You're coming back,
and it's the end of the world
We're starting over, and I love you darling
and I am done here
-I Want You, Mitski
Warnings for a wee bit of blood and mentions of violence!
"...and then I woke up, and found this! Can you believe it?!" Suitcase's smile took up half her face as she waved the paper in her hands around, Fan and Balloon standing around her. They were at the Thinker home once again, this time to have an overnight resistance meeting. Suitcase, Balloon, and Fan were technically supposed to be sleeping, but the former girl had to share the news, now that nobody could eavesdrop. "We're so close!"
"So we can actually get your mom home soon?" Balloon gasped. "That's amazing!"
"Yeah! She could actually help us out a lot, couldn't she?" Fan asked. "She did trap Merripen in that interdimensional limbo, after all, and she had countless encounters with them, according to Candle..."
"Yeah! And...I'll finally get to meet her." Suitcase took a deep, shaky breath, staring down at the paper. "But first...we need to get all of this."
"Huh, let's see...'locks of who she loved and who loved her'..." Balloon mumbled. "Maybe...that's Baseball and Candle? That's the best answer I can think of, really..."
"But how are we gonna get their hair?" Fan questioned. "I mean, I don't think they'd just hand some of it over to us..."
"Simple," Suitcase stated. "If they won't give us any, we'll just get it ourselves."
~~~~~
Silver and Candle were asleep, the former snoring not-so-delicately while sprawled on his side, while Candle laid on her back, snoring quietly, her purple hair laid spread out over her pillow. They seemed to pay no attention as the bedroom door squeaked open, Suitcase silently walking in, clutching a pair of kitchen scissors in her hands.
She knew she shouldn't do this. She really shouldn't.
But it was for a good cause, wasn't it? So Candle would understand, right?
Suitcase gingerly picked up a strand of Candle's hair between her fingers, slowly moving the scissors towards the yoga teacher's hair. Silver Spoon shifted slightly in bed, Suitcase's body going stiff as she stared at the slender man, only for him to turn over in his sleep and wrap an arm around Candle. Suitcase sighed, glancing down and slowly and carefully trimming the strand of purple hair, grasping it gently in her hands as she quietly shuffled out of the bedroom, meeting up with Balloon in the hallway, who was holding a chunk of white hair with red streaks.
"I just trimmed his ponytail," Balloon whispered. "Do you think it might be too much?"
"No, that's good, that's good," Suitcase replied softly. "C'mon, let's just go back to the guest room."
The two friends rushed over to the guest room, where Fan was sitting crosslegged on one of the sleeping bags, holding something small in his hands. He glanced up at the two twelve-year-olds, who held up the hairs in their hands as if they were saying "halfway done!".
"Nice!" Fan whispered. "Now, I think for the part that says 'a piece of what was once hers might be...some part of one of her belongings, maybe?"
"I don't think that's a problem," Suitcase said. "Candle and Silver have the journals on them, we can just tear a page out of there. But now we need..." She trailed off, staring down at her wrist.
"Suitcase?" Balloon approached her slowly. "I'm not going to stop you from doing it. I mean, I did promise I'd help you get your mom back, but...do you want me to hold your hand? You just look...hesitant."
Suitcase nodded, sitting down and placing the strand of Candle's hair in front of her, holding out her right wrist, holding her left hand out for Balloon to hold. Meanwhile Fan dug in his backpack, taking out a small switchblade and a tiny vial (apparently from Test Tube's chemistry kit; he'd been carrying it around ever since she had gotten stabbed and assumingly abducted by Merripen). He approached the nervous-looking Suitcase, flicking open the blade and hovering it over her hand.
"Are you ready?" Fan asked, looking up at the small girl in front of her. "I won't do it until you are."
"Yeah. I'm ready."
Fan took Suitcase's hand, steadying it as he made a quick, clean cut across her palm. Blood seeped up from the wound, the echoing sting making the young girl wince. She felt Balloon rub his fingers over her knuckles softly, silently taking deep breaths.
It's for her mother.
For her mother.
