A/N: Welcome to this week's edition of "Heart, Soul, and Mind"! Today, we're about to have a chat with Rumor Honeybottoms from the Honeycomb Herald. But...there's a problem, or two, that await. Stay tuned for more!

(Lexie's P.O.V)

After exchanging goodbyes with Grim and Hilda, wishing them to be safe, we left Grim's caves behind us and began to make our way over to Isle 3.

"Man, I don't know about you but I needed that laugh. Made me feel a bit better." Liam commented.

"Yeah! Same!" I agreed.

"It was certainly one way to get my mind off of that nightmare I had earlier…" Katie trailed off.

I definitely felt bad for Kate. Having that idiot of a manager hit on me is bad enough, but she's having the DEVIL of all people to have go all 'Marry me or else' on her. Ugh, what sickos.

"Agreed, and don't worry, Kate, we promise that will never happen." Natty reassured. "We're here for each other."

"Amen to that! Best friends for life!" I beamed, wrapping my arms around both of the girls.

I saw Kate's frown turn into a warm smile as she chimed in, "And how!"

Ah, much better.

"You know, I've been thinking; with all that's been happening we need to spread the news out fast." Cuphead spoke.

"Ah, like the paper! Good thinking, Cups!" I exclaimed.

"You know the old saying; sometimes the pen is mightier than the sword."

"Indeed." I agreed.

At some point we pass by an old abandoned Die House on the bridge connecting Isles Two and Three. I wasn't excited to see that in person since King Dice runs those things. And the last thing I want is to run into him again so soon should we have to go in there to get to the next Isle.

"And uh...that's the Die house…" I shuddered.

"Don't worry, it's abandoned." Cuphead assured. "No one's been in there since Mugsy and I defeated the Devil."

"Still, anything reminding me of Dice makes me nervous." Natty commented.

I couldn't help but scoff before I replied, "You're nervous? Try having the blockhead come onto you...then talk to me about Dice making ya nervous."

"Okay, okay, point taken…" Nat said.

"Frankly, Dice never scares me, not even in that cutscene before his boss level, much less in real life" Katie stated, before shuddering herself. "The Devil on the other hand…"

I nodded before putting a hand on Kate's shoulder, "Growing up, I was taught 'Don't be afraid of Satan and his demons'. Why? Cause God's stronger than 'em."

I then shrugged while adding, "Now granted, he CAN hurt people...but not permanently.

"That's true." Nat nodded in agreement.

"And know that even if he comes after you, he's got the entire group to deal with." Liam reassured us.

"Safety in numbers after all." Kaichi chimed in.

Katie smiled while beaming, petting Kaichi's head. "You know it, bud!"

"And I'll be more than happy to give him the old one-two!" Cuphead grinned.

"Yeah! They're all a buncha meanies!" Matt exclaimed.

Liam and I chuckled. Matt is such a sweet, innocent li'l angel. Bless his heart.

"That's right, bro. They are a bunch of meanies." Liam agreed with him, ruffling Matt's hair.

"Make that a bunch of big dumb meanies." Kaichi corrected with a smirk.

"You know it!" Chalice chimed in.

We chuckled while heading into Isle Three. As we were heading into the frontier of the city, we approached the Honeycomb Herald. It was then I realized…

The "Honeycomb Herald"...was full of bees. Ohhhhhhh, man, I HATE bees! I've had a fear of them since I was a small child. I hate how they buzz so loud and obnoxious…though I think it's because I was sensitive to loud noises growing up.

Granted, the sensitivity isn't as bad as it once was thanks to therapy, but still…I get sooo nervous around them. Wasps, too.

"Lex? You okay?" Natty inquired as Katie looked over in concern and confusion.

"Yeah, it's just the newspaper…" Liam added, just as concerned.

"I-I know but um...isn't it full of...bees?" I squeaked.

"Erm, yes?" Cuphead replied, confused. "I mean it's run by Rumor Honeybottom. Why?"

"I-I'm kinda...oh lord, this is embarrassing…"

I didn't wanna admit it to my pals, seeing as they have this image of me being brave and stuff…but it definitely was bad for me to hide it.

"I-I'm...I'm scared of bees, okay?!"

"Huh? What is there to be embarrassed about?" Katie spoke in understanding. "To be honest, I'm terrified of wasps. While bees do sting, they actually try to avoid doing that since they would die. Wasps on the other hand… are much worse. I should know… I was stung by one when I was a young girl…"

She shuddered. Clearly, the experience must have carried some very bad memories for her.

"Yo, wasps are the worst!" Natty exclaimed in disgust as Katie nodded in agreement.

"Lex, there's nothing wrong with being scared of bees." Lee reassured me, putting an arm around me. "We're all scared of something."

I shuddered while scrunching my face, "Wasps...bees, I don't care...if it has a stinger in its BUTT, I don't like it. I hate how they hover and buzz so loud and obnoxious and they sting you."

Matt gave me an innocently confused look as he asked, "Uh, you mean the abdomen Lex-?"

"That's not the point, Matt!" I cut him off. "Not the point..."

