Author's Note:

Yes, as you can tell by the chapter title, I finally found a way for the Persona 5 crew to appear in the story. I suddenly regret not doing this earlier. But anyways, time for some guest reviews!

"Here's some questions since I'm out of requests. Is Lailah going to get into a pun-off competition with Lucina? Is Alisha gonna have her default outfit or the outfit she wore in her DLC story? Is Berkut gonna cause conflict or try to befriend the Fire Emblem characters when he appears? Will you still include the Palutena, Presa, and Lightning scene? Is Aerith using her Mandy Moore, Mena Suvari, or Andrea Bowen voice? And finally, do you think the Final Fantasy XIII games get way too much hate?"

Holding off on a pun-off. Alisha will wear hear default outfit. Not spilling any details on Berkut. Still doing that Palutena scene. Aerith is using her Mandy Moore voice. And why do the XII games receive hate? The linearity could be to blame. Next is Derick Lindsey:

"Seeing Duck Hunt Dog in this chapter gave me an idea for a suggestion it's from an episode of Dexter's Laboratory: Someone makes a collar or a vitamin for him to eat so he can talk and he doesn't shut up and just annoys everyone with his non stop talking (even people like Sora and Pit are annoyed)."

Never saw this episode of Dexter Laboratory before...but I'll still this idea a go. Roydigs22 is back for more:

"Can you bring in soma, mina, and the rest of the dawn and aria of sorrow cast? And maybe a battle between the pokemon quartet and fawful?"

Eh, probably just do Soma and Mina. As for this Pokemon-Fawful battle...we'll see. Now we have a new face in the crowd...the Masked Rocker:

"I love what you got going here but I have a idea how about have Snake get an assignment from master hand but make a certain Umbra witch his partner for said assignment to his absolute misery"

Ooh...that just sounds so evil. Gotta end Snake's "fling" with Kiria first before this takes place.


Episode 95: PhantomThieves

One of the duties Isabelle had at the mansion, aside from serving as the lapdog (no pun intended) for Master Hand, was organizing the meeting room, and ensuring the room was nice, clean, and tidy. Of course, this was something Mr. Game and Watch could do himself, considering he was the housekeeper of the mansion, but oftentimes the 2-D man would share meeting room duties with Isabelle, who has hosted many meetings in the meeting room herself.

Another set of visitors were about to visit the mansion, to work alongside with Professor Layton and Luke Triton - these visitors were known as Phantom Thieves, a group of high schoolers...and a cat...working together to purge the world of evil by "stealing the hearts" of the corrupt members of society. With Fawful somehow alive and kicking, being revived after his destructive death at the end of Mario and Luigi: Bowser's Inside Story, Layton figured that the Phantom Thieves could perhaps find some clues regarding the revival of Fawful.

So far, Layton and Luke knew that the Beanish Fawful was affiliated with Team Flare, if that meeting they attended last week was any indication. But why was he with Team Flare, was he serving under their leader Lysandre? Fawful served under his former boss Cackletta, an evil witch who attempted to steal Peach's voice and use said voice to awaken the Beanstar, and by golly was he effective in that role.

As these questions continued to mount, Mr. Game and Watch was vacuuming the meeting room, where Layton and Luke would meet up with the Phantom Thieves. Isabelle scanned the entire room, looking for any spots that needed to be cleaned.

"The Phantom Thieves will be arriving at any minute now," stated Isabelle, glancing at her watch. "Don't know how many will show up, but their presence is what matters the most. Layton and Luke should have showed up by now..."

Master Hand: Layton gave me the 4-1-1 on who these Phantom Thief losers were. Nothing bunch a bunch of bratty, edgy high school teenagers whose number one mission is to rid the world of evil...such tomfoolery is why I scoff at such peons, vowing to change the world. How can you possibly get rid of something that's been around since the beginning of time, it's practically impossible! You're always gonna have your fair share of good and evil, to balance everything out. You realize how boring everything would be if everything was good and righteous? You know how bored out of their minds the media would be if they never get the chance to report the bad stuff that goes on today and sensationalize the masses, because of no more evil? You realize how differently people would react if I scared their pants off unsuspectingly? Usually when I scare someone like Viridi, they would call me "an evil individual", but if you take the evil out of the world, then whenever I scare someone, they'll actually compliment me, and ask me to scare them again! A person who is not only afraid of fear, but enjoys to take fear head-on...how messed up is that? A world without fear?Now that, THAT is a world I would refuse to live in!

As if right on cue, Layton and Luke would enter the meeting room, just when Isabelle was starting to worry the two detectives wouldn't show up. But here they were, eating ice cream sundaes made by the Ice Climbers.

"Sorry we didn't come earlier than usual, Nana and Popo were making more of their world-famous sundaes, and you know Luke and I would never refuse free food," apologized Layton; either the sundaes were indeed "world-famous", or Popo had forced Layton to shove this lie down people's throats. "Might be the best sundaes I've ever tasted - I highly recommend you get a taste yourself, Isabelle!"

"Only if there's vanilla sundaes, otherwise I can't have any," stated Isabelle with a smile; a chocolate sundae would be absolutely deadly for the shih tzu, given that dogs consuming chocolate would result in a very fatal result. "Mr. Game and Watch, are you done cleaning the meeting room?"

"Yes ma'am - the entire room looks spotless and clean!" replied the 2-D man, after he was finished vacuuming. "It's ready for the Phantom Thieves, who I assume are already at the mansion. Probably got lost somewhere, I don't know."

"Well it is pretty easy to get lost inside this mansion...I've learned that the hard way, during my first day. Mario would later show the way, showed me where everything was, and ever since been, we've been very close with one another...but thankfully, I wasn't as lost as Sora was." Sora must've gotten himself lost by searching for Heartless. Would be the only viable explanation.

"Professor Latyon and Luke, I do believe that you have some visitors that wish to see you," Ganonforf informed the detective duo, poking his head in through the meeting room entrance. "Saw them in the gaming room, asked them why they were here and they told me they wished to speak with you two. Think one of them insulted my looks and called me ugly...but I know they were just joking around. Unless they don't care about life...oh, they're right behind me, hopefully the person I'm speaking of didn't hear that...are you ready to see the visitors?"

"Yes, bring them on in!" exclaimed Luke, as Ganondorf allowed five individuals...and a cat...inside the meeting room. These five...erm, six...individuals were known collectively by one name, and one name only...the Phantom Thieves.

Leading the pack was Akira Kurusu, a trickster whose trickster ways were kept concealed behind a meek exterior. Standing close to Akira was the deliquent of the group, Ryuji Sakamoto. With Akira and Ryuji were three ladies - Ann Takamaki, who as the first name implied, had some white heritage in her blood; Makoto Niijima, the president of her student council at the academy the Thieves attended; and Futaba Sakura, a programming prodigy with virtually no social skills. Oh, and the cat? His name was Morgana, and he had shape-shifting abilities, as well as some experience as a medic.

"Akira Kurusu, at your service," Akira would shake hands with Layton and Luke, as his friends would later introduce themselves to the detectives. During the introductions, Ganondorf and Mr. Game and Watch would leave the premises, as Isabelle sat in the back of the meeting room, to observe everything taking place.

"Glad we were able to keep in touch with one another, and I'm also glad you all obliged to work with us," smiled Layton, as he, Luke, and the Phantom Thieves all took a seat. "I would have reached out to the Yu Narukami and his group of investigators, but I didn't feel like accessing the TV World to reach out to them. Granted, we have a machine for accessing the TV World, but using it would be too much work...also, I imagined you six would be better off for what Luke and I have in mind for accomplishing today."

"Yu and his friends are perhaps handling important business in the TV World anyways, it wouldn't be best to bother them," said Akira, as he adjusted his glasses. This was a very common habit of his. "They also wouldn't be the best candidates for dealing with evil guys, like we do. As you specified in that couple a couple of days ago, you mentioned that you needed assistance in finding out the origins of the 'Beanish' by the name of Fawful...which I believe Yu and his friends wouldn't be up to the task for."

