This has been someday, gaped Juliana wondering if she was dreaming.
Leaving the gravesite, Julianna had regained her cool and cleaned herself of the Yar'mir's goo she calmly paced back towards Halloween town with hands on hips. She paused though and glanced out with her eyes when she heard the small pants of someone breathing. Taking a moment to study those breaths she instantly recognised them and said.
"You can come out now."
Popping her head out from behind a tombstone, Wendy took a few blinks to make sure that was her and responded amazed. "You're alive."
"Yes." Acknowledged Juliana unoffended by that remark. "But if you doubted me, why didn't you keep on running instead of sticking around."
Looking down at the headstone ashamed, she awkwardly said back. "I don't know, guess I had a feeling you would survive."
"Still gives you no reason to why you're still here." Sighed Juliana finding her a bit hopeless. "But either way I can walk you home if that's what you need right now."
"Okay." Hopped Wendy ecstatically coming out of cover and prancing alongside Juliana. Taking a quick glance at her to make sure she was okay, the Shadow girl decided to just never mind and continue on walking with the little girl beside her now.
Continuing on their way through the stone craft streets, the two came to the midst of Halloween town, where they wondered the streets of the merrily inhabitants. As they did pace through the settlement of bizarre werewolves, witches and vampires, they had been quiet up til Wendy had been needing to ask.
"Why did you save me back there anyhow?" Asked the zombie girl.
"Because for one I could." Listed Juliana. "And two I'm collecting good deeds."
"Good deeds?" Winced Wendy confused. "Why?"
"Because I shouldn't be here." Answered Juliana simply.
"Shouldn't be where?" Even more confused.
"Here in the underworld?"
"But this isn't the underworld." Corrected Wendy. "It's Halloween town."
"Same thing." Grouched Juliana. "The dead walk here, the dead that cannot go up to heaven."
Looking up at the sky, pretending to be able to see heaven, she looked back up at the older female. "You think you should be heaven?"
"Yes."
"Why?" Being that only good souls could go up to heaven.
"Because." Winced Juliana, but she stopped herself before she said anymore. "Look how about asking me something else."
Considering on what else to ask, Wendy looked down to something that pestered her about Juliana. "Why do you walk on bare feet?"
Looking at her naked feet, she gave Wendy a befuddled look. "What's wrong with me walking on barefeet."
"Feet are disgusting and it's weird to walk around outside on them." Grossed Wendy.
"Well having my feet naked allows me to feet the ground I'm standing on and it give me use of my toes like a third and fourth pair of fingers." Defended Juliana.
"There you are my dear!" Cried this thick mannered voice, and the girls turned to see hurrying down the street in his short legs, a short man who had a really long top hat, a bowtie that resembled or possibly was a spider and had a ribbon that said mayor. He had a cone pale face that glowed with jolly huge grin with rosy cheeks. "Your parents have been anxiously awaiting for you Wendy, where have you been."
"Sorry Mayor, I was attacking." Scooting behind Juliana shy. "But I was saved by this person."
"Attacked!" Jumped the mayor twisting his head around to unveil a dread even paler white face that had his teeth grindingly anxious after he had stop in front of the two.
"Yes." Nodded Juliana. "It was a daemon that somehow managed to trespass on these lands, but I managed to put an end to its life."
"I guess something like this was expected with all the strange things going on, but hopefully things might go onto a bright side with it slain." Prayed the man rotating his head again to reveal his huge smiling grin. "But for now we have people like you atleast Juliana protecting the place." Showing he was acquainted with her.
"Come one come all!" Hollered this voice grabbing their attention and turning to see down the streets circling about a wooden stand on unicycle, in a jazzy unicycle with a fancy Fedora hat a skeleton with light red ball pool eyes that had a green line swirling over them in a hypnotic fashion. "Try your luck, see what the where the pebbles are hiding and in return you get double the money you were betting on if you are right."
Underneath the unicycling skeleton was another one exactly like him was showing off his fast cup stacking skills. As Juliana watched, she could tell it was just to demonstrate how easy it looked for someone's eyes to follow a specific cup and be pulled into the game. Knowing there weren't many skeletons here in Halloween town, it was strange to see ones out in the street like this.
"Who are they?" Questioned Juliana.
Twisting his head into its mop again that was more aggressive this time as it glared at the two "Oh those are two wanderers, Bag bones and Rib sack, no one knows where the two appeared or where they come from, all I know is that they're a nuisance." And before getting anymore into it, he rotated his head back into his friendly smile towards where Wendy was. "Now let's bring you back, hey!"
Running off however, Wendy was running towards the two skeletons, marvelled by the one cycling about and interested in their game.
"Welcome, names Rib sack." Greeted the one sitting and quickly shuffling the black bowls around the table with a pebble slipping back and forth underneath them. "Want to try your bet a few coins and guess where the pebble is for a few silvers?"
"Yeah." Nodded Wendy giving him a coin.
"Good luck lassie." Laughed Bag bone going by behind her.
