"That sure doesn't sound right." Chantenay said at his farm as he heard unusual noises coming from the kettle's house. They certainly didn't sound friendly, that was for sure.
"Y-you don't think they're being attacked, do you?" Weepy stuttered out as his bulbous onion body shook from his flood of tears. Snarls and crashes emanated from the aged hovel. And Weepy's body cringed every time they rang out.
"I'm not sure, Weepy." The carrot said as he turned to his partners. "But we're too big to go inside and check it out. Moe, go get Hilda. She's the closest one that's small enough to enter the house."
"I thought she was leaving today for a trip to the North." The potato pointed out.
"If that's the case, then you'd better hurry. You have to get her before she leaves!" Chantenay urged.
"On my way!" Moe replied, burrowing himself underground. He surfaced right outside the witch's observatory when he sensed her exiting the building. She had no sooner locked the door and turned around when the ground began to rumble.
"Gah!" She squealed as the large vegetable sprouted before her.
"Sorry to scare you like that, Hilda, but we've got a problem."
"Can't you get someone else to help you? How about the cup brothers? I'm supposed to be on my way to the Arctic right now. I'm already running late as it is." The woman dressed in red explained. Bags were draped over her shoulders, bulging with warm clothes. Even a red scarf was tied around her neck since there was no more room for anything in her luggage.
"Actually, I think it's the cup brothers that may be in trouble. There's some sort of commotion going on in the house. And it certainly doesn't sound friendly."
"Okay, Moe. I'll go have a quick look before I head out."
"Thanks so much. That racket is really upsetting us, especially Weepy. He won't stop crying and shivering." Moe explained, always seeming annoyed with the onion no matter what he did. Hilda wasn't sure how this was different from any other reaction of Weepy's.
The witch made her way over toward Kettle's house. She arrived at the vegetables' farm only to be met with silence from the neighboring residence. Hilda looked to the trio of vegetables who seemed in shock. Their bodies were cringing and hands were over what she assumed to be their earholes.
"Th-that was awful!" Weepy sobbed.
"What was?" She inquired. But the onion was too shaken up to answer.
"Someone screamed so loud that the windows shattered!" The carrot gasped and pointed to the nearest opening. Glass was littered all over the window sill and the grass below it.
"Hang tight, guys! I'll go investigate." Hilda said and sprinted for the front door, bags bumping on and off her body. What on earth had been going on in there? Why would someone scream so loud as to cause glass to shatter? She assumed that she was about to find out. Her gloved hand knocked on the door. No answer came. In fact, there seemed to be sounds at all coming from the house. It was eerily quiet. Hilda tried to open the door. It was indeed unlocked. Unsure of what she would find, the witch slowly opened the door.
"Hello? Anyone here?" Hilda called in as the door creaked, opening up all the way. The house was in ruin. Windows were completely gone, pictures fallen from the walls, and even pieces of furniture exploded in all directions. A white liquid was spattered along the ground. Her gaze took in the interior until it locked onto the small figure of Mugman. The witch gasped, dropped her bags, and immediately approached the limp body. Down on her knees, Hilda took in the sight of the multiple injuries all over his body, specifically the puncture wounds in the child's stomach. There was no doubt the origin of the white liquid all over the room was from the cup brothers. For it still oozed out onto the boy's clothes and floor.
"Oh no! This is really bad!" The female cried. She inspected the mug child to see if he was still alive. Hilda gently placed a hand on the mug's chest to see if his heart was even still beating. It was a slow and quiet thumping. But it wouldn't be making noise for too much longer if he didn't receive medical attention immediately. She unwrapped the scarf around her neck and tied it around Mug's torso, covering the puncture wounds and putting pressure on it. The glass body made a small squeal of pain when she made the knot and tightened it. The witch then started rummaging through her biggest bag. She pulled out a vile with a green liquid in it. For it was her share of the Miracle Heal that Djimmi had distributed to everyone on the island. Right now, it was poor Mugman's only hope. Releasing the cork with her teeth, her other hand lifted Mug's head up. His mouth sagged open just enough so that Hilda could pour the liquid down his throat.
