Kestrel woke up to the sounds of yelling. Sir Richard and Sir Galahad were arguing about whether knights or ninjas were more cool. "Knights have swords!" Sir Richard shouted. "So do ninjas!" Sir Galahad retorted. "Ninjas are cooler because they can sneak up on people and hide in the shadows. Knights just ride around on horses wearing clanky tin cans and challenging people to duels. Ninjas are better!" "Yeah right!  

Knights are brave and fearless and they have lots of weapons and shields. Ninjas only have swords!" "Nuh-uh! Ninjas have ninja stars too. And they have deadly aim. You better watch out!" "Well, whatever. Ninjas are still cowards, though! They just sneak around in the shadows and wait for perfect opportunities." "Knights never think twice. They just charge out onto the battlefield unprepared!" "I challenge you to a duel!" Sir Richard yelled. "Fine!" Sir Galahad accepted. The two sirs circled each other as Joan and Autumn Leaves sat watching, bored. "He's always like this," Joan complained. "So is Sir Galahad," Autumn (can I call you Autumn?) answered. 

***

Bolton, Beth, Bombett, and Burt sat in the first row of the zebra-bus watching with wide eyes as Candy steered it through the knight sky. They were puzzled as to who she was, because Candy was wearing a white mask, a black suit, and had her hair stuffed up into a jester hat. "Why the jester hat?" Bombett whispered to Burt. "Who knows?" he shrugged. "I think she's cool, though," Beth said. "She gave us lollipops!" Bolton added, sucking on four. "Hey! You took mine!" Bombett accused. "You weren't eating it!" Bolton defended. "Look!" Burt said, and pointed to Candy. They watched as Candy reached up and pushed a purple button on the ceiling. A panel opened above Bombett and a bag of tootsie rolls fell into her lap. Smugly, she handed some to Beth and Burt as Bolton scowled. He finished the lollipops and threw the sticks into the air. They landed on Cortana and Chester who were playing cards. "Hey!" Chester yelled. As he raised his head, his bumblebee antennae hit the ceiling and broke off. They landed on Sir Galahad's head, distracting him from his duel with Sir Richard. Sir Richard knocked the sword out of his hand and sent it flying. Joan and Autumn watched in horror, frozen to their cheetah-spotted seats as the sword embedded itself in Fia's chest. She gasped and then her eyes rolled back in their sockets. Kestrel sat up groggily, saw the sword, burst into tears, and promptly fainted again. Puck quietly got up to get Candy.   

The mood in the zebra-bus was very subdued after Gossamer and Fia's deaths. Sir Richard and Sir Galahad were huddled miserably on a jaguar-patterned seat on the second floor. Autumn Leaves was tending to Kestrel as she slept. September handed some pillows to her and they arranged them under Kestrel. Muriel was sobbing quietly next to them. Fia's body had been removed to the third level of the bus by a disgusted Diovald and Ariel. "Why us?" Ariel muttered as they hauled Fia up the stairs. "I mean, couldn't Joan have picked Saphira or someone else instead?" agreed Diovald. The two annoyed AEs were just heaving Fia onto a cowhide-patterned seat and complaining loudly about it ("Why do dead bodies have to be so heavy?") when Alexandra ran up the stairs. She stood panting a moment, then walked over to them, fighting back tears. She looked away and handed Diovald a zebra-striped sheet ("What is it with these stupid zebra stripes?"). Ariel took it and placed it over Fia, hiding the gaping sword wound in her chest. "You mind if I stay up here a bit?" Alexandra asked, "t-to say goodbye?" Her voice cracked and tears spilled onto her cheeks. "By all means," Ariel answered, "stay as long as you wish!" He and Diovald rolled their eyes as they left the room, "CBers these days," Diovald complained. The murderer, who had been listening in on their conversation, grinned evilly. This would be the perfect opportunity! They went back to their seat to plot. 

***

Soon, the bus slowed down. "Where are we?" asked Daisy, peering out the window. Queenie rolled her eyes, "we're obviously flying over the Atlantic Ocean." She knew it was the Atlantic. After all, she was the queen, and queens know everything. "Nooo... I think that's the pacific," Anna countered, scrutinizing the black depths below them. "Look! There's some lights!" Daisy exclaimed. She mentally ran over a map of the Pacific Ocean. "That must be Hawaii! I wonder if we're picking up Kate?" Candy's voice sounded over the intercom: "we've had a late arrival, but this is our last stop, and then we can paaaaarty!" The CBers' mood was greatly improved at the prospect of a party. In fact, so much that Sirs Galahad and Richard climbed down from the second floor to join in. Alexandra was still mourning. 

***

In about 30 minutes, the zebra-bus was swooping down upon a neighborhood. The CBers could see their friend Kate jumping up and down on her roof, a small ant on an inky backdrop. The zebra-bus pulled up beside her and she jumped on, looking relieved. "Thank goodness! My parents were going to send me to Aunt Rachel and Uncle Richard's house in the morning." She shuddered at the prospect. Candy frowned at her, "you're not wearing a costume!" "I got it right here," she answered, is there anywhere I can change?" "Sure!" Candy visibly relaxed, "you can change on the third level." "Thanks!" Kate made her way throught the crowd of CBers and to the stairs. Everyone was just settling down again, when they heard an earsplitting scream. Kate came running down the stairs, her face white. "Th-there's a-a dead body in there!" In the back seat, Kestrel sat up groggily again, saw Kate's white face, screamed at the top of her lungs "FIA!!!", and fainted again. "Fia?" Kate looked confused. "Yes," Echosong answered gravely, "Fia died an hour ago." "B-but it wasn't Fia, i-it was 

A-Alexandra!" "What?!" Anna hurled herself up the stairs with a sob. Queenie followed more slowly. After all, royalty isn't supposed to run. Even when their creator was supposedly lying dead on the floor. It wasn't dignified. Sure enough, there was Alexandra. She was lying on her back with her arm pulled back as if to punch someone. Moonlight entered the room and assumed the role of detective. Immediately, she began searching for clues. Stuffed behind the last seat, she found the weapon of murder. It was a medieval club, used most commonly by knights. She brought it down to the first level for everyone to see. The murderer grinned as Bolton gasped,

"that-that's mine!"    

