"Ms. Bellum, could you, uh, step in here a moment, please?" Mayor called into his intercom as he laid under his desk in shock.
The tall redhead walked in, expecting another incident with the pickle jar.
"Yes, Mayor? What on earth?!"
"Could you please come here for a moment?"
Confused, she walked passed the three girls who looked incredibly ticked off. She pulled the mayor off the floor, sitting him in his desk chair.
"What's wrong?"
"Well, the girls...they said...they said," he sputtered, wanting to tell her but not wanting to actually say the word.
"What did they say?" she asked, her patience beginning to thin.
"They said..."
He beckoned for her to lean over, and she did so, and he whispered the word in her ear. She pulled back with a gasp.
"They said what?!"
"That," he said meekly, cowering under the force of her anger.
"Girls!" she snapped, and they winced, never having seen her so angry before.
"Yes, Ms. Bellum?"
"Where did you learn that word?"
The three looked at each other debating whether or not to tell her. Her glare hardened further, arms crossing over her chest. They gulped, never remembering seeing her so irate, and knew they were in for it.
"Bubbles said it first!" Blossom and Buttercup yelled, pointing to the blue puff.
Bubbles began to cry as the older woman's gaze rested solely on her.
"Bubbles, where did you learn that word?" she asked, icy calm.
"F-from the Professor!" the little blonde sobbed out.
"Well you can't say it anymore," Ms. Bellum said, the force of her anger redirected to her boyfriend. She sighed, realizing they had only been repeating something they'd heard and that truly, it wasn't their fault. She crouched down, beckoning the girls to her. They floated over slowly, wary of what she was going to do to them. "Girls," she said once she had them nearly in her lap, "that word is a bad word."
"A bad word?" Blossom asked.
"Yes, a bad word. It's not nice to say, and it really upsets some people when you do. Words like that should never, ever be repeated. Now I know you didn't know that when you started saying it, so I'm not that angry with you this time, but please don't say that word again."
"But why is it a bad word? What does it mean?" Bubbles asked.
The woman sighed, having hoped she would be able to get away with not telling them that.
"It means..." She leaned closer and whispered the meaning, watching as their eyes blew wide. "That's why you should never say that word."
"Ew! Gross!" Blossom yelped.
"That's what that means?!" Buttercup asked.
"I've been a potty mouth!" Bubbles wailed, in tears again.
"Shh, it's okay, you didn't know what the word meant. But now that you do you won't say it anymore will you?" Ms. Bellum asked.
"No," the three chorused.
"Good. Come with me," she said, beginning to guide them out of the room.
"Where are we going?" Blossom asked.
"Well, I imagine that you've used that word quite a bit since you heard it, so I have no choice but to punish you on behalf of those people. Just think of it as an incentive not to say that word."
"What are you gonna do?" Buttercup asked, just the tiniest bit afraid.
"Calm down, girls. The most unpleasant part is the taste."
"Huh?"
She led them into the bathroom, selecting a new bar of soap from inside the storage cabinet. They looked on, confused until she removed it from its wrapping.
"Okay, who's first?"
"No! I mean, um, please don't?" Blossom asked.
"Girls, please don't make this harder than it has to be," Ms. Bellum sighed.
The three looked at each other, none wanting to go first. Bubbles sighed, breaking the stare off.
"I guess since I said it first I'll go first."
"Sorry sweetheart," Ms. Bellum said as she placed the soap in her mouth.
Bubbles winced as it began to foam, the taste something she never wanted experience again. Blossom and Buttercup winced, their resolve to not taste it strengthening.
"Who's next?"
Blossom and Buttercup glanced at each other.
"Not me!" they said in unison.
"You go first!" Blossom snapped.
"No, you!" Buttercup yelled back.
"You!"
"You!"
Ms. Bellum ended the argument by calmly reaching over and popping a bar of soap into both of their mouths. They made sounds of protest, but Blossom had the sense to keep hers in while Buttercup spit hers out.
"That's gross!" she yelled.
"Buttercup," Ms. Bellum warned in a tone they knew well.
"I ain't puttin' that back in my mouth!" the girl protested.
The older redhead sighed, realizing there was only one way to deal with her. Before Buttercup knew what was happening, she found herself in the older woman's firm grip, the bar of soap disturbingly close to her face. She struggled, trying to get away but not wanting to hurt her by using her powers.
"No!"
The older woman calmly allowed her to scream, waiting until her mouth was open wide enough to replace the soap. Buttercup shouted muffled protests, but Ms. Bellum kept her grip on the small brunette, not letting her go until she quieted down. Bubbles and Blossom watched the scene in awe, never having seen someone force their sister to behave. One by one, they were allowed to remove the soap and throw it away, grimacing at the left behind taste.
"Now, I hope that has taught you a lesson," the older woman said, leading them back to her office.
"It has. We won't say that word again," Blossom promised.
"Yeah, I don't like soap!" Bubbles agreed.
Buttercup remained silent, her glare saying what she couldn't.
"Good. Go back to school now, I'm sure Ms. Keane is wondering where you are." She waited until they had flown away before dialing her phone. "John? Do you know what the girls just said?" He said something in reply. "They said-" a loud crash from outside muffled her voice.
She had to hold the receiver away from her ear as he began yelling.
"John, I already took care of it!" she yelled over him. "Yes, I washed their mouth out with soap and explained why that word is so bad. They shouldn't say it again. But do you know what I found really interesting?" She heard him gulp as her tone changed to one of feigned interest with an undertone of anger.
"What?" he asked.
"Where they said they heard it in the first place."
"W-where?" he asked, actually fearful for his life.
"Bubbles said she heard it from you. Would you like to tell me why they heard you say such a thing?"
He began to sweat, nervous when faced with his irate girlfriend. He just knew this wouldn't end well for him.
"Well, you see," he stuttered, hoping the only thing she would do was yell.
Ms. Bellum smirked, knowing that what he was about to say was not an adequate reason. "Mm-hmm," she hummed as he told her what had happened. "John," she purred in a tone that was anything but pleasant, "I'll deal with you when I get home."
She hung up, happy to leave him to sweat it out. He, on the other hand, shook as he replaced the receiver, wary of what the woman had in mind. He loved her, but he wasn't afraid to admit she scared him when she got angry. He could only hope whatever she had in mind wouldn't have the results he suspected.
