A mistake that many people made was assuming that Leni was stupid. Was she the brightest person in the room? No. Could she be a bit naive at times? Definitely. Could she be a bit of a ditz at times? Certainly, but to assume she was stupid would be doing a serious disservice to her. From time to time, even a few of her siblings thought that she was stupid. It cannot be understated that whenever Leni put her mind to something, she could be just as cunning, witting, and determined as the rest of her siblings. It was for that reason that Leni was sitting at a desk, tirelessly sketching design after design, only to crumple each of them up and toss them aside. It wasn't before long that she had a mountain of balled up paper at her feet.
"Come on, Leni! Think!" She scolded herself, desperately trying to find inspiration. "This can't be the best you've got!"
"Hey Leni!" Lio greeted her, peeking his head into the room. "Dessert Storm is about to come on, wanna come watch it with me and Lincoln?"
"Sorry Lio, but I kinda don't have time for that right now," Leni told him.
"Why is that?" Lio asked, looking out for Lori before cautiously stepping inside.
"So you know the Royal Woods Junior Designers' Contest?" Leni asked.
"Yeah, what about it?" Lio asked.
"Well, I'm trying to design the perfect dress for the contest, but I can't think of anything," Leni said. "The contest is in a few days and I haven't even finished the basic design!"
"Well what kind of design were you going for?" Lio asked, hoping that he could offer his sister some help.
"Well, I was thinking of something that's midnight blue with a twinkling silver flower pattern embroidered to the side just below the left breast," Leni said as she started sketching out the dress' layout yet again.
"What about length?" Lio asked. "Does it cut off just below the knees or does it go all the way down?"
"All the way down," Leni answered. "I want it to resemble a prom dress or something you'd wear on the red carpet."
"Floofy at the bottom or no?" Lio asked.
Leni shook her head and said "I want it to be slim and sleek. While I do occasionally like taking inspiration from Victorian era dresses or Mexican sundresses, I'm looking for something more modern for this one."
"Straps or no straps?"
"A single strap," Leni answered. "Over the right shoulder."
"Then what's the problem?" Lio asked. "That dress sounds totally awesome!"
"The problem is sketching it out," Leni replied before showing Lio her latest outline, which was rather crudely drawn and resembled a kindergartener's arts and craft drawing. "I mean, look at this, I can't work with a design as sloppy as this."
"Is that why you have all these wads of paper on the floor?" Lio asked, picking up on of them to see what Leni had drawn.
"Yeah," Leni said. "Normally, I don't need to sketch out my dress designs before I begin work on them since I can just work from the vision in my head, but for this dress I want to be extra careful to make sure it comes out absolutely perfect."
"Fret not, Leni," Lio said. "You've got yourself an expert artist at your disposal who can perfectly illustrate your vision."
"Who's that?" Leni asked.
"Me," Lio said, sounding a bit deflated.
"Oh, that's right, I forgot you like to draw!" Leni said with an innocent giggle. "Sorry Lio, I kinda forgot."
"It's fine," Lio said, pulling out his trusty pen. "Just give me five minutes and I'll bring your vision to life."
Lio sat down and quickly began drawing out Leni's design as she had described it. Thanks to the details she had given him, it didn't take Lio much time to sketch out a draft outline for the dress Leni sought to make. The young artist didn't stop there and had soon drawn an entire render of the dress, fully colored and everything; all as Leni watched over his shoulder.
"What do you know, took me less than five minutes," Lio said proudly before showing Leni his work. "So, what do you think? Is this good or am I missing anything? Do I need to redo this?"
"No, no, no! This is perfect! It's just as I imagined it!" Leni squealed, giving Lio a huge crushing hug. "Thank you so much, I'm going to start working on it right away!"
"Glad I could help," Lio squeaked, gasping for air. "Leni… you're kind of crushing me."
"Oops, sorry," Leni said, letting go of Lio before running over to her closet to retrieve the materials needed to make the dress she desired.
Lio was just getting the air back into his lungs when he heard Leni let out a scream, causing him to run over to her to check up on her. "What's wrong?" He asked, looking over her shoulder to see what the commotion was about. "Are you okay?"
"I can't believe it, you've gotta be kidding me!" Leni said, desperately digging through the closet. "I cannot be all out! Not today! This like, cannot be happening!"
"What's wrong?" Lio asked.
"I ran out of silk!" Leni explained, sounding like she was ready to cry. "I can't make the dress I have in mind without silk!"
"Leni…" Lio tried to say.
"And before you say that I could just use some other material like polyester or wool, no that won't work!" Leni said, starting to pace back and forth. "In order for this dress to be perfect, it has to be made from silk!"
"Leni…"
"The judges would probably laugh in my face if I even thought about using some other fabric," Leni continued on. "Not that I'd ever think of using another fabric, but still, I can't-,"
"Leni, calm down!" Lio said, finally getting his sister's attention. "It's not that big a deal. It's not like we can't go out and buy some more silk for you."
"You don't understand," Leni said. "I don't just need any old regular silk, I need it to be in the midnight blue shade that I was talking about earlier."
"Then we'll go out and find some midnight blue shade silk," Lio said, shrugging his shoulders.
"It's not that easy," Leni said.
"Why?" Lio asked. "Is midnight blue like a super rare shade of silk or something?"
"No," Leni said. "Like, it's actually kind of the other way around in that it's super common. It's just that…"
"Just what?" Lio asked.
"Practically everyone and their mom is going to be looking for midnight blue," Leni said. "We'll be lucky to find anywhere that still has it in stock! And even if we do, we'll have to fend off other girls who are after the same thing!"
"Then we better get going," Lio said, grabbing his hood.
"Going where?" Leni asked.
"Going out to find your material before they run out," Lio said. "We've still got a few hours left in the day so it's best not to waste any time."
"Do you really think that we can find it before anyone else?" Leni asked.
"Who knows?" Lio said with a shrug. "But we'll never find out if we just wait around."
