Gemwing2012: I'm very pleased by how this chapter had turned out. To make this story differ from the original movie, it was agreed we would go with a trip to a café since I really don't play golf. As mentioned in Heart, Soul & Mind, it had been a childhood dream to be apart of the cartoon world and interact with all of the characters from all those beloved classic shows like the Looney Tunes and Disney Afternoon. I'm very proud and pleased to be a part of this project.
Nataliepthatsme: this was a great way for us to meet the toons. Like Kate, I'm not much of a golfer but thought this was a good way to get transported to the toon world. Meeting characters like Mickey Mouse, super Mario and sonic the hedgehog really got me excited as well as meeting other characters from cuphead. This story is going great and I can't wait to see what'll happen next
LexieLuthor98: It's been a real pleasure working with y'all on this project. It's amazing how different cartoons of different types, styles, and backgrounds come together for a greater cause, and we get to be a part of it! Can't wait to see where this goes!
May your dreams shine and thanks for reading. Don't forget to leave a review
Alicia lays in bed, sound asleep. Well, she tried but unfortunately the thoughts of the toons kept coming back and they wouldn't leave her alone.
"I hope Cuphead and Mugman are okay."
She was worried something might happen to them while she wasn't with them. Unlike Cuppy and his Mugman from the Cuphead Book they couldn't use any weapons to defend themselves.
But while she tries to get a decent sleep two familiar faces appear in her Dreamworld.
It were the Angel and the Demon from The Delicious Last Course. Both live in her head inside her Dreamworld to make sure she doesn't get any nightmares or to make sure she and her husband are united.
"Alicia, Your Majesty! We have an important message for you from Cuphead." The Angel informed.
"Is it bad?" asked Alicia nervously.
The Demon handed her the message over, answering, "Well, we were told to give you this and that it is important for you and your friends the Dreamstones."
Alicia held an envelope in her hand with her name on it. She opens it up and from out of nowhere did Katie, Lexie and Natty appear in her Dreamworld.
"Whoa, guys?" Alicia was surprised to see the three in her Dreamworld.
"Ali?!" Katie gasped, just as surprised. "What are you-? How did we-?"
"I don't know. I'm as surprised as you guys." Alicia answered her question.
"What's going on?" Lexie asked. "This is getting so weird…"
"My head hurts even thinking about it." Alicia groaned, scratching her head.
"Maybe we can help." The Angel spoke up.
"How?" Natty asked.
"Just read the letter." The Demon barked.
Alicia opens the letter to see the message written down.
"Alicia, Katie, Lexie and Natty,
We need your help.
~ Cuphead and Mugman
"Uhhh what?" Alicia was perplexed.
"Wait… this is just like the message from Cuppy in the book." Katie realized.
"They want us to meet in a café." Alicia noticed as she read the last part of the
letter.
"Weren't we going to meet up at a café tomorrow once the storm is over?" Lexie inquired.
"Yes. Why do you ask?" Alicia was confused about Lexie's statement until she remembered it.
"Well, we were going to grab a couple of drinks and do some catching up as well as you introducing us to your brother." Katie stated. "So… why do you think the Cup Brothers would want us to meet up there concerning our help with… what?"
"I don't know. Maybe the Devil did something and tried to trick us or something that has to do with the NBA Players." Alicia sighed. "I mean there is no other way you can explain why these things happen."
"Well… if it's a message from Cuphead and Mugman, I know we can trust them." Natty said. "And from the looks of it, they must be in really big trouble."
"Okay I trust them and I trust you but guys, please be careful when we meet the Cups." Alicia said, looking worried.
"Hey, don't worry. We've been through some worst when it concerns Old Scratch Butt." Lexie replied in reassurance. "And whatever trouble the Cup Brothers and the Toons are facing is, we'll see to it together."
"I hope everything will be alright." Alicia sighed again, looking down to the ground.
"Hey…" Katie spoke up, placing a hand on Alicia's shoulder. "As long as we're together, I'm sure everything will be fine. We've been through many scrapes before and always pulled through to overcome whatever's been through at us."
Before Alicia could say something a bright light appears blinding everyone.
"What the…" Alicia uses her arms to shield her eyes from the light.
"Gah!" Katie cried out as she, Lexie and Natty did the same.
"What's happening?!" Natty yelled.
"I… Ahhh!" Alicia screamed.
"AL!" Lexie shouted in alarm and concern.
The light got brighter and brighter until…
Alicia wakes up in bed in a cold sweat. She didn't know what that was. A dream, a nightmare or a vision?
She didn't know.
Meanwhile in the hotel….
