This chapter was originally supposed to be much longer, but I thought I'd save it for next chapter...things get wilde.


Tick. Tick. Tick.

The clock moved way too slow for Lucy's liking. Settled on the bar couch, she leaned her face against her arms. The box of villain documents sat in front of her, waiting to be used for the party. She could just imagine the fun celebration they were having right now...and she was the only one who missed out.

Yet, she did spend some time with the girls before putting them to bed. After reading Gru's special book, One Big Unicorn, they peacefully fell asleep with a family of unicorns flying in their dreams. Flipping through the pages, Lucy chuckled. Maybe she should create the second part of the story.

Nevertheless, now with the girls asleep, Lucy sat alone.

"This sucks," Lucy sighed, "what's so different about being a villain, anyway?"

As she pondered on the rhetorical question, her elderly scientist friend entered the kitchen. Nefario gave her a nod, reaching for the coffee machine. "Evening, Lucy."

She gave him a weak smile. "Hey, Nefario."

Nefario waited a moment. They shared an inside joke of asking each other how many coffees they contaminated themselves with during the day, being the only coffee lovers in the Gru household. Dru and the girls were hot chocolate fans, and Gru personally despised the taste. But, knowing Lucy long enough to miss that particular joke, Nefario frowned, "Everything alright?"

Lucy sunk her chin further into her arms. "Just missing out on the fun."

"Ah, Gru told me about that," he remembered. Inserting the coffee pod and pressing the power button, Nefario took a seat opposite her in the booth, "he also told me how awful he felt, but you in a room full of past villains…doesn't sound compatible."

Lucy exhaled. "Aren't you supposed to be down there, too?"

Nefario winced. "Yes, but it's awkward when none of them have ever heard of me."

She frowned. "Oh, I'm sorry."

"It's okay. They weren't my circle of villains, so I'm not too bothered," Nefario nodded, before jumping up from the booth. He'd forgotten to switch off the coffee machine, again. Lucy chuckled amongst herself as Nefario cursed at the spilt hot water. He grabbed one piece of kitchen tissue, before snatching up the entire roll and making an even bigger mess.

"I'm not the party type, anyway," Nefario resumed, wincing as the water burnt his hand, "I'd be working on some new weapons if they weren't down there."

Whilst the water wasn't exactly dry, at least the floor was clean. Nefario settled back down, taking a sip of his coffee. A lightbulb popped above Nefario's head. He turned to Lucy with a confident smile. "I bet if you were a villain, you'd charm the lot of 'em."

The comment surprised her. Lucy as a villain? That's like…the Minions, but green. It didn't seem possible, or even plausible.

Unless?

Lucy shook her head, chastising herself for even thinking about such a scenario. But she couldn't help it. "Hmm…sometimes I do wonder what it's like to be a villain, y'know?" She relaxed into the recliner, fiddling with an orange peel. "It does get a little boring doing the same thing for years. Well, not boring but kinda..."

"Repetitive?" Nefario understood. Jams and jellies weren't his expertise that one time Gru changed his profession, but neither was destroying the world. So, he settled on the fence.

Lucy nodded. "That's kinda why Gru had a change of pace."

Nefario cocked his brow. "Would you become a villain?"

"No!" Lucy threw up her hands, "Well, I…I wouldn't mind maybe for like…a day? Just to see what it's like. But it's not like I can go 'whoosh! I'm a villain now!' overnight."

That's when Nefario grinned. "Follow me."

He sneaked away, tapping his fingers like the classic Bond villain. With perked eyebrows, Lucy followed him to the elevator.

Nefario's side of the lab wasn't what Lucy expected. She'd only interacted with his pop-up desk, but the weaponry station was a wonderland. Of course, he wasn't the most organised scientist in the world. Several boxes and pieces of paper were tossed everywhere, bins were cluttered with failed plans, and broken coffee machines discarded in the corner.

But the gem of the area was the weaponry wall. Lucy gazed at the wall in awe, mesmerised by the variety of shapes and sizes, the absurdity of what they even were.

Lucy laughed from the shock. "Holy flamethrowers…you've been hiding these all this time?"

"Well, most of them are inventions I made whilst I was just a young adult," Nefario shrugged, "experimented with them at Villain-Con, but about half of 'em are duds."

Lucy gasped, pointing at one, "That's the Atomizer, right?"

Nefario grinned. "Absolutely. Can bring down anything as large as a cloud."

