What a week! It's midterm season (at least for me), so I wish you the best of luck if you're going through that as well!
Guest: What can I say, it's just not the time for 'I love you'...yet :)
Firephoenix: Glad you liked the fluff and unhinged nature of it all! He's a Disappointed Dad, but she's still his kid, even though she's too thick to realize it right now.
Haley: Your pitchforks are valid. You're gonna hate the next chapter.
Nora: I truly with the eyes emoji could be used in fanfic...but know that's my response. 00
Guest: Bezata has no desire to split up Jack & Ivy; she's just in pure survival mode and 'wtf wtf wtf' is on loop in her brain. It's been a rough day.
Loxiety: THANK YOU for the compliment and I PROMISE IT'LL ALL BE OK (but your prediction powers already know that).
GoldGuardian2418: I can say with confidence that she has no idea what she's getting herself into. So let's take a look!
February 16th
The Trick or Treater's Tree House
3am
Ivy's hands were burning from where they gripped the rope, the only point of contact on her body that seemed to ground her. Her Converse kept slipping from where they pushed upwards, but she kept her mouth shut and her eyes on the prize- the opening to the Treaters' home, and Oogie's layer underneath. In her pocket, two vials of Devil's Breath sat heavily.
The plan, she kept repeating to herself, was simple. Jump into Oogie's hideout, make him admit to destroying the Veil/fix it, get out, tell Jack she had irrefutable evidence of Oogie being responsible, and hope that doing this would convince Jack she wasn't a terrible person.
She wasn't, right?
Ivy rose over the side of the Treehouse and gratefully swung her feet onto the platform, balancing precariously over the side for a moment before her center of gravity shifted and she let go of the rope, feeling the torn calluses stinging in her palm. Her heart was pounding, but she deliberately put the acknowledgement of the sensation out of her mind. She was calm, she was collected, and she was going to face the Boogie Man but it was fine.
She walked over to the metal slide, hearing the blood in her ears pound. There was a cold pit in her stomach, tugging her heart down, down, down until she thought it would fall through her stomach. If she thought about it, Ivy could feel the heat of the raised lines on her face. A nervous energy was shooting up her arm, and when she looked down her hands, pale and chapped from the cold air, they were shaking like a leaf in an angry gale until she could hardly form a fist. She shoved the traitorous limbs into her pocket, unable to bear the sight of her failure.
A scrap of cloth hit the skin of her fingers and she frowned, pulling out a pumpkin-patterned kerchief that Sally had stitched for her when she'd complained of her new bangs getting in her face. Bezata's blood, still on her fingernails, rubbed off onto the fabric. Her face twisted and she threw the garment aside, letting it fall into a dust-filled corner.
Before she could submit to the nerves she was stubbornly ignoring, Ivy climbed up into the chute, wincing as the metal creaked and bent. She froze, listening intently, but the winding black space in front of her yielding no sign that whatever monster lurking below had heard her. As quietly as she could, Ivy slid her jacket off her shoulders, feeling the vials in her pants pockets digging into her sides. With the fabric laid out, she carefully transferred one knee onto it, then the other-
Her center of balance lurched forward and she fell forward onto the jacket with a clang, sliding down the chute with a speed she hadn't thought possible. Her head struck the metal as she rounded a corner, flipping her onto her back and disorienting her. The temperature rose until she could feel beads of moisture on both her forehead and the sides of the walls, an uncomfortable slickness that glued itself to her skin. The noise of her descent echoed and ricocheted, and if she'd been able to focus, Ivy would've winced at the sound of her cover being blown.
Abruptly, the chute ended, and Ivy pinwheeled her arms (getting tangled in her coat) until her back hit the ground with an aching wooden creak. The scent of hookah smoke brought memories of old corner stores back home as she tried to regain her breath as quietly as she could. She blinked the stars out of her eyes and stared into the darkness, the silence somehow louder than even her fall had been. There was no way Oogie didn't know she was here, right? Maybe he wasn't- oh, god, what if he wasn't even here? She hadn't even considered the possibility. After all, where else would the Boogie Man himself choose to hide?
And oh yeah, she hadn't bothered to think far enough ahead to get out. Shit.
Ivy lay there another moment, frustration building up in her limbs, when the noise of chains rattling above her echoed around the dark chamber. She sat upright, trying to roll onto her feet, only for something to smash around her, a low ceiling forcing her to her knees. She flung a hand out blindly only to be met with bars, slick with a substance that clung to her skin like a membrane.
A gleeful giggle bounced around the chamber, high-pitched and utterly joyful.
"Well, well, well well well," came a voice that activated Ivy's fight & flight in a way that only Jack's darker form had, and with an accent she'd never heard in her life. "What is this, now? What a delight!"
Electricity crackled behind her, and the chamber lit up with neons and the unique blend of green that was only ever seen with glow in the dark. And glow it did- the chamber was still overwhelmingly dark, but now the bars of her cage were dripping with a fluorescent blue, stripes and zig-zags decorated the wall, and a luminescent board flickered into existence in front of her.
Dimly, she also noticed that her socks were glowing.
The bars of her cage were just large enough that she could slip through but as she went to do so, the voice boomed inches from her face, despite the air revealing nothing but empty space.
