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bajistadiamond · 1 year

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Yuu and the Magical Power of Songs

Yuu Singer, 🎶💎Ramshackle💎🎶 (Once Upon a December)

Yuu felt… nostalgic.

The holidays were approaching, his favorite time of the year. And although Twisted Wonderland had different ways of celebrating Christmas and New Year according to each country or kingdom, in the end it was the same feeling of union and love.

It had been a couple of days since Azul, the Leech twins, Kalim and he saved Jamil from her OverBlot.

Like Kalim, he also forgave Jamil for everything he did. Also, Jamil was one of two people he fell in love with in his time on TW. He didn't hold a grudge for what he did.

For Yuu the whole situation was the fault of the Asim and the Viper, although there was something for him in that situation. Every time he saw Kalim and Jalim he could see something hovering over them and he didn't talk about his magic.

Putting that aside, Yuu decided to take a walk through the halls of NRC.

Grim, Ace and Deuce stayed in his bedroom and Kalim was throwing a big dinner party with Jamil to celebrate the holidays.

He was considering whether to go to Scarabia or accept the invitation of M.D. in Diasomnia.

If he was honest with himself, he didn't want to celebrate. He didn't remember what his family was on Earth and the comments about what the boys enjoyed doing at festivities with his relatives didn't help either.

As he walked, he came across a large ebony door and, seized by his curiosity, he entered the room without realizing that he was being followed...

Lilia was a fae who had lived and been through a lot in her lifetime.

But he had never seen someone like Yuu. He had met others with "the voice of the gods" and many humans as well, but never someone from another world.

There were theories of other worlds or universes, but all of that remained just ideas or fantasy until Yuu somehow arrived in Twisted Wonderland.

That's why he was curious about the young man and whenever he could, he kept an eye on him to make sure he was safe. You never know what could happen.

That was the reason why he secretly followed him through the corridors of NRC; Several of the castle's rooms were unused and who knows what dangerous objects might be in them.

It pained him to see Yuu's aura full of sadness, so similar to Malleus's when it was the holidays… it was sad that even as royalty he didn't get party invitations on such dates.

Lilia almost loses sight of Yuu thinking that. Luckily, Yuu entered a room that the fae knew.

A room filled with antique vases and gilt-framed landscape paintings; all completely harmless.

Yuu was amazed, because even with the dust and cobwebs the room was beautiful and the decoration exquisite.

Then… he was shocked when he saw something, which he never thought he would see again.

On a table, there was a small golden circular box adorned with blue and purple gems, whith drawings of white bears and birds. The strange thing was that he recognized the box; In his family there had been an identical box that passed from generation to generation. And it seemed that it was the one of his family and not a similar one.

"Maybe he came here like me?" Yuu thought before opening the box… there were a couple of things that highlighted a golden brooch with diamonds.

When Yuu saw it, he felt the magic surrounding him strongly. As they had explained to him, sometimes his magical gift took over his mind and that's what happened.

Magic was sensitive, so Yuu relied on magic before starting to chant…

~ Dancing bears, painted wings ~

~ Things I almost remember ~

Yuu went through a door that connected to another room, it was a huge living room. Yuu guessed it was a ballroom because of the crystal chandeliers and stained glass windows. As he continued to sing, something in his mind cleared up and he began to remember.

Lilia followed the young man in silence, mesmerized by his melodious voice and the magic that was happening around him.

In the center of the double staircase leading to the drawing room was a large gilt frame with a faded painting. When Yuu looked at him the paint suddenly cleared up and revealing a family sitting on a white bench. A 37-year-old woman with brown hair, green eyes and fair complexion stood on the left; a 40-year-old man with white hair, hazel eyes, and a dark complexion sat on the right; the center of them was him... Yuu's father and mother.

~ And a song someone sings ~

~ Once upon a December ~

The image of the box then changed. Now you could see his beloved parents, his gossipy uncles, his funny aunts, his beloved cousins, his grandfather and also the silhouette that Yuu thought was his grandmother, since she died before his birth. .

Lilia looked at the painting with a bittersweet feeling; he was glad that Yuu got to see his family for the time, but the fae he was sad that he couldn't be in person.

~ Someone holds me safe and warm ~

Yuu hugged himself with tears in his eyes as more and more memories that until a few minutes ago had been blocked in his mind.

~ Horses prance through a silver storm ~

The magic could be seen in beautiful silver wisps and brilliant sparkles throughout the room.

~ Figures dancing gracefully ~

~ Across my memory ~

Yuu moved his hands up, as if praying to a deity and instantly the entire room came to life. Literally, people she met in her world dressed in nobles began to descend into the hall while dancing elegantly.

The place was clean, the chandeliers lit, the columns had vines with forget-me-not flowers, and the stained glass windows alternated in different colors; the whole place was magical.

A stunned Lilia stood in the center of the double staircase as Yuu made his way down to the dance floor.

~ Someone holds me safe and warm ~

Yuu couldn't believe it, all his neighbors and friends were there. He also saw his relatives and even he could see ancestors that he only knew from photos. Although he wondered where his parents were, since he couldn't see them.

Lilia felt as some magic erupted behind him; she looked at the painting in amazement when Yuu's parents came out…Then another person came out of the painting and Lilia was speechless when she saw it. A woman he came to know, a woman who despite being kidnapped from her family and her fiancé fought as she could, a woman who was pronounced dead when the kingdom in which she was held captive was turned to ashes.