"Okay...uh how about this? Lex and I will stay outside while the rest of you go in and warn Rumor." Liam suggested, putting a comforting arm around me. "That way she can get people to write about the Devil and his plans in the paper and send it out."

I nodded in agreement while clinging onto Liam. I hated to have to opt out of an important task like that, but my fear was just too much for me.

"Sounds like a plan." Katie agreed. Turning her focus onto Matt, she stated "Matt, why don't you wait outside with your brother and Lexie, sweetheart? Natty, Cuphead, Chalice and I won't be too long."

Matt nodded while responding, "Okay."

"Thanks guys." I sighed in embarrassment. "I'm sorry...I shouldn't let this fear get to me but I can't help it."

"Don't worry, Lex, we'll handle it." Nat assured me. "And like Liam said, it's okay to be scared of something. Even Mario gets nervous around Bowser sometimes."

"Once we speak with Rumor about spreading the news to the rest of the debtors, how about we go get some ice cream later?" Katie suggested.

"Sounds good! I could use some ice cream." Cuphead smiled.

"Ice cream sure sounds great right about now!" Chalice added brightly.

"Sounds literally amazing!" I beamed. "Thanks Kate!

Katie winked while replying, "No problem. Next to chocolate, ice cream is the best choice of comfort food."

"Cheers to that!" Kachi chimed in, licking his lips.

"I agree! I would love to have ice cream here." Natty smiled.

"Yay! Ice cream!" Matt cheered, jumping in the air with excitement

"Sounds good to me!" Liam added.

Katie smiled sweetly as she giggled.

Yep. Ice cream does sound good right about now. After all we've been through so far with all that Ol' Scratch Butt had thrown at us and the whole fiasco with his good for nothing lackey and that creepy Death from Puss in Boots 2 ripoff of a bounty hunter, we could do with a little treat to calm the nerves.

"Okay, first the local paper then ice cream. We'll be back in a bit." Natty said.

"Alright, be safe." I smiled.

Cuphead winked as he replied, "We will!"

"Don't worry. We've got each other's backs." Katie said in reassurance.

With that said, Kate, Nat, Cuphead and Chalice walked into the Honeycomb Herald while Liam, Matt, Aya, Kaichi, and I waited outside.

(Natty's P.O.V)

Once Kate, Cuphead, Chalice and I were inside, we were surprised to hear the buzzing of worker bees, shuffling papers, typing of the typewriters, and all the things you'd expect from your typical newspaper company. I had to admit; it was really cool to be inside. I know Audrey had shown me her office for the New York Times, but it's really awesome to be inside.

"So this is the Honeycomb Herald, huh?" I commented. "Gotta say this is pretty huge."

"Golly, you got that right." Chalice agreed.

"Yeah, Rumor Honeybottom likes to go all out for decorating." Cuphead explained.

"I have yet to play the game myself but this is rather impressive." Katie admitted.

We suddenly heard a loud whistle as a huge guard approached us; it was that bee guard from the first phase of the fight.

"Excuse me, uh, how can I help you?" The guard asked.

"We're here to see Rumor." I answered. "It's very important."

"Like Devil related important." Cuphead added as Chalice nodded urgently.

"Oh, of course! Right this way!"

The bee guard led us down the hall past a few rooms. I assumed they were printing rooms, offices for certain writers, and of course break rooms and such.

"Just down this way and we should meet with her." The guard stated.

"Is she busy?" I asked.

"When ya run a newspaper, yea it gets busy but I'm sure she can spare a second or two to hear ya out."

"Thank you, sir." Katie said politely.

"Yeah, we very much appreciate it." Chalice added.

Approaching carefully, I knocked on the door.

"Excuse me, Ms. Honeybottom, may we please have a word with you? It's very urgent." I called through the door.

"The Devil is after you and we need to protect ya!" Cuphead announced.

We waited and waited…but there was no response.

"Rumor? Ms. Honeybottoms?" I called out again. "Hello?

"Ms. Honeybottom? Are you there?" Katie asked, getting extremely concerned. "Something is very wrong here…"

"Yeah, it's way too quiet in there…" Cuphead agreed.

Suddenly, the silence was shattered by a loud agonizing scream piercing behind the door:

"AAAAAAAHHHHHH!"

"Oh, no! Not again! RUMOR!" I screamed.

We jerked the door open and saw Rumor lifeless and colorless unconscious while Anubis held up her soul. I felt my hands go clammy. Just seeing his ugly face made me nervous, remembering that he kidnapped me in the middle of the night.

"No! We're too late!" Chalice cried.

While we were all angry about this, no one was more angry than Kate. She glared at Anubis and shouted "YOU!"

He turned to see us and shot us a wicked grin. "Hola señoritas. Don't mind me, I'm just picking up some sweet nectar for El Jefe." He explained, placing the soul in the same sphere Dice used.

"Let her go!" Cuphead shouted, pointing his finger gun at him, but Anubis chuckled.

"Ayyy, why are you so demanding, chico? If you and tu hermano had given El Jefe the contracts, we wouldn't be speaking of this, sí?"

