Author's Note:
So I played as Joker for the first time yesterday, and let me say...he is SO MUCH FUN to play is. His movement is insane, and Arsene makes Joker so great as a fighter. Feels like Sheik...but with a gun. And SO much better. But enough about Joker, it's time to answer some reviews:
"Is Rex wearing his default outfit or the outfit he gets in later chapters? Is Jedah from Darkstalkers gonna cause problems for the characters if he shows up? Maybe include Asura from Asura's Wrath? Has Viridi's hatred of humans finally gone away? And finally, what are your thoughts on God Eater 3 getting ported to the Switch?
"He's wearing his default outfit. Jedah may cause some problems. Asura might appear. Viridi's hatred of humans will go away soon (gotta give her a defining moment). And I don't know much about God Eater, so I have no opinion on the port. Next is el pollo compero:
"Will Reggie be showing up at all. Hence this is his final week at Nintendo. :("
In this chapter? Sadly, no. Too much story going on. But he will be dearly missed, as president of NoA. Next is GreaterDoomerUKI:
"1) Out of all my entirety of reading this, you didn't make a Kirby and Master Hand chapter. At least feature all Kirby characters because master hand is from that series.
2) Will we have Claus Appear. Mother 3 never released in America..."
1) Is Master Hand really from the Kirby series. Doubt it. But I guess I owe you guys a Kirby-centric chapter, so I better get on it.
2) Claus will appear, if I have something for him to do.
Last up is PinkRose4452:
1. Assuming you played Brawl, did you beat the Subspace? If so, what are your thoughts about it?
2. Will the Male and Female Protagonists from Pokémon Sword/Shield make an appearance in the Sword/Shield chapter?
1. I LOVED IT. Loved the cutscenes, the levels, everything about it. Probably won't see anything like that again in Smash.
2. Seeing as how the Sun/Moon protagonists never appeared, I can make the male/female protagonists from Sword/Shield appear.
Episode 174: Disbarment
To this day, no one exactly knew why Professor Herschel Layton and Luke Triton remained at the mansion. To many of the residents, Layton and Luke were overstaying their welcome, especially ever since the whole Calamity Ganon conundrum was finished. The two British detectives could've returned to England, anytime they wanted to...but they never did!
When asked why he persisted on staying at the mansion, Layton claimed that he was secretly hiding from someone. Not a single person in the mansion knew who this someone was, but Layton's mysteriousness always had everyone guessing. Luke was also asked similar questions, but was told by Layton to remain tight-lipped.
While the discussion about Layton were at an all-time high, Layton and Luke were at Mario's place, enjoying some of Peach's tea in the living room. Nobody was questioning Layton and while he was still sticking around in Seattle...which pleased the detective greatly.
"Really love the honey in this tea, Princess Peach," commended Layton, giving the princess an earnest smile. "Really adds to the flavor!"
"Why thank you, Professor Layton - I was just trying out a new recipe," smiled Peach, as she was dusting around the living room. It never hurt to try out new things. "Too bad Mario doesn't think the same way you do..."
"As I've said-a before, princess, honey only belongs on French-a toast, and nothing else," stated Mario, who was seated at his computer with Spyro and Hunter flanking at his side. "Anyone who thinks-a otherwise has poor-a taste."
"Hey Mario, check that out..." smiled Hunter, as he pointed at the computer screen. Mario looked at the monitor, and saw a video of a man slipping on ice...and that man was Rodin. Mario, Spyro, and Hunter all laughed in unison.
"What on earth are you three watching...?" questioned Layton, who had some minimal concerns. Mario had to turn away from the computer screen, to stifle his laughter.
"Oh, nothing, just a bunch of video footage Lakitu uploaded to the web the other day," replied Spyro; it was most likely the video footage Lakitu recorded from the previous episode. "You probably wouldn't understand..."
Lakitu: Tried to send in my videos to America's Funniest Home Videos, but I think I might've missed the deadline. Or perhaps I sent it to the wrong address. Oh well. *shrugs* At least I still have film of Shaymin getting slapped by Shaymin - that could make me some money somewhere on the Internet. Team Rocket might knew a good spot.
"Why is Rodin slipping on the ice?" questioned Luke, as he got a good view of the computer screen. "Where was this video even taken?"
"It was filmed over at-a the mansion," replied Mario, who stopped laughing as he wiped away a tear from his eye. "Rodin claimed-a that it was a prank set-a up by Midna, some-a thing Midna viciously denied."
"So, Midna is just living in denial? Because I know for a fact that pranking people is right up her alley..."
The doorbell rang, followed by a knock on the front door. Layton looked at the front door anxiously, acting like there was a potential serial killer on the doorstep waiting to kill Mario and Peach and the others.
"Please tell me that isn't her..." fretted Layton, not wanting to answer the front door. In fact, he didn't want anyone to answer the front door. The detective stood up, and moved around the living room.
"Layton, why are you hiding behind the sofa?" asked Peach, seeing the detective quickly hide behind the sofa. He was trying to be sneaky about it, but he failed.
"Let me know if the person at the front door is a girl or not," Layton told Peach, who was unsure whether she should fulfill Layton's request or not. A man like Layton should just suck it up, and answer the front door.
"Oh, for Pete's-a sake, Layton..." groaned Mario, miffed by how frightened Layton was, as he got up out of his chair and marched over to the front door. The plumber grabbed the door handle, and pulled the front door wide open...
...and saw two familiar faces, Phoenix Wright and Maya Fey. Maya looked like her normal, upbeat self, as she had a smile on her face. Phoenix, on the other hand, looked down in the dumps, like he just went through an ugly breakup.
"Phoenix Wright? Maya Fey?" Mario uttered the duo's names, as Layton slowly poked his head out from the sofa and looked at Phoenix and Maya. "Welcome! I don't ever recall-a you visiting my home."
"Good afternoon, Mario, it's good seeing you again," greeted Maya, as Layton appeared out of the sofa and walked to the front door. "We just wanted to stop by your place, for a hot minute."
"Howdy," a much more relieved Layton smiled and waved to Phoenix and Maya; Maya smiled and waved back, while Phoenix looked at Layton with his eyes wide.
"Pr-Professor Layton?" the attorney said, as Layton walked to the front door. Mario moved to the side, letting Layton and Phoenix have their little moment.
"Long time no see, my good friend," Layton held his hand out to Phoenix, expecting the attorney to shake it. But instead of initiating the awkward handshake all the way back from episode 96...
...Phoenix fell unto Layton and wrapped his arms around him, before embracing the detective in a heartfelt hug.
"Is...everything...the matter, Phoenix?" asked Layton, concerned about the attorney just like everyone else in Mario's household.
"Oh, Professor Layton, it's terrible..." replied Phoenix, before lifting his head up to face Layton so he could tell him the bad news. "I've been...disbarred!"
"Disbarred?! From the Bar Association?" For those of you unaware, being disbarred as an attorney meant that you were removed from the practice of law, meaning that you had your law license revoked. It usually served as punishment, meaning that Phoenix must've dun goofed up in court and lost his attorney status.
"Yes man, where else would I get disbarred from?!" Phoenix released his hold on Layton, before wiping away the tears from his face with his sleeve. "I got disbarred for forging evidence in court...and I did it unknowingly."
"Well that's too bad - I'm sure it wasn't intentional. When did this happen, what was the court case?"
"So this guy named Zac Gramayre went on trial today, for murdering his mentor Magnifi. I accidentally presented forged evidence, and as a result, I got disbarred from the Bar Association. Even worse, Zac vanished before the verdict could be made..."
"I decided to come along and serve as Phoenix's moral and emotional support," added Maya, as she pointed her finger in the air. "Although Phoenix claims he doesn't need any support..."
"As I've told you before Maya, I can do well enough alone..." Phoenix would soon prove his own self wrong, as he stomped his foot on the floor angrily. "Oh who am I kidding, I'm a wreck! I have nothing! Nothing!"
"But you have-a us," stated Mario, as Phoenix looked at the plumber like he was crazy. Phoenix didn't want Mario, or Layton, or anyone else; he just wanted his attorney job back.
"What, you're trying to make me feel better or something? Well cut it out - that's why I have Maya for. She would stick with me through the thick and thin, even if I went homeless and had to steal people's welfare checks."
Maya: It's a good thing I've been preparing for life without Nick...my training as a spirit medium has gotten better!
"Come, Phoenix, have a seat," Layton said to the former attorney, as he escorted him into the living room. Maya followed, and Mario closed the front door, as Layton and Phoenix sat on the couch.
"Nice eyebrows, my man," Hunter snickered at Phoenix, finding his eyelashes to be very funny-looking. Phoenix looked at Hunter; if he was in a better mood, the former attorney would've put Hunter on blast.
"Who is that talking cheetah, and why is he offending me?" questioned Phoenix, as he pointed his thumb at Hunter. "Is everyone gonna be picking on me today?"
"Nonsense, Hunter there was just making a snide comment," replied Layton, as he patted Phoenix gently on the shoulder. "Now, would you and Maya care for some tea? Princess Peach would be happy to oblige..."
It was about that time - time for another episode of the critically-acclaimed web series, Microwave Idol Mamorin. Mamori was joined by her co-hosts Ashley and Asuka in the living room, where everything was prepared - from the camera, to the food. Only thing missing was today's guest.
"I told you girls that Sonic would be late for production," Ashley told Mamori and Asuka, feeling like Mamori made a poor executive decision by letting Sonic appear on her show. "For that reason, you both owe me five bucks."
"Five bucks for what?" questioned Mamori, as she adjusted the chef hat on her head. "We never seen you spend any sort of money, ever."
"I have to purchase some new exotic ingredients for my potions, after I had to use one of my potions for Guile. Tried asking him for money, but nothing I did ever worked on him, sadly."
"What if neither one of us had five bucks, what would you do then?" asked Asuka, as Ashley's eyes suddenly grew red. The redness of the eyes struck fear and intimidation in Ashley and Asuka.
