Hello there my beautiful Nightmare Before Christmas fans! I am HeavyMetalRose and I bring to you my version of what the sequel to our favorite Halloween movie, if by some miracle it should ever exist, should be like. I hope you all enjoy, and don't worry! I know the title sounds like there's going to be a lot of death but I can promise you that if you stick with me, you'll actually be very pleased with the outcome. This was written as a sort of sequel that happens after the game, Oogie's Revenge, because apparently it was meant to be the sequel to the movie (Not sure how I feel about that cause it wasn't the greatest of games, but the plot was pretty decent so that's why I'm going to give it a passing grade and consider it canon.) Again, enjoy! The story is going to be told in movie/story form. Parts in parenthesis will be the parts told as if your watching the movie and the rest will be story form. Consider it a movie written out into a book. I'm also going to try and include songs, but I AM NOT a song writer and I could never be anywhere near as good as Danny Elfman so please bear with me.
(We open up with the title screen, THE NIGHTMARE BEFORE CHRISTMAS 2: THE VALENTINE'S DAY MASSACRE. After the title disappears, we see the holiday door trees, just like in the first film, only this time we are at ground level and slowly zoom in as though we are walking towards them. The narrator, our dear friend 'Sandy Claws', speaks up)
Greetings to all, and welcome back. It's been quite a while, but its time for another tale involving our favorite Pumpkin King Jack. Long after the defeat of the walking sack of bugs, we all thought that was the end to any his Holiday tweaks. But a few years after Jack hijacked Christmas, and the Boogyman tried to take over the seven holiday worlds, the land of love known as Valentine's Day had their own conundrum, so to speak. Now before you ask, it wasn't Jack's fault this time around. But instead, if it wasn't for the Pumpkin King and his world of screams and frights, the day of love would have disappeared along with those who live in its town. So, to all those who have ever known love, I'd suggest you hurry and not dally. Watch and see how Valentine's Day was saved, thanks to our dear old friend Jack and his ragdoll love Sally.
(Entering the Halloween holiday door, we are brought back to Halloween town. We zoom in on the main gate of the town entrance, where we find many of the residents dancing around, practicing the routine for the next up coming Halloween. We see Jack standing onto of the mayor's car, watching as the denizens practice their steps.)
Come out to play, come out to play!
Ghoulish ghosts from every tombstone!
Come on out and celebrate!
The day where zombies groan and spirits moan!
In our town of Halloween!
Where creepy corpses start to roam!
Werewolves howl and witches cackle!
This is the town that we call home!
Once a year, every year!
We come out on this very night!
Dressed to the nines and ready to scare!
We come out to give you a good fright!
Just when things begin to settle
And when you think you are alone
You'd better tread lightly or
Skellington Jack will scare you down to the bone!
Make way, make way, for he is here!
The master of fright and our king!
Here to terrify and petrify any and all!
Enjoy the night and join us as we sing!
La la la la la la la la la la la la la la la
(Remember, I'm not a song writer. You guys can make up any sort of creepy music to the lyrics that you'd like)
As the denizens finished up their song, Jack jumped down from the car and held up his hands, calling out "Stop! Stop!" to which they all stopped dead in their tracks. They mayor ran up to Jack, his face turned to the worried side
"What's wrong Jack?! Didn't you like it?" He asked, nervous about what the pumpkin king had to say
"No, its not that. I'm just wondering if maybe we should up the scare factor during the performance. It doesn't really feel scary enough" Jack responded, folding one arm under his other elbow, holding the other hand up to his chin.
"We could add more snakes and spiders!" One of the witches called from her broomstick
"Or we could have the ghosts possess some of the jack o lanterns and have them floating around" One of the vampire brothers added
"Well, they're good ideas, but its still not quite right. The theme this year is 'The Night of the Living Dead'. Which means we need to really focus on having a deathlier feel to it. Make it more decaying and slimier." Jack responded with a small smile, waving his arms around to empathize his point.
"Of course, Jack. Your absolutely right! I'll get to work on that right away!" The mayor switched to his happy face and ran off towards the town hall
Jack looked to crowd and said, "Let's run through it one more time, and then we'll pick back up tomorrow once the mayor and I are finished making adjustments."
The denizens got back into their positions and began to do the performance again. While Jack was watching them, he noticed Sally, his ragdoll love, sitting on a stone bench nearby. She was sewing something together, but he couldn't tell what it was. When she looked up and saw him, they both smiled sweetly at one another, Jack waving to her and she waving back before going back to what they were working on. What they didn't notice was the mayor, who had returned with several scrolls of Halloween plans in his arms, watching them. His head switched to his happy side and then ran up to where the residents of the town were practicing.