"I've said this before and I'll say this again; they no longer owe him their souls, you pathetic excuse for a bounty hunter!" I snapped, pulling out my Keyblade. "Now give back her soul!"

He then grinned lustfully at me, claiming "You know I cannot do that, mi dulce. I see you have my lovely gift from last night." He gestured to the red rose that was in my pocket.

Now, before you say anything, I didn't keep it because I liked it. No, I have a reason for bringing it with me, instead of ripping it up.

Kate gave a draconic snarl as she got in front of me. "Oi! Back off, you overgrown hyena!"

Anubis rolled his eyes in annoyance. "Again, I'm a jackal...geco volador."

Kate arched an eyebrow in confusion, but also anger. "I beg your absolute pardon?"

"Oops, seems to have slipped mi cabeza. No hablas Español..." He recalled, sneering at Katie. "Geco volador means "flying gecko", chiquita."

"HEY! Don't insult Kate like that, you fleabag!" Cuphead shouted.

Now, Kate was mad. Besides the constant pet names the Devil refers to her as, this was a whole new level of insult.

"Gecko?!" She cried. She then transformed into her dragon form and breathed out a tiny flicker of flames from her mouth.

Ooooohhh, he was in for it now! I could tell he was nervous. I mean, come on, the dude was freaking out when he first saw her form, and now, she was very angry.

"DON'T YOU EVER CALL ME A GECKO!" She roared.

"Qué? You don't like being called a gecko?" Anubis sneered. "Perhaps you should reconsider calling me "hyena" chiquita."

"It's not my fault you practically look more like a hyena with really big ears, 'mi amigo'." Katie shot back. "And what's the deal with your name? You're named after the Egyptian God of Death and yet you speak Spanish. How does that work exactly?"

That was a good question. I do remember studying Ancient Egypt when I was in fifth grade, and seeing displays in a museum in London when I was in college. So, if he was named after an Egyptian god, why does he speak Spanish?

"Oh, mi Madre wanted to name me after someone famous, and Anubis came to mind. Don't ask me how." Anubis replied, shrugging.

Well, that was my answer. I noticed Kate rolled her eyes as a sign of 'called it.' Just then she was about to pounce on the guy when I stepped in.

"Hold on, Kate! I need to do something first."

"Huh?" Katie uttered in confusion before she understood and stood back. "By all means, Nat, he's all yours."

I stepped forward, trying to avoid that horrible seductive smile on his face, took the rose, and angrily threw it at his face. It then landed on the ground in front of him, while he wasn't phased.

But I was ticked.

"You are a sick freak! How DARE you kidnap me in the middle of the night, and-and do who knows what to me!" I shouted. "I've had to deal with a lot of horrible people, but you took the cake and frosting along with it!"

He gave a chuckle. "Ah tranquilo, mi amor. I didn't do anything drastic. Although, you give muy buenos besos." He replied, licking his lips.

I wasn't sure what he meant at first, but then somehow a bit of my Spanish from college came back…and I was more angry than ever.

"You FREAK! Argh, I wanted my first kiss to be with an awesome guy, not some horrible monster!"

"A romántica freak, no?" He sneered, as he picked up the rose and took a whiff at it.

Katie snarled at him before snapped, "More like a SICK freak, hyena boy!"

"Okay, that's it!" I exclaimed before transforming into my wolf form. "You mess with me, you're dead meat!"

"Mess with both of us, you'll be roadkill!" Kate added in, flaring her wings wide.

"Cualquiera, as fun as this fiesta is, I should bring this soul to its rightful owner." Anubis claimed. "But I leave you en buena compañía...mi loba escarlata."

He then blew a kiss in my direction. That disgusted and angered me even more.

Katie roared as she and I charged at Anubis but he teleported, leaving us to wonder what the heck he was talking about.

"Ugh! Now I really wish they had taught us how to speak Spanish in school!" Katie groaned. "What could he possibly mean?"

"I wish Lex was here right now. She could translate that for ya." Cuphead recalled, knowing Lexie had that Spanish face off with Anubis in the cave.

"It's strange… why would the Grim Creeper just take Rumor's soul and then leave just like that?" Katie wondered. "You'd think he would want to start a fight in hopes to turn us over to the Devil. It doesn't make any sense…"

"Yeah getting that feeling too…" I trailed off, looking over at Rumor. This wasn't looking good. We're getting closer to the Casino and he's hitting hard, taking down the ones that are close by. I just hoped we can get this message out to people asasp.

Suddenly... Rumor started to contort and turn into a freaky looking wasp. To put it in simpler terms, she looked like a wasp had decided to take horror pills. Now the thing was whenever I watched scary movies (not on a regular basis) but when there's a really terrifying moment in the film, I skip over that part.

But in this situation, I couldn't.

"Uh, I think we found our answer!" Cuphead trembled as a horrified Chalice gasped.

Katie's ears drooped down and her wings sagged to her sides as her eyes widened in horror. She looked as though the Devil had shown his ugly face again when she saw how huge and monstrously hideous Rumor now looked in her new demonic form.

