Chapter 2: Hospitality

We landed outside the all-too-familiar movie studio and entered.

Upon seeing us, the receptionist immediately called for Conductor and Grooves. Heh, did we really come down that often?

Anyway, it was a short wait until both birds came barreling out of their respective double doors and ran toward us.

"Darlings!" DJ Grooves shouted, "We've been waiting so eagerly for you to come!"

"Hey, calm down, it's only been a day," I joked.

"Eh, maybe, but we have a lot to discuss, lad," Conductor said.

"Are you two not gonna be going for eachother's throats for once?" I asked.

They turned to eachother, then back.

"We've come to a bit of an accord," DJ Grooves said, "We'll never truly get along, but we both agree that we should put aside our differences for you two."

"But not always," Conductor muttered.

DJ Grooves scratched his head.

"Well, let's head into the studio," He said, and we did. We followed the two birds through the double doors, and...

A smile formed on my face.

This place had hardly changed since we were last here. I guess, if it ain't broken, don't fix it.

Anyway, the two directors took us down through the studio until, after what seemed like an eternity of walking, we came to what seemed to be a small break room.

"Never seen this place before," I said.

"This studio is massive, darling. There's many places you haven't seen," DJ Grooves explained.

"Aye, people get lost all the time in here," Conductor agreed, "But anyway... so ye've decided to stay, eh?"

The kid nodded gleefully.

"Again, we're glad ye did. Sure wouldn't be the same without ye and yer adventures makin' things more lively 'round here," Conductor replied.

"Sure is gonna be a big change for us, that's for sure," I said, "Being a tourist has way less responsibilities than being a resident, even with... temporal dilemmas."

Still wasn't sure what I'd do for a job and whatnot...

They both chuckled.

"Well, darling, if you ever need money to support yourselves, you can always come record more movies with us," DJ Grooves suggested.

"Hey, stop reading my mind!" I joked.

The birds laughed.

"It is a good income, though," He explained.

"'Good income'? Oh, I'd say it's a little bit peckin' better than 'good income', DJ Peck Neck," Conductor exclaimed, "And this time, there won't be the risk of explodin'!"

I looked at the kid and raised an eyebrow questioningly. She got the memo, grinned from ear to ear, and gave me a double thumbs up.

Done and done.

"Alright," I said, "We'll definitely keep that in mind. Thanks, you two."

"No, darling, thank you," DJ Grooves responded, "Well, we shouldn't keep you waiting much longer, you've got an entire planet waiting on you two, after all."

We all nodded.

"I'll show ye the way out," Conductor offered, then began walking away, "Follow me! And make sure to keep an eye out where we're goin'! Best to start learnin the layout of this place today!"

"You make it sound like we've already signed a contract!" I chuckled, and we quickly followed, shouting a goodbye to Grooves as we did so.

I attempted to make note of where we were going as we were led through the vast place, but it was for naught. Still had no clue where we were, or where we came from.

But we eventually made it out, said our goodbyes to the Conductor as well, and returned to the ship.

"Where to, now?" I asked.

"Let's go pay Cooking Cat a visit! We don't see her very often..." She suggested.

"Great idea," I agreed.

She then led me to the kitchen, and we teleported down to Mafia Town.

"Oh right, I forgot she was here," I said, "I guess you know where to go?"

She nodded and ran off. I quickly followed, as she led us to the cannon pointed at the mafia headquarters.

Made sense, where else would she do her cooking for the Mafia?

She hopped in, then I did, and we entered the building.

This time, it didn't seem like we were interrupting anything. Although there were less Mafia Goons just sitting around doing nothing.

The kid motioned to follow her, so I did, up on top of the bar and up into the rafters, where I noticed a rat infestation problem. It made me wonder what else was around... cause you gotta remember, first time I was here, I was being escorted to see the Mafia Boss. I didn't have time to look around.

We stopped at a small makeshift kitchen... which was empty.

"Huh?" The kid muttered, "This is where I first met her... it wouldn't be like her to just stop helping the Mafia... where is she?"

"Does this place have an actual kitchen?" I asked.

The kid cringed in disgust, clearly recalling some bad memory.

"A... very bad excuse of one," She grumbled in response.

Well, that didn't sound good. But if it was a kitchen...

"Could she be there?" I questioned.

"Doubt it," She answered, "But I guess we could check."

We dropped down from the rafters, and she led me behind the bar and through a door.

The sight in front of me completely froze me.

Shiny, clean walls, a neat tile floor, all sorts of fancy kitchen appliances, various foodstuffs dotted about neatly...

It was the exact opposite of what I was expecting, given the kid's description. It looked like a kitchen you'd see in the fanciest of restaurants.

Mafia Goons were dotted about at various stations, wearing chef's hats and cooking various dishes... and they seemed to be happier than I'd ever seen any other Mafia Goon whilst doing so.

I turned to question the kid, but she was just as shocked.

"I'm guessing this is new?" I muttered. She nodded slowly.

"It's quite a bit bigger, too," She said, "I guess they downsized their freezer to make room."

I was about to say 'let's get looking', however, I'd already found her.

Cooking Cat was walking about, checking on the Mafia Goons and helping them out occasionally.

"Well, there she is," I said, "Let's go greet her."

We walked up to her, and she seemed quite surprised.

"Oh! Well isn't this a lovely surprise!" She greeted, "I don't think you've seen me working before, have you?" She questioned me.

"No, I have not," I said, "Must say, this is quite a bit better than what the kid said the Mafia's kitchen was like."

She laughed.

"Yeah... I was working in secret before, cause I didn't want them finding out. You know them, they'd probably not be very happy if they found out," She said.

We both nodded.

"But no secret stays secret forever! After... well... ah... the moustached girl incident, I got found out," She said, "As I expected, they weren't too happy about it, and they insisted that they try cooking for themselves."

