On the outside, Towa Kadowaki possesses a friendly demeanor. When conversing with people, he exhibits himself in a good natured manner. On top of that, he never fails to put on a smile even during serious situations. Because of this, many who meet him for the first time find him approachable.
Beneath his cheerful exterior however, lies a horrifying past. When Towa was a child, his parents were brutally killed by Marchens. The shock and trauma from the incident motivated him into fighting the monsters who murdered his family in cold blood. Despite this, the trauma remained and led to his mind being partially broken. In order to maintain his sanity, Towa tortured and killed any Marchens he laid his hands on when the opportunity arose. Jack and Alice once asked him to change his ways, only to have their words fall on deaf ears.
On the day everyone escaped from the Jail, a feeling of great relief swept over Towa. No longer would he have to struggle to retain his sanity. It was an opportunity for him to turn over a new leaf and start afresh. Hence, he discarded the thoughts of his past deeds and devoted himself to assisting the Dawn in their current efforts.
Then, the nightmares came.
Every night, Towa relived the same scenario-The image of his parents being mutilated by a horde of Marchens. No matter what he did, the same scene haunted him in his sleep again and again. Though disturbed, Towa disclosed nothing of his nightmares to anyone and remained his normal amiable self.
That however, will soon change. From the moment the Underground Cavern's Core was discovered, Towa occasionally heard voices in his head. The voices were encouraging yet tempting. At times, Towa felt as if he was being goaded to do something.
Do you seek power?
They wouldn't have died if you were stronger.
I can help you attain strength.
Offer yourselves to me and your wish shall be true.
Regardless, Towa shook them off and continued with his duties. Unbeknownst to him, the voices were only the beginning. As he and his team prepared to depart for the Underground Caverns once more, little did the expedition team know that their efforts served as a premonition. That their actions would beckon a new evil.
The worst was yet to come…
Jack and the Blood Maidens along with Mr. Shiro and Hinata are walking towards the roundabout from the residential area. Previously, Jack and his friends left for Hinata's house and invited him to join them in their tour. With Hinata joining everybody, the group decided to head to the Tea Party Brigade and invite Hatter's company as well.
"Thanks for inviting me. You didn't need to go all the way to call me though," Hinata said to Jack and his company with gratitude.
"Don't sweat it, Hinata," Red Riding Hood grinned at Hinata. "We don't mind the extra company. Besides, the more the merrier as they say,"
"By the way, I didn't know you all had a guardian," Hinata then spoke to Jack and the Blood Maidens. "What happened to your parents?"
"About that, Hinata, Jack and the girls were orphans," Mr. Shiro answered. "I do not wish to mention this but, they were born with no memories of their parents,"
"Is that true?" Hinata could not believe what he heard.
"That's right," Jack said. "Even if we knew our parents, our memories of them are pretty vague," Jack's words were partly true. In truth, Jack and the Blood Maidens were born from Marchens that mimicked the appearances of their respective mothers. It is due to this that they had no recollection of their origins until a certain point in time when they learnt the truth of their birth. Of course, there was no way Jack and his friends would bring themselves to mention their true origins to ordinary people. Doing so could end up bewildering them.
Just then, Hinata noticed a few of the Blood Maidens, mainly Kaguya, Cinderella and Snow White, having forlorn looks on their faces. "I'm sorry," he said. "Maybe I shouldn't have asked about your parents," Hearing Hinata's words, the three girls' moods lightened up.
"There is no need to apologize," Kaguya smiled. "All individuals have a past. What matters are the things that we do in the present,"
"Indeed. Regardless of the past, what is important is that we are grateful to be together like this," said Cinderella.
"Putting that aside, do we have to call Hatter to join us?" Thumbelina asked with reluctance. "I don't feel good over having him with us all the time,"
"Come on, Thumby, why the skepticism?" Red Riding Hood added teasingly, "Could it be that you're shy when he's around?"
"Of course not! Why should I be?" replied a surprised Thumbelina.
