Author's Note:
Unless you didn't watch the Game Awards, then you are probably aware about Super Smash Bros Ultimate winning the award for Best Fighting Game. A big accolade for Masahiro Sakurai and company, as their beloved game nearly beat out Jump Force for the award. What stiff competition Ultimate had to go up against. With that sarcasm out of the way, let's answer some reviews:
"If Yang shows up will you have her interact with Tifa? Can you include a scene of Ruby interacting with Leia? (Saori Hayami voices Leia and Ruby. RWBY had a short lived Japanese dub) will the Persona 5 Royal chapter happen on March 31 when the game comes out? Will overlooked Fire Emblem characters like Faye or Fiona have some screen time? And finally, what are your thoughts on Trails of Cold Steel III finally getting a Switch port?"
Yang and Tifa are both similiar characters; I can have them interact with one another. I can also have ruby interact with Leia, that's an easy one. The Persona 5 Royal chapter will take place on March 31. We'll see about Faye and Fiona, and any other overlooked Fire Emblem character. And I don't know much about Trails of Cold Steel, but it's nice to see that the tradition of porting everything to the Switch is alive and well. On to Derick Lindsey:
"I didn't know that animals were involved with secret Santa too (I mean feral ones like Duck Hunt Dog and the goose not anthro ones like Banjo, Kazooie, and the Star Fox crew) or that Master Hand was worried about Duck Hunt Dog going missing since it feels like Master Hand wouldn't really care if one resident went missing unless it was someone important like Isabelle or Mario?"
Master Hand is a "participation matters" kind of dude so he would make everyone participate in Secret Santa, including animals like the Duck Hunt Dog and the goose. As to why he would care about Duck Hunt dog going missing...let's just say he was more worried about how the dog going missing would make him look, in terms of reputation. Moving on:
"Quick question would Chrom still bother people if he was Lucina's secret Santa because I can see him bothering everyone to help him find the perfect gift for Lucina and also what if someone drew themself as Secret Santa would they be able to trade a name then or do they just get stuck with getting themself something which would be humorous to see also I would feel sorry for whoever had to get something for Master Hand if he does get involved in the secret Santa thing."
Anyone that drew Master Hand's name for Secret Santa would be the most stressed out person in existence. Wouldn't wish that on anyone. As for Chrom, I could see him doing that, being the goofball that is. And if anyone drew their own name, I'm sure that Master Hand would do a recall. Last up is PinkRose4452, with a suggestion for next year's Animal Crossing chapter:
"Master Hand puts Tom Nook at an abandoned island, and he must find a way to escape the island."
Master Hand and Tom Nook might be on equal terms now, but I could still see Master Hand doing this. Just for laughs and giggles.
Episode 208: ChristmasTree
One of the greatest parts about Christmas, if not the greatest, was the Christmas tree. You would always find a Christmas tree in every living room, adorned with ornaments and Christmas lights, with a star on top. It was a part of Christmas that has remained to this very day.
Every year around Christmas time, Master Hand would ask one of his residents to buy a Christmas tree for the mansion. He wanted the biggest and best Christmas tree available; anything that was below his intended size was seen as a "fake" tree. Banjo and Kazooie, who were tasked with finding a Christmas tree, had to find the best tree they could find, lest they would never hear the end of it from Master Hand.
Because Crazy Hand appreciated Christmas as much as Master Hand did, the giant hand would also handpick one of his residents to fetch a Christmas tree for the tower. Kapp'n was the resident selected to do the honors, and he found a Christmas tree suitable for the tower's lobby.
"Tell me again why this tower doesn't have a living room?" Lyn asked Knuckles, as the two were looking the Christmas tree. The Squid Sisters had added a few decorations to see tree, to spruce it up a little.
"This dumb tower feels more like a college dorm, the more I think about it," replied Knuckles, before taking a sip from his bottle of soda. "And it doesn't even have a room for the vending machines! Now that's messed up!"
"Hey Kapp'n, what's with all those lights?" Lyn looked over, and saw Kapp'n showing up in the lobby, carrying a bunch of Christmas lights in his hands. "We have enough lights on the tree already!"
"You can never have enough lights hanging up on a tree," stated Kapp'n, as he placed the Christmas lights on the floor next to the tree. "There's no rule saying that Christmas trees can't be decked to the top with lights."
"But what if the tree tips over, what would we do then?" Knuckles asked Kapp'n, who dared not to answer the echidna's question. Instead, the turtle just placed the Christmas lights on the tree in silence.
"Christmas lights aren't that heavy...and Christmas trees aren't that light. It's a perfect balance. Now to see if these lights work..."
Once Kapp'n got all the lights hanging up on the Christmas tree, the turtle grabbed the plug attached to the lights, and plugged it into the nearby outlet...
It had been two weeks since Luigi and Daisy's infamous Thanksgiving dinner. Daisy was angry at Luigi for inviting Anna to the dinner, and got even angrier when her husband allowed Yuffie to invite all her friends to the dinner afterwards. She was so incensed, that she literally chased Luigi around with a golf club outside.
You'd think that tensions between Luigi and Daisy were high at the Luigi household, but to the surprise of many, things between Luigi and Daisy were mostly calm. While Luigi was playing with Charles in the living room, Daisy approached the plumber.
"Oh, hi Daisy..." Luigi greeted the princess, as he looked up at her. He could feel a sucker punch coming, for some reason. "...you're still not angry with-a me over inviting Anna on Thanksgiving...are you?"
"Eh, I kinda got over it," replied Daisy with a shrug, as Luigi let out a huge sigh of relief. That was one thing Luigi didn't have to worry about anymore. "And you're not angry with me after I beat your head in with that golf club, right?"
"I've had-a worse - Lemmy used to scrape-a my back with a garden rake." Luigi shuddered, as Lemmy's torture of him brought back some bad memories. "Said he was doing it out of fun, but I beg-a to differ..."
"Shoulda told him to stop. But, if you didn't, I wouldn't be surprised. You've always been a pushover, Luigi!"
"Ha! Far from it!" As Luigi sported a confident smile on his face, Charles tugged at the plumber's overalls, like he wanted something. "Yes, Charles, I'll let-a you ride on top of me like a horse...d'oh!"
Luigi: Think I learned my lesson from-a Thanksgiving. Next time I invite-a someone ever, it's gonna be a heartthrob - a smoking hot man that will swoon-a over Daisy and Yuffie. Daisy will be so enchanted-a by his hotness, that she wouldn't even be angry about-a me inviting a guest over. But if this man starts-a flirting with my wife... *frowns, then punches fist into the palm of his hand*
"Well, looks like I have-a no choice in the matter..." sighed Luigi, as he got down on all fours; Charles happily climbed atop his father's back, as Daisy looked on with an amused face.
"Giddy up, horsey!" Charles squealed, as he kicked Luigi in the side. This caused Daisy to laugh, before she covered her mouth with her hands to stifle her laughter. But it was too much, as the princess started laughing away.
"What's so funny?" inquired Yuffie as she came out from her room, seeing Charles riding atop Luigi. Yuffie snickered, as Charles kicked Luigi in the side once more, even harder this time.
"Ow, not so hard, boy!" Luigi scolded Charles, as Daisy was laughing even harder. Charles on top of Luigi was such a precious moment, that it needed to be documented forever.
"Daisy I need to see your phone..." Yuffie told the princess, needing to record Luigi and Charles' shenanigans on a device of some kind. "Where is it?"
"It's in...it's in the laundry room..." replied Daisy as she wiped away a tear; she was laughing too much, to the point where she could hardly speak! Yuffie ran to the laundry room, and returned with Daisy's cellphone.
"Um, Daisy, I just got a text from Peach..." Yuffie notified the princess, looking at the text notification on Daisy's phone. "...apparently there's a fire coming from the tower. Nothing like one of Bowser's fire drills, or anything."
"A fire from-a the tower?" Luigi overheard, as he turned over on his back - grabbing Charles in the nick of time - and stood up. "That Chef Kawasaki, he must've burnt-a his roast again..."
Frankly Chef Kawasaki didn't burnt his roast (not this time, at least), for the fire didn't come from the tower's kitchen. Instead, it came from the lobby...and the Christmas tree was ON FIRE! Dr. Wright was fanning away the flames, and Mario was putting out the flames with FLUDD, while Peach, Spyro, Hunter, Ruby, Weiss, and a couple of tower residents were looking on with Crazy Hand.