Peach: Mario informed me and Luigi about Fawful's return once he returned with Layton and Team Chaotix. Fawful working alongside Team Flare would be very disastrous and problematic, especially if he's working as the second-in-command of the leader. I would pass the information on to Bowser, and he didn't react to the news so well...

Bowser: Yeah, I'm still butthurt about that Fawful jerk - he took complete control of the Mushroom Kingdom before I did, and took control of my own castle and my servants, thereby ruining my villain street cred! Not only that, but Fawful also terminated my bank account, abused my children, and worst of all, posted nude pics of myself online for everyone to see!...Okay, none of that stuff happened, and I do realize I'm technically nude, but if I hadn't stopped Fawful in time, those three things very well could've happened!

"So who exactly is this Fawful twerp, and what is he up to?" asked Makoto, wanting information about the person her fellow Phantom Thieves were going to delve into for the day. Can't possibly hurt to know.

"Fawful is a Beanish guy who is very eccentric, and speaks kinda funny; he's working with Team Flare for reasons unknown," explained Luke, as he dug into his pocket and pulled out a photo Mario gave to him. "This is what he looks like; according to the famous plumber Mario, he tends to act more childish than he looks." The Phantom Thieves all took a look at the photo, which had Fawful donning his exquisite red cape.

"That's how Fawful looks, for real?!" questioned Ryuji, uttering his catchphrase in surprise. "Man, I thought he was supposed to look more fearsome and intimidating than that - looks like some loser nerd trying too hard to be a villain, like the supreme overlord of the universe! Where's the real bad guy we have to investigate?"

"Apparently you're looking right at him..." remarked Layton, sounding underwhelmed judging by the tone of his voice. "Mario and his brother Luigi spoke to me about how much of a pest Fawful is, and how he has improved in villainy as time went on. Don't think any of you see any form of improvement after seeing that photo."

"Sure don't, can't believe we came all the way here to investigate some stupid villain wannabe. A complete waste of our time! Where's Yaldabaoth when you need him, I'd rather fight him over this stupid crap!"

"Now now, Ryuji, there's a very good chance Fawful might be more intimidating than he looks in person," Akira told the deliquent, who folded his arms and looked the other way. "Looks can be deceiving, you know, and I should know that better than anyone. So Layton, has there been any suspicious stuff taking place at the mansion that we should know about?"

"Not that much, although two mansion residents aren't currently at the mansion," explained Layton, stroking his chin. "Captain Falcon, the famous F-Zero racer, was arrested following a street race, while he was doing his taxi service - the fact that the arrest happened a week after his breakup with his girlfriend Nowi makes it suspicious. The other resident, Lucas, was kidnapped by a ninja mercenary named Raiden, and taken to an unknown location. He's been reaching out to the others with his telepathy, but he says he can't disclose his current location."

"On another note, Mario did say that his computer was acting funny, and it was because of some disc installed into the computer," added Luke, bringing up this factoid that Mario told to him and Layton. "We're starting to think these instances and events are tied up somehow...and it's opening up our investigation even more."

"I know, why don't we all split up and find out some answers that way?" suggested Ann, as Layton and the others paid an attentive ear. "Futaba will scourge Mario's computer for anything fishy. Makoto will ask the residents about the telepathic messages they've been receiving from Lucas. And I'll do some investigative work on Captain Falcon's taxi service. Akira, Ryuji, and Morgana will work with Layton and Luke and find some clues regarding Fawful's sudden revival. How does that sound?"

"Wait, where does Mari live at, does he live at one of those two houses close to the mansion?" asked a now nervous Futaba. "Do I really have to go by myself?" As stated earlier, Futaba had very little social skills, and she didn't know how she would do in the mighty presence of Mario, let alone Peach.

"Oh, you'll be fine Futaba, it's not like Mario is going to hurt you or anything? Have you ever seen the guy? He's virtually harmless, won't lay a single finger on you!" Futaba apparently thought otherwise, as indicated by the nervous fiddling of her fingers.

Futaba: I'm not inherently afraid of Mario...I'm just afraid of how he would feel about me, and how he would interact with me in my presence. I know I'm very much a hermit, but I suppose I can do well in different environments...You say Princess Peach of the Mushroom Kingdom is living with Mario? And she's his wife? Uh...is it too late to go back home now?


Makoto would go around the mansion, asking random residents about Lucas, and whether or not they received any telepathic messages from the PSI whiz. Everywhere she went, the girl had a notepad, jotting down the responses of the people she asked.

"Lucas only contacted me once, and warned me to keep a very wary eye on Jakob, who is vying to be the official butler of the mansion," Rosalina would explain to Makoto, who jotted this information down on her notepad. "He has been in very hot water as of late, so him getting the job might not be a possibility..."

"It was Lucas who encouraged me to work out everyday, to get stronger and build muscle," said Akuma, as he flexed his muscles for Makoto to see, although she didn't care in the slightest. "Have no idea why he's so concerned with me working out, but whatever makes him happy, I suppose..."

"Lucas hasn't spoken with either one of us, and he shouldn't bother - he would distract us from our work in the kitchen," Popo said to Makoto, on behalf of him and Nana, who did not share his sentiments. "Also, you should try our ice cream sundaes - try it if you know what's good for you!" Popo held out an ice cream sundae to Makoto, who would indulge in the Ice Climbers' treats if she wasn't busy.

"Um, no thanks...I have important matters to take care of," Makoto said nicely as she left the kitchen; Nana had to hold Popo back as the male Ice Climber hurled unnecessary death threats at Makoto. Dude was a totally different animal when he was working his ice cream mfagic.

Makoto, still needing a few more responses, would venture to the mansion gardens, where she figured she would find a lot of people there. But instead of people, the girl would instead find dozens upon dozens of Yoshi eggs, all laid out with the plants and flowers and such. Makoto walked through the gardens, making sure not to stop on any eggs, as she observed the scene at hand.

"Hello!" an excitable voice greeted Makoto from behind, making her scream and jump as she turned around...only to see Yoshi, with a smile on his face. "Whoops, sorry if I scared the pants off of you...if you're really are wearing pants, that is." They're called pantyhose, Yoshi...don't get it twisted. "My name is Yoshi, but you can just call me Yoshi, if you want...what's your name?"

"M-Makoto Niijima, member of the Phantom Thieves," Makoto would introduce herself to Yoshi, feeling weirded out by the dinosaur's eccentric nature. "I'm here to investigate the kidnapping of Lucas, and I've been asking the residents about if they received any telepathic messages from Lucas...have you been contacted by Lucas yourself?"

"Yes I have - in fact, Lucas has been keeping in touch with me throughout the week. He's been telling me to raise the eggs you see around in the gardens, and has encouraged me to keep raising the eggs until they hatch." Yoshi dared not to question why Makoto was here, or how she knew Lucas or why she even cared about the teen to begin with...because Yoshi was now going into detail about the Yoshi eggs, telling Makoto every bit of information that she needed to know, although it wasn't a requirement.

"...and I take it you're raising the eggs all by yourself?" Makoto asked Yoshi once the dinosaur's long lecture of Yoshi eggs came to an end. He still had a lot more in the tank; he just didn't want to annoy Makoto.

"Good heavens, no - that would be too big of a burden for me to bear! Thankfully I have some friends that are splitting up the work in raising the eggs - namely Pit, Kirby, Viridi, and Aerith. Had I laid less eggs, then maybe I would do the task by myself..."

Two of Yoshi's fellow caretakers, Pit and Kirby, would show up at the gardens, with Pit carrying a few Yoshi eggs. The angel and Kirby took sight of Makoto, and were both easily in complete awe.

"Hey Yoshi, is that chick your new girlfriend?" Pit asked the dinosaur this idiotic question; Yoshi was offended, while Makoto felt disgusted that Pit would ask such a question. "Look, I know you're tired of Birdo, but dating human chicks isn't the answer!"