"Isn't it obvious?" Gretel spoke in a slightly teasing manner. "It's because he likes you. The fact that you are flustered indicates you're resisting his efforts to engage in romantic conduct with you. This further implies that you possess an inner desire to reciprocate his actions which you constantly suppress by putting up a strong front,"
"Gretel, don't you even start!" Thumbelina spoke in a mixture of embarrassment and irritation.
"There now, Thumbelina," With a friendly smile, Mr. Shiro calmed the red headed Blood Maiden. "There is no need to get worked up. Let us meet your friends shall we?" After some time, everyone arrived at the Tea Party Brigade which was getting closed up for the day. Hatter, March and Drake were introduced to Mr. Shiro and informed of Jack and his friends' trip around the town.
"You're asking us to go on a date?" Hatter asked the Blood Maidens eagerly.
"It's not a date, Hatter," Thumbelina corrected Hatter. "Don't get the wrong idea,"
"I was only playing, Thumby," said a grinning Hatter. "Seriously though, it's a great honor to have beautiful maidens such as yourselves come up and invite us to go out together,"
"What's there to be honored about?" A confused Hinata asked.
"So, where are we headed first?" Drake said to everyone.
"We're not entirely sure," Alice pondered. "We have a few places in mind but, we don't know if our destinations are within this town,"
"There's no need to worry so much about that, Alice," Red Riding Hood gave a cheerful grin. "We'll go wherever our legs want to take us. It'll be an adventure!" Rapunzel nodded at Red Riding Hood's statement happily.
Hatter snapped his fingers and pointed at Red Riding Hood with a finger gun. "I like the sound of that! What're we waiting for, fellas? Let's paint the town RED!" Letting out a loud cheer, Hatter skipped away happily. All eyes were on him as he began moving his body rhythmically to the thought of going out with the Blood Maidens. Hatter's actions caused Thumbelina to shake her head.
"Let us depart, shall we?" At March's words, everyone left the Tea Party Brigade and spent the evening visiting several shops in Wonder Ville. Their first stop was a bookshop in which Gretel purchased an erotic romance novel called "Hundred Layers of Pink". When asked why she bought it, she replied, "Because I find it intriguing,"
The group's next stop was an ice cream shop. There, Jack and the Blood Maidens, Rapunzel in particular, were intrigued at the sight of the colorful ice cream flavors on display. At Rapunzel's bidding, Mr. Shiro bought a cone with multiple scoops of ice cream for her. Leaving the ice cream shop, everyone watched happily as Rapunzel enjoyed her deliciously cold treat.
Other places the group went to include a pet shop, a boutique and a flower shop. At the pet shop, Red Riding Hood adored a terrier and cuddled it. Kaguya was surprised upon seeing the pet shop's undercoat rakes which resembled one of her special lazy tools, the "Cat's Paw".
In the boutique, Cinderella, Alice and Snow White tried on several dresses with March commenting on the trio's beauty including Snow White's. At one point, Jack blushed a little when Alice wore a floral dress. This prompted Hatter to tease Jack, saying that the latter liked Alice, to which Jack himself protested against.
At the flower shop, Hatter jokingly wooed Thumbelina by offering her a red rose. In response, Thumbelina smacked him in the head leading to Hatter remarking, "For a tiny girl, you sure hit like a truck," What ensued next was a hilarious chase scene with Thumbelina pursuing Hatter relentlessly outside of the shop. It took Red Riding Hood, Snow White and Sleeping Beauty to calm Thumbelina down and resolve the situation.
With the evening coming to a close, everyone decided to have dinner in a western restaurant. The restaurant, located in the middle of the shops between the north and east road, had two glass windows at it's front. It's interior comprised of several round tables encircling an empty circular space. Classical music played from two small speakers attached to one corner of the restaurant's ceiling each.