"My TREE, my wonderful CHRISTMAS TREE!" wailed Crazy Hand, who was completely in shambles as his precious Christmas tree was ablaze. Luigi, Daisy, Charles, and Yuffie showed up at the tower, witnessing the fire.
"Yuffie, take Charles away..." Daisy told the ninja girl, as she handed Charles to her. Didn't want Charles to see the fire any longer, it could corrupt his mind.
"What, you think him witnessing the fire will make him edgy or something?" questioned Yuffie, as Daisy looked at the ninja girl with a stern look. "Fine I'll do it..." So Yuffie led Charles away, as Charles was slightly entranced by the fire.
"What on earth-a happened to the Christmas tree?" Luigi asked the tower residents, hoping that one of them had an answer.
"Totally Ruby and Weiss' doing," Hunter would answer Luigi's question, in-between coughs; Spyro looked at Hunter, and shook his head.
"The tree just set itself on fire, it was very unexpected," stated Lyn, who was around in the lobby when the tree first caught on fire. "Had Knuckles to call over Mario, so he could put the fire out. Luckily, we saved all of the presents in time."
"you could say that christmas so far at the tower has been pretty...lit," snickered Sans, who had came over to the lobby just so he could crack a pun. But the skeleton was the only one laughing, as everyone gave him weird or stern looks. "i'll just show myself out..."
Shadow: My Christmas gifts shouldn't have been saved. Lyn and Knuckles should've thrown my gifts into the fire. Waste them, just like how the people who bought them wasted their money on me...
"But HOW could my Christmas tree catch on fire in the FIRST PLACE?" questioned Crazy Hand, wanting answers immediately; the tower residents looked at one another, wondering who was responsible for the fire. "There HAS to be wrongdoing afoot!"
"Why don't we ask the person who bought the tree?" asked Knuckles, as he brought Kapp'n to the forefront. He placed the turtle in front of Crazy Hand, allowing him to feel the giant hand's fury.
"You sure have A LOT of explaining to do, mister!" Crazy Hand got all up in Kapp'n's grill, as Kapp'n was shivering in fear. Like how any mere mortal would. "What have you DONE to my tree?!"
"I did nothing to it, honest!" Kapp'n pleaded his case, hoping that Crazy Hand would see him through. If not, then that turtle was in for a world of trouble. "All I did was put on more Christmas lights, and then I plugged it the cord, and BOOM! The fire happened!"
"Those LIGHTS simply couldn't have caused the tree to BURN up like that...have you been WATERING the tree, like I told you to do?"
"How was I supposed to know that?! I didn't know that trees needed to be watered! Thought it was only plants and flowers that needed watering!"
"Good thing that Viridi and Olimar aren't here..." Spring Man whispered to Dillon, who nodded his head in agreement; knowing Viridi and Olimar, those two would have an absolute field day with Kapp'n and his ignorant self.
"Alright, Crazy Hand, the fire's been taken care-a of!" Mario alerted Crazy Hand, before turning off FLUDD; the tower's Christmas tree was now a shell of its former self, with its leaves burnt off and smoke rising from the branches.
"Gonna need some cleaning supplies to clean up all this soot..." remarked Dr. Wright, as the corner of the lobby where the Christmas tree was placed at had soot all over the walls. Crazy Hand would smack Dr. Wright out of the way, as he went over to his beloved tree.
"Oh my Christmas tree, you were TOO young..." wailed Crazy Hand, sobbing as he caressed the burned Christmas tree with his hand. Then he started to sing... "Oh, Christmas tree, oh, Christmas tree...oh how I loved you, Christmas tree..."
"This guy needs some serious help," remarked Spyro, while Crazy Hand continued to sing his sorrows away. "He makes Master Hand look perfectly normal!"
Crazy Hand was in tears, as he watched Mario and Luigi toss his burnt Christmas tree into the nearby forestation. A few Yiga clansmen were around, and they offered to took collect the tree for their own use.
"We could chop this bad boy into pieces, and use said pieces as firewood," one of the clansmen explained to Crazy Hand and the Mario Bros, with he and his fellow clansmen holding the burnt tree in her hands. Crazy Hand was left sobbing. "Is he...going to be okay?"
"He will, hope-a fully before the end-a of the day," replied Mario; Crazy Hand seemed to value that Christmas tree a lot more than expected. "He can always-a get another Christmas tree..."
"Really? You can get another Christmas tree?!" This was apparently news to the Yiga clansman, who sounded pretty ecstatic. "Thought when you buy one Christmas tree, you have to stick to it, no matter what. Even if it's crappy!"
"You can buy another tree when-a ever you want," stated Luigi, as the other Yiga clansmen were delighted by the news. "Got a lousy Christmas tree? Why not replace-a it with a better one?"
"That's what we plan on doing! Let's go, boys!" So the Yiga clansmen went away, returning to their hideout with the burnt Christmas tree now in their possession.
"Why do I feel like we're always-a encouraging the Yiga Clan's-a bad habits...?" Mario asked Luigi, as Crazy Hand started sobbing once more. Enough was enough!
Master Kogha: So what if we steal stuff for the holidays? We did it with the Smash Mansion before we got caught, and we steal from other people after we got caught! In fact, we usually steal for all the other holidays. Thanksgiving? We steal a few turkeys from some families. Halloween? We steal candy from the little kids who go out trick-or-treating. Valentine's Day? We kidnap a bunch of older teenagers and young adults, and bring them to our hideout for some...dating simulations. Which only last for a short period of time until the angry parents come over. Stupid teenagers, and their snitching tattletale ways...I should confiscate their phones next time.
"Guess I have to spend another flipping FIFTEEN HUNDRED DOLLARS on a new Christmas tree..." sighed Crazy Hand, after he was done sobbing. Fifteen hundred dollars on a Christmas tree? Crazy Hand sure had some high standards.
"What hast befallen ye, Crazy Hand?" inquired Shovel Knight, as he came over to the giant hand with his trusty shovel. "I've heard about a fire at the tower."
"The Christmas tree at the Assist-a Tower burned down," Mario explained to Shovel Knight, who gasped in shock; at least Shovel Knight wasn't salty about missing a fire ablaze, unlike a certain angel. "Luigi and I just-a threw the tree into the wilderness."
"And now I have to SPEND my hard-earned money to buy another one!" cried Crazy Hand, as the Mario Bros and Shovel Knight wondered where Crazy Hand even accumulated his "hard-earned" money from. Probably stole from Star Records. "Oh, the absolute HORROR!"
"If I may, Crazy Hand, I can buy thou another Christmas tree," Shovel Knight offered to the giant hand, not wanting the head of the tower to feel depressed any longer over some lousy Christmas tree. "I have enough gold coins to purchase one...provided the worth of said gold is sufficient."
"Thank you, thank you, THANK YOU!" Crazy Hand would "hug" Shovel Knight by simply grabbing the knight with his hand and squeezing him tight. "Always knew you were a lifesaver, Shovel Knight!"
"My insides...are being crushed..." wheezed Shovel Knight, before Crazy Hand released the knight and dropped him to the ground. Shovel Knight felt like he was having his life squeezed away.
"I want you to find the BIGGEST and BEST Christmas tree that you can find. If the tree doesn't LIVE up to my standards, then you're gonna have to go back and BUY another one. Capiche?"
"Understood!" Shovel Knight would salute Crazy Hand with his shovel, before heading to the tower to retrieve his gold coins. "I won't let you down, Crazy Hand!"
After grabbing his bag of gold coins from his room, Shovel Knight went down to the lobby, where Waluigi and Lakitu were seen scrubbing the soot off the walls. As the knight headed out of the tower, he saw Ruby Rose playing with the Duck Hunt Dog, with Mewtwo looking on.
"Alright, boy, sit!" Ruby instructed the Duck Hunt Dog, who sat down on the ground. "Roll over!" The Duck Hunt Dog rolled over on the ground, and then rolled over once more. Just to show off.
"Now tell him to do a jig," Mewtwo commanded of Ruby, who looked at the psychic Pokemon with a confused stare. The thought of a dog dancing was awfully very foreign to Ruby. "Do as I say..."