Lexie, Katie and Natty all sat up in bed in shock, startling Kaichi, Aya and Daisy awake.
"Huh?! Wha-?" Kaichi stuttered, half-awake as Aya mewed and Daisy
squeaked in confusion.
"G-guys…?" Natty stammered. "Th-that shared dream with Alicia and the message from Cuphead and Mugman… d-did that actually just happen?"
"W-what does that all mean?" Katie gasped.
"I-I have no idea…" Lexie shuddered.
Aya mewed in concern as she padded up to Lexie as she took the kitten into her arms to calm her nerves. Daisy looked at Natty in worry, scampering from her pen and into Nat's hands.
"Kate…" Kaichi uttered as he hovered up to a shaken Katie, who took him into her cupped hands and kissed him on the head in reply.
"Whatever this is all about, something tells me our holiday will have to be on hold tomorrow…" Katie said grimly.
Natty groaned. "Seriously? We can't have one decent vacation without something happening like this? Ugh, can't imagine what my honeymoon would look like."
"Same, I hope my honeymoon with Liam will be good." Lexie sighed, rubbing Aya gently.
"And to think my plans to introduce Validor to my parents were going to be my only concerns…" Katie added. "Still, we won't be of help to anyone if we don't get any decent amount of sleep. We'd better get some rest since we have a whole day ahead of us tomorrow."
"Right." Natty agreed.
"Yeah. We need to be ready for anything." Lexie chimed in.
With their companions nestled back into their little beds, all three women settled back down and got back to sleep.
The next Day…
The door to her bedroom slowly opens as Alicia walks out of it wearing her black pajamas with a black and white striped shorts. She was still sleepy from what happened last night in her dream.
"I hope it was just a dream." She thought, walking down the stairs to make herself a coffee to start the day. Her parents weren't home of course. Work was more important than family.
"Morning, Sis." John greeted her, handing over a mug of coffee to her.
"Morning, Bro." Alicia yawned before she sat down on the chair.
Breakfast was on the table. The toasts were in a small basket next to the butter, the strawberry jam jar and the Nutella jar that was closed. John hold the honey jar in his hand before he puts it on the table.
"Couldn't sleep last night?" he asked her.
Alicia only nodded before she grabbed a bun and put honey on it.
The breakfast went by fast and Alicia went up to her room to change her clothes. She was wearing a black T-shirt with Balto on it, gray shorts, white socks, her wolf necklace, her bracelet and her red house shoes.
"Where do you want to meet your friends again?" John asked, coming out of the kitchen and looking at his smartphone.
"'Bean There, Brewed That' is the name of the café." Alicia replied while John found it.
"Hmm… 10 minutes away from our house. Should we walk there?"
Alicia nodded to his question.
"Should we take Duke with us?" She asked him.
But sadly, big dogs are not allowed in the café as John had looked it up.
"Sorry, Sis, but Duke can't come with us."
Alicia sighed and wanted to say something but suddenly her phone started vibrating.
"Huh?" She exclaimed as she looked at it and saw a message from the girls.
Katie: Hey, Ali! We're excited to get coffee with you! We'll meet you over at the café and then we can hang out! Can't wait to see ya!
Alicia typed down her replied message and sent it to the chat.
Alicia: We're on our way guys. Sadly we can't take Duke with us. No big Dogs are allowed.
Almost instantly, another message appeared.
Natty: Awww! That stinks! We'll have to see if we can get him something dog friendly from the café.
Alicia saw the message, sending her reply.
Alicia: My brother told me they're the only ones that don't allow pets.
Just then, Lexie sent a message.
Lexie: Thanks for that. TBH, we didn't know about that till now since we're bringing our pets. We'll have to be careful when we go. Don't wanna start something.
Alicia: Same here. We can't hide Duke so maybe we can go to our house after we meet up?
Katie: Sounds like a plan. I would love to meet him since I have a Samoyed and a Pomeranian back home in the U.K., so I'm cool with him being super excited to have visitors over.
Alicia: Well, be careful. He likes to kiss strangers and loves to get pets and hugs.
Katie: Eh, I'm used to that since I have some aunts up in Yorkshire who had dogs themselves who are kissers themselves when I was a kid.
John: And he loves to fall asleep on your lap when you scratch him behind his ears.
Natty: I'm totally fine with that. As long as he's not jumping all over me, I can handle him napping on my lap.
Alicia: Alright then, we see you all in 10 Minutes ;)
Katie: Okay, see you soon ^^
Natty: KK! Can't wait!
Lexie: See y'all there :)
"Alright sis let's go!" John said, putting on his shoes sitting on the bottom of the staircase waiting for his sister to put on her shoes as well.