"Oh, don't go yet! We haven't even gotten to know each other!" Ivy shrieked and fell backwards against the bars, scanning the darkness frantically. Out of the corner of her eye, a shadow quickly streaked across the wall, but was gone before she could get a good glimpse.
"You're Oogie Boogie, right?" She shouted, grateful she could push down the waver in her voice. The shadow paused, and the rehearsed tone faltering.
"Oh, you're familiar with me, aren't you?" The high-pitched hmmmm bounced around the walls, switching directions as quickly as Ivy's heartbeat. "That's new, ooo hoo. And who might YOU be?"
The you came from behind her, and Ivy held in her jump, gritting her teeth. "That's none of your business. I'm here to talk to a potential murderer and cheater."
"A cheater?" The light tone fled and Ivy heard the boogie man snarl. The light in the room flashed, and Ivy mentally swore as the ground under her trembled. "That's a pretty bold claim from a green player."
"I know you're the old ruler of Halloween," Ivy yelled, grasping the bars and ignoring the cold slime against her palms. "Jack kicked you off the throne, and now-"
"Ahhh," Oogie said, his voice dropping an octave and glee re-entering his tone. "I know who you are now. You're Jack's human, aren't you?"
Ivy's stomach swooped, and the thought of Jack made her grip the bars so tightly slime oozed between her fingers. "I'm not Jack's anything anymore," she spat, hating the burn in her throat. Oogie just laughed, and the neon green on the wall was blocked by something incomprehensibly huge darting in front of it. Ivy stuck her leg through the bars.
"I'm not anything of Halloween's either, girlie." There was a blast of hot air, the pressure making Ivy's ears ring, and a gleaming pink liquid poured from the wall and into a goblet on the ground, steam rising from the rim. "And Jack didn't kick me off nothing, neither."
"But Jack said-"
"HA!" The bars on Ivy's cage rattled and she fell backwards, her ankle catching in the bar and getting trapped. Flecks of spit landed around her, she heard a snake hiss, but nothing revealed itself to her eyes.
"You think you can trust what Stingy Jack says?" Oogie hissed, and the rattling of coils slowly grew louder. "Girl, he cheated the Devil! He didn't kick me off the Throne; he cheated me out of it!"
Ivy blinked, the action useless in the dark. "Wait, what?"
"Confused? Join the club," Oogie snarled, and Ivy felt a blast of cold air hit her neck. She froze in place, keeping her muscles tensed, until the presence behind her crept away, the sound of dozens- no, hundreds- of legs scuttling away. "He challenged me, I accepted like the honest player I am, and he cheated." The voice launched into a sing-song intonation, a mock sorrow dripping from each word. The lights on the wall glowed once more, but this time Ivy saw the wisps of smoky shadows forming, one a dark, amorphous profile and the other the lanky skeleton form she'd come to know. Against her better judgement, Ivy crept close to the bars once more, narrowing her eyes.
"I showed up to the agreed location," Oogie began, as the shapeless form paced around the wall. "But Jack, that coward, didn't show. He kept me waiting until the moon was halfway across the sky, and my bugs were restless under the ground."
The Jack-shadow on the wall was lanky and twisted, scuttling in the tree-tops above Oogie's head. He dropped to the ground on one knee, spreading his hands in defeat.
"He shows up at last," Oogie snarled, and Ivy heard an uncomfortable squelch that she refused to ponder the origin of. "And says he was terribly sorry, that he didn't want to challenge me further, that I could stay the King, and even offered to buy me a drink in victory."
The shadows swirled, and Jack's shadow kept providing pint after pint to Oogie's enormous shadow.
"Escorts me back to my Manor, which I don't realize has been trapped." One the wall, the Oogie-shadow was somehow restrained, flames flickering around the pair that Jack seemed to ignite.
Could Jack set fires?
"It was my second death or giving up the Crown," Oogie snarled, the location of his voice shifting with every word. "So, I know when to fold. I transfer power, as he likes, on the condition that he doesn't banish me." Oogie paused, and the shadows shifted to show Jack with the Crown (complete with neon red slashes drawn across his face). "And his first act- before he'd even been sworn in- was to use Halloween's magic to banish me."
Ivy snorted, but managed to cover it with her mouth in time.
"Off he runs to the Town Council," the rant continued, "showing how he defeated me, and gets the formal approval and advanced magic to keep me banished. Oooo, I was not a happy gambler that day! House always wins, you know- but I wasn't running the show anymore."
Ivy stared at the sketched figure of Jack, wondering how far the threats to Oogie's life had gone. Would Jack have followed through? Did he hurt Oogie to prove he was serious?
Was that the part of him she'd seen in the sewers that night?
"So now," Oogie growled, as the shapes were devoured by the opening of a mouth filled with pointed incisors, "I've got vengeance in spades for that little bone man! And what a treat, for his pet human to come down to me! A full house, Jack!" Oogie laughed, the deepness of it still making Ivy's joints ache, but her head was pounding more.
"Dude," Ivy said, nearly desperate, "no more card puns. I get it."
Oogie's laughter cut short, a gasp of affronted disgust taking its place. "Ex-cuse me?"
