ladybug's hand, which was still gripping her own friend card. "I kept your friend card in hope that you'd come back, but when you didn't…"

"So, is it true?" Lily changed topics, wiping the tears from her eyes. Ladybug stared at her, her eyes widening as Lily spoke. "Is Toontown really closed?"

XXX

Ladybug awoke the next 'morning', hoping it had all been a dream, that she'd find that Toontown was as bright and beautiful as always. She opened her eyes and looked around the room, seeing confining, gray walls and Lily asleep beside her. Alas, it was not a dream, but a nightmare taking place in the real world. Ladybug wiped the pink fur below her eyes, to find that it was streaked with dry tears. She was quick to wipe off her fur.

"Ladybug, you awake, too?" Lily asked suddenly.

"Yeah," the peach cat responded. "What time is it?"

"No clue. The sun is pretty much nonexistent."

"So what are we gonna do?"

"We need to escape, of course!" Lily spoke as if the solution to their problem was obvious. "We can't let them keep us here to torture us, we need to get away!"

"What? But we'll die the second we take one step outside!"

"It's better than what they have planned for us," Lily's voice was dark.

"W-What?" Ladybug stuttered nervously, fearing the answer.

"Torture," Lily spoke in a low growl. "Beating us up every day for the rest of our lives. Kicking and punching and telling bad business jokes… That's our future if we don't die."

"Well, there's gotta be a better strategy than 'Run outside and kill ourselves'. You're good at strategy! Let's think of something that doesn't involve death and pain."

"I've thought this over for years, Ladybug. I've been in here for years. I've been thinking the entire time, planning my escape. I hate to admit it, but I was kinda hoping they'd capture you so we could pull off my escape plan."

"So, wait, how do you know they're gonna torture us?"

"They used to have guards positioned right outside this door, and you tend to learn a lot from the people that watch your cell and make sure you don't escape. They said that once they had you, they were gonna torture us in so many brutal ways. The Cogs you encountered on the streets were nothing compared to what's gonna happen to us, here. And, say, what's that voice in your head got to say about the situation?"

Ladybug emitted a small, stifled sob, a fresh stream of tears pouring from her eyes. "She's, uh… She's gone…"

"She?"

"She told me everything. Her name is Laura, and she's a human."

"A human? A mythical creature?"

"Turns out, yeah… humans are real. Businessmen from her world created our world, which is apparently just a game. She said she was sorry for not telling me everything, but apparently, she couldn't. If she did, she couldn't talk to me anymore… and after she told me everything, I couldn't hear her…"

"I'm so sorry," Lily felt like crying, herself, now. All those times she and the voice would talk, and now…

"Don't be. It's not your fault. It was her choice, anyway."

"I can't remember how many times you two would be talking as we took down buildings and factories… Good times. If only Toontown hadn't-"

"Wake up, Toons!" the shout of a Cog pulled the two cats to attention. "And don't try anything stupid."

"Oh, like you're about to do?" Lily hissed.

"You think you're so funny, Toon. We'll show you not to mess with the Cogs!"

A Big Wig opened the door, two leashes in his hand. He approached the two Toons, clipping the end of the leashes to the chains of their handcuffs. Ladybug was quick to pocket Lily's Friend Card, before the Cog looming over her had a chance to take it. He led them out into the dungeon hallway, which was surprisingly well lit, unlike the inside of that cell. Quivering as she walked, Ladybug stared all around her out of curiosity. The dungeon hallway looked just like the inside of the cell, with the same gray panels and grooved floor. There were other high-ranking Cogs all around her, staring at her as they walked, and she couldn't help but slink a little lower in fear.

The Big Wig lead them through many different hallways, past rooms that neither of them knew what lay beyond, until he finally stopped at a large, white double-door. The two doors opened, and the two Toons were soon staring in horror at the scene before them.

They were being led to a giant arena of sorts, with hundreds, maybe thousands of Cogs in the bleachers all around them. On their own respective platforms, were the four Cog bosses, all staring disapprovingly at the two in the entrance. As soon as the doors had opened, they were met with boos and hisses from the crowd.

"Move," the Big Wig behind them commanded, kicking the two forward with his foot. They stumbled forward for a second, before regaining their balance and starting to walk towards the center of the arena. Lily stared straight ahead, knowing what was coming, and not showing any fear that could be used against her.

Ladybug on the other hand, was snapping her head in all directions out of fear. She had never seen so many Cogs in one place, before, and had never seen them so riled up and out to kill. It wasn't just unsettling, it utterly terrified the small pink feline, who had fought numbers far exceeding those in the room, but seeing them all together, ganged up on her…

"You afraid, or something, Toon?" the Big Wigs robotic voice made Ladybug jump, as she turned her head around to look at him.

"N-Never," she snapped, her confidence returning as she forgot just how many Cogs surrounded her. "You'd have to kill me before I'd ever be afraid of you!"

A chuckle, "That can be arranged."

Ladybug couldn't help but puff up her pink fur as he said this. She looked over at a fearless Lily, Ladybug only realizing at that moment, in the bright light of the arena, just how truly disheveled her friend had become. Her clothes were in tatters, her gloves were somewhat gray, and her beautiful lavender fur was discolored, looking a bit paler and dirtier, on top of being horribly messy and greasy. The Cogs had truly done a horrible job taking care of her.

