Sitting in her most recent favourite princess gown, Agnes sat cross-legged at the front door. She stared at the door with an eager smile, hoping two people in particular would open the door soon.
Edith dragged her feet along the floor, rubbing her eyes with a big yawn. She cuddled the manga novel close to her chest, the thrill of finishing the story still running full speed across her mind. How that hero managed to save the day using a cardboard katana, she was in absolute awe. Perhaps one day, if the AVL Youth Club her parents pitched ever goes ahead, she'll replicate that exact moment. Agent Edith - the master of cardboard katana battles.
Stepping into the hallway, Edith paused as she spotted her younger sister sitting opposite the door. She cocked an eyebrow. "What are you doing?"
"Waiting for Mom and Dad to come back!" Agnes smiled.
Margo emerged from the kitchen with a glass of water. Overhearing their conversation, she lay a hand on Agnes' shoulder. "They've probably been called out for an emergency mission."
Edith gasped, throwing her hands up. "We should totally go help them!"
As her hands flew upward, Edith's book smacked Margo in the face. She groaned, pushing her hand away. "Don't be ridiculous, Edith. There's no way we could sneak in."
Agnes gasped, holding up the ruffles of her dress as she ran towards them. "Yeah! I've always wanted to see Mom and Dad's work."
Whilst her younger sisters jumped together in excitement, Margo frowned. How on earth would they get to the AVL anyway? It wasn't like they could waltz through the front door - it was either the submarine or a blimp. Unless they grew wings or fins, no chance.
However, before she could crush their dreams, Margo spotted two figures outside the front porch. To her surprise, it was Gru and…Lucy? In a black coat? Margo tilted her head, curious. Her Mom never wore any dark colours, she claimed that wearing black and grey never suited her hair well. To be honest, black looked quite stylish on her!
But still…something was up.
Margo smirked at her sisters. Maybe a trip to her parents' work would be interesting after all. "Actually…you wanna get to the AVL? Follow me."
With widened eyes, Edith and Agnes grinned as they crept behind Margo. She opened the front door, then rushed towards Gru's tank vehicle. They slipped inside whilst Gru paid attention to Lucy in the garage.
"I thought you were so desperate to turn me back," Lucy tilted her head.
"If I turn you back now, the good Lucy will tell Da Vinci what she did," Gru sighed, "and then we'll get fired."
Lucy opened her mouth, and then nodded. "True."
"Listen honey," Gru held her shoulders, "do not listen to them."
"Da Vinci?"
"No," his head fell, "the villains."
Lucy frowned. "Why not? I wanna prove I'm just as good a villain as I am an agent!"
"Not by stealing the submarine's emerald reactor!" Gru exclaimed, "That thing is the backbone of the place. If you steal it, you'll sink the entire thing."
Lucy shrugged, "We've still got a blimp."
Gru slapped his face, dragging it down in a slow and painful movement.
Noticing his frustration, Lucy threw up her hands. "Okay, okay. I won't try anything."
"Not just that. You cannot say anything villainous around Da Vinci," he warned, "even if something slips, just say…uh…"
"That it's an experiment!" Lucy suggested with a beam, "Thinking like a villain to see how they would act."
Gru nodded, taking Lucy's hand. "That'll do."
Just before he moved towards the vehicle, he stopped. Lucy followed suit, still holding his hand. Once Gru wasn't moving alongside her, she glanced back and tilted her head.
"What's up?" she asked.
Gru stepped closer, hand stretching to touch her hair. One of the many ringlets in her bun turned black. Just one, but enough to steal his attention. "Did you try to dye your hair the same colour as your clothes?"
Lucy stared at him, puzzled. "Uh, no, but that's a good idea! Colour-coordination, a key villain trait, how could I forget about that?"
Then, she pursed her lips shut. She pretended to zip her mouth closed. "Oops. No villain talk."
Gru frowned. Perhaps another Villainization Ray side effect, or a late-blooming transformation.