Ivy wiggled her head and shoulders between the bars, staring up at the black ceiling where she thought Oogie may be lurking. "Do you need me to spell it out? Fine. You make one more stupid pun, and I'm gonna deck you."
"Ooh, good one," Oogie replied automatically, then the sounds of multiple hands slapping- skin?- echoed around the chamber. "Hardly frightening, though. But very- hmm. What do you humans say? Ad~or~able?" The twisted impersonation of a coo snaked its way to her ears, her skin twitching in discomfort.
"I am not adorable," Ivy spat, hands twisting into her jacket pocket to grab a vial. "I'm gonna wrench whoever may heads you've got off your neck and take it back to Jack!"
"Like a newborn alley cat," Oogie crooned. "Oh, Jack trained you well. I can hardly wait to see the look on his face when I'm done having fun with you!"
Ivy grit her teeth and yanked the vial upwards, only for an immense pressure to wrap itself around her arm. She gasped and stared at her sleeve, expecting to see an arm or vine compressing her limb, but there was nothing there, even as the pain crept closer and closer to her bone. Her fingers flew open in agony, and the vial dropped to the floor, where it was snatched away by some invisible force.
"Splendid." The voice somehow moved from her right to left ear in one word, and there was a wet pressure at the back of her neck, just under where her hair ended. She tried to twist away, throw her other arm back, but it was caught in the same invisible grip.
"The other vial, if you please."
Ivy sent up a prayer. "Dunno what you're talking about."
Oogie sighed, the gust sending her hair flying and a new wave of chills down her spine.
"You've got a good poker face," came the admission, "but I'm sure we can-"
And the back of Ivy's mind exploded- colors and audio of screams and the somehow-familiar sensation of being turned inside out, the warmth of her insides exposed to the cool air, the incomprehensible dread that felt like ice-cold bowling ball in her stomach, Jack's bone and her own grinding into a fine dust-
She gasped for air as her body hit the floor, the tremors of her mind shooting through the rest of her body. Her awareness slowly grew as she panted, just enough to feel the second vial get pulled from her pocket. A bust of energy shot through her and she flipped over, stubbornly ignoring the cries of pain at the back of her head, and slammed her heel down on the air by the vial. She felt something crunch despite the squishy sensation and- nope, don't think about that, don't throw up down here.
Oogie did hiss in discomfort, so that's a win.
Ivy snatched the vial back and dove between the bars, the adrenaline making the pain melt away but not the residual soreness. She snarled into the darkness and tried to ignore the glow from her teeth.
"So you lost the Throne," she yelled, uncorking the veil and holding it over her head. "And now you want it back, so you're destroying the Veil! That's your final gamble, huh? Rip the Veil to shreds, and Halloween gets destroyed. But how? How're you doing it?"
To her shock, Oogie doesn't immediately launch into a rage, or even attempt to grab her again. Instead, an inquisitive hmm trips its way up and down the scale as the sound of rattles picks up.
"Now that's an idea," Oogie says, sounding for all the world like a child learning two plus two equals four. "Would certainly be gratifying, but I'm in this for the long game. I have fun down here! No need to fold so early. I'd much rather see the Citizens scared of me, not whatever's behind that Veil!"
Ivy blinked, sheer shock dropping her arm and jaw. "You- you're not taking the Veil apart?"
"Little pet," and ew he sounded amused, coils shifting closer to her, "it hadn't even crossed my mind!"
"What the fu-"
"I didn't even know it was breaking," Oogie muses, his voice shifting to behind Ivy once more. The human was too dumbfounded to move, her brain lagging as she frantically tried to cram the puzzle piece that refused to fit the more the boogeyman spoke.
"Maybe that's why some of my old friends have been stopping by…" a section of the wall glowed, and Ivy stared with rising panic at twisted, charred corpses, with far too many arms & legs, with long-dead runes etched onto their limbs. "Curious, isn't it?"
"You came down here to try and stop me, didn't you?" Oogie laughs again as Ivy doesn't move a muscle, her eyes still trained on the flaking bodies. "Oh, now that is precious!"
"No," Ivy stammered, not seeming to hear Oogie's comment. "No, that- that doesn't make sense. You've got- motive and shit. You hate Halloween. You want to destroy it. You have to be the one destroying it!"
Oogie sighed, boredom dripping from his tone (along with something onto the floor). "Pet, ripping down that Veil is a suicide mission." Scraping began to creep along the wall, closer to her, but the sheer denial in her mind kept her glued to the spot. "That wall of magic old as time itself comes down, so does everything between worlds on us. And they're not gonna be interested in claiming this place, just burn it to ash and start over. I take it down, they'll pretend to bow, then pull a sleight of hand and slit my throats. No thank you."
"But-" it was somehow harder to breathe through the grip of failure than it had been under Oogie's grasp. "Then- then who's doing it?"
"Beats me," Oogie vocally shrugged. "Toss 'em down my chute when you find 'em though, I'll do the disciplining that Jack won't!"