"Stop! Hold on a minute!" He yelled
The residents began to groan, getting annoyed that they were stopped in the middle of their practice again and began chattering.
"What is it this time?" The werewolf asked with annoyed tone
"I've just thought of the most wonderful idea! Why don't we include our Pumpkin Queen into the routine?!"
Everyone suddenly focused their attention on the mayor with a confused jumble of murmurs. Sally looked up from her work with a jolt and looked over to the crowd with a look that was a mix of shock and confusion, while Jack looked at the mayor in surprise.
"Oh Sally! Come on up my dear!" He called out joyfully
Everyone's attention then very quickly shifted to Sally, who sat there frozen like a gargoyle statue, her hand with the needle held up in the air looking like she was about to do another stitch. Jack at first looked at her with shock, but then suddenly grinned with joyful delight.
"Wonderful idea mayor!" He exclaimed
The townspeople, who knew about Jack and Sally's relationship, became very boisterous and all ran over to her, excited with the new change of script. Several of them grabbed Sally's arms while another took her needlework and put it down on the bench. They began to pull Sally over towards the middle of the town square where Jack and the mayor where standing.
"Hold on! Wait a minute!" Sally exclaimed, but her pleas were drowned out by their enthusiasm.
They brought her over and pushed her into Jack's arms. When she looked up at him, he grinned with delight. He turned her around and took each of her wrists with both hands.
Looking over to the townsfolk, he called out "Alright everyone! Once more! From the top!"
They all began to do their dance number once more, with a higher degree of energy thanks to the excitement of the sudden inclusion of the ragdoll. Jack began to lead Sally in a ghoulish but suave dance that could send chills up your spine with how hauntingly beautiful it was. Sally, who was still shocked at being brought to the center of attention and not knowing what to do, just let Jack to continue to lead her through the dance. At the final chorus, Jack quickly dipped her down and brought her back up, right as the dance number came to a close. The denizens began cheering and whistling with admiration of the two of them. While Jack, used to the attention, simply bowed to them with a wide grin, Sally could only slightly bow, unable to really bring her face back up in embarrassment.
"Magnificent everyone! Let's give a big thanks to our Pumpkin Queen! Come my dear, come say a few words!" The mayor held out his hand towards Sally, beckoning her to come forward
"I…um, well I…" Sally began to speak nervously
"SALLY! There you are, I've been looking for you everywhere! Come! You're needed at home!" Dr Finkelstein called out to her from his wheelchair.
"Coming! Sorry, I have to go!" Sally replied, apologizing before running over to him
"Well no matter! That's all for today, everyone! Great work!" The mayor happily proclaimed
The crowd dispersed and headed back to there homes. The only one left was Jack, who had watched Sally run off and was still looking towards the Doctor's lab. He suddenly heard barking and saw his trusty companion, the ghost dog Zero, float towards him with a happy smile.
"Hey there Zero, ready to go home?" Jack smiled at him
Zero barked his consent to his master, and they began to walk towards his manor. Jack stopped for a minute, looked back towards the Doctor's lab, then continued back home.
(The day turns into night, and the giant moon rises into the sky. We zoom towards the Doctor's lab, right into the window leading into Sally's room.)
We see Sally working at her sewing machine, concentrating on keeping a steady hand as she sews the fabrics together.
"Sally!" The Doctor's muffled voice calls out
This snaps Sally's concentration, who then gives a slight sigh and snips the string off the machine and puts the fabric away. She heads over to the lab to find Dr. Finkelstein tinkering with one of his inventions. When he sees her, he looks up and points to a nearby kettle.
"I need to you boil me some more tea. And don't even think about adding deadly nightshade! I'm almost finished with this device and I can't be delayed any further!" He ordered before going back to work
"You know I haven't poisoned you in a long time now, right?" She replied, picking up the kettle
"That may be, but I can't be too careful with a sneaky girl like you." The Doctor mumbled sternly "If Jewel was here, she…never mind."
Sally looked over to an operating table on the opposite side of the lab, where the lifeless body of Jewel, the Doctor's recent creation, was strapped onto. It was during the Christmas incident that the Doctor had made her, and when everything went back to normal, she become the Doctor's assistant and love. She was even the one who got him and Sally make amends with one another, helping him come to realize that while Sally still cared for him, she needed to be allowed to spread her wings. As such, Sally still stayed at the Doctor's lab, but she had finally been given the freedom she had craved to come and go as she pleased, taking part of the comings and goings of Halloween town. They even were able to talk more because of her, with Sally seeing her as a great friend. Perhaps this was the more emotional side of the Doctor, since Jewel shared half his brain.
