Author's Note:

Got another Google Forms survey...and yes, it's about this story. You can access it right here, with this link: forms. gle/CBasBcwW1NfAHKMv9 (just gotta put it all together). Like the last one, this survey is optional; only five people completed the previous survey, so I would appreciate just a bit more participation. I know that clicking away from this story might be too much effort for some of you, but the survey responses will be much appreciated. And with that out of the way...enjoy the chapter!


Episode 238: Roadtrippin'

It was a pretty known fact that Toad was a bus thief. For the longest time, Toad had a large bus parked outside the mansion, ready for any transportation necessary. Whenever he was asked where he got the bus from, or how he was able to afford it, Toad was always quiet...very suspicious.

But little did you know that Toad also happened to steal another vehicle - an RV. He recently got an RV on Tuesday, and he had the vehicle parked right next to his bus. And Toad had yet to drive the bad boy around...until now.

Toad was ready to embark on a trip around King county in his stolen RV, as a bit of a request from King Dedede. The RV was parked outside the mansion at the side of the road, as Toad and King Dedede watched a few residents pack stuff inside the RV.

"Nice, keep it coming," King Dedede said to the residents, watching them work while he just stood around and did nothing. "And don't forget the bug spray! It's perfect for spraying in the face of hitchhikers."

"Whoa. An RV? Camping gear?" said the male Inkling, as he and his female counterpart showed up outside, ready to board the RV. "Are you running from the law again, King Dedede?"

"Nope! It's the ultimate Washington road trip adventure!" Banjo called out to the Inklings, as he and Kazooie were atop the RV tying stuff to the roof.

"Eh, it's more like a revenge trip," King Dedede clarified for the Inklings; if there was anything King Dedede loved, it was getting revenge on others. Even if it wasn't warranted. "Not for me, but for Master Hand..."

King Dedede: Master Hand loves to mess with tourist traps in the state of Washington. Every year or so, the owners of those tourist traps get back at Master Hand by pranking the mansion. Last year those hooligans duct taped Corrin to the ceiling.

Corrin: That was a fun 78 hours, being stuck to the ceiling...wish I could do it all over again.

King Dedede: Well, no more! *pulls out a map of Washington's tourist traps* I'm visiting every tourist trap along the State Route 99, on Master Hand's behalf, and I'm gonna prank back every single one. All of the candidates were too chicken to go through this, saying they didn't want to "lose their candidacy", so I have no choice but to take matters into my own hands.

"Bow wow! Time to let the road dogs bark!" exclaimed Morton, barking like a dog as he and the Koopalings filed into the RV. "Woof woof!"

"THAT IS US...WE ARE THE ROAD DOGS..." proclaimed R.O.B., as he entered the RV along with his robot buddies Ray and Chibi-Robo. King Dedede was gonna have a full house!

"Thanks for letting us come along for the road trip, King Dedede," Morgan thanked the fat penguin, as she and her twin brother Marc showed up at the RV. "Although it wouldn't be possible without our father's permission."

"The more the merrier!" replied King Dedede, before digging into his imaginary pockets and taking out two contracts, as well as two ink pens. "Just sign these non-disclosure agreements. None of your parents are lawyers, right? I sure hope not..."

"What do you say, Inkling boy? You coming?" Kazooie asked the male Inkling, as Banjo jumped down from atop the RV. The male Inkling was undecided, as he evaluated his options.

"Just so you know, I already went to the trouble of packing all your stuff," the female Inkling said to her male counterpart, who looked up and saw his stuff on top of the RV. "Even the stuff you kept in that secret box under the bed. I asked Dedede if we could join him on his road trip, since Wednesday."

"You didn't see anything in that secret box...did you?" the male Inkling cautiously asked, as the female Inkling smiled as she took out a few pictures...pictures of Callie.

"Hey, what are those?" Toad asked the male Inkling, who panicked as he quickly snatched the pictures out of the female Inkling's hands. The female Inkling couldn't stop smiling.

"Uh, nothing! Just...Callie stuff...from old times. By old times, I mean...a few months ago."

"Pictures of Callie? I thought you were already past that stuff! Didn't you say you would stop falling head over heels for Callie?"

"I know, I know! I know she's not that interested in me and I would never stand a chance with her, but how do you just turn off the way you feel about someone?

"Two words, kiddo...move, on," Kazooie advised the male Inkling; the redbird didn't see anything special in Callie, or Marie either. Never understood their appeal.

"Yeah, dude. And a road trip's the perfect place to meet new people," said Banjo, as the male Inkling looked at a picture of Callie in his hand. He then looked up at the sky, feeling that there was a big enough chance for him to start all over.


As the man (and woman) of the mansion, one of the duties that came with the role was to look over the mansion's finances. The mansion mainly used its finances for things like paying bills, giving the youngins their weekly allowance, etc. So when someone tampered with the money, heads would be rolling.

As candidates, Link, Cloud, and Minato were put in charge of looking over the mansion's finances, and making sure that everything was steady. So when there was something amiss, the candidates had to consult Mario or the search committee.

"So what is it that you wanted to talk-a to me about?" Mario asked Link, Cloud, and Minato, who stopped by the plumber's house to discuss some things.

"There's about $3,000 missing, and we're trying to figure out where it went," Minato explained to Mario; $3,000 missing was simply too big to ignore, so there was obviously a huge problem afoot.

"Well, it's probably just some-a error - a glitch in-a the system."

"I'm afraid it's not some error - we strongly believe that someone purposefully stole money from the mansion."

Cloud: This is the first I've heard of it. Outside of Link, the other candidates never tell me anything. I kinda like it that way...

"Obviously we do need-a to find it quickly to ensure-a that it's not a criminal action," stated Mario, hoping that no money from the mansion was stolen. Otherwise somebody was gonna pay. "So, notify me when-a you have news. Okay?"

"Understood," Link nodded his head, as Mario left the living room and headed upstairs.
Everything was left in the hands of Link, Cloud, and Minato...could they get down to the bottom of things? Only time will tell.

Link: I'm pretty sure Wario's involved because every other time there's been money missing from the mansion, it's always been Wario. Except, he's usually really obvious. Like, he'll say he spent $50 on a lunch with a client, and he'll submit a receipt from J. Crew. He can't even fit into those clothes.


With everyone on board, the RV drove across the open road, with Toad driving fearlessly through the highway. Crash, who was riding in the RV along with the rest of the Crash clan, was panting with his tongue sticking out.

"Man, RVs are amazing," remarked Sonic, who was one of the occupants in the RV along with Tails and Mechanica. "I can't believe we're sitting at a table in a moving vehicle!

"Look at all these informational travel pamphlets!" gawked Mechanica, as she was staring at a bunch of travel pamphlets sitting on the table. "I just wanna to read them all and gain their travel knowledge."

"Kid, those useless pamphlets have never helped a single person," King Dedede said to Mechanica, as if he was some travel guide expert speaking from knowledge. "The only travel guide you'll need is me. Now look alive! We're coming up on an attraction run by the most black-hearted proprietor in all of Washington."

Toad would make his first stop at the first tourist trap...some place called the Great Yarnball. Which was far from what you might consider a "black-hearted proprietor".

Sonic: I've lived in this state long enough, and I've never heard of a single tourist trap called "the Great Yarnball"...some of these tourist traps sound like they're made up. King Dedede must be duping us, somehow.

"Don't let the face fool you," King Dedede warned the residents as they filed out of the RV, bringing their attention to a large sign that had a woman's face on it. "That woman Jacky's car on fire on two non-consecutive occasions. Or so I've been told."