Jack and his company sat a short distance away from the restaurant's entrance. While the group enjoyed their dinner, Hatter requested for Jack and the Blood Maidens to share their experiences at school to which the latter complied. As everyone discussed the matter, Gretel unashamedly shared about Red Riding Hood being "attacked" after the day's Physical Education lessons. Much to Red Riding Hood's embarrassment, Hatter burst out laughing, prompting Thumbelina to get out of her seat and smack him once more. Before she could, Alice brought Thumbelina back to her seat and told her to be calm. Despite her disapproval over Hatter's behavior, Thumbelina complied with Alice's words.
"I got to say it's nice for us to be together like this," said a smiling Jack. "Not to mention being able to see different kinds of things earlier,"
"You're right, Jack," Alice, who sat next to Jack, agreed. "Although we've seen our fair share of them, there are more that we had yet to find in this world,"
"Quite right, Alice," Cinderella sounded pleased. "The world is indeed a wondrous place!"
"You guys' speaking as if you've never seen much around you," Looking at everyone, Hatter added, "Say how bout we talk more about ourselves? Especially y'all," Hatter moved his gaze towards Jack and the Blood Maidens.
"Why us?" Thumbelina raised an eyebrow.
"Come on, Thumby," Hatter said. "You and yo friends ain't know nothing bout stuff like music. Plus, your names are based on them fairy tales. Anybody would get curious when they hear that. So, what say we break the ice? Get to know each other better,"
"Is it alright if I start?" Hinata suggested. "I'd like to say something,"
"But, of course, Hinata," March said politely. "We do not mind in the slightest," Hinata became quiet as if he was reflecting on something. Jack and the rest of the group had their attention on him as he prepared to speak.
"Ever since I was little, I never had many friends. Because of that, I kept getting bullied by people around me. People like Ichijo and his friends that is. I never dared to talk back no matter what they did. Even when I felt mad, I couldn't bring myself to say anything,"
"I'm sorry to hear about that," Jack became sympathetic at Hinata's explanation. Even some of the Blood Maidens shared Jack's sympathy.
"You don't have to be," Hinata continued his story. "Anyway, for as long as I remember, things had always been that way for me," Seeing Jack and the Blood Maidens, Hinata said, "Then, you all came. To be honest, I find all of you awe inspiring. Especially you, Alice,"
"Me?" Alice appeared startled.
"When I saw how you stood up against Ichijo's gang, I felt like I wanted to do the same. And I did although; it led to me getting beaten up in the end. After that, you all came and helped me. You all even invited me, of all people, to go out with you. I've never had anyone do that to me before,"
"And that's why I'd like to say, I'm grateful for what you all did for me. Because of what you've done, I feel inspired to better myself. Also, if you ever need anything, I'll help in any way I can. It will be my way of thanking all of you for the things you did,"
"Simply put, I want to say thanks. That's all I'd like to say," Hinata saw that the group was quiet. "I'm sorry for bringing up a long story like this. I just felt like sharing what I really feel,"
"There's nothing to apologize for, Hinata," Alice smiled. "It's only natural for friends to share their thoughts with each other,"
"It is like Alice said," Mr. Shiro added. "If I may ask, Hinata, do you resent the delinquents who harassed you?"
"No…" Hinata cast his eyes down. "I just hope that they've learnt their lesson for good. At least, that's what I think at the moment,"
"I am sure they have realized the impact of their actions," Kaguya stated. "Especially given that they had a change of heart,"
"Kaguya's right," In a positive tone, Red Riding Hood said, "Anyway, Hinata, don't worry so much about thanking us. What matters is that you're alright,"
"Are you sure?" Hinata was unsure of Red Riding Hood's words. "It'll be inappropriate for me not to do anything in return for what you all did,"
"You heard Red," Hatter said. "Seriously, you don't hafta be so formal. Relax. We're friends. No need to be too polite, man. Be natural,"
"Still, I'll do my best from here onwards," replied Hinata. "That won't change,"
"That's good to hear," said a smiling Jack. "If anything, we'll be glad to help. What do you think, everyone?" He addressed the whole group.
