Chapter V: Topsy Turvy land Part I

There was a gentle breeze in the air as the scent of sweet flowers filled the atmosphere; it was filled with complete peace and harmony as the blue skies clouds drifted overhead. A land of green surrounded her as she looked at it all fondly, bending down on her knees in her long white dress she began to pluck some of the white flowers that were gathered there, she gazed at them fondly as she pulled them all into a small bouquet and smelled them all fondly.

Suddenly she noticed a shadow approach from behind her, turning around first puzzled she then gazed upon someone she knew so well, her face lit up as she smiled and-

FLASH!

Opening her eyes tiredly Nozomi was confused as she whispered lightly, "who was that…" But it was too early for her to speak as then the pool of clear white light she had been submerged in had vanished. She looked above herself as it vanished away revealing a clear light blue sky. She blinked confused as she was heading further and further away from the clouds, feeling the wind as it blew through her hair and clothes Nozomi knew she was falling through the air!
"AAAAAAAAAGGGGGGGGGGHHHHHHHHH !" She screamed as she scrambled her arms and legs around desperately trying to stop herself.

"Come one! Come all!"

She opened her eyes shocked as she heard singing coming from below, looking down she saw that there was a huge colourful carnival or fair happening in a huge town square. She then noticed a rope that was coming closer and closer towards her as she looked on desperately. She reached out to grab it when suddenly from nowhere someone else swung onto the rope as she caught it causing it to quickly come undone.

"WOOOOOAAAHHHH!" The figure yelled while Nozomi only clenched her eyes shut as she felt the rope swing with her and the person on it. It was fast as they then both hit the hard paved ground with Nozomi landing painfully on her backside once again, a few tears of pain came to her eyes as she saw her companion had landed on the ground completely balanced and without even a single scratch!

Nozomi couldn't see that much but she could see he was wearing green and blue cloak that covered the majority of his face, she was a bit jealous that he'd come out of that crash unscratched, but before anything could be said suddenly she heard the singing voices once again as she turned to see the singers approaching and all at once,

"Come and join the feast of... FOOLS!"

Suddenly confetti started to rain out and everything became engulfed in cheerful celebration as she saw a joker dressed in vibrant colours of blue and yellow appear from the cloaked singers with a purple mask on his face along with ringing bells on his ankles. "What's going on?!" She asked shocked and absolutely confused.

It was then as she turned that she noticed the person who too had grabbed the rope with her was trying to quickly runaway, Nozomi seeing puzzled decided to chase after him to maybe get some answers as to where she was and what was happening here?

But then as she got close to him she suddenly felt an arm pull on her as she was forced into a dose do with her cloaked companion along with the joker who started to sing once again,

"Once a year we throw a party here in town! Once a year we turn all of Paris upside down!"

Nozomi blinked as she was let go and suddenly as she turned around she saw the joker who was beside a fancy dresser costumed as a King of some kind but as he sang the words,

"Every man's a king and every king's a clown!"

The king then flipped onto his hands, as another head emerged underneath him revealing that this person wasn't just one performer, he was two! And now they'd become a clown! Nozomi looked on wide eyed in shock at this sight, but quickly shaking her head out of her bewilderment she turned to look for that cloaked person again, but he'd vanished!Aggravated she looked as she ran into the crowd where suddenly she saw the joker again who was singing with a pair of scissors in his hand,

"It's a day the devil in us gets released!"

Doing that he cut away the strings of some balloons that someone was holding. As the colourful things floated away she saw it was that cloaked person who'd been holding them as he went to run away again. Quickly she called out to him as she followed, "wait!"

She ran as he headed through a colourful caravan of some kind, but when she came to the other side of it he was gone again! Baffled at how he could have disappeared she looked around to try and find him again, however her eyes only met more weird sights. Dogs walking people on leads, a weird man pointing with red arrows on a weird two bottomed…. Horse? Then more weird masked figures started to approach her which made her look to the side as she saw the cloaked person AGAIN!

She quickly ran after him getting further annoyed as he went into another tent, thinking that she had finally caught up to him she suddenly felt a pull on her arm! "Hey whoa!" All at once she was dragged across by some women who were performing the cancan in long dresses and white pantyhose. She blinked confused as this happened but before she could think she saw that the cloaked person had also been caught as they were both pulled into the opposite tent. Quickly as the women who'd been holding her let go and she rushed at the cloaked stranger pushing him forwards as her impatience got the best of her, "why are you-" but this sudden action caused them both to fall out of the tent and into a bigger neighbouring one as they landed inside it with a crash.

Nozomi rolled over as she fell over a stall and was now sprawled flat on the floor, "Owwww! Why does this keep happening to me!" She moaned again loudly with pain.

But then she noticed that the cloaked person she had been chasing had landed underneath a huge sheet but before she could say anything she heard another voice, "hey are you both all right?"

When Nozomi turned to look at this person who'd asked she saw a woman with long raven black hair and rich brown skin as a single gold ring hung from her right ear, she was also wearing a green dressing gown. She looked at her dumbfounded unable to answer as she was amazed at how beautiful this woman was, but then she heard a voice from beneath the sheet, "I, I, I didn't mean to I'm sorry!" He spoke worried and scared as he removed the sheet trying to move back as much as he could away from both Nozomi and the woman.

It was this action that made Nozomi worry as she got up and moved closer over to the cloaked person, as it was her fault that they'd gotten into this messy predicament, "I'm so sorry about that fall there, are you hurt at all?" She asked as she went to check on him.

Then the woman moved over to him too as she along with Nozomi looked at the cloaked person, "here let's see!" She spoke as she moved her hands forwards.

"No, No, No!" The figure cried out distressed. With that the strangers cloak was removed and there Nozomi saw his face, she looked at him surprised. She could see that he was disfigured slightly with a rather big nose and a layered eye with brown short hair along with worried green eyes that stared at her and the woman.

