Chapter Fifteen: So... Now what?

"YOU WERE ON THE NEWS THIS MORNING!" Dill tackled Finn, knocking the still exhausted teen backwards.

Finn shoved his best friend off of him, annoyance flashing briefly in his eyes. "Can you say that any louder? Don't think China heard you."

"Sorry." Dill plopped unceremoniously onto the Finn's bed. "So what was your folks response to finding out about your night time activities?"

"They still don't know." Finn shrugged as he checked that he had everything he needed to spend the day at the Festival.

"But you were on the news!" Dill spluttered confusion flooding his eyes.

Finn shrugged as he turned to face his ITEM. "For some reason, you are the only one that appears to be able to tell who we are."

"Oh... how are you going to take that to the Festival as your pet anyways?"

"I have no idea..." Finn rubbed his eyes tiredly frustration flashing through him. "Maybe there's a way to turn it into a real fish."

"That'll be cool." Dill eyed the Fish that was swimming through the air casually. "Man... you're so lucky! You get to sneak out at night to go on some kind of magical adventure, a literal break away from real life! I mean even the ITEMs look magical and not real."

Finn stared at Dill for five seconds, before turning to face the FISH. "Dill... you are a genius. Reality." Nothing happened. Frowning, Finn tried again. "Real." A slight shimmer but nothing more. Finn thought for a minute, before trying once more. "Real life." This time the ITEM turned into a gold fish, complete with a small fish bowl filled with water... Finn dove for it to keep it from crashing to the ground. "Okay... we know how to do that... um... if that turns you into a gold fish then... maybe Magical Dream will turn you back..." The ITEM turned back into the blue and silver fish it was before. "Sweet." Finn grasped the Fish in his hands eyeing it curiously. "I guess I probably should give you a name now, uh? Oh, before I forget... Real Life." He was once again holding a fish bowl with a goldfish in it.

Dill tilted his head to the side, a thoughtful expression on his face. "How about Nemo? You know, from that movie, Finding Nemo?"

"Uh... no." Finn rolled his eyes, even as his mother hollered up the stairs.

"Boys! Time to go!"

Hopefully this wouldn't completely backfire on him...

"If I hear one more mention of the Keepers... I'm gonna scream!" Finn muttered to Dill as they wove their way through the Festival

Dill hummed in agreement as he scanned the area for the other Keepers... which was what everyone who had seen the news was doing. Apparently Finn probably shouldn't have told the others to meet up here in front of a dozen or so cameras. Dill paused, his gaze latching onto a group that was just ahead of them. "Is that them? I mean... they have a squirrel and a chimpanzee with them... and is that a dove?"

Finn blinked, before looking ahead where the rest of his team was gathered with, thankfully, actual animals in place of the ITEMs. Not that Finn or Dill were fooled. They knew that those really were the ITEMs. "Hey guys!" Finn jogged over to them, somehow not spilling water out of the fish bowl that he was caring.

"Finn! I see you brought Bossy with you." Maybeck waved at him, the large canine next to him barking out a greeting along with the jovial one that Maybeck used.

The deadpanned looks everyone was shooting Maybeck was all that was needed to tell him that it was just a Maybeck thing. Walking up to them, Finn raised his eyebrow at his teammate. "Seriously? Bossy?"

"Well... your Leader and I think their names have got to have something to do with who we are. Mine's Lookout." Maybeck patted the dog on the head.

Shaking his head, Finn glanced at the others. As if picking up a silent signal, Willa scratched her chimpanzee on the head. "Strategy. Yes... Maybeck named her."

"Mine's Arrow." Charlene feed a nut to the squirrel sitting on her shoulder.

"I told my parents that mine's Potion." Philby shrugged, seemingly undisturbed about all of this as his arched its back as it stretched.

"We picked Power and Danger for ours." Amanda interjected as Jess shifted to readjust her grip on the snake that was coiled around her shoulders.

"Let me guess... Power is the dove, and Danger is the snake?" Finn guessed, the confirming nod from the sisters letting him know that he was right.

"Who's this with you?" Apparently Maybeck only just now realized that Dill was with Finn.

"This is my best friend, Dill. Don't worry. He knows." Finn gestured to his friend, before turning his attention to the more serious reason why they were meeting up in the middle of the day. "Let's find somewhere private to talk." With that, the group set off together.

Finn wasn't sure when they lost Dill... but he also wasn't too concerned about that either. Slipping into a booth at the ice cream parlor farthest from the door, he sat the bowl with Bossy, the name stuck, down on the table while Amanda held his frozen treat. "Thanks Amanda." Finn took his ice cream, sitting it down in front of him. The others quickly slipped into the booth, Lookout and the others animals settling on the floor next to them. "So... we have the pen."

"Yeah... but we still don't know what it does." Maybeck pointed out as he shoveled a large bit into his mouth.

Finn glanced over at the sisters, certain that they would know. Jess shook her head at them, worry creasing her brow. "I have no idea what it is that the pen supposedly can do. Anyone else has an idea?"

"Finn... your dream, did it show you what it could do?" Charlene asked, stirring her ice cream more than eating it.

Finn paused, barely recalling the vivid dream that he had shortly after this entire adventure started up. " I don't think so... I did mention something about it being the most powerful weapon in the universe for some reason though."

"Great... the final battle is coming up and we have no clue what we are supposed to do with the pen!" Willa groaned as she leaned back in her seat, rolling her eyes skyward.

Silence fell over the group as they pondered what it was that they were supposed to do. After all, the entire world was literally resting on their shoulders.

A/N: Done! Poor teens with way too much responsibility… they just realized that they don't know what the pen is capable of, at all. Not even the sisters who were born and raised in the Kingdom know anything about it. Fun times! Also we are getting really close to the end and I'm wondering if you all would like me to do a sequel to this story... it will be a crossover with Avengers Earth Mightiest Heroes if I do do it. If not... Well thank you for reading this story!

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*crickets chirp up a storm...* Guys please review! I need to know how I'm doing!

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SkyTalon