"I don't know about this, Lio," Leni said. "I just have a bad feeling about this."
"Truthfully, so do I," Lio admitted. "But more than anything, I wanna see you win that contest and I'll do anything I can to help that come to fruition."
"Are you sure you want to help me with this?" Leni asked. "Like, I don't want you getting hurt or anything."
"Absolutely," Lio answered, smiling ear to ear. "Don't worry about me, I'll be fine. I'm sure nothing will happen."
"You say that now, but you've never been in the middle of a shopping frenzy," Leni tried to warn him. "I swear, it's like the people turn into animals trying to get what they want."
"Really?" Lio asked, showing signs of fear.
"Yeah, like remember that time Lucy tricked me into thinking I was possessed by a demon?" Leni tried jogging his memory. "And I was thrashing and throwing things all over the place?"
"How could I forget?" Lio replied.
"Well picture that, except like, 100 times worse," Leni said. "And with dozens of other people involved!"
"That sounds… chaotic," Lio said with a gulp, thinking in the back of his head "See, this is why people terrify me." Nevertheless, he was determined not to let fear stop him and said "We can still make an attempt."
"Are you sure you want to do this?" Leni asked him. "You don't have to do this for me."
"Look at it like this," Lio said. "Either we get to one of these stores and they still have your midnight blue silk in stock and we can hopefully get it without issue… or we arrive a little too late and they're all out so we avoid the rabid crowd you described."
"Do you really think it'll be that easy?" Leni asked.
"Not really," Lio admitted. "In fact, part of me of telling me that there's no way it'll go down as smoothly as we hope, but maybe we can find something else that'll be suitable for your dress."
"I doubt it," Leni said, "but I guess it's worth a shot."
"Then let's get going," Lio said. "There's only so much time left in the day."
"But what about Dessert Storm?" Leni asked him.
"Eh, I'll just get Lincoln to tell me the results later," Lio said with a shrug before the two departed.
The first place the siblings chose to look was a fabric and crafts store located at the mall. Thanks to Leni's job at a rival store, she wasn't allowed to so much as step foot in said store, let alone actually purchase something from them. Lio however, was held to no such stipulation and could freely buy the materials Leni needed. If they had them in stock that was. While Leni waited outside, Lio walked inside and began looking around at the various fabrics in stock, desperately seeking out the midnight blue shade Leni was after. While finding that particular color was proving to be rather difficult, Lio took note of the various types of silk around him. There was milly black chiffon, cheetah print georgette, navy charmeuse, and many more hanging on the walls. However, when it came to the midnight blue, it was nowhere to be seen. Lio wasn't surprised seeing as Leni had told him midnight blue sold out rather quickly, but he had still been hoping for something of a miracle during this search. Following a few minutes of searching, Lio was approached by an employee of the store.
"Well hello there, little boy, are you looking for something?" The woman asked.
"Y-Yes," Lio replied nervously, using his hood to hide his face. "I-I-I'm looking for midnight blue silk fabric and was wondering if you had any."
"You don't seem like the type to be into this type of thing," The woman said, prompting Lio to reply with a nervous and offended "What's that supposed to mean?"
"Nothing, nothing," The woman said quickly trying to save face by saying "I'm just saying that boys your age typically aren't into fabric and designs such as this."
"I come from a family with 10 girls," Lio explained, becoming more and more anxious with each passing second. He really hadn't thought this through. "Anyway, do you have any midnight blue silk? Preferably satin?"
"I'm afraid not," The woman said. "We just sold our last few yards of that colour silk a few hours ago."
"Drats!" Lio thought to himself. "Can't say that I expected a different outcome, but I was hoping that we could maybe get lucky." Lio then asked the woman "Do you know when you'll be getting more silk in stock?"
"Not for another few days," The woman said. "At the earliest, we'll have another batch available in two days. Feel free to come back then if you're still looking for it!"
Lio nodded his head and calmly walked out of the store to reunite with Leni. "Did they have it?" Leni asked.
"Afraid not," Lio said, shaking his head. "The lady said that they won't have that brand of silk available for another two days."
"That would only leave me with three days to finish my dress," Leni said sadly. "Talk about being put under pressure."
"Don't panic just yet," Lio said. "There are still several other places that we can check out. Doesn't hurt to give those places a try."
"I guess you're right," Leni said, "but before we go, do you think that we could stop by the food court and get some smoothies?"
"I was actually going to ask you the same thing," Lio said. "I guess you must've read my mind."
"Nah," Leni said. "I'm just really eager to try out this new smoothie place. I hear that it got rave reviews and I really wanna taste their blueberry smoothie. What kind are you going to get?"
"Probably cherry," Lio answered.
"Why cherry?" Leni asked as the two head to the food court.
"No reason," Lio said as he tried pushing the 'rerorerorero' thoughts out of his head. "No reason at all"
After getting their smoothies, the pair head to the next location on their list. This store was mostly known for selling goods for sewing and quiltmaking, but also stocked several types of fabrics available for use by any aspiring seamstress. It wasn't as large a chain as the store they'd visited in the mall, but they could still be reliable. Lio remembered their mom bringing him to this store last year when Lio was in that sewing class at school. As far as Lio remembered, Mom still had the quilt he'd made for her using those materials.
"Are you sure that this place will have what we're looking for?" Leni asked as she and Lio walked through the doors. "Like, this place doesn't seem like the kind of store that would carry satin silk."
"I know that this doesn't seem like the likeliest place, but don't count them out just yet," Lio said. "Also, I looked them up on the internet and they said they carry a variety of different types of silk so maybe we'll catch a break here."
"Hello there!" A young woman greeted the pair. "How can I help the two of you?"
"I'm making a dress for the upcoming Junior Designer's Contest and I was hoping that you carried a certain type of silk that I was looking for," Leni explained.
"Oh, I'm sure that we can help you in that regard," The woman said sweetly. "What kind of silk are you looking for?"
"Midnight blue satin silk, preferably 6.5 yards x 60 inches" Leni answered, causing the woman's eyes to go wide.
