True Love Conquers All (Open)

[Madam Mim]

"Eh?" Mim glanced over to that meddling feral girl she had imprisoned only a short while ago - she had almost completely forgotten about her. "That worthless wench? Oh, fine, I'll let her go," she hastily agreed, clearly not caring much for the girl. She was planning to personally make her pay for her interference, but, in the end, it didn't matter whether or not she lived, so long as Mim got her way.

"... If you win," she added, grinning smugly at the elderly duck and his comrades. Were she not so greatly outnumbered, the witch's confidence might have given her foes cause to worry - she did have more than a few nasty tricks up her sleeve.

"So! Shall we begin?" Mim clapped her hands together and smiled in the same manner as an excitable child.

[She-Wolf]

Of course, the Masked Mallard's demand was of much greater notice to the imprisoned wild girl than to Mim. Her striking gray eyes expressed surprise and stared straight at the Masked Mallard when the duck requested that she be set free. Why did they want her to live...? And why did they want her on their "team"?

While the prospect of being let go was favorable for the girl, she had no desire to join the group that was confronting Mim. Even if they did share a common enemy at this time, they were still outsiders to the wolf-girl - trespassers, even. The girl had made it a rule to not trust people, to shun them. Their world, the world of buildings and streets and false laws and crime and senseless murder, was a corrupt world, and she wanted no part in it. The humans and duck she saw before her... they only wanted her free so they could use her abilities for their own whims. She had no reason to be thankful to them. When she was set free, she'd kill that damn witch herself, by her own will, and then send those intruders back where they came from.

Of course, she had yet to realize that she had more in common with the foursome than she thought.

[The Masked Mallard]

The duck gritted his teeth in his anger and frustration. If it had been just him, he would have arguec Mim down, poking her about being so worried about a wild girl being such a threat to her. He wasn't so willing to make such a gamble with Dreamchild and Sunshine's lives however. This was a dangerous game, and having seen how unpredictable and nasty-tempered Mim was, he feared pressing his luck in a situation where he wasn't holding all the cards.

The Masked Mallard hated it when he wasn't holding all the cards. He didn't trust Mim to keep her word about freeing the girl. He never trusted any of the crooks they fought. He glanced to the other Dreamers, the back at the witch.

"Very well." He said through gritted teeth. The infamous McDuck temper was starting to show, but he tried to bludgeon it back.

[Madam Mim]

Mim uttered an excited cackle, eager to begin their little game of hide-and-go-seek - it was almost unbelievable how the same old witch that had cursed a young girl to eternal slumber, and threatened to kill another young girl, showed such childlike enthusiasm over even the simplest of games. Indeed, games of all sorts were Mim's greatest love of all, and, competitive as ever, she could simply never pass up a challenge to one.

"You all run along and hide, now! I promise not to peek!" she assured the heroes, although as she turned from them to approach the tree that would serve as home base, a sly smirk grew across her wrinkled face - only Paradox and Archimedes would know for certain that you could never trust Madam Mim when it came to playing fair, but it couldn't be too difficult for the other Dreamers to sense that she wouldn't stick to her word, either. The squat old hag shut her eyes, covered her face with her arms and leaned against the trunk of a large tree, commencing her countdown to twenty. "One, two, three, four..."

[Dreamchild]

Dreamchild had sent convicts to the authorities that were more likable than this old, fat, ugly witch. What right does she have to gamble with lives so shamelessly? The stakes were high, but Dreamchild knew it didn't matter. She telepathically (and sarcastically) asked Paradox a question. <<I don't suppose we can trust her?>>

No, there was no possible chance that Mim would keep her promise. But what could they do? Dreamchld levitated so that her stepping feet wouldn't signal where she was heading, turned, and rose up to a large tree. She hid behind the tree, standing on top of a branch, high off the ground. She would wait and think.

[Paradox]

<<Of course not!>> Paradox mentally scowled in response to Dreamchild's query. He grumbled and muttered under his breath, but he said his true feelings through his mind. <<You can't trust her at all. She's a natural cheater, and even if we do win she won't keep her promises.>>

The old wizard transformed himself into an amorphous swirl of glitter and smoke, and it very hurriedly shot behind a tree, out of sight, presumably to hide.

