Allies and Rivals II
Chapter 23
Wheeling and Dealing
The City of Townsville, and on the afternoon of December 2, Buttercup and Blossom had a spat regarding who was really at fault for messing up what was suppose to be an easy fight and nearly getting a lot of people killed in the process. To complicate matters, Brick had a challenge that resulted in an election to be held on the afternoon on December 3
Blossom thus made two mistakes that increased the chances of her being dethroned.
First, she accepted Brick's challenge. She could easily have refused, and Brick won't be able to do anything about it, but she accepted on the premise that she would be able to rig the rules in her favor, which to her surprise, Brick fully accepted.
If all goes according to Blossom's plan, Buttercup, Bubbles and she will vote for herself, while Brick, Butch and Boomer will vote for the red ruff. Thus, there would be a tie, and according to the rules, the current leader, Blossom, would win the election.
But then, she made her second mistake. She had a fight with Buttercup. Granted, she might had good reason, but that was not the point. They always had spats, and they normally make up after a few days. The point is, she just lost the certainty of Buttercup voting for her the next day, and as a result, she might lose. And because of her deal with Brick, she would be humiliated in the extreme.
And Brick wasn't done with his scheming yet.
Blossom and Buttercup did not talk for the rest of the afternoon. The leader of the Ruff-Puff Alliance was smug over her victory, both over the crab, and over Buttercup in the argument, and is looking forward to winning the next day over Brick. 'Ha, after his humiliation tomorrow, he'll never again challenge me for the leadership!' she thought. 'Ha, good thing Brick thought about that tickling as punishment! That's one thing I know I'll do to him after this is all over!'
Buttercup was angry at Blossom.
Brick is doing some thinking of his own. 'Ah, Blossom, you just made my work easier. Now, I wouldn't have to work harder to win the election.'
After school...
Blossom and Buttercup went straight for home when school was over, not talking to each other at all.
"Blossom! Buttercup! You two looked liked you had just gone to a funeral! A corpse looked more cheerful than both of you!" the Professor observed when he saw his two daughters.
Blossom's frown quickly turned into a smirk. "Well, Buttercup again showed her recklessness when she endangered the lives of the people. Luckily, quick action on my part saved them all. Well, it's over since Buttercup apologized for her mishap? Didn't you Buttercup?"
"The only reason I apologized is because you threatened me with tickling!" Buttercup grumbled.
"What's that Buttercup?" asked the Professor.
"Nothing," Buttercup quickly said, looking at a smirking Blossom. 'Oh, what I'd do to wipe that smirk off her face. Ever since she became leader of the Rowdyruff Boys as well as Bubbles and me her head has swollen to biblical proportions.' Without a word, she went quickly to her room.
"What the matter with her?" asked a curious Professor.
"I guess she still feels bad about it," Blossom quickly replied. "But she'll come around. She always does."
Meanwhile...
Bubbles, according to the deal she made with Brick three months before, went home with them to help clean the house. In exchange the boys would have to play with her and be friends with them. And the deal yielded tremendous dividends for both parties. The boys had considerable help in doing their household chores, while Bubbles not only became close friends with Boomer, but curiously, also with Brick, and gained the tolerance, if not the friendship, of Butch. Consequently, she was the most popular Powerpuff among the boys.
During that afternoon, there wasn't too much chores to be done. Brick froze the giant crab to preserve it, while the house was clean enough that it only took ten minutes to do all chores.
"Hey, Bubbles, I bet I can beat you at the play station! You were only lucky yesterday, that's why you won!" Boomer boasted.
"Well, I don't know. Let's play something different!" Bubbles requested.
"What?" Brick asked, looking at both of them from a couch, reading one of the comic books he had earlier purchased from Blossom.
"Let's play house!" Bubbles proposed.
"Huh? What's that?"
"Well, we can pretend to be a family! I can be the mommy, Boomer can play Daddy, while Brick can be the baby!" Bubbles said.
"What, no way I am going to play house! It's for girls and I'm a boy!" Boomer declared.
"And I'm not playing baby!" Brick snapped.
"Well, what do you want to play that we haven't played in the past three months?" Bubbles asked.
"Video games?" Boomer proposed.
"We've been playing video games of all kinds for the past month."
"Wrestling?" proposed Brick.
"Done that two months ago!"
"Race car?" Boomer asked.
