Hey, everyone. Author here. I know normally I'd be enthusiastically talking about how I've been waiting for this for literally forever, but… well, let's just say my life hasn't been the best.
Ever since my 17th birthday, things have somehow taken a turn for the worse. I've been getting more reckless and irresponsible, and I'm guessing that's cause my brain signals associated the fact that I have 358 days left before full adulthood (as of publishing this chapter), and now I have tried to live my life my own way. Horrible idea.
So,I've been juggling my emotions and all that stuff, and I've been trying to fix my attitudes and living style. Also, I'm trying to convince my parents I'm worthy of a new pair of Bluetooth earphones for Christmas. But I kinda gave up on it. I dunno, my ambitions are complicated. But one thing I do know, is that my ambition to finish this story from five years ago has grown oddly stronger. I don't know why, but it's a very welcome change.
So, after five or so years, I give to you all, the first chapter of the long awaited Amphibia-esque Cuphead fanfiction, Teen Girl in a Toon World.
This is "The Brothers and the Beast".
Far, far away; from the galaxy our planet inhabits, there lies a world of magic, of wonder, and like many others, danger. It is a world very much unlike our own, inhabited by citizens of all shapes, sizes and colors. Our story does not focus on one of the larger landmasses or a country of this world. Instead, we focus on the little-known Inkwell Isles.
The Inkwell Isles is of three large masses, each with its own unique style. The smallest isle held the forest of most of the isles' natural beauty, where there were very few residents of the more civilized kind. The medium was a smaller town, where the circuses and carnivals would settle when they came; a valid reason for its smaller population. The largest one of all was where the citizens mostly inhabit; the big top, most would call it. This is where most of the establishments were placed, especially when it came to jobs, transportation, and the like. It came with the cost of a bit of noise pollution, however. It was always best to prepare yourself for the honking of horns and the loud chatter of the busy days.
What is most noteworthy about this world, at least to the people who are not of it, are the strange inhabitants that are simply called toons. Most of them are not human people like you and me. Some of them are everyday objects; come to life with faces, voices, and limbs. Others have inanimate objects for heads, with the rest of their bodies being quite normal torsos. This is what adults, especially reasonable ones who have left their childhood behind, would seriously question if they ever landed here. They would ask themselves if they've gone mad, or on a trip that came from the effects of alcohol, drugs or other such strong medicine. But what would children, or even teenagers say? The question shall be begged today.
Our story begins in the first isle, in the little cottage sat somewhere in the deeper woods, at the very far end where the shore meets the sea. In this cottage lives the good old Elder Kettle, a former soldier and army leader. A few years ago, he took it upon himself to raise two little boys that came from his lovely granddaughter and her husband. He couldn't help but wonder what had happened to them after they had gone abroad, as the letters had stopped coming as the boys got older. But he had good confidence that they were perfectly alright, just as they had always been.
On this fine, late summer day, is the first son Elder Kettle's raised all these years. He is a little ten-year-old boy with a black sweater, red shorts, white four-fingered gloves and light brown shoes for little boys of his current age. But, as per the strange custom of his world, he was one of those with a normal human-like torso and a cup for a head, hence his name, Cuphead; the older brother of two little twin boys. As he walked with a merry step, his bent white-and-red straw spinned around in the liquid stuff in his head, and his little red nose took a whiff of the fresh forest air.
As his younger brother Mugman stepped outside, one would almost barely be able to tell the difference between the two. He looked almost exactly the same, except for his blue color scheme that was an alternate to his brother's red. His blue-and-white striped straw was straight instead of bent, his eyes were a little far apart on his mug-shaped head, and his big blue nose was more like a little balloon. He took a deep breath as well, enjoying the early morning aroma.
"Ah, yeah," Cuphead sighed happily, putting an arm around his younger brother. "Nothin' like a beautiful late summer morning, eh Mugsy?"
And, I did forget to mention, most of our characters have a bit of an accent. A New Yorker one, if you will. If you've never heard of that kind of accent, you've got nothing to worry about, because neither have I until now. Just imagine their voices however you'd like, if you haven't heard the original version of these tales already.
"Oh, absolutely," his little brother Mugman said, putting one hand on his hip and swiping his palm across the sky like an artist admiring the view. "I love nature on a day like this. The wind is blowing, the flowers are blooming, and you can hear such beautiful sounds out here—"
If only those tranquil sounds hadn't been interrupted by such a startling scream on that fine late summer day. In fact, it was so startling that even Mr. Sun in the sky looked down to see the commotion as the birds that flew out of the nearby trees tried not to get too close to him. The boys cringed and suppressed the urge to cover their invisible ears.