"Nabila... ". He said in a whisper. Yuu's parents and the older woman, the matriarch of the family, came down the stairs.

~ Horses prance through a silver storm ~

Yuu's cousins and friends approached him; everyone was smiling and dancing around him. Then one of her older cousins placed a gold necklace on him to match the brooch that was still in his hand.

~ Figures dancing gracefully ~

~ Across my memory ~

Yuu twirled with his arms outstretched as he danced… his outfit changed to a beautiful blue outfit with black embroidery and lace, short puffy sleeves, and a crown sparkling with diamonds, amethysts, and sapphires.

~ Far away, long ago ~

A man that Yuu once had a crush on came to him with a bow and he with a bright smile accepted his hand to dance a waltz.

~ Glowing dim as an ember ~

Then a woman took over the waltz, she was one of Yuu's cousins. He couldn't contain her tears of happiness when he saw her.

~ Things my heart used to know ~

Nabila, an older woman with dark skin, red eyes and white hair, gracefully and calmly approached the center of the dance floor. Lilia could only compare the woman's poise to that of the queen he worked for.

~ Things it yearns to remember ~

Yuu looked at the older woman in confusion; He looked at her parents for help, but they just smiled at him with a wink.

Nabila then began to sing the same song before leading the young man into another, slower waltz. The boy remembered at that moment who the woman was, his great-grandmother.

~ And a song someone sings ~

Nabila's ghost had a sad smile as she looked at her great-grandson… then when they finished the waltz she caressed his cheeks and gave him a kiss on the forehead.

Yuu saw the last memory of his past before TW…a fire, in the apartment building where all of his family lived. He saw himself running through the smoke-filled halls, calling out names and then the memory ends when he saw his reflection in an oval mirror... the mirror of darkness.

Yuu knelt before his great grandmother and the rest of his family. He didn't know how he could keep singing without being interrupted by sobs.

~ Once upon a December ~

Lilia saw Nabila look at him and gestured for her to comfort her great-grandson before disappearing with the rest of the people. The one with black and pink hair was not going to deny that request, his father's heart was screaming at him to pamper Yuu.

Yuu was crying because of what happened, he already remembered how he got to Twsited Wonderland, but he didn't want to believe that he lost his family. The young man felt a hand on his shoulder and looked up; Lilia was there kneeling next to him.

Yuu hugged him for comfort. The fae accepted the hug with gusto. "Yeah, yeah." She told him stroking his head. "Everything will be fine Yuu." The white-haired young man wanted to believe him. "I hope my family is okay." Yuu told him in a whisper. Lilia nodded. "They sure are." Said the fae without knowing that this saddened the boy. And in that moment he wanted with all the strength of him while he had the image of his whole family in his mind. "I wish they were here". In a brilliant flash the costume and the decoration of the room disappeared.

Unbeknownst to anyone, the mirror of darkness came to life upon feeling the desire of a young man with a heart of gold. Without hesitation, he searched again for the world Yuu was born into. She realized that the first time he couldn't find Earth because Yuu's soul was from a descendant of TW and he didn't look any further; It didn't take long for him to find New York City…everything was standing still. The mirror smiled and connecting with his equal in the world supposedly without magic, he searched for everyone in the building. And in a flash of light he teleported them to Twisted Wonderland...

Meanwhile, in a remote forest in TW several people showed up. Everyone was confused by where they were, as a woman and a man searched through the crowd. "Yuu, where are you?!".

Yuu's father and mother

Note: Nabila: means 'the one who is noble and intelligent'.

Happy Holidays...

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elm-writes-stories · 10 months

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Cuphead: Isle of Shadows (Rewrite)

*Hey, everyone! I'm back with another episode of Cuphead: Isle of Shadows Rewrite! This is published on July 28, 2023. If you guys enjoy this episode, don't forget to heart it, reblog, and comment! Those are always appreciated! Warning: there is racism involved along with violence in the beginning. Enjoy!*

Episode Seven: Birthday Bash

The choir was singing a boring hymn that gave praise to the Most High while Porkrind stood there in the pew with his distant mother. He was embarrassed of his own voice as a child and stayed silent through the entire hymn. On that day, he and his mother sat by a family of red-furred cats with different colored hair. During one of the hymns, young Porkrind heard a voice that he thought sounded like an angel next to him. He looked to his right and there was Shayna. The red-furred cat girl with ebony long hair, singing along with the choir in a softest voice next to him. Porkrind smiled to hear her sing and looked back at the choir until they were done singing.

As the pastor came up to the podium to speak of the Most High’s words, Porkrind leaned in a bit towards Shayna.

“You have a nice voice,” Porkrind complimented in a whisper.

Shayna twitched her ear to the side and looked at the pig. “Thanks.”

They looked at the pastor as Shayna leaned back over to Porkrind.

“What happened to your eye?” Shayna questioned the young one-eyed pig.

Porkrind covered his eyepatch in embarrassment. “Nothing happened to it.”

Shayna seemed unconvinced by it. “You look pretty cool with an eyepatch. Like a pirate.”

Porkrind giggled silently. “Thanks.”

“Wanna hang out afterwards?” Shayna asked quietly.