"What did you say?" The woman asked, looking as if she were experiencing traumatic flashbacks of some sort. Her right eye twitched, giving off a psychotic vibe.
"Um… midnight blue satin silk," Leni repeated herself. "You see, for the dress I'm trying to make, I wanna go for a sophisticated, high class type of look and-,"
"Oh no, not again," The woman said, pulling at her hair. Her strange behavior prompted Leni to throw herself in front of Lio while the latter looked ready to shrink away. "Don't tell me that you're one of those savages! You've come back to finish the job, have you?"
"What are you?" Leni started to ask before the woman unexpectedly grabbed a broom and brandished it like a ball bat. "WHOA!"
"You're one of them, aren't you?" The woman asked. "You shrill fashionista harpies who just want some stupid silk and don't care who you have to hurt to get it! Is that it, huh?" Both Leni and Lio slowly backed away. "Last time you witches came looking for your fancy midnight blue silk, you tore the whole store apart! Well it ain't going down like that this time!"
"What the heck is going on out here?" Asked the manager as they emerged from the back. Spotting their employee brandishing a broom at two kids, they tried to calm her down and defuse the situation. "Whoa, Donna, what do you think you're doing!? Put the broom down and let's talk about this.""They're back sir," Donna said nervously, keeping her eyes trained on Leni and Lio. You know what those hooligans did to me last time they came here! It took weeks for my hair to grow back after that crowd went crazy! I'm not letting it happen to me again!"
"Slow down a second," The manager said. "Who's back?"
"The midnight blue crew!" Donna yelled. "They've come back to finish what they started last time, I just know it!"
"Midnight blue?" The manager asked. "As in midnight blue silk?" Donna nodded her head and the manager got a steely look in their eyes. "I still remember that day as if it were yesterday. Dozens upon dozens of teenage girls, all fighting and trampling over one another. All the damage they caused, the windows they smashed, the shelves they toppled over, the fabrics they tore to shreds… all in search of that accursed midnight blue silk."
"Um…" Leni said, not sure of what to say.
"Is it true that you two are looking for midnight blue silk?" The manager asked. The siblings nodded their head and the manager said "Well you're going to have to go to someone else if you want to find that stupid silk! After the fiasco that happened last time, we stopped carrying that line of material. Now get out and leave us alone before I call the cops!"
"But-," Leni protested.
"OUT!" The manager insisted, pushing the pair out the door. "I'm sorry, you two seem like good kids, but after what happened last time, we can't take any chances." With that, the manager shut the door on both of them.
"Well… that certainly didn't go as expected," Lio said.
"Not going to lie, that lady kinda gave me the creeps," Leni said.
"I don't blame you for that," Lio said. "Although given what she and the manager said about what happened last time, I can't say I blame her either."
"Yeah," Leni said.
"Is the midnight blue craze really that bad?" Lio asked. "Do people really go in that much of a frenzy over that?"
"Yep," Leni said, nodding her head. "Like, no joke, people take their stuff really seriously."
"Yikes," Lio said.
"So where are we head to next?" Leni asked. "Or should we just give up and go home now?"
"I'm not ready to throw in the towel just yet," Lio said. "There's still one more place I think we should check out."
The final place Lio brought Leni was a small mom and pop fabric shop. Lio figured that if anyone were to have what they were looking for with as little fuss as imaginable, it was here. Lio started to wonder why he hadn't just looked here first if that were the case. Nonetheless, they were here now and unlike the previous locales visited, Lio had a very good feeling about this shop. Upon entering the store, Lio and Leni were greeted by a kind elderly man.
"Hello, good evening, welcome to my humble store!" He greeted them. "Tell me, how can I help the two of you today."
"We've been all over town looking for this special brand of silk," Leni explained. "We were hoping that you maybe had it and that we could buy it from you."
"Oh, say no more," The old man said. "Any material you're looking for, we've probably got it. Look around and tell me how many different materials we have available."
Leni and Lio took a moment to look around them at the many displays of cloth surrounding them. For a small business, this place looked to be loaded with materials.
"Ten," Leni guessed, getting a chuckle out of the old man.
"Oh, there's plenty more than that," The old man said. "We have so many different materials at our disposal, it's hard to keep count of all of them. So just tell me what you're after and I'll have my wife Sheila bring it out for you."
"Really?" Leni asked, her eyes lighting up. "That's great because like I said we've been everywhere and haven't been able to find what we're looking for. Anyway, the fabric in question that we're looking for is midnight blue satin silk and I need it 6.5 yards by 60 inches if you have it."
"That should be no problem," The old man said before calling his wife, "Sheila!"
"Don't worry, Harry, I'm already on it," Sheila said, gesturing for the pair to follow her. "You kids are in luck, we have just enough of that shade silk to satisfy your needs. It's in the back however so you're going to have to follow me."
"Oh, that's no problem," Leni said, she and Lio following after her. "We're just glad that you have it. Trying to buy it has been a real nightmare. I honestly didn't think that I'd find it after all this time we've spent!"
"Well you came to the right place," Sheila said with a smile. "Most people don't think to come to us so we sometimes have a surplus of supplies needed by aspiring fashion designers." The trio reached the back room where they encountered a dilemma. "Oh dear…"
"What is it?" Leni asked.
"It would appear that the last of our midnight blue silk is at the top of that shelf," Sheila said, pointing upwards to the top of a tall shelf. She quickly grabbed a ladder and said "Bear with me as it might take me some time to climb up this thing."
Lio held up a hand as if to say "Don't worry about it, I've got this," before climbing up the ladder.
"Your brother seems to a gentleman," Sheila observed.
"Yeah, he always mentions how he wants to be a gentleman like this guy named Jonathan Joestar, whoever that is," Leni said.
Lio had reached the top of the shelf and was reaching for the silk in question when the door to the shop opened. The resulting ring of a bell distracted Lio for a brief second and allowing all three to hear the ensuing conversation.