But before she can do that, she grabs her shoulder bag from her bedroom where the Cuphead Book was inside.
10 minutes later…
After a bit of walking, Alicia and John finally came to the cafe "Bean There, Brewed That." It was an average size building, painted red with a brown building, glass window with the logo of the shop as well as some elegant designs. There were tables, chairs and umbrellas outside, where people were chatting, and enjoying their beverages.
"Hmm. Do you see them?" asked John looking around.
"I don't see them. Maybe they're on the way here?" answered Alicia his question.
Just then, they heard someone call from behind "Alicia! John!"
Both siblings turn around and saw the three women running towards them.
"Hey!" Katie waved. "Long time no see! How you're been?"
"I'm good so far. A little sleepy but I'm fine." said Alicia while she yawned.
"Had a rough night?" Lexie asked.
"Yep, you can say that." Alicia nodded and stretches her arms out.
"Sorry to hear that." Natty sheepishly replied. "I'm sure once you'll get some caffeine in ya, you'll feel better."
"Sure, one latte and she is awake like a hamster." John joked as he playfully nudged his sister.
"Ha ha, very funny." Alicia rolled with her eyes.
"Speaking of which…" Natty smiled as she opened up her jacket and Daisy popped her cute little head from the inside pocket. "We didn't want to leave them behind, so we're sneaking them in."
"Yep! Wouldn't be fair just to leave 'em cooped up in our hotel room all day." Lexie added in as she slightly lifted up her hat to reveal Aya, who mewed.
"Hey! Long time no see, Al!" Kaichi greeted as he poked his head out from one of the breast pockets of Katie's cold shoulder jacket.
"Awww so cute!" said Alicia looking at the hamster. "And Kaichi and Aya are here too?"
"Yep." Lexie smiled, as she lifted her hat and Aya was perched on her head. She gave a cute mew and smile to Alicia.
John looked confused, pointed at Kaichi and asked, "Is that a fox dragon?"
Kaichi actually sweat dropped like an anime character as he made a deadpanned face.
"Actually, he's a Sprigon." Katie corrected.
"A what now?" John was more confused than before.
"We can explain it to you inside the coffeeshop, Bro." Alicia pushed him towards the shop as her Cuphead book falls out of her shoulder bag.
"Whoa! Ali! Your book!" Katie cried out as she made a grab for the book before it would hit the ground.
"Thanks, Katie." Alicia grabs the book and puts it in her shoulder bag, closing it before she and the others walk inside the coffeeshop.
The place was not as busy as the group thought as they seemed to be the only ones here and it was peacefully quiet, save for the barista manning the till and the other staff employees working in the kitchen on the other side of the door behind him.
"It's quiet." Alicia said.
"Too quiet." John added.
"Well, at least it'll be easier to make conversation." Katie pointed out. "I'll really hate it when I can't make out what everyone at my table is saying over the chattering of crowds. It also comes off annoying that my parents tell me to keep my voice down despite trying to talk over the commotion."
"Agreed, makes it harder to hear people and myself." Natty claimed.
"And I can show you why I have the Cuphead Book with me." Alicia said, opening her shoulder bag and grabbed the book from it.
"Ohhhhh! That's so cool!" Lexie squealed. "Totally fangirling over this!"
"Well it's not a normal children's book." John said.
"It's belonged to our family over generations." explained Alicia.
"That's incredible!" Katie gasped in awe.
"Even more incredible if you know that you're a Moldenhauer by blood." John scratches behind his head.
"So, shall we take our seats and order something so we can discuss about what's going on with… you-know-what?" Lexie suggested.
"Yeah, guess we do need to talk about it." Natty sadly mentioned.
Katie nodded in concerned agreement. "And I have a bad feeling that what we had witnessed and experienced last night isn't a coincidence."
"Sure." Alicia sits down on a table big enough for the group.
A waiter then walks up to the table.
"Hi, welcome to Bean There, Brewed That. What can I get you guys?"
"One caramel latte for me please." Alicia said.
"A normal one for me." John ordered.
"I'll take an apple cinnamon iced latte and a sugar cookie please." Natty replied.
"I'll have a red velvet frappé and a triple chocolate cookie please." Katie requested.
"And I would like a vanilla chai tea latte with a couple blonde shots please." Lexie chimed in. "Oh, and a frosted cookie please."
The waiter wrote everything down as he asked, "Is that everything?"
"Yes, thank you." Natty smiled.
"Yep, it is." Alicia nodded.
"We're all good, thank you." Katie added politely.
