Titano Man: Hello there everybody! It's good to see you all again. I'm sure that you all excited to read the chapter, so I'm not going to blather on and on here and give you all what you want.
Xion: wait, doesn't this chapter mark the end of the poll?
Titano Man: Yeah, and?
Shin: I think they all want to see the results of the poll and see which story you're going to preview.
Titano Man: Oh yeah, I still had that going on.
Sora: Well?
Titano Man: Wait, right now?!
Everyone nods their heads.
Titano Man: Fine, fine. Alright everybody, the winner of the poll is... *whispers* Can I get a drumroll please?
*cue drumroll*
Titano Man: ...going to be revealed at the end of the chapter!
Karly: Dick move man.
Titano Man: My poll, my rules! Now, be a dear and roll the disclaimer.
Karly: Ass... *clears throat* Titano Man XIII does not own Kingdom Hearts, Final Fantasy, or Final Fantasy in general, Pokémon, or anything else that he decides to put into this story. The only thing he does own are all of the OCs that appear in this story with the exception of Shinryu Verus, who belongs to The Unknowing Herald.
Titano Man: On with the show!
Final Kingdom Arc 1 Kingdom Hearts Academy
Play Bleach opening 4- Tonight, tonight, tonight by Beat Crusaders
Play Final Fantasy VI OST- Kids Run Through the City
The scene opened to show a small apartment not too far from the commercial district of Radiant Garden.
The home had a quaint and warm aura to it, filled with modest, well used furniture, and soft, earthy color palette.
But the main focus was the single bedroom of the small apartment.
The room had an aesthetic that was fit for a young woman that had a girly personality. Walls were colored a soft, pastel pink while the furniture were made of sturdy oak. The bed was a very soft and comfortable looking queen sized bed that was covered by a thick red quilt.
All throughout the room, placed along several shelves and tables were various pictures and a large collection of plush toys, each ranging from classic teddy bears, to Chocobos, and even Behemoths. But the most prominent plush in the room was the large, stuffed Moogle doll that sat on the center of the bed.
The doll itself appeared to be old and somewhat worn, as if someone had owned it throughout their entire life and had shown a great amount of love to it.
Just then none other than Terra Branford entered the room, clad in a pair of light red, form fitting pajamas with the top cut to expose her midriff. There chibi Moogles dressed in various job classes printed all over them. Her hair was set free from its usual ponytail and the natural curls of her emerald colored tresses blanketed her shoulders. (Think Ryūko Matoi's pajamas. Now I have the mental image of a sleepy looking chibi Terra in this outfit. And it is adorable.)
She gave a tired yawn and stretched her arms over her head.
"Boy, am I tired!" she said as she let her arms drop to her sides. "Stardust? Where are you?" she asked as she looked around the room.
There was some movement coming from the Moogle doll for a moment before the small white Chocobo chick flew out from behind the doll and fluttered towards her mother.
"There you are girl! Are you ready for bed?" she asked in a motherly tone as a loving smile graced her beautiful face.
The small chick gave a happy little cry and flitted around Terra's head for a few moments before landing on top of it and settling down.
The young mage giggled happily at the chicks actions before giving out another yawn.
"It certainly has been a long day. I really need to get some sleep." she said as she once again stretched her arms over her head and arched her back enough for her ample bosom to bounce slightly at the action.
She then walked over to her bed and sat on the edge of it.
Letting out a sigh of relief at finally being off of her feet.
She stretched out her legs and made sure to curl her toes a couple of times before she pulled her legs up onto the bed and shifted her weight to somewhat sit on her side. She leaned on her elbow so her arm would support the weight of her upper body and keep it off of the bed.
Stardust took that moment to flutter off of her mother's head and land on the bed next to her.
The girl then looked over to the nightstand next to her bed and saw a couple of the pictures that were on top of it.
There were three in total, one was with Terra and Xion, looking at the camera and making silly faces. The second was of her and Shin. They were both at the Chocobo ranch with Stardust flitting about around them while the two of them were laughing. And the third was of a younger looking Terra standing between two other people, whose faces were hidden by the glare of the light, with a happy smile on her cute face.
With her only free hand, she reached out and grabbed the third picture. She brought it up to her face and looked at the image, unmarried by any glare of the light.
The picture depicted Terra standing between two people, a man and a woman, each with a hand on the girl's shoulder and smiling at the camera. The man was a tall and very buff looking with a grayish-tangelo skin tone and sea-greenish-gray hair pulled up into a ponytail. His dark violet eyes shone with strength and power. The woman looked like an older version of Terra, only with long, sandy blonde locks and warm, honey-brown eyes.
Terra smiled longingly at the image as stared at the two individuals that stood next to her in the photo.
'Mom, dad, I miss you both so much! I wish I can see you both again soon.' the mage thought as she let out a soft sigh.
She stared at the picture for a little while longer, wishing that she could go and visit the two back on her home world and just spend the day with them. Then a thought suddenly struck her. What if she invited them to attend the upcoming festival with her? Then she can finally spend some quality time with her parents after all of these months away from them. It was perfect!
"Yeah! I'll invite them over for the festival and then I'll be able to spend the day with them!" she cried out excitedly. She placed the picture back onto the nightstand and sat up on her bed. "I'll even cover the expenses for the trip! Nothing's too good for my folks!" she said as her eyes practically glowed in determination.
Stardust chirped in cheer, caught up in her mother's exuberance.
"So it's settled then! Tomorrow I'll get the money I've been saving up and buy them first class tickets to Radiant Garden!" she said in determination as she shot up off her bed and stood firm with her right hand clenched in a resolute fist.