So, when Jewel suddenly collapsed one day and never woke up, it was shock to both the Doctor and Sally, greatly saddening the both of them. After examining her, the Doctor concluded that he needed to find a power source that could maintain her life, something like a heart (No, this isn't a Kingdom Hearts reference) He's been working to make such a device, but so far, the attempts have been unsuccessful.
"Have you gotten any closer in your experiments?" Sally asked in a somber tone
"No, but this device is my next attempt."
"…Do you think maybe if you did exactly what you did when you made me, she could be brought back?" Sally asked, looking at the motionless woman again.
The Doctor paused for a moment, put his tool down on the table, lifted the microscope lenses off his face and looked at the ragdoll
"You were created in a unique set of circumstances. Before I made you, I found this strange device in the forest near spiral hill. It radiated with this…energy that I couldn't quite place. It wasn't electricity, but I could tell that it was powerful. I brought it here for further study. After a while, I decided that I needed more help, as Igor can only do so much. I stitched you together and got you strapped onto the table. But before I pulled the switch, something possessed me to use the device and combine it with the electricity. The result was very…fascinating. Suddenly, the whole room was filled with red, white, and pink colors as the electricity merged with the device. After I used it on you, the device crumbled into dust, and you awoke. I doubt I could ever recreate that exact scenario, so I have to discover a new power source, one that can at least match the strength of the energy from that device. I'm so very close. So…don't poison my tea." The Doctor then picked up his tool and went back to work.
Sally placed a hand on his shoulder, saying "You'll find a way. I know you can. You're the smartest man I know"
Not saying anything, he simply patted her hand on his shoulder, then went back to work. Sally looked at the Doctor with a pitiful expression for a moment, then took the kettle and went back to down to the kitchen. After brewing more tea, she quietly left it on the table next to him. As she passed the table with Jewel's body, she gave to lifeless woman a pat on the arm, and went back to her room. She then soon began working on the fabric she was sewing earlier. An hour later, she is startled as she hears a thump, like something fell on the floor. Looking around, she didn't see anything. Going back to her work, she hears another thump. This time she gets up and starts to look around. In the corner of her eye, she sees something hit the glass of her large window. Unlocking it and looking down, she sees her love, Jack, the Pumpkin King of Halloweentown, down below her window. He gives her a grin.
"Come take a walk with me?" He suggested
"Of course! I'll be down in a second!" She called back.
She quickly walks out of her room and towards the lab, telling the Doctor "I'm going out on a walk with Jack, I won't be gone too long"
"Fine, just be sure to be back before the sun rises. I'm going to need your help tomorrow." The Doctor shooed her away
She smiles and runs back to her room, where Jack was still waiting for her. "I'm coming down!" She yelled, before jumping out her window.
Jack's eye sockets widen as he sees her fling herself from her window, quickly holding out his arms and catching her in a princess hold.
"Sally, you shouldn't do that, it's dangerous" Jack lightly scolds her as he puts her down
"I would have been fine. I've done it before. Right gentlemen?" She called out to the zombie band that was standing along the wall near the lab
"It's true." The sax leader nodded "She jumped out of her window one night and just stitched herself back up"
"Well…you should still be careful. I don't want anything to happen to you" Jack replied, taking her hands into his, looking into her eyes with a bony grin on his face.
"Alright, I promise to be more careful" Sally smiled back to him
"Shall we?"
Jack held out his elbow for her hold onto, and they walked towards the graveyard where their special spot, spiral hill, rested. Once they got there, Jack patted his leg, summoning Zero from his grave. He happily rose, and floated around the two of them. Jack took out one of his ribs and threw it for him to fetch. Once Zero found it, he brought it back to the pair, who had just reached the top of spiral hill. This time Sally took it and threw it in a different direction. As the ghost dog floated off to find it, the pair sat down and watched him search for it. The silence was suddenly cut short as Jack began to speak.
"Sally, I was wondering"
"About?"
"Well, during the dance rehearsal, when the mayor suggested you come up and join us, it felt like…you didn't like being up there with me. Do you… not want to be my Pumpkin Queen?" He asked, his voice filled with unease
"What?! No, of course not! It's not that!" Sally quickly shut the thought down, waving her hands in panic
Zero barked as he brought back the rib, which Jack took and tossed rather far this time, giving them time to continue their talk.
"It's just that…"
"It's just?" He questioned
"I just don't feel that I've really earned that title." She confessed, folding her arms together.
"What do you mean?" He asked, visibly confused
"Well, you're the Pumpkin King because you can scare anyone. Man, woman, child, even the tiniest of insects to the mightiest of predators. You earned your title because of who you are and what you can do. Whereas I on the other hand, I haven't scared anyone since I was created. I tried scaring corpse kid the other day when I saw him alone at the fountain. But it ended in failure because I tripped before I could even try to scare him. He said that I almost got him, but…I knew that was a lie."
