Years passed, and Nancy remained in the paradisaical home for a long time. She had grown into a full-grown woman as her life became a single straight line: family, friends, and lots of fun.
Nancy was now wearing a more casual knee-length white dress with a single lace sleeve and a new, blonde hair color.
But eventually, she got homesick. If Nancy ever thought about her old homeland where she had been a princess, where her sister, father, Frenchy, Ono, and Prince Ven was still alive, she did not say. She was happy; her family was Louie, Michelangelo, and Miriam. And she liked her new life a lot.
One day, Nancy, Louie, and Michelangelo walked and talked with Miriam.
"You know what hits me," Louie began. "In nature, there's a balance."
"You mean the way of life?" Nancy asked.
"Well, where you're from, that might be it," Louie replied. "But here, we have a meaningless line of indifference."
"Meaning we're all just running towards the end of the line, and then one day, we'll reach the end, and that'll be it," Michelangelo said. "Line's over, and you can do your own thing because your line doesn't affect anyone else's line."
"So, are you sure it's not a circle? That we're all connected?" Nancy asked.
"Well, a circle would mean we're all this," Michelangelo said, gesturing to everyone. "That would mean what I do affects anybody or anyone, which would mean doing whatever we wanted, not that cool."
"In short, Life is meaningless," Louie added.
"That's why you've always looked out for yourself," Miriam said. "That's also why you do you, Nancy."
"This is important," Louie said. "Think about all that you've taught."
"What do you want to do?"
"Absolutely nothing!" Nancy answered.
That night, Nancy, Louie, and Michelangelo were gazing at the stars as Michelangelo spoke, "Hey, Louie, have you ever wondered what those sparkly dots are up there?" he asked in a safe tone.
"I don't wonder. I know," Louie replied. "They're stars. Everyone knows that they're stars that always showed up at night."
Michelangelo smiled a bit. At least, that was the answer he had expected. "Oh, right. I always thought each star was a slice of pizza, looking down at me, waiting for me to taste them."
"Mikey, why is everything always with you and pizza," Louie sighed, then looked at Nancy. "Nancy, what do you think?"
"Well, I don't know," Nancy said softly. "Somebody once told me that the great rulers of the past are up there, watching over us. But you might think that's silly."
But Louie and Michelangelo didn't laugh, for there was a long pause.
"Really?" Michelangelo asked, amazed.
"You mean a bunch of royal dead folks is watching us?" Louie was confused.
"Sounds like what God is doing," Miriam spoke as she walked up to Nancy and the boys. "God looked down at us from those stars, just like those rulers you talked about." She then turned to Nancy, "He saved you in all your wanderings, and even now, he saved you from the hot desert. God won't abandon you. So, maybe don't do the same."
Louie and Michelangelo were awed by Miriam's words. Their jaws dropped.
Later that night, as everyone slept, Nancy gazed up at the starry sky and wondered if what Miriam and her mother had told her was true. She thought of the past she had left behind.
With a sigh, Nancy returned to her tent to sleep as a bit of fluff drifted away in the night breeze.
It flew into the air and reached Valka's house as the wise woman plucked and studied the fluff. There was something special about it.
"Nancy!" Valka exclaimed when she realized Queen Claire's daughter was alive. It was time for the true ruler to come back home.
The next day, Louie and Michelangelo were walking along the edge of their outcast camp when they accidentally caught the attention of two intruders, who nearly sprang into action. They ran, but the intruders gave chase.
Nancy raced to their rescue and tried to stop them while Miriam looked on and came to Louie and Michelangelo's aid. But as one of the intruders, a younger woman, looked at Nancy's eyes, she thought she'd recognized her.
"Nancy?" The woman asked as her eyes widened. "Is it you?"
"Who are you?" Nancy asked.
"It's me, your sister, Jojo. Prince Ven is here, too."
"Jojo?" Nancy's shocked face changed to amazement and happiness. "Jojo! Look at you. You're all grown up!"
"And look at you," Jojo told Nancy, noticing her sister's new clothes. "What on earth are you dressed up as?"
Like Nancy, Jojo and Prince Ven also grew up.
"Oh, Nancy, it's so good to see you," Prince Ven said, hugging her.
"Hey," Louie said. "Excuse me, but WHAT's GOING ON HERE?"
"Guys, this is my sister, Jojo," Nancy explained. "And Prince Ven, my, uh..."
