Act II

Saturday soon arrived, and the Royal Woods Under 18s Formal Party was held in the local courtly hall just as Beth stated. Many classy teenagers and children were in attendance of the event, with all the young girls wearing elegant gowns and dresses while all the boys were wearing suits and tuxedos.

Lola Loud approached the hall with enthusiasm and excitement, while her less than graceful sister was hesitant to make way her inside. Lynn stood behind the tree as Lola turned around to see what was the matter.

"What are you doing, Lynn? Get out from behind that tree and let's go inside!" Lola told her.

"Nope, I'm not coming out!" the jock insisted.

"Lynn, we had a deal! Now get your butt over here!" Lola said and pointed at the ground in front of her.

Lynn then reluctantly stepped out from behind the tree. She was wearing a classy red dress with a white belt, accompanied by a pearl necklace, dangling earrings, and red slip on shoes. While she certainly looked the part of an elegant young lady, she was certainly not happy about it. "I look ridiculous!"

"Excuse me?! I saw to it that you had the best dress money could buy!"

"No you didn't! You had Leni make it for me!"

"Enough whining! You agreed to this! Now come on, we're going inside!"

"Look, I know I said I never shy away from a challenge, but I don't think this is a good idea, Lols. There's no way I can keep this junk up for the whole night!"

Lola then facepalmed herself in frustration as it appeared her sister was still going to be difficult about the whole arrangement. "Okay, how about this? Beth and I have made a bet that the loser must give the winner fifty dollars. If we win the bet, I'll split it with you. Deal?"

Lynn then grumbled to herself before giving into the temptation of a nice cash prize. "Fine. Let's just get this over with."

The two girls then walked over to the front door, where there were a dozen young teenage boys all dressed in sharp black suits minding the door, acting as the event's security team of sorts. Lola and Lynn saw in front of them two young boys trying to get in, but the guards were quick to deny them entry.

However, once Lola appeared in front of them, the guards gave the Loud sisters no such grief...

"Good evening, Miss Lola." one of the boys politely greeted her.

"Oh, thank you, Casey." Lola replied.

After the two girls walked past them and entered the building, Lynn whispered in her sister's ear. "Psst. You know those guys?"

"Oh yeah, some of them I've seen before. Some of those boys volunteer as backstage security for some of the larger pageant events around these parts."

Meanwhile, Babs and Beth were right behind them, also sporting elegant dresses of their own, as they also made their way to the entrance of the building, with Babs giving Beth just as much grief as Lynn was giving Lola.

"This is dumb, sis! I don't know why I agreed to this!" the big sister said.

"Because your pride won't let your rival Lynn get one over on you. Now come along." the little sister replied.

Unlike Lola, Beth was relatively new to the world of pageanting, and so her face wasn't instantly recognisable to the guards. They were quick to stand in front of them at the doorway. "Are you two on the list?" a blonde haired member of the group asked them.

"Get out of our way!" Babs aggressively told them as she clenched her fist and prepared to brawl with them, but Beth held her back and calmed the situation down.

"Ahem, I believe a simple check shall rectify this. We're under the names Barbara and Elizabeth Bestie. We are booked in for this evening." she said.

The suited boys then glanced at their list and saw that Beth's claim was valid. "Very well, ladies. Enjoy your evening." one of them replied as they graciously stood aside and allowed the Bestie sisters to pass through.

"And that's another thing! No violent outbursts tonight. That's not going to help us win the bet." Beth instructed her sister. "Diplomacy, not abrasiveness."

Babs just grumbled to herself as the whole predicament seemed worse for her every passing moment.

And so, both pairs of girls were inside the party. Both Lynn and Babs now had to keep up the act of being classy and dignified for the whole event... or at least until one of them cracked.

Lynn looked around to see what this high and refined upper class event had to offer. It was a very sophisticated party, just like Lola had implied, with a long table featuring a wide array of nice foods, beverages, and treats. There was a small fountain in the corner of the room where some guests stood about and talked away. In one area of the room, there was a photographer taking pictures of all the young children in their fine fancy gowns and suits. However, Lynn picked up one observation above all others...

"Hey, Lols, this party's a little flat, isn't it?"

"What do you mean?"

