Chapter 5

He Who Mustn't Be Named!

…No, Not The Nose-Less Guy, He's The Worst

"Zis place is much tidier zan I expected." Ryuto looked up from his makeup work quizzically as his animated toy rummaged through his desk in his room. "Your mozer doesn't strike me as ze type to be too stern viz cleanliness." There were one or two toys scattered on the floor and shelf but other than that it was pristine.

"Papa gives me a little extra on my allowance if I do stuff without being told."

"Zat explains it." He said as he tossed out a notebook with his new face printed on it.

"What-cha lookin' for Ludwig-Kun?"

"Hm? Oh. Vell, I believe it's a long shot but I'm searching for my vand I told you about. It could be nearby."

"Oh." He tapped his pencil against the book as he struggled to find the right numbers. He would occasionally glance up to see where Ludwig had moved to next. Thankfully the Koopa-turned-Dinosaurus would put the previous areas back in appropriate order before changing.

"Vhat is zis?" He was halfway done when he looked up to see the teen looking at a small toy closet tucked into the person sized one. He opened in to see tiny clothes that appeared well made but oddly measured. "Did your sister forget zis vhen she moved into her own room?"

"No, those are for Gachapin."

"He came viz zis?" He looked at him in disbelief as he pulled out a rain coat that would fit him perfectly.

"No, my Mama started making them because Matsuko was worried he'd get cold since he doesn't have fur like Mukku. She likes sewing clothes so she just keeps making more."

"She must be quite ze seamstress." He marveled at the intricate designs on what appeared to be school uniform. He pulled back a few T-shirts, jerseys, jackets, hats, uniforms, and a diving suit to find the outfit he liked best. "Vas it her job to make clozing?"

"No, she just likes to make us all outfits sometimes. She even has this old book she likes to draw clothes in. It's got all sorts of neat stuff in it like a picture of Papa's hat."

"I see. Quite interesting…" He thought to himself as he buttoned up the vest over his dress shirt and red tie. "At least she's not letting her talent go to vaiste. Zat vould have been a shame…Now, didn't you need help viz your vork?"

Soulless Ones

The house was empty at the moment as the family was out for the day. It was void of everything including the dog as the displaced souls tried to think up their next phase of action… Well, that was the plan anyway…

"I regret reuniting viz you already." Ludwig shook his head. "You like seeing me in pain, don't you?"

"I can't do it either. I'm just seeing if the one with fingers can open it." He grumbled.

"I've seen you open a jar viz zose stubs you fail to call fingers." He snapped as he finally got a good grip. All that strength really means nothing if your hands are too soft to grasp properly.

"That's different." He protested in a way that was not like him at his age.

"How so?" The bag came open with a snap.

"The caps are easier to grasp." He stated simply. He took the plastic bag offered by his brother and seized some of the contents.

"Mm, Lui? Roy?" They looked up at Lemmy who seemed so troubled by something he had to stop balancing the pencil on his finger.

"Vhat is it Lemmy?" He asked concerned.

"Can toys change?"

"I suppose it depends on ze toy, vhy?"

"Well, it's just, yesterday when we woke up. I didn't feel right." He thought for a moment as he tried to articulate the full extent of his problem. "I was hungry but not rumbly, just empty…Now I'm rumbly."

"Your stomach just wasn't growling, zat's all."

"But, yesterday I could feel warmth, but I couldn't feel the hurty point of a needle. Today I can feel the hurt." He held the pencil and poked himself in the finger to make sure he was right. "What do you think Lui?"

"Mm, I, haven't noticed…" He looked over to Roy for some insight but he only shrugged before reaching in the bag again.

"And there's one last thing…" Lemmy was hesitant; absolutely sure he would probably mess up what he was trying to say.

"Vhat is it Lemmy?" He repeated the only thing he could think of to encourage him.

"When we touch watery stuff. We don't suck it up."

"Um…Vhat?" He tilted his head. "Vhat do you mean? Of course ve don't absorb it, our skin-." He froze.

"Aren't stuffed animal's supposed to?" He wasn't sure why he stopped so he continued anyway. "Not like a sponge…Just a tiny bit soaking into the stuffing and stuff."

"Ja, zat is true…" He had a look of deep thought overcome him.

"So?" Roy wasn't quite as struck by the revelation. "We aren't exactly normal 'Toys'."

"But our vessels vere." He explained.

"Our what?"

"Our vessels? Receptacles? Ze zings our souls are in." Roy gave his usual grunt of understanding so he continued. "Zink about it. Vhen you first 'Voke Up', as Lemmy puts it, you didn't feel ze same as you did in your body, did you? If fact I remember how strange it felt finding zis vessel. Today it feels much more…Comfortable."

"And what does that mean? I take it it's not good?"