Given her fear of wasps, Kate was right to be scared as she gave out a terrified scream.

"Oh jeez! That's not good!" I gulped.

"This is worse than how most of the Disney Villains turned into Heartless in their boss levels from Kingdom Hearts!" Katie added.

Rumor then gave a thunderous roar and buzzed around, trying to sting us.

"Look out!" I screamed, as Katie grabbed Cuphead and Chalice in her claws and flew out of the way

"Yikes! thanks Kate!" Cuppy smiled.

"Yeah, thanks! That was a close one!" Chalice chimed in.

"No problem!" Katie answered.

"I know her boss fight wasn't difficult in the game but this looks like its gonna be different!" I claimed.

Despite Rumor's new form, Cuphead tried to snap her out of it.

"RUMOR STOP! Please, it's us! Fight it!"

Getting annoyed at our dodging, she started blasting her homing magic at us.

I, even in my wolf form, used my wand to push back hers. Our magic pushed back and forth for a while until finally...

*BOOM!*

The blast ricocheted into the wall nearby. I was curious to know if anyone heard that, given how close that was.

(Lexie's P.O.V)

While the group was inside, Liam, Matt, Aya, Kaichi and I stayed outside from the building. I feel bad for asking to stay behind, but no one seemed to be angry with my request. I just hoped it was an in and out job.

As Matt petted Aya, suddenly, we all heard a loud

*BOOM!*

It came from the building and shook the area a bit.

"Oh, man! That didn't sound good!" Lee gasped.

"No! Guys!" I cried.

"Are they okay in there?!" Matt asked in concern, scared by the commotion.

"I'm not sure but we gotta check." Liam claimed. "Hold onto Aya and stay with Kaichi."

Aya mewed in concern while Kaichi stated, "Be careful, guys."

I gulped as we approached the building. I knew there were bees inside and I was not ready to go in. I stopped at the front door, and Liam took notice.

"Lex, I know you have a bad history with bees but the guys are in trouble." He reminded me. "If it's the Devil in there, or even Anubis or Dice, we have to help. We can't stay back because of fear."

I looked at him for a second before I took a breath. " I know Lee…"

Then, building up some courage, I added, "You're right."

I then took Lee's hand and he nodded.

"Sweet! Let's go!"

Lee and I rushed inside the building. I mean, it couldn't be too bad. What could be...oh my God.

"Oh, my freakin' God…" I trembled.

What we saw was the worker bees were straight replaced with demonic looking wasps. I saw they were fighting the others, with Nat and Kate transformed. I pulled out my Keyblade and Liam summoned a sword and shield, and we rushed to them.

"What the heck happened here?!" I cried as Natty threw one back.

"Anubis happened, that's what!" She replied. "He grabbed Rumor's soul and now turned her into this!"

"He must've corrupted the worker bees along with her!" I exclaimed. "We get her back, we get the others back!"

Cuphead and Chalice defended themselves as best as they could as they shot down several demon wasps but more kept coming. The new batch changed tactics and shot out their stingers like bullets while new ones took their places.

"Cups! Chal! Look out!" I cried.

Cuphead and Chalice each raised a hand over their heads to shield themselves just as the stinger bullets were about to rain down on them.

Suddenly, a glowing, sparkling screen of blue magic formed over their heads, causing the stinger bullets to bounce harmlessly off, which surprised and awed Cuphead and Chalice.

"Whoa!" I gasped.

"Yooooo! That was awesome!" Natty exclaimed.

"Good gosh! That potion Misterie gave us really worked!" Cuphead beamed.

"Now we're talking!" Chalice grinned before she and Cuphead lowered their shields and blasted the demon wasps away.

Meanwhile, Katie had learned a new ability as we all saw her spinning into a literal tornado, pulling in a couple of wasps, battering them with some debris caught in her cyclone before throwing them aside. Just as Kate had stopped her tornado, Rumor suddenly went after her.

"KATE!" Natty screamed.

Katie gasps in horror, but due to her own fear of wasps, all she could do was freeze and squeeze her eyes closed.

"KATIE NO!" I shouted.

Without thinking, I rushed after Rumor, in hopes to stop her from reaching Kate.

"Lex! Be careful!" Liam called out.

"Lee! We need backup!" Natty called.

"Got it!" He then summoned a fighting staff and rushed off to help Natty.

I kept running after Rumor when… despite our distance and she was above me, the gem pendant of Katie's necklace suddenly started glowing. In a brief burst of light, Katie was suddenly donning silver armor.

One piece of armor covered her chest and shoulders while she donned some covering her back. Her bracelets were replaced by bracers and atop of her head is a helmet.

"Huh?!" She gasped.

We were all shocked by this. I did not see that coming, but I can take a gander and believe this is why Misterie gave it to Katie.

Just then, Rumor's magic blast bounced off of her armor and hitted her instead, throwing her back as she screeched in agony.

"Whooooaaaa what's going on?!" Natty gasped.

"Her armor! It reflected Rumor's magic back at her!" I exclaimed.

