This Time I'll Make You Disappear (Mystery Skulls Animated)

Five: Day One, Memory Walk

Mystery barked happily when his owner stepped into the house. Arthur's previously saddened mood flipped immediately when he heard his companion.

"Hey, Mystery, b-boy! W-wanna go f-for a quick walk a-around the p-park?!" Arthur pat his legs and the dog quickly and excitedly ran to his owner, jumping all over him and barking happily.

Arthur giggled and grabbed the leash he left at the door from before. Mystery whined a little, but almost immediately went back to being excited. 'What's got him so excited?' The blonde hooked the leash on the collar.

"C-come on, Mystery, t-to the p-park!" Arthur smiled and opened the door. He zipped up his jacket more and put on his hood.

Mystery urged Arthur to walk and the blonde found himself being pulled by the dog.

"O-okay, Mystery, g-geez, what's got you s-so pumped?" Arthur held on tightly to the leash as he started walking at the same pace as Mystery.

Soon, they were on the track at the park and Arthur just looked around, memories flooding his mind of when he, Vivi, and Lewis were kids.

~~~

"Come on, Artie! We gotta get to the playground!" squeaked a nine-year-old Lewis running down the park's trail.

"I-I-I'm c-c-coming, Lew!" ten-year-old Arthur squeaked back.

"Are you making fun of the way I sound?"

"N-n-n-no, Lew! Y-y-you know I w-w-would n-n-never-"

"I know you wouldn't, Artie. Chill out. Now come on! Vivi's already beat us there!"

"O-okay!"

The two boys ran faster, Lewis the faster of the two, and soon they arrived to see twelve-year-old Vivi sitting on the monkey bars with a smug smirk on her face.

"Come on, slow-pokes," she teased jokingly.

Lewis and Arthur were panting for breath by time they arrived at the playground.

"How....did you......get here.....so fast?" Lewis wheezed.

"I'm the oldest and the tallest!" Vivi bragged.

"That's n-not.....f-f-fair," Arthur dropped to the ground on his back.

Vivi laughed so hard that she started leaning back. She forgot she was on the monkey bars for a minute and panicked when she didn't feel anything behind her supporting her. She stopped laughing and instantly started screaming, not wanting to fall to the ground.

Vivi fell off of the monkey bars and felt the impact...of arms? The bluenette opened an eye precariously. She sighed in relief when she saw Lewis' purple eyes looking at her worriedly.

"Are you okay, Vivi?" he asked concerned, but it just turned out squeaky. Darn puberty.

Vivi giggled and hugged Lewis. "Thank you for saving me, Lewy. I really thought I was a goner."

Lewis instantly started blushing profusely. "Uh...hehe, it was, um...it was n-no problem, heh. I wouldn't just...l-let you f-fall, now would I?" Lewis flustered.

"Oooh!" Arthur sang. "Lew's g-got a cr-crush on V-Vivi!"

"N-No I don't! I-I mean, n-not that you a-aren't crushworthy, it's just...no, wait...ugh, why can't I get my point across?"

Vivi laughed and let go of Lewis. "It's okay, Lewis. Arthur was just joking."

"Y-yeah, s-sure," Arthur shrugged.

.........

"L-Lew, if y-y-you're g-g-g-g-gonna slide, d-d-do it n-no-now," Arthur complained.

"I...I can't," Lewis squeaked. "I-I'm scared."

"You're scared? I th-thought I was the sc-scaredy-cat a-around here."

"Look, Artie...I've always...had this fear of heights...I don't know where it came from, but...I can't slide down," Lewis' lip quivered a little.

"Hey, h-hey, it's okay. N-no one's g-g-gonna force you to do something y-y-you don't w-w-wanna do, okay?" Arthur placed a gentle hand on Lewis' back. "A-and d-don't be ashamed t-t-to be afraid, o-okay? It's n-normal."

Lewis looked back at Arthur and smiled a little. "Thanks, Artie, for understanding."

"N-no problem, b-bud," Arthur smiled back.

Vivi suddenly ran excitedly past Arthur. She bumped into him in the process, bumping him into Lewis who was now going down the slide.

"Lewis!" Arthur screamed and watched the kid slide down while covering his eyes. "O-oh no."

Arthur hurriedly ran down the stairs and to Lewis' aid.

"L-Lew, buddy, are y-you-"

"WHY DID YOU PUSH ME!?!?" Lewis roared.

"L-L-Lew, I-I-I-I d-d-didn't m-mean it! V-Vivi b-b-bu-bumped i-into me, i-it was a ch-chain r-re-reaction!" Arthur sputtered out quickly, fearing the kid's rage.

"THAT...that was sc-scary...but, also kinda fun," Lewis calmed down and looked at the terrified Arthur. "Sorry, for jumping to conclusions, Artie...I always tend to do that." Lewis rubbed the back of his neck.

"I-i-it's okay," Arthur shook.

Lewis smiled and hugged his best friend. "Thanks, Artie. You're the best friend a guy could ever ask for."

"Y-you t-too, L-Lew," Arthur hugged back.

~~~

Arthur looked at the empty playground. He looked at the monkey bars that were no longer the beautiful, glowing blue color they were in his childhood. As they continued walking, Arthur noticed more memories. Like when he watched Lewis push Vivi on the swings or vice versa. He'd remember playing tag and he'd always be it. He remembered playing pirates on the big boat attraction. Lewis would often be the captain, Vivi was the navigator, and he would be the sharpshooter. Lewis always referenced an anime called One Piece he watched at that age about a bunch of pirates.

Arthur stopped at a slide. It was a dull yellow compared to the shiny golden it used to be. Regardless, this slide brought him to tears. Mystery sat and looked up at his owner concerned and confused. 'This is the same slide...I accidentally pushed Lewis down...key word; accidentally.'

The blonde sobbed loudly, tears falling freely down his face. The situation was absolutely different, but it still hurt him to know he scared his best friend that day. Lewis had a fear of heights and Arthur was sure he still had that fear. That's why he didn't stand so close to the edge.

"I-I'm sorry," Arthur wept, "But you wouldn't c-care a-about 'sorry', n-now, w-would y-you!"

Mystery winced, having no idea who Arthur was calling out to. To be honest, Arthur had almost forgotten the dog was with him. He wiped his tears for the second time that day. 'Stop with these random bursts of tears.'

"S-sorry, Mystery," Arthur sniffed. "That sl-slide just b-br-brought up some memories."

Mystery placed a paw on Arthur's leg in comfort. The blonde smiled a little and pet the little dog's head thankfully.

"Come on, b-buddy. L-let's g-go home."

Mystery barked in agreement and started walking back.

'One day down, three to go...'

~~~

Heya everyone! Sorry I updated this too late. One Piece feels got to me for the whole day and I totally forgot to post this! Sorry, I'm kinda obsessed thanks to my Korean friend. Anyways! I hope you all enjoyed this, you know what to do if you did! I will see you guys on Wednesday! Go Seahawks (for my football fans)! Bye!