The meeting was held in the AVL submarine this time. Da Vinci, pacing up and down the room, made the silence even more enduring with her heel clicks. With a lump in his throat, Gru tapped his foot. He glanced at Lucy, who seemed unbothered by the show.
"So…you gonna tell us what's going on?" Lucy cocked her brow.
Da Vinci whipped her head around, glaring. "Is that such a way to talk to your director, Wilde?"
Sitting up, Gru chuckled. "She is very concerned. Wants to kick whoever's butt you need, Director."
Letting out a hmph, Da Vinci returned to her seat. Arms crossed. "You won't believe the night I've had."
"Same here," Lucy murmured to herself with a grin.
Gru gave her a gentle nudge.
Luckily, Da Vinci didn't notice. "My beautiful red tesla, my baby, my darling angel…was hijacked earlier!"
Gru tugged on his scarf. Was the thermostat at its highest temperature? Boy, it was warm.
"Oh no," Gru tried his best to sound surprised, "that's awful."
He could sense Lucy's desperation to laugh.
Da Vinci growled, facepalming. "And I have no idea who the criminal was. How could someone be so despicable?"
Lucy cleared her throat. "Ooh, I like that word."
The Director shook her head. "It's the perfect word. And once I found out who they are, I can finally use the AVL's most recently issued weapon on them."
Gru gulped. "Eh…and what would that be?"
With a smirk, Da Vinci opened a cabinet drawer. She slapped a large file in front of him, showcasing a wide-barrelled weapon almost the size of his shrink ray. Lucy gazed at the weapon in awe.
"The Deafening Ray," Da Vinci grinned, "the loudest sonic boom that'll permanently deafen your opponent."
"That's pretty…immoral for a moral organisation," Lucy cocked her brow.
"It's pretty immoral to steal someone's car!" Da Vinci argued back.
Well, it's not like you don't have the money to replace it," Lucy shrugged.
Sitting forward in her chair, Da Vinci glared at Lucy. She looked the agent up and down, scanning her sudden change in attitude. "Are you finished with the petty comments, Wilde?"
Before Lucy could open her mouth, Gru grabbed her hand. No villain talk. No acting like a villain. Though the urge tried to fight back, she spoke through gritted teeth, "Yes, Ma'am."
Nodding, Da Vinci swung around. "Find this culprit and bring them to me. I'll deal with them myself."
Clenching her fists, Lucy rose from her seat and left without another word. Gru let out a breath, before standing to follow her.
"Agent Gru."
Gru closed his eyes with a wince. He turned, one eye opening. Greeting her stern frown with a nervous chuckle, he cleared his throat and said, "She hasn't slept so well recently, Miss Director…Ma'am. I'm sure you understand."
"And I sure hope you understand our deal," Da Vinci crossed her arms, her acrylics almost reaching around her limbs a second time, "the second she steps out of line…" she swiped a hand over her throat with a horrible click of her tongue. "Consider the offer gone."
With a gulp to ease his dry throat, Gru nodded. "Got it."
He backed towards the door, smacking against it. With a nervous laugh, Gru scrambled for the handle before disappearing into the hallway. A hand dragged down his face with an exhausted groan.
Meanwhile, Lucy paced in front of him. Even as a villain, her morality for the welfare of other villains reamined the exact same. "There's a rule book," she argued, "no fatally injuring the opponent. I learnt that in Cadets, for crying out loud."
"Gru!" Nefario hobbled over, holding the Villainization Ray. "You forgot this."
With a relieved sigh, Gru held the ray gun. He examined the contraption, shaking his head at the absurdity of the thing. There wasn't any more time to lose - switching the option to good, he aimed the barrel at Lucy.
"Woah, woah, wait!" Lucy held up her hands, "I'm not finished yet."
Gru sighed. "Honey, trust me. The real Lucy is definitely finished."
He pulled the trigger.
