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It had been a week since the final battle, since a little girl in a top hat had left with her timepieces in toe. It had been a week since they feel back down to their planet, landing right in the middle of Mafia town with an empty, guilty feeling in their chests. The Mafia goon had ran off as soon as he woke up, admently hiding his tears as he went to go tell his fellow Mafia the bad news. The birds had dusted themselves off and bitterly started arguing over who drove her away, before losing their steam and finding a motel to rent for the night. And Snatcher?
Well, he expected it all along, but the sting didn’t hurt, not in the least.
Everyone seemed to linger in Mafia town, strangely. The birds didn’t leave, seeing as their movies had already been made. The Mafia remained oddly calm, not even bothering others for their goods or favors. And Snatcher just lurked in the shadows, trying to figure out why this bugged him so much…
At least, until that little Hero came out of hiding. That’s when things started to get serious.
“Hey, let go of me!”
Snatcher’s attention was dragged from the alley way he’d be squatting in to the fountain. Just in his line of sight, two Mafia members seemed to be dragging the Mustached girl by her arms, with little to no care about her comfort. Said girl was squirming and kicking with all her might, a rage filled look on her face. “I said, let go!”
“No, someone wants to speak to little girl, so we are taking you to him,” One of the Mafia stated plainly, not even looking back to talk to the child. “Consider yourself lucky that Mafia not teach you less for all the trouble you’ve caused…”
If Snatcher had been a better man, er, ghost , he would have stopped them. But he wasn’t, and she wasn’t a good kid ether. So he simply watched as she was dragged down the road and towards a hot air balloon. Eventually her yells and curses faded completely, and Mafia town returned to its new, peaceful state. And with it, he went back to sleep…
“ Excuse m e ,” a voice called out, but Snatcher didn’t open his eyes. He simply waited for them to leave. “ ...wake up, young prince. ”
That got him up.
Eyes snapping open at an alarming rate, Snatcher jumped out towards the person who summoned him, rage coursing through his ghostly aura at being called something he used to be.
“ WHO DARES TO- Oh… ” Snatcher’s rage simmered down to a scowl when he recognized who he was talking to. “ It’s you, the badge seller… ”
And there the badge seller was, in all his twitchy, glitchy glory. To see if he was looking at Snatcher would be as hard as predicting the lottery, considering his mask constantly moved and switched positions. Yet he seemed oddly still at the moment…
“ What do you want ,” Snatcher grumbled, leaning back into his shade. He never liked the Badge seller. The thing never had a soul to begin with, at least not when he first started appearing in Subcon forest. But after time and time of trying to get him to leave, he gave up and allowed him to sell his wares. “I thought I made myself clear that I didn’t want any of your crummy badges. ”
“ Don’t worry, I am not here to sell you any of my fine wares , ” The Badge Seller soothingly said, his twiggy arm motioning to some of the badges on his belt. “ I was actually paid a large some of money to give you and a few others a message. I believe you know the sender, the girl with the hat? ”
Snatcher opened one of his eyes, shooting the badge seller an odd look. “ ...Why would I want to hear whatever that brat would want to say. Last time I checked, she hurled us into the atmosphere without a care. ”
“ Alright, ” The badge seller said, turning to leave. “ It’s no skin off my back if you don’t wish to hear, as I’ve been paid in advance. But if you change your mind, I’ll be telling everyone at the Mafia headquarters in an hour. ”
And with that, he vanished.
----
“What is she doin’ here,” The conductor scowled, pointing at Mustache girl as she sat, tied to a chair near the corner. He’d already been at the HQ, eating some of the Famous Cooking cat’s delicious food, when two of the Mafia Dolts rushed in with the troublemaker in toe. Just the sight of her ruined his appetite.
“Like I wanted to be here,” Mustache girl pouted, keeping her gaze strictly on the floor. She hadn’t said so much as a word when they’d tied her down, and no one else seemed to say a word to her.
“Ugh, and here I was excited to see dinner and a show,” Dj Grooves mused, having arrived coincidently at the same time that the Conductor did, of course. “If I’d knew it’d be a B rated horror movie, I’d have just stayed back at the hotel.”
“Don’t worry, Mafia show is better than-” One of the Mafia started, but was quickly cut off by the swooshing sound of space being separated, before being stitched back together. Instantly, the Badge Seller appeared, causing a small gust of air to spread out as he materialized. Some of the Mafia clapped, the bird bristled. Mustache girl remained silent…
“Did you find the scary shadow man?” one of the nearby Mafia asked, looking around frightfully.
