A Nightmare Remembered

Chapter IX: Human Again

Jack awoke suddenly the next morning feeling extreme pressure in his lower abdomen. The feeling was startling and seemed to increase by the minute. Without taking the time to put his shirt on, Jack ran out of the room to see if he could find Wallace and maybe he would know what it was he was feeling. Jack ran out into the hallway. Its length and the darkness of it made him slightly dizzy.

"Wallace?" Jack called out. Nothing. He was starting to feel like his lower abdomen was about to burst. "Wallace?!" he shouted. Suddenly a sound came from the room next to his. The door opened and Wallace emerged, tying his robe.

"What, what? Is everything alright?" He exclaimed, a wild look in his eye. Jack could feel himself turn red, but he couldn't be bothered with that now.

"Everything is…uh…look okay this is quite embarrassing, but I feel….very uh, heavy down…erm, here." Jack said motioning to his groin. Wallace looked wide-eyed as Jack tried to explain what he was feeling. Suddenly it looked as if he was trying to suppress a giggle.

"Yeah, erm I don't think I could be much help with…that…but…here, follow me." He said and started walking down the hallway. Jack followed close behind, walking as lightly as he could. They reached the end of the hallway and Wallace opened the door nearest the stairs.

"Here, in there is a toilet….just go in there and do your thing." Wallace said looking extremely uncomfortable. Jack peeked into the bathroom and looked curiously at the toilet.

"Right…I'll just do that." Jack said, inching into the bathroom. Wallace reached for the door knob.

"You'll understand if I close this behind you." He said, shutting Jack in. Jack lifted the toilets lid and peeked inside.

"Sooo….I just sit on this?" Jack yelled through the door. He could hear Wallace sigh.

"That or you stand."

"I knew that." Jack said. "Wait stand?"

"You honestly don't remember how to do this? I know you've been dead a while….but it's not like you stopped being human." Wallace said sleepily. Jack cleared his throat.

"Ummm…okay, you're right. I can do this." Jack said uneasily. He looked down to his trousers and tentatively began to remove his belt. After mastering the belt's removal, he began to unbutton. Finally his pants fell from his hips and he saw what had captured his curiosity when he first became human again. What….is….that? Jack wondered looking wide eyed at his manhood. Before Jack could do anymore investigating, his urge to relieve himself had hit its peak and he quickly rushed to the toilet.

It was 20 minutes until Jack finally came out from the bathroom; Wallace had fallen asleep against the opposing wall. Jack grunted. Wallace startled awake.

"Oh! Hmph….uh, so how was it in there?" Wallace asked rubbing his temples. Jack cleared his throat; a nervous look was on his face.

"I…erm, think I did pretty well in there…I just….I never want to have to do that again." Jack said, disgust evident in his voice. Wallace began to laugh very hard. Jack looked at him with a frustrated look. "What?"

"Jack you will have to do it again sometime." Wallace said between laughs. Jack looked uneasy. "Don't worry son, you'll get used to it….would it make you feel any better by saying that everyone does it, all throughout their lives? Even you did when you were alive!" Jack thought about this for a minute.

"And um…this?" he said pointing towards his groin. "Everyone has one of those? Oh wait! Just men, am I right?" Wallace looked down at his slippers, trying to hide his embarrassment. He took a deep breath.

"Alright son, before I go into the details of human beings and their functions…you have your story to tell me and perhaps that will enlighten me on how you honestly don't remember this stuff." He said leading Jack down the hall, back to his room. Jack nodded, truly hoping at the same time that Wallace wouldn't think he was crazy when he explained the past 150 years.

oOo

"Here put this on." Wallace said handing Jack a black v-neck shirt. Jack took it happily, as he was beginning to feel a bit embarrassed wearing nothing but his trousers. "It belonged to my son, before he left for England. In fact left a whole bunch a clothes behind when he left…you are more than welcome to use them. I assume you would probably be wanting new clothes considering the ones you have now." Wallace said motioning to Jack's bloodstained shirt and coat. Jack looked at them sadly and sighed.

"I was murdered in those clothes." Jack said. The words tasted bitter and actually hearing himself say it out loud made it all too real. Wallace glanced blankly at the clothing. He blinked.

"You were never buried….where exactly did you come from?" he asked Jack curiously. Jack took a deep breath.

"I suppose the only right way to begin is to reintroduce myself…my name is Jack Skellington…and I am the King of Halloween." He said, feeling a bit silly as he did. Wallace grunted.

"As in the holiday?" he inquired. Jack nodded.

"About one hundred and fifty years ago…I was killed, and in being killed I was sent to a place called Halloween Town. I don't know why…no one knows why anyone gets sent there, in fact. The first thing I remember after waking up there was looking at a reflection of myself in a nearby pool of water…..I was a skeleton. The act of seeing myself this way would have been all the more intense had I actually remembered that I had been human. But I didn't and from that moment on…I was a sort of other worldly being. I found a home in Halloween Town and made new friends." Jack said softly, as if to not impose his past too harshly upon Wallace.