"Come on, dear! Drink! It's your only chance!" She quietly explained to the limp body. As soon as the potion was gone, she placed the empty container on the ground. The witch could feel that his body temperature was starting to drop.
"He's getting cold..." She observed. "I've gotta find someone that can keep him warm!" The female stood up as she cradled Mugman in her arms. His limp body rolled against her red clothes, staining them with his sticky blood. Hilda immediately left the house at a sprint, completely forgetting about her bags that were still sitting on the floor of the house. The vegetables saw her moving with a purpose.
"Hilda, what happened?" Chantenay asked as she got closer to the farm.
"Get help! Mugman needs help!" Was the only thing they heard as the human sprinted past them at full speed with the child in her arms. They stood there dumbfounded for a second at the lack of explanation.
"Help it is!" The carrot announced. "Let's round up anyone that can provide medical attention."
Meanwhile, Hilda ran right for the closest person she knew had the means for warmth and herbs to lessen the pain. And that person was Cagney. The carnation himself was tending to his guardian with the help of Spoonfred. The flower was teaching him how to properly plant and care for a special species of flora.
"Like this, Cagney?" He asked, patting down the soil around a batch of beautiful bright pink flowers.
"That's right!" The living plant beamed. "Keep it up and you'll be an expert gardener in no time!"
"Thanks, Cagney!"
"Good! Can I leave you to it for a few minutes? I need to take a shade break real quick." The carnation said, blocking the sun with his leafy hand.
"No worries! You can count on me!" The young spoon replied, happy to be of service.
With that, Cagney shuffled himself into the shade of a tree.
"Whatta ya know? That little guy isn't so bad after all!" He muttered to himself. His vines picked up movement from another source behind him.
"Cagney! Cagney!" Rang the familiar voice of Hilda. "I need your help!"
"Hilda? I thought you left for-" But then he noticed the wounded child in her arms. "Oh my gracious!"
"I need a warm bed for Mugman!" The female huffed and puffed as she skidded to a stop. She had a hard time holding back tears of her own. The flower took a closer look at the boy's condition.
"Egads! What happened to the boy?" He questioned.
"I don't know." The witch confessed. "But he was all by himself in the house like this! How fast can you make a nice leaf bed for him?"
"Pretty quick, I guess."
"Good! Then I'll leave him with you while I go find Djimmi for some helpful spells." Hilda explained.
"But what if he wakes up all clawy and bitey?" Cagney inquired. The female got a bit annoyed when the carnation hesitated to take the boy. She held out the limp body by its arms. It immediately wanted to drop to the ground, but she held it firm.
"Does this really look dangerous to you?" She said with a stern tone in her voice.
"No...." The flower confessed, averting his gaze away from the agitated witch.
"I trust you to keep him safe for a few minutes. I'll be back as soon as I can."
Cagney used pieces from trees and his own gardens to create a nice soft bed for the mug child. As soon as it was ready, Hilda placed him down. A large leaf was wrapped around the mug's body like a blanket. She bid a quick farewell to the flower and ran towards the middle section of the island.
Please don't die while I'm gone! The witch silently prayed. Not again! It can't happen again!
Tears now streamed down the human's face as she thought back to a very similar situation in which her own son was in a position of life or death.
Unknown to Hilda and her husband, their son had suffered from a terminal illness. And no one knew until it was physically noticeable. The boy's condition had deteriorated fast and the only known cure was not even on earth. Desperate for the substance that would save her son's life, she went to the Devil's lair. It was there that she had traded her soul for the powers that would allow her to leave earth's atmosphere and retrieve the needed item. Having been turned into a true witch, Hilda wasted no time in transforming herself into a celestial being and made the long journey to the moon. She was exhausted from her journey when she returned home. But hope filled her heart that everything would turn out fine. As soon as the witch had stepped into her home, she found her husband grieving over the lifeless body of their boy. It lay peacefully in its bed for the last time. Hilda approached the bed and grieved with her man.
