It was a quiet evening in the quaint town of Lititz Heights, A truck for Mirage Candies was arriving at Waving Jester Candy Shop. The manager, Remy Novak, was prepping up some new heart shapped lollipops when the movers came in. After he handled the shipment of new Mirage Candy, he opened one of them for a snack break and saw was disgusted by its flavor. It tasted like something out of a newspaper. Realizing this, he bought counterfeit candy.
XxoxX
Meanwhile, on the other side of town, the Klue Queens were playing dessert bingo when Carolina came in with some great news.
"You remember my best friend Raina," Carolina explained, "the Friendly Scout who makes Friendly Scout Pops with the '50s logo 'The Right Way'?"
"I remember," recalled Estrella. "I heard she's getting married to her British/Italian fiancé here from Cristina."
"Yeah," replied Carolina. "And she asked me to be the maid of honor."
Suddenly, they heard a doorbell ring. "The ministress for Raina's wedding is here," Carolina suggested.
By the living room, they were greeted by a very beautiful calica in red and marigolds. Recognizing her from their 6th grade history class, Leah and Rylie could tell that it was La Muerte, ruler of the Land of the Remembered.
Leah said, "Not only is she the ruler of the Remembered and a storyteller. She's also a justice of the peace."
"Si," replied La Muerte. "Maybe during the reception, I can tell the mihos at the kiddy table about the legend of Gravity Falls."
"Good idea," agreed Leah as she looked down. "Hey, where's Kirby?"
"He better not be in the kitchen eating the galetas again," Estrella replied. "Swinger, go find him."
With one nod, Swinger started looking for the little puffball. In the attic, he could see a scary looking god in green playing dessert bingo with some beavers, pigs, turtles, and skunks. Swinger was mad because the animals were trespassing. Before Swinger got a chance to attack, Kirby sucked him and spot him near a trunk.
"Come on!" groaned the green god. "The animals and I were having fun with dessert bingo. Whoever wins gets to have seconds on spider and cockroach ice cream."
While the animals cheered, Swinger got annoyed. In the attic, Carolina, La Muerte, and the Klue Queens came up to see the chaos going around. Amongst the pig was a familiar animal to Rylie. "Sumo?" she asked. "How did you get here?" Sumo barged through and came up to her.
"I've been going around town gathering animals from the forest for a game of bingo," explained Xibalba. "And perhaps a bunch of counterfeit candy form the candy counterfeit ring."
"Balby!" scolded Marybeth.
"Counterfeit candy ring?" asked Paige. "Like, bummer. People paid good money for candy."
"Isn't Rayna and Harlow ordering candy for the reception via empoloyee discount?" Estrella asked her older sister.
"Rayna does work at The Waving Jester," answered Carolina, "and her boss just hired Harlow so he won't be traumatized by his past."
"I just remembered something," replied Kaylin. "Mirage means 'illusion'. Just like in 'Lawrence of Arabia'. Uncle Rusty, Fayth, and I saw that movie a few times. Lelannee isn't allowed to watch it until she's ten."
"Enough small talk," replied Leah. "We need to find out who would be responsible of a counterfeit candy ring."
XxoxX
Suspects
Angelica Di Cafaro (Half British/Half Italian CEO of Mirage Candies) - Seems grumpy about Valentine's Day.
The movers from one of the trucks - Have been on the same truck as the delivery of Piping Passion Bars.
Raina Jarvis and Harlow McCann (Carolina's best friend and fiancée) - Raina loves peppermint candy and Harlow used to work for Mirage candies.
XxoxX
At the wedding tent, Kaylin, Paige, Tania, Kirby, Rick, and La Muerte arrived to talk to Deputy Downs' little sister and her newfound husband. Also there was Deputy Downs himself. "Thanks again for letting me help out Jimena," he said.
"Hey," Jimena replied. "If I could help my brother have the perfect wedding, so can the best friend of one of my sister-in-laws."
"Careful with that, Bentley!" shouted Jimena. "We don't want to ruin the couple's happiest day of their lives."
