Tea time

'Well, that's really interesting! But you know what, Les? Nukus and Horribelle just arrived to tell us the same thing. We're having tea and cookies! Are you coming over too?'

'No, I have another appointment,' the phone said. Flabber decided to put it on speaker so everyone could hear it.

'Oh, that's too bad, you can't make it?'

'I'm going to visit Les. I'm pretty suspicious of it, so maybe you could all keep an eye out? It wouldn't be the first time he tries to stab me with a pencil in jail. If I don't return, tell everyone I said hi.'

'He sounds just as queer as his brother,' Nukus remarked while adding some sugar to his tea. The monsters sat there quietly, inspecting their drinks as if Nukus could magically insert poison in them. Or perhaps throw the table at them when they least expected it.

'What, rewind?!' Flabber flabbered a videorecorder and pushed the rewind button. 'Going to see your brother in jail?! Did you two make up again? Oh, you're making stuff up again, together. Semantics, schmemantics! Oh yeah? That's Flabberific, talk to you later!' The tape recorder disappeared again.

'Okay, okay, this is getting confusing,' Mums remarked. 'Let's summarize. The kids are not here yet, but we called them and they're on their way. So they'll drop in and then we'll try to eat them again.'

'Uh-huh,' Frankenbeans nodded. 'Yum, yum.'

'That's right, Franky. Two of the Crustaceans are here and they sort of want to fight, but realize that they're severely downplayed and have no good means to battle the borgs. Right?'

'Where did you get that information? Of course we can defeat you easily, if we wanted to!' Nukus said, crushing his tea cup.

'It's just that we chose not to, for a while,' nodded Horribelle.

'My china!' Flabber called out, while he used magic to wipe up the remnants of the cup. Nukus didn't seem particularly interested in the broom in front of him.

'Now that we have that cleared up,' the count continued, 'that leaves the artists. We are currently in jail and also want to resolve something themselves.'

'Yes, and that 'something' frightens me. What will Art and Les do?' Horribelle said. 'We are at their mercy. If they develop other heroes or villains, what will become of us?'

'Let's not think to pessimistically now.' Flabber tried to cheer her up while giving Nukus a new cup. This seems awfully misplaced somehow and they all knew it. 'Art is a good guy, he doesn't destroy stuff. Besides, you can't easily be conquered to begin with, the Borgs battled you countless of times.'

'Ah, Flabber, are you giving a pep-talk to the Crustaceans?' the count asked.

'It would appear that way, yes!' Flabber said happily. 'I'm really good in keeping everyone positive and cheerful and enhancing the team spirit.'

'We're not a team, buster!' Little Ghoul cried out. 'They've tried to squash me with giants!'

'Well, you were siding with our enemies,' Nukus replied. 'It's not like we have a personal grudge against you.'

'And didn't you yourself want to side with us wants, just to stay safe in return for a coin?' asked Horribelle. 'You should know we are open to your suggestions and plans any time.'

'The mantis lady is kind of right,' mums said. 'But what do we do now?'

'Yes, and what kind of help do you two want?' Flabber asked.

'We're here for the children, to ask them not to hurt Vilor. At least not that much,' Nukus said. Horribelle silently nipped her tea and nodded.

'But you still want to eat the children, just like we do, right?' the Count said. 'We're exactly alike!'

'Defeat, not eat,' said Nukus. 'All we want now is to negotiate with Flabber about the kids.'

They remained silent for a while, Frankie mumbled a bit, Wolfie licked his tea cup on the ground, Mums played with his bandages and the count tried to get crumbles out of his teeth. Little Ghoul was slowly becoming angry on her seat. 'That does it, losers! I'm going back to the basement, this is idiocy!'

'I'm sorry, Little Ghoul?' Flabber asked.

