Musically: Thanks for all the reviews, everyone. They keep me going!
Victoria: Remember a long, long time ago, when I told people to not review? Yeah. That's still in play, guys.
Musically: Oh, be quiet. Go find Jack or something.
In the center of Halloween Town, every monster and demon were gathered around the coffin sleigh. The skeleton reindeer pawed restlessly at the ground. Dreary music floated lazily in the air as the band played, and the Mayor stood dutifully beside the coffin and practiced his lines. It seemed as though millions had come to see Jack on his way.
The coffin lids opened with a bang, and then Jack rose up from the casket. Everyone cheered. With a smile, Jack waved to them all, scanning the crowd secretly for Victoria. His face fell slightly as he realized she was nowhere to be seen. Still, he felt that he had an image to uphold tonight. He turned to the Mayor, who began his speech.
Meanwhile, Victoria was just returning from Oogie's lair. She was sprinting across the graveyards, desperate to find someone who could save Santa from that treacherous Boogie man.
"Jack! Jack!" she yelled. It wasn't any use. There was no one around, which wasn't like Halloween Town at all. Where were they? After catching her breath, she heard music and cheering people downtown. She would have smiled if she hadn't known that Santa was in danger. Victoria made her way into the center of town, pushing her way to the front of the crowd to see Jack.
For a second, she thought Santa had transported himself to this spot. There, on the coffin sleigh, was a man decked out in red and white with a hat, a coat and pants, and boots. He laughed merrily and waved to the people. However, he was terribly thin and much taller than Santa could ever be. It was Jack.
Stunned was the only word to describe Victoria at this point. The most far-fetched idea that anyone could ever think of…and he'd gone through with it. It had worked. In desperation, she tried to call out to him.
"Jack! It's Victoria! Don't do it, we've got to save Santa!"
Her shouts were drowned out by the rest of the crowd, who were happily oblivious to the oncoming doom. Victoria stormed off, shoving those in her path. She had to find Sally. Maybe, just maybe, Sally had figured out a way to stop Jack before it was too late.
Victoria decided to rest by the main fountain.
"Victoria!"
"AH!" Victoria screamed, quickly turning around. She felt an instant relief flood through her as she saw Sally, but Sally looked incredibly embarrassed.
"I'm so sorry!" Sally apologized as she helped Victoria up, "Did I scare you?"
"No. You startled me. I'll be fine," Victoria mumbled. She looked interestedly at the jug on the floor near Sally. It looked ancient, dusty, and had an unpleasant brown hue to it, but the label read, "Fog Juice." Sally caught her stare.
"That's your secret weapon?" Victoria asked. Sally nodded.
"Watch."
In a quick motion Sally had snatched up the jug and had begun to pour it into the fountain. A thick fog began to seep out from all sides. The greenish water inside turned a rainy blue and the cold mist wrapped around their ankles. The fog rose like a flood. Soon, it was up to both of their waists. Victoria almost had a hard time seeing Sally as she explained what it would do.
"Victoria, all of the fountains and wells in Halloween Town are connected. At this very second, fog is coming out of this fountain and about four others. The whole town will be covered in it! Jack's reindeer won't be able to get an inch above the ground."
"Sally," Victoria whispered with a grin, "You are amazing!" If she could have seen Sally clearly, she would have noticed the rag doll's cheeks redden. After searching a bit through the mist, Victoria grabbed her hand.
"Come on! We have to see if Jack is going or not."
The two raced through the fog, and soon they found themselves among the crowd again. With some effort they pulled to the front. To their pleasure, Jack's disappointed voice was heard above all the others.
"Oh, no! We can't take off in this! The reindeer can't see an inch in front of their noses," he moaned. He slowly sank back into his seat as the cheers of the crowd faded. Sally and Victoria grinned at each other.
"There go all of my hopes. There go all of my precious plans, my glorious dreams," Jack said mournfully. From beside them, a small corpse child began to cry.
"There goes Christmas," he wailed. Sally cast a guilty glance at Victoria, who simply shook her head.
"It's for the best," she whispered. Suddenly, a small but almost blinding orange light floated past them. Victoria squinted and saw that it was Zero. Zero began to float up to his master, whining and folding his ears backwards. Jack looked quite dejected as he called him off.