Viridi: Things between Yoshi and Birdo have been rather quiet as of late...either the two broke up, or Yoshi just doesn't want to disclose any information about his relationship with Birdo. Although it's a bit of a one-sided relationship...Birdo loves Yoshi, but Yoshi refuses to love Birdo back. Only reason people see them as a couple is because they're constantly shipped together.
Pit: Shipped together? As in like, shipped in boats across the Atlantic Ocean to unknown places?
Viridi: No, silly - shipped together, as in like romantic ships! When you take two people, put them together, and form a relationship!
Pit: Wait, so how does that work, do the two people shipped together have to agree on certain terms?
Viridi: Not specifically; they don't have to enjoy the shipping particularly. It's just a thing people like to do for fun.
Pit:...since when was matchmaking ever fun?

"This isn't my girlfriend, Pit...I've just met this girl," Yoshi explained to the angel, who was still convinced Yoshi and Makoto were an item. "Her name is Makoto Niijama, and she does...things, for a living." Yoshi said this without a shred of confidence as he looked at Makoto, who could only nod with a smile. "Lots of things, oodles of things...she's a jack-of-all-trades."

"Just to clarify, I'm a member of a vigilante group called the Phantom Thieves," clarified Makoto, still feeling offended by Pit's idiotic question.

"Yeah, jack-of-all-trades, Phantom Thief...both are the same thing. Very fancy job titles. But Makoto here is NOT my girlfriend, just so you know, and non-human creature like myself would never have romantic feelings for a human chick. Contrary to what Bowser believes in."

"Does that mean Birdo is still your girlfriend?" Kirby asked Yoshi a question the dinosaur dared not to answer. Anything pertaining to Birdo, Yoshi refused to give his two cents on. "Or are you going through some 'rough patches' in your relationship?"

Before Yoshi could open his mouth, the Yoshi eggs in Pit's possession were starting to shake...they must be ready to hatch! Everyone in the gardens watched, as the eggs continued to shake, and their egg shells cracked, the shells chipping away as time went on.

And then, it finally happened...the egg shells all cracked upon, all revealing Baby Yoshis inside. These infant Yoshis were of three different colors - blue, yellow, and purple. Nobody was more excited for the birth of the Baby Yoshis than, well, Yoshi, who couldn't contain his excitement.

"Hooray, the first Yoshi eggs have finally hatched!" exclaimed the green dinosaur, wanting to give Makoto a big hug but unsure if hugging her would be a great idea. Probably didn't like being touched. "So excited that I just can't hide it!"

"Congratulations Yoshi - now you and Makoto are going to be full-time parents!" congratulated Pit, as Yoshi and Makoto both shot the angel a glare. Yoshi already informed Pit that he and Makoto weren't boyfriend-girlfriend, and if anything, Yoshi was the only parent of the Baby Yoshis, since he was the one who laid eggs at will. He was bound to have more and more "children" as more eggs hatched.

"FOR THE LAST TIME, MAKOTO IS NOT...you know what, forget about it. Let's just go tell Viridi and Aerith the great news..."


Futaba, mustering all the courage inside of her, tried to stand confidently as she stood at the front door of Mario's home. She had her fists clenched, and took a deep breath, gaining her composure. The programming prodigy, who has lived as a shut-in for much of her life, wasn't going to let her lack of social skills doom her, not this time. If she was going to conquer this social hurdle, she was going to have to conquer it head-on, and not let the pressure get to her.

So Futaba, her hand trembling, rang the doorbell, waiting for Mario to answer the door. The orange-haired girl was looking down at the ground, as a gloved hand opened the door, mustached and all while wearing his trademark blue overalls.

"M-My name...my name is Futaba Sakura...pr-programming prodigy...and I'm here...to fix...to check out your computer..." stammered Futaba, as the confidence inside of her - the confidence she thought she had - was suddenly expelled outside of her. The girl would look up...only to realize she somehow screwed up.

"Hmm, I don't-a remember calling a computer repair-a person to check-a out my computer..." said the mustached plumber in overalls...named Luigi. Yes, Futaba went to the wrong house, Luigi's house, and spoke with Luigi, rather than Mario. Now Luigi will think of Futaba as a socially awkward dork, who had no idea what she was doing. "Rotom, does our-a computer need fixing?" Luigi called out to the plasma Pokemon, who would join the plumber at the doorway.

"No you didn't, Luigi...in fact, you don't even have a computer to begin with, zrrt!" explained Rotom, as Luigi slapped himself on the forehead. How could he forget? "You and Daisy have your own personal laptops, remember? And your own cellphones, and your own tablets, and your own vape pens, which you never use, and your own..."

"That's enough-a Rotom, our guest didn't need to know-a about the vape-a pens," Luigi said to the plasma Pokemon, before redirecting his attention to Futaba...who was no longer there. "Wait, where did-a that girl run-a off too?"

Futaba: Of course I would mess up, going to the wrong house...I'm such a wreck, I have so many flaws it's not even funny. Knew I should have let Haru take my place in this mission instead, I'm sure she's a computer genius like me...just doesn't want to admit it. Couldn't blame her!

After her awkward encounter with Luigi, Futaba would head to the right house, Mario's house, which was next door, as she rang the doorbell. Peach, not Mario, would open the door, and was delighted to Futaba, whom she apparently mistook for someone else...

"Female Inkling, is that you?" asked Peach, and you couldn't blame the princess for asking this, for Futaba and the female Inkling looked very similar to one another. Could be because of the orange hair, the glasses, the slender frame, the similar clothing, or all of those reasons. "Had quite a growth spurt, didn't you? Say, the male Inkling must've had a growth spurt too, didn't he? Where is he, I want to see him!"

"I'm...I'm not this female Inkling that you speak of," answered Futaba, leading Peach to look on with a confused face. "I'm Futaba Sakura, and I'm a programming prodigy from Japan. Member of the Phantom Thieves - it's basically a teenage vigilante group working together to save the world from evil, pretty much!"

"Oh, a group of crime-fighting teenagers, how wonderful! It's very nice to meet you, Miss Sakura. So you're a programming genius, huh? That must mean you're here to inspect our computer." Futaba glad that her and Peach were on the same track, nodded her head. "Yes, something very odd happened to our computer a couple of weeks ago, a mere week after we installed it. This disc was loaded onto the computer, and it caused our device to act up in the strangest ways, before leaving behind a very threatening message. I've asked my husband Mario to inspect the computer for any viruses or malware, but he's either too lazy to do it himself, or to ask anyone from the mansion for assistance."

"Well it's a good thing I'm here to check things out...mind if I come in?" Peach would allow Futaba inside her home, as the princess showed the prodigy where the home computer was. Futaba would take a seat, and flex her fingers, before turning the computer on.

As Futaba logged into the computer under Peach's account (and yes, Peach typed in the password...the password being "toadstool"), Mario would come down from the stairs, indulging himself with some chocolate-covered raisins. Bought a box of them once from a convenience store, and has been hooked ever since. When the plumber arrived at the first floor, and went to the living room to see what his wife was up to, he would find Peach with Futaba, and his mouth fell agape, as he dropped his raisins to the floor.

"My goodness, female Inkling, how much-a you have grown!" exclaimed Mario, also mistaking Futaba for the female Inkling just like Peach. The programming prodigy might as well get used to this treatment for the day. "Tell me, what-a did you eat? Eggs? Beans? Yogurt? Drank some-a milk? Did the male-a Inkling have a growth-a spurt too? Tell-a me all the juicy details!"

"Mario, this isn't the female Inkling...this is Futaba Sakura, a programming prodigy who came all the way from Japan," Peach would introduce Futaba to Mario, as the girl turned to face the plumber and weakly smiled as she nervously waved to him. "Don't know what compelled her to come to our house and inspect our computer, but I don't think we have to pay anything...yet. Do we have to pay?" Peach asked Futaba, who shook her head no. "So we're getting free service! Isn't that great?"

"Someone is inspecting our-a computer, and I don't have-a to pay a single penny out-a of my wallet..." Mario smiled at the thought of this, nodding his head. "Great deal in-a my books. I'll just leave-a you be Futaba, let you do-a your thing...I believe you should-a follow suit, Peach."