[Archimedes]

Archimedes, meanwhile, was left hovering in mid-air as Merlin dematerialized into a whispy cloud and shot behind a tree. Rapidly flapping his wings to stay airborne, the owl quickly followed what he could see of Merlin and perched himself on a nearby tree branch, hidden from Mim's view.

However, he could still get a decent look at the witch from where he sat, and he scowled furiously at her, feathers ruffled. He simply couldn't believe that she had the nerve to follow them here into the future... and here he thought their witch problems were over! Perhaps things wouldn't be so difficult now that they had strength in numbers, however... but Archimedes knew that Mim couldn't be felled that easily. She'd pull out every nasty trick she could think of to get her way.

[Sunshine]

Sunshine, who had quite enough of the old witch, harshly stared at Mim as she negotiated with the Masked Mallard what would be the winner of the game's prize. Sunshine wanted the old witch brought to justice, and she wanted her brought to justice yesterday. But, sensing that the Masked Mallard was onto something, she waited silently until Mim turned and started to count. The witch's counting was Sunshine's cue; without making a sound, she rose in the air and flew away, up beyond the tree tops, out of sight. Where was she going? Was she abandoning everyone, or did she have something in mind? Was she hiding...?

[The Masked Mallard]

The Masked Mallard's dander was up, but he knew he needed to maintain a cool head. Seeing the other Dreamers employ assorted methods of hiding themselves, the avian darted for some temporary cover of his own, behind the trunk of of a large tree. With his cape and top hat, hiding in the thicket would only hinder his movement.

Concentrating with all his might, he literally shouted in his mind at the Dreamer's resident psychic: 'Dreamchild! Relay this message to everyone: don't try to engage Mim in close quarters! Provide a moving target, either distract or hit her hard and fast, and get away! We'll tire out that old bag of bones first!' With her dumpy physique, Madame Mim didn't look very fast, and he'd wager she wasn't in very good shape either.

The Scotsduck hadn't noticed Sunshine's seeming departure just yet. Seeing as how Merlin had converted himself into a cloud of glittering smoke, the duck made for the tree where Archimedes perched. Using his cane, he hooked onto a branch and half climbed, half-pulled himself up until he was right underneath Archimedes. The Masked Mallard could see him from he where he stood on one of the sturdier branches. He wanted to question the bird before the actual fighting began.

"Archimedes, does she have any exploitable weaknesses?" He asked, keeping his voice lowered to harsh whisper as he indicated Mim with a jerk of his head.

[Dreamchild]

Standing on the tree branch high off the ground, Dreamchild let out a soft, barely audible gasp when she saw Sunshine fly out of sight. She noticed the pink and blue-clad teenager fly off through the corner of her eye. Why was she flying away? Was she a coward? Dreamchild stopped her negative thoughts, though, when she realized that she still sensed Sunshine's presence. She was still nearby, maybe just above the trees and hidden. Therefore, Dreamchild trusted Sunshine. Her thoughts were interrupted by the Masked Mallard's sudden voice. Her gloved hands pressed against the tree for support, Dreamchild occasionally looked from around the tree to Mim, as she responded to the elder.

<<Yes, Mr. Mallard. I will tell everyone.>> Dreamchild did as she was told, addressing everyone through their minds... even Sunshine, who was evidently high above. <<The Masked Mallard orders us to not attack Mim in close quarters. Distract her or create targets for her to focus on, and attack her by surprise, then run away. Hit and run, I suppose is what he meant.>>

Dreamchild licked her lips as she anxiously waited for Mim to finish counting.

[Archimedes]

"Not too many, I'm afraid," Archimedes whispered back to the Masked Mallard - he didn't even bother to glance down at him, as his yellow eyes were still locked onto Mim. "She'll do absolutely anything and everything it takes just to win - that's all she cares about. And believe me, she has more than a few tricks up her sleeves, so be prepared for anything."

He stared down the witch with a glare as intense as a burning sun, anxiously awaiting her first move...

[Madam Mim]

Unbeknown to the Dream League, they too, were being watched - by Mim, even as she hid her face while counting down. Just as Archimedes had warned the Masked Mallard, she was full of surprises - and her means of spying on her competitors certainly must have surprised whoever had caught a glance of her at that precise moment. On the back of her head, even through her bushel of scraggly purple hair, two huge, wild green eyes - the very same as the pair on the front of Mim's head - snuck a glance at where everybody was running off to (with the exception of Sunshine, whom she didn't see anywhere at all...), with a sly and cocksure look. It was likely that at least one of them caught a glimpse of her little trick, but she didn't care - something as small as that couldn't possibly diminish her chances of winning.

