Chapter Text
Meanwhile, somewhere in Gentle Plaza, the marching puppets search for the remaining night Raven members.
The puppet says, "ThEY rAn THiS wAY! FiND tHeM! DoN't LEt ThEM eScAPe!"
Then the puppets march far away from the area. Soon, Ace and the others peek out from behind the trees.
Ace sighs in relief, "Phew, glad these trees were here to give us some cover... But those puppets are hot on our trail.
Kalim looks around, "I don't see Ortho. Is he okay?"
"Hard to say…" Ace says, "But if the alternative is all five of us getting captured, him getting away alone is probably for the best."
"I hope Ortho is okay," Sereia says.
Trinket tinks in response.
Suddenly, one of the puppets hears them, "HmM..?"
"Oh, crud!" Ace mutters, "That puppet stopped... Is it onto us?!"
The puppet says, "WhAT hAvE We HeRE..?" and sees a bag on the ground, "ThERe'S a PoUCh oN tHE gRoUNd By THe WaLKwAy," It then rattles the bag, "LoSt PRoPeRTy!"
"Huh? Lost property?" Kalim says, confused.
The puppet then says, "DiD oNE of ThE viSItoRs We StUFfed InTo CrAtES DRop ThIS? I MuST DeLivER iT At OnCE."
And then the puppet fusses about in distress.
"Why's it freaking out over one little lost item?" Ace questions, "I noticed this back when they were fixing up the Domicile of Destruction, too. Aren't their priorities a little weirdly skewed?"
"That goes to show how earnest the puppets are about helping out in the park. It's admirable how much they care about their work!" Kalim says.
"That's true," Sereia says, "We have to remember that these puppets are also employees of the park."
"Something tells me a guest stuffed in a crate isn't gonna appreciate a puppet going, 'Here, you dropped this,' though…" Ace replies.
But then notices something about the bag, "Hold on, isn't that…"
Seeing the bag, Sereia gasps, "It's… It's Briar's bag…"
"But why is it out here?" Kalim asks.
"I don't know, but I got a bad feeling about this," Ace says.
"It WOuLD be JuSt TErRibLe If thERe WeRe evEn MoRE loST iTems. LeT's ScoUR tHE AreA MoRe ThOrouGhly," The puppet says.
The gang begins to worry.
"It's a matter of time before they spot us…" Ace says, worried, "And we made it so close to the Playful Stage, too... Is this curtains?!"
"Don't give up now, Ace," Kalim says, "I'll figure something out. You run for it!"
"What?" Sereia asks, worried.
"Huh?" Ace responds, "Wait, why would you suggest that?!"
Then Kalim says, "No point in all of us getting captured. I'm a housewarden. I'm supposed to look after the other students! If I act as bait, well... I'm sure the rest will work itself out!" and is determined to protect everyone.
"Bait? You're not going to just jump out in front of them, are you?!" Ace says, shocked.
And moves towards Kalim, "Whoa, whoa, whoa! Kalim, just settle down for a second and-"
Soon, multiple mechanical chimes are suddenly heard nearby, catching everyone off guard, and one of them accidentally drops the bag.
That also earns the puppets' attention.I HeARd SomEtHIng! Let'S GeT OVer TheRE, NoW!"
And with that, the puppets march away, and forgot the bag on the ground.
"The puppets all left..?" Ace says.
"I think so, yeah…" Kalim says.
"It looks like it," Sereia says, and rushes over to pick up Briar's bag.
Trinket says.
All of them sigh in relief, "WHEEEEW.
"Thank goodness!" Kalim says.
"No kidding…" Ace says.
"But where did that music come from?" Sereia asks.
Even Trinket looks confused.
Soon, Ortho pops out from the bushes close by, "Heh heh. It was me!"
"Ortho!" The crew cries out in surprise and relief.
Ortho says, "I found a vendor's cart in the area where I fled, and I turned on all the noise-making toys it had in stock. Testing toys out before buying them doesn't count as misdeed, right? Are you all okay?"