“ Yes, but it seems he’s still hurt over your friend’s evident departure. Shameful of him, really, he of all people should understand why she left… ” The Badge seller mused, before walking towards the three remaining bosses and taking a seat.
At the mention of her, the room once again grew silent. Some coughed, some looked away, some’s eyes even started to water. Yet no one dared to say a word. No one wanted to, no one wanted to really think about it, after all. But that's the sad thing about the mind, the more you try to push something away, the more it plague your conscious.
The conductor stabbed his steak knife on the table, glaring at the Badge seller. “Peck it all, ya said the ugly mug wasn’t gonna show up! Get on with the message!”
“ I never said that ,” the Badge seller said calmly, a subtle mirthful tone filling his voice. “ I said he was still hurt. If I’m correct, he should be here about- ”
The door was quickly flung open, and a dark, foreboding figure snaked in. The room felt about ten degrees cooler, yet the Mafia weren’t quivering cause of the cold. While the Conductor paid the shadowy figure no mind, Dj Groove kept his gaze darting from him to the Badge seller and back. He kept his flipper on his stake knife.
Mustache girl remained silent.
“ Alright, no need to bust out the party poppers, I’m here. ” The Snatcher stated sarcastically, rolling on over to his own booth and taking it up entirely. He shot the others a curt nod, which no one recuperated.
“ Ah, good. Now I don’t have to waste another hour, ” The Badge seller said, before standing up. “ But before we begin, I do have one question for you all...what did you all think would happen? ”
The room went silent once more. Some shared looks, other didn’t. No one said a word.
“. ..Exactly, you see my point here, ” The Badge seller said smugly, crossing his twiggy arms as he watched them like a cat would mice. “ Did you all honestly think apologizing for nearly killing this girl, or keeping her stranded millions of lightyears from her home, was going to make her want to stay with you all? ”
The Conductor gritted his teeth. DJ Grooves looked away. Snatcher stared unimpressed.
The Badge seller began to laugh, “ I mean, seriously , how godly do you all think our are, that your actions don’t have consequence?! That you can betray someone’s trust and think they’ll come waltzing back without so much as a hint of hesitance! It’s almost highlarious, to even think of the arrogance you all exhausted! ”
The Conductor began to rise, already making his way to the door. “Aye don’t need to take this from no overgrown, sniveling little-”
Before anyone could blink, the Badge seller was in front of the doorway with an evil, evil glint in his eye. He leaned right into the conductor’s face, starting the bird down with ease. Instantly his started to speak like the conductor, down to his shrill tone. “ What was that? Mr. aye-only-care-about-me-trai n, Oh! How about the moment Aye noticed Grooves using her for his movies that aye had to use her as well. Aye didn’t give a peck about that lassie, not even until aye lost the award and realized the true power of the time pieces. Aye was only worried about me stupid golden trophies!”
“ Why you- !” The Conductor snarled, but was already backing down, step by step.
“Oh, and aren’t aye forgettin’ the best part! Aye aint even better than DJ Peck Neck. If aye’d had won, aye would have used the spare time piece to get the one, puny trophy he stole from me all them years ago.” The badge seller exclaimed with absolut delight, cackling as the Conductor was sent speechless. “Cause under these ruffled feather, aye ain’t nothin’ but an insufferable, insecure, annoyin’ train conductor who can’t even get to his stations on time. ”
Suddenly, a knife was tossed in between them, colliding with the wooden wall to their left. The Badge seller turned his gaze to his assailant, but the damage was already done. The Conductor was speechless. He couldn’t deny the truth. Not anymore.
“That’s enough,” DJ Grooves stated, his voice cold and gaze sharp. “If you’re going to scold anyone, scold me.”
“Oh don’t even get me started, Darling,” The Badge Seller said, already getting started. “The only reason you feel bad is cause you got caught. You never gave a damn about that girl, even though she though she thought the world of you. Even when she did her best to make sure you won. You tossed her aside even when she thought about letting you use one of the time pieces. Just like you do everyone else.”
DJ Grooves stood his ground, but it was clear that he was shaking. But whether it was rage, fear, or guilt could have been anyone's guess.