"Alright, just gonna..." Fan mumbled, tilting Suitcase's hand so the blood could drip into the little vial. "There! That should be it!"
Suitcase stared at the vial in the teenage boy's hands, tears pricking at her eyes before she began to cry, her shoulders shaking and shuddering as tears streamed down her cheeks.
"Suitcase?! Suitcase, are you okay?" Fan asked worriedly, placing a hand on the girl's shoulders.
"Is something wrong?" Balloon piped up, scooting closer to her friend.
"No, no, nothing's wrong, it's just..." Suitcase sniffled, looking up at her friends. "...I'm going to see my mom soon."
~~~~~~~
Suitcase's thumb ran over the journal in her hands, staring at the cover for what seemed like hours before she slipped it into her bag, slinging it over her shoulder. She took a deep, shaky breath, staring into the mirror, running a trembling hand through her hair.
She knew she shouldn't be nervous. This was her mother, for Christ's sake! She'd be happy to finally see her after so long...
So why was her anxiety going through the roof, like this?
Suitcase shook her head to clear it, taking more deep breaths as she rubbed at her temples, squeezing her eyes shut. Relax, Suitcase. Just relax, she thought. It's going to be okay. It has to be.
"Suits?"
Suitcase stiffened, whipping around to stare at Knife, who was staring at her from her doorway. "Knife! I didn't—how long have you been there?"
"Long enough to know that you're getting ready to go somewhere," he replied, leaning against the doorframe.
Fuck.
"K-Knife, listen, it's not what it looks like, I just—"
"Woah, woah, easy there, kiddo," Knife chuckled, waving his hands in the air. "Who said that you couldn't go?"
Suitcase blinked. "Huh?"
Knife smirked. "Hey, Baseball and Nickel are helping Candle and Silver tonight, remember? So technically, I'm in charge. And as long as you're not going anywhere dangerous...are you?"
Suitcase shook her head. "I'm not going anywhere dangerous."
Knife smiled, ruffling her hair. "Then why don't you head out, huh? If you're still gone when Baseball and Nickel come back, I'll cover for ya, kiddo."
A smile spread across Suitcase's face as she quickly wrapped her arms around her brother, hugging him tightly. "Thanks, Knife! I owe you one!"
Knife chuckled softly. "Don't worry about it, Suits. Just shoot me a message if you need anything."
"I will! Bye, Knife!" Suitcase separated from the hug, rushing out of her bedroom and down the stairs, scurrying out of the front door and running to the park at top speed, heart pounding in her chest.
"Return to the place where your journey began", the note had said. And Suitcase knew what the note meant, what area of town had led to her unknowingly toppling the dominoes that led to the events that were taking place now.
The crypt, where she had found the first of her mother's journals.
Balloon and Fan were waiting near the swingset for her, Fan having parted the bushes so they could leave as soon as Suitcase got there. Balloon quickly waved her over once they made eye contact, Suitcase hopping over.
"Hey! I got the journal!" Suitcase patted her bag. "You have the hair still, right?"
Balloon nodded, pulling out a small plastic baggie from his jacket pocket. "And Fan still has your blood, so we should be all good."
"Great!" Suitcase grinned, stepping through the bushes. "C'mon, let's go!"
Fan and Balloon followed behind the small girl, retracing their steps back to the crypt, where everything had unfolded for the three of them. They never thought that they'd ever return to the crypt, at least, not this soon.
Especially in order to bring back Suitcase's mother.
Finally, the three of them reached the large, gaping hole that served as the crypt's entrance, the trio staring down into it. Suitcase's throat started to ache as she remembered the screams that had flooded out of her as she had mistakenly fallen in, before she had fallen into the bottom, where...
Well, the rest was history, wasn't it?
"You guys ready to do this?" Suitcase asked, glancing back and forth at her friends.
"Not really," Balloon replied. "Let's do it."
Suitcase nodded, slowly walking backwards, her gaze transfixed on the crypt's entrance. She hesitated for a few moments, taking several long, deep breaths, her hands clenching into loose fists before she finally let out a loud, determined cry, bolting at the entrance and throwing herself down it. She recognized the familiar feeling of her heart pounding in her chest as she fell, hearing Balloon and Fan leap down behind her, the former crying out as the three of them fell down.