"H-he said he had been feeling a bit off for months before we knew. But he never said anything because he didn't want us to worry." Her husband explained to her as their hearts broke. If only they had known sooner, they could have saved him. Neither one of them slept for days. And then her husband's grief turned to anger.
"This is all your fault!" He accused.
"M-my fault? Wh-what did I do?"
"You went off to live your dream while your son was dying!" It was true that Hilda's dream was to travel to the moon, but it had not been a trip that she had enjoyed. Not under those dire circumstances. "He kept asking where you were and when you were coming home! All I could tell him was soon. His dying wish was to see his mother one last time. But he never got that wish, did he? You don't know how hard it was to watch the disappointed boy fade away before my own eyes! Now you get to enjoy your new powers for the rest of your life. I hope you're happy that you chose magic over your own son. I'm very disappointed in you, Hilda!" He snapped.
"No, I won't be stuck with it for the rest of my life. I swiped my soul contract away from the Devil before he could put it away." She explained, holding the rolled-up parchment in her hand. "As soon as I destroy this, I'll be free of any debts." Hilda then proceeded to throw the contract into her fire place. The two of them watched as the flame burned and burned. But the paper did not even have a mark on it. Once the fire went out, Hilda retrieved her contract.
"I....don't understand. Why won't it burn?" She said, starting to cry. The poor woman didn't know that the only way to destroy the contract was to put it in Hellfire, which could only be found in the Devil's lair.
"Looks like you are stuck with it, Hilda." Her husband said. "It's your fault, no matter how you look at it."
That very night, the man packed up his stuff and left the poor witch to wallow in her sorrow. She never heard from or saw her husband ever again. For he had been too mad at that moment to see that he still had a loved one to live for.
Ever since then, Hilda was determined to perfect the cure for son's disease. The witch mastered her transformation skills and successfully made many more trips to the moon and beyond. She wanted to ensure that the disease did not claim any more souls. The woman sold her cure to many medical facilities around the world, helping the greater good. Even though she was helping those in need, there was still that empty void in her heart that could not be filled. Hilda had no family left, and that weighed heavily on her.
That's why it was so important to her to get back in time. Mugman was the closest thing she would ever have to a son ever again. And she just couldn't lose another child so close to her heart. Hilda had barely survived that first heartbreak. There was just no way she could survive another.
Meanwhile, Cagney shuffled about his territory looking for some helpful herbs.
"Aloe, aloe. Where do I have aloe?"
Spoonfred heard him muttering to himself and chimed in.
"Aloe is just behind the mint leaves."
"Thanks, Spoonfred."
"Hey, did I hear that Mugman stopped by?" The utensil inquired.
"Yeah, he's still here." The carnation explained, ripping some leaves from the aloe plant.
"Can I come see him too?" Spoonfred asked, following the flower before he even responded.
"Yeah.... Just don't freak out when you see him." Cagney said uneasily. The little spoon was unsure of what this meant. He soon found out when he saw the wounded glass body wrapped up in various types of leaves.
"Mugman!" He called out and tried to race toward him.
"Whoa! Whoa!" The flower said, gently holding him back with a single root. "We have to be easy with him. Mugman's really hurt." Spoonfred stood back while Cagney rubbed some of the aloe gel on Mug's burns.
"What happened to him, Cagney?"
The living flower paused but did not say anything. For he truly did not know exactly what had happened. He then finished up applying the sticky substance to the child's burn marks and stepped back. The utensil looked to him with a look of horror on his face, like he was going to cry.
"Is he going to be okay?"
"I....I don't know, kid. I really don't know..." The carnation confessed with a sigh.