"Wow, that's amazing!" Cuphead gasped in awe.

Katie hovers down and lands on the floor. She was just as stunned by all of this as she looked herself over, examining her new armor,

"So this is what Misterie meant. My necklace enables me to wear special dragon armor." She murmured. She then broke out into a beaming smile. "This is so cool! It's like the Golden Armour power up from Gormiti: The Supreme Eclipse Era!"

"Coooool!" Natty exclaimed.

"Thanks for rushing over to help me." Katie said, looking over at me. "Sorry that my armor had stolen your thunder though."

"Pfft! I ain't worried about that!" I replied. "I just wanted to make sure you're okay."

"We're good. Nat was ticked off at Anubis and even threw the rose he gave to her at his face." Cuphead mentioned.

I couldn't help but laugh. "Nice one, Nat!"

"Serves him right for taking me and...kissing me." Natty shuddered. "Makes me sick knowing that."

I took a sigh before announcing, "We should get back out there. Matt's waiting on us."

"Hold on. We still need to get the word out in the paper." Natty reminded us.

"Hmmm...I might be able to do that." I said. "I did some article writing in college. Working for the NYT helps too."

"Nat, didn't Audrey give you pointers on editing?" Liam asked.

"Oh yeah. Lex, you write it, I'll edit it!" Natty beamed.

"Sure thing!" I winked at her.

I sat at one of the desks and began to write the article explaining what's going on. I gave as much detail as I could, describing the situation and what the Devil was planning. I just hoped people would be inspired to help us.

After a bit, Natty, who was back in her human form, took a moment to do some editing and once that was done, the article was ready to be published.

"And that should do it!" She smiled.

"I feel like Lois Lane publishing this." I giggled.

"Now all you need is Clark Kent to be helping ya who is Superman in disguise." Natty replied.

"Does a handsome man with a sword count?" I grinned, gesturing to Liam.

"Hmmm, I believe so." Natty answered.

Liam began to blush while I chuckled.

"Let's hope the news reaches the others in time…" Katie, in her human form again, said hopefully.

"Word gets out fast in Inkwell, so I'm sure it will." Cuphead assured.

"Soon everyone in Inkwell will know about this." Natty sighed.

"And hopefully join our side." I added.

I knew some people might be scared to stand up to the Devil, despite his reputation being ruined, especially with his goons, manager and bounty hunter running around stealing souls.

Just then, there was a demonic roar as the possessed Rumor got up and was flying around, searching for us. This was like out of one of those video games you thought you've beaten a certain boss, only for them to reveal they have a second verse.

"Oh, C'MON!" I yelled.

"Oh, no. Looks like she's not done with us!" Natty gasped.

"There's always a secret phase isn't there?" Liam groaned.

"We'd better put a stop to this before she gets outside and cause some real damage and hurt the residents in town!" Katie cried.

As I dodged a magic strike, a thought came to me.

"Nat! Remember those Shadow bugs in Zelda Twilight Princess?!"

"Yeah! They were nasty! Why?" She asked.

"Link was in his wolf form while beating them!" I reminded her. "Maybe you can do the same!"

"Good call! You deal with Rumor, I'll handle the bugs!" She informed me.

"You got it!" I responded.

She then transformed back in her wolf form and began battling the bees.

I had to admit, Demonic Rumor kinda reminded me of Sectonia from Kirby Triple Deluxe, but that's besides the point. I had an idea.

I took out my paintbrush and summoned;

"Kirby! I choose YOU!"

Ah, I could not resist using the line from Pokemon.

Kirby then came to life as an assist trophy.

"Poyo!" Kirby happily beamed.

"Awwww! Cute!" Katie giggled.

"That's so cool! Man, so awesome to see him come to life!" Liam smiled.

Rumor tried to blast more magic on me but I called to Kirby with a quick command;

"Kirby, inhale that magic!"

Kirby used his classic sucking ability to inhale the magic and got a boost, transforming into plasma Kirby.

"Atta boy Kirby!" I beamed.

"Whoo! Let's go, Kirby!" Natty cheered.

"Go get 'em, little guy!" Katie added.

Kirby then blasted plasma beams at Rumor. The blasts hit Rumor, making her shriek in pain.

"Direct hit!" Natty exclaimed.

"Nice going Kirby!" I cheered.

"Poyo!" He replied.

"Guys! Let's try a water spell like in KH3!" Katie called out. "Maybe we can subdue Rumor without harming her by getting her wings wet!"

"Good idea!" Natty replied.

"Lead the way Kate!" I added.

Kate got out her Keyblade and began to conjure a Waterga spell.

"Water!" She called out. Natty followed suit and both created a water wave that blasted out, hitting Rumor, making her drenched from head to stinger.

"Nice shot!" Natty praised.

"Thanks! You, too!" Katie beamed. She then turned to me, signaling, "You can take it from here, Lex!"

"Alright, Kirbs. See if you give her a bit of a "shock" eh?" I grinned.

"Poyo! Poyo!" Kirby nodded.