Finally, with heavy thuds, the trio fell onto the cold, hard crypt floor, a feeling that Suitcase hadn't missed whatsoever. As they all brought themselves to their feet, Suitcase noticed a large, heavy-looking cauldron sitting in the center of the room, the outside covered in rust. As she stepped closer, she could see some sort of solution swirling around inside, the boiling and bubbling sending shivers down her spine.
"Do we...put all the stuff we gathered in here?" Balloon questioned, tilting his head as he stared at the cauldron.
"Looks like it," Fan replied, taking out the vial of Suitcase's blood. "Quick, get the hairs."
Balloon did what he was told, opening the plastic baggie and dumping in the hairs, Fan opening the vial and doing the same with the blood.
"Okay...guess it's my turn," Suitcase sighed, pulling the journal out of her bag, but she couldn't help but stare at the cover, her thoughts racing. She knew that her thoughts weren't making complete logical sense, but that didn't stop them.
Even though her mom had been trapped in...wherever this interdimensional limbo or prison was for almost as long as she'd been alive, would she be happy to see her daughter?
I mean, of course she would! That place was probably awful, and she had been trapped in there with Merripen, up until recently.
But Suitcase couldn't stop herself from wondering, what if her mother was mad at her for doing this, for blindly trusting an entity that had visited her in her sleep?
But then again...
Suitcase opened the journal, ripping out a page that just had random scribbling on it. What the scribbling meant, she didn't know, but that didn't stop her from staring at the page with teary eyes as she allowed the journal to fall to the crypt floor.
For her whole life, she thought that she had never known her mother Handbag, only to learn that Handbag had given up twelve, nearly thirteen years with her daughter, just to save her. And even then, Suitcase didn't even remember her mom, not her face, or her voice. She only knew what Candle, Silver Spoon and her family had told her, and later on, what she had seen from the strange crystal in Candle's hidden room.
And now, she had gotten a chance.
A chance to bring her mother back to this world.
A chance to bring her mother home.
A chance to finally reunite with her, hopefully for good, as they defeated Merripen, once and for all.
And she wasn't going to give this chance up.
"Please, Prism," Suitcase whispered, her voice breaking. "Please have this work. I want my mom back." She gently kissed the page in her hands, tears falling down her cheeks as she let the paper fall into the cauldron.
The page almost immediately dissolved once it touched the solution in the cauldron. The liquid inside the cauldron quickly changed colors, shifting into a lovely pale yellow. Smoke began pouring out of the cauldron, the rusty pot rumbling as smoke swirled around it, a big, bright light exploding from the cauldron and shining throughout the room, nearly blinding everyone. Suitcase stumbled back, nearly falling to the floor, noticing that her blight stone was glowing, as was Balloon's and Fan's.
"Oy gevalt! What's going on?!" Balloon cried, staring down at his blight stone. "What's happening?"
"Calm down! I've seen enough animes to know what to do!" Fan shouted, holding out both his arms. "Everyone, get over here and join hands! It's Calamity time!"
Suitcase didn't quite understand the reference Fan was making, but she rushed forward, towards the cauldron, grasping Fan's outstretched hand, followed by Balloon's. Three bursts of bright light erupted from their stones, making the light even brighter as the ground rumbled and shook. A loud crumbling noise echoed through Suitcase's head, and she glanced up, noticing the ceiling was beginning to crack and fall apart, large pieces of dirt and rock collapsing around the trio, leaving huge gaps behind that allowed the crisp, cold night to shine through.
"Uhh, guys?" Suitcase screamed. "Is that going to be a prob—"
She was quickly cut off as the cauldron suddenly exploded, the rest of the ceiling falling to the ground as Suitcase, Fan and Balloon were sent flying across the room, landing in a groaning, bruised heap.
"Is everyone okay?" Fan asked, sitting up and rubbing his head as he looked at a disoriented Suitcase and Balloon. "Nobody's dead, right?"