"Done that a week ago!"
"War?" Brick asked.
"Done that yesterday!"
"Chess!" Brick asked.
"It's boring, and I'm not too good at it. Besides, we did it three months go!"
"Pirates?" Brick asked.
"Done that!"
"Hide and seek?" Boomer requested.
"Done that lots of times!"
"Toy soldiers?" Boomer again requested.
"Well, we did that the other day!"
"Well..."
"Oh come on, I promise you house is fun!" Bubbles said. "Please, Boomer. I always played your games for the past three months, now let's play what I like! Besides, boys can also play house, not only girls!"
Bubbles then tried a true and tested method of getting Boomer do what she wants. She went too close to Boomer, at least in the blue ruff's opinion, and batted her eyes. "If you don't, I'll kiss you!"
Boomer got nervous. He doesn't like being kissed by a girl. "Brick, get me out of this! I don't want to get cooties!"
But Brick is too busy laughing at Boomer to help him out.
Finally, an outfoxed Boomer gave in. "Okay, you win!" Suddenly, he found a way out. "But only if Brick agreed."
Brick was a tougher nut to crack than Boomer for Bubbles. "Brick?" she asked.
"Well, I might, but you have to do something for me," Brick slyly said.
"Please!" Bubbles asked, trying to sweet talk Brick.
Like before, it didn't work. "Well, I might, but you owe me, and I'd like to ask something in return!"
Bubbles gave up. "So what is it you want?" she asked, thinking not much of it. "You want to play another game after playing house?"
Brick smirked. "No, no. I'll tell you after we play! Okay, we can play it, but I ain't gonna play the baby!"
"Well, okay, but who can play it?" Bubbles asked.
"I know! Butch!" Boomer said.
"I don't think Butch would like to play the baby," Bubbles replied.
"Don't worry," Brick said. "I'll take care of him. Just wait."
Brick then went to their room, where Butch was taking a nap. Ten minutes later, he came back with a grumbling Butch. Boomer and Bubbles were chatting, or more like Bubbles was babbling while Boomer was pretending to listen.
"Well?" asked Bubbles.
"It took some convincing, threats, jawboning, and arm-twisting, but he finally agreed to be your baby!"
"You two are disgusting for letting yourselves be controlled by a girl," grumbled Butch. "Yeah, yeah, I agreed to be the baby, but only because you forced me too, Brick, so let's get it over with!"
"Okay! Boomer and I are the Mommy and Daddy, while Butch is our baby. We are going on a visit to our neighbor, Brick..." and Bubbles explained how they would play.
Basically, Bubbles enjoyed it the most, with the Brick and Boomer primarily enjoying poking fun at Butch while playing their characters. They got a giant carriage from the basement, and put Butch in there. They also put a baby cap on him and forced him to wear a pacifier on his mouth and he had to act baby like. Butch was annoyed, unhappy and embarrassed, but Brick and Boomer and Bubbles easily kept him in line. Brick, Boomer and Bubbles wore mini-adult clothes, though they had difficulty finding something for Bubbles because only boys lived in the Edwards house.
Two hours later...
They had just finished playing, and had slid down to their usual clothes, but not before Brick was able to snap a photograph of Butch in baby clothes for future purposes of teasing and blackmail. All in all, all of them except Butch of course had fun, even while the boys said it was the last time they would play a 'girly' game with Bubbles.
Boomer was packing his toys up while Butch further grumbled, tossing expletives at his brothers. He didn't enjoy it at all. Brick was reading a book in the living room, when Bubbles, who was about to leave, approached him.
"Hey, Brick, what favor do you want?" asked Bubbles. "Thanks for letting me play it. It was fun!"
"Yeah, yeah, I know," Brick wryly replied. "Anyway, I wonder, because tomorrow's the election, if you would like to vote for me?"
"Oh Brick, I'd love to..." Bubbles said.
"Really?" Brick asked with hope.
"If only Blossom wasn't a candidate, I would, but since she is, I'll vote for her," Bubbles replied.
Brick was disappointed. "Well, I guess so," he merely said. 'All that hard work for nothing,' he thought.
