Once onboard her ship, Hattie wasted no time taking care of Mu. She quickly set her down on the floor in her air-conditioned ship.
"Hang on, Mu. I'm gonna get some water!" She jumped up the ladder and dashed into the kitchen. Soon as she entered, she stopped, seeing Cooking Cat pacing.
"Mama Cookie!"
"Hattie!" She then ran over and hugged Hattie firmly, relieved. "Thank the stars. You're okay. Soon as I saw the town flood with lava, I fled up here and didn't find you. I got worried."
"I'm okay, Cookie. Oh, but Mu isn't! I think the heat got to her and I need to help her!" Cooking Cat immediately released her embrace and looked down at her seriously.
"Where is she now?" Hattie pointed out of the kitchen. Cookie exited and gasped, seeing heat-exhausted Mu laying on the floor. She slid down the ladder and quickly got to work. Thankfully, she knew first aid.
"Hattie, dear, go get a damp cool washcloth and a cold glass of water, please. Quickly now." Hattie nodded, quickly going back into the kitchen to grab such things.
Meanwhile, Cookie took off her chef coat, showing a sort of cream colored long-sleeve shirt underneath. She folded up the coat and propped it under Mu's legs to keep them elevated.
"Now, Mu dear, I'm gonna take off your hood to help you cool off." Mu mumbled something incoherent. Cooking Cat could only assume she meant "okay." She still had her pink dress with the purple sash on underneath, but at least with the hood off, it'll be easier to cool her off.
"I got the water and cloth!" Hattie hopped down with both things on hand. Working on the Arctic Cruise has really helped her with these sort of tasks.
"Be careful, don't spill the glass. Just hand them to me, dear." Hattie did as she was told, watching over Mu with worry. Cookie folded the damp cloth and placed it on her forehead. She then gently had her sit up a bit and take small sips of the water.
"Is she gonna be okay?"
"Poor dear's suffering a bit of heat exhaustion...but thankfully, that's the worst of it. She'll be alright once she's completely cooled off." Hattie exhaled with relief.
Now that Mu was taken care of, she now had to take care of Snatcher. She pulled out her contract and saw that it was complete. Bonuses included. She only cooled down twice and didn't overheat, after all. She smirked, feeling a little proud.
"Hattie, do you know how those faucets turned back on?" Hattie blinked, rolling up the contract once more, and looked to Cookie.
"Well...I think Snatcher did it. But I don't really get why. All I know now is that he's not acting like himself, as far as I've known him, and he's making me do these 'advanced contracts.' I don't know why now or why he's doing it..." She then looked to the hallway to her room. "But I'm gonna find that out."
She then looked back to Cookie. "Will Mu be alright while I go check with Snatcher real quick?"
Cookie gave her a reassuring smile. "Of course, sugarcube. I'll watch over her."
Hattie smiled back. "Thanks, mom." She then headed into her room to meet with Snatcher. Mom. That was kind of a new one for Cookie. She smiled warmly at the title nonetheless.
As Hattie walked down the hallway, she quietly pulled out the corrupted-looking Time Piece from her pocket and looked it over once more. What is this exactly? Surely it's not a real Time Piece, right?
She then looked up when she heard the familiar "woosh" of her doors opening. Looking up her pillow pile, she spotted Snatcher in his spot. He glanced up from his book with that same wide grin she's been seeing him show. Though...that smile was twitching a little now.
"Hey, kiddo! Gotta say, almost didn't expect you to get this far already." Hattie frowned though, crossing her arms and showing a fed-up expression.
"Aww, got mad because you weren't allowed in the cooling bucket I was in?"
"No, I'm mad that you put Mafia Town in danger like that! Mu got heat exhaustion...whatever that means exactly. All I know about it though is that she practically passed out because of that challenge."
"Well, it's the brat's fault. She shouldn't have tried to help you through your contract." He looked so dismissive saying that. As if he didn't care. Hattie frowned, then pulled out said contract.