End Theme
Suddenly her vision started to become blurry and she felt her head begin to ache.
"Ugh, not another headache!" she ground as she brought a hand up to clutch at her head, which was now beginning to pound with pain. 'These headaches have been happening a lot more frequently lately. Maybe I should go see someone about this soon.' she thought as she held her aching skull.
Just then another white-hot lance of pain shot through her brain, causing her to let out a loud groan of discomfort.
Stardust gave a concerned, questioning wark, worried about her mother's sudden change in demeanor.
"Mommy's okay sweetie. She just has a really bad headache, nothing to worry about! A couple of painkillers and a good night's sleep will fix me right up!" the green-haired girl groaned out as she forced an obviously pain laced smile onto her face in an attempt to reassure the small bird.
The small white Chocobo let out another worried trill as she watched her mother stagger out of her room and towards the bathroom.
The girl soon entered the bathroom and opened up the medicine cabinet.
"Where is it?" she asked as she searched for the bottle containing what she needed. She quickly found what she was looking for and pulled it out just before she let out a hiss as another wave of pain hit her skull.
Terra quickly opened the small container filled with pills and downed a couple of painkillers.
Almost immediately, a powerful wave of pain, worse than any that came before it, shot through her, causing her to cry out as she clutched her head with both of her hands.
Her eyes were screwed shut and she breathed raggedly as she tried to ride out this current onslaught of pain.
What the girl didn't notice however, were the small currents of electricity that were currently arcing off of her body.
The pain soon passed as the painkillers finally kicked in, making the electricity that was coming off of her die down and disappear as well.
She finally opened her eyes and looked herself in the mirror.
Her skin was much paler and she was breathing heavily with sweat pouring down her face. Her night clothes were disheveled and her hair was a complete mess. She felt extremely tired after the intense headache she had just went through. As such, she didn't even have the will to fix herself up.
The girl staggered back into her bedroom and collapsed onto her bed, nearly landing on Stardust in the process.
Luckily the small chick flew out of the way in time and fluttered over her exhausted looking mother.
Terra gave a slurred apology to the baby Chocobo and tried to pet the airborne bird. Her attempt failed however when her arm flopped uselessly onto the bed, feeling as though it was made of solid lead.
Stardust landed on in the bed in front of her mother's face and nuzzled her comfortingly.
The girl cooed softly at the affectionate gesture and gave a weak smile.
"Go on off to your bed, okay? Mommy's gonna turn off the light." she muttered weakly as she looked at the small bird.
The chick gave a small kweh and flew up to the small little nest that Terra had set up for her next to the bed. She landed on her nest and settled in before looking towards her mother as she dragged herself further onto the bed and flopped down face-first onto one of her soft, fluffy pillows.
The mage moved over enough so she could reach the lamp next to her bed and turn it off, casting the room into complete darkness.
The bed shifted a little more before the girl finally settled down.
"Good night... Star...dust..." she muttered sleepily as she drifted off.
Soon only the sound of soft snores were heard throughout the room.
Stardust stared at the spot where she knew her mother slept and gave a soft trill before she too drifted off into the world of sleep.
The next day!
Play Kingdom Hearts OST- A Walk in Andante
Narrator: It was a wonderful October morning and everyone was out and about, setting up for the festival that was to be held in only a week's time. Because of this, the whole city was feeling the Halloween spirit! Even the the royal family is getting into it by decorating the castle both inside and out. There were even rumors going around that the king of Halloween himself, Jack Skellington, was helping plan the festivities. Yes, everyone was feeling the Halloween spirit, especially our favorite ravenette Xion.
Xion was seen taking a short morning jog through the town.
She had recently started going out on jogs and hitting the gym every so often in order to keep herself in shape.
Having freshly baked goods from the café she lived on top of every day for breakfast wasn't exactly the healthiest thing to do after all.
The girl had been jogging for for the better part of an hour now and had worked up a nice sweat. When she reached Radiant Garden's Marketplace, she decided to take a short break so she could catch her breath.
"Man, who knew keeping in shape could be so exhausting?" she asked to no one in particular as she wiped the sweat off of her brow.
The girl then noticed that there was a small convenience store nearby that was run by a Moogle.
Feeling the need to get something to drink, she made her way over and bought a bottle of water.
Received water!
Xion quickly drank her fill and let out a sigh of relief, feeling the refreshing liquid restore some of her energy and vitality.
After capping the bottle she it aside and let out a sigh as she looked up into the sky.
'The festival's going to happen soon. Karly mentioned something about everyone going in costume since it's going to be on Halloween. I want to get a costume too, but I have no clue on what to even go as.' she thought as she hummed in thought.
The ravenette went to sit on a nearby bench as she thought more on what she basically wanted to be for Halloween. She was so focused on her line of thought that she didn't notice someone stop in front of her.
"Thinking deeply about something important young lady?" the figure asked politely, knocking the girl from her concentration.
Surprised by the disturbance, Xion looked up at the person standing in front of her, only to jump slightly at the sight of that person looking at her with an eerie smile stretched upon their features.
The figure was actually a man that was quite odd in appearance. He had well groomed red hair, pointy elf-like ears, and beady red eyes, though they could not be seen because they were very squinted, almost appearing to be closed. Though the most defining feature he had was that unsettling grin on his face. He wore a purple tunic over a pair of purple tights, an open purple vest with a golden mantle, golden bracers, and purple shoes with curled toes. On his back was a large travel pack that was covered in a large number of odd looking masks.
The scene froze and the title card appeared with Shin's voice reading it over.
Mischief Night!
The scene then restarted.