"Uh...Duck Hunt Dog...do a jig?" Ruby instructed the dog, who immediately stood up on the ground and started to do a dance - Dance of the Sugar Plum Fairy. Only thing missing was some Christmas music.
"Hmph, works every time...or at least during the winter time." As the Duck Hunt Dog continued to dance, Ruby was looking more confused than ever before.
Mewtwo: My job isn't to make visitors feel home, whether they're living at the mansion, or close by. Rather, it is my job to inform these visitors of the very strange and abnormal beings that they have to endure and abode with. Which is why I instructed Ruby to give the Duck Hunt Dog commands, to see that he is an extremely peculiar dog who cannot be trusted by anyone. But if there's one thing I appreciate about the mutt's abnormality, it's his dancing... *laughs slightly* ...now why am I laughing?
"Top of the afternoon, you two!" Shovel Knight greeted Mewtwo and Ruby as he walked by, while waving his shovel. Ruby saw the shovel, and was left slightly intrigued for some reason. "Hope you all get inside, before the rain comes."
"More rain in Seattle, what else is new..." grunted Mewtwo, who had grown tired of Seattle's rainy weather conditions over time. Ruby ran over to Shovel Knight. "...Ruby, where are you going?"
"Excuse me, sir, but...is that shovel your weapon?" Ruby asked Shovel Knight, who looked down at the shovel in his hands. The fact that someone asked Shovel Knight about his trusty weapon made the knight's day.
"Why yes, yes it is - I can't leave anywhere without it!" proclaimed Shovel Knight, as he held his shovel up high in a triumphant manner. "The tower, my bedroom, the bathroom...you name it!"
"You take your shovel into the bathroom...?" questioned Mewtwo, eavesdropping on the conversation from where he was. "Good thing I never touch that thing."
"Wow, I've never seen anyone who has used a shovel as a weapon before," marveled Ruby, who was slowly becoming more interested in Shovel Knight. "Do you mind if I come along? I wanna see you using your shovel in action."
"I highly doubt that I will ever even get to use my shovel...but, thou art welcome to come along regardless. Wouldn't mind a traveling companion!"
So Ruby joined Shovel Knight, as she and the knight walked together en route to finding a new Christmas tree for the mansion. Mewtwo was looking on, shaking his head at Ruby for the decision she had made.
"That Shovel Knight is going to drive Ruby insane..." predicted Mewtwo, before looking over at the Duck Hunt Dog...who was still doing the Dance of the Sugar Plum Fairy. The dog was looking like a natural. "...you can stop dancing now, you stupid dog."
Fox and Falco were chugging right along in their wedding planning for Fox and Krystal's wedding, and the two were seeking Krystal for input during the process. The two pilots were in Krystal's room, with Fox wanting to show Krystal some groomsmen attire.
"I want you to choose from two separate attires that Falco and I have in mind," Fox explained to Krystal, with Falco standing partially outside of the room so he wouldn't spoil the surprise. "So, no pressure...right?"
"I mean, I'm just choosing from two pieces of clothing..." replied Krystal, who wanted the whole thing to be over with. The vixen had some stuff to get done. "...this isn't a matter of life-or-death."
"We should make this a matter of life-or-death...makes it more exciting. But, it is what it is..." Fox looked towards Falco, who was waiting for his cue. "...aight, Falco, show Krystal attire number one! Numero uno!"
"Attire number one, coming right up!" exclaimed Falco as he entered Krystal's room, holding up an attire on a clothing hanger that consisted of a white dress shirt, a bowtie, suspenders, and blue slacks. Krystal was unsure what to make of it.
"So, Krystal, what do you think?" Fox saw the iffy facial expression on Krystal's face, and was hoping that the vixen would make a positive comment.
"I'd imagined that the attire would be a bit more...formal," Krystal offered her two cents - not an entirely negative critique, so Fox let out a sigh of relief. "Why not wear a suit, or a tuxedo?"
"Because suits and tuxedos at weddings are two mainstream now," stated Falco, as him and Fox were still willing to go against the grain at whatever cost. "Personally, I wanted suit shorts, but Fox talked me out of it."
"This is a wedding, Falco, not a frat party..." Fox reminded his best friend, who stomped his foot on the floor in anger. "...now show Krystal the second option!"
"Second option, comin' right up!" Falco held up the second piece of attire...which was...exactly like the first attire. Only difference was, there were no suspenders.
"That looks exactly like the first one, but with no suspenders..." Krystal pointed out, feeling like Falco was insulting her intelligence. And Fox, too, to some extent.
"I mean aside from the suspenders, the second attire is drastically different from the first in more ways than one," said Fox, although Krystal refused to believe him. "Just gotta look hard enough, and see all the little differences."
Krystal: Fox and Falco have made plenty of head-scratching choices during the whole wedding planning process, but as Fox's fiancee, I have no choice but to go along with the flow, and approve of every little thing that Fox does. Of course, I could just say no, but Fox would throw a hissy fit.
Fox: Krystal said what? She told Tiki that the groomsmen can't rap their way down the aisle? How else are the groomsmen supposed to have fun?! AAAAAAHH! *punches hole in wall, then looks around while playing it off* I meant to punch that wall, by the way...the paint was really throwing me off.
"Krystal can I come back in the room now?" Phosphora called out to the vixen, as she was alone by herself in the hallway. The very moment Fox and Falco came over, poor Phosphora got kicked out of her own room due to "private conversations".
"Not yet, Fox apparently wants to go over the wedding playlist with me," Krystal responded, as Phosphora grunted and went away. The goddess went down the hallway, looking for something to waste her time with till Fox and Falco were gone.
"Stupid Fox and Falco talking about some stupid wedding..." As Phosphora went down the hallway, the goddess came to a stop when she came across Crazy Hand. Flanked around the giant hand were Yuri, Gray Fox, and Zero.
"Phosphora, do you have a minute?" asked Crazy Hand, who didn't sound as loud and boisterous this time. The burning of that Christmas tree must've broke him. "Got a little FAVOR to ask of you..."
The mansion's Christmas tree was still intact, as it was sitting in the living room and wasn't on fire at all. The tree was adorned with ornaments and Christmas lights, and had presents at the bottom. Pretty standard for any Christmas tree. Viridi was busy tidying up the tree, as Touma came over.
"Surprised that you're touching that tree," Touma told Viridi, who scoffed and rolled her eyes as she continued doing her work. "Seen many of the human residents come in contact with it. Myself included..."
"Go fall in a ditch somewhere, Touma..." Viridi told the redhead, who had been teasing the goddess of nature since the 200th episode. Something about the way Viridi reacted made Touma keep coming back for more.
"Hey, I'm just telling you something that you don't already know..." Touma shrugged his shoulders as he walked away, letting Viridi do her thing. After Touma had left, Pit and Incineroar showed up carrying a bunch of Christmas presents.
"Kirby, Incineroar and I did some Christmas shopping at the NME Enterprises superstore," Pit explained to Viridi, struggling to hold all the presents as his legs were shaking mightily. Same couldn't be said for Incineroar. "Is there any room under the Christmas tree?"
"NME Enterprises has a superstore now?" questioned Viridi, before shaking her head; knowing NME Enterprises, who knows what kind of stuff they sell at their store. "Ah, never mind...you can put those presents near the wall."
"Neat-o!" So Pit and Incineroar placed the Christmas presents near the wall, close to the tree, since there was ample room. Crazy Hand was peering inside the living room, looking at the Christmas tree...
...before heading back to the foyer, where Phosphora, Yuri, Gray Fox, and Zero were awaiting instruction.
"So let me get this straight...basically you want us to steal the mansion's Christmas tree," Zero said to Crazy Hand, in disbelief that he even agreed to the mission. "Isn't someone getting a tree already?"
"Yes, Shovel Knight is - BUT we need a backup plan," stated Crazy Hand, fearing that Shovel Knight might somehow screw things up. There was a good chance that Shovel Knight didn't have enough gold coins to buy an expensive tree. "Which is WHY you guys are here!"
"It would be easier if you stole the tree yourself," said Gray Fox, and he had a point - Crazy Hand was the only person bent out of shape over a Christmas tree. "We don't want to do your dirty work!"