"Unique sounds, huh?"
Cuphead had basically summarized the shock in a simple three words. Before any of them could think of what to do next, a living accordion as big as them both came out screaming and running through the woods surrounding their cottage. Mugman jumped into his brother's arms with a scream and Cuphead caught him on instinct, calming down after noticing it was only their good friend Accordo; or as the isles called him in a definitely not affectionate way, "Crazy Joe Accordion". He wasted no time on his breath, and instead began crying out in what one could easily mistake as one of his fits, "There's a monster out there in the woods! I seen it! I've seen it!"
"M-M-M-Monster?!" Mugman cried, while Cuphead dropped him onto the ground "on accident", he said. But really he was excited by the idea of some real excitement going on in this boring place.
"What kinda monster?" He asked, putting himself right in front of the poor accordion man's face that showed he was truly trapped and forced to answer the question. "Is it a fire-breathing dragon? A one-eyed gorgon turning everyone to stone?! No wait, don't tell me—it's a purple rabbit with a big glowing smile!"
Mugman looked like he was going to faint, but the last one made him recover as he stood up and looked at his brother in confusion. Accordo the Accordion however, was not finished. He grabbed a nearby twig and waved it in the air at them, kneeling down afterwards to illustrate his findings.
"WORSE! It was tall and lanky, with an ugly face and an ear-piercing roar, and long spindly limbs!"
"AAAAAGH!"
"... well, I ain't too worried about it."
"Oh, believe me, boy, you should be," Accordo muttered, jabbing the end of his branch into Cuphead's face, narrowly avoiding his little red nose. "There's been nothing like that in all the history of this place, and I should know. Found some ancient stuff in an old cave and I gotta say— it's finally coming true!"
"What's coming true—"
"Well, boys! I'd love to chat more, but I gotta warn the isles that that thing is coming! I can't say anything about my discovery, but—well, I've said enough. Accordo, away!"
With a salute, he was off, cartwheeling through the trees down the path that led outside the first isle. The boys could only watch in bewilderment, until their guardian Elder Kettle called them inside. They went inside and the old kettle was sat on the couch, blowing off the steam on the top of his tea cup. He looked up and smiled, patting the couch as the boys sat down next to him to listen.
"Ah, there you are boys. How was your quick nature walk this fine morning?"
"Didn't get a chance to do it," Cuphead shrugged. "Good old Accordo came tumblin' outta the woods yellin' some nonsense."
Elder Kettle raised an eyebrow at this, but didn't say anything.
"So, why'd ya call us in?"
"Ah, right. I'm off to the market for groceries and I'd hate for something to happen to you both while I'm gone. So I think it's about time the two of you learn to be home alone."
Cuphead gripped the sides of his chair with an excited grin, and Mugman simply listened with unbridled interest. EK would've smiled if it weren't for the fact that Cuphead was a little too excited for this little task he was about to bestow on them.
"Now, boys, you know I hate picking favorites, but I'm afraid only one of you will be in charge. And that one's going to have to be Mugman."
"What?! Come on, Elder Kettle, why can't I do it? We already know Mugman's gonna make me do boring stuff."
"I'm sorry Cuphead; while you are the elder twin, you're not as responsible as I wish you would be. Mugman, on the other hand…"
"Come on, gramps! What makes ya think I'm irresponsible?"
EK sighed and rubbed the space between his spout, and Cuphead cringed. He knew where this was going.
"Well, there's the time you drove the truck straight into the garden for some reason…"
"Then there was the time you burnt the pancakes while Elder Kettle was out swatting fruit flies away from the garden," Mugman muttered, counting on his fingers and decidingly ignoring the glare his older twin was giving him.
"And then you played around with helium tanks when we went to last year's carnival and we had to chase you all over the isles to get you back…"
Cuphead groaned and slapped his hand over his eyes, running it down as if he were trying to pull his porcelain skin off his face. "Okay, okay, fine, I get it, I'm not the best at takin' care of myself. But how could takin' care of the house be any different?"
EK stood up, walking to the door to grab his kettle lid and plop it on his head. He turned around and tried to glare at Cuphead, but it was difficult with his kid doing the same. He sighed and just smiled at him instead.
"Maybe one day, Cuphead, when you've learned to be able to handle yourself and stop getting you and your brother into trouble, I might just change my mind." He grabbed a basket with some cloth bags inside and left the cottage, and Cuphead slumped into his chair with a frustrated groan while Mugman picked up one of his favorite books to catch up on.