She scratched the back of her head.

"You... can probably guess how that turned out," She said uncomfortably.

"Somebody got food poisoning, that's for sure," I muttered.

"Yeah... once they figured that out, their boss wasn't happy that the 'Mafia of Cooks' were the worst cooks on the whole planet, so now he's having me teach them how to cook! It's a dream come true!" She said happily.

"Dream come true for Mafia, too," A nearby Mafia Goon agreed.

She laughed and nodded.

"Well, that's awesome!" I exclaimed, "Ain't no one better for the job than you, that's for sure."

A thought popped into my head. One I failed to think of earlier.

Wouldn't I have to learn how to cook, too?

Well, I mean, I wasn't completely helpless, but having the skillset would definitely be beneficial for our permanent residence.

"Do you think maybe you could teach me how to cook sometime?" I asked her.

She smiled warmly.

"I'd love to!" She exclaimed, "Not right now, but..."

"Of course, you're busy," I said, "Once this all gets settled down, maybe?"

She nodded.

"Sounds like a plan, dear," She said.

Suddenly, a Mafia Goon yelled out in pain.

"AH! MAFIA IS BURNING!"

"Oh, dear... I really need to get back to my students!" She said, "I'll come visit later!" She then ran across the kitchen while waving a quick goodbye.

I chuckled.

"Sounds like she's got a lot on her plate, eh?" I said with a smirk, nudging the kid lightly.

She blew a raspberry.

"You're gonna have to do better than that," She said.

I frowned.

"Really? I thought that was pretty... spicy," I said.

"Just... stop," She groaned.

I laughed.

"Alright, I'll cut you a break," I said, "Let's get outta here."

We left the HQ and hopped down to the main island.

"I don't know who I should be happier for," The kid said, "Cooking Cat for being accepted, or the Mafia for accepting her."

"Why not... both..." I said, but lost focus mid sentence as I locked eyes on a familiar foe standing there:

A very miserable looking Moustache Girl, staring right back.

"As if my day couldn't get any worse... I thought you two were gone," She said miserably.

"What do you mean?" I asked.

"What do you think I mean?!" She spat, "Every single person on this stupid rock hates me! I can hardly go anywhere without being yelled at or worse!"

I raised an eyebrow at her.

"You do know what you did, right?" I muttered, "How many lives you screwed up?"

She sighed.

"Yeah, yeah... I know..." She said, "I really took it too far this time. All because of that stupid Time Piece... made ME the bad guy, when I just wanted to help! I still can't believe it..."

"So you're not mad at us?" The kid questioned

"No..." Moustache Girl grumbled, "Part of me wants to be... but I know I can't be. It was my fault this all happened anyway. I was expecting you two to just yell at or attack me like everyone else has been doing."

"People are attacking you?" I scoffed, "Like, physically?"

"Yeah, it's a good thing I'm fast!" She yelled, "Cause if I got hurt, not like anyone would help me!"

I scratched my head.

"That's pretty brutal for a kid," I muttered, "Regardless of what was done."

"I'm eleven..." She pouted, "And it wouldn't be the first time..."

"That's not the point," I replied.

"Whatever. Just let me live my miserable life," She grumbled, "I'll just stay in hiding until this blows over..."

I heard the kid breathe in sharply.

I turned to her, and she had a bright-eyed grin that meant only one thing: she had an idea.

"I know, if everyone's being so mean, why don't you stay with us?" She suggested gleefully.

"What?" I shouted, "You're joking, right?"

"Yeah, you can't be serious!" Moustache Girl spat, "You really want that to happen again, kid?"

The kid just smiled.

"You're just making me think you won't do it again even more," She said, "And if it makes you feel better..." She eyed me as she said that, "We can go fix the lock on the vault."

"It was broken this whole time?"I questioned.

"That'd explain why it was so... uh... easy..." Moustache Girl muttered.

"It always has been broken. I just never had the time or the tools or whatever to fix it," The kid explained, "But now that we're here to stay, we'll be able to have plenty of both!"

I looked at the red-hooded girl. A deep look.

Before I saw a psychotic menace. But looking at her now... she just looked like a poor, traumatized girl. Without a home or anyone to lean on.

I sighed.

"Alright," I muttered.

"Are you really sure this is a good idea...?" She hesitated.

The kid suddenly ran up to her and hugged her, causing her to completely freeze.

"Absolutely certain!" She exclaimed.

Slowly and hesitantly, Moustache Girl returned it.

"T-thank you..." She said quietly, "And... I... I-I'm sorry..."

"I know you are," The kid replied, "And I forgive you."

I watched this scene from afar with a smile on my face. I wouldn't have ever expected this to have went anywhere close to how it did.

And now I believed the kid... she wouldn't be a problem at all.

Would she stay forever? Of course not. One out-of-control kid was enough, two would drive me insane. But we'd help her until she could get back on her feet, as she didn't deserve the treatment she was getting.

"Let's get you back to the ship," The kid said, holding a Time Piece to the sky as she grabbed Moustache Girl's wrist, and my hand.

A couple seconds later and we were back.

Talking to the others could wait a little while, cause if there's one thing I've now learned, it's that everyone deserves a little hospitality.

A/N: Well, there it is. First real chapter. Wasn't 100% sure how to write this one, hence why it took so long. Hopefully I made the right choice.

The idea for this chapter was completely my own, but coincidentally I did get a message from starseedchild suggesting a redemption arc for Moustache Girl... which I was already planning. I appreciate it nonetheless!

Next chapter: Moustache Girl gets acquainted with her new, albeit temporary, home. See ya then.

Oh wait, almost forgot!

SunsetScrewball: That's what I was hoping for. Thank you very much.