Keeper of the Wizarding Dizznees

Chapter 13

Marella POV:
Wow! Magic Kingdom is just... Wow! And the castle! Yes, some elves lived in houses bigger than that, but it was still impressive, majestic, and well... Magical. Marella looked around, trying to take in everything she saw at once. She saw a golden statue of Walt Disney with Mickey Mouse. She had heard all about it, of course. It was called the Partner's Statue. She saw Main Street U.S.A, with all of its lamp posts, and buildings. The Dapper Dans going around with their quartet, performing songs for everyone, as a giant Remy the Rat paraded around, taking pictures with the guests. She thought she was having a heart attack, however when she accidentally bumped into a girl her age, but instead of colliding with her, she passed right through her! She turned around to apologize, even if she didn't get an explanation, but she was already speaking. "Welcome Ladies and Gentlemen, Boys and Girls. You are on Main Street U.S.A of the Magic Kingdom." She moved weirdly. Almost- robotically? "May I show you around today? Please feel free to interrupt at any time, and I will be happy to answer your question," said another boy. He was tall, dark-skinned, and had dreadlocks that went to his shoulders.
"It's a beautiful day in the Magic Kingdom!" the girl said. The girl's voice dropped and turned less syrupy. "My name is Charlene. That's Maybeck. You're part of the group coming in with Sophie Foster, right? Don't tell anyone I'm doing this, alright? Only people in your group." She switched back to the louder, more sugary voice. "Magic Kingdom opened in 1971, after Walt's brother, Roy, carried on Walt's dream of owning the Park. Sadly, Walt never got to see it happen.: She lowered her voice again. "Listen, we need your help. Can you round up the rest of your group, and meet me and Maybeck over by Escher's Keep in 20 minutes?" she stared at the confused look on Marella's face. "Right, you don't know what that is. Just meet us on the side of the castle in 20 minutes. I'll be bringing some friends." Charlene walked away, but before she did, she loudly said "Okay! If you need assistance later, just find me and say 'Hello, Charlene'".

Sophie POV:
Sophie walked over to Marella. "Why was that girl moving and talking so electronically? And what'd she want with you? Who was the boy, also?"

"Well," Marella started slowly. "The girl was named... What was it... Shirley, or something? And her friend's name was something like- Mayleck, maybe?"

"O... M... G...!" Sophie gushed. "Did you just talk to the Charlene Turner and Terry Maybeck?!"

"Uhhh, maybe? But- how do you know them?" Marella asked.

"I don't know them personally, but I've read about them! They're the Kingdom Keepers. You know the villains from the Disney movies?"

"Yeah..."

"Right, so they're trying to take over the Parks, so the 5 kids were turned into holograms to guide people in the Parks. They also turn into holograms in the Parks at night to defeat the villains!"

"Ohhh. Well... She wanted to meet us at this Escher's Keep place on the side of the castle in 20 minutes. All of us. She said something about needing us, and asked me if I was 'part of Sophie Foster's group'".

"Escher's Keep!? I've always wanted to go there! Yessss! So... Let's gather the others." Sophie paused, then called out "Linh, Tam, Keefe, Wylie, Biana, Fitz, Dex, Amy, Maruca! We need you over here!"

"But... Sophie... Are we really just going to trust these random hologram kids?" Marella asked.

"Yes," Sophie replied.
Everyone gathered around the bench by the Partner's Statue, and Sophie explained the change in plans.

15 minutes later, they found themselves outside the firehouse on Main Street U.S.A.
"I thought we were supposed to meet them outside the castle." Tam said, confused.

"Nope. We're supposed to meet them in Escher's Keep. There just so happens to be an entrance here too. Sophie really hoped she remembered the way up, because if she didn't, they would open a trapdoor, dropping them into the castle's moat. Thankfully though, she saw another group of people coming towards them. Suddenly, the blond haired girl who had come up to Marella earlier was visible in the dim lighting of the Keep.
"Charlene." Sophie whispered. As more people appeared, she recited their names. First it was a red haired boy with a British accent, who Sophie recognized as Philby, then a girl with dark hair, and hooded eyes, who's name was Willa, and last came two more boys. One looked to be their leader, Finn Whitman, who stood next to Terry Maybeck.
"Is everyone here?" Finn asked her.

"Yes... why?" Sophie answered.

"We need your help, as Charlene already told you. We heard about what's been happening in the Lost Cities from an inside source, who would like to remain anonymous for now. And similar things have been happening here. The kidnappings, vandalism, threats, even almost deaths..." Finn finished, staring at Sophie while grinning. Sophie blushed and turned away. He soon turned serious again. "So... Can you help?"

"Ummm... Sure- wait? Where are Amanda, Jess, and Mattie?" Sophie realized that the 3 girls were missing. "And what's up with Emily, Tim, and Nick these days?"
Finn obviously didn't know what to say to that, so he just shrugged. Philby stepped in for him.
"Amanda, Jess, and Mattie are joining us later. As for Nick, Tim, and Emily, they won't be coming until at least tomorrow."

Sophie realized how vulnerable they were, just standing there on the bottom of Escher's Keep, so she said "You know what, maybe we should continue this up at the top of the Keep, where we'll get less eavesdroppers."

"Okay."

Sophie walked up the first staircase, skipping every other tread. She looked back to make sure everyone else knew where else to go. She opened a door, hoping it was the right one. She thought she remembered it being the purple one, so she put her hand gently on the knob, and slowly pushed it open. It opened, and Sophie walked inside. She helped her friends across the invisible bridge, making sure they veered right towards what wasn't actually a solid wall. They all got to 2 different staircases.

"Now if I remember correctly, this is the one where you need to go down the stairs in order to go back up." Sophie said decisively. It looked like they were walking upside down. When they got to the 3rd platform, they went behind the false wall with 2 windows. She instructed everyone to go across the floor, only stepping on the black tiles, but never 2 in a row. There was now just the middle staircase, the red door, then they could take the left staircase, cross the last invisible bridge, and get to... a black hole.

There was really an elevator there, but nobody wanted to test that. Only Sophie was brave enough, so when she got on and didn't fall, everyone else got in too. They finally exited the elevator into a small apartment. Sophie practically squealed when she saw a girl laying on the couch. She had long, black hair, dyed red at the tips, and tattoos on her arms. This could be none other than Mattie Weaver. Another girl emerged from the shadows. She had blond hair, almost white actually, and pale skin.