"Friend," Jojo pointed out as she nudged Nancy. "Her very promised friend."
"Hi there," Michelangelo chirped.
"Nice to meet you," Miriam said to Jojo and Prince Ven.
"Wait a minute," Louie snapped, trying to assemble the pieces. "Let me get this straight. You three know each other, but they almost tried to catch us. And everyone's okay with this?"
Miriam replied. "Louie, relax."
"Wait 'til everyone finds out you've been here all this time," Jojo said to Nancy excitedly. "And our dad. He'll be so..."
"No, he doesn't have to know," Nancy said. "No one must ever know."
"What are you talking about? Of course, they do!" Prince Ven said. "Everyone thinks you're dead."
"They do?"
"Yeah. Gothel told us about the flood."
"She did...?" Nancy asked. "What else did she tell you?"
"Who cares, sis?" Jojo exclaimed. "You're alive! And that means...you're the queen!"
Miriam looked surprised and awed. "Queen?"
"Queen?" Louie repeated. "Lady, have you got your lines crossed?"
"No, she's really the rightful queen," Prince Ven insisted.
"WHAT?! I'm freaking out here," Michelangelo cried. He almost fainted, but Miriam caught him.
"Oh, stop," Nancy muttered, blushing and smiling.
"Mikey, don't be crazy. Nancy's no queen." Louie said, then he turned to Nancy. "Are you?"
"Yes," Nancy said, finally confessing as she sat down. "I mean, I was gonna be, but…it's been so long..."
Louie's jaw dropped. "Let me get straight. You're the Queen? And you never told us?"
"Look, I'm still the same girl," Nancy said.
"But with power," Louie added.
"That's all behind me. It doesn't matter anymore."
"Are you kidding!? It matters to me! Everything's ruined. It'll never be the same," Louie said, then sighed. "Great, now I gotta gravel."
"You mean 'grovel,'" Michelangelo corrected.
"Whatever, and I'm not gonna do it."
"Stop it, you two," Miriam said. "Nothing's changed."
Prince Ven turned to Miriam, Louie, Michelangelo, and even Jojo. "Could you guys excuse us for a few minutes?"
"Why am I not surprised?" Jojo groaned.
"Sure," said Miriam in a huff. "Come on, guys. Let's give the two a little privacy."
"It starts!" Louie said as they all walked away. "You think you know a girl..."
"I knew she was a queen all along," Michelangelo said excitedly. "I had this feeling in my shell."
"No, you didn't," Louie replied. "That was lunch."
Prince Ven gave Nancy an extended reunion hug while tears welled in his eyes when they were alone.
"What is it?" Nancy asked Ventus in surprise.
"It's like you got back from the dead," Ven said. "You have no idea how much this will mean to everyone. What it means to me..."
"It's okay," Nancy replied as she hugged him back. "But I miss you, too. Do you still feel the same way about me all those years?"
"Of course I did," Prince Ven nodded.
A while later, Nancy and Ven walked across the plains, discussing the things they'd missed in each other's absence when they were apart. Together, they ran and chased each other.
It wasn't long before they fell in love, much to Louie and Jojo's dismay. But Miriam and Michelangelo noticed the romance already.
"It is beautiful," Prince Ven said. "I can see why you like it here."
"Yeah," Nancy nodded. "But I know what you're thinking. I've been alive all this time, and why didn't I return home? Did you guys miss me?"
"Yes," Ven nodded. "We were suffering, and so was your father. Frenchy and Ono, too. Gothel has decimated the whole kingdom, letting the Gross Sisters, the pigs, and bandits do whatever they want."
"What?" Nancy was shocked. She tried not to think of home but realized that things she'd never imagined had happened to those she loved.
"You should've seen it. Everything was destroyed," Prince Ven continued. "There's no food, no water, no anything. But now that we're together, we can still do something about it, right?"
"I... I can't," Nancy said as she lowered her head.
"I'm sorry, WHAT?!" asked Jojo, shocked. She came out of her hiding place and looked at Nancy wide-eyed. "Don't you get it?! Our whole kingdom – everyone we know – is in danger!"
"I can't go back," Nancy said sadly. She thought she was hiding from the past, but now she's hiding from the future.
"Why?" Jojo demanded.
Nancy snapped at her sister. "You wouldn't understand."
"What wouldn't I understand!?"
