#lee!trainer

Tokens, each stamped with the team emblem, were hidden all over the grounds, from classrooms draped in cobwebs to the trackside bleachers. Whoever collected the most tokens would earn bragging rights and an extra dessert voucher in the cafeteria. A small prize, sure, but Special Week was already bouncing with competitive energy.

Of course, the biggest draw wasn't the tokens. It was the "ghosts." A handful of volunteers roamed the grounds to spook or tag players out of the game. Trainer had written the rules as straightforward as possible... but he really should have known better than to let Gold Ship anywhere near the role of ghost.

"BEHOLD, MORTALS!!" Gold Ship boomed, sweeping into the courtyard with a bedsheet draped dramatically over her tall frame. The fabric dragged on the ground, eyeholes cut unevenly, one side tied in a knot where she'd tripped on it earlier. Somehow, she managed to look commanding as well as completely ridiculous. "I am the Phantom of the Track, the Spectre of Speed, the Ghoul of-"

"You look like someone's laundry," McQueen deadpanned, adjusting her lace-trimmed sleeves. Her costume was far more composed: a refined black-and-violet dress straight out of a gothic novel, complete with choker and gloves. She didn't need fake cobwebs to give off elegance. The others weren't entirely sure if she had intended it to be a costume.

Special Week clapped her hands, her pumpkin-shaped hat wobbling with the motion. "I think it's adorable! Very... creative, Gold Ship!"

Trainer, standing nearby in a cheap vampire cape he'd been coerced into wearing, sighed. "Just remember, the ghosts are just supposed to tag the players. No funny business."

Gold Ship tilted her sheet-covered head. "Oh, absolutely. Pure professionalism. Not a single drop of funny business will leave these ghastly fingers!"

The way she wiggled said fingers made Trainer's stomach sink. He didn't miss the mischievous sparkle barely hidden behind the bedsheet's uneven holes.

Special Week bounced on her heels, eager to dart off. "Alright! I'm going to win this for Mom!" she declared, fists pumped with determination.

McQueen shook her head, muttering about misplaced priorities, but even she looked faintly amused.

Gold Ship, however, grinned unseen under her ghostly disguise. Tagging was boring!! If she was going to haunt her teammates, she might as well really haunt them, with something far more effective than a simple tap on the shoulder!

As the whistle blew to start the event, she floated off into the shadows, already plotting her first scare.

-

The Academy's hallways were dimmer than usual, the lights intentionally left low so paper bats and dangling ghosts cut out of construction paper cast exaggerated shadows. Special Week tiptoed down one of the side corridors, her oversized pumpkin hat bobbing with each careful step. The game was in full swing outside, with shouts... laughter... an occasional squeal echoing faintly through the open windows. Must be some funny jokes someone's telling out there! Inside, though, it was quiet.

Perfect for finding a token.

"Alright, where would Trainer hide one..." she whispered to herself, pushing open the door to an empty classroom. Fake cobwebs stretched across the corners, complete with a few cheap plastic spiders that glinted when they caught the faint light. She grinned. This was precisely the kind of place Trainer would pick.

She began searching under desks, humming nervously to keep herself company. Every creak of the wooden floorboards made her twitch. She wasn't scared, not exactly. Special Week had plenty of spirit, after all. But something about the atmosphere put goosebumps on her arms. She could've sworn she felt a draft run down her back.

As she leaned down to peek beneath the teacher's desk, the door behind her creaked shut.

Special Week froze.

Her heart thudded. "...Hellooooo?" she asked the empty room, her voice carrying much thinner than she'd intended. Silence answered.

She swallowed and crouched lower, determined just to grab the token she knew had to be here and get out. That was when it all went wrong.

A sudden skittering sensation at her sides!! Fingers, quick and merciless, kneaded into her ribs and spidered under her arms.

