Author's Note: Well, well, well. Looks like the Elders are slowly being closed in on without realizing so. How, pray tell, will those dastardly men pay? Hee hee, dastardly. That's a funny word. Anyhow, The Nightmare Before Christmas still doesn't belong to me. It never did, to be honest. As much as I wish the word dastardly belonged to me too, alas, it doesn't. This story belongs to me though, so nyeh.
Billy could hardly believe it. In one night, he had seen his home in the afterlife, met other holiday figures, saw his Mr. Unlucky pass out from bad tea, and worn a cheap Halloween costume in the middle of spring. Billy would have to write a book about all of this one day, but not now. Now, he had to help all of these holiday folk bring some peace to Thanksgiving Town.
"Um, Santa Claus?" Billy asked the large man in red.
"What holiday are you from?" Santa Claus asked in return. "Wait, let me guess. Are you the April Fool?"
"No, sir. I'm a mortal."
"A mortal?" Santa Claus asked loudly, causing the rest of the Council to turn to him.
"Yep. William Colby, you can call me Billy."
"Billy, I understand this must be very strange for you-"
"Not really. Jack told me you all existed."
Billy knew the moment Santa Claus walked away from him that he had gotten Jack into some serious trouble. Well, at least Santa was leading the rest of the holiday people to Jack. Billy knew he should not have found this funny, but he couldn't help chuckling to himself as he followed suit. All the bad karma Mr. Unlucky had cause him for twenty years was about to bite him in his bony rear.
"Jack, why is it that when some rule higher than all of us is broken, you are the one who broke it?" Santa Claus asked the Pumpkin King, who was now lying down on a bench with Sally watching over him.
"What did I do now?"
"Billy is a mortal. Mortals are not supposed to come to any of our worlds."
"They aren't?" Rabbi Tevel asked. "Not that I've ever brought one," he finished, noticing the glare Santa Claus had given him.
"He's marked," Jack said as he began to sat up, "I'm allowed to bring marked souls to my world."
"When they die, Jack. Not when they're alive."
"I resent that," Billy said, "You know, for Santa Claus, you're pretty mean."
"Marked or not, you don't belong here."
"I don't know about you, but I don't think my being here is the main problem we're dealing with," Billy stated.
"He's right," Sally said. "Now that you're all here, we can come up with a way to reveal the real kidnappers of that child," the rag doll finished, looking over to Kimi and Pallaton, who were seated on the floor and guarding the baby carrier.
"What do we know so far?" Saint Patrick asked.
"We know Jack did not do it. Sorry about that again," Cupid said to Jack.
"It's water under the bridge," Jack replied.
"We also know that the Elders are behind it, and they have my fiancé in jail," Jacob said in a worried tone, receiving a comforting pat on the shoulder from the Easter Bunny.
"Don't forget, they imprisoned one of their own with her," Rabbi Tevel added, "Chances are he'll confess everything if the others don't."
"Alright, so our main goals are to free the two prisoners and have the Elders confess to kidnapping. How can we do that?" Santa Claus asked.
"Excuse me," Kimi said as she got up and walked to the discussing group, "I feel that some of my people should be there when the confession is made. It's only fair."
"I guess we can go back to the village and get Takoda's parents and your chief," Jacob said, "But we need something to stall the Elders long enough until we return."
"What kind of stalling?" Jack asked as a grin began to creep across his face.
"We want the Elders to confess only when Kimi and I return with the boy's parents and the chief, and any other Natives who want to come. The Elders need to think they've won long enough for us to make the round trip."
"I have an idea!" Jack exclaimed.
"Uh-oh," Santa Claus muttered to himself.
"I'm going to be exorcized," Jack said proudly.
"Jack, wasn't the whole point of me rescuing you was so that you wouldn't be sent to the Great Beyond?" Sally asked in confusion.
"Not really exorcized, Sally," Jack said before looking over to Pallaton, "Excuse me, Spirit Man? Bring Takoda over here. We need to talk."
"Yes?" Pallaton asked as he walked over with the carrier in his hands.
"Is there a way for you to, well, pretend you're sending me to the Great Beyond?"
"I can use the wrong incantations on purpose. Those won't do anything to you."
"Or Billy."
"Yeah, or Billy... wait a minute!" Billy exclaimed.
"Santa Claus can't be too mad at me if you're helping," Jack said in an insisting voice, slyly adding a wink when Old Saint Nick wasn't looking.
"Right, helping," Billy said reluctantly.
"So, here's my plan," Jack started as he folded his hands together, "We wait until whatever trial the Elders are having with Patience and their other captor is well under way. Spirit Man, I'm sorry, what's your name?"
"Pallaton."
"Yes, Pallaton. Pallaton, you enter the courthouse and say that you have found the demons. That is where Sally, Billy, and I come in."
"Jack, why am I in this part of the plan?" Sally asked as she began to wring her hands.
"Think of it as the role of your life. You'll be a vicious demon woman."
"I don't think I can be vicious."
"I know it's a stretch, but you can pull it off."
"Can we get back to the plan, please?" Santa Claus asked.
"Sorry," Jack apologized, "As I was saying, Billy, Sally and I will play the demons. We'll pretend to be tied up, then break from our 'bonds' and start to 'fight' Pallaton. All the while, members of the Council should be posted in different areas of the town and woods."
"Why?" Rabbi Tevel asked.
"When the Native witnesses are halfway to Thanksgiving Town, that's when Pallaton will begin to 'exorcize' us. When they actually reach town, that's when I'll corner the Elders."
"Corner the Elders?" Cupid asked.