"I'm not entirely sure. I do know zat our vessels are changing, like zey're becoming a part of us in order to properly house our souls." He shook his head at the thought. He didn't want to admit how much he missed his hair. "Zere's only vone person I know zat can better explain ze odd characteristics of ze soul…"

"Hm, Maybe he can answer another thing that's been botherin' me. Why do we need 'Vessels' in the first place? I didn't really choose this body it just stuck to it like static tape." He quickly added another thing as Ludwig prepared to respond. "And why the heck did we end up in the bedrooms of little kids?"

"I remember him telling me years ago zat our souls need somezing to live in. Ozervise zey'll get too used to it and…Die or more accurately it vill zink it's dead and von't be able to return to ze body. Zen ze body vill die. As for ze bedroom zing zat vas a mix of chance and unconscious desire to be around living vessels in hopes of finding our own."

"Can we stop calling them that? I'm starting ta feel like an invading alien or fungus." He shuddered from the thought. He even stopped munching on his crispy snacks. "Anyway, so we might as well call him to get some answers while we have the house to ourselves."

"Ve can't."

"Why not? All Dad ever had to do was call him by his title and he'd poof into the room with that dumb cackle."

"It's too dangerous to do it ze easy vay. Zere's…Somezing out zere strong enough to do what happened at ze castle zen uttering his title alone could put him in great peril. You know as vell as I do his name is everyzing. It holds all his pover. Zat's vhy he kept it such a guarded secret and practically became Fazer's servant after he found it. Ze same goes for his title only to a greatly lesser scale. Ve can't risk getting him in trouble."

"If he isn't already caught…"

"If I know him he found a vay to hide. Not even zat scientists could have kept him trapped forever."

"Alright, then if we can't call his name then what's the hard way? You know just as much about the guy as dad does."

"Our vands have an unbreakable link to beings like him. If I can only find mine…"

"Do you think they're in the woods in the back?" Lemmy suggested innocently. He had taken a break from juggling a few utensils to claim the bag of snacks.

"Mm, Who knows? I didn't appear too far from you two. Kaai's house is how far?"

"I don't know, I haven't been zere."

"Well, it can't be too far, both houses are on the same side of town near the woods."

"I vonder if ze souls of ze ozers are vondering ze voods…"

"Hm…Right, maybe we should try findin' them first."

"Zat shouldn't be too difficult for some of zem…" He mumbled. "Vere should ve start? As far as I know zey could be in anozer country…"

"Aren't you listening to yourself?" His brother snapped. "I just said we weren't too far apart. It's not very likely that we're the only ones that were so close together is it? They should be around the city somewhere, around people since our souls are apparently attracted to living things."

"But zat could also mean vild animals. Who's to say zey vouldn't have been attracted to a squirrel in a tree?"

"But we weren't!" He narrowed his eyes at him which honestly looked a bit sinister considering he had Totoro's face. "What are the chances that all three of us were attracted to children with a bunch of stuffed animals who just happen to know each other? There has to be a reason we picked these kids! Maybe they're not human. That tall guy and that green-haired girl seem pretty weird ta me. Not to mention that teacher guy that takes care of Yuki. I mean you were the one who said they didn't act like normal humans when they found out their kids' toys are alive."

"It doesn't matter vhy ve're here! Obviously ze ozers weren't attracted to zem!"

"But maybe they were attracted to kids like them." He tried to explain without losing his temper. "Maybe one of the kids' relatives or they touched down where Matsuko was visiting before she returned home."

"Gah…Zere are still too many possibilities…He could probably help us find zem too…Not to mention his odd link viz ze vands…"

"Well, we can't talk to him! You just said that!" He watched as the eldest walked over to the back of the house to one of the rear windows. "We're right back where we started!"

"I vonder…Looking vouldn't hurt. Seems all ve have right now is time. Stars guide us…"

Soulless Ones

"And I thought school was boring before…" Ryuto moaned silently as he looked up at the clock high above the class. It seemed like every time there was something cool waiting for him at home the dumb clock would instantly slow to a halt especially when it was this close.

"Ryuto-Kun?" He shot up at the sound of the teacher's voice. His eyes met up with the brunette man's kind yet stern grey ones peering from behind his sleek glasses. The man wore the same black suit and blue tie he always wore. He was right there just in front of him and it put him more on edge.

"Y-yes, Hiyama-Sensei?" His mind quickly raced over what they were talking about before his mind drifted off.

"I asked everyone to pass up their permission slips. I was wondering why you haven't taken out yours." He clarified calmly.

"Oh, I have it!" He let out a huge sigh of relief as he took out the paper. The only answer he could come up with was molecules and the names of quite a few samurai warriors. (Though half were fictional) A few of the other kids laughed a little at his unease but it was nothing compared to the horror of staying behind in class.