"May I help you?" the girl asked after she was able to regain some of her composure, though she still felt very creeped out by the man's large smile.
"Oh I'm dreadfully sorry for bothering you. You see I was just passing by when I noticed that you looked quite troubled by something, so I thought that I would come over and see if I could help." she man said with his hands clasped in front of him, though that grin remained in placed.
"Oh well, I was just thinking about what kind of costume I wanted to wear for an upcoming festival that's going to happen this Halloween." the ravenette said, not entirely sure why she would say all of this to a total stranger. Especially one that unnerved her this much.
"A costume you say!" the red-haired man said excitedly as he held his chin. "Well why didn't you just say so?!" he said as he slouched over and clasped his hands in front of him again.
"Um... I just did." the girl said softly but it looked like the man didn't hear her.
"Well you are in luck young lady! I just so happen to be a travelling salesman who sells masks that can bring great happiness to people!" the salesman said as he gave a polite bow.
"So you're some sort of Happy Mask Salesman?" Xion asked with a quirked brow.
"That is what I'm usually referred to as, yes. Now if you want, I can show you my collection of masks and costumes that I had procured over my travels. I'll even let you have another costume for free with your first purchase." the Happy Mask Salesman suggested as he looked at the girl with a grin.
"I guess it wouldn't hurt to look." the girl said with a shrug. Though it was against her better judgement, she figured she could at least check out the traveller's wares, especially if she could get something for free.
"Wonderful! Now give me a moment to set up my stand." he said excitedly as his grin widened even more, if that was possible.
The salesman walked a little ways and within a flash, a small stand with dozens of costumes and masks hanging out on display appeared.
"Now please have a look at my wares!" he said as he stood behind the counter.
End Theme
Some time later at another location!
Play Final Fantasy VII OST- Farm Boy
It was around lunch time at Radiant Garden's Chocobo ranch and both Terra and Shin were caring for the massive birds.
Ever since they were tasked with caring the White Chocobo chick, Stardust, they had been volunteering at the ranch, helping out in anyway they could in exchange for the means to care for their little chick.
At the moment Shin was walking around the stalls filling the troughs with various greens, berries and nuts for the giant birds to eat.
As he walked around, soft music was being strummed out by a certain blond musician.
For some odd reason Myde was there as well, sitting on a bail of hay and strumming out a simple tune on his sitar. Many of the smaller Chocobo and the chicks were around him, dancing and flitting about.
Shin stopped walking about and looked at the older man. "You know, this work would get done a lot faster if you helped too." he said with his hands on his hips.
"I am helping! I'm entertaining the chicks with my awesome music!" the aquamancer said as he continued to strum his Arpeggio.
The brunet shook his head with a sigh before he turned away and went back to feeding the Chocobos.
But he didn't even take two steps before he accidentally tripped on a loose floorboard and fell onto the end of a nearby bench, causing it to flip and the open bag of manure sitting on the other end to be sent flying through the air, heading straight for-!
Myde was still playing on his sitar unaware of what was about to happen.
"Myde look out!" Shin cried out in alarm.
Curious, the blond looked up just in time to see the bag of manure heading straight towards him.
The bag crashed onto the musician, covering him in fresh compost as he cried out in horror.
"Who even has a bag of manure on a Chocobo ranch?!" he cried out in despair as a river of tears streamed down his face.
Demyx owned: IX
Achievement Unlocked!
Shin winced and couldn't help but feel sorry for the guy.
End Theme
Play Legend of Zelda Ocarina of Time OST- Lon Lon Ranch
Meanwhile Terra was in one of the stalls brushing the feathers of the Chocobo that resided in there.
Though it looked like she wasn't quite paying attention to what she was doing since she had been brushing the same spot for over the last five minutes with a dazed expression on her face.
Seeing that his lady friend hadn't finished her task, Shin walked to the stall she was working in.
"Hey Terra, are you feeling alright?" he asked with a slight bit of concern in his voice.
The young Mage simply kept brushing as if she hadn't heard him.
"Terra?" the boy asked in a slightly louder tone, trying to catch his friend's attention.
Still the girl didn't react.
With a frown on his face, Shinryu entered the stall. "Terra, can you hear me?" he asked as he walked up next to the smaller girl and gently shook her shoulder.
With a small start, Terra shook her head and regained her bearings. "Huh, Shin? Sorry, I guess I zoned out there for a bit. What did you say?" she asked with a sheepish grin as she looked at her male friend, embarrassed by the fact that she had been caught not paying attention to the chore she had been assigned.
"I asked if you're feeling alright?" the young man asked, his concerned brown eyes locked onto her tired looking, ethereal violet orbs.
"Oh, I'm fine Shin. Just a little tired is all!" the Mage said while trying to put on an enthusiastic expression, but she only came off looking more tired.
Shin's frown deepened at the blatant lie. His eyes roved over her face, taking in the obvious bags under her eyes, her flushed cheeks and red nose, and the tired look in her eyes. It was obvious to him that Terra Branford was sick.
"Are you sure? Because you look pretty sick to me." he said as he crossed his arms over his chest.
"I'm not sick Shin, honest!" she said with a shake of her head. "I'm still as fit as a fiddle!" she crossed her arms over her chest with a confident look on her face. "I bet I can take on a Behemoth right now without any trouble, whoa...!" the emerald-haired beauty said as a sudden wave of dizziness came over her.
The girl held her head with her right hand as she tried to keep her balance. Sadly she failed and began to fall forward.
Acting quickly, Shin placed his hands on his friend's shoulders and let her lean against him to help her regain her balance.
"Okay, I guess I'm a little bit sick..." she said through heavy breaths as she rested her forehead against the brunet's right shoulder.