Bubbles saw the disappointed look at Brick's face. "Don't take this the wrong way, Brick. You and Boomer have been very good to me ever since Dr. Edwards resurrected you, even before Blossom apologized for using those monsters. I always wanted to be friends with you once I realized you were not that evil. I thought it would be difficult, but you made it easier for me Brick. And I appreciate it. And I enjoyed being friends with you and Boomer very much! Pity that I haven't become much better friends with Butch."
"That doesn't surprise me!" Brick replied. "Butch is probably the most unfriendly boy I have ever met!"
"Well, he isn't that bad," Bubbles countered. "At least he doesn't hate me anymore like before!"
Boomer, at that point, joined the three. "Hey, what are you guys talking about?"
"Nothing much," Brick replied. "Now, if you could only talk her into voting for me tomorrow?"
"Yeah Bubbles, why don't you vote for Brick?" Boomer urged. "I know I am going to vote for him!"
"Well, why are you voting for Brick?" Bubbles asked.
"Duh! He's my brother!" Boomer replied as if that is the most obvious thing in the world.
"And duh! Blossom is my sister!" Bubbles countered.
"Well, if you put it that way, then it makes sense for you to vote for Blossom!" Boomer replied.
"How about I give Boomer to you if you vote for me?" Brick proposed in jest.
"Hey!" Boomer protested.
She giggled at the suggestion. "Nah! I already have Boomer wrapped around my fingers," Bubbles replied.
"I resent that! I am not wrapped around anybody's finger!" Boomer declared.
Both Bubbles and Brick ignored him.
"Anything you want that would make you vote for me?"
"Nope! You guys know that I'd never betray my sisters, especially Blossom. You've been good and kind to me, but whatever you did, Blossom did ten times, no a hundred times better ever since the Professor created us. No guys, I owe Blossom much more than I owe you, and I'd still choose her over you. But that doesn't mean I don't like both of you! I do!"
"Well, you certainly are loyal to Blossom," Brick replied.
"Yeah, to someone who doesn't deserve it," Boomer sneered.
Bubbles suddenly got very angry, and grabbed Boomer by the collar. "James Boomer Edwards, Blossom deserves it! She took care of us, she saved us lots of times, and she led us to victory many many times. She is a great sister, and you won't badmouth her again in front of me, understand?"
Boomer was terrified at Bubbles' sudden change of attitude. "I'm sorry, I promise I won't badmouth her again in front of you!" he quickly apologized. 'But that doesn't mean I can't badmouth her when you're not around.'
Bubbles's expression changed back to cheerful. "It's okay. I understand! I forgive you. But you really should get to know Blossom. If you do, I'm sure you'll like her! I know Brick really likes her!"
"I do not like her!" Brick protested.
"But you don't dislike her either," Bubbles said.
"No I don't," Brick replied. "Then again, she's too like me for me to dislike her, but for the same reason, I don't like her too!"
"I'm still waiting for the favor!" Bubbles suddenly said. "Just nothing that would make me betray my sisters!"
"Well, how about this. If I do win tomorrow's election, would you follow my leadership and show to me the same loyalty you did Blossom when she was the leader?"
"Brick, you don't need to ask me to! Of course I will!" Bubbles replied. "You can rely on me to follow your orders, as Blossom can of mine, as long as they're not evil! If you win the election of course! I think Blossom's got it in the bag!"
"Well, stranger things do happen!" Brick replied. "Thanks!"
"Brick, could you do me a favor?" asked Bubbles.
"What now?"
"Well, if you do win, could you not make Blossom do some of those embarrassing and humiliating terms you two agreed on?" Bubbles requested.
"I don't know," Brick replied. "She was the one who gave those terms. She wanted it, so she should pay in full if she lost."
"Yeah! She should be able to take what she can dish out!" Boomer seconded. "When Blossom loses, she should be able to take what she intend to dish out to Brick!"
"Well, she didn't expect to lose," Bubbles continued.
"And she meant to humiliate me! Really Bubbles, why should I be more lenient to her when she obviously will be harsh to me if I lose?" Brick queried.
Bubbles began to think. It was true that Blossom was the one who made those terms. Then an idea hit Bubbles in the noggin. "What if I make Blossom take back those terms? Would you also do the same?"
Brick looked at Bubbles with skepticism. "Now why should I believe you can persuade your sister to change her mind?"
"I can try," Bubbles insisted.
"Well, tell you what. If you can do that, then I'll think about it, but I won't make guarantees," Brick replied.
"Really?" Bubbles asked.