'How did we get wrapped up in all of this anyway?! I was just a little ghoul in the basement, minding my business, and suddenly everyone wants something from you! To talk and drink tea and why?! I just want peace!' She walked away in a hurry, then turned back. 'And where are Dragonborg and the others?! Aren't they also involved?! If we are going to finish this once and for all, shouldn't they be here too?!'

'Oh, somehow still has a crush, that's what this is about, isn't?' Flabber laughed.

'We haven't seen them since the mantrons got destroyed and that gigantic Roboborg appeared!'

'We didn't defeat them, if that's what you're suggesting,' Nukus said.

'I didn't suggest anything,' snapped Little Ghoul.

The door bell went and the kids entered. Sometimes they pushed the bell, just to alarm Flabber they were there, in case those monsters would try to eat them again.

'Hi, Flabber,'

'It's pretty crowded here,' Jo remarked.

'You can sit on the couch next to Horribelle,' Flabber suggested happily.

'Uh,' she replied, afraid to be zapped by an offended Horribelle if she refused. She sat down at the couch, but didn't drop her guard. Also, her hand shaking constantly kind of gave away she was a bit scared. Especially when she trembled and in attempt to pick up the tea Flabber had poured in for her. 'G-g-g-good tea, Flabber!'

Roland and Drew opted for the extra chairs and uncomfortably looked around the room.

'So, you want a truce,' Drew said.

'Not so much a truce as a cooperation to stop Vilor.'

'With the footnote that he shouldn't be hurt, right?' Flabber remarked, mediating between the two parties. 'That shouldn't be that hard, right kids?'

'And he's on his way?'

'We're not quite sure when he'll arrive.'

'Oh, I forgot to tell you that, Art said that Les said it'll be tonight. So we still have some time to prepare and take it easy.'

'There isn't much to prepare if it's just Vilor,' Drew laughed. 'What's the deal anyway? Can't he turn mega anymore?'

'He's a bit impotent as of late,' Horribelle laughed.

'He seems a bit of a lame foe then, especially without you guys,' Roland said.

'That's exactly why we're here to ask you not to destroy him. He tends to take himself a bit too seriously,' Nukus elaborated.

Roland wanted to reply, but seeing Nukus on the mansion's flower couch with a cup in his hands was kind of hilarious. He had to do his best not to laugh and upset them. They were still a dangerous two-some, even with tea cups.

'That settles it then,' Flabber wrapped up. 'We'll stop Vilor together. But what worries me is what we do afterwards.'

'I want to finish this once and for all,' Nukus decided. 'We might need the cartoonists here.'

'If I'm correct they're discussing things in jail now,' Flabber said. 'I know it isn't right, seeing that Les is technical still a prisoner, but maybe I can Flabber them over here?'

'They'll notice he's gone then, and he'll get even more jail time,' Drew remarked. 'He won't like that at all and might take revenge by drawing something new and dangerous.'

'Hm, you got a point. We need someone to fill in for Les. I know! Wolfie, we'll disguise you as Les!'

'Wouldn't Count Fangula or Mums be a bit more realistic?' Jo asked.

'No, no! Wolfie will do just fine!' Flabber conjured him up a nice Charterville prison outfit. 'As long as he pretends to draw non-stop, it'll work out! I'll accompany him to the cell right away.'

'But then you leave us here with the monsters!' Roland called out. The count was already checking him out while eating a cookie from the jar. 'Please, we aren't tasty!'

'Don't worry, we'll protect you!' Horribelle said. That was an even more frightening thought.

'You're in good hands, I see! Well then, see you in a minute,' Flabber called out and poof, he was gone. There was an awkward silence again. The count innocently moved a bit closer to Jo and touched her tasty wrist as if it was a biscuit. Horribelle slapped his hand immediately.

'Now what did Flabber just say?'

'No touching?' The count asked sadly. Her skeptical, strict look reminded him of the time she tried to nurse him. It still caused him nightmares. Jo was actually relieved to be sitting next to Horribelle now and gave her a smile.