"You're right Mario - sorry if I'm in your way, Futaba," Peach would apologize to the prodigy, as she and Mario would leave the premises, leaving Futaba alone by herself. Futaba would sigh, and it was a sigh of relief...about time she had some time to herself.


Ann: Asked the owner of the mansion, Master Hand, about Captain Falcon's taxi service, and he advised me to ask Fox McCloud and Falco Lombardi about it, since they gave Falcon some advice prior to him starting his business. Both Fox and Falco have a lot of business experience as the heads of Star Records, and they're also affiliated with the co-owner of Falcon's taxi service, B.D. Joe. Obviously I can't talk with B.D. Joe right now, so I'll see what answers Fox and Falco will provide for me...

Unfortunately for Ann, Fox and Falco wouldn't provide any answers for her, as the Star Fox pilots, Itsuki, and Knuckles were playing a very masochistic game called "Lightning Reaction Reloaded" in the Star Records room. The game was simple in nature - each player would grab a handle, press the button in the center, and watch the red light blink as suspenseful music played. The goal of the game was to press the trigger button as quickly as possible when the red light turned green...otherwise you'd be in for quite a shock!

"I have some very important investigative work to do, in case you boys weren't aware..." an annoyed Ann, her arms folded as she waited impatiently while sitting in a chair, said to Fox and Falco, who were both sweaty to the core as the four players listened closely to the suspenseful music, paying close attention to the blinking red light. The suspense grew inside the Star Records room, the tension could be cut with a knife...

...then suddenly, the green light flashed, and Itsuki was the first to press his trigger button, while Fox, Falco, and Knuckles all got shocked at the same time. Itsuki would slightly gloat in his victory, while his fellow players dealt with the pain of being shocked. Knuckles was being extra with his reaction, falling to the floor and flailing like a madman.

"I'VE BEEN SHOCKED YOU GUYS, I'M BLEEDING, SOMEONE CALL 9-1-1!" screamed Knuckles, flailing in faux pain. If he was bleeding, it would be hard to tell given his red skin. The blood would have to be crimson red for it to be distinguishable. Regardless, Fox, Falco, nor Itsuki did anything to help Knuckles during his time of "agony".

"Knuckles, we all know you aren't bleeding, quit being such a drama queen," Falco said to the echidna, after he shook off the shock. Knuckles grumbled, as he got back to his feet, acting like everything was fine.

"Yeah, I was just testing to see if any of you guys would come to my aid. Looks like I totally failed in that regard. Either that, or you punks are just heartless jerks!"

"Alright, your stupid game is finally over...now how about you tell me everything I need to know about Captain Falcon's taxi service?" Ann asked the Star Fox pilots, standing up with her hands on her hips. "I don't have all day you know!"

"Oh Itsuki, there's an ice cream sundae in the dining room with your name on it, prepared just for you!" Tsubasa poked her head through the Star Records doorway to inform her boyfriend. She had a smile on her face...then again, the idol singer was all smiles ever since Itsuki has been her boyfriend.

"Sorry boys, but it seems like Tsubasa is craving for my presence...I'll catch you guys later," Itsuki said to Fox and company, as he got up and left the Star Records room. The young man already won at Lightning Reaction Reloaded, so he might as well leave with a W under his belt.

"Falco already made it clear that we'll answer your questions until after he wins at Lightning Reaction Reloaded," Fox said to Ann, who grumbled as she folded her arms in disgust. "Yes, this might take forever, but patience is a virtue, as Ronald Reagan once said...I think he said it. U.S. presidents always have the best, most memorable quotes, it's a proven fact."

"Look, I don't care about presidents, or stupid quotes...I just need some answers. So why don't you and your friend Knuckles just let Falco lose this next round, so I can finally do my job around here?!"

"You really that desperate, huh?" questioned Falco, fed up with Ann. "Well allow me to help you do your stinking job!" The avian pilot would exit the room, and later return with Pikachu in his possession, handing him to Knuckles and Fox. "Now, Pikachu, electrocute both Fox and Knuckles, do it now!"

"Pika pika?" Pikachu looked in confusion, but it wasn't until Falco held his blaster against the side of the mouse Pokemon's head that all the confusion faded away.

"DO IT NOW, I SAY!" So Pikachu would use Thunderbolt on Fox and Knuckles, electrocuting the both of them and sending them to the floor, as Falco turned to face Ann and raised his arms in faux victory. "There, you got your victory, I won, Fox and Knuckles lost! Now you can do your stupid cover story, or something!"

Knuckles: Been electrocuted by Pikachu so many times, I've grown an invulnerability to his attacks. Electricity now acts like nutrients to me.

Not wanting to make Ann angrier, Fox and Falco would oblige and sit down with the Phantom Thief in the Star Records room, giving her information about Captain Falcon's taxi service, and why they encouraged the racer to start a taxi business in the first place.

"Captain Falcon was undergoing a bit of a slump after his girlfriend Nowi broke up with him, and we suggested to him that starting a taxi service would be the best way to keep him happy with life," Fox explained to Ann, who jotted this information down on a notepad.

"The idea came to us when we chatted with B.D. Joe a few days prior - he's a great taxi driver, had a very memorable ride with him," added Falco, recalling the taxi ride in which he, Fox, and B.D. Joe were jamming out to The Offspring and singing to their heart's content. "B.D. Joe was a very excitable dude, could put a smile on anyone's face, even Cloud's...we figured that he could keep Captain Falcon's spirits up, and since both he and Falcon had an affinity for driving, maybe they could work together and start a taxi service."

"Professor Layton and Luke Triton informed me that Captain Falcon was arrested after being involved in a street race...do you have any intel on this?" asked Ann, wanting to know if Fox and Falco were aware about the street race the day it happened.

"We were told about Falcon's arrest by Mario a few hours after the street race went down in the streets of Seattle. Initially we were shocked by the news, but later on, we shouldn't have been that surprised...we kinda knew Falcon couldn't control himself when it came to racing in the streets. We did know he was arrested, but what we didn't know was who Falcon had raced against."

"Miss Ann Takamaki, I've received this police report from Master Hand, he told me to hand it to you!" Isabelle ran inside the Star Records room, holding a police report in her hand and handing it to Ann. "He received it from the police department the other day."

"Let's take a look-see at what this report says..." Ann would analyze the police report in her hands, her eyes squinting when she saw a familiar name. "According to this police report, famous demon-hunting vigilante Dante was the one Captain Falcon apparently went up against in his street race. Not only that, but Captain Falcon was also racing with a passenger in his taxi, named Lara Croft...sounds like Mr. Falcon was in the presence of some great company prior to his arrest."

"Hold up...Dante was the guy Falcon raced against?" Fox raised an eyebrow - well Fox, that was what Ann just said. "That guy's from the All-Star Manor, the same place where Raiden resides at..." Just then, a shocking theory entered the pilot's head. "...what if Raiden and Dante are working together? What if Captain Falcon being arrested, and Lucas being kidnapped, is all part of some conspiracy with Team Flare? What if Team Flare, Fawful, AND everyone in the All-Star Manor were all working together, against us?!"

"Oh please Fox, the guy running the All-Star Manor is just some floating purple head, according to Mario," snickered Falco - kudos if you know who this floating purple head guy was. "Who would you rather take, a giant hand or a giant head? At least with a giant hand, you can grab women and stuff."

Ann: Falco's comment...about grabbing women...not sure if that was supposed to be sexist or not. But I'll let it pass, for now...

"Can we PLEASE get back on focus here?" shouted Ann, nearly losing her patience with Fox and Falco. "It does seem odd that two individuals from the All-Star Manor were involved in incidents that involved two residents no longer at the mansion, at least for the time being. Might I ask when Lucas was kidnapped?"

"One week after Captain Falcon got arrested," answered Fox, and this made things all the more suspicious. Keep in mind that Jakob had kept in touch with both Dante and Raiden, and instructed the demon hunter and the mercenary on what to do.