"That our mother is dead!"
Those words stunned Jojo and Prince Ven as Nancy continued. "Our mother would've wanted me to come back. But she's dead, and it's my fault. None of it matters now, okay!?"
Jojo somehow knew that Gothel was responsible for their mother's death through an unknown source, but she couldn't tell her sister. "Well, what about our father? Our dad!? This is our chance and responsibility, sis! We need to stop Gothel!"
But Nancy still refused. "I can't go back. Ever!"
"Why?" Jojo pleaded. "Because of what happened at the flood? Gothel already told us that-"
Ven put his hand on Jojo's shoulder to calm her down. "She's serious, Jojo. None of it matters to her anymore. Something about Hakuna Matata."
"What?" Jojo asked in confusion.
"Hakuna Matata," Nancy explained. "It's something I learned out here, Jojo. Sometimes bad things happen, and there was nothing I can do about it. So, why worry?"
"Why worry?" Jojo repeated, shaking her head. "Because it's our responsibility!"
"Well, what about you? YOU left."
"I only left our home to go find help, and Ven came along with me! And now we found YOU. Don't you understand? We're their only hope!"
Nancy looked away. "Sorry."
"You know what?" Jojo said out loud, getting angry. "I used to believe in you. When we were kids, I believed that nothing really bad could ever happen because you were here. But now I see that the kingdom's fate hangs on idiots like me! And that, sis, is sorta terrifying. But people like us don't change the past, Nancy."
"Because people like you never let it go!"
Jojo stared at her big sister for a long moment, trying to see the Nancy she once knew. But not anymore. "What happened to you? You're not the Nancy we remember."
"You're right. I'm not. Now, are you done?"
"No," Jojo said sadly. "I'm just...disappointed."
Seeing that there was nothing he and Jojo could do, Ventus sighed. "Nancy, I should have told you everything, and for that, I'm sorry. But...you have to stop running from the past, Nancy. If you can't do it now, I worry that maybe you never will. And I can't live like that."
"I think it's time for you to go," said Nancy.
Jojo sighed, giving up. "You know, it's really upsetting to me that you're the heir to the throne and are too afraid to do it."
With one sad look at Nancy, Jojo and Ventus turned and began to walk away into the camp. They tried and failed as Jojo thought about telling her father, King Doug, that she had found her sister, only to lose her again.
As night began to fall and everyone tucked in to sleep, Nancy stalked off alone, refusing to believe she could challenge Gothel to the throne.
"She's wrong," Nancy said to herself. "I can't go back. What would it prove, anyway? It won't change anything. You can't change the past." She then looked up at the sky, packed with stars, looking for her mother. "You said you'd always be there for me! But you're not. And it's because of me. It's my fault. It's my fault."
But at that moment, Nancy became aware of a faint sound - somebody singing. She couldn't tell where it was coming from, so she continued onward.
Startled, Nancy saw a wise woman appearing right in front of her. It was Valka, acting on intuition, came looking for Nancy. When Nancy saw her, she was surprised but was not in the mood for games.
"Go away," Nancy shouted.
"Going away does not answer the question," Valka spoke, shaking her head.
"What question?" Nancy asked in confusion. "Who are you?"
Valka looked at Nancy in the eye. "I know exactly who I am. But the question is, who are you?"
Nancy sighed as she looked down. "I thought I knew. Now I'm not so sure. I'm nobody."
"Well, I know who you are," Valka answered. "Everybody is somebody, even a nobody."
"I think you're a little confused," Nancy groaned.
"I'm confused?" Valka replied. "You don't even know who you are."
"Oh, and I suppose you do?" Nancy snapped.
"Sure do," Valka said with a smile. "I held the daughter of Queen Claire."
Suddenly, Nancy stopped momentarily, hardly believing what she'd just heard. This old woman knew her mother?
Nancy turned to Valka, asking softly if the words from before had struck her. "You knew my mother?"
"Correction," Valka said. "I know your mother."
"I hate to tell you this," said Nancy. "But she died a long time ago."
"Nope! Wrong again," Valka said, laughing. "She's alive! And I'll show her to you. Follow me, and I will show you! If you can keep up!"
Valka led Nancy to the edge of a reflecting pool. But when Nancy crept closer and looked into the water, she saw only herself and not her mother.
Overwhelmed with disappointment, Nancy turned to Valka. "I don't see anything. It's just my reflection."
