Lock gently wrapped his tail behind her legs as she ran her fingers through his hair.
"Well, I didn't do anything."
Probably. He still wasn't entirely sure, but if he had anything to do with it, he couldn't remember, so as far as he was concerned, he was innocent.
This time, anyway.
He felt his collar pulled, and ended up stumbling back. Lock tried to pull his collar free, but upon mention of his siblings, something seemed to click in his mind. Maybe that's why he was here. Weren't they planning a trick? Still, Lillith was here, and Carver was dragging him away from her.
"Let go!" he cried, before he freed himself from her vines. Lock fixed his shirt, then turned to Lillith. "Uh...catch you later?"
Hide-and-shriek? Well, the graveyard was the best place to play. Lock didn't think too much harder as he shoved her away, then slugged her back.
"I wasn't coming out of hiding!" he exclaimed. "I was--!"
What was he doing?
It didn't matter. Lock stuck his tongue at her, then glanced over at Lillith and Carmilla. Deciding to shift the subject to them, he laughed as he took in their drenched clothes and, in Lillith's case, hair.
"What happened to you two?" he asked, more playfully than malicious. "Apple bobbing in the fountain?"
Lock used his tail to scoop up another balloon. He reached behind his back to retrieve it. Lillith's gaze bore into his as he slowly realized there wasn't really a way to explain this...so he didn't.
"Water balloons. Isn't it obvious?"
Lock smirked, but only to hide his dawning horror that there was only one way to worm out of this with Lillith being none the wiser as to what he was really up to. He gave her a quick kiss on the cheek.
"You'll forgive me later."
He took a breath and smashed the water balloon on her head, before he dove from the crypt. Lock mitigated the easiest way for the fog to influence him, but the resulting splash and mist still seeped into his bare skin. Worse, he felt his thoughts fade as he tried to retain the most important parts of the prank. He saw an orange blob on top of a metal cage heading this way, and only briefly registered Carver coming for him before that thought too faded away. In the seconds it took to take effect, he'd only managed to run a few feet before his mind completely went into a haze.
When it cleared again, Lock saw he was standing in the cemetery. How did he get here? When did he get here? Much like walking into a room and forgetting why you entered to begin with, Lock quickly looked around to retrace his steps. He turned and saw Lillith. A date, then? That couldn't be right, Carmilla was here too. Also, why were they both wet? Lock's tail flicked in confusion, before he shook his head. No matter. He was happy enough to see his girlfriend, and went to her.
Lock and Barrel both laughed when they heard Shock's voice on the radio. Barrel had more within the pumpkin patch. There was Behemoth, of course, but Wolfman and a few of the bigger monsters had come to help gather more pumpkins for the preparations. Several rapidly-fired water balloons later, and they'd join the others in confusion. Barrel helped himself to a particularly large pumpkin now that Behemoth was occupied and forgetful.
Over in the graveyard, Lock had less to do. He'd only seen Hanging Tree and Sally enter, and of the two, Sally had already gone back into town. Lock listened for the gate, and watched Hanging Tree further down the path. He might have to get closer, but at least he had plenty of ammunition.
Behind him, the gate creaked open. Lock quickly grabbed a water balloon and loaded it into his slingshot. Just as he was about to let go, he completely took in who had entered: Carmilla and Lillith.
Lock hesitated for a second, as he expected them to be in town. He briefly realized he should have warned Lillith, or at least, invited her to the tree house and out of the way of the prank.
Too late now. Thrills before girls, after all. Lock shifted his aim so the balloon would hit Carmilla.
Shock cackled at Carver's remark and the Mayor's resulting embarrassment, then hooked her arm with the pumpkin creature's and cheerfully joined her best friend in heading for the pumpkin patch.
Jack just shook his head as he watched them go. Sometimes, he wished the tricksters were still children. Other times, he wasn't sure he saw much difference aside from the four of them getting taller.
"And-and stay out of trouble!" the Mayor called after them.
Jack gave a glance to the new pumpkin pile by the fountain, then headed for Town Hall.
"I don't think we have much to worry about, Mayor," he said reassuringly. "They've never caused too much trouble this close to Halloween, and after yesterday's stunt at the witches' shop, they've probably gotten out enough of that sort of restlessness to tide them over for two more weeks."
The Mayor skittered after Jack. His head swiveled again to show his smiling face, though he was still a bit nervous.
"I think you're right, Jack," he said.