Sally looked to over to where Zero was, who was still searching for the rib, then gazed around the cemetery for a moment before looking back to her skeleton love.
"Lately, I've begun to wonder if I even belong here. I wasn't made for Halloweentown, I was made to be a servant to the Doctor. And while I finally have the freedom to do as a I please, I haven't been able to find my purpose. I would love more than anything to be your Pumpkin Queen. But I don't think I've earned the right to be called that yet. I can't just be the Pumpkin Queen because we…well you know" She replied, getting embarrassed as she spoke about their love. If she could blush, her face would be bright red.
Jack was quiet for a moment. When Zero got back to the couple with the rib, Jack took it and put it back into his chest. He then stood up and held out a hand for Sally.
"Come with me" he said
"Where are we going?"
Instead of answering, he simply took her hand, pulled her up, and brought her to the bridge that led into the Hinterland woods.
"Now, I want you to walk into woods and don't look back." He said, pointed to entrance of the forest
"Why?"
"Just trust me" He replied
"Okay" She said, walking across the bridge and into the woods.
The Hinterland woods was very dark at this time of night. Being a resident of a land that loved the night life, Sally wasn't really scared of the dark. However, she could feel her fabric skin begin to crawl as the wind made a loud howling sound. Being in a forest at night was an ideal spot for scaring people during Halloween, as the many trees and darkness can hide a person's presence. She then suddenly heard the snapping of twig, which caused her to stop in her tracks. She resisted the urge to look back, as Jack had told her not to, even though her sense of fear was screaming at her to do just that. She continued to walk forward, but then heard the sound of someone or something quickly running up behind her. She turned around and screamed at the sight of Jack's ghoulish figure and scary face he was making. He then straightened up and smiled at her.
"That, my dear Sally, was your first lesson in scaring people."
"Wait, what do you mean?" Sally asked, recomposing herself.
"I'm going to help teach you how to scare others" he held out his arms in a grandiose way and gave a large grin.
"Really?" She asked, a smile forming on her face
"Yes, what better way for you to become better at scaring then learning from the master of fright himself" He proclaimed, holding a hand on his chest.
"Thank you, Jack! But wait, won't that interfere with your work?" She asked with a worried expression
Jack took her hands and said "Nonsense, my love. Nothing could be more important then helping my Pumpkin Queen. But just remember, even if you don't think so, myself and the other town members believe you worthy enough to be the Pumpkin Queen, whether you scare others or not. You belong here, with us. With me"
"…Thank you" She whispered, hugging Jack tightly
"Of course. And until you feel that you can scare with confidence, just take pride in the fact that I can be scary enough for the both of us" Jack hugged her back
She giggled at the somewhat boastful comment and they look at one another with deep affection. Just as they were about to kiss, ghostly barking could be heard from behind the pair, where they found Zero smiling at them, waiting for them to throw him another rib. The two laughed and Jack tossed a rib for Zero. The two held hands and walked back to the cemetery. After returning to spiral hill, the pair enjoyed each other's company for several hours.
Soon, Sally noticed that it was getting brighter out. She got up and said "I'd better get back now. The Doctor asked I be back in the morning to help him with his experiment."
"Is he still working on a way to bring Jewel back?"
"Yes. I can tell he's getting weary from the constant failure. I just wish I could help him."
"I'm sure you being there helps him plenty for now" Jack encouraged her
The couple held hands as they walked back to the Doctor's laboratory with Zero following closely beside them. After getting to the door, Sally said with a smile "Thanks for walking me back. I'll see you later"
"Sure" He replied
Jack paused for a minute, grinned, and took the rib Zero was playing fetch with earlier out again and tossed it. As Zero happily flew away to go find it, Jack quickly turned back to Sally and kissed her. It was a light one, but Sally could feel the love from him. They smiled at one another before Jack turned to leave.
"See you later" He smirked as he waved bye to her and walking off
Sally quickly went inside and leaned on the doorway, swooning at the sudden romantic moment between them. She could feel herself on cloud nine. However, she suddenly snapped back to reality as she heard the Doctor call out to her.
"Sally? If your back then hurry up here and help me!" He yelled down to her "I think I've got it this time!"
"Coming!" She yelled
Once she made her way up the stairs, she saw the completed device sitting of the table. The Doctor looked at her and said "It's time to see if this works."
Okay guys, that's my first chapter. Hope you all enjoyed. I'm not a song writer, but I will try to offer song lyrics to some of the upcoming chapters. See you in the next chapter