"Hello there, how may I help y-," Henry started to ask before a rude middle aged woman cut him off.
"Listen, I don't have time for idle chit chat," The woman said. "I have places to be so I'll make this quick: I'm looking for some midnight blue silk for my daughter, 6.5 yards x 60 inches. Do you have what I'm looking for?"
"Well yes, but-," Harry tried to say only to get cut off again.
"Then go get it for me and make it snappy," The woman demanded. "My daughter is waiting and I promised her that I'd get this for her. She's going to win the junior designer's contest this weekend, you know."
"I'm sorry, but I already agreed to sell my last supply of that brand silk to another customer," Harry explained.
"Really?" The woman scoffed. "And who exactly would that be?"
"This teenage girl and her little brother," Harry explained. "I believe she also said that she was going out for the contest as well."
"This is unacceptable, I already promised my daughter that silk and you're just going to give it away to some random girl!" The woman huffed. "I demand to speak with your manager!"
"I'm the owner," Harry replied, causing the woman to fume until she spotted Lio retrieving the silk from the top of the shelf.
"You there!" The woman said, storming over to Sheila, Leni, and Lio and pointing at the latter. "Hand over that silk right now!"
Lio immediately hid behind Leni, feeling a panic attack coming on from having to deal with this hostile woman.
"Didn't you hear me?" The woman shouted. "Quit wasting my time and give it to me!"
Lio only shrank back further, prompting Leni to ask "What the heck is your deal lady!?"
"My deal is that your little brother is being disrespectful towards his elders!" The woman replied. "I have told him repeatedly to hand over that silk and he has repeatedly refused to comply!"
"Leave him alone!" Leni said, standing in front of her brother defensively.
"Step aside Missy or I'll give you a talking to too," The woman threatened, pushing Leni aside and into Sheila, knocking down the elderly woman. She then turned to Lio and asked "Now are you going to give it to me or not?"
Lio froze up, tears forming in his eyes as he stared blankly like a deer in the headlights. His instincts were telling him to run, so that's what he tried to do, running on his heels with silk in hand. He didn't make it far before the woman hit him in the face with her purse, knocking him out cold.
"Serves you right," The woman said, snatching the silk from an unconscious Lio and dashing out the door, placing money on the counter as she did so. "Keep the change!"
After helping Sheila back up to her feet, Leni went to check on Lio.
"What a foul woman she was, hitting a child like that," Sheila said, disgusted as she tried to help Leni get Lio to stir.
"This is exactly the kind of thing I was afraid of," Leni said. "People go crazy over midnight blue for some reason."
"Sadly, that is the case," Sheila said, nodding in agreement. "Especially around this time of the year when prom season is approaching. I've seen so many people act like savages over a stupid cloth! It's despicable."
Lio finally started to stir, sitting up clutching his head and exclaiming "What the heck!? Did that woman have a brick in her purse or something!?"
"Are you alright?" Leni asked.
"Yeah, I'm fine," Lio said, standing to his feet. "Sorry that I let her get away with your silk, I just froze up and didn't know what to do."
"It's fine," Leni told him. "I guess winning that contest just wasn't meant to be."
"I know it might not be much, but if it's any consolation, you're free to select from any of the remaining silks we have,"
"Thanks, but I don't think there's anything that can-," Leni said before spotting the perfect substitute. "Ooooooh! I may not have gotten the silk I wanted, but I think I found the next best thing."
"Well looks like everything worked out well in the end," Lio said, holding a bag of ice to his swollen left eye as he and Leni walked home. "Though I must say, you weren't lying when you said that people go bananas over midnight blue silk."
"You didn't think I was kidding, did I?" Leni asked.
"No, not at all," Lio said. "I just didn't expect it to the degree you described."
"I tried to warn you," Leni said.
"That you did," Lio said with a laugh. "Still, I'm glad you were at least able to find something else to make your dress with."
"Yeah and this dress will be so much better than what I originally had in mind," Leni said confidently.
"What do you have in mind?" Lio asked. "Do you need me to sketch out your design for you?"
"Nah, that won't be necessary this time," Leni said. "I'm keeping this one top secret until this weekend."
"Whatever you have in mind, I can't wait to see it," Lio said. "Although if you also need someone to model it for you, you know who to call."
"Lincoln?" Leni replied. "Or maybe Lori? What about Lola?"
"I was talking about me," Lio said in a deflated tone.
"Oh, right! Sorry!" Leni apologized. "But to be honest, I don't think I'm going to have anyone model this dress for me. Like I said, I wanna keep this a secret until Saturday."
"You've certainly got me itching with anticipation," Lio told her.
"Thanks," Leni said. "I just hope I don't disappoint"
"I'm sure you won't," Lio said.
Saturday rolled around fairly quickly and with it came the contest. As to be expected, Leni was fairly nervous about her prospects of winning. Thankfully, Leni's fears melted away when she saw the other contestants' dresses. Practically all of them looked the same and what's more, every single one of them resembled the design that Leni originally had in mind.
"These dresses all look familiar," Leni said. "Where have I have I seen that design before?"
"Leni, those dresses look just like the one you originally wanted to make," Lio pointed out as he helped Leni carry the mannequin wearing her redesigned dress onto the stage.
"Oh yeah, that's right," Leni said. "Wow, I can't believe they stole my idea like that!"
"Yeah, it's a good thing you thought of something else" Lio said.
Listening closely, Leni and Lio could hear the other contestants arguing with each other, accusing one another of stealing and ripping off their idea. The contestants were so busy arguing amongst each other that they didn't even notice when the three judges took their seats and began silently critiquing each dress.
"Ahem!" One judge said, finally getting their attention and getting them to stop talking. "My, my, I must say that it looks like each of you had the same idea."
"I concur," said the second judge. "Aside from some slight variations which are so small they might as well not even be counted, your dresses are all carbon copies of each other."
"Nevertheless, it is our job to determine which of your dresses is the best designed," The third judge said. "So we'll give you each a minute to explain what inspired your pieces… starting with you" He said, pointing to the far right.
