Author's Note:
It's that time of the year...Halloween. Yay, I guess. This chapter has some Mario Party in it, with a side of Fatal Frame: Maiden of Black Water. It was intended to have more focus on Fatal Frame, but plans changed. No avalanche of guest reviews, as I had feared...
"So, I guess the baby will be a son, no? Since Mario already had a daughter. I guess you're gonna name him Louis, for Lou Albano. But there's always alternatives, like Robert for Bob Hoskins, or Christopher for Chris Pratt."
Mario will have a son. Louis would be a good name, as a homage to the late great Captain Lou Albano. Or I can name him Christopher, because of Chris Pratt. (He's so cool!) Another anonymous review:
"Could you write a Kirby-centric chapter? I haven't seen any of them for a while."
Shoot, I can't even remember the last Kirby-centric chapter I wrote. I'll add that one to the menu. One last anonymous review:
"...huh. How can Cranky be in Seattle, when last episode, you had Cranky appear and talking about the hotel in Hyrule? A continuity error?"
Yup. My mistake. I'll fix it. On to David:
"If Terra, Aqua, and Ven show up, will Vantias show up to cause trouble? A possible scene of Riku meeting Noctis and Yozora? (Some joked that Yozora is Noctis's Nobody). Have any Xenoblade superbosses shown up to cause trouble? Does anyone keep Deoxys in check so he doesn't randomly kidnap people like he did in his debut movie? Are Sora and Kairi gonna be roommates with Cloud? Do you think Nintendo is overcharging for the Switch Online Expansion? And finally, do you believe that the WWE Raw Women's division is safe now that Nia Jax is out due to a hand injury? (Look at the videos of her botching her performances that led to so many injuries)."
He might. Riku could meet Noctis one day, don't know about Yozora. No Xenoblade superbosses have shown up. There is someone who keeps Deoxys in check...but I won't say who. Sora and Kairi are roommates with Riku. I do agree that Nintendo is overcharging with the new expansion (I knew there was a fee involved, but I wasn't expecting it to be THAT big). And I think that the WWE Raw Women's division is safe - for the time being. After Nia returns, who knows. Some more questions from David:
"Will the non-Smash residents also have a home not too far from the mansion? (That way Little Mac and Leia can keep seeing each other). Will the Sakura Wars characters show up for the Super Robot Wars chapter? (They're from Sega and just got announced as DLC for the game). Is the Advance Wars chapter gonna be pushed back? (The game got delayed until Spring 2022). Is Roxas gonna have his Twilight Town or Organization XIII outfit when he shows up? And finally, what are your thoughts on G4TV finally returning to television?"
Some will. Sakura Wars characters might be in the Super Robot Wars chapter. The Advance Wars chapter, sadly, will be pushed back. Roxas will have his Twilight Town outfit, it's too iconic. And I'm happy to see G4TV back on TV. Watched it quite a bit when I was but a young lad. Next is Romance Enjoyer:
"...please, don't entertain the idea of Doom Slayer x Isabelle. I'm a romance enjoyer, NOT a zoophilia enjoyer."
The thought of Doom Slayer and Isabelle being an...item always puzzled me. That said, you will see how I treat the two in this story. Moving on:
"Also, wasn't Champion Link's Zelda named Commander Zelda? And, will Toon Zelda appear as Tetra, or is this Toon Zelda from Phantom Hourglass?"
I think she was named Commander Zelda! Whoops. And the Toon Zelda that was featured is from The Wind Waker (a favorite of mine). An old reviewer, El Pollo Campero...has returned!
"...is there ever going to be a story plot revolving around College football. We've done professional, so why not the collegiate?"
I love college football (Go Gamecocks!), so I would be open to doing a story plot around it. Perhaps in January, during the College Football Playoff. (If Cincinnati makes it in, and Alabama somehow doesn't, I will be a happy man.)
Episode 306: Spooked
It was finally done. After many long years, after many months of "will he, won't she?" - Link and Zelda finally got married. The man and woman of the mansion were the most recent couple to get married, and they did it in their homeland of Hyrule. Many Link and Zelda incarnations were witnesses of the big moment, which was pretty neat.
Link and Zelda had no plans on moving out of the mansion; they were the biggest voices of authorities around, only after Master Hand. But there was one person who was on the verge of moving out - Cilan, the connoisseur who had stayed at the mansion as far back as episode 44. Thanks to some enticing from Iris, Cilan decided to head back to Unova after the wedding. But since he had some "unfinished business" left to do, Cilan instead opted to stick around until the end of October.
Little did anyone know that Cilan wouldn't be the only one on the verge of leaving. Wishing to "trim some fat" from the mansion, Master Hand asked several residents to join him in his room - Crash, Coco, Crunch, Aku, Cortex, Uka, Ema Skye, Leia, and the Hearts siblings, Hisui and Kohaku.
"What do you think this is about?" Coco whispered to the others, as Isabelle was with Master Hand getting the giant hand's notes ready. As if Master Hand needed any notes, to begin with.
"Must be about the whole 'Get It Kraken' initiative next week," assumed Hisui, who had heard murmurings about this initiative from the party-planning committee. "I hate that Seattle got a hockey team..."
"Whatever it is about, it can't be good," mumbled Cortex, in a very sour mood as he was frowning with his arms folded. "I'm still salty that Marth embarrassed me in front of my love at the wedding dinner!"
"Marth embarrassed you in front of your nonexistent girlfriend?" Ema asked Cortex, who responded with an offended frown. "Oh, you're talking about her..."
Cortex: Everything at the wedding reception was going well - I was seated next to Tiki, and we were enjoying dinner and each other's company! Then Marth passed by and poured hot chai on my lap. On my previously injured crotch! Who in their right mind would have chai at a wedding reception? Clearly, Marth had done that act on purpose.
Marth: That was purely an accident - I only spilled my drink because I had slipped on a banana peel on the floor. Diddy Kong never knows where the trash can is, if ever. As for Cortex winning Tiki's heart...I hope that he lives in his delusion forever. Means less trouble for me.
"Greetings, everyone," Master Hand greeted the residents in his room, speaking with a heavy heart. Almost like he had some devastating news to deliver. "This is a day that I was dreading for some time..."
"It's not even Halloween yet," stated Hisui, as Halloween - Master Hand's most favorite holiday - was but two days away. "What's got you so worked up, Master Hand?"
"Really? Do you want to know? Do you really want to know? Trust me, this will hurt me a lot more than it will hurt you."
"You're sounding quite vague, Master Hand..." stated Aku, able to tell how lowkey miserable the giant hand was feeling. Isabelle might have to deliver the news to everyone herself. "...out with it!"
"Very well...Isabelle, give 'em what they came here for." So Isabelle went around, passing out a slip of paper to everyone. Everyone took the slip of paper, as they read the very top...
"Woah! Is this an eviction notice?" asked Crunch, as he saw the words "eviction notice" at the top in dark, bold letters. Now even more depressed, Master Hand let out a sigh.
"Since this mansion is getting overcrowded, I am going to cut loose with several of the residents - starting with you guys. You have between now and December 31st to leave the mansion. I would appreciate it if you go out peacefully - don't make me get the firing squad on any of your behinds."
"F-Firing squad?" Kohaku said to Master Hand, looking up at the giant hand with sudden fear. "As in, a bunch of men armed with rifles and guns?"
"Yes...is that not what firing squad means? What, you think that I have an army of Vince McMahons, ready to kick you out of the mansion? Use your brain!"
"Well, I can't say that I'm too shocked by this," remarked Ema, taking her eviction notice with heavy stride as she placed her note in her pocket. "I was planning on leaving the mansion soon anyway."
"You...WHAT?!" Master Hand found himself shocked by Ema's decision, and it was a decision that Ema was proud of taking. "You wish to leave voluntarily?"
"I mean, I was planning on going to Europe a few years ago. Better late than never, as they always say!" Ema had a big smile on her face, as Master Hand hovered away in disbelief.
"But I like you...you're so sweet and caring, and gave me free pedicures when no one else would. You even got Jakob arrested, for crying out loud!"
"Well, I'm glad that I won't be doing your stupid pedicures anymore soon." As Master Hand gasped, Ema left the room. "Looking forward to the remainder of my stay, Master Hand!"
"No, Emma, come back!" Master Hand called out to the forensics expert, but nothing he could do or say would be able to bring her back. The giant hand was left in shambles, hovered over to his bed.
"At least you still have us, Master Hand!" Leia said optimistically to the giant hand, who collapsed onto his bed with a sad moan. "There, there..." Leia pet Master Hand gently, making him feel better, as everyone else left the room.
Cortex: That Master Hand, trying to keep me away from Tiki...ooh, I know! I'll just pull a Tom Nook and live in the basement of the tower. That way, I can be even closer to Tiki than ever before! Should've done it the very moment the tower was built!
Uka: Sure would be an easy way to warrant a restraining order...
Ema Skye: Felt like I already served my time at the mansion. Took care of Jakob, and ensured Aerith's residency, among other things. Now it's time for me to go. If you love something, set it free - and as I've learned today, Master Hand loves me a LOT more than I gave him credit for.
Isabelle and company exited Master Hand's room, left to continue with the rest of their day. Crunch turned around and smirked when he saw a certain marine making his way over to Isabelle.
"Don't look, Isabelle, but I think your secret admirer wants to have a word with you," Crunch said to the Shih Tzu, who started to blush and smile as she thought about her favorite hippie dog.
"Is it K.K. Slider?" asked Isabelle, before turning around...her smile immediately turned upside down, as the Doom Slayer approached her while donning a pumpkin mask over his face. He was holding a small Halloween costume. "Oh my..."
"Nice Pikachu Libre costume, Isabelle," smiled Hisui, and the Doom Slayer was holding a Pikachu Libre costume in his hand. Custom-fit for Isabelle.
"I was going to dress up as a witch for Halloween this year, but...thanks anyway, Doom Slayer," Isabelle thanked the marine, who snatched up the Shih Tzu and ran away. "Not again!"
