Big and chunky chapter coming up, with some more drama to boot!
The sun by now had set over the island, as King Julien had finished preparing the upcoming feast. His cherished red boombox sat on a corner, playing soft music. He had set up a huge table in the middle of his living room, filled to the brim with bowls of mangos, pok-poks, kumquats, lychees, sliced watermelons and pineapples, berries of all kinds – which he had been busy collecting all evening – and a large bowl of punch sitting at the middle, all complete with coffee and smoothie dispensers (among other drinks) that stood right next to the bar. Five chairs sat on each side of the table for all twenty people, while a menagerie of plates and cups sat in front of each and every chair. Julien was now embroiled in the task of lighting up several candles strewn along the table's length, when he heard a knock at his door.
"You can come in," he said, bringing up a match to the last candle.
The door opened, and Maurice, Clover, Mort and Timo walked in. The king waltzed over to greet his first guests of the night. "Ah, you guys are just in time!" he exclaimed. "Timo, I hope you bring me some good sleighy-gifty news?"
The tenrec nodded. "Yes, Your Majesty, the sleigh is finished and ready for take-off, and the gifts have been delivered and hidden safely inside a sack. All we need to do is load it in and call it a day! Well, er... night!" he snorted. "It was harder than I expected – I had to personally downscale several of the gifts by hand, but otherwise, I'd say it was a sounding success!"
Mort glanced up at him and asked, "What did you pay them with? Don't all those things cost money?" He for once, was one to have a lot of personal experience with those green bills.
Timo rubbed the top of his hatted head, then answered, "Well, since we don't have actual money, either physical or digital, I just sent a package of bills from that board game you found in the Cove of Wonders a while back. I hope the humans don't notice, or the price on my head will be quite high..."
Timo's report filled His Majesty with glee. "Fantastic!" he declared while clapping his hands, "You guys can take a seat while we wait for the peoples to arrive." He then guided his friends over to the furthermost side of the table. "The one at the middle is for me, so nobody gets to put their booty on it, got it?" he added as the four sat down, leaving the middle chair empty for the king.
As he reached for the bowl of lychees, Timo took notice of the Christmas tree by the corner. "Oh, I'm glad to see the tree you and I put together has been pleasantly decorated, Your Majesty," he said while eating one of the small red fruits. "Some of the ornamental choices are a little, um, strange, but it does add a colorful touch to the place."
The four lemurs smiled at each other. It was their tree, and they wouldn't have it any other way.
Maurice then gleamed over the entire setting with wide eyes. "This is some very impressive work, Your Majesty! Did you really do this all on your own?" he asked with disbelief. He almost convinced himself he must've had someone else do it all for him. On any normal occasion, he and the others would've been the ones ordered to collect all this food while he slacked off somewhere else.
Julien picked up one of the cups, then walked over to the smoothie dispenser. "Of course Maurice, I admit I may be a bit of a lazy bum sometimes, but I can get stuff done by myself too, you know?"
Maurice held his hands up in a gesture of self-defense. "Sure thing, Your Majesty! I believe you."
Then, a few minutes later, another knock came at the door. Julien opened it to meet eyes with Xixi. The moment she had read the word "party" on her invitation, she had ensured to be here the second the sky turned dark. The party-ready toucan was carrying several glowsticks, and wore even more neon-colored bracelets around her wings and neck.
"Xixi! Glad you came! Come in, come in – make yourself at home!" the ringtail greeted her as he invited her in. "I see you've come dutifully prepared; now that's the spirit!"
"Of course I did, no party's complete without this here girl – woot woot!" she cracked one of the glowsticks alight and tossed it near the table.
"Well, this is more than just a party, you know? It is mainly a cheery Christmas feast, the party comes after that."
Xixi flew up and perched herself on the backrest of one of the many free chairs. "Not while I'm around! When I'm here, all of it is a party!" This earned a chuckle from the royal.