"No, Zero. Down, boy," Jack said quietly. As Zero persisted, however, Jack's eye sockets began to widen in realization.
"My, what a brilliant nose you have. All the better to light my way!" Jack exclaimed. The crowd erupted into cheers as Sally and Victoria's faces fell. Jack stood up again and pointed extravagantly towards his bony reindeer.
"To the head of the team, Zero! We're off!"
Zero barked happily and zoomed over in front of the reindeer; his yapping could barely be heard in the new, powerful uproar of the monsters. Sally and Victoria tried unsuccessfully to get Jack's attention.
"Wait, Jack, no!"
"Jack, stop!"
It was too late. The reindeer had already broken into a run behind Zero, and Jack was snapping the whip at them like a madman. His ecstatic laughs echoed for a moment as he rose into the sky, and then there was nothing more. He was gone. As the rest of the crowd dissipated to go look into the cauldron, Victoria and Sally stood there for a moment, staring at the now empty ramp. Quietly, Sally glanced up towards the sky.
"Good bye, Jack. My dearest Jack," she whispered. Victoria looked on in sympathy, and for a second, Santa's impending endangerment seemed to disappear. Sally really did love Jack. The rag doll slowly walked towards the gate of the town, and Victoria followed loyally behind.
"Oh, how I hope my premonition is wrong," Sally told the wind. Victoria caught up to her.
"Don't worry, Sally. I'm sure Jack will be fine," Victoria reassured her. Her words were empty, however, as she was feeling the same way as her friend. Music began to drift from the jazz band as it played in the background, and Sally swayed back and forth to the rhythm. Victoria watched her and leaned on the fence. In an almost angelic voice, Sally began to sing.
"I sense there's something in the wind
That feels like tragedy's at hand.
And though I'd like to stand by him,
Can't shake this feeling that I have."
She slipped through the bars in the gate beside Victoria. With little effort, Victoria followed her friend into a back alley that was away from all of the commotion of the unaware crowd. Victoria could see a black cat cross both of their paths. As superstitious as she was, Victoria ignored it and went to sit by Sally.
"The worst is just around the bend.
And does he notice my feelings for him?
No, I think not. It's never to become
For I am not the one."
The cat mewed in small surprise as Sally lifted it up onto her lap. Victoria gave her a sympathetic look, and then she stood up. The cat leapt from Sally's lap and dashed into the shadows of the alley. Sally watched it go forlornly as Victoria began to sing a reassuring melody to her friend.
"Now, Sally, please don't be that way.
You two'll be together soon, one day.
So though you think there isn't hope,
I bet that one day you'll elope!"
Victoria gave Sally a smile as she joked (at least, for the last part). Sally couldn't bring herself to return the favor, but Victoria didn't take offense. Instead, she kept singing.
"Oh, yes, it's true. Jack really does love you,
He only needs a clue."
Sally got up. Victoria's message was sinking in, but she still couldn't stop thinking about the danger that Jack was in. Victoria understood. In the middle of the alley, they both sang out their lamentations.
"What will become of our dear friend?
Where will his actions lead us then?
Although we'd like to join the crowd,
In their enthusiastic cloud.
Try as we may, it doesn't last."
"And will we ever end up together?" Sally sang. Victoria nodded.
"Don't worry now; you'll fall in love somehow.
If the fates only allow."
Victoria ended the duet. Sally still looked a bit unsure, but Victoria tapped her on the shoulder and pointed towards the gate.
"Come on. If we're ever going to save Christmas, we need to save Santa."
They slipped back through the bars of the gate and walked towards the crowd inconspicuously. Before they joined them, Victoria whispered to Sally.
"Here's what we need to do. I'll stay with the crowd and monitor Jack while you go down and get Santa from Oogie's lair. Think you can handle that?" Victoria asked. Sally hesitated for only a second before nodding vigorously.
"Good. If you're not back in a half-hour, I'll come after you."
"All right," Sally said. She waved before running off in the direction of the tree house. Victoria turned towards the crowd. With her small stature, it was quite easy to sneak up to the very rim of the cauldron and look down into the enchanted waters. It was like looking at a liquid television screen.