"I can't steal the tree, it would be too EASY! And besides, Master Hand would think LESS of me if he catches me stealing his tree! Better that you guys get CAUGHT rather than myself."
"The sooner we get this over with, the better..." Yuri whispered to Phosphora, who nodded her head; Crazy Hand got all up in Yuri's grill, as he pointed his finger in the young woman's face.
"You weren't SASSING me, were you Miss Kozukata?" Very much intimidated, Yuri calmy shook her head no, as Crazy Hand backed off. "Good. Time is of the essence, people - I want you to STEAL that tree right away! Chop, chop!" And with that, Crazy Hand vanished away.
"You guys can stay here and serve as distractions," Gray Fox told his fellow tower residents, as he went into the living room by himself. "I'll use my camouflage to steal that tree, with nobody looking."
"No, we should all go in together," stated Zero, as he walked over to where Gray Fox was. "Standing around in the foyer will only make us look suspicious."
"Why do we have to steal a Christmas tree for?" whined Phosphora, who didn't want to do any work whatsoever. Showed you how lazy she was. "This is so lame!"
"Yo, tower dudes!" Sonic called out to Phosphora and company, as he showed up in the foyer eating a chili dog. "Any of you guys down for some Christmas caroling? There's gonna be hot chocolate..."
"Uh, sure, when does this Christmas caroling start?" asked Zero, who had every right in the world to question whatever activities Sonic planned on doing.
"Right now, actually - Knuckles, Tails, and I are gonna stop at each room, knock on the door, and sing some Christmas carols to the residents. Would do it later at night, but Knuckles said that this is a 'test run'..."
Knuckles: Yeah, I'm gonna do some indoor Christmas caroling...except it's gonna have a bit of a twist to it. A twist nobody will see coming. Depending on how things go, the end result could validate the next step in my master plan. Which I won't tell you guys about. Confidential stuff.
"Go on ahead..." Gray Fox told his fellow tower residents, taking out his trusty blade. "...the more people you keep at bay, the better shot I have at stealing that Christmas tree.
"Aw, but I don't wanna be seen around Sonic!" whined Phosphora, as Sonic frowned and folded his arms. Sonic thought of himself as great company, and he was the only person that actually thought that. "He stinks!"
"What's so wrong with a guy like me?" Sonic questioned Phosphora; residents that knew Sonic well could give that hedgehog a list of reasons. "Also, what's this I hear about stealing a Christmas tree?"
"Um...I wasn't talking about the tree in the living room," stated Gray Fox, realizing that he should've kept his voice low. "I was planning on steal a Christmas tree from, uh, one of our neighbors."
"From who? Marth? Can't say I blame ya - that dude's Christmas tree looks plain as heck! Just sits there in the living room, all by itself..." This was apparently very disturbing to Sonic, as the hedgehog shuddered.
"Look at you getting all unsettled, Mr. Christmas Tree connoisseur...if you're so concerned, then why don't you decorate Marth's Christmas tree yourself?"
"Because that Caeda's job to do, not mine. That woman made her own bed when she married Marth a long time ago. Now are you guys gonna join us in Christmas caroling, or not?"
"Just go..." Gray Fox told Zero, Yuri, and Phosphora, before he entered the living room. "...I got this covered. Don't have to worry about me - you stall the others!"
"Uh, Gray Fox, Marth's home isn't that way!" Sonic called out to the mercenary, before he shrugged his shoulders. "Eh, he's probably going through the backdoor. So, are you guys ready? Hope you got some good singing voices!"
"Not sure how this Christmas caroling is gonna stall anyone..." said Zero as he, Yuri, and Phosphora begrudgingly followed Sonic into the hallway.
Shovel Knight and Ruby were walking through Seattle, looking for a Christmas tree for the tower. As Crazy Hand said, the tree had to be mighty expensive, since it would highly reflect the tree's state of quality.
"How much did you say the tree has to cost?" Ruby asked Shovel Knight, as it was starting to rain; Ruby knew she should've brought an umbrella.
"According to Crazy Hand...no less than fifteen hundred bucks," replied Shovel Knight, as Ruby understandably gave the knight a bewildered look. "Crazy Hand loves to shoot for the stars...no matter how haphazard it may be."
"But where in this city are we gonna find a Christmas tree worth that much?" Someone should've smacked some sense into Crazy Hand, but that was like a death wish just waiting to happen. "Expensive trees like that don't grow on...well, you know what I mean."
"When there's a will, there's a way. I doubt that any of the home improvement stores have a tree worth over a grand, but if we somehow convince..."
Shovel Knight stopped speaking, as he came to a stop when he saw something that caught his eye. Ruby would stop too, as she and Shovel Knight were now looking at a store, that was adorned with bright lights. Looked like the newest store in town.
"NME Enterprises...Superstore?" Ruby read the name of the store, which had the letters adorned in bright flashing colors, as she furrowed her brow. The young woman had no idea what NME Enterprises was, but the same couldn't be said for Shovel Knight.
"I reckon that NME Enterprises is where Kirby gets his strange Christmas gifts from," explained Shovel Knight, who recalled Kirby ordering Christmas gifts over the phone during the Christmas season last year. "Now, they have a store..."
Kirby: Yeah, NME Enterprises has a store now. Recently they started going into the superstore business, so they could rake in more money and not just rely on customer service forever. Other than Seattle, they had stores set up in Tampa, St. Louis, and even Wyoming of all places. Sadly those stores didn't last that long - the one in Tampa had its certificate revoked, the one in St. Louis somehow got swept up by a tornado, and the one in Wyoming predictably closed down due to very slow business. So, the store in Seattle is the only one left standing...
"You think that this store might have an expensive Christmas tree?" Ruby asked Shovel Knight, who scratched his chin in thought with his shovel. "They do look like they sell some pretty expensive stuff!"
"What makes you think that?" asked Shovel Knight, before he saw a customer walk out of the NME Enterprises Superstore with a very expensive diamond chandelier. He then saw another customer trying to walk a kangaroo to their car, struggling along the way.
"Guess this store has a little bit of everything..." Must be the greatest superstore in all the land. "...they should definitely have a couple of Christmas trees up for sale, don't you think?"
"Well, Miss Rose, judging from what I've seen...I am now fully convinced. Let's get moving, shall we - that tree can't buy itself!"
Crazy Hand was still upset over his Christmas tree burning down, so the Mario Bros wanted to uplift the giant hand's spirits by giving him another Christmas tree - provided that Shovel Knight couldn't fulfill his deed. Mario happened to have a Christmas tree in his bunker, which he stored just for safekeeping purposes.
"Ta-da!" Mario exclaimed, as he and Luigi revealed the Christmas tree to Crazy Hand in Mario's living room. "One Christmas tree, good-a as new!"
"Okay but how much was this Christmas tree WORTH?" asked Crazy Hand - to him, this was the most important question. Both Mario and Luigi bit their bottom lip, with neither plumber desiring to answer.
"Um...probably $150?" answered Luigi, with a slight smile, before Crazy Hand aggressively backhanded the Mario Bros and sent them flying into Mario's kitchen. Crazy Hand was absolutely heated.
"Why on EARTH would you offer that crappy tree to me?! You don't think I HAVE any standards? SHAME on you both!" Crazy Hand was so loud, that Spyro and Hunter left their room to see what was up with the giant hand.
"Dude, are you still upset over that tree?" Spyro asked Crazy Hand, who was now huffing and puffing with rage. Spyro and Hunter made sure to keep their distance.
"It's not the end of the world..."
"It IS the end of the world, you bozo! How can I CELEBRATE Christmas, when I don't even HAVE a Christmas tree? It's like, having Thanksgiving dinner without a TURKEY, or Valentine's Day without a SIGNIFICANT other, or Independence Day without FIREWORKS and selfish American pride..."
"Okay, okay, we get it, we get it already..." Spyro knew that Crazy Hand' had to be contained, for his insanity was beginning to brew over.
"Hey, has anyone seen Ruby around?" asked Hunter; the cheetah wanted to ask Weiss, but ultimately decided against it. "Not that I care, but morale at the house has been on an upswing!"
"Ruby went-a with Shovel Knight...to go buy another Christmas tree for-a the mansion," explained Mario, as he used a kitchen counter to help himself up to his feet. "Knowing Shovel Knight, he might-a get...sidetracked."