With his back turned to the door, Julien then heard soft footsteps, followed by a voice he hadn't heard in a while.
"Hi there, Julie!" a certain red and yellow lemur called him. He turned around to cross gazes with Rob, who stood hunched over at the doorway in his usual nurse attire.
King Julien moved in closer. "Yo Rob, my disfigured and gross buddy, what's cracking?" he then looked over his shoulder when he realized he was alone, his smile faltering a bit. "Ehhh, where's Dr. S? Is he coming later or...?"
Rob shrugged. "Meh, he decided to stay back at work. Too busy fusing two rats' bodies together and all that, you know him."
The king wasn't particularly glad to learn this, but didn't let it show. "Oh, well... I guess it's kinda a good thing, because I'm pretty sure giant snakes don't like mangos and strawberries..." he stated in an attempt to make himself feel better.
The nurse agreed. "Nah, not at all," he slurped up some spit, "Actually, he likes dead things the most. Just the other day I had to dig up some old corpse from a cemetery since he refused anything else I gave him." Ignoring the shocked faces of the other guests, he then reached out an arm. "Anyway, let's shake on it, friend, for old time's sake!"
Julien and Rob then proceeded to do their complicated secret handshake, the one they had known since many years ago and always ended up disturbing people. When it came for the time to entwine their tails and bump their rears together, everyone present looked away in disgust. Its effect on bystanders never quite wore off, even after all this time.
"Agh, I still can't get used to that," Clover complained while shielding her eyes.
"Speak for yourself, Clover! I could watch that all day," Mort said as he stared at the pair with dreamy eyes, secretly feeling jealous of Rob. Timo, who was sitting next to him, shuffled his chair a few inches away from his, while Maurice, Clover and Xixi gave each other a disturbed look.
Right after Nurse Phantom had joined the five on the table, a host of voices came up from outside, and several lemurs emerged from the ladder. Horst was the first to walk in. He was wearing his glittery DJ sunglasses, which he lifted over his eyes as he approached the host.
"Your invite was right about not missing the place, King Julien! This hut is so bright I- he took a sip of his beverage, "had to bring my sunglasses, son! Not even at the nightclubs I work at there's this many bulbs!"
Ted and Dorothy then walked inside, "Yes King Julien, we thought we'd go blind when were at the base of your tree! And that's really saying something," he reiterated as the couple rubbed their eyes.
"Thanks for the invite anyway; Ted and I are so glad to be here tonight! Let me say, you've decorated your hut so beautifully!" Dorothy added with excitement as she looked around. Julien bobbed his head as a means of thanking her.
A snarly voice then rose above the rest. "Argh, what do you geniuses think this is? I think I'm gonna need eye surgery after seeing that eyesore of a lightshow you got out there – with nails!" Maurice was surprised when he saw Hector there. When he had come to his house earlier that morning, he had been forced out mere seconds later and had the door slammed on his face, with barely enough time to explain why he was there in the first place.
"Hector! I'm surprised you came – I remember you kindly throwing me out of your house earlier," he said with slight venom in his voice. "What made you change your mind?"
"I heard there was going to be food. That's all," Hector yapped as he pulled out a random chair and plopped himself on it. He then grabbed a blueberry and chomped on it, ignoring everyone else around him.
Julien then came up from behind and planted his hands on the seated lemur's shoulders. "Well, the fact that you're here is what counts! Especially after you let us down at the snowball game yesterday. And yes, not to be cocky or anything, but let me add that we were about to kick your butts."
Pancho was the next to greet the king. He waved at him as he invited himself in. "Hi KJ, it's sure very neat that you invited this many people, 'cause it means a load of empty huts ready for so- he immediately stopped talking when everyone gave him a strange look. The red lemur realized a bit too late he was probably saying too much.