BAM!
However, her nimble movements allowed her to dodge the bolt without hesitation.
"No!" Lucy argued, turning sharp on her heel with a cunning smile, "She's gonna make questionable weapons? Then I'm gonna steal that emerald reactor."
"Lucy–"
"What's that?" Lucy ran away, hands covering her ears, "Can't hear you!"
BAM!
Before the bolt could hit her, Lucy escaped past the corner. The ray bounced back, almost hitting Gru in the face. He swiped his head, sighing. "That was close."
"Meh," Nefario shrugged, "you're neutral, the most it would've done is give you an ol' nasty scar across your face."
"Great," Gru rolled his eyes. Charging up the ray once again, he turned to leave.
"I'd be careful," Nefario warned, "there's lots of good guys and villains in this place, and there's not enough–"
"Yeah, yeah," Gru chased after Lucy, leaving Nefario in mid-sentence.
He caught up with her charging through the main conference hall. She leapt onto the table, kicking files and coffee cups. Gru quickly gathered some scattered documents, handing them back to the meeting leader.
"Heh, sorry about that, she's had one too many twizzlers," Gru chuckled, before sprinting away.
Around the corner, a closed door kept Lucy stationary for a moment.
BAM!
Once again, the bolt missed. Instead, it bounced between the walls of the AVL, down the staircase, leading straight towards the prison cells. The security guard prepared the prisoners' desserts for the night, finally catering to Bratt's wishes - jelly.
However, as the guard turned his back, the bolt landed straight into the jelly - the red texture wobbled, slowly dissolving into yellow.
"Got any…eights?"
Growling, Eduardo tore his card into thousands of pieces. He pointed at Clive and yelled, "Your little Furby is cheating!"
Bratt gasped, as well as Clive, whose robotical face shed block-like tears. He hugged his companion, glaring at Eduardo. "How dare you compare Clive to something as hideous as a Furby!"
Before he could kick off once again, the guard entered the room with the dessert trolley. Bratt smooshed his face against the glass, giggling at the treat.
"Finally!" he cheered, "Sweet, sweet jello!"
Eduardo and Vector exchanged tired looks, rolling their eyes.
Before any of them could dig into their dessert, the hallway door swung open, slamming hard enough to catch their attention. They watched as Lucy sprinted down the hallway with a joyful laugh. She cheered, "I'm gonna be the greatest villain of all time!" before continuing on her merry - villainous - way.
Eduardo peered down the hallway. "Was that…"
"Lucy Wilde?" Bratt finished.
"Oh, she and Gru have fashion sense in common," Vector snorted.
Bratt scratched his mullet. "No, no, she usually wears blue…and doesn't usually yell the words 'I'm gonna be the greatest villain of all time!'"
"Maybe it's a case of the Super Flu," Eduardo snorted, sitting down again.
Vector tilted his head. "Super Flu?"
"Do your homework, Hector," Eduardo rolled his eyes, "Super Flu is when these goody-goody agents have been good for so long that they're thirsty for some change."
Vector scoffed. "Sounds dumb."
Bratt shook his head. "Nah, man. There have been a few, including El Wacko over there."
Eduardo grumbled something under his breath.
"So, is there a Villain Flu?" Vector joked.
"Villains turning into good guys?" Eduardo chuckled, "Yeah it happens, but it's the most ridiculous thing I've ever heard."
"Right?" Bratt scoffed, "Imagine being a good guy. How boring."
They all laughed, finally agreeing on something. Soon afterward, they dug into their strawberry - yet yellow-coloured - jelly.
After licking his bowl clean, Bratt hiccupped, before his stomach gurgled violently. "Ugh, what did they put in this? Rat poison?" He glared at the jelly, before yelping in agony. He clasped his head as his hair burst out of its ponytail. The mullet fell, extending with the rest of his hair.
"My hair!" he cried, grabbing the strands in hopes that it'd stick back up again. "My beautiful locks!"
