Part 1: A Glitchy Beginning

 It was cleaning day, and Yen Sid and his apprentices were all doing their part in washing, drying and folding in order to keep the castle they all called home squeaky clean. Oswald was putting some of the wet clothes into a dryer, Mickey was folding some towels into a basket, which he was pretty sure had Julius hiding at the bottom, and Scout was wiping down some of the surfaces while listening to her songs on her headphones. Meanwhile, Yen Sid and Golden were washing the dishes, though with varying degrees of enthusiasm. Golden was the youngest at seven years old, and she was drying off the plates, though she was in a bit of a mood. “Careful not to break those, child.” Yen Sid warned, whilst using magic to dry his own set of plates and stack them neatly into a pile. “Sure, just like you didn’t break my back that one time?” she mumbled, Yen Sid giving her one of his curious yet cautious stares, raising one eyebrow as he often would. “What was that, Golden?” he asked, the girl looking up at him with a bit of a glare. “You know what.” she replied, her speech almost as foul as her mood. Yen Sid gave her a small glare of his own, not particularly liking her tone with him, nevertheless he went back to the dishes whilst trying to ignore what he heard. Golden, likewise, got back to work, but still felt pretty annoyed. After their fight a few weeks ago, she still couldn’t completely forgive him for what he’d said to her. Granted, she may have been arrogant and stupid, but weren’t all kids? She huffed and got back to cleaning, hearing everyone else whistling as they worked.

Some time later, they were nearly done. Mickey and Oswald were having a playful towel fight, and stopped faster than lightning when Yen Sid and Golden walked into the utility, hiding the towels behind their backs. Scout noticed them walk in and removed her headphones, and she couldn’t help but notice Golden was looking a little grumpy. “Almost time for a break, everyone.” Yen Sid began, “You’ve all worked very hard since this morning, and we wouldn’t want to become exhausted, so let us start lunch.” he spoke, walking toward the kitchen and giving each of them a smile. Scout punched a fist into the air. “Alright! Lunch tiiime! I’m getting myself a strawberry croissant!” She giggled, just as Julius popped his head out of a basket, some of the towels flying around haphazardly as he made his appearance. “Lunchtime?!” He crowed, jumping out and joining his two brothers, who giggled at his antics. Golden, who wasn’t particularly hungry, followed after everyone, still glaring sharply at Yen Sid. “Sure, whatever. Wouldn’t wanna be exhausted from working too hard…” she muttered, Yen Sid shooting her another glare. “No, we wouldn’t, would we? Apprentices always need their nourishment, so I learned from my own master.” he said, before using magic to summon each child’s favourite food. Despite it looking delicious and everyone else tucking in, Golden just poked at hers with a moody expression. “Child…” Yen Sid warned, Golden resting her face on her arm slightly and turning to look at him. “Whatever has got you in such a mood, I don’t care. Don’t ruin a nice day with your family by being grumpier than Grumpy.” he spoke, his face slowly becoming angrier as she poked her tongue at him. “Whatever. I’m not in the mood for playing happy fantasia families right now.” she replied, Yen Sid shrugging. “Fine. Then you have no place in this room.” he replied, using musical magic to send her flying up and out of the door to the dining room, leaving her on the other side still holding a plate of food. She gave a mischievous look, and threw the plate toward the door, blowing a raspberry and running off.

Every apprentice stared at Yen Sid for a moment, whose hat suddenly and violently ejected off his head, much like a volcano eruption. Golden counted down on her fingers. “Five, four, three….” she paused, before a roar shook the house. “GOLDEN!!” he screamed, the girl running off and hiding under her bed, actually a little afraid. The rest of the apprentices cringed as he strode upstairs, ready to give the youngest member of the house a stern talking to, preferably with his fists.

The rest of the apprentices listened at their doors as the ensuing argument was loud enough to be heard throughout the house. They first heard Yen Sid shout “Look at me young lady.”, and to which Golden responded with “No! Leave me alone, you hag!” After that, there was nothing but the sounds of crashing and explosions, no doubt they were using magic. There were no more words exchanged between them, at least none that the apprentices could hear, and the argument went on for at least 15-20 minutes before everything went quiet. Opening their doors, the apprentices gathered together, Mickey and Julius holding onto Scout’s robe as they followed her to the stop of the stairs, where they spotted a rather exhausted Yen Sid with an even grumpier looking Golden under his arm, her own crossed with a pout of anger and defiance. “Golden,” Yen Sid said quietly, side-eyeing his youngest, “That temper is going to get you into a lot of trouble one day.” he whispered, Golden thrashing around and being tangled up in her own robe in response. “You haven’t even SEEN my temper!!” she yelled, before her head fell inside the folds of her robe, her hoodie falling over her eyes and leaving her a thrashing mess of fabrics and fury under Yen Sid’s arm, the old sorcerer ignoring the ensuing tantrum.  

Some time later, Golden had resigned to her room, refusing to come out around dinner time. Mickey and Oswald were setting out plates, noticing that one of their members was missing. “Is Golden still not out of her room?” Mickey asked, Oswald responding with a shrug. “I haven’t seen her since earlier.” he replied, both of them now wondering what on earth she could be doing in there. Yen Sid walked out, wondering if he ought to have a word with her, but it was likely she wouldn’t speak to him right now. Scout stood up, and approached Yen Sid, lightly touching his arm. “Why not let me talk to her? I can always try to make her feel better!” Yen Sid thought about it, and nodded slightly, thinking about the fact that Golden really looks up to Scout, much like a little sister would. “Good idea Scout. I think she will likely listen to you, and I hope you can help. I don’t like seeing her like this.” Scout nodded, casting her eyes down a little, “Me neither…not to worry, I’ll have her down in no time!” she proclaimed, before giving a playful tip of her hat and heading upstairs, toward the area where the sisters’ rooms were. 

“Knock knock little grump!” Scout giggled, before putting an ear to the door and hearing a little bit of shuffling around. She subtly checked the door handle- it wasn’t locked, so she could enter. “Golden, I’m giving you three seconds before I bust in there!” she warned, though her tone was obviously playful. Unlike Yen Sid, she wasn’t there to tell her off, just to find out why her little sister was so moody. More shuffling. Scout sighed, and finally opened the door- only to find a pile of blankets on the floor. At first glance, one would think Golden wrecked her room in anger, but… it was too organised to be that way. It was more like a cave, one Scout couldn’t find an opening into, but nonetheless, she gave a playful knock. “Helloooooo in there? Is there a big scary dragon under there? Or how about a spooky ghost?” she giggled, before finding a corner and pulling the blanket off, lunging in and starting to tickle Golden, who tried to resist but was soon bursting out into peals of laughter. “I shall vanquish the angry monster and tickle her until she smiles!” Scout proclaimed, Golden unable to even get words out with how much she was laughing. And then, finally, Scout stopped, and Golden put the blanket back round herself, though looking a bit brighter. “So, what’s my sister doing being a grumpy old troll under the blanket?” Scout giggled, Golden pulling a face at her. “Um….” the smaller girl spoke, though she looked quite nervous. Involuntarily, she gave a little yawn, Scout wondering if their rough and tumble had tired her out, but Golden just shook it off. “Come on, you can tell ol’ Scout anything! I’ve had my fair share of grumpy days- heck, once I even quit this whole apprentice shtick! But thanks to Yen Sid, I had the courage to open up and talk about it all. I know you can do the same, kiddo.” She smiled, gently reaching out and stroking Golden’s shoulder, who gave a tiny, tired smile. “It’s a lot…” Golden whispered, Scout rolling her eyes. “Dinner can wait, we have microwaves and fire magic for a reason. I’m all ears!” she giggled, before making her ears wiggle and Golden laughing at her silly big sister. Scout wrapped the blanket round both of them, ready to hear whatever her little sister had to say. “So…a while back, dad and I had a fight…” she began, her mind immediately going back to that awful day.

It had started off a regular day in her apprenticeship, the little seven-year-old deciding today was the day it would finish and she’d become a master. She had a lot of ambition, and knew practically all the spells in the basic spellbook due to many sleepless nights spent practising with just a trainee hat and wand. Suffice to say, she was OBVIOUSLY a master already. She’d be able to boast about being a graduate at seven! And the master would be so pleased…she skipped toward the workshop, where he was reading some old scrolls, and strode towards him proudly. “Master! I have great news! You’ll never ever believe it!” she giggled, Yen Sid raising an eyebrow and smiling down at his littlest. “Oh yes? What is it, starshine?” he beamed, Golden giving him a slightly cheeky grin. He often called her that- though he had only met her when she was five, he had given her his surname and a nickname alike, for in his mind, she was as much his daughter as his apprentice. He treasured these times, and hoped they wouldn’t end anytime soon. Her voice snapped him out of those thoughts, though. “I’m ready to graduate!! I can be a master right now!” she giggled, expecting a round of applause and hug from the man she had come to call her father. But no such gesture came. Instead, there was…disbelief? Yen Sid’s fist curled. “What makes you think that?” he asked, facing away from her and beginning to examine the shelves for spellbooks. “Well, because I know everything there is to know!” she proclaimed, Yen Sid’s hand pausing and suddenly gripping one of the books, hard. So hard, in fact, that he forever left an imprint of his palm on the leather-bound cover. “Oh yes?” the old wizard countered, feeling absolutely stupefied at the words coming out of his child’s mouth. “Yes!” she replied, enthusiastic as ever, which only made him feel even more riled up. “Alright then. What do you do if a realm goes haywire?” he tested, the little sorcerer smiling. “You have to go in and look for the threat, and then subdue it like how we would subdue the noise!” she replied, Yen Sid silently gritting his teeth. “And what do you do if you let your guard down midway through a spell?” he continued, Golden realising he was giving her a test and smiling even wider, knowing she’d pass and graduate. “You have to breathe, focus, and remember exactly what motion you were making so you can continue it!” she answered, Yen Sid’s fists clenching so hard that they were white. Technical knowledge was one thing, but…he suddenly remembered the foes he’d faced in his three hundred years, and turned slightly to look down at his daughter. She was so tiny in comparison…tiny, and naive. What would happen out there in the world to her? She’d perish before his very eyes a thousand times over if any foe got close to her, and…he didn’t want to bear that guilt. He silenced his thoughts, and turned fully to face her. “So, you know technicalities. But…what would you do if a fellow apprentice decided to attack you? Or someone worse?” He posed. Golden furrowed her eyebrows a little, not expecting this sort of question, but nonetheless thought of answering him. “Well, you’d stop them! If they attack you, you have to fight back or protect yourself but…but Master, that’s not gonna happen. No one is gonna do that!” she answered, but by now Yen Sid’s aura was beginning to appear, and Golden felt something in the atmosphere change, though she couldn’t place exactly what it was. “What would happen if they stole your heart? Broke your muse? What would you do if something like this happened?” Yen Sid asked, his voice carrying fury. He suddenly held up his hand, and Golden was suddenly lifted off the ground. She yelped in shock and stared at the wizard who had no change of expression, “What are you…doing?! Yen Sid, put me down!” she cried, trying to wriggle out of this weird grasp he had on her. “Answer the question.” Yen Sid said, his fist curling. Golden frowned, angrily trying to get put down. “My muse…” she said quietly, “it won’t. I’ll protect it!” Yen Sid closed his eyes, his fury still visible. “Child, you DON’T know that. You clearly don’t know what you are saying, and yet you think you can protect your muse?” And with that, he detached it from her, leaving Golden shocked. “Hey!! Give that back- my song is in there! What are you doing?!” she cried, trying to reach for the muse, instead he lifted his hand, and she went higher up toward the ceiling, by now Golden was beginning to feel frightened, and struggled to even try and get out of his hold on her. What was he planning now?! “Exactly what I said would happen. Your muse is gone, and you’re as helpless as before. You can’t possibly think of defending yourself with magic now. And with your power source stolen, that means one thing, doesn’t it?” he finished. Golden was almost afraid to ask. “What?” she said, Yen Sid opened his eyes, his fury pouring out of him. “Any wizard who steals your power can use it against you, you’d have no means of defence. And with this power, they can and will easily hurt you!” Yen Sid said, his voice continuing to rise. He summoned his music magic, sending them spiralling in circles around Golden as an attempt of intimidation and she looked all over, seeing the notes everywhere. And then without warning, she dropped, and was slammed hard into the ground. It was such a shock she couldn’t even cry out, and that wasn’t the end, she was lifted back up by the magic, and the music notes were once again circling around her. “Wait!!” she yelled, but Yen Sid wasn’t done. “That’s not all, they could have more they wanted to do. With you so weak and vulnerable they wouldn’t stop at one attack. What if they combined it with their power?” he said, sending the notes her way. Although she dodged one or two of them, the rest of them hit her square in the chest, hitting her heart. More and more notes were summoned as Yen Sid went on, his furious expression unchanging. “What if they broke your arms? Or your legs? What would you do then? Aren’t you going to answer me?” With that last question, he summoned the five composition spells, lining them all up against her. Golden by now was aching all over, her vision was slightly blurred, but she blinked enough times to see the composition spells in front of her, her heart in her mouth at the mere sight. Yen Sid continued as he unleashed the frenzied attack. “No answer? Well there is a reason why; you DON’T know. You still don’t know all there is to know. You still haven’t learned everything a sorcerer must learn. There are pages of things that must be done that you simply haven’t accomplished yet, and until you do, you’re expendable, just another apprentice, another novice. Someone who thinks they know everything when in reality they don’t, and you will never understand unless you continue your training, learn everything and get rid of that arrogant mentality that is plaguing your mind.” He ended it with one final attack from the music notes that left her limp, he opened his hand and she once again fell to the floor with a loud thump. Golden felt a pain in her limbs and the taste of blood in her mouth. She shakily got up on her knees, pushing herself up despite hurting all over. Yen Sid broke the silence with another question. “Do I make myself clear?” Golden growled silently, lifting her head up and she wiped her bloodied lip whilst her gaze shot daggers of pure anger at her master. “Crystal.” she whispered, “You old hag.” And then she was gone, off to her room, where she would stay.