"Ruby went with Shovel Knight? Welp, so much for Shovel Knight returning to the tower alive..."
"I think that Shovel Knight let Ruby join him," assumed Spyro, which only made Hunter even more upset.
"So Shovel Knight essentially turned his quest of buying a Christmas tree into a suicide mission. Gotcha."
Spyro: Last week, Ruby and Weiss drew Lucario and Corrin's names, respectively, during the name exchange. Since then, Hunter has been giving the two needless "pointers", letting them know about when they should start fearing for their lives. Hunter believes that Ruby and Weiss plan on killing Lucario and Corrin with their gifts, but me, being a pretty sane person...thinks otherwise.
Lucario: Hunter stopped by my room the other day, and told me that Ruby wished to gift me a hand grenade. He went into elaborate details about how Ruby could even afford such a dangerous weapon, but I just tuned the guy out. Hopefully Corrin did the same if Hunter bothered him...
Corrin: So scared for my life right now...Hunter has convinced me that Weiss wants to give me poison, concealed as a Secret Santa gift! I can't afford to let Weiss get away with this, something must be done...my siblings might know what to do. Kamui might not be enough...
Spyro: Oh, and the two that drew Ruby and Weiss' names, Petey Piranha and Mythra? Hunter is apparently giving those two suggestions for gifts that could send Ruby and Weiss back where they came from. Watching your best friend act paranoid over foreigners can really suck sometimes.
"What's this I hear about Ruby and some suicide mission?" Weiss showed up, with an angry scowl on her face. She confronted Hunter, knowing that the cheetah was spewing nonsense. "You're not slandering against Ruby's name, are you?"
"No, I'm just keeping it real," replied Hunter as he folded his arms confidently. "You might think that Ruby's innocent, but I know better..."
"I NEED A NEW CHRISTMAS TREE!" wailed Crazy Hand, as he fell to the ground and started throwing a tantrum. He didn't like that he was no longer the center of attention, so he acted up to get all eyes on him.
"Why is everyone here so insane..." Weiss wondered to herself, returning back to where she came from. Hunter was about to follow Weiss, only to stop after he heard Spyro clearing his throat.
"If you're trying to put Weiss to sleep, then you can think twice about that..." Spyro told Hunter, who snapped his fingers in disgust as he stormed away.
Link, Champion Link, and Cloud were chilling in their room, when they heard a knock at their bedroom door. Cloud would answer the door, and he saw Knuckles gathered around with Sonic, Tails, Phosphora, Yuri, and Zero - all of whom were dressed as Christmas carolers.
"Why did I bother answering..." groaned Cloud, bracing himself for what he was about to be subjected to. "...don't tell me you're singing stupid Christmas songs."
"Dashing through the snow, in a one-horse open..." Knuckles began to sing, before realizing that he was the only person in the group singing. Angered, the echidna turned and looked at his fellow carolers. "Why aren't you guys singing along?"
"You never even gave us the cue," stated Phosphora, as Knuckles groaned and slammed his book of Christmas carols unto the floor. The echidna stomped on the book repeatedly, before ending his tantrum and picking up his book.
"Why do you even need a cue for? Are you guys that stupid? Or are you nervous? Which one is it?!"
"What was up with that singing?" questioned Link as he and Champion Link joined Cloud at the doorway, before seeing Knuckles and company gathered around. "Why are you guys dressed up as Christmas carolers?" Link asked.
"Because we're singing Christmas carols, around the mansion," explained Tails, seeing that neither of the Links were convinced. "Knuckles claimed that this is supposed to be a 'test run'."
"Depending on how things go here, we're gonna take our singing talents to the streets of Seattle, and delight the city folk," added Knuckles, as both Link and Champion Link found themselves laughing. Cloud was seen smirking. "What's so funny about that? Why you gotta hate?"
"Singing Christmas carols with those guys...you gotta be joking," said Cloud, with the two Links laughing hysterically behind him. Knuckles got all grumpy, as he wanted to slam his book on the floor and stomp it again.
"What's so wrong with these guys? Sonic is the most talented in this group; he can out-sing Justin Timberlake on any given night. Yuri over here is better than any J-pop idol that I know, which isn't that many. And Phosphora is a goddess, so obviously she has a great singing voice."
"Who considers Sonic the most talented at anything?" snorted Champion Link, as he and Link continued to laugh. Sonic was hurt, as the hedgehog wished to leave.
"Knuckles, I think we should move on to the next room..." Sonic told the echidna, who nodded in agreement as he led his group down the hallway. "...gotta get away from all this endless hating."
"Sounds like those swordsmen were keeping it real to me," remarked Tails, as he and the others followed Knuckles down the hallway. Link and Champion Link were still laughing.
"Sonic out-singing Justin Timberlake...that could only happen if pigs could fly!" said Link, laughing even harder as he fell down unto the floor. Cloud just stared at his best friend, wondering how a man could laugh so much.
Shovel Knight and Ruby were now inside the NME Enterprises superstore, baffled by all that was going on inside. Lots of expensive items were sold - expensive pets, expensive jewelry, expensive furniture, and even expensive water. Which Shovel Knight was drinking a sample of.
"My goodness, the water is absolutely splendid!" exclaimed Shovel Knight, after drinking his sample. Ruby impenitently looked on, as Shovel Knight tossed his plastic cup into a nearby trash can.
"I can give you another sample of the water, free as charged," said the Poppy Bro Sr. who was in charge of the water samples, as he poured water from a glass bottle into another plastic cup. "What do you say?"
"I shall hand this fine cup of water to my fine maiden friend, Ruby Rose." Shovel Knight grabbed the cup and offered it to Ruby, who looked pretty hesitant. "Drink, Ruby - drink to thy heart's content!"
"Whatever makes you happy..." said Ruby as she took the plastic cup from Shovel Knight, before sipping the water. The young woman expected to be impressed, but instead had a normal look on her face. "...this tastes like regular water."
"Of course it tastes like regular water!" frowned the Poppy Bro Sr, as Ruby tossed the plastic cup into the trash can. "You were supposed to use your...imagination."
Poppy Bro Sr: How much is this bottle of water worth? *holds up glass bottle of water* Roughly eleven hundred dollars. But it's not the water that's worth eleven hundred dollars...it's the bottle! 24 karat gold! *glass bottle slips unto floor and breaks* Well that is very depressing...
"Shovel Knight, we really should get a move on," Ruby encouraged the knight, who was now sampling water from all the other water bottles. It all tasted the same, but to Shovel Knight, each water had its own unique taste. "We have to find a Christmas tree!"
"Looking for a Christmas tree?" the Poppy Bro Sr. asked, before pointing towards the garden center of the superstore. "You can find any tree you want in that garden center. We got upside down trees, rainbow trees, trees that glow in the dark..."
"Okay, okay, we get it..." Ruby would grab Shovel Knight's hand and walk away, but Shovel Knight broke free and made a mad dash away from Ruby. "...Shovel Knight, where are you going?"
"One moment, Miss Rose...I have to make a quick pit stop to the restroom!" replied Shovel Knight, walking as far as his legs could carry him. Ruby sighed, as she followed after Shovel Knight.
The Christmas carolers went to another bedroom in the mansion, as Knuckles knocked on the door. The door was opened by Eight, who was accompanied by fellow Dragon Quest hero Solo.
"We wish you a Merry Christmas, we wish you a Merry Christmas, we wish you a Merry Christmas, and a Happy New Year..." Knuckles and company sang for Eight and Solo, with only Knuckles and Sonic giving their all. Everyone else was phoning it in.
"Uh, why are you guys wishing us a Merry Christmas?" questioned Solo, who evidently didn't understand the whole point of Christmas carols. "It's not like we don't see each other often."
"Yeah you don't really have to sing it to us, we already get it," added Eight, as Knuckles and company were wrapping up their song. "Why can't you sing for the people around Seattle instead?"
"Because we're practicing at the mansion, to see how well-received our singing is," replied Knuckles, once the singing was over with. Eight and Solo had a hard time telling who the worst caroler was. "So, what do you think?"
"I think the singing is really good - for making our ears bleed," critiqued Eight; refusing to believe that he contributed to the bad singing, Knuckles looked among his fellow carolers for a fall guy, as his eyes fell upon Zero.