The waiter walks away leaving the group alone. As they waited, they made the most of the peace and quiet and chatted away.
"Now, to answer your question earlier, John, Kaichi is a Sprigon." Katie explained. "Similar to Pokémon, it's a shortened term for sprite dragon. He was originally an OC I had made up and he started out as drawing when he was suddenly brought to life when the girls, Lexie's boyfriend and his kid brother and I were pulled into the Cuphead world in our own Cuphead book."
"Ah, I see." John said as Alicia opened the book.
She looked through all the pages until she found the page with the Cups sitting inside the cottage with Elder Kettle enjoying hot chocolate with marshmallows in a mug.
"Nothing doesn't seem wrong so far in there." Kaichi observed from Katie's jacket pocket.
Cuppy noticed Alicia and walked up to the group, calling out, "Alicia, we need your help!"
"With what? Cuppy?" Alicia asked, confused.
The cup looked around before talking further as he and the others froze like statues
"Here you go." The waiter returns with the drinks and food.
"Oh, thank you." Katie replied.
He puts the drinks and food on the table. Cuppy and the others moved again, signing before for saying something.
"You need to head to Toon Town. Cuphead and Mugman from the show as well as all the Toons need your help." said the cup, confusing the group even more than before.
"Toon Town. What is that place?" asked Alicia.
"Isn't a fictional place in California from Who Framed Roger Rabbit?" Katie chimed in.
"Yes, that's right." John added before scratching his chin in thought.
"But where should we look? California is big." Alicia pointed out.
She was frustrated and about to give up when suddenly a voice called out for her: "Guys…"
Alicia looked around. Did she actually hear that? Is someone calling for her and the others?
"Did you hear that?" She asked, grabbed the book and looked around again.
"Yeah, it came from over there…" Lexie trailed off as she pointed at the door. "Someone wanna come with me while I check it out?"
"Maybe we should all check it out?" John said.
"We did just order our stuff, don't wanna leave without paying." Lexie shrugged.
"Yeah but… Hey Sis!" John noticed Alicia run towards the door leading behind the coffee shop to an alley.
"Nothing good ever happens in alleyways…" Lexie muttered. "Al, come back!"
She rushed after Alicia while the waiter came back.
"I saw what happened, do you guys need your drinks to go?" The waiter asked, looking puzzled.
"Yes please." Katie replied with a nod.
But Alicia didn't hear the others and looks around the alleyway until she stops in front of a brick wall.
"Here the voice is coming from here behind that wall!" Alicia said and takes a closer look on the wall.
"That wall?" Lexie asked. "Seems pretty thick…"
Some bricks looked odd. Like they don't belong to the others.
Alicia touched one and a symbol appeared on it.
It was a wolf head.
"Whoa…" Lexie gasped.
On a hunch, Lexie decided to tap another brick, and sure enough, a symbol of a butterfly appeared glowing yellow on its surface.
"That's so insane!" She beamed.
Katie and Natty followed Lexie's lead and each touched a brick of the glowing yellow wall. For Katie's brick, a symbol of a dragonfly appeared while the one Natty had touched had a symbol of a firefly materializing on it.
John touches the wall as well and a dog head symbol appears.
"Okay, that is totally weird." He commented.
"I'll say…" Kaichi agreed as Aya popped out from under Lexie's hat and perched on her shoulder.
The bricks suddenly moved inside the wall creating a black wooden door with a silver doorknob. On the door were several animals. However, a wolf, a dragon, a phoenix and another wolf with wings stood out. They glowed golden.
"Sis, be careful." John said.
Alicia reached for the doorknob when suddenly the door opened on its own and a 2D lasso appeared and grabbed her and the others tight around their waist.
"Wait, what?!" Katie exclaimed.
"Whoa! What is going on here?!" Alicia asked as she tried to free herself.
"I think we're about to find ouuuuut!" Lexie cried, holding Aya in her arms as the lasso suddenly yanked the group into the door.
"Oh great, here we gooooAAAhhhh!" John cried as well.
"Whoaaaaahhh!" Katie and Natty screamed while Kaichi and Daisy clung onto them inside their jacket pockets.
The group disappeared through the door before it closed and the wooden door turned back to a brick wall.
The door leads the group through a tunnel similar to Alice in Wonderland when Alice followed the White Rabbit and she fell into a rabbit hole.
"This is nuts!" Kaichi yelled as the lasso pulled everyone further down the tunnel.
"Tell me." Alicia rolled with her eyes as she saw a piano floating next to her and a table with two tea cups and a kettle pouring tea in both cups.
"Serious Alice in Wonderland vibes here!" Natty exclaimed as they went past a mirror that shows their reflections upside down.