The two of them remained like that for several moments before Terra was finally able to stand on her own.
They separated from each other, but Shin kept a soft, but firm, grip on his friend's shoulders to keep her from falling. As such the two of them stayed no more than a foot apart from one another.
"Can you stand on you own?" the young man asked gently.
The green-haired beauty nodded softly, head bowed and staring at the space between them.
The brunet let go of Terra's shoulders and stepped back by a few inches. "You haven't been acting much like your usual self lately Terra. Are you sure you're okay?" he asked as he cupped her chin and lifted her head so their eyes could meet.
"There's nothing to worry about Shin. I'm fine! I've just been getting these really annoying headaches a lot recently." the young woman said with a reassuring smile.
Still unconvinced, Shin reached forward and placed the back of his right hand against the smaller girl's forehead.
The young Mage's eyes widened in surprise at the action. She was entirely unsure what to think about this at the moment.
'Ah! Why did he put his hand on my forehead?' she thought as her cheeks tinged a light pink color. 'His hand... It's so big... And it feels so good against my skin...' she thought as she closed her eyes, enjoying the comfortable coolness that radiated from her friend's hand.
'Hmm, she's really warm. She's probably has a small fever. Best if I get her home.' the boy thought as he felt the girl's temperature.
He removed his hand from the girl's forehead, but before he could return it to his side, she grabbed it and pressed the palm of it against her left cheek, trying to absorb all of the coolness from it.
'So cool...' she thought as she let out a soft moan of relief. She tightened her grip on the appendage and nuzzled her face further into the palm, a small smile gracing her features.
Shin felt his face heat up at the sudden and unexpected action. This was the last thing he expected the normally shy and reserved Terra to do.
The emerald-haired beauty was deeply enjoying the comforting coolness she was feeling from her friend's hand until she felt something nudge against her side.
Making a sound of confusion, she cracked open her right eye and saw the Chocobo she had been grooming before looking at her.
"Kweh!" the giant yellow bird cried as it ruffled its feathers slightly, as if reminding her of reality.
The Mage then opened her other eye and finally noticed that she still had Shin's hand pressed against her face. Realizing that what she was doing was inappropriate, her entire face turned beat red and she quickly let go of her friend's hand. She quickly backed away with a look of utter embarrassment on her face.
"Ah, I'm sorry! I don't know what came over me!" she said as she waved her hands in front of her face.
"It's okay. I'm not holding it against you. Besides, it was actually kind of... Cute. You reminded me of a cat." Shin said with a small blush staining his cheeks as he scratched the back of his head.
Terra's blush darkened even more if that was even possible and quickly averted her gaze from the young man before her.
'H-he called me cute?!' the emerald-haired beauty thought as she bit her lip.
'Why did I say just say that?!' the brunet thought in embarrassment as he looked off to the side.
The two then stood there for several moments, unable to utter a word to one another.
...
...
...
(Great! Now it's awkward.)
Before their awkward silence could continue any longer Myde walked by with a towel around his neck and slightly damp hair. He had just come back from washing off all of the manure that landed on him earlier and making sure that he didn't still reek of the stuff.
"Hey guys, whatcha doing?" the musician asked as he stopped to look at the two. He then noticed the awkwardness that was going on between them. "Um, did I miss something?" he asked with an arched brow.
Seeing as they had company, Terra and Shin quickly shook off their embarrassment of the previous situation and looked at the older teen.
"Oh, hey Myde, glad to see you're back. Listen, Terra's not feeling all too well so I'm going to take her home. You can handle everything on your face own for a while right, thanks. We'll be going now." Shin said seemingly in one breath and left the stall with Terra before the musician could give a response.
When the duo was gone, Myde looked to the Chocobo with a confused expression. "Uh, what just happened?" he asked the bird, earning a squawk in reply.
With Terra and Shin!
The duo now exited out of the barn, leisurely making their way to the ranch's exit.
As they walked along the path, the emerald-haired beauty glanced at her friend every so often, biting her lips nervously in thought.
"Do you want to say something?" the boy asked without turned nag to look at her, prompting the girl to let out a soft squeak of surprise.
She remained silent for a moment, watching her own feet walk across the ground as she thought of what to say. When she got her thoughts in order she took a deep breath to calm her nerves. "I'm sorry about what happened earlier. I didn't mean to burden you with my problems." she said forlornly as she bowed her head.
The brown-haired boy couldn't help but chuckle a little. "It's not a burden at all Terra. You could have told that you weren't feeling well today. I could've handled today's chores on my own." he said as he stopped walking and turned to look at the Mage, prompting her to do the same.
"But I didn't want to dump all of the work on you." Terra replied with her hands clad behind her back.
"Well it doesn't really matter all that much since we both dumped our chores on Myde." the boy said sheepishly as he scratched the back of his head.
"I guess you have a point there." the girl said with a giggle. Do you think he'll be okay in there?" she asked with a bit of concern as she looked back towards the barn, prompting the boy to do the same.
Just then, the sound of crashing and Myde screaming was heard echoing across the ranch.
Demyx owned: 10
"I'm sure he'll be fine." Shin said as he looked back towards his female friend.
Terra nodded her head in agreement.
A wave of dizziness hit the Mage, causing her to swoon.
The brunet quickly caught her and made sure that she was able to regain her balance.
"Come on, let's get you home. You need your rest." he said as he held onto her.
The girl nodded in affirmation and they began to make their way off the farm.
"And Terra..." Shin stated, earning his friend's attention. "If you ever have a problem, or need help with anything, just come to me. I'll help you the best I can." he said with conviction as he looked her in the eyes.