"Gotta admit, the timing between both incidents is rather intriguing...nonetheless, I need a bit more information, so I can really understand what's going on regarding Captain Falcon. Now, this Nowi chick...do you boys know a way that I can contact her?"

"She's very old-fashioned, per se, so she doesn't have a cellphone on her, nor does she have any communication device," replied Falco, thinking of a solution before snapping his fingers, a light bulb, dinging above his head. "I know, we'll just go to Chrom - he knows Nowi better than anyone. Actually, he knows Sumia better than anyone...or it could be...let's just say that he knows a lot of women from his country better than anyone, and leave it at that."

"Chrom isn't a womanizer, is he?" asked Ann, asking something that loomed in Fox and Falco's minds on an occasional basis. Chrom sure was a hoot with the Plegian ladies...


Sonic walked through the hallways, brushing the Alolan Vulpix named Suzie. Suzie, who was the pet of Tails, was being "confiscated" from the yellow fox by Sonic for acting like a jerk. Until he learned his lesson, Tails would likely never see his pet Suzie again.

As Sonic walked through the hallways with Suzie in his possession, he would pass by Celica, who received some vital information about Sonic and Tails in the previous episode. Lucas told the princess not to share this information with anyone else...but it wouldn't hurt to discuss this information with Sonic and/or Tails would it?

"Hello Sonic...I see that you're still caretaking for Tails' pet," Celica would greet the hedgehog, as Sonic smiled. Suzie, on the other hand, wanted to be with Tails.

"Yeah, that's right - Tails still has yet to turn from his jerky ways, and for that reason, his precious Suzie will remain with me!" explained Sonic, as he brushed the icy fur of Suzie. Completely acting like Suzie belonged to him. "Better not try to get back with me and take care of Shaymin, if he knows what's good for him! Just let that guy lay a single finger on my pet Pokemon..."

"Uh huh...so Sonic, how did you find out Tails was in a relationship with Coco? Was it on the day you found it? Did someone perhaps, well I don't know...spill the juicy details to you beforehand?" Sonic thought over Celica's questions, with a finger underneath his chin...

"Nope, can't think of an answer to your question. Someone could have informed me, unless I wasn't either paying attention or just not listening. For all I know, the person that could have informed me was a ghost, and I couldn't hear them for that very reason. But if I think up of an answer, I'll make sure to tell you. But only during your downtime. I'd hate to give you an answer while you and Alm are doing your daily smooching."

"...okay, I think I've heard just about enough from you, Sonic. Good day..." Celica, clearly bothered by Sonic's comment about her and Alm smooching on a daily basis, would walk down the hallway, as she and Sonic both went their separate ways.

Celica: Made a promise with Lucas not to pass the information he told me about Sonic and Tails to anyone in the mansion. Alm was listening in as Lucas was telling the telepathic message, and I hope he kept the promise too...sort of.

Alm: Celica had to keep a promise with Lucas, to withhold the information he passed on to her...but Lucas never said anything about me making a promise to withhold anything. So, just to test the waters a little bit, I spilled the juicy details to some guy on the street wearing a Sonic t-shirt, and the next thing that happened, he laughed hysterically and rolled on the concrete sidewalk in laughter. Ran away as soon as I could. Word of the wise, kiddos...never communicate with a crackhead on the streets.


Layton and Luke would lead Akira, Ryuji, and Morgana through the hallways, taking the three Phantom Thieves to a person that they believed would be the most helpful in finding out how exactly Fawful came back to life again. Morgana would walk with the crew, minding his own business, when...

"Hey...what the...?" the cat said, as something snatched him by the neck and dragged him away from Layton and company. As soon as the cat was behind a corner, unseen, he was face-to-face with Midna. "What...who are you, why do you want me?"

"Don't even know me, huh...man, you must be the most ignorant talking animal I've met," Midna facepalmed, as she shook her head. "If you're even an animal...might be some stupid ghost disguised as a cat. Mind if you do me a little favor?"

With Morgana off doing things with Midna, Akira and Ryuji were the two remaining Phantom Thieves, as they arrived at the ball pit room, where Cloud was monitoring the Koopalings. Bowser would monitor the young koopas himself, but he was off looking for a missing possession of his.

"Cloud, do you have a second?" Layton called out to Cloud, who looked over at the detective and saw Akira and Ryuji. Wanting to be friendly - because he really had no other choice but to - Cloud would head over to Layton and company, to greet the two Phantom Thieves. "Cloud, I would like to introduce you to Akira Kurusu and Ryuji Sakamoto - they work as Phantom Thieves. Fellas, this is Cloud Strife..."

"Yeah, yeah, yeah, we're not idiots, we know who Cloud Strife is..." Ryuji cut off Layton, approaching Cloud with his hand in his pocket...before taking said hand out and offering it to Cloud. "Nice to meet ya, bud."

"Same here man, it's a pleasure," Cloud would shake hands with Ryuji, and after he was done, he would slightly wave to Akira, who waved back. "So what's the hitch, Professor Layton, why do you have these 'Phantom Thieves' with you?"

"We're sure Pit, Kirby, Sonic, or Fox and Falco have informed you about Fawful's return," said Luke, to which Cloud nodded his head to. Anything major that transpired, it was bound to be heard from the residents in due time. "And we know that you have dealt with Sephiroth in the past year, after he strangely came back from..."

"What does Fawful even have to do with Sephiroth..." Cloud raised a very curious eyebrow, feeling somewhat cautious. "...what are you even getting it?"

"Could we, well...chat with your arch-nemesis Sephiroth for a minute or two?" asked Layton; Cloud was more than ready to object to this. "After all, Master Hand did say that Sephiroth was kept away inside an urn, in the storage room..."

"Sephiroth still alive and inside the mansion, for real?!" exclaimed Ryuji, contemplating running from the mansion to avoid the fury of the one-winged angel. "Bump this mission, I wanna live! Don't want Sephiroth anywhere near me!"

"Chill out Ryuji - we're just going to speak with Sephiroth, and ask him how he came back to life, and then we'll just go from there," Akira said to Ryuji, before noticing that someone was missing. "Morgana must have gone missing...must be solving a mystery on his own."


Little did Ryuji know that Morgana wasn't solving a mystery...rather, the talking cat was forced to do Midna's bidding. He was standing outside Link's room with the imp, with Midna discussing some important business.

"You see that bum lying in the bed all day long, named Link?" Midna pointed at Link, as he rested; Morgana, believing that Midna was plotting to outright murder him, nodded his head, certain he would die on the spot if he didn't give a response. "And you said you can shape-shift, right? I want you to shape-shift into something, and charm Link, while I go off to do...girly things." Midna sighed when she said this, and her reasons were quite obvious...

Midna: Zelda asked me to join her in the stupid beauty salon and polish her nails for her...which I think is absolutely incredulous. Zelda wears her white gloves all the time, why would she need her nails polished for? Is someone like Link ever going to see her fingernails? Has Link ever seen Zelda's fingernails to begin with?!

"You want me to shape-shift into something, eh..." said Morgana, as Midna nodded with a smile, hoping the cat would oblige. Getting into position, Morgana would shape-shift into an object that would entertain Link all day long...a classic jukebox. "How's this, is this good?"

"Not exactly what I had in mind, but it shall do; Link better like it, or else," replied Midna, knowing that Zelda was waiting for her presence. "If Link asks, just tell them that you're from the Twilight Realm, or something like that. Sounds weird, I know, but he's very gullible. You'll learn from your own experience. Now go in there, and do your thing!"

So Midna would fly away, as Morgana entered Link's room. The hero of Hyrule known as Link was still resting, looking up at his ceiling, as his head continued to aggravate him day by day. He would look up, and see Morgana the cat...uh, jukebox...and was momentarily scared for his life.

"Um, who are you, and why are you here?" Link asked Morgana, reaching out for his Master Sword even though his beloved blade was nowhere near him. Cloud had put the Master Sword in the closet just for safekeeping.