"Jack'll handle it better than you ever could," she snapped, the insult finally reviving her frozen body. She whirled around, increasing the volume of her voice until it could be heard echoing as loudly as the water drips and endless legs and slinking noises that made up Oogie's chamber. "He was smart enough to get you off the Throne, you're clearly too afraid to challenge for it back-"
"I won't deal with this yammering anymore!" Oogie roared and there was a new gleam of light in the corner, where truly ancient looking slot machines stood, coated in spiderwebs, dust, and- yup, blood.
"Do those things even work?" Ivy asked, trying not to sound impressed.
A mechanical cowboy lowered one arm an inch at a time, the clicking of metal sounding for all the world like a cart going up a rollercoaster, then fired.
The shot went over Ivy's head, and her primate brain spared a moment to stare at the pretty light show it created before exploding behind her, briefly illuminating the entirety of the chamber and what in the good Lord's name was that freaking MASS on the WALL-
Then she didn't have much time to think about it, because she was on her knees coughing through the smell of gunpowder as dust rained down from the ceiling.
"YEEE-HAWW!" Oogie somehow managed to scream over the ringing of her ears. The floor lurched, and Ivy was almost grateful she was on her knees as the ground lit up underneath her, numbers and letters she couldn't hope to decipher spinning around her.
"I'd say you're a perfect suit for my decorations!" Oogie cackled, and a bright orange stripe streaked up to the ceiling, where a windchime, complete with femur bones and a skull, elegantly dangled. Oogie took a deep breath and the air in the chamber spun, knocking the skull against the femurs with a hollow th-clunk sound that made her own bones twitch.
But it also made the chains hanging from the ceiling sway, including a glowing green hook that swung just a few Jack-lengths above Ivy's head….
Hmm.
The machines began to whine with the next charge, and Ivy braced herself as the ground spun her towards them. Counting it out as best she could, she launched herself at the cash machines and quickly stepped up onto one of the guns, then bunched her legs together and jumped.
Her fingers latched onto the curve of the hook, but just barely. Her jaw and ears popped as the chain swung back towards the middle, and a bruise from Bezata made itself known the longer she dangled there. She heard Oogie moving again, but determinedly put the thought of him out of her mind as she struggled to pull herself upwards. Oogie took a deep, deafening breath, and the air in the room circled, stinking of smoke and sweaty cash. Ivy held her breath and kept her grip on the hook, thankful that she'd learned to push down the fear response that made her want to curl into a ball and wait for Jack- Jack who wasn't coming, who didn't even know she was here.
Oogie didn't have what she needed. She had to get out, now.
"Don't tell me you're a sore loser," Oogie complained, not seeming bothered as she hooked her foot into a separate chain and managed to stand. Her ankle screamed at the pressure, but she forced herself to stay balanced, ignoring the wobbling of her form. "Maybe you're right- what if we took a little trip back to Halloween together?"
Escape plan temporarily on pause, Ivy turned over her shoulder to stare at the spot where she'd seen the massive, sticky glob of Oogie. "What do you mean?"
"Perhaps it's time I show my hand," Oogie mused, and the lighthearted tone was somehow more stomach turning than his temporary anger. "Challenge Jack for the Throne back. Not allowed, of course, but who's going to stop me?"
"Even if you challenge him, Jack's gonna win." Ivy fixed her eyes on a slight gap in the ceiling, where a hint of moonlight shone through. "He'll never let you have Halloween back."
There was a breeze on her face when she swung close to the window, and the idea of just blindly leaping came to mind. If the Wind was here, would the formless being help her? The air swung the chain closer to the window, gently easing her gaze away from the depths of the darkness. She took one foot off the chain, testing as the Wind flapped around her ankle...if she just stepped forward, maybe-
But wait. The Wind had seen her fight with Bezata. Jack had seen the fight. Jack hated her now. Ergo, the Wind hated her now. What if she stepped forward and the Wind just let her fall? Why would they catch her at all?
As she hesitated, Ivy's stomach constricted and she was yanked backwards off the hook. She flipped upside down, head pounding both from her bruises and the blood adhering to the laws of gravity, even if her body wasn't. She tried to crane her neck and look down, only to be met with the same nothingness holding her hostage.
A wave of heat rolled across her face and she gagged, flopping back and crossing her arms over her face. Blinking to restore the moisture to her eyes, Ivy stared as Oogie's own eyes finally blinked before her. For an instant there were dozens, hundreds- scattered across the darkness, various sizes and shapes, giving yet another hint towards the massive scale before they blinked out, leaving only the two at her own eye level. Not that it was much more comforting, One eye was simply a dark green flame, flaring the length of her entire body, while the other was 'human' - if human eyes were bloodshot and had two pupils, each looking in a different direction.
"You think he'll let me if I tell him it's the Throne or you?" A snake appeared from the darkness and hissed in her face, it's tongue flicking the barrier of her arms. "He threatened my life, I threaten yours. A bargaining chip, as they say!"
Ivy was certain that her heart was following gravity's path through her throat. "He's not gonna do anything," she rasped, unsure of which eye to focus on. "He doesn't...he's not gonna care what happens to me. He didn't send me here; I ran away."
Oogie sighed, and Ivy found herself flipping and being deposited into a (furry?) palm. She tried not to wince as the skin below her twitched and squirmed as though infested.