"One more reason to puke for me." Alicia moaned, not happy to get those vibes.
Alicia had a good reason why she hated Alice in Wonderland.
As the group keeps falling down they noticed something at the end of the tunnel. A bright light is coming closer and closer until something blocked it.
"A curtain? Really?" Alicia rolled her eyes as she and the others came closer to the curtain.
It opens and reveals a beautiful 2D world.
Everything was drawn and looks like a cartoon. From the buildings which are alive to the trees, just everything looked cartoony. Or rather toony?
Well, it looked like the group ended up in a world within their own world.
The group could talk about that later. Right now Alicia, her brother, the Dreamstones and their companions need to prepare for a harsh landing.
"Oof!" Alicia exclaimed as she landed on the grass with her belly.
Her brother lands next to her on his butt with Kaichi, who fell out of Katie's pocket, landing on his lap.
"Woah, little fella. Are you okay?" John asked the Springon.
"Y-yeah, I think so, Lexie…" Kaichi answered dizzily, the distortion made him easily mistake the man for one of the girls.
Katie groaned as she was on her side while Natty was sprawled on her own with Daisy on her head and Lexie was on her back, Aya on her stomach.
Everyone failed to notice Sandy Cheeks was rolling up her lasso after she had successfully pulled them into the cartoon world and walked away.
All three Dreamstone members sat up, rubbing their heads. Unlike Alicia and her brother, the three women were suddenly animated versions of themselves, looking like a cross between Disney and anime.
Alicia slowly stood up as she rubs her head and opens her eyes. Her vision was blurry at first but became normal again.
"Whoa! What is….!" She gasped, bumping into the others as she saw Bugs Bunny and Mickey Mouse under a tree looking at the group.
"Oh, uh, watch out for that first step, docs. It's a real lulu." Bugs cautioned.
"Uh, yeah, you all might want to take it easy first." Mickey added.
"Bugs Bunny?! Mickey Mouse?!" Alicia exclaimed in shock and surprise.
"Eh, were you expecting Santa Claus and the Easter Bunny?" Bugs quipped.
"You're both cartoons. You are not real." John mentioned as he puts Kaichi on Katie's shoulder.
"Not real, eh?" Bugs repeated, raising an eyebrow. "Well, if I weren't real, would I do this?"
Bugs moves closer to the group and gives John a kiss on the mouth. Once Bug pulls back, a disgusted John quickly wipes his mouth, taken aback. Mickey covers his mouth to stifle a chuckle, actually finding this funny.
"Was that real enough for you?" Lexie asked.
"Yep, it was." John answered, sticking his tongue out in disgust.
Alicia giggled when suddenly three familiar voices were heard coming closer to her.
"Alicia!"
She looks around and falls to the ground as the two cup brothers jumped on her while The Baroness stretches out her hand to help her get up from the ground.
"It's so good to see you again, sweetheart!" Bon Bon squealed in joy to be reunite with her goddaughter.
"Hey, Bon Bon! Long time no see." Alicia was happy to see her too after a very long time.
More and more Toons appeared and came closer to the group as Katie, Lexie and Natty were over the moon to see all of the cartoon characters from every animated show from their childhood and so on.
"Is that Alicia Powell?" asked Kit Cloudkicker Baloo.
"Well, it must be her. The Cups know her." Baloo answered.
"Oh! And those must be her friends, Katie Gemwing, Lexie Luther and Natty Poke!" Granny added happily.
"The Dreamstones?" Slyvester as he popped out from a manhole in the road.
"Well, that's what the Cup Brothers said they call themselves." Luigi replied as he and Mario came over with their plumbing tools.
Up in the tree not far away from the group Tweety Bird wakes up.
"Ooh, I tawt I taw…" He started before he looked down and spotted the group. "I did, I did see Alicia Powell and the Dreamstones!"
He flies down landing on Lexie's finger, making her smile.
"Jeepers! They made it!" Roger beamed as he and his wife, Jessica Rabbit came over.
Walking up to Katie with a notebook in her hand was Webby as she requested, "Um, excuse me, Miss Katie, ma'am? Could I maybe get your autograph please?"
Surprised at first, Katie became flattered as she smiled at the young duckling girl in pink as she replied, "Oh, sure."
Alicia and her group then heard a commotion and noticed a mailbox bouncing about until it was shattered to pieces to reveal the Tasmanian Devil had been hiding inside for some reason, scattering mail letters everywhere.
"Basketball!" Taz cheered before he did his trademark spin.
"Oh boy, oh boy!" Donald quacked happily as he and Goofy hurried over.