"I will." she said, nodding in agreement.
The two exited the ranch and made their way towards the city.
End Theme
That Evening!
It now around five-thirty in the evening, and the inhabitants of the Castle Town were starting to make their way back to their homes.
The light of the setting sun cast painted the sky with oranges, purples, pinks, and blues as the waning light illuminated the streets below.
The streets were nearly devoid of life, with only few wandering souls and the occasional light that was peering out from a nearby window. It wouldn't have been all that bad if it wasn't for all of the Halloween decor giving everything a creepy feeling to it.
It was eerily silent as well. Not even the sound of crickets could be heard. If anyone was walking about at this time, then they would certainly start to feel the creeps.
But the silence was soon broken by the sound of loud footsteps and creaking.
After several moments the source of the sound came into view, reviewing it to be a walking bathtub.
The Bathtub was, true to its name, a large, white bathtub with four short, three-toed, white legs on its sides. The tub had a large rim and a very small faucet on its inner side. The faucet and drain plug, which was held on by a chain, appeared rusted and discolored.
The bathtub walked down the now empty streets of the Castle Town with relative silence as it carried its three mischievous riders.
The riders were three children, two boys and a girl, all seeming to be the same age if their heights were anything to go by. All three children wore Halloween costumes with masks.
One of the boys was dressed as a devil, wearing a plain, long-sleeved, tattered red shirt, and pants of the same color. His brown shoes had pointed toes that curled upward, and he seemed to wear pale orange gloves. Under the mask he wore his skin was an unhealthy grey color, his eyes were an eerie yellow and his lips were sky blue. His upper eyelids were a pink color, while the lower ones were periwinkle. His chin was rather large and the top of his head was quite flat. His ears were set rather low on his head, and his eyebrows were the same shade of red as his clothes, while the rest of his hair was a darker red-brown color. He styled his hair in such a way that he had two "horns" in the front. His nose was pointed, but not nearly as large as the girl's nose. His mask was a faded red devil's face with horns that curved upward much more than his hair. The mask's mouth was curled into a ghastly smile, showing sharp teeth. His outfit was completed by a red, pointed tail, though it was unclear whether or not this was an accessory.
The only girl of the group was easily the tallest, being only slightly taller than the boy in the devil costume, as well as the thinnest. She was dressed as a witch, wearing a purple witch's hat that was about the same height (perhaps even taller) than her. Her hair was wiry and blue, the same color as the makeup she wore around her eyes. She also seemed to wear sky blue lipstick (though both of the boys had lips of the same color, so that may have been her normal lip color) and had deathly grey skin, the latter being a trait all three children shared. Her face and neck were quite long and her nose was enormous and pointed, taking up most of her face. The girl's mask was a plain grey-green one that sported the same large nose as her own face, and its mouth was set in a deep frown. She wore a pink dress with a dark purple hem, as well as black boots and dark purple gloves.
The last boy was the shortest and most rotund of the trio, sporting the same pale grey skin and blue lips as his friends. His head was spherical and he had short, pale green hair. His nose was very small when compared to the other two, and it was upturned. His eyes are quite close together and appeared to be sunken into his head, though this could just be an illusion created by the dark makeup around them. He dressed up like a skeleton, wearing tattered purple pants and a like-colored shirt. Both of these pieces of clothing were decorated with bones roughly corresponding to their locations in the human body. Unlike his friends, he didn't seem to wear gloves, but his feet were oddly shaped, with three toes of the same length. It wasn't clear if they were part of his costume or were his actual feet. His mask was that of a skull; a simple, round, white mask with the mouth being bare teeth set in a wide grin, reflecting the fact that the boy himself was usually seen grinning.
Play Kingdom Hearts Chain of Memories OST- Just Wondering
"Can you tell me again why we're here Shock?" the boy in the devil costume said as he rested his chin rest on the lip of the bathtub and let his arms dangle limply over the edge.
A tick mark appeared on the girl's forehead, oddly enough it was on visible on her mask as well. She let out a groan of frustration and quickly turned around to face the masked boy. "Lock you idiot! How could you forget what the boss told us to do!" the now named Shock said as she bopped her companion on the head. "We're here to mess up whatever Jack's planning to do with this whole festival thing that he's helping set up!" she with a scowl beneath her mask.
"Yeah, and when the whole thing turns into a big disaster Mr. Oogie Boogie can pop in and save the day with his decorations!" the small boy in the skeleton costume said excitedly.
"Right!" the little witch said with a nod.
"Well how are we supposed to do that?" Lock asked in an annoyed tone as he rubbed the top of his head.
"We destroy all of the decorations of course! With all of the decorations trashed so close to the festival, they won't have enough time to replace it all!" Shock said, grinning widely under her mask.
"And then the boss will come in and prove he's way better than Jack when it comes to planning and throwing the best Halloween parties!" the green-haired boy said excitedly.
"You got that right. And then Mr. Oogie Boogie will reward us with all the candy we want!" the little bluenette said excitedly.
"Now this is starting to sound like fun!" the small red-head said with a smile matching the one on his mask.
"Now..." the little witch started as she turned her gaze towards the smallest member of the trio. "Did you bring the stuff Barrel?" she asked the boy.
Barrel grinned beneath his mask and pulled a large sack from... somewhere.
"Got it all right here!" he said as he opened up the sack to reveal an assortment of small, multicolored pumpkin-like objects with fuses sticking out of the top. "So what should we start with first? Stink Bombs? Paint bombs? Or the super TP bombs?!" he asked excitedly as he and his two cohorts looked over the sack's contents.