"Jack didn't even know the last human, and he still got in the way of me redecorating the Town with his innards," Oogie griped. "So no matter how much he hates you, that pathetic creature would probably grind himself to death if you die." The room glowed, and Ivy got the sinking impression that Oogie was smiling. "And that's something I can't wait to watch."
Ivy opened her mouth to- well, probably put her foot in it, but the sudden vertigo from Oogie- standing?- sent her crashing further into the Boogie Man's palm...but closer to the ceiling.
"Maybe it's time for some sabotage of my own!" Oogie snarled, and Ivy tried to ignore the way she clung to the fur beneath her to avoid toppling backwards. "I deserved to keep the Throne, and he stole it from me. "
And perhaps he had yet another monologue stored within him, but there were connections beginning to spark within Ivy's mind and she thought if Oogie spoke one more time her brain would explode.
Luckily, something else did.
Or at least that's what it felt like. The chamber rattled, setting off the cash machines and causing the floor to tremble. Oogie's form swayed, and Ivy felt the vibrations echo from the core of her chest, reverberating into her very bone marrow.
Oogie's eyes made a full 90 degree tilt, the glow of the chamber dimming briefly. "Now that's interesting."
"What?" Ivy asked, craning her neck around to no avail. "What was that?"
The palm lifted and then settled, as though Oogie had shrugged. "That, little pet, was the Veil. Looks like it just got attacked again."
"What?" Ivy dared to stand fully, scrambling to the edge of Oogie's hand to peer up at the gap in the ceiling. "What do you mean? We've never felt that in Halloween!"
Oogie snorted, the sensation another hot gust. "Halloween has protected sigils around it," the boogie man snarled. "Which includes keeping me out, otherwise I'd've taken that skeleton apart long ago."
So - so whoever was destroying the Veil was there now. She had to get out of there!
Without any further thought, Ivy dove off the boogie man's palm, clinging to a chain and sliding down. Oogie lurched forward and gripped the opposite end, halting her progress with a speed that had her teeth slamming together.
"Nice try," came the cackle, "but dying in Halloween is the perfect way to be stuck here forever! And there's only so much I can do with a ghost, and you're an awfully pretty thing…"
Ivy held on, ignoring the new sickness in her stomach as she let him monologue. He slowly pulled his side of the chain down, rising Ivy closer to his eye level- and the ceiling. His dark form covered the front of the opening, which complicated things, but…
As soon as she was within range, Ivy yanked the recovered vial from her pocket, uncorked it with her teeth, held her breath, and hurtled it.
The effect was instantaneous- there was an explosion of brown light, illuminating the front of Oogie's face, and Ivy nearly lost her concentration at the scream that flew from her throat. No, no, focus. Oogie stumbled down, dark limbs flying towards his head, then rising, rising-
Ivy leapt forward, landing on the top of Oogie's head, and made another frantic jump into the opening as Oogie rose to his full height once more. A gust of wind hit her from the back, propelling her forward until her fingers hit dank grass and leaves. The moonlight was almost blinding after the odd glow of Oogie's lair, but she didn't allow herself to be distracted. Her legs still dangled in the darkness below, ready for Oogie to snatch her back down. Her body ached in protest- she hadn't eaten since she'd woken up, there'd been too much adrenaline tonight as it was- but she bit the inside of her cheek to have pain to focus on and engaged her core, panting as she managed to drag herself out of the hole.
Over the sound of the blood rushing in her ears, labored heartbeat, and ragged breaths, she heard Oogie's body crumple to the floor, as if a skyscraper made of jello had collapsed onto concrete.
The Wind was gone again.
To be safe (as if that were ever really possible when she wasn't near Jack) she scrambled a few paces away before collapsing onto her back, throwing one arm over her eyes and trying to steady her breathing.
One minute. You get one minute to freak out.
There was still slime stuck to her hair, and it'd gotten into the scratches on her face as well. Strangely enough it seemed to ease the throbbing there, so. At least she had that. But it didn't' make up for the ache in her bones, the way her side screamed in protest the more the adrenaline wore off.
She sniffed, hating herself even as she did so. All she'd wanted from today was to pass her Scare Test and make Jack proud. She hadn't even managed to do that.
30 more seconds. Get your head back in the game.
Ivy began to breathe, forcing her heartrate to slow. What to do next? Oogie wasn't the one destroying the Veil, so- so she had to find whoever was. Maybe not stop them, since she'd used up her vial because she'd been too stupid to get the other one back-
So. Go to the site of the Veil (her stomach twisted, remembering what she'd heard and seen last time). See if she could figure out what was going on there (even though Ciaran had made her promise not to. Well, might as well disappoint the only other one who cared about here down here). Then…tell Jack and hope he wouldn't laugh her out of Halloween for even coming back.
If he'd even noticed she was gone.
The thought threatened tears, so she ignored it- sitting up in a way that made her arms scream in protest, so she could convince herself the tears were from that. Ivy leaned against a nearby tree and stood, glancing back over her shoulder at the innocuous hole that hinted at Oogie's lair. Then she turned her back on it, squared her shoulders, and marched towards the center of the explosion.
Xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx
Halloween Town
Just After Ivy Threatens Shock
Jack was doing his absolute best not to scowl, because he truly thought that one more unpleasant stimuli would make the human next to him faint.
All things considered, he was surprised she hadn't done so already- returning to the inside of the hall after sending Ivy back to the Manor, the attacked girl hadn't seemed to be surprised by the turn of events, even as she held her glasses aloft, one of the arms snapped.
"I thought it would've happened long ago," was her only comment as she wiped the blood from her ear.
The Council had been dismissed shortly afterwards, with it being decided that Bezata would stay with Vlad- there was no chance Jack would risk the same fight happening under his roof.
The vampire had protested, of course, but Jack was glad to use a word Ivy had taught him- voluntold- as he yanked the Classic to the side.
"You're the only one here besides me that's been in the presence of a human for longer than a few minutes, and pleasantly, might I add," he'd hissed.
"Pleasant?" The vampire had the audacity to give a short laugh at that. "Do you not recall he cut my throat?"
"That was after his time with you," Jack snapped. "You kept him alive for a month, am I right?"
"Yes, but-"
"And you're aware of what a human needs to survive- and have willingly provided those things yourself?"
"I was prepared to have him as a guest," Vlad retorted. "He was wanted. This weak thing...is not."
"I'm sure you'll be the perfect gentleman." Jack smiled with murder in his eyes, and Vlad had huffed his submission and turned into a bat, flitting away to 'prepare'.
However, Jack didn't quite trust Ivy (or the other Citizens) not to find another opportunity to attack the girl, so he volunteered himself to ensure she made it to Vlad's dwelling safely.
It gave him more time to sort his thoughts regarding how he'd deal with Ivy, anyway. He was sure he'd come home to her sulking in her room- perhaps she'd even try to keep him out with a chair- but he'd get in and force her to talk and they'd fix it, because that's what pare- because that's what friends did. She was his human; his responsibility.
"I'm sorry you were attacked," Jack said to the girl walking beside him, who was carefully stepping around any gap in the cobblestone. Her eyes alternated between staying glued to the ground and darting around the Town in disbelief. When he spoke, she nearly lost her grip on her glasses, flinching at looking up at him.
"Uh. It is… you're not… the one who did it."
Jack dipped his head, politely ignoring how the motion caused her heartbeat to uptick. It was frantic and faster than he thought even normal human's should be, the sound grating after becoming accustomed to Ivy's.
"That's true. But I didn't stop her as soon as she started. I assure you, this is not the standard welcome in Halloween Town."
Bezata seemed to laugh at that, even if it was a bit frantic. Her other hand flew up to cover her mouth anyway, shoulders tensing as though expecting a strike. "Sorry," she apologized (for the sixth time that hour). "I did not- it's strange that there is a standard welcome. I didn't mean to laugh."
"It's alright, I know this must all be...odd for you."
Ivy wouldn've snorted, her face twisting in hidden amusement. Bezata looked defeated.
"It is odd," she began, voice uncertain as if she didn't know if she was allowed to speak. "I do believe in- in things like this, but I didn't think it was real, you know? I never thought I'd actually see a ghost."
"Well, no need to stare," a nearby ghost snapped, floating up from a pumpkin. "I'll look like this the rest of eternity; there's no rush."
Bezata whined in the back of her throat, and Jack made frantic shooing motions above the human's head. The ghost rolled their eyes (and head), but begrudgingly floated away.
"This is all real," Bezata muttered to herself in her native language. "I'm not- well, maybe I am going crazy, but it feels real."
"Vlad is fluent in German, should you tire of English," Jack offered as he guided the human around a corner, swiftly kicking a cat carcass down the storm drain before she could notice it. "Though I'll say you're doing rather well with it."
Bezata flushed, and- ah, interesting. This human went red on her nose and forehead, rather than the cheeks and tips of ears Jack was used to.
"I only speak it in Englisch Klasse and sometimes to Kunden- ah, customers. Mama says I need to be better, but-" the girl cut herself off, going into that strange hundred yard stare that Jack was noticing with disturbing frequency. "So I'm sorry if I mess things up."
Pushing past the oddity, Jack nodded. "Like I said, Vlad'll be grateful to practice, even if he doesn't show it. He hasn't had a human in some time-"
Bezata's eyes widened, and Jack frantically backpedaled.
"- to stay, not to drink!"
"Is he going to drink me?"
Jack shook his head. "No, of course not. No harm will come to you in Halloween, I give you my word."
Bezata blinked rapidly, appearing to do her own sort of mental calculation. "Than- what do you want me to do for you?"
Jack frowned, then tried not to laugh as her heel got caught in a sewer grate. As she yanked herself free, he tucked his hands behind his back and gazed at her curiously. "What do you mean?"
"For me to stay and not be...drinked," she said, rolling her ankle to test it's flexibility.
"You...you don't have to do anything. You didn't choose to come here and you don't have the choice to leave; we aren't going to make you do anything you don't want to do."
Bezata gave him a look of suspicion. "But then I will be a- hmm. How do you say… a freeloader." She seemed pleased with the word choice, brightening for half a second before almost instinctively regaining control of her face into the mask of neutrality. It was a practiced movement, and Jack didn't care to think of what for. "Favors aren't favors. Don't do anything for free."