“Since then…I’ve...been having these odd nightmares. About…this monster thing, it’s this big mess of glitches and it makes this awful loud noise.” Golden finished, Scout looking down at her for a moment before enveloping her in a huge hug. “Aw Goldie…” she whispered, the smaller girl then burying her head in her big sister’s shoulder. “I haven’t been sleeping well so…and I’m afraid all the time….” she whimpered, Scout gently stroking her hair as her little sister got a bit weepy. After some time, Golden finally leant back, looking up at Scout like a lost child. With a smile, Scout gently put her cap on Golden’s head, which immediately fell over the kid’s eyes. She twirled it round till it was on backwards, and Scout gave her a grin. “You know what? This all sounds like a problem we can fix!” she replied, Golden looking up at her in confusion. “Really? But…but how do you fix a nightmare that won’t go away?” she replied, Scout putting on a thinking face that was much like Yen Sid’s. “Well…my mum always said to “follow your muse”. And since it’s created from the song inside your heart, I think what she really meant was “follow your heart.” Kinda sappy, but that’s Mum for ya.” she giggled, before looking slightly wistful. Gently, Golden put her cap back on her head, and pulled it firmly down. “I betcha she’s proud of you, wherever she is.” the smaller sorcerer replied, Scout snickering slightly and going a bit red. “Hope so. But anyway, my advice is that you and Yen Sid make up. He’s the most likely to have a solution to this nightmare.” She finished, before standing and offering Golden a hand to follow. Slightly nervous, they headed toward the office, intent on finding answers and solutions.

Downstairs, everyone had finished their dinner by now. Yen Sid had placed Scout’s and Golden’s dinner on the stove, which made Golden smile a tiny bit. Scout picked up the plates and took them to the table, where they sat down and began to eat- it was shepherd’s pie, one of Yen Sid’s signature dishes. As they ate, Scout noticed that Golden was eating a little slower, possibly not very hungry. Soon enough, they were finished even as Golden simply played with her left overs. “Golden.” Scout and Golden looked up to see Yen Sid enter the kitchen, followed behind by the boys, who stayed close by, beside the door. Yen Sid lifted a hand, and the plates magically hovered over to the sink, and placed down. Yen Sid continued to speak to his youngest apprentice. “It’s good to see you out of your room.” he said; she looked down, looking a little stoic. From behind the old sorcerer, Mickey stepped forward, sitting beside Golden. “Hey, you okay, Golden?” he asked, “It’s okay to talk about your feelings, if that’s what’s bothering you?” Golden lifted her head a little, the sound of Mickey’s kind voice eased her a bit, he was so sweet and it wasn’t easy to stay angry or silent around him. She played with her hands a little, trying to find the words for her to answer him, but it was difficult, especially with how she wanted to say them. After telling Scout everything, expressing how she felt to the boys and especially her master were much harder considering she still felt angry at him. “I…I don’t…it’s hard, Mickey, I don’t know.” Mickey patted her hand, giving her an understanding smile. “It’s okay!” he said, “Just take your time, we’ll understand.” Golden managed to softly smile as she lifted her head more, looking at Mickey’s gentle expression, Scout stood up and stared straight at Yen Sid, who had a grateful look in his eyes, he was thankful Scout could talk to Golden. “If you like, Golden,” Scout started, getting her little sister 's attention by tapping her shoulder, “why don’t you come with me to Yen Sid’s office? I’m sure I can explain to Pops about everything, if you find it a little difficult, maybe it’ll be easier that way?” Golden was still unsure, and looked back down at the table. “Maybe, Scout? It might be better with you there.” she mused, getting up slowly and slipping her hand into Scout’s own, feeling a little safer with her right there. Yen Sid spoke up, “I am glad you are willing to come to my office. I…have something I wish to say to Golden, so please, come this way…boys?” he turned to Julius, Oswald and Mickey as they lined up together. “Would you all mind waiting for a moment? I’ll be back soon, I just need a moment with Golden, is that alright?” The three of them looked at each other, in thought about what he said, believing it sounded quite important. Mickey was the first to nod. “Okay sir! We’ll wait here.” Julius followed with “Hope everything goes okay, whatever it is…” and finished with Oswald saying “Don't be too long!” 

As they headed into the office, Scout felt Golden clinging to her and gave her a reassuring smile. With a bit of luck, everything would be resolved soon enough. Yen Sid sat down on his enormous chair, giving a faint smile to both his girls, although he looked serious at the same time. “So…it appears we have much to discuss” he spoke, Scout giving a little glance down to Golden, who almost seemed to shrink down into the oversized folds of her robe. “To begin…I apologise.” he said, Golden looking surprised, before her eyes became misty. “I promise you, I’ve never regretted anything more than the day I threatened you. I reflected and I know I didn’t react accordingly, so I apologise for that. And I also apologise for my conduct today. Please, I am deeply sorry for causing you any upset, and I hope you’ll forgive me in time.” he finished, before looking down in surprise as Golden wiped her eyes on her robe sleeve, trying to cry silently but failing as sobs clogged her throat. “I…I forgave you ages ago…” she started, before becoming overcome with her crying and trying to control herself. “It’s not you I’m mad at…I’m mad at myself for always making a huge mess! I’m a terrible apprentice!! I’m so…so sorry!” she yelled, Scout looking shocked at her words and  Yen Sid having a stern look in his eye. “Child.” he began, his tone much sharper than before, which caused Golden to stand up straight and attempt to stop crying, whilst Scout stepped to the side, not wanting to get in the way of the ensuing conversation. Yen Sid got up from his chair and walked toward her, the girl looking as if she wanted the earth to swallow her up, and she stepped back slightly as his imposing form towered over her. He dropped down to her level, though, and opened his arms, the tiny girl running into them and leaning her head on his shoulder, Yen Sid standing and holding her close. “Oh, Golden. This weight on your shoulders, how did I not see it sooner? Please, if anything troubles you, come to me or any of the others. We will take care of you at all costs, alright? And…you’re not a terrible apprentice, far from it. We all make mistakes and have tough days, but I never give up on my apprentices, even when they themselves cannot believe in their own worth.” he whispered, Golden nodding and burying her head in his shoulder. The old sorcerer had only known her for two years, but she was his little girl all the same. Though he still had a number of unanswered questions regarding her life before, he knew that his biggest priority was taking care of the insecure, frightened girl in his arms, and thus he was content to hold her and let her cry, until she was eventually calm enough to think rationally again. 

After a while, Golden finally calmed herself, looking up at Yen Sid in slight shame, who merely gave a reassuring smile. “Little one, please. Let me know what troubles you. I promise, you and I will find a solution.” he spoke, before Scout popped up behind him and stole his hat from his head. “And me too! I’ve got your back, sis!” she grinned, before gently plonking the hat down on Golden’s head, which caused it to fall over her eyes and Yen Sid to give a soft chuckle. “Scout…can you explain, please?” Golden whispered, Scout giving a thumbs up and proceeding to explain the nightmare. “A repeating nightmare, hmm?” Yen Sid mused, noticing slight dark circles under his youngest’s eyes. “Well, luckily, there exist cures and ways to ease night terrors, so let us find something.” he smiled, Golden giving a very faint smile in response. The thought that this would all go away soon was reassuring, and she felt safe in her dad’s arms. Gently putting her down, he walked over to his bookshelves and began looking through them, Golden finding herself looking around his office while she waited. Though she came here often, she always found new things each time. She wandered past the portrait of an old wizard on the wall, then past his little dioramas and models, and finally came to a new item on the shelves, a gold locket with several little slots for missing emblems. She reached out for it, but Yen Sid gently pulled her back. “No, little one. That’s a relic for the council.” he spoke, Golden stepping back but wondering about it. The top had a heart, and the middle had the shape of a crown, but there were several other lost gems that weren’t in their proper places, which made her curious. Nonetheless, it wasn’t for her. She gently nodded, although still feeling very curious, she decided not to question it if it wasn’t intended for her, and instead held onto the bottom of Yen Sid’s robes as he pulled out a large and dusty book from the shelf. He wiped it down a little and read the title: “Nightmares: Understanding and Controlling Your Fears.” This title made Golden feel uneasy, and she gulped. Yen Sid noticed her demeanour, and lowered his hand to her head, although she cringed and shut her eyes, afraid he’d hurt her…instead, his hand was gentle, and stroked her hair. “It’s alright, little one. I know it sounds scary, but think of it like…an adventure to overcome, a monster to battle so you can move on.” he said, giving her a look of reassurance, Golden lifted her head a little, getting an idea around what he was talking about. “Like…like in video games?” she asked, the corners of her mouth curling a little, which made Yen Sid smile. “Yes.” he nodded, “It’s like that, and you won’t be alone. If you’re scared, I will be right by you, Scout too. In fact, we’ll all need to be there in order for this to work.” he took her hands and brought her a little closer to him, until their foreheads connected together gently. “It’s gonna be alright, child. I promise.” Golden felt her eyes brim a little with tears again, though she blinked them away with a smile as her father’s reassuring words ran through her mind, putting her at ease after feeling so stressed and angry. She mouthed a small thank you, which was all but blocked out by the interruption of the door crashing open, and Oswald, Mickey and Julius tumbling inside the office. “Ow you pushed me!” Oswald cried, rubbing his temple and he bonked Julius on the noggin, the cat retorted with “I pushed you?! You were pressing against me, fatty!” Oswald growled, preparing to rough and tumble with his brother until Mickey pushed between them, looking aghast and apologetic. “Yen Sid! We’re very sorry!!” He cried, “We didn’t mean to eavesdrop, it was Oswald’s idea and I didn’t wanna do this I-” Oswald cried out in outrage. “MY idea?! You were in on it too!!” Yen Sid sighed, and stood up. He held up his hand to quell the argument between the boys. “Enough.” He started, “It’s alright, just…knock okay? Anyways, I was hoping to tell you boys, as you three will be necessary for a little upcoming experiment, for the little’un.” Golden groaned at the nickname, scowling up at the sorcerer. “Don’t call me that…geez.” 