"You guys think that Master Hand knows about the Halloween festival going on?" Coco asked the others - was this festival taking place right now? Let's see...
Outside the mansion, residents were gathered outside dressed in Halloween costumes. Citizens of Seattle were also gathered outside, also dressed in Halloween costumes. And there were a lot of Halloween decorations and attractions...yup, definitely a Halloween festival taking place.
Master Hand, who was originally depressed when he had to break the bad news to Ema and company, wanted to go outside so he could find something to cheer him up. But when he appeared outside and saw everyone gathered in the Halloween spirit and whatnot, the giant hand was completely beside himself.
"Who wants some free candy?" asked Anna, dressed up as a witch, as a bunch of kids flanked to the merchant's lady stand. Master Hand gasped in horror as Anna offered Halloween candy to the children.
"Anna!" Master Hand called out the merchant lady's hand, before floating over to the stand. Anna's presence was the very least of Master Hand's concern. "Is that Halloween candy even free?"
"The reject ones aren't, but as for the rest...the kids will find out later." The kids started eating up the candy as Master Hand watched, sick to his stomach.
"Are you kids alright?" Master Hand the children, assuming that Anna kidnapped the children, and brought them to the festival for her own sick purposes. "Do you need me to call your mommy and daddy?"
"My mom is getting her face painted," a boy replied as he pointed over at his mom, who was getting a face painting from Vince. Master Hand gasped once more, almost on the verge of passing out.
"This skull design looks lovely on you, ma'am!" Vince said to the woman who was getting her face painted, as Master Hand was shaking. Soon Sora and his friends, Riku and Kairi, approached Master Hand while wearing their Halloween getups.
"You look pretty upset, Master Hand," Sora said to the giant hand, who slowly turned to the Keyblade wielder bridled with rage. Said rage increased when he saw what Sora and friends were wearing. "Upset that no one invited you to the festival?"
"How could you do this to your own friends, man?" Master Hand questioned Sora, who furrowed his brow in confusion. "Why would you infect Riku and Kairi with this Halloween filth?"
"We've been into Halloween for a long time," stated Riku, as Master Hand gasped a third time. He was hyperventilating fast, unable to control his emotions. "Ever since we were little kids."
"But that's impossible! How would you even trick-or-treat on Destiny Island? It's just you three! Where do you get the candy? You expect it to come in bottles floating across the sea?"
"Hey, you guys, the dunk tank is about to start!" Red the Pokemon Trainer called out to Sora and friends while wearing a Charizard costume. It was pretty hot in that costume - and that was without the flames.
"We'll talk to you later, Master Hand," Kairi said to the giant hand as she, Sora, and Riku ran off to the dunk tank, which was now accruing spectators. "Save some of the Halloween candy for us!"
Riku: It's funny - after Sora aged down, Kairi and I did the same. Can't say that I changed much - my hair's still short, so I almost feel the same man. Just younger. And maybe more handsome. Don't even try to call me cute.
Red the Pokemon Trainer: Well, I'm back to being physically young again. Thanks, Sora, I guess. So technically I'm in my thirties, but physically, I feel like a ten-year-old. Gonna be super weird to explain this to my mom and Professor Oak.
Everyone gathered around at the dunk tank, which had a Halloween theme to it. Sitting inside the dunk tank was Mario, who wearing a purple cape and a pumpkin over his head. Yashiro was the "host" of the dunk tank festivities, wearing a circus ringleader outfit and holding a microphone in his hand.
"Who wants to be the first to dunk the famous Mario into the water?" Yashiro asked the crowd, as many were voicing their desire to dunk Mario into the water he was sitting above. Master Hand saw Mario sitting in the dunk tank, and couldn't believe his nonexistent eyes.
"I am very brittle, so I would-a appreciate if any of you miss," Mario said to the crowd, before looking down and panicking when he saw a school of Carvanha swimming underneath. "Yashiro, why is there-a Carvanha in the water?"
"It's to ante up the stakes a little bit. Also, seeing you get bit all over would be funny. And entertaining!" Clearly thinking otherwise, Mario gulped nervously as he awaited his possible fate.
"Can I go first? I wanna go first!" shouted Bowser, as he pushed through the crowd not caring who he knocked down. Whether it be child or adult. "Let me take a crack at it."
"Bowser, you can't just cut in line and expect things to be handed to you," Yashiro said to the Koopa King, who rarely enjoyed being lectured. "I haven't even picked anyone..."
"Well, you should pick me! As Mario's long-time nemesis (and occasional drinking buddy), I feel obligated to dunk Mario into the water first. It is my duty!"
"The drinking buddy part is not-a true," stated Mario, while at the same time pondering over how miserable it would be to drink beer with Bowser of all people. He would much rather have Pit as a drinking pal.
"Whatever. I'm still gonna enjoy this anyway." Bowser marched over to Yashiro and held out his hand to the idol singer. "Give me the ball, Yashiro."
"You can't just demand things!" Yashiro frowned at Bowser, who grabbed the idol singer by the collar and held him up in the air. Yashiro began fearing for his life, as the crowd looked on in peril.
"Do I really have to repeat myself? Give me the ball, or you're going next after Mario!" Refusing to swim with the Carvanha, Yashiro dropped the ball in Bowser's hand, and Bowser dropped Yashrio onto the ground. "Thank you."
"You're welcome..." Yashiro wheezed in slight pain, before standing back up slowly as Bowser assumed his position in front of the dunk tank. "...here is Bowser, with his first attempt at dunking Mario."
"Mama mia..." uttered Mario, bracing himself and closing his eyes as he feared for the worst. His fingers were crossed, as he hoped for Bowser to miss.
Bowser, knowing what his objective was, acted out his plan methodically as he got himself in the groove. He stared down at the target like a baseball pitcher staring at a baseball mitt. Once his focus was locked in, Bowser winded up his arm and threw the ball at the target...only for the ball to be caught midway in the air.
"Hey!" frowned Bowser, after Master Hand suddenly appeared and caught the ball right before it could hit the target. Master Hand threw the ball in Yashiro's direction, almost nailing the idol singer in the head. "What gives?"
"I'm sorry - Mario and I need to have an executive meeting," stated Master Hand, reaching into the dunk tank and pulling Mario out. Mario felt relief as Master Hand took him away from the premises.
"Uh...anyone wants to sit in the dunk tank?" Yashiro asked the crowd, shortly after Master Hand had left. He saw Bowser veering over at him, and immediately felt uncomfortable. "Bowser, why are you looking at me like that...?"
Mario was carried back to his house by Master Hand, who dropped the plumber at his front door. Master Hand then turned Mario around, making sure that he was facing the front door. Seconds passed, and Mario was doing nothing.
"...well?" Master Hand asked Mario, wondering what the hold-up was. "Are you gonna head inside or what?" Mario did not move an inch, for he was more confused than anything.
"Why would I go inside-a for?" asked Mario, as Yashiro was heard screaming and calling for help from the distance. "The Halloween festival hasn't ended yet."
"That's the point - I'm merely trying to save you from that hoopla. Yashiro may have tried to rope you in, but spending time will your spouse ought to..."
"I think Mario used that blanket of yours for his costume," Peach said to Spyro as she opened the front door, wearing some bumblebee outfit. The princess quickly recognized the cape that Mario was wearing. "Aw, would you look at that! He's wearing it!"
"Seriously, Mario? Not cool," Spyro confronted the plumber, getting all worked up over his blanket. Linus van Pelt would be so proud. "What else am I supposed to sleep with?"
"Gotta say, it's great-a for blowing my nose," remarked Mario, demonstrating as he blew his nose on his cape...erm Spyro's blanket. Spyro's mouth went agape, as he was full of disgust.
Spyro: Well, it looks like I lost my blanket forever. Just like how I lost that mug I got from Lilina after Mario pooped in it. (Both bathrooms were occupied.) If Mario uses Sparx as a toothbrush or something, then it gets personal.
"Why are you sobbing, Master Hand?" Peach asked the giant hand, who was crying his nonexistent eyes out. If Master Hand could shed tears, his tears would be like literal gallons of water.
"It's the same old rodeo every year..." sobbed Master Hand, who was reaching a level of disappointment never before seen. "...every year, your stupid wife forces you to celebrate this stupid holiday."
"You're seeing other women?" Peach crinkled her nose at Mario, wondering what deep, dark secrets her husband was holding from her. "What 'stupid wife' do you have?"
"Don't you see, princess?" Master Hand was letting it all out on Peach, unleashing all of his disappointment on her. "You're the one making Mario enjoy Halloween, against his free will!"
"I've always loved-a Halloween," Mario admitted to Master Hand, who wanted to believe that the plumber was telling lies. Lies fed from Peach. " I don't know what narrative-a you're spinning."
"Yes, you have always loved Halloween...and it's all Peach's fault." Master Hand's melodrama was earning the giant hand weird looks from Mario and company. "She manipulated you, tricked you. And I'm going to fix it."
"Fix what, exactly?" inquired Spyro, as Master Hand wished to steer Mario in the right direction. "Why can't you just accept that a lot of people genuinely like Halloween?"
"Because then I would have to accept that this world is full of foolish people. And that is one 'truth' that I am not willing to accept!" Master Hand looked out into the distance and saw the game board that was first constructed in episode 146. It was still there.
"Don't do it, Bowser...please don't!" Yashiro was heard pleading to the Koopa King, before screaming as the sound of water splashing was heard. Yashiro was screaming even louder as he jumped out of the dunk tank, with Carvanha all over him.
"I know what will get the 'Halloween spirit' out of your system," Master Hand said to Mario, watching as Yashiro was running around in agony. "How about a good ol' game of Mario Party?"
"But I have a Halloween-a festival to get back to," stated Mario, as Master Hand slapped the plumber silly. In a perfect world, Master Hand would have canceled the festival already.
"Forget the festival, it's nothing more than a waste of your time! Don't know why we're even having such a festival in the first place. Was this Link's idea? Thought he was smarter than that..."