"...I mean..." he cleared his throat, "I don't want to imply that Andy's ransacking your places while you're all here or anything, he he... It's just that, um..." he then stopped trying to make useless excuses and went straight to the table. As he looked around the brightly-lit house to find something to change the subject, his eyes fell upon the familiar-looking crown resting on top of the Christmas tree. "Hey Your Majesty, is that... your crown over there?" he asked.
Maurice, Clover and Mort all shook their heads at him as if telepathically telling him don't say a word.
The king stared at the red lemur blankly. "Ummm... no?"
The felon narrowed his eyes at it before turning his attention to the cup sitting in front of him. "Oh, okay. If you say so."
A jittery lime-eyed lemur then wandered in. Julien skipped over to him to give him his cheers. "Willie, my man! Good to see you didn't get lost or anything!" he said as they shook hands. "Can I count on you not screaming bloody murder during the feast for no real reason?"
"Sure, Your Majesty!" Willie yipped with enthusiasm. Then he looked over his shoulder. "I mean, I'm sure no fossa will attack us while we're all here, right? It's Christmas after all, no one eats lemurs during Christmas... right?" he claimed timidly, his frame already shaking slightly.
"Oh come on, stop being such a buzzkill and sit down. The fossa don't even know what Christmas is, you dummy!" Julien groaned as he pushed him on.
As he gazed at his gathered guests, he re-ran the list on his mind and noticed there was someone small, green and scaly missing. "Hmm, where is..." He mused when, as if on cue, a green chameleon with multi-colored patterns materialized out of nowhere an inch from his face.
"I'm right here," Masikura stated as she hung from one of the ceiling rafters.
Julien yelped in fright and recoiled so hard his hat fell off his head. He tried as best as he could to shrug off the multiple sneers that came from the crowded table. "Masikura, don't teleport in front of me like that, your old scaly face showing up out of the blue freaks me out!" he scolded her as he picked up his hat and dusted it off.
"My apologies, King Julien. I just want to say thank you for allowing me here. By the way, I do not teleport," the fortune teller said neutrally as she blinked out of sight once more.
"Whatevs, it's creepy so stop doing it!" Julien shouted at the spot she had been standing on as he finished dusting off his precious headgear and put it back on.
He then felt the floor tremble slightly as something – or rather someone – approached. "Nice lil' tree ya got there, King Julien," he heard a female voice at his door. Tammy, Butterfish and Todd appeared. "I reckon some of those," Tammy pointed at the decorations on it, "would feel right at home for Todd's glitzy costumes, right baby?" she said lovingly, patting her son's head.
"Yo, I don't think the lil' girl likes that kinda stuff, but you do you," Butterfish drawled out as he dragged himself to the place with the most food. Tammy narrowed her eyes and growled after him.
"And speaking of Todd, how's the little guy doing tonight?" Julien bent down to his level, smiling from ear to ear, "Maybe wishing for something special to happen? Something magical? Hmmm?" he cheekily asked him, but the child didn't react or move in any way. His pupils were but minuscule dots in his big yellow eyeballs, and he stared blankly out into space while remaining completely still like a statue. After a few uncomfortable seconds, the creeped-out host stood up.
"...Riiight, yeah... me – me too. Anyhoo, you guys go take a seat or something," he pointed over his shoulder at the special double chair he had taped together for Tammy, just in case one wouldn't be enough.
"Come on, little baby, let's get you seated by the pretty glowing tree," Todd's mother purred, and he moved for the first time, although his face remained as stone-cold as before.
Seeing that everybody was now accounted for, Julien clasped his hands with great satisfaction. "Ah well, now that everyone's in, we just – wait a minute, where's Abner and Becca?" He suddenly remembered them. He went to the door and walked outside, his face swelling with indignation. "Don't tell me they didn't show up either and that I wasted my time making those fancy invites for nothing!" he shouted at nobody in particular. He then stomped his foot once. "Aaah! I mean, just – aaah!"
"I don't think they're coming, Your Majesty, so we better get started!" Clover raised her voice as she remarked from her seat. She had to hide her growing smirk. Thank Frank for that.
