Ah! Night four, episode 5! What's ironic about this is that I've got something planned for every episode except this one, my favorite. Hmph. Well, let's get onto it. I'm back from "Camp in the City", an outreach camp at my church. I'm tired, cold and wet, but my throat is having a bonfire. Swell. My glands are doing just that. Ha! Well, now that we have a cute status update, let's hear some reviews! Maybe that'll chase away this writer's block!

TealEmpress: Glad this update made your day and all. It was refreshing for me to write, too. Thanks!

RapidSammi: It was, wasn't it? Well, if there's anything I want you to take from it, it's hope. Have some hope!

Ariza Luca: Yes, it was. Glad you like it!

: It took Jesse 75 years to come to Reuben, but it actually took Lukas 3 days. He died of grief. But like I told RapidSammi, I don't want you to leave with just sadness. I also want to give hope!

Well, looking back, I said I had no idea what I had planned, and I also said I'd hope to be more humorous. So, I racked my brains and here you are! This is a mixture of episode 5 inspiration, and a reference from Toni42's "Movie Mode". We all know Reginald to be the loving, loyal Captain of the Guard. But we have to remember that every hero has humble beginnings, and Reginald used to guard a tree. An important tree, mind you, but a tree. You know what to do, Crisper.

Crisper: Okie! (hits it)

Everything has a humble beginning, regardless of how important it is now. Remember, Jesse was a loser before he ever became leader of the New Order. The Old Order themselves were the same way, even with their fall of pride. And Sky City used to be a wooden castle on a huge floating island, only with a single tree. It was early in the history of Sky City, before it sported a massive palace of precious materials and a large population, and before Reginald was captain of the guard. Right now, he was just someone protecting a very important someone: the Founder. There was no guard to even lead at this point: It was just him and a few others. Years passed, and the buildings somehow became more elaborate. They only heard fleeting rumors of the magic of the Eversource, but saw its results. The population grew as well (through spawning, mind you) and in a short ten years, Sky City was nearing its prime. The royal guard, as it was later called, had grown from three to fifty in that time, though jobs were few. Most of them only stood guard in front of the palace, a job they saw as boring. One'd be lucky to get to work at a post, making sure everyone on the list got to use the furnace or the crafting grid that day. Only the highly elite stood beside Isa's throne throughout the day. But for now, Reginald was standing outside, literally watching life pass him by. It had been like this for a very long time, and he was bored, yet used to the job. But something amazing happened that day. Something that changed his life forever.

Isa remembered a tree.

It was the tree in the middle of the city, the tree that dropped the saplings for every tree in the entirety of Sky City, if they stood with leaves or completed a flight of stairs. After ten years, the Founder decided it was time that tree got the respect it deserved, and she officiated its existence as a monument. It would be the city's pride and joy, close in status to the Eversource itself. She decided that something of such importance would need to be guarded by the very best, and the decision was made without a doubt.

When Isa sent for Reginald during his shift, he thought he'd die. He nervously paced down the hall to her throne room, a fellow guard escorting him.

"Do you think I did anything wrong, Benjamin?" He asked.

"Hmm… I don't think so. From what I can tell, she's pretty happy with you as a guard and all. I'm actually a bit jealous." He said with a friendly smirk. Before Reginald could question him on that, he found himself standing in the throne room of the Founder herself.

"Hello, Miss Founder." He stammered with a quick bow, suddenly unsure of how to address her. He looked to her attentively, awaiting her command.

"Reginald," she began, "I am pleased to inform you that you are being promoted." She paused to let the words sink in, and Reginald tried to be professional about his emotions. "There is a tree in the center of our grand city. As you know, this tree I speak of is the one that has provided all the wood and trees we have today. It is a very special tree that needs very special care, and I want you to guard that tree. Make sure no one does anything at all that could bring it harm."

"O-oh! Your wish is my command, Miss Founder!" He stuttered excitedly, giving another fast, nervous bow. "When do I," he cleared his throat and blinked a few eyes, returning his giddy face into a more conserved one. "When would you like me to start?"

"Right now." She said, almost amused at his attempts to seem more sophisticated. She knew very well how excited he was about the new duty, and valued it.

He wasn't captain of the guard yet, but as Reginald stood underneath the shade of the Great Tree, he felt like the man of the hour. It wasn't every day a guard was promoted, much less to guard the world's most important tree, and he did not take this responsibility lightly. The time to celebrate would come later. But now was the time to protect this marvel of nature, keeping it safe from all hurt, harm and danger. Reginald was ready. The fluttering of a bird's wings caught his attention, and he rushed to the other side of a tree where a white-feathered bird took a perch. The way it dug its sharp, long claws into the tree's delicate, beautiful bark made him furious. How dare that bird!

"Go! Get away from here! Shoo!" He shouted, shooing it away with his hands. The frightened bird screeched as it fluttered away. Good riddance, Reginald thought. But just as he began to relax, the tree released a painful groan, which in reality was a gentle creak. He raced to the other side, not breaking a sweat, and saw a lazy hooligan nearly bending the tree sideways. To other eyes, it was just a man taking a rest in the shade, but Reginald saw a hooligan destroying a sacred treasure, and he couldn't stand that. He cleared his throat loudly, catching the man's attention. He paled a bit, uncomfortable with this unexpected confrontation.

"D-did I do anything wrong, sir?"

"Yes. Can't you rest somewhere else? You're hurting this tree." He said. The man instantly straightened, his eyes darting towards the tree like it was a stolen treasure placed in his grasp.