"Whoa!" Katie gasped in awe, her eyes sparkling.
"You can say that again." Natty agreed.
"This is so cool!" Lexie exclaimed.
Alicia and John, on the other hand, were a bit overwhelmed by all of the Toons looking to the siblings over since they were the only live-action humans in the animated world. While the Dreamstones are still human, they were still animated, blending in with their new surroundings.
"Uh, John…" Alicia was a little afraid as more Toons came closer to the group.
Even Daffy, who is suddenly dressed in a doctor's suit. He was interested in the two siblings.
"Back up! Let the doctor take a look!" Daffy declared as he barged past in between Baloo's pals, Wildcat the mechanic and Louie, making his way to the siblings.
Alicia and John looked confused at him when suddenly both were sitting in a chair.
"Woah! What is going on?" asked John confused.
"I don't know." Alicia said in panic.
Daffy had pulled a lever that had appeared out of nowhere. Unfortunately, he had pulled it too far, causing the chair to extend upwards, lifting the siblings way too high over everyone.
"Guys!" Lexie cried.
"Whoops! A little too high." Daffy said sheepishly.
"Ya think?!" Kaichi snapped in annoyance as Daisy and Aya gave the black mallard a disapproving look.
"Uhhh, we need help!" John shouted as he held his sister in his arms.
"I hate heights! Please let us down!" Alicia yelled down at Daffy.
Of course, Daffy was more than happy to oblige as he grabbed the lever with both hands.
"Going down! Woo-hoo-hoo-hoo!" He exclaimed, pushing the lever forward.
"Me and my big mouth!" Alicia cried as the chair zoomed down to the ground.
Both siblings screamed and hugged each other as they reached the ground.
"So, what do you say we go for a little spin?" Daffy suggested.
He spins the chair around, making both siblings dizzy. The chair stops and Daffy looks into John's ear with an otoscope.
"Hmm. Now let's see what we got inside here." Daffy muttered.
He looks through John's ear and on the other side was Bugs Bunny waving and yodeling, "Yodel-ay-hee-hoo!".
Daffy removes the otoscope from John's ear, the older brother was glad that it was over. But before he could enjoy himself, Daffy put a thermometer in his mouth.
"Say Ahh!" Daffy requested as the thermometer swells and explodes in John's face, making the girls flinch.
The cloud of smoke disappears while Daffy stamps both siblings as well as the Dreamstones on their forehead leaving behind an "A-OK" sign.
"All right, they're OK!" Daffy declared.
"Ahhh, classic cartoon logic…" Lexie mused, gently shaking her head.
"Tell me about it." John said, annoyed as he rubs his head.
"What's going on here anyway?" asked Alicia as she looked at every Toon. Both Cups knew the group need an explanation.
"Yeah, why are we even here?" Katie added.
"Gosh, it's a long story." Mickey answered in concern.
"It's okay. Just start at the beginning as best as you can." Natty said.
"Well, it started when these little aliens from another planet arrived and wanted to make us slaves to work at their theme park." Mugman explained.
"We weren't too worried about it 'cause they're tiny, so we challenged 'em to a basketball game, thinking we could win but…" Cuphead trailed off, looking nervous.
"But what?" Kaichi asked.
"What happened?" Lexie chimed in.
"Well, they showed up again, they were… huge." Mugman replied. "And when I say huge, I mean they looked stronger, scarier looking and could break the court in a matter of seconds!"
"Oh jeez! That can't be good." Natty mentioned, twisting her ring a bit.
"That's awful!" Katie agreed, fiddling her locket anxiously.
"Yeah, and now the problem is we don't have a powerful team to stop them." Cuphead mentioned. "If we lose, we'll be forced to work in their amusement park."
"The boys are right!" Bugs piped up. "Those aliens are talking about slavery! They wanna make us do stand-up comedy, drama entertainment, be poked around in petting zoos and forced to give out pony rides for all eternity!"
"That's horrible!" Lexie gasped.
"We'll all be locked up like prisoners if we don't win." Minnie Mouse shuddered, clinging to Mickey. "Oh, Mickey. I'm scared."
"I know you are, Minnie. But we won't let that happen." Mickey sternly announced.
"Wait, you said they came from an amusement park?" Natty remembered. "Where?"
"I think one of them mentioned a place called… Moron Mountain." Mugman mentioned. "Why?"
"If they came from another planet, they might be under strict orders from someone." Natty answered. "They may be big now, but they were small before. Someone else is pulling the strings, but who that is, I couldn't tell ya."