She felt like a teenage fangirl again, obsessed with the roulette of various gadgets and inventions. Once they all caught her sight, she side-eyed Nefario. "Why are we here again?"

Also caught in a trance by his own weaponry wall, Nefario exclaimed "Oh! Just give me a moment," before moving towards the weapons. He climbed a ladder, reaching one particular section. Counting all the weapons, trying to find the right one.

He soon cheered, "Aha!"

Nefario stepped down, holding a ray with the barrel shaped as a large glowing corkscrew. There were two options: yellow for good, red for bad.

Lucy tilted her head, "What's that?"

"This is the Villainization Ray!" he declared.

Lucy blinked. Did she hear that correctly? "Woah, you don't mean–"

"Oh absolutely. It can turn good guys into villains, and villains into good guys."

"Get outta here!" Lucy grinned, "Why did you make it in the first place?"

"Well, it was originally meant for finding me a workmate. Get any average joe off the street and wham! turn 'em into a villain," Nefario explained with a grin, fist raised in the air. Soon, he lowered it with hunched shoulders, "but then I got arrested for public harassment."

Lucy's mouth fell open slightly. But, in all honesty, she wasn't surprised. "Does it work?"

"Hmm...I'd try it on the Minions, but they're pretty much neutral," Nefario rubbed his chin, turning the weapon over in his hands, "that's the grey area with this ray. The person must be purely good or purely bad."

Lucy snickered, "Well, according to my Mom when I was six, I'm full of sugar, spice and everything nice."

Nefario frowned, "Oh, maybe go and see a doctor? Other than me, of course."

She facepalmed, the joke completely flying over the Doctor's head. "Don't worry."

With a gasp, Nefario hobbled over to the room's corner. He removed a dust sheet from a cage. "Actually, I do have a test subject."

Without warning, a purple minion launched itself at the edge of the cage. He gripped the bars, shaking it violently. "BAH!"

Lucy jumped backward. The glorifying memories of a purple minion army surrounding her weren't exactly what she wished for. "I forgot about him."

Nefario grinned mischievously. "Prepare for a transformation you've never seen!"

He pulled the trigger. A piercing yellow light shot out of the barrel, hitting the minion in its eye. He yelled in protest, before it's skin dissolved into a baby pink colour. Crooked teeth gone, eyes like a puppy dog, a smile bigger than all the Minions combined.

"Aww," Lucy smiled, kneeling in front of the Minion, "he's kinda cute!"

"Hmm, much better than before," Nefario smiled, "at least the ol' ray is still working."

He glanced at the tank, filled with a peculiar silver liquid. Three quarters empty. Wincing, he tapped his chin. "I suppose we have enough for both transformations." Nefario raised the barrel towards Lucy. "You have the honour of becoming the first good guy to turn into a villain. Excited?"

Her grin faded. "Ah…maybe this isn't a good idea." Rubbing her wrists, Lucy glanced at the Pink Minion, cuddling the cage bar. "What if I turn savage like he was before?"

Nefario lowered the ray, "Oh, that's not possible. There's a side effect where you turn into the worst possible version of yourself, so I don't know…maybe you'll become a fully committed villain," he joked.

Lucy frowned.

Nefario cleared his throat. "But I won't let that happen. All this will do is alter how your mind patterns work, so all that workaholic energy will go towards wanting to steal something."

Lucy pursed her lips. "Just stealing, right? Nothing worse?"

Nefario shook his head. "Definitely not. You want to go see those villains, right?" Nefario continued, "You want to know what it's like to have that adrenaline pumping through you when you steal one thing, then another, and another?"

Lucy nodded, beginning to feel that thrill rush through her veins again. Or was it dread? Or a terrifying mixture of both? "Yeah…it's just for one night," she smiled, "and I'm sure Gru would love to see me as a villain, right?"

Nefario nodded. "You'll take his breath away."

Lucy grinned, needing every single inch of clarification. "And you can turn me back earlier if I wanted?"

"Oh, I wouldn't doubt it. Any more than a day and that'd be bad news."

Lucy nodded. Then, she froze. "Why?"

Nefario opened his mouth, before shutting it. "It doesn't matter, it won't happen."

Grinning, Lucy clapped her hands together. She jogged on the spot, and then opened her arms. "Alright, hit me!"

Nefario blasted the ray at Lucy. She grinned, closing her eyes in hopes that the ray wouldn't blind her. An electric buzz swirled across her limbs. Here we go! Lucy thought.

