Two-Brains gave out a yawn as he checked his morning mail.
Doc: Bills, bills, and more bills… Doesn't matter, I don't pay those anyway… and hey… what's this? (Sees a brochure of a cruise ship; he opens it and three tickets fell out, and then he reads) "Congratulations! You won passage upon the S.S Daydream! But you better hurry; this deal only lasts today, so pack up and go!" Hmm, sounds tempting, but how do I know this ticket is the real thing…?
Henchman: Whatcha got there, Boss?
Doc: See for yourself.
Henchman: Oh, cool! A cruise trip! Can we go? There are three tickets, one for each of us.
Doc: Yes… but it could easily be a hoax! Just because we won this trip doesn't mean it's real! Anyone who got this should be suspicious!
Across town, other villains look at their brochure, are happy, and begin packing up. In Mr. Big's office…
Mr. Big: Leslie, make a note of canceling my meetings all week. I'm taking advantage of a free vacation!
Leslie: Yes, sir. (Turns away smirking)
Granny May managed to steal a yacht, then made Ms. Question confuse a sea captain so he could do the driving to taking the men far from Fair City. Granny watch as the villains boarded the boat. She carefully counted them off. There were two villains missing: Two-Brains and Tobey. She figured with Tobey that his mother would never let him go on his own, so she made a separate trip just for him and his mum. Two-Brains was another story; she needed him to come before the ship sailed.
LRW: I overheard him in his lair. He doesn't trust the cruise.
Granny: That stupid second brain of his! You'll have to convince him to go!
LRW: Me?! Why me, myself, and I?
Granny: (Grinning slyly) Don't you two date on occasion?
LRW: (Blushing) Yes, but-
Granny: Then he'll listen to you! Now go!
As her civilian self, she knocked on the warehouse door.
Doc: (Opening it with irritation) Yes, what is it- Be-Be! Um, I mean, (Rubbing his neck) Beatrice… What brings you by? Don't we normally have our date every end of the month?
Beatrice: We do, but that's not why I came…
Doc: Oh?
Beatrice: Tell me, have you been feeling stressed lately?
Doc: Me, stressed? Why would you say that?
Beatrice: Well, it just seems you look overworked. That you haven't been getting enough rest.
Doc: You think so? I guess I have been pushing it with the cheese heists and working on new rays to do the job.
Beatrice: Then don't you think you should go somewhere and try to relax?
Doc: Hmm, there was a brochure and tickets for a cruise I found this morning. I suppose I could go, if you feel I should.
Beatrice: Oh, yes! Definitely! You need the relaxation.
Doc: You're so good to me, Be-Be. I can always count on you if something's up. (He rushes back inside)
Beatrice: (Feeling guilt overcoming her) Yeah… that's me… you can always do that…
Doc: (Coming back wearing sunglasses and a Hawaiian shirt and the henchmen were dressed the same way) We're off on a cruise!
Beatrice: Have fun! (She waved them off as they got in the van)
He waved back and drove off. Once he was out of sight, she looked down in sorrow as Granny May in her armor floated down to her.
Granny: Good job! I knew he would go through with it! He just needed the right motivation… You did the right thing.
Beatrice: But why does it feel I did the wrong thing? I tricked him! (Pushes her nose) Fooled him! Pulled the wool over his eyes! If he finds out, he'll never trust me ever again! I'll… lose him…
Granny: Not if everything goes according to the plan, then he'll never know! You did him a favor, trust me.
But she felt more unsure than ever.
Becky was walking in the park, but something was nagging her.
Becky: (Telling Bob) It's too quiet around here… Normally at some point at this time, a villain would be trying to rob something or other.
Scoops walked from the other side of the park, greeting his superhero pal.
Scoops: Hey, Becky, have you noticed how unusually quiet it has been?
Becky: I know, that's what I have been thinking.
Scoops: What do you think is going on? The Butcher hasn't committed a crime and neither has Chuck, Two-Brains, Mr. Big, or Tobey for that matter!
Becky: It is strange… Maybe a walk around town might help.
Doing just that, they've noticed that none of the men villains were around.
Scoops: Wow, it's like they all went on one big cruise or something! Wouldn't that be funny?
Becky: It would be, but no way that's happened.
Scoops: What are you going to do now? If all your villains are out of town?
Becky: I'm… not sure. I guess I should take this as an opportunity to enjoy myself and Huggy, too. In fact… Huggy, you deserve a vacation.
Bob: ("But why?")
Becky: Because, you do so much as my sidekick, you never catch a break. I think now's a good time as any for you to go relax.
Bob: ("But I'd rather stay with you in case they show back up again")
Becky: That's sweet, but I insist you take a vacation! Besides, now that Scoops knows, he can help out if trouble does show up. Don't worry, I'll be fine.
Bob: ("If you're sure…")
Becky: Very sure. Now get going!
He jumped into her arms and gave her a quick hug as she returned it. He let go, headed off, and gave off a quick good-bye wave. Once he was gone, Scoops turned to her.
Scoops: So that's it, Word Girl is going solo for a bit and I have an article to write about. (Taking his leave)
Becky: See ya, Scoops. I wonder if Violet is doing anything… (Quickly leaving to see she can hang out with her best friend)
Narrator: At the motel where the villain conventions usually takes place, now it looks like a girls' clubhouse…
Granny: (Having a poster board up showing different pictures for different stages) Stage One: Team-up with other female villains, check. Stage Two: Get rid of men villains, check. Stage Three: Befriend Word Girl.