"I agree with Jack!" Hameln happily said. "As friends, it is important for us to lend moral and emotional supper to each other!" Her slip of the tongue led to Hinata becoming confused. Seeing this, Gretel gave a soft sigh.
"Um… Hameln?" Alice appeared to be slightly amused. "I believe you meant to say 'support',"
"W-Why yes, you're quite right, m'lady," Hameln cleared her throat.
"So, um… now that I'm finished, who wants to go next?" Hinata moved his eyes across everyone.
"How about Hatter and his two friends?" Cinderella looked at Hatter, March and Drake. "I must admit, I have been curious about the three of you. What with how you have conducted yourself so far,"
"Oooh, you wanna know about me and my pals so bad?" A huge smile crept across Hatter's face. "You must really like us, Cinderella,"
"You better not be getting any funny ideas when you said that, Hatter," Thumbelina narrowed her eyes at Hatter.
"Whatchu talking about, Thumby?" Hatter replied playfully. "I was just playing. Anyway, you all really wanna know bout the three of us? It's gonna be a long story,"
"We don't mind," Jack said with a smile. "I actually am curious about you and your friends too like Cinderella,"
"I'm with Jack," said Alice. "In fact, there a few things I'd like to know in particular. For instance, your way of speech, Hatter, and how you performed your 'magic' earlier, March,"
"We'd like to share about ourselves," said Drake. "But, like Hatter said, it's a long story,"
"It's fine," Red Riding Hood appeared keen. "It'll be like listening to something out of a story book,"
"All right then," Grinning, Hatter placed his elbows on the table and clasped his hands. "Imma gonna tell you all our story-A story from a land far, far away. So, listen up, y'all. This is going to be one h*** of a long a** tale-" While he was talking, a waiter holding a wireless microphone stood in the center of the restaurant. Speaking into it, he got the customers' attention including Jack and his friends'.
"To our fellow customers, I hope that every one of you is enjoying your dinner. Tonight, our restaurant is going to host a special routine for all of you. Any one of you may request for us to play a song of your choice. And while the song plays, you and your friends may dance to it. Now, then, who will like to start?" The customers began talking amongst themselves. Most of them appeared keen at the waiter's offer. Hatter quickly turned to look at Jack and the rest of his friends.
"You know what? Instead of that story, I got a better idea," Getting out of his seat, he added, "Excuse me, fellas," Signaling for March and Drake to follow him, the trio walked towards the waiter. Hatter and his companions discussed something with the waiter while the rest of Jack's group looked at the four individuals.
"What's Hatter doing?" Thumbelina wondered.
"You don't think the three of them are going to dance, are they?" asked Hinata.
"I wonder…" said Alice. At Hatter and his friends' side, the three had finished talking with the waiter. As the trio headed back to Jack and his company's table, the waiter signaled for his colleague, who stood next to a counter a few feet away from him, to prepare something.
"Today's your lucky day, fellas!" Hatter announced to Jack's group as he, March and Drake stood in front of them. "The three of us are gonna show y'all how to dance!"
"N-Now?!" Jack was startled at Hatter's announcement. "Why are you saying that all of a sudden?"
"I'd say that would be lovely!" Hameln's eyes lit up. "Let us all partake of this experience!"
"Actually, Hameln, only three of you are gonna hit the dance floor with us," replied Hatter.
"And who among us are you referring to?" Kaguya asked.
"Oh, that'll be Thumby and her sisters here," Hatter motioned towards Thumbelina and her sisters. At this, Thumbelina and Snow White were surprised. Sleeping Beauty raised her eyebrows.
"What?!" Thumbelina exclaimed. "You can't just decide that on your own!"
"Chillax, it'll be alright. You just gotta follow our lead," Hatter assured Thumbelina in a carefree manner. "Anyway, you and I will go first. Then, March and Snow White will follow along with Drake and Sleeping Beauty-"
"That's not what I meant!" Thumbelina stood up and faced Hatter. "First, you make a move on me and now your friends are going to do the same to my sisters?!"