But the woman seeing him only smiled gently as she told him, "See no harm done."

The figure quickly smiled at her for her gentleness but when he looked at Nozomi and saw her perplexed eyes he turned his face away ashamed. Seeing him like that made Nozomi sad herself, but as she moved to apologise the woman started to guide the once cloaked person out saying, "just try to be more careful."

"I, I will!" He spoke as he was then led to the tents exit.

But before he left the woman spoke to him again, "by the way great mask!" with that she shut the tent door pointing to him revealing that she was impressed leaving him still with a happy glad smile.

The cloaked stranger was gone and now she couldn't apologise to him and Nozomi felt guilty and depressed. But before she could even think to what she was going to do next a finger was pressed into her nose as she saw it was the woman again.

She looked down at Nozomi seriously but then seeing she'd got her attention she smiled as she said to her "so I see you finally arrived!"

Nozomi blinked confused at this, "what?" She asked puzzled.

The woman then removed her finger as she continued, " you're the introductory dancer right?" She said as she turned to get dressed again.

Nozomi was silent and quickly turned away to be respectful as she was trying to think of what was best to say, "uh well you see I only arrived here today and I-"

"And you don't know the routine?" She said finishing the sentence for her as she was quickly slipping something new on.

Nozomi was dumbfounded and didn't know how to reply exactly, "uh well I-"

The woman who was putting a tiara in her hair as she spoke again, "it's okay don't panic, I'll show you what to do real quick! You'll only be up there for a little anyway!" She smiled to her with a wink.

"Uh okay…" Nozomi replied, she'd gotten herself into another predicament again but at least it wasn't with a wolf! The woman then gestured to her to come towards her, which Nozomi did and with that as she was made to stand in one place the woman gestured as she moved her body, as she moved Nozomi then went to copy her moves and with that the two of them started to move and synchronise and with that she was quickly instructed at what to do in the routine.

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"Eurgh!… What happened this time!" Riku spoke annoyed as he woke up with a slight headache which he winced at as he held his head as he moved himself forwards to get a little more careful. He then saw that he was in an alleyway against a bunch of broken barrels with a pipe dripping down with water a little further off in the distance. As he saw this he asked, "where is this place?"

"Well it looks like we're in a city of some kind I gotta say," Riku turned and saw that it was King Mickey who looked on ahead down the alleyway as he saw the celebrations of the 'Feast Of Fools' being held in the town centre.

"Your majesty?! What's going on? How did we get here?!" Riku asked him as he hoped that he'd know the answer to this weird situation.

The King turned to look at him as he answered, "well I think that-"

But quickly he sensed something else! He ran over to Riku fast as he hid behind the barrel where he was still sitting, "what're you-" But a gloved finger was put to his mouth as the King gestured for Riku to be silent. Then seeing that he'd managed to succeed in quieting his comrade he pointed down the alleyway.

Riku understanding this gesture nodded as the king released him and with that he looked across, as he did after a moment of silence a procession of soldiers dressed in medieval dark grey and black armour rode down upon their horses. Looking at them he saw that they were accompanying and guarding a huge carriage with someone sitting in the centre of it.

Riku looked at this figure with a hard stare and he saw that this person was an old man with a stern cold look on his aged face dressed fully in black and purple with a red long feather flowing from out of his big black hat. As he stared at him he could sense a deep darkness within that man, his eyes looked on at him with distrust. The carriage along with the procession of soldiers after a little more time passed on as they headed into 'The Feast Of Fools'. There was silence between both King and keyblader as they made sure that all the soldiers had gone before either of them uttered a word.

"Did you sense that?" The King asked him.

Riku nodded, "yeah I did…"

"This mean's troubles a brewin especially concernin what brought us here," Mickey spoke, he looked tense with the thought of the possibilities of what could happen.

"What do you mean your majesty?" Riku asked completely lost.

The King turned away from him sadly as he responded, "well you see Riku the thing is I have a guess that-"

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"And that's how you do it!" the woman spoke as she finished her last step with a bright smile.

Nozomi then followed the step herself as she breathed in and out slightly from the rush, "wow! That's really intense!" She spoke as she wiped a bead of sweat from her forehead.

"Well it has to be if we're gonna earn from the crowd," the woman laughed as she went to put a necklace on.

Nozomi smiled as she felt the excitement inside her overflow, she'd done dancing before but never on this kind of level! She couldn't believe her luck! "Wow travelling to the other worlds like this is more fun then I could ever imagine!"

"What did you say?" The woman asked her curious.

"Uh nothing, nothing!" Nozomi laughed awkwardly remembering what King Mickey had told her about to keep the world order. But then at this thought it made her worry slightly inside as she wondered, 'where could those guys be?"

"Right I think it's time you got ready!" The woman told her, shrugging off what Nozomi had said before.

Still deep in her thoughts Nozomi had been distracted and after a moment it registered that she'd been spoken to and so she looked at the woman confused, "huh? What was that?"

"You need to get ready now," she replied smiling as she gestured for her to come on over to her again.

Nozomi getting it walked over to her as she saw a clothes rack, "you can choose what you want to wear now okay? Just remember to try and pick something that will really draw in the crowd! I gotta be out of here in a second, so choose wisely!"

Nozomi nodded in reply at this and with that she looked at all the clothes amazed at the vast arrays of colours and designs along with the way they shone in the light. She then heard a rustle as she saw the woman had now disappeared through it to prepare for her role.

Silent Nozomi stopped as she considered and after a moment she spoke softly, "just pick…" with that she held her hand out to the clothes rack as she went to make her selection, " I hope Riku and the King are okay…" with that she picked what she needed as she went to go and get changed herself.