"Eeheeheehee?! W-WHAahaHAHAH-!!" Special Week shrieked, the sound bouncing off the chalkboard as she nearly toppled forward. She burst into helpless giggles, squirming in place as unseen hands tormented her. Her pumpkin hat slipped forward, covering her eyes as she flailed. "AAHAHhHAHAHAHAHA!! S-STOhOhOHOHOHOPP!!!"

The "ghost" had found her next victim.

Behind her, under the tattered bedsheet, Gold Ship's grin stretched wide. She hunched dramatically, her makeshift ghost costume brushing the floor as she unleashed her... "haunting."

"OoooOOOOoooo!!! Beware, pumpkin girl!! The spirits of the Academy demand laughter as payment~!!"

Special Week squealed again as fingers wiggled mercilessly along her stomach, circling her belly button through her costume. She kicked her legs, laughter tumbling out in her frantic, bubbly bursts. "EEEHEEHEHEEEK!!! GOHOHOHOHOLD SHIHIHIHIHIP, IHIHIHI KNOHOHOHOW THAHAHAHAT'S YOUHUHUUHUHUU!!"

Gold Ship laughed evilly, entirely unbothered that her cover was blown. "Oh~? How can you be so sure! I am but a restless phantom, destined to tickle every pumpkin I see!" She dug her fingers into Special Week's sides again, wriggling just enough to make her thrash.

Special Week's laughter rose to a desperate pitch, tears forming at the corners of her eyes as she struggled to tug her hat back into place. "PLEEHEHHEEHASEE!! NOHOHO MOHOHOHOHORE!!! IHIHIHI'M DOHOHOHOHOHNEEE!!1"

"Done?" Gold Ship tilted her head beneath the sheet, pretending to ponder. "But you haven't paid the toll yet!! The toll is... uh, three more giggles. Very official ghost business, I assure you."

As if on cue, she wiggled her fingers up to Special Week's underarms again. The poor little pumpkin practically folded, cackling helplessly as she tried to scuttle away on hands and knees.

"AHAaHAHAHAHHAHA!!! FIHIHIHIHIHIHINE!!! T-TAHAHAHAKE IHIHIHIT!!!" she squealed. Her laughter spilled freely, echoing down the hallway.

Finally satisfied with her haunting, Gold Ship let go and stepped back, swooping the bedsheet around her like a cape. "The toll is paid!! You may wander freely, mortal pumpkin... but beware!! The ghost will haunt again!"

Special Week collapsed against a desk, panting, cheeks flushed crimson from laughing so hard. She shoved her hat back upright, glaring at the doorway as Gold Ship floated out, her laughter trailing like an actual phantom's.

Special Week clutched her stomach, still giggling weakly. "Shehehe's... Shehehe's suhuhuch a mehenace..."

But even as she said it, a smile tugged at her lips.

-

While Special Week was still recovering from her "haunting," another student prowled the Academy's quieter wing with sharp precision, far from the squeals and shrieks of her classmate(..s).

Mejiro McQueen glided across the tiled floor, her every step measured and quiet, lace hem brushing against her stockings. Where Special Week charged headlong with enthusiasm, McQueen approached the event with cool calculation. She wasn't here to stumble around, she was here to win.

"Trainer mentioned that tokens would be placed where one might least expect them," she murmured to herself, brushing a strand of hair from her cheek. Her violet eyes scanned a row of lockers near the library. "Which means everyone else will be busy scouring the obvious spots. Predictable."

Her gloved fingers slid across the cool metal of the lockers as she inspected each handle. She prided herself on composure, on staying unflappable. A silly school event wouldn't be enough to ruffle her.

...or so she believed.

The air grew colder. McQueen didn't notice it at first, her mind too focused on strategy, but soon she found herself pausing, tilting her head. The lights above flickered faintly, the sort of thing most would dismiss as faulty wiring. But the timing was too uncanny.

McQueen stiffened. "... Gold Ship."

She didn't hear a reply... no footsteps, no taunts, just the soft rustle of something moving behind her.

She refused to look, refused to give in to theatrics. "I will not play along with your antics. I am here for tokens, nothing more."

