It was dusk at Delivery Debbie's Pizzeria. Hearing the bell over the door ring, Delivery Debbie hurried to the counter.

"Delivery Debbie's," the proprietress of the restaurant chirped. "How can I... help..."

Her voice faded and her mouth hung open as she stared at the trio who had just entered her restaurant. The woman standing in front of her was tall and coldly beautiful, with dead eyes, dead white hair and an old-fashioned, flowing white gown. The angelic-looking little boy holding her hand, in contrast, was dressed all in black, with a frock coat slightly too big for him and a stovepipe hat he removed upon entering, revealing black, curly hair. He was positively tiny, apparently no more than four or five, but his eyes, either blue or black depending on the light, registered polite, bemused contempt for everything around him. They fixed on Debbie for a moment and Debbie found herself desperately wishing he'd look somewhere else. The third person was another woman, black-haired and black-garbed. She skulked about in the background while the other two approached the counter.

The boy looked at Debbie and a moment later, the woman in white did the same.

"Hello," she said in a quiet, almost whispering voice. Debbie couldn't help noticing the boy's throat moved as she spoke like a ventriloquist. "I am from out of town. I am seeking a young man called... Odd Todd."

"Odd Todd?" Someone from a nearby table exclaimed. "What do you want with him?"

The woman and boy turned to face the girl who had spoken and her dinner companion. The boy smiled a sweet yet somehow unnerving smile. "Ah. You know him?" He had a piping voice and an upper-class English accent.

"Well, I guess you could say that," the girl's companion said. "My name is Olive. This is my partner, Otto."

The dark-haired woman wandered over to the boy. He stroked her long hair and she purred contentedly.

Otto stared at this, then shook his head. "What do you want with Todd?"

The boy's hand had slipped out of the woman's grasp when they turned. She stood, swaying slightly and staring into space until he slipped his fingers into hers again.

"He contacted us some time ago about a certain matter," she finally answered. "Could you tell me how to find him?"

Both Debbie and Otto were about to reply but Olive headed them off. "Not exactly. He's not an easy guy to track down."

The boy's creepy smile widened. "I see." He sounded vaguely amused. "Well, if any of you should see him, could you let him know Basil Valentine is trying to get in touch with him? Here," he reached into his hat and pulled out a slip of paper. "Here is where he can meet with us."

He handed the paper to Olive, and that was when they noticed his right hand. It was white and withered, almost skeletal, with talon-like fingernails he had painted with red nail-polish.

He donned the hat again and the three of them left.

Delivery Debbie looked at Olive and Otto. "What was THAT?"

#

The next day, Todd was happily puttering about in his garden.

"If you like to sing with tomatoes... If a squash can make you smile..."

He noticed a shadow suddenly falling on his right over the cauliflower.

"What is it, Odd Squad Mobile Unit?"

He turned to face them and was gratified by the startled looks on their faces.

"How did you know it was us?" Oswald gasped.

Todd shrugged. "The one girl always wears bubblegum scented perfume. The boy with the freckles powders himself and the other boy wears way too much Axe body spray. And the other girl makes her own soap." He nodded to himself. "It's not an easy combination to forget."

"Never mind our smell!" Opal said, then frowned. That didn't come out quite right. "I mean..."

Omar took over. "We need some information. Do you know a guy named Basil Valentine?"

Todd's face gave away the fact that he did.

Orla glared at him grimly. "He's looking for you."

"Yeah! Here's the address!" Oswald pulled a Post-It note out of his pocket and tried to hand it to Todd. Todd wouldn't take it.

"No. No way. I'm out of that now. I don't do that stuff anymore."

"We know that. But he doesn't." The Big O stepped around the Mobile Unit and walked over to Todd. "We need to know what he's planning."

"He is a villain, right?" Oswald asked. "I mean, we tried looking him up and all we got were references to Fifteenth Century alchemists..."

"He's... way more than just a villain." Todd picked up his spade and started digging in the soil. "I'm not sure what he is."

Orla raised an eyebrow. "Indeed! Why would you even know such a person?"

"Hey! When you're a villain, you meet people, y'know?" Todd's spade stabbed at the dirt. "We ran into each other at a villain party in Ottawa." He grabbed a handful of seeds and dropped them in the hole he'd dug. "I think they had a Black Mass scheduled but it was getting late and I had to leave..." He saw the OSMU Agents staring at him. "I'm out of that life now."

The Big O took a deep breath. "We need you to dress up like Odd Todd again and meet with him."

All the blood drained from Todd's face. He shook his head vigorously.

Omar nodded. "Guy's that scary, eh?"

"It's not that," Todd insisted. "It's... I can't do it."

Opal knelt down beside him. "Todd. We wouldn't ask if it wasn't necessary." She put his hands on his shoulder. "We need you."

"You don't understand." Todd tossed his shade into the dirt. "I'm not scared of him. But I had to work so hard to give up oddness. It... I still have urges. It's a struggle." His hands were trembling. "It was the hardest thing I've ever done in my life." He shook his head. "I don't know if I could put the suit on again. I don't know if I could keep from going over the edge again."

The Big O took Todd's hand. "We'll be there for you. You don't have to do it alone."

He still looked unsure.

"I'm asking as a personal favor."

Todd stared at the ground. "How... When did he talk to you?"

"He didn't. He went to Delivery Debbie's Pizzeria. Olive and Otto were there."

Omar nudged Oswald. "Wasn't Olive his old partner?" Oswald shushed him.

"He... Olive?" Todd took a deep breath. "I... I guess I owe them..." He sighed. "All right. Fine."

"You'll do it?"

Todd stormed away, nodding his head.

Opal squeed to herself. "This is gonna be SUCH a fanfic!"

The other four stared daggers at her.

#