Maurice gave her a suspicious look. "You didn't have anything to do with that, right?" he leaned closer and whispered to her.
"Maurice, what kind of person do you take me for?" she asked, sounding slightly indignated.
"The kind that breaks someone's arm if they do so much as touching you," he replied flatly.
The crowned lemur lifted a finger, "That only happens to strangers and people who deserve it – case in point, those two buffoons. But rest assured, I had nothing to do with it." Then she added, "This time."
"Yeah Maurice, gotta take the crazy lady's word for it I guess," Horst peeped from across the table, while Hector just produced a throaty growl and kept shoving blueberries into his mouth.
Meanwhile, Julien remained outside in wait, his back pressed against the wall beside the door, under the blinking, glowing crown with the tree inside. Disregarding the cold, he stood there for several long minutes, counting every second as he hoped for those two heads to rise over the bamboo guardrails. However, it didn't happen. He finally figured Abner and Becca wouldn't be showing up at all. Oh well. Three of his guests apparently weren't interested at all in Christmas.
He shook his head with disappointment, and was just about to go back inside to begin the feast... when he heard a voice calling his name.
At first, he thought it was his imagination, or possibly the howling of the chilly night wind. It had been almost a whisper, but he had heard it as clear as day. It hadn't come from inside the hut, like the rest of the casual chit-chat everyone was engaged in. He briefly mused the cold was most likely making him hear things, so he shrugged it off and got ready to shut the door. But then, he heard it again, this time even clearer.
"Julien..."
The king spun around again, but no one was there. His eyes darted to every place, to every illuminated leaf on every tree, but he couldn't see anyone. That voice... It had almost sounded like... No way. His eyes widened with worry, but he kept his cool.
He looked back at his guests; fortunately none of them were paying any particular attention to him, as they were all deep in talk with each other. Seizing the opportunity, he quickly trotted inside towards the boombox, turned the dial up, then skipped back to the door. Then he whistled to get everyone's attention and said briskly, "Er, I just remembed there's this quick thing I need to do; you guys can get settled at the bar and make yourselves some drinks or whatever you want! Be back in ten!" He received a collective nod as a response, then slipped outside and closed the door, muffling the sounds that came from inside.
Now it was just him, and the one person he already knew was hiding somewhere in the shadows.
He cupped his hands to his mouth, "Karl, you there? I know it's you! Come out!" he whispered. For a moment, there was only silence.
Then, a slender brown-furred figure stepped out from the deep, dark refuge of a nearby tree's crown - its inner foliage was shielded from all the lights and had served as the only viable spot to hide in. Karl advanced along one of the tree's wide branches, then hopped down into the balcony to meet his arch-nemesis. He looked... nervous. King Julien wondered what on earth he was doing here. Even though he had planned to go visit him soon, the fanaloka's presence here, right now, could only mean he was up to no good yet again. Somehow though, the strange look on his ruby eyes told him otherwise.
They spent several seconds staring at each other, neither of them saying a word. When Karl saw no anger or resentment on his nemesis' eyes, he was the first to break the silence.
"...Hello, Julien," he said in a meek, shy voice that was very unusual of him.
The silver king crossed his arms as he spoke. "What do you want now, Karl? Came again to crash the party? Didn't you have enough with yesterday?" he asked him in a more serious tone.
"N – no... I came here because..." the fanaloka rubbed his arm uncomfortably.
Julien pressed. "Because what?"
Karl motioned with his hand at the snow-covered, footprint-riddled floor. "Listen Julien, may I ask you to take a moment, so we can just... sit down and... talk? Please... There is something important that must be discussed. Be at rest, I haven't come with woeful intent."
Julien's eyes widened, and his worries vanished. This was actually what he had been looking forward to – to have a talk with Karl. He guessed that plan about going to pay him a visit wouldn't be needed after all, even if his timing was a little unfortunate. Although his friends weren't here with him (as he and Maurice had agreed) he accepted the fanaloka's request, and both sat down at the edge of the balcony. Their backs glowed in a combined hue of gold, red and green in tandem with the flickering lights.
