Author's Note: Hello, loyal readers! It's me again! If you've read my previous story, Ed Edd n Eddy: Halloween of Hair, you know that I'm taking a temporary hiatus from my Ed Edd n Eddy/Nightmare Before Christmas series. Right now, I'm taking on a small side project. We all know what adventures the Eds had during Halloween and Christmas, but what if they had an adventure before that? Like say, during the summer? And what if it involved the world's favorite virtual band? Yes, this is an Ed Edd n Eddy/Gorillaz crossover. It takes place in the summer before Ed Edd n Eddy's Nightmare Before Christmas. To find out more, read the story, and feel free to read my other Gorillaz story One of those Hideous Stories where the Guardian Dies. Happy reading! ;)-AMX
These three friends were named Ed (with one D), Edd (with two D's, also known as Double D), and Eddy. The reason they performed these ludicrous scams was for one reason and one reason only: to obtain enough money to buy delicious jawbreakers!
They performed these scams all year round, but they were most plentiful during the summer, when they didn't have any other distractions. For this summer, they were setting a goal for themselves: one of their scams was going to work this time!
It was the first day of summer for these three boys, and they were confident about making a scam work this time. Double D, the only real responsible one of the group, had made all three of them save up money for the past few weeks to buy supplies for their first scam of the summer.
"A lemonade stand!" Eddy was saying as he got two big bags of lemons. "So simple! Why didn't I think of it sooner?" Eddy was obviously the leader of the group, and he made sure everyone knew about it. He came up with all the scams and he was the one who would psyche the kids up and make them fall for the scam.
"Because I thought of it first?" Double D asked as he picked out a fruit juicer. Double D was the only one of the three boys that had any common sense. He was also the smartest. Therefore, he was in charge of assembling Eddy's scams.
"Sweet!" Ed exclaimed as he looked at the assorted types of sugar. He was the dumbest of the three friends. He was the one who would demonstrate the scams, especially the dangerous ones because he was oblivious to pain.
"Whatever," said Eddy. "But as long as it gets me some cash, who cares?"
"Of course . . . " said Double D. "Shall we head back to our stand while it's still light?"
"My thoughts exactly!" said Eddy. "Come on, Ed!" He then saw Ed walking toward them with an armful of Pixie Stix. "Ed, not that kind of sugar!" Eddy exclaimed. "Unfortunately . . . "
Ed looked at the Pixie Stix in his arms. "Aww . . . " he mumbled.
---
After helping Ed find the right type of sugar, Double D paid for their supplies and the three boys began their trek back to Eddy's house, where they had set up their booth.
"Another summer, another dollar, eh boys?" asked Eddy.
"With our luck, maybe another penny . . . " said Double D.
"Ha ha! Penny!" said Ed, laughing at Double D's joke. "Um . . . who's Penny, guys?"
As the three boys got to the corner, Eddy gave an annoyed look at Double D. He hated how Double D seemed to point out all the flaws in his plans.
"Geez, way to give support, Double D," said Eddy as he began to cross the street. "Why don't you go ahead and . . . "
"EDDY, LOOK OUT!" Double D suddenly shrieked.
"What?" asked Eddy. It was then that he saw what Double D was pointing at. He went wide-eyed with fear when he saw the giant bus barreling down the road, straight for him!
At the last second, Ed and Double D ran out and grabbed Eddy, pulling him and the lemons back onto the sidewalk.
SCREECH!
The three dumbstruck boys watched as the bus continued to speed down the street, into the center of town.
"Are you okay, Eddy?" Double D asked frantically.
"Quick!" Eddy exclaimed. "Get the license number of that bus!"
"It had a big "G" spray-painted on it," said Ed. "Cool."
Eddy growled in frustration. "Try to run over me, will they?!" he exclaimed, suddenly furious. He ran back out to the middle of the street. "HEY!" he yelled after the bus. "Who do you idiots think you are, king of the road?!"
"Eddy, please!" said Double D, running over to his heavily panting friend. "When has getting angry ever solved anything?"
"Never!" said Ed, following his two friends. He then thought for a second. "Guys, can we spray-paint a big "E" on our lemonade booth?"
Instead of answering, Eddy ground his teeth together.
"Okay, Eddy, that's enough," said Double D. "Let's just try and head back to our scam, shall we?"
Eddy gave one last sneer at the disappearing bus, then went back over to his bags of lemons. "Yeah, yeah," he grumbled. "But if I see that thing again, I'm callin' the cops . . . "
---
"DAMN!" the man driving the bus yelled. "Missed that kid. Tha's the problem wit' these bloody Americans. Always gotta travel in groups, they do . . . "
Yeah, that's right. The bus driver was trying to hit Eddy. But then again, the guy driving this bus was no ordinary bus driver. In fact, it wasn't even an ordinary bus! As Ed said, a big "G" was spray-painted on both sides of the bus, along with a great assortment of other types of graffiti. It was a tour bus. The band name was spray-painted on the back of the bus in big red letters. GORILLAZ. This was their first tour in America, and they were planning a pit stop in Peach Creek.
The man driving the bus was the leader and bass player of the band. His attire consisted of a grey long-sleeved shirt, some dirty jeans, and some Cuban boots. A gold chain with an inverted cross was around his neck. His mismatched eyes were hidden under a mop of greasy black hair, and his abnormally long tongue ran across his dagger-like teeth. His growing array of fans knew him as Murdoc Niccals.