"What does he mean, when I can handle myself?! I can handle myself just fine! Right, Mugsy?"
"Uh huh." Nothing but the sound of a page being flipped.
"Are ya even listenin' to me?"
"Look, Cuphead," Mugman sighed as he put down his book in his lap. "You know I'd love to agree with you on these things, but when you rope us into any situation, you know how much trouble we can get into."
Before he could even start listing off instances, Cuphead immediately put his finger on his brother's lips and kept him quiet. He hopped off the armchair and marched with frustration to the nearby window, glaring outside at the forest near the cottage.
Cuphead, being the bolder and bigger one of the both of them, was always fond of getting out, exploring, and finding something he was certain no one else had seen before. Like a small rock that to him, looked like a face! Or a piece of thread he could turn into a little bow and tie to his straw until it fell off and he'd have to find a new decor. Every minute was an adventure or a waste of it to him, and just sitting around while Elder Kettle was out doing errands without them was always the worst. Waiting for hours until he came back, being stuck with chores until he was free to play—like I said, the worst.
"Hey Mugsy?"
"Yeah?"
"What kind of a beast ya think Accordo was talking about anyway?"
"I don't know, and I'm not curious enough to think about it. So please don't rope me into another adventure while we can just sit here and relax!"
Cuphead sighed. Unlike him, Mugman was a lot quieter and calmer, and—no offense to his loving brother—really quite boring. He preferred to stay cozy and safe with his nose stuck in a book all day. Except for the rare occasion when he'd willingly be going along with him if Cuphead didn't drag him into it. So you better bet Cuphead didn't know how to drag him into this adventure and keep him along for the ride.
"Aw, fine," Cuphead muttered as he slowly trudged upstairs to their bedroom. "I guess I'll just go upstairs and nap til Elder Kettle comes back."
"Don't forget to come down for lunch," Mugman called as he snuggled into the couch to enjoy his peace and quiet.
Some time later…
The young girl squinted through the bushes, careful not to reveal herself but not losing the sight of her target. The salvaged rope stood under the leaf pile where it should be so to catch that annoying accordion that had been coming by for a while now. He was her only means of rescue or even info about this place, and she was not going to lose the chance, even if he was gonna be screaming his weird mouth off when she caught him..
Sure enough, there came a rustle. In the shadows of the nearby trees and their leaves, she couldn't see if it was the same guy when a figure popped out of the bushes. But she was too tired and frustrated to care. So, she yanked at the rope and didn't let up when the kid yelled in protest while she tied her end to a nearby branch.
Wait… a kid?
She didn't think much about it as she grabbed her pocket knife and charged, hacking at her hiding spot (or atleast pretending to) as an intimidation tactic. She raised her knife and charged, and stopped just a few inches above the kid's straw in his head—all while they were both screaming their throats out, except for her when she stopped with her knife.
Okay. If she thought this world was weird before, it was five times weirder now.
The kid in front of her had a cup for a head. Of all things, it was a cup for a head. A weird look for an already weirder world.
"Hey kid," she panted after a moment, staring him down with their faces so close she could smell his minty breath. She watched him gulp and try to keep his cool, as he pointed his finger at her with a bluffing glare.
"S-stop right there, ya monster," he muttered, poking her cheek in a way that wasn't necessarily annoying, but not exactly endearing either. "You don't wanna eat a weird looking kid like me, would you?"
"Heh; you're right about one thing," she chuckled, putting some distance between them as she folded her pocket knife and put it away into her pocket. "If you think I'm gonna be eating some weird talking cup headed kid, you've got the wrong idea."
"You tried to eat Accordo!"
"Oh, you mean that weird accordion dude who wouldn't let me sleep?" Her left eye twitched and she sighed, rubbing her forehead as if she had a headache. "He ran off screaming every time I tried to ask for help. I'm surprised it took him this long to tell anybody."
"… that does sound like Accordo. Uh… can I be let down now? I'm gettin' kinda dizzy."
"Only if you tell me who you are first."
"I dunno, why don't you tell me who you are first?"
The two of them glared at one another, locking eyes with none of them daring to actually move. Growls were exhanged, and neither refused to move. It was an intense stare-down unlike any other. Okay, not really like any other, but you get the idea.
Finally, she pulled back and blinked, wiping away the small tears and laughing softly despite her defeat. "I like your guts, kiddo. You've got no fear, I can see that much. Alright, I'll tell you who I am. Amari Fernandez, teenage girl from another world."
"I'm Cuphead! Little package filled with big potential! Atleast that's what Mugsy says."