From the path to the pumpkin patch, Shock ducked into a small nook just out of sight to eavesdrop. She smirked as she listened to their footsteps fade away.
"They haven't seen anything yet," she said quietly. "Come on. Let's make sure Barrel didn't break anything."
~~~
The day passed by slowly for the tricksters' tastes. Lock hung around the graveyard, with his bucket carefully hidden just inside one of the tombs. He'd brought some of his music notes to look through in the meantime. Barrel had his hidden in the pumpkin patch. At the very least, he could find a good pumpkin to munch on. Both of them watched the comings and goings of various citizens. Carver was free to assist whichever of them she pleased.
With Jack situated and still a while to go before the busiest time of the day, Shock met Barrel in the pumpkin patch and retrieved a walkie-talkie from him. He'd give one to Carver as well, now that Jack had checked the contents of her cage. With hers acquired, Shock headed back to the square. While it was still fairly empty, she climbed up to the roof of Town Hall and situated herself carefully to watch for both the square and the main residential area.
She had forbidden the use of the walkie-talkies until she gave the signal in order to maintain her position. Among the citizens' regular day-to-day activities, no one would notice her hiding in plain sight unless something - such as the crackle of a radio - got their attention.
The gloomy day spurned activity sooner than she expected. By noon, Shock was sure she'd seen everyone in the whole town pass by at least once - and now the square was bustling with unlife. She took care when climbing down, knowing to not bring attention to herself. Even so, one of the vampires spotted her.
"What were you doing up there?"
"Haven't you gotten your fill of trouble yesterday?" another one piped in.
Shock just smiled sweetly.
"Nothing."
That got a round of glares. She didn't care. Shock shoved past them with her usual unpleasantness.
"Check if you want," she said. "I didn't do anything."
Yet.
The vampires grumbled and went back to their Halloween preparations. Shock made her way to the nook by the gate. She leaned against the wall near it and lit up a cigarette, partially so a passing citizen would leave her alone, and partially to keep her free hand hidden under her halfway-crossed arms.
This was it, the final stretch. Citizens bustled around the square, carrying decorations, heading up the path to the pumpkin patch, and going in and out of the adjoining area where the witches' shop was undoubtedly getting a lot of business. Shock carefully focused on the pumpkin sitting on the edge of the fountain and concentrated on it. She brought the cigarette to her lips and subtly shifted her fingers on her free hand. The pumpkin rocked back and forth, until finally - sploosh!
A few monsters turned their heads at the sound, but the fog was already dispersing. Shock ran for the nook and grabbed Agnes' broom. She'd practiced a bit at home to make sure she could handle it, and sure enough, just as she planned, she was out of the gate within seconds, and high above the forget-me-lot fog just as quickly. Shock grinned as she watched the fog quickly encase the square, and with it, a good portion of the town.
Many monsters looked about in confusion at first. There wasn't supposed to a fog like this until Halloween! Their confusion at the fog quickly became confusion of whatever tasks they were doing as the forget-me-lots worked their charm. Shock pulled the walkie-talkie from her pocket.
"Halloween Town just got a severe case of amnesia," she said with a wicked cackle.
There was one final thing to do. While she was still airborne and a safe distance from the fog, Shock focused her power on Town Hall.
Slowly, the numbers reading, "017 Days to Halloween" turned until they read "000". Her part done, Shock headed for the pumpkin patch, while keeping an eye on the fog's spread. She'd be ready to warn Barrel (and Carver, if she was with him) if it spread faster than they were expecting. She'd also be able to see any stragglers.
((Due to a personal issue IRL, on behalf of SystemOfEleven, I will be taking Phoebus and Pierre this go-around.))
Would that the Holy Virgin make the ground more stable so he could more easily follow precious Cynthia and get her back to her parents before the mob found her first! Pierre stumbled towards the stables after the fleeting little girl. Well, from behind, she certainly had her mother’s dark, unruly hair and taste for purple clothing. And the hat - ah, probably a gift from Clopin, who had an affinity for fine headwear himself! Yes, he remembered - no, no, focus, Pierre! No time to think of christenings and holidays when Esmeralda’s child was in danger of being burned as a witch! He vaguely realized she was certainly small for an eleven-year-old…was she eleven? Or five? Pierre’s head hurt as he briefly tried to remember the timeline his drunken mind conjured up. Five when...right, something about festivals. So she should be about eight.