The residents had no business bothering with this woman, for they were more interested in seeing the Great Yarnball. The Koopalings stood in front of the yarn ball in question, which was half the size of the statue of liberty.

"I'm going in, guys! Wooo!" announced a very daring Bowser Jr, crawling inside the giant ball of yarn as his siblings all followed suit. The male Inkling walked past the yarn ball, looking around when he saw a tourist girl pass him by.

"Okay. Like Banjo said, meet new people," the Inkling said to himself quietly, before approaching the tourist girl and clearing his throat. "So, uh...come here often?"

"No. I'm a tourist," the tourist girl replied, as the male Inkling laughed nervously trying not to lose his cool. He couldn't wave in the white flag just yet.

"You're funny. And cute. I mean, not cute. I mean, you're not not cute. Phew, let me start over...I am a male Inkling." The male Inkling extended his hand to the tourist girl, who proceeded to dump her ice cream in his hand and walked away. The male Inkling sighed.

"Male Inkling, hup to!" King Dedede called out to the youngster, loud enough to get his attention but not loud enough for anyone else to hear. "This ball of yarn ain't gonna prank itself."

Coco: I'm not all about King Dedede's revenge trip, or whatever. Just wanted to come along for the ride. The Koopalings can go ahead and cause mayhem - I want no part of it. But if they make me a fall guy, then we're gonna have some problems...

The Koopalings were going to work, tying a strand of the Great Yarnball to the RV. Meanwhile, the male Inkling sat alone, feeling down with his chin resting in the palm of his hand.

"Something on your mind, kiddo?" King Dedede asked the male Inkling, as he took a seat next to him. The male Inkling, if he were motivated enough, would've scrammed. "You're thinking about Miss Cold Shoulder over there, huh?

"Ah, I'm so embarrassed," the male Inkling confessed, burying his face in his hands in shame. "All that time I spent chasing after Callie, it was all for naught. So many wasted chances..."

"Heh, yeah. Chances...thought I had a chance with Impa, but sadly we never saw eye to eye. She was too serious for me."

"And I wanna move on, but I'm terrible at talking to girls. The moment I open my mouth around them I unravel like...like...well, I can't think of a perfect metaphor, but you get the gist. At this rate, I'm going to grow up to be a sad loner like Waluigi."

Waluigi: There's nothing wrong with being a loner. Why in fact, I don't even consider myself a loner at all! At least I can say that I've been in love, albeit with chicks who were already taken. And I've been slapped before, by all sorts of women. That's something no other loner can say!

"Whoa. Never say that about yourself," advised King Dedede, before smiling as he pointed his thumb at himself. It was at this point that the male Inkling was unsure whether he should still trust Dedede or not. "Good thing for you I'm an expert on women! Listen to me, kid. When it comes to girls, always be confident. And be funny, but not too funny. And be kinda annoying but in a lovable way."

"I don't know, King Dedede, this sounds kinda jerky," said the male Inkling, who found Dedede's method of getting girls to be very counterproductive.

"Hey, jerky is just a term non-jerks use to bad mouth innocent jerks. Confidence, comedy, some third word starting with a C. The three Cs of the King Dedede dating technique! At the next tourist trap, try out my advice on the first girl you see."

"Cool, thanks." If for any reason the male Inkling failed, he would never trust that King Dedede ever again. Would be a big lesson learned for him.

"Hey, I'm full of good ideas. Speaking of which...everyone! Now!"

Everyone ran inside the RV, with those who were in the yarn ball quickly crawling out. The RV sped away, unraveling the yarn ball completely. The tourist trap owner, who was minding her own business, saw the act being done and was incensed.

"Why, you darn son of a no good..." the owner seethed, before taking a nail out of the ground and throwing it at the speeding RV. "...I'll get you, Master Hand!"


Link, Cloud, and Minato went back to the mansion to talk things over. The three were in the foyer, having discussions about the money that was stolen.

"Are we absolutely sure it's not some accounting error?" asked MInato, wanting to get things set straight before fingers were pointed.

"I went over the books three times," stated Link, who like the other candidates had to use accounting software to check out the finances. "Saw nothing out of the ordinary."

"Has anyone in the mansion bought anything nice recently?" inquired Cloud, before he and Minato saw something on Link's wrist. It was a watch; Link seldom wore watches.

"That's a very nice watch you got there, Link," Minato said to the Hylian, as he eyed the watch suspiciously. Link held up the watch, which was green like his attire.

"Yes, it is," said Link, as the watch had grown on to him over some time. "Some crazy old lady left it to me when her husband died."

"I've never seen it before. He must have died very recently." Link's story sounded fabricated, nearly too good to be true.

"Yes, he did, actually...about three weeks ago."

"Hey guys, are you about to do some cool stuff together?" asked Pit as he approached Link and company in the foyer. "Can I come too? I wanna be a part of things!"

"You think we should let him tag along?" Cloud whispered to Link and Minato, understandably not willing to risk it with Pit. "He might get annoying after a while..."

"He'll be dead weight...but it's not like he'll drag us down," Minato whispered back, before bringing his attention to Pit. "You can come with us if you want, Pit."

"Score!" cheered Pit, pumping his fist as he ran over to Minato and the others. Was it too early to have second doubts?


The RV pulled up at the next stop on the road trip - a tourist trap called Upside-Down Town. The residents filed out of the RV, and marveled at the peculiar building in front of them.

"Ah, Upside-Down Town, the nausea capital of the state," said King Dedede, after taking a quick glance at his map of tourist trap spots. "If not the whole country. Whatever you do, don't use the restrooms."

Sonic: Did all these tourist traps start appearing yesterday? JUST WHAT IN THE HECK IS UPSIDE-DOWN TOWN?! I feel like this is some kind of hallucination, an acid trip I'm stuck in and can't get out of...wouldn't say it's anything like being stuck inside of Kirby's stomach, but it's pretty close.


Before heading inside, one first had to make sure they had on the proper equipment. Everyone put on shoes with Velcro on the bottom, so they could walk on the carpeted ceiling.

"Road dogs! Woof, woof, woof!" barked Morton, as his dog mannerisms were of great concern to the few other tourists. Everyone got aligned with the ceiling and walked into the house.

"This is so weird...but neat at the same time!" remarked the female Inkling, who found herself laughing as she was hanging upside down with her Inkling hair hanging low. The male Inkling walked inside, as he noticed a girl standing by.

"Hi, I'm the male Inkling," the male Inkling introduced himself to the girl, clearing his throat as he calmly approached her. "But you can call me Agent 3. Crazy place, right?"

"Oh, hi. I'm Sue," the girl introduced herself to the male Inkling. So far, so good... "You know, if you pretend we're right side up, it looks like everyone's hair is standing on end."

"Huh. Yeah, weird, right? Pretend you're screaming." Everything was going smoothly, no hiccups so far.

"Okay. You gotta take a picture of me, though." Sue handed the male Inkling her phone, before screaming as the male Inkling snapped a picture of her.

"Let's see about...whoa!" The male Inkling would let go of the phone, before catching it just in the nick of time. "Hehe, just kidding."

"You are the worst." Sue playfully punched the male Inkling on the side of his right arm, as the male Inkling laughed.

"You bet I am. I'm bad, Sue. Kind of a jerk. You wouldn't want to mess with a jerk like me!"

"Sue, come on! We have to get back home before your mother gives birth!" Sue's father called out, as the male Inkling made a very questionable face.

"It's a long story..." explained Sue, as she looked down at the floor...or the ceiling, rather.