She reached for a locker handle and tugged, only for her world to erupt into chaos.

Hands seized her sides from behind, fingers worming mercilessly beneath the edges of her refined dress bodice. McQueen's breath caught, then broke into a sharp burst of laughter. "Hhh-HhHahHAHAHahAHA-! W-WhahAHAHHAT IhiHihs ThiHiHiS!!"

Gold Ship, draped head to toe in her crooked bedsheet, leaned in close and declared in a low, theatrical moan. "OoooOOOoooo!! Elegance cannot save you from the ghost's grasp~!!"

McQueen thrashed, her gloved hands flying to pry at the intruding fingers, but Gold Ship's wiggling grip was relentless. Her laughter spilled out in bright, indignant peals that echoed down the corridor. "G-GOhOHoHOHOLD ShiHIHIHIHIP!!! YOHUHUH AbSOLUHUHUHUTE-!! HhhhAHahhHAHAHAA-!!!"

Her composure shattered with every squeal. Gold Ship delighted in it, pressing her advantage. She scribbled her fingers up and down McQueen's ribs, then dipped under her arms where the fabric of her sleeves offered little protection.

McQueen's knees buckled, laughter bubbling uncontrollably as she twisted against the lockers. "HhHhaHHAhahAHHAH!! T-ThiHiHIIS IhihIs PrEheHEHEPohOhOSteroHuhUhUS!!! HAHhaHAhahAHHA!!"

"Preposterous?" Gold Ship repeated, feigning deep consideration. "Nay (neigh), noble lady, the term you're looking for is 'supernatural!'" She leaned in closer, her sheet brushing McQueen's shoulder as her hands danced lower to squeeze at her hips.

McQueen yelped, a decidedly ungraceful sound, before dissolving back into high-pitched giggles. "YOUHUHUHU chaahHAHN't beheEH SehEHhERIOUS!!!! IHIHII'LL- ohohOhOHohOH- G-GEheHEHET YOuHUhUHU FohOHOR THIHIHIHS!!!"

"Revenge~?" Gold Ship teased, circling her fingers over McQueen's waistline until the refined horse girl nearly doubled over. "Alas, the dead cannot be defeated! You will forever be haunted by... the tickle spectre!!"

For a moment, McQueen's pride fought to reassert itself. She tried to straighten, tried to glare through her laughter, but another squeeze at her ribs ruined her resolve. "S-StohOhOhOP thIHIHIHIS N-NohoHOHOnSehehEnse!! GHoHoHOSt Ohohohr noHohot, hHahahAHAHHA!! IIhIhiH sweHEhehHAR YouhUHu'LL PAHAHAY FOHOHOR THIHIS!!!"

Gold Ship only cackled villainously to herself, enjoying her victim's collapse far too much. "So fiery~! So spirited~! Truly, your dignity is most delicious to my ghostly palette~!"

Finally, after what felt like ages to McQueen, Gold Ship retreated, having many more victims to catch. The other still trembled from holding back tears of laughter. She glared fiercely at the departing sheeted figure, though her lavender hair clung slightly to her forehead, betraying just how thoroughly wrecked she'd been.

Gold Ship's muffled cackle echoed down the corridor. "Another soul haunted!! Beware, mortals!! None are safe!!!"

McQueen groaned, smoothing her dress back into order, though her cheeks burned crimson. "Utterly shahameful..." she muttered, though her voice was still broken with breathless laughter. "I wihihill... I will see to it she regrets this."

But the truth sat heavily in her chest. For the first time in ages, her carefully curated composure had been ripped apart, and not by rivalry, or training pressure, but by Gold Ship's ridiculous antics!!!! That alone made her blood simmer hotter than her flushed cheeks.

She stomped down the hall, fuming, but the memory of her own hysterical laughter still clung stubbornly to her ears.

-

Trainer had expected chaos when he approved the hide-and-seek Halloween event. He had not, however, expected the strange reports that filtered in from laughing students.