Juliana and the Mayor then walked up behind Wendy watching as Rib sack used fast cup stacking movement that not even the Shadow girl could keep up. After a few moments the skeleton finally halted and opened up his hands to allow the girl to study each one of them.
"Which one girl?" Asked Bag bone going by again.
When things became tense enough, Wendy poked out her finger to one of the cups. "This one?"
"This one?" Putting his hand on it. "Are you sure?"
"Yes."
"Okay." And pulling up a cup to see the pebble underneath where the two skeletons roared out. "Yah she found the pebble, she found the pebble!" Practically sing it in a fast celebration until Rib sack dropped two silvers into the girl's hand.
"Okay Wendy let's go." Insisted Mayor reaching out for her shoulder.
"No I want to try again." Jumped Wendy.
"I think you've played enough." Believed Juliana.
"No!" Snapped Wendy putting the two coins back into Rib sacks outreached hand. "I can get afford that doll I wanted doing this, one more time."
"Let's go little girl." Snickered Rib sack shuffling the cups again.
After a few seconds he stop and showed the cups. The way he did it didn't surprise Juliana when Wendy picked the cup this time and the skeleton pulled it up to show there was no pebble underneath.
"Oh tough luck girly." Sympathised the riding skeleton.
"But I really wanted that doll." Whined Wendy getting upset now.
"I'm sure you're parents will buy it for you." Sighed the Mayor getting the girl to turn around.
"Wait!" Halted Juliana. "Let me try."
"Oh does the lady want to have a go then." Interested the skeleton.
Stepping up to the stand, Juliana handed a coin into his boned fingers and next watched his hands shuffled. As she did, she wasn't looking for what cup was hiding the pebble, but for anything out of place. It was near difficult though, the skeletons hands were amazingly fast even for a revived construct, that it seemed near impossible at how fast she moved.
Tensely eyeing trying to uncover the secret behind this, Juliana knew anytime now the shuffling would come to a stop and she'd be forced to pick, knowing it be only futile. But she had to do this, finding a way that showed these skeletons were up to no good and had stolen that coin unfairly from the girl would be one step closer to making another good deed.
However when the cups did come to a stop it was unsuspected when they all heard the mayor go. "Hey." Turning around, everyone was shocked to see leaning over on his unicycle with his right hand outstretched into the politician's pocket was Bag bones, who had nearly fell off balance and ended up pushing against the Mayor. They all looked at him in a jaw hanging fashion as how he just tried to pickpocket a small man from a unicycle it ended up causing the pebbled to fall out of Rib sacks mouth stupefied at how much of an idiot he was. This was further proven at how Bag bones recoiled himself holding up the Mayor's wall in front of his chest gently with his fingers from both hands.
"That's mine!" Outraged the two-faced man.
"It's ours now!" Leaped Rib sack onto the stand and spring up over both Juliana's and the Mayors head and landing sitting on top of Bag bones shoulders, where the lower skeleton began to cycle for it across the streets.
"Hold on!" Juliana snapped out of it. "Get back here!" Chasing after them.
"Hurry Bag bones that one's gaining on us already!" Panicked the upper one with his arms out to retain balance.
"I'm cycling as fast as I can!" Hurried the pushing one.
"You won't get away!" Promised Juliana pulling out from her belt two shards of metal and threw them at the skeletons' unicycle.
"Evasive manoeuvres!" Spotted Rib sack over his shoulder.
"Crude!" Cursed Bag bones curving his leg-pushed vehicle through the street, managing to dodge the weapons and causing people to jump back panicking as the projectiles looked like it was going to hit them.
"Hey you could rip somebody's limbs off with those things!" Yelled Rib sack.
It was an idea, but seeing how the shurikens nearly harmed a number of people, Juliana decided it was too dangerous to use them here. Instead she calculated how close the buildings were and how fast the pilferers were moving as well as her own abilities. After a few seconds, she leapt side wards onto a witch's shoulder and then used the heightened height to hopped off her and pressed her feet against the wall where she sprang against it for momentum before spring off and darting her form directly for the two skeletons, who she successfully struck into thanks to the bizarre attack crashing into them and making them go flying off their unicycle.
Dropping back to the floor with both knee and right knuckle, Juliana slowly raised herself as she watched the duo wham onto the pavement in a clumsy and painful fashion and then scramble back onto the feet to anxiously face their assailant.
"Hand over what you stole and come quietly." Offered the former Bruisehall.
"Quick Rib sack use your deck of cards!" Alerted Bag bones.
"Oh right forgot about these." Remembered Rib sack wrenching out from his coat pockets piles of cards in careless fashion. Knowing the two were up to something and that it wasn't right, the woman darted herself at them. Reacting quickly however Rib sack tossed the cards scattered up front of him. "Pick a card!" He said just as the cut-out thick paper glowed with red energy that aligned up in front of him. "Any card!"
Still trying to hurry before whatever they were doing was complete, she was already too late as she tried to duck underneath one of the flying objects, but the red energy rippled and shooting out of it was this hose of water that sprayed out pressing against Juliana and throwing her back across the street. The citizens were being confused and bewildered by this, that they weren't too sure what was going on.