Jack was there, still laughing happily as he glided through the sky. Time after time he'd land on the roofs of more children and jump down through the chimney, dragging his large sack of toys behind him. A few more seconds, and he would be out again and on his way. Victoria could see Zero and the reindeer leading the sleigh.
Suddenly, the cauldron went black for a moment. Then a picture appeared on the 'screen' in front of them. It was an anchorwoman, whose head was blocked by the rims of the cauldron. Her voice seemed to blast towards Victoria as she spoke about Jack's midnight ride around the world.
"Reports are pouring in from all over the globe about an imposter who is shamelessly impersonating Santa Claus, mocking and mangling this joyous holiday," she said. Wild cheers rose up from the monsters, while Victoria stared at the cauldron blankly. The rest of the anchorwoman's words were only heard by Victoria as she listened.
"The authorities assure us that at this moment, military units are mobilizing to stop the perpetrator of this heinous crime."
Victoria's jaw dropped. A strangled kind of cry came from her throat, but all she managed to choke out was, "Oh, my God!" The cheers, by now, had died down. The monsters and Victoria were now staring intently at the water, which was now picturing Jack again. Victoria could hear mechanical sounds coming from below him.
His jovial yell was heard, "Look, Zero! Searchlights! They're celebrating, thanking us for doing such a good job." Victoria could see the spotlights illuminating Jack's ghostly face as he waved back down to him. Her soul became filled with dread as a missile nearly grazed Jack's hat.
"Whoa, careful down there! You almost hit us," Jack shouted down to them. Victoria heard Zero's worried bark come from the unseen front of the team, and Jack answered him.
"It's okay, Zero! Head higher!" Jack called. The sleigh rose into the clouds, and then came back into view.
Victoria watched in a kind of hypnotized terror as the explosives were launched towards her friend. It wasn't long until one actually hit a reindeer. The deer's skull was blown clear off, and for a moment, Jack lost control of the reins. The back of his sleigh was blown off, and presents were soon falling to the ground below. Jack was panicked now with realization.
"They're TRYING to hit us! Zero!" Jack yelled out desperately.
Victoria shook her head in shock, whispering, "No, no, no!" Soon, though, the final blow was made. A missile aimed for the middle of the sleigh hit its mark, sending Jack, Zero, and the reindeer falling to the Earth far, far below. As Jack grew smaller on the screen, his voice still rang out.
"Merry Christmas to all, and to all a good night!" he yelled. The crowd stared in complete silence. Then, a nearby werewolf let out a howl that spoke for all of the citizens' sorrow. Slowly, the monsters bowed their heads, some crying with the overwhelming grief.
"Poor Jack," Victoria whispered. In a swift movement, everyone was looking at Victoria with a newfound anger that replaced all of their sadness.
"Hey, she came up with this whole idea!"
"Victoria's to blame for Skeleton Jack's untimely death!"
"You're right! This Christmas stuff was all her fault!"
Angry shouts rose up from the crowd. Victoria began to back away as they advanced on her, shouting curses and profanities.
"No, it wasn't me! Jack did this to himself!" Victoria admitted, almost shamefully. The citizens didn't seem to hear her over their rage, and she could see the Mayor glare at her before going to announce the news in his car. The vampires' fangs were bared, and the werewolves' claws were sharp and reaching for her.
"Gotta get out of here!" she muttered frantically. Victoria managed to sidestep the monsters and break into a run, fully aware of the angry mob coming after her. That only made her faster. Adrenaline pumped through her, and she could feel the blood rushing as she dodged trees and shrubs. Soon, she was faced with the same gate that she had been at a few minutes ago. She slipped through the bars quickly and looked behind her. The monsters (which were luckily, too big to fit through), roared at her from behind the barrier.
Victoria turned and ran, now fully aware of where she was going. She had to get to Santa and Sally. As she ran, however, the idea of Jack's death was slowly sinking in. Tears streamed down her face as she made her way towards the tree house.
Musically: Oh, don't cry, Victoria!
Victoria: There's something in my eye...