"Don't bet the farm on it, Bubbles," Brick replied. "I said, might, not will!"
"Thanks anyway!" Bubbles exclaimed as she pecked both Boomer and Brick in the cheek before galloping away home.
Boomer was blushing, while Brick just wiped it.
Butch was standing at the top of the stairs observing it all.
"That was disgusting," the black haired boy said. "Letting yourselves be pushed around by a girl, and by Bubbles to boot! Boomer I can understand, but you Brick, our great and mighty leader? Where the hell is your pride?—the pride that allowed us to beat the snot out of those damn girls twice?—the pride that made Dad proud? I still respect you, Brick, and I'll do anything you tell me to and I'll go anywhere you tell me to, but damnit, I'm sick and tired of you following the redheaded girl like a slave! Like a lapdog! You're a guy! I am! We know we're better than those girls, yet you let them push us around? What's up with that? Look at me! I never let that black haired girl push me around, like Blossom pushes you or Bubbles pushes Boomer around! I wish I can be the leader, then I'd end the alliance! It shouldn't have been made in the first place."
"Are you finished?" asked Brick, looking his brother squarely in the eye.
"Not yet," the proudest of the Rowdyruffs replied. "Ever since you made the alliance, you were like a dog responding to the very call of your master, Blossom! You never directly disobeyed a single order of her when it comes to matters of the alliance! You forced us to follow her even if Boomer and I hated her. Maybe you forget, but we certainly don't, that she made that monster alliance! Just because you're not at the receiving end of those attacks doesn't mean you can just ignore it! Before, all of us are tough, proud and manly, now we're weak and sissies because we let ourselves be controlled by those girls! Dad said we must always be proud, and look at where you've taken us!"
"Are you done?" asked Brick.
Butch nodded.
Brick's expression was grim as he looked as he listened to Butch's passionate arguments. To him it made a lot of sense emotionally. But he thinks Butch just doesn't understand why he's doing what he's doing. "Look Butch, we've been through this before. Now, don't accuse me as enjoying following Blossom's order. I hate every minute of obeying her orders, because I'm also proud, and don't like obeying orders from anybody but from Dad. I'm proud too you know, Butch. You're not the only one with pride. Yes, Butch, I know the importance of pride for a Rowdyruff! But unlike you, I know when to swallow it, and when to flaunt it for the greater good of your pride. Every time I swallow my pride, like when I obey orders from Blossom that I violently disagree with, I do it with the objective of retaking it ten times in time. No, Butch, if I did what you proposed, I wouldn't get far, and my pride would be further crushed because it would be with less substance than if I did what I did."
Brick continued, this time speaking as passionately as Butch did before him. "As for Blossom, I don't hate her, like you and Boomer do. I also don't like her. But I respect her and admire her, because she is a damned great leader, and even you can't deny that. As for the monster alliance, I don't give a damn about it, since it's over, ancient history. She apologized, and that's about it! We can't just dwell on the past, Butch. We gotta think about the future!"
"I think you just like her! You got a crush on her, Brick?" Boomer suddenly asked.
"Boomer, don't ask dumb questions! I do not have a crush on that girl—Blossom! She's just an ally and a rival, nothing more, nothing less! Anything I do for her, anything we might have done together is just for the advantages I might get! I don't like her the way you like Bubbles, Boomer!" Brick declared. "Butch, let me tell you this. I might seem to be a slavish ass-kisser to her, but remember this. I know what I want, and I know exactly how to get it!"
"So what do you want?" asked Boomer.
"I want power! I want to be the absolute leader of not only the Rowdyruff Boys, but also of the Powerpuff Girls! All of my actions in the past three months have been dedicated to achieving that goal!"
"Phooey! That's just a lame excuse to cover up your slavishness to Blossom," Butch accused. "It's been three months, for crying out loud! What the heck is it you're up to?"
"You mean you don't know? Tomorrow is the date for the election of the leadership if this alliance. Tomorrow is where all my plans and schemes for the past three months would come to head!" Brick declared. "Dad would be proud when I'll win it and I'll become the leader. So I want you to vote for me."
Butch was surprised. "Tomorrow? You'll be the leader? And that girl wouldn't give orders to you and me and Boomer anymore?"
Then he was silent for a few seconds as the words of Brick sunk into his brain. "You mean tomorrow, you wouldn't take orders from Blossom anymore?" asked Butch.