"Thank you, Ryuto-Kun." He gave the boy a weary smile. "But please try to pay more attention. I don't want to see your grades slip again and neither does your mother." He shook his head as he saw the boy sink into his seat a little. Ryuto was a great student when his attention was caught but unless the curriculum involved ninjas or dinosaurs that was a tall order. Luckily he has become more attentive this year and his grades have rocketed to most satisfactory. Talking calmly and kindly to the parents does pay off, usually.

His sister, on the other hand, was always a good student, though it was difficult to tell just by looking at her during class. Kiyoteru sighed as he collected all the papers. He glanced at the clock through the corner of his eye so the children wouldn't copy him.

"Before class ends I would like to remind everyone how close we are to the end of this year and you know what that means right? You have your assignments for the night if you can complete them then you have nothing to worry about." He finished and allowed the students to start their cleaning duties, leaving for a moment.

"M, Matsuko." Ryuto tapped on the shoulder of the girl next to him. "Matsuko, it's time to clean up. C'mon, I'm not doing your share this time."

"Eghn. Sixty three." She uttered the answer to the math equation of the day as her curtain of unruly pink slowly lifted from her large red eyes. Looking up wearily at the clock she knew what she had to do next.

"Well, what do ya know? Ryuto-Kun didn't doodle on his desk today." One of the girls with desk duty playfully mocked as she wiped the wood surfaces down. "But Geoffrey-Kun draws some pretty flowers!" She giggled as the boy in question threw a loaded eraser her way.

"Hey!" The boy named Mochi glared at Geoffrey from the new puddle of chalk dust as he lifted the mop. His freckles seemed less noticeable as his face grew red. "We have to clean that up you know!"

"Don't be such a baby!" The other boy glared back at him as he cleaned the board. "It's not that hard to mop!"

"Not again." Ryuto grumbled in a whisper as he and his sister stared on the windows.

"Not that hard? Yeah sure, if you call that crap job you did yesterday cleaning!"

"I did it better than you are! I did it faster too! You're so slow moss can grow on the floor before you're done with even one square!"

"At least I don't draw girly little flowers on my desk!"

"What on earth is all that yelling?" Kiyoteru walked in just in time to catch the boys wrestling each other on the ground. "Boys, that's enough!" A dark mood came over him that was much rarer and unlike him than a messy hair day. He leapt in with speed unlike any normal teacher. He snatched the collars of both children and ended the skirmish. They stared up at him wide eyed.

"That's the third time this week boys." He crossed his arms as he stared down at them, his voice carrying a grim tone as he addressed them. "I don't even care how it started this time. It's disrespectful to not only me but your fellow students that you continue to disrupt class and cause destruction of property." He looked up at the other children as a phrase-less reminder to continue working.

"C'mon Ryuto. We should go." Matsuko spoke in a hush as she put up the spray. Pretty much the whole 'Kenmochi' family was good at cleaning. They had to be if they were related to Ka-Chan; the greatest maid to ever live.

"What do you think Hiyama-Sensei will do to Mochi and Geoffrey-Kun?" Ryuto made sure they were halfway down the hall before speaking.

"Mmm." She heaved her red bag up on her shoulders. She didn't have problems with it as she was concerned. "I don't know, but I really feel bad for them; their Mamas are going to be so upset."

"You know what Kaai-Chan would say." He stopped in his tracks and did his usual 'Yuki Imitation' pose, his hands on his backpack straps. "That's what they get for fighting all the time! It's just punishment!" His sister giggled at his spot-on act of the girl's mannerisms. They started to walk again.

"You're so silly Gacha. You know Yuki-Chan would scold you if she saw you."

"Yeah…" He adopted a more somber tone. "But Hiyama-Sensei…I've only seen him that mad one other time."

"Mmm. Poor Sensei, he's such a good teacher when no one's pushing him." She looked up at the sun as the opened front doors allowed its light in.

"Hey! Wait!" The two turned around at the voice of Yuki. She caught up to them with heaving breaths. "H-H-How? How come you guys are always leaving so early? I, I had to bribe Akiko to get done in time!"

"If you had to wash stuff as much as we do you wouldn't have to." Ryuto answered as all three started to walk together. "Not just on Mama's birthday either."

"I guess that's why I'm the lucky one. I just have to help on New Year's." They waited on the side of the road as a few cars passed by.

"She doesn't really make us." Matsuko tried to clarify. "She just tells us the right way to do it. Papa, Mama, and Auntie Kuji are the ones that tell us we should help her."

"Now you're just splitting hairs." Yuki grumbled as she thought up a better choice of topic. "I haven't seen Kuji-Sama in a while. Is she alright?"

"She's OK. I think she went on a trip…I heard Mama talking about it." The children continued to converse on their way home. The topics as usual ranged from various things and by the time they got there Ryouko had returned too. The house was full once again and they still didn't accomplish much more than stirring up a few birds in the back yard. Man, no wonder that plumber always got the better of them…

Author

Well, that last part feels irrelevant...But I do feel like it needs to be there so it stays.