Amari laughed and walked over to the tree where she had tied her end if the rope and gently let him down before letting go of it entirely. "Sounds like he's got a point. I don't know much about you, but I can tell you're a pretty cool guy."
"Oof… really?"
She nodded and helped him up to his feet, but her stomach rumbled before she could think of a response. With a sigh, she patted her shirt as her cheeks flushed with embarrassment. "Okay, Cuphead: you got anything to eat that aren't bugs?"
The little guy who called himself Cuphead stroked his chin in thought, then snapped his fingers with a cheery smile. Amari felt like her heart was melting with every smile he gave her. Somehow, it was always so bright she felt like it could hurt her eyes, not just her heart. "I got some leftover muffins from breakfast if you want it."
She shrugged. It was better than nothing as she led him to her small camp site a little ways away from the ground whee she'd just caught him. "Eh, it's better than nothing. I haven't had real breakfast food in a while."
So they both sat down on a couple smooth rocks, Amari grabbed her bag and slung it over her shoulder, and accepted the chocolate chip muffin without complaint. She hummed contentedly and savored the flavor, and put down the muffin as she caught him staring at her curiously.
"What's that look for?"
Cuphead stopped and flushed, chuckling nervously as he crossed his arms and tried to look cool despite having been caught staring. "I know you said you're a 'teenage girl from another world' or something, but I don't really get ya. Ya look like a person, but I dunno what that means for ya."
Amari just laughed with a shrug. "I guess I do look outta place in this world, don't I? That's cause my world is nothing like this one."
He leaned forward in interest, plopping his head into his hands and putting his elbows on his knees. His eyes grew wide, and his expression was weirdly serious. "Tell me everything."
She laughed and gently tapped the rim of his cup head, her finger accidentally touching the weird milk-like substance inside. "Sure bud. But first, I gotta ask: what're you doing out here in the woods?"
"Proving I can take care of myself!"
"Oh, nice. How?"
"Uhh…"
Then, the rustling.
"There they are!"
"Wait, what?!"
Amari jumped up and looked around, grabbing her baseball bat and standing into defense. Cuphead stood up as well, comically jumping behind her and gripping her shorts in fear. She tried to shake him off, but didn't get much of a chance to when something grabbed her wrists and bound them behind her with a rope. Next thing she knew, someone had tackled her from behind, hands behind her back and someone was tapping her on the top of her head with her bat from behind. Amari groaned. It was annoying.
"Get off of me!"
"Not til you yield, monster!"
"We caught it! Get the hunters over here!"
She struggled, but it was no use. Five people were sitting on her back now, stopping her from getting up at all. She looked up and saw Cuphead being dragged backwards by an old-looking man with a kettle for a body, all while the kid was trying to back away and crying out something she couldn't hear over all the chatter. Amari saw another kid who looked just like Cuphead, only he had blue shorts, a smaller head, and a bigger nose, and he was trying to talk to Cuphead and hold him back despite his protests. His brother, maybe? She was too busy trying to get up to think.
Unfortunately, someone knocked her out in the back of her head with her bat and she passed out.
Amari groaned as she sat up, rubbing her head and her eyes and massaging the spot where she'd been hit. The damage wasn't so bad, but it had knocked her out for who knows how long.
She sat up, and frowned when she saw her backpack lying next to her soft bed. Was all of that a dream? Actually, why was she in her clothes? Normally she'd be wearing her blue army patterned pajamas, but this time…
She stood up and looked around. This wasn't her room, and not just because of the lack of her sports posters. It was small, definitely smaller than her old room, but still quite nice. Her bag and baseball bat sat at the base where the head rest was, and a small desk with drawers was on the far side under a window, where the sun was high in the sky and lighting up the room quite well. She took off her shoes and was about to leave when a knock sounded on her door.
"Come in," she said cautiously, and the old gray kettle she saw before came in with a plate of vegetables and a spoon and fork. Immediately, she didn't know how to react, but she figured she could trust him for now. If he attacked, she could hit him with her bag instead of her missing bat.
"How're you feeling?" He asked as she sat down on her bed and he gave her a little tip of his top cover as if it were his hat. She crossed her arms and tried to look cool and casual. "Fine, I guess. Thanks for… whatever all of this is."
"It was nothing," He smiled as he poured her some water into a glass from a pitcher she didn't even see him bring in. "The boys were very careful while bringing you in."
"Thanks," she muttered, and while she took the plate from him she finally realized how hungry she was again. "How long was I out for?"