Link was sitting in front of a mirror in his room, applying some makeup to his face. Why was the Hylian wearing makeup, mind you? It was because he was going back to dressing up as the Joker for Halloween - The Dark Knight Joker, that is. Midna floated inside the room and saw Link, shaking her head.
"So this is what you want to do after you get married," the imp said to Link, who was drawing the iconic red Joker smile over his mouth. "Going back to playing pretend for Halloween."
"It's for the party," stated Link - no Halloween at the Smash Mansion would be complete without a party to go along with it. "Can't hurt to add a little...chaos to the fun."
"Here we go again..." Midna turned and looked away in shame, only to see Zelda enter the room while dressed up as Harley Quinn. "...you too, princess?"
"I'm quite shocked by your demeanor, Midna," Zelda said to the imp, who turned and looked away once more. "I imagined that a girl like you would enjoy Halloween."
"Guess all that edginess was wasted on the wrong person," said Link, as Midna frowned and gave the Hylian a hard smack on the face. "Ow! Watch it, you're gonna ruin the facepaint!"
"So what..." muttered Midna, as she rubbed the white facepaint off of her hand. Link was left with a hand imprint on his face, where Midna slapped him at.
Link: Took a year off last Halloween, but the greatest criminal mastermind is back in the game. Bear in mind, I'm no monster - I'm just one step ahead of the curve. Always have, always will be. *winks at the camera*
"There, all done," said Link, as he patched up the spot on his face where Midna slapped him at. With his Joker transformation complete, the Hylian stood up from his bed and put his materials away. "Let's go to the party."
"I can't believe that I have to be associated with you both," Midna grumbled to Link and Zelda as she exited the room with the newly-wedded Hylian couple. "If I see any more crappy Halloween costumes..."
"What is up, my diggity dawgs?!" Dr. Wily suddenly approached Link and Zelda, as he was back in his Young Wily persona - wearing a basketball jersey, baggy pants, a baseball cap, and some gold chains. "Young Wily, back in action!"
"...I sadly spoke too soon." Midna got a brief taste of Young Wily during last year's Halloween, and now she wanted to shoot herself in the head. Just to save her from the misery.
"Um, nice gold chains, Dr. Wily," Zelda awkwardly said to the mad scientist, who was flaunting his gold chains for the princess and Link to see. Midna was too bothered to care. "How much are they worth?"
"I dunno, I stole them from the jewelry store just to complete my costume," Wily replied with a shrug; that man might have a warrant for his arrest. "So how was your honeymoon, home dawgs?"
"It was lovely; we both had a fun time," answered Link, who had spent his honeymoon with Zelda in Hyrule. Spend their time touring the land. "The Link and Zeldas were there, too. They should be coming over later today."
"Midna was our plus-one," added Zelda, as Midna refused to be acknowledged - especially when Young Wily was in her presence. "She almost got us banned from a tavern."
"Well, how was I supposed to know that lady was a man?" questioned Midna, who apparently slapped a father of three at the tavern Link and Zelda went to. "His wife should've done him a favor and shaved his head."
Hunter: When Link went on his honeymoon, I started borrowing his room to fart in. Then one day I came in and I just stayed. Cause that room is awesome. It feels like home now. Even better than my home. My home sucks. Thanks, Mario.
Champion Link: Had to bunk in with Cloud and Sephiroth during Link's honeymoon, since Hunter wanted to stink up the joint. I mean, the first few days were Hunter weren't so bad, then suddenly I started developing a sinus infection. A cheetah's farts are not to be trifled with.
"Back to dressing up as the Joker again..." sighed Cloud as he appeared in the hallway, feeling disappointed when he saw Link. "...guess some things never change, even after marriage."
"Sadly, Link might be a broken record," said Midna, as she was losing all hope for Link. If she had done it before, her hope must now be at an all-time low. "Zelda can't even fix him at this point."
"Is today 'Crap-On-Link-After-His-Wedding Day' or something?" frowned Link, as he directed much of his anger towards Cloud and Midna. "Why aren't we smearing Zelda's name for playing dress-up?"
"Because she can take it far better than you can," replied Cloud - Link wanted to refute his best friend's claim but couldn't find the words to do it. "Also, I didn't come here to make fun of you..."
"Cloud Strife! Sorry for being late," Simon apologized to the swordsman as he came running down the hallway, holding a large picture frame in his hands. "Richter was busy getting this framed."
"Framed for what?" Cloud watched as Simon held up the picture frame - and in the picture frame was the quilt of Link and Zelda knitted in episode 144. "That is totally unnecessary."
"We still appreciate the gesture, Simon," Zelda told the vampire hunter, also appreciating Simon for providing one of the better wedding gifts. Better than some lousy toaster that can't even cook hot dogs.
"I have another quilt framed - it's of the more 'naked' variety," Simon informed Link and Zelda, who both cringed at the thought of them being nude in any art medium. "Meta Knight's idea. I would recommend not hanging that one up in your new home."
"Our new...home?" Link furrowed his brow, confused as he and Zelda had no plans of ever moving out. Not especially as the man and woman of the mansion.
"Have you not heard? The Carpenters are going to build a new home for you two to stay in. I personally don't blame you for leaving these heathens behind."
"Talk about a blessing in disguise," remarked Midna, as she was in much agreement with Simon. This new house was news to Link and Zelda, as they exchanged bewildered looks with one another.
"Cloud, you're in charge of the Halloween party," Link delegated to Cloud, patting the swordsman on his torso as he and Zelda hurried down the hallway. "Make sure no one pees in the punch bowl like last year."
"But what about the quilt?" Simon called out to Link and Zelda, who were both out of sight as they were gone in the blink of an eye. Simon sighed as he looked down at the picture-framed quilt in his hands.
"About this...exhibitionist quilt of LInk and Zelda..." Wily whispered to Simon, breaking character as he leaned in close to the vampire hunter. "...mind if I take a sneak peek?"
"Did you happen to steal those gold chains?" Simon curiously asked Wily, as he was peering at the mad scientist's gold chains. Wily looked around innocently while taking a few steps back.
"I may have purchased them from the flea market...perhaps." After taking a few more steps, Wily tried to make a run for it - only for Simon to tackle him to the floor. Simon put Wily in a chokehold, making him way for his thievery, as Cloud looked on.
"Gotta play babysitter second Halloween in a row..." sighed Cloud, as he recalled regulating last year's Halloween party. This year might be more of the same, much to Cloud's chagrin.
News about the Crash Clan, Ema Skye, Leia, and the Hearts siblings leaving the mansion soon made its rounds around the mansion, and some folks weren't happy. One of those folks was Sonic, who was worried about his good pal Crash on the way out. Coco, Crunch, and Aku he didn't care for nearly as much, but the line was crossed when Crash was faced with eviction.
Wanting to make Crash's presumably last Halloween in town feel special, Sonic took his bandicoot friend to the tower along with Tails, to do a little scaring. Sonic, Tails, Knuckles, and Crash were all dressed up as werewolves and were going around door to door scaring the tower denizens, while Aku accompanied them. Waluigi was the first victim to be scared.
"Did my new foot scrub finally come in the mail today?" the lanky man asked as he opened his door, expecting someone to deliver him a package. Instead, Waluigi saw Sonic and friends looking menacing...except for Tails. He was too cute to look menacing.
"Boo!" Sonic and friends shouted at Waluigi, spooking the lanky man with their werewolf costumes. Waluigi began fearing for his life, seeing death before his eyes as he backed away from his bedroom door.
"No...not today, God!" Waluigi suddenly backed up into his bedroom window, which was apparently open, and fell out of it screaming. The lanky man landed with a seemingly painful thud. "I'm okay..."
"Psst, Sonic, here comes Saki," Knuckles whispered to the blue hedgehog, as he saw Saki Amamiya walking down the hallway. Sonic and friends sneaked up on Saki, with Crash tapping him on the shoulder.
"Who goes there?" asked Saki as he turned around and saw Sonic and friends, who all made roaring sounds. Saki screamed out of fright, before instinctively punching Sonic in the face and taking off down the hallway.
"Nice punch, Saki!" Sonic called out to the half-Ruffian, now sporting a black eye. "The black eye was totally worth it!" Soon the Arcade Bunny came walking down the hall, and he froze in place as Knuckles saw him.
"What are you looking at, bub? Scared?" Knuckles asked the Arcade Bunny, who screamed like a little girl as he ran away. Tails had a little sympathy for the Arcade Bunny, while also showing some regret.
"Sonic, I think we should stop," the yellow fox suggested to the hedgehog, who was looking around for any potential denizens to scare. "We might give someone a heart attack!"
"Heart attacks don't really happen that way," Sonic stated matter-of-factly, as Dr. Wright came down the hallway only to be frightened by the costumes Sonic and friends were wearing. "You think that scaring people magically clogs their arteries?"
"Mother..." uttered a frightened Dr. Wright, as he fainted and collapsed onto the floor. Alucard walked past by, coming to a stop when he saw Dr. Wright lying on the floor.
"Rawr!" Crash growled in front of Alucard, attempting to scare the dhampir in any way possible. Alucard's eyes went wide for a second, but that was about it.
"Close, but no cigar," Alucard gave his honest critique on Crash's scare attempt as he walked away, before muttering under his breath, "What an absolute waste of money, those costumes..."
Sonic: Crash's time at the mansion is sadly coming to an end soon, so I wrote up this list of things to do before he leaves. *pulls out list* Made one for Coco and for Crunch; Aku just isn't fun enough. Some of the stuff Crash and I will do together include go-karting outside, skydiving, and even humiliskating down a mountain. Preferably on Cortex. You could humiliskate on a girl, but that would be a huge conflict of interest. Cortex would know.
Sonic led his pals down to the end of the hallway, where they saw Yuri and her friend Miu speaking with someone. It was a Japanese man, wearing glasses, and he had an assistant with him. Sonic saw Yuri and company as easy pickings, as he rubbed his hands together.
"Let's not be rash, Sonic..." Tails warned Sonic, who walked over to Yuri and company anyway. Tails tried to stop Sonic, only for Knuckles to place his hand on the yellow fox's shoulder.