Some time passed, and Yen Sid had created a brew. Golden looked pretty nervous, so Mickey gently sat next to her on the bed, putting an arm around his little sister. “Don’t worry, I just know dad’s got a plan! We’re gonna knock that nightmare right out!” he giggled, before ruffling Golden’s hair and making her smile. She turned to her father and took the potion into her hands, downing it in one go. It tasted funny, but soon she began to feel sleepy, Scout gently tucking her in as a misty cloud appeared above her head. It floated there for a moment, Julius turning to Yen Sid. “Uhhh dad? Is something meant to happen?” he whispered, Yen Sid gently reaching down to stroke his son’s head, Julius giving a little purr as he did. “Soon, her dream will begin. And then we shall find out what troubles her.” he explained, Julius nodding and everyone turning back to the fog, which began to light up with an image. A massive glitching mess was moving through the workshop, rampaging and destroying everything in its path. Two hands suddenly came into view, peeking out from behind a box- so this was Golden’s view- and the glitch monster spotted her, suddenly charging toward her. “BACK OFF!” Oswald suddenly yelled, everyone turning to him, but he hadn’t said a word. They watched in shock as he appeared in the dream, alongside everyone else, and the monster began to attack them all, Golden seemingly frozen in fear as it turned toward her. Scout suddenly noticed something below Golden’s bed and reached down for it, discovering a glitching mess of…sheet music? Meanwhile, Yen Sid felt himself flare up as the dream monster charged, and involuntarily fired a spell, one which hit the cloud and…caused it to start glowing. He tensed up. Interfering with dreams was known to have consequences, but he wasn’t about to let his daughter wake up in fright again. As the cloud expanded, it enveloped them all, bringing them into the dream.

They arrived in the workshop, Yen Sid immediately turning and blasting the glitching monster back and away from Golden. Julius ran over to her, gently shaking her shoulder, and she turned, seemingly surprised. “This…doesn’t normally happen…” she whispered, Julius just giving a reassuring smile. “That’s because we’re not normally here, silly.” Oswald chimed in, before the creature roared and swiped at him, the rabbit flying up and blasting electricity at it in retaliation. Scout summoned song cues alongside Mickey, the two trying to attack the monster, but it just released its own soundwave, reminding Scout of the Noise she once fought. As it charged into the centre of the workshop, everyone circled around it, Julius putting a protective hand in front of Golden. “Don’t worry, I won’t let anything happen to you.” he whispered, as his fist clenched slightly in fear. As they all tried to blast the glitch together, it roared and let out an incredibly loud wave of noise, a bright light appearing above it and enveloping everyone, leaving Golden alone with it to try and defend herself with the few spells she knew.

She found herself in a dark place, the walls were black, the floor solid but wet. She was face to face with the monster, a loud scream echoing and sending vibrations all throughout the floor, ripples of soundwaves surrounding it. Golden clenched her fists, remembering what Yen Sid had taught her, all about the fundamentals of sorcery- knowledge, understanding, and application. With those three things, a wizard could do anything, so she tried to remember a shield spell he’d taught her. The book had instructed one to hold out their palm, clench their fist, and imagine being enveloped in a bubble. She did the motion, imagining she was safe inside a bubble, just like the ones Yen Sid used to show her, and then…a bright flash. She was surrounded by rings of sheet music, a glowing orb of notes and sound surrounding her, keeping the glitching mess away. It crashed against the shield, though, and began causing the notes to glitch, Golden becoming afraid yet trying to keep her focus. Bubbles…music...it all needed to stay strong, until Yen Sid could come and save her from the monster. She looked up at it, and began to wonder what it could be. Against her better judgement, she wondered if she could communicate with it. “What are you…?” she whispered, but only received a roar in reply, a glitching, anguished roar that raged and cried, filling the dark place with noise and ripples, water cascading under her feet as she shielded herself. Nevertheless, she tried again. “You don’t have to be angry, I won’t hurt you if you don’t attack me.” she spoke, but the monster just screamed louder, Golden feeling a pain in her ear. She put a hand over it, before pausing as a trickle of blood trailed down her cheek. She went still for a moment. She was bleeding. She felt fear begin anew, and kept her fist tight, the shield continuing to spin around her as the monster growled and raged with inner fury, uncontained and raw. She decided to give one final attempt, and stared at the dark landscape. It was a risky move, but anything was possible. Using her other hand, she removed her golden, sparkling heart from her chest, the very embodiment of her love and creativity held, quite literally, in her hand. The monster went very, very quiet at this, and began to examine it, despite appearing to have no eyes. It sparked and buzzed, but it was far quieter. In fact, it seemed to want to get closer, gently bumping against the shield to dismantle it, music notes creating a passageway inside, despite Golden being slightly afraid and backing up. It approached her heart slowly, however, and brushed against it, causing something to happen. Golden felt a little strange, but it wasn’t a frightening feeling. In fact, it was like a missing piece had been put back, and she watched as the monster dissipated into something small, still glitching. A page of sheet music. And only then did she remember. That day, when she’d fought with Yen Sid, she’d created a mess of music in her fury, and felt so strange and empty afterward. Perhaps it was because she’d transferred some of her power into it, leaving her hollow and broken. And yet, she also felt as if she could remember something else, too. The dark place began to change, the ground becoming solid, and she turned, finding herself in front of a bright, glowing theatre. Eyes wide, she suddenly felt her heart starting to glitch anew, and blacked out, leaving the young apprentice in the chrysalis of darkness, awaiting the day she would clamber out into the light and be with her family again.

Yen Sid realised the nightmare had changed, in both scenery and atmosphere, he was alone, his apprentices had disappeared, and the world now looked…familiar. He searched his surroundings, looking for any sign of an escape route out of this nightmare, and where his apprentices were, he feared for them more than himself. “Hello? Golden?” A voice called out, it was Julius. Yen Sid stood still, trying to find the source of where the voice came from. “Julius?” Yen Sid called out, “Are you there?” “Dad?!” Julius sounded close, but the walls of this nightmare were blocking them off from one another. “Julius?! Oswald?” That was Mickey, it came from the other side of this nightmare world. “I’m in this…sky world? All I see is stars!!” Yen Sid held his hands together, forming a plan in his head to get out of this world, and locate his apprentices. He didn’t know where Scout and Oswald were, but it sounded like Mickey and Julius were close. As for Golden, it worried him she might be stuck with that monster, the true nightmare. “Hold still everyone, I’m going to try a spell, I need to break this nightmare world down, I must be careful though. This place feels…fragile, and scared. Golden…I’ll find you, and the others. Just hold on, please…”

The sorcerer put his hands together, watching as the sky above turned to a thunderstorm, the nightmare clearly working against him. Despite the wind and the rain, he worked his magic, focusing on locating his apprentices, finding the light in their hearts. A massive wave of energy released as he clapped his hands together, a shining phoenix appearing above him, one that would tear through the surroundings and bring comfort to all who needed him. As it screeched, a soundwave seemed to echo all throughout the sky, the clouds beginning to dissipate and the phoenix streaking upwards, where it disappeared into the sky, intending to find everyone and bring them home. The surroundings slowly became brighter, Yen Sid finding himself staring out at a massive field, a realm of clouds and light, full of flowers and a sky that was slowly turning from rain to shine. He became curious about the setting and began to wander, despite how beautiful it looked, he had to remind himself that this was ultimately a nightmare, one designed to isolate and trap Golden, so he had to find a way out of the seemingly endless valley, all whilst trusting his phoenix to locate the others. As he looked around, he caught sight of his reflection in a nearby lake, one full of precious shining stones, and wondered what sort of sleepscape this was. The air was almost electric, and the sky suddenly changed to billions upon billions of stars, all sparking and glitching as if they were alive, full of energy and hope and possibility. He couldn’t help but smile as the scenery became peaceful once again, as if the entire world was being told to hush and calm, much like how he’d tell Golden when she was afraid or scared. In the distance, the silhouette of the workshop came into view, so Yen Sid took his leave and walked toward it, hoping to regroup with everyone in their sanctuary, whenever they were found.

Mickey had found himself in the Cosmos, one of the many realms of Fantasia, but he knew deep down that this was all a part of the nightmare they had accidentally been dragged into. He felt slightly scared as he looked down at the raging waters below the cliff, a part of him was frightened of water after the disaster he had caused by dabbling in advanced magic, but nonetheless he found himself searching for a way out. He stared up at the stars, galaxies and constellations scattered and glimmering all across the sky, reflecting off the oceans below as if they were one, a million jewels decorating the crests of the waves. Despite it being a nightmare, he couldn’t help but find it beautiful, and found himself wondering why Golden didn’t dream of this instead. Well, he supposed she didn’t have much of a choice. As he stared out at the sights, a sudden screech startled him, as a phoenix glimmering in orange and blue showed itself from behind one of the planets. It drifted past several large stars, which responded with sounds and music, clearly past compositions from the apprentices of before. Mickey found himself wondering if he would be able to come back here again, and try conducting the world around him through the music, the heavens and oceans bowing to his command just as he’d once dreamed. The phoenix drew closer and gently approached him, Mickey recognizing it as the one Yen Sid would sometimes send flying out through the observatory. It nuzzled his head with its beak, before a mischievous twinkle in its eye began and it gently pecked one of Mickey’s ears, which tickled and made the small mouse laugh. At this sound, it seemed the entire Cosmos responded, several stars lighting up as if triggered by the joy that permeated the realm. The phoenix turned, indicating Mickey was to get on its back, which he did, albeit a little hesitantly. He still trusted the creature though, just as he trusted Yen Sid, and they took flight through billions of stars and galaxies, thousands of sounds ringing out and sparkles following closely behind, as if Mickey himself was the brightest star of them all.

Oswald opened his eyes and found himself atop Mickeyjunk Mountain, a place that had once been his sanctuary and prison all at once. The memories caused him to clench his fist, but he took some level of comfort in remembering this was just a nightmare, and that this place would be no more once he awoke. He’d tried calling out for Scout, Mickey, anyone, but it was all in vain, and the walls of the nightmare made him feel pretty trapped. Clinking and clanking from old toys and memorabilia of his little brother was also making him feel pretty unnerved- he was sure one of those dolls had just looked at him!- but even so, he soldiered on until he reached the summit, where his old base lay. Just looking at it made him emotional. Plenty of bitter days and nights had been spent up here, wishing and hoping for a chance to be remembered, but surprisingly, that chance had come in the form of his own little brother. And eventually, though it had taken some time, his heart had reformed, allowing himself and every single resident of Wasteland to be free. He gave a slight smile. The heart he had now was loving, bright, the exact same one Walt had given him all that time ago. It held space for Mickey, Julius, Yen Sid, Scout, and especially his silly little sister. He found himself dwelling on memories, and it occurred to him that he was lucky to do so- his youngest sister didn’t have that chance. She was an amnesiac kid who had randomly appeared one day in the workshop, with only her name, some old clothes that were presumably in storage somewhere, and a surprisingly powerful heart. Oswald had seen how she could take it out of her chest like a toon, except it was golden instead of red, which made him wonder if that’s why her folk had named her that way, whoever they were. A screech and familiar voice snapped him out of his thoughts, though, as he turned to see Mickey riding the back of a glowing phoenix, a sight he didn’t expect but that somehow made sense, considering the strange stuff his little brother did. Whether it was as a musketeer or a prince, Mickey never failed to put a smile on anyone’s face, and the sight of him certainly made Oswald smile. “Come on Ossie! Get on!” The smaller mouse called, the Phoenix landing atop the Mickey memorabilia and sending some of it flying as Oswald took his brother’s hand and jumped on. As they flew away, Mickey couldn’t help but stare at the hoards of old stuff. “Gosh, guess that’s why they call me a capitalist icon, haha!” he quipped, both boys collapsing into howls of laughter as the mountain faded below them. 