The ringtail then looked at his enemy. "So... you want to talk? Well, that's actually pretty convenient, 'cause it turns out I also wanted to speak with you! But you know, I'll let you go first," he said.
Karl kept his nervous look as he proceeded. "Yes, about that... This morning I sent Chauncey to your kingdom to do some... well... listening, and he happened to hear what you and Maurice talked about. What you said about me."
The royal recoiled slightly. "You had your creepy-crawly pet spy on us? That's not cool, man... also kinda weird."
Karl looked down, "I know, and I apologize for that." Julien's eyes widened at this. "But I needed to know what you thought about yesterday's... unfortunate events. He told me about what you had said, about you wishing to apologize to me, and it made me realize something..." He paused to inhale deeply. "So after much contemplation, I took the leap and came here to... well... say sorry and set things right."
King Julien couldn't believe what he had heard. "You? Saying sorry?" he huffed half-jokingly as he stuffed his pinky in his ear to ensure it was working right. "That sounds a little strange if you ask me. After all, you've tried to kill me and my friends tons of times before – more than anybody else in fact. Why would you apologize now all of a sudden? Did you slip on some ice and hit your head or something?"
"No, Julien. I do because I sincerely regret my actions yesterday. I should not have engaged – forced – you into battle." The fanaloka then glared at his beloved sorrowfully. "Both Chauncey and I almost lost our lives, and I felt that... maybe things wouldn't remain the same between us after that. That's why I sent him."
The lemur formed a half-smile. "Well, you certainly screwed up big time. In fact, I think it's pretty much a new record for you. But um... since you now know thanks to your bug, I also gotta say sorry – as crazy as it sounds coming from me. I guess I said some things I shouldn't have. I just got angry that you did what you did and didn't mean it."
Karl kept his gaze fixed upon the distant black sea that could be seen extending for miles. "You have nothing to apologize for, Julien - what Maurice told you was true, I'm the one who needs to do this, not you. All that you said yesterday was truthful and justified, and it made me think and come to this conclusion." Then he veered his head to look at the golden eyes of his arch-nemesis. "You see, as much as I'm always trying to destroy you, I avow I... don't actually loathe you, Julien. You may be my arch-nemesis, but I honestly wouldn't know what to do without our long-standing chemistry – the thing that powers me everyday – besides my beloved Chauncey, of course." He inched his finger closer to his face, and the cockroach snuggled against his cheek. "I'd feel... lost. Empty and without a purpose."
Julien began running his fingers across the snowy floor. "Yeah well, you're mostly okay too I guess. To be honest, I do kinda like all the crazy adventures you put me through on a regular basis – it adds some spice to the kingly life. And we have made a good team from time to time too. If that's what you were afraid of, that we wouldn't keep things up like usual, don't worry. I'm not angry at you for what you did." Then he added while pointing at the door, "If I were, I would've had Clover come out and kick your butt to the other side of the island five mins ago."
The villain smiled. "I know, Julien, and I thank you for it." He then had Chauncey crawl onto his palm, where he began caressing his shell. "Now, you see – I appreciate our... bond, but you must know, Julien... I also hold... envy for you."
The royal tilted his head and lifted an eyebrow in surprise. "Wow, for real? I mean, I totally get why someone would envy me," he chuckled, "I'm the most handsome king with the best fashion and dance moves in the land after all – everybody wishes they were me! But why would you of all people?"
Karl veered his head back and intently listened to the sounds coming from inside the large glowing house. From the cacophony of cheers and encouraging words, it appeared Mort and Pancho were engaged in a smoothie-drinking contest. Karl couldn't help but smile longingly – the smallest smile anyone could muster – something Julien didn't fail to notice.
"Because of that. Do you hear it?"