"You do realize who you're talking to, right?" Knuckles asked Tails, who sighed in defeat as he had no choice but to let Sonic do his thing. "Let him have this."
"I found a shrine just south of this city," the man with glasses explained to Yuri and Miu while showing them some notes. He looked and sounded pretty uncomfortable around the two ladies. "Just wondering if, um..."
"We came here to see if you were interested in checking this shrine out," the assistant said to Yuri and Miu, as the man sighed in relief. A lot of pressure was taken off his shoulders. "It might be haunted."
"As long as this shrine isn't too haunted, I don't mind," said Yuri, as Sonic was sneaking up on her and Miu. The hedgehog was out of sight, out of mind. "The very last thing I'd want to deal with is..."
"ROAR!" Sonic shouted at Yuri and Miu, making them both scream in terror. Yuri was screaming the loudest, as she kicked Sonic down to the floor.
"Sonic, you almost gave us a heart attack!" Miu scolded the hedgehog, who was too busy laughing at the reactions he got. "That was super uncalled for."
"What, did I almost clog your arteries?" Sonic got back up, still laughing as he wiped away a tear from his eye. "Have you guys been eating too much cholesterol?"
"At least your guy friends showed some restraint," remarked Aku as he looked over at the man and his assistant - the latter of whom felt insulted.
"I am a woman..." the assistant frowned at Knuckles, who did a double take out of pure disbelief. Knuckles oughta keep his mouth shut unless he wanted a black eye just like Sonic.
"Indeed - this is my assistant, Rui Kagamiya," the Japanese man with glasses explained to Knuckles, "And I'm Ren Hojo. Yuri and I, we're pretty close."
"Cool, I didn't expect Yuri to have a boyfriend," remarked Sonic, as Rui blushed profusely and directed her anger towards the blue hedgehog. "Where's your boyfriend, Miu?"
"Relax, Sonic - Ren and I are just friends," assured Yuri, dispelling any romantic assertions - mainly for Sonic's sake. "He just wanted to visit for Halloween."
"Still interested in seeing that haunted shrine?" Ren asked Yuri, anticipating his friend backing out anytime soon. He only asked just to make sure. "Your Camera Obscura might be needed."
"Can we come with?" Sonic asked Ren, with Yuri and Miu warily eyeing at the blue hedgehog. Tails and Knuckles wouldn't be much trouble; the same might not be said for Sonic and Crash.
"It's a haunted shrine...and yes, you can come if you want," answered Rui, as she left Sonic satisfied. Yuri and Miu weren't exactly fans of the decision, Yuri even more so.
"Just promise not to scare us on our way there," Yuri voiced her request to Sonic, who gave an assuring thumbs up. Tails half-expected Sonic to have his fingers crossed behind his back. But Sonic did pull out a phone, however...
The Mario Party board that Master Hand asked to have built was mostly untouched since episode 146, save for a few rare instances when the documentary crew was absent. Master Hand made the game board "open" again, hoping that it would cause Mario to lose the Halloween spirit. He asked Toad to redesign the board, and when he stopped by to check out the progress made...
"Toad, why is the board Halloween-themed?" Master Hand asked, triggered by the pumpkins, cobwebs, and tombstones that made up the board's decor. "This is the opposite of what I wanted."
"A simple game board would be too boring," replied Toad; a game board with no gimmick was exactly what Master Hand wanted, apparently. "Also, it's Halloween! Gotta get with the times!"
"I asked you to do one simple thing, and what do you do? You blunder it. Why did you have to fall victim to the Halloween fever too?"
"Cheers, love!" a certain pilot greeted Master Hand, who turned around and saw the Overwatch gang - Tracer, Genji, Winston, and Mercy, all of them dressed up for Halloween. "You like what we did to the game board?"
"SWEET CHEST HAIRS OF MASAHIRO SAKURAI, WHAT DID YOU DO TO TRACER?!" Master Hand was panicking because of how Tracer looked - her skin and hair were a ghostly blue-green color, and her eyes were glowing.
"We didn't do anything to her...she simply chose this costume," stated Genji, who was dressed as a Karasu Tengu - a bird-like demon, more or less. Master Hand checked out Genji's costume and was wailing even more.
"And they turned Genji into some ugly bird demon...why?" The more Master Hand cried the more the Overwatch gang judged him. "What have they done to deserve this?"
"You do understand the whole point of Halloween, do you?" Mercy asked Master Hand, who was left in a sobbing mess. Tracer smiled and went over to comfort Master Hand, gently patting him.
"There, there - I know how scary my costume is," the pilot said, finding Master Hand's reaction completely natural. "Why, I scared one boy so much that I made him cry!"
"Stop coping...it's only making it worse!" As Master Hand sobbed away, Mario showed up along with a few folks that he handpicked - Steve, Wario, Mr. Game and Watch, and the Luminary.
"Uh, Master Hand, I got some-a people," informed Mario, as Master Hand looked up and saw the folks Mario recruited, all in their costumes. That got Master Hand sobbing even more, as he collapsed unto the ground. "Why are you so sad?"
"Because Tracer's a ghost...they turned Tracer into a ghost!" The behavior exhibited by Master Hand was concerning to some, as Mario and the others exchanged weird looks.
"Who is this 'they' that you speak of, Master Hand?" asked Mr. Game and Watch, the nerdy shades he was wearing apparently enough to have brought more despair to Master Hand. Probably because they were fake.
"Talon, you stupid imbecile! They probably killed Tracer, that would explain why she looks like that. Once I get my hands on those fools..."
"Whoever said we killed Tracer?" asked a certain mercenary, as Reaper looked over and saw Reaper dressed as...well, a reaper. "Also, if anyone's killing Tracer, Widowmaker's got first dibs..."
"You too?!" Master Hand shrieked when he saw Reaper, with several Overwatch heroes behind him - namely Symmetra, Roadhog, and Junkrat. Or as he liked to be called in his mad scientist look, Dr. Junkenstein. Symmetra and Roadhog were dressed as a dragon and Junkenstein's Monster, respectively.
"Are we too late for the party?" asked Junkrat, with a crazed smile on his face as was ready to bring on the chaos. Never before has Master Hand ever felt so much despair during the time of Halloween.
Reaper: Apparently, I'm a part of some "Mario Party" Halloween affair. I'm supposed to be one of the "obstacles" on the game board. Meaning that I have to involuntarily scare people. *grumbles* They better pay me enough for doing this crap...
"Perfect timing! Knew you guys would come through," Toad said to Junkrat and company, whom he had made contact with to serve as "obstacles" for the game board. Mercy flew over to Toad, seeing that Mario and company were now game.
"Shall we begin, Toad?" asked Mercy, the ringleader of the party game who would keep Reaper, Symmetra, Roadhog, and even Junkrat in check. Feeling offended, Mario marched over to Mercy.
"Pardon-a me, Mercy, but you should-a be asking me," the plumber stated to the nurse, letting her know what was up. "I'm the one-a hosting. Right, Toad?"
"No, pretty sure Master Hand delegated the host duties to me," replied Toad, as Mario looked at the still depressed Master Hand with a look of disgust.
"I'm never gonna host my own Mario party game, am I?" grumbled Mario as he angrily marched back to his original spot. "They named-a it after me...ME!"
"I'll sit this one out," said Mr. Game and Watch, allowing Mario to take his place. Mario was in an unpleasant mood as he had his arms folded.
Master Hand: Wait, I got it! I know what to do. I'll just screw Mario over during the party game, and make him miserable as he loses spectacularly. Then he'll be so miserable, he'll lose his Halloween spirit, and then he won't celebrate that stupid holiday anymore. Such a genius plan! I could do the same to the others, but that would just drag the game on. Way past midnight, I reckon.
Even after Zant was taken care of in the last episode, Falco still felt bad about his involvement with the king of twilight. He felt so bad, he continuously apologized to Link and Zelda ever since they returned from their honeymoon. Not only that, but the avian pilot also feared that Zant might be coming out to get him.
"Falco, get out from underneath the desk," Fox commanded his best friend, who was hiding underneath the Star Records desk scared out of his mind. Fox and Itsuki were standing around, losing their patience.
"Wh-What if Zant is out to kill me?" asked Falco, his voice shaky as he refused to even let a feather slip out from underneath the desk. "For betraying him?"
"I don't see Pac-Man all worked up like you are," stated Itsuki, ready to call in some help if necessary. "And he was much more involved than you were."
"C'mon Falco, Mamori wants us on our show," Fox reminded the avian pilot; Mamori was airing a special Halloween episode, and by no means was she canceling under any circumstances. "We got obligations to fulfill."
"Promise that Zant won't be around?" asked Falco, as he only wanted two very simple words to answer his question. Fox rolled his eyes.
"I promise." With Fox's answer giving him enough confidence, Falco bravely emerged from under the desk and stood up, downplaying his fear.
"Alright then, I'll take your word for it." So Falco followed Fox out of the Star Records room, keeping his mind off of Zant (and maybe Astor, also). "Hold it down while we're gone, Itsuki."
"I'll try," replied Itsuki, as the Star Fox pilots left the room. Alone by himself, Itsuki took out his phone and ventured over to the window...and he looked outside and saw something that caught his eye. "Hmm..."
Halloween was Sans' favorite time of the year, and it had little to do with him being a skeleton. It was the perfect time to crack puns - Halloween puns, to be exact - and he had been annoying residents with his jokes throughout the week. Those at the cafe received the brunt of it.
"aren't halloween puns so corny?" Sans asked Solo and Master Mummy while eating from a handful of candy corn. Solo and Master Mummy did their best to ignore Sans, and so did the baristas Pit and Joker.
"They sure are extra corny coming out of your mouth," replied Solo, wondering how many Halloween puns he could endure. Sans was firing puns out the gates like rapid-fire.
"did you know that wrap is a mummy's favorite genre of music?" Sans directed this pun at Master Mummy, and the skeleton was wheezing as he repeatedly banged his fist on the counter. Master Mummy, judging by his angry scowl, didn't like the pun one bit.