Julius woke up in…his room? In his soft, cosy bed, the blankets fluffy as usual and needing him to brush away one or two stray hairs that had fallen- being a cat had its drawbacks! He sighed and snuggled up, wondering if everything had merely been a dream, but glad it was over. Under his blankets, all cosy and warm, it reminded him of old times, though he preferred not to think about those and instead focus on the present. If his family were all safe and protected like he was, there was nothing to worry about. But just as he was getting comfortable, the mattress was suddenly pulled out from under him, and he catapulted out of bed and out of the window, bouncing off the windowsill like a spring and the scene around him changing, proving this was still all part of that crazy nightmare. He flew over trees and hills, before finally plopping down into a river, where he managed to grab onto a raft with a tiny sail, the cat giving it a slight side eye as a hole appeared in it. “Just perfect, a messed up raft straight out of The Tempest. Well at least this one has a sail.” he quipped, before the current of the river became faster, Julius trying to paddle against it with his hands but being largely ineffective. “Couldn’t this have come with oars or something?” he muttered, before one hit him on the head from absolutely nowhere, the cat letting out an exasperated groan. “This is crazy! Cats don’t do water!” he sighed, before watching in fear as the water became rougher, several rocks popping up from practically nowhere and obstructing his path. Clinging to the raft, he shut his eyes tight as they crashed, and was thrown up way into the air, his yell echoing all throughout the cartoon landscape. He flew higher and higher, knowing this was just toon logic messing with him, and yet he wasn’t fully convinced he’d bounce back like usual, shutting his eyes once more as his involuntary descent began. Luckily, right before he hit the ground, he felt talons grab at him, turning to see the beady eyes of a phoenix, which caused him to scream in fear. Only when he saw Mickey and Oswald did he quiet down, but was still afraid until they pulled him onto the creature’s back, Mickey explaining this was Yen Sid’s phoenix and that they would be safe. Relieved, Julius stared down at the landscape below him, watching as the fragments of the raft were pulled under by the river, and snuggled into his little brothers’ arms, feeling for once as if he didn’t have to be the responsible oldest one and could just be held forever.

Scout trekked through a dark forest of shrubbery and bushes, picking up a stick and beating back some of the leaves in her way. She began to hear a slightly familiar melody, walking through the undergrowth and becoming slightly tense, as it was hard to see and who knows what monsters and creatures could be hiding in the shadows? It almost reminded her of the picture books her Mum would read to her, the ones about children getting lost in the woods and meeting all sorts of otherworldly beings. Frankly, that wasn’t helping her feel any better. She suddenly heard shuffling and turned, holding up her stick defensively, but found she recognized the creature approaching her, a deer with antlers holding candles, lighting up the surrounding area with its ethereal presence. It almost reminded her of someone, but nevertheless it seemed relatively harmless, if looking a little excitable. In fact, it came straight from the Hollow, the first realm Scout had ever shown Golden, after Yen Sid had taken her to the aquatic paradise of the Shoal. She smiled and put down her stick, holding out a hand for the deer to approach her, if it so wished, and it did, bowing its head and Scout giving a slight giggle as its fur tickled her fingertips. Several bells hung off its antlers, creating peals of sound that the landscape seemed to respond to. It turned, allowing Scout to clamber on, although she was a little uncertain. It seemed to light up the entire forest, allowing the girl to see far better than she could when alone, and she felt as if it was possible to rely on this creature, the girl gently holding its antlers and peering at the landscape around her, noticing several fairies were appearing from the shadows and lighting up flowers and webs alike, several tiny maidens being blown around in the wind as if they were dandelion seeds. Flowers came alive at the deer’s feet, dancing in ringlets and patterns, and several mushrooms began to dance, seven in fact, and Scout couldn’t help but giggle as the smallest one tried to keep up, almost reminding her of Golden and how she strove to be the best apprentice she could, even though she was the youngest. Music flooded the forest, Scout bopping along as even more scenes began to entrance her, despite her previous fear. Butterflies flooded the forest, several bees and ladybirds dancing amongst them, and the deer led her through a little vale of waterfalls, which splashed her in an almost comedic fashion, as several beautiful flowers spun on the surface. The scenery was becoming far brighter, the deer’s candles lighting up every inch of what was once a frightful forest, and Scout couldn’t help but be amazed at the scope of this scene, before they finally came to the edge of the forest and she spied a huge mountain range, the largest of which was familiar to her, having a dark summit as opposed to the snow-covered tips of the others. The deer stopped, allowing her to get off, and she thanked him for carrying her this far, waving him off as he galloped away, before familiar voices caused her to grin and run toward them. Her three big bros, all in one piece, and she was the last one they needed. Hopping up, they soared over the landscapes, Scout spotting a town further away and watching in awe as the forest lit up with fireflies, darkness falling over the scene and illuminating thousands of stars above, though also the summit of Bald Mountain, which luckily they were far from at this point. 

The group soared over fields of flowers and a huge lake, before finally spotting the workshop in the distance and cheering, the Phoenix diving through the window of the observatory and returning to Yen Sid, as his children rushed towards him and almost caused him to fall by running into his arms. All except one of them, Yen Sid showing them a large chrysalis that had taken up residence in the workshop, a cocoon of safety and comfort amid all the frightening things. Mickey, though uncertain, had a hunch, and gently put his hand on the chrysalis, which despite being brown and large, was decorated with curls and swirls of gold, which shimmered at his touch. Oswald and Julius followed, then Scout, and then finally Yen Sid, and a bright, victorious burst of music startled all of them, causing everyone to close their eyes…

And then open them again, only to discover they were in Golden’s room, having been asleep on the floor. No fog, no nothing, and Yen Sid got to his feet, Oswald wishing he could have coffee and feeling like his strength had been pretty much ripped out of his system. A chorus of yawns filled the room, before a crash startled them. Under a fallen pile of blankets and pillows, a little head popped out, looking at everyone quite sleepily. “What happened…?” Golden murmured, Yen Sid smiling and taking her into his arms. “The nightmare ended, because you managed to stop it. How did you do it?” he whispered, Golden blinking a few times before realizing, and examining her heart. It gave a few glitches, Yen Sid looking down at it in concern, but noticed a brightness in Golden’s eyes that he recognized from before, and one he’d seen in several other apprentices before her. Well, however she did it, one thing was certain- the nightmare was over, and even if it left him with more questions than answers, he knew sorcery held the solutions, and for now was content to spend time with his apprentices, all of whom enveloped him and Golden in a group hug, truly glad everyone was safe.

A few days passed, Yen Sid receiving a letter from the council that a meeting was imminent, and he was needed promptly. He informed the apprentices that he would only be gone for a day, reminding them of the ground rules, and instructed them to clean the castle whilst he was gone, as it had become messy from their lessons in basic alchemy from the prior day. Whilst he could use sorcery to fix the mess himself, it gave his apprentices something to do, and taught them important values such as responsibility and diligence, traits sorcerers could only learn through practical means. And thus, another cleaning day, but Yen Sid wasn’t there to supervise them. Golden and Oswald were on laundry, Julius was organizing the kitchen, and Mickey and Scout were sweeping, much to their chagrin. Up and down they went, sweeping the third floor, then the second, then the first, and by the time they reached the ground floor they were bored out of their minds. “This is so mind numbing I’d rather watch paint dry.” Scout remarked, Mickey giving a giggle and nodding, both of them working on the large workshop space where Yen Sid taught them all, sweeping every corner before both leaned on their brooms in vexation. “You’re telling me, haha! But hey, not long ‘till we’re done, and then we can play!” the little mouse replied, Scout shrugging and looking as if she was thinking quite hard. “Man, if only there was a way to get things done faster…” she mused, before catching Mickey’s eye and the two giving a sly smile. “You thinkin’ what I’m thinkin’?” They both whispered, before softly giggling and pulling out seven brooms, who were inanimate at the moment under Yen Sid’s command. Normally they would run around making sure everything was clean, and communicated by sweeping in morse code, which always amused everyone. Golden even called them ‘broomies’, a play on roomies, as she considered them friends, even if they pranked her once or twice by throwing her in the cauldron or tumble dryer. Once they even locked her in the fridge! Nevertheless, Scout and Mickey took them out of the closet and rolled up their sleeves, setting them against the wall.

“So, you really think it’ll work this time?” Scout grinned, Mickey giving a wide smile. “Definitely! I’ve learned a lot since then, handling this magic will be as easy as pie!” he chuckled, both of them raising their arms as a sparkly substance floated from each of their hands, swirling around the brooms and causing them to spring to life in a burst of light. “Yes!” Mickey cried, Scout giving him a high five as the brooms faced their direction, awaiting a command. “Alright, remember me you dusty old planks? You’re gonna get to work, the proper way this time!” the mouse commanded, the brooms shuffling forward and Scout pointing them in the direction of the workshop, where they immediately got to work. They almost looked like ice skaters, gliding across the wooden floors with ease and leaving behind trails of clean, polished oak, both Scout and Mickey giving excited giggles. “Sweet! They’ll get the job done, we get to play! What shall we do, Mick?” Scout laughed, Mickey taking her hand and rushing to tell everyone else, who were just about done with their chores. 

“We’re gonna what?!” Julius cried, almost dropping his handful of clean plates at what he just heard from his brother, who was looking pretty pleased with himself at the suggestion he had come up with alongside Scout. “Hide and seek!” Mickey said, “I thought we could go down and play in the library while the brooms took care of the work, whaddya say Julius?” The little cat looked a bit nervous, he remembered what he was told when the brooms were left in charge without one of them watching them at work; he did like to play, and they didn’t have any current responsibilities, but Yen Sid had left them in charge while he was out! “Are you sure, Mickey? Scout?” Scout winked at him, taking the plates out of his hand and sliding them back into the cupboards. Dusting her hands off, she took Julius’s hand and then walked with him behind Mickey as they went down to the laundry room, where Oswald and Golden would have finished by now. “It’ll be fine Julius!” said Scout, cheerfully looking at her little brothers with a confident smile, “It’s only for some time. And besides, we’ve learned a lot of spells and enchantments since living here, if anything happens, we can fix it! We always do when we’re together, right?” Julius thought for a second, thinking of what she said. He nodded, it was true that whenever they were doing things as a family, nothing was ever difficult to overcome, even if at times it could be frightening. Even after the whole process with Golden’s nightmare had nearly left them trapped in some strange dimensions, he still held onto the idea that they’d get out, and they’d never leave one another behind, including Golden, who they were thankful didn’t have to deal with that horrid dream anymore. Mickey opened the door to the laundry room, where Golden was sitting on some of the towels in the laundry basket. The youngest apprentice closed up her book, looking at her siblings and felt surprised to see them enter all together, and with a suspicious smile on their faces. “What are you all doing here? Aren’t you two on sweeping duty?” she asked, looking directly at Mickey and Scout. Mickey extended a hand to her. “Golden, wanna come play hide and seek with us? We can go in different areas of the house! Except for Yen Sid’s room ha-ha!” Golden looked a little taken aback, and looked down at her book, quickly slipping it behind her. “Guys! You can’t slack off and play! We have stuff to do while dad is out.” Scout had a small smirk, looking at what Golden was trying to hide. “Oh yeah?” she said, “And what’s that? Are you reading instead of doing laundry?” she giggled as she pointed at the clearly visible book. Golden pouted slightly, placing her hand on her hip as she pulled the book back out, opening it up on her lap. “Ahh but I’m NOT slacking, I’m doing homework! After all, my education waits for no one!” Scout put her hand to her chin, looking closer at the book, it was one she’d seen before. She stepped forward, and Golden showed her the book, it was one of the books Yen Sid often had out, commonly used for his magical exercises- it was regular for sorcerers to use basic magic spells every day to keep their minds sharp and their reflexes and bodies fit for more advanced magic. Golden was on the page about the bat and the butterfly, one of Yen Sid’s personal favourites. “See? The bat and the butterfly! I want to learn this spell, I’ve seen dad do it many times! I think it’s a great exercise technique for sorcerers, and it’s not very complicated.” Scout nodded and giggled with the boys at how invested Golden was with her homework study. “Yeah, I’ve seen that book before. Hehe, you might wanna hold onto that book, Golden; we’re gonna have some fun!” Golden looked up a little from the pages to see the giddy expression on Scott’s face, still unsure if they had finished their work upstairs, giving an arched eyebrow at them similar to the look Yen Sid would often have. “I think you’re up to something…are you sure you’re done, or are you sneaking off to play?” Scout turned to Mickey, who stepped forward and took Golden’s hand, Golden noticing the playfulness in his eye as he giggled softly and helped his little sister to her feet, keeping a tight hold on her book. “About that…” Mickey began, winking. “We did a little enchantment earlier on the brooms, up in the workshop! But don’t worry, it’s all working well! Care to join us, Golden?” Golden thought for a moment, she’d love to just stay and do her homework now that her work was done, but the idea of playing with her siblings did sound fun, and to play hide and seek; Golden knew there were places she could hide where they’d never look. She grinned and nodded a yes at Mickey’s question. “Yes! Okay, let’s go get Oswald!” Mickey laughed and began bouncing up and down with Golden, and spinning around with her in circles. “Hehe yeah! We can go have fun and have all our work done by the brooms! All before Yen Sid gets back!” Golden giggles, feeling a teensy bit dizzy from spinning. “By the way that reminds me, how did you manage to get the brooms to listen to you? Normally they only listen to me.” Mickey snickered, as did Scout. “We had a little training with the spell, now those dust heads have gotta listen!” he laughed, just as Oswald walked in, placing an empty basket down. “Okay, what’s going on here?” he asked suspiciously, Golden snickered with a slight side eye. “Mickey and Scout enchanted the brooms, now they are doing the work and we’re off to play!” Oswald almost fell backwards in shame. “WHAT? Mickey, are you crazy? You remember what happened the last time you left the brooms in charge? It was a total disaster!!” He said, facepalming as everyone gave him a stare. “Disaster?” Golden replied, not understanding what Os meant, “what happened last time?” Scout laughed as Mickey quickly jumped into answer, pulling Golden along and covering Oswald’s mouth with his hand. “Ahaha nothing too crazy! Just some silly brooms, it doesn’t matter- anyway let’s go play hide and seek!” Golden was feeling curious about the ‘disaster’ from last time, but nevertheless happy to start playing with her brothers, before Oswald finally pulled Mickey’s hand down. “Alright, ONE GAME, and then we check on them. I don’t trust those brooms after last time!” He asserted, Scout rolling her eyes but nodding in agreement. She put her hands over her eyes and began to count to one hundred, everyone running off in different directions and hiding all over the castle. Mickey ran toward the library, Julius the kitchen, Oswald the art room, whilst Golden clambered up and up, until she finally reached the door to the attic and pulled herself in. 