"Do you wish to find out?" Asuka and Mamori both shook their heads no, as Ashley's eyes quickly went back to normal again. "Hmph, just as I thought..."
Guile: This might come as a surprise to you, but I never give away my money. I keep it for myself, so I can spend it on American things. Like burgers, footballs, and nifty license plates. I seldom spend my money on anything stupid, like bottled water for instance. Can you believe that this country forces you to pay for something as universally available as water? It's no wonder outsiders claim America's isn't that grand. It's an oligarchy!
Mamori and her co-hosts wouldn't have to wait much longer, as their guest Sonic sped inside the kitchen. The blue blur wasn't alone, for he brought his pal Crash with him. Having Crash on the show was not part of the script.
"Sup ladies, sorry we were late!" apologized Sonic, as Mamori and company looked at Crash. "Crash apparently doesn't know how to bathe himself, so I had to do the honors! Gotta make sure my mans is all spiffy for his M.I.M. debut!"
"Sonic, I'm sorry, but Crash won't be appearing in today's episode," Mamori told the hedgehog, who looked at the young girl like she was on crack. "Guests who appear on the show aren't allowed to bring their friends with them."
"Pfft, that sounds like a whole bunch of malarkey! Show me in your handbook where on-screen guests bringing their friends to appear on the show ins't allowed." Mamori, Ashley, an Asuka looked at one another, unsure of how to fulfill Sonic's request.
"We don't really have a handbook, Sonic," stated Asuka, as Sonic found the ninja girl's response to have as much malarkey as Mamori's. "We don't have that many rules on our show."
"So you claim, yet you have the gall to make one up on the fly like you did a moment ago. What do you have against Crash? It is because he has too much fur, and he he sheds a lot? Y'all discriminate against furry animals?"
"We never said we did," replied Ashley, not at all surprised that she and her co-hosts were getting into a huge argument with Sonic. Saw it coming from a mile away. "It's just that we only want you on the show."
"Aha! So you do discriminate against furry animals like Crash!" Sonic accusingly pointed at the three girls, as Crash gave the girls an angry look. "Or do you just hate marsupials? Which one is it?"
"Can you...give us three a second?" Mamori asked Sonic, who obliged as Mamori got into a group huddle with Ashley and Asuka. "Look, I really don't want Crash on the show. I think it'll have his drawbacks."
"I agree, and I should know from experience," whispered Asuka, remembering that one time she tried to cook with Crash and Coco. "Crash will do nothing but act a fool, and mess up our food and our mojo."
"True, but Sonic won't appear on our show if we don't let Crash appear with him," whispered Ashley, who was perfectly fine with having a guest other than Sonic. "So something's gotta give..."
"I think I know a good compromise, for both parties..." Mamori whispered to her co-hosts, before breaking up the huddle and facing Sonic. "Alright, Sonic, we've decided - we'll let you AND Crash appear on our show."
"Aw yeah, let's go!" exclaimed Sonic, as he and Crash cheered and gave each other a bro hug. "Knew you ladies would come around eventually."
"However, there is a little something you two must do..." Sonic and Crash broke up their bro hug, as they looked at Mamori warily. Whatever this something was, may or may not be in Sonic and Crash's favor.
Mamori: Soinc wants to be on Microwave Idol Mamorin with Crash. He'll be on our show with Crash, alright...but in style. *smiles evilly*
Link and Zelda both had a very pivotal moment in the last episode, when their life was hanging in the balance at the hands of Nathan. The treasure hunter had his gun whipped out, ready to shoot either Link or Zelda...and Link had used his girlfriend as a human shield. Something Zelda did not appreciate, even to this day.
"So Link, are you feeling much better about last week's incident?" Zelda asked her man, as the two lovebirds passed through the foyer. "I've never seen you so afraid in your life!"
"You'd be the same way too, if someone had a gun pointed at you," said Link, who already apologized to Zelda for his actions last week. "Surprised you weren't as scared as I was!"
"Unlike you, I've actually seen a gun in person before." Zelda said that like she was almost bragging. "Don't you recall Agent G, and that whole vampire incident with the Inklings and royal twins?"
"Oh yeah, I totally forgot that moment...I nearly had to break character just to protect those four. But you have to admit, my Joker rendition that year was better than the one a few years ago, amirite?"
"Many times I told you to give up that Joker shtick, and yet every time you never listen...wait, was that the doorbell just now?"
Link and Zelda stopped in place, when they heard the doorbell sound. The two walked to the front door, as Link opened the door, and looked down, seeing two fellows on the porch. Interestingly enough, the two fellas had cups for heads, and they were moving around with their hands on their hips, as a folksy song played from record player behind them...
Well, Cuphead and his pal Mugman
They like to roll the dice.
By chance they came upon Devil's game
and, gosh, they paid the price...
PAID THE PRIIIIIICE!
"These guys are giving me 1920s vibes, and that's not okay," Link whispered to Zelda, who ignored the Hylian as she listened to the rest of the song:
And now they're fighting for their lives
On a mission fraught with dread.
And if they proceed
But don't succeed...
WEEEEELL...
THE DEVIL WILL TAKE THEIR HEADS!
"We can't take any chances...call the cops right NOW," Link whispered to Zelda, once more, who again ignored the Hylian as she clapped for the song.
"Bravo, bravo, what a lovely song!" smiled Zelda, as Link looked at the princess like she was insane. "Really enjoy hearing a classical song every now and then!"
"Good golly, it actually worked!" exclaimed one of the cup fellows, who had a red nose. The other fellow, who had a larger blue nose, was just as excited. "Someone actually liked our song!"
Link: Zelda would rather clap for a bunch of chumps with cup heads and their stupid song, rather than calling the police on them...it's nice to see that she has very poor taste. Then again, not every girlfriend can be perfect.
"So, I take it you're Cuphead and Mugman?" Zelda asked the two fellows, kneeling down to speak with them with her hands on her knees. "The two that were mentioned in the song?"
"Yes ma'am, that's us!" replied the fellow with the red nose, as he confidently pointed his thumb at himself. "We both came from Inkwell Isles - perhaps the finest place there is!"
"Inkwell Isles sounds very suspicious," stated Link, as Zelda gave her boyfriend a very weird look. "How aren't we supposed to know that you chumps are thugs, trying to burglarize the mansion!" Zelda rolled her eyes at Link, as she returned her attention to Cuphead and Mugman.
"We came here because we're in quite a pickle," explained Mugman, the one with the large blue nose. "You see, we made this deal with the Devil, after we were playing craps at his casino. Cuphead here made a very bad roll, and lost..."
"...and now we have to collect the soul one of the Devil's runaway debtors, in order to receive pardon," continued Cuphead, while Link found the whole story to be extremely unbelievable. "We've been told by the Devil's right-hand man, Mr. King Dice, that this debtor wandered off to this city."
"Oh please, I know for a fact that your dumb story isn't true," scoffed Link, smirking to himself with his arms folded. "Quit pulling make-believe fairy tales out of your behinds. It isn't gonna work."
"Why can't you be nice to our visitors for once?" Zelda scolded Link, standing up and confronting her boyfriend. "You've been mean to them this whole entire time. What have they ever done to you?"
"Um, let's see...they have cups for heads, they like to play old Disney songs, and they claim to have interactions with the Devil himself. Those things alone are telltale signs that those two can't be trusted."
"Well I'm sorry, Link, but that's just silly and asinine. Has anyone ever told you not to judge a book by its cover?" As Zelda and Link quarreled, Cuphead and Mugman grabbed their record player and entered the mansion before closing the front door.
"Now look, those chumps just waltzed inside the mansion, like we gave them permission," Link pointed at Cuphead and Mugman, who were left wondering why Link was hating on them so. "They act like they live here now!"
"Relax, Link, they're only guests. Once we find them this runaway debtor, they'll leave for good and you won't feel so bothered anymore. Understood?"
"Hey Link, Zelda...who are those guys?" asked Ema, the forensics expert walking by with a bunch of papers in her hands. "Are they new?"
"They're just two shady miscreant bums that want to share their contrived stories with others," explained Link, as Zelda gave the Hylian the side-eye. Ema gave Link one as well, before looking at Zelda.
"...they're Cuphead and Mugman, two boys from a place called Inkwell Isles," Zelda explained to Ema, who knew that she could trust the princess' explanation more. Link was still being an egregious hater, for whatever reason.
"Oh, that's cool. And what brought them all the way to Seattle? Inkwell Isles sounds like a pretty faraway place, if you ask me!"
"One of them was playing craps and lost, and had to make a deal with the Devil. They have to find one of the Devil's runaway debtors, or the Devil will take both of their lives."
"Uh huh...that sounds...very unfortunate." Ema found the story to be unbelievable, but not to the great extent as Link. The forensics expert was willing to help out Cuphead and Mugman. "If you want me to, I can run some forensics, and found out who this runaway debtor is."
"I don't think forensics will do just the trick, sadly...it might take more than that to find this debtor."
"I agree wholeheartedly - don't waste your time with this, Ema," Link advised the forensics expert; the Hylian should just leave, if he was gonna be all negative.
"But, if you want to, you can run some forensics if you like. Don't know if it'll get us anywhere, but it'll be a good start..."
In her talking head segment, Mamori mentioned that Sonic and Crash would appear on her show, Microwave Idol Mamorin...but in style. That implied that Sonic and Crash would be wearing something while on air. Mamori had Ashley and her assistant Red find some costumes, and Ashley knew just the right person to ask...
"Here you go - it has all the apparel you need," Guile handed Ashley a large duffel bag in the lobby area of the tower. Ashley unzipped the duffel bag and looked at its contents out of curiosity, before furrowing her brow.
"How did you even get this stuff...?" the young witch questioned, as she looked up at Guile with a face of mixed emotions. Bewildered, concerned, creeped out, a little disgusted, and then some.
"It was...it was for a party we had, my Street Fighter brethren and I." Guile didn't feel like admitting this, as he awkwardly scratched the back of his head. "We had a costume contest. Somehow Balrog had won..."