The rest of the ride to All Hallows' Eve Manor was spent trying to keep a growling Anna away from Bolton, who was protesting his innocence in a very squeaky voice quite unlike him. That was why none of the CBers noticed the giant whirlpool looming up in front of the zebra-bus until Echosong exclaimed "Oh my Galloping Gargoyles! Are we really going through that?" "Of course not!" Luna answered sassily, "we're just sight-seeing." "Ummm... Does Candy know we're heading towards a giant whirlpool suspended in the sky with invisible strings?" Autumn Leaves asked. "Definitely not!" Luna exclaimed, "we should go tell her!" She rolled her eyes. Were these CBers clueless? "Listen!" Echosong said as the intercom crackled to life. Candy's first words were drowned out as Anna screamed at Bolton. He was trembling like a leaf caught in a hurricane. Candy's voice filtered out unsteadily through the speaker on the ceiling: "YOU EVIL-midnight, so we can-LITTLE DEVIL-" (At this Puck sighed happily) "whirlpool and-YOU KILLED-Eve Manor on time. Then-ALEXANDRA-rooms and you can-I WILL GET-sleep. It's been a-MY REVENGE-we're all tired, I'm-BEWARE-also hope that-DON'T THINK-more murders." (At this the murderer grinned. More murders? Sure!) "Get-I'M A COWARD-for the plunge! Here-YOU BETTER-go. Hang on-WATCH OUT!!!!!" Suddenly, the zebra-bus tilted violently. Everyone fell over and slid to the right. Then the bus righted itself, but before everyone could get their balance, the bus tilted to the left, and everyone slid the other way. Beth, who had landed on the window and had gotten a quick peek out, managed to screech "I think we're in the wiiiiiiiiiiirlpool!" before being tossed into the air as the zebra-bus was shaken like a marimba. "Which way is uuuuuuuup?" Burt asked flying through the air and hitting the windshield. Candy stared curiously at him for a second, before he flew back the way he had come. "I told you guys to hang on," Candy chided. "But we didn't heeeeeeeaaaaaar you!" Saphira explained. "Oh! That explains it. Everyone, hold on to whatever you can find. This last part is a little tricky." Joan grabbed hold of the back of a violently magenta zebra-striped seat, Moonlight managed to stick herself to the ceiling with duct tape, Muriel attached herself to a window with silly string, Queenie wedged herself under an electric blue cheetah-spotted seat, and Chester huddled behind the last row, clinging to a rubber chicken. (Please don't ask me where he got it-I have no idea) Everyone else attached themselves to the zebra-bus as best they could and hoped for the best. The bus was nearing the end of the whirlpool-the CBers could see a small circle of light signifying the end of the nightmarish roller coaster ride, but the powers of nature (and perhaps a touch of magic) weren't finished with them yet. Soon the zebra-bus began to tremble violently (it had a striking resemblance to Bolton). Nuts, bolts, springs, and greasy 1930s wigs started breaking off the zebra-bus in little clouds. Then the bus was spinning, faster, and faster, and faster. "IIII thiink I'm gonna be siiiiiick..." Joan groaned. "I know... I really shouldn't have eaten all those lollipops earlier..." Bolton agreed. It didn't seem possible, but the Zebra-bus was now spinning faster. So fast that everything was a blur. Kestrel took this wonderful opportunity to wake up. "Where are we?" She muttered, before seeing the blurred water outside the window and fainting. AGAIN. (This has been, what, the fourth time now? Fifth?) Luckily, the zebra-bus was slowing down somewhat, and the patch of light had grown significantly bigger. Everyone sighed in relief. Luna hurled on the floor. Everyone sighed in exasperation and covered their noses.  

***

The CBers climbed off the zebra-bus dizzily, clutching their belongings. Chester squeezed his rubber chicken tighter, as Luna hurled on the driveway. It was instantly absorbed. She stared, fascinated at the once-wet spot on the driveway. Then she noticed that the gravel of the driveway was a weird color. It was white, instead of gray. "Why's the gravel white?" she asked Candy. Candy looked proudly at the ground and answered "It's special absorbent gravel. I had it installed after the 77th time someone hurled on my driveway. Do you like it?" "It's amazing!" Luna answered, "What's it made out of?" "Come on! You guys must be exhausted. I'll show you to your rooms," Candy quickly changed the subject. She led the rumpled CBers up the driveway. "Oh! Sorry, I forgot. Diovald and Ariel, could you two bring Fia and Alexandra up to the morgue? There's a map in the entrance hall." "What! Can't we have some help?" Diovald asked, "Dead bodies are heavy!" "OK, fine. Ummm... Saphira! Can you help them because they're such wimps?" "Sure!" Saphira marched on ahead, dragged the two bodies down from the third floor herself, turned into a dragon, grabbed one in each clawed hand, and took off towards the mansion. "Oh well!" said Ariel, "Come on!" The two AEs began jogging back to the group of CBers plodding methodically up the driveway.