They had sworn that the "ghosts" weren't just tagging them. Others mentioned something about fingers and giggling? But the details were muddled, everyone was too embarrassed to explain clearly. Trainer rubbed the back of his neck, his cape swishing as he walked the darkened corridor.

"Alright..." he muttered, checking on a set of classrooms, "as long as nobody's getting hurt, I guess it's fine... Just keep things under control. That's all I ask."

The hallway was quiet, with faint orange light from the courtyard spilling in through the windows. Trainer slowed, frowning. He could swear he felt eyes on him, though he saw no one. The air carried a chill, just enough to raise the hairs on his arms.

He sighed, amused but weary. "Gold Ship. I know you're there."

Silence.

He continued down the hall, trying to ignore it. That was his big mistake.

The moment he passed under a flickering light, something swept up behind him. A rustle of fabric, a theatrical "OooooOOoooo~!" and then...

Fingers jabbed suddenly at his ribs.

"Wha-?!" Trainer jolted with a sharp yelp, twisting away on instinct. Too late. The hands followed impishly, tickling mercilessly at his sides. "AhahHAHA- G-Gohohohold ShiHihip, c-cuHuhUt ihihiht ouhuHuHUT-!!"

From beneath the crooked bedsheet came gleeful laughter. "The ghost has no mercy!! Even the mighty master of ceremonies must pay the toll!!"

Trainer bent double, helpless laughter spilling from his throat as the attack continued. He tried to keep his voice low, tried to preserve some shred of dignity, but every fresh wiggle of those fingers dragged another undignified squeak or chuckle out of him.

"S-StoHOHoHop, StoHoHop! Y-Youhuhu cahahan't juhuhust- ahahHAhahaha- dohohoho thiihihis tohohoho thehee evehehent ohohohorganizeher!!"

"On the contrary!" Gold Ship intoned in her most serious ghostly voice, "This is the most essential haunting of all! For if the conductor laughs, the whole orchestra must follow!!"

Her hands darted higher, scrabbling under his arms. Trainer jerked upright with a strangled laugh, arms instinctively clamping down, but the pressure only trapped her fingers there. "N-NoHoHoHoHo!!! NoHoHoT thEHehHEERE-!!!"

Gold Ship leaned closer, the sheet slipping sideways so that one mischievous eye peeked out. "Ohhh, but here is perfect~!! This is where the most haunting giggles are stored!"

Trainer squirmed backward, trying to wedge himself against the wall for stability, but the tickly phantom followed relentlessly. Every attempt to bat her away only left another side exposed for tickling. His cape tangled around his legs, making him stumble and buckle, sliding down the wall, earning a dramatic wail from the ghost.

"Behooooldd!!! The vampire has no power against the spectre!"

Trainer laughed so hard his cheeks burned. "YoUHuHuHU're goHOhoHnna- pffffhaahahHAHAh- ruHuHUHUHIN myhYhy imahahage in frohohohont of thehehe StuHUUHUDents!!"

As if to punctuate his plea, two girls peeked around the corner at the end of the hall. Their eyes went wide at the sight of their usually composed Trainer doubled over, cackling uncontrollably while a bedsheet-clad "ghost" clawed at his sides. A second later, both dissolved into helpless giggles themselves, covering their mouths.

Gold Ship turned her head toward them, triumphant. "BEAR WITNESS, MORTALS!!! Your leader cannot resist the ghost's wrath!!"

Trainer groaned through his laughter, mortified. "G-GohoHOHOhold ShiHihiiiiiihihihihipp!!!"

Finally, Gold Ship took pity. She gave one last mischievous wiggle at his waistline before swooping back dramatically, sheet billowing as she retreated. "Haunting complete!! Another soul subdued by ghostly giggles!!!"

Trainer slumped against the wall, catching his breath, face flushed with crimson. His chest rose and fell as he tried to steady his breathing.