He then used his energy ball attack and it shocked Rumor to the point it knocked her unconscious. Upon falling unconscious, Rumor turns back into her normal self, but is still dull and lifeless due to Anubis having stolen her soul.

The demonic wasps were covered in a black smoke-like substance (sort of like from Miraculous) before they were turned back into the bee workers, who all looked around confused.

"Whoa, that was amazing!" Natty claimed.

I took a breath, worn out from the battle. "Whew...glad that's over with."

I turned to Kirby and smiled. "Great job li'l buddy!"

"Yeah, you've been of great help." Katie chuckled.

Kirby smiled while he disappeared in a beam of light

"It was good to see him. Seriously." I mentioned.

I heard Katie sighing in relief now that the whole ordeal is over. But she also looked guilty of what we had to do. I really can't blame her.

So far, the Terrible Trio had taken the souls of the former debtors and left their empty bodies behind. So, seeing Rumor turning into a monstrous version of herself and having to fight her was new.

Perhaps that was why Misterie had placed all those charms on Mugman back in her hut after Dice nabbed his soul. She was seeing to it that poor Mugsy wouldn't suffer the same fate as Rumor had.

"I feel really bad for having to fight Rumor though." Katie said sadly. "It's bad enough that the Devil and his goons are stealing all the souls of the former debtors by force but… forcing them to turn against us? How could they be so heartless?"

I felt uneasy hearing that. It really was hard to watch people getting their souls taken and then using them like puppets for his dirty work.

I took a deep breath, and sternly answered "...'Cause they can, Kate. They feel stronger because they can pick on weaker people. It's not just cruel and heartless...it's straight cowardly."

Katie looked down before adding "There are times I wonder if that's why I was often picked on at school… believing I'm not strong enough to stand up to anyone just because I'm… different from the rest of them…"

"But you are strong enough, powerful even." Natty mentioned, putting an arm around her shoulder. "I know that those memories were hard to revisit, believe me I felt the same with mine, but know you have us to help you and each other."

She looked at Nat and smiled. "Thanks, Nat…"

"No prob!" She beamed.

"And we won't let bullies like him get away with anything!" Cuphead added.

"Right!" Katie smiled.

As we high-fived each other, a thought came to me.

"Oh wow...I just ran into a whole building full of bees..."

"And you overcame your fear!" Liam cheered, hugging me. "Oh Lexie, I'm so proud of you!"

"Yeah! Way to go Lex!" Natty smiled.

"Awesome job!" Cuphead replied, giving me a thumbs up.

"I-I'm still a bit nervous around 'em, but it'll fade with time. Thanks guys." I sheepishly stated.

"Still, that was amazing on what you did; you pushed aside all fear and helped out." Liam then gave me a kiss before adding "I'm proud of you, Lex."

I began to blush and smile. I love it when he does that. Better than you know who.

Just then I heard Cuphead stated in disgust, "Blech! That's gross!"

"Oh, come on, Cuppy. He does love her." Natty giggled.

"Yeah, but did they have to do it here? Gross!" He gagged.

I couldn't help but laugh. "Ah, Cups. I think when you're older and you have that special someone, you'll enjoy it. Trust me."

"In time, you'll understand." Katie smiled.

Cuphead rolled his eyes as Natty claimed

"Ok well, we got the newspaper ready lets send it out to Inkwell!"

"Right. And we'd better see how Matt, Kaichi and Aya are doing." Katie added. "They must be worried by now. We did promise to go get some ice cream afterwards."

"Sure thing! But uh...I don't think we got trained in those old timely printing presses tho…" I trailed off.

I know I used something like this back in New York, but this was like rocket science to me.

"Oh, darn, you're right." Liam groaned.

Just then, a worker bee popped into the office and asked, "Uh excuse me? Perhaps the team can be of some assistance?"

"Oh! Yes, please, that would be grand!" Kate smiled.

"Absolutely! Thank you!" I beamed.

"Alright now, I'll show you how it's really done." The worker Bee claimed. "This should be out in Inkwell in a few hours, less if we have all hands on deck."

"Whaddya think guys?" I asked the rest.

"Let's do it!" Natty exclaimed.

"You got it!" Liam chimed in.

"Yeah! Let's spread the word out!" Cuphead cheered.

"Okay, lemme get Matt and the others." I stated. "I don't want him by himself for long."

"Okay." Kate nodded.

I headed out of the building. I felt more confident in myself than before. I managed to push aside my fear and help my friends in their battles. That was a huge obstacle I overcame and I feel pretty proud of myself. Made me think I can take on any challenge.

I walked out of the building to pick up Matt when I heard him shout:

"Back off! Leave me alone!"

Oh, no!

I grabbed my Keyblade and rushed to him. Once I got to where Kaichi and Aya were waiting, surrounded by a few of Dice's card minions. Matt tried to fend them off with his yo-yo until I charged in and whacked them away with my Keyblade.

"HEY! Leave him ALONE!" I demanded as I kept Matt close behind me.

"Lexie! They came outta nowhere!" Matt cried.

"And guess who's behind this!" Kaichi chimed in, dodging a swipe from one of the cards.