Guile: All Balrog did to win was wear some demon costume, with horns and sharp teeth and all. Ken tried to convince me that Balrog was cosplaying as a Lord of the Rings character, but I refused to believe it. I'm a real American, I don't follow that nerdy stuff. That being said, Ken Masters is NOT a real American.
"Who did you dress up as, Guile?" inquired Ashley, making Guile blush as the major did his best to maintain his stoic persona.
"I'd rather not say, it was quite humiliating..." replied Guile, as some vividly bad memories started to form in his hands. "All I can tell you is that Chun-li forced me to participate in the costume contest. I'll just leave it at that."
"Someone had to force you to participate? What a surprise..." Ashley zipped up the duffel bag, before handing it to Red. Red was struggling to carry the duffel bag, due to how big it was compared to him.
"Too...heavy..." the little red devil wheezed, trying to keep himself afloat by vigorously flapping his wings. "...can't you carry this yourself, Ashley?"
"Come on, you wimp, let's get moving." Ashley left the tower, with Red following after her with the duffel bag. Right around when Ashley opened the front door, Cloud had appeared.
"Thanks Ashley," the swordsman thanked the young witch, who held the front door open wide so he could enter in. Ashley soon closed the door, as Cloud was now in the tower. He was face-to-face with Guile.
"Ah, Cloud...care to join me for some exercising?" Guile proposed to the swordsman, who was more than ready to answer no. "I could really use a workout buddy. I would ask Akira, but his workout buddy is Jacky so..."
"No thanks, I prefer to do my workouts alone, by myself." Guile held his head in sadness, as Cloud walked past the major and patted in on the shoulder. "But don't worry, I'm sure you'll find someone soon."
Cloud took an elevator up to the fourth floor of the tower, and walked through the hallway. It was quite a mystery what purpose Cloud had at the tower - wasn't like he had any homies he wanted to visit. Maybe he just wanted to get away from the mansion; couldn't blame him.
As he passed through the hallway, however, Cloud heard some talking from a nearby room. Hearing the commotion from a few feet away, Cloud went to the source of this noise, a small room, and peered inside said room. In this room were four individuals, gathered around - Spring Man, the Arcade Bunny, Yuri, and Shovel Knight.
"I don't know if I can do this alone..." Spring Man said to those in the room, as Cloud leaned against the wall and eavesdropped. "...I mean, it's a pretty big issue. Ribbon Girl might be aware of it...or maybe not."
"Thou mustn't run off into danger all alone," stated Shovel Knight, who always wanted to do what was best to help others. It was a part of his personal creed. "Thy heart may be big, but thy valor..."
"Okay, let me stop exaggerating...it's not THAT big of an issue. But it's an issue that should be resolved ASAP. And if it's not resolved in time, then I'm afraid heads will be rolling..."
"What exactly do you want us to do about it?" asked Yuri, feeling like she wasn't contributing much to working towards a solution. "You're not really being clear about this issue you speak of."
"Let's just say that I needed to get this thing off of my chest. You three seem like the ones I could trust the most. Promise you three can keep a secret?"
"Of course!" exclaimed the Arcade Bunny, flashing a reassuring smile. "Besides, keeping secrets is my specialty...that, and ruining personal relationships. So! What is this secret that you wanna share with us?"
Cloud held his left ear closer to the door, wanting to hear what this secret was. He knew that he was slightly in the wrong for wanting to hear something so secretive, but Spring Man sounded like a guy in dire need of help. And Cloud could really help Spring Man out.
But before Cloud could eavesdrop some more, someone poked him in the shoulder, with a very feathery touch. Cloud screamed and jump in fright, before seeing Falco standing in front of him.
"Woah dude, chill out...I just poked your shoulder," Falco told Cloud, who was taking the time to catch his breath. Cloud had never been scared like that before. "Anyways, do you have that necklace, like you promised."
"Sure do, replied Cloud, as he dug into his pocket and pulled out a necklace which he gave to Falco. "This whole 'have Fox give things to Krystal' better lead somewhere..."
Cloud: Aerith gave me that necklace as a keepsake, before she returned to her universe. I would keep it, but frankly I don't wear necklaces.
Falco: I've been having my man Fox give Krystal random gifts, for two reasons - one, it'll save us some money from buying wedding gifts, and two, it'll keep the goodwill between Fox and Krystal intact. Gotta make your girl happy, you know what I'm sayin'?
"Did you guys hear that scream?" questioned Spring Man, as Cloud acted fast; the swordsman grabbed Falco and ran into the nearest closet, before Spring Man appeared out from the room and looked around.
"I'm sure you were just hearing things," Yuri told Spring Man, as she walked the ARMS competitor back into the room. "Trust me, I've been there...so what were you saying, about those noodles?" Once the coast was clear, Cloud and Falco exited the closet.
"Bruh what was that all about?" Falco questioned Cloud, who had an inquisitive look on his face after Yuri mentioned something about noodles. "What are you trying to hide us for?"
"I was eavesdropping on Spring Man earlier, before you showed up," explained Cloud, keeping his voice low, before he peered inside the small room for a very brief moment. "Said he had an issue on his hands. Yuri mentioned something about noodles..."
"Noodles, huh?" Falco stroked his break in thought, thinking about what issue Spring Man could possibly have. "I think I have a slight hunch for Spring Man is talking about...might have something to do with a contemporary of his."
"A contemporary of his? As in like, a fellow ARMS competitor? Who is it, then?"
"...alright, maybe I don't know who it is. Lemme hit up my boy Fox, just to make sure." Falco pulled out his phone, as Cloud sighed.
When they weren't having a paint battle, one of the things the Inklings liked to do in their spare time was debating which Squid Sister was superior - Marie or Callie. When they weren't doing that, they were debating which member of Off the Hook was better - Pearl or Marina. And when they weren't doing that...they were busy making fresh jams with K.K. Slider in the recording studio.
But in recent times, K.K. Slider was faced with a dilemma. One of his records was stolen, having been stolen by PJ Berri two episodes ago, and it put the hippie dog in a state of panic. Having a record missing from his library was always devastating to K.K. Slider.
"Check out this sick beat!" the male Inkling told his female counterpart, pressing the play button on the soundboard in front of him. He folded his arms proudly, as the most jacked up electronic beat started playing. Sounded like awful dubstep mixed with extremely random sounds.
"Is that even music?" questioned the female Inkling, who found he beat so obnoxious that she actually wanted to throw up. "Our standards have gotten so low these days, good grief..."
"Music standards have always been low - it's just that nobody wanted to admit it until after Michael Jackson died. He really did a lot to carry the music industry on its back, and hide all its flaws."
Male Inkling: It's no coincidence that after Micheal Jackson died, Justin Bieber immediately rose to fame...adds salt to the wound, doesn't it? I personally blame the powers that be.
"Oh no, this ain't groovy..." panicked K.K. Slider, who was searching the entire recording booth for his missing record. The Inklings looked at the hippie dog, as the male Inkling pressed the pause button on his horrendous beat.
"C'mon K.K, you know you didn't leave that that record in the recording booth," the female Inkling told the dog, who refused to believe her. "Just admit it - someone stole that record from you!"
"Mellow out, Inkling girl, no one would ever steal a record from me. Do you know how twisted that sounds, stealing from others? That's just unreal, man!"
"Even if you agree to let a stranger use your turntables, at a gratuitous wrestling event?" asked the male Inkling, as K.K. Slider looked up in realization. It was in that moment that the hippie dog realized he made a grave mistake.
"Inkling dude and dudette...do any of you know Parry and Cherry's phone numbers?" The Inklings looked at each other, before looking at K.K. Slider; the female Inkling shook her head, while the male Inkling shrugged his shoulders. "Groovy...just groovy..."
Meanwhile, at Mario's house, Phoenix was still brooding over the fact that he was disbarred and lost his job as an attorney. He was sitting on Mario's living room couch, down in the dumps as Mario and company did all that they could to uplift his spirits.
"I'm so screwed...I HAVE NOTHING TO LIVE FOR ANYMORE!" Phoenix cried out to the heavens during his time of despair, before burying his face in his hands and moaned sadly. Maya and Spyro looked on, feeling bad for the former attorney.
"He does realize that there are plenty of job opportunities out there, right?" Spyro whispered to Maya, as Phoenix fell unto the side of the couch - unto the spot Mario was gonna sit at.
"This is why I tell him not to value his attorney job too much," Maya whispered back, as Mario tried to lift Phoenix off of the couch cushion he had wanted to sit on. Mario eventually sat Phoenix back up, before looking at the former attorney in the eye.
"You came to join the pity party too?" Phoenix asked Mario, who looked at him with an angry look, before slapping Phoenix real hard. The former attorney winced in pain, as he grabbed the side of his face. "Ow, what the heck man?!"
"We're getting real-a tired of your crap, Phoenix," stated Mario, letting the former attorney know how he and the others feel. "You think we wanna see-a you hopelessly whine?"
"Nobody had a problem with it until you slapped me for no reason. I don't hear anyone else complaining about my sad state of despair! Maybe they're just silently sympathizing with me!"
"Mario is right, Phoenix - you are being a little too overdramatic," Layton informed the former attorney, who scoffed at what the detective said. "All this whining won't make things any better."
"You're right, you're right...this whole disbarment thing, it must be a fake, just like that forged evidence. It has to be a prank! It's just a prank, bro...IT'S JUST A PRANK, BRO!"
Phoenix would start laughing manically for a good five seconds, before eventually pulling on his own hair. Mario and company looked on, knowing that Phoenix was a lost cause.
"Desperate times-a calls for desperate measures..." said Mario, as he whipped out his FLUDD and doused water all over Phoenix. Phoenix was flailing his arms and legs about, as he received a wicked blast of water to the face.
"Please don't get the entire couch soaked, Mario!" pleaded Peach, as Mario sprayed water at Phoenix at full force. The plumber kept on spraying, until Phoenix and his blue suit were soaking wet.