"And so…they just crowned you king?" Wallace asked. Jack chuckled.

"Not at all. In fact, I had to accomplish a lot of things before I became king…but that story is for another time I think." Jack replied. Wallace gave him a sarcastic nod. Jack didn't appreciate it, but then again he couldn't blame him for his disbelief.

"Anyway…so yes, I became king. I ruled for well over a hundred years, creating the holiday of Halloween every year, so that the humans could enjoy it." Jack finished, his hand absentmindedly brushing through his hair. Wallace put a hand to his chin and sat in thought for a while. Finally he cleared his throat and shifted himself a bit closer to Jack.

"If I get this straight…you died in 1889, was transported to 'Halloween Town'", he said, his fingers shaping quotation marks. "Became king of this place, make Halloween for all of us…and somehow you what? Got your memory back suddenly and decided to come back for Eve?" he asked sounding a bit frustrated.

"Almost…you see…about four years ago, I met Eve…again. I had wondered away from town and had actually made my way into this world…Eve found me and helped me back home…but then she became stuck in Halloween Town." Jack paused, trying to read Wallace's expression, but was at a loss. "Well anyhow…we spent a lot of time together while we tried to find a way to get her home…after a while though…I didn't want her to go home anymore. I fell in love with her and she with me. However she couldn't stay. She was alive and only the dead can thrive in Halloween Town. Before she left we happened to find out that we had known each other in another life, I won't say how we found out, for I'm already sure you don't believe a word I'm saying. But she had to leave, for the sake of her life… she could have died if she stayed, and it's never certain that if you die, you'll end up in Halloween Town. So she left and forgot everything that had happened between us."

"Forgot?"

"Yes, well she needed certain potion to get back here and within it was an ingredient that wiped her memory. It's been four years and ever since she left…I haven't been the same. I have to get her back. My fate and the fate of my kingdom depend on it." Jack said, feeling himself become hopeless again. Wallace didn't look frustrated or even confused anymore. Jack made his way to a chair and sat down. Wallace grunted.

"I see. Outstanding isn't it?"

"What is?"

'That you two fell in love all over again. Even after a hundred years…it's almost sickly romantic….but nice too." Wallace mumbled. The two of them sat in silence for a while.

"Do you….do you believe me?" Jack asked tentatively. Wallace grinned.

"It's hard, I won't lie. But you're here aren't you? And if you're not here for the purpose that you said then I don't know why the hell you would be here. So just give me a while…I'll come around in time." He said placing a hand upon Jack's shoulder. Jack lowered his head.

"You see…I don't have a while. I took a potion to get here as well…it also made me human again, but it only lasts for a fortnight. After that…I turn back into my skeleton form." Jack said gravely. Wallace blinked.

"Ah. …No offense Jack, but I really hope I'm not around to see that." Wallace said bluntly. Jack nodded.

"I understand, but I need to have Eve back before that happens." Jack explained. Wallace clapped his hands together.

"Well then what are you waiting for? Come on let's get you dressed, some food in you, and let's find her."

"Fantastic. Do you happen to know where she lives?" Jack asked happily. Wallace was on his way out the door but suddenly stopped.

"Uh…no. But don't worry we can figure something out…after all this town is incredibly small…we'll find her. Now come on, time to remind you of a few human things." He said enthusiastically. Jack grinned and followed Wallace out of the room. They had just reached the staircase when a knock came from the front door. The two men looked at each other with wide eyes.

"Are you expecting someone?" Jack asked. Wallace shook his head.

"Nope. I'll go see who it is I suppose." Wallace said trumping down the massive staircase towards the door. Both were not expecting to see who was at the door.

"Oh my, uh…Benjamin right?" Wallace said through the door. Benjamin grinned and nodded.

"Yeah, hello, uh, Mr. Ailey?" Benjamin asked. Wallace nodded. "Sorry if this seems weird, but I just wanted to check on Jack, like how he's doing….he passed out so suddenly last night…" Wallace grinned.

"You can ask him yourself….Jack?" Wallace motioned for Benjamin to come in. Jack felt a bit flustered.

"Hello Benjamin…how are you?" Jack asked, not knowing what else to say. Benjamin smiled.

"Good. Glad to see you're okay. You're feeling better?"

"Yes, much better…just needed some sleep, I suppose." Jack said quietly. Benjamin nodded. The three of them stood in the midst of an awkward silence.

"We were just about to have some breakfast, would you care to join us Benjamin?" Wallace asked. Jack gave him an unappreciative look. Wallace winked at him.

"Sure…if it's okay." Benjamin said. Wallace nodded happily.

"Perfectly fine!" Wallace said leading the way to the kitchen. Jack slinked after them, slightly annoyed. What could have been the purpose for Wallace inviting Benjamin to breakfast?