"Zero, what did I tell you about mailing in your singing skills?" the echidna snapped on the robot, who could care less about what Knuckles had to say. "You're supposed to be our bass - your voice is supposed to give our singing depth and meaning!"
"Thought you said that I was a soprano," said Zero, as Knuckles looked up in sudden realization. Not a very good look, in front of Eight and Solo.
"No, I'm the soprano," Phosphora corrected Zero, who nodded in acknowledgement. "You're the tenor." Zero was bound to forget that later.
"That can't be right, Knuckles said that I was the tenor," Yuri pointed out, growing more confused by who was what. "But if that's the case..."
"...you know what, how about we get all of this sorted out," Knuckles said to the carolers, leading them away from the Eight and Solo. "Thanks for hearing our performance, Eight and Solo!"
"Uh, don't mention it," replied Solo, before shaking his head in complete and utter dismay. "Man, the city folk in Seattle are gonna eat those dudes alive..."
Shovel Knight had drunken one too many samples of water, and as a result, he had to relieve himself at the men's restroom in the superstore. Ruby waited outside the men's restroom, wondering when Shovel Knight would finish.
"What is possibly taking him so long...?" the young woman wondered, as she looked up at the clock on a nearby wall. Time was off the essence; Shovel Knight and Ruby had to find a Christmas tree, before Crazy Hand lost it for good.
Dr. Wright: Well, we got the area around the Christmas tree all cleaned up...and now Crazy Hand is planning on donating our Christmas presents to the homeless until Shovel Knight shows up with the new Christmas tree. Nikki and Alucard are doing their best to talk Crazy Hand out of it.
Shadow: Crazy Hand wants to give away our Christmas presents, if we don't get another Christmas tree? I should probably sabotage Shovel Knight, while I still can.
Ruby wouldn't have to wait any longer, as Shovel Knight walked out from the men's restroom feeling relived. The knight would affirm his relief, by letting out a giant sigh that could be heard throughout the superstore.
"Ruby, thou would not happen to have any money on you, hmm?" Shovel Knight asked the young woman, who was baffled by the question. "I need to spend some money to use the soap dispenser."
"That sounds like a rip-off to me," replied Ruby, now greatly concerned over how the superstore operated. "How much does it cost to use the hand soap?"
"Not much, just ten or so dollars. I would hate to use one of my gold coins, on something so insignificant as hand soap. But alas..."
"Sadly I don't have much on me...Weiss and I pretty much came into this universe broke. We spent the last of what we had on..."
"Oh snap! Shovel Knight and Ruby!" greeted Knuckle Joe, showing up at the premises while carting a shopping cart. "You guys shop here, too?"
"Today is our first day here," replied Shovel Knight, grateful to see at least one familiar face at the superstore. "Thou seemest to be a frequent shopper!"
"What makes you think that?" The amount of stuff in Knuckle Joe's cart - which was overflowing - was the dead giveaway. "I don't shop here that much!"
"That's what they all say..." replied Ruby, as she rolled her eyes at Knuckle Joe. "...but since that you're here, maybe you could pitch in some funds, and get us a new Christmas tree for the tower."
"Oh yeah that is right, the tower needs another tree! How about you guys let me handpick the Christmas tree? I know just the one the tower needs!"
Knuckles and his Christmas carolers were still singing Christmas carols, and Knuckles refused to stop until at least one resident gave him props. Growing desperate, Knuckles knocked on the bedroom door, and Samus answered.
"Yes, may I help you?" asked Samus, only to realize that nobody was standing around. The bounty hunter looked confused, until Knuckles showed up at the door and cleared his throat.
"It's Christmas time, there's no need to be afraid..." the echidna sang for Samus, who was cringing mightily as she regretted answering the door. "At Christmas time, we let in light and we banish shade..."
"And in our world of plenty, we can spread a smile of joy..." sang Sonic, showing up at Samus' door and resting his hand on Knuckles' shoulder. "...Throw your arms around the world, at Christmas time!"
"But say a prayer, pray for the other ones..." sang Tails, as he joined Sonic and Knuckles; Samus should've slammed the door by now. "At Christmas time it's hard, but when you're having fun...there's a world outside your window, and it's a world of dread and fear..."
"...where the only water flowing, is the bitter sting of tears..." sang Zero, picking up from where Tails left off, as Samus found Zero singing laughable enough to make her snicker. "...and the Christmas bells that ring there, are the clanging chimes of doom..."
"...well tonight thank God it's them, instead of you!" Knuckles sang his heart out, as Samus covered her mouth to stifle her laughter. It was too much for her.
"Hey Knuckles, when do Yuri and I join in?" asked Phosphora, as she was waiting for her moment. "Do we hop in at the end?"
"Shut up, Phosphora, this song isn't for you! Just stay put where you are, and nobody gets hurt!"
Samus: Knuckles and his boys actually accomplished something...they somehow managed to make me laugh. Alright, so maybe it wasn't their intended reaction, but I gotta make those boys feel proud of themselves.
"And there won't be snow in Africa this Christmas time..." Knuckles, Sonic, Tails, and Zero were all singing together in unison, with Samus still resisting the urge to laugh out loud. "...The greatest gift they'll get this year is life...where nothing ever grows...no rain or rivers flow...do they know it's Christmas time at all?"
"Okay, I don't think I can handle this anymore...I'm done," Samus told Knuckles and company, before slamming the door. What a shame, as the male carolers didn't even get to the chorus part of the song.
"Did you guys see Samus' eyes watering?" Knuckles asked Sonic and company, as Yuri and Phosphora came over. "We got Samus to show human emotion, just with our awesome singing! Almost moved her to tears."
"Or maybe her eyes were watering because she was about to laugh," assumed Tails, to which Knuckles considered a nigh possibility. Although the echidna couldn't see Samus laughing. Unless it was sociopathic laughter.
"Hmm...that could be it. You know what? We're gonna affirm that. Everyone, we're heading outside...to Mario's place!"
"Shouldn't we stay inside the mansion?" asked Yuri, since staying put would be the best intention. Especially for Gray Fox - it would break the mercenary's heart hearing that Yuri and company had gone outside.
"No, we must see if Mario and his folks will appreciate our Christmas caroling. It's the only way. But first, I need some eggnog..."
Gray Fox was almost close to stealing the tree, as he was about to remove it from its spot in the mansion's living room. The assassin had safely removed all the Christmas presents underneath the tree, and made sure that all the decorations were intact.
Gray Fox: My invisible camouflage started malfunctioning while I was trying to remove the tree, and Chrom and Raven showed up, so I had to wait around behind the couch until the coast was clear. Heard a lot of smooching sounds, which I had to stomach through, but I made it out alive...I think I'm gonna vomit...
Gray Fox had finished removing the tree, and was about to head back to the tower with it. But before the assassin could get away, Pit walked inside the living room and caught Gray Fox red-handed.
"Gray Fox?!" Pit shouted out the assassin's name, dropping his glass of milk to the floor. Mainly just for dramatic effect. "What are you doing with that tree?"
"I was...just hugging it," replied Gray Fox, as he began to hug the tree. Felt extremely weird and awkward doing it. "I'm a tree hugger - Arbor Day is my favorite day of the year."
"Oh really? Because it looks like to me that you're trying to steal our tree. You wanna chop down the tree and shred it to pieces, don't you?"
"Like I said, I'm a tree hugger - I would do nothing to this tree. Even if I did..." Suddenly Gray Fox pointed behind Pit, up at the ceiling. "Look, behind you Pit! A distraction!"
"A distraction? Where?" Pit turned and looked around, as Gray Fox darted out of the living room with the Christmas tree. Pit kept looking, as Snake entered the premises from the dining room with a cup of coffee in hand.
"Found a chameleon in the living room?" Snake asked Pit, wondering why the angel was looking around so erratically. "Bet you it was that Kecleon again..."
"Not now Snake, I'm looking for the distraction!" The distraction Gray Fox spoke of sure was taking a lot of rental space in Pit's mind. "I'm gonna find it!"
"A distraction, eh? Do you plan on eliminating it? Because if you ask me, I'm a master when it comes to eliminating..."
"No, what kind of stupid question is that? I just wanna see what this distraction looks like!" Pit kept looking, as Snake looked at the angel with a judgmental look.