"... Eighteen... nineteen... TWENTY!" There was no trace of the eyes on the back of her head once she lifted her head back up, but the eyes on her face were lit up with manic glee. The game was on!

"Ready or not..." However, as Paradox and Archimedes said, she rarely played fair, and the very first move she made in this game was, lo and behold, foul play. With a swirl of extravagant purple smoke, she vanished from sight - but her voice remained. "HERE I COME!" she cackled, her voice echoing all around the clearing. There was no telling where she was hiding...

[Dreamchild]

From where she hid, Dreamchild occasionally risked her secrecy by shifting her weight and looking around the tree. She could see what looked like two white circles behind Mim's head. It was obvious that they were a pair of eyes. If Dreamchild was easily impressed by cheating hags, she would have been thrilled. But, no, she was actually quite displeased and annoyed. She quickly hid behind the tree when she realized she nearly made eye contact with the witch. Oh, well!

She heard Mim announce herself, and Dreamchild waited, staying very quiet, waiting and ready to act. It wasn't the game she was concerned about. It was the player, not the game, whom Dreamchild targeted. She looked around, waiting to find Mim, should she appear.

[Madam Mim]

Unfortunately for Dreamchild, Mim had caught a brief glimpse of her hiding spot while taking time out of counting to take a "tiny peek" at her competitors - that brief glimpse was more than enough to tell her where one of her foes was hiding, though. The game was on, and Mim was pumped up, raring to go and ready to throw all of the magical tactics at her disposal to win. Although it seemed almost as if she had completely vanished from the area, there was no way she would leave until the game was finished.

Being the first victim she caught in her sights, Dreamchild would also be the first to discover Mim's whereabouts. Right behind the Dream Come True, hidden in the darkness of the surrounding forest, Mim's wild green eyes suddenly appeared, eyeing Dreamchild with sadistic glee as a cat would eye its prey. This allegory would turn out to be literal - a ferocious roar suddenly bellowed from behind Dreamchild, as Mim leaped out of her hiding spot - not as a squat old hag, however, but as a huge, pink, pot-bellied tiger with purple stripes. It was immediately obvious that the cat was Mim in disguise, as it retained her large eyes and scraggly mat of purple hair atop her head. Dreamchild had little time to take in these details, however, as Mim was in the process of pouncing right on top of her, displaying a delighted snaggletoothed grin.

[Dreamchild]

Dreamchild, whose back was turned to her adversary at the time, sensed Mim's presence. She gasped and spun around, in time to see a multicolored, obese tiger pounce for her. Dreamchild was amazed that Mim, especially in tiger form, could stand on top of the same tree branch as Dreamchild and not break the branch, considering how much she must have weighed at the time. But, then again, the branch was large and thick, and supported Dreamchild up till then. But there was no time to think of such details.

Dreamchild, seeing no other branch above her, only could jump off. She used her powers to slow her descent, almost as though she had a parachute. But she knew Mim wasn't going to give up! As soon as her feet touched the ground, she looked up to the tiger and tried to shove Mim with a psychic push, from where she stood. Unfortunately, the further away the target determined how less effect the psychic shove could be.

[Madam Mim]

Oh, bat gizzards! It was bothersome enough that the little brat had the nerve to dodge just before Mim could have tackled her - she then made use of her powers to mess up her game even more. The tiger's smug, confident grin became a bewildered slack-jawed frown as she suddenly felt some strange force propel her farther back in mid-air. "Aah! What in the-" she shrieked and muttered to herself, seconds before plummeting down to earth with a thunderous THWUMP.

In her current feline form, she was so immense and weighty that she actually managed to cause a slight crater in the forest floor from the impact of her fall. She had landed unceremoniously on her back, and, after heaving herself back up and shaking her head, she glared with irritation at Dreamchild. "Don't think you've won, brat!" she growled, moments before raising up her paw, within which an orb of bright pink, crackling magical energy rapidly began to form. In an instant, she swing her arm to hurl the ball of pink lightning towards Dreamchild. It wouldn't make contact with the girl, however - instead, upon reaching mere inches away from her, it would spontaneously spread itself out into a transparent pink barrier, similar to the one that held the wild woman hostage. Dreamchild would be temporarily trapped in this magical prison, until the game was over - of course, if Mim won, Dreamchild's fate would be no better off.