Walking up to him, she held out the unrolled contract, showing that she finished it. "Contract's complete. Now I want answers. Why are you making these? Why not just do it in your forest? What is happening to you? Cause you're being a real jerk."
Snatcher sighed, taking the contract. "You could afford to be more polite, kid. Is a simple 'please' too much to ask for?"
Hattie frowned. She was not in the mood. Snatcher smirked at her expression. "Well, I did say I'd give you answers. I'll keep it simple and brief then."
She gave him her attention as she looked right into his eyes. He just continued showing his wide smile as he simply stated, "I want your soul."
Hattie blinked in shock. Even now, he's still aiming to get it?
Snatcher continued, "After our last fight, and that trick you put into the last contract, I knew I had to come up with something greater and harder to get what I wanted. I figured what my forest had to offer alone wouldn't be enough of a challenge for you. So, I expanded the horizons and made challenges for the entire planet!"
"You...still want my soul? But we're BFFs! BFFs don't steal each other's souls!"
"You understand, like I said before, that's not how contracts work, right?" In Moonjumper's case, it would not apply to him. Snatcher was to be her BFF, not him; hence, he could be as evil as he can be to Hat Kid and get away with it.
Hattie began to look down, taking all this in. She thought he was actually starting to care about her. The Arctic Cruise...her return from visiting Bow...was all that just a facade? Was he really just scheming and tricking her?
There was no way. He seemed so genuine in his emotions. If he really didn't care, he would've done this sooner.
Hattie then blinked, remembering another question. She pulled out the purple Time Piece and held it up to him. "Well, what are these then? They can't be Time Pieces, right?"
"Smart observation, kid. No, they're not. At least, not exactly." He then took it from her hands and held it up with pride. "I made these myself. Tried to recreate a Time Piece out of dark magic. They may not rewind time like yours can, but they can bring great power to the possessor of them. Think of these as your end goal items that you need to get to finish your contract, just like your real Time Pieces."
So that purple sand was just pure dark magic? In no way did that sound safe. But he was right about one thing: in every task that she has done, she earned a Time Piece at the end of it. It would make sense that these weird purple ones would represent the end of her Death Wish contracts.
"So with each one you earn, I'll hold onto it. And you know, I'm actually glad you got through that first contract! I had so many more planned and I was worried you wouldn't get to them."
"But I don't want to do more. I just want to know why you still want my soul. Contract or not, you're still not acting like you were before." Hattie was showing concern now.
Snatcher's right eye now twitched. "As I said, kid...I'm fine." Hattie took a small step back as his voice dropped to a dangerous low tone. He's being a bit scarier than she remembered him being before.
"And whether you like it or not, you're doing these contracts I have set for you. Do so, and I'll still give you those rewards I promised as well as more answers if you still have more questions." Hattie frowned. She really didn't want to keep going on this...but she had to figure out what was wrong with Snatcher.
Despite what he keeps telling her, she can tell something is off about him. But perhaps if she played along for now, she'll get more answers and find a way to help her BFF get back to his senses.
With a sigh, Hattie quietly nodded. "Alright...then what's next?" Snatcher's wide grin seemed to have somehow grown wider. It honestly made Hattie uncomfortable how he was smiling so much now.
"Well, even with the bonuses, you're still only able to do this one for now." A new contract scroll poofed in front of Hattie. She quietly took it and opened it.
The title stated, "So You're Back From Outer Space" Her goal was to reach one of Snatcher's Time Pieces. The little plus said, "Mafia saw spaceship!" That sounded a little familiar to her. Finally, the bonuses were, "Smash all the UFOs" and "Reach the end in 65 seconds."
Hattie frowned. This looked hard already, but there was no turning back on it now. Snatcher held out the quill for her and she signed her name. He then stamped it.
"Now, get to it, trooper!" Hattie quietly nodded, looking to her map. Before she located where this new challenge is suppose to be, she then looked at this one candle symbol that was on her map.
"Hey, Snatcher. What's this candle thing?" She held up the map to show him.