"I'm Morgana, a talking jukebox from the Twilight Realm!" exclaimed Morgana, making him out to be very suspicious. Talking jukebox? Twilight Realm? Link was aggressively reaching for his sword even more, knocking his belongings from the dresser all over the floor. "But do not fret, for I'm not here to hurt you!"

"Don't try and force your slanderous lies into my headache-riddled head, I know what your ulterior motive is! You wish to play demonic songs, songs that will not only give me nightmares, but give me the most inhumane headaches known to man! But as the hero of Hyrule, I know better...begone with you, foul demon!"

"Woah, woah, chill out, I'm not this foul demon that you speak of! I'm just a kind-hearted jukebox who just happens to come from a relatively dark place." The Twilight Realm sure sounded intimidating, the way Midna put it. "I can play any tune, any tune you request, and it will put a gleeful smile on your face!"

"Any tune...I dare you to play Saria's Song!" "Saria's Song" was to Link what "City Escape" was to Sonic; only difference was that Link never gave "Saria's Song" the distinction of being the greatest song of all time, even greater than "Heroes" by David Bowie and "Bohemian Rhapsody" by Queen.

"Saria's Song, coming right up! Searching, searching, searching..." Morgana would search his jukebox for the song Link requested, and a few moments later, a familiar melody and the sound of beautiful ocarina notes started playing..."Saria's Song" was playing from Morganan, and Link would nod his head to the beat, with a smile on his face.

"Oh yeah, this is definitely Saria's Song, sounds just like the original!" Link was now moving along, like he was dancing on the bed - it was the most Link had ever moved since he was doomed to stay in his bed and heal from his head injuries. "You're not that bad of a jukebox after all!"

"Stop it, you're making it blush..." Hard to determine if Morgana was blushing or not, given the form he was in.


Mario: Futaba informed-a me that she'll be scourging the computer in-a its entirety to look for anything-a remotely suspicious, and there are some-a things I wish Futaba would-a leave alone...like my secret folder of-a hot anime chicks...No, no, I don't-a look at them, I just analyze them-a for...artistic purposes, yes. If it's naked, it's-a art...probably shouldn't have said-a that out loud, Peach could-a have heard that. CURSE YOU META KNIGHT, AND YOUR STUPID, INSANE LOGIC!

Lara Croft, who has been residing with Mario and Peach as a guest, had just finished an afternoon jog around the block, wanting to remain fit and healthy as her days in Seattle were (hopefully) dwindling down. The tomb raider, drinking from a bottle of water, would return to Mario's home, expecting to walk into a very peaceful household with little to no dissension.

But when Lara stepped inside Mario's home, she later found out that what she expected was the exact opposite. She saw Peach in the kitchen, she saw Futaba still working away on the computer...and she also saw Mario and Bowser, in the middle of the living room, arguing with one another.

"I know you stole my Yoshi stuffed animal Mario, give it up or else!" Bowser pointed in the face of Mario, who swatted the koopa king's hand away. "I can hardly sleep without my precious stuffed animal, how do you expect me to sleep again after you stole it?"

"Like I would ever steal-a your stupid stuffed animal!" retorted Mario, offending Bowser by calling the stuffed animal stupid. "You have-a yet to apologize-a for stealing my foot massager!"

"Well...you have yet to apologize for stealing my wife!" Bowser would angrily point at Peach - sometimes Peach wished she was left out of Mario's situations.

"YOU AND PEACH WERE NEVER MEANT-A FOR EACH OTHER, WHY CAN'T YOU-A EVER UNDERSTAND THAT?! WHY DO YOU THINK I SPENT-A ALL THOSE YEARS SAVING PEACH-A FROM YOUR IDIOTIC CASTLES?! WHEN-A WILL YOU EVER LEARN?!"

"Peach has been my wife, always has been...heck, she's even the biological mother of Bowser Jr! Ain't that right, Peach?" Bowser asked Peach, who looked up momentarily before resuming her kitchen duties. "See what I mean? If Peach wasn't Bowser Jr's biological mother, she would have stated that herself! Face the facts, Mario - you're just jealous of the love Peach and I have for one another, that's way you keep coming for Peach each and every time!"

"Shut up Bowser, everyone-a knows that you're-a the jealous one, and you've been-a jealous ever since Peach and I got-a married. Your Bowser Jr. argument is meaningless, you've used it time and time-a again but we all know it's-a false!"

"I think you're the one who needs to shut up Mario, for I speak the truth! Bowser Jr. IS the biological son of Peach! I know it, you know it, Peach knows it, the wannabe Inkling chick at your computer knows it, Lara Croft, who is standing near the front door knows it..."

Bowser, immediately after uttering Lara's name, would find himself in a bit of a romantic trance, as he turned to face Lara Croft, who was wary as Bowser advanced towards her, with a grin on his face. Mario and Peach watched cautiously, as Bowser rested his arm above the front door, leaned against the wall as he prepared himself to smooth talk Lara.

"So, uh...you come here often?" Bowser asked Lara, acting like the two were at a club. Bowser was seemingly starting off small. "Got a special place in my beloved castle, just for a hot babe like you..." At first sight of Lara, Peach had completely left Bowser's mind for good.

"No thank you, and for your information, I'm not interested in a relationship..." stated Lara, trying to back away, as Bowser quickly grabbed the front door handle and closed the door, making it so Lara wouldn't escape.

Lara: My first encounter with Bowser, and he attempted to flirt with me...somehow, I blame Peach for allowing that incident to transpire.

"It's never too late to change your relationship status, you know..." said Bowser, as he leaned in closer to Lara, the tomb raider starting to fear for the worse...

"Aha, I found it, I found the program!" exclaimed Futaba, momentarily interrupting Bowser during his...strange romantic encounter. The computer genius, who had a thumb drive inserted into the computer the whole time, would take out the thumb drive and hop out of her seat. "Mario, Peach...I'll explain everything to you later on, but now I must hand this flash drive to someone...someone important. I'll be back!" A rather excitable Futaba rushed out of Mario's home, opening the front door and knocking Bowser down to the floor, as she headed to the mansion.

"...do you...do you want to be my girlfriend or not?" Bowser, lying on the floor, looked up at Lara, expecting her to say yes. But the tomb raider, kneeling down at the koopa king's side, would provide him a different answer...

"By no means would I ever date a fiendish turtle creature like myself...so it'll be a no from me," replied Lara, patting Bowser on the head. "Appreciate the effort, but I don't think I'd risk taking any chances with you..." Lara stood back up and headed to her room, as Bowser laid on the floor in defeat.


Makato remained in the gardens, with Yoshi, Pit, Kirby, Viridi, Aerith, and hordes of Baby Yoshis. More of the Yoshi eggs hatched since the hatching of the first three eggs, and Yoshi was undoubtedly joyous about all the Baby Yoshis that were present.

"Quick question: did Lucas ever tell you why you had to lay so many eggs and hatch them?" Makoto would ask Yoshi, as Aerith counted how many Baby Yoshis were present. Had her work cut out for her.

"We should sell the Baby Yoshis on Amazon, we could easily make a big buck that way," Pit said this random thought, earning weird looks from the others. "Think about it - nobody has ever sold a living being on Amazon - according to my knowledge - and we could be the first to break the mold! We'll be filthy rich!"

"Lucas told me not to tell anyone the full purpose of the whole egg laying and Baby Yoshi thing, so I'll respect his wishes," replied Yoshi, with a Blue Yoshi idly walking by unseen. "Aerith, are you finished counting?"

"Yes, just finished...I count 97 Baby Yoshis in total," answered the flower girl - and there were more eggs bound to hatch soon. "At this rate, we should find a separate room to contain the Baby Yoshis, one large and spacious enough."

"Right now we just have to make sure none of the Baby Yoshis leave the premises," said Viridi...and would you know it, the aforementioned Blue Yoshi was trying to make a run for it, leaving the gardens. "...and we have a runaway right now!" Viridi pointed at the Blue Yoshi, quickly grabbing Yoshi's attention.

"Won't be running away for long!" vowed the green dinosaur, as he got up and chased after the Blue Yoshi.