"Maybe you could tell me sometime," the male Inkling suggested, as he held out his hand. Almost like he was implying something.

"Here's my email address. Write me and I'll tell you all about it. Sue wrote her email on Dipper's hand and walked away.

"A girl gave me her email. And it wasn't out of pity! Haha! Yes!" The male Inkling jumped in the air and fell to the floor, landing next to the female Inkling and others. "I'm okay. I'm better than okay. Female Inkling, hi. There's my Wendy. Mechanica, looking great, looking great. Is that a new haircut I see? Sure looks nice." Mechanica blushed deeply, as the male Inkling started cheering.

Wendy: Maybe it's the blood pooling in my head, but that male Inkling seems different. *groans as her forehead turns purple*
Mechanica: Yes...good different.

"Now, Crunch!" shouted King Dedede as he and Crunch started jumping on the floor, rolling the house and turning it right-side up. "Not so upside-down now!" Everyone ran inside the RV, as Toad stepped on the gas pedal and drove away.

"Ooh, what a lovely normal home!" a civilian marveled at what was once Upside-Down Town, which was now a regular house. The owner of the attraction seethed, shaking his fist at the RV.

"Master Hand I know you were responsible for this...I'll get you!" the owner vowed, kicking the dirt on the ground as the RV sped down the road.


With Pit accompanying them, Link, Cloud, and Minato decided to interrogate the residents, and find out if any of them stole the $3,000. The first person they spoke with was Star Records' secretary, Ayaha Oribe.

"You guys wanted to see me?" Ayaha asked Link and company, after the three approached her in the Star Records room.

"Hi, Ayaha - we're going over everyone's expenses for the year," Link explained to Ayaha, who was prepared to provide whatever info was necessary. "Just a little standard procedure..."

Minato: We're missing $3,000 and we're trying to figure out where it went. Wario is the obvious suspect, so we have to at least pretend to ask other people first.

"So, I know the answer is probably 'no'.." continued Link, as Ayaha waited patiently for the question. "...but did you take any money, or buy anything with the mansion's money or anything like that?" Ayaha started looking guilty, her eyes darting around the Star Records room.

"Well, about three months ago, I was on a sales call and I broke the heel on my shoe," explained Ayaha, showing deep regret with every word that she spoke. "Fox and Falco were skittish about using money from Star Records, so...yeah. I'm really sorry."

"She's really not that sorry," Fox told Link and company, as he and Falco were at the Star Records desk watching "Threat Level: Twilight". Both pilots were watching their performances in the movie, which they believed was award-winning.

"Well, how much was it?" Link asked Ayaha, whose bottom lip began to tremble as she started to fear for the worst.

"...fourteen dollars," Ayaha squeaked, too ashamed to even look up at Link. Fortunately for her, she had nothing to worry about."

"We're talking more like $3,000." Ayaha felt relieved, as her fear and worry went away.

"$3,000? That wasn't me, then."

"No. We didn't think it was."

"It will never happen again," Fox assured Link and company, before taking out a credit card and showing it to them. "Falco and I gave Ayaha this Star Records credit card that she can use. Only for emergencies."

"An emergency like, when you have an ice cream cake, and you're in the sun, and it's melting," Falco provided an example, as Fox gave the avian pilot a questionable stare.

"You don't use it to buy refrigerators, Falco! It's a waste of money!"

"Don't yell at me like that...you're not my mom."

"Thank you for your cooperation, Miss Oribe," Link thanked the secretary as he and the others left, ready to continue their investigation.


The male Inkling was in high spirits, as he was looking at Sue's email on his arm. Pretty weird spot to put one's email, but it's not like the male Inkling had pen and paper ready to go.

"I can't believe it worked," remarked the male Inkling as he shook his head in slight disbelief. "What do I do now? Do I email her?"

"No, no, no. You practice," advised King Dedede, who was looking over the male Inkling in a very non-creepy manner. "The more girls you talk to, the better you get at it."

"King Dedede, these tips are priceless! Can't believe I'm saying this, but you're a huge help!"

"And that's just the tip of the advice-berg! Ba-dum-tiss..."

Next person that Link, Cloud, and Minato spoke with was Bayonetta, whom they encountered in the kitchen. Bayonetta was about to open the fridge when Link and company approached her.

"So, is there anything you want to tell us about?" Minato interrogated Bayonetta, right before the Umbra Witch could open the fridge door.

"Good heavens, I don't think so," replied Bayonetta, who found it amusing that Minato and his pals were interrogating her. Made it feel like she was wearing a badge of honor.

Link: We're still trying to find out who stole money from the mansion. Bayonetta seems like a very likely culprit.

"It's better to be embarrassed by the truth now, then to go to jail for it later," Cloud told Bayonetta, who was left smirking because she thought she was above going to jail.

"Why don't we just ask her if she took the $3,000?" Pit whispered to Link and Minato, who were standing by as they watched Cloud do his thing.

"Since we don't have the element of surprise, it would be impossible to trap you, and we won't be able to register the look on your face when we ask if you stole $3,000..."

"You think I stole $3,000? How cheeky..." said Bayonetta as she smiled even harder, amused that she would be accused of anything.

"We know you did…or someone else did. Might be an accomplice, for all we know."

"Did you use any of the mansion's money for anything?" Link asked Bayonetta, who could only snort in response. "We're just trying to find the culprit."

"Please. If I stole $3,000, I wouldn't be here," stated Bayonetta, as she walked away from the fridge seductively as she knew how. "I'd be on a beach in Jamaica drinking Red Stripe!"

"Red Stripe, huh?" asked Cloud, as he and the others followed after Bayonetta as she walked away. "That's Jamaican beer?"

"Yes, my darling. We should go out and get a beer later today. Or, would you boys like to go right now?"

"It's the afternoon..." replied Link, but Bayonetta found that to be a weak excuse.

"You didn't take any money at all?" Minato asked Bayonetta, who was slightly annoyed by the onslaught of questions. "You're sure?

"Yes. I'm a single mom," replied Bayonetta, as this startling revelation caught Minato and company by extreme surprise. "I would never do anything to jeopardize my kid."

"I never knew you had a kid," remarked Link, who was left wondering what other secrets Bayonetta was hiding from everyone else.

"Okay, I don't have one...sometimes I just like to pretend that I have one. And that Luka is my adoring husband! It drives him insane."

"Thanks for your time," Link thanked Bayonetta, as he and the others walked away. Bayonetta was one name they could cross off their list.

"You boys still want to get that beer?" Bayonetta called out to Link and company, only to be met with no response. "Looks like I'll be going to Paradiso by myself..."


King Dedede and the gang made two more stops - first at a tourist attraction mainly centered around logs, and a corn maze. The male Inkling flirted with girls at both destinations, while King Dedede sabotaged as much of the attractions as he could. After finishing his work at the corn maze, King Dedede was ready to set course towards another tourist trap.

"Everyone on board?" King Dedede asked everyone inside the RV, making sure that everyone was accounted for. Couldn't leave anyone behind.

"Probably," replied Coco, although she wasn't entirely confident in her reply...


The RV drove away, and little did everyone in the RV know that they left someone behind...or rather, two people behind, Banjo and Kazooie. The bear and bird duo were stuck in the corn maze, no way to get out.

"Guys? Hello? Anyone?" Banjo called out to the open, only to be met with no response. "They'll come back for me." Kazooie facepalmed, as Banjo remained where he was expecting one of his friends to return.