Peach: I could at least forgive Poochy for damaging the couch, since he's pure and innocent enough to be forgiven of any wrongdoing. But with Mario, that's a different story. If he were to kill Jennifer for any reason, he'd be a dead man...but if Poochy were to be the culprit, I'd just consider it an honest mistake.
"And that should do it!" exclaimed FLUDD, after the deed was done. Phoenix was left soaking wet on the couch, huffing and puffing as he clutched his chest. Mario then sprayed him again once more, just for good measure.
"Mario, what in the world was that for?!" the former attorney scolded the plumber, as Maya took out a tissue and used it to dry off Phoenix. Didn't really work a ton, but it was the thought that counted.
"I had to get-a you out of your feelings some-a how," replied Mario, before the doorbell rang. Layton suddenly got panicky, hiding behind the sofa once more.
"Oh no, what if it's her?" the detective wondered, making sure he was concealed. "Oh my dear..."
"You guys keep watch-a of Phoenix," Mario told everyone, placing FLUUD on the table before him. "I'll go get the door."
"I don't need anyone to watch over me!" frowned Phoenix, grumpier than a bear after hibernation. "I'm not some kid at the candy store! I'm just depressed, that's all! You wouldn't understand..."
Mario went to the front door and opened it, and saw Mewtwo. The psychic Pokemon looked like he meant business...though to be fair, he looked like that a hundred percent of the time.
"Good afternoon, Mario," Mewtwo greeted the plumber, before looking over Mario and seeing Phoenix with the others. "Ah, I take it you have some company with you today. Did I come at a bad time?"
"No, no, I'm not busy or anything," replied Mario, as he looked back at Phoenix. "Mr. Wright over there, he's-a just...not in the mood right-a now."
"I lost my attorney license, tell him the whole story!" Phoenix snapped on Mario, before laying back on the couch and sighing depressingly. "Why did I even say that for...I'm an idiot."
"...is he going to be okay?" Mewtwo asked Mario, knowing that Phoenix won't be feeling himself the next few days now that he's been disbarred.
"Eventually he will - we just jave-a to give him some time," responded Mario, now wishing that Mewtwo had came at an earlier time. "So, what do-a you want? Someone challenged me to a Pokemon-a battle? Because believe me, I know a thing-a or two about..."
"No, nobody challenged you to a Pokemon battle...not after that debacle last week." Poor Mario must've had his butt handed to him last week. "It has something to do with two visitors...Cuphead and Mugman."
"Cuphead and Mugman?" Cappy awoke, as he raised a very curious eyebrow. "Are they baristas? Are they promoting a new coffee shop in town?"
"They're not baristas - they're just two kids who unfortunately have cups for heads." Mewtwo said that like it was a bad thing. Like having inanimate objects for a head was the worst feeling in the world. "They're in quite a pickle."
"What kind-a of pickle is it?" inquired Mario, as Mewtwo took a deep breath, preparing to say the very words that would come out of his mouth...
"Cuphead and Mugman came from a place called Inkwell Isles, where they live with this person named Elder Kettle. The two boys enter this place called the Devil's Casino, to play some craps. They go on a winning streak, and the Devil, who runs the casino raised the stakes. Cuphead lost the roll, and now he and Mugman have to collect a soul of a runaway debtor, or their own souls will be taken."
After hearing that entire spiel, Mario and Cappy looked at Mewtwo with the most dumbfounded looks in existence. Mewtwo understandably sighed.
Mewtwo: The story I told to Mario and Cappy was far-fetched enough to nearly wreck their brains. Told the same story to Master Hand earlier, and he just laughed at me! This is why I hate delivering messages...
"I find-a this very implausible..." Mario gave his take on the whole story, with Mewtwo more than inclined to agree. "...how can the Devil from-a the Assist Tower run his own-a casino, and he never invited-a ME?!"
"You moron, the Devil from the tower and the Devil running that casino are two different people," stated Mewtwo, as Mario felt less salty. That plumber would blow his money at the casino anyways. "I'm just telling you what information I received from Princess Zelda."
"Does Zelda know Cuphead and-a Mugman personally? If so, can you tell her to ask-a Cuphead and Mugman where-a that Devil's Casino is at?"
"Zelda was the one who let Cuphead and Mugman in the mansion; she, Link, and Ema are doing everything they can to help out those two as I speak."
"I see...but you can still tell her to ask-a Cuphead and Mugman about the location-a of the Devil's Casino, right?" Mewtwo looked at Mario, strengthening his glare.
"No way am I giving you any venue to waste your hard-earned money." On that note, Mewtwo teleported away, as Mario snapped his fingers in disgust.
Ema worked furiously in her room, running some forensics on who the runaway debtor was. Link, Zelda, Cuphead, and Mugman were all there, with the latter two begging on their knees.
"Please Miss Skye, you have to find out who this debtor is!" begged Cuphead, with tears running down his eyes. "You gotta!"
"If we don't collect the soul of the debtor before midnight, the Devil's gonna have our souls for sure!" begged Mugman, who also had tears running down his eyes.
"What a very specific deadline..." mumbled Link, who was chilling with his back against the wall. Zelda looked at the Hylian, and nudged him.
"Can you boys back away, just a little?" Ema asked Cuphead and Mugman, concentrating with all her might. "You're a little too close..." Cuphead and Mugman scooted away from Ema, moving on their knees. "...thank you."
"So did you find out who the runaway debtor is yet?" asked Cuphead, leading Ema to grit her teeth in frustration. That girl could snap at any second.
"You literally asked me that question just five minutes ago..." Ema was clearly bothered by the constant questioning, as her eye was twitching.
"I'll be the one asking the questions..." Mugman told Cuphead, putting his hand out in front of him, before looking at Ema and clearing his throat. "...so are you gonna find out who this runaway debtor is, or what?"
"Can you just leave me alone for just ONE MINUTE?!" Ema snapped on Cuphead and Mugman, looking at the two fellas with an angry scowl. Link and Zelda jumped back, for it was the angriest they've ever seen Ema.
Ema: To be honest with you, my forensics work will have nothing to do with solving Cuphead and Mugman's issue. I just thought that doing some forensics would make them less worried about their situation. But instead, I might've made things worse...
"We are so sorry, Miss Skye, please continue your hard work," apologized Cuphead, as Ema softened the look on her face and returned to her forensics work. The work she claimed in her talking head segment was all for naught.
"I'll be right back," Zelda informed Link, as the princess left the room. Link frowned as Zelda left, with his arms up in the air.
"You're really gonna leave me here with those miscreants?" the Hylian complained, before throwing his arms up in defeat. "It's okay Link, it'll be over soon..."
"You said somethin'?" Mugman asked Link, who looked away from the young fellow and folded his arms, still leaning against the wall.
Reason why Zelda left Ema's room was to take care of some laundry, as the princess had to take some clothes out of the dryer and put them in a laundry basket. Zelda was about to leave the laundry room with the basket, just as Pit and Kirby entered.
"You got a minute, Zelda?" Pit asked the princess, right before she could leave the laundry room. He had a brown slip of paper in his hand.
"Not now, Pit, a little busy at the moment," replied Zelda, as she left the laundry room. "You can show it to me later, when I'm free." Pit and Kirby watched as Zelda walked down the hallway with the laundry basket.
"Welp, so much for that..." remarked Kirby, watching as Zelda made a turn around the corner of the hallway. Pit looked down at the torn up piece of paper in his hand.
It was a wanted poster, with Phoenix's face on it.
Although it took them much preparation, Mamori and her co-hosts Ashley and Asuka were now ready to start filming today's episode of Microwave Idol Mamorin. The young idol singer and her friends were gathered in front of the camera, ready to start.
"Good afternoon, my cute Mamorinis!" exclaimed Mamori, flashing a peace sign in front of the camera. "It's me again, Mamori, ready to bring you another episode of Microwave Idol Mamorin with my good friends, Ashley and Asuka! We're gonna warm up your heart, with the press of a button!"
"Joining us on our show today are two hot dog fantasists," added Ashley, before pausing, like she expected someone to appear onscreen. "I said, joining us on our show today are two hot dog fantasists." Ashley waited around once more, as she groaned angrily. "I SAID..."
"Hot diggity dog!" exclaimed Sonic, as he and Crash appeared and joined Mamori and company...both the hedgehog and the bandicoot were wearing hot dog costumes. Mamori and her friends did their best to stifle their laughter. "Is it getting hot in here, or is it just me?!"
"Ta-da!" exclaimed Crash, as he posed for the camera in his hot dog costume. So much pride and dignity was being sacrificed right now.
Sonic: We've made some pretty terrible life choices...
Crash: *nods head in agreement*
"Everyone give it up for Sonic the Hedgehog and Crash Bandicoot!" Asuka introduced the two, as Ashley played the applause sound from her remote. Sonic and Crash both had smiles on their faces...extremely disingenuous smiles.
"Hot dog! Are we gonna make a chili dog today?" Sonic asked Mamori, with enough fake excitability to sway the mind of even the least gullible person in the world. "'Cause I sure love chili dogs!"
"That's right, Sonic - after all, chili dogs are your favorite food!" responded Mamori, before going to the fridge and taking out a pack of wieners. "Since you know more about chili dogs than we do, we'll let you and Crash show us the ropes."
"Hot diggity dog, that's fine with me! Say, where's that dang chili? Can't make a chili dog without the chili, ya know what I"m sayin'?"
"Oh yes, how could I forget? Please bear in mind, Mamorinis...a regular hot dog to Sonic is not a hot dog at all. The more you know..." Mamori went back to the fridge, looking for a container of chili, but couldn't find it anywhere. "Oh my...where is that chili?"
As Ashley and Asuka quickly came to the rescue, Crash looked at the stove, and squinted his eyes when he saw small people. Small people dressed in red, dressed like they were from a medieval village or something.
"Woah!" Crash nudged Sonic on the shoulder and pointed at the small people, who were seen nonchalantly taking several pots of food off the stove. Sonic watched, as the small people walked away with the pots.
"Ha, found it!" exclaimed Mamori, once she and her friends found the chili. By the time Mamori closed the fridge door, the small people had already left, with the pots of food in their hands.