Cloud would retrieve the urn containing Sephiroth from the storage room, and brought said urn to Layton and company in the lounge. However, there was only one problem...the urn wouldn't open! It was sealed tighter than usual, likely as a safety precaution, and not Cloud, nor Layton, Luke, Akira, or Ryuji could get the urn open.

So Layton and company got Crash and Meta Knight to try and open the urn themselves. Crash would use his teeth to pry the urn open, whereas Meta Knight took a more conventional route and tried to pry the urn open with his sword. Both different methods, both not working as well as Layton and company hoped.

Master Hand: Glass Joe. Glass freakin' Joe. Not Knuckle Joe, heck, not even B.D. Joe...Glass Joe was the one who opened that urn during the Heartless invasion and unleashed Sephiroth. To ensure losers like Glass Joe won't ever open the urn, I sealed that urn real tight, just for precautionary measures.

"Crash, while I found your current method to be somewhat useless..." Meta Knight said to the bandicoot, like he was the one to talk. "...I have to give you credit for not spinning this urn to get it open. Aku still has yet to forgive me for you spinning me out of the window, from the fourth floor. Granted you can apologize yourself, but you know nothing but gibberish, and as we know, Aku has to accept full responsibility for your actions, as a guardian mask..."

"Knew the scent of Crash was nearby!" exclaimed Cortex, as he entered the lounge. The fact that he was able to detect Crash's scent meant that the mad scientist was sort of obsessed with his arch-rival. "Just who are those two Japanese men standing with you, Professor Layton, found yourself more apprentices? You're that full of yourself, aren't you?"

"No, Cortex, these aren't new apprentices...they're Akira Kurusu and Ryuji Sakamoto, members of the Phantom Thieves," explained Layton; Cortex dared not to ask what a Phantom Thief was. "They're investigators, just like Luke and I! Thought bringing some fellow investigators might help speed up the investigation a bit. Right now, we need to open that urn you see in front of you, since there's a person trapped inside that could help us."

"Good thing I have a ray gun that can open things at will!" Cortex pulled out his ray gun - a gun that has caused the mad scientist trouble in recent weeks. "Crash, Meta Knight...stand back and let a professional handle this!"

So Crash and Meta Knight would move out of the way, as the "professional" Cortex fired a beam at the urn, to open it. Unfortunately, just like the microwave incident, Cortex would have the ray gun on the WRONG setting, and instead of opening the urn, the beam would destroy it completely. Darkness would soon exit out from where the now destroyed urn was, that darkness coming together to reveal itself as the famed one-winged angel...Sephiroth.

"Looks like...I'm finally free, from my prison," remarked Sephiroth, as he looked down and observed the pieces of the urn, scattered on the floor. Cortex was looking up at Sephiroth, his legs quivering as he quietly wetted his pants. Either Sephiroth was that intimidating, or Cortex was just a scaredy cat.

"I believe I heard Uka calling for me...I should go see what he wants..." said Cortex, as he bolted out of the lounge. Crash and Meta Knight, not wishing to deal with Sephiroth, would wisely follow suit.

"Sephiroth...it's been a while," Cloud would approach the one-winged angel, face-to-face with his nemesis for the first time since episode 31. Sephiroth found it odd that the ex-SOLDIER was empty-handed, leading him to assume that Cloud was surrendering.

"I see that you're without your precious Buster Sword...so, what's the hitch?" Sephiroth asked Cloud, preparing his grip on his Masamune sword in the event Cloud tried to pull something funny. His fingers were on his sword...

"Greetings Mr. Sephiroth, my name is Professor Herschel Layton, and with me is my apprentice Luke Triton, and Phantom Thieves Akira Kurusu and Ryuji Sakamoto," Layton would introduce himself and the others to Sephiroth, holding out his hand, as Cloud just looked on with disbelief. Layton, sensing that Sephiroth didn't feel like shaking hands, retracted his hand, and cleared his throat awkwardly. "...anyways, we wish to speak with you about your, your...revival, how you came back to life and such."

Master Hand: Isabelle just informed me that the urn in the storage room has been destroyed, thanks to Cortex...honestly, I could care less. The urn has been tainted ever since Glass Joe touched it, so it being destroyed is the least of my concerns. And who cares about what Sephiroth does, he could go full ham and kill everyone, and I wouldn't even care.

"Questions about my revival, you say?" asked Sephiroth, as Layton nodded his head, hoping the one-winged angel wouldn't kill him. "I'm more than willing to bite...as long as Cloud is kept away at a distance. Might be tempted to fight him to the death."

"I fully second that, I share the same exact sentiments," stated Cloud, glad that he and Sephiroth were actually on terms with one another. A first for everything.


Fox, Falco, and Ann stood outside the laundry room, waiting for Chrom to finish his laundry duties. Fox and Falco claimed that Chrom was very close with Nowi, the prince bonding with the half-Manakete during the war, and they hoped Chrom would supply the information Ann needed.

"Chrom will be with you all shortly, he's almost done," Rosalina poked her head outside the laundry room door to inform Ann and company. "A bigger load than what we've been used to before...and it's for one person." A heavy load for just one person?!

"Tell them I'm finished Rosalina, the clothes are finally dried!" Chrom informed the mother of Lumas, as the sound of a dryer machine stopping was heard. What followed afterwards was a sigh of relief from Chrom.

"Well what do you know - Chrom is finished with his laundry duties. I'll go and fold the clothes." Rosalina would retract her head back inside the laundry room, and a moment later, Chrom would exit the laundry room, standing in the presence of Fox, Falco, and Ann.

"Sorry I kept you folks waiting, Ganondorf's clothes aren't exactly easy to wash...or dry," Chrom would apologize to Ann and company. "From his armor, to his cape...don't even know why his armor even needs to be washed. And I'm sure Ganon's capes are dry-clean only. So what's up?"

"Fox and Falco have informed me that you are a close friend of Nowi," Ann said to Chrom, having met the prince while he was doing his laundry duty so an introduction wasn't necessary. "As you know, Nowi was the girlfriend of Captain Falcon, and it was believed that Falcon started a taxi service to keep his mind off of his breakup with Nowi. Can you provide us any information regarding Nowi that could be useful?"

"I'm not sure, since Nowi and I don't keep in contact with one another like we used to...but I can always call Raven. She's my girlfriend." Chrom would dig into his pocket, and pulled out his cellphone, and dialed a number.

Chrom: People kept complaining about how Raven and I don't keep in touch with one another despite being boyfriend/girlfriend, so I did what any "great boyfriend" would do, and bought Raven a cellphone...in secret, so we can call and text one another to our heart's desire. I keep receiving text messages about "overage charges", but I'm sure that it's the cellphone service's way of telling me that I'm hitting the right strides as a boyfriend.

"Hello, who is this?" a voice spoke from Chrom's phone, after the prince dialed the number. That voice belonged to Raven.

"Hi Raven, it's me Chrom...I see that you haven't set up my caller ID yet," answered Chrom, flashing a nervous smile. Fox and Falco were quick to infer what this nervous smile meant. "How are you doing?"

"Eh, I'm hanging in there, been practicing my spells and stuff...pretty much working on my craft. So why is a fine, handsome man like yourself calling me and distracting me from honing my spellcasting skills?"

"I just need to ask you a quick question, about Nowi, since you're closer with her than I am...did she ever tell you why she and Captain Falcon broke up? From what I've heard, the breakup happened because someone told Nowi about Captain Falcon at some club with Kalos Elite Four member Malva...I assume it was Globox, since he saw it himself."

"Someone did tell Nowi about the Captain Falcon incident...and it definitely wasn't Globox, he's too stupid to tell anyone anyways." This alarmed Chrom, and also alarmed Fox and Falco as well. "May I tell you who this person was?" Chrom looked at Ann, who nodded her excitedly; this was the breakthrough she needed.

"Yes, that would be very swell - might pass on this information to Master Hand. Could use it just for future reference."

"Okay, but not act all surprised when I tell you, alright? The person, who told Nowi about Captain Falcon at the club with Malva, was..."