"Yup! Instead, you can have the pleasure of seeing Blossom taking orders from me!" Brick replied, smirking and folding his arms.
"Are you sure?" Butch asked.
"Sure as hell! Tomorrow, I'll be the leader of the Ruff-Puff Alliance!"
"Well, I'll be damned! I never thought you would, well, let's just wait for tomorrow, shall we?" Butch asked. "Then we'll celebrate! By the way, that's the last time I'm going to play the baby!"
In the meantime...
Bubbles had just returned from the house of the Rowdyruff Boys, happy and singing a happy tune.
"How was your playtime with the boys?" asked Blossom, who greeted her at the door.
"Well, it was fun!"
"What did you play? Race car, wrestling? Hide and seek?" asked Blossom as both flew to their room.
"Nah, we played house!" Bubbles asserted. "I played Mommy, while Boomer played Daddy, while Butch played the baby, and Brick played the neighbor..."
"What? Butch played the baby?" Blossom shouted, then after a few minutes, she laughed at the floor. "How were you able get him to do that?"
"Well, Boomer was easy to persuade. Brick was a little tough to crack, but I made a deal with him, and so..."
"Deal? What kind of deal?" asked Blossom. Blossom knew Brick is an expert wheeler-dealer and could easily have pulled one over on Bubbles.
Bubbles wondered to tell Blossom that he asked her to vote for Brick instead of Blossom. She decided not to as it would make her job harder. "Nothing important," Bubbles replied. "Anyway, Brick then made Butch play the baby! That was so funny!"
"Glad you had fun! Gosh, I don't know how you do it, but I think you can control those boys better than I could ever do!" Blossom complimented.
"Well, I was just being nice to them, and I think they are being nice to me too!" Bubbles replied. "Um Blossom, could you do me a favor?"
"Anything for you, Bubbles," Blossom said.
"Well, could you, um, not make Brick do all those things you agreed to if he lost? Not all, but only those that I think would be too humiliating? I mean if you forced him to do those things, wouldn't his feelings be hurt, and you'd be able to command him harder than before?"
"Well, Bubbles, I'd like to, but I can't. The deal is made, and to back out would make me look like a chicken," Blossom explained.
"But why'd you make those terms?" asked Bubbles.
"Well, Brick told me I can make the rules, so I decided to stack it against him and make Brick never forget this defeat," Blossom said. "Basically, I want him to learn the futility of challenging me. Frankly, I'm tired of him always telling me he can replace me, and I hope this experience would teach him a lesson."
"Well Blossom, I don't know," Bubbles said, concerned. "If you win..."
"Correction. Not if I win, that should be when I win," Blossom interrupted.
"Okay. When you win, and make him do those things, don't you think it might strain our relationship with the boys?" asked Bubbles.
"No," Blossom replied. "Look, I consider Brick as a friend, an ally, and yes, a rival. He is a good, yes, great second-in-command. And he is a very competent leader, and I have no doubt that the alliance is in very competent hands if he was in charge. I respect him, and yes, in some ways, admire him too. But he challenged me for the position, told me I can make the rules, and he accepted those. Now, he made a challenge, and he must accept the consequences of his decision. Otherwise, he can just make idle threats to get whatever he wants!"
"Well, what if Brick said he wouldn't make you do those things, would you not also make him do those embarrassing things?"
"Brick, call off the deal about the punishments of the loser? Ha, Inert gases would bond with other elements to form a compound before that would happen!"
"What's an inert gas?" asked Bubbles.
"Oh, their elements with eight electrons that...", however, Blossom saw that Bubbles had no idea what she was talking about. "Nevermind. Let me rephrase that. Ha, Mojo Jojo would speak laconically before Brick would let that happen!"
"Blossom, what does laconically means?" asked Bubbles.
"It means to speak briefly, and without wasting any words," Blossom explained.
"Oh, I get it!"
"Anyway, Brick thinks he can win, so why would he cancel the most humiliating of punishments? I think in his mind he's imagining enjoying me bowing to him, or wearing boyish clothes, or God forbid, cut off my hair, or tying me up and tickling me like I did to Buttercup and Boomer? No, he won't have that satisfaction!"
"But what if he does?" Bubbles countered. "Since you're so smart, then you'd also do it? I mean not make Brick do those things if Brick also agreed?"