Kazooie: Banjo sure loves to get stuck in mazes...lemme guess, you stayed behind just to record our plight, didn't you?


Taking a break from the road trip, King Dedede and company stopped at an RV park. King Dedede and the male Inkling were relaxing in a hot tub, with Sonic and Crash.

"So then I said to the bouncer, 'Where's your ID, ugly?'," King Dedede told his story to the others, before pointing underneath his right arm. "That's where I got this scar."

"I don't see any scar," stated Sonic, as he looked underneath King Dedede's right arm and saw nothing but blue penguin flesh.

"Then you just aren't looking hard enough...or maybe you need some glasses. I'm gonna guess it's the latter."

"King Dedede, I gotta say this was one of the best days ever. Look!" the male Inkling said to the fat penguin, before holding up his arm - had a bunch of phone numbers written all over.

"That's the King Dedede method, kid. Works every time. I should get a trademark!"

"I'm just a little worried, though. I mean is it bad to flirt with this many girls at once? I'm just trying to get over Callie. I don't wanna hurt anyone's feelings."

"Please...that's the best part about flirting on a road trip. You're not gonna see any of these gals again. To moving on!" King Dedede and the male Inkling shared a laugh together, as Sonic and Crash looked at each other, confused.

Meanwhile, the girl band of the female Inkling, Wendy, Coco, Morgan, and Mechanica were sitting together next to the RV, enjoying each other's company and whatnot. Nothing like some good ol' girl talk to pass the time.

"Okay, it's time for...Truth or Dare or Don't!" the female Inkling announced, before pointing at the unassuming Mechanica. "Mechanica, you go first!"

"I choose...don't!" said Mechanica, after giving some thought and consideration. Wendy looked at the mechanic with a big frown.

"Ugh! You chose don't the last time we played," the female Koopaling said to Mechanica, frowning upon her for not being original.

"Fine. Uh, truth...I'll go with truth." That was something Wendy and the girls could go along with.

"Do you...like someone?" Morgan asked Mechanica, who found herself blushing. The cat was firmly out of the bag - no turning back.

"Uh-oh. Someone's blushing!" exclaimed Coco, who was now curious as to who Mechanica was harboring a crush on. The answer might shock the other girls.

"Okay, maybe just a little," said Mechanica, holding her index finger and thumb close to signify how little her feelings were. "I don't know for sure. It just...started."

"Tell us! Tell us!" All the girls were closing in on Mechanica, pressuring her to spit it out. Mechanica, after enough mounting pressure, finally cracked.

"Okay. It begins with a 'M' and ends with an '-ing'." The girls suddenly drew back, as they realized who Mechanica had just described.

"No..." the female Inkling uttered out of shock, refusing to believe Mechanica.

"Yes." Mechanica held firm, as the heavy wave of shock overwhelmed the female Inkling. The other girls all gasped collectively.

"I think I need to scream..." said Wendy, collecting herself as she prepared her vocal cords, before letting out an ear-piercing scream. The dudes chilling in the hot tub looked around, wondering what that awful sound was.

Crunch: Man, coyotes sound a lot worse than I remember. Got no clue as to why we had so many on N. Sanity Island...

"All my life dreams are coming true right now..." remarked the female Inkling, as her feelings of shock quickly morphed into joy. "...my best friend is in love, and it's not Callie!"

"I can't breathe! I'm so excited I can't breathe!" screamed Wendy, unable to control herself as she fell backwards unto the ground. She was taking it a bit too seriously.

"I never really noticed him before, but he seems different lately," confessed Mechanica, as Coco offered to help Wendy back up. "Less sweaty, and more charming. But how do I approach him?"

"Don't even worry about that, Mechanica," Morgan assured the mechanic, as she and the girls now had a goal to fulfill. "We'll come up with a plan..."


Next person that Link and company decided to speak with was Samus, as they went to the workshop where the bounty hunter worked. As one might believe, Samus was largely uninterested in any interrogation.

"Somebody stole $3,000...that is fantastic," Samus remarked very sarcastically, as she was tirelessly working on her Power Suit.

Cloud: I think this is kind of fun. I'm learning a lot more about the people I live with than I probably should.

"I'm sure it's not you, but we have to ask," said Link as Samus continued to work away, not bothering to look up at Link and company.

"I hope they bought something nice, and I hope you never catch them," replied Samus, as she was now done working. The bounty hunter was putting away her materials.

"We'd appreciate your cooperation if you find out who did it," said Minato, as Samus left the workshop trying to get away. When Minato followed her out of the workshop, Samus turned around to give the young man a piece of her mind.

"I'll tell you what, if I find out who did it, I will shake their hand, pat them on the back, give them 72 hours to get out of the country, and then I'll let you know who it is. Is there anything else?"

"...no, no there isn't. Thanks for your help." Samus walked away, disgusted that she was even interrogated in the first place.

"I don't think that Samus did anything wrong," the angel said, coming to this very profound conclusion. Way to use that noggin of his.

"Really, genius?"

Pit: Everyone thinks it's an insult when she calls me a genius, all sarcastic and whatnot, but technically, guess what? I am a genius. A year ago, I took an IQ test and I scored over 100. So, joke's on...all of you!


The RV was back on the road, with Toad driving the RV he most definitely stole down the Seattle highway. Only one stop was left for King Dedede and the gang.

"Alright, campers, we got one more stop left, for breakin' laws and breakin' hearts," King Dedede said to those inside the RV, having some very high hopes for the next tourist trap. "Everything up until now has been a walk in the park compared to our next attraction."

"Is it a walk in the world's biggest park?" Lemmy asked King Dedede this silly question, one that King Dedede wanted to giggle at. Nevertheless, the penguin tried to remain serious.

"Eh, sort of." King Dedede looked out through a window, and saw a tall mountain in plain sight. "There she is, boys and girls. Mystery Mountain! Five times the size of all the other tourist traps, and what's worse: she has real attractions."

"Oh! I have read about this place," remarked Tails as he took a quick gander at Mystery Mountain, as he couldn't help but think it looked familiar to him. "It has a sky tram, and a mummy museum, and sightings of half human, half spider creatures."

"Even their made up legends are better than ours. Today, the mountain falls!"

Sonic: How is it that Tails of all people knows about one of these made-up tourist attractions, and I don't? Always knew that guy was a nerd, but today settles it!

The girls had formulated a plan, one that would help Mechanica hook up with the male Inkling. Coco nodded towards Wendy and the other girls, ready to put the plan in motion, as she started to fake being sick.

"Question: the back seat makes me car sick," the blonde bandicoot complained as she grabbed her stomach; Aku came over to check on Coco, only for the bandicoot to fan him away. "Can I sit up at the front, please?"

"Also question: I'm the size of two koopas," said Wendy, spreading her arms and legs about to make her seem bigger than usual. "Can I have a whole seat to myself?"

"Eh, I don't know, sure," shrugged King Dedede, who had no jurisdiction over who sat where. "You girls can sit wherever you want, I don't care."

"I'm the size of two koopas, why can't I sit at the front?" whined Roy Koopa, who pouted and snapped his fingers in disgust when he was left ignored.

"Time for a change up!" the female Inkling yelled as she ran to the shotgun seat, pushing the male Inkling out. Having been ousted, the male Inkling looked around for an available seat.

"Wait, that means it'll just be me and..." the Inkling said before looking at the back seat...and seeing Mechanica, smiling and sitting all by herself.

"Hi there," Mechanica kindly greeted the male Inkling, with a slight blush on her face. The male Inkling looked uneasy, as he crept towards the back seat.