"Deputy Downs," informed a female Mirage Candies employee. "We figure you might be helping Jimena plan another wedding. There's been a counterfeit candy ring going around Pennsylvania lately, and we were wondering if you know anything about it."
"There have been some rumors of Mirage Candies going downhill after the CEO's nephew left the company," explained Deputy Downs. "He couldn't take the pressure of his aunt's cruelty anymore, even after his parents were killed in a car crash when he was nine."
"I'm sorry to hear about the boy," replied Kaylin. "If we find her nephew, we'll talk to him about his parents."
XxoxX
At The Waving Jester, Leah, Rylie, Estrella, Tokkori, Swinger, Sumo, and Xibalba, they met an African-American girl and a Italian/British boy.
"Raina!" shouted Estrella. "And you must be Harlow."
Observing carefully, Estrella could see a marking of an arrow through the heart on the side of his neck. "What is that marking you have?" she asked.
"It's a birthmark," answered Harlow in a British accent. "I don't like to talk about my family's past."
Harlow explained to them that his parents died when he was a boy, leaving him with his evil aunt. Every day she focused on her business more than himself. "I try to be nice to my Aunt Zia," he continued, "but she ignores me. She thinks I hate her. Mostly on Valentine's Day, she would yell at people in rage."
"Valentine's Day is supposed to be a happy day not a sad day," growled Tokkori. "Go cry in a sorrow milk bar." Everyone got mad at Tokkori for kicking Harlow when he was down.
"Tokkori," scolded Rylie, "what did we tell you about messing with people's emotions?"
"So what?" Tokkori asked.
"You may be a jokester who enjoys hurting people on purpose," replied Leah, "but you aren't helping matters here. Apologize now or you won't get any Valentine's Day candy tomorrow."
"I'm sorry I kicked you when you're down," Tokkori groaned.
After Harlow felt better, he saw Xibalba eating the counterfeit candy. Raina decided to let him go because usually it would be made for animals. On the ground, Swinger found a clue. It was a candy bar.
"There's an inscription on it," replied Estrella. "'VB'. What does that mean?"
While Leah, Rylie, Estrella, Raina Tokkori, Swinger, and Sumo were observing the candy bar, Harlow flinched a little.
XxoxX
At Roadhouse Fantasia, our heroes were enjoying some Valentine's Day desserts going over some clues. Leah got out a map that was left behind in the box of counterfeit candy. It was a map of pennslvania, and all the heart stamps. Thinking quickly, they could tell that the heart marks represent the places where they sold Piping Passion Bars.
"There's Waving Jester," recalled Leah. "And look at all these candy stores," she whispered. "Kaiwi Confection, Cubby's Candies, Swizzle Shop."
"These are all candy shops that aren't part of a franchise," recalled Kaylin.
Suddenly, they heard a truck from outside. It was the movers who were at every candy store delivery.
"I told you not to leave the map in one of the boxes," groaned a mover.
"But the boss said to dispose it once we sell the last Pipping Passion Bar box to Lititz Heights," explained the other. "And now I can't find it anywhere."
Little did the movers know, is that Xibalba, Swinger, and Kirby snuck in to find more of the passion bars. Dissapointingly, they didn't find any, only a bunch of birthday candles with a bunch of cake crumbs. Kirby knew that it had to be a clue. So he took the candles and Xibalba sent them back to the restaurant.
After showing Paige the candles, she knew one thing. "The candles must be off of a birthday cake," she said. "And that 'VB' symbol left on the candy bar, it must've meant 'Valentine Birthday'."
"The culprit must really hate Valentine's Day," replied Kaylin, "all because of one forgotten birthday."
On her phone, Kaylin could see a picture of Angelica Di Cafaro about Valentines Day. In the picture, she could see that she has a birthmark shaped like an arrow through the heart on the side of her neck, just like Harlow.
"Wait," interrupted Estrella. "Didn't Harlow say that his family died when he was a little boy?"