"Go ahead and waste your time, kid..." Snake walked away from Pit, before stopping when he saw an important part of the living room missing. "...hey, where the heck is that Christmas tree?"
"I think Gray Fox stole it a minute ago. Probably wants to hug that tree a lot, in his spare time. Did you know that he's a tree hugger?"
"Gray Fox, a tree hugger? I find that hard to believe..." Snake knew that Gray Fox had an ulterior motive in regards to stealing the tree, but would the former spy make an effort in stopping the assassin? Probably not...
Using his own expertise and knowledge, Knuckle Joe handpicked the perfect Christmas tree in the garden center for Shovel Knight and Ruby to buy. It was dripping in diamonds and pearls, and was sparkly even without decorations. It was the perfect tree.
"What do you guys think of this tree?" Knuckle Joe asked Shovel Knight and Ruby, both of whom were pretty impressed. The former more so, as he nodded his head in strong approval.
"That tree will look absolutely fabulous in the tower lobby!" exclaimed Shovel Knight, raising his shovel triumphantly for effect. Nearly poked out Ruby's eye. "It'll be love at first sight for Crazy Hand!"
"Well what are we waiting for, let's get it!" said Ruby, as Knuckle Joe grabbed the Christmas tree and stuffed it inside his shopping cart...somehow. Knuckle Joe pushed his shopping cart to the nearest cash register, with Shovel Knight and Ruby following him.
"Thank you sir...come again!" the person who was running the cash register thanked the customer, who walked away with the expensive stuff he bought. The person running the cash register...was the NME Salesman, who was wearing a Santa hat.
"NME Salesman?" Knuckle Joe uttered the guy's name, as he brought his shopping cart up to the cash register. "Why are you running the cash register?"
"What are you trying to say, man? You think I can't handle this mundane job? I'm only doing this because the Blade Knight had to call out sick!"
"Sure man, sure...so are you gonna scan my stuff, or what?" The NME Salesman saw all the stuff Knuckle Joe had in his shopping cart, and was left smiling.
"My oh my, aren't you quite the shopper, Knuckle Joe! I can check out all that stuff, including the Christmas tree! Got you covered!"
Poppy Bro Sr: This whole NME Enterprises superstore initiative was mostly Nightmare's idea. Sadly, three of our stores shut down, so this is the only store we got...fingers crossed that this store does well, or Nightmare will have our butts for sure! *looks down at his hands* Wait a minute, I don't even have any fingers...WHY WAS I BORN LIKE THIS?!
So the NME Salesman ran all of Knuckle Joe's stuff across the scanner, including the Christmas tree that Knuckle Joe picked out himself. Once all items were scanned, it was time for Knuckle Joe to pay up.
"And the grand total is..." the NME Salesman said as he typed away on the cash register, with Knuckle Joe waiting patiently. "...carry the one and...four thousand, one hundred and thirty two dollars."
"My NME gift card should cut the price down some!" exclaimed Knuckle Joe, reaching for his pockets...only to realize that something was amiss. "Shoot, I forgot to bring my gift card...and my money, too! I'm done for!"
"What about those two, can they bail you out?" The NME Salesman looked towards Shovel Knight and Ruby, and thankfully Shovel Knight had some gold coins to spare. Talk about coming through in the clutch.
"Hopefully I got enough gold coins to spare!" said Shovel Knight, taking out his bag of gold coins and pouring them near the cash register. The NME Salesman looked at the gold coins inquisitively, before picking one up and inspecting it.
"Hold on a sec, this isn't a gold coin..." The NME Salesman looked at the coin closely...before peeling off the gold wrapping paper, revealing chocolate inside. "...this is just a bunch of chocolate coins! Trying to bamboozle me?!"
"You won't hold this against us...right?" asked Ruby, smiling nervously as the angered NME Salesman pulled out a whistle. The man blew into the whistle...
...and right on command, a bunch of Kirby enemies showed up, and surrounded Ruby and company. The customers in the garden center ran away when the enemies showed up, for their own safety.
"Got a Code Red on our hands, gentlemen..." the NME Salesman informed the Kirby enemies, who all served as the superstore employees. "...these three bums are trying to get away without paying for their stuff! How about you teach them a lesson?"
"Hope you're ready for a fight, Miss Rose..." Shovel Knight told the young man, bracing himself as he got his trusty shovel ready.
Gray Fox safely brought the tree to the tower, placing it in the lobby where the original tree was. The assassin and Crazy Hand were looking at the tree together, admiring its beauty and all else.
"Do you know how much this tree COSTS?" Crazy Hand asked Gray Fox, like he expected the assassin to know from the top of his head. This was a very important question to the giant hand.
"I got you a tree, why does it matter how much..." started Gray Fox, before he saw a price tag at the trunk of the tree. The assassin plucked off the price tag. "...they left behind a $160 price tag on the tree. Idiots..."
"$160 FOR A CHRISTMAS TREE?!" Crazy Hand was so furious, that he backhanded Gray Fox. "That is CHEAP! You and your accomplices should've REPRIMANDED Master Hand and whoever bought that CHEAP Christmas tree, for selling themselves short!"
"Well you wanted a tree...and I got you one...wait, where are my accomplices? Hmph, must be doing a great job at stalling the others in the mansion..."
Yuri, Phosphora, and Zero weren't stalling the residents in the mansion...rather, they were still stuck with Knuckles, Sonic, and Tails, still singing Christmas carols. After a break, Knuckles took his fellow carolers outside to Mario's home, wanting to sing some songs to Mario.
Knuckles: This is it, the make-or-break point...if this goes well with Mario, then this Christmas caroling thing will be a bigger success than i imagined. If it fails, then I just have to move on to my next phase...which will be intended, in a way. You'll see.
Knuckles knocked on the front door, and Peach answered it. Knuckles was expecting Mario, but he would take Peach regardless. Provided that Mario heard him and the others singing.
"Ooh, are you guys going out Christmas caroling?" asked a very delighted Peach, as Knuckles was looking down at the ground. Tails, Yuri, and Phosphora started doing some vocal percussion, as Knuckles slowly lifted his head up and looked at Peach.
"Mary did you know...that your baby boy, will one day walk on water?" Knuckles sang to Peach, who quickly recognized the song that the echidna was singing.
"Um, my name isn't Mary...but thanks anyways!"
"Mary did you know...that your baby boy, will save our sons and daughters?" Sonic joined Knuckles at the doorway and sang to Peach, catching the princess by surprise.
"Oh my, I didn't know that you could sing, Sonic..."
"Mary did you know...that your baby boy, has come to make you new?" Zero sang to Peach, rushing inside the house and taking hold of Peach's hand. "This child that you've delivered, will soon deliver you..."
"Hands-a off my wife..." Mario sternly told Zero, as he was in the kitchen dicing some tomatoes. Weiss was also in the kitchen, with Hunter monitoring the young woman out of his own paranoia.
"Hey Mario, you heard that awesome singing?" Knuckles asked the plumber, with Zero letting go of Peach as Tails, Yuri, and Phosphora ceased their vocal percussion. "The stuff of legends, amirite?"
"Eh...I've heard much-a better in the past." Mario's critique was pretty negative for Knuckles, who could only grunt in failure. Just then, the house phone rang, and Peach quickly answered it.
"Hello, Mario residence, Princess Peach speaking!" Peach happily spoke into the phone, in a perfectly happy tone that couldn't be faked by anyone. "Who's this?"
"Hey Peach, it's me...Knuckle Joe..." replied the person on the phone, Knuckle Joe - sounded like he was at a huge brawl. Lots of fighting in the background. "...we're trying to save our butts!"
"Who's we? Where even are you? And why do I hear so much commotion going on in the background?"
"I'm at the NME Enterprises...with Shovel Knight and Ruby...and the employees are trying to beat us up in the garden center! It's madness, I tell you!"
"Knuckle Joe, Shovel Knight, and Ruby are fending off a bunch of angry employees at that NME store, in the garden center," Peach relayed the information to Mario and company. "Ooh...I knew that store was always bad news!"
"Sounds to me like those three are in trouble!" exclaimed Spyro, who was always ready to go for some action, as he hopped down from the couch he was sitting on. "They could use some backup! C'mon Hunter, let's go!"