"Well, it's a little boring by the looks of things. I mean, there's no party games, no contests, nothing fun to do. There's no darts, no pool, not even a pin the tail on the ding dang donkey or something... what are we supposed to do all night?"

"What every classy young person with a sense of etiquette does, Lynn... stand around and look good." Lola proudly stated.

Lynn just let out an annoyed groan before saying "This party bites it hard!"

"Lynn, in case you've already forgotten, you're supposed to be a graceful and elegant young lady tonight. That means no getting overly competitive, no being aggressive, and no screwing around and making a mess. Just stand there, eat, and talk." Lola told her. "Oh, but don't eat and talk at the same time. A true lady doesn't talk with her mouth full." she then added.

"Well, you're no fun." Lynn replied.

"Look, just go and grab some grub and try to keep yourself out of trouble. Remember, if you can keep up the act, you'll get a nice cash prize at the end of the night." Lola tried to encourage her. "Now be a good girl and don't ruin this for me!" she then said with a fierce sense of anger as she got up close in her sister's face.

Lynn just brushed off the threat and made a sassy remark. "*Hmpf* And you say I need to work on my etiquette. Your temper is just as short as mine."

"UGH! Just... don't be yourself!" Lola angrily ordered her as she ironically strolled away in an aggressive and angry manner, not acting like the fair lady she normally portrayed herself as, nor how she wanted Lynn to behave that night.

Lynn just walked off and said to herself "They could have at least had an indoor basketball court."

Babs and Beth made their way over to a clique of distinguished young gentlemen. Beth was quick to reinforce the requirements her sister had to meet as they prepared to interact with the children of high class. "Remember, these are some of the most sophisticated young men in town, so you need to act graceful and polite."

"Yeah, yeah..." an annoyed Babs begrudgingly agreed.

The fancy looking boys turned to face the two red-haired girls and greeted them. "Hello there, what are two fine young ladies such as yourselves doing on your own during an occassion like this?" one of the boys asked them as he kissed Beth on her hand.

"Oh, it's a pleasure to meet you, too." Beth politely replied as she did a curtsy in front of them.

Babs just rolled her eyes in response to her sister's mannerisms, but what she didn't yet know was that her sister wanted her to join in on the act...

"Anyway, my name is Elizabeth and this is my older sister, Barbara." Beth then introduced her, before subtly nudging her sibling in the arm and whispering under her breath the words "Do a curtsy."

Babs's eyes opened wide as she realised what her sister had just ordered her to do. She did NOT want to perform a curtsy, and she just remained still, hoping that the moment would pass and she would get away with it. However, as the boys continued to stand and glare at the big girl, she realised that just wasn't going to happen.

Beth then nudged her again and whispered a second time. "They're all staring at you, do the dang curtsy!"

"Kiss my a-AAARRGGHHH!" Babs went to curse, but suddenly began to yell in pain as her little sister aggressively stomped on her foot with her high heels.

"Do it!" Beth fiercely ordered her.

Babs then accepted defeat and performed the gesture as her sister instructed. "How do you do?" she asked as she did so.

"Better." Beth mumbled under her breath.

"You're lucky you're my sister, or I'd..." Babs mumbled back at her.

"She's a rather large girl, isn't she?" one of the boys then commented.

But before Beth could open her mouth and come up with a sophisticated and witty response to the question, her older sister's ego kicked in and she began flexing her bicep muscle. "Yeah, all muscle, baby." she bragged loudly. "A lot of blood, sweat, and tears went into getting size like this."

Beth then angrily grabbed Babs by the arm and pulled her away. "Sorry gentlemen, but we have to powder our noses." she said as she got her sister out of there and to a quiet corner of the hall.

"What? I was talking with them. I thought that was what you wanted!" Babs said.

"Yes, but I didn't say start flexing your biceps and act like an egotistical braggart, did I?! Look, just tone down your aggressive, boastful, and competitive ways and behave like a proper lady. Surely you can do that for just one night!"

Meanwhile, Lynn helped herself to some refreshments at the food table. She began stuffing her face with ham, chicken drumsticks, sausages... for a moment, she reverted to her natural slobbish instinct to eat like a pig, much to the discomfort of the young boys and girls around her, who found her manner of eating to be rather discomforting.