"Why hasn't this peon been banned from your cafe?" Master Mummy asked Pit and Joker, imagining that the two would've grown tired of Sans' shenanigans.
"...we're trying our best," replied Joker, as he was preparing some pumpkin spice latte - no better time to have a drink like that than now.
"sup viridi," Sans greeted the goddess of nature, who entered the cafe with Kirby and Incineroar. Viridi was wearing a vampire costume. "those fangs of yours look...fangtastic."
"Shut up...lame excuse of a comedian," Viridi fired back, putting Sans in his place, as the goddess and her two companions went over to Pit. The two went behind the counter, which was a big no-no for the cafe patrons.
"Guys, what are you doing?" Pit asked Viridi and company, keeping his voice low so that Joker wouldn't hear. "Only employees are allowed back here!"
"Which is exactly why we're here. We're future employees of Cafe Leblanc!" Pit desperately tried to cover Viridi's mouth, but it was too late - Joker overheard the goddess.
"Future employees?" Joker crinkled his nose as he confronted Viridi and company, making sure that he wasn't hearing things. "Am I hearing this right?"
"Viridi wishes to work at the cafe, alongside Pit," Kirby explained to Joker, who was slightly intrigued by the proposition as he scratched his chin. "Incineroar and I are being roped in, just because."
Kirby: I had no choice in the matter. Quite frankly, I usually have no choice in the matter whenever Pit is involved.
"So you three want to work at Cafe Leblanc, eh?" Joker asked Viridi, Kirby, and Incineroar, seeing that the trio could help keep Pit in check. They did have the experience, after all. "How about you do me a favor first?"
"What, do we have to go around asking others for permission?" Viridi asked Joker, who made a knowing smirk before looking back at Sans. Viridi saw Sans and got a sense of what Joker might want.
"trick-or-treat yourself," Sans offered some of his candy corn to Solo and Master Mummy, while at the same time cracking a pun. Master Mummy had grown tired of Sans, as he left the cafe to preserve his own sanity.
"Can you three find a way to make Sans stop with those Halloween puns?" Joker asked Pit's friends, as Solo now had his hands covering his ears. "He has been annoying with them all week."
"Why not just ban him until after Halloween?" asked Kirby, wanting Joker to flex a bit of his authority. Joker bit his bottom lip, showing some hesitancy.
"It's...I just can't bring myself to do it." The choice to not deal with Sans weighed down hard on Joker, who let out a defeated sigh.
"I can ban Sans from the cafe, Joker!" Pit volunteered himself, as Joker looked at the angel with a face showing a lack of faith and confidence.
"No, Pit, just let your friends handle this. They'll have to prove their worth to me...just like how you did."
The party game was set to begin, with Mario and the four other participants at the starting point. The blue and red spaces were activated, and so were the event spaces. Junkrat and the other "bosses" - Reaper, Symmetra, and Roadhog - were at their positions. Tracer, Genji, Winston, and Mr. Game and Watch were spectating, with Master Hand hovering above them.
"Shall we go over the rules?" Toad, the host of the party game, asked the four participants below him. He was ready to whip out his rule book, and read every rule inscribed from start to finish.
"Was that meant to be a rhetorical question?" asked the Luminary, as Toad noted the lack of response from the four other participants and sighed depressingly.
"...fine, let's just roll the dice." With the clap of his hands, some dice magically appeared above the four participants' heads. "Don't hit your head too hard!"
"How is that even possible...?" wondered Reaper, watching from his perch - now would be a good time for Winston to proclaim, "through the many wonders of science!", or something of that nature.
Mr. Game and Watch, Wario, and the Luminary all rolled their dice, each man rolling a four or higher. When Mario rolled his dice, however, Master Hand snapped his fingers to quickly change the number Mario had rolled to something else. Something...lower.
"Aw, Mario rolled a one!" announced Toad, as Mario looked up at his dice in sudden disbelief. "That means he will have to go last."
"Who cares, I get to go first!" cheered Wario, who had rolled a six. Mario had also rolled a six before Master Hand meddled; that obviously would've resulted in a do-over. "The rest of you losers can go ahead and call it quits."
"So Wario goes first, and the Luminary, Steve, and Mario go after him. Now that the order is established...where is our first star?" Soon Mercy flew down in her witch garb and landed on a random space, as she presented the game's first star.
"'Tis the first star!" the nurse announced as she held up the star, which was glistening with radiant brilliance. "Erm, did I do that right?"
"Never better!" Toad gave Mercy the thumbs-up seal of approval, before directing his attention back to the four competitors. "Time to get this show on the road! Let me first give you your coins." Toad gave the four competitors ten coins each, out from his imaginary pocket...or something. "Wario, you're up first!"
So Wario went first, rolling a four, and landed on a blue space. The Luminary and Steve landed on a blue space as well, after their turns. Mario rolled a two and landed on a blue space...which suddenly became a red space before he stepped foot on it.
"Weird - that red space was originally a blue space," stated Toad, as coins were magically deducted from Mario. Reaper was left wondering how that was even possible. "Mario lost six coins?!"
"Why did I lose-a six coins?" wondered Mario; losing three coins from a red space was the usual fare in Mario Party. "Added stakes, I assume?"
"No, it cannot be..." Bewildered and panicky, Toad took out his rule book and flipped through the pages, glossing over the rules. "...that space must be faulty. Oh well. Carry on with the game, fellas."
Master Hand: No minigames will be played during the party game. Just misery. For Mario, that is. *laughs mischievously*
With Sora, Riku, Kairi, and Red all aging down, it was expected that Marlene and Leaf would age down as well. They would do just that, as Leaf was back to being ten years old and Marlene was back to being a young girl. You best believe that Barret was ecstatic about it, as he celebrated with his daughter at the gaming room where the Halloween party took place.
"Yeah, I finally got my baby girl back!" the eco-terrorist rejoiced, smiling as he held Marlene up high in his loving hands. Cloud and Tifa were looking on, both of them feeling happy for Barret.
"I've never seen you cry so much before, Barret," remarked Tifa, as tears of joy were streaming down Barret's face. Cranky Kong, who was invited to the party by Donkey Kong, took note of Barret's emotion as he came over.
"You really must've missed holding her like that," Cloud said to Barret, as the swordsman was surveying the party atmosphere. Which was meant to be Link's job, technically speaking.
"Well, it just feels different doing it now, compared to when she was a grown woman," said Barret as he placed Marlene back on her feet, unable to shake off how happy he was. "I'm just glad that the natural forces or whatever made my girl young again."
"Aw phooey...to think that I was about to find Marlene a suitable partner," frowned Cranky, as Barret and his friends looked over at the elderly gorilla. "Her and Red would've been quite an item."
"Dad, Cranky Kong is creeping me out..." Marlene said to Barret, as Cranky's vivid imaginations sounded unnerving to the little girl.
"What's the matter, you disagree? You and Red would be cute together. I would've loved to sit at the front row of your wedding."
"I think we heard enough out of you..." Barret frowned at Cranky, as he grabbed Marlene's shoulders and took her away. He didn't want Cranky to fill Marlene's head with some twisted thoughts.
Cranky Kong: Link and Zelda had a fine wedding. A very fine wedding, indeed. You may not know this, but that wretched author wanted to end his precious little story with Link and Zelda finally getting married! Could you imagine him making his readers wait that long? Bah!
"If your daughter is ever looking for a future soulmate, just hit me up!" Cranky called out to Barret before walking away on his cane; Barret would much rather seek advice from Wolf instead.
"That wedding sure put him in a good mood..." Tifa said to Cloud concerning Cranky, as Cilan and Iris drew near. They were dressed up as a Simisage and Haxorus, respectively.
"Nice costumes, you two," Cloud said to Cilan and Iris, leading Tifa to wonder if the swordsman was being sarcastic or not. Given that Cloud always had the same mood, it was hard to tell. "Where did you buy them from?"
"Actually, Iris made them herself," stated Cilan as Cloud and Tifa both looked on, quite impressed. Iris was proud of her work, as she smiled and nodded her head in confirmation. "She is quite the seamstress!"
"Cilan wanted to make his Halloween costume himself, but he accidentally cut off his armpit hair somehow," stated Iris, as an embarrassed Cilan looked away while scratching his head. "So I kinda had to take over..."
Cilan: Feeling kind of bittersweet, since this will be my last Halloween at the mansion. I'm going to miss the Halloween fun, just like how I'm going to miss the chaotic Thanksgiving feasts. Or at least until Master Hand finds a way to reel me back to Seattle next month.
"Check that out," said Cloud, as he drew everyone's attention to Isabelle and the Doom Slayer. Isabelle was wearing the Pikachu Libre costume that the Doom Slayer had given her, and the Doom Slayer held the Shih Tzu by the hand as he took her to the punch bowl.
"Isabelle, is that your new boyfriend?" Iris asked the Shih Tzu in a teasing manner, as Isabelle turned around at Iris fully blushing. Many folks had asked Isabelle the same question, often in different variations.
"We're just friends," clarified Isabelle, as the Doom Slayer poured up a cup of fruit punch and offered it to the Shih Tzu. "He's very thoughtful, that's all."
"Then that's a clear sign that he likes you," smirked Tifa, as the Doom Slayer patted Isabelle on the head and made her blush even more. "No one else can get him to act tranquil like you can!"
"He does like me...as a friend." No matter how many times Isabelle clarified herself, it wasn't enough to shake off the suspicions that Tifa and the others were having. And when the Doom Slayer leaned in close to Isabelle...Isabelle shrieked and fainted on the floor.
"He likes you as a friend, alright..." remarked Cloud, as Isabelle had spilled her punch upon fainting. The Duck Hunt Dog ran over and licked the wasted punch off of the floor. "...I'll go get a mop. Be right back."
"They would be cute together, don't you think?" Iris asked Tifa and Cilan, as Cloud went to go look for a map. The Doom Slayer knelt down and stroked Isabelle's face, as Viridi, Kirby, and Incineroar were peering inside the gaming room.
"You boys thinking what I'm thinking?" Viridi asked Kirby and Incineroar after she had kept her eyes on the Doom Slayer for most of her time looking.