"That sounded like the same story Deputy Downs gave us about Angelica's nephew," recalled Kaylin. "Unless..."
"Harlow McCann is Angelica Di Cafaro's nephew!" exclaimed the girls.
"That's right," said one of the movers. "We saw a trail of sparkles leading to our truck. Luckily, we used our alien-tracking phones here."
The Klue Queens needed a way to escape the movers. Remembering High School Musical Week from LADUWS: Season 1, they decided to dance their way out. Just as they were about to escape, a stern Italian/British lady in a red buisness suit glared at them. It was Angelica Di Cafaro. "What are you girls doing?" she asked in a British accent.
"We know all about your little counterfeit candy ring, dudette," growled Paige. "Like, where's the love?"
"Love?!" shouted Angelica. "More like *years*. My birthday has been forgotten by the forsaken Valentine's Day. I started off working as a local candy shop girl in Atloona. Sadly, everyone keeps forgetting my birthday, including my parents and my little sister. I promised myself that on my 50th birthday, I would pull off my Pippin Passion Bars."
She got out a handgun, hoping it'd make them push up daisies. Looking down, Leah could see a leftover Pipping Passion Bar on the ground.
"Any last words before you go to Star Heaven?" demanded Angelica.
"Just four," Leah replied, "Kirby, suck it up!" With one gulp of the counterfeit candy wrapping, Kirby turned into Love Love Stick Kirby.
"A flying gumball with a love wand?" asked Angelica. "That doesn't scare the gelato out of me."
She shot from her gun, only for it to pop out hearts. Angelica was petrified by this. Using the Love Stick, Love Stick Kirby knocked out her two henchmen cold. Using some marigold petals, La Muerte pelted the movers with them, hoping it'd sooth their nerves. Angelica tried to escape, but Xibalba blocked her. "Heard of an ambush?" he asked. "Here's an 'animal-bush'."
Summoning beavers, skunks, pigs, and turtles, they scared her into the Heart Bubble that Love Stick Kirby just made.
"How did you figure out that it was me?" Angelica asked.
"There is the definition of 'mirage' that blew your cover," recalled Tania, "then a map of all the local candy stores in Pennsylvania, then the inscription on the candy bars 'VB' indicating to me that it involved a birthday, and finally there was the birthday candles in the truck."
"Aunt Angelica!" shouted Harlow as he and Raina came up in rage.
"Harlow, my boy," Angelica smiled.
"Don't you 'Harlow, my boy' me," growled Harlow. "Raina and I were going around for a drive when we spotted a giant heart popping from Roadhouse Fantasia. My mom would be very mad at you for turning our familia factory into a counterfeit mine."
"I told my little sister not to marry a dentist," growled Angelica, "but she didn't listen to me!"
Instead of taking her and her cohorts to jail, La Muerte and Xibalba decided to let them sleep until Raina and Harlow's wedding was over, so that there wouldn't be any objections. "And after the reception is over," continued La Muerte, "they'll be force to become better CEOs and workers, or else they'll be attacked by animals again."
Harlow was glad that they were going to teach his aunt a lesson. Now he and Raina could have their happily ever after.
XxoxX
The next day, Raina and Harlow were having their wedding reception. When it was time for the slow dance, Leah and Issac, Rylie and Martin, and Estrella and Helen came up and danced with the happy couple.
As they were enjoying the couples dance, Tania found Kirby, Swinger, Sumo, Little Miss Starlight, Masahiro, Rick, and a bunch of beavers, pigs, skunks, turtles sleeping under a tree while using the ring bearer pillow. Paige recognized the pillow as the one she got for her Thrift Donation badge. "Doesn't Kirby look cute sleeping that?" she asked.
"Solid," replied Kaylin. "Too bad Nathaniel couldn't come 'cause he promised his father to see his book singing in Erie, but this is good for me."
Xibalba tried to come up to cuddle the animals, but a scared skunk acidentally sprayed him by the eyes. He was so petrified by the skunk spray, he took off.
The End