"Why don't we set up tons of stink bombs all over the Central Square. And when they go off, all of the food and game stands will reek!" Shock said as she pulled out a small green pumpkin bomb and held it up to the moonlight.
"Ooh, I like that! What then?!" Lock asked excitedly.
"After that we'll take all of the spooky paint bombs and mess up all of the decorations in the castle town!" the little witch said as she pulled out a neon green pumpkin bomb that glowed in the dark.
"And then?!" Barrel asked excitedly.
"Then we'll use the super TP bombs to TP the entire neighborhood!" she said as she pulled out a white pumpkin bomb, causing the two boys to cheer.
The three children then laughed maniacally, excited about all of the mischief they'll cause.
They were so caught up in their scheming that they didn't notice the person walking besides them.
"You three certainly sound like you have big plans." a soft, feminine voice said in amusement, causing the three children to snap their heads towards the speaker.
What they saw was a fairly attractive young woman that appeared to be around sixteen or so with waist-length, snow-white hair flowing down her back like a curtain with a small light blue snowflake-shaped headpiece on the left side of her head. She had icy blue eyes with nearly indistinguishable blue pupils of a slightly darker color, and pale, nearly snow white, skin with rosy cheeks, pale, slightly blue lips, and small freckles. She stood at a good 5'0" and had a modest figure with C-cup breasts, an average waist size, wide hips, and long, creamy legs. Her attire consisted of an elegant, floor-length, light blue furisode-style kimono depicting a blizzard on it with long, draping sleeves, a baby blue obi sash with depictions of white snowflakes on it, white tabi socks, and geta sandals. Tied to her obi sash was a small lyre-like harp that was seemingly made of a crystal-like substance.
She walked alongside the walking bathtub at a leisurely pace with a small smile on her face. Her every movement was fluid and graceful, giving off the impression of nobility. Though oddly enough, the children couldn't hear any footsteps coming from her.
"Who the heck are you?!" Lock asked as he pointed at the girl.
"Oh I'm just a simple passerby who overheard your conversation." she said with a disarmingly beautiful smile.
The trio was taken aback by this strange girl. For some odd reason, they felt comfortable around her.
"Are you going to stop us?" Shock asked as she crossed her arms over her chest, frowning beneath her mask and glaring at the older girl as if daring her to try.
The stranger simply giggled. As if amused by the younger girl's bravado. "On the contrary, I don't intend to stop you from having your fun. In fact, I want to help you kids." she said as her smile became mischievous.
"Really? How so?" the small bluenette asked with interest.
"I might have an idea that might make your mischief more fun." she said as she tapped her chin with her dainty index finger.
"And what kind of idea do you got?" Shock asked tilting her head to the side.
Shadows obscured the mysterious girl's eyes as her smile widened. "Please follow me." she said as she turned around and walked away.
The three children looked glanced at each other for a moment before moving for their bathtub to follow the woman.
They walked off, completely unaware that they were being watched.
Once they were out of sight, Shin walked out from behind a nearby alley with a suspicious frown on his face.
'What are they up to? And who was that girl?' he thought as he began to follow the odd group.
End Theme
Later!
Play Persona 3 OST- Backside of The TV
The night had now fully settled in as Shin continued to follow the odd group.
He followed them down the deserted winding streets and through dark alleys until he suddenly lost sight of them when he found himself deep in the Boroughs of Radiant Garden.
"Where did they go?" he asked as he looked around for the people he was following.
Now one would wonder why the boy would even concern himself with a bunch of strangers. And in any other situation he would have likely ignored them. But those children he saw were acting suspicious, if their talks about their pranks was anything to go by. But it was the white-haired girl most of all that caught his interest. There was something about her that was just... off. So against his better judgement, he decided to follow them.
And now he had no clue where he was.
When he was unable to find any recognizable landmarks, he shook his head in frustration and let out a sigh. "Great, now I'm lost! Maybe I should have just minded my own business." he said as he ran a hand through his hair.
Just then he heard what sounded like children's laughter coming from nearby.
After a moment of hesitance, he decided to follow the sound to its source.
After wandering about for a bit, he finally found the source of the laughter.
The three children he had been tailing were standing in front of a long flight of stairs that led up to Radiant Garden's Marketplace.
The trio then ran up the stairs before the boy could get their attention.
Seeing that he had no other choice, Shin followed them up into the Marketplace.
End Theme
He followed the children until they came upon one of the stands that had been set up for the festival.
Lock, Shock, and Barrel were laughing mischievously as they hopped out of the back of a horse drawn wagon with many different types of masks painted along each side.
"What are they doing? And where did that girl go?" Shin asked as he hid behind a nearby trash can to avoid being seen.
Play Kingdom Hearts Re:Chain of Memories OST- Just Wondering
"Can you believe what we just scored?!" Shock asked with a mischievous snicker as she jumped out of the back of the wagon with several odd looking masks held in her small arms.
"Why are we even taking a bunch of masks for? We already have some in case you didn't notice!" Lock said as he took off his devil mask and held it in front of the little girl's face.
The small witch frowned behind her mask. "I know that you idiot! But that lady said that these masks have a special magic in them." she said as she held up a rock-like mask with eyeholes on it.
"Yeah, like these masks can make us move faster or invisible." the redhead said skeptically as he placed his mask back onto his face.
"Well I think they're cool!" Barrel said as he held up a mask that looked more like a yellow hood with bunny ears sticking out of the top.
"Nobody asked for your opinion!" the small devil yelled as he looked at the green-haired boy.
"You're just jealous that your mask doesn't have any cool powers!" the young skeleton said teasingly.