"We're coming to save you, Shovel Knight and Knuckle Joe!" vowed Hunter, as he and Spyro ran out of the house and past the Christmas carolers. The cheetah was obviously forgetting someone else...
"Don't forget about Ruby!" Weiss called out to Hunter, unsure if the cheetah heard her. Or if he even wanted to hear her in the first place. "Oh, what's the point..."
Eventually word reached Master Hand about the Christmas tree Gray Fox stole from the mansion's living room, after Pit and Snake had informed the giant hand about the heist. Because Master Hand was too lazy to do it, he assigned Zelda and Link to retrieve the tree from the tower.
"Crazy Hand, are you really THAT desperate for another Christmas tree?" Zelda asked the giant hand in the lobby, as Link was carrying the mansion's Christmas tree. The poor Hylian's legs were shaking. "You should just get another one."
"But I can't WAIT to get another one, I need another one RIGHT NOW!" whined Crazy Hand, wondering what was taking Shovel Knight so long. Safe to say that Crazy Hand was a very impatient being. "Who would want to WAIT for anything?"
"People wait until they open presents on Christmas day, all the time...perhaps you should do the waiting game too, Crazy Hand. Come on, Link, let's go..."
"Why is this tree so heavy..." wondered Link as he followed Zelda out of the tower. But he couldn't get through the door, because the tree was obstructing his path.
"Turn it the other way, Link..." Soon enough, Link realized that he was holding the tree horizontally, and when the Hylian turned the tree vertically...he felt like he made a big brain maneuver.
"Ah, of course! I'm so smart, am I, Zelda?" Zelda didn't answer and just rolled her eyes, as she and Link left the tower with the Christmas tree in tow.
Master Hand: Crazy Hand thought he was slick and steal my Christmas tree, huh? Well two can play at that game! I'll take all the Christmas presents at the tower, and guess what I'll do to them? Donate them to the homeless people!...Wait, Crazy Hand waited to do that first? Oh man, the guy is playing 4-D underwater chess right under my nose...
"PLEASE Shovel Knight, PLEASE come through with the Christmas tree..." pleaded Crazy Hand, who was sure to give Shovel Knight hugs and kisses and everything else if he fulfilled his deed.
After asking some random Average Joe on the street for some directions, Spyro and Hunter managed to reach the NME Enterprises superstore. They saw a man walking his shopping cart to his car, and Spyro and Hunter ran over to him.
"Hey, do you know where the garden center is?" Spyro asked the man, who felt like he was seeing things as he adjusted his glasses. Not that often you saw a dragon and a walking cheetah in a parking lot.
"It's on the right side of the store," the man replied, as he pointed at the garden center; Spyro and Hunter went to the garden center, as the man checked his glasses. "Mom was right, I should totally lay off the creamer..."
Spyro and Hunter entered the garden center of the NME superstore, expecting to kick some butt...but as it turned out, the butt was already kicked, as a bunch of NME employees were on the ground writhing in pain. Shovel Knight, Ruby, and Knuckle Joe were standing triumphantly, with Shovel Knight standing atop the NME Salesman.
"Aw what, we missed all the action?" frowned Spyro, who really wanted to put his flame breath to get use. He and Hunter arrived a little too late. "Way to save all the fun for us, you guys!"
"Shovel Knight are you okay, did Ruby hurt you any?" Hunter ran to the knight, inspecting him for any injuries of the sort. "Are you alright?"
"The employees at this store did most of the hurting, but I'm fine!" replied Shovel Knight, his bright blue armor covered with scratches. The knight stepped down to the floor, off of the NME Salesman.
"Have you bums got any decency?" scolded the NME Salesman, picking himself up off the ground and standing up, as Spyro and Hunter were laughing. "Beating up my employees, all because you wouldn't pay for your...why are you boys laughing?!"
"Man, why is such a manly guy like yourself so short?" laughed Spyro, poking fun at the NME Salesman's height. All that the NME Salesman had aside from his head and torso were two feet. "You look like Kirby, cosplaying as a human!"
"Hey, you take that back - only my boss can use that joke! I'm gonna clubber the living daylight right out of ya..."
But the NME Salesman couldn't make a single move, as Hunter pounced on the man and sent him flying to the floor. The cheetah was holding the NME Salesman to the floor, preventing him from moving.
"You guys get away while you can - Spyro and I are gonna hold this man down!" Hunter told Shovel Knight and company; Knuckle Joe quickly grabbed the Christmas tree he picked out, as he, Shovel Knight, and Ruby ran out of the store.
"Get back here with that tree, you haven't even paid for it yet!" the NME Salesman yelled at Knuckle Joe, as Hunter had him pinned to the ground. "That tree ain't cheap, you know!"
Crazy Hand paced back and forth in the lobby, growing increasingly anxious. That anxiety would vanish away, when Shovel Knight and Knuckle Joe entered the tower with the brand new Christmas tree.
"Here is thy newest Christmas tree, Crazy Hand!" the knight announced to the giant hand, who was all giddy as he squealed in delight. Knuckle Joe placed the tree where the old tree was, made sure it was a perfect fit.
"Shovel Knight, you are a LIFE saver!" Crazy Hand told the knight, as Knuckle Joe began to wonder when Crazy Hand would give him some admiration. "How can I ever REPAY you?"
"You should be thanking me, Crazy Hand, I picked out the tree myself..." stated Knuckle Joe, proudly pointing at himself...only for Crazy Hand to slap him out of the way, and hug Shovel Knight real tight.
"Insides...being crushed...once again...please release me..." wheezed Shovel Knight, as Crazy Hand eventually dropped the knight to the floor.
Knuckle Joe: Crazy Hand may not have given me props for handpicking the Christmas tree...but he did put me in charge of watering the tree. And no, I'm not an idiot...I know how much trees need water. I actually passed my chemistry class. Twice! *pauses* That's where you learn about trees and stuff, right?
Later that day, Ruby spoke with Shovel Knight outside the tower. The young woman had a few kind words she wanted to say to the knight in shining armor.
"Really loved how you used that shovel of yours to beat up those monsters," Ruby commended Shovel Knight, who had the sudden urge to stroke his shovel like it was a newborn baby.
"They don't call me Shovel Knight for nothing!" exclaimed Shovel Knight, triumphantly raising his shovel up high. Once more, he nearly poked out Ruby's eye.
"I regrettably left behind my scythe at Mario's house, so I couldn't find as much...but you did a stellar job at protecting me, with that shovel. And, Knuckle Joe too...guess I could give him some credit."
"I'd be willing to share the credit with that good ol' chap. Two heads are better than one, as they always say!"
Watching the conversation between Shovel Knight and Ruby in the confides of Mario's living room was Hunter, who was peering through the bathroom window while standing on the toilet seat. Hunter saw Ruby giggling, and it made him seethe.
"I'm on to you, Ruby Rose..." the cheetah said, as Sonic was in the bathroom washing his hands. Sonic smirked, as he turned off the water from the faucet.
"Get a life, my man..." Sonic told Hunter, as he left the bathroom and went to the living room, where Knuckles and Tails were sitting on the couch. Yuri, Zero, and Phosphora had already returned to the tower.
"And then, I chased him around the store, and kept flaming his butt!" Spyro told Mario and Peach in the kitchen, telling him the story of how he and Hunter dealt with the NME Salesman. "He couldn't run that far due to his stubby legs, so I was able to keep up."
"I don't think that the NME Salesman HAS any legs..." remarked Peach, as Sonic sat on the couch next to Knuckles. Knuckles was looking pretty stern.
"Soooo...what's next on our agenda?" Sonic asked Knuckles, rubbing his hands together in much anticipation. "We're still going Christmas caroling around Seattle tomorrow? What about next week?"
"Nope - we won't be doing any Christmas caroling at all," replied Knuckles, leaving both Sonic and Tails relatively shocked. "I've received more than enough validation today...which means that I have no choice but to start the next phase."
"What is this 'next phase'? Are we gonna give bring gifts and holiday cheer to the little children instead? Because I know a good place where we can..."
"We're not doing any of that stuff. The next phase is gonna be something different. Very different..." Knuckles looked even more stern, as Sonic looked at Tails; Tails responded by shrugging his shoulders.
Whatever the "next phase" was, Sonic and Tails - and everyone else - would have to wait and find out. Gotta play the waiting game...