"Well, in the unlikely event that he agreed to, I might think about it," Blossom evasively replied. "I might consider it. Happy?"
"Promise?"
"I promise!"
"Well Blossom, since you put it that way, then you'll cancel those embarrassing terms if you win!"
"But Bubbles, I only promised it if Brick did it first!"
"Well, Brick already did. I was able to talk him into it when I was there. It was hard, but I finally did it!"
Blossom could not believe her ears. "What, the proud, overconfident and arrogant William Bricker Edwards actually agreed to drop those humiliating terms if for some inexplicable reason he wins tomorrow's election?"
Bubbles only nodded with a smile on her face.
"Well, I'll be a monkey's uncle! Well, stranger things has happened in Townsville," Blossom wondered. "How did you get him to do it?"
"Well, I just..." Bubbles then was silent for a few seconds, thinking. "Well, I kinda forgot!" she finally said, scratching her head and grinning.
Blossom was left wondering how Bubbles did it.
"So are you gonna cancel the embarrassing terms and keep your promise?"
"Well, I said I might. Now that he did it, I'll think about it, but I can't promise you anything. I might cancel it, I might not, we'll see! Though I promise to think about not humiliating him totally tomorrow!" Blossom finally and evasively said, though in truth, she was faced with a dilemma. She wanted to punish Brick for his audacity, yet because of Bubbles, he backed out of it—not from the election itself, but on the punishment. 'Why did you have to interfere and ruin my plans, Bubbles? I want to punish him, but now I can't do that without looking like a mean spirited girl! Before, Brick agreed to it too, so it won't be seen as mean spirited, but now...?' she thought.
Later, at seven in the evening...
They had just finished eating supper and it was Buttercup's turn to wash the dishes. Buttercup grumbled, trying to make a lame excuse not to, but the Professor didn't bite. Blossom fixed the rest of the kitchen, while it was Bubbles' turn not to do any chores that night after dinner.
The Professor went back to his lab to finish a paper. Bubbles then made her move.
With everyone else busy, she stealthily went for the phone in the living room downstairs. She dialled some numbers on it and waited for someone to pick up the phone on the other side.
"Hello, Dr. Edwards speaking."
"Um, hello Doctor, could I talk to Brick?" asked Bubbles.
"Just a minute Bubbles," Dr. Edwards said. "Brick, someone's on the phone for you!" Bubbles heard the doctor shout.
A few seconds later...
"Who is this?" asked Brick in the phone.
"Hey Brick, it's me, Bubbles. Just wanted to tell you that Blossom sent me to tell you that she agreed not to make you do those embarrassing stuff in case you lose."
Brick couldn't believe his ears. "What?" he shouted in the phone. "She actually agreed to drop those?"
"Yup! It was hard, but I pleaded to her and she said she's not going to do it—the embarrassing punishments I mean!"
"You're not pulling my leg, Bubbles?" asked Brick in skepticism.
"Nope! So you're gonna not humiliate Blossom too if you won?"
"Well, what I promised is I might not do it. Well, since she dropped those punishments, I'll think about dropping it, but don't pin your hopes on it yet, Bubbles! It's not written in stone, you know," Brick replied.
"Well, thanks for thinking about it!" Bubbles said cheerily. "Gotta go!"
"Wait Bubbles, um could I talk to Buttercup right now?" Brick asked.
"Well, she can't. She's still washing the dishes," Bubbles replied.
"Can you tell her to call me as soon as she's finished? It's really important that I talk to her tonight!"
"Sure!"
"Just don't tell Blossom I wanted to talk to Buttercup. Thanks," Brick said before hanging up the phone.
Bubbles then gallivanted towards the kitchen where Buttercup had nearly completed washing the dishes. Blossom had already completed her chores a few minutes earlier and was now upstairs in her room studying for her lessons in school.
"Hey Buttercup, Brick wants to talk to you on the phone. Call him when you're done with the dishes," Bubbles said.
"What does that jerk want?" asked Buttercup.
"I don't know. He just told me to ask you if you could call him," Bubbles replied.
"I'm done now," Buttercup said as she put away the last plate into the rack. "I wonder why he wants me to call him?"
"Well, what better way to find out than asking him right now on the phone?"