"Yeah, real smart thing ta say in front of ya drummer, Muds," said a big black man from the back of the bus. This man was truly huge, and had a definite Eastern accent from being raised in New York. His milky white eyes were hidden under a cap. He was the drummer of Gorillaz, Russel Hobbs.
"That boy didn't seem too happy wit' ya, Murdoc," said another man, looking out the back window. "I fink 'e was screamin' at ya." This man was very tall and very skinny. His shirt proudly proclaimed "Tazer the Yoot" on the front. But his most prominent features were his big, black eyes lacking pupils, and his spiky blue hair. He was the lead singer and keyboard player of the group. His real name was Stu-pot, but his friends and fans knew him as 2D.
The fourth person on the bus just sat there in silence, staring at 2D. She was a ten-year-old Japanese girl with a natural talent for playing guitar. Her trademark Radio helmet sat on her head, covering most of her short black hair. She wasn't exactly sure what her older bandmates were saying, because she didn't speak English; just Japanese. This adorable little guitarist came to the boys via FedEx box, and her name was as peculiar as her arrival: Noodle.
"Eh, since when do I care what you think, Face-ache?" Murdoc asked 2D.
"C'mon, Muds, when are we gonna stop?" asked Russel. "I think Noodle's getting bored."
Murdoc looked in the rear-view mirror at his guitarist. Noodle was slumped over in her seat, resembling a throw rug. She let out a little sigh, confirming her lack of anything to do on the cramped bus.
Giving a sigh of annoyance, Murdoc found a place to park and haphazardly pulled over. Noodle was more than eager to hop off the bus, followed by the three older men.
"All right, listen up!" Murdoc said in his thick British accent. "I'm givin' all of yeh the rest of the day to go through this scrawny. We all meet back here at sunset, no later. If you're not back by then, I'll go after your sorry arse myself, and unless you want your head screwed up, you do not want that to happen." He glared at 2D and Noodle as he said this, since they were the most likely to forget this. "Do I make myself clear?"
"Y-yes, Murdoc . . . " 2D stammered, not wanting to be beaten today.
Noodle, on the other hand, slightly tilted her head. She wasn't sure about everything Murdoc had said, but she had recognized the word "sunset," and Murdoc's gestures and expression spoke for themselves. She smiled. "Hai," she said.
"Good," Murdoc grumbled. He then began to walk away. "Gotta find a store in this bloody town that sells fags . . . "
"'D, you think you can take care of Noodle?" asked Russel.
2D gave a grin, revealing the gap in his mouth where his two front teeth would be. He liked taking care of Noodle. He looked down at the little guitarist.
"'Ow 'bout it, Noodle luv?" he asked her. "You wanna spend the day wif me?"
Noodle responded by jumping into 2D's arms and giving him a hug. She liked playing with the vocalist.
"I guess that's a 'yes'," said Russel.
"Don' worry, Russel," said 2D. "I'll try not to lose 'er this time."
"You better not," said Russel. "'Cause one of these days, I'm not gonna be able to stop Murdoc from goin' after ya every time ya mess up."
2D looked at the ground. "S'not my fault . . . " he muttered as he walked away with Noodle.
Noodle sighed again as she rested her head on 2D's shoulder. She kept swallowing to try and ignore the dryness in her mouth, but it wasn't working. She was thirsty. Finally giving up trying to ignore it, she poked 2D in the shoulder.
"Sumfink wrong, luv?" 2D asked.
Noodle opened her mouth and pointed at it.
"You hungry?" asked 2D.
Luckily, Noodle knew the word "hungry," but that wasn't what she was. She shook her head, then closed her eyes and scrunched her face in thought, trying to find the right word. She opened her eyes again.
"Wa . . . " she concentrated. "Wa . . . ter . . . ?"
"Oh, you're thirsty," said 2D.
Noodle nodded.
"Well, uh . . . " 2D began looking through the windows of the stores he passed until he saw one with an aisle of drinks. "'Ere's a shop with drinks. Wot do you say I get us some?"
Noodle nodded again.
2D stopped in front of the store and put Noodle down.
"You wait right out 'ere, okay luv?" he asked. "You got some of your own money?"
Noodle reached into her pocket and pulled out a few British coins. "Hai," she said.
"Awright," said 2D. "I'll be right back, so don't go anywhere, okay? Murdoc'll 'ave both our 'eads if you wander off like last time, okay?"
Noodle nodded.
2D smiled. "Good," he said. "At least I got one friend in this band . . . " He then entered the store.
Noodle peered through the window. 2D had stopped as soon as he entered the door. He now had a blank expression on his face. This usually meant 2D had forgotten what he was doing. Noodle groaned. 2D was nice, but he did have a tendency to forget things very easily. This was probably caused by the knocks on the head given to him by Murdoc. Who knew how long it would take for 2D to remember what he was doing. She needed a drink now!
"Lemonade! Ice-cold lemonade here! Only twenty-five cents!"
A new, distant voice caught Noodle's attention. "Lemonade" was another word she was familiar with. She smiled. Lemonade meant a drink!
But then she remembered what 2D had told her. She wasn't supposed to leave. She looked back at the window. 2D still hadn't moved.
Then an idea hit Noodle. At this rate, it would take a while for 2D to remember. She could just run to the place that was selling the lemonade, get her drink, and hurry back before 2D came back out. So simple!
Taking one last look at 2D, she began to follow the voice advertising the refreshing drink, remembering her plan: get the lemonade, then get back to the store.
However, it's funny how quickly a plan can change . . .