"Well, Sonic, Crash, we found the chili," Asuka informed the two, who were gawking at what they had seen. "So you're gonna stop looking like that, or...?" Sonic and Crash looked Asuka, before shaking their heads so they could get back into character.
"Hot dog, hot dog, HOT DOG...we finally got ourselves some chili!" exclaimed Sonic, as he looked at the chili. One has to wonder how much humiliation the hedgehog was enduring, especially since he was presenting himself to the entire world. "Time to make ourselves some dang chili dogs!"
Falco and Cloud were down in the kitchen of the tower, joined by Fox and Chef Kawasaki...as the men were working together to make some noodles. Nobody knew exactly why they were making noodles in the first place, although it might had something to do with Spring Man's dilemma. But it pleased Chef Kawasaki to have someone cook with him.
"Something sure smells good from the kitchen..." smiled Mr. Resetti, sniffing the air as he entered the kitchen. He saw Chef Kawasaki making noodles, and got all giddy inside. "Ooh, are those noodles for me?"
"No, they're for someone else," replied Cloud, who was busy boiling the noodles. Pretty simple task for a beginner cook like himself. "You can't have any."
"I can't have any?!" Mr. Resetti quickly got upset, as he had steam coming out of his ears. "I'll have you know, mister, that I live in a free country, the United States of America, and I get what I want, and deserve!"
"Go cry somewhere else dude, we're busy at the moment," Fox told Mr. Resetti, as he was breaking the uncooked noodles. Mr. Resetti starting fuming even more, as he stomped on the floor in anger.
"I guess I didn't make myself clear, huh? I. DESERVE. NOODLES! I've been working my butt off, 24/7, seven days a week, 365 days in a year, for how many years I have in my lifetime! And I don't even get anything for my hard work? Is this country even free?!"
"Sometimes I ponder over that question all the time..." remarked Guile, who was nearby drinking from a water bottle. One that he was thankful he didn't pay for.
Mr. Resetti: Most people have it all wrong. I'm not a spoiled brat who thinks he should get everything in life. I'm just very privileged. It's a very hard for people to either accept, or get used to. I understand.
"You don't wanna mess with me, I was a prized boxing champion at university!" said Mr. Resetti, showing off his hops by moving around like Little Mac does and throwing a few punches. "I'll wipe the floor with all of you!"
"Guile!" Cloud shouted the major's name, and Guile quickly rushed to action, picking up Mr. Resetti and tossing him out of the kitchen like a football. Mr. Resetti screamed at the top of his lungs, until he was out of sight.
"You can thank me later, future workout buddy," Guile said to Cloud, giving the swordsman a thumbs up. Cloud rolled his eyes, as he continued to boil the noodles.
In addition to the brooding Phoenix and the affable Maya, Mario and Peach received more guests to their home, when the Knitting Club came over to knit stuff. The plan was to meet up at Pac-Man's house, but Pac-Man didn't wish to let his children think less of him by seeing him knit. So it was off to Mario's house, yet again, while one of the members, Ashley, was out of action.
"You should join us, Phoenix - knit your cares away!" Celica said to Phoenix while she knitted, as Pac-Man slyly gave Phoenix a cautionary shaking of his head. Phoenix looked at Celica and Pac-Man, before sighing.
"Thanks, but no thanks...no knitting will cheer me up," replied Phoenix, feeling like all hope was lost and gone forever. "It's not even a good coping mechanism, for crying out loud! What's a good coping mechanism, Professor Layton?"
"How am I supposed to know, I've never dealt with tragic events before," replied Layton, before taking a sip from his cup of tea. "Other than the death of my beautiful love, Claire. But we won't talk about that..."
"Useless..." Phoenix looked away from Layton, and looked towards Mario, who was also sipping some tea. "Mario, what coping mechanisms do you use when you're down in the dumps?"
"Sometimes I like-a to stare in front of a mirror and think of how worth-a less I am," replied Mario, in perhaps the happiest tone possible for the kind of response he gave. Mario immediately caught himself, seeing the weird looks he was getting. "...I just stare in front-a of a mirror."
"Didn't you say that you like to do it in your underwear?" asked Spyro, as Mario nervously bit his lip. Too much information. "Because you 'like the breeze'?"
"Spyro, you don't have to tell-a everyone my dirty secrets. You don't see me going around-a and telling people that you like that goat-a girl. What's-a her name? Elora, isn't it?
"Yep, it's Elora...and she's not a goat." Elora would really appreciate Spyro for making that correction. "She's a faun."
"Mario it's okay if you cope with your sadness in your underwear, I do the same thing too," Hunter told the plumber, who was feeling judgmental of the cheetah. "Your underwear sure is quite comfy!" That response made Mario even more judgmental.
Mario: So that explains why I kept-a seeing yellow fur in my underwear drawer... *shudders* ...hopefully I never wore-a the pairs Hunter has worn.
A knock was at the front door, greatly alerting Layton. The detective, who was seemingly conditioned to the sound of the knocking on the door, quickly hid behind the sofa as he had repeatedly done throughout the day.
"When are you going to stop hiding behind that sofa?" Peach questioned Layton, giving him a stern look with her hands on her hips. "What are you so scared for?"
"You wouldn't understand, it's a long story," replied Layton, as Mario made his way over to the front door. "Just...let me know who's standing at the front door."
Mario opened the front door, and saw Marth standing on his doorstep. Not the person Layton was hiding from, but the detective needed some confirmation.
"Hello Marth," Mario greeted the hero-king, as Layton let out a sigh of relief and appeared from behind the sofa. "Care to join-a us for some tea?"
"No thanks, Mario - my wife and I just had tea earlier," replied Marth, with a kind, earnest smile. "I just wanted to show you something I found lying on the ground, in the front yard of the mansion."
"Well, what-a is it?" Marth dug into his pocket, and pulled out a piece of paper; interestingly enough, this piece of paper was strongly similar to the one Pit had.
"The Duck Hunt Dog was about to pee on this, but I scooped it up just in time." Marth handed the piece of paper to Mario, who looked at it very curiously. "Just a little warning, it might surprise you..."
"'Wanted...Phoenix Wright'?" Mario read the contents of the piece of paper, which had a mugshot of Phoenix. It was totally the wanted poster Pit was carrying around. "Phoenix Wright-a is a wanted man?"
"Wait, what?!" Phoenix shouted, immediately jumping up off the couch and rushing to the front door. He snatched the poster out of Mario's hands, and looked at it with big, bulging eyes. "I'm wanted?! For what?! When? Why? How?!"
"Beats me - I just found it lying on the ground today," explained Marth, as Maya came over to check out the poster. Not even she could believe it.
"But why am I a wanted man for?! First I get disbarred and lose my attorney license, and now this...could this day possibly get any worse?!"
With Marth having found a 'wanted poster of Phoenix, Pit and Kirby still had the other poster, and were showing it to some of the residents. The two friends went up to the recording studio, to ask K.K. Slider about the poster.
"You like to post posters around town sometimes, so you might know what this poster means," Pit said to K.K. Slider, who was still on the search for his missing record. "Does this mean that Phoenix Wright is hosting an opera, about being an attorney? If so, why weren't we invited?"
"This isn't just any normal poster, Pit - it's a wanted poster," explained K.K. Slider, hating himself for having to make such an explanation in the first place. Kirby felt his pain. "It means Phoenix Wright is a wanted criminal!"
Pit: Come to think of it, a musical opera about the law and being an attorney doesn't sound that bad...sure the songs will suck because of the theme, but some musical genius could make it work somehow. *singing* "When you mess with the law, you go to court and get a..." *pauses* "...get a..." *pauses* ...you know what, screw the rhyme scheme. Rappers don't need it anyways, so why should Phoenix?
"Phoenix Wright is a wanted criminal for doing what?" questioned Kirby, bewildered by the whole situation. "He isn't the kind of attorney to do scandalous things."
"True dat - maybe Phoenix did something stupid in the past, and it finally caught up to him," assumed K.K. Slider, as he looked for his missing record. "But I don't really know what's going on. You should show Phoenix that poster when ya see him."
"Say, K.K. Slider, whatcha looking for?" asked Pit, as he saw K.K. Slider look around the recording booth. He was search every nook and cranny, sniffing around just to be on the safe side.
"Glad you asked, Pit - one of my records has gone missing! Been missing ever since Master Hand's wrestling event a few weeks ago. I've been searching high and low for the record, but I'm left with nothin' but goose eggs!"
"I think I saw that bear leave with one of your records, after the wrestling show was over," said Kirby, as K.K. Slider stopped searching and looked at Kirby. "The one you let use your turntables."
"You mean Cherry? He took my record?! That wasn't very cash money of him. I'm sure he might've taken it by accident. Or as a keepsake." If only you knew the truth, K.K. Slider...
Little Mac cruised through the hallway, drinking from a sports drink energy bottle. It was an energy drink Heihachi had recommended to him, and he's been hooked ever since! Little Mac drank the energy drink nonstop, even against Doc Louis' warning.
"To think Doc Louis said that this stuff would make me go crazy..." snorted Little Mac, as he looked at his energy drink bottle. He came across Link, who was leaning against the wall near a bathroom.
"Don't mind me, just keep on walking..." Link told Little Mac, appearing frustrated as he had his arms folded. The Hylian had no right feeling so bitter today.
"What for?" Little Mac suddenly heard the sound of a toilet flushing, followed by someone washing their hands. That someone came out of the bathroom, and it was Cuphead, whom Little Mac looked at with wide eyes.
"Thanks for being my escort, Link!" Cuphead thanked the Hylian, who begrudgingly escorted the fella back to Ema's room. Little Mac watched as Link and Cuphead walked away, eyes still wide open, as he poured the contents of his energy drink into a nearby flower pot.
Little Mac: Next thing I know, that flower pot I poured that energy drink into will sprout limbs, and become a person... *shakes his head* ...I probably should've listened to Doc Louis.