Porkrind was never asked this question by any kid his age before…it was a strange feeling then, but he hadn’t a friend before. So he nodded his head.

“Sure,” Porkrind uttered.

“Quiet,” he heard his mom shushed him.

Shayna pinned her ears back with clenched teeth to look at both him and his mom apologetically. Then she mouthed to Porkrind, ‘After church’.

Porkrind nodded his head in agreement and continued to listen to the pastor. However, his excitement of hanging out with a potential new friend after church caused him to not remember a single word from the pastor. It was after church bell rang to end the gathering where Porkrind snuck off with Shayna out into the woods.

Shayna and Porkrind were skipping stones down the lake.

“Do you have to be home at a certain time?” Porkrind asked Shayna in consideration.

“Nah. Just as long as I am home before supper, I’ll be fine,” Shayna said with a smile. “Say, we haven’t introduced ourselves yet. The name’s Shayna.”

“S-Shayna?” He questioned the pronunciation.

“The pronunciation is a bit tricky. My parents tried to find unique names for me and my five siblings,” Shayna said with a cheeky grin. “And your name?”

“P-Porkrind.”

“Porkrind, huh? Ooh, that’d be a cool pirate name for you. You could be Captain Porkrind. Argh!” She said excitedly while skipping the stone across the lake.

He smiled and chuckled, finding the flat rock on the ground. “I could have a hook for a hand too.”

“That would be cool,” Shayna replied.

They both giggled at their own joke while skipping the stones across the lake. For a moment, they enjoyed the wind and the sound of birds chirping from the branches from the willow trees. The water rippled at every time a flat stone skipped to the water until it drowned in the middle. The sun was slowly setting and the clouds passed through above them, with some clouds shading them from the sun until the sun was strong enough to break through and shine once again.

Shayna looked up at the sky and smiled at the view of the sky.

“Whoa! Check it out!” she pointed at the clouds with a bright smile.

Young Porkrind glanced up at the clouds. “Uh…they’re just clouds.”

“Yeah. And they can form fun shapes! C’mon! Let’s get a better view!” Shayna encouraged by taking him by the hand and pulling him along with her.

“Hey, wait! Hold on!” He gasped in shock while letting her lead him up to the cliff side on the hill that overlooked the woods and faced the Inkwell City.

Once they reached to the cliff, Shayna sat down and let her legs dangle over the cliff. Porkrind just sat back with his feet barely reaching the edge. Both of them stared at the clouds while she pointed at one of the clouds.

“Look at that one. That one is shaped like a dog,” she observed.

He squinted with his one eye and smiled once he figured out the shape she was talking about. “Oh yeah. What about that one?”

“Oh, that one? It’s a bunny. See the little cotton tail?”

He nodded his head with a chuckle. “Yeah. And that one?”

“Oh, that’s definitely a pirate ship. Hold on, let’s get a better view.”

She laid back against the grass and he joined in with her. The world felt different staring up at the sky with the clouds passing above them.

“Hmm, that one looks like a cat,” Porkrind pointed at one of the clouds.

Shayna nodded her head. “Yeah. It does. Good eye.”

“That’s the only eye I have.”

She clenched her teeth until he chuckled a bit, causing her to loosen the tension on her shoulders and giggled along with him.

“This is fun,” she commented with a sigh.

He frowned when she commented and looked at her. “Soo, um, you are hanging out with me after church.”

“Yeah, I am.”

“Well…I, uh, don’t mean to ask, but…why?”

She shrugged and looked up at him. “Because I thought you were pretty cool.”

“Even when I’m fat?”

“Yeah. I thought you were pretty cool. Besides, I've seen how much kids pick on you for your size at school.”

Porkrind frowned.

“You have no idea how many times I wanted to step in, but…you know, I already clawed somebody for picking on me and the teachers thought I was some ticking bomb waiting to go off. I’m kind of glad we’ve met officially.”

He smiled at her. “Me too.”

“Should I call you Porky for a nickname or…?”

He chuckled. “Nicknames already?”

“I don’t know…just something to go by. Ooh! How about Po? I figured Porky is more of an insult than a nickname.”

He shrugged. “Sure. Should I come up with a nickname?”

“You can if you want.”

“Well…how about Shay?”

“I like that. Hey, Po?”

“Hm?”

“I’m glad I’ve met you. I wish we could stay like this forever.”

“Me too.”

Both of the kids looked back up at the clouds, watching the clouds roll by.

~.~

Ever since that day, Porkrind and Shayna had been childhood friends. They did a lot together at school. They played together and they explored together. However, they grew up in different environments. While Shayna grew up in a loving home, Porkrind grew up in a home where he would watch his mother pass out on the couch from the amount of alcohol she drank. Despite of that, they would still hang out together.

Both Porkrind and Shayna had been visiting that cliff side every day to watch the clouds and point out the shapes of each cloud until they started to grow up. Both had different interests, but they grew so close to the point where they thought they could try something a bit more than friends once they were teens. So, they have dated for a while and it was fun…mostly fun. However, after a month of dating, both Porkrind and Shayna decided to break up mutually. It was on good terms and mostly understood that they weren’t each other’s types.

As they grew into young adulthood, Porkrind decided to create his own business to move out of his mother’s house while Shayna found someone else to fall for. He was a red cat like her with ebony bang and his name was Jack.