He looked at it, then explained, "Oh, those are little bonus contract tasks that you can do at anytime. They can offer you rewards as well. If you want to start it, just light one of the candles in the room." Hattie looked to the candles that were around her walkway. They were all unlit, but surely that's a fire hazard near her pillows. They were also very big and had Snatcher's face waxed on them.
She decided to start at the bottom-most candle. Digging into her top hat, she pulled out a small box of matches. Lighting one, she carefully lit the candle and looked up to Snatcher.
"Well done, kiddo. You can light a candle. I'm real impressed." Something told Hattie that he was using sarcasm as he stated all that. "As I said, you can complete that contract at any time, and some places might be more suitable than others for whatever bonus contract you'll do. So go take your pick!"
"How will I know I'm done with it completely and I plan to do another candle?"
"I'll tie a little red ribbon around it and you'll blow it out once it's done." Snatcher then snapped in the contract Hattie signed up for and tossed it to her.
Hattie caught it and pocketed it, willing to look it over later. This all seems pretty straightforward. Now she had to do this new bonus contract and this "back from outer space" one. Snatcher wasn't kidding when he said he had more planned.
"Well, what are you waiting for? Go on! Shoo!" Hattie jolted a bit as Snatcher snapped out of her thoughts, dismissing her. She frowned and quickly left the room.
Once outside, she saw Mu and Cookie talking with each other. Mu didn't look as worn down as she did just a little bit ago.
"Mu!" Hattie pocketed the contracts and dashed to her, hugging her.
Cookie quickly stated, "Ah ah ah! Careful, Hattie, she's still recovering!" Mu was a bit surprised by the sudden hug, but hugged back nonetheless with a small smile. She still felt weak, but definitely better than earlier.
"Thanks for the save, kid. Don't know what would've happened if you didn't get us out of Mafia Town." Hattie's smile grew as she continued hugging.
Mu then had Hattie release her embrace so she could look into her turquoise eyes in a serious manner. "Your brute of a friend almost chucked me into the lava sea then left me stranded in the clock tower! You can't just expect me to believe he's still a good guy to you."
Hattie's eyes widened. Snatcher really did that? ...No, perhaps Mu was exaggerating. She did that a lot. Nonetheless, Hattie frowned. Sure, Snatcher was being a jerk lately. But surely he wouldn't go that far...would he?
"I don't know what to think of him right now. All I know is I need to get through whatever challenges he's throwing at me and get answers."
Mu sat up more straight and prepared to crack her knuckles. "Well then, let's take on whatever that noodle shadow ghost has to offer!"
Hattie then shook her head, gently lowering Mu's fists. "He wants me to do it myself. They're my contracts, he says. And when you tried to help, he stopped you and you almost got overheated."
"But you can't fight him alone!"
"I know, but I've been through his contracts before. Surely the oncoming ones won't be as bad as they say they are. After all, I got through the first one fairly well."
Mu frowned, quietly concerned for her friend. Cookie then finally interjected. "Well, we'll be rooting for you on the sidelines then. In the meantime, Mu, let's rest up for the night." She then picked up Mu, carrying her.
"Wh-Cookie! I'm not a baby! I don't need to be carried!"
Cookie just smiled a little and said, "That is true. You're not a baby. But you are in no condition to run around for now. I'm carrying you to bed and that's that."
Mu pouted, but didn't bother fighting her more about it. Cookie then turned to Hattie and said, "We'll be up in the Attic. Please try not to be out too late and be careful."
Hattie nodded, giving Cookie a reassuring smile. As Cookie headed to the elevator, Mu looked over Cookie's shoulder to Hattie and said, "Good luck, fellow rebel. Show that Snatcher that you're tougher than he thinks."
Hattie's smile grew as she nodded once more. Once the two of them went up to the Attic, Hattie pulled out the main contract she got first and the map. According to the map, this contract starts at the Observatory Deck.
She looked at Earth. It should be nighttime right about now. And judging by those clouds in Mafia Town, it was going to be a rainy day. Hattie dashed back to her room, grabbed her raincoat, and dashed back to the hatch.
A rainy day wasn't going to stop her now.