Feeling confused and slightly concerned for the state of the humans around her, Jack made the turn onto Vlad's street, sending a glare at a few daring children who'd snuck over to see the new human. "That, ah, may be the custom of the human world, but in Halloween we help those around us. You need help, and so here we are!"
Nearly all of Bezata's anxieties seemed to have melted away in the argument- at least the two humans had that in common. "If you say so," she said carefully, a clear note of disbelief in her voice. "Did you do this for Kun- for Ivy too?"
She stumbled over his charge's name, and Jack spared a moment to wonder when the last time she said it aloud was.
"We've been looking after her, yes." There were hardly any monsters living on this edge of town- Vlad liked his solitude. Contrary to his story, he'd denied the offer of a castle, instead constructing a surprisingly human dwelling- of English design, filled with the trinkets he'd managed to salvage from the burnt remains of his castle. Although he'd never say it to the vampire's face, he'd often thought that Vlad was the most human of all the monsters- and the one that missed the human world the most. "And she's been- well. Today wasn't her best, but she's been happy here, I hope."
"I can't believe she's been alive this whole time," Bezata admitted. "Everyone thought she'd just run away again, but now they think it's kidnapping or she's dead. I didn't think…" Bezata frowns, choosing her words. "She was under here the whole time."
Jack's insides twist with guilt at what his charge's family must be thinking- her real parents, who'd had her for years, not just half of one. The endlessly tortuous thought of inevitably sending Ivy home was one that he tried to avoid at all cost- he couldn't imagine coming home and having no idea where she was, or knowing if she was alive or dead.
Luckily, he was distracted by Vlad opening his front door, blinking down at Bezata in distaste. To her credit, the human immediately ducked her head and put her hands behind her back, eyes lowering until Vlad snapped within her eyesight.
In perfect German, he asked, "do you plan on slitting my throat as I sleep."
Bezata's jaw nearly fell open, but she quickly forced that same neutrally blank mask back on. "N- nein?"
Vlad nodded curtly, not budging from the doorway. "Do you plan on disobeying any rules that I give you, including which rooms you are or are not permitted in."
"Nein." The answer came quicker this time, more practiced. And oddly enough, she seemed more comfortable with it.
Another nod. "Do you plan on asking me if my favorite flavor of ice cream is 'veinilla', telling me that I am 'draining', or saying I should install a 'bat flap' on my front door."
Bezata reverted back to uncertainty. "Uh...no."
Vlad didn't quite smile - his smiles tended to have a bit too much bloodlust in them - but he nevertheless stepped to the side and gestured for Bezata to enter. "Than you are far better than the other blood bag in this Town, and are welcome in my home."
Bezata brightened at the invitation, stepping over the threshold and glancing around. She stiffened, one hand tugging at her braid nervously. "Uh. There's a skull on your mantle?"
"He's an old friend," Vlad answered smoothly, closing the door in Jack's face.
The skeleton bristled, seriously considering rattling Vlad's doorknob or stepping on his Lilies of the Valley, but refrained. Curiously, the human's heartbeat was settling down, and Jack wondered how much of it was due to the rigid structure Vlad would no doubt impose. But no matter. Despite the vampire's reluctance, Jack knew he could trust the other monster to keep an eye on her while he attended to his own human.
Realizing that returning home was the next steps, Jack groaned and rubbed his eye sockets fiercely, feeling the dust on his fingers settling into the grooves of the sockets. He turned and walked away from Vlad's dwelling, his mind turning over what he'd say to her.
How could he stress to her that her actions were wrong, no matter how slighted she'd felt? What was the extent of her lie? How could he discipline her without risking her using the words he dreaded most - you're not even my father?
Skeletons had no need to swallow. Jack did so anyway.
He remembered the joy of trickery, of outwitting an opponent. His greatest con would be the Devil (twice) but the negative consequences thereafter had soured the victory somewhat. Oogie would perhaps be next- the booby trapping of the entire Manor had been a delight to plan, and seeing the anger in Oogie's gaze as the Crown slid from his head, the words of succession pulled from his lips like his stitches.
But he hadn't- it had been for a good reason. The betterment of the Town, not just himself. He had to make her understand that, at least.
All too soon, he arrived at the gates of the Skellington Manor. Sighing, with a sense of dread and glumness that he'd not had in a while, Jack trudged up the steps and opened the door, making as much noise as he could.
"Ivy?" He called, making sure his voice echoed to every corner of the Manor. "I'm home. We have to talk about this, but do you want something to eat first?"
On autopilot, not truly expecting a response, Jack made his way to the kitchen, fixing a quick batch of tea and plate of scones. He let himself be lost in the simple motions, not at all surprised that he was still alone in the kitchen. Stacking the peace offering onto a tray, Jack climbed the stairs, ensuring he hit every creak spot to let Ivy know he was coming. He set the tray down outside the door and settled himself against it, folding his arms across his knees and unlocking his jaw.
"I have something out here for you," he tried again. "Something simple, all right? You've still got human needs, no matter how much you ignore them."
Silence.
Well, he'd been expecting that. He tucked his face into the fold of his arms, closing his sockets and dragging up memories of James' youth.
