Gasps all around. The old advisors shimmered and — poof! — turned into two tiny reptiles. One in a comically small tailcoat, the other flicking her long braid like a whip. They stood frozen for a second… then bolted in opposite directions!
— Great. — Pestichida jutted out her bottom lip. — Now I'll have to invent new advisors.
— Maybe you don't have to. We could be them. — Yuki offered. Her brother jumped in right away:
— Yeah, and your kingdom's already cool as it is, so we wouldn't even have that much work.
— You like it here? — Pestichida beamed. — Best thing I've heard all day. Wait— all night?!
Up in the sky, the bright sun suddenly blinked out, replaced by the familiar moon. Pestichida shivered.
— I didn't order a day-night switch! Delivery service in my subconscious is terrible!
Right then, a pair of ordinary glasses dropped to the ground beside her. The kids leapt toward them, Mami rolling in first with a gasp:
— Oh my stars! It's my double! Did it just fall from the moon?
Everyone turned to the glowing orb above. Yuki squinted and saw something familiar shaping on its surface: whiskers, little ears, even fangs — just like the cat she'd seen before.
— Cat-Moon, — Pestichida muttered. — I swear I didn't create that. I know everything about ROFLand. It's all my thoughts made real. How did that sneak in?
— Sis, we have to go there! Mom's there! — Lil C. shouted. — You get that, right?
— Of course I get it. But how do we get up there? Hmmm… maybe… here, kitty kitty kitty… — Yuki pinched her fingers together and called out to the moon. And sure enough, it started drifting closer. But not close enough to climb aboard.
— Ugh, if only we had a rope! — Pom-Pom groaned.
— It can be engineered, — Mami suggested. Pestichida waved a hand at her fluffy guards.
— Jump on my servants, they'll bounce you like trampolines. Maybe you'll make it… or maybe you'll crash. Better stand back first.
Yuki and Lil C. froze mid-step. Then they heard footsteps: someone strolling past with a baguette, and the rumble of a car engine. Reaching to their faces, they realized — their device was gone.
— Looking for this? — came a voice both familiar and dear. The children turned. Their father was there. Dr. Chaffy stood before them, not in his usual lab coat but in jeans and a plain T-shirt, looking like an ordinary dad. Except… in his hands he clutched two pairs of defibrillators, sparking with mental static.
— Lucky thing I built two models, huh? Otherwise I couldn't have come to help you. And by the way, running a kingdom turned out pretty simple. — He chuckled, and Yuki doubled over with laughter.
— Wait… so Pestichida Carbonara was you all along?
— Who else? I came back from the store, couldn't find my kids, and turns out you two were hopping in and out of other people's brains.
— You're not gonna ground us for that? — Lil C. asked nervously.
— Ground you? No way. Especially since you helped me figure out what happened to Mom.
— Daddy, don't keep us waiting! — They hung on his arms, and he playfully swatted them off. When the wrestling stopped, he got serious.
— The moon is the symbol of a massive, dangerous mind. A core image someone built their sub-world around. Our two devices linked up, sent out a surge, and that caught his attention. He dropped the glasses on purpose — to taunt us, and to hint at something.
— Hint at what?
Dad's face darkened.
— That hostile consciousness has swallowed your mom. My wife. Now we need to understand how he pulled it off. But more importantly… we need to find her and bring her back. Right?
— Of course!
— Which is why I've changed my mind about sending you straight to that fake moon. We need a plan. No rushing, no recklessness. And what's the best way to plan? Over a good meal.
He grinned.
— I bought tons of healthy salads, and after that — popcorn. Special kind. Licorice flavor!
The twins groaned in unison. Lil C. could already feel his stomach preparing a rebellion. And he still had to climb all the way to the moon… Maybe he should just call a cab?