Still rather young to be tried and burned as a witch, though, which meant he must get to her first!
“Waaaait, dont’t tun Cyn--” Pierre tripped on a jagged cobblestone and wobbled for a moment, but found his footing, “--wait fer me!”
He followed her to the stables, and to one of the first stalls. He saw “Cynthia” trying to climb into...he wasn’t sure, but she probably shouldn’t be there. Pierre dove to try to catch her.
“I’ll s-s-saaave--!”
The child jumped to evade his grasp. Pierre crashed inside the whatever-it-was. He groaned as he landed on...all sorts of things. Some large and round, others small and sharp. The whatever-it-was began to move, with a rocking motion on either side. Pierre groaned, but the movement felt familiar. After a moment, it came to him. But of course! It must be Cynthia’s cart, pulled by none other than his precious Djahli. She wasn’t trying to evade him - why would she, when she knew him to be a pillar of valor, a valiant hero with the heart of a lion and the bravado of a charging stallion? - she was simply hooking the little goat to her cart!
Clever girl. Much like her mother, she had a plan to get away.
Satisfied by this, Pierre allowed himself to enjoy the ride, at least until the “cart” stopped and two more children joined in. In his drunken haze, he barely picked them out as boys. Right. Children. Pierre pondered on their names. The shorter one was broad...brad...Bradley! Yes, that sounded right. Young Bradley, a precocious little scamp who tagged along behind his older brother...what was his name? He looked like he was named something foreign. Jonas...Jonah...Jonathan. Why couldn’t he just be a Jaques? Oh, right. Phoebus made strange friends in the war, and lost some… Such a bittersweet christening that was.
The boys came to either of Pierre’s sides, while “Cynthia” positioned herself at the back. Ah, such wonderful children, helping him to sit up so he could see their grateful parents’ faces. He vaguely picked out Esmeralda’s form.
“M’fine,” he said reassuringly. “S’no...s’no trouble at all...”
Pierre felt himself slide against the edge of the “cart”. He gave a goofy grin and a small wave as he tried to stand, only to slip back down. The children made a second attempt, and the next thing Pierre knew, he was smacking into the cobblestones.
Well! Such rude children! Surely, they’d be getting a talking to from their father for ungraciously throwing him out of their cart like that! He tried to stand to at least have a word with Esmeralda, but his ex-wife stepped in front of him to handle one of those black-clothed hooligans. Djahli came barreling out from behind Esmeralda to headbutt a shadow that threatened to get too close.
“My pretty!” Pierre happily called out.
Djahli ignored him and back-kicked a different shadow. He wasn’t able to take it out, but in the bathtub beside him, Lock traded his slingshot for a spiked club and finished the job. The little goat gave a grudging scoff of approval before situating himself beside Esmeralda.
In the main part of the square, Phoebus was shoved away, but he caught himself before he fell. In a quick motion, he retrieved his dropped sword and glared at the hunter before him.
"That was no beast!" he exclaimed, more hotly than intended, but this buffoon could have severely hurt Quasimodo, or worse. "He's a friend!"
A large burst of light momentarily diverted his attention. Phoebus kept his sword drawn, and could hardly believe what he saw.
"AH-HAHAHAHAHAHAHAH!"
The walking skeleton was now a walking scarecrow?! A more religious man might have crossed himself. Phoebus simply watched the scarecrow in horror for a second, and more, the shadows heading his way. He quickly took a defensive stance and readied himself to cut them down. He could berate Gaston later; right now, he had more immediate concerns, such as keeping these things from the tavern, and by that right, Esmeralda, the strange children, and Pierre. His sword cut through a shadow as it leaped for him.
With the scarecrow providing a new source of light, the shadows fled...but many of them, dark but sheer before, became more opaque once directly out of the Pumpkin King's immediate glow. As the saying went, the brighter the light, the darker the shadow. They avoided Jack directly, but the more opaque they grew, the more they strengthened as the brighter light contrasted with their darker forms. So long as a direct beam of light didn't hit them, they could use the light to their advantage.
Gaston was about to argue back, but the increasing severity of these monsters forced him to focus back on the immediate danger. His blunderbuss reloaded, Gaston took aim and fired a shot through three shadows standing close together.