"I didn't mean to shout earlier," he tried. "You- I was surprised when you acted so- when you attacked her. It made me feel… as if I didn't know you."
Silence.
"But I do know you," Jack stressed. "And I know that you've been changing since Halloween night, and certainly since you hurt her all those years ago. You don't have to be bound to the mistakes of the past, you just have to-" a lump in his throat, the difficulty of admitting things caring little if the words came from an organic body or not. "I regret the things I've done. But you reminded me to take the steps to improve myself. I don't want to be the same skeleton that my descendant saw cursing her. I want to show her how I've changed, apologize, make amends. And- and you can do that too. I can help you."
Silence.
Jack let the back of his skull hit the door. "I'll give you space if you ask, but this isn't a conversation we can avoid forever." Taking her silence as permission to stay, Jack began to anxiously fiddle with the hem of his pants leg. "At least let me look at your wounds, love. I promise, no scolding until you're ok."
Silence.
Jack cracked his neck, ready for a different tactic, then froze.
It was quiet. Too quiet.
On his feet in a flash, Jack opened her door- which hadn't even been locked. No sign of his human sprawled on the bed, the window remained unopened. He closed his eyes and honed in on her heartbeat, frantically trying to place it within the house.
There was nothing. Wherever she was, it was out of range.
Jack flew down the stairs, abandoning the cooling cup of tea as he burst from the Manor, his sights pinned on Finkelstein's Tower. He was one of the fastest Creatures in Halloween, even if it was a trait he rarely displayed. All the while he kept listening, straining his awareness, looking for even a hint of her heartbeat or aura and refusing to admit to the absence in its place.
Jack pounded at the door of Finkelstein's Tower, stubbornly pushing down the fact that he couldn't hear her heartbeat in here, either.
Finkelstein whipped open the door, his angry scowl immediately fading away at whatever expression donned Jack's face. "What's happened, my boy?"
Sally appeared from behind Finkelstein, and for once Jack wasn't distracted by the way her skin and hair glowed, or the way her eyelashes perfectly fanned across her cheeks.
"Ivy," Jack said swiftly, no lack of breath to take away from the harshness of his tone. "Is she here? Has she stopped by?"
"No, Jack," Sally answered first. "I haven't seen her all day."
"Sally's right," Finkelstein confirmed, and Sally seemed to take pride in the rare admittance of her words. "We haven't seen that little demon for a few days. Jack, what's- what happened to you? Is that human blood?"
Jack glanced down to his waistcoat, where he'd had Ivy pinned earlier. Though long dry, he touched two bony fingers to it gently, as though hoping it would tell him her location.
"Ivy's missing," Jack said, and now that thing from earlier had returned to his throat. "Ivy's missing, and I can't find her, and-"
"Jack!"
The Pumpkin King wanted nothing more than to collapse into a pile of bones and have a good cry, but he forced himself to turn and face the Treaters, who came galloping after him in their bathtub. Not bothering to give a polite dismissal to the Doctor and Sally, he focused his efforts into making sure his hands didn't curl into fists. "I told you three not to leave your Town Dwelling!" His voice was louder than it ought to be, but he was already dealing with one rebellious child, he didn't need three more.
"But Jack-" Shock piped up.
"No buts!" Jack roared, sweeping his hands out. "I do not have the time or patience to deal with your- your nonsense! There is a real problem on my hands, and I don't need your mischief!"
"But Jack-" Lock tried next, only for Jack to seize him up and dump him in the bathtub.
"What did I say?" Jack leaned across the rim of the tub, the force of his hands denting the sides. "Go back, before I make your outsides match Barrel's hair."
Shock and Lock sputtered, but Jack was already turning away, ready to head down the path and start a search and-
"Ivy went after Mr. Oogie Boogie."
Jack froze, then slowly turned to stare at Barrel. The child blinked, the effort of crafting a full sentence warranting another lick of his lollipop.
"That's-" Jack cut himself off, certain that whatever came out wouldn't be words or child-friendly. "Why and how do you know."
"She asked us!" Lock protested, without a trace of malice in his tone. "She was gonna hurt Shock unless we told her where Mr. Oogie Boogie is hiding, so we did!"
"You-" for one brief moment, Jack's aura flared, and each monster fell silent. When he came back to himself, Jack spotted Sally, who'd taken a few steps back, her lovely eyes gazing at him in terror.
Forcing himself under control, he snapped his fingers at Shock, who jumped to attention. "How long ago?"
"Not long," the witch replied. "We came and got you as soon as-" she broke off, her skin flushing.
"As soon as we got Shock out of the well," Barrel filled in helpfully. "Ivy closed the cover of it, so it was kinda heavy to get off, but we did it."
Jack nodded, more to reassure himself than the others. So she couldn't have gone far. Perhaps he'd even be able to catch her before she… no. He couldn't afford to think like that.
"And where," Jack asked the Treaters, in the darkest tone they'd ever heard him use, a voice that made the shadow flee the moon and the night air grow cold, "might Oogie's hideout be?"
Next chapter will, of course, update on Halloween! Be spooky & safe until then, and thank you again for all the support!
-Aria