Glancing over at Eduardo, Bratt gasped and pointed at his suit. The wrestling costume transformed into a long-sleeved silk shirt, flared pants, and dress shoes - a tango uniform, his favourite costume during the years he retired from villainy.
Meanwhile, Vector stared at his jumpsuit, now ridden with neat stitches instead of latex fabric.
Eduardo would've gasped in horror at the sudden transformation, but something made him grin upon seeing such a beautiful uniform.
"Wow!" Eduardo grinned, hands on his hips. He turned to his right, knocking gently on the wall between him and the other cell. "Vector! Have I ever told you how much I love your orange colour palette?"
Previously facing the wall, Vector swirled around with a pleased smile. His orange jumpsuit was now a sophisticated orange suit - blazer, shirt, tie, and pants. Puffing up his blazer, Vector held up his hands. "Oh, my man, call me Victor. We're besties."
"What an honour!" Eduardo touched his chest, before turning to Bratt, "Of course I wouldn't exclude you, Balthazar."
His ridiculous shoulder pads were exchanged for a purple robe, seemingly fitting with his luxurious hair and purple-rounded glasses. No longer an 80s child star, but more of a calm hippie.
"Relax, man," Bratt murmured.
The door opened again, revealing Gru. Breathless, he hunched over, taking a break. He recognised the room he stood in, and then realised…he wasn't being insulted.
"Well, if it isn't my most favourite nemesis ever."
Gru blinked. He took a moment to examine Bratt. Within the timeframe they were enemies, Bratt never spoke to him in such a joyful voice that was so…nice.
The only thing that slipped from his mouth was a puzzled, "Uh…?"
"Need any help, mi amigo?"
Gru turned, now facing Eduardo, also cheerful and smiley.
"If you're looking for a heroic tango dancer to help the AVL, who are you gonna call?" Eduardo paused for a moment, before flexing his muscles, "Macho Bueno!"
"Macho…huh?" Gru stepped back. He didn't like this. It was weird. Too weird. What sick game were they playing?
"Or, you could call Victor."
Gru glanced wearily at Vector, gaping at his orange tuxedo. He glanced between all of them, puzzled.
They were acting…good.
Behind him, a breathless Lucy rested an arm on his shoulder. "Ugh man, I couldn't find it. Plus it's less fun without you chasing me."
He glanced between his villainous Lucy…to his heroic nemesis'. If he couldn't conjure his worst nightmare before…he must've found it there and then. Lucy as a villain, and Vector, El Macho, and Bratt as heroes.
Finally peering at the ray, Gru realised. "Oh no."
Lucy took a moment to examine the villains. With an amazed grin, she laughed, "Woah. How the turn tables."
He gulped, wincing at an anxious ball wedged in his throat. "I'm screwed."
"You could say you're s-grued," Lucy snickered.
Back at the lab, Gru and Nefario both sighed in relief when they realised the Sixties Supers had left. Gru wasn't devastated - those villains were a bunch of jerks, and he felt much better without their company. Especially after their little stunt. Sending Lucy to steal the AVL's emerald reactor? Are they pulling on his leg? But right now, they weren't worth his time. He needed to change Lucy back.
After a few hmm's, oh my's, and a final oh crikey, Nefario returned with the ray. "I hate to say this…but you see this little tank here?"
Gru and Lucy examined the tank, once filled with silver liquid. Only a few splotches remained on the sides. Nefario clicked his tongue. "I'm afraid it's run out of juice."
"What?" Gru exclaimed, eyes widened, "Don't you have any more liquid?"
Nefario shook his head. "Oh no, no, no. This isn't some liquid you find lounging around."
"Whelp," Lucy chuckled, rubbing her hands together and walking towards the weapon wall, "looks like I can be a villain for another day!"
Gru whirled his head around at Nefario, glaring. He waved his hands around, "There must be something!"