"We ain't say nothing about making a move on your sisters," replied a surprised Hatter. "We just giving you girls a dance lesson specially from me and my pals,"
"You could have at least asked us first!" Thumbelina responded curtly.
"We only wanna surprise you," Hatter said with a shrug.
"Ladies and gentleman," The waiter from earlier addressed everyone in the restaurant. "May I present to you our song called "Smooth" by Santana. Give a round of applause for tonight's dancers, the Tea Party Brigade and their lovely partners, the Thumbelina Sisters!" The customers clapped their hands with some of them cheering loudly. Soon, the restaurant's speakers blared out a hybrid of Latin rock and pop rock.
"Okay, Thumby, I'm sorry for not telling you earlier but, this is going be the best chance of your life," Hatter spoke quickly. "So, you just gonna stand there doing nothing or are you gonna dance?"
"What should we do, dear sister?" Snow White asked Thumbelina anxiously.
"Argh, fine!" Thumbelina said in an irked tone. "Let's do this!" She then said to Hatter, "You and your friends better not do anything weird to my sisters though!"
"No problem," Hatter took Thumbelina's hand. "Let's rock this joint!" The latter was startled by Hatter pulling her close to him. The customers watched as Hatter and Thumbelina danced at the center of the restaurant.
Man, it's a hot one
Like seven inches from the midday sun
Well, I hear you whispering in the words, to melt everyone
But you stay so cool
Jack, the Blood Maidens and Hinata watched in surprise as Thumbelina danced with Hatter gracefully despite having never danced before. Gretel in particular, appeared to be fascinated. Mr. Shiro watched Hatter and Thumbelina's performance with interest. In the middle of it, March extended his hand towards Snow White.
"Shall we?" he asked her. Although Snow White was nervous, she accepted March's offer and danced with him. At the same time, Drake asked Sleeping Beauty whether she wanted to dance to which she agreed. Everyone in the restaurant was now greeted with the sight of three pairs of youngsters dancing the waltz together.
My muñequita, my Spanish Harlem, Mona Lisa
You're my reason for reason
The step in my groove
And if you said this life ain't good enough
I would give my world to lift you up
I could change my life to better suit your mood
Because you're so smooth
To the astonishment of the customers including Jack and his friends', Hatter, March and Drake lifted their respective partners up and spun around momentarily. Putting Thumbelina and her sisters back on their feet, the three boys upped their rhythm by performing the tango with the girls. As the music reached it's climax, Hameln delighted at the sight of the current turn of events. Even the rest of Jack's group shared her delight.
And it's just like the ocean under the moon
Oh, it's the same as the emotion that I get from you
You got the kind of lovin' that can be so smooth, yeah
Give me your heart, make it real or else forget about it
The music switched to an instrumental interlude. Hearing this, Hatter and his two companions moved a few steps away from their dance partners and swayed their bodies rhythmically. At the encouragement of the trio, Thumbelina, Snow White and Sleeping Beauty joined in. They could not believe how they were able to do so despite having little to none dancing skills. Nevertheless, it was clear that the three sisters enjoyed themselves.
Soon after, the song repeated it's chorus. Hatter and Thumbelina's group switched back to the waltz followed by the tango. Their smooth transition from one style to another impressed the audience leading to some of them cheering out loudly. A short while later, Hatter, March and Drake concluded their performance by ushering their partners back to their seats and bowing down to the audience. The people inside the restaurant clapped their hands. While they did, Hameln gave a loud "Bravo!" twice.
With the performance over, Jack and his group left the restaurant after having their bill paid by Mr. Shiro. Walking on the road in between the shops, they talked about Thumbelina and her sisters' dancing.
"I didn't know you were such a dancer, Thumby!" Red Riding Hood sounded amazed. "Since when did you learn how to dance?"