It was a large, dusty space full of old trinkets and such, paintings of wizards Golden didn’t recognize scattered about, and all sorts of old boxes and crates lying around. She couldn’t help but look closer at some of them, finding one for Scout that was just full of cool old stuff, such as an old sitar and amps, and one for Oswald that had lots of old posters and plushies, as well as a painting of himself and Ortensia. She continued to look around in curiosity, before finding one box tucked away in the corner, one with her name on it. Now VERY curious, she pulled at the tape and opened it, and forgot all about the game.

“Ninety-eight, ninety-nine, one hundred! Ready or not here I come! Remember, my name is Scout and I’m good at finding people!!” Scout, being a girl of strategy, planned her way of seeking everyone out, thinking hard on where they’d hide. She looked around, and headed down to the ground floor, toward where the library was. At first, she theorised where this might be where Mickey was hiding, based on him mentioning the room earlier- it seemed like a pretty easy start. Upon entering, her eyes were met with bookcase to bookcase stacked high with hundreds to thousands of books, she was slightly breath taken by how many there were- despite having come here several times a week since she started living here, she hadn’t really put into thought just how large it was, and how many books Yen Sid necessarily needed. “Oh gosh, this place is bigger than I thought.” She mused, scouring the large bookcases before her as she slowly paced down the large hallway in between. “I guess this whole house really is bigger on the inside.” She went over to one of the bookcases, taking out two books and looking behind where they once sat. “Hmm…I wonder if anyone could be disguised behind these books, this place suuure is big and would be easy to hide in…” she was cut off by the sound of an recognisable giggle, which came from behind one of the sofas in the middle, where people would sit to read and relax. Scout grinned, making her way over very slowly. “Hmm…let’s see, if I were a little apprentice, I would hide somewhere veeeery difficult to find, after all, there’s so many hidden places in this whole building. Phew…” she wiped at her brow, and sat down. The sofa was comfy and soft, perfect for a long library read. “…and speaking of, there’s so many areas to search, it gets tiring, I gotta sit down for a moment to get my strength back.” Another giggle behind her, Scout tried to hold back her own laughter as she slowly turned and glanced behind the sofa. There was Mickey, he hadn’t noticed her! He was sitting behind the sofa trying to keep himself quiet, though it was difficult given how close he knew Scout was to finding him. Taking a few seconds pause, Scout finally reached down and grabbed Mickey, surprising him and lifting him up. The little mouse burst into a fit of adorable giggles and wiggled about as Scout pulled him into her arms, tickling his ribs and ruffling his head as they fell backward a little onto the sofa cushions. “Gotcha!” Scout cried gleefully, “Behind the sofa eh? I thought you’d try somewhere else!” Mickey managed to pull himself free and push against her, though she still had a slight gentle hold on him, giving him a small cuddle. “Aww gosh! Was I too obvious? Hahaha!” Mickey giggled, Scout gently ruffled his head again as she got up, placing him back down on the floor. “Nah, it’s alright. I thought it was pretty good! Now, to find the others…”

The two of them walked around the ground floor, heading into the living room, then wondering about the classroom, opening the door but finding nobody inside. Yen Sid’s board duster and markers were doing a little tap dance, though, so that was amusing. They headed further, finding themselves by the door to the art room, which was closed. Odd, considering Yen Sid kept the room airy to make sure all the paintings would dry faster, which clued both in that someone was hiding there. It could be Golden, considering how much she loved to draw, but they expected anyone, Mickey slowly opening the door and hearing some frantic shuffling. One of the canvases seemed to be out of place- clearly whoever was in here had grabbed it hastily, leaving the place in slight disarray. Mickey pointed at it and they approached from both sides, tickling whoever was underneath. “Hey, hey! Quit that!” Oswald whined, Scout pulling back the huge canvas only to see his ear was stuck through a smaller one, much to his annoyance. Giving a giggle, she gently pulled it off and used a spell to repair it, so Yen Sid would be none the wiser. Mickey helped him up, the three heading out to find whoever was left.

Meanwhile, Golden was going through the contents of the box- lots of old things she’d forgotten about. An old black sheet from a game she and Yen Sid used to play when she was younger, a game where he would pretend to be an orca and take her all around the workshop, running in circles whilst she sat on his back. An old, full notebook, drawings of fairies and music everywhere, though she cringed slightly at how bad they looked compared to how she drew now. She’d even drawn HERSELF as a fairy- how humiliating! She kept searching, finding some old toys she no longer played with, including a few fairy dolls since she had too many in her toybox already. Then, she reached the bottom, and found something strange. Neatly folded clothes, a hoodie and some trousers, way too small for her now but strangely familiar. She remembered getting her first robe from Yen Sid, how big it had been…were these what she’d been wearing before? She reached in and picked them up, something flying out of the hoodie pockets and settling on the floor. A photo.

The trio of apprentices entered the kitchen, Mickey looked under the table, while Scout opened the kitchen cupboards for any sign of Julius. Oswald scratched at his ear, looking over at the sink before realising that was probably a silly place to look. “You guys were quick to find me!” he said, “How’d you guess?” Scout winked at him, putting a finger to her lips and giggling. “Well I have a knack for finding things! I am named Scout after all~ I could find anyone, well…I hope everyone.” She seemed to trail off quietly, making Mickey and Oswald stare at her for a second, wondering what got her so deep in thought. A rattling from the side of the kitchen caught their attention, it was a large plant pot. “Huh? What the…? We didn’t enchant a plant pot, did we?” Scout said, getting up and approaching it, the shaking got more violent as they all got closer before it toppled over and broke, revealing inside it to be Julius, whose pupils were popping out of his face. “BWAHAHAHAHA!!” he was rolling about and moving his arms and legs like a marathon runner, the boys jumped back, never seeing him so hyper before. “Julius?!” cried Oswald, as Julius got up, clinging to Scout as he was suddenly an uncontrollable ball of energy. “SCOUT!! SCOUTSCOUTSCOUT HEEEY!!” he shouted, Scout snickered as she tried to hold him steady. “Wow Julius! What’s gotten you acting so crazy huh?” Mickey went over to the plant and sniffed it, and realised what was going on. “Umm, guys?” he said, holding up the plant, “This plant is catnip!” Julius got down from Scout’s arms and then jumped in Mickey’s, causing the younger to drop the plant and catch him. “MICKEYMICKEYMICKMICKMIMIMEEEEE!!” Scout quickly started up a relaxation spell, which looked like white mist, and sprinkled it over Julius, who soon became very calm and stopped moving his limbs about so much. His pupils shrank as he started to look a little dazed, gazing up at his siblings as he sat on the floor. “Huh, guys? What happened?” he said, rubbing his forehead. “Guess ya found me.” Oswald and Mickey helped Julius to his feet and steadied him. Scout petted him on the head, making him purr and rub against her palm as he began to relax a lot more. “Catnip.” Scout told him, “Haha! I don’t know why we have that! But probably best to stay away from it, little buddy. Now, just Golden to find, wonder where she’s hiding…?” 

Golden stared down at the picture, it was one of her, dressed in the outfit she was holding, and standing in front of something, a large building of red and yellow, a sign stretching out like the sun and holding some words, Golden peering closer. “Now…playing…” she could make out, but her head blocked most of the signage at the bottom, making her curious. The top of the photo was a beautiful starry sky, indicating to her it was night, and a huge sign reached to the top of the frame, spelling out the word ‘Theater’ and lighting up the area. And there she was in front, giving a huge smile. Except for one small issue. She didn’t remember this happening at all. She suddenly scoured the box for any more stuff, shaking the old clothes, the sheet, looking in the folds and even between the tape, hoping there would be another clue but…nothing. Just a photo and some old clothes. And she had no idea what had happened to her.

The rest of the apprentices checked the ground floor, then the basement. “Maybe she’s on one of the higher floors?” Mickey suggested, Julius thinking. “I can take the first floor, Scout can do the second, Mickey can do the third, and then Os can redo these two floors again, just in case she’s hiding really well.” He suggested, everyone nodding and walking toward the stairs, before noticing something was off, very off. They stared at the doorway to the workshop, where the brooms were creating an army of magical dust bunnies, which were accumulating and coming alive. “YIKES!” Scout yelled, Oswald looking at her and Mickey in disbelief, both of them giving a slightly guilty grin in response. “Alright, the game’s up! Someone go find Golden, and the rest of us deal with my warped cousins over here!” he commanded, sounding just like he did when he reprimanded the bunny children. Mickey decided to head up to find his little sis, whilst Scout and the others ran into the workshop, hoping to fix the mess before dad came home!

Mickey clambered up the three flights of stairs, before noticing the door leading up to the attic was ajar, huffing and puffing as he climbed the ladder all the way up. Golden was back in her hiding spot, but she couldn’t stop thinking about the photo, and worrying about her amnesia. Mickey noticed the pile of stuff out of the box but didn’t question it, just scooped it back in so Yen Sid wouldn’t be cross about the mess. He then listened, hoping to hear Golden, and heard a slight rustle behind one of the paintings, sneaking over before gently touching her on the head. “Gotcha!” He giggled, Golden looking up at him in surprise and hastily shoving the photo in her robe pocket, holding her book close to her chest. “Oh…is the game over?” she asked, Mickey grinning sheepishly. “We…had a bit of a malfunction.” he giggled, Golden making a face at him and clambering out from behind the painting. Heading downstairs, she was greeted by a crazy scene, as Scout had managed to entangle the brooms in musical binds by getting them to smack into each other, all except the seventh who was trying to escape. As soon as she saw Mickey she lifted them into the air, Mickey trying to reverse the spell as Scout struggled under the weight. He managed to say the incantation, though, and everything seemed fine as the brooms calmly floated down…before they burst into planks on the floor. 