"Oh yeah, it sounds like Mort's giving Pancho a good beating, ha ha ha! I hope they don't gobble up all the smoothies all by themselves, that'd be a total bummer!" the lemur laughed.
Karl kept his sights on the door and had to shield his eyes when he looked just slightly up. "Those cheerful sounds... that laughter, that music... Everyone present at this moment is here because of you." Then he looked back at the king. "To be with you."
Julien kept listening attentively, not even blinking once as his arch-nemesis kept talking.
"That is why I envy you, Julien. You have the one thing I always craved, yet never found: friendship." As he said this, he held his little companion closer. "Me and Chauncey have always been two forsaken outcasts; ignored and never taken seriously by anybody. We've only had each other for all of our lives..." Julien winced when he said this, as all the memories of both of them back in Lemur School flooded back to his head. All the memories of the young, desperate fanaloka trying to reach out to him, only to be ignored and cast aside like he didn't even exist. A deep feeling of shame was beginning to settle down upon the lemur king.
He almost didn't hear what Karl said next.
"But you? Just look at all this," he spread his arms wide as he wistfully stared at all the lights decorating nearly every tree and hut in the vicinity. From their high vantage point, they extended like a beautiful rainbow sea amidst an ocean of blackness. "You have brought all this... festive joy to your kingdom selflessly, out of a desire to make your subjects happy, while I remain bitter, resorting to attacking you and forcing you into pointless squabbles steeming from my loneliness and my selfish need for attention... I sometimes wonder how you manage to do it. The fact that you're still here, listening to me – your worst enemy who's caused you so much harm – by itself demonstrates how worthy you are of such love and devotion from your people."
Julien was at an absolute loss for words. Never, not even in the wildest recesses of his imagination, he would've thought Karl – of all people – would come to him and spill all this very personal info out to him. But then again, he also had something to say from deep down inside.
He rubbed the back of his head. "Um, listen, Karl. You and Maurice say there's no reason for me to say sorry for what happened yesterday, but... there is something I have to apologize for after all."
Karl's eyes widened in his head, and the king let out a deep sigh. Then he spoke in an almost dejected tone, "You know how we went to Lemur School together back then, when I was still a prince? Throughout all those years, you constantly tried to reach out to me because you were lonely, yet I never even acknowledged you existed. I was always too busy with the ladies, or the parties, or just being popular and awesome, you know?" Karl rolled his eyes. "The thing is, I see now I should've paid attention to you. Maybe if I had done so, things wouldn't be as they are now between us. You only wanted a friend, and I was a total grade-A jerk to you... Now, it's not easy for me to say this, but... I want to say..." he spoke the last word as if it hurt. "Sorry. I'm really sorry for what I did."
Karl understood. Neither of them found it easy to say all they wished to. But it didn't matter now. Karl smiled and even dared to place a hand on the king's shoulder. "Be at ease, Julien. I wholeheartedly accept your apology. You can consider that a thing of the past."
And he meant it.
Julien then reached out his hand with a corny little smile of his own. "Okay, so now that we've both sentimentally "declared our appreciation" for each other... no hard feelings? Think we could maybe even... start anew? No more Mr. Bad Guy, turn the page and all that? What do you say?"
Karl looked at it for a moment, as if taken aback. But then, a smirk traced his lips and he nodded. "Indeed, Julien. No hard feelings, no more... "Mr. Bad Guy," as you put it."
And with that, the two nemeses vigorously shook hands. Karl, on the inside, felt a wave of change and happiness overcoming him, and he felt like a brand-new man.
The king exhaled full of glee. "So from now on, can I expect you not to try and reduce me to bits with some crazy supervillain plan?"
Karl planted a hand to his own chest. "You have my promise. From now on, me and Chauncey shall stay away from all evil schemes. I measure it'll be difficult to... adjust, but in time, I see a bright new future for our relationship."