"I must say I'm impressed," Kaguya said with wonder. "I never thought of you to be the kind who would embrace something as graceful as dancing, Thumbelina,"
"I don't know how I did it," Thumbelina replied with uncertainty. "When Hatter made me dance with him, my body started moving on it's own,"
"Snow White felt the same thing as well," said Snow White.
"Me too…" Sleeping Beauty stated.
"That's the magic of dancing, girls," Hatter said to Thumbelina and her sisters. "Once you start grooving to the beat, you stop thinking. Instead, your body does all the talking,"
"More importantly, did you enjoy yourselves?" March spoke. "I do apologize for having the three of you dance with us all of a sudden, by the way,"
"It's alright, March," Snow White said happily. "Snow White was surprised at first but, it turned out to be fun in the end,"
"I'm glad to hear that you liked it," said Drake.
"Mm… Mm…" Sleeping Beauty nodded, an expression of delight on her face.
"Rapunzel wants to dance too!" Rapunzel cried out joyfully.
"Me too," Red Riding Hood grinned. "Seeing all that dancing made me want to join in as well,"
"I feel the same way," Jack smiled. "We can all dance together at our tea party on Sunday,"
"I would love to do that, Jack," said a delighted Alice. "We should even have Haru's side join us once they arrive here,"
"That is a swell idea indeed, m'lady!" Hameln stated enthusiastically.
"I can't imagine Haru dancing with us though…" said a doubtful Thumbelina.
"I am sure they will like the idea, Thumbelina," said Mr. Shiro. "For now, let us return home and settle in for the night," The group exited the shops between the northern and eastern roads. After some time, everyone arrived at the front of Jack's house. Mr. Shiro proceeded to unlock the door with Jack and the Blood Maidens standing behind him. Hinata, Hatter, March and Drake stood behind Jack and the Blood Maidens, waiting for the latter to enter their house.
"Thank you for the meal tonight, Mr. Shiro," Hinata spoke while Mr. Shiro opened the door.
"You're welcome, Hinata," Mr. Shiro smiled. "It was a pleasure having met you. As well as the three of you," He looked at Hatter, March and Drake.
"No problem, Mr. Shiro. We appreciate the meal by the way," said Hatter.
"Well, we'll see you all tomorrow," Jack said to Hinata, Hatter, March and Drake. "Good night," At Jack's words, everyone wished each other good night. Just as Jack, the Blood Maidens and Mr. Shiro were about to go through the door, Hatter said to Thumbelina, "Thumby, you got a minute? There's something you need to know,"
"What is it?" Thumbelina along with her companions turned around to face Hatter.
Turning his head sideways, Hatter placed a finger on one of his cheeks. In a girly voice, he said, "Aren't you gonna gimme a good night kiss, Thumby?" Thumbelina blinked out of disbelief at what she heard. While she and her friends stared at Hatter, Red Riding Hood started to chuckle. Hinata looked dumbfounded upon hearing Hatter's words.
"Hatter, can I say something?" Thumbelina asked.
"Sure, what is it?" Hatter replied.
"Drop dead," Looking displeased, Thumbelina walked into the house. "Let's go, everyone," As Jack and his company entered their house, Snow White silently apologized to Hatter's group for Thumbelina's choice of words. Once the door to Jack's house closed, Hatter frowned at March, Drake and Hinata.
"You see how she talked to me?" he asked.
"Well, you did say something odd right out of the blue," Hinata became concerned. "I hope Thumbelina's alright…"
"Rest assured, she will be," said March. "A girl's heart is ever changing,"
"That aside, shall we go?" Drake asked.
"Yeah, let's go hit the hay," Walking away from Jack's house together with March and Drake, Hatter said to Hinata, "Catch you tomorrow, man,"
"Sure, see you tomorrow," With Hinata and Hatter's group having bid each other their goodbyes, the former walked back home. Just like that, another seemingly ordinary day had passed for everyone. Tomorrow was going to be another day for them.
Or so that is what they believe it would be…