"I think so," Balloon said slowly, blinking slowly as his eyesight readjusted, glancing around the room for a moment before gasping sharply, his eyes widening as he stared and pointed at something near the front of the room. "Guys, look!"
Suitcase lifted her head up, her eyes following where Balloon was pointing. A large portal had suddenly materialized, different shades of purple and yellow mixing together in the odd-looking vortex. A tall silhouette could be seen faintly from the other side of the portal, before a cloaked figure stepped out, their face obscured by their tan hood. They noticed the journal that laid in front of them, and slowly approached it, their footsteps echoing through the crypt as the portal faded away behind them.
"Oh my god," Fan whispered. "Is that..."
The figure picked up the journal slowly, before their hand reached for their hood and pulled it down, revealing Handbag's puzzled expression.
"It worked," Suitcase said softly, her voice even quieter than a whisper as tears threatened to escape from her eyes. She slowly brought herself to her feet, grunting quietly as she did, which got Handbag's attention, the older woman lowering the journal slightly as she stared at the young girl in front of her.
"Suitcase?" she said, almost as if she were in disbelief. "Suitcase, sweetheart, is that really you?"
"Mom," Suitcase barely managed to choke out, her voice breaking as tears streamed down her face. It worked, it actually worked! Her mom was here, right in front of her, and not just part of a dream or a vision, she was...actually here.
Suitcase opened her mouth to say something, anything else, but it all came out as blubbering, her vision becoming more and more blurred as more tears poured out of her eyes. She finally couldn't take it anymore, giving up and letting the sobs escape her body, her body trembling and her shoulders shaking as she wailed.
Handbag gently tossed her journal to the side, her and her daughter running at each other, embracing in a tight hug, Suitcase sobbing loudly as she grasped onto Handbag's shirt, hiccupping softly as her cries of joy escaped her small body.
"Oh, Suitcase, oh my baby," Handbag whispered, rubbing her daughter's back gently. "I'm so sorry. I missed you so, so much."
"I-I know. I..." Suitcase took a deep breath, sniffling. "Candle showed me the truth. How you sacrificed yourself to...save me, and...how I figured out how to bring you back is a long story, but..."
"Shhh, it's okay, Suitcase. You don't have to explain anything, it's okay." Handbag cupped Suitcase's face in her hands, tilting her head up so she could look at her. "I'm so proud of you, honey."
"Thanks, Mom," Suitcase smiled slowly. "But I couldn't have done this alone." She glanced over behind her, right at Balloon and Fan, who quickly straightened up.
"Uh, hello, Ms. Handbag, ma'am," Balloon said quickly.
"Oh, hello, you two! You're Suitcase's friends, aren't you?" Handbag approached the two of them, Suitcase sticking close to her side.
Balloon nodded. "I'm Balloon, and this is—"
"Oh, Fan!" Handbag exclaimed. "I recognize you, I remember seeing you and your little friend group having playdates with Paintbrush...are you all still friends?"
"We are," Fan replied. "But...but Test Tube...Merripen got her."
"Apparently Merripen was puppeteering her," Suitcase explained to her mother. "Test Tube was helping us get out of the flame ring, when Merripen...stabbed her."
"...oh. Oh my, I'm so sorry." Handbag placed a hand on Fan's shoulders. "...I think I know what's going to happen to her, but...we need to speak with Baseball. A-And Candle and Silver Spoon, as soon as possible!"
"Is it...bad?" Suitcase asked her mother tentatively, a worried look crossing her face.
Handbag looked down at Suitcase for a while, before sighing deeply. "I don't know, Suitcase honey. But we can only hope." With one swift motion, she picked her daughter up and carried her carefully over her shoulder, moving to climb over the debris that used to be the ceiling to the crypt. "Suitcase, do you know where your father and Nickel are?"
"T-They're at Candle and Silver Spoon's! They're helping with something..."
"Perfect! I know a shortcut from here," Handbag exclaimed, moving to approach one of the crypt's tunnels. "Kids, this way, hurry!"