Everyone stared in silence as they watched the planks fall, although glad the brooms were no longer causing havoc with the dust bunny army, no one had intended them to become planks like they had been chopped up again. “Broomies!” Golden cried, looking over each and every piece on the floor, before taking the book from Scout’s hands and flipping through the pages to find the spell they needed to now fix this problem, it shouldn’t be a difficult one to fix, and they still had enough time before Yen Sid got home. “Here let me fix this.” Golden continued flipping, before stopping at the spell she was looking for, she grinned and ushered Oswald over to her, showing him the spell. “Look! I think this is your job Oswald, it involves a force of electricity to bind the planks and stick them together, can you try it, please?” Oswald puffed out his chest and lightly punched it, looking tall and confident. “Say no more sis!” he said, “I got this under control.~” He pulled out his little remote control device from his pocket, aiming at the sticks on the ground. He waved his free hand over the remote, wiggling his fingers as he pushed the button, electricity shot from the aerial and hit the planks, shocking them and sending them up into air, they all began to merge together into brooms again! “It’s working!” said Julius cheerfully, “Nice one, Oswald. Now we can…huh?” he stopped and stared, the broom pieces were merging, but not in the way they intended, instead they all merged together into one big… “SUPERBROOM!” Scout yelled, turning tail and running, Julius following behind quickly and scurrying away on all fours. Mickey grabbed Golden’s hand and helped her to run, with Oswald closely coming up behind them. “COULDN’T YOU GUYS JUST DO YOUR CHORES NORMALLY???” he shouted, using both his feet to run and ears to fly, making him go a little faster. The superbroom was also fast, gaining speed as it chased behind them through the hallways like a monster straight out of a kaiju movie. “Okay, time out!” Scout yelled, looking over her shoulder, “Golden, what’s the spell for this?!” Golden still had the book in her hand, Mickey let go of her other one so she could easily scan the pages for the spell. “Ahh, hold on guys! I’ll find it!” She tried to find the correct page for this but running made it difficult, and the superbroom was getting closer, it’s sweeping getting stronger, everyone turned a corner and darted down into the library as the superbroom lost them for a moment.

“DANG IT!” Oswald shouted, thumping his foot. “Next time I sweep!” Mickey looked up and went to take a peek outside the library door, looking for any sign of the superbroom in the vicinity. It was gone, at least for a moment, and he could still hear it sweeping around and looking for them. “Hmph, I won’t let those brooms beat me this time!” he said defiantly, “Keep looking Golden, we’ll fix it together!” Golden was now sitting on the floor, flipping page after page, the older apprentices stood by watching her. She snapped her fingers when she found what she was looking for. “Here it is!” she said, “Okay, let’s see…ahh…” she stood up, and everyone huddled together, forming a circle. “So the spell requires a large area, do you think the library would work? I think it does!” Oswald looked up a little, seeing the large library room around them, he bit his lip a little. “Are you sure? I don’t think Yen Sid wants to see this place in pieces, there are ANCIENT books here!” Golden giggled, shaking her head. “No no it’s perfectly safe! All we gotta do is have a big space, and then use this spell on the broom’s middle at the same second! Keep your eyes focused on that.” They all heard a familiar shuffling, Mickey and Golden went up the stairs, seeing the big superbroom looking around, confused as to why it couldn’t find the group of apprentices. Nodding at each other, Mickey and Golden jumped out and cried.”HEY! OVER HERE YA OVERGROWN TOOTHPICK!” The superbroom turned, and like a wild animal raced toward them at top speed. The young apprentices ran back into the library, giving their older siblings a thumbs up and taking their positions to take down the superbroom. The giant stormed into the room, several books flying off the shelves as the momentum carried them with it. The place was quiet, and the superbroom soon noticed as it scanned the area, it had been tricked. “NOW EVERYONE!!” The apprentices all jumped out of their hiding spots, and cried an incantation all together. A jet of light shot out from their hands and struck the superbroom in the middle, shrinking it down and splitting the single broom into seven, the original number. They all looked a little confused despite lacking a face, but once they spotted Golden, they rushed over to her, wrapping her in a huge group hug between them all. “Eeehehe! Aww broomies! You’re all so silly!” giggled Golden, her arms were stuck to her sides so she couldn’t hug them back, but was nonetheless happy. Then as they all let go, the one behind her snatched something out of her back pocket, the photo! “Hey!” she cried, “Give that back! Naughty broom, it's mine!” It ran off, Golden now being the one giving chase. The older apprentices laughed, finding her relationship with the brooms both funny and sweet. They all looked up at the clock, and realised Yen Sid might be home soon- they ran up the stairs and could still hear Golden and the brooms as they ran about the halls. Eventually the broom with the photo turned into an inanimate one as she snapped her fingers, and the rest of the brooms followed as each apprentice grabbed one. “NOW.” Oswald shouted, “Will you all pleeeease get to work?! Man, all this could have been avoided if you two did your jobs!” Mickey and Scout looked at each other, what Oswald said was true, but they couldn’t help giggling. “Yeah, but it wouldn’t be as fun though, eh Os?” The rabbit rolled his eyes, but smirked a little, it was a teeny bit fun, and now they could finally finish work. Golden picked up the photo, looking at it intently again, she couldn’t really focus on dusting the floor, only the photo. Just what did it all mean? Did Yen Sid ever take her to a theatre that she didn’t remember? Speaking of Yen Sid, everyone turned heads as they heard the front door open.     

Yen Sid had a bright smile on his face as he walked in- he had brought a guest. The apprentices rushed to greet him, all holding brooms, and Golden shoving the photo into her back pocket again, everyone smiling at the new face. He had a short beard and veil over his eyes, one that dangled down from his hat, which was covered in raindrops. Clearly, his specialty was water and weather, which reminded Golden of Aero, who could do the same type of magic. He looked to be the same age as Yen Sid, but had a darker skin tone and glasses, giving them all a warm smile. “Hello there.” he spoke, his voice soft and gentle as he looked, and Yen Sid giving a chuckle at the slightly stunned apprentices before him. “Now what did you troublemakers get up to whilst I was gone?” he smirked, Oswald looking guilty but doing his signature whistle as if to say ‘nothing important’. Yen Sid merely raised an eyebrow, before noticing his youngest looked a little nervous- something to talk about after his guest had left. “This is an old friend of mine, much like a brother. We were both taught by Master Grey, as I’ve told you before.” Yen Sid explained, leading them all to the sitting room to chat. The stranger was warm and gave a slight chuckle as Mickey clambered onto Yen Sid’s lap, Golden snuggling up next to Scout at the same time, and Os and Julius squishing onto one of the armchairs, since neither of them could decide who wanted it more. Yen Sid smiled at his brother, and put an arm around him, Mickey looking up at the stranger in curiosity as he smiled at both of them. “Care to introduce yourself?” Yen Sid offered, the man giving a good-natured chuckle and smile to all of the younger ones in the room. “My name is Ambrose Symphonus. I’m a member of the council much like your father, but I also have two little apprentices of my own who I teach.” He explained, everyone giving a welcoming smile and several of them nodding. Ambrose stayed for dinner, telling all sorts of fun stories from their childhood together, such as the time Yen Sid got stuck in the laundry basket or all the apprentices banded together to steal Master Grey’s hat- they may have got reprimanded, but it was worth it. Eventually, he departed to go back home to his own apprentices and wife, but promised to visit and write to them all, gently rubbing Mickey’s head much like Yen Sid would. And then, it came to bedtime, and Yen Sid went to visit Golden in her room, as she had been rather quiet.

“So, what did you all get up to whilst I was out?” He smiled, gently sitting down on her bed as she snuggled under the covers, all warm and cosy in both pyjamas and a sleep hoodie she liked to wear. “Well, we did all the chores, and I did some homework, and then we played a game!” she replied, omitting the fact a kaiju monster had rampaged the workshop and intended to sweep them all up. It made her wonder if the dustpan could become a superdustpan, but no use dwelling on that silliness- one superbroom was enough for a lifetime! Yen Sid gave a little smile, noticing the completed sheet of work on her bedside table, and gently flipped through it. “Hm, that’s right. You missed a step on this one, though. Remember, a sorcerer has to focus before they can do anything.” he explained, pointing out the mistake as his sleepy daughter nodded, looking up at him with slightly tired eyes. “Is there anything else that happened? I noticed you were rather quiet at dinner. Were you just shy because of Ambrose?” he asked, Golden shaking her head and reaching into her pocket, pulling out the old photograph. “Well…we were playing hide and seek, and I found this in the attic…! But I have no idea where it’s from, what it means, anything!” She cried, her speech going slightly stuttery, which made Yen Sid a little suspicious. She never usually tripped up on words to that extent, which either meant it was super important, or something else was happening. Nevertheless, he examined the photo. “That’s you, in front of a theater, maybe a cinema?” he offered, Golden nodding, but looking very worried. “I don’t remember this at all! Did you ever take me to the cinema?” she asked, but Yen Sid shook his head, not even recognizing the location. “I’m sorry little one, but I have no answers for you. Though…there are ways to look into your memories…” he mused, Golden looking a little confused. “How on earth can you look into memories I don't have?” she retorted, Yen Sid giving a chuckle as her sassy side came out. “Well, think of memories like being locked away in a chest. With the right spell, we can forge a key, and open it up.” he replied, Golden looking quite curious. “Hmmm…would it be like looking into a dream?” she asked, Yen Sid nodding and giving a smile. “Exactly. I’ll look into it before I sleep and then we can do this tomorrow, if you’d like? It won’t just be you, I have questions about all you funny little apprentices that only your memories can answer.” he explained, Golden musing over this. “Even Scout?” she asked, Yen Sid giving a good-natured chuckle. “Especially that enigma.” he giggled, Golden laughing too. Yen Sid smiled down at her, before starting to tickle her, Golden ducking under the blanket to try and escape, but only being grabbed and pulled out. “Can’t fool PapaSid, I’ve been around for a long time, little miss!” he chuckled, continuing to tickle her as she laughed and tugged at his beard to try and get him to stop. Finally, he gave a smile and draped her blanket over himself, lifting her onto his back. “Who’s your favourite whale?” he asked, Golden laughing and remembering this game from when she was young, and still learning everything about the world, including the ocean. She leaned down so her head was on top of his, and gave a smile. “You are, hehe.” she whispered, Yen Sid smiling and wrapping her up in the blanket, giving her a kiss goodnight and hoping she would have sweet dreams.