"No," said Valka, pointing at the water. "Look harder."
As it shifted slightly, Nancy looked down at the water, and her reflection changed to that of her as a young child and Queen Claire.
Nancy leaned down, and when her mother's face stared back at her, Nancy caught her breath in her throat as she gasped.
"You see," Valka said. "She lives in you."
Then, a mysterious thing happened. The water shifted again, and the Queen's reflection moved from the water and into the illuminating, starry sky.
"Nancy..." A voice echoed through the sky.
Nancy saw that her mother's voice filled her mind and heart. "Mom?"
The gigantic ghost of Queen Claire appeared in the sky and right in front of Nancy. "Nancy, you have forgotten me."
"No!" Nancy cried as she shook her head. "How could I?"
"You have forgotten who you are and so have forgotten me. But look inside yourself, Nancy. You are more than what you have become. You must take your place in the Circle of Life."
"How can I go back?" Nancy asked in tears. "When I'm not who I used to be. I'm sorry, but… it's just that...I don't know how to be like you."
"As queen, I was most proud of one thing," Queen Claire said, smiling. "Having you as my daughter."
Queen Claire's words had surprised Nancy as a cry nearly caught her throat. She smiled as she wanted to tell her mother how she wanted to hear those words and wanted her mother to be alive.
Nancy said softly, "But that was a long time ago."
To her surprise, Queen Claire shook her head. "No, Nancy. That is forever."
"Please, don't leave me again," Nancy begged as she saw her mother's spirit fading, along with the clouds.
"I never left you," Queen Claire said. "I never will. Remember who you are... Remember..."
When the Queen was gone, Valka sat beside Nancy as she said, "The funniest weather, huh? Besides, change is good."
"But it isn't easy," said Nancy. "I know what I must do, but...going back means facing my past, that I've been running from for so long."
"Yeah, the past can hurt," said Valka. "But the way I see it, you can neither run from it nor learn from it. And so, I ask again, who are you?"
"I'm Nancy. Daughter of Claire," Nancy answered. Feeling encouraged by her mother's words, she returned to her kingdom and took her rightful place as Queen.
Just before dawn, Ventus and Jojo's voices woke Miriam, Louie, and Michelangelo.
"Have you guys seen Nancy?" Jojo asked.
"No, we haven't," Miriam answered with worry.
"We thought she was with you," Louie looked surprised.
"She was, but we can't find her," Prince Ven said. "Where is she?"
"Ahem," interrupted Valka, who found them. "You won't find her here. The queen has returned."
Hearing the old woman's words, Jojo was amazed. "I can't believe it. My sis has gone back."
"Gone back?" Miriam repeated. "What do you mean, gone back?"
"Hey, what's going on here?" Louie demanded. "Who's the wise old lady?!"
"Nancy's gone back to challenge Lady Gothel to take her place as queen!" explained Prince Ven.
"Ohhhh," Louie and Michelangelo both said in unison.
"Challenge?" Miriam thought it over, then asked in a worried tone. "You mean like a fight to the death? She might be killed!"
"And it's all thanks to you," Louie yelled at Jojo and Ventus.
"You don't understand, Louie," Ventus said.
"I don't understand?" Louie repeated. "I don't understand?! You don't understand. Nancy's gonna march off into the jaws of death, and it's all your fault!"
"Let me come with you," said Miriam, pleaded with Jojo and Ventus.
"I'm going, too," Michelangelo said.
"Not you, too!" Louie cried in dismay.
"Boys, it's about responsibility," Miriam told Louie and Michelangelo in a serious tone. "There comes a time in life when one must take fate into one's own hands. And like Nancy, who marches off into the face of death, I, too, go to meet my destiny...as her friend, caregiver, caretaker, and guardian."
"Then, we're going, too," Michelangelo agreed, holding Louie. "I mean, come on. We know her royal identity now, and our friendship has been cemented."
"Fine!" Louie yelled. "Let's all go crazy!" Then, he dashed after Ventus, Jojo, Miriam, and Michelangelo. "Hey, wait for me!"
"BOOYAKASHA!"
"What does that even mean?!"
When Nancy reached her homeland, she found it dry and barren, just as her sister and Ven had said. The answer was simple: Lady Gothel.
In the years since Gothel took over, everything her parents had worked so hard to create was destroyed. New monuments and statues were all made through the hard labor of people in the kingdom.