"...You ain't gonna propose to me or anything now, right?" Julien then joked as he bumped Karl in the arm with a silly chortle. The fanaloka simply grinned and shook his head no. Still it amazed him just how quickly the lemur king could turn over a new page without holding any sort of grudges.
For a few minutes after, both sat in silence, looking out into the faraway ocean, listening to the sounds coming from the house. Karl ultimately deemed they had been here long enough, and that someone would eventually come out looking for Julien. "Anyway, it would be best if I departed and let you enjoy your night; I wouldn't want to ruin this delightful shindig you got taking place. I thank you for listening, and wish you a... what was it? Merry Christmas. I wish you and your friends a most pleasant night," he politely said.
With that, he stood up and prepared to climb down the ladder, but he felt a touch in his arm that halted him. When he looked back, he saw the king's hand wrapped around his arm and a warm, sincere smile emblazoned on his face.
"Hey, who says you have to leave, or depart or whatever?" he noted. "Why be alone tonight when you could maybe... I don't know, enjoy yourself for once and... join our little event? It's real peaceful and relaxing in there," he added, pointing at the hut.
"AWWWW! WE'RE NEVER GONNA DIEEEEE!" a harsh scream suddenly rang from inside. Right then, a red glowstick and a smoothie cup flew through one of the windows, followed by a loud bang.
Julien chuckled, "Well, with Xixi in the mood, there can be none of that."
Karl allowed a short snicker to come out. However, he soon looked down and his ears fell. "...No, I could not. Not after everything I have put you and your kingdom through throughout all these years. I don't deserve such kindness," he said in a discouraged tone. "Me and Chauncey can go home, now that our feud has been properly settled."
His Majesty wouldn't hear any of that. "Hey come on, don't leave me hanging like this! You didn't have me spill my guts to you for nothing! You really think I'd let you go back to that creepy lair of yours without at least having a taste of the punch? Not while this king is still breathing and definitely not while it's Christmas!" he argued resolutely.
The idea did seem very enticing to Karl. It was after all, finally a chance to taste what he had yearned for the most throughout all his life. But then, he looked away, still unconvinced. "Julien, even if you'd let me, these are your friends, there's no place for someone like me among them. In addition, they all rightfully hate me... I am unwelcomed."
"Nonsense, my peoples are totally the welcoming kind, even for ex-bad guys like you! Also, I'm the king so they'll have to do as I say anyway. Besides, I'm sure your bug friend over there agrees that you should join us, right?"
Chauncey chirped something in the fanaloka's ear. Even the cockroach somehow looked excited. "You really think so? Well, I... I suppose giving it a chance wouldn't hurt."
Julien smiled grandly. He had no idea what the insect had told Karl, but knew it had been enough to persuade him. "Now that's more like it!" he said, then flung an arm around Karl's shoulder as they both went for the door. "Come on, let me introduce you to something we call a party. Very enjoyable stuff, so much so that I just know even someone as stuck-up as you will like it. Now, stay behind me and let me do the talking."
Karl gulped down a lump in his throat and nodded nervously. King Julien pressed his hand against the door... then flung it open.
"Everybody, listen up!" he announced as he walked in. "Stop guzzling down drinks 'cause I've got a super important announcement to make! Tonight, we're having a very special guest. One that honestly, not in a million years I would've thought would be here. But we've just talked things out and it turns out... he's not such a terrible dude after all!"
"What are you getting at, Your Majesty? Who's joining us?" Maurice asked confused, although he had a slight hunch about who it could be. A small hopeful smile crept up his mouth.
Here goes nothing.
"Hold on to your socks, peoples, because our special guest is none other than..." he then stepped aside, revealing Karl. Immediately, everyone present gasped in utter shock. Those who were standing stumbled back a step or two. Those who were seated immediately stood up. Mort and Pancho dropped their smoothie cups. The music stopped playing. No one dared to breathe. The feel-good air of relaxation had completely vanished. The fanaloka was starting to feel overrun by anxiety, with fifteen pairs of judgmental eyes trained on him - he felt besieged from every side. Only the king himself and Maurice remained calm with his presence.