"Hey..." responded the male Inkling, as he sat on the back seat with a considerable amount of distance between him and Mechanica. So far, it was just awkward silence...

...until Mechanica moved closer towards the male Inkling after a few seconds had passed. Mechanica was making her move.

"You're sitting pretty close," the male Inkling said to Mechanica, as the other girls were watching very attentively. Wendy giggled, as she moved a curtain over the back seat.

"So, male Inkling...I can call you that, right? I was wondering, would you maybe want to walk around the Mystery Mountain with me?"

"Sure I mean, wasn't that already the plan?" The male Inkling scooted away from Mechanica, as the young genius was too close for comfort.

"I mean, just us. You and me. Mechanica and the male Inkling." At this point, the male Inkling was having feelings of uneasiness that he never felt before.

But the Inkling's mood would vanish away as Toad mashed on the brakes, coming to a stop in front of the Mystery Mountain entrance. How Toad was able to reach the brakes despite his stubby feet will forever remain a mystery.

"Alright, road dogs!" King Dedede exclaimed as everyone filed out of the RV. "I got five bucks for whoever can tip the big blue ox! Go, go, go!

"I'll see you in there!" Mechanica told the male Inkling, as the Koopalings ran off to go and cause some mayhem. Mechanica giggled as she walked away, while the male Inkling looked down at the ground.

"Hey, what's up with the mopey mug, kid?" King Dedede went over to the male Inkling, wanting to know why the youngster was looking so down.

"King Dedede! You gotta help me!" the male Inkling said to the penguin, breaking free from his depressed trance as he grabbed Dedede's collar. "Everything you taught me worked too well! I think Mechanica just asked me out on a date!"

"Hey hey! Look at this rowdy champion!" Very impressed, King Dedede smiled as he punched the male Inkling in his arm.

"What? No! I mean, Mechanica's great, she's sweet and she's smart, but I never thought of her like that! This is all moving way too fast." The male Inkling sat down on a nearby bench, to cool off and take a deep breath. "Okay. I just need to be honest with her and tell her I'm not ready for all this."

"Don't you see what's happening here?" King Dedede laughed at the male Inkling, shaking his head in disbelief. "That's your dumb obsession with Callie gettin' in the way of your future! If you wanna move on, you've gotta say yes to whatever comes your way. Speaking of which..."

King Dedede walked towards the ticket booth to Mystery Mountain, where he saw a beautiful blonde lady at the stand. The lady grinned at King Dedede.

"But I don't wanna lead her on! I don't think I'm ready for this..."

"Ah ah ah! Watch and learn." Once he reached the ticket booth, King Dedede dug into the pockets of his robe. "Oh, I seem to have lost my number!" Then he looked towards the lady, acting all flirt-like. "Can I borrow yours?"

"You are a riot!" the lady laughed at King Dedede, appreciating the penguin's humor. She was truly a rare kind. "What brings you here? We don't normally get men this handsome around these parts."

"Hehe. Well..." King Dedede looked at the lady's name tag, and saw the name "Arlene". "...Arlene, between you and me, what I'm doing here is a little secret."

"Oh, you seem like a man with secrets. Or, a bird with secrets. Arlene laughed, and King Dedede would laugh along with her. The male Inkling found this chemistry brewing between the two to be very off-putting.

"You know, I'm going on a break. You wanna take the sky tram up to Widow's Peak?"

"Take my advice or don't, but clearly I know what I'm doing," King Dedede leaned in to whisper to the male Inkling, before bringing his attention back to Arlene. The penguin offered his arm to Arlene, who took it delightfully.

"Oh, fancy!" gleamed Arlene, as she and King Dedede walked away arm-in-arm. King Dedede turned his head back at the male Inkling, grinning as he pointed at Arlene.


Link, Cloud, and Minato interrogated every person they believed was guilty of stealing the $3,000, and so far it got them nowhere. Of course, Wario was still a prime suspect, but the three were holding off on him.

"I really don't think it was anyone in the mansion," Link spoke with Cloud and Minato, as he felt like he was going around in circles all day.

"It had to have been someone," said Minato, wondering if there was even anyone left in the mansion to interrogate. No point in asking the more innocent folks.

Minato: Yeah, I do think it's someone in this mansion, which really breaks my heart, to tell you the truth. Because I thought we were all good people here...just with a few exceptions here and there. You know who I'm talking about.

"Maybe it was someone from the tower who did it," assumed Cloud, thinking that a wide-scale interrogation of the tower would be necessary. "What about the Squid Sisters, Marie and Callie?"

"They wouldn't do it," said Minato; the Squid Sisters were pop icons, they didn't need a measly $3,000 anyways. "They both have too much character."

"You have a crush on Marie...don't ya?" asked Pit, grinning from ear to ear as he nudged Minato at his side. Caught off-guard by Pit's question, Minato shook his head.

"I do not. That is improbable...all my heart goes to Yukari."

"You have a crush on Marie! You can't hide it."

"Stop it right now! I like Yukari, and nobody else."

"Does she excite you? Does he get your blood flowing? Does she get your..."

"Pit...enough," a very commanding Link said to the angel, who finally backed off. "You don't know anything."

"Minato and Marie, sitting in a tree, K-I-S-S..." Pit stopped singing when he saw Link, Cloud, and Minato glaring at him, and he kept his mouth shut for good.

"We don't think it was either of you," Link spoke with Marie and Callie in their room, as the Inklings were busy filing their nails. "But we have to ask everybody if you used any money from the mansion to buy anything..."

"Well, I mean, how would we do that even if we wanted to?" asked Marie.

"You would have to take some from petty cash," replied Pit...petty cash? What did Pit possibly know about petty cash?

"Well, we don't even know where that is," stated Callie.

"In Dark Pit's drawer. He keeps the key behind his bed post. Calls his money petty cash."

"Pit, why are you giving them instructions on how to steal?" Cloud scolded the angel, who once again had to be silenced.

"Wait, hold on - we'd never do something like that," said Marie. "It's wrong. We don't steal things."

"Well, I'm satisfied," said Minato, as he and the others were about to leave. "So, thank you very much for your time, Marie and Callie."

"Oh, Marie, one more question," Pit said to the Inkling, having a very serious question to ask of her. "What do you think of Minato?"

"You don't have to answer that one..." Link assured Marie, before grabbing Pit and dragging the angel out of the room. Cloud and Minato left afterwards.


With King Dedede off flirting with Arlene, the male Inkling had no choice but to face things on his own with Mechanica. The young lad was walking to one of the attractions at Mystery Mountain, with Mechanica by his side. Lemmy and Morton, who were busy raiding a candy machine, looked over and saw the male Inkling and Mechanica together, and were stunned.

Lemmy: I can't believe what I just saw...the male Inkling, going on a real date! And with that Mechanica girl! I wonder what they'll name the baby, if they can even have one.
Morton: If I had a baby, I would name it Morton 2: The Sequel!
Lemmy: You would make such a good father...

The male Inkling and Mechanica were inside one of the attractions, which was named "Mummy Town USA". Perhaps Master Mummy's family lived here. The male Inkling and Mechanica were sitting on a bench, underneath a banner that read "NEW MUMMIES DAILY".

"This place is very enchanting," remarked Mechanica as she looked around, while the male Inkling looked up at the banner over his head.

"Sort of confused by the phrase 'New Mummies Daily,' though," said the male Inkling, finding the banner altogether to be extremely suspect. "I mean, how does that even work?"