Nancy scarcely recognized it as a child. But the lush, green grass and lovely buildings were no more, thanks to Lady Gothel.
"Nancy! Wait up!" Jojo ran up behind her, as did Prince Ven, as the two looked at the state of their home. "It's awful, isn't it, sis?"
"I didn't want to believe you...," Nancy said, overcome with emotion.
Prince Ven looked at Nancy with tenderness in his eyes as he spoke. "I don't understand. What made you come back? I thought you wanted to stay. I thought what you said last night, and it meant something."
"Of course, it did," Nancy said to Ventus. "I love you."
"Then what happened?"
"Some sense got into me...with a bump to prove it," Nancy said, referring to her encounter with Valka, then she turned back to Ventus. "I finally realized I have to face who I am. If I don't, there's no future for us."
"I know you're right, Nancy, and it's what I wanted, but... I just don't want to lose you."
"And I you," Nancy said. "Besides, this is our parents' kingdom. If Jojo and I don't fight for it, who will?"
"I will," Prince Ven said. "We'll do it together."
Nancy looked over at him and smiled.
As the two shared momentarily, something flew above them with a voice. "It can't be."
It was Ono, who had just noticed Jojo and Prince Ven had returned with a grown-up Nancy.
"Hi, Ono," Nancy greeted happily.
Ono landed in front of Nancy and happily bowed. "Nancy, welcome home."
A cloud of dust appeared behind them, and they turned to see who it was. It was Louie, along with Michelangelo and Miriam.
"We're here!" Miriam exclaimed as she hugged Nancy.
"Everyone! Calm down. We're here!" Louie cried.
"The backup has arrived!" Michelangelo exclaimed in excitement.
"Guys! Miriam!" Nancy said, feeling glad as she hugged Louie, Michelangelo, and Miriam. "What are you doing here?"
"We were concerned because you're our friend," Miriam explained while Michelangelo hugged Nancy.
"At your service, my liege!" Michelangelo said, happily bowing.
Louie looked at the ruined kingdom as he raised an eyebrow. "We're going to fight that evil lady for this?"
"Yes, Louie," Nancy said. "This is my home."
"Talk about your fixer-upper!" Louie said.
Ignoring that comment, Miriam said solemnly. "Nancy, if it's important to you...we're with you until the end."
Nancy smiled at her friends, her sibling, and her betrothed. Turning, they all gazed at the dark clouds and the devastated kingdom. It was time to put an end to Lady Gothel's rule.
Together, Nancy and the others made it safely without being spotted. Some of the kingdom's people were praised and amazed to see their true ruler, Nancy, had returned.
Once there, however, they peered to see some green pigs guarding the palace.
"Green pigs?" Louie said. "Why did I wear green already? They always see me in green!"
"Take it easy," Miriam told Louie. Then, she asked Nancy, "What's your plan for getting past those piggy guards?"
"Live bait," Nancy answered.
"Good idea," Louie said. "Hey!"
"That's a great idea!" Michelangelo said genuinely. "Those guys could never resist a pretty good distraction. So, you're saying that all we have to do is create a diversion. Maybe a little tune?"
"What do they want us to do? Dress in drag and do the hula!?"
Nancy nodded as she smiled reassuringly. It was the only way of getting past the guards, so Louie, Mikey, and Miriam loved to nominate for a job they'd do.
Their plan was simple: While Louie, Michelangelo, and Miriam distracted the pigs, Ven would rally for help, and Nancy and Jojo would deal with Lady Gothel.
"Hey, you little piggies! Get a whiff of this!" Louie shouted to get attention as a group of pigs and bandits looked up to see Louie and Michelangelo doing the Charleston and the Hula dance, and Miriam provided some music.
With everything preoccupied, Nancy and Jojo snuck inside their own palace home with the path clear. Everything looked smaller because the two were so much older and grown up.
Behind the pillar, Nancy and Jojo can see Lady Gothel, unaware of their arrival, reclining in the throne room, enjoying her meal. Poor Frenchy was imprisoned under a small metal cage.
Suddenly, Nancy and Jojo hid in the shadows as the Gross Sisters ran in. They whispered to Gothel, and she roused up instantly.
"OOOHHH, DOOUUGGG!" Lady Gothel roared.
As if on cue, the guards carried King Doug forward with his head lowered and standing before Lady Gothel.