Nefario stroked his chin, clicking his tongue. He hobbled towards his clutter bin, shuffling through documents. "I know I put it here somewhere…"
Tapping his foot, Gru waited with the amount of patience a five-year-old would acquire.
After a moment, Nefario pulled out a stack of paper. Licking his finger, he flipped through. "Ah, okay. Let's see…oh."
"What?" Gru's eyebrows sprung upward. He peeked over Nefario's shoulder, "What is oh? Don't just say oh and then not say anything!"
"This liquid is mercury, Gru," Nefario turned, "and the Apex Lab is the only way you'll be able to grab enough to transform everyone back to normal."
"Apex Lab?" Gru exclaimed.
Nefario's head sunk into his neck. "Yeah…but it's a bugger to break into."
"Break in?" Gru pulled both ends of his scarf, almost strangling himself, "I can't just buy this stuff?"
"If you've got a million dollars just lying around, then yeah."
If he could've dug his fingers into his skull, he would've. Breaking into Apex Labs? Even as a prime villain, he never found a way to infiltrate the building. The security was impeccable, much more impenetrable than Vector's lair or Bratt's lair. Gru clenched his teeth. What to do…what to do…
SMASH!
Gru flinched, whipping his head over at the sound. Holding the Atomizer, Lucy hunched her shoulders as she stared at the broken ceiling. A few minions glanced downward, laughing and waving.
Kicking her foot against the ground, Lucy chuckled, "Heh…just wanted to see if it still works."
Gru smiled. Lightbulb!
"Heyyyy, honey," Gru moved opposite her across the desk, hands behind his back.
However, Lucy was still intrigued by the weapon. "Gru, we've gotta try the Atomizer on something even bigger," she gasped, "the mall!"
"Maybe later," Gru lowered the weapon in her hands, "because I've got something even better."
Now he caught Lucy's attention.
"You're a villain now, hm?" Gru smiled, "How about going on your first proper heist?"
Lucy's jaw dropped. With a mischievous grin, she leaned across the desk closer towards him. "Don't tease me, tell me more."
Gru followed suit, also leaning closer. "How about…"
Lucy smiled. "Mhm?"
"We steal…"
"Go on."
"From Apex Labs."
Lucy gasped. "Apex?"
Gru nodded, wiggling his brows.
Almost bursting from excitement, Lucy gripped the desk so she wouldn't explode like an enthralled firework. Squealing with joy, she gave him a quick kiss. "You get the drawing board ready, and I'll find an outfit perfect for heisting."
Watching her bound away with a rougesome smile, Gru chuckled amongst himself. This was bound to work. And…the only way it could work. Two villains were better than one. He quickly glanced around, hoping that Dru wasn't eavesdropping on his conversations again. Another heist with his brother tagging along was the last thing he wanted.
Lurking behind him, Nefario tapped Gru on the shoulder. "Uh, Gru. A word?"
Gru turned to his friend, still content with his plan.
Nefario rubbed his hands together. "Are you sure this is a good idea?"
"Of course!" Gru patted him on the back, "Lucy and I are a dream-team. I've got the brains, and she's got the muscle...and the brains, too."
"Yes, I don't doubt that," Nefario then winced, "the thing is, never like to be the bearer of bad news, well…actually, don't worry."
"Wha-don't worry?" Gru stammered, "After you say bad news?"
Nefario waved a hand, turning to leave. "It's fine. It won't happen."
Gru glared at the scientist as he tried to escape the conversation. "What won't happen?"
Stopping in his tracks, Nefario inhaled. "Just don't provoke her too much into villainy."
Gru pursed his lips. "That's pretty difficult after someone turned her into one."
Ignoring the comment, Nefario continued, "Once the ray hits the subject, the mind is tampered with. In the case of Lucy, her mind will keep indulging in villainous thoughts until she becomes truly evil."
Gru blinked, unprepared for what came next:
"Including…turning on you."