"This mountain is full of mysteries. Like, why are we sitting so close together?" The male Inkling saw how close Mechanica was sitting, and was getting all sweaty and nervous."

"Uh, yep! This is what I want! This is all part of the plan and stuff." Just when the male Inkling thought that things couldn't get any worse...a girl he met at the corn maze showed up.

"Oh, Agent 3! Hey!" the girl from the corn maze greeted the male Inkling, whose nervousness went from zero to a hundred real quick.

"Corn Maze Girl!" the male Inkling gasped, as Corn Maze Girl (as we'll call her) sat on the bench next to the male Inkling.

"I was wondering when you'd call." Mechanica began to furrow her brow.

"Male Inkling, who is this?" the young genius asked, as the male Inkling was feeling the heat.

"Nobody! I mean, uh, somebody, but..." Things would start taking a turn for the worse, as Sue from Upside-Down town showed up.

"Agent 3!" the girl greeted the male Inkling as she walked over to him. "I didn't recognize you right-side up. You'll never guess where my mom...hey, who are these girls?"

"Agent 3?" asked a girl that the male Inkling met at Log Land, appearing from around the corner. "Why haven't you called? Did our romantic log ride mean nothing to you?

"I can't believe it," Mechanica frowned at the male Inkling, completely disgusted with him just like the other girls. "You agreed to go on a date with me and you were seeing all these other girls?

"Well, answer us - which one of us do you like?" Corn Maze Girl asked the male Inkling, as the four girls cornered the youngster demanding some answers.

"I...I like all of you!" the male Inkling quickly responded, with the nervous sweat running down his face. "I mean, I don't like any of you! I mean...I was trying to learn how to talk to girls...hehe."

"Unbelievable..." the girl from Log Land said as she walked away, disgusted.

"So gross..." said Sue, as she too walked away from the male Inkling.

"What a jerk..." said Corn Maze Girl, being the third person to walk away. That only left Mechanica, who was very disappointed in the male Inkling.

"I thought you were a nice guy.." the young genius said to the male Inkling, before shaking her head at the youngster. "But I guess you only care about yourself." Mechanica huffed, as she walked away.

"Uh, Mechanica, wait!" the male Inkling called out, but it was too late; he goofed up big time. "Ugh, I messed everything up. I gotta find King Dedede. He'll know what to do!"


"So, it isn't Ayaha, it isn't Samus or Shulk, it isn't Bayonetta, it isn't any of us," said Link, after doing a rundown of the interrogations done today.

"We don't know that," said Minato, who kept a very close eye on someone he truly believed was the culprit...Pit.

Pit: I didn't steal $3,000. I am not stupid. If I wanted to steal from the mansion, there are a lot of easier ways to do it. For example, I could seal people's coats and sell them on eBay!

"You know what, enough of this investigation stuff," said Cloud; he would say something like that, wouldn't he? "We just have to put a memo to the mansion and ask that someone come forward anonymously."

"I'll write it!" volunteered Pit as he ran down the hallway; if the angel couldn't be trusted writing a speech, how could he be trusted putting a memo together?

"I'll supervise him..." Minato informed Link and Cloud, as he walked down the hallway following after Pit. "Pit, wait up for me!"


King Dedede and Arlene headed to the Giant Spider Forest, one of the many attractions of Mystery Mountain. It was smooth sailing for King Dedede so far.

"Oh, are you sure you wanna go this deep into the forest?" Arlene asked King Dedede, thinking that the fat penguin was too chicken to brave through a forest. "It's so scary."

"Heh, don't worry, toots," King Dedede assured Arlene, wrapping his arm around her. "That spider people stuff is just an urban legend. I can't believe people fall for it."

"You're so brave." Arlene put her hand on King Dedede's chest, and Dedede was really enjoying where things were headed.

"What can I say? I'm a real catch." King Dedede had a million dollar smile on his face.

"Yes." Arlene blinked, as her eyes turned pink and her voice was distorted. "The catch of the day..." Arlene suddenly began to change form, as something fell out of one of her eyes.

"Uh, I think your contacts fell out..." King Dedede picked up some contacts off the ground, before glancing up Arlene...and screaming out of his mind.


At the Mystery Mountain entrance, there was a dude running the information stand, looking bored just like any other person who would be working his job. The male Inkling ran up to the information stand, on the hunt for King Dedede.

"Uh, have you seen a fat penguin around here?" the male Inkling asked the man at the information stand, panting as he was nearly out of breath. "Blue skin, fat lips, a real know-it-all?" The man pointed over at some penguin animatronic, who fitted the description."

"Ah, ah, ah! Flame Retardant Penguin says: don't hug forest fires," the penguin animatronic warned, trying to take the shine from Smokey the Bear. No one could ever unseat Smokey.

"Ughhh. King Dedede, where are you? I need your advice!" As the male Inkling walked to the Mystery Mountain entrance, he heard his phone ringing, and picked it up. "King Dedede?"

"Hey, buddy boy - good thing Toad let me borrow his phone," King Dedede said on the phone, sounding like he found himself in some deep trouble. "So remember how we were talking about my technique? Well, sometimes it leads to unexpected consequences."

"Yeah, you can say that again. Where are you?"

"The good news is, I've solved the mystery of where Washington's mummies come from. The bad news is..."


"...I'm about to become one. Turns out Arlene is actually a witch, who turns people into mummies. But beyond that, the date's been okay." King Dedede was stuck in a large spider web inside some cave, as a shadowy figure approached him...revealing herself to be Cackletta, Mario and Luigi's old nemesis.

"Ah, yes, you're the biggest catch I've ever made..." Cackletta cackled at King Dedede, her tongue sticking out as she rubbed her hands menacingly. "...you'll be perfect for my mummy collection."

Cackletta: Shortly after he was revived by Kamek, Fawful politely requested to Kamek that he should revive me, his adoring master! Or so I've been told, by Kamek. Always knew that my assistant still has a soft spot for me. Since then, I've been running this tourist trap, after kicking out the original owners. I've made myself quite a collection of mummies, I'll say...

"Wait, wait, wait, Arlene is a witch?!" the male Inkling screamed over the phone, not expecting such a twist. "How is that possible?"

"I don't know; One minute we're having the perfect date, and the next minute she reveals her true form. This Cackletta witch lady is something else! Women, right!"

"Cackletta? You mean the evil witch that tried to steal Princess Peach's voice?!" The male Inkling had heard stories about Cackletta, from both Mario and Luigi. "You didn't even know it was her all along?!"

"I was blinded by flattery! Also, this weird acid she threw in my face. I'm up the mountain at Widow's Peak."

"Alright, I'm gonna find you. Stay put!" The male Inkling hung up, as Cackletta summoned a bat to retrieve the phone from King Dedede.

"Ah, aaaah! Trying to escape now, aren't we?" said Cackletta, as the bat dropped the phone in Cackletta's hand. Cackletta squeezed her hand, crushing the phone.

"You tricked me!" King Dedede shouted at Cackletta, having been played like a fiddle. "I'm 80% certain you don't really love me at all!" Anyone could've told you that...

"Hah! Men will fall for anything. You're just as smart as you look."

"You...you meant that to be a good thing, right?"

"Tell me, King Dedede. Before I transformed, who'd you think was in charge? You, with your cheesy lines and 'fake confidence?' I'm the one who's in control here. This time, you're getting used for your body! Since body-snatching is kind of my thing."

"You'll never get away with this. Fool me once, shame on you...but you won't fool me again!"

"I wonder what beverage pairs well with a vintage obese penguin? Be right baaaack!" Cackletta walked into a darkened part of the cave, laughing evilly.