As the two skeletons laughed at seeing Juliana getting thrown back like that, the Mayor and Wendy had managed to catch up to them and stopped to where the woman had slammed into the crown. "Are you alright!" Cried Wendy helping her up.
"Dark magic!" Called out Juliana.
"No but close." Disagreed the Mayor glaring at the two. "Dark magic has more of a destructive and spiteful nature to it, that there was more of unpredictable and loony nature to it."
The two skeletons finally stopped laughing, when Rib sack punched his partner on the shoulder. "Hurry, find something in the jack pocket!"
"Good idea!" Agreed Bag bone raising his index finger and the shovelling it into his a pocket that was just as dark as the rest of the material and had been stitched in. He then came out with it two red cubes with white dots on them.
"Ah yes magic dice!" Excited Rib sack being given one. "Put in the coins now."
The two then took out ordinary coins and slotted them against the plastic objects which the material somehow absorbed them like mould. The dice then glowed with energy, red in Rib sack's one and green in Bag bone's where the two next rolled them against the street. Landing onto double threes the energy then formed on top of both of them into a shape of boot before fading away.
"Yes times three speed!" Hopped the two like hyperactive children as they began to glow the same colour as their respective dice and when Juliana had got back up to see them, she saw their eyes glow with the beads of energy flames on them, before they zoomed off with incredible speed leaving a smoking trail behind them.
"No you don't!" Shouted Juliana gripping into her hand a rope she managed to throw onto Bag bones unnoticeable before being hit by that water blast, though this was probably a bad idea when the rope was fully stretched out and suddenly dragged Juliana after them.
"What the?" Rotating his head behind him to see Juliana had placed a hook onto his belt that was tied to by a piece of rope. "Why I outta." About to reach of the rope.
"Don't!" Cried Rib sack. "If you stop moving your arms in motion you cancel out the spell as same for you legs."
"Darn it how do we get rid of her then!" Asked Bone bags managing to speed his way pass everyone that was trying to keep out of the way.
"How do you think!"
Unable to skid on her feet otherwise too painful, Juliana ended up having to drop onto her front which caused the pieces metal across her body to sparkle and grind against the ground, making horrible sounds at the speed they were going.
Overcoming the sounds and burns, Juliana looked up the two moving side to side as they were trying to influence the rope to do the same, causing her to swing herself. This caused her to put her feet out to stop splatting against the wall or roll up to avoid hitting into the crowd as she kept fighting to hold on.
While trying to keep manoeuvring, she attempted to climb her way up the rope, but found it impossible with this rate of movement and her weapons hindering her that eventually she resort to pulling out her dagger, holding it up and stabbing it into the pavement. But this epically failed with how hard the ground was and just how fast, that all it did was make the dagger shatter and cause one of the shrapnel's and smack into Juliana's face forcing her to let go of the rope and go sliding back and smash into the face of a concrete building.
With her gone, the two made a mocking laughter behind them, they finally turned their heads back to see in front of them a concrete building of their own where the two skeletons screamed out before slamming full force into it.
Having to walk through so many rows of houses, the Mayor and Wendy finally made their way to where the crowd was gathered over and started pushing and shoving them aside until they were at the front of the audience where they found the skeleton's clothes, items and bones littered across the place. In the centre of the pile conveniently where the two skulls laid with either their own foot or hand hitting the other other's face.
"Ouch!" Yelped Rib sack being kicked in the head by the animated foot. "It's your fault you've got a kleptomania problem!"
"Hey-hey we weren't making any money off your gambling addictions." Before being thumped on the skull by Rib sack's fist.
"Yes we were you nig-nog!" Yelled Rib sack giving him another punch.
"Enough!" Roared the Mayor. "I knew you two were no good from the beginning, I want you both out of my town right after you've put yourselves back together."
"But we have nowhere else to go!" Yelped Rib sack.
"I don't care!" Cutting both hands through the air.
"I do though!" Cut in Wendy getting everyone to turn completely shocked. "Well it's not like anyone was hurt."
"Mind asking that again?" Limped Juliana throw the crowd with cuts and bruises across her body.
Knowing that wasn't easy to get around that one, Wendy quickly went for a different angle. "Look you heard them, they have problems that they can't help." She pointed. "Kleptomania means you can't help stealing and it's hard to overcome addictions and you heard them, they have no money."
"They have dangerous magic items." Pointed out someone.
"Hey didn't kill anyone did they and it's that gal's own fault for holding onto us so stupidly like that." Defended Bag bone.
Seeing that simple reasoning wasn't going to help, Wendy turned to the Mayor looking at him innocently. "Please they have nowhere else to go and I promise they won't do it again?"
"Yeah we won't do it again!" The two promised.
Giving a unsatisfied frown with the really pale face, the Mayor couldn't help but be pressured by that look on Wendy that after trying to battle through it he finally announced. "Very well but I expect no more trouble by the duo."
"Yes!" The three shouted, with the two skeletons climbing their way up to the town leader chanting. "Thank you, thank you, thank you!"