"Am not! And your mask doesn't have any powers neither!" said the red garbed boy.
"Are too!" the stouter boy said tauntingly, completely ignoring the second statement.
"Are not!" Was Lock's rebuttal.
"Are too!" taunted Barrel.
This back and forth argument continued for several moments until Shock had enough.
Fed up with the argument, the young bluenette took off her witch mask and used it to smack both of her cohorts on their heads.
"Knock it off will ya?!" she said with a growl as she sent a glare at the two. She then placed her mask back onto her face and jumped into their walking bathtub, which had been standing next to them the whole time. "I wish my cohorts weren't so dumb..." the girl said with a sigh as she pulled out a sack and began stuffing the masks she and her accomplices had 'acquired' into it.
"I'm not the dumb one!" Lock said with a scowl on his face.
"You're no fun!" Barrel said with a frown.
"Shut up!" Shock shouted as she glared at the two. "Anyway, with these masks or schemes could go swimmingly! Not only that, I bet that Mr. Oogie Boogie will like to have these masks too. Who knows what kind of mischief they could cause?" she said with a giggle, which sounded more like a witch-like cackle.
"Oh yeah, I bet he could use them to finally beat Jack once and for all and become the king of Halloween!" Lock said excitedly.
"That sounds like fun!" Barrel said with just as much excitement.
The three children then proceeded to do a villainous stereotype by laughing maniacally.
End Theme
"That doesn't sound good." Shin muttered as he watched the scene. "I better go and stop them from causing any sort of trouble." he said as he stood up from behind the trash can.
Just then he felt a pair of small, dainty hands grip both of his shoulders from behind and the soft, melodic voice of a woman whisper into his ear.
"You know it's considered very rude to follow someone without them knowing about it." she said in a hauntingly sweet tone.
With a gasp Shin spun around to confront whoever had snuck up on him, only for his eyes to widen when he saw that no one was there.
Unfortunately, his sudden movement caused the trashcan he was using for cover to tip over and hit the ground with a loud clatter, alerting the three scheming children to his presence.
(Cue Metal Gear alert sound effect here.)
Three giant red exclamation marks appeared above the trio's heads as they turned around and spotted Shin.
"Uh oh, we've been caught!" Barrel said in alarm.
"Cheese it!" Lock said as he hopped into the Bathtub, shortly followed by his two associates.
The Bathtub then began to waddle away as quickly as its stubby legs could take it.
Play Kingdom Hearts II OST- Spooks of Halloween Town
Shin grit his teeth in frustration as he saw the little thieves attempting to escape. He opted to ignore the strange occurrence that had just happened and opted to chase after the kids instead. "Get back here you three!" he said as he gave chase.
Due to the Bathtub not being all that fast he was able to catch up to the fleeing trio. But before he could get close enough to stop them, Barrel turned around and threw an orange, Pumpkin-like bomb at him, forcing the brunet to dodge out of the way.
The bomb hit the ground and let out a small but loud explosion. Luckily there was no real damage to the surrounding area.
"That was close." the darkly dressed young man said as he stood back up. After dusting himself off he noticed that Lock, Shock, and Barrel had gained some ground again. "Hey!" he shouted as he gave chase once more.
"Hey, he's catching up again! Don't we have anything to move faster?!" the small red devil asked as he looked at his two cohorts.
"I think this mask makes whoever wears this move faster or something." Barrel said as he pulled out the Bunny Hood.
"Well then find a way to put it on you idiot!" Shock said as she pulled out another bomb and threw it at their pursuer.
the stout skeleton looked around until he spotted the tub's faucet. Not finding anywhere better, he put the mask over the faucet and hopped for the best.
Just then, Bathtub suddenly picked up speed, causing the three to fall into the tub.
"Now we're talking!" Lock said excitedly as he picked up a bomb.
"What the...?" Shin said when he saw the bathtub gain speed. He picked up the pace, doing his best to catch up to the trio all while dodging the bombs they threw at him.
The case continued like this all throughout the Borough and into the Castle Town. Along the way, Shin found out that he could slow them down by batting their bombs back at them. It was made especially easier when he had found a sturdy stick along the way.
Upon seeing Shin getting close to them once more, Lock grabbed a pumpkin bomb and chucked it at the older boy.
Seeing his chance, Shin used the stick to send the bomb back to sender.
"Uh oh..." the trio chimed at once as the bomb sailed right back towards them.
The pumpkin bomb hit the back of the bathtub, causing it to be sent flying a couple of feet into the air where the Bunny Hood mask flew off of the faucet.
Before Lock, Shock, and Barrel could react, the tub flipped over while in midair with its feet pointing up towards the sky as it came crashing down onto the ground upside down, trapping the three troublemakers inside. Luckily they were able to get some air thanks to the drain hole being unplugged.
End Theme
The bathtub's legs kicked about futilely as it tried to continue running.
"Hey, get us out of here!" Shock cried from within the bathtub.
Shin breathed a sigh of relief, glad to see that the chase had finally ended.
He then noticed that all of the ruckus had garnered some attention.
"What's going on out here?" a man said as he made his way towards the scene.
When the man stopped in front of the boy, the brunet had to look up in order to gaze upon the slender form of the Pumpkin King himself, Jack Skellington.
Play Kingdom Hearts II OST- This Is Halloween
Uh, well you see..." Shin started nervously as he began to explain what had happened.
"I see..." Jack said in thought as he held his chin. "Well it's a good thing that you were able to stop them. I don't know what I would do if they ruined all of the decorations so close to the festival. So thank you for that." the skeleton said with a grin.