Spring Man was outside of the tower, looking around for someone. He was joined by Shovel Knight, Yuri, and the Arcade Bunny, who were all standing next to a pile of microwavable ramen noodle containers.
"You really think this will suffice?" the Arcade Bunny asked Spring Man, who was on the lookout for potential visitors. "We really could use those Ramen noodles, for emergency purposes..."
"Pfft, only college students eat ramen noodles," replied Spring Man, making silly generalizations about college students. Like an old man ranting about millennials. "They need them way more than we do."
"Still, we practically raided Chef Kawasaki's pantry," stated Yuri - that pantry must be full of delicious food Kawasaki would never dare to cook. "If he ever finds out about what we did..."
"...did someone mention my name?" a voice called out, as Spring Man and company turned around and saw Chef Kawasaki, joined by Fox, Falco, and Cloud. The three dudes behind Kawasaki were carting out a giant pot on wheels.
"May I inquire what is in the pot?" asked Shovel Knight, as the smell emitting from the pot permeated his nostrils...if the knight had nostrils, to begin with.
"Oh, it's just nothing but noodles inside." Chef Kasawaki said that very casually, but when Spring Man heard it, he felt like a giant relief came over his shoulders. "I see you took those ramen noodles out of my pantry...not that I'm complaining."
"You cooked a giant pot of noodles?" Spring Man asked Chef Kawasaki, not sure whether he should ask why the noodles were cooked to begin with, or how Kawasaki was able to keep a giant pot around. "But why?"
"I might've done a little eavesdropping earlier..." confessed Cloud, as Spring Man looked at the swordsman before forming a smile on his face. Looked at him like he was his hero. Cue the Foo Fighters song!
"When did you find out?" Spring Man stopped, and shook his head, smiling even more. "Ah, forget about it - looks like we got all the noodles we need! Those three will be blown away when they see the noodles you've made!"
"Isn't that the three you're speaking of?" asked Fox, as he pointed out ahead. Spring Man turned around and looked, and saw three individuals walking together, creeping closer and closer to the tower.
But these weren't three random individuals, not in the slightest...for this three was quite popular. Leading the pack was a guy adorned in black, with blonde spiky hair; he was definitely a Final Fantasy dude. Behind him were two ladies - a blonde and a brunette. Cloud easily recognized who these three were.
"Everyone be on your best behavior," Spring Man advised the others, wanting everyone to be and act professional. Shouldn't be that hard to do. "Gotta make the Mintendo Noodle House proud!"
"Spring Man works for the Mintendo Noodle House?" Falco whispered to Fox; the avian pilot usually associated the noodle company with another ARMS fighter, Min Min. Her dad owned the company.
The three individuals finally reached Spring Man and company, who were all acting professional and such. They saw the giant pot, and the piles of Ramen noodles, and were left satisfied.
"Tiddus, Yuna, Rikku...so glad you could make it," Spring Man said to the three, as he walked to the guy in front and shook his hand, professionally. "Real pleasure getting to meet you and all."
"Likewise, Spring Man, likewise - good to see you," grinned the guy, who was in fact Tidus. Meaning that the brunette and blonde behind him were Yuna and Rikku, respectively. "Min Min did say that you made for a great noodles guy!"
Spring Man: Min Min usually depends on me and her other ARMS friends to deliver noodles, whenever she can't make the transactions. In a way, we're kinda like emergency Mintendo employees. More often than not, we have to completely bust our behinds to make ends meet.
"I see you got a lot of noodles for us!" remarked Tidus, looking past Spring Man at the noodles abound...before spotting a familiar face. "...Cloud Strife?" Cloud sighed, with a knowing smirk, as he approached Tidus.
"Well, looks like you found me..." the swordsman remarked, not surprised that Tidus recognized him. "Never expected to see you here...Tidus?" Cloud stopped walking, as Fox and Falco suddenly ran past him to greet Tidus.
"Ay, Tidus, what up my dude!" Fox greeted the blitzball star, slightly geeking out as he gave him some dap. So much for acting professional. "I'm Fox McCloud, but you probably knew that already."
"And I'm Falco Lombardi!" exclaimed Falco, who was wanting to flirt with Yuna and Rikku. Gotta stay faithful to his girl, Katt Monroe. "But you can just call me Falco. Everybody does."
"Fox, Falco, Cloud, Spring Man..." Rikku pointed at the two pilots, the swordsman, and the ARMS competitor in that order, before pointing at denizens from the tower. "...and who are those guys?"
"Those are my good friends - Chef Kawasaki, the Arcade Bunny, Yuri Kozukata, and Shovel Knight," Spring Man introduced the four denizens to Tidus and company. Shovel Knight raised his shovel, while the other three either smiled or waved. "They helped me with gathering the noodles."
"Well that was awfully nice of them," remarked Yuna, as Rikku went over to count the amount of Ramen noodle containers. "Seems like you have a nice group of friends to hang around with!"
"So, uh, what's with all the noodles?" Falco asked Tidus, who was busy counting the containers. "What do you even need 'em for? some kind of eating competition?"
"Ha, I wish," grinned Tidus, after he was done counting all the containers. "The girls and I are gonna bring all these noodles back home with us, some we'll have enough food for our Blitzball tournament."
"Blitzball?" Falco has heard of the term blitzball before, and although he didn't know what it was, it sure sounded fun. "What kind of sport is that?"
"Blitzball is basically a mix of American football and soccer," explained Cloud, showing off his Final Fantasy knowledge in the most chill way possible. "Instead of playing it on a field, you play it while underwater."
"Told you Cloud was a lowkey sports fan..." Fox went over to speak with Falco, nudging the avian pilot. Fox and Falco smiled to themselves, as Cloud looked on and sighed at both of them.
Arcade Bunny: Dang, I thought Blitzball was just some super complex form of baseball...Walmart, you lied to me! Stupid liars!
"Spring Man, is there any easy way to take this noodles back home with us?" Yuna asked the blue-haired fellow, who thought to himself. All the plausible methods he thought of didn't seem to work, in theory or execution.
"We could have Villager use his Pocket to carry the noodles..." mused Spring Man, unsure if Villager even wanted to tag along with Tidus and company. "...but then someone would have to bring him back. Or maybe..."
"You know, there is a teleportation device in the mansion..." stated Yuri, subsequently lighting the lightbulb above Spring Man's head. "...Miu and I have been guilty of using it on our own. Without permission..."
"A teleportation device? In the mansion?" exclaimed Tidus, who found this way too good to be true. "Yeah, I'm down with that! It'll make going back to Zanarkand all the more easier! Do we need someone to operate it, though?"
"We have enough people that know how to operate that device," replied Fox, before he slowly lifted his head up and looked at the sky. "Just gotta ask them to...WHAT THE HECK IS THAT?!"
Everyone looked up, as they saw a giant black ball heading towards them. This black ball exploded, emitting a giant smokescreen. Everyone was left coughing and gagging, and it continued until the smoke was cleared.
"Is everyone okay?" asked Chef Kawasaki, once the smoke dispersed; everyone either gave a word of confirmation, or nodded their head. Seconds later, Rikku noticed that something was amiss...
"Oh no, all the noodles are gone!" the blonde shouted, seeing the giant pot and all the containers gone. "Someone must've stolen them!"
"Ah, a bunch of noodle thieves..." frowned Tidus, wishing that this incident would have never happened. Especially today. "...just what we needed."
"Guys, I just wanna say that I'm sorry for the noodles being stolen," apologized Fox, although an apology probably wasn't that necessary in this instance. "I should've seen that smoke bomb earlier, and it was my fault that I..."
"Don't blame yourself Fox, I'm sure that bomb was launched out of nowhere," Cloud told the pilot, before looking around. "But by whom?" The swordsman looked past the tower, and saw a bunch of men carrying the noodles with them to the back of the mansion.
"Are those the noodles?" questioned Falco, as he too saw the noodles being carried away by the men - who were actually the little people that were in the kitchen not that long ago. Falco pointed at the little people, as everyone looked at them.
"Those are indeed the noodles!" replied Shovel Knight, as he took out a trumpet from his imaginary pocket. "Let us sound the trumpet!" Before Shovel Knight could sound the trumpet, Rikku came over and gently pulled the trumpet down.
"Forget the trumpet...let's go ambush them!" the blonde exclaimed, feeling the need to throw some hands. And kicks. And maybe a whole bunch of other stuff.
"C'mon Rikku, let's not get too bashful about this," Tidus advised the blonde, who looked at him with a disinterested glare. "We should just sneak up on them, and take our noodles without starting any fights."
"That sounds like a very boring strategy," remarked Fox who, like Rikku, wished to get his hands dirty. "But I see where you're coming from..."
Mamori and her co-hosts, along with the guests Sonic and Crash, had already completed the cooking portion on Microwave Idol Mamorin. But because Mamori was in a particularly sadist mood today, she had Sonic and Crash do embarrassing things, like attempting to juggle hot dogs.
"Hot dog, I sure love me some good ol' jugglin'!" exclaimed Sonic, remaining in character, as he and Sonic were hopelessly juggling hot dogs in their hands, in front of the camera. Mamori, Asuka, and Ashley were standing behind the camera, as the former two were stifling their laughter.
Mamori: Sure got a real good kick out of Sonic and Crash's juggling prowess, or the lack thereof. I bet the other two loved it.
Ashley: *stares deeply into the camera* ...I have no soul.
As expected, the only one trying not to laugh out loud was Ashley, who had a stone-cold expression on her face. Someone could literally walk inside the kitchen and slip on the floor, and it still wouldn't make Ashley laugh.
"So this is what selling yourself out is like..." murmured Ashley, who still couldn't believe that Sonic and Crash agreed to Mamori's terms. Even though they didn't know what they were in for. Just then Red, Ashley's demon friend, came over to speak with Ashley.
"Are those guys supposed to be in there?" Red whispered to Ashley, as he pointed at the dining room. Ashley turned her head, and saw the dining room door open, with the little people exiting through it. They were taking food from the pantry with them.