"Oh! I had no idea! I'll just be going!" He scurried to his feet and rushed off. Guilt whispered in Reginald's ears as the man disappeared into the crowd. He hadn't quite meant to scare him off like that. But he was hurting the tree. He needed a way to keep people away from it was all. He looked the tree over, checking for any abrasions or nicks. When he didn't find any, he took a few steps back to look it over in whole. No birds in sight, or lazy hooligans weighing it down. Perfect. Until a few children came by to play. His stomach curdled anxiously as they scurried around it, engrossed in a game of tag that he hoped would either go somewhere else or end.

"Ha-ha! You can't catch me!" One shouted as he began to climb the tree. Reginald jolted into action, his hat nearly flying off in the process. He scooped the child off the tree before anyone, including himself, could utter a word.

"You can't climb that tree!" He shouted in a frenzy.

"Why not?" He asked.

"Yeah, why not?" The other of the three children asked.

"It's a very important tree, so we can't do anything to hurt or break it."

"But I can't break a tree. I'm too small."

"And you won't break this tree, because you won't climb this tree. Can't you children go play somewhere else? Or why don't you climb the stairs?"

"Stairs are boring. Like my parents."

"Well, stairs can also be fun. But fun stairs or boring stairs, you can not climb this tree, and that's final." He declared. The three defeated kids trudged off to the boring stairs, but Reginald stood his ground in victory. No one said this job would be clean-cut and easy, and he'd have to be okay with that. He surveyed the tree for birds, hooligans and mischievous children for the next few hours. The sun hung in the sky, but the cool wind kept the temperature bearable. Everything was quiet as far as the tree's troubles. No one approached it at all, and Reginald was beginning to think that word of his promotion had spread around. But he mistook the calm before the thunderstorm as an easy day at work. Who knew Sky City was overrun with literal tree-huggers?

They came wearing loose, unkempt clothing, as long and flowing as their messy hair. Reginald had no idea who the fifteen or so of them were, or why they were assembling, but he knew to be wary of them with their laid-back smiles and strange vernacular. But 'wary' wasn't what he felt when he realized what the zombie-like group of young adults was plodding towards: The Great Tree.

"This tree is righteous!" One of them, presumably the leader, shouted. And in a long flash of wavy, golden hair, he wrapped his arms around the tree.

"Hey!" Reginald yelled, trying to rush over to the strange man. "What are you—get off of that—" Within seconds, the tree was surrounded with true love, but dangerous, strong arms. This time, Reginald was right to turn queasy at the loud creaking of the tree. "GET OFF OF THE GREAT TREE!"

"Braaah, you, like, need to totally chill, brah." One of them said from inside the huge group hug.

"My name is Reginald!" He fussed indignantly. "Everyone, you have ten seconds to let go of that tree!"

"But it, like, needs love, not war!" A girl drawled.

"There's going to be a war if you don't—" His strong voice was drowned out by a chorus of hippies singing the word 'love'. No one in Sky City knew what was going on. There. The author has said it. The hidden population of tree-hugging hippies had finally come to the light. Reginald knew the Founder would not be pleased. Meanwhile, it'd be the perfect cover-up for the Secret Build Club that was assembling as Reginald spoke, er, glared. The tree groaned again, and Reginald's eyes popped when he saw the huge plant leaning even more. That 'love' was going to destroy the tree! And the Founder's heart! How furious would she be when she found out that Reginald had failed his job within hours? Hours?! What was he going to do?

A shade of green caught his eye, and he turned and saw a sickly birch-tree, waiting wistfully near another building, and an idea popped into his head. He quickly ran around so that he was standing in front of the group of tree-huggers. The Great Tree cracked again, and he hoped his plan would work. He cleared his throat one last time before yelling at the top of his lungs.

"I am Reginald, and I speak for the trees!" His unusual declaration caught the attention of everyone in the city, even the tree-huggers. He breathed a sigh of relief when they stopped their tree-hugging to face him. "The trees say 'Stop! Look at that tree!" he pointed to the birch-tree, "It needs some love! Lots of it! Go hug it, or something!" And then he waited. The tree-huggers exchanged glances among one another, wondering what to do. Reginald felt like he was standing on the tips of his toes with anticipation. Would the tree-huggers continue to destroy a national monument? Or would they go and show love to a tree that needed it? The great tree was bending for the second option.

Reginald held back a cry of joy when the herd of lovers corralled around the small birch, enrapturing it with a love that knocked it clean over. When he saw the Great Tree, he sighed with relief. There wasn't too much damage done to it. Only a few cracks that would heal over the week, he hoped. He'd have to make a petition for a fence and a gate to keep unwanted visitors out, too. But nevertheless, it was a job well done. He knew the Founder would be proud. Maybe he'd become Captain of the Guard someday, but that was just a thought.

But for now, he is Reginald. And he speaks for the trees.

So, there you have it! Night four, episode 5! Sorry if it wasn't as funny as you were hoping. These chapters are planned and written so close to the deadline I don't know what to say. All of it was typed in real-time with no post-editing. I'm typing this author's note as I think of it in my head. Things are moving pretty fast up here.

So, the reference comes from Toni42's edition of episode 5 part one. One of the characters makes a joke about Reginald guarding a tree. So, I played on it a bit. Trust me, if I had the time, I'd play a lot more with this. Maybe I'll do a one-shot revamp in the future, but for now this will have to do. Hope you enjoyed it!

Well, see you tomorrow for episode 6! I think you're going to like it. I don't intend for it to be humorous, though. More on the interesting 'What if' side. Well, see you then! Close it, Crisper!

Crisper: (closes it)