"I spotted ya, so now you're out!" Mim jeered at the imprisoned girl, with a proud and condescending tone. After enjoying her first victory, she quickly whirled her head all around her, her tiger ears twitching two and fro. "Now, where could all of your little friends be hiding?" she mused, with a gleeful cackle. Mim was already well on her way to winning, and this gave her a rush that could only be quelled by the tables being turned.

[Dreamchild]

<<Mim is a tiger,>> Dreamchild mentally spoke through the links she established with her fellow Dreamers. <<Be careful!>> She turned to run, but the ground shook when they immensely fat and heavy tiger crashed hard on the forest floor. This caused Dreamchild to nearly lose her footing, effectively stopping her escape. She avoided tripping, but she lost precious seconds; she looked back as the tigerish Mim insulted her, and trapped her in a pink barrier, a magical cage similar to what that wolf girl was trapped in.

Dreamchild stared angrily at the transformed witch. "I may be 'out,' but you are going to lose in the end. I promise you that."

Calming herself, she closed her eyes and placed her gloved fingers on her temple. No, pressing the fingertips to the head wasn't necessary, but it seemed to help her concentrate.

<<Well, I'm afraid I'm 'out.' Mim has caught me in a barrier, like that strange woman. I'm sorry for being captured so fast; I'm disappointed in myself.>>

She pouted a little childishly. She sat Indian style on the ground, folded her arms on her chest, and waited for the game to end. Was she nervous that the Dreamers would lose? Maybe slightly, but she tried not to expose it.

[Sunshine]

---

Meanwhile, high above the forest's canopy and way up in the air, Sunshine's eyes were closed, and her arms were open as if to embrace the sun, which her body was facing. It was working; she could already feel solar energy course throughout her body and held in storage. She was absorbing much-needed power.

"Please grant me some more of your power, great sun," she whispered sincerely, like she was praying to a deity. "I promise to put your energy to a worthy cause. I must defeat this witch, and help those who helped me. Please, just a little more..."

Her lips frowned when she heard the distant mental voice of Dreamchild. Apparently, she had just been captured by Mim. All the more reason to gain more solar energy quickly! She had to hurry!

---

[The Masked Mallard]

From where he hid, the Masked Mallard heard a tremendous crash. Something big and heavy must've fallen from a considerable height off the ground. Sounded like battle to him! He began making his way towards the direction where the sound came from. Indeed, he could hear Mim and Dreamchild's voices, although he was still too far off to hear exactly what was being said. Stopping when he could hear no more, the duck concealed himself behind a cluster of boulders.

He was relieved when Dreamchild contacted him and other Dreamers through the mental link she had with them. She sounded disappointed, but not hurt or the like. As he listened to her telepathic message, a frown creased his brow. Mim had succeeded in capturing one of his teammates already. Blast, so now there were two people that noxious witch had in her clutches!

' 'Tis alright, lass. We'll get you out of there.' The Gentleman's Crimefighter reassured the dismayed youth.

So Mim was a shape-changer, was she? 'That would've been a handy fact to know, Paradox.' He thought bitterly. Well, Archimedes had warned him to be prepared for anything, he supposed. But still, more detail on what the sorceress was capable of would've been appreciated. Speaking of which, he wondered where Paradox and Archimedes were hiding, or Sunshine for that matter. He hadn't seen where she had gone. If he found them, then they could coordinate a plan of attack.

All was silent now. The Masked Mallard still didn't exactly know where Mom was. He risked running right into her if he walked through the forest. Reaching down, he picked up a stone that lay near his feet and pocketed it for future use. True, a thrown rock would hardly dissuade a tiger, but he wasn't actually planning on throwing it at Madame Mim. He had another idea in mind for it -- well, it was going to be more of a wee trick, really. Turning, he carefully raised his head over the boulder in front of him, trying to see if he could spy anything. To anyone who was looking at the boulder head on, only the upper half of his white-feathered head, including his eyes, were visible.