"We... we're... we're all..." Willie was beginning to tremble, but before he could say anything more, the aye-aye covered his mouth.
"What is he doing here?!" a scalding voice then boomed as Clover stomped her way through the stunned crowd and in front of the pair, holding out a vindictive finger. "So that's what was taking you so long, hey? What did he say to you? Some stupid lie or sob story to get into your head and infiltrate us? No way, this must be another one of his plans - you know he can't be trusted, Your Majesty! You can't allow him in!" she shouted in anger.
The king stepped in between Karl and his bodyguard before things could escalate. "Back off, Clo-Clo, he's okay. He'll be joining us tonight and is not gonna cause any trouble, ever again actually! We just had a nice talk and have come to an agreement. Now I don't want any of you – especially you," he said while pointing at her, "to start anything. We're all here to have some good Christmas fun, so that's what we're going to do. And as your king, I ask you all to give him a chance."
He then stepped aside again to let Karl explain for himself. After looking at His Majesty for support and receiving an encouraging nod, the fanaloka turned to the other guests. He held Chauncey tight, close to his heart.
"Gr... greetings, everybody," he began. "I am aware I have caused a lot of suffering to all of you for many years now. I haven't been the kind of person I should have, but that is about to change, I assure you. Julien and I have talked things out, and I have ceased all evil schemes. There is nothing to fear from me anymore, I shall not cause any trouble again. I – I hope my presence tonight will not pose any concerns to any of you. Most of all, I want to say I'm deeply sorry for crashing your snowball game yesterday and for everything else I've done, and know that I do not wish to cause any harm and I simply look to enjoying my time here. That is... if you will have me..." he finished shyly.
He sounded – and looked – completely sincere. There was none of the usual cockiness and air of grandeur that always emanated off him wherever he went and that accompanied every word he said.
"Well... I for one do believe in second chances..." Dorothy spoke out to her fellow guests after a while.
"Yeah honey, if you're leaving the evil club then you're free to join the party club! Everyone's allowed in!" Xixi reasserted, still holding her glowsticks.
A flame of hope was reignited inside Karl's soul. "Really? Would you...?"
"Sure man, just don't go all nutty on us and don't eat all the food, a'ight? Those pok-poks be lookin' sweet right now, know what I say?" added Butterfish.
Ted then walked up to him and grabbed him by the arms. "It is Christmas after all, isn't it? You may have been a big meanie before, but what's a festivity without a little sympathy for your fellow man? After all, sincerity goes a long way, am I right, fellas?" he looked at the others, who nodded in support.
Karl's eyes filled with such joy he felt he could cry. "I... I don't know what to say... I'm... thank you. Thank you all so much for this chance!" he stammered. Chauncey chirped something the others took as a sign of happiness.
The fanaloka found himself welcomed in with open arms. There was one person who didn't share the same feeling, however. Although the villain sounded genuine, Clover still didn't allow herself to trust him for a second. The bodyguard got up to his face, her green eyes staring intensely into his red ones. "I'll be keeping an eye on you, Karl. King Julien and the others may buy your little charade, but I don't." She said in a low voice as she poked his chest with her pointer finger. "Make one fishy move, and I'll show you how forty-five different ways of killing with my teeth really look like."
But he kept smiling relaxedly – he was much too happy to take her threats seriously now. "Don't fret, Clover," he told her. "I'm confident we won't end up throwing punches at each other." Then he ambled up to the bowl of punch, took the nearby ladle and dipped it in. After pouring some for himself and Chauncey, he lifted the ladle. "Now, shall we throw down this punch to celebrate?"
King Julien giggled at the reformed fanaloka's little joke and closed the door. Outside in the dark vicinities, where the light didn't reach, two concealed figures stayed vigilant, observing the royal hut with great intent – and hatred.