"That...that is not good." Acting fast, Ashley quickly poked Mamori and Asuka, garnering their attention.
"What is it, Ashley?" Mamori asked the young witch, who pointed at the dining room door. Mamori and Asuka saw as the last of the little people left through the dining room door with food, before closing the door. One of them had to jump up to do it, due to their small height. "Did they...just take food from our pantry?"
"Let's go get 'em!" said Asuka, as she and her co-hosts left the kitchen. All the while, they left Sonic and Crash with juggling the hot dogs, to no end.
"Hot dog, my arms are gettin' tired!" exclaimed Sonic, not sure if he could sustain juggling any longer.
Back at Mario's home, where the Knitting Club remained, Mario had Phoenix watch some television to uplift the former attorney's spirits. He had him watch some court show, hoping it would get him back in the groove.
"This is plain torture..." remarked Phoenix, who watched the court show with his chin resting in his hands. He looked hopeless, lost, and completely out of it.
"Is it because you wish to be there in that court, Nick?" asked Maya, while Yoshi poked Phoenix's face to see if he would pay attention. Peach had to come over and slap the dinosaur's hand away.
"No, it's just that this show serializes a small claims court! Where's the stakes, where's the drama? There's hardly any intensity! Why do they need some silly judge to settle some meaningless indifference?"
"He sure is feeling quite salty today..." Yoshi whispered to Peach, as Phoenix buried his face in his hands. Maya smiled, and patted the former attorney on the back.
"Yes, now do him a favor and leave him alone," ordered Peach; Yoshi did as he was told, returning to his knitting club buddies.
Yoshi: The way Phoenix has been acting, you'd think his girlfriend had died. His attorney job must've been his girlfriend. A law career, his true love. How sad!
Phoenix and Maya continued to watch the court show, until there was yet again another knock on the front door. The hairs on Layton's skin were tingling, as the detective grew nervous once more.
"Don't let it be her, don't let it be her, don't let it be her..." Layton repeated, as he hid behind the couch he was so accustomed to hiding behind...only to soon realize that the couch was no longer there!
"Ha, take that Layton!" exclaimed Spyro, who had moved the sofa with Hunter's help. "Time for you to face your fears!"
Layton looked on nervously with anticipation, as Mario went to the front door. When the plumber opened it, Layton was soon relieved to see that it was only K.K. Slider standing on the doorstep.
"Howdy, Mario - hope you're having a fine afternoon," K.K. Slider greeted the plumber, tipping an imaginary hat to him. "There isn't by any chance you have either Parry or Cherry's contact information, do you?"
"Nope, haven't seen-a those two ever since-a that Mini Wrestlemania thing," replied Mario, as K.K. Slider held his head down in sadness. "Why do you ask?"
"I've been told that Cherry might've left with my record by accident. It's a very...erm, important record, and it's something I have to keep in my personal library. So if you see Parry or Cherry again, will you tell them to..."
"Mario, Mario, Mario!" Pit shouted the plumber's name, as he and Kirby came running to the house. The angel ambushed poor K.K. Slider, sending him to the floor as he and Kirby entered Mario's house.
"What do you want-a know, Pit?" questioned Mario, not having enough patience to deal with Pit today. "Can't you see that I was-a speaking with K.K. Slider?"
"Yeah, well, this is more important." Pit dug into his pocket, and pulled out the wanted poster and showed it to Mario. "Did you know that Phoenix Wright is a wanted criminal?"
"Not this crap again..." sighed Phoenix, as he got up and left the house through the backdoor. "If anyone needs me, I'll be outside taking a smoke break...without the smoke," Phoenix informed everyone, before he left.
"Funny you should-a show me that - Marth came by with the same-a poster," stated Mario, as he grabbed the wanted poster from the living room and showed it off to Pit and Kirby. "Honestly, I have no-a clue what's going on."
"I never had a good look at the poster, let me see..." said Latyon, as he came over to Mario to look at the wanted poster. He saw text at the bottom of the poster, which made him furrow his brow. "...anyone know a place called 'Inkwell Isles'?"
Phoenix was chilling out on the patio, taking some time to compose himself. First he got disbarred, and now he was a wanted criminal. At this point, Phoenix was getting all delirious...he could start seeing things.
And that was exactly what happened, when he saw the little people in red walk by Mario's patio. Phoenix just watched the little people pass by, scratching his head in bewilderment.
"Where on earth are those guys headed..." the former attorney wondered, as he followed closely behind the little people. Shortly after Phoenix left, his assistant Maya came out from Mario's house, looking for Phoenix.
"Nick? Nick!" Maya called out the former attorney's name, as she looked around. "Where did you go?"
After being ambushed by Pit, K.K. Slider would return to the mansion, having turned down an ice pack by Peach for his head. On his way back, the Inklings came out of the mansion to speak with him.
"K.K. Slider, you gotta hear my epic music jam, it's the bomb!" the male Inkling told the hippie dog, who shuddered at the thought of listening to anything produced by the male Inkling himself.
"I'm just here to warn you about how awful the music track is," the female Inkling told K.K. Slider, likely suffering from musical vertigo after having to endure the musical creation from her male counterpart.
Male Inkling: My music track will be universally liked. Heck, it's even liked by Master Hand already! Which says a lot!
Female Inkling:...Master Hand hated the track so much, that he won't let the male Inkling back inside until he destroys the disk with the music on it. Just by association, I got kicked out as well...
"I put my tunes on this disk, for you to listen to," the male Inkling told K.K. Slider, as he pulled out the disk Master Hand told him to destroy. "You should give it a listen, when you have the chance!"
"Thanks, but no thanks, I'm not interested in your..." K.K. Slider started, before he looked over and saw Phoenix following after the little people.
While Chef Kawasaki and the other tower denizens returned to their abode, the group of Spring Man, Cloud, Fox, Falco, Tidus, Yuna, and Rikku were hiding among the bushes, spying on the little people. They were seen feeding a blonde princess in a pink dress, who was getting fatter with every morsel she ate. The food from the pantry was there, as well as the noodles; thankfully the noodles weren't touched yet.
"Princess Peach really let herself go, hasn't she..." remarked Tidus in almost perfect disbelief, as the little people fed the princess food from the pantry. The others looked at him, giving him weird looks.
"That's definitely not Princess Peach, my dude..." Fox corrected Tidus, before looking back at the princess and the little people. "...I'm guessing it's some wannabe Princess Peach. One who couldn't afford Toads."
"Bruh I thought Mega Man was supposed to be on surveillance duty, where's he at?" questioned Falco, who expected Mega Man to be scoping the entire mansion premises for intruders. "Isn't he on the roof?"
"You know Mega Man only checks the front of the mansion, and never the back," stated Cloud, before he saw a man approach the ever-growing princess. "Looks like we got some company."
The man happened to be Dante, who was obviously back at the mansion to start some more trouble. He saw the little people feeding the princess, as he smiled.
"You sure do have quite a huge appetite, Fat Princess..." the demon hunter remarked, as Fox, Falco, and Cloud found the Fat Princess name to be somewhat familiar. "Keep it up and those mansion dorks will be starved!"
"This food might not be cake, but I'll take it!" Fat Princess chirped, as she scarfed down an entire box of goldfish crackers. "So why am I doing this again?"
"It's all part of our plan...we gotta make those residents starve to death. Or at least just make them starved. That way, they will be in no position to stop us from destroying the mansion!"
"Is he referring to you guys?" Rikku - who was looking through her trusty binoculars - asked Fox, Falco, and Cloud, who were too busy eavesdropping the answer the blonde's question.
"Ooh, that sounds like a really good part of our plan!" Fat Princess smiled, as she happily clapped her hands. "But isn't Master Hand a part of our plan, too?"
"Exactly - which is why after we destroy his mansion, we'll destroy him next!" replied Dante, with an evil grin on his face. "And Crazy Hand, too! But if we wanna do that, we gotta tear his brawlers from the inside out, or bring them over to our side. That's why we came after Joker..and we'll come after others, too."
"This is horrible...they straight up want Master Hand and Crazy Hand to be done for!" frowned Spring Man, caring more about the two hands than anyone else would.
"Yeah, I never would expect demon hunting vigilante Dante wanting to do something like that," remarked Fox, as he scratched the bottom of his chin. "This has to be some kind of coordinated attack, by the maonr..."
"A coordinated attack...but for what?" a voice asked, as everyone looked to their left...and saw Phoenix Wright, hiding in the bushes with the group. Phoenix looked to his right, seeing everyone staring at him.
"...Phoenix Wright?" Cloud uttered the former attorney's name, in slight disbelief. "How long have you been hiding here with us?"
"Oh, not that long - I just followed some of those little guys over there to this area. I then darted behind these bushes, so I wouldn't be spotted, and watched Dante and his princess friend from afar."
Maya: Nick hasn't returned from his little "smoke break"...a pretty long smoke break, if you ask me.
"Well can't you just go up to Dante and the princess, and tell them to leave?" Yuna asked Phoenix, who smiled as he stood up and fastened his tie. "They practically stole our noodles..."
"I was hoping you would ask..." smiled Phoenix, as he was about to strut his stuff over to Dante and Fat Princess. "Now watch me do my thing!" The former attorney strutted over to Fat Princess and Dante, grabbing the latter's attention.
"Phoenix Wright?" Dante uttered the former attorney's name, looking at Phoenix like he was seeing a ghost. Fat Princess and the little people looked at Phoenix too.
"Stop eating, at once!" commanded Phoenix as he pointed with swift justice; the little people stopped feeding Fat Princess in an instant. "Did you know that stealing food from others is wrong?"
"Um...no we didn't." As Phoenix kept his finger pointed at Dante, Cloud and company saw some rustling coming from the bushes on the other side, behind Dante and Fat Princess.
"Not only that, but you are also blindly promoting gluttony! And gluttony, as everyone knows, is one of the Seven Deadly Sins! How does that even make you feel?!"
"What are you even lecturing us on, Phoenix? Felt like popping out of nowhere and lecturing people or something? Tell me, what's the catch?"