Nancy and Jojo gasped at what had happened to their father. Like his subjects, he was unkempt, poorly dressed, and he even had grown a beard.
"Why have you put yourself through all this?" Lady Gothel told King Doug. "All you have to do is be my king. You're suffering for what? A memory of a life you once knew. A queen you once loved."
"Still love," King Doug corrected.
"Whatever. I tried to make you understand what a true ruler can be!"
"Gothel, everyone knows that a true ruler's power is compassion," King Doug answered.
"Do I look like I have compassion?" Gothel scoffed.
"It's over. There's nothing left," King Doug replied. "You're destroying everything! Let my people go. You're sending us to our deaths!"
"So be it. We're not going anywhere!" Lady Gothel snapped. "And neither should you. I'm the Queen, and I make the rules here, so I have the power to do what I want."
"If you were half the queen my wife Claire was-"
"Don't you dare mention that name to me!" Lady Gothel shouted angrily as she slapped King Doug with her open hand.
Jojo clenched her fist in anger as she and Nancy saw their father fall.
"I AM TEN TIMES THE QUEEN YOUR WIFE WAS!" Lady Gothel screamed as lightning flashed in the dark sky.
But just then, she was startled because as the thunder faded, it turned into someone's scream of anger. Looking around, Gothel widened her eyes in fear. Standing in front of Lady Gothel, illuminated by the flashes of lightning, were the shadowy figures of two grown girls.
"What?" Lady Gothel whispered. "It can't be..."
"Get away from our father!" Jojo exclaimed as she and Nancy came down in front of Gothel.
King Doug raised his aching head as he looked at his daughter. "Jojo?"
"Yes, Dad, I'm home," said Jojo, hugging her father. "And I brought back someone." She gestured to Nancy, who looked at her father as well.
"Dad, it's me," Nancy finally spoke to her father.
King Doug looked at Nancy with his eyes wide in realization and tears. Jojo was right. This was Nancy, all fully grown and a spitting image of her mother.
"Nancy...," King Doug said, hugging Nancy and Jojo. "You're alive? How can that be?"
"I'm here, Father," Nancy said firmly. "I'm home."
"Nancy?" Gothel said, shaking her head, trying to understand it all. Then, recovered from her shock, she broke the moment with a wicked smile. "Nancy, I'm a little surprised to see you. Alive."
When Lady Gothel said the word, she angrily turned to the Gross Sisters and the green pigs.
"Whoa, whoa, hold up," Nubia said to Lady Gothel. "Uh, I don't know what you're mad at us for."
"You said you took care of her, right?!" Lady Gothel angrily demanded. "'Dead as a doornail.' Weren't those your EXACT words?"
"It must've been a different Nancy, right?" Leonard suggested. "I mean, it is a very popular name nowadays."
With Nancy by her side, Jojo narrowed her eyes at Lady Gothel. "Give us one good reason why we shouldn't rip you apart."
"Now, girls," Lady Gothel stumbled. "You must understand. The pressures of ruling a kingdom-"
"Are no longer yours," finished Nancy. "Step down, Gothel."
"I would, actually...," Lady Gothel said as she nodded to a dozen green pigs and the Gross Sisters, "but there are some who still adored me as queen."
"Well, we don't," called Prince Ven. "Your reign is over! Nancy's the rightful ruler, not you!"
Nancy and Jojo looked around to see that Prince Ven was surrounded by everyone, along with Louie, Michelangelo, Miriam, and Ono.
"The choice is yours, Gothel," Jojo said. "Are you gonna step down or what?"
"Must we all end this in violence?" Lady Gothel said to Jojo. "I'd hate to be responsible for the death of a family member. To feel the shame of knowing I took the life of someone I loved." She then turned to Nancy. "Wouldn't you agree...Nancy?"
Nancy shook her head. "That's not going to work. I've put that behind me."
"But what about your faithful subjects?" Lady Gothel gestured to the gathered people. "Have they put it behind them?"
"Girls," King Doug said to Nancy and Jojo, looking back and forth between them and Lady Gothel. "What is she talking about?"
Lady Gothel enjoyed the moment. "So you did tell them. After all, you wouldn't happen to be responsible for the Queen's death, would you?"
Nancy lowered her head in dismay, and there was no point in hiding the truth now. "Yes," Nancy sighed.