Bowser returned to the mansion, walking through the hallways heaving a sigh. The koopa king flirted with Lara Croft and failed; any other instance when Bowser's flirting attempt failed, the koopa would "reconcile" with Peach, but with Peach married, there was no point in "reconciling" anymore.

Even worse, Bowser's stuffed animal was still missing. Mario didn't have, and neither did Peach, leading Bowser to assume that his stuffed animal was lost and gone forever, never to be seen again. As the koopa king moped, a nearby elevator door opened, and the Blue Yoshi ran out, with Yoshi still chasing the little critter.

"Get back here, I need you as a part of my...my...my peer group!" Yoshi called out to the Blue Yoshi. "You have no idea what it's like being the lone Yoshi in the mansion! Share the burden with me, I beg of you!"

Yoshi would keep chasing the Blue Yoshi, until the infant Yoshi ran into Bowser, who picked him up. Yoshi would stop in his place, and gasped in horror, certain Bowser was going to eat the Blue Yoshi whole.

"Yoshi, I know exactly what you're thinking...you think I'm gonna sell this Baby Yoshi on Amazon, since selling pets online would reel in big dough," Bowser said to the green dinosaur; apparently he and Pit had the same aspirations. "But hear me out...I lost my Yoshi stuffed animal today, and it was blue, just like this little fella in my hands. I think my stuffed animal is lost, and that is no bueno - I need that thing to go to sleep at night. But this, this Baby Yoshi...would make for a bona fide replacement. He could be a living stuffed animal, and I can tuck him in with me at night and not run off...like I've seen other Baby Yoshis do. So Yoshi, I ask you...can I keep this Baby Yoshi with me?"

Yoshi mused over this offer - would it be wise for Bowser to keep the Blue Yoshi? Sure he was displaying that he had the right intentions, but this could possibly be a facade for committing evil deeds. But Bowser deeply cared about his stuffed animal, and was willing to replace it...even with a living, breathing, tiny blue dinosaur.

"...go ahead, knock yourself out, you can keep him," was Yoshi's reply, and seconds later, Bowser would rush to Yoshi and shake his hand eagerly, holding his new companion in his arm. Maybe the koopa king can sleep peacefully at night now...

Yoshi: Heh, had no idea Bowser was that kind and caring...well, to a stuffed animal, that is. Had no idea Bowser owned one. But with that Baby Yoshi, I think Bowser might change for the better...emphasis on "might".
Aerith: *from afar* Yoshi, another Baby Yoshi just escaped. And Pit is trying to sell a Baby Yoshi online as we speak!
Yoshi: Welp, duty calls...then again, that's what you expect as a father. *retreats*


"Been thinking about trading this Wishiwashi card for a Jolteon card..." Gil said to Robin, showing his collection of Pokemon cards to the mage outside the meeting room door. "...or maybe a Braviary card. Either one will do."

"I'm sure there's someone on the streets stupid enough to trade you a Shadow Lugia for that Wishiwashi card," said Robin, who apparently played with Pokemon cards just like Gil. The mage had interests other than magic, you know. "Go to one of the parks in Seattle, and you could trade a Magikarp for a Rayquaza C Lv. X! I kid you not, I've done it before!"

Suddenly the meeting room door opened, and first to come out was Sephiroth. Robin and Gil, at the sight of the one-winged angel, shrieked and ran away, as Layton, Luke, Akira, and Ryuji all filed out of the room.

"It was nice speaking with you Sephiroth, we have all learned a lot from you," Layton said to the one-winged angel, thankful that he life was still preserved once the meeting commenced. "Do you know what we ask from you?"

"Yes, I'm very much aware...I must search the earth for the individual responsible for reviving me, and bring him to the mansion for interrogation," replied Sephiroth, the Masamune in his hand enough to send shivers down Luke's spine. "With my enhanced strength and power, finding this individual will take swift effort."

"Just make sure to retrieve this person as soon as possible. I can already see this investigation coming to an end very soon. A few more steps along the way, and Luke and I shall find a fitting conclusion!"

Sephiroth nodded as he made his grand exit, flying out of the mansion through the ceiling and leaving behind a hole. Mr. Game and Watch is gonna be super ticked later today. Moments after Sephiroth left, Makoto, Futaba, and Ann would arrive at the scene, one-by-one.

"Ah ladies, you've all returned, and perfect timing too!" exclaimed Akira, with a big smile on his face. "Us men have finished our little investigation; we managed to get Cloud Strife's rival, Sephiroth, to do a favor for Layton and Luke. Incredibly long story. Now, what about you ladies?"

"I learned that Lucas informed one of the residents, Yoshi, to create an armada of Baby Yoshis," explained Makoto. "Yoshi was forbidden by Lucas to explain the purpose of this armada, though."

"I found the program on Mario's computer that caused the device to act funny," explained Futaba. "Saved it onto the flash drive, and pulled it up in the computer room - has information about who the owner of the program is."

"I received word about a person who snitched on Captain Falcon and triggered the events that lead to Falcon's time behind bars," explained Ann. "I suspect this person to be the one behind all the weird stuff happening around the mansion lately."

"Excellent work, ladies, very good..." said Akira, before noticing that one Phantom Thief was missing... "...argh, where on earth is Morgana?! Hasn't been going rogue all day, has he?!"


Morgana was indeed going rogue, as the shape-shifting cat remained in jukebox form, still playing music for the ailing Link. When Zelda and Midna arrived at Link's room from the beauty salon, they would find Link, resting comfortably on his bed, arms behind his head, as Morgana was playing Saria's Song...on full repeat.

Zelda: Link LOVES Saria's Song, loves it to death. He can play that song on any instrument - ocarina, guitar, drums, xylophone, and even the triangle! It's the only song he's good at, unless you consider horse calls to be actual songs.

"Told you to entertain Link before you went to the beauty salon...and I see that you found a long-term solution," said Zelda, observing how genuinely happy Link looked lying in the bed. "Link's actually smiling too...first time I've seen him in smiles ever since his head started bothering him."

"Wasn't like I had no other choice anyway...figured you'd be worried sick about Link, so I did what I had to do," replied Midna, as she watched Link. "Wouldn't want the princess of Hyrule to be constantly fretting about her boyfriend, would I?"


After viewing the program in the computer room with the Phantom Thieves, Futaba would return to Mario's home, bringing the Phantom Thieves along with her. There, Akira and company would introduce themselves to Mario and whatnot, and share with them what they learned throughout the day. Futaba would also pull up the program on Mario's computer, showing said program to Mario and Peach, and the person who created the program in the first place. Mario and Peach both felt informed, and so did Master Hand, who was in the know beforehand.

"What, Sephiroth was at the mansion and you never told me?!" Sora said to Cloud, following the swordsman through the foyer with a sundae in his hand. "Really wanted to fight him again, and prove victorious, just like last time!"

"You defeating Sephiroth, one-on-one?" scoffed Cloud, amazed by Sora's "vivid imagination", as he called it. "In your dreams kid...you can't even hold a candle to Sephiroth, dude could literally kill you if he tried."

"But that's where you're wrong Cloud, for I defeated Sephiroth not once, but TWICE! You were there the second time it happened...actually, you didn't show up until after the fight, but you were still there!"

Cloud rolled his eyes as he picked up the pace, walking even faster from Sora, as Jakob passed through the foyer. The butler still wasn't on good terms with Master Hand and the residents, but he still believed he had the official mansion butler job in the bag.

"Gotta hand it to those Ice Climbers, they make some really great desserts..." remarked Jakob, as he arrived at Master Hand's door, his hand on the doorknob. "If only Popo could chill out some. He might pop a vein, or even worse!"

When Jakob opened the door and stepped inside Master Hand's room, he was greeted by Master Hand himself...and Mario, who was glaring down Jakob with his arms folded. Some things were clearly going down, and they certainly weren't in Jakob's favor...

"Mr. Jakob...we need-a to talk..." Mario said to the now wary butler, his glare still intact.