"Oh? Me?" The girl at the end replied. "Well I was inspired to make this dress after reading up on masquerade balls and had a desire to make something sensual and mysterious. I used only the finest materials to make this dress and even designed a cute mask to go along with it…"
Leni had to fight the urge to bite her nails as the judges went down the line, allowing each contestant to explain what inspired them to make their dress. In addition to their designs being similar, the other contestants' explanations sounded pretty much the same. When it finally came down to her, Leni was petrified.
"And what is your name, dear?" Asked the second judge.
"What is my name?" Leni asked, nervous beyond belief before she got ahold of herself. "My name is Leni Loud."
"Well, Ms. Loud, I notice that your entry in this contest is shrouded behind a veil," The first judge said. "Could you be so kind as to lift the veil and show us what you've created."
"Um… of course," Leni said, gesturing to Lio to pull the veil off of the mannequin.
Lio nodded and pulled off the shroud, revealing an elegant black dress that instantly stood out from the other contestants'. This newly designed dress featured a ruched mesh design and was rather form fitting, while having a sheer illusion neckline and sleeves. The neckline was a rather deep V and the dress was designed so that it could be worn on or off the shoulder. Its length extended until it was just above the ankles. Seeing Leni's design caused both the judges and audience to gawk at how beautiful it looked.
"What's this?" The third judge exclaimed. "Some originality? A dress that stands out from all the others in terms of its design, why I never! This is splendid!"
"Ms. Loud, if it's not too much trouble, do you mind explaining what have you this idea?" The first judge asked.
"Well, I originally wanted to make something that would be a modern take on 1950s fashion magazine features," Leni said. "Then I took inspiration from the femme fatale trope from old crime movies and came up with this as a result. So… do you like?"
"Very much so!" The second judge said. "I don't know about my colleagues, but I think I've found the winner!"
"I'm very much inclined to agree," said the third judge.
"Even if I were to disagree with your assessment, it wouldn't matter considering majority rule means you win regardless," the first judge said. "However, I find myself to be in complete agreement with my fellow judges, therefore I award this contest to you, Ms. Loud!"
"Ladies and gentlemen, give a round of applause to this year's winner of the Royal Woods Junior Designer's Contest… Leni Loud!" The announcer announced, prompting Leni to squeal with excitement while the crowd cheered her on.
"I'm not good at remembering a lot of things, but I'll always remember that," Leni told Lio.
"Same," Lio said. "I still remember the smile on your face after you won… it was honestly too adorable."
"Do you remember the time you climbed onto the roof to get my sunglasses for me after a bird stole them?" Leni asked.
"How could I forget?" Lio replied with a laugh. "Mom grounded me for a week for doing that since she said it was too dangerous."
"By the way, did you ever find out who won that episode of Dessert Storm?" Leni asked.
"No, I don't think I did," Lio said. "I forgot to ask Lincoln to tell me."
"It was Sasha," Lincoln chimed in. "Her soufflé simply outshined the others' desserts."
"Hey," Lucy said to Lio. "I remember in your diary, you mentioned our failed midnight excursion to the movies…"
"Yeah," Lio said with a frown. "I'm so sorry that I screwed up…"
"Don't be," Lucy said. "I'm not here to talk about that. I mean, what's one failure compared to, what is it by now, twenty seven successful attempts at sneaking out?"
"Hold on, you two have sneaked out before?" Lori asked.
"Dozens of times," Lucy said nonchalantly. "We've done it so many times that getting caught that one time was just bad luck." Lucy then turned to Lio and asked "Do you remember the first time we snuck out of the house to catch a horror movie?"
"Yeah, I remember being so nervous," Lio said.
"Honestly, I was too," Lucy said, "but somehow we pulled it off…"
Anyone who knew Lucy knew that she was a huge horror aficionado. Whether it was your typical slasher flick or psychological horror to even gratuitously gory torture porn, there were very few genres of horror that Lucy didn't enjoy. Horror was one of the things that influenced her writing style and her overall personality. It played a huge role in her becoming the person she was today. The only problem lied in the fact that like any parents, Lynn Sr. and Rita were very apprehensive about letting her watch true horror movies or shows. There was a time where Lucy remembered having to sneak downstairs at night to watch reruns of Tales From the Crypt. Usually, the only types of horror that Lucy would be allowed to watch were family network channel original movies and cartoon Halloween episodes. Boring, cliched, poorly acted films that were hardly even frightening. Honestly, the scariest things about these movies were just cheesy they were.
Occasionally, her parents would slip up and allow her to watch a real scary movie and that only made her crave more of the genuine article. Truthfully, even the real horror movies had a hard time actually scaring her, but Lucy always appreciated the effort put into them. The work that went into crafting the special effects, the (usually) engaging and creepy storylines. The (usually) stellar acting and abundant nightmare fuel that would keep most people up at night. Even the lesser quality movies had their own charm to them that kept Lucy's attention. Whether she was watching fleshed out realistic protagonists try to avoid a tragic fate or unsympathetic over the top (and frankly idiotic) caricatures being murdered one by one, Lucy almost always enjoyed watching her scary movies.
Again, it was her parents' supervision that oftentimes kept her from engaging in her favorite pastime. It was for that reason that Lucy couldn't help but be a little disappointed when she saw the trailer for a new upcoming horror movie entitled "Justice". The premise seemed promising, featuring a well meaning but deranged doctor wanting to take eliminate the dregs of society such as murderers and thieves and killing herself in order to become a ghostly urban legend and gain the power to fulfill her wish. It wasn't often that horror movies featured female slasher villains so that alone had Lucy hooked. When she found out that one of her favorite directors had been in charge of the film her excitement only increased. The disappointment stemmed from the fact that Lucy knew her parents would never allow her to watch movie as violent and bloody as this one was shaping up to be. Making matters even worse was that the movie was coming out this Friday. Darn it, Lucy just had to see this movie if it was the last thing she did. She didn't just have to see it, she had to see it the very night that it came out.