The next morning arrived, Golden rubbed her eyes and pulled herself up out of her bed. She felt groggy as she went toward the door, and remembered what her dad had told her last night, the memory spells. She went down the stairs, into the kitchen, where Yen Sid was preparing a cup of tea for himself, and a coffee for Oswald when he came down. “Dad?” Golden murmured, rubbing her eyes as she sat down. Scout was also up, scooping spoonful after spoonful of sugar into her porridge. “Morning Golden!” she said, passing a glass of water to her little sister. “Sleep well?” Golden nodded, taking the glass and having a small sip. “Yeah, I did! I was very sleepy after yesterday, it was so hectic!” Yen Sid turned toward them, with a mischievous smirk on his face. “Hectic eh? Cleaning was hectic?” Golden realised she might have said too much, and quickly tucked into her breakfast, avoiding his question. Scout turned a little pink in the cheeks as the sugar in her porridge had now become a little mountain. “Aha well…cleaning can be a lot of work!” she said, “especially when you don’t use magic! Haha, right Mickey?” They all looked to the stairs, where a wide awake Mickey was pulling a still asleep Julius in one hand and a grumpy looking Oswald in the other. “Ha-ha! Yeah! And I should know, I was tasked with hauling water from the fountain to the cauldron! That was heavy work.” Mickey sat down, Julius slumped forward and rested his head on the table as he snored, he didn’t even stir when Oswald slammed both fists onto the table. “COFFEE. NOW!!!” Yen Sid placed two mugs of fresh coffee down for him, and the bunny quickly got to chugging one of them down, not even blowing the steam away first. “There you go Oswald, and for you Mickey, some cheese on toast, with tomatoes!” Mickey took the plate, and began munching happily on his breakfast. He loved cheese, which wasn’t unusual for a mouse, but he had a particular fondness for it. Yen Sid then placed down a plate of anchovies on toast for Julius, who awoke with a jump and smiled. “Anchovies?! Yummy!” Yen Sid smiled as everyone ate, and he too sat down to drink his tea, and eat a small bowl of fruit. He turned to Golden, he looked at him inquisitively, he knew what she had on her mind. “Ahem, everyone.” he said, getting their attention. “I thought we’d conduct a little experiment today.” Oswald tilted his head, looking more like himself now. “Experiment?” he said, “Care to explain, sir?” Yen Sid nodded, “Yes. Golden and I had a little talk last night, and I decided to look into something, and I was pleased with the results. Everyone, I’d like to take a look into your memories, I feel like we might be able to figure out some things we don’t know.” he glanced at Golden again, and then to Scout, who looked very intrigued by this announcement. “Memories? Like, all of ‘em? How far are we talking?” Mickey raised his hand quickly, “Are we going all the way back? Like when we were babies?” He seemed to have a big smile on his face at that, which made Yen Sid laugh. “Hahaha! Oh my no, these memory spells, mostly pick out major events and memorable moments in our lives. They can even dive into memories that have been forgotten by the person, such as our little’un.” Golden grunted softly, she wasn’t truly fond of that term, considering she was the youngest. “Daaaad.” She groaned, and the sorcerer chuckled, getting up to wash out his empty cup. “Well, I think it would be a good opportunity to get some questions answered, or perhaps find out some new things. What do you all say?” The apprentices exchanged looks, Scout and Golden were on board, nodding enthusiastically. Oswald looked somewhat interested, and gave a nod. As did Mickey. “Yeah! It sounds neat! Who knows what these guys were like way back when?” he said, pointing a thumb at Julius, Scout and Golden, Julius didn’t remember a lot from his youth, much less Scout. “Come to think of it,” Mickey continued. “Julius, you never told me about your life before you met Yen Sid, didja? At least I don’t think you did.” Julius turned away, giving a small shrug, and looking a bit quiet as he thought about it. “Hmm, I guess not. Sorry everyone…” Scout smiled softly, putting a hand on his shoulder. “Hey, don’t worry, this is what this experiment is for!” she said, “Come on boys, it’ll be cool! I wanna see how this all works, pops!” Yen Sid smiled and gave a nod, using a small magic spell to lift everyone’s empty plates and cups to the sink, and letting the brooms do the rest of the washing up. “Right then,” he said with a clap, “follow me upstairs to my office. We’ll begin the memory spell experiment once we are there, I assure you all it’s very safe and simple. I’ll give you instructions on what to do as we begin, okay?”

Upon reaching the office, Yen Sid began to instruct them to get out various ingredients, such as gardenia and lavender, which he ground with a mortar and pestle to make into a paste. He then used magic to summon a sound of crickets, the music notes diving down into the concoction. Clearly, this was an advanced spell, capable of putting anyone to sleep, but the memories were the most important part of it, and it was necessary to perfect that for a reaction. In a separate bowl, Yen Sid put a pansy, fragments of amber, and leaves of a fir, turning them into paste too. He combined them together, which created a bright burst of light that made everyone cover their eyes, and a brew was created. Quickly pouring it into a cup, he quickly used a spell to test if it was safe to drink, and further enchanted it to make it taste better than a bunch of ingredients, promising them all that it was completely safe and made of things that would not harm them thanks to the sorcery he knew. Oswald still didn’t like the fact there were bits of stone in his drink though, he’d always choose coffee. The apprentices stood around the table as he cleared it up, before he led them down to the workshop once more and began moving stuff around with magic, creating a bed by putting several desks together and summoning a blanket and pillows, ensuring it was comfortable. “So, will we see everyone’s memories?” Scout asked, Yen Sid nodding. “It will appear much like the fog of the dream, where we will see in, but you won’t see out. With a bit of luck, we’ll be able to see into the deepest parts of your memories, just as vividly as you saw them all that time ago.” He explained, before Golden piped up. “Or not, haha.” she retorted, a little smirk on her face that caused the boys to chuckle, and Scout to snicker. Yen Sid rolled his eyes. “My sweet, sassy child, we will find out what’s hiding in that head of yours very soon. And once we do, we’ll find out and understand just who you were before you became my daughter.” he whispered, setting the brew down and taking her into his arms for a moment, allowing her to lean on his shoulder. “I’m a little nervous…” she admitted, Yen Sid smiling and nodding. “Don’t worry, so are the others. It sounds frightening, but we won’t see any of you differently, and we love you more than anything, you know that.” he whispered, gently giving her a kiss on the forehead before setting her down and looking at each of the apprentices in turn, a slightly mischievous and excitable look in his eye. “So, shall we go from oldest to youngest?” he winked, and passed Julius the brew, the cat sitting on the bed and sipping it, before Yen Sid tucked him in. “Ready, kiddo?” he whispered, and Julius gave a nervous nod, before settling down into sleep. The fog appeared, and everyone watched in anticipation as an image was revealed.

The first image was of a bright field, on a sunny summer’s day, where a little girl dressed in red and with long blonde curls was playing with a small kitten. The tiny cat was running around in circles, chasing butterflies and birds that would duck and dive around him, the little girl giggling at his antics before picking him up. The memory changed to them a little older, exploring a forest together full of caves and berries, the girl showing the cat which ones were safe to eat as he pawed at her dress, before changing again to them both running together, on a dark, cloudy night. They didn’t look as happy as before, and were dressed differently, as if they were going on an adventure, and the memory turned to both of them finding a campsite, huddling together by the fire as the cat sung her a song, before the scene went dark, revealing the cat was now alone and running away, seemingly frightened. He ran and ran through trees, eyes of unknown creatures lighting up the darkness all around and causing him to only run faster, before tripping and falling down a hill, crashing through a fence and ending up by a well, one they all recognized. And then, Julius woke up, looking quite startled and a little shaken by what he remembered. He turned to stare at everyone, Mickey and Oswald approaching him and giving him pats on the back, previously unaware that their big brother had such a tumultuous past. Yen Sid smiled and approached him, gently petting him on the head, which caused him to give slight purrs and nuzzle his dad’s hand in response. Oswald brushed away some stray hairs whilst he wasn’t looking, and Julius got out of the bed, hopping down and toward the girls, who were seemingly deep in thought. “You know, Julius? I remember that day you came to my workshop. It was such a surprise, but I’m really glad I found you.” Yen Sid spoke, Julius giving a grateful smile. Though he was a little speechless now after reliving all that, he felt as though he could get some closure with time, as long as Yen Sid was willing to be patient with him. Oswald gave him one last pat on the back, before taking the brew from Yen Sid and downing it, jumping up and onto the bed with great flair. He began to snore in his sleep, Mickey chuckling, and the fog appeared soon after.

There was a trolley on rails, with various animals getting inside of it. They all took their seats, including a young cat girl, with armfuls of small baby bunnies, and Oswald pulling the whistle in the driver’s cabin. The dream was mute, but Oswald appeared to be saying “All aboard!” and began to drive down the track, going faster and faster like a crazy ride, before it finally stopped at the station, with Oswald looking very pleased and the passengers all looking a little dishevelled. The scene shifted, he was sitting on a small chair, as if he was waiting. He whistled and patiently kicked his legs, before he saw two men, they looked as if they were arguing, and the man in the chair was dismissing the other, who looked over at Oswald, before sadly closing the door. Oswald got up, wondering where he was going, and got nervous. He ran to the window, only to see the car he was in this morning drive away, leaving him in that office. He gave a sad wave, though he wasn’t at all sure why he wasn’t going with the man. The scene shifted again, he was now looking out at a world he now lived in, the Wasteland. He wasn’t alone though, there was Ortensia, and all four hundred and twenty of their beloved children. There were some other folk there, who lived there with them. It was the life they now had, until the thinner disaster, and he met Mickey…and then after their adventure, he was pulled out of the Wasteland and into the workshop with everyone else, where he was now given a new place he could call home. He took Yen Sid’s hand, and was more than happy to take the role as a new apprentice. The fog disappeared, and Oswald woke up, sitting up quickly. He gave a deep sigh, and rubbed at his head a little, swinging his feet over the bed. Mickey got up and approached him, placing a sympathetic hand on his brother’s shoulder. “Os, you alright?” he asked, Oswald’s vision cleared up, and he saw Mickey’s sweet smile. “Yeah, I’m okay Mick.” he said, getting up from the bed and Mickey leading him back to the others. He gave another sigh, though it was softer. “Wow, I never…thought I’d think of that again, for a long time I didn’t understand, and I became…angry, and alone.” He looked over at Mickey and Julius, and then to Yen Sid, and Golden and Scout. His slightly sleepy smile got wider. “But, I did have Ortensia, and our bunny children. And you guys.” Mickey and Julius got up, and they both hugged him. Julius led him back to the seats, where Golden now hugged him too, and Scout patted him on the head, making him grin. It was followed by a second pat on the head by Yen Sid. “And we are more than happy to have you, Oswald.” said the sorcerer with a kind look in his eyes. “You are one of the family, no more or less than any of us.”

After some time, it was Mickey’s turn to go, so he took a sip and lay down, soon falling asleep with soft snuffles that made Yen Sid smile. The fog appeared, depicting a tiny little mouse holding the finger of a human, as if he had walked right out of a drawing. He wandered amongst the pots of pencils and graphite, before the human led him further along the table, toward a film reel. The little mouse jumped in, and a classic scene began, that of a steamboat. From there, many more scenes, slowly getting more and more colourful; a ghost hunt, a concert, trading places with a prince for a day, then becoming a royal musketeer, the list went on and on, and it seemed the little mouse would never fail to make people smile. He fought with his trusty keyblade, performed in parades, opened the magical kingdom…and then the memory focused on a specific moment, one Mickey reminisced about constantly. The first day he met Yen Sid. He was hiding shyly behind the man’s leg at the time, but the old sorcerer had made him feel welcome, even despite the one or two mishaps that occurred afterwards. And then, Mickey staring up at that statue, the beautiful one that shone and sparkled in the sunlight, of him and his beloved partner. And even when that man was gone, he still had everyone around him- Minnie, Donald, Daisy, Goofy, Pluto…and his brothers, and papa. The light he held in his heart would touch the hearts of millions of others, whether it be a collector of his merchandise or a writer with a boundless imagination, he never failed to inspire the world to keep hoping, dreaming and believing. And thus, on with the show he went.

Mickey awoke to see Yen Sid standing over him, a hand already on his shoulder before the little mouse had even had time to process the flood of memories. He gave a sweet smile to Yen Sid, though, even despite the tears brimming in his eyes, and found himself in a warm embrace just as Oswald had. “Oh Mickey…you still miss him, don’t you?” Yen Sid whispered, Mickey giving a nod and slight sniffle as he wiped his eyes, before he beamed. “I’ll never stop missing him…but I know he’s there in the stars, watching over us all…and I’m sure he’d be proud of all of us.” he giggled, looking at each of his siblings in turn. They all beamed back, Scout giving a grin. “I might not have known the guy myself, but he sounds amazing, I can just feel it!” she giggled, Mickey nodding enthusiastically. “You’re not wrong there, Scout! He brought so much happiness to the world, and he’d love each and every one of you.” he smiled, before Yen Sid put him down and he rejoined his brothers, Scout raising an eyebrow. “My turn! Still got some of the potion?” she asked, Yen Sid nodding and gently swivelling her cap. “Yes, Scout. I hope this can shed some light on things from your past, so that we may help you going forward.” he replied, giving her a gentle smile as she downed the liquid, to which she was baffled by the taste. How had the boys drunk it so easily? Nevertheless, she rolled into bed, and the fog formed not long after.