"There is no catch...I'm just trying to bring you and your fatty friend justice!" Dante looked up at the sky, laughing to himself and at Phoenix. "Either you stop what you're doing or..."
"Look Phoenix, we're not in court, so just chill out already. You can go hang around Seattle, find some random couple seated a bench, and point at them all day and shout at them for no reason...but just leave us alone."
"Leave you alone I will not! I have had a very bad day today...and I'm not gonna let someone else have a bad day too! How will I do that, you ask? By the only way I know how...TAKE THIS!"
As Phoenix pointed again at Dante and Fat Princess, this time in more dramatic fashion, a "HOCUS POCUS" was heard, followed by a spurt of magic fired at Fat Princess. Fat Princess suddenly grew wings, as she flew up in the air and away from the mansion.
"I'm flying, I'm really flying!" cheered Fat Princess, flying away as she happily flailed her arms. The little people, her lowly servants, all panicked as they ran after her.
"Hey, get back here!" shouted Dante, as the little people ran off, before a disk was hurled at the vigilante, slicing through his neck. Dante got down on one knee, clutching his neck, as blood seeped through his fingers.
"Alright guys, now's our chance!" Tidus told his group, before jumping out of the bushes and aligning himself with Phoenix. Fox looked in bewilderment, before shrugging his shoulders as he and the others followed suit.
"...what's this?" Dante slowly rose up to his feet, as he saw Phoenix now joined by Tidus, Yuna, Rikku, Fox, Falco, Cloud, and Spring Man. "Got yourself a squad, eh?"
"We won't let you destroy the mansion, or Master Hand!" vowed Spring Man, as he raised his fists in the air. Dante scoffed at Spring Man's vow, smiling to himself.
"That's cute...looks like you've been spying on me this whole time. But don't worry, your precious tower and the hand in charge of it is gonna go down soon. Just like you and your friends."
"I wouldn't be making any guarantees just yet, demon hunter..."
K.K. Slider suddenly appeared, along with the Inklings, grabbing Dante's attention. Then Mamori, Ashley, and Asuka appeared out of the bushes on the other side, also grabbing Dante's attention. Ashley had her magic wand out, just in case.
"Whaddaya know, I've been cornered..." smirked Dante, seemingly enjoying the spotlight as he had his arms out to the side. "...but our plan's been derailed, so, I'll be back another time. Won't tell ya when."
And with that, Dante darted away, running into the trees and shrubbery that were nearby. Everyone lowered their guard, as Spring Man and Tidus ran over to the untouched noodles.
"Good thing they didn't bother the noodles!" Spring Man said to Tidus, who was feeling relieved. Soon Ashley came over to speak with Spring Man and Tidus.
"You should thank me, I was the one who got the magic spell off and sent that princess flying," Ashley told Spring Man and Tidus, who were both very appreciative of the young witch. "Had to wait for a distraction, though." Ashley looked at Tidus for a brief moment, before walking away.
Ashley: Would I have fangirled over meeting Tidus in person? Nah, not really. As I've said before, I really have no soul.
"I was the one who threw the disk," K.K. Slider came over to speak with Spring Man, while Mamori and Asuka came over to fangirl over Tidus. "I too waited for a distraction before striking."
"Well we greatly appreciated it, K.K. Slider," responded Spring Man, as Tidus found the fangirling over him to be too much. "Thanks to you, Tidus' blitzball tournament has been saved!"
"Seems like Tidus has his hands full with those girls," Yuna said to Rikku, who was giggling as she and Yuna watched Tidus trying to back away from Mamori and Asuka. Meanwhile, Phoenix fastened his tie, as the former attorney seemingly regained his confidence.
"You did good, Phoenix...most of what happened was unintentional, but you still did good," Phoenix said to himself, before Fox, Falco, and Cloud came over. Fox landed his hand on Phoenix's shoulder, alarming the former attorney.
"So, Mr. Wright, how did that make you feel?" Fox asked Phoenix, holding an imaginary microphone to the former attorney's mouth. Phoenix flashed a confident smile, something he never would've done an hour ago.
"Not gonna lie, Fox McCloud, that made me feel good. If I do say so myself. Felt like a giant mountain of misery was lifted off my shoulders!"
Finding his mojo, Phoenix happily returned to Mario's home, where he told Mario and the others about what went down with Dante and Fat Princess. He made sure to tell everyone what Ashley and K.K. Slider did, to save the day. Tidus, Yuna, and Rikku were hanging aroun with Phoenix, until the teleportation device was situated.
"Oh, and before I stop talking, I got some juicy info to share with you all," said Phoenix, once he was finished telling his story. "While we were spying on Dante and Fat Princess, we heard Dante mention something about destroying the mansion...AND Master Hand and Crazy Hand along with it!"
"Destroying Master Hand and-a Crazy Hand?" exclaimed Mario; destroying the mansion was nothing new, as Dr. Eggman attempted that two years ago, but destroying Master Hand and Crazy Hand was next level stuff. "That must-a be the manor's evil plan!"
"It could be why folks from the manor have been snooping around," assumed Luke, putting on his thinking hat. "They could be scoping around and taking notes, so they'll know when to act out their master plan."
"Is it too soon to tell Master Hand this?" asked Maya, knowing that Master Hand should be aware about anyone plotting against the mansion. "This might be too much for him to bear."
"We'll tell him when the time is right," replied Peach, unsure when this time will be. "Last thing we'd want is a paranoid Master Hand!"
Another sound of the doorbell was heard - Mario and Peach never expected to have this many visitors to their home in one day. Mario was about to get up and answer the door...only to be stopped by Layton.
"I got this," Layton assured Mario, who sat back down. The detective took a deep breath as he went to the front door, and opened it...and saw Link and Zelda, standing at the doorstep with Cuphead and Mugman.
"Hi, Professor Layton," Zelda greeted the detective, with Link looking at Cuphead and Mugman with heavy disdain. "Could you ask Mario if he can take these two in? Their names are Cuphead and Mugman; they kinda drew Ema Skye crazy today."
Ema: *face buried in her hands* So many hours of my life...wasted...
Link: Ha, I knew Cuphead and Mugman were nothing but trouble. They waited till the last minute to say that they didn't need any forensics to find out who this "runaway debtor" is, because forensics doesn't even apply to their objective. They were using Ema...tried to warn Zelda, but she never listened!
"Ema Skye!" Phoenix randomly shouted out the forensics expert's name, like he had forget one of his belongings. "I had meant to speak with her today. Still might have some time."
"...yes, we can ask Mario together, come on in," Layton said to Zelda, as he let the princess, Link, and the cup bros inside Mario's house. The detective closed the front door, as Cuphead saw the wanted poster on the living room table.
"Look Mugman, it's the wanted poster the Devil gave us!" exclaimed Cuphead, as he grabbed the poster and showed it to Mugman. "Or at least one of them."
"...who are they?" asked Tidus, as he pointed at Cuphead and Mugman. He looked specially at Mario, who didn't know himself.
"They must be Cuphead and-a Mugman, the two princess-a Zelda mentioned," Mario answered to the best of his ability, as Cuphead and Mugman looked up and saw Phoenix. They alternated glances between the poster, and Phoenix himself.
"That's him, that's the runaway debtor!" Mugman pointed at Phoenix, who was looking around in confusion. "Let's get him!"
"Look boys, I think you got the wrong guy," Phoenix grinned, as he stood up and put his hands in front of him. "I'm not this runaway debtor that you speak of, so lay off the..."
But Cuphead and Mugman wouldn't listen, as they started firing blasts from their fingers at Phoenix. Phoenix just stood there, unharmed by the blasts, with a straight face and his hands on his hips.
"Am I supposed to be in pain, or..." questioned Phoenix, as Cuphead and Mugman stared firing blasts at Phoenix's crotch, hoping that would bring him down. But it didn't work.
"I think you're doing just fine," Yuna told Phoenix, who let out a yawn as he stretched his arms. The brunette got up from her chair, only to get caught in Cuphead and Mugman's crossfire. The blasts didn't hurt her any.
"Get outta the way woman - it's the man in the suit we're after!" shouted Cuphead, as Yuna simply went into the kitchen. Maya came over to speak with Phoenix, leaning in close to the former attorney.
"Are you really not the runaway debtor?" the assistant asked, with a very wry smile. Phoenix looked away, acting very suspicious.
"I...might've done some blackjack at the Devil's Casino in my spare time," confessed Phoenix, letting out a slight chuckle. "Don't ask me how I get to Inkwell Isles, it's a secret of mine..."
Mamori and her co-hosts returned to the kitchen, and they were amazed...for Sonic and Crash were still juggling! Or at least trying to. There were hot dogs all over the floor, but that didn't stop Sonic and Crash from entertaining the audience.
"Guys, I think I left the camera running this whole time," admitted Ashley, with a slight feeling of regret. "Hopefully it wasn't on low battery."
"Good thing Sonic and Crash gave us some good material while we were gone!" exclaimed Mamori, as she rubbed her hands together. She was looking forward to some editing later today.
Reunited with Fat Princess and her legion of little people somewhere in Seattle, Nathan discussed plans with the princess in secret. At the same time, they were also waiting for their ride.
"Elena should be here with the plane at any minute..." said Nathan, looking up in the sky for a flying vehicle. "...she better not use that 'low engine fuel' excuse from last time."
As Nathan and Fat Princess waited, two floating figures appeared, both wearing cloths over their bodies. The cameramen got close to these figures - but not too close - interested to see if they had anything to say.
"Those manor scum are getting in the way of our plans..." the first floating figure said, with a very edgy voice. "...we should stop them!"
"No, let's just let things play out," said the other floating figure, in a more cheery voice. "That way when they ultimately fail, we'll clean up after them!"
"Sounds like a good plan. We have already recruited the necessary allies needed for our little scheme. Do we need anymore?"
"We will, in due time. But I can assure you this...that one of our allies happen to be in another dimension!"
The floating figures floated away, never to be seen again. Looks like they were just watching from the sidelines...but only for now.