Fox and Falco were ready to go for Microwave Idol Mamorin, as the latter pilot eliminated any thoughts about Zant out of his mind. The hosts of Microwave Idol Mamorin were ready as well, gathered in the kitchen for their special Halloween episode. Save for Ashley, both Mamori and Asuka were dressed for the occasion.
"Welcome, Mamorinis, to a special Halloween-themed episode of Microwave Idol Mamorin!" exclaimed Mamori, standing in a kitchen that was full to the brim with Halloween decorations. Master Hand would not approve. "We're gonna warm up your heart, with the press of a button!"
"Two of our bosses, Fox McCloud and Falco Lombardi, will be our special guests for this evening," announced Ashley, not at all enthusiastic about Fox and Falco appearing on the show. "So everybody, give them a warm..."
"Best pilots in the room, how ya doin'?!" shouted Fox as he and Falco vibed their way into the kitchen, posturing in front of the camera. Mamori and Asuka didn't mind the pilots' shenanigans...Ashley, not so much.
"...welcome," Ashley finished her sentence, seething quietly as she held in her wrath. Unleashing her anger during a live episode would not be ideal.
Falco: I can't let the bad vibes get to me, not for Mamori. I gotta be positive, think positive, and even breathe positive. I have to be cool - as cool as the other side of the pillow. *pounds chest* Gotta make Stuart Scott proud.
"So, do you two have any idea what we'll be making today?" Asuka asked Fox and Falco; there was no wrong answer, so Fox and Falco could respond with the zaniest thing and not be judged for it.
"We baking Halloween cookies?" asked Falco, as he and Fox were both in the mood for decorating some Halloween cookies. "Or what about pumpkin pie?"
"Nope! But good guesses, though. For this year's Halloween episode, we'll be making croissants...Halloween croissants." The moment that Asuka said "croissants", Falco started panicking.
"D-Did someone say...Zant?" Falco cautiously looked around, fearing that Asuka might've secretly summoned Zant or something. The avian pilot looked on in fear, as Mamori and friends were confused.
"Earth to Falco...earth to Falco," Fox waved his hand in front of Falco's eyes, and the previously fear-stricken Falco finally calmed down. "You gotta look strong, man. The whole world's watching us."
"That's right," Mamori agreed with Fox, as Falco slowly reverted to his normal visage and took a deep breath. "I know it's Halloween, but we can't be scared just yet!"
"Right...let's just get to making some croissants," said Falco, ready to get started as he rubbed his hands together. Mamori smiled as she went into the fridge, grabbing a roll of Pillsbury dough.
"So Fox and Falco, what are your favorite horror movies?" asked Mamori, starting up some conversation as she was eager to hear the pilots' responses. Again, no wrong answers...or is there?
"My favorite horror movie is Twilight," Fox answered confidently, as Ashley and Asuka gave the pilot inquisitive looks. Falco was suddenly fearful again. "What's with those looks? Haters..."
"Twilight is a romantic fantasy, you dolt," Ashley clarified to Fox, who looked up in realization as he felt like the biggest idiot on earth. The second mention of Twilight made Falco even more afraid.
"He's coming...he must be near," the avian pilot said, reaching into the kitchen drawer and pulling out a knife. Mamori, who was struggling to tear the Pillsbury dough, saw the knife that Falco was holding.
"Oh goodie, I could really use a knife right now!" the brunette exclaimed as she tried to take the knife to Falco - but Falco wouldn't let go. "Falco, what gives?"
"I can't just hand over the knife; he might be out to get me." Falco tried to pull the knife away from Mamori, being mindful not to stab her.
"Who's out to get you? The Headless Horseman?" Fox asked Falco, suffering from second-hand embarrassment due to his friend's behavior on camera. "Or is it the Wicked Witch of the West?"
"Think of the spike in viewership if Falco got Mamori to shed blood," Ashley whispered to Asuka, wondering what would happen if Falco were to stab Mamroi by accident. There would be a viewership spike, alright...and perhaps a cancellation later down the road.
"Any idea how this 'transfer portal' works?" Ryuji was heard speaking on the phone outside the kitchen, as Falco's pupils were dilated with fear. "What do you mean, that only applies to student-athletes?!"
"AAAAAAHHHH HE'S OUT TO GET ME!" shrieked Falco, dropping the knife onto the floor as he ran out of the kitchen screaming. Mamori picked up the knife, sighing as she had lost one of her guests.
"Excuse us for a moment...one of our guests has gone AWOL," Mamori addressed her audience, as Fox looked out the kitchen entrance and shook his head. "Maybe our Halloween episode was too SCARY for him!"
"So paranoid..." Fox remarked in a disappointed tone, now having a hunch for why Falco was constantly scared out of his mind.
Steve, Wario, and the Luminary were faring well at the party game, with the three competitors collecting coins and getting an occasional star or two. Mario, on the other hand, was on the short end of the stick. Thanks to Master Hand.
"Oh no, Mario landed on an Extra Bad Luck Space!" fretted Toad, as the Bad Luck Space Mario stepped on was intensified by Master Hand.
"Why does-a this happen to me...?" wondered Mario, as he was magically brought back to the starting space by Symmetra. Symmetra was smiling at Mario, anxious to deliver the plumber's fate.
"We meet again, Mario," the architect said; evidently, this wasn't Mario's first time experiencing bad luck during the game. "Let's spin the wheel, shall we?"
"Let's get this done..." So Symmetra summoned a roulette wheel, one full of bad luck options, and Mario stopped it. The wheel landed on "lose half of your coins", but then it was tipped over to "lose all of your coins."
"Well, well...it appears that you are now broke." Symmetra collected the coins from Mario, who was more slighted than ever. "Good luck getting a star now."
"Hey! 'Lose all of your coins' isn't even an option!" complained Mario, feeling bitter as he was brought back to his original space.
"Something fishy is afoot..." Tracer whispered to the other spectators, as Master Hand was quietly keeping to himself.
It was brought to Link and Zelda's attention that apparently a new house was being built for them. With Master Hand busy at the moment, the Hylian couple was forced to seek the answers they were looking for elsewhere. They asked guys and gals like Tom Nook and Ayaha Oribe, but they were just as much out of the loop.
"Found anything yet?" Cloud asked Link and Zelda, who both entered the gaming room. Cloud was still hanging out with Tifa - and Cilan and Iris as well.
"Literally no one else has any clue about the new house," stated Link, seeing that Master Hand (when he was available) was the last resort. "So we're still in the dark..."
"A new house? Is it for me?" Cilan furrowed his brow, having a suspicion that Master Hand was secretly trying to keep him in town. "I told that Master Hand that I was leaving after Halloween..."
"No, it's for Link and Zelda," stated Cloud, as a now relieved Cilan smiled and put his hand over his chest. "They have no clue whose bright idea that was."
"I don't mean to interrupt, but the new house for Link and Zelda...that was my doing. If I may..."
Cloud and company's eyes fell upon Pac-Man, who meekly came over to the group. Like Falco, Pac-Man was showing some regret for actions from the past two episodes.
"Pac-Man? Is this new house being built your doing?" Tifa asked the eater of ghosts, who nodded head while looking down at the floor.
"More or less, it's a way for me to make up for nearly ruining their wedding," stated Pac-Man, thinking it was the thought that counts. "Got Master Hand's approval."
Mutoh: Yeah, the boys and I are building a new house, and it might be my favorite one yet. It's for the newlyweds - Link and Zelda! So proud of those two. Fox's house was already great, so Link's house has to be even better. Ichiro claims it would be impossible with Link and Zelda being "old-fashioned", but I've known better than to listen to that Debbie downer's yap. The man even refuses to work in the rain! Coward!
"We appreciate the gesture, Pac-Man, but..." Zelda said to the eater of ghosts, before looking up locking eyes with Link. "...we're both fine with staying at the mansion."
"Sure about that? Having your own place will make you feel special!" Pac-Man enticed Link and Zelda, but neither Hylian would budge. "Eh, if that's what you wanna do, then go for it."
"We could have a whole floor all for ourselves," suggested Link, acting a little greedy as Zelda slapped her husband on his arm. "Come on, Zelda, it would be perfect!"
"Might as well see if anyone will occupy that house," Cloud said to Link and Zelda, who were left with plenty of choices. Could a married couple occupy the house? How about a group of friends like Rayman, Globox, and Barbara?
"Next few weeks should be pretty interesting..." Link was eager to start the search, refusing to let the new house go to waste.
Sonic and his friends traveled with Yuri and her friends to a Buddhist shrine - the shrine that Ren and Rui spoke of earlier. They all stood in front of the shrine, which looked quite spooky.
"Remember - no funny business," Yuri gave this warning to Sonic and company, but Sonic and Crash especially. The two troublemakers. Sonic and Crash exchanged smiles as the group entered the shrine, with Yuri wielding a flashlight.
"Sure looks creepy in here," observed Miu as she and the others looked around, seeing different Buddhist paintings on the walls that Yuri shone the light on. There was an almost eerie atmosphere in the shrine, which was expected.
"Quite fascinating," remarked Ren, taking note of the Buddhist designs that were at every turn. A few Buddhist statues were found, as Ren snapped a quick picture of each one on his phone. "Everything about this shrine looks spectacular so far."
"Everyone follow me, and you will be safe," Aku said to the group, as he led them through the temple...or so he thought he was doing. The group for the most part was doing their own thing.
"Is he really necessary?" Rui whispered to Tails, as she was not a huge fan of Aku's tour guide skills. "He just floats in the air."
"Only as Crash's bodyguard," Tails whispered back, as Aku turned around and was upset that nobody was following his lead. "Without Crash or his siblings, he virtually has no life."
"I do have a life!" an offended Aku defended himself to Tails, able to hear what the yellow fox was whispering. "I enjoy watching TV infomercials in my spare time, thank you very much..."
"Shh! You guys hear that?" whispered Yuri, and Aku shut his yap as he and everyone else heard an eerie howling sound in the shrine. After the sound faded away, Sonic saw that someone in the group had gone missing.