At first, Porkrind didn’t like Jack that much for only two reasons. One, he was stupidly annoying determination to get to the bottom of problems. Two, Porkrind didn’t think Jack deserved someone like Shayna mostly because Porkrind was protective over Shayna like an older brother. Porkrind was afraid that Jack was some sort of a smooth talker and he would break her heart…but he was glad he was wrong. Once he saw Shayna enjoying Jack’s company and laughing at all of his dumb jokes, Porkrind’s heart turned to mush.

It was then that Porkrind was invited to the wedding and he watched Shayna walking down the aisle and Jack lifting her veil to see her beautiful furry face. They both shared a kiss as Porkrind watched with a proud smile at her. It was so beautiful. It’d been a while since he shed a happy tear for his friend.

The war happened a couple of months after the wedding and Jack was called to serve the military. Shayna was pregnant before Jack went away to war as she had been waiting for him. Porkrind kept her company since he couldn’t go into the military due to not being physically fit enough to fight a war by visiting her at her house and talking with her for a long time until night happened. Or she would visit his shop and just to conversed.

When Porkrind’s shop wasn’t doing so good, he started to work with shady people like Jerry. However, Jerry became more than a coworker. He became a friend and he got a chance to meet Shayna while she was pregnant.

Luckily for Shayna, Jack got home from the war just in time to take care of his wife and his future litter of kittens. That day came when she was rushed to the hospital and gave birth to the litter of kittens. However…all but one didn’t make it. Only one kitten made it after she was given birth. Porkrind was there at the hospital and that was when he was introduced to who the felines called Shayna and Jack’s miracle baby.

They named her Cassidy.

After Cassidy was born, Jack started to look for a job and found it through the Manson Corporations.

Porkrind didn’t think it was a good idea for Jack to be working there, but Jack was offered more money to support his family and his friend from the military, Murray, was there. The pig didn’t want to argue further.

But there was a day he remembered…a day he would never forget. Porkrind was just sitting back with the radio on in his shop when it happened.

“Attention! Attention, Inkwell Isle citizens! The Manson Corporations has released a toxic chemical throughout the city. Many people became monsters and is killing each other! We have to quarantine that part of the city. The head of the Manson Corporations responded!” the radio announcer announced as someone else different spoke through the radio.

“This situation is under control. This chemical was released by a former employee of mine. His name was Jack Cat. He and his species caused this Tremaine outbreak,” the voice of the head of the company spoke aggressively.

Porkrind blinked in surprise. With a growl, he shut off the radio and shook his head to ignore it all. He thought that no one will be fooled by the cunning voice belonging to Hunter Manson himself…but the pig couldn’t be anymore wrong. The hate didn’t start overnight. Everywhere Porkrind went, whether that would be delivering packages for Jerry or going shopping for food, he saw posters of red cats acting like demons in each of them. It progressed throughout the days and towards a year, inciting some violence towards the red cats and their community.

There was one day where Porkrind witnessed an innocent red cat being beaten in the streets by a couple citizens and went to break up the fight.

“Alright! Alright! You had your fun! Now beat it!” Porkrind barked at the aggressors. The aggressors were timid of Porkrind’s strength and rushed off. He breathed heavily and looked down to see that the innocent red feline was none other than Shayna herself.

Shayna covered her side, cradled baby Cassidy in her arms, and spat out a drop of blood from his lips. “T-Thanks, Po. You’re a real one.”

“Shay?” Porkrind helped her up to her feet. “Hey, are you okay?”

“I-I’m fine…Just trying to grocery shop like a normal person,” Shayna said. “I better get home before—before—”

“No, you ain’t walkin’ home by yourself. C’mon, let me get you patched up,” Porkrind determined while helping Shayna and while she was carrying baby Cassidy towards his shop.

Once they got inside of the shop, Porkrind sat Shayna down on the seat while he searched for a med-kit. Baby Cassidy started to whine while Shayna shushed her gently.

“Po…”

“Hm?” Porkrind answered while cleaning her face.

“C-Could you hold Cassi for me?” Shayna uttered. “I need to get her food.”

“Yeah, sure,” Porkrind replied while picking Cassidy off of Shayna’s arms. Shayna began digging through her purse until she found the formula. However, Cassidy was calmer in Porkrind’s arms, earning a chuckle from Shayna.

“She likes you already,” Shayna said with a smile.

“Eh…that depends…” He said while letting her pick Cassidy back into her arms and feed her with the formula bottle. He watched with a frown. “Where’s Jack? Is he home?”

Shayna shook her head. “He’s working on the cure.”

He frowned and sighed. “What times does he get home?”

“Usually late at night.”

“How about you and Cassidy stay here until then…? You know, just to protect you both from the angry citizens out there.”

“That would be nice.” There was a pause as Shayna looked at Porkrind. “You know, it’s crazy that we’ve been friends for such a long time.”

“Yeah. Kind of crazy. All things considered, I’m happy for you and Jack…and for Cassidy as well now that she has a loving mother like you.”

“Thank you…Po?”

“Hm?”

“If…if anything happens to me or Jack or both of us…could you do me this one favor for me?”

“Sure. What is it?”

She showed baby Cassidy resting in her arms. “Could you take care of Cassi for us?”

“Uh…for how long…?”

“I don’t know…I need to know if you’ll be there and help take care of Cassi if we need you to.”