As Lucy lamented the situation, she's soon find a solution coming from a rather unexpected source. While one might not expect it from his quiet nature and fixation on anime and manga, Lio was just as much a horror aficionado as Lucy was. Just like Lucy, horror greatly influenced his writing and artstyle. Whether he was reading Edgar Allan Poe, reading a niche horror manga, watching scary movies behind his parents back, Lio always found joy in getting a good scare. He was never one to suffer nightmares from watching these movies, but they occasionally did keep him up at night. Lio's love of scary things was to a point that The Thing was his favorite movie of all time. If there were frights involved, Lio was all for it. As he grabbed an apple from the fridge, Lucy could hear him gushing over a certain movie trailer.
"Whoa, wicked," Lio said, his eyes on his phone. "How did they pull off that effect and that kill, oh my DIO, it looked gruesome! I can't wait to see this in full!"
"Lio?" Lucy said, startling Lio and almost causing him to drop his apple.
"Yo, what's going on Luc?" Lio asked after recovering from his shock.
"What are you watching?" Lucy asked, trying to take a peek at his phone.
"Oh, I was just checking out the trailer for this new movie that's coming out Friday," Lio explained. "It's called "Justice" and I think you'd really like it, Lucy. It seems like a real fun fright fest!"
"Yeah, I've heard," Lucy said. "I'm surprised that you're interested in a movie like that."
"Are you kidding me?" Lio replied. "I love scary movies like this and the protagonist, or is it antagonist, Gwendolyn seems so compelling. Like, oh my Speedwagon… can we just talk about Gwendolyn, she seems like she's going to be the next great slasher!"
"I know right!" Lucy said stoically. "One thing I'm interested in is seeing her transition from a wide eyed idealistic doctor to a psychotic but well intentioned killer ghost!"
"Same! This whole movie seems like it's going to be a blast," Lio said. "A bloody, terrifying blast, but fun nonetheless!"
"Too bad we won't be able to see it until it comes out on demand," Lucy said.
"Why is that?" Lio asked.
"Are you serious?" Lucy replied. "Mom Dad would never let us watch a movie like that."
"I dunno, maybe we could try asking them and see if they'd relent," Lio suggested.
"I doubt that would work" Lucy said. "They'd probably claim this movie would warp our minds and traumatize us."
"I've seen scary movies far worse than what this movie is shaping up to be and came out just fine," Lio said. "It would take a lot to traumatize me."
"Still, do you think they'd waver and let us watch it?" Lucy asked.
"You make a good point," Lio said. "I remember that it took a lot of begging and pleading to convince Mom to let me read and watch JoJo and even then, she was still a bit reluctant."
"I just wish they wouldn't treat us like babies," Lucy said. "I mean, I know they're just trying to look out for us, but this isn't anything we can't handle."
"I know what you mean," Lio said, taking a bite out of his apple.
"Hold on a second, going back to what you said, what do you mean you've seen worse horror movies than this?" Lucy asked. "Just how many scary movies have you seen?"
"More than a kid my age should've seen," Lio replied before getting an idea. "I think I may have just thought of a way for us to see Justice."
"Oh?" Lucy asked. "What do you have in mind?"
"It's a little risky and devious, but if we can pull this off, it'll be well worth the risk," Lio said. "Are you willing to break some rules to see that movie?"
"I'll do anything to see that movie," Lucy answered.
"So here's what I was thinking, I was thinking that sometime next week we sneak out of the house to catch a showing of Justice," Lio suggested. "We can do this after we get home from school or later in the evening as long as we're back before-,"
"You're thinking too small," Lucy interrupted him. "I want to see that movie as soon as possible. I want to be at the midnight premiere this Friday."
"Whoa, I know I said my plan was risky, but you're taking it to a whole new level," Lio said.
"Come on, Lio, do you want to see this movie or not?" Lucy asked. "If we're going to sneak out, we might as well go big or go home."
"You have a point," Lio said, contemplating his options.
"Think about it, do you really want to wait until next week when someone else has probably posted spoilers to the movie online?" Lucy asked. "Or do you want to be there opening night and be one of the first to experience the horror? To feel the nightmare?"
"You know, the more that I think about it, the more I can see the pros to sneaking out on opening night," Lio said. "For one, since it's a Friday that means we can sleep in on Saturday without arousing suspicion. Two, there's the thing you mentioned about not having to avoid spoilers. Three, if we sneak out late enough without waking up Mom Dad then we won't have to worry about arousing their suspicion."
"So what do you say, Lio?" Lucy asked, flashing Lio a subdued smirk. "Do you want to sneak out on Friday or not?"
"Hmm…" Lio said, thinking it over before smirking back at Lucy and saying "You know what, I'm in."
"I knew you'd say that," Lucy said.
"I'm not going to lie, I'm just as eager to see this movie as you are," Lio admitted. "Not to mention that sneaking out of the house is nothing exactly new to me."
"Wait, you've snuck out of the house before?" Lucy asked.
"More than once," Lio replied. "Usually to buy the latest manga from the bookstore before a crowd arrives and it sells out."
"Interesting," Lucy said. "That means you could probably give me some good advice on how we should best go about this?"
"Yeah," Lio said, nodding his head. "Honestly, sneaking out is the easiest part despite living with eleven siblings. All you really have to do is make it past your roommate and you're in the clear. As long as there's not a thunderstorm, you have nothing to worry about."
"Why would a thunderstorm be a problem?" Lucy asked. "Aside from the obvious issue?"
"Lincoln makes it a habit of checking up on you and our other younger sisters during thunderstorms," Lio explained. "To make sure none of you get scared or anything."
"Does he really think that I'd be scared of some silly thunder and lightning?" Lucy asked.
"No," Lio said truthfully before smiling fondly. "But he always wants to make sure our little sisters are okay."
"That's pretty sweet of him," Lucy said. "But please carry on about how you go about sneaking out."