"Your people are God-fearing, yes?" Jack asked Jacob.
"Very God-fearing," Jacob replied, "Is there a problem with that?"
"No. The plan depends on it. I'm going to scare the Elders into thinking they are going to Hell unless they loudly repent their sin, kidnapping Takoda. When they do, I'll let them out of their fear and that's when everyone sees them for the despicable people they really are."
"What was all that again?" Saint Patrick asked after a brief silence, causing Jack to smack his forehead.
Jack took in his breath and slowly repeated his plan without interruptions. It was decided that the watching posts would be set up just outside the woods and at the settlement's entrance. The Easter Bunny and Rabbi Tevel would be the ones at the former post while Saint Patrick and Santa Claus would wait at the latter one. They were in pairs because one of each pair would have to run to the head signaler, whose job was to let Jack and Sally know when to stop fighting with Pallaton and when to stop pretending to be exorcized. That job was given to Billy, who was doubling as a demon andthe headsignaler.
As for where Takoda would be during all of this, Cupid volunteered to take care of him. He would stay in Jacob's house with the child until the whole mess was cleared. He said he needed practice with babies anyway, so Jack didn't argue against that. The only person who wasn't so sure of the plan at this point was Sally. Jack managed to pull her aside for a few moments and tried to get her to be vicious, among other things.
"Jack, I'm not good at acting."
"It's fun. Ok, make the maddest, most evil face you possibly can."
"Alright, but don't say I didn't warn you," Sally said before squaring her eyes, pouting, and crossing her arms.
"It's a start. Could be better though," Jack said, barely hiding his letdown.
"Could be better? Jack, I don't know what goes through your mind sometimes. You come up with these crazy ideas and just expect me to go through with them perfectly. I'm not perfect, Jack. How am I supposed to be vicious by the time we pull off this grand scheme, if we can do it in the first place? This is insane! I feel like I'm falling apart right-"
"Sally, that's it!"
"What is?"
"That tirade. Just think back to that and you'll be vicious. See, I told you it could be done."
"How does everything work out fine for you?"
"My crazy ideas get crazy results."
"I'm sorry."
"I understand. When this is all over, I won't pick up any stray babies in the woods ever again. I promise."
"Speaking of picking up babies, did I tell you about our appointment with Venus? She said she needs to see both of us before we can have children of our own," Sally said as she drew closer to Jack, drawing invisible circles on his chest with her fingers.
"That I hadn't heard," Jack said, "Perhaps our forbidden baby question will be answered after all."
"I hope so. Maybe focusing on our future children will tone down your scheming."
"I'm not that bad, am I?"
"No, but I have to admit that pretending to be vicious and sent to the Great Beyond isn't how I'd choose to spend a normal day."
"Alright, point taken. Where would I be without my voice of reason?"
"Probably in the real Great Beyond. There's no chance of Pallaton making a mistake in his act, is there?" Sally asked.
"I doubt it," Jack replied, "I think it's about time we get this started. Ready?"
"As ready as I'll ever be."
"Let's go."
Jack took Sally's hand and together they gathered the rest of their mission crew. As they all took their respective positions, and Jacob and Kimi made their way to the Native village, the trial of Patience and Daniel was underway at the courthouse. Every colonist in Thanksgiving Town was there, amazed at the charges those two were accused of. Before the villagers stood the worst villains they could think of: a witch and a traitor.
"Patience Carrington, is it not true that thou art a witch?" asked the Grand Elder from the judge's bench.
"It is a lie you fabricated," Patience said from the witness stand.
"How dare she speak to the Grand Elder in that way?" asked a Puritan woman who covered the ears of her children.
"She surely must be a witch," said a Puritan man.
"They are lying to you!" Patience exclaimed.
"Silence!" yelled the Grand Elder. "Miss Carrington, when this cousin of thine needed help in overthrowing his fellow Elders," he continued, pointing to Daniel sitting at the Defendant's Chair between Elder Robert and Elder John, "Did you promise to use thine witchcraft in helping him succeed?"
"Of course not."
"Ah, so you admit to practicing witchcraft, just not using it for treason?"
"You're just twisting my words around!"
"Who here thinks she is worthy enough of the gallows?" the Grand Elder asked the colonists, watching as each and every hand went up, "No further questions. I hereby sentence thee to death by hanging. Daniel-"
Before Grand Elder Joseph could call Daniel to the stand, the doors to the Courthouse flew open. Every head in the courtroom turned to see who had disturbed this trial. It was a Native man, who strolled down the aisle as if he had been inside many times before. He looked to be focused on something when he gave a bow to the Grand Elder.
"Who are you?" asked the Grand Elder.
"Pallaton of the Native tribe," said the stranger, "There is something I wish for you to see."
"You are disturbing justice."
"I have found the demon who kidnapped the child from my village. I would like for you and the other Elders to witness his exorcism and that of his accomplices."
"Very well. Robert, John, escort the prisoners outside. We can't let them out of our sight."
The Grand Elder would have been more pleased if the Native had mentioned killing all who resided in the land of Halloween. Perhaps he was waiting to say so until after he disposed of the skeletal demon and his partner in crime. In any case, this was a step headed in a right direction towards disposing the Natives. The Grand Elder motioned for the rest of the colony to stay inside the Courthouse while business was taken care of outside. Little did he know how fast his power was slipping away.
So, will Jack's plan actually work? Will they come across any snags? Can it be that the Elders really will repent what they've done? Only one way to find out. (Re-edit Comment: I love it when the good guys make plans. So much anticipation, eh?)