"It's no problem." the young man said as he scratched the back of his head.
"Oh don't be so modest! Now, let's have a good look at these troublemakers." the sharply dressed corpse said as he bent down and grabbed the edge of the bathtub.
And with no effort at all he lifted the edge of the tub and flipped it up onto its feet, revealing the occupants under it.
Upon getting a good look at the culprits, a frown replaced Jack's ever present grin.
"Lock, Shock, and Barrel. I should have known." he said with a shake of his skull.
"You know these three?" Shin asked curiously.
"These three troublemakers are Oogie Boogie's henchmen. They cause all sorts of problems back in Halloween Town. And I bet my ribs that Oogie put them up to this." he said as he crossed his long, spindly arms over his chest.
"Hey Jack!" Lock said in a nervous tone.
"How's it going?" asked Barrel.
"We weren't doing anything bad, Jack." Shock said in an innocent tone.
Jack didn't respond to the three and simply shook his head with a sigh. He turned to address Shin once more.
"I thank you again. If you hadn't stopped them then I doubt we would be able to hold the festival this year. If you ever need a hand with anything, then just let me know." the Pumpkin King said with a grin.
"What are you going to do with them?" Shin asked as he looked at the three children.
"I'll think of a suitable punishment after the festival. But for now I'll have them sent back to Halloween Town so they won't cause anymore trouble here." the tall skeleton said as he looked down at the trio with a stern look.
Shin nodded in acceptance of that.
"Ah, it seems that you were able to retrieve my stolen masks!" a voice said right next to the brown-haired young man, causing him to jump in shock.
Jack looked at the newcomer and grinned. "Ah, it's you!" he said happily.
The Happy Mask Salesman grinned as well. "It's good to see you again Pumpkin King." he said with his signature chuckle.
"I didn't think you'd be here for the festival." Jack said in mild surprise.
"You know me. I always go to where I'm needed." said the mysterious redhead.
"That's understandable. Let's meet up again later this week before the festival. I would love to talk about what kind of costumes you could sell to the kids!" the sharply dressed corpse said excitedly.
"Yes, yes, I'll be sure to visit. But for now I must return my stolen merchandise to my little shop." the salesman said as he picked up the sack holding several of his masks and the Bunny Hood that lied on the ground nearby. With his items in hand he bid goodbye to the Pumpkin King and walked off back to his shop.
"Well, I should take these three and be on my way. Thank you again for all of the help. Now you should be heading home as well. It's getting pretty late." he said as he picked Lock, Shock, and Barrel up off the ground by the backs of their shirts with one hand. "I hope to see you during the festival." he said with a grin.
"Yeah, me too." the young man said with a nod.
"Wonderful! So until then, this is goodbye." he said with a nod before he turned around and walked away with the three troublemakers hanging limply in his grasp and the walking bathtub waddling along after him.
The young man let out a tired sigh and began to make his way back home, desiring to simply get some sleep after the exciting night he had.
End Theme
Later that night!
It was well after midnight and a local cemetery in Radiant Garden sat silent and empty, its inhabitants resting silently in their eternal sleep.
Everything was at peace...
Or so it seemed.
Jest then, the soft sound of a harp being played filled the air. Each pluck of the strings giving off a haunting and somber melody.
Play Kingdom Hearts Re:Chain of Memories OST- Scent of Silence
The mysterious white-haired girl played a crystalline harp, smiling at the beautiful melody she played.
"It's a pity. I was hoping that those kids would liven things up around here. But it seems that was only wishful thinking." she spoke out loud to no one in particular. "Oh well, they played their part wonderfully anyways. I have what I came for, so now all I have to do is wait for just the right time." she said as her smile morphed into a twisted grin. "But for now, I'll simply play my songs. Please feel free to dance to it if you want to." she said as she closed her eyes and focused on her playing once more.
Fog then began to form around her as small wispy balls of light appeared from thin air and began to move and twirl about, as if dancing.
"Soon, it'll be time for the main performance!" the girl said excitedly as she continued to play.
End Theme
End of Chapter 13
Author's Notes
Titano Man: And that brings another chapter to a close. And just in the nick of time too! I almost missed Halloween!
Karly: Ahem!
Titano Man: What?
Shin: Aren't you forgetting something?
Titano Man: Um, I don't think so.
Karly: The poll results you idiot!
Titano Man: Oh that? I got so caught up with this chapter that I nearly forgot about it. I had to rewrite it three times.
Karly: Yeah, don't care. Besides, I'm not even in this one! Now get on with it!
Titano Man: Alright, but first-
Kaya: Get on with it!
Rachel: Yes, get on with it.
Crowd: Get on with it!
Titano Man: Okay, okay, geez! I'll now announce the winner of the poll. With a whopping sixty percent of the vote, can I get a drumroll please?
A drumroll began playing.
Titano Man: The winner of my first poll is Super Smash Brothers Unlimited (Story Mode)!
A fanfare played.
Titano Man: thank you all so much for participating. I'll upload a sneak peak/first chapter as soon as it's complete. Now if a story that you wanted didn't get chosen, then don't worry I'll do another poll in the future to see which one you want to see next in the future. So once again, thank you all and I hope you enjoy. Now play the teaser for the next chapter!
Teaser:
Jack: Welcome everyone! Please enjoy the festival
Xion: Do you like my costume?
Terra: I'm glad that you could make it here.
Roxas: Who are you?
?: Now it's time for my main performance!
Narrator: Next time, A Haunting Melody part 1!
Titano Man: Thank you all for reading everyone! Please favorite, follow, and review. It'll make me want to write more! So until then, stay awesome!
Nova: See you guys next time!