"Oh, right," Lio said before continuing on. "Once you make it out of your room without notice, all you have to do is make it down the stairs and out the door. And given your talent for sneaking up on people without making a peep, I think you have nothing to worry about in that regard."
"What's next?" Lucy asked.
"Well, once we're out of the house, it's a matter of time management," Lio said. "We need to set a time for when we need to head out and when we need to be back. It is important that we stick to this set time no matter what. If we try sneaking out too early, we risk alerting one of our siblings who may not actually be asleep. If we're even a second late, we risk not making it to the theater in time"
"Is it really that vital?" Lucy asked.
"Yes," Lio replied. "There's a reason why time management is important. If we're even a second off, we risk waking up either our siblings or Mom and Dad. We have to plot out each course of action down to the last second if we want this to be successful."
"So what do you propose we do?" Lucy asked.
"The movie starts at midnight, right?" Lio asked and Lucy nodded. "And the movie theater is 15 minutes away on foot so that theoretically gives us up until 11:45 PM to leave the house. However, we also have to take into account the number of people who'll also be looking to catch the premiere, which could range from 3-400. The average screen room has roughly 225 seats. Assuming the theater will only have one midnight showing if Justice, that means we'll have to adjust and leave the house 45 minutes before midnight in order to buy tickets before they're sold out. No matter what we do, we're never going to beat the crowd that camps out overnight to buy tickets, which'll range from anywhere to 50-120 people. That'll leave us with anywhere between 100-175 tickets to work with. Assuming all of that goes off without a hitch, we'll be seated by 11:45, which is typically when the trailers begin."
"Are you-?" Lucy started to ask, only for Lio to continue on.
"If the movies starts on time and has a runtime of 105 minutes (according to pre-screening reports), that means we'll get out of the movie at 1:45 AM, at which point we can't waste any time and have to head straight home to be back by 2 AM," Lio said. "It is imperative that we stick to this schedule to the letter if we want to avoid being caught. The only grace period we are allowed is the time between 11:30 and 11:40 PM, which is, if everything else has gone according to plan, is the time in which we'll purchase our snacks from the concession stand before making our way to our seats."
"You… you really were serious about plotting all of this out, weren't you?" Lucy asked.
"Why of course," Lio said. "Mom and Dad would kill us if they found out we sneaked out after dark."
"Fair point," Lucy said. "But what if something goes wrong?"
"Then I'll take the heat for it," Lio said. "Admittedly, every time I've sneaked out, I've never stayed out longer than an hour so this is the first time I'll be out for a long time."
"Am I sensing a little nervousness creeping up?" Lucy asked.
"A little bit, yeah," Lio admitted. "Like I said, I've never done something to this degree before…"
"I've never snuck out of the house before at all," Lucy pointed out. "You've got way more experience with this kind of thing than I do."
"I know," Lio said. "But that doesn't mean my nerves still don't get to me every once in a while." Lio smiled and said "Of course, that doesn't mean I'm going to let my nerves get in the way of taking my sister to see what'll probably be the best horror movie of the decade."
"We're actually going to do this then, huh?"
"Well, we've come too far to back out now, so why not go big or go home as you so elegantly phrased it?" Lio replied.
"I'm definitely not backing down now," Lucy said. "If I do, then I'll never get a chance to see Justice."
"At least, not until it comes out on digital," Lio said. "Anyway, I guess we better start getting ready for Friday. Never too early to start getting prepared."
"Trust me, I'm way ahead of you," Lucy said.
The next couple of days were a blur to Lucy. She was only fixated on Justice and the upcoming Friday. She couldn't believe that she was actually going to sneak out to watch a scary movie. Sure, she'd been out after dark for her mortician's club, but those had always been with her parents' permission. This was something completely new to her, going behind their backs and everything. And despite really anticipating this movie, Lucy couldn't help but think of what would happen if something went wrong. What if they woke up their parents while sneaking out? What if their parents decided to unexpectedly do a bed check while they were gone and they were caught? What if one of the others saw them sneaking out and alerted Mom and Dad? What if Lio unexpectedly had a change of heart and decided not to go through with their plan? What if he decided to tell Mom and Dad of what they were planning?
Lucy felt she didn't have to worry about that last option seeing as she could always turn around and tell Mom and Dad how he was always sneaking out to buy his manga. She could even use this information to blackmail him into going through with it if he got cold feet. Not that she felt it would come to that. In the back of her mind, Lucy knew that she was probably just overthinking things seeing as nerves were likely just getting the best of her, but that didn't stop her from worrying. Friday could not get here soon enough. Not just so that she could see the movie, but so that she could get over her worry.
Finally, Friday night rolled around and the pieces were all falling into place. It seemed like everything was going to go perfectly. The Loud siblings all retired to their beds at the usual times while Rita and Lynn Sr tucked in for the night shortly afterwards. Both Lucy and Lio were wide awake, waiting patiently as their respective roommates were lulled into a gentle slumber. The two glances at their watches to check the time: 10:45 PM, still thirty minutes until they were set to leave. Despite this, both of them arose from their beds and put their ears to the door to listen out from their other siblings.
Being home to 12 siblings, bedtime for one didn't necessarily mean bedtime for all. Luna could've been practicing her playing and rehearsing her vocals, Luan could've been trying out new material (and the fact that she told jokes in her sleep made it hard to tell if she was really asleep or not), Lori could've been on the phone with Bobby, there was no telling. Lio had planned for this, which is why he texted Lucy, telling her to wait 15 minutes before emerging from their rooms, when they could be sure that all the others were in a state of slumber. At 11:40, the two met each other by the door downstairs.
"Alright, are you ready for this?" Lio whispered.
"Yeah, I'm ready," Lucy whispered back. "Thank you, by the way"
"For what?" Lio asked.
"For not backing out or getting cold feet," Lucy told him.
"I promised you that I was taking you to see that movie and I meant it," Lio said. "You've got your dummy prepped in case anyone decides to check up on us, right?"