As Lynn noticed them glancing at her from every direction, she suddenly imagined her sister's voice in her head, telling her off for her lack of eating manners. "Lynn, no eating like a slob! Mind your manners at the table!"

Feeling a little humiliated, Lynn used a napkin to wipe her mouth, put down the food she was scoffing, and picked up a small glass of lemonade. She then slowly sipped the liquid in an effort to save face against the onlookers.

One boy then walked over beside her and reached out to grab the last chicken drumstick that she had just dropped back onto the table...

"Hey! That's mine!" Lynn objected as she swatted his hand away.

"Well, I never! You do know, young lady, that it is customary at formal gatherings such as this one to politely share with your peers?" the boy said back before smugly closing his eyes with a feeling of moral dominance.

Lynn then went to throw a punch at the boy's face for his smug attitude whilst his eyes were still shut, but she stopped herself at the last second when she remembered she still had a bet to win. The boy then took the drumstick and walked along the table to grab some other bites while Lynn delivered an audible *Grrr* sound as he moved away.

At that point, the blonde one of the security guards walked inside and strolled towards the table, where he also began helping himself to some food.

"Dang, I'm starving! I could use some good grub." he said aloud as he began filling his plate.

"Ahem, Master Cooper, aren't you supposed to be minding the door outside?" one of the girls asked him.

"Eh, everyone's arrived now, so we agreed it would be better if some of us came in here. Besides, I could do with some food. I'm a growing boy, after all." he then joked.

But as he started eating, he involuntarily let out a loud and sudden belch, attracting the scornful eyes of everyone in that area of the room.

The blonde teen looked around as all the refined young ladies and gentlemen were glancing at him with disapproving and disgusted frowns on their faces. He blushed slightly as he couldn't help but feel the embarassment.

"Master Cooper?! How uncouth!" one of the girls berated him.

Lynn herself was no stranger to be chastised for nothing more than simply embracing her bodily functions, given her previous Middle School experiences. Noticing the boy was suffering from a similar kind of humiliation, Lynn decided to divert everyone's attention away from him. She let out a burp of her own, twice as long and twice as loud, in an effort to outdo him on the spot. Her efforts were successful, as everyone's criticism was directed away from him and back towards her.

"EW!"

"Gross!"

"How unladylike of you!"

Lynn just shrugged in response to their critiques, causing them all to walk away from the table in disgust. The blonde boy gave her a quick "Thanks." in appreciation for what she had just done for him.

"Eh, don't mention it... especially to my sister." she joked in response, before looking around to make sure Lola hadn't witnessed her display of uncouth behaviour.

As the party continued, the two pageant girls bumped into each other. Both girls immediately put on a confident and satisfied face as they each tried to evaluate how close the other one's sister was to snapping.

"So, how's the party been going for you and your sister, Beth?" Lola asked her, forcing a smile.

"Oh, it's been terrific. The food's been nice, the people have been exquisite, and to top it all off, my sister has been a delight. She's been so enthusiastic about this whole thing. I've not had an ounce of trouble from her." Beth replied, also forcing a smile on her face.

"That's great." Lola said as she tried to fight off the urge to give her an angry growl. "Well, Lynn has also been on her best behaviour. Honestly, I never knew she could be so full of charm and class. I've had no issues whatsoever from her tonight."

"That's good. I wouldn't want the bet to be too easy, after all." Beth said, also trying to suppress her feelings of anxiety and competitiveness. "Just remember... I'll be watching you and your sister all night for any slip-ups."

"Yep, and I'll be doing the same for you two." Lola replied as the two girls walked away from each other.

"Dang it! I don't know how she got that red-haired brute to behave for so long, but there's no way I'm losing to her!" Lola said to herself, before a mischevious grin emerged. "Hmm, I think it's time I put Babs Bestie's touch of class to the test. After all, Lola Loud always has a Plan B!"

Babs was struggling but managing to keep the act up as she tried to keep her interactions down to a minimum and just blend into her surroundings. However, the scheming of Lola Loud was about to throw a curveball in the works. As she looked around at all the fancy and sophisticated young boys and girls in the room, she noticed someone who seemed a little... familiar. She couldn't quite put her finger on it, but she felt like she had seen him before. He was just some boy in the distance, hanging around and chatting away at the other side of the room. But he stood out in her mind as someone she had met some time ago.