"Come on, the male Inkling, where are you?" If King Dedede ever wanted out of his sticky situation, his hope rested on the male Inkling.

Cackletta: Tell me, what is my adoring assistant Fawful up to these days...What do you mean, he's doing time in jail?!


A heartbroken Mechanica was sitting at the Stump Bench, with her gal pals Wendy, Coco, Morgan, and the female Inkling. Aku was also there, watching as Mechanica was being comforted by her friends.

"I feel like such a fool," remarked Mechanica, looking down at the ground feeling hurt. "I should have known to guard my heart."

"There, there. Let my calming voice soothe you!" said Wendy, who was about to sing...only to be stopped by Coco, who put her hand in front of the Koopaling.

"Let's not do that..." Coco said to Wendy, saving herself and the other girls from audible torture. Soon the male Inkling showed up, panting as he ran over to the girls.

"Girls! There you are!" the male Inkling said to the girls, as Mechanica, Wendy, and the female Inkling were glaring at him. Coco and Morgan were at least acting impartial.

"Betrayer!" the female Inkling pointed accusingly at her male counterpart, hoping he realized how much he hurt Mechanica.

"Oh, you. What do you want?" Mechanica questioned the male Inkling, who knew just how angry the young genius was with him.

"I need your help," the male Inkling replied; he would ask some of the Koopalings for help, but they were off causing mischief. Crash, Crunch, Sonic, Tails, and Marc who knows what they were up to.

"With what, some sick jealousy trap?" Mechanica gave Wendy a high-five, making the male Inkling sigh.

"Yeah, sing it, Mechanica!" grinned Wendy, greatly enjoying how the young genius was standing up for herself. "Testify!"

"Look, I'm so sorry about everything," the male Inkling apologized; he'd have to do more than just an apology, to win back Mechanica's trust. "But King Dedede's in trouble! You can totally kill me later, but right now he needs us. I'll explain on the way."

Pit was in the library, typing up the memo. Supervising the angel was Minato, who had to make sure that everything was right. Grammar, format, everything.

"The date should be right-justified," Minato told Pit, who tapped away on the keyboard as he made the adjustment. "Right-justified, not left-justified. Do you know what 'justified' means?"

"Yeah, as in 'justifiable homicide'," replied Pit, as Minato read over the beginning part of the memo and saw something amiss.

"'To whom it may concern?' Really, Pit? Really?"

"Fine, then you write it..." Throwing his arms up in defeat, Pit got up from the computer, allowing Minato to take the wheel.

"Thank you, it's just easier this way."

Pit: I finished my own memo. *holds up a memo, which reads: "Friday To Whom it May Concern: MINATO STINKS. Sincerely, Pit"* Minato stinks. I mean, I'm not handing it out or anything. And don't tell him I said it. It's just for me. In fact, forget that I said anything about it, ever. Oh no. What have I done? *groans*


At the cave, Cackletta was singing to herself as she was making preparations for King Dedede's mummification. King Dedede was holding out hope that the male Inkling would eventually save him.

"Please. I don't know if you're really up there or not, but if you are...please save me, Grim Reaper!" prayed King Dedede, with hands clasped together. Since when has the Grim Reaper ever saved anyone?

"King Dedede!" a voice was heard from afar, as King Dedede found the voice very recognizable.

"Whoa, did that really work?" King Dedede turned his head, and instead of the Grim Reaper, the fat penguin saw Aku, with the male Inkling and the girls.

"I got you!" the female Inkling told King Dedede as she took out her Splattershot, using it to tear up the silk that was holding King Dedede in place. King Dedede fell to the ground, as everyone tore the webbing off the fat penguin.

"Quick! Before that witch lady shows up!" King Dedede and company ran out of the cave, as Cackletta appeared soon afterwards.

"No! Where are you?" the evil witch shouted for King Dedede, before turning into a bat as she chased after the fat penguin.


While Minato was busy putting on the finishing touches on the memo, Link spoke with Zelda in the gaming room, filling her in on what happened so far today. He felt that the princess deserved to be in the know.

"You're saying Wario stole money from the mansion?" Zelda asked Link, as Wario was still an at-large suspect.

"We've asked everyone else," replied Link, who at this point should just wrap up the whole investigation.

"Well It has to be somebody else. Like Bowser. Or Snake. No. Bowser definitely.

"Cloud and I asked him a few moments ago. He said he didn't do it."

"Which is exactly what you'd say if you did do it..." said a certain evil genius, as Cortex came around the corner after eavesdropping on Link and Zelda. "..I should've been handling this investigation from the beginning."

"I believe he didn't do it. Are you doubting me, Dr. Cortex?"

"No. There has to be a better explanation."

"How did he afford that new waterbed he's always bragging about?" asked Zelda, as she recalled Bowser bragging about his waterbed. Which he usually did whenever he got new stuff.

"He charged it. Discover. Made a little cash back on the deal. Why, if he were a general in the Army, and you accused him without proof, you would be court-martialed in front of a firing squad!"

"That's not true." Cortex could only laugh at Zelda's ignorance, as he walked away.

"Watch 'A Few Good Men' and tell me that that's not true. I own it on DVD if you wanna watch it later. 'You can't handle the truth.' Just kidding, you can."


King Dedede and company made it outside, and there was nowhere else to run to. That was, until there was a sky tram in sight.

"The sky tram! Everybody on!" shouted Mechanica as everyone ran inside the sky tram, which was big and spacious enough for everyone. The door to the sky tram closed, as the sky tram took off down the mountain.

"Ha ha, yes!" cheered King Dedede, relieved to be out of the cave and away from Cackletta. "Ride like the wind, sky tram!" Unfortunately for Dedede and company, the tram was moving very slowly.

"Welcome to Trambience, the world's slowest treetop tram ride," said the voice inside the sky tram, with a boring tone to boot. "Enjoy the sights at 0.1 miles per hour."

"Ugh, can't this thing go any faster?" groaned Morgan, as the very speed of the tram felt almost painful, nerve-wracking even.

"No it can't. This is Trambience. Enjoying the view? Take a picture!"

Cackletta's head appears in the window, with a very evil smile. Everyone inside the tram panicked, as Cackletta started licking the tram window.

"We're doomed!" panicked King Dedede, thinking that he was now living out his last moments on earth. "We're all gonna die!

"Listen carefully!" shouted Mechanica, as she was reading a pamphlet on aerial tramway. "This sky tram has an emergency drop switch. Below us is one of the largest statues in Washington. And Old Reliable goes off in five...four..." Mechanica looked at her watch, as she grabbed the emergency drop switch.

"Mechanica, wait, don't pull that lever!" the male Inkling pleaded to the young genius, who kept on counting down as the others were on edge.

"Kid, are you crazy?!" questioned King Dedede; he knew he was going to go out soon, but he didn't want to go out like this.

"Now!" shouted Mechanica as she pulled the switch, disconnecting the tram from the rail and sending it and Cackletta down to the ground. An Old Reliable went off, pushing the tram into the air and making it bounce and roll across Mystery Mountain, barrel through the ticket booth and crash into a statue of some man holding a hammer. Cackletta was severed from the tram, and lied beneath the statue as its hammer fell on the witch.

"My only weakness! A hammer!" Cackletta hissed, struggling to get from underneath the giant hammer that pinned her down. "A giant shoe also would've been pretty bad. Cursed Mario Bros..."