“Shay—”

“Promise?”

There was a pause as the pig sighed deeply.

“I promise. You know I’ll be there.”

She smiled and held her daughter close. “Thank you.”

He nodded his head to say ‘You’re welcome’.

A couple of days after he made that promise, Porkrind was just closing up shop in the snow storm and was about to go to sleep until he heard a knock at the door.

“We’re closed!” Porkrind shouted.

The baby cried outside of his door. The pig gasped and hurried towards the door to open it. It was revealed to be baby Cassidy in the blue basket and a note attached to it along with the formula bottle.

Porkrind pulled the basket in before baby Cassidy could freeze in the cold while she cried. He shut the door and locked it. He placed the basket on the table and stroked Cassidy's head to calm her down.

Porkrind pulled out a note from the basket that read.

“Po, I’m sorry to place this all on you. But…I’m at a loss and Jack hadn’t come home…The angry mob is burning down our community. By now, Cassidy might be the only survivor. Please take care of her and show her all the love that both Jack and I could never give her. Love- Shay.”

Porkrind had his eye twitched from reading the letter. “What the—? No, no.” His best friend couldn’t be dead. She couldn’t be dead. No, he refused to believe that. Porkrind got on his coat and scarf and hurried out of the shop, locking the door behind him so that no one could break in and hurt baby Cassidy.

Porkrind hurried through the storm to find Shayna, more than determined to help her out of another sticky situation until…he was too late. He saw two people beating up someone under the streetlight.

“HEY!” Porkrind called out angrily, causing the individuals to scurry into the shadows. The pig hurried towards the person who was beaten up badly. He gasped in horror once he recognized long ebony hair covering the blood on the back of her head. Her red fur didn’t cover the bruises and she wasn’t breathing.

Porkrind breathed heavily while examining her body. He turned her over and saw that her once beautiful face was now battered and her head was split open. The pig shed tears from his one eye and shook his head.

“Shay…”

There was no response from her.

Porkrind shook his head and bit his bottom lip ragged to hold in all the tears. He looked to the side to see the flames. He looked back down at her and fell onto his knees on the snow.

“Shay…?”

There was still no response.

“Cassi…” Porkrind said while going back to his shop as quickly as he could to see how Cassidy was doing.

Once Porkrind went inside of the shop, he heard baby Cassidy crying as the pig hurried and fed her a bottle while picking her up in his arms. She drank it with content while resting in Porkrind’s arm. Once he was done feeding her, he placed the half-empty bottle aside.

Cassidy still cried while he rocked her in his arms.

“Oh gosh…what am I even doin’?” Porkrind uttered, his voice cracked. He looked down at Cassidy and he could’ve sworn he could see Shayna’s features on Cassidy and he couldn’t help but trying to hold in the tears. He buried his face into crying kitten’s chest, trying to keep himself together.

“I know. I know,” Porkrind soothed. “I miss your mama too.”

Porkrind held Cassidy closer.

“I miss your mama too.”

~.~

Fifteen years later:

Cassidy was awakened by the smell of fish-sticks in the early sunny morning. She jumped off of the bunk bed that she shared with Mugman and followed the smell. She approached the kitchen and found Porkrind cooking something on the oven.

Porkrind realized that he burned the fish sticks and swiped at the black smoke coming from it. “Dang it—” He turned to see Cassidy standing there. “You didn’t see that.”

“What? Your spectacular cooking?” Cassidy teased her father.

He chuckled. “Yeah, yeah, make fun of me all you want. It ain’t like I used the stove often.”

“Are you makin’ fish sticks for me?” she asked.

“No, they’re for me and Jerry to enjoy.”

One of her ears was pinned down to her head while she smirked at her father.

“Of course, they’re for you,” Porkrind answered. “Besides, you’re the only one that seems to like that stuff.”

Cassidy tilted her head. “What’s the special occasion? You wouldn’t cook those unless there was a special occasion.”

“Don’t tell me you forgot?”

She was silent for a minute.

He gave her a deadpan stare. “It’s your birthday.”

“Oh! Sorry, I guess I forgot about it.”

“It’s fine. Happy birthday, by the way.”

“Aww, thanks, Dad.” She frowned and looked down at the ground.

The pig noticed her frown. “What’s wrong?”

“Can’t believe I lived through fifteen years,” Cassidy uttered. “I mean…who would’ve thought?”

“Well, there are definitely more years to come,” Porkrind said with a smile.

“I guess.”

He frowned at her answer. “What’s on your mind?”

“Well, so many things. First, there was this whole Night Stalkers situation and waiting for a moment where they find us and kill us. Then Mugman had Tremaine and who knows when the potion will wear off. Then there’s me…just…existing…almost like I wasn’t supposed to. D-Do you think my parents ever loved me?”

Porkrind was taken aback from the question. He kneeled down and placed a hand on Cassidy’s shoulder.

“With all of their hearts, Cassi. With all of their hearts.”

Cassidy frowned and looked away. “I wish they were here so they could say that to my face.”

“Yeah…me too…” Porkrind replied sadly. “But…I can say with confidence that they both love you very much. Trust me, I know.”

“How do you know? It’s not like you’ve met them before…right?”

Porkrind frowned and was about to say something until—

“Why does this kitchen smell like burned fish-sticks?”