"Not long," the kettle smiled kindly. "If you're wondering what happened, I'll be willing to tell you as much as I can. But just so you know, my boys did all the lifting. I just stood by and kept the isles folk from going rampant."
Amari looked up from her plate and gave him a curious look. The kettle nodded and put his hands on his knees and folded them to give her his full attention. Maybe now she can hear everything he has to say. He cleared his throat and held his hand out for a shake.
"First of, proper introductions are in order. My name is Elder Kettle, and I am the caretaker of the little boy—you may already know him as Cuphead—and his little brother Mugman."
Amari shook his hand back and put her hand on her lap afterwards. "I'm Amari. Nice to meet you, sir. So, where'd you guys take me, exactly?"
"Ah, well," Elder Kettle stroked his metal mustache thoughtfully. "We managed to take you to our little cottage out here in the woods. The mob wasn't such a huge problem when we managed to convince them you weren't such a threat after all. Actually, it was the little boy Cuphead who told them all the right things. I knew he had it in him."
Amari smiled, if only a little. Maybe he wasn't as bad as she thought he was. Maybe just a little bit loud though. But overall, he's an okay kid.
"Heh, I know he is," Elder Kettle smiled. Amari didn't realize she had said that out loud, but the old kettle didn't seem to mind. In fact, he chuckled in return and Amari flushed. "I won't tell him, don't worry. Giving him too much praise is going to give him maybe a bit more pride than he should have."
Amari chuckled and put down the finished plate and utensils on the bed, running her fingers through her short hair. "Yeah, well, give him my thanks when I get going, yeah? I'd like to find my way outta this kooky place as soon as possible."
At that, Elder Kettle frowned. He explained to her somberly that the Isles were experiencing great coastal storms around this time of year; so if she wanted to leave, she's going to have to stay put and wait it out here, in this little cottage in the woods.
Wait…
"Where's my backpack?"
The sky blue bag that was lying at the foot of her bed a little while ago was gone, and the bedroom door was slightly ajar. A loud thump was heard further down the hallway, and another, then a series of thumps falling down the stairs outside. With a silent non-profane curse, Amari rushed out of the room and downstairs to find Cuphead and presumably his little brother sat on the floor
With her stuff, spilled out, and scattered in front of them.
…
Where are those crickets coming from?
"Boys," Elder Kettle sighed disapprovingly as he followed her downstairs. The boys, caught red-handed, dropped whatever they were holding and looked down with embarrassed flushes on their faces. Amari sighed and walked over, sitting down on the floor and immediately shoving her stuff back into her bag.
*Hey, uh, not that it matters, but he kinda spilled all of that out himself."
"What?! If I recall correctly, you started dumping everything on the floor without consent, Cuphead!"
"Hey, don't drop this on me, Mugsy!"
"You started it!"
"Oh, my lord—!"
The two of them got all up into one another's faces, and started brawling, for some reason? Amari didn't know, and she was too busy walking upstairs with her full bag of supplies to care, walking past Elder Kettle as he quickly ran down to defuse the daily situation.
Amari walked upstairs and found her temporary room again after a few wrong turns (at least she had finally used a proper bathroom). She flopped onto the bed tiredly and stared up at the ceiling. Not thinking, but not just lying there lazily either. Her eyes were half-lidded, and the light in the room was dimming with the setting sun outside. She closed her eyes and breathed in. Then, she was calm.
She reached into her spare notebook and reached for her "BFFs!" photo with her and her best friends, Vexy Notting Campbell and Julia Marelli Ishita. She smiled and hugged it close to her chest. Those ridiculous long names were a source of comfort for her, in this strange world where anything hardly made sense. She turned on her side and put the photo face down on her mattress, a few tears falling down her face. She missed them dearly, as they would've been a great source of consolation in this strange world. Wherever they were, she was worried. She wanted so badly to find them as soon as possible, but…
She just had to trust them. Trust that they would be fine. Safe and okay, even without each other.
Amari sighed and sat up, gently putting the photo in her pocket. She had no idea what was in store, and the wait was going to be long. But she supposed that's what she got for getting herself into this mess. Even through the noise and the scolding downstairs, she knew what she had to do.
Time to buckle up and prepare for a crazy ride. She's going to be here for a while.
Thank you all very much for taking the time to read the finally published chapter of my story, especially to the older fans who stuck around until this time. And if you're a new reader, congratulations! I hope you all stick around for the long ride, just as I have.
If you have anything to say about this fanfiction, please do! It makes me happy that people are reading. But as Ate Nat says, let's avoid the flames please.
God bless us all, and stay weird.