A strange device landed near his and Phoebus’s feet. A sharp, loud sound, a burst of light, and a sudden shrill whistle emitted as it sparked and spun. Phoebus cried out in terror as the loud BANG and shrill whistle reminded him of a cannonball sailing by. He unwittingly swiped at the air and barely missed striking Gaston. Gaston shoved him away with a snarl. Unlike Phoebus, the sound reminded him of his glory days in the war. He swung his blunderbuss to take out two more shadows and buy himself another moment to reload.
Esmeralda saw the burst of light, heard the sharp, shrill noise from the strange weapon the trickster children threw, and the startled cry from Phoebus. In the second it distracted her, a shadow grabbed the fire poker and tried to pull it from her grasp. She kicked at it, but a few more slipped towards her. She wrested the poker back as more shadows came her way. Behind them, she saw the newcomer and called out to him.
"Quasi!"
The hunchback came barreling towards her, moving with grace to avoid some of the shadows, while taking out any that directly crossed his path. Quasimodo only briefly glanced at the light from the firework before continuing on his way. The light and color from the strange device caught his attention more than the loud BANG that came from it. Near-deaf as he was, though, even he heard it.
More of the shadows tried to block his path. In the light from the tavern windows behind her, Quasimodo saw Esmeralda's lips move, though he guessed she'd uttered his name even without it.
"Esmeralda!"
He kept going, as aside from his dearest friend, he also saw three children in a basin of sorts, and a drunk and likely useless Pierre nearby. While he trusted Esmeralda could handle herself, there were others who needed protection. He tackled another shadow, and - with greater difficulty than before - took it out.
Lock, Shock, and Barrel looked over at the strange man Esmeralda called out to, and curiously took him in. The three of them grinned under their masks. Two more shadows went down from their slingshots before they turned to Esmeralda.
"You didn't tell us--" Barrel started, impressed.
"--You had--" Shock continued.
"--A monster friend!" Lock finished.
There was no malice in their tones, only curiosity and excitement, and Lock's emphasis on the word "monster" came with genuine solidarity. The trio seemed to believe he was one of their own. He'd probably fit right in, in Halloween Town! Lock lifted his mask to get a better look, but Shock elbowed him to get him back on task as the darker shadows came their way.
"Admire your new boyfriend later," she said.
Barrel giggled. Lock stuck his tongue out at his sister and pulled his mask back down, but otherwise went back to assisting his siblings. They had more shadows to fight and trouble to cause.
Having access to a lot more projectiles allowed Barrel to reload more quickly. While he didn't always hit his target, the rapid fire kept the shadows thinned out just enough that his siblings and Esmeralda could more easily handle the ones that slipped through, especially now that they were stronger than before. Shock assisted Barrel on a different side of the bathtub. She couldn't reload her slingshot as quickly as her little brother, but her accuracy was better.
With the first firecracker having been a success, Lock took note of how many they had left. They had a small pile, but they'd need to be careful, especially since the shadow monsters weren't clumped together like they were before. Between the first firecracker, Cassim’s lantern, and Jack's pumpkin flames, the monsters were already adapting to that tactic. They spread out a lot more so fewer of them could be hurt or defeated so easily, and did their best to stay in the sweet spots of Jack's light to allow their forms to darken, lash out at their targets, and double back. Lock readied another firecracker. He lit and threw it when a few more of the stronger shadows got close.
Another loud BANG! and burst of light weakened these newly-powered shadows, only for a barrage of rocks and bone shards to finish the job.
Esmeralda was more than grateful that Lock, Shock, and Barrel could handle themselves. It meant she didn't have to put all of her focus into guarding them, and instead could focus on keeping Pierre safe, and the shadows away from the tavern entrance.
A massive white stallion jumped into the fray and trampled a few shadows under his hooves. Esmeralda watched as the horse kicked away a few more. From behind her, Djahli came barreling through to headbutt another shadow.
Esmeralda smiled at the stallion.
"Thanks," she said, before she stabbed through another shadow with the fire poker.
This one was a bit more resilient, and required a few kicks from Djahli and a direct punch to the jaw to dissipate.
One shadow got behind the stallion and grabbed his tail in an attempt to startle him, all the while minding his hind legs. Several more tried to attack in a wave on one side of the stallion, and conveniently out of line of the tricksters' fire.
Over in the alley, Mulan's shift to defend herself paid off as one of the stronger shadows came for her. It didn't disintegrate like the others before, and would take more work to be rid of, but after a few more swipes, it joined its previously-slain brethren. Another shadow slipped behind her to try to take Mushu. Flame from any source could help or hinder their cause, and they believed the dragon to be more of a detriment.