"So, it would seem that the Devil has nothing to do with what had been happening after all." Katie confirmed. "Now, you guys mentioned you don't have a powerful team to take on these now huge aliens… what does it have to do with us exactly?"
"Well, to put it lightly…WE NEED YOUR HELP!" Bugs cried. "We need you guys to help us defeat the Monstars. You guys need to join our team to win against them."
"Play basketball? With you guys? Against them?" Lexie repeated.
"This is a bit sudden." Katie spoke up, a bit uncertain. "I had played a bit of basketball back in P.E. back in school, but I'm afraid I might be a bit rusty."
"Yeah, I haven't played since high school in P.E. and I would only play for fun with my brother and dad." Natty piped up. "Not really a NBA star here."
"Yeah but we knew from the Cups that Alicia is very good at playing basketball, so we decided to make her our coach with you guys as her helping hand." Bugs said, eating his carrot.
While the others thought about that, Alicia's eyes widened in horror as she slowly moved away. She didn't hear that, did she? Her as a coach?
"You're kidding right?"
Everyone looks at her with different expressions while Alicia gets more and more nervous with each second.
"I'm not a good coach or even a good basketball player at all!" She protested.
She wanted to go, but both Cups stood in her way from leaving Toon Town.
"You can't leave, Alicia!" Cuphead argued. "We need you to help us with basketball."
"Yeah, and none of us know how to play very well." Mugman chimed in. "If we don't do well, we'll all be in big trouble!"
"But I…" Alicia sighed and looked down to the floor while Bon Bon put her hand on her shoulder.
"I know it's scary to think, but you're someone who knows more than any of us." The Baroness said gently. "Besides, we need all the help we can get to save the other Toons from a horrible fate."
"Sis, I know deep inside of you that you play on the same level as an NBA player. There is no need to hide that." John motivated her.
"Al, I know it sounds really intimidating, but we sometimes have to put all that aside and try." Lexie chimed in.
"I guess you guys don't know why I stopped playing basketball, do you?" Alicia asked, looking from the Toons to the Dreamstones.
They all shook their heads in answer.
"No. Why?" Katie asked, looking concerned. "Did something happened?"
"Back in highschool, after my brother went to college, I got bullied really badly. Even when we played in a team, I got bullied and mocked." Alicia explained.
Bon Bon wiped the tears away from her eyes and hugged her.
"Oh my gosh!" Katie gasped in shock. "Alicia… I-I'm so sorry."
"Oh, Alicia. I-I had no idea." Natty sighed sadly. "That was not cool of them to do."
All Toons cried or were close to tears. A sobbing Roger was wiping his tear-filled eyes with one of his ears while his wife rubs his back in comfort. SpongeBob and Patrick were bawling their eyes out as they hugged one another, their tears spewing out of their eyes like geysers all over Squidward, much to his annoyance.
"Gosh, I'm so sorry, Alicia." Mickey added, wiping his eyes. "That must have been very hard."
"Yeah, and those guys were so uncool." Sonic piped up. "You were probably one of the best players they had."
"While it's true some bullies can be cruel for no reason, some do tend to pick on others because they're likely jealous of people being good at something." Katie spoke up. "Maybe most of your schoolmates have been so nasty to you because they have insecurities about themselves, thinking they're not as good as you are. Still, that doesn't excuse them for being so horrible to you."
"Alicia was our ace back then." John explained the others. "She was faster, quicker and she could outsmart the others."
Alicia began to blush a bit. She could always count on her brother saying something like that to help her.
John sighed as he continued, "But sadly I couldn't do anything to stop the bullying. With me being away at college, I couldn't help her and I felt bad not being there for her."
"Don't blame yourself, John." Natty claimed, putting a hand on his shoulder. "You can only do so much."
"That's right." Lexie added. "What's done is done and we all gotta move on and do whatever we can to improve ourselves. We can't let our past misfortune define us."
"Lexie's right. We've all faced hardship in some way shape or form, but we need to move forward and keep going." Natty added. "If we stay in the past, we'll never see a change in our future."
"And this time, we all have good friends backing us up to stand up to whatever challenge lies ahead." Katie chimed in as she got in between Lexie and Natty and placed her hands on each of their shoulders. "Heart, soul, mind and strength, are all stronger together."
The girls nodded and smiled at Katie. The three of them have been through a lot together, but they continued to stick together, even when things got difficult.
Kaichi, Daisy and Aya each perched themselves on their humans' shoulders. Kaichi grinned confidently while Aya mewed and Daisy squeaked out their agreement.
"And look, Alicia. We're not forcing you to play. We need someone with your expert basketball skills to give us some pointers and training, giving us some help before we face them." Tails mentioned as he flew over to her. "Sometimes, even Sonic needs help on his adventures."