Victoria: You want us to be friends with Word Girl?!
Ms. Question: As in be nice? Do things with her?
Granny: Exactly! As a way to convert her, you have to gain her trust and friendship.
Ms. Question: Would you give an example to show us how?
Granny: If you want me to go first, just say so!
All: We want you to go first.
Granny: Fine! I'll show you how it's done! (Has her armor on and flies away)
Becky was enjoying an ice cream with Violet when her super hearing went off as a clerk was arguing with Granny May.
Becky: Vi?
Violet: Yes, Becky?
Becky: I have to get going now, but I'll see you later, okay?
Violet: Okay, sure, see you later.
She went off to transform and flew off to the mall.
Word Girl: Hold it right there… Granny May? (Sees that Granny was purchasing an item)
Granny May: (Using her sweet old lady act) Oh, Word Girl, did you need something?
Word Girl: But, I thought… (Pointing to the clerk)
Clerk: There was a dispute at first, but it's all fixed now.
Word Girl: Oh, okay… well, if there's nothing else… (Turning to go)
Granny May: Actually, there is one thing… (Looking at her with slatted eyes)
Word Girl: Oh, is there? (Bracing for battle)
Granny: (Holds up her mall bags) Won't you be a dear and help me carry these bags? (Using her sweet elderly voice)
Word Girl: (Feeling stunned and remembers someone's watching them, then moves cautiously to grab the bags) Ah, sure… (Once they were in the clear, she went into Granny's face) Alright, Granny May, what's your game plan here?!
Granny: Plan? Oh, whatever do you mean, dear?
Word Girl: You can't fool me. You're up to something and you wouldn't ask me to carry bags if you weren't planning on trapping me! Ah-ha!
Granny: Now, sweet pea, if I wanted to trap you, wouldn't you be trapped right now? You know me better than that.
Word Girl: Touché… But I'm still on my guard!
Granny: And I wouldn't blame you… What with me being such a mean old lady…
Word Girl: I wouldn't say old…
Granny: Ohh, you are so sweet! (She pinched her cheek)
Narrator: Later, at Granny May's house…
Granny: (Showing her photo albums) And this is my fourth baby, and my fifth baby…
Word Girl: (Feeling bored) Not that this isn't any fun, Granny May, but I should probably get going.
Granny: What's the matter? I'm not exciting enough for you?! You prefer our battles instead?!
Word Girl: No-no-no! This is a nice change in pace, but I don't really have a whole lot of interest in photos, although you do have a nice-looking family.
Granny: Aw, thank you.
Word Girl: I can see a lot of them took after you, even Eugene.
Granny: (Actually feeling touched) Well… well, thank you… That's just about the sweetest thing I have ever heard.
Word Girl: You're welcome, but it's true. I've noticed all of your children including your grandkids look a lot like you.
Granny: So they did, all except my daughter… (Shows picture) She took after her dear father… (Sighs and gives off a sad expression)
Word Girl: You okay?
Granny: Oh, I'm fine, it's just hard…
Word Girl: About what?
Granny: Talking about my husband…
Word Girl: Oh, I'm so sorry, I didn't mean…
Granny: It's alright, like you would have any idea what happened.
Word Girl: I understand it's a painful subject if you don't want to talk about it.
Granny: It is a bit painful, but for you to truly understand, I must tell you the story.
Word Girl: Alright… I'm listening… (Meaning it, too, as she sat there giving her full undivided attention)
Granny: We were childhood friends, although we weren't friends at first; we were school rivals as he always kept picking on me, so I picked on him in return. Then one day, we were caught by the teacher of our fighting and were forced to stay after school. Naturally, we blamed each other that it happened, but suddenly, he surprised me by apologizing. He admitted the only reason he picked on me was because he liked me…a lot. I realized then I must've liked him too, or else why would I get back at him when I could've just left him alone? We called a truce and became the best of friends from that day forth. As we grew, we fell more in love with each other and got married after high school. We had our children and were happy for the rest of our days, until… (She took a pause) he got very sick and we found out he had… cancer…
Word Girl: (Covers her mouth) Oh, no…
Granny: By that time, treatments weren't very good and we knew we would have to say goodbye… (She lowers her head in sadness)
Word Girl: That's… (She couldn't finish)
Granny: It's alright, no need to say anything. Just you knowing now is all that matters.
Word Girl: (Spotting the clock, knowing it was almost time for dinner) I better go, but thank you for sharing your memories, and I am sorry about your late husband…
Granny: No need to feel sorry for me. But I appreciate your condolences.
Word Girl: At least you're still around for your children and grandchildren.
Granny: So I am… Thank you, Word Girl, for reminding me of what I still have and what came from my and my husband's love.
Word Girl: It's nothing; you would've known that on your own.
Granny: You got that right, sister! Now you have some place to be?
Word Girl: I do. See you around! (She flew out of the house)
Granny: (Waves bye-bye to her, then says to herself) Well, that didn't go as planned. Maybe the others will have better luck… (She looks at a picture of her husband and holds it to her chest, remembering all that she told the heroine)