Kuzco would be able to take a few more down before the next wave.
'...HA!'
The new wave was of the opaque shadows strengthened by Jack's pumpkin fire. The first opaque shadow simply grinned at him when the emperor's foot halted against its chest.
They wouldn't get another chance as Cassim's pointed combination of the lantern and scimitar cut through a group of them.
"Hurry, boy! Group with a partner, don't let yourself get surround-Guk!"
One of the shadows took its opportunity. A second later, it disappeared into wisps of fog as a brick landed in it.
"I AM NOT A CHICKEN!"
He was loud enough to be heard at the tavern entrance, which earned some snickers from the brat pack. Could have fooled them!
Zero's nose combined with their slingshot ammo took out a few more of the stronger ones and bought a moment of reprieve for the trickster trio. Lock, having both of his hands free after throwing the firecracker, was able to give Zero a pet and a proper scratch behind the ears.
"Good boy," he said.
Shock and Barrel each gave him a quick pat before grabbing more ammunition. All three of them giggled at the licks to their faces, or rather, the masks covering them.
"Ready to--" Shock started.
"--Cause some more--" Barrel continued.
"--Trouble, Zero?" Lock asked.
A few more shadows were heading their way.
"REDHEATDS UNITNITE"
Quasimodo had almost reached Esmeralda and Pierre when something landed on his shoulders. In the overall commotion, he didn't hear the "battle cry" and thus had no warning of the approaching princess - not that he'd have heard it anyway from that distance. A sudden weight threw off his balance and focus. Quasimodo quickly reached up to pull the alleged attacker away, thinking it was another shadow.
"I guess it's just too hot for some of these shadows to bear! In fact..."
The new burst of light took out another round of the weakened shadows. The stronger ones, however, still remained, though they scattered to avoid the Pumpkin King and keep him from weakening them again, or any further. The ploy had some success in that some of the hordes that started coming seemed to think better of it. A few of the wiser ones came only close enough to Jack's light to gain a bit more strength.
Several of the shadow creatures began to retreat, though others came towards Jack to strengthen their forms.
It seemed they were gearing up for a final, terrifying attack.
Jack just gave the girls the distinct, "I don't, but I'm too polite to say it" look.
"You're welcome, Carver."
Shock quickly got Jack's attention again.
"Say, Jack..." she said. "Do you think this one looks better--"
She tapped the brim of her hat, then quickly reached over to snatch the Mayor's hat, before she mockingly traded it with her own.
"--Or this one?"
The Mayor let out a pitiful cry, then tried to swipe his hat back. He could only jump a few inches off the ground.
"Hey! Give it back!"
Shock grinned, clearly enjoying her superior height to the Mayor.
"What do you think, Jack?" she asked. "I know how to plan. Think I got a chance?"
Jack snatched the Mayor's hat from her and handed it back. If he had them, he would have rolled his eyes. Rarely did any of the three cross paths with the Mayor without antagonizing him in some way.
"You're good at planning trouble, Shock," he said, with a twinkle in the back of his eye socket, "and the Mayor's job is work, not fun. Sorry. I don't think you're quite cut out for it."
Shock pulled her own hat back on, now that her fun with the Mayor ended. She shrugged.
"Couldn't hurt to ask," she said, then turned to her friend, trusting that she planted the container. "Come on, Carver. Let's go get some more pumpkins."
She'd have to wait until later to knock the pumpkin over, and she could pretend to join Carver in the meantime.
Shock took note of the Mayor hiding behind Jack. She gave him a wicked, pointed grin and she enjoyed the small yelp he made as he pitifully tried to hide behind Jack. As small children, they frightened him. Now that the trio had grown, he was outright terrified of them, and her especially. It sent her wicked heart all a-flutter.
She giggled when Jack mentioned the "accident".
"Of course, Jack," Shock said sweetly. "Wouldn't want anything else getting stuck, would we?"
Jack gave her the distinct look that he wanted to laugh, but also didn't want to encourage this behavior. Shock grinned, knowing well the Pumpkin King found some humor in their trick, but had to keep face.
"Especially since both the witches and Dr. Finklestein seem to have run out of glue remover," Jack said, coolly.
"What a coincidence."
"I'm sure it was."
Jack finished his examination of the pumpkins, then turned to Carver.
"Just one more thing," he said gently. "Would you mind showing me the contents of your cage?"