"Crap, Crash just disappeared!" the blue hedgehog freaked out, fearing that the howling sound might've scared Crash out of the temple. Aku freaked out as well, as he was slacking on his job.
"Oh my...Crash would be the one to vanish," sighed Aku, with some slight hope that Crash hadn't run into any trouble. "I take my eyes off of him for one second..."
"You guys wait right here." Taking on Aku's responsibility, Sonic ran away to go searching for his best friend. "Crash, where are you?"
"We should probably press on forward," Yuri suggested to the others, before shining the light on Knuckles. Knuckles, for some reason, was standing far away from the group. "Knuckles...?"
Yuri and the others crept over to Knuckles, who was standing in a corner of the shrine with his back turned away. He was holding his head down, with his hands in front of him.
"I've seen this before," whispered Rui, recognizing the stance that Knuckles was in. "The Blair Witch Project." That got Aku worried.
"Does this mean the shrine is haunted by witches?" the floating mask panicked, as Tails went over to closely inspect Knuckles. "Buddhist witches?! Why does such a combination have to exist..."
"Hello, earth to Knuckles!" shouted Tails as he waved his hands in front of Knuckles' eyes. No response from Knuckles, which was concerning - but at least he was still breathing. "It's like he's stuck in a trance."
"Some supernatural force must've taken possession of him," inferred Ren, making Aku even more worried. The same could've happened to Crash, and caused him to leave the others. "If so, then what could it be?"
Suddenly, Yuri was screaming as she, Miu, Ren, and Rui were all attacked by an unseen force that brought them to the ground. It wasn't an unseen force that had ambushed them...instead, it was Sonic, Crash, and even Wolf.
"Haha, got 'em!" exclaimed Sonic, as he exchanged high fives with Crash and Wolf. Knuckles broke free from his "trance", joining in on the high five exchange as Tails and Aku looked on with disappointed faces.
"Gotta hand it to ya, Sonic, you drew that up perfectly!" Wolf commended the blue hedgehog, giving him some props; Yuri and friends were all glaring at Wolf, as well as Sonic and Crash. "Scared them out of their wits."
Wolf: Sonic asked me on the phone if I wanted to "scare some peeps" at a shrine. Like I would ever say no to scaring people during Halloween.
"Sonic! You promised not to scare us!" Yuri scolded the blue hedgehog, regaining her composure as Ren helped her and the others to their feet.
"Yes, but until we got to the shrine," stated Sonic, pointing out a loophole in the promise he had made with Yuri. "But since we're here, all bets are off."
"Your friends took the scare like the men that they are," Wolf said to Yuri and Miu, referring to Ren...and Rui. Rui grew angry as she rolled up her sleeve.
"What did you just call me?" the assistant frowned at Wolf as she marched towards the mercenary, with Wolf running for his life. Rui chased after Wolf, hoping to lay the smackdown on him.
"I have never seen so much emotion from Rui before..." remarked Ren; he was always used to his assistant having a personality of bricks. "...that wolf must've brought something out of her."
"Which means that he did his job," said Sonic, before turning his attention to Yuri and Miu. "Awesome work, you two." The blue hedgehog held up his hand for a high-five, but Yuri and Miu left him hanging.
"Knew we should've just brought Tails instead..." mumbled Yuri as she and Miu walked away feeling bitter. Sonic followed after them.
"What, did I give you guys a heart attack? Did my scare attempt clog up your arteries?"
It should be noted that for most of the party game, Mario landed on more red spaces than blue spaces. But now the plumber was on the upswing, collecting enough coins to afford himself a star. Steve was in prime position to grab a star right now, standing in front of Mercy.
"One star, please," requested Steve, trading in twenty of the coins that he collected. In exchange, Mercy gave the craftsman a star.
"Steve has earned himself another star!" announced Toad, as Steve moved to the next space to complete his turn. Now it was Mario's turn, and he was five spaces away from his first star.
"Big money, big money, big-a money..." chanted Mario, before jumping up and rolling the dice. The plumber rolled a five, but Master Hand magically changed it to a four, and so Mario moved four spaces - much to his bewilderment.
"Ooh! Mario just stepped on an event space!" With the event space triggered, Mario looked up and saw Junkrat standing above him.
"Fear the mighty creation...of Dr. Junkenstein!" bellowed Junkrat, pressing a button on his remote control as a gate opened in front of Mario. Roadhog stepped out from the gate, acting and moving like a monster.
"I'm a one-man terror machine..." said Roadhog, as he ran up to the petrified Mario and gave him a bear hug. The bear hug was strong enough to make Mario lose a couple of coins.
"Aw, phooey...Mario is back to square one," announced Toad, as Roadhog dropped Mario onto the ground and went back into his hiding spot. "But there's nowhere else to go but up!"
"That's it...I've had enough-a of this!" shouted Mario, finally fed up as he took his hat and threw it on the ground. He would stomp on it, but then he would be hurting Cappy.
"You're not quitting, are you?" Wario asked Mario, not wanting the game to end. Wouldn't be the same with only three competitors. "I haven't even won yet!"
"Oh? You've had enough of what?" inquired Master Hand as he floated over to Mario, interested in what the plumber had to say. "Indulge me."
"Of this! Nothing seems-a to go my way," complained Mario, jealous of how easy Steve, Wario, and the Luminary had it. "It's red-a space this, bad-a luck space that!"
"Yes, yes, lots of bad luck...but is Halloween not about experiencing bad luck? Bad vibes? Why complain?"
"I haven't experienced any bad luck this entire game," stated the Luminary, seeing why Mario had grown so frustrated. "Neither has Steve or Wario!"
"Master Hand, were you messing with Mario to prove a point?" Tracer asked the giant hand, with her hands on her hips. Master Hand had quite some explaining to do.
"Prove what point? That he's out of his mind for liking a dumb holiday like Halloween?" questioned Master Hand, only to realize that he spilled a lot of tea. A gasp was made here and there, in response to Master Hand's slip-up.
"Tried to get the 'Halloween spirit' out-a of me, huh?" Mario frowned at Master Hand, struggling to think of a way to defend himself. He was in hot water now. "By making me struggle?"
"Yes...but for a good cause. I was merely transfiguring you the entire time." No way was Mario buying that excuse.
"You have issues, Master Hand..." Done with the party game, Mario stormed off the game board and went back home. Master Hand was in shambles, Mario's words cutting into him deep as a knife.
"Technically, I still get the win, right?" Wario asked Master Hand, who began floating away as Mario's words weighed heavy on his mind. "Don't ignore me, Master Hand!"
"I don't have issues...do I?" Master Hand was left in a state of deep thought, as Wario chased after him. The Luminary exchanged looks with Tracer and Toad, showing some signs of worry.
Sans remained at the cafe, and he was still telling the patrons some Halloween puns. The skeleton had puns for days and was ratting them off one by one.
"vampires are a real pain in the neck, don't you think?" Sans asked Alucard, who was sitting next to the skeleton eating some curry. Alucard frowned in response to Sans' joke.
"Why did I bother coming today..." Alucard grumbled as he stormed out of the cafe, leaving his curry unattended. Sans turned his attention to K.K. Slider, who was busy playing his guitar.
"do you play the trom-bone?" The cheesiness of this pun was enough to offend K.K. Slider, as the hippie dog stopped playing his guitar. "i am dying to know."
"If I had a dollar for every lousy pun you ever said, I'd be a billionaire," K.K. Slider said to Sans, as he continued his guitar playing.
Sans: where does a skeleton such as myself go to have fun? cafe leblanc, of course. it's a hip joint - if i do say so myself. *smiles*
Also at the cafe was Link and Zelda's wedding stationery, Adeleine, who had stopped by for some curry. It was a decision that the painter would regret doing, because of Pit's presence.
"I think that you and Kirby are next to get married," Pit said to Adeleine, as he wanted nothing more than to see his best friend marry the girl of his dreams. Would be more of a dream come true for him than Kirby.
"Well, you can go ahead and keep on thinking that," responded Adeleine, gathering up all the wedding cards that were left from the wedding ceremony. "Frankly, I have no interest in marrying Kirby. Or anyone else, for that matter."
"So you wanna be a lone wolf...weird life choice for a girl like you, but maybe one day you'll smell the roses." Interested in hearing Joker's opinion, Pit glanced after at the young man. "Joker, what do you think about Kirby and Adeleine's chances?"
"They have the same chance of getting married as you graduating with a Ph.D. from Harvard," replied Joker, being very frank and sincere with his comments.
"Wow, the chances must be pretty then! There might be hope for you yet, Adeleine!" Pit was renewed with confidence, as Adeleine and Joker both sighed.
"I beg to differ," said Adeleine, as a certain space marine entered the cafe. The Doom Slayer appeared, bringing Isabelle with him as he held her hand.
"I feel so uncomfortable..." Isabelle timidly squeaked, as the Doom Slayer approached Adeleine; he gently placed the painter on the floor, as he gave Sans his full attention.
"really digging that pumpkin mask, doom slayer," Sans gave his props to the space marine, clicking his finger at him. "now, give me pumpkin to talk about."
The Doom Slayer couldn't give Sans something to talk about...partly because he couldn't speak. Instead, the space marine grabbed Sans by the neck, holding him in the air.
"woah there buddy, whatcha doin'?" Sans asked the Doom Slayer, who had a strong vice grip on the skeleton's neck. "why are you squeezing my neck?" Soon Viridi, Kirby, and Incineroar entered the cafe, seeing Sans in complete peril.
"People are getting sick and tired of your crappy Halloween jokes," Viridi said to Sans, letting him know how she and the others felt. "Why don't you put a sock in it already?"
"i'm just trying to lift everyone's spirits." Sans had his neck squeezed by the Doom Slayer's grip, making him gasp for air. "wait, why am i gasping for air? i'm a skeleton!"
"You're not lifting anyone's spirits, Sans - you're only annoying the heck out of Joker's customers. It's damaging morale."
"c'mon viridi, don't be a jerk-o-lantern." Another wack pun earned Sans another chokehold, courtesy of the Doom Slayer. "ack! make him stop!"