"I'll do that," Buttercup said as she picked up the phone in the living room. Bubbles decided not to snoop on the conversation, and went upstairs to their room.
"Hello?" Brick answered.
"So what it is you want?" Buttercup immediately asked.
"Well, I've heard that you've got a spat with Blossom," Brick said.
"So what if we did?" asked Buttercup.
"Well, do you want to get back at Blossom? To teach her a lesson about arrogance?" Brick asked.
"Would I? That redhead had been acting like a peacock all night long! I want to wipe that smile off her face for once!" Buttercup bitterly replied. "She's been acting way too bossy recently and I'm sick of it!"
"Then here's your chance. Tomorrow's the election, and all you have to do is to ensure I win tomorrow, which you can do by voting for me instead of Blossom. Then she would lose, and won't be the leader of the Ruff-Puff Alliance anymore. Then, she won't be high and mighty around you anymore!"
"Hey, I might not like what she's done, and I might want to teach her a lesson but I ain't gonna betray Blossom!" Buttercup replied.
"Oh Buttercup, let me ask you a question. To whom will you betray Blossom to if you let her lose?"
"To you of course!"
"And am I a bad guy?"
"Well, you were once, but now, no, definitely not," Buttercup said.
"If you did vote for me, would Blossom be hurt?"
"Well, physically, no, but I think she might be disappointed," Buttercup said.
"Look, the only thing that would be hurt is Blossom's ego! Are you telling me that even what Blossom has said and done to you doesn't merit bursting her ego? The only thing that would be hurt is her pride and arrogance. Think about it. If you help oust her, then she would think twice about being mean to you in the future! The only thing that would happen is that she isn't anymore the leader! She won't be put in harm's way at all! Think about it! Besides, by clipping part of her pride, we're doing what is good for Blossom," Brick said.
Buttercup was silent for a few seconds. "Okay, you're convinced me that me voting for you is not a betrayal of Blossom, and that she deserves to be kicked out of being the leader of the Ruff-Puff Alliance. She definitely needs something to check her ego, or her head might get too big it might explode! But why would I want to replace you with her? What makes you so special?"
"Well, I'm not Blossom," Brick replied. "And I'm the only available candidate who can defeat her in an election."
"True, that's a plus in your favor, but you're Brick, a Rowdyruff!" Buttercup shot back.
"And so?"
"Well, you were evil once! Why should I trust you to lead us?" Buttercup questioned.
"Oh ye of little faith! You mean after all we've been through, you still can't see me as a leader. Well, first, I saved your life when we were fighting Ckracknow on his island. If it weren't for me, you'd be in the bottom of the ocean right now. So you owe me, and I'm here to collect the favor! Then, I commanded you on the main battle against Two. You can't say I botched it up, did I? Plus, we were partners in the pairings system for the past three months?"
"Okay, okay, you win, I'll trust you with being the leader, but only because you've saved my life before and I owe you one, plus the fact that you've done nothing bad against me in the past three months."
"Okay, so here's the deal," Brick continued. "I'm willing to let you teach Blossom a lesson in humility, but you have to do me a favor?"
"What is it? Isn't voting for you favor enough?" Buttercup sarcastically replied.
"Well, what I want is, when I become leader, you would absolutely follow my commands and orders, even if you think they are wrong, unconditionally. In exchange, I promise that I won't blame you for any of the mishaps that might arise because of my orders!"
"Now just wait a cotton pickin' minute! Always obey your orders! That's too much! No, I won't accept it!" Buttercup firmly said on the phone.
"Oh well, I guess I'll have to call off the election for tomorrow," Brick bluffed. "Pity, Blossom would be more arrogant than before, and she would probably get away with blaming you more. Well, if you don't want to teach Blossom a lesson, if you don't want to get back at her, if you want her ego to be even larger, well, that's your choice."
"But it's you who want to be leader?" Buttercup said.
"Oh I've been under Blossom for the past three months. I can stand following her orders for the next few years," Brick replied. "Look, I'm doing you a favor. I don't want to be the leader that bad. I'm only offering you a chance at justice, at a chance to teach Blossom a lesson. If you don't want to accept my terms, then Blossom will get away with this. But if I am to be the leader, I won't have my hands tied behind my back so I demand absolute power in exchange for it! Well, if that's what you want, bye!"
"Wait, Brick," Buttercup suddenly said.
"What?"