The girls at the end of the hall whispered furiously to each other before scampering off, no doubt to spread word of what they'd seen. Trainer buried his face in one hand. "Greheheattt, just greattt.... I'll never, ever live this down."

From down the corridor, Gold Ship's triumphant laughter sounded like the cackle of a genuine spectre, rolling through the Academy halls.

-

By the time Trainer regained his composure, the entire courtyard buzzed with one story: the ghost who made everyone laugh whether they wanted to or not~! Special Week's pumpkin hat was still askew, McQueen's cheeks were still faintly pink, and now, even Trainer's dignity had been shredded! Enough was enough.

The small crowd had gathered near the fountain, trading grim nods like conspirators.

"She get you too-?" Teio asked.

Kitasan nodded. "Mhm, Scarlet and Vodka as well."

"G-Gohot us both at the same time..." Vodka huffed, Scarlet looking away.

Teio quirked her ears. "Wait. Scarlet, Vodka, weren't you both ghosts as well?"

"Yes." They both replied simultaneously with a sigh.

Trainer scratched his chin. "She's been hard at work... Where's Suzuka?"

Special Week looked up. "Oh, no-! I haven't seen her since we started! You don't think she's the last one standing, do you?"

"Well, if she is, she's the winner until Gold Ship finds her, which won't be long now," Kitasan said.

"She can't keep getting away with this," McQueen said flatly, adjusting her sleeves.

Special Week pumped her fists. "Right! Let's team up and catch her!" Her proclamation earned a round of shouts of agreement from the other students.

Trainer hesitated, rubbing the back of his neck. "...I probably shouldn't encourage retaliation, but..." He glanced at all their determined faces, then sighed. "Alright. Let's put this ghost to rest."

They moved as a group, listening for... there!

In the distance, they heard the squeals of ticklish laughter. They closed in.

-

"WHYHYHYHYYHY MEHEHEHEEHEHEE!!!" Suzuka shrieked. The ghost was sitting on the back of her thighs, merrily rubbing at her last victim's very, very sensitive hips.

"Well, you complete the set," Gold Fish replied, forgetting to put on her ghost voice. "Uh, I mean- Alllll mortals must feeear the ghoosttt~!!"

Suzuka kicked her feet and pounded her fists against the hallway floor. "GOHOHOHOLD SHIHIHIHIP, PLEHEHEHEASEE!! IHIHI CAHAHAHN'T-!!"

"So you won't!!" Special Week called.

Gold Ship froze, turning briefly to see her seven previous victims, grouped together and grinning villainously.

"Boo," Trainer said, smirking.

Hopping off of her victim, she tried to run, but Special Week lunged first, grabbing the edge of the sheet. McQueen seized her other arm firmly, and the rest of the girls soon followed, holding Gold Ship in place and pinning her to the floor.

"You alright, Suzuka?" Trainer asked, helping the last survivor to her feet. "You won, if it's any consolation."

"I... Ihihi dihihid? Y-yay-!!" Little giggles still escaped from her as she smiled somewhat proudly.

Gold Ship was thrashing around, trying with everything in her to escape the vengeful grip of her friends. "NoOOOO!! Betrayed by my own teammates!!" she cried.

"Not betrayed," McQueen corrected, her smile sharp. "Justly punished."

Then, their tickle attack began. Special Week dove for her ribs, McQueen targeted her underarms, and the rest of the girls picked the spot nearest them as they held the ghost firmly in place. Gold Ship shrieked, laughter exploding as she kicked and writhed. "GyAAHAHAHAHAHAHAHHA!!! N-NOHOHOHOT FAHAHAHAHAHAIRRRR!!!"

She flailed helplessly, her ghostly sheet tangling around her ankles as the group dismantled her in perfect, merciless rhythm. Every cackle she'd inflicted came back tenfold, and the hallway was filled with the work of their labor.

Trainer stepped back with a grin. "You know, Gold Ship... you really are the spirit of Halloween. Mischief, scares that don't hurt, and plenty of laughs."