In Porkbelly, the Test family, except for Johnny and Dukey were getting ready for an important evening. Johnny and Dukey stood around while Susan and Mary were dusting around and Hugh was vacuuming all around the house.
"Girls, quick! Clean your lab!" Hugh said quickly.
"Taken care of Dad," Susan told him.
"Really?"
"Yeah Dad, we built cleaning robots so we could multitask easier." Mary concluded.
"What's with all the fuss?" Johnny asked.
"Your mother has a new client moving into Porkbelly and everything has to be perfect when he and his daughter move in the neighborhood!" Hugh explained. "If we don't make this turn out well for your mother it'll be bad for us all!"
"Daughter?" Johnny hissed. "Gross! I'm not gonna play with some girl only interested in dolls, dress up and tea parties!"
"Not all girls like that, Johnny." Susan hissed. "Mary and I are girls and we like science, school, and-"
"Blah, blah, blah," Johnny whined. "Johnny bored."
"Here, you can help clean up this dump." Hugh handed the vacuum to Johnny.
"Great." Johnny rolled his eyes after Hugh left to the kitchen.
"I better check on my meatloaf, I hope he likes it." Hugh walked off.
"No chance." Dukey darted his eyes at him and looked up at Johnny. "Umm... Johnny, do you even know how to use that thing?"
"Duh! I'm not an idiot!" Johnny started the vacuum and it went out of control and wheeled all around the house, making an even bigger mess.
"JOHNNY!" Susan and Mary cried.
"Dukey did it." Johnny hid the vacuum behind his dog.
"Wise, blame it on the dog." Dukey rolled his eyes.
After cleaning, Lila rushed in home. She threw her briefcase on the couch and ran into the kitchen.
"Please tell me you're not making another meatloaf." Lila panted from running.
"What else would I make?" Hugh asked, like she was an idiot or something.
"My client hates meatloaf!" Lila gripped her hair.
"HATES MEATLOAF!? Is he insane!?"
"No Dad, I think you are since you only feed us that and nothing else." Johnny scoffed. "The school cafeteria food is more edible than your cooking."
"Johnny, don't make fun of your father!" Lila scolded him. "It's not his fault his cooking is atrocious and I'm too busy to provide for you and your sisters!"
"Hey!" Hugh called out in defense.
"Now, be good, Johnny. Mr. Allen's daughter is younger than you, Susan and Mary, so you all have to play extra careful with her." Lila said calmly. "Do you think you can make her feel comfortable? It was rough on her, moving away from Porkbutt."
Johnny laughed wildly. "THAT'S where they're from?"
"Johnny, stop, Mr. Allen's daughter is very sensitive and if she doesn't feel welcome here, they'll leave and they need all the help they can get." Lila sounded firm.
"Heh, butt..." Johnny kept snickering.
"Johnny!" Lila yelled.
"Alright, alright, I'll be nice to that dork's daughter." Johnny grumbled.
"Good, now go upstairs and put on a clean shirt. Mr. Allen and his daughter will be here soon." Lila walked off.
"Fine..." Johnny stormed off, being annoying and difficult as usual.
Johnny wore what he usually wore, only this time his clothes were slightly clean. Dukey was watching over him as he drank some coffee.
"You look weird in clean clothes." Dukey observed.
"What are you talking about?" Johnny turned to the dog. "I always wear this!"
"Maybe you should wear a suit since your mom has a guy coming with his daughter."
"She's a kid!"
"So are you."
"There's a difference, I'm 11 and she's eight and a half or something!"
Just then the doorbell rang and there came a British man with scruffy brown hair, a beard and hazel eyes. He wore a suit and came in with a cane.
"Ah, Mr. Allen, it's nice to meet you." Lila greeted.
"Why thank you, Mrs. Test." Mr. Allen smiled. "Please, call me Timothy."
"Very well, and since we're on first name basis, you can call me Lila."
"Very well... Lila..." Mr. Allen purred and kissed the back of Lila's hand like a gentleman. "Enchante..."
Lila giggled and blushed slightly and looked down by Mr. Allen's legs. She saw a young girl wearing a blue hooded sweater, with a dark blue skirt, white sneakers, shoulder length brown hair and black glasses.
"Oh, this must be your daughter." Lila noticed.
"Yes," Mr. Allen stepped aside. "This is Lucille."
"You can call me Lucy..." the girl said in a very quiet, shy voice.
"Welcome to our home, Lucy." Lila knelt and put her hand on Lucy's head. "You remind me of when my daughters were about your age."
"You have daughters?" Lucy looked hopeful.
"Yes, but they're 13, I'm sure you'll get along nicely with them though." Lila stood up and went to the stairway. "Susan! Mary! Johnny! Dukey! We got company!"
"COMING!" The Test kids called back.
"I wasn't aware you had more than one son, Lila." Mr. Allen raised an eyebrow as he noticed the Test kids and Dukey.
"Dukey's actually our dog, sir." Lila concluded.
"Oh good, so you won't be insulted if I would've called your son Dukey hideously ugly." Mr. Allen chuckled darkly and walked away from the kids.
Dukey growled, but Lila waved her finger at him to get him to stop.
Lucy looked at Dukey and hid behind her father. "Daddy!" she cried.