Chilling at the entrance to Mystery Mountain were Sonic, Crash, Crunch, Tails, Marc, and the other Koopalings, who all saw the tram land from afar. Crunch opened the tram door, as King Dedede and those inside the tram stumbled out, safe and sound.

"Thank you for riding the Trambience sky tram!" thanked the voice recording from inside the tram, sounding more upbeat than usual. "Tell your friends it was a boring, boring ride."

"Are y'all okay?" Crunch asked King Dedede and company, checking them for any injuries. "That sure looked like a pretty hard fall!"

"Kid, that was ingenious!" King Dedede said to Mechanica, now thinking that the young genius was now smarter than Coco and Tails. "How'd you know that would work?"

"Useless travel pamphlets!" replied Mechanica, showing Dedede the travel pamphlet that she had been carrying around this whole time.

Sonic: Those guys in the tram should've been DEAD! Now I know that this is all a fever dream or hallucination. A bum like King Dedede shouldn't be having more immortality than me!

"Oh, King Dedede..." a weakened Cackletta called out to the fat penguin, as she was still trapped underneath the large wooden hammer. "I'm sorry. I dunno what came over me. You'll let me out, right?"

"What?! After all that?" frowned King Dedede; he already made it clear that he wouldn't be fooled a second time. "Seriously, do I look like an amnesiac?"

"You're so funny." Cackletta laughed with a laugh that was more friendly, and not as evil. "Have you ever considered becoming a comedian?"

"You know, I actually have. Comedy is too subtle these days. My style involves more oversized props and junk." King Dedede walked over to Cackletta, strangely offering her a helping hand. "Here, let me get you out from there..."

"No, wait!" shouted Morgan as she and her gal pals grabbed King Dedede, pulling him away.

"Oh, yeah. Right." King Dedede was literally seconds away from breaking his own promise - he just couldn't help himself.

"You win this round, King Dedede! But mark my words, as long as there's gullible men like you out there, I'll never run out of prey!" Cackletta turned into a flurry of bats, as King Dedede and the others screamed.

"Aah! Get the car, get the car!" screamed King Dedede, as he and the others quickly ran inside the RV for safety. Toad, who was just chilling in the RV the entire time, drove away from Mystery Mountain.


The road trip had come to an end, as Toad was driving back to the mansion. The male Inkling sighed, as he wiped the girls' numbers off of his arm.

"Alright, kid, I gotta admit something," King Dedede said to the male Inkling, coming over to make a confession. "I'm no expert on women. Truth is, I've been divorced once, and slapped more times than I can remember. Confidence can buy you a lot, but at the end of the day, pickup artists tend to get our heads bitten off. When it comes to women, I'm a failure."

" 're both failures." The male Inkling pointed at his arm, showing King Dedede that he had nothing to be ashamed about. "You know, even if your dating tips were bad, I actually haven't thought about Callie all day. Plus, you did teach me to be more confident. I guess I just need to learn to use that power for good."

The male Inkling got up and walked over to Mechanica, who was staring out the window. Doesn't seem like there was any tension between Mechanica and the male Inkling.

"Hey, I found a pamphlet I don't think you've read yet," the male Inkling said to Mechanica, handing her a pamphlet that was titled, "A Loser's Attempt At An Apology". Mechanica read the pamphlet, and smiled.

"It's okay, male Inkling - the open road makes people do crazy things," responded Mechanica, admitting that she had gone a little crazy during the road trip. "Plus, after seeing you flee that witch like a baby, I kind of lost interest."

Male Inkling: Yep! Yep. I deserved that.


The RV returned to the mansion, as Toad parked it near his bus. All the occupants got out.

"I still feel a little bad about those tourist traps being wrecked," remarked Toad; maybe he should've done something about it, instead of just sitting around in the RV all day.

"Ah, come on, everyone loves pranks!" gleamed King Dedede, who thought of himself as the ultimate prankster. Leagues ahead of the likes of Bowser. "And the best part is, Master Hand doesn't have to face any consequences for my...SWEET MOTHER OF PEARL!"

King Dedede ran to the mansion, and was in full panic mode when he saw the owners of the tourist traps he wrecked messing around the mansion. They were smashing a decoy of Master Hand's Lamborghini with baseball bats, thinking it was the real deal.

"That's what you get, Master Hand!" shouted the owner of the Corn Maze, as he was smashing the headlights of the Lamborghini decoy. Link and Minato arrived, seeing the carnage.

"Good thing that neither one of us will be held liable for this..." Link said to Minato, before approaching King Dedede. "Oh, King Dedede, have you seen Banjo and Kazooie around?"


Banjo and Kazooie were still at the corn maze, after pretty much everyone forgot about them. Banjo showed no signs of wanting to escape, much to Kazooie's chagrin.

"Okay, Banjo, remember what Mumbo Jumbo taught you," Banjo said to himself, standing alone in the corn maze with Kazooie. "When you get lost, stay exactly where you are, and don't move."

"Some strategy this is supposed to be..." grumbled Kazooie, as Banjo was struggling to stay still; for him, it was apparently harder than it looked.

"You know, I would make a really good scarecrow."


Unable to find out who stole the $3,000, the trio of Link, Cloud, and Minato spoke with the search committee in Master Hand's room to discuss the issue. Tom Nook and Isabelle might not be able to remedy the problem themselves, but it couldn't hurt to fill them in.

"Well, Pit claims that neither Cortex nor Brio took it, but frankly, I think he's hiding something," Minato said to Tom Nook and Isabelle, as the former awkwardly cleared his throat. "What is it, Tom Nook?"

"We, uh...Isabelle and I found the money," replied Tom Nook, as Minato and company's eyes went wide. Did the search committee find out who stole it, though?

"You did? Where?" inquired Cloud, as Tom Nook was too reluctant to speak - which meant that Isabelle had to spill the beans.

"According to our records...it was you who did it, Minato," Isabelle said to the young man, who instantly perked up. He was looking very nervous.

"How can you be so sure?" questioned Minato, refusing to believe that he ever stole any money. "Do you have any proof?"

"The proof was in your room all along," replied Tom Nook, taking out a stack of cash and placing it on the table. Inside the stack? $3,000. "Found the money underneath your pillow."

"There's a post-it note on the cash," observed Link, squinting his eyes as he made out the message and read it out loud. "'Tom Nook is the biggest child trafficker in history.'"

"...not sure how that got there." Tom Nook tore off the post-it note, before balling it up and tossing it in the nearby trash can.

"I don't understand, it wasn't underneath my pillow this morning..." stated Minato, finding himself deep in thought as he stroked his chin. Maybe he just forgot to check.

"I know Isabelle and I let candidates like yourself have access to the mansion's safe, but I'm afraid that you overstepped your boundaries, Minato. And since we have no refutable evidence..."

"Yeah, I know, I know...it was an honest mistake."

Minato: So...that's that. Somehow $3,000 magically appeared underneath my pillow, and I lost my candidacy because of it. I'd say that I had a pretty decent run - just wish that the end was much sweeter.


Easing his cares away, Minato was chilling in the living room, watching some television to take his mind off of things. Keeping him company was Yukari, and Minato told her all that had happened today.

"So are you gonna clear your name?" Yukari asked Minato, who mulled over the suggestion. "Can't be known as the guy who stole thousand of dollars from the safe!"

"To be fair, only me, Link, Cloud, and Mario know about the money," replied MInato, as he was flipping through the TV stations. "It'll be our own little secret."

"I still think you should do something. Honestly, I'd hunt whoever put the money under your pillow, if I were you."

"Might do some lowkey investigating, and see what I can find. You may see some justice being dealt pretty soon..."