The image showed a small girl, about three or four years old, playing the drums with great enthusiasm. A woman was watching her and congratulating her on her playing, which she did very well. The memory shifted a bit further, Scout was now six, she was seated on the woman’s knee looking over sheets of music, and pictures of instruments. There was Scout playing the flute, the drums, piano, theremin, anything…she really has a talent, in both music and magic. Yen Sid and the others knew this lady was Scout’s mother, who she had mentioned a few times and spoke about, but never knew what had become of her. The scene shifted again, a slightly older Scout was looking curiously up at her mother, who was putting on a travelling coat. She was going away somewhere and Scout wanted to come. The lady knelt down to her daughter’s level, placing her hands on her shoulders, and sadly telling her to stay, and that she will be back before she knows it. Kissing her forehead, the woman left, and the two of them wished each other well and goodbye. Scout is all alone, waiting for her mother, but she never returned, despite saying she would. The ever curious Scout begins looking through some old drawers, ones that hadn’t been touched in a long time, and sees something…notes. Notes about music, realms, magic song cues…the noise? The young Scout read through the notes, over and over, and thought about her mum. Making her mind up, she packs her things and heads out of the door, going on a search for her mother and this mysterious noise. But in the end, she found no leads, and only became tired and hungry. She walked and walked through a town, stopping at a tavern. Looking inside, she could smell food, freshly cooked at people’s tables. She didn’t have any money to spare, but maybe if she snuck some without anyone noticing…a hand grabbed her shoulder, neither firm nor gentle, but it made her flinch. A hooded man was pulling her aside and she became defensive, he might be a danger, until he removed his hood. The stern yet kindly old sorcerer they all knew well. He offered Scout a seat by his table, where he was more than happy to share his meal. He and Scout spent the whole time talking and eating, and Yen Sid knew straight from then on, that young Scout possessed great potential.

Scout awoke with a slight jolt, sitting up right in the bed and panting a little. Yen Sid quickly reached his arm around her, hugging her closely to calm her down. “Easy Scout, easy…” he whispered gently, “It’s alright. Oh, I apologise, that must have been quite a painful memory.” Scout started to relax, leaning against Yen Sid and taking in the memories she had just seen, and smiling slightly. “Aw, it’s…it’s okay, Yen Sid.” she said, “I guess…wow, it’s been a while, a long while. I almost forgot.” She pushed off the blanket, with Yen Sid helping her up, allowing her to go back over to the others, only for Golden to leap toward her and enveloping her in a tight hug, her eyes streaming with tears. “Oh Scout!!” she wept into her sister’s chest. “Oh I can’t imagine what that must have been like! You looked so sad and lonely, in that house…in that forest! I don’t ever want you to be sad or scared!” She continued to hold Scout, as if she was giving her a hug attack of the grandest proportions, and refused to let go even when Yen Sid gently tugged her arms. Scout was quiet for a moment at this, but leaned her head down so it was on top of Golden’s, hugging her back very tightly. “Aww, I'm fine kiddo. Really it’s…it’s cool. Don’t worry your cute little blue and purple head about it.” she giggled, Golden leaning back and wiping her eyes, Scout helping brush some of the tears away. “I’m here now, after all. I’ve got you guys, and well…if it weren’t for that chance meeting…" She trailed off, looking over at Yen Sid, who gave a reassuring smile, and then back down at Golden, who was still a bit weepy. “I’d say everything went my way that day.” she finished, gently running a hand through Golden’s hair, who gave a small smile. “I’m glad it did too. I was more than pleased to have made you my apprentice, Scout. Now that we have a clearer view of what happened in the past, I believe there are some things that can finally be resolved.” Yen Sid spoke, both girls looking at him in curiosity. “Really? You think so?” Scout replied, raising her eyebrows as she normally did. Yen Sid nodded. “I do. I know you still think about your mother, and miss her dearly, and that since that day you have been seeking closure. Rest assured, I feel that things may turn around soon, if you keep having patience.” he winked, Scout giving a hopeful smile and Golden seeming to wonder. Yen Sid had a knack for sensing potential future probabilities, and that twinkle in his eye…perhaps they really could find Scout’s mother. But then, Yen Sid turned to Golden, who felt the butterflies in her stomach turn to whirlpools. “Ah, cuddlebug. It’s sweet to see how much you care about all of us, and especially Scout. As you already know, we feel the same for you, so perhaps this will help you in the long run.” he gently spoke, before passing her the potion. She looked down at it with slight fear, but drank it nonetheless, immediately falling asleep onto Scout, who luckily caught her, snickering slightly. Scout helped move her into a more comfortable position, tucking her in, and the fog soon appeared, everyone watching in anticipation as to what it would reveal.

The memory began with streetlights and cars, the blaring honking of horns filling the previous silence. Footsteps caught the attention of the group, as the memory seemed to zoom in on a certain family, two parents and a child walking through a busy street, the two adults swinging the youngest as she giggled. They soon reached the theater from the photograph, buying tickets to a movie, and then a kindly photographer offered to take the kid’s picture. Taking down her hood, as it was cold, Golden nodded enthusiastically, much younger than she was now, and smiled widely as he got the perfect shot, giving her the printout to keep. They headed inside to watch the movie, and the memory shifted to later, Golden going on and on about how much she adored the movie, even claiming she wished to do magic just like the sorcerer in it had. The family approached a store, where Golden ran into the toy aisle and began to play with some of the ones on display, such as putting on a policeman hat or waving a fairy wand around. But her fun was interrupted when someone approached, wearing dark clothing and with messy brown hair, lighting a cigarette. He walked over to the child, who looked apprehensive, but playfully put on a police hat just like she had, starting to talk to her. He asked her where her parents were, Golden pointing to one of the further aisles, but the man shook his head, saying he’d seen them leave and that he could lead her to them. Now worried, they put down the toys and headed outside, where it had begun to rain, both of them putting their hoods up. The man led her through the streets, past cars and people, everyone being none the wiser about what was occurring. That is, until Golden felt this was not right, and began trying to pull away. He led her into an alley, now much more sinister, and the young girl began frantically trying to escape, raising her voice and calling out for someone to help her. Not having it, the kidnapper picked up a nearby bottle and brought it down on her, causing something strange to happen. She glitched. And she wouldn’t stop, managing to free herself from his tight grip and running out into the streets again, trying to lose him amongst the hoards of people. A light ball suddenly appeared in front of her, wanting to help, and spoke to her reassuringly, leading her back to the theater as the glitch cried that she just wanted her parents. They ran through the ornate red doors, the light locking them behind him, and through into the back of one of the rooms, where the screen was playing that same movie from before. The light watched as she continued to glitch, but the music from the movie seemed to soothe her, despite her head bleeding from the impact. The light stayed with her until she eventually fell asleep, deciding to go out and scour the streets for any worried parents, but he didn’t find any. And by the time he returned, Golden had disappeared, and the only trace left was a faint sense of a glitch.

Golden opened her eyes slowly, yawning and rubbing them, before staring at everyone. Unlike the rest of them, her amnesia had affected her ability to see the memories they had, but she couldn’t help but notice how shaken they all looked. Her butterflies seemed to have butterflies themselves as she tried to meet their gazes. Scout had her hand over her mouth in shock, Mickey and Oswald were clinging to each other, and Julius looked very upset, whilst Yen Sid was merely looking down, fists tight as his phoenix raged inside him, protective instincts higher than ever as he finally looked up at his little girl.  “Did…something happen?” she whispered, everyone looking apprehensive to tell her, but Yen Sid finally approached her, reaching down as she sat up and giving her a tight embrace, as if fearing she may vanish within seconds. “My dear child…I don’t ever want you to feel fear, but you know that I’ll always be there to protect and teach you, and keep you safe from anything that may try to harm you. That I promise, at all costs.” he whispered, Golden nodding but wondering what could have happened. He didn’t seem to want to talk about it, though… so instead, she just reached up to return the hug gently. “Papa, I know that, and I’ll always trust you. I’m gonna protect you too!” She insisted, Yen Sid giving a slight chuckle. “Oh my sweet child, I’d appreciate that a lot. Really.” he replied, before giving her a kiss on the cheek, his beard tickling her and making her giggle. He then lifted her up into his arms, gazing at her for a moment. She was still small, naive…and this put everything he’d said to her during that argument into a whole new light. At the time, that arrogance was one he recognized, but now…she really was just as he had said- another apprentice, a novice…the list went on. She was young, and needed to be protected from harm, as the thought of what might’ve happened that day weighed on his mind. He passed her to Scout, who grinned down at her, even if everyone was still struggling to process everything, and Yen Sid turned to them all. “I’d say this was…a success, this experiment of mine. I learned things about you all today, so thank you for agreeing to take part. I know it wasn’t easy, so you should all get some rest, to make sure you’re ready for tomorrow’s classes. Make your way upstairs, I’ll come in a moment to wish you all goodnight, alright?” he spoke, everyone nodding and Scout taking Golden’s hand, the two of them heading up together as their rooms were opposite each other, and Scout intended to brush Golden’s hair before bed, something the kid found comforting. 

Yen Sid watched them leave, breathing a deep sigh and closing his eyes, before feeling someone grip his hand, turning and looking down to see Mickey looking up at him, slightly timid. “Master…are you feeling alright?” He whispered, Yen Sid’s stoic expression soon melting into a gentle smile as he looked down at his youngest son. He nodded, gently reaching down to rub one of Mickey’s ears, something the little one liked as a form of affection. “I’m just a little tired, Mickey, but thank you for your concern. You’ve got a heart of gold, much like your sister, so never change.” he smiled, Mickey’s eyes going bright at this, as if they were made of shining stars. The sight alone cheered Yen Sid up slightly, and he gave a slightly firmer rub, one which tickled and made Mickey giggle. “Now, run along my little lad. I’ll be there soon.” the older sorcerer finished, Mickey giving a wave as he ran out. “Alright, night dad! Love you!” He called, Yen Sid giving a slightly wider smile, and gazing at some photos as he walked into his office. “I love you all too…” he whispered, looking up at one of them all together, a memory he’d captured for a future photo album, but which for now sat on his wall. Heading past the shelves, he caught sight of another photo, a framed one of himself and two others, from when he was younger. He took it into his hands, looking down at it, and then back up at the other one on the wall. “I hope things will never change between us.” he finally whispered, placing the photo back in its proper place, and lighting a candle on his desk. He thought back to all the memories he’d experienced today- Julius’s friendship, Oswald’s past, Mickey’s joy, Scout’s potential, and Golden’s fragility. He couldn’t bear to see a single one of them hurting, so he would do what he could for all of them. He knew that light, that kind man who had changed his life, and seemingly the life of his youngest, and contained his aura by thinking back on those soft memories of times before, even before Julius. He took out a quill and piece of paper, enchanting it, and wrote the first words of a letter.

‘Dear Percy…’

Scout brushed Golden’s hair, working on her fringe as it had a tendency to stick up. Though as she did, she noticed something she’d never paid attention to before, gently brushing the hair back to get a better look. Golden was confused as to why she was leaning in closer, but didn’t question it- her big sis always knew best. Scout’s eyes went wide for a moment. The force of that bottle hadn’t just caused her to bleed, it had left a scar. She clenched her fists and shuddered slightly, Golden inching back to see if she was okay. “Scout…? Is something wrong?” she whispered, Scout coming to her senses and shaking her head. “No, nothing. Sorry, I was just checking something.” she replied, before moving around to brush the back of Golden’s hair, who reached into her pocket and pulled out the photo, silently wishing someone would tell her something. And Scout felt a frown crossing her face as she thought back on that man with the cigarette. She hoped he would get comeuppance for what he did, but now the most important thing was Golden. And clearly, there was much to discuss regarding if she should be told everything. Continuing to brush, Scout began to hum a lullaby, the same one Yen Sid would sing to them all, before tucking Golden into bed. “Goodnight, little sis.” she whispered, heading into her own room to journal the night away.