Porkrind looked up to find Jerry covering his big nose. “I was trying to cook fish-sticks for Cassi’s birthday.”

“Oh? Why didn’t you ask for help then?” Jerry said while coming up to the stove.

“Because I thought I can take care of it.”

“Of course, you thought that.”

Cassidy smiled while watching both Porkrind and Jerry cooking together.

“Look, this is how you work the stove—”

“Yeah, yeah, I get it. It’s not like I used these every day,” Porkrind interrupted Jerry’s sentence.

“I’m just showin’ ya.”

Cassidy giggled until she heard footsteps coming in behind her. She whirled around and saw Mugman walking behind her.

“Good morning,” she greeted Mugman, who yawned and rubbed his eye.

“Morning,” Mugman uttered.

Porkrind and Jerry noticed Mugman entering the kitchen.

“Are you guys cooking fish-sticks?” Mugman asked while smelling in the kitchen.

“Yeah,” Porkrind said and showed the crispy fish-sticks. “Didn’t work out.”

Chalice entered the room with Cuphead and Canteen.

“Whatcha cookin’? We can smell it from all the way over here,” Chalice asked with her brow quirked up.

The one-eyed pig sighed heavily. “How many times do I have to answer that?”

“Oh, he’s just cooking fish-sticks for Cassi’s birthday,” Jerry answered nonchalantly.

“Oh, is that all?” Cuphead asked before everyone widened their eyes.

“Wait a minute—”

“HAPPY BIRTHDAY, BESTIE!!!!” Natalie announced, interrupting Mugman’s realization.

Aurora waddled behind her big sister with a giggle. “Happy Birthday, Cassi.”

Cassidy blushed and rubbed her arm. “T-Thanks.”

“Well, well, I didn’t know it was your birthday,” Chalice responded with a smile. She slid next to Cassidy and wrapped her arm around the feline. “We should go out and celebrate!”

“Yeah!” Cuphead shouted in agreement. “This time, we’re going where you want to go!”

“Wait what?” Natalie uttered.

“You heard me. We’re goin’ where Cassidy wants to go,” Cuphead said with determination.

“Yeah,” Mugman agreed and looked at Cassidy. “Where do you want to go on your birthday?”

“Ooh, I heard there’s a really cool water park—”

“Not to be rude…but I don’t think he was asking you,” Canteen pointed out to Natalie.

“I’m just makin’ suggestions. Sheesh,” Natalie said with a groan and her arms crossed.

“Soooo? Where do you want to go?” Chalice asked.

Cassidy rubbed her arm nervously. “A-Anywhere you guys want to go—”

“Cool! Let’s go to that water park—”

“No, we will not accept that,” Mugman said, interrupting Natalie. “We’ll go anywhere you want to go. Just pick the place.”

“I, um, I—um…”

The others waited for her answer, watching her struggle with anywhere to go to that everyone would like.

“I think I have a place I wanna go,” Cassidy uttered.

“Then lead the way!” Chalice determined.

“Hey, you better be careful out there—” Porkrind instructed while watching Cassidy walking out of the mansion with her group of friends.

Jerry watched the kids and then looked at Porkrind. “She’ll be fine. If anything happens, Cuphead, Chalice, and Mugman will fight them off. She’ll be safe with them.”

Porkrind frowned. “She’s growing up too fast…”

“Way too fast. She oughta slow down,” Jerry joked.

Porkrind was still frowning.

“Does Cassi’s birthday remind you of Shayna?”

He glanced at his friend sadly. “Every day she reminds me of Shay…”

Jerry placed a hand on the pig’s broad shoulder. “When are you going to tell her about her parents?”

“I—I don’t know…I don’t know…”

~.~

The kids walked into the local library in the small town on the coast not too far from Natalie’s house. Natalie groaned once they entered the library. The library wasn’t huge but it had books along the sides.

“Ooh,” Canteen uttered. “I didn’t know there’s a library here in the coastal town. I wonder how long I was a statue for.”

“Thousands of years,” Chalice teased Canteen.

“Har har, very fu—wait, really, thousands of years?”

“Nah, I’m just pulling your leg…or am I?”

There was an awkward pause for a moment.

“Is Roll the Dice still on the radio?” Canteen asked.

“It shut down two months ago,” Chalice said.

“Oh, okay, I was gone when the show had a weird sounding new host…I guess I’ve been a statue for two months…interesting.”

“You’re not even freaked out that you missed two months of your life?”

“It feels strange, but I’ll be fine,” Canteen said with a soft smile at her.

Natalie didn’t look impress with the local library. “Seriously? We could’ve gone to cooler places…but instead…we went to the library.”

“Well, it’s not as risky as taking her to the water park,” Cuphead argued.

“Do you have any other suggestions we could go that is cooler that is not where the Night Stalkers are?” Natalie said.

Cuphead pondered about it. “Uh…no…”

“See?”

“Well, why don’t you sleep there until we’re done?” Cuphead said while pointing at the couch.

Natalie crossed her arms. “If I know Cassidy any better, we would be stuck here for thousands of years.”

“Nat, come on,” Chalice interrupted the conversation with her hands on her hips. “We gotta act somewhat interested on what Cassi likes. Look, Canteen and Mugman are acting interested.”

“I actually like books,” Canteen uttered awkwardly.