"We are now, thanks to you!" Kalim says, "Aren't you glad we all got away, Ace? Boy, I was on pins and needles before that!"
And Ace says, "Kalim...I was making snide remarks about you not too long ago. You haven't forgotten about that, have you?"
"So you knew you were being snide?!" Ortho questions.
Ace turns to Ortho, "Can it! Anyway, if an underclassman trashed me like that, I'd never bother protecting them. Why were you gonna stick your neck out for me?"
Hmm... Well, I've got a lot of younger siblings," Kalim says, "They all start getting cheeky once they're older than ten, but I still love them. You being an underclassman kinda makes you like an honorary little brother. And of course, little sister."
Sereia giggles. Trinket smiles and hugs Kalim by his cheek.
Ace soon says, "Hey, I'm not some ten-year-old kid! I'm only a year younger than you."
"I know," Kalim says, "But it's still a big brother's job to look out for his younger brothers. Considering all the Heartslabyul guys have been captured, you must be pretty scared, right? I might not be as dependable as Trey or Cater, but feel free to think of me as your big brother and lean on me anyway!" and Kalim smiles and sparkles with sincerity, "You can count on me being there when you need me most. Okay?"
Ace sighs, "Ah, geez... Can your smile get ANY brighter?"
And Ortho says, "Kalim Al-Asim, your suggestions were illogical, baselessly optimistic, and nonsensical. But Ace Trappola, your counterarguments only conveyed personal irritation. They were juvenile and unconstructive. So what if both of you make an effort to meet in the middle and try to get along?"
"Dude, you sound worse than either of us did!" Ace says.
Confused, Kalim asks, "Was my idea really that bad..?!"
"Rgh…" Ace responds. He then says, "Look, Kalim... I'm sorry. I got bent out of shape, and I shouldn't have said what I did. I still strongly disagree with your whole plan, and I don't think it's the right call… But in-fighting isn't gonna get us anywhere," And grins, "If we stayed at odds... how could we give Ernesto the royal beatdown he deserves?"
"For sure!" Kalim says, 'I mean, I never saw it as a full-blown argument anyway, but... It's totally cool! There's nothing we can't achieve if we just put our heads together!"
Trinket agrees.
Then Ace turns to Sereia, "And don't worry Sereia, we promise that Ernesto gives you the answers you deserve."
"Really?" Sereia asks.
"That's right. In fact, that's basically the reason why you wanted to come, and Briar and the others, despite all of us wanting to have fun, wish to help you. And after all that you remember, it's time that Ernesto answers to all of them," Ace says.
"I agree. You deserve to know the truth about your past and you might finally get your answer," Kalim says.
Ortho giggles, "Heh heh. Good call. Let's find the best approach we can-something the five of us can do."
"But this… I'm worried…" Sereia says, looking at Briar's bag.
"You're right, if her bag is here, then…" Ace says, and grows worried, "It must mean that Briar must have got caught as well."
"Oh no," Sereia says, worried.
Even Trinket thinks in worry.
But Ortho assures.
"Don't worry Sereia, will find a way to save her and everyone. And we'll be sure of it," Ortho says.
Back in his office at the Playful Stage, Gino looks at the unconscious Briar with a sad expression. He then gently pats her head in response.
Ernesto walks in and asks, "How is she doing?"
Gino gestures in sadness, but does give reassurance.
"I see," Ernesto says. Then sighs, "I can't believe this happened. And to the one who took care of Sereianna. And yet, she did it to save her. The girl has a kind heart."
Suddenly, Briar lets out a low groan in pain and slowly opens her eyes.
She slowly turns her head to see, "Er-Ernesto… Gi-Gino…"
Ernesto shushes her gently, "Easy, you have received some injuries, and you need to rest. Just close your eyes, and rest," and then tucks her in with a blanket.
Briar feels dizzy and soon falls back asleep in response.
"Do not worry, you, along with your friends will be well taken care of here, especially for being the closest and taking care of Sereianna," Ernesto says, softly.
Gino smiles and nods in response.