"What is it now, Lucy?" Mr. Allen looked down at his daughter.
"That doggy looked at me funny!" Lucy pointed with tears streaming down her face.
"Mrs. Test, you keep that mutt under control." Mr. Allen sounded cold as he picked up Lucy in his hands.
"Right away, Mr. Allen." Lila agreed, uneasily.
Outside
"I'm sorry Dukey, but Mr. Allen would prefer it if you stayed outside during this dinner. I promise to buy you a big juicy bone when I go to work tomorrow." Lila petted Dukey on the head and he happily whimpered as he was tied to a pole outside. "Sound fair?"
"Umm... Ruff!" Dukey replied.
"I swear, it's almost as if you can understand everything I'm saying." Lila laughed and she left to go back inside the house.
"Nice woman, but she could do so much better for a husband and kids." Dukey stretched and allowed himself to get some rest.
"I can't believe Mom made Dukey stay outside!" Johnny griped. "He's my best friend!"
"It's for Mr. Allen, Johnny." Mary told him. "I assure you everything will be fine in the end for everyone."
"Yeah, yeah, the sooner we get rid of that scaredy cat brat, the sooner we can do experiments in the lab." Susan growled.
"Susan, you should be kinder when it comes to new people." Mary insisted.
"Ugh!" Susan scoffed.
Lucy walked in shyly. She tapped her knuckles together as she came in the living room and her father stood beside her.
"Why don't you get to know our new possible neighbors a little better while Daddy talks with Mr. and Mrs. Test?" Mr. Allen smiled at her.
"I... I don't know, Daddy..." Lucy said shyly. "I just..."
"You just what?" Mr. Allen sounded firm. "You need to get over your fear of crowds and social anxiety and you had better do it while we're with important people like Lila Test!" Mr. Allen left which made an unsettling feeling in Lucy's stomach.
"Dude, your dad's a total control freak." Johnny stated.
"You don't know the half of it." Lucy sighed.
"You sound like you need a friend." Mary smiled as she put an arm around Lucy. "The Test Twins are here to make it better."
"More like worse." Johnny laughed.
"SHUT UP!" Susan hissed at him.
"HEY YOU CRAZY KIDS, YOU BETTER NOT BE BULLYING MY LITTLE GIRL!" Mr. Allen called sharply.
"Let's go to the lab." Mary suggested as they all ran up the stairs.
Lucy marveled at the white tiles of the Test twin laboratory. She had never been in a science lab before and she felt like she was in a dream. She gazed all around with delight.
"This place is amazing!" Lucy squealed.
"It really is." Mary smiled at her.
Later on, Mr. Allen was arguing with Hugh and Lila. The children came back down to meet with them.
"Your son will be a very unfit role model for my daughter!" Mr. Allen sneered.
"Yes, but we have genius daughters!" Hugh insisted.
"Why don't you ask Lucy what she thinks would be best?" Lila suggested.
"She can't think for herself, she's a social outcast!" Mr. Allen snapped.
"Daddy?" Lucy piped.
"Johnny, I might've lost a client because of your unruly behavior!" Lila scolded her son.
"Sorry Mom!" Johnny said in defense.
"Can I say something?" Lucy interjected.
"I told Mom and Dad having another kid after we were born would've been an awful idea!" Susan hissed.
"Maybe for our next invention we'll make an alternate universe device for ourselves to live in." Mary shrugged.
"I have something to say!" Lucy said in a louder voice than she usually spoke in.
"Oh, what is it, Lucy?" Lila looked down at her with her arms crossed.
"Can't I stay here in Porkbelly?" Lucy asked. "I like it here. It's a lot better than Porkbutt and for once, I feel like people listen to me. Johnny might not show it, but he's been nice to me and Susan and Mary are like the big sisters I've always wanted. It's lonely being an only child. Up until next year I was homeschooled with no friends and no one ever wanted me part of their group, but Johnny, Susan and Mary make me feel like for once I belong. Please Daddy, can we stay in this neighborhood?"
"Well... I don't know, sugar-plum..." Mr. Allen felt touched.
"Please Daddy?" Lucy pouted.
Mr. Allen sighed and smiled. "Alright, we can stay here in Porkbelly. Only if Mr. Test promises to make roasts for whenever we stay for dinner."
"It's a deal!" Hugh chirped. "Shame I won't be making meatloaf anymore, but it's nice to know I can cook other things a whole lot better than meatloaf!"
"I'll get some deeds and contracts for you, Mr. Allen." Lila walked off with the others to the kitchen.
"So Lucy, whatya wanna do on your first night in Porkbelly?" Johnny asked. "Have a tea party?"
"No," Lucy shook her head.
"Play dolls?" Susan suggested.
"Uh-uh." Lucy declined.
"Create an alternate universe device?" Mary suggested.
"Bzzt." Lucy mocked a buzzer to mean no.
"Then what?" the Test siblings asked.
"You got any video games?" Lucy asked as her eyes lit up. "Smash Badger's my favorite."
"AWESOME!" Johnny chimed as he grabbed Lucy's hand and dragged her to the video game console. "I think you're gonna like it here, Lucy."
"Thanks Johnny, me too." Lucy smiled as they played Smash Badger throughout the night.