“Me too,” Mugman said with a brow arched.

Chalice shifted her gaze at Natalie. “Even your sister is acting interested.” Chalice referred to Aurora. Aurora was reading the books made for little kids and giggled at the funny pictures in the books.

Natalie arched a brow. “Soooo….?”

“So act interested,” Chalice said. “This is Cassi’s birthday after all. Please, just act interested.”

Natalie rolled her eyes with a groan. “Fine…”

“Good,” Chalice said while grabbing a random book and reading it.

Cuphead and Natalie looked for a book to read as Cuphead picked the one with the whale and the ship as the cover while Natalie was reading the one with a brown leather cover with a bored look on her face.

Mugman decided to read another romance novel and Canteen scanned through the engineer book he found randomly on the shelf.

Cassidy walked by Cuphead and gasped, scaring the cup out of the book and drawing everyone’s attention, including her friends.

“What? What? Did you see something?” Cuphead asked urgently.

“You’re reading Moby Dick,” Cassidy said excitedly.

“Moby what?”

“Moby Dick. It’s a book about a man’s obsession for revenge against a sea beast that took his leg. It has a strong metaphor for a goal that is impossible to attain—”

“Oh no, she’s rambling,” Natalie muttered to herself while Cassidy went on and on about the book Cuphead was reading.

Nearby bystanders looked at Cassidy in disgust and moved away from her.

Mugman watched her ramble with a soft giggle at her while Canteen and Chalice seemed surprise to see the shy feline ramble on and on about the book.

“—And that’s why the book is really cool and interesting,” Cassidy said with a cute smile until she realized that Cuphead looked at her with pure confusion.

Cassidy realized that everyone else was looking at her in disgust while her friends seemed a bit confused for a moment for her random rambling. She looked at Natalie, who groaned in discouragement while covering her face. Her ears pinned down to the back of her head.

“You know what? Nevermind. L-Let’s go to the water park,” Cassidy said while walking out of the library.

“Yes,” Natalie muttered to herself while picking Aurora up from reading her favorite book, who whimpered once she was pulled away from reading the book.

Natalie followed Cassidy out of the library.

Cuphead looked at Chalice, Canteen, and Mugman.

“Well, so much for acting interested,” Chalice said to herself while walking out of the library.

Cuphead clenched his teeth and looked at Canteen, who shrugged his shoulders and exited the library.

Both of the brothers followed their friends with confused glances at each other.

~.~

Cassidy watched everyone enjoying themselves at the water park.

She figured that everyone will have better enjoyment at the water park than being at a boring old library. She smiled to watch her friends having fun on the slides or going shopping around the place, even though it was without her in there. When she heard shuffling feet and a creak on the bench, she turned to the side and saw Mugman sitting next to her.

“I told you I would keep you company,” Mugman said softly.

She smiled and rubbed her arm. “Yeah…thanks.”

He frowned to see her like this and looked at the water park. “You know, you didn’t have to choose the water park.”

“I know…I just want you guys to enjoy yourselves.”

“Oh, Cassi—”

“I’m serious…it would make me happy if you guys enjoy yourselves.”

“But we didn’t get to do what you want.”

“That’s okay. I’m alright with making sacrifices.”

“But you shouldn’t have to always be the one to make sacrifices,” he replied sadly. “This is your birthday after all. This is your special day.”

“I kind of hated it.”

“Why?”

“I—I don’t know…” she hugged her legs. “Ignore me. I’m just being emotional.”

Mugman frowned to see Cassidy like this. He placed his hand on top of hers to get her attention. “You’re not being emotional. You’re just perfect—I mean, you have flaws but you are valid in your emotions. Look, if you don’t want to tell me—”

“Ew, look at her,” someone whispered behind them.

Mugman threw a glare at the kids whispering to each other.

She had her ears pinned down to her head.

“She shouldn’t even be here.”

“She shouldn’t even be born.”

Mugman glared at the kids that whispered that, his eyes turned yellow with red irises around his pupils. “Say that again!”

“Mugsy!” Cuphead’s voice called, noticing Tremaine taking over Mugman once again. He hurried when he saw Mugman hopping over the bench to creep over to the kids that insulted Cassidy.

“C’mon! Say that again!” Mugman growled at the teens.

Cuphead rushed towards Mugman and held him back before he could leap to attack the kids. “Mugsy, calm down!”

“Let me at ‘em! Let me at ‘em!” Mugman barked while claws grew from the tips of his fingers. He started to swipe his claws in the air, but Cuphead was strong enough to hold him back surprisingly.

“Mugsy, come on! Snap out of it!”

“LET ME GO!!” Mugman demanded before swiping his claws at Cuphead’s cheek. Cuphead let go and stumbled back onto the ground, covering his cheek with a groan in pain.

Chalice, Canteen, Natalie, Aurora, and Cassidy witnessed it in horror and looked at Mugman, who was breathing heavily with saliva dripping out from the corners of his mouth. However, his eyes shifted back to normal and noticed his brother on the ground, covering his cheek.

Mugman’s eyes were filled to the brim with tears once he looked down and saw his claws coming back into his fingers. He looked at his friends, who were staring at him in horror. He glanced over at the kids he almost attacked and noticed how they looked at him. Like he was a monster. This was not what he wanted.

“I’m sorry…” Mugman uttered while he ran away from the crowd and into the woods.