"True that, bro." Sonic nodded.
"Thanks, guys but I changed my mind and I will be your coach." Alicia said.
She stood up and walked up to Bugs and Mickey. They smiled and nodded.
"Do you have a gym?" She asked, looking around, but there was no gym to be found.
"Erm, well, not really, but there might be one in town." Darkwing chimed in. "If we find it, we can start training."
"Alright lead the way, DW!" John said.
"Yes, please do!" Katie cheered, practically fangirling at the fact that she and the others are going to follow one of her favorite childhood cartoon characters.
"Whoa! Katie, easy." Alicia said to her.
"Heh, sorry about that." Katie chuckled sheepishly. "It's just that I'm practically living a dream right now. Interacting with cartoon characters has been a childhood dream of mine."
"I know, it's crazy to see Baloo and the others in real life." Alicia added.
"I know! I always wondered what meeting characters like Mario and Sonic would be like, and it's awesome!" Natty smiled.
"Literally, fangirling right now." Lexie giggled. "I keep pinching myself to see if it's still real."
"Hey guys, you don't need to do that." Baloo said putting his arm around Alicia.
"We know a lot about you too." Darkwing added.
"Oh? Really? That's awesome!" Nat replied.
"And creepy at the same time." Alicia gulps.
"I think what DW means is we've heard stories about you guys, battling evil doers and saving the world from destruction." Mario claimed. "Not the creepy stalking that some people do."
"Oh." Katie spoke. "Yeah, we've done plenty of those. Although… we do have our hand of being stalked and hounded by unwanted suitors every now and then."
"Like a certain demon." Alicia scoffed, rolling her eyes.
"And a blockhead." Lexie groaned.
"And a Spanish-speaking, shadow bending jackal." Natty muttered.
"Whoa, those people do not sound like guys I wanna be friends with." SpongeBob claimed.
"Yeah, like they don't sound very friendly." Shaggy shuddered.
"Reah." Scooby piped up.
"They are and believe me it get's annoying when you have to tell him you're already taken." Alicia stated, then showed her wedding ring, while Lexie and Natty showed their engagement rings to the Toons.
They 'oohed' and 'awwed' at them.
"Well, blow me down! The lasses got some fine sailors to be with." Popeye claimed.
"Oooh, who's the loving husband?" Olive Oyl asked.
"Uhhh …" Alicia said nervously.
"It's kinda complicated." Kaichi shrugged. "And another story for another time."
"Yeah, but we can tell you her husband loves her very much, and is lucky to be with Alicia." Lexie added.
"And Lexie and I are engaged. We're in the middle of planning our weddings." Natty smiled.
"Aww!" Sally said together with Bon Bon, Olive Oyl, Betty Boop and Daisy Duck.
"Such lucky gals." Jessica commented.
"Technically, I'm still dating." Katie spoke up bashfully. "I'm due to properly introduce my boyfriend to my parents but… I'm a bit worried about what they would think of him once they meet."
"Don't worry, they will accept him." Alicia said.
"Yeah, they'll love him." Lexie assured Katie, who managed a smile.
"Thanks, guys." Katie said as she fingered the charm link with the seven pointed star encrusted with white gemstones on her silver bracelet.
"But now, off to the Gym!" Alicia exclaimed.
Katie nodded as she responded, "Right!"
"Let's a-go!" Lexie beamed.
As Darkwing and the Toons began leading Alicia's group towards the gym, no one were aware that they were being watched by a certain demon and his minions.
"Sooo, they're going to start training, huh?" The Devil said. "Looks like we have some competition, boys."
"Indeed we do, Boss." King Dice chimed in. "But knowing that my lil' darling is there, I can't help but be glad about it."
"And soon Katie and Alicia will be mine." The Devil grinned diabolically. "And this time neither that copy of mine nor that dragon can stop me!"
Next to Dice was an anthropomorphic shadowy jackal wearing a sleeveless trench coat, with some body armor. And he had fingerless gloved hands, a red streak of fur on one side of his head, and purple eyes.
It was Anubis, another one of the Devil's lackeys and Natty's unwanted lover.
"Sí, señor, sí." Anubis sneered, his voice carrying a Spanish accent. "I'll soon have mi amor in my arms again, not that pathetic cucaracha."
"Patience, you two. You will have your girls back with you once more." The Devil assured them. "But for now, we need to plan carefully. Come, let's prepare, shall we?"
Dice and Anubis nodded before the three disappeared in a cloud of smoke.
Turns out, there was more pressure on the team than they thought.