She was then approached by her sister. "Okay, Babs. You're doing fine. Just keep it up and we'll have this in the bag. I just spoke to Lola, and she was clearly hiding something. I think her sister is about to break any minute!" she said, but she noticed Babs was stuck in some kind of trance. "What is it, sister? What's wrong?" she then asked.

"I... I swear I recognise that guy. Over there, the one with the short brown hair and the blue tux!" Babs said as she pointed at him.

"Why? Who is he?" Beth asked.

"That looks like... Robert Garvey, the rotten little runt!" Babs then clarified with a notable amount of anger in her voice.

"Am I supposed to know what you're talking about, Babs?"

"He's one of the jerks who used to pick on me back when I was your age! He was the ringleader of the popular kids at school who used to push me around and pull pranks on me! He and his jerk buddies were the ones Terry saved me from back when we first met!"

A nervous Beth realised this turn of events was putting her sister on edge, which really wasn't very fortunate for her. "Well then, you have a lot to thank him for. If he never picked on you, you never would have met your old martial arts master and you never would have got so strong. Now come along, let's forget about him!" she said in a desperate attempt to lure her sister away and prevent her blood from boiling, but Babs wasn't budging this time.

"Nuh-uh, sis! This is something I've wanted to do for a LONG time!" Babs said as she shoved her sister aside and aggressively began strolling across the hall towards her former bully.

Beth glanced around and saw Lola standing and talking to some girls not too far away from where Robert Garvey was standing. Knowing that Babs unleashing hell on him there and then would surely cost them the bet, Beth whistled towards the blonde security kid who was standing nearby and said "Hey, my sister's about to cause some trouble! Be a good boy and restrain her."

The guard then rushed his way over and grabbed Babs from behind, locking his arms around her waist and preventing her from moving forward. "Not so fast, little lady. There's gonna be no trouble on my watch!" he said.

"You again?!" Babs said as she tried to bust out of his grip, but he was proving to be quite strong. "Ungh! You're stronger than you look, buddy, but I'm stronger!" she said as she then put in maximum effort and after a brief struggle finally managed to break free of his hold. The guard then fell backwards but was caught by Beth, who helped him stay on his feet.

The blonde boy then prepared to advance at Babs once again, but this time she turned to face him head on. She raised her fists and issued a threat. "You better be sure you wanna do this, punk!"

Beth then ran over and restrained her sister. "Babs, just forget about it! Come with me and try to calm down!" she said as she finally managed to lure her sister away before a fight could break out.

As she escorted Babs to the other side of the party hall, she walked past Lola and asked her "My sister's former bully just so happens to be here tonight. You wouldn't have anything to do with that, would you?" with a blatantly suspicious tone of voice.

"Who? Me?" Lola asked, trying to sound innocent, before dropping the act immediately and cockily confirming it. "Yeah, that was a pretty clever idea of mine, wouldn't you say?"

Beth then emitted a sly grin on her face and said "Well played, Lola, but two can play at that game. At least I'll feel a little less guilty now." as she walked off with her sister.

"What's that supposed to mean?" Lola wondered to herself.

As it turned out, Beth had also pulled an underhanded tactic before the event in an effort to defeat her rival and win the bet, and this tactic was about to hit Lynn hard.

The sporty little Loud girl was standing around by the fountain, trying to keep to herself in an effort to outlast Babs Bestie. She wanted to have some fun, but she knew she had to keep her rowdy and competitive urges in check if she was going to survive the challenge.

"Ugh! I'm so bored! I wish something exciting would happen!" she moaned to herself, though she should have been more careful what she wished for...

...as she was suddenly startled when a familiar voice suddenly said "Hey, is that you, Lynn?"

"What the...?!" she blurted out in shock, before turning around to see her friends Margo, Maddie, and Paula standing before her.

Margo was with Elliott and Maddie was with Kaito, while Paula was with the injured boy she first met at Dairyland. The girls were all wearing fancy, elegant dresses and the boys were all wearing suits, just like the rest of the party guests in the building.

"Margo! Why did you tell them I was here?! I thought that was our secret!" Lynn walked over and aggressively called her out.