I rolled my eyes while replying, " I could only imagine…"

Aya then arched her back, hissing at some cards before swiping a claw at one as it tries to nab her.

"Hey! Leave her alone!" Matt shouted, holding Aya back protectively.

"Stand back, Matt I got it." I announced. I then drew a Koopa shell and kicked it, making it hit multiple baddies. Eventually, it drove out the cards.

"Awesome!" Matt cheered, as Aya gave a happy mew.

While I was thrilled to see Matt alright, I still had one baddie to tackle. "Did anyone even see that blockhead anyway?"

Kaichi looked around as he answered, "No. I bet that coward is obviously hiding somewhere, watching from afar like the big, dumb wimp he is."

"He was here a minute ago…" Matt trailed off. Just then, we were all startled by Aya as she gave a yowl.

"Huh? What's wrong, Aya?" Matt asked, worried.

"Aya? What is it girl-!" But before I could finish, we suddenly heard an all-too familiar voice I had hoped I'd never have to hear again.

"Well, lookee here! It's my favorite gal! Glad to see you again."

I groaned. That answered my question.

"Oh, for the love of-!" I turned around to see Dice approach us, with that same stupid smirk on his face. "Don't you play suave with me! Especially after that idiot stunt you pulled last night! And I know Anubis took Nat so don't even try to play dumb!

"Personally I enjoyed that, holding you in my arms while keeping you close." Dice smirked. "Now, I wonder how I can do that with you wide awake."

"How about never?! Sound good?" I shot back.

"Always something with that. No matter." Dice chuckled. " And regarding Anubis, I mean, I was hoping to do that solo, but he insisted on joining me. He couldn't stop talking about last night; holding pinkie in his grip while he ran his claw through her hair, and giving her such sweet kisses…"

"You disgusting FREAKS!" I shouted at him.

"Eeewww! He's gross and so are you!" Matt cringed.

Kaichi clapped his paws over his mouth, looking like he was about to toss his cookies as he groaned, "I think I'm gonna puke!"

Even Aya looked like she was going to hack up a hairball

"Hey, that's coming from him." Dice shrugged. " I was just reiterating what he told me."

"Well, I guess the two of you also neglected to mention your boss decided to be a creeper himself by sneaking in while you did all of that, playing around with Kate's hair and leaving her that black rose!" Kaichi snapped, his tail bristling.

Dice looked surprised. "Oh, he did? Huh, didn't know he popped in to see his lucky bride. He asked me if I saw her, but I didn't."

He then paused and asked sternly "And also which one of you was the idiot who tore up my jacket?! That cost me a fortune to fix it!"

I smirked as I replied, "Heh, that would be Nat."

I then glared at Dice as I deadpanned, "Ya know, to send a message to "Stay away"!"

Kaichi did an eyelid pull taunt at Dice while sticking his tongue out to add to my comment. I nearly chuckled at that.

"I dunno what gives you creeps the right to just manhandle us like that but it needs to STOP! RIGHT NOW!" I shouted.

"Hard to keep away from a pretty girl like you. oh and by the way, interesting note you sent the boss." Dice claimed. "He wasn't too thrilled about the music but I thought it was pretty catchy."

"Oh please." I scoffed while rolling my eyes. "You just sayin' that crap, 'cause I like Elvis Presley? Lame."

Aya then hissed at Dice in warning before he mentioned.

"What? I was being serious. Never heard music like that before. Got some good taste in music."

"Probably 'cause it wasn't out til like 20 years from now." I stated while Kaichi rolled his eyes to make my point.

"Anyway, the boss wanted me to see how the three of you were doing, considering you'd just lost another soul." Dice mocked me. "Gotta say, Mr. S is on a winning streak."

"Don't go pressing your luck, cheese cube!" Kaichi snapped. "We still got a handful of souls safe from that overgrown throw rug!"

"Oh right, how could I forget? But some of the people we got are very powerful." He recalled. "The mug even showed himself to be a hero, despite him being in his brother's shadow,"

"Hey! He's just as strong as his brother!" Kaichi defended, puffing up his fur angrily. "He was just as strong to beat the Devil and freed all of the former debtors! He was also most especially capable enough to kick your big, fat pompous bubble butt!"

"Right, because he knew his and his brother's life were on the line because of a stupid mistake." Dice reminded us. "I'm just saying, the boss has more resources than any of you. He's not gonna give up on trying to marry Ms. Gemwing and have you and pinkie as his kids."

Aya let out the loudest growl I've ever heard from any kitten her size. Jeeze, she was mad.

"Awww, how cute, the little kitty cat's growling. How adorable." Dice sneered.

I held Aya in a protective positon. I didn't want Dice or anyone to hurt her, especially knowing how small she was.

Suddenly, I noticed that Aya was moving her tail about and… Dice was suddenly lifted up into the air. The blockhead was startled by this as he frant flailed his arms and legs about just like how the Devil had levitated him in the episode, Roll the Dice.

"Whoa! Whoa! What's going on!?" Dice exclaimed, frantically waving his limbs about some more.