"Okay, I changed my mind. You can have your absolute power, and I'll obey your orders even if I don't like it, but only on matters pertaining to the alliance and saving the day! You won't control my personal life! And that doesn't mean I'll keep quiet! I'll still speak my mind, only I'll do what you say. And I only agreed to it not because I like you, but I want to teach Blossom a lesson!" Buttercup shot back.
"Agreed! I'll oust power from Blossom with your help so you can get justice, and in exchange, you'll obey me in matters regarding the alliance and in saving the day, but not your personal life, and you can criticize me all you want," Brick said. "Besides, you can vote against me in the next election after this if you don't like how I'll run this alliance."
"Yeah, yeah, I agree," Buttercup said. "Don't worry, tomorrow, I'll make sure you win the election."
"Thanks. And I'm willing to give you $10 in addition to justice if I win tomorrow!"
"Really! Thanks. Hey, is that a bribe?"
"Nope! Just a token of my appreciation!" Brick said.
"Thanks! Don't worry, tomorrow, you'll win the election and teach Blossom a lesson! But don't forget the ten dollars!"
"Yeah, and don't tell Blossom about this, okay?"
"Okay!"
Meanwhile...
Blossom was studying when a thought came to her. 'I think I'll call Robyn tonight. I forgot to ask her what page the required reading is.'
Blossom then went to the corridor upstairs and picked up the phone.
"Thanks. And I'm willing to give you $10 in addition to justice if I win tomorrow!" Blossom suddenly heard Brick say.
"Really! Thanks. Hey, is that a bribe?" she heard Buttercup say.
"Nope! Just a token of my appreciation!" Brick said.
"Thanks! Don't worry, tomorrow, you'll win the election and teach Blossom a lesson! But don't forget the ten dollars!"
"Yeah, and don't tell Blossom about this, okay?"
"Okay!"
Then, both hung-up.
It threw Blossom into a panic. 'Oh no, I'm going to lose the election! Damn! Who knew Brick would go so low as to bribe Buttercup to vote for him? Well, I won't let that happen!'
Blossom stormed downstairs where she met Buttercup, who was halfway up the stairs.
"Buttercup, why the hell did you allow yourself to be bribed by Brick?"
"And why are you listening in to my telephone conversations?" Buttercup shot back.
"I accidentally did it, not on purpose!" Blossom replied. "The point it, you're going to vote for Brick, aren't you?"
"Well, so what if I am?" Buttercup defiantly said.
"You just sold your vote," Blossom exclaimed. "Imagine, you're going to vote against your sister and for somebody you don't like at all for a measly ten dollars! For no good reason other than ten dollars? What kind of principle is that? Other than to have money?"
Buttercup just stared dangerously at Blossom but didn't say anything.
"Well, since you accepted a bribe from Brick, might as well do the same," Blossom said. 'It's low,' Blossom thought, 'but it's better than losing. And Buttercup would not vote for me if I keep up my moralizing,' she thought. "Look, what if I give you twenty dollars?"
"Twenty dollars?" exclaimed Buttercup in amazement.
"Yup! I've sold most of my comics to Brick and I have the money to pay you," Blossom said. She then took her wallet from her pocket, grab a crisp bill with the portrait of Andrew Jackson on it, and dangled it in front of Buttercup's eyes. Buttercup just stared at the money, mesmerized by it.
"And it's all yours! If you don't vote for Brick tomorrow, I'll give you this! So what do you say?"
Buttercup was caught in a dilemma. She wanted to have the twenty dollars, as it was the largest cash she would possess until that time, and she began to dream about what she would buy using it. But she also wanted to have revenge on Blossom. And she wouldn't want to waste the ten dollars. 'There's got to be a way to have it both ways,' Buttercup thought.
"Okay. I won't vote for Brick tomorrow. Prepare the twenty bucks!" Buttercup finally said after a minute of thinking.
It instantly produced a smile on Blossom's face. 'Whew that was close. Nice try Brick, but you just didn't offer enough money!'
So both Brick and Blossom slept with the expectation that they would win next day's election.
Still, Buttercup made promises to both Blossom and Brick, and she would have to break one of them. Or does she? Buttercup slept with a peaceful mind. Both Brick and Blossom are sure of her vote, but whom will Buttercup really vote for?
And would the winner actually force the loser to do the humiliating punishments?