"Honestly, I didn't even know you were here, Lynn!" Margo defensively replied.

"What do you mean?! You were there when me and Lola agreed on the bet to come to the party!"

"Yeah, but I didn't know this was the same place as where you and her were going!"

"To be honest, we all just recieved some flyers in the mail advertising a cool under 18s party." Maddie then stated.

"It said to dress up nice, bring your dates and to come down on Saturday evening for a good time." Paula added.

"But why would they advertise it to you guys?" Lynn questioned. "This is a party for snobs!"

"I don't know. But we just thought that it would be a nice night out. I didn't think this would be the same place that you and Lola were going to in a million years, I swear! Honestly, I didn't tell anyone about your bet with Lola." Margo insisted.

Lynn then thought to herself before realising what had likely happened. She looked around and glanced over at Babs Bestie's little sister. "I bet it was her! Ooh, that snake!" she angrily mumbled to herself.

"I've gotta be honest. I'm surprised to see you of all people at a place like this, Lynn." Maddie then commented.

"Or in that fancy red dress." Paula followed.

"I mean, no offence, but you're not exactly the most graceful, classy, or feminine of girls." Maddie continued.

"Well, like Margo and I said, I'm just doing it to win a bet." Lynn insisted.

"Yeah, but still... I never thought you'd rock the graceful girl look so well." Paula complimented.

"Yeah, well, you know..." Lynn tried to brush all the comments off, but with little effectiveness.

All of their words had the unintended side effect of making Lynn feel awkward, of her feeling out of place with what was going on around her. She felt uncomfortable at the party, she felt uncomfortable in the dress, and having her closest friends see her doing something so wildly out of character for her... she just couldn't stand the discomfort or anxiety any longer.

She began to sweat as she became more and more tense, the presence of her friends making matters many times more difficult for her than they already were. The sense of humiliation became overwhelming as her friends began to chit chat amongst themselves. Suddenly, without being provoked, she blurted out "I gotta head to the bathroom, I'll catch ya later!" before sprinting her way out of there.

Lola saw Lynn nervously running off from her friends as she figured out exactly what Beth meant when she said two could play at that game. "Oh, so she sent Lynn's friends invitations to the party to try and embarrass her. I would be angry..." Lola went to say, but then followed with "...but I'm actually quite impressed. Who knew goody-two-shoes Beth had that in her." Lola understood the meaning of playing dirty, and while she didn't like it when those tactics were used back against her, she had to respect it.

Trying to cool off after the altercation with the security guard, Babs walked out of the main party hall and into a separate hallway, where she could be alone for a minute and clear her head and recover her sense of calmness.

However, as she did so, the one person she really didn't want to see followed her out there. It was Robert Garvey, talking to someone on his phone, standing around loitering in the hallway, unaware that Babs was standing nearby.

"Hey babe, don't worry about it. All these ladies here are nothing compared to you. Heck, I only came to this snooze-fest party because some dumb girl paid me to. Anyway, I'll see you tomorrow. Have a good night." Robert said over the phone as he ended his conversation. "Ha, dumb girl. Someone should have told her growing up that whatever happens at parties, stays at parties!" he then said to himself after finishing the call.

Babs knew that whatever two-timing the boy was doing, it was not any of her business. She had a bet to win, and an agreement with her sister to try and uphold. She stood back and did her best to ignore him... but there was still a thought in the back of her head, an urge to go and confront him.

One of the security guards then walked outside to issue a warning to Robert as Babs watched on from a distance...

"Hey, listen buddy. We're getting a lot of complaints from some of the guests in there that you're behaving in a really unsavoury way. We've been told you've been toying with girls' affections and bullying some of the younger boys." the guard said.

"Hey, don't worry about it. I'm sorry, I just get a little carried away at parties. I'll be on my best behaviour, I promise." Robert said with a false sincerity, but it was convincing enough for the guard to leave him be.

"Pfft, my dad is the richest man in town. He could buy out this whole building if he wanted to! Ha, what a bunch of cockroach-butts, don't they know that I do whatever I want?" Robert then said to himself.