"We'll make him stop alright...but only if you agree to stop telling your Halloween puns at the cafe." Viridi was pressing a hard bargain, and Sans had to take the bargain for his own sake.
"okay, fine - i'll just take my Halloween puns elsewhere." Having made his decision, Sans was dropped to the floor by Sans. "hope you guys are happy."
"Most certainly so," smiled Joker, as he and Pit - and the cafe patrons too - could enjoy the next few days in peace. "See you after Halloween, Sans."
"Whatever. Let it be known that Halloween won't be the same without me this year." On that note, Sans exited the cafe, bringing his myriad of lame Halloween puns with him. And just like that, Joker was satisfied.
"Thank you," Joker thanked Viridi, Kirby, and Incineroar, although most of the thanks went to Viridi. Kirby and Incineroar just stood around, taking the credit by mere association. "I believe that you three should be awarded."
"Awarded how?" asked Viridi, smiling from ear to ear. Joker reached underneath the counter and pulled out some cafe aprons - three of them.
"Congratulations - you three are now free to work at the cafe!" Joker handed the aprons to Viridi and company, all of them in the same size. "You earned it."
"Is this what nepotism feels like?" pondered Pit, as his friends tried on their aprons; Incineroar's was too small, whereas Kirby's was too big. "My friends getting jobs because of me? Because of my awesome presence?"
"...somewhat." Joker dared not to think of Pit as being awesome because then he'd be entertaining lies in his head.
Viridi: Ever since Pit got the barista job, he rarely got to spend time with me anymore. But now, we can be as close together as we were once before. Now he can never leave my sight!
"Now we're boyfriend and girlfriend - and cafe employees!" Viridi smiled at Pit, happily standing behind the counter with her man. It was a great feeling.
"Cafe employees in love, baby!" cheered Pit, before looking over at Adeleine and seeing the painter shy away. "Maybe you and Kirby will share that distinction too, Adeleine."
"Or maybe it will be Isabelle and the Doom Slayer instead," quipped Kirby, taking some attention away from Pit's crazy romantic fantasies. Isabelle was back to blushing.
"Can we go now, please?" Isabelle asked the Doom Slayer, grabbing the space marine's hand and guiding him out of the cafe. So adorable...
While Pac-Man tried to make peace with Link and Zelda, Falco had yet to do the same thing. He had forfeited finishing the rest of Microwave Idol Mamorin's Halloween episode, now hiding in shrubbery near the mansion so that Zant wouldn't find him. Fox brought Link, Zelda, Cloud, Cilan, and Iris outside, to Falco's hiding spot.
"He's hiding from Zant in the bushes?" questioned Iris, seeing Falco's butt and feathered tail sticking out from the leaves. "What a weirdo..."
"Had to do Microwave Idol Mamorin without him," stated Fox; being on Mamori's show without his best friend made Fox feel some type of way. "It was a horrible experience."
"Falco?" Link called out to the avian pilot, as he tugged on one of his feathers. This provoked Falco and got the pilot jumping out of the bushes in an instant.
"Better keep your hands off of me, Zant!" shouted Falco as he held his Blaster out, only to lower his guard when he saw Link and the others. "Oh...it's just you guys. Hehe."
"Fox told you that you think Zant is going to kill you," Cloud said to Falco, and the mere mention of Zant was enough to send Falco into another tailspin. "Is this true or not?"
"Yeah, it's true...is he coming to get me?" Falco turned Cloud around and hid behind the swordsman, looking around for any signs of Zant. "Didn't think it would be this soon..."
"Zant's not going to kill you, man," Link assured Falco, as he gently took the avian pilot away from Cloud. "It's all in your head."
"If Zant has his eye on anyone, it's us," informed Zelda, speaking on behalf of Link and herself. Falco was slowly starting to calm down. "He wanted to ruin our wedding for a reason."
"You're right...don't know what had gotten into me," admitted Falco, getting back to his usual cool and confident self. "Probably the guilt I still had."
"You apologized to Link and Zelda aplenty during their wedding reception," stated Cilan; he was keeping count during the entire dinner. "Why not make one last apology? Get it all out of your system."
"Good idea..." So Falco reeled in Link and Zelda and gave the Hylian couple a group hug. Both Link and Zelda were eyeing around. "...please forgive me."
"Uh...we forgive you," answered Zelda, as Falco ended the group hug now wearing a smile on his face. His fear was no more. "Better now?"
"Yoo-hoo! Over here, guys! Check this out - it's a UFO!"
Calling out to Falco and company was Itsuki, who was sitting on top of a spacecraft - a UFO. The same one that the Turks would travel in.
"It's been in that same spot since we got back from the wedding," stated Zelda as she and the others came over to the UFO. "The Turks never showed up when it was time to go back home..."
"I was trying to get the hatch open," said Itsuki, showing off a few tools that he used at his disposal. A lot of them came from the garden shed. "Doubt that there's anyone inside, but..."
To everyone's surprise, the UFO hatch finally opened, as a startled Itsuki fell off of the spacecraft. The hatch opened, and some smoke cleared...revealing Gex to be inside the UFO.
"Nothing like a good nap to get you in the right groove..." remarked Gex, waking up from his slumber as he stretched out his arms. The lizard looked out below and saw the residents in front of him. "...ha! Even my naps draw in a crowd."
"Gex?!" everyone shouted the lizard's name in unison, as Gex grinned and donned his pair of sunglasses. Sunglasses at night.
"I'm quite the charmer, am I? I just love it when the people say my name! Say it one more time, for good time's sake."
"But I thought you were with the Turks?" Link asked Gex, as there were no signs of Reno, Rude, or Elena. Only Gex. "Where even are the Turks?"
"Those Turks wanted to cut bait...once they met their guy, Zant, they kicked me to the curb! Went through some fancy portal...and that was that."
"So how did you get back home?" Cloud asked Gex, who had placed a toothpick in his mouth. "You went through a portal, too?"
"Nah - I just hid in Cranky Kong's beard. He was my plus one. Also didn't want any dirty looks from key individuals I will not mention."
"Wonder who they are..." wondered Fox, as he and Falco still had some bad blood with Gex. To the pilots, Gex was still a snake in the grass.
"But yeah, I've been 'hibernating' in this UFO since my return. Not the biggest return, but a return nonetheless."
Gex: Cranky Kong's beard was very thick - and smelly, too! Like being trapped in a washing machine at Zangrief's house.
"If you wanna know what the Turks are doing..." said Gex, as the others were interested in hearing about the Turks' current whereabouts. "...they're doing some 'recruiting'. That's the gist I got when their boss spoke the phone with Zant."
"Recruiting, huh..." said Cloud, with some heightened suspicions about the Turks' dubious activity. "...guess that means we won't be seeing them for a while."
"I'm fine with that," commented Iris, who was never a fan of the Turks. "Something about government agents in black suits gives me the creeps!"
"Silly Iris, they won't be your problem," smiled Cilan, placing his arm on the former champion's back. "You'll be in Unova!"
"Yeah, you're right...but they still give me the creeps, though. I won't deny that."
"I better get going - probably should return this bad boy to Shinra," said Gex, looking around at the UFO dashboard for the button to close the hatch. "Remember kids - never throw a party at Jerry Garcia's!"
"We won't," responded Falco, as Gex pressed the button and closed the hatch. Everyone backed away, as the UFO hovered in the air before flying away.
Leia, who comforted Master Hand earlier, checked on the giant hand to see how he was doing. The nurse took a peek inside Master Hand's room and saw Master Hand lying on his bed.
"Is Ema's decision still bothering you?" Leia asked Master Hand, wondering how long the giant hand was on his bed.
"Leia, do you think that I have issues?" Master Hand curiously asked the nurse, who wished to give an honest answer without hurting any of Master Hand's feelings.
"...might wanna ask a psychiatrist that. Asking the wrong person." Leia quickly closed the door and was about to walk away...but not before running into the Luminary.
"Give Master Hand a little space," the Luminary recommended to Leia before walking away, hoping that the nurse would heed his words. "He's very clearly in his feelings right now."
Done with the party game, and Master Hand's shenanigans, Mario was back at home chilling. He had some company over, in Impa, who many thought would be gone after the wedding.
"Not heading back to Hyrule as of yet," Impa informed Mario, who was speaking with the Sheikah in his living room. "Link and Zelda want me to do some 'scouting' for a new house. One that was originally intended for them."
"So that means Steve's shrine-a will remain intact?" asked Mario; Impa wanted to burn that shrine to the ground, only to spite Steve. "At least Ruby's friends will have a place-a to..."
"Mario, we have some more company!" Peach called out to the plumber, as she let Cilan and Iris enter the house. Mario stood up when he saw the two Pokemon trainers.
"Well, today's my last Friday in Seattle...as a resident, that is," said Cilan as he and Iris walked over to Mario. "Going to be leaving Sunday evening."
"Sticking around-a for Halloween, eh?" smirked Mario, only to be caught off guard when Cilan leaned in and gave him a hug. Surprised at first, Mario happily returned the favor.
"Thank you for the opportunity, Mario. I said that I would enjoy my time here...and I did just that. So, thank you."
"Glad you could-a be here, all these years. Gonna miss-a your cooking. Until we see each-a other again?" That earned a smile out of Cilan.
"Till we see each other again..." Soon Peach inched closer to Cilan, wanting in on the embrace, as Spyro and Hunter looked on.
"Man...the food quality at the mansion is gonna tank so hard," Hunter quietly discussed with Spyro, dreading the thought of Palutena having more sway in the kitchen. And he even wasn't a resident!
"Dunban can just ease into Cilan's spot - the mansion will be fine," responded Spyro, as he and Hunter went over to share any parting words to Cilan.
Cilan: My last time doing this as a full-fledged resident...as they say, all good things come to an end. Got to attend Link and Zelda wedding, on top of saving said wedding, which is like the cherry on top. I'm going to miss the Smash Mansion, and the others as well - so many good memories I made during my time. No pleasant memory is ever too good not to keep. *winks at camera*