"Yep," Lucy replied. "Are you ready to go?"
"As ready as Freddy," Lio answered. "Freddy Krueger that is."
"Then let's get going," Lucy said.
"You'll get no argument from me," Lio said, checking his watch. It was 11:13, a couple minutes ahead of schedule, but no issue with that.
Opening the door slowly, the siblings began their walk to the movie theater, making it there exactly 15 minutes after leaving the house. Just as Lio predicted, there were a few people who were rolling up their sleeping bags and packing up their tents after camping out overnight. Fortunately, aside from them, it seemed like they had beat the crowd. After waiting in a short line, Lio and Lucy approached the ticket booth.
"How can I help you?" The apathetic teenage cashier asked the two of them.
"Two tickets to the midnight showing of Justice please," Lucy said.
The cashier took one good look at the kids before saying "Sorry, but that movie is rated R and you two don't even look close to being old enough to watch it."
Lio looked at Lucy and winked before sliding the cashier a 20 dollar bill, causing him to completely change his tune.
"You two seem rather responsible, I'm sure you can handle it," The cashier said, accepting the bribe. "That'll be 18 dollars."
Lio and Lucy looked at each other and smiled before handing the clerk the money and receiving their tickets.
"I can't believe it was that easy," Lucy said as they head to the concession stand to get their snacks.
"Luna taught me that trick," Lio said. "She says she shares a class with that guy and that he'll do anything for a quick buck. Apparently this theater job doesn't pay enough."
"How lucky for us," Lucy said.
After purchasing their snacks (two large extra butter popcorns for each of them with Lucy ordering a dark raspberry slushie while Lio ordered a cherry slushie), the pair head straight to the theater room. The time was 11:47 PM and they were already seated and ready to go. The two of them barely paid attention to the trailers preceding the movie (one for a juvenile comedy that not even Luan would find funny, another for yet another superhero movie, two for a melodramatic romantic flick, one for action and the final trailer being for another horror movie that the two actually seemed intrigued by) and were just ready for the main attraction to begin.
They would get their wish soon enough as the movie opened with a terrified man fleeing from a shadowy silhouette into an alleyway. Just when he thought that he'd escaped his pursuer, he was stabbed through the throat by an unseen killer who attacked from behind. This exciting opening scene instantly hooked Lucy and Lio's attention and let them know they were in for a ride before it was followed by a 1980s style TITLE CARD! What followed was 105 minutes of pure, gory, horrifying, cold sweat inducing, nightmare fuel filled fun that kept both siblings on the edge of their seats. There were even a few moments that made even Lucy jump in fright (not that she'd ever admit it). It was safe to say that this movie completely lived up not only to the hype, but to Lucy and Lio's expectations. By the time the movie was over, both of them were more than satisfied with what they had seen. It was well worth the money as well as the risk of getting in trouble if they got caught. The pair had plenty to talk about as they began their walk home.
"I don't say this a lot but "the hype was real" for that movie," Lucy said, tossing her empty popcorn container and cup in the trash.
"I know right!" Lio said excitedly. "Let's start with the story! Not going to lie, when I first heard about Justice, I thought the plot sounded like a combination of cliched creepypastas and would be the weakest part of the movie, but they actually managed to pull it off and make it feel original!"
"Part of the credit has to be given to the cast," Lucy said. "They played their parts to perfection and made the whole movie feel fresh and realistic."
"Especially the actress that played Gwendolyn," Lio said. "My DIO, that scene where she learned she miscarried… I could just feel the heartbreak she was going through!"
"Same," Lucy said. "Also, can we talk about the kills?"
"Yeeeeeeeeesssssssss! Every single one of those kills were epic and worthy of the Golden Chainsaw award!" Lio exclaimed. "I can't wait for the movie to come out on blu ray and digital so that I can see the behind the scenes features so I can find out the magic behind the practical effects they used for them."
"Especially the hot tar kill," Lucy said. "That kill was the most painful one in the whole movie, not that the guy didn't deserve it, but I really want to see how they pulled it off."
"I don't know about you, Luc, but I don't think I'm going to be able to sleep tonight," Lio said.
"Scared you that much, huh?" Lucy asked.
"No!" Lio replied quickly. "Because of just how good Justice was! It deserves to win all the awards!"
"I know what you mean," Lucy said. "I seriously want to watch it again"
"Well since we no longer have to worry about spoilers, we can always sneak around later tomorrow (or technically, today) to catch it a second time," Lio suggested. By now, the two were on the Loud House porch. "What do you say?"
"I say let's do it," Lucy replied before hugging Lio. "Thanks for taking me out to see it."
"You're welcome," Lio said, reciprocating the hug. "But don't thank me just yet. We still aren't completely out of the woods."
Lio slowly opened the door and tiptoed inside. The house was completely quiet with the only audible noise being the faint sound of snoring. Lio and Lucy knew better than to celebrate prematurely so for a few minutes they stood motionless. When it became apparent that the coast was clear, they silently cheered.
"I can't believe it," Lucy whispered. "We did it. We actually got away with it. Yes!"
"Maybe we should do this kind of thing more often," Lio suggested.
"If you're up for it, I'm all game," Lucy said.
"You have to admit that was a pretty fun night," Lucy said. "I still can't believe how easily we got away with it."
"Kinda crazy to think about, isn't it?" Lio replied.
"And you say you've done this before?" Lori asked.
"Please don't tell Mom and Dad," Lucy pleaded.
"Don't worry, I won't," Lori said. "I'm just surprised you've done this so many times before."
"Especially you, Lio," Lynn said with a slight laugh. "I wouldn't expect someone as antisocial as you to sneak out at night for anything."
"Seriously," Leni said. "I wouldn't expect that out of you."
"What I want to know is how he got away with it without anyone knowing," Chris said, causing Luan to whistle inconspicuously.
"To be fair, Lio is rather good at keeping a secret," Lynn said. "Like that one time he kept silent about one of my secrets…"