“Mugman!” his friends called, but he disappeared into the woods before they could stop him.

Cuphead got up and felt a sting on his cheek. When he stroked the scratch, he noticed that something burning red, mending his scar to where it completely disappeared.

“What the—?” Cuphead questioned and looked at his friends.

“Should we go after Mugman?” Canteen asked, his voice trembling a bit.

Cassidy frowned while looking into the woods.

~.~

Mugman ran through the forest as fast as he could while the day turned into night.

He hurried towards the cliff-side and stopped there on the edge. Breathing heavily in panic, he sat down and looked at his trembling hands. The tears streamed down his porcelain cheeks and he let out sobs.

Mugman hugged his legs and cried into his thighs, letting out as much emotions he could. What was wrong with him? He heard shuffling feet and looked up in sudden alert when he saw Cassidy walking behind him.

“You okay?” she asked softly.

He looked out towards the horizon, staring at the big destroyed city in front of him. “I kind of ruined your birthday, didn’t I?”

She sat down next to him and shook her head. “No, you didn’t. You were a little protective over me. I appreciate that, but…don’t hurt them…I don’t want them to think you’re under some kind of spell.”

“Why would people say that about you?” Mugman uttered.

She frowned and looked away.

“Why would they say that horrible stuff about you? You know, the parts where you weren’t supposed to be born or whatever. How could they say that to someone who was kind and compassionate?”

“You think I’m kind and compassionate?”

“I think you’re a lot of things, Cassi,” he said while looking up at her. He lowered his gaze over at the cliff. “It’s no wonder you think you’re a burden.”

“Yeah…”

“But why would they say that stuff about you? What did you do to deserve this kind of hate?”

“I…I don’t know. It may have something to do with my biological parents…I don’t know. I never understood it for the longest time. I had bullies tried to kill me when I was a kid…maybe because my species was extinct and I’m the only one who survived. Sometimes I wished I died along with them…just so that people could live in peace. Dad and Jerry wouldn’t have to raise me and…everything would be better.”

Mugman raised his head and softened his gaze at her. “No, it wouldn’t.”

She looked at him.

He took a deep breath. “Look, I don’t know what would happen if you have died along with your kind, but I can tell you that you being here…even when Tremaine took hold of me…made everything better. I mean, I gotta tell ya…I don’t know what would happen if I haven’t met you. You’re purrfect just the way you are.”

Cassidy giggled at the cat pun he used until she snorted, causing him to smile softly at her. They both looked at each other, their eyes finally meeting.

“You always have a beautiful laugh,” Mugman uttered.

She smirked. “Really?”

“Yeah~” he said with a lovesick smile.

“I still hated my laugh.”

“That’s okay. I just wanna hear you laugh.”

She smiled at him while watching him turn to look up at the stars. Her heart fluttered at the sight of his smile finally returning to his face.

“You know, you’re such a loveable goofball,” Cassidy said while kissing his cheek.

Mugman froze, his face red and the liquid from within his cup-shaped head boiled, the puffs of smoke shaped like hearts came out of his straw. He turned to look at her, his pupils dilated.

Cassidy blushed and her body trembled, looking away from his eyes. “I’m sorry! I shouldn’t have done that…I-I don’t know what came over me—” she felt his hand caressing her furry cheek.

She looked into his soft eyes once again. Mugman took one glance down at her lips and then back at her eyes. He scooted closer to her, leaning towards her face. She leaned towards his face, her heart thumping against her chest when their lips were about to touch.

“There you guys are!” Natalie shouted, causing Cassidy and Mugman to pull apart from each other and turning away just to face the horizon instantly.

Natalie, Cuphead, Chalice, Aurora, and Canteen approached Mugman and Cassidy.

“You guys just took off,” Natalie said. “We were wonderin’ where you both were.”

“Oh, uh, just staring at the stars,” Cassidy replied with a plastered smile.

Chalice noticed something between Mugman and Cassidy and smirked.

“Ooh, that’s fun to do,” Canteen stated while sitting down on the patch of grass near the cliff.

Mugman looked at Cuphead with an apologetic gaze. “A-Are you okay?”

“Yeah, I’m fine. I ain’t too worried about it,” Cuphead reassured his brother with a soft smile while sitting down.

Natalie and Aurora sat down together.

“What do you see up there?” Natalie asked her little sister.

“Pwetty stars!” Aurora cooed.

“Yeah, pretty stars,” Natalie said with a soft smile. She looked at Cassidy and frowned. Then she sighed and swallowed her pride. “Happy Birthday, Cassi.”

Cassidy turned to look at her best friend with a soft smile. “Thanks.”

Natalie nodded her head and shifted her focus on the stars.

Everyone looked up at the stars, counting them all together.

Unbeknownst to them, Porkrind had been searching for the kids in concern for their safety until he approached the cliff and saw them. Before he could chastise the kids for staying out for too long, a memory of him and Shayna sitting on cliff in this exact spot watching the clouds flooded his brain. He shed a tear at the reminder and tried not to cry in front of the kids. He let them stay for a little longer until he was ready to tell them that it was time to go home.

To Be Continued...

#cuphead #cuphead: isle of shadows rewrite #mugman #ocs x canons #ms chalice #canteen hughes #porkrind #cuphead jerry #oc parents

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