"Kneel," she was soon being commanded, and reluctantly, she obeyed, seeing a pole placed between her and her handcuffs, keeping her from escaping. She struggled against the chains that bound her hands, turning her head back towards Lily, to see that the other cat was remaining perfectly calm and still as they pegged the pole into the ground.

Lily, herself, was absolutely terrified, but she didn't let it show on her face. She had been suppressing her emotions the entire time she'd been in their custody, and it wasn't that hard a task for her, anymore. Still though, she couldn't help but feel a thread of fear weaving through her calm exterior. This had been the thing those guards had talked about outside her cell door. She'd heard every plan they'd come up with, and she dreaded what the Cogs were about to dish out.

Ladybug was still staring all around her nervously, at all the Cogs staring down at them, when a sharp cry from Lily caught her attention. Ladybug's head whipped around towards her friend, seeing a Cog's fist slammed against her friend's face.

"Lily!" she screamed, desperately yanking against her handcuffs, but she knew it was futile. She was trapped, watching her friend as the Cog landed another blow to the other feline's tan muzzle.

Another Cog pulled out a whip, and Ladybug couldn't help but avert her eyes, Lily's screams echoing through her ears. She knew she'd be next, once they were done with whatever they were going to do with Lily. There had to be a way out of this, one that didn't involve torture, and for one terrifying moment, Ladybug considered death, before shaking her head of that idea.

Don't worry, Ladybug. Toontown Rewritten is coming. I promise, I will see you again, very soon. Ladybug gasped, even more tears pouring down her face.

Laura! Laura, can you hear me? Ladybug shouted in her head, trying not to focus on Lily's continuous cries of pain and anguish. Laura! What is Toontown Rewritten? Another game? A second chance? Is it true?

I don't know if you can hear me right now, Laura continued. But a group of loyal Toontown players are working as we speak to recreate Toontown, without a paid membership, and it will hopefully be around a lot longer than a mere ten years. Wherever you are right now, I promise you, as soon as the game is released, I will bring you back. I promise… And I almost forgot something yesterday… I love you…

The voice faded away into nothingness, and Ladybug could only smile. A second chance at Toontown? It almost sounded too good to be true. Frankly, Ladybug didn't care, but she could feel her Laff meter recovering quickly. The ceiling above caved in, taking out all of the lights and the darkness that had ended thousands of Toons' lives crept in, though Ladybug did not fear. She smiled, feeling death coming after her once more, the only thought on her mind, being that she'd return one day, and when that happened, she'd stomp out the Cogs, once and for all.

And in happiness rather than complete and total grief, Ladybug allowed death to take her, and even though the Cogs were panicked out of their memory-chips, and Lily was buried under a pile of rubble from the ceiling having caved in, she was happy.

XXX

"Ladybug? Ladybug? It's really you, isn't it?"

"Mama… Papa…"

Notes from the Author

I'm writing this on Halloween, I got that creepy vibe. So, I know the torture was a little unpleasant, and the amount of crying was limitless, and the closing of Toontown didn't really happen this way, and it's creepy that Ladybug is speaking to her parents in the afterlife, blah, blah, blah…

First, I dialed down the torture as much as possible, trying to keep in my mind that this was a kids' game, and it's most likely going to be kids reading this. I'm sorry if the torture part was a little unsettling, but what else would the Cogs have done to them? They saved them both from death, so there had to be something that they were planning to do to them to keep them alive a little longer, while also making them feel miserable. Torture just sounded like the best way to go. Also, I was initially going to have it so that in her time in the Cogs' custody, Lily would have been tortured, and wanted revenge as she appeared in chapter 7 of the FanFiction. I just decided that I wanted to drag Ladybug into the mix, too.

Secondly, all the crying was to get the message across that this event was horrific, even more so than we thought when everyone simply lost connection. Did anyone wonder what happened to their Toons the second they were disconnected? I'll give you a pretty good clue! The tear-stained-faced Toons laying strewn about the playground was mainly for the shock factor, I will admit, but I can't just create the image of a playground in ruin without including all the Toons that were there at the time! The crying of the two felines afterwards was for a somewhat touching feel, since they hadn't seen one another in years, and after that, it was mainly from all the shock and sadness that they were feeling about the situation at that time. I promise the Fan-Fic isn't going to be as touchy-feely as this probably came across.

Thirdly, I am aware that the closure of Toontown was simply Disney pulling a plug and POOF there goes Toontown. However, that does not make for a good story. I could've written it, "She stared at the blue sky, thinking of all the great times she'd had in this town, and wishing that this wasn't the end… POOF!" But, while it is straight to the point, it doesn't make for a dramatic scene. There had to be something horrific, and I made something horrific. You're welcome.

Finally, the ending is kinda trash, but I felt that it was best if Ladybug didn't just DIE! I mean, I could've left it at that, but instead, I added a little more, just to keep this story in the reader's mind by reminding them: This isn't the end, merely a beginning, and as she's taken into where lost files of code go when they're deleted, right there in that big external drive in the sky, Ladybug was reunited with the parents she thought she'd lost forever. (And yes, her parents did eventually get killed by the Cogs, that's something I need to remind all of you)