But unbeknowst to him, he had unleashed a can of worms by saying the insulting term in front of an observing Babs Bestie. Babs remembered her years as a victim of bullying quite well, and the term 'cockroach-butt', while actually rather lame and juvenile an insult, was the term used against her for years as a young girl. She associated it with some very harsh memories. She had flashbacks playing out inside her head at that moment of all the times Robert and his cronies tormented and bullied her at school. All the name calling, all the pushes, and punches, and wedgies, and all the 'Michigan Stink Bomb' pranks he used to dish out on her...

After a moment of fending off the nasty flashbacks inside her mind, Babs decided it was time to pay her old 'friend' a visit. She walked up towards Robert and allowed him to notice her first. "Oh, hey there. You're a big girl, aren't you? What's the matter? Can't keep your hands off all the pies in there?" he insultingly asked her.

"You must need your eyes testing, buddy. This is all muscle." Babs replied as she flexed her right arm.

"Say, have we met before? You seem familiar for some reason." Robert then brought up, though Babs was in no rush to reveal her identity to him at that point in their confrontation.

"Eh, it doesn't matter. You're just some big fat loser, from what I can tell. Just another lame-o cockroach-butt." he then beratingly said, which angered Babs more and prompted her to grab him by the collar and press him up against the wall.

"You don't remember me, do you runt?!" she aggressively interrogated him as his insulting and arrogant attitude was beginning to shorten her patience.

"Should I?" he replied with a slightly nervous tone.

"Try and picture it. A little girl with red hair in a skirt, crying on the school playground, while you and all your friends pick on her? Sound familiar?!" she said as she got up in his face.

"Wait a second, now I remember! You're..." but just as he was about to say her name, she viciously delivered a knee to his gut, which was painful enough to make him wail in agony before dropping to the ground.

"Yeah, that's right. The name's Babs Bestie, and what I'm about to do to you is long overdue!"

Robert then stood back up and tried to gather back some of his bravado. "You're gonna pay for that! I don't even care if you're a girl!" he shouted as he ran over and threw a haymaker punch, but Babs just slipped her head to the side while simultaneously responding with a nasty punch to the solar plexus, successfully winding him. She then followed up with a thunderous head hook, which knocked him back down to the ground.

"You know? For years, I was scared of you! But why?! You're just another little runt! All big and tough when you've got your friends around you, but on your own, you're nothing!" Babs told him.

As Robert looked back up, he could tell that the red-haired brute meant business. His cocky front deterioated as he recognised the danger he was in. "Please... I'm sorry, for everything I've done. Please don't hurt me!" he began to pathetically beg as he realised he was outmatched by this vengeful bruiser that stood over him.

"You're begging? Wow, what a chump! I always pictured a big showdown the day I finally ran into my big bad bully again, but honestly, you're nothing but a joke to me now!" she said as she looked down at his snivelling face.

Babs then grabbed the boy and pulled him back to his feet, before stringing him up against the wall a second time.

"You're not even worth my time, punk! Just remember the next time you see your friends to tell them that you got your butt handed to you by Babs Bestie!" she said before letting go and letting him drop back down to his knees.

But just as she began to walk away, she turned back around and said "Oh, actually, one more thing..." before shoving her butt in front of his face and letting out a vile fart, which caused him to cough in disgust.

"I remember you used to do those Michigan stink bombs on me, so there's a little payback for that... cockroach-butt!" she said as she smirked proudly, before finally walking off in triumph against her former bully.

However, Babs's sense of triumph did not last long, as she walked further down the hallway to see a disapproving Beth staring her down.

"You idiot!" the younger sister said.

"What?"

"I told you no violent outbursts!"

"Aw, come on, that jerk deserved it!" Babs defensively argued.

"That's not the point! For all you know, Lola or Lynn could have spotted you doing that!" Beth pointed out.

"But they didn't! There's was nobody around except me and him!"

"You don't get it, do you?! That foolish little stunt of yours could have cost us the bet!"

Babs then walked away angrily whilst shouting "UGH! I've had enough of this dang bet!"

Beth watched her walk off in a sour mood as she remarked to herself "One night, just one night where she wouldn't act like a brute, that's all I asked for!"

Author's Footnote:

And that's the second chapter done. Not really much else to say except you should expect the third and final chapter at some point within the next week. Take care and any feedback in the meantime is welcome.