"Wow! That's so cool!" Matt beamed.

With her telekinesis, Aya threw Dice at a wall before he collapsed into a nearby dumpster beneath him. He then sat up in the garbage, groaning before the lid fell over, hitting him over the head and he fell back as it closed up on him.

"Ow! Oh, come on!" He shouted, his voice echoed a bit.

There was a short pause before we all burst out laughing. Oh, man alive, that was AWESOME! Epic karma right there!

Aya then mewed innocently, as if it was her way of saying sarcastically, "Oops, sorry."

Man, I am starting to love this kitten even more.

"Nice job Aya! Wow! I had no idea she could use telekinesis like that!"

I gently picked up Aya and rubbed my nose on Aya's, "Someone is going to get a good treat."

Aya then mewed happily as she licked my nose, which made me giggle.

I then turned to Matt and Kaichi, "Anyway come on guys, we need your help making the newspaper."

"Yeah, anything we can to spread the word and keep ten steps ahead of Old Stupid and his goon platoons." Kaichi added.

"Awesome! Let's go help!" Matt cheered.

(Normal P.O.V)

Moments after the group headed back to the Honeycomb Herald, Dice, who was covered in filth and garbage, lifted the lid and growled.

"If they think they can make me look like an idiot, they're wrong.

He hopped out, and teleported away.

Meanwhile, back at the casino, a few imps were attending to their duties when they smelled a foul stench in the air.

"Ew, yuck!" An imp gagged, holding his nose with his fingers.

Henchman, several imps and some of the casino employees covered up their noses as Dice stormed past them, reeking like the garbage that had been thrown out weeks ago.

"Sheesh, that smells!" Another imp gagged.

Hopus Pocus literally turned green as his cheeks puffed up, his ears rolling and unrolling themselves. Unable to stand the smell any longer, he pulled out his wand and made a large magician's hat appear before he hopped inside. His arm quickly popped out to hang a sign onto the hat that reads, "Do Not Disturb".

Dice just kept storming past the imps and employees as Mangosteen floated over to Dice.

"Oh, hey! Mr. King Dice, sir! How's it go-?"

He stopped mid-sentence to smell the disgusting stench all over Dice. "Ew! I sure wish that I had hands! And I don't even have a nose either!"

"Shut your trap! I don't want to hear it right now!" Dice snapped, shooting a glare at him.

"Aw, jeez…" Henchman muttered, holding his nose.

As Dice stormed off, Pip arched an eyebrow. "Gee, what's eatin' him?"

Phear Lap shrugged and decided not to ask his employer. He was steamed enough already.

Dice turned a corner and headed down the hallway as the Devil was speaking to Anubis about some planning he had.

"And once we take care of those debtors, we can move on here." He stated, pointing to a map of Inkwell Isle three, specifically near the theater and the scrap yard.

"Ah, si, el Jefe. I like that." Anubis agreed.

As they finished up, they heard the sound of footsteps approaching and saw Dice moving towards them.

"Ah, Dice, good to-oh, ugh! You smell awful!" The Devil snapped, covering his nose and mouth with his hand

"Ay caramba! That smells terrible!" Anubis gagged.

"Great, thanks for the notice, Anubis." Dice sarcastically replied, removing a rotten banana peel from his jacket sleeve.

"Dare I ask why you reek?!" The Devil asked, waving his free claw in front of his face.

"Well, I was hoping to chat with Lexie but-" Dice started, but Anubis interrupted.

"Oh, wait, did she 'dump' you?" He then began to laugh, making Dice see red.

"Oh, shut your trap, you cackling hyena!" He snapped. "At least I was close a few times with Lexie, while you have zero luck with Pinkie!"

"At least mi amor didn't punch me in the face." Anubis argued.

"Oh, right, because you rely on your pathetic shadows to do your bidding!"

"It keeps my prey from leaving!"

They both looked like they were ready to have a smack down when the Devil intervened.

"Alright, alright." The Devil sighed. "Look, Dice, I'm sure what you did was entertaining, but as the manager of the casino, I expect you to show up decent! Now go hit the showers and put on some clean clothes!"

Backing down from Anubis with a huff, Dice bowed as he answered, "Yessir."

As Dice then headed out, the Devil shook his head behind him.

"Hm. Such a shame Lexie's ignoring him. He is a good match for her, yet she's quite stubborn."

"Si….you think she knows you arranged the two to casarse?" Anubis asked.

"In time, she will." The Devil claimed, gazing in his looking mirror as he watched Lexie and the rest head on out of the building. "As much as her boyfriend can put up a fight, I don't approve of the relationship between them. Dice will make a better match for her and she will agree to marry him."

The Devil then claimed, "Come, Anubis. I need to finalize my plans. We'll discuss it in my office and wait for Dice to return once he doesn't smell like rotten garbage."

Anubis nodded and followed his employer.

A/N: UGH! He doesn't "approve" of OUR relationship?! The NERVE! What will the Devil pull next? And will my powers ever manifest themselves? "Toon" in next time on "Heart, Soul, and Mind"!