“ You know, I’m not sure who’s worse between the two of you. ” The badge seller stated, leaning back up. “ I mean, at least the Conductor was always mean, you ended up being a wolf in sheep's clothing after all. Then again, Snatcher here might take the cake, seeing as he’s done that not to one, but millions of souls! ”
The snatcher paused, thinking on the badge seller’s words, before smiling. “ What did you expect, honestly? I mean, do you see me? Do you know what I do for a living? The only embarrassing thing is that she beat me using my own attack… ”
“ No, the embarrassing thing is how easily you let this child slip pass your walls, even if you won’t admit it. ” The badge seller said, pointing accusingly. “ Then again, who am I to judge, seeing that’s what got us into this mess in the first place. ”
Everyone’s eyes fell onto Mustache girl, who still hadn’t looked up at all. Yet it was clear she was crying, as each sob that escaped her stained her lap with more and more tears.
“But you know what,” The badge seller exclaimed, throwing his arms into the air with glee that for a moments, they looked like they would shoot off. “ She’s right! We’re all the bad guys! We really, really are! If anything, you’re all lucky she took most of hat kid’s timepieces! If there had been an easier way to get them, that hat kid would have have left us to our fate, cause by the stars that’s what we all deserve!”
Letting the weight of his words sink in, the Badge seller slowly withdrew his arms as he watched the conflicted, guilt filled looks of those around him grace his view. The only sounds that could be heard were the seagulls and the tide, muffled by the wooden walls of the bar. One of the Mafia members was crying.
“ ...Ya done, ” The Snatcher asked, quirking his eyebrow and tapping his ghostly tail against the floor impatiently. Yet the badge seller could tell by just how tightly Snatcher’s arms were crossed how made he was. Extremely so.
“ Ah, yes, I feel better now that I got that out of my system. I just really hate to see stupid people bumble about their short little lives. ” The badge seller faked a cough, before turning back to face everyone. “ Alright, Now that you’ve listened to my bit, here’s the message I was suppose to leave behind. Are you ready? ”
With a snap of his fingers, the Badge seller transformed into almost an exact replica of Hat kid, much to the shock of everyone.
“...H-hey,” She stammered, seeming a bit sad. “Ok so I...I want you to tell them I’m not mad at them. At any of them...I mean, I am a little upset, and a little hurt but...well, I just...I can’t stay, even if I wanted too. I can’t trust anyone here with the time pieces. And I need to get home to my mom and dad, and my siblings and I...I. just…”
She pauses, wiping some tears from her eyes.
“I don’t want to leave ether, I really don’t. I know everyone’s tried to kill me, but I love fighting the Mafia, and playing silly roles in movies, and even delivery mail! And i...I want to relive every moment of that! I want to learn how to cook with cooking cat, and I want to choose every possible murder subject, I wanna be read laws and h-how they fit in the judicial system till I fall asleep, I wanna see what happens if I scream Peck on live tv!..I...I don’t ...I don’t want to go.”
She wipes her snotty nose on her sleeve. It’s disgusting, but no one seems to mind.
“But...but most importantly of all, I don’t even know how I’ll age here. I-i...I’m not from here. For all we k-know, I could live for hundred of e-earth years, or for only a few months...and I...I don’t want to see anyone else die…”
She gave a sad smile.
“So i-if this is it...I-if I never come back. Promise me. Promise me you’ll forgive each other and do better. And if you can’t do the first part, just please do the second...everyone. I love you…”
Giving a shaky kiss, she blew it to the group.
“Good bye.”
Snatcher was the first one out of the headquarters, already slithering far, far away from this hell hole of a room. No, no way in hey was he going to let these mortals see him cry, no one would ever. Yet he couldn’t help feeling his cold black hole of a heart breaking even more.
Mustache girl was still sobbing, even as Dj Grooves untied her bounds. The Mafia were useless, still being complete children about the whole ordeal, so it was up to him to get something done.
“S-she was my first friend, e-ever,” Mustache girl sobbed into her hands, but soon enough found herself being held in someone else’s arms, or rather, flippers. Nonetheless, she continued to sob, gripping onto the DJ’s jacket tightly as the tears kept on coming. “It’s not fair, it’s n-not fair!
Grooves was silent as well, his acting had prepared him for moments like this. But that doesn't mean he wouldn’t cry at home, like an absolute fledgling, once he’s alone. No, he’d definitely need to have a good crying session when he got back to the moon.
“ Peck it all !” The Conductor screeched, having gone to kicking the nearest thing he could find, rage bubbling up and out of him like a shaken up soda can.
And all that seemed to remain was the badge seller who, now back to his normal form, took a decent amount of pride at the chaos he’d caused. He didn’t have to go that far, but he was paid to make sure a message was received. And he sure as hell made sure it was. Shakily walking out into the daylight, The Badge seller took in one last breath of this earth’s air and, in the blink of an eye, vanished…
And so the world turned...