Once the ray stopped, the tingling also stopped. Lucy stood there awkwardly, arms still open, waiting for a sign of transformation. Her smile faded.

"Oh," Nefario frowned. He poked the ray, before looking back at Lucy, "Do you feel anything?"

Lucy examined herself, though not entirely sure what she expected. "Not really."

What would you expect whilst transitioning into a villain? Lucy presumed that the ray must've been past it's expiration date, but her head began to pound worse than a migraine.

"Ow…" Lucy winced, rubbing her head. "Maybe it's the headache ray…"

Nefario gasped. "Lucy, look!"

Her eyes were clenched shut, the ache near unbearable. But, she followed Nefario's gaze, soon gasping too. Her turquoise coat, one of her most beloved pieces of clothing, began to turn black. She gasped as she touched the fabric, watching as it expanded across her attire.

Lucy tilted her head. "Are you sure it doesn't just make me look like a villain?"

She groaned again, pressing against her temples. Something was happening. Not just to her clothing...but to her entire thought process. Multiple thoughts ran into her mind, and partnered with her usual giddy attitude, it continued full throttle.


The party was...not what he expected.

Well, what did he expect? All of the villains praising his past work, conversing only about him, asking about every little detail of his life? Not quite. Maybe he received two or three questions. After that, they all continued with their own affairs. Once again, Gru felt isolated. Especially when the mockery began.

"So, Felonius. Do you consider yourself a fan of–"

"Gru."

Black Knight, an iron-clad man with no intent of showing his real face, stopped mid-sentence. Everyone else quietened, staring at Gru.

Clearing his throat, Gru continued, "It's just…Gru."

Frankie Fishlips scoffed, guzzling a pitcher of seawater.

"Fine, Gru," Black Knight corrected, "were you ever a fan of the Mambo Approach?"

Gru gulped, "The…what approach?"

Dumo the Sumo shook his head. "Don't be ridiculous. The boy is too young to remember such things."

Tina Nelson, a stout, curly red-headed woman, threw her hands up. "Hey, I'm the same age and I know what it means," she argued, before setting her drink down and approaching Gru, "lemme demonstrate."

Gru stumbled back. "Woah, woah. What are you–hey!"

Everyone cackled as Tina heaved him onto her shoulder, before grabbing his legs and swirling him round and round and round and–

"AHHHHH!" Gru screamed, before Tina finally came to a halt. He collided with the ground, sighing as his cheek hit the cool metal.

"Guessin' he didn't," Tina laughed, "but there you have it. Dancing around with your enemy, call that the Mambo Approach!"

Gru forced a laugh, struggling to stand from the previous dizziness. "Ha…ha. Good one."

Tina left Gru hanging, instead skipping to Black Knight and giving him a high-five.

Taking advantage of her distraction, Gru snuck away. His social battery dwindled once again. That's when he realised with a pout…he needed Lucy by his side. His much more confident other half, who kept his nerves at ease. But no. He pushed her away.

Why did I do that? Gru frowned, What are you so afraid of?

The next person he'd reach out to would be Nefario. However, he hadn't spotted his mad scientist companion for the majority of the night. Spotting his blond twin, Gru headed for the buffet.

"Dru, have you seen Nefario?" he asked.

Turning around, Dru faced his brother. Mouth stuffed with cake, icing smudged around his lips. "Wha?"

Gru slumped. "Carry on."

He headed for Nefario's section of the lab. To his surprise, he wasn't met with his friend, but a magenta-painted Minion.

"Eh...Tim?" he approached the Minion, kneeling in front of him, "What the heck?"

Further ahead, he noticed the pile of discarded weapons. They should've been hooked on Nefario's weapon wall, but it seemed like someone had trashed the place.

POW!

A smoke bomb burst through the room. Gru jerked backward, coughing and fanning the smoke away from his nose. He squinted, trying to figure out where the substance came from.

The mystery didn't take long. A figure shifted within the smoke. Closer and closer towards Gru. With a glare, he whipped out his freeze day, aiming it at the mysterious shadow. With each step they took, his finger poised at the trigger.

"Who's there?" Gru threatened, "Show yourself!"

But, he noticed that the figure looked familiar. He widened his eyes.

All of a sudden, Lucy jumped out of the smoke. A Dust-Bomb gun in her arms. "Hey Gru!"

The freeze ray fell from his grasp.