The crowd gasped as King Doug walked to his daughter. "It's not true! Tell me it's not true."
Meeting her father's sad eyes, Nancy nodded. "It's true. I'm sorry."
"Nancy," King Doug shook his hand, refusing to believe it. "You were a child! It can't be true."
"Face it, she admits it!" Lady Gothel shouted, not concerned with the moment between father and daughter. "Murderer!"
"It was an accident!" Nancy protested.
Lady Gothel sneered. "If it wasn't for you, the Queen would still be alive. It's your fault she's dead! Do you deny it?"
"No!"
"Then you're guilty!"
"No, I'm not a murderer!" Nancy cried.
"We should all believe a daughter who takes the life of a mother?" Lady Gothel said, laughing. "We should believe a daughter who takes the life of a queen!? A child who abandons her father?"
Sadly, King Doug looked at Nancy, knowing her young daughter would never mean to kill her mother.
"Face it, Nancy. You're in trouble again," Lady Gothel said. "Only this time, your mommy isn't here to save you. And now everyone…knows…WHY!"
As Lady Gothel nearly scared Nancy in front of her face, Nancy fell backward to the ground.
"Nancy!" cried Prince Ven as he, Louie, Miriam, Ono, and Michelangelo saw this in shock.
Suddenly, lightning struck again, setting the whole land ablaze. As Nancy tried to get up, Gothel held her down with her heel.
Nancy didn't know it, but she felt her mother's reaction before her death.
Lady Gothel savored the moment as she smiled. "Now, this looks familiar," she said. "Where have I seen this before? Oh, yes, I remember. This is just the way your mother looked before she died. I looked at her straight - saw the fear in her eyes, and before she knew it, she was all...too...gone."
Jojo's head nearly snapped. Her eyes met Lady Gothel's, and she knew what had happened. Her big sister hadn't killed their mother. Lady Gothel had.
Rage flooded Jojo as she screamed angrily, fueled by the adrenaline. "STOP IT, SHUT UP! YOU KILLED HER, LADY GOTHEL! I know you did it!"
The crowd gasped once more—even the pigs and Leonard watched this spectacle like a soap opera.
"Oooh, this is getting good," King Leonard said as the other pigs brought popcorn.
Nancy was shocked to hear that. "Jojo…?"
"Who told you that?" Lady Gothel asked in anger.
"I did," Ono said to Lady Gothel, with Frenchy beside him as he began to explain.
A memory came to Ono, back when he was about to get the Queen some help, but he was knocked out cold by one of the Gross Sisters. A moment later, Frenchy came to wake the egret up. They saw that the flood was gone, Queen Claire was dead, Gothel told Nancy to run away and never return, and Lady Gothel was with the Gross Sisters, some bandits, and the green pigs.
After seeing too much of this revelation, Ono and Frenchy couldn't tell the King about Lady Gothel's betrayal. So, they turned to the one person Nancy promised that they would always be together: Her sister, Jojo.
That's how Jojo knew the truth when she was in tears, devastated about losing Nancy.
Ono finished the story. "You set everything up with the Gross Sisters and the pigs' help!"
As Nancy listened, a shred of sadness and anger burned inside her. She had lived in exile all those years – and it wasn't her fault. None of this was her fault.
"You did this?" Nancy questioned Lady Gothel, who backed away, allowing Nancy to get up.
Lady Gothel laughed. "First you kill your mother, and now your little sister wants to kill me!"
"YOU KILLED HER!" Jojo screamed as she pointed a sword at Lady Gothel's throat. "TELL THEM THE TRUTH!"
"Don't believe their lies!" Lady Gothel shook her head as Jojo quickly came to her sister's aid.
Rage flooded through Nancy as her eyes narrowed at Gothel. Everything Lady Gothel had told them was a lie. Everything she'd told Nancy was a lie. She had been the reason Nancy ran away, and the kingdom was in ruins. She was the reason Queen Claire was dead.
"You've been lying to me my whole life," Nancy said as she slowly stood up with Jojo's help and took a fighting stance.
"Murderer!" Jojo said, echoing.
Lady Gothel gestured to her army. "Get them all!"
With that, Nancy and Jojo ran after Lady Gothel while King Leonard and his pigs attacked again. But Prince Ven and the citizens joined the battle.
Together with Louie, Michelangelo, Miriam, Valka, Ono, and Frenchy, they began to batter and scatter the pigs. Behind them, Miriam heard the entire outcast community from their home join in the fight. They listened to the cries of triumph and victory as they sent all the bandits running for their lives.
Nancy and Jojo could hear the triumphant shouts from everyone. But the two sisters didn't have time to waste as they managed to corner Lady Gothel on the palace's rooftop.
"It's over, Gothel," Nancy said, deepening her voice.
Slowly, Lady Gothel turned to face Nancy and Jojo. "You were a foolish and naive child, Nancy! I'm the one who deserves that throne because I'm the best ruler! This is my kingdom, my destiny!"
"Destiny?" Jojo repeated. "After what you did? You fooled everyone, just like you fooled my sister!"
An evil smile came over Lady Gothel's face. "And I'll gladly do it again, with you as a bonus, Jojo! Even though, from the looks of it, I did send your sister away for a very long time. You two should probably dial it back a bit. You wouldn't want to kill me now, would you?"
"No, Gothel," Jojo said. "My sister is not like you. You don't even deserve to live."
Lady Gothel started to slink off, pretending to leave, but then turned and attacked. But Nancy and Jojo punched Gothel together, making her fall to her death below.
Nancy and Jojo peered over the rooftop to see the Gross Sisters slowly trying to escape.
"Now what?" Nubia turned to her sisters. "We did all her dirty work, and we should get paid!"
Just then, an array of green pigs slowly surrounded the Gross Sisters as Leonard said to them, "Paid, huh? 'Cause I thought Lady Gothel told us that you said we were 'fatsos' and wanted to eat us."
Nancy and Jojo saw that the green pigs had had enough of these bullies. They had heard from Lady Gothel that they no longer needed the Gross Sisters once they were done with them.
As Nancy and Jojo turned back to their friends, they heard the Gross Sisters' screams and the pigs' sounds of charge as they advanced and chased the three. They would teach the Gross Sisters a lesson - one they would never, ever forget.
"Well, that went well... If you're me," Leonard said as he shrugged.
In the sky above, rain began to fall, drenching the barren land and dousing the flames that threatened to consume the kingdom. Free at last, the jubilant people sang a song of faith and thanks. They danced and embraced each other.
Inside the palace, Nancy and Jojo walked out into the throne room, with their bodies aching. They looked around with smiles on their faces.
A smile spread across Nancy's face as she looked around. Their father and Prince Ven stood waiting for them, surrounded by their guards, knights, and maids. And off to one side, Louie, Michelangelo, Miriam, and the other outcasts stood smiling, too.
Nancy and Jojo approached their father and hugged him. Then, Nancy turned and gave a nod of thanks to her friends, and Louie gave her a thumbs up while he, Michelangelo, and Miriam hugged her.
Ono landed in front of Nancy and bowed once again. "Your Majesty," Ono said.
Ven held Nancy's hand. He turned her around to look at the people in celebration with joy and amazement.
"Look!" Prince Ven said as he gestured to Nancy and the cheering people. "Look at your people, Nancy. They are free."
"It is time!" Valka cheered as Nancy walked to the palace balcony. As she stared at the sky, remembering her mother and all she had taught her, Nancy heard her mother's voice in the wind.
"Remember..." Queen Claire said.
I'll never forget it, Mom, Nancy thought as she smiled, looking out over her kingdom and the lands beyond with Jojo, Ventus, Louie, Michelangelo, Miriam, Ono, and King Doug by her side. Now, it was time to look toward the future.
Before long, the whole kingdom flourished again, no longer a devastating wasteland under Lady Gothel's rule.
The grass, flowers, and trees blossomed beautifully, the food became plentiful, and everyone rejoiced. Then, one morning, everyone in the kingdom gathered again for yet another celebration - this time, the green pigs and Leonard Mudbeard joined in.
On the balcony of the palace, Nancy looked out over her kingdom. Then, she looked at Valka, Jojo, Frenchy, and her father, who were with her newly wedded husband, Prince Ven.
With all their friends around, including Ono, Louie, Michelangelo, and Miriam, a new celebration of life took place.
This celebration was the wedding of Prince Ven and Nancy, who was now crowned Queen after her coronation. They slowly walked arm in arm to the royal palace's balcony and held their hands high for all